Chapter 22: A tripwire
Guo Xiaozhong had been getting desperate these past few days. After failing to find Su Can at school several times, he had come all the way from home specifically to see him. His eyes widened the instant he learned that Su Can would be submitting a piece to Morning Blossoms. He was no good at hiding his feelings, and now that he had heard Su Can had actually made contact with the Morning Blossoms Society, and that his next piece was for the Jade Terrace column, he was naturally very excited.
The Morning Blossoms periodical might have drawn plenty of criticism from students at No. 27 Middle School, but as the literary publication for the entire school, it still attracted considerable attention. There was no helping it: with everything so centralized, it was bound to be watched closely.
What Guo Xiaozhong remembered most vividly was Wu Shimiao submitting a piece to Morning Blossoms the previous semester and having it selected as one of three candidates for that issue's Jade Terrace column. Two of the children from the residential compounds had organized a gathering at a small hot pot restaurant. Wu Shimiao had dressed in something so fresh and pretty it was dazzling, and Zhao Xin, Yang Zhao, and the others beside her had treated her like a princess, making Guo Xiaozhong's heart race for no apparent reason. Though the children from the old compound had muttered behind her back, "What's she so full of herself for?" they could not hide their envy.
Wu Shimiao had basked in her moment of glory, already feeling that once Jade Terrace published her piece, people all over No. 27 Middle School would be asking about her. That sense of vanity was enough to leave her flushed with pleasure. Apparently, while