I'm not celibate

The physics paper for the first monthly exam had been relatively easy. Dozens of students alone had gotten full marks. As a provincial key school, Jingcheng No. 1 High School had more than a dozen students clustered in each score bracket behind Xie Sui, whose results were far out in front. Everyone's scores were extremely close.

When the class rankings came out, Song Yu sat comfortably in ninth place, perfectly satisfied.

He had only studied so seriously to give President Song the impression that he was behaving himself and focusing on school.

He had made the top hundred in the grade and gotten full marks in two subjects. Mission accomplished, perfectly.

Wonderful.

Ma Xiaoding was so smug his tail was practically pointing at the sky, as though he were the one who had made the top hundred. "I told you my Brother Yu could be both a top student and the school bully. His position as Jingcheng No. 1 High School's daddy on both fronts is official."

Xi Bowen, fifty-third in the grade and sixth in class, stared at the score sheet in shock, feeling that his deskmate really was far too carefree. "How can you still be smiling, Brother Ma? Your grades are the worst out of the four of us. Tenth from the bottom. Shouldn't you reflect on that?"

Ma Xiaoding froze for a few seconds with his lollipop between his teeth, then mumbled, "The exams are already over. Why bring up grades?"

Xi Bowen sneaked a glance at Jiang Chunian, who sat in the middle of the classroom.

She was checking answers with her deskmate, a few loose strands falling against her fair cheek and a shallow dimple beside her lips. Exasperated with his hopeless deskmate, he said, "But the girl you like is thirtieth in the grade and fifth in class."

Ma Xiaoding: "..."

The lollipop in his mouth instantly stopped tasting sweet. qwq.

He slumped listlessly over his desk.

Just then, Song Yu and Xie Sui returned.

Song Yu popped a mint into his mouth. He had already suppressed the delight on his face and calmly sat down as though he had expected nothing less, looking every inch the top student.

Unable to bear seeing his deskmate so dejected, Xi Bowen nudged him with his elbow. "I suggest you ask Brother Yu for some study tips."

Ma Xiaoding rolled his eyes. "Brother Yu already had a solid foundation, okay? He almost scored eight hundred on City A's high school entrance exam."

Xi Bowen said, "There's more than a little difference between the difficulty of City A's exams and Jing City's. Brother Yu's improved incredibly fast, okay?"

Kindhearted student Xi Bowen decided to get his deskmate back on track and said into his ear, "Jiang Chunian is fifth in class! Fifth in class! Fifth in class!"

Instantly fired up, Ma Xiaoding straightened from his desk and poked Song Yu from behind with a pen.

"Brother Yu, Brother Yu, Brother Yu, Brother Yu."

Like a yapping machine.

In high spirits after his good news, Song Yu bit down on his mint and turned around. "What?"

Seeking knowledge for the sake of love, Ma Xiaoding said, "Brother Yu, share some study tips with me. Full marks in physics and math-that's amazing."

Song Yu was actually a little embarrassed. "I got lucky with those two. Xie Sui marked the last big math problem for me. Even the answer was unchanged. I was familiar with the other concepts too. There's only so much material on the exam, and only so many variations on the questions. I have to say, Xie Sui's predictions were really accurate. They were basically all similar types of problems, with barely any deviations."

Growing more touched as he spoke, Song Yu took a mint from his pocket and offered it ingratiatingly. "Thank you, my dear deskmate."

Xie Sui had never liked sweets before, but after meeting Song Yu, he had started trying mints.

He accepted the pale blue candy with a smile. "No need to be so mushy."

He could have left out "deskmate."

Ma Xiaoding: "..."

Agonized and full of regret, he asked Xie Sui, "God Xie! Could you mark the key points for me next time too?"

Xie Sui was unwrapping the candy. "The key points I give Song Yu might not work for you."

Ma Xiaoding abandoned his dignity for love. "They will, they will."

Song Yu scoffed. "Like hell they will. You sleep in class and head to the internet café afterward. Try studying properly for a week first."

Ma Xiaoding: qwq

The bell rang for math class. The math teacher put the answers straight onto the PowerPoint, adjusted the little microphone by his mouth, and said with great satisfaction, "Only four students in the grade got full marks this time, and two were from our class. I'd like to give special praise to Xie Sui and Song Yu. The final function problem was somewhat beyond the syllabus. The second part was the hardest-infinity minus infinity. It required L'Hôpital's rule, which you haven't learned yet. Even final-year students might not have been able to solve it, but they did. Their working was exactly the same, too."

The whole class froze for a few seconds at his words, then burst into laughter and all sorts of teasing calls.

The math teacher said, "The other two only got full marks because their math teacher wrote the paper. Teacher Zhang had covered similar problems, but even with that, only two students managed to solve it. That shows just how outstanding our two students really are. Ahem, all right, enough of that. Check your answers against the PowerPoint. I'll pick a few problems to go over afterward."

Jiang Chunian kept looking toward Song Yu, unable to suppress the smile tugging at her lips.

Her deskmate tugged her ponytail. "Had your fill yet? Check your answers."

"I know." Still smiling, Jiang Chunian picked up her red pen and glanced at the PowerPoint. Yet on the last question of her answer sheet, she neatly wrote "L'Hôpital's rule" and "Lagrange's mean value theorem."

Her deskmate looked speechless. "What are you doing?"

Jiang Chunian blinked. "Do you know what I heard God Xie say to Brother Yu last time, after I pretended to ask about the domain?"

Her deskmate asked, "What?"

Lowering her voice, Jiang Chunian said softly, "He stared into Brother Yu's eyes and said, 'I only answer questions about Lagrange.' Then Brother Yu blushed with embarrassment. Tsk, there's definitely some unknown but fucking romantic story behind that."

Her deskmate looked horrified. "Good grief. Brother Yu has already singled you out, and you're on the verge of getting beaten up. Could you stop courting death?"

Jiang Chunian thought for a moment, then shook her head with a sigh. "I nearly got on my knees to beg Brother Yu's forgiveness that day. Who knew he'd let me off so casually? Sui Yu at Peace really is real."

"I wonder if he read further. There were plenty more details about pinning him against the wall and kissing him. These days, nobody buys a romance unless the male lead is desperately in love-he has to corner him against a wall and kiss him, eyes red with fierce emotion, voice hoarse, baring his heart and soul, ready to give him his life."

Her deskmate said, "...Fuck! How are your grades still so good when you read so many fucking romance novels?"

Jiang Chunian rolled her eyes. "Do you know how hard I work behind the scenes?"

Returning to the subject, she smiled and completed what she wanted to say on her answer sheet. "Lagrange sealed their love, L'Hôpital bore witness. So fucking full of mathematical romance."

"I can add a few lines to my blurb." Propping her chin on her pen, she recited slowly, "Until one day, the students of Jingcheng No. 1 High School saw their school hunk pinning the school bully against a wall and kissing him. Xie Sui's cool eyes turned crimson, his hoarse voice suppressing unspeakable desire. 'Song Yu, it's only my life, isn't it? Take it.' Then add another line."

Smiling, she gripped her pen and wrote each word.

"Since meeting you, all the stars in the sky have lost their brilliance. Since kissing you, the long years ahead have held something to look forward to."

Her deskmate: "..."

There's a girl going crazy here. Can someone take her away?!!!

Her deskmate gave up and sighed. "You'll get your retribution." She was sure of it!

Jiang Chunian merely smiled and tossed aside her pen. "Just kidding. I won't write it, I won't. Brother Yu's already found out, so I'd better rein it in. Fun is fun, and games are games, but don't gamble with your life."

Their last class was with their homeroom teacher, who asked where they wanted to go for their class outing. In the end, everyone decided on karaoke, scheduled for Friday evening on Linqing Street.

With the monthly exams over, a weight had lifted from Song Yu's heart. Since a bunch of his classmates were clamoring for him to go, he agreed.

Naturally, agreeing meant inviting Xie Sui too.

On the way back to the apartment after evening self-study.

Song Yu asked with feigned casualness, "When's your birthday?"

Xie Sui raised an eyebrow and asked with a smile, "Want to give me a present?"

Song Yu choked, then said, "You really are no fun."

Xie Sui said, "Still a while away. Sometime in winter, I think."

He rarely celebrated his birthday.

Song Yu said, "All right." He made a mental note. The watch he had asked President Song for would come in handy.

Song Yu recalled the whispers from the people beside him when he had looked at the noticeboard that day.

A trace of puzzlement appeared in his light-colored eyes, and he tilted his head to ask, "Tell me, have you been secretly studying behind my back every night?"

Xie Sui raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "Why do you ask?"

Song Yu said, "You're always sleeping in class. Aren't you slacking off a bit too much for someone ranked first in the grade?"

Xie Sui asked humbly, "Oh, then what should the top student be like?"

Song Yu paused and scratched his head. "You should at least work harder than I do."

Xie Sui drawled, "Then I'd better keep slacking off."

Song Yu was furious. "...Are you looking down on hardworking types like us?!"

But before Xie Sui could answer, his anger had already faded.

Thinking of the original novel, Xie Sui had still held firmly onto first place in the grade in those circumstances. Even if it was the protagonist halo, it was genuinely impressive.

Song Yu sighed.

"They call you God Xie, and I don't think they're wrong. You really are like some immortal, impossible to figure out in every way."

Xie Sui found this topic rather interesting. "In every way?"

Song Yu said, "Yeah. I think they have a point. Your personality, your intelligence-all mysterious and impossible to work out. But I know you're a really good person at heart."

Xie Sui chuckled. "That's too much."

Song Yu said, "Huh?"

Xie Sui remembered the rumors about him in City A during his previous life, rumors he had never cared about.

But hearing Song Yu talk beside him now, he suddenly found himself a little interested.

"What do other people say about me?"

Song Yu recalled the thread he had read yesterday. After an odd silence, he began piecing the descriptions together. "They say you have an exceptionally high IQ, a mysterious family background, an aloof, unapproachable personality, and a cold, celibate air. An unattainable flower on a lofty peak."

Now that he mentioned it, he was curious too. How had they guessed about his family background?

Xie Sui laughed softly, the sound particularly pleasant.

Once he had finished laughing, he analyzed each point in a mild voice. "I wouldn't say exceptionally high IQ. I suppose I was born with a photographic memory. As for my family background, I'm not clear on it myself. Being unapproachable is a matter of personality. And finally-"

He smiled at Song Yu, his voice cool yet low.

"Actually, I'm not celibate."

Song Yu stared into his eyes, momentarily stunned.

Xie Sui lowered his head slightly, meeting his gaze. There was only each other in their eyes, dark and deep as a galaxy.

Moonlight flowed over his cool features.

The curve of his lips was gentle, and his smile gained a little sincerity.

Xie Sui said, "What they're spreading is all an illusion. If you want to get to know me, you don't need to climb a mountain to pick me. I'll come to you myself."

Song Yu opened his mouth, feeling his heart beat a little faster without knowing why.

His face warmed slightly. He took a step back, his mind a jumble, and said awkwardly, "N-no, no, thanks. You'd better stay planted on that mountain. I couldn't keep you alive."

Having pushed him this far, Xie Sui was already perfectly satisfied. He was starting to blush, and not out of anger either. That was more than enough progress.

He straightened and chuckled. "Then I'll take care of you."

Author's note: Little sister Jiang Chunian really will get her "retribution." [dog head]

There are fewer comments now. qwq. Can I win you back by randomly giving out thirty red packets per chapter?

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