Chapter Summaries

Song Yu led Ma Xiaoding and Xie Sui into a pool hall to confront Zhu Zhixing, but Chen Zhijie and the thugs tried to trap them in a snooker bet. Song Yu defeated the gang and forced Red Hair’s crew to retreat, then took Zhu Zhixing outside and warned Chen Zhijie to stop bullying others.

• Ma Xiaoding identified Zhu Zhixing in the crowded pool hall, where Chen Zhijie trapped the group and challenged Ma Xiaoding to a snooker match with humiliating stakes.
• Song Yu took Ma Xiaoding’s place, changed the stakes, and fought off Chen Zhijie, Plaid Shirt, and the other thugs when they attacked him.
• Red Hair arrived with his crew, recognized Song Yu, and chose to leave rather than fight him.
• Song Yu ordered Ma Xiaoding to take Zhu Zhixing outside and warned Chen Zhijie not to bully people again.

Song Yu brought Xie Sui to the junior high confession wall, where Zhu Zhixing was forced to erase the insults and promise a belated apology. At No. 1 High School’s welcome assembly, Song Yu learned that Wang Ci had replaced Xie Sui as freshman speaker and challenged the decision.

• Song Yu led Zhu Zhixing to the Love Tree and made him wipe away the graffiti insulting Xie Sui and explain himself in their junior high class group.
• Xie Sui said he was not angry with Song Yu for bringing him back to the wall, and he accepted a mint from him on the way back to school.
• Song Yu and Xie Sui found their class had left for the assembly early, so they headed to the auditorium for Xie Sui’s speech.
• While waiting backstage, Song Yu defended Xie Sui on the school forum and noticed a post by “Long Live Brother Ci” suggesting the freshman speaker had not been decided.
• Song Yu learned that Wang Ci had taken Xie Sui’s place as speaker, then confronted the teacher and sarcastically suggested Wang Ci speak about getting rich raising pigs.

Song Yu worked to stop Wang Ci from taking Xie Sui’s place as freshman representative, and the education bureau restored Xie Sui to the program. Xie Sui delivered his speech while looking toward Song Yu, leaving Song Yu unsettled before he left the auditorium.

• Wang Ci mocked Xie Sui and insulted Song Yu, but Song Yu called his cousin Meng Guang and asked him to intervene against Wang Ci’s appointment.
• Meng Guang contacted a friend at the education bureau, then offered to come to the school, but Song Yu persuaded him to stay away.
• Song Yu encouraged Xie Sui backstage and gave him a mint while Wang Ci’s followers gloated about Xie Sui losing the speech slot.
• The host announced Xie Sui as the freshman representative after the education bureau changed the speaker, humiliating Wang Ci and his followers.
• Xie Sui gave his speech and directed the words “The future stretches like the sea; there are many days ahead” toward Song Yu, who then left the auditorium.

Song Yu waited for Xie Sui after the welcoming ceremony, joked with his father and sister about his grades, and walked back with Xie Sui. Ma Xiaoding’s forum post then prompted readers to reinterpret Xie Sui’s affectionate words to Song Yu.

• Song Yu found a forum thread calling him “Your Husband Brother Green” and received a call from President Song, who challenged him to rank in the top hundred and earn full marks in a subject.
• Song Wanying teased Song Yu about his suggestion that she repeat the year, and revealed that she and their mother had bet he would come last in his monthly exams.
• Song Yu waited for Xie Sui, praised his speech, and heard Xie Sui say that looking at him had made the speech feel simple.
• Song Yu bought milk tea with Xie Sui and read Ma Xiaoding’s messages about Wang Ci’s anger and the forum thread.
• Ma Xiaoding claimed Xie Sui’s final words had been directed at Song Yu, prompting forum users to speculate about their relationship.

Song Yu panicked when Ma Xiaoding’s forum post sparked rumors about his identity and a shipping thread pairing him with Xie Sui. After Ma Xiaoding tried to clear things up, Song Yu left the forum behind and asked Xie Sui whether he could earn full marks in math, ending the chapter focused on his resolve to study.

• Song Yu read the forum’s reaction to Ma Xiaoding’s post and worried that his identity would be exposed.
• Song Yu threatened Ma Xiaoding in chat, and Ma Xiaoding posted a correction saying he did not know Brother Yu and only wanted to be his brother.
• Forum users continued arguing and started a popular thread titled “The future is as vast as the sea, at peace with Sui and Yu.”
• Song Yu ignored Ma Xiaoding’s messages, finished his milk tea, and resolved to keep his identity secret and focus on studying.
• Song Yu asked Xie Sui whether he could get full marks in math and surpass him, and Xie Sui encouraged him while teasing him about his grades.

Song Yu and Xie Sui settled into their first day of classes, while Ma Xiaoding reluctantly became the math class representative. During English class introductions, a girl recognized Song Yu’s name as the one she associated with her husband, Brother Yu.

• Ma Xiaoding enthusiastically urged Song Yu to run for math class representative, but the teacher chose Ma Xiaoding for the role instead.
• Song Yu asked Xie Sui about a Venn diagram formula, and Xie Sui explained it after politely refusing a girl’s question about domains.
• Xie Sui turned down a strawberry cake sent by a girl, so Song Yu took it and used the chance to explain domains to him.
• Ou Yilian had the students introduce their deskmates, and Ma Xiaoding rambled about Xi Bowen before Xi Bowen identified Ma Xiaoding as the math class representative.
• Song Yu introduced himself to the class, prompting a girl to ask whether his name used the Yu in “my husband, Brother Yu.”

Song Yu and Xie Sui praised each other during a classroom introduction, delighting their classmates and intensifying rumors about them. Song Yu later updated his forum profile to reveal his identity and asked everyone to leave him alone so he could study, while Xie Sui went to deal with Zhu Zhixing.

• Song Yu praised Xie Sui as his excellent deskmate, and the girls in Class One erupted in cheers.
• Xie Sui called Song Yu kind, cute, and smart, then said they might spend a pleasant three years together.
• Song Yu happily teased Xie Sui after class, while Ma Xiaoding and Xi Bowen discussed the girls’ reactions and the forum rumors.
• Xie Sui declined Song Yu’s lunch invitation because he had matters to handle concerning Zhu Zhixing.
• Song Yu updated his forum profile to identify himself as “Your Husband Brother Yu” and asked users to uninstall the forum so he could study for a perfect score.

Song Yu studied English with Xie Sui, then slept through Chinese class while classmates speculated about their relationship. After receiving a threatening message targeting Xie Sui, Song Yu challenged the sender to come after him.

• Song Yu went to Xie Sui for help with English, and Xie Sui teased him when he struggled over the word “husband” before explaining the answer was “darling.”
• Song Yu grew sleepy during Chinese class, and Xie Sui told him to sleep until the teacher reached the important parts.
• Classmates debated Song Yu and Xie Sui’s relationship online while girls in Class One quietly watched them together.
• Xie Sui slept through the first physics lesson, and Song Yu worried that he would fall behind.
• Song Yu received a stranger’s threat to expose Xie Sui’s mother and destroy his life, then replied that the sender should bring it on.

During PE, Song Yu left his plans to study with Xie Sui behind when Ma Xiaoding asked him to help reclaim Class 1's basketball court from Year 2, Class 15. Song Yu tried to settle the dispute politely, but when Gao Feng declared himself the new school tyrant and challenged them, Song Yu threatened to beat him.

• Song Yu waited for Xie Sui after PE began, and the two headed downstairs together.
• Song Yu declined Ma Xiaoding's invitation to play basketball and suggested studying with Xie Sui instead.
• Xi Bowen told Ma Xiaoding that Year 2, Class 15 had taken their court, and Ma Xiaoding asked Song Yu to help uphold Class 1's dignity.
• Song Yu went with Ma Xiaoding and Xi Bowen to confront the other class, intending to resolve the court dispute through discussion.
• Gao Feng announced that he had replaced Chen Zhijie as the school's tyrant and challenged them to fight.
• After Gao Feng mocked his attempt to reason, Song Yu threatened to beat him until he answered when called son.

Song Yu and Xie Sui were sent to the office after a confrontation with Gao Feng, where Song Yu studied while Zhu Zhixing’s mother arrived seeking to transfer her son after a family scandal. As Song Yu and Xie Sui left, Zhu Zhixing accused Xie Sui of exposing his family, and Zhu Zhixing’s mother shoved Song Yu toward the stairs before Xie Sui caught him and confronted her.

• Song Yu stopped Gao Feng’s attempted fight by catching his wrist and pressing the basketball against his face, but the PE teacher arrived and sent Gao Feng to run laps and write a self-criticism.
• The PE teacher also ordered Song Yu and Xie Sui to report to the office and write self-criticisms, where Song Yu studied while Xie Sui helped him recall a line from Qinyuanchun: Changsha.
• Song Yu overheard Zhu Zhixing’s mother tell the homeroom teacher that she wanted to transfer her son because of a humiliating family scandal.
• Song Yu and Xie Sui encountered Zhu Zhixing in the stairwell, where Zhu accused Xie Sui of sending photos and surveillance footage to the police and insulted his mother.
• Song Yu punched Zhu Zhixing and defended Xie Sui, but Zhu Zhixing’s mother shoved Song Yu toward the stairs, and Xie Sui caught him while grabbing her hand and warning her.

After Zhu Zhixing’s family was publicly exposed and began collapsing, Xie Sui admitted to orchestrating the revelations and warned Zhu Zhixing that the punishment was only beginning. Song Yu encouraged Xie Sui to stand up for himself, then challenged Gao Feng to a fight and discovered their Friday showdown had become a forum sensation.

• Zhu Zhixing’s father attacked Zhu Zhixing’s mother in the stairwell, and school staff and police arrived to restrain him.
• Xie Sui admitted to Zhu Zhixing that he had exposed his father’s crimes and medical diagnosis, then warned that their family’s troubles were only beginning.
• Song Yu and Xie Sui went to eat, and Song Yu urged Xie Sui not to forgive people too easily or trust friendly strangers.
• Gao Feng challenged Song Yu to fight after school on Friday at the Book Mountain Building, and Song Yu accepted with a taunt.
• Song Yu checked the school forum and found students arguing over who would win the upcoming fight.

Song Yu defended Lin Shuangqiu when Ou Yilian cruelly resisted approving her leave to visit her sick grandmother, and he sent a recording of the exchange to the principal. As Song Yu prepared for his showdown with Gao Feng and invited Xie Sui to study over the weekend, Xie Sui received a threatening message and asked whether he would get a reward.

• Students on the school forum joked about Song Yu's coming fight with Gao Feng, while Song Yu arranged to visit Grandma Meng that weekend.
• Ou Yilian refused Lin Shuangqiu's leave request and made a cruel remark about waiting until her grandmother died before approving it.
• Song Yu played a recording of Ou Yilian's words, demanded that she sign Lin Shuangqiu's leave slip, and accompanied Lin to get it stamped.
• Ou Yilian tried to excuse herself and hinted that her connections would protect her, while Song Yu told her he would see what happened and sent the recording to the principal.
• Ma Xiaoding teased Song Yu about the upcoming fight with Gao Feng, and Song Yu asked Xie Sui to study with him at the library on Saturday.
• Xie Sui received a message with a secretly taken photo of his grandmother and an order to stay in the classroom Friday after school; after deleting it, he asked Song Yu what reward he would get for tutoring him.

Song Yu and Xie Sui joked about Song Yu’s plan to study hard, while Song Yu prepared for the monthly exam and his coming confrontation with Gao Feng. After receiving anonymous evidence about homeroom teacher Ou Yilian’s past, Song Yu realized her misconduct was worse than he had suspected.

• Xie Sui asked Song Yu what had been bothering him, and Song Yu wrote that he disliked their homeroom teacher and intended to study hard to prove her wrong.
• The Chinese teacher caught Song Yu passing the note, read part of it aloud, and Xie Sui claimed Song Yu meant to slap him.
• Song Yu forgot his Chinese homework, and Xie Sui showed him a one-line semester goal: helping Song Yu take first place in the city.
• Song Yu accepted that he would face Gao Feng at the Book Mountain Building, while Gao Feng bragged about the challenge and Bai Xuexin decided to get closer to Xie Sui.
• Song Yu received an anonymous email containing records of Ou Yilian’s past teaching and an account from a student she had driven into depression and suicide attempts.

Song Yu learned about a former student's abuse and Ou Yilian's role in it, then reported his homeroom teacher while deciding not to expose the victim publicly. As Song Yu prepared to face Gao Feng, Xie Sui received a message directing him to an old classroom building.

• Song Yu read the girl's diary, learned how Ou Yilian had dismissed her reports of harassment and exposed her to further humiliation, and chose to send the evidence to the principal and Meng Guang rather than publicize it.
• Song Yu wondered whether Xie Sui had suffered similar harassment, then chatted with him about childhood books and joked that he might lose his fight the next day.
• Ou Yilian mocked Song Yu for sleeping in class and made an insinuating remark about his illness, while Song Yu's classmates grew more comfortable joking and encouraging him.
• Song Yu and Gao Feng's rooftop confrontation drew a playful live commentary on the school forum, and Song Yu introduced himself as Your Husband Brother Yu.
• After Song Yu headed to the rooftop with Ma Xiaoding and his group, Xie Sui stayed behind and received a message directing him to a secluded old classroom building.

Xie Sui turned the tables on Wang Ci when he tried to blackmail and assault him, while Song Yu rushed to help after receiving photos that misrepresented the confrontation. They escaped the school dean together, and Xie Sui pretended his hand hurt so Song Yu would support him as they left.

• Xie Sui stabbed Wang Ci's hand, knocked him down, and took Jiang Xiu's phone, where he found messages and photos sent to Song Yu.
• Song Yu defeated Gao Feng on the Book Mountain Building rooftop by frightening him into calling Song Yu Dad, then fought off Gao Feng's lackeys when they tried to stop him leaving.
• After seeing the photos of Xie Sui and Wang Ci, Song Yu escaped the dean by jumping from a window and hurried to the abandoned classroom.
• Song Yu found Xie Sui unharmed and learned he had dealt with Wang Ci, but he noticed blood on Xie Sui's hand and insisted they leave for the infirmary.
• Xie Sui and Song Yu climbed out of the classroom window to evade the dean, and Xie Sui pretended to be injured so Song Yu would support him.

Song Yu and Xie Sui reconciled after Xie Sui admitted he was unused to receiving kindness, then went to the school office to confront Ou Yilian and Wang Ci’s mother. After Xie Sui revealed evidence of Wang Ci’s threats and attempted assault, Song Yu slapped Wang Ci’s mother, then called his aunt for help.

• At the infirmary, Song Yu learned Xie Sui had only a small bruise and arranged to take him home.
• Xie Sui teased Song Yu about a forum thread shipping them, and Song Yu stormed off after feeling his sincerity was doubted.
• Xie Sui apologized and explained that he was unused to kindness; Song Yu reassured him that he simply wanted to treat him well.
• Ou Yilian summoned Xie Sui to her office, where Wang Ci’s mother accused him and Song Yu of wrongdoing and threatened legal action.
• Xie Sui played a video of Wang Ci threatening him and attempting to sexually assault him, explaining that he had fought back in self-defense.
• When Wang Ci’s mother insulted Xie Sui, Song Yu slapped her and called his aunt, asking her to come to No. 1 High School.

Song Yu’s aunt Wen Yuan arrived at school and exposed Wang Ci’s mother’s history, while the dean confirmed that Wang Ci had lured and bullied Xie Sui. The chapter ended with Ou Yilian realizing Song Yu’s uncle was the mayor, as the adults faced consequences for their actions.

• Song Yu called his aunt Mrs. Meng, and Ou Yilian berated him while Wang Ci’s mother insulted him.
• Song Yu accused Ou Yilian of covering up Wang Ci’s bullying of Xie Sui and mentioned a student she had once driven toward suicide.
• Wang Ci’s mother threw scalding water at Song Yu, but an unidentified person caught the cup and threw it back; Wen Yuan then arrived and slapped Wang Ci’s mother.
• Wen Yuan exposed Wu Xinmei’s past and demanded an account of what had happened, while Ou Yilian tried to take back her accusations.
• The dean said Wang Ci had threatened and lured Xie Sui to an abandoned classroom, and Song Yu and Xie Sui showed Wen Yuan their evidence.
• Wen Yuan vowed to have Wang Ci sent to a detention center, then Meng Guang and the mayor arrived, leaving Ou Yilian horrified to learn that Song Yu’s uncle was the mayor.

Mayor Meng intervened after Ou Yilian mistreated Song Yu, suspending her classes and revealing that a past incident had been reported to the police. Song Yu explained his family background to Xie Sui, who promised not to distance himself, and invited him over to do homework.

• Mayor Meng criticized Ou Yilian's treatment of Song Yu, rejected her as the school's outstanding-teacher candidate, and ordered her classes suspended pending investigation.
• Ou Yilian pleaded with Mayor Meng and Song Yu, but Song Yu told her that her past actions had brought consequences.
• Song Yu pulled Xie Sui into the corridor and tried to explain his family background, then admitted he feared Xie Sui would distance himself because of their class differences.
• Xie Sui reassured Song Yu that no worldly label would change how he saw him and promised to help him have the peaceful school life he wanted.
• Wen Yuan invited Song Yu to bring Xie Sui over, and Song Yu texted Xie Sui, asking him to come do homework the next day.

Song Yu invited Xie Sui to tutor him, and the two planned to study together at the library. After Grandma Meng told Xie Sui about Song Yu’s mysterious recurring illness, Xie Sui grew concerned but kept his thoughts to himself.

• Xie Sui agreed to tutor Song Yu, and Song Yu’s family teased him about being excited to spend time with his handsome deskmate.
• Song Yu learned that Xie Sui had already finished his homework and planned to help him pursue his goal of taking first place in the city.
• Ma Xiaoding warned Song Yu that a video of his fight with Gao Feng had likely spread across the school forum, where students were celebrating his victory and discussing his online identity.
• Song Yu opened the forum thread titled “A future vast as the sea, finding peace with Sui and Yu,” read its matchmaking post, and decided to stop before reading further.
• Grandma Meng told Xie Sui that Song Yu suffered from unexplained episodes of severe weakness and delirium, prompting Xie Sui to remember Song Yu’s poor health.
• Song Yu and Xie Sui set out for the library to study, and Xie Sui teased Song Yu about having little room for his grades to fall.

Song Yu studied with Xie Sui at the school library, where a rainy-day nap left Song Yu troubled by a dream of Xie Sui’s painful past. When a forum post exposed their study date and cake-shop outing, Song Yu identified himself, leaving the students who had mocked the pair embarrassed.

• Song Yu set aside his anger when Xie Sui brought up studying, and the two went to the school library to work on Chinese and math.
• As rain fell, Xie Sui admitted he disliked rainy days, then reviewed Song Yu’s test papers and wrote notes about his weak math foundations.
• Song Yu fell asleep and dreamed of a banquet welcoming someone named Xie, followed by a bloody, distressed boy stumbling through the rain; Xie Sui woke him after half an hour.
• Song Yu and Xie Sui went to a cake shop, where Song Yu reflected on Xie Sui’s painful history and noticed a forum thread about their library study session.
• After someone photographed Song Yu at the shop, he replied to the thread with “Me,” and the students who had insulted the pair answered with “Embarrassing.”