Shi Meng

Biodata

Background / History

Shi Meng comes from another town and attends the school because of its highly regarded English teacher, Teacher Yang. She is a good student and belongs to a friendly circle of academically strong classmates 2 35.

In Lin Er’s original life, Shi Meng was the first girl to accept her and became her best friend. They eventually lost touch because their choices and circumstances diverged, not because of an argument or falling-out 1 2.

After her rebirth, Lin Er suspects that their homeroom teacher originally assigned Shi Meng to look after her. This remains Lin Er’s interpretation rather than a confirmed explanation for Shi Meng’s kindness 2.

Appearance

• Approximately the same height as Lin Er when they enter middle school 2.
• Has soft, short hair at her temples 27.

Personality

Shi Meng is considerate and attentive to practical needs. She makes room for Lin Er in their crowded communal bed, accompanies her to the restroom despite the approaching class bell, and offers to help carry hot water to their sixth-floor dormitory 1 2 7.

She is initially anxious about breaking school rules: she worries about arriving late to English and warns Lin Er that a novel brought into the classroom might be confiscated. With friends, however, she is playful enough to tease Lin Er about her grades and fiercely guard her own embarrassing sports-meet messages 2 23 44 49 50.

Shi Meng questions opinions she finds unconvincing. During their Harry Potter discussions, she challenges Lin Er’s defense of Snape rather than accepting it out of friendship. She also admits that she is not particularly devoted to any fictional character and struggles to understand Lin Er’s attachment to someone whose faults Lin Er openly acknowledges 23 24 27.

Relationships

• Lin Er — Classmate, dormitory roommate, and best friend in the original timeline. Their renewed friendship develops through shared chores, conversations, and Shi Meng’s invitations to join her social circle 1 6 35 44 49.
• Xu Duoduo — Dormitory roommate and classmate. The three girls share hot water and snacks 6 25.
• Yan Jingting — Friend within their classroom circle; joins Shi Meng and Lin Er in exercising after evening study 44 49.
• Wang Juan — Part of the four-girl group involved in relay practice and anonymous cheering messages at the winter sports meet 50.
• Teacher Yang — English teacher whose reputation drew Shi Meng to the school. Shi Meng describes her as reasonable despite initially fearing her strictness 2.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Early School Life

• Welcoming Lin Er: Shi Meng and Xu Duoduo are the only students beside Lin Er willing to give her more room in the overcrowded dormitory bed 1.
• Late arrival to English: Shi Meng catches up with Lin Er on her way to the restroom and accompanies her. Lin Er reassures her and takes the initiative in asking permission to enter class; Teacher Yang admits them without questioning their lateness 2.
• Hot-water arrangement: Shi Meng accepts the hot water Lin Er brings back after secretly bathing off campus. Believing Lin Er’s explanation about visiting a relative, she offers to meet her and help carry it upstairs; Lin Er declines to protect her secret route 6 7.

Harry Potter Discussions

• Recognizing the spells: Shi Meng notices Harry Potter spells in Lin Er’s magic book and mistakes it for a commercially produced notebook. She says she has watched Philosopher’s Stone and chooses Hermione as her favorite character for being intelligent, hardworking, and tenacious 23.
• Challenging Lin Er: She objects to Snape’s treatment of students and rejects Lin Er’s initial criticism of Dumbledore. Their conversation attracts other classmates, turning into a wider discussion of Snape’s past 23 24.
• Following the story: Shi Meng urges Lin Er to continue after Lily intervenes in Snape’s bullying and makes space for nearby students to listen 25.
• Questioning fandom: After hearing Lin Er describe Snape’s wrongdoing, she asks whether Lin Er’s devotion has “circled back around to hating him” 27.

Joining the Classroom Circle

• Keeping Lin Er informed: When Lin Er returns late after the National Day holiday, Shi Meng passes along the examination seat number entrusted to her by Gao Bo 41.
• Saving a nearby seat: Shi Meng first proposes sitting together before the seating rearrangement. When students later choose seats by examination rank, she waves Lin Er toward a place near herself and Yan Jingting, which Lin Er accepts 35 44.
• Including her socially: Shi Meng invites Lin Er to accompany the group into the city after the midterm examinations 44.
• Reversing their chores: Once classmates discover that Lin Er has no relative at school, Shi Meng stops accepting her off-campus hot-water deliveries. She instead fills Lin Er’s kettle at the cafeteria each day while Lin Er supplies cold water 49.

Winter Sports Meet

• Relay preparation: Shi Meng joins Lin Er and their friends in a 400-meter relay and suggests exercising together after evening study 49.
• Anonymous messages: She blushes and hides her cheering slips when her friends try to read them. Her threat to put their names on their messages successfully makes them stop snooping 50.