This translation is by Pocketrobbin at S h a n g h a i f a n t a s y . c o m

The scorching sun blazed down and the sound of cicadas’ chirping pierced the sky.

In a classroom on the second floor of Xuri^[1]Rising Sun Middle School, Chen Mingxu stood on the podium, holding a ruler while giving a lecture. His shirt was soaked with sweat.

The air was so hot it seemed ready to bubble. The ceiling fan whirred loudly, but the breeze it created felt scorching under the intense heat.

The students below looked drowsy and listless.

Chen Mingxu couldn’t help but feel a bit irritable.

“Look at the blackboard.” Noticing the state of the girl sitting in the third row, Chen Mingxu frowned slightly and tapped the ruler against the blackboard with more force. “Did you hear me? Look at the blackboard!”

Several students who were about to fall asleep jerked awake, their bleary eyes widening as they forced themselves to focus on the blackboard.

The girl, however, seemed not to hear him. She kept her head down, doodling with a pencil on her paper. She had a pretty and harmless face, showing a hint of youthfulness that made her appear even more endearing.

She sat upright, her demeanor serene and gentle, looking exactly like the kind of obedient student teachers favored.

Except for the fact that she was currently treating the teacher on the podium as if he were invisible.

Chen Mingxu’s frown deepened as he continued, “Angle one equals angle two, angle three equals 108 degrees—”

As he neared the end of the problem, the girl still showed no sign of looking up. Chen Mingxu’s long-suppressed anger surged, and he slammed the ruler onto the desk.

The plastic ruler collided with the wooden desk, producing a loud bang.

The noise startled the entire class, making everyone flinch. The subsequent shout made the atmosphere even more tense.

“Sang Zhi!”

The named student, Sang Zhi, lifted her head and looked at Chen Mingxu for two seconds. Then, she put down her pencil and stood up on her own accord.

Chen Mingxu, restraining his temper, asked, “What did I just say?”

Sang Zhi glanced at the diagram on the blackboard, her expression calm. “Angle four equals 72 degrees.”

Having grown accustomed to her always appearing like a model student, Chen Mingxu wasn’t fooled this time. He tapped the desk again with the ruler and sneered, “I haven’t gotten to that part yet!”

“……”

Sang Zhi started to feel a bit troubled. “Then why did you ask me to stand up……”

Chen Mingxu retorted, “Why do you think?”

Sang Zhi pondered for a few seconds and guessed, “Is it because you don’t know the answer?”

Chen Mingxu: “……”

Sang Zhi: “So, you asked me to stand up to teach you?”

Chen Mingxu: “?”

“I see.” Sang Zhi nodded knowingly and looked at the blackboard. “Because angle one equals angle two, AB is parallel to CD. When two lines are parallel, the same-side interior angles are supplementary—”

Chen Mingxu could no longer tolerate it. “Since you’re so great, why don’t you take my place as the teacher?”

Interrupted, Sang Zhi’s expression turned a bit bewildered. She opened her mouth, then hesitated for a few seconds before saying, “But I can’t take away your livelihood.”

“……”

The room fell silent for a few seconds, then erupted into laughter.

Chen Mingxu was furious. “Quiet down! Be quiet!”

The students, still laughing, turned the classroom into a noisy market. A few boys in the back row started to cheer mischievously.

“Teacher, I think it’s a good idea! Let Sang Zhi take over our class!”

“Does that mean we won’t have to do homework?”

“Can I just not come to school anymore?”

Chen Mingxu shouted, “Silence!”

“Sang Zhi.” Chen Mingxu looked at Sang Zhi again, his breathing heavy as he tried to keep his composure. Eventually, he lost his temper and roared, “Call your parents in tomorrow!”

The bell rang, signaling the end of class.

Chen Mingxu left the classroom with a stern face, not looking back.

It was the last period of the day and most of the students had already packed up, leaving in groups.

“Why did you provoke Baldy Chen again?” Her friend, Yin Zhenru, rushed over to her seat as soon as the bell rang. “Don’t you know he loves calling parents over for no reason? We’re only halfway through the month and your mom has already been here twice.”

Sang Zhi stuffed the notebook on the table into her backpack and zipped it up forcefully. “I don’t even know what I did to provoke him.”

Yin Zhenru’s eyes widened. “You don’t know?”

Sang Zhi looked annoyed and muttered, “Didn’t I answer the question?”

“Your answer was practically asking for trouble.” Yin Zhenru laughed. “Saying you can’t take away his job? Even I would want to hit you for that.”

Sang Zhi scoffed softly. “Then you’re just as unreasonable as he is.”

“Hey, seriously.” Yin Zhenru continued, “Why don’t you pay attention in class? And you always get caught.”

“Don’t you think Baldy’s voice is like a lullaby?” Sang Zhi slung her backpack over her shoulder and yawned. “If I listened attentively without doing something else, I’d definitely fall asleep.”

“……”

That made sense.

Yin Zhenru wanted to say more but noticed a few boys standing at the school gate out of the corner of her eye. She changed the subject, bringing up something else, “By the way, are you going to the bookstore?”

Sang Zhi glanced at her. “Why?”

Yin Zhenru explained, “Fu Zhengchu invited you, along with a few guys from Class 6. We’re all going together.”

Sang Zhi asked again, “Why?”

“He said,” Yin Zhenru thought for a moment, “to buy Huanghou Xiong^[2]Empress Xiong?”

“……”

What on earth is Huanghou Xiong?

Sang Zhi was silent for a few seconds. “You mean Wang Houxiong^[3]referring to the textbooks written by the said author?”

Yin Zhenru nodded, “Yeah, yeah, are you coming?”

“No.”

“Why not?” Yin Zhenru gently nudged her shoulder and teasingly said, “Fu Zhengchu is quite handsome, you know.”

The two walked out of the classroom side by side.

Hearing her words, Sang Zhi’s expression turned indescribable. “You should get your eyes checked at the hospital.”

Yin Zhenru protested, “What’s wrong with my eyes? I’m not the only one who thinks he’s handsome! Lots of people do.”

Sang Zhi nodded and suggested again, “Then you can all go to the hospital.”

“……”

After speaking, Sang Zhi took out her phone from her backpack. She opened the messaging app and hesitated for a moment before sending a text to Sang Yan, 【Brother, you haven’t been home for a long time. When will you come back? Can you come home tomorrow? I miss you so much TAT】

Yin Zhenru, unaware of her actions, sighed in disappointment, “You’re really not going?”

“Nope.”

“They’re all waiting at the school gate……”

“If you want to go, then go ahead.” Sang Zhi replied absentmindedly. “I’m not in the mood today.”

Yin Zhenru asked, “Is it because you have to bring your parents? So what are you going to do? How about asking your dad to come this time?”

Sang Zhi shook her head. “They’re not coming.”

“Huh? Why not?”

Sang Zhi kept her eyes on her phone, waiting for Sang Yan’s response. “I’m not going to tell them.”

Yin Zhenru reminded her, “But if your parents don’t come, Baldy Chen will call them.”

“It’s fine.”

Before she could mention, ‘I’ll ask my brother to come’, a text message came in.

【Sang Yan: ?】

【Sang Yan: I can’t.】

“……”

At the school gate, Yin Zhenru said her goodbyes to Sang Zhi and then walked over to Fu Zhengchu and his group.

Fu Zhengchu’s expression dimmed as he watched Sang Zhi’s retreating figure. He asked knowingly, “Sang Zhi isn’t coming?”

Yin Zhenru nodded. “She was scolded by the teacher and is in a bad mood.”

Fu Zhengchu’s brows twitched. “Her parents are being called again?”

Yin Zhenru: “Mm.”

“……”

This time the number was almost catching up with his.

How could he, a delinquent boy, accept this?

Fu Zhengchu stood still for a couple of seconds, then suddenly turned and walked back into the school.

Another boy, Liu Weiqi, quickly called out to him, “Hey! Where are you going? Aren’t we supposed to buy Wang Houxiong?”

Upon hearing those words, Fu Zhengchu turned back, smacked Liu Weiqi on the forehead in frustration, and said, “I’ve told you to read more books.”

The confused Liu Weiqi who reflexively rubbed his head: “?”

“It’s Huanghou Xiong, you idiot.”

“……”

———pr


On the other side, Sang Zhi continued to text Sang Yan, berating him for being heartless and uncaring, completely ignoring his thirteen-year-old sister who still couldn’t take care of herself. She accused him of abandoning her just to go to university and leaving her to fend for herself.

After waiting for a while, Sang Yan still didn’t reply.

She waited a bit longer.

The cold-hearted Sang Yan remained unresponsive.

Sang Zhi’s heart completely sank. She boarded the bus home, beginning to consider how she would explain the third ‘parent-teacher meeting’ of the month to her parents once she got home.

What should she say?

Should she claim that it was because she was too outstanding and thus envied by the teacher, leading to her parents being called?

Or, something she said in class caused a misunderstanding with the teacher, making him feel threatened in his career?

Or maybe, it was just that the weather was too hot, the teacher was too idle and he wanted to invite her parents over for tea out of boredom……

Sang Zhi rubbed her head in frustration.

None of those excuses seemed quite right.

Looking up, she realized the bus had already reached her stop.

Sang Zhi got off and walked slowly toward home.

Entering the house and seeing the familiar surroundings made her feel even more uneasy about what to say.

Just then, her mother, Li Ping, called from the kitchen, “Zhizhi, you’re back?”

Zhizhi^[4]只只 was Sang Zhi’s^[5]桑稚 nickname.

She responded softly and slowly took off her shoes. Preoccupied with her thoughts, she didn’t notice the unfamiliar pair of sports shoes on the shoe rack.

Li Ping called out again, “Zhizhi, come here for a moment. Help Mom with something.”

Still mulling over how to confess, Sang Zhi mumbled, “What is it?”

“Take this plate of fruit to your brother’s room.” Li Ping said as she came out of the kitchen. “Your brother is back—”

“Mm…… hmm?” Sang Zhi instantly perked up, her tone rising in surprise. “Brother is back?”

“Yes.”

The unexpected news left Sang Zhi in disbelief.

A flood of surprise and joy surged within her all at once. At this moment, the annoying and unfeeling prick, Sang Yan, transformed in Sang Zhi’s mind into the image of a perfect older brother— aloof on the outside but warm-hearted underneath.

Li Ping continued speaking, “When you go in, be mindful. Your brother brought—”

“Okay, okay, okay!” Not wanting to wait for more details, Sang Zhi grabbed the plate and ran toward Sang Yan’s room. “I got it! I’ll deliver it to him right away!”

Li Ping watched Sang Zhi’s unusually enthusiastic back with some confusion. “What’s up with that child today……”

Thinking about not having to face her parents’ scolding, Sang Zhi couldn’t help but smile as she forcefully pushed open the door to Sang Yan’s room.

The inside was spacious and bright, with large amounts of sunlight streaming in.

It was filled with a warm scent. But in the next second, a strong smell of tobacco hit her, causing her to cough slightly.

She frowned and glanced around.

In the dimmer part of the room, a slender young man was lounging on the sofa by the computer desk, looking down at his phone. He sat with his back to the light, his figure shrouded in shadow. One hand rested on the side, and his long fingers held a cigarette with its ember glowing red.

His build was somewhat similar to Sang Yan’s.

Yet, he seemed unexpectedly unfamiliar.

Sang Zhi’s steps faltered and she hesitated. Her lips parted, but before she could utter the word ‘Brother’, the man looked up.

At that moment, she finally saw his face clearly and inexplicably held her breath.

The young man’s expression was indifferent, his facial features sharp and well-defined. A smile that did not reach his eyes lingered on his face, giving him a gentle yet unapproachable air.

His slightly upturned peach blossom eyes had light brown irises. His brows and eyes were alluring, contrasting completely with the deep black eyes of her brother.

She had expected to see her brother, but instead, she encountered an unfamiliar person. Her brother was nowhere to be seen.

For a moment, Sang Zhi’s mind went blank, unsure of how to react.

The scene seemed to freeze.

Both of them stood still, with no additional movements.

After a short while, the young man lowered his eyes again, leisurely extinguishing the cigarette with a casual expression. He seemed to have no desire to speak and silently got up to open the window for ventilation.

Watching his actions, Sang Zhi called out in confusion.

“……Brother?”

Hearing the address, the young man’s actions paused and his eyebrows rose. He fixed his gaze on Sang Zhi, his peach blossom eyes carrying a gentle hue with a hint of playfulness. Then, he curved his lips into a smile and responded in a drawn-out, teasing tone.

“Hmm?”

“……”

This response struck Sang Zhi like a bolt of lightning.

In that instant, the unclear matters in her mind were vividly shaped into clear traces by her imagination.

She finally saw her brother again, whom she hadn’t seen for months, but he had turned into the person in front of her.

She was petrified and couldn’t believe it at all. After a long while, she finally managed to stammer out a word, “Y-you……”

She paused for a few seconds.

Sang Zhi swallowed hard and cautiously completed her sentence, “You had plastic surgery?”

“……”