Chapter 1: How Slim is His Waist

“Yesterday’s practice exercises.”

A boy in a blue and white school uniform walked over, carrying a thick stack of exercise books in his arms. This is Xie Jun, the class monitor.

Xie Jun walked to the back row and stopped beside a desk.

The boy in the last row had dyed his hair gray and wore his school uniform carelessly, leaving the zipper open, leaning back against the chair in a bold and unruly manner. With his delinquent appearance, he was fortunate to have good looks—a pair of slightly upturned phoenix eyes—and he could pull off this hair color, resembling a protagonist straight out of a manga.

Kui Ming leaned back against the chair and casually said, “I didn’t bring it.”

Xie Jun glanced at the practice book sprawled carelessly on his desk. “Isn’t this it?”

Kui Ming glanced down briefly and smoothly changed his statement, “I didn’t do it.”

Xie Jun gave him a light glance. “I’ll come to collect it this afternoon.”

With that, Xie Jun turned around and left, still carrying the thick stack of exercise books. The chubby boy sitting next to Kui Ming whispered, “Brother Ming, sh-should we do it?”

Kui Ming didn’t respond, his gaze fixed on Xie Jun’s back as he walked away, lost in thought.

Kui Ming looked even more intimidating when he wasn’t speaking. The chubby boy shrank back slightly, completely unaware that what Kui Ming was thinking about was how slim Xie Jun’s waist might be without the school uniform.

…

The preparatory bell rang.

A fair, slender hand knocked on his desk. “The exercises.”

That hand was truly beautiful, with long, slender fingers, perfectly proportioned, and as fair as if carved from warm jade, with a faint hint of pink at the nails.

Kui Ming placed the exercise book into the person’s hand. His name was written on the cover in a flamboyant style—his grades might not be good, but his handwriting was impressive.

Xie Jun took the exercise book and turned to leave.

“Wait.” Kui Ming suddenly spoke up. “Aren’t you going to open it and take a look?”

Xie Jun paused in his steps and opened the exercise book, finding not a single word written on it.

But it wasn’t entirely blank. A drawing had been sketched on it in pencil.

It was a portrait.

Shaded with varying depths, it outlined a human figure, a fair face, with eyes cast downward, giving a cold and distant expression.

It was exactly like the expression Xie Jun had at that moment, looking down with lowered eyes.

Kui Ming raised his eyebrow at Xie Jun.

A tearing sound rang out as the paper ripped. The chubby boy beside them shrank back, but Xie Jun, without showing any sign of anger, calmly tore out the entire page, rolled it up, and tucked it into his pocket.