In three days, Wei Xiaochi earned a thousand yuan. Adding the five hundred Jiang Zhan had paid him back and the remaining one hundred and fifty for his glasses, the total was one thousand six hundred and fifty yuan.

Wei Xiaochi kept a small portion for personal expenses, and the rest was deposited in the bank.

Since middle school, he had always been aware of the value of money. Now, with nearly eighteen thousand yuan in his account, looking at his growing savings, Wei Xiaochi felt genuinely secure and at ease.

This good mood lasted all the way until Monday when he went to school. He rode his bike fast, his white T-shirt billowing in the wind, feeling unusually full of energy.

The school didn’t allow bicycles on campus, so Wei Xiaochi pushed his bike through the gates.

Seeing the disciplinarian Wei Minzhen, his heart skipped a beat.

The school had a rule that boys’ hair couldn’t be longer than their ears. Wei Xiaochi hadn’t gotten a haircut in weeks, and he was supposed to have done so this week, but he had forgotten due to extra lessons.

If Wei Minzhen caught him, Wei Xiaochi would have to pay a fine.

There was an unwritten rule in their class: if personal reasons led to a deduction in class points, the one responsible had to pay ten yuan per point into the class fund.

Wei Xiaochi felt guilty and hurriedly lowered his head to walk faster.

“Stop!” Wei Minzhen’s voice rang out behind him.

Wei Xiaochi’s breath hitched, and his legs weakly gave way, reluctantly halting in place.

“What class are you in? Your hair…”

Before Wei Minzhen could finish, a calm, deep voice interrupted, “Teacher.”

Li Suilin walked toward them from a distance, his pace steady and measured. His posture was straight, and he wore his uniform with an air of elegance and refinement.

When Wei Minzhen saw him, his serious expression softened into a smile. “Suilin, huh?”

His tone was unexpectedly warm and friendly.

As Li Suilin passed by Wei Xiaochi, he gave him a discreet glance—an unmistakable signal for him to quickly return to class.

Wei Xiaochi couldn’t believe it—class monitor Li Suilin was actually covering for him.

But there was no time to think too much. While Li Suilin stalled Wei Minzhen, Wei Xiaochi seized the chance to slip away.

He had always been a rule follower and had never done anything like this before. As he walked to the bike shed, he was on edge, fearful that Wei Minzhen might follow him.

It wasn’t until he was sure that Wei Minzhen wasn’t chasing after him that he breathed a sigh of relief. He absentmindedly grabbed a strand of hair hanging by his ear, feeling a little distressed.

He had managed to escape this time, but Wei Xiaochi worried that he might get caught by Wei Minzhen again, so he didn’t even dare to leave the classroom.

He held it in all morning, and as soon as the school bell rang, he dashed to the bathroom. After taking care of his physical needs, he joined the crowd heading to the cafeteria for lunch.

After getting his meal, Wei Xiaochi scanned the room for an empty table and saw Li Suilin waving at him.

During the time Li Suilin had been recovering at home, the atmosphere in class had changed. The mood was restless.

Li Suilin was a competent class monitor, and as soon as he returned, he started making changes, addressing all safety concerns before they could escalate.

Xu Yang, one of the safety issues in the class, had earned Li Suilin’s attention, and the two of them sat together for lunch in a relatively harmonious atmosphere.

Li Suilin had often talked to people in the class. In the two years they had been classmates, Wei Xiaochi had shared lunch with him twice. Both times, Li Suilin had noticed him in a quiet corner of the cafeteria and had come over on his own, calling it a “talk,” though it felt more like a casual conversation.

Li Suilin had a remarkable ability to make people feel comfortable talking, and even someone as socially awkward as Wei Xiaochi didn’t feel uneasy when sitting with him.

After spending the weekend with Li Suilin, Wei Xiaochi came to realize that these “conversations” were more like a way for Li Suilin to gauge his personality, testing him to understand his behavior, so he could manage him in the most effective way.

Wei Xiaochi couldn’t help but think that their class monitor was a little scary.

But compared to Li Suilin, Wei Xiaochi still found Xu Yang more intimidating. He thought that bookish students were fine with intellectual challenges but dreaded those who were ruthless and resorted to violence.

Wei Xiaochi had always kept his distance from troublemakers, and the thought of eating with Xu Yang felt like he was about to get skinned alive.

Pretending he didn’t see Li Suilin’s wave, Wei Xiaochi carried his tray and distanced himself from them.

Just as he thought he’d successfully avoided Li Suilin, Han Ziyang spotted him. “Hey, Four-Eyes, over here.”

Han Ziyang’s voice was impossible to ignore, echoing through half the cafeteria.

Wei Xiaochi felt like a thorn was stuck in his back—he didn’t want to sit with him, especially since Han Ziyang was sitting with Jiang Zhan.

Deciding to give up on avoiding him, Wei Xiaochi randomly found an empty spot to sit.

He chose a nearby seat, but it was rush hour in the cafeteria. With no empty tables, lone diners like him had to share.

To his surprise, he ended up sitting with a group of big, muscular alphas.

Feeling their eyes on him, Wei Xiaochi instinctively wrapped his tray in his arms and buried his head in his food, trying to avoid eye contact, too scared to even lift a hand.

Finally finishing the torturous lunch, Wei Xiaochi slipped out to the convenience store and bought a correction tape.

On his way back to the classroom, he passed the basketball court and saw Han Ziyang and the others practicing shooting hoops.

It wasn’t ideal to do intense exercise right after eating, but Zhao Zifeng suggested a timed shooting contest to see who could make the most shots in one minute.

Han Ziyang stood under the basket, just finishing one shot when Zhao Zifeng threw him another ball.

The alpha caught it smoothly and, with muscle memory, shot it without hesitation. He kept going, with Jiang Rui and Zhao Zifeng feeding him the ball, and within a minute, he had thrown over thirty shots, though his accuracy was less than fifty percent.

Zhao Zifeng kept track, “Twelve made shots.”

Han Ziyang, who had a fiery temper and unstable mindset, became even more irritable during this timed challenge, which affected his shooting.

He knew about this flaw and wiped the sweat from his brow, muttering a curse under his breath.

When he bent down to pick up a stray ball, he spotted Wei Xiaochi nearby, watching curiously.

Just out of pure curiosity, Wei Xiaochi’s gaze lingered a few seconds longer than expected, and before he knew it, Han Ziyang had caught on.

Without thinking, Han Ziyang strode up to him and blocked his way. “Hey, where are you going? Didn’t you hear me call you in the cafeteria?”

Wei Xiaochi feigned ignorance, responding with a confused, “Huh?”

Han Ziyang wasn’t buying it. “Don’t pretend you didn’t hear me. I called so loudly, how could you not hear?”

Caught red-handed, Wei Xiaochi felt a bit embarrassed.

Really, it seemed like no matter where he went, he was bound to run into people he didn’t want to see.

Fortunately, Han Ziyang didn’t push him further for an explanation.

Instead, Han Ziyang gave him a once-over, clicking his tongue. “Look at you, your body’s so underdeveloped from lack of exercise.”

“Why don’t we take this opportunity to give you a workout?” Han Ziyang grinned, signaling to Jiang Rui.

Wei Xiaochi sensed something wasn’t right and quickly backed up. “It’s almost time for class, I need to get back.”

Han Ziyang grabbed him by the shoulder. “No need to rush, there’s still time.”

“Right,” Jiang Rui added with a smile.

“You better not forget that physical fitness is part of the college entrance exams too. Since you’re tutoring us, we’ll return the favor by helping you with your weak body.”

Finally, Jiang Rui added with a scholarly tone, “It’s only polite to return the favor, and what could be better than using our strength to help you with your weaknesses?”

In basketball, the best tactic was always a double-team, and Wei Xiaochi found himself surrounded by them.

He froze, his face turning pale. “What… what are you doing?”

Han Ziyang smirked, “What’s there to be afraid of? We’re just helping you work out.”

Wei Xiaochi clung to the basketball hoop, his legs hanging in the air, the weight pulling on his arms, leaving painful red marks. His arms were aching, sore and numb.

The hoop wasn’t very high, only about three meters.

Wei Xiaochi stood at 1.76 meters, and with his arm length, his feet were less than a meter from the ground.

This height was nothing for a seven- or eight-year-old to jump down from, but Wei Xiaochi was too afraid. He had two basketballs right under his feet.

If he jumped, he might step on one and either twist his ankle or fall flat on his rear end, hurting his tailbone.

The balls had rolled to him by chance, not placed there intentionally by Han Ziyang or the others.

He asked Han Ziyang to move the balls away, but Han Ziyang saw that Wei Xiaochi was too scared to jump, so he demanded that Wei Xiaochi stay in the position and do thirty pull-ups.

After struggling through five, Wei Xiaochi’s arms gave out. He was stuck hanging there, too exhausted to move up, and too scared to drop down.

Jiang Zhan walked onto the basketball court and saw this strange scene.

As an alpha with exceptional physical strength, he never thought Wei Xiaochi wouldn’t be able to jump down.

His position was very noticeable, and although Jiang Zhan tried to ignore it, he couldn’t help asking, “What are you doing up there?”

Wei Xiaochi had his arms up, the hem of his shirt rolling up, revealing a slender, pale waist.

Due to his personal health, Wei Xiaochi’s bruises were slow to heal. The bruising from the previous beating was still there, though it wasn’t as severe as before.

Wei Xiaochi was about to give in, his arms shaking with exhaustion, when he looked at Jiang Zhan.

“Could you… could you help me move the basketball?” he asked weakly.

Before he could finish his sentence, Jiang Zhan’s fingers brushed over his side where the bruise was.

The cold touch sent goosebumps all over Wei Xiaochi’s skin, making him shiver uncontrollably.

The basket creaked as Wei Xiaochi’s arms finally gave way, and he fell.

Jiang Zhan was startled, but his instincts kicked in, and he quickly reached out to catch Wei Xiaochi, pulling him close.

Wei Xiaochi’s foot scraped across a basketball, but thanks to Jiang Zhan’s reflexes, he took the brunt of the fall and stopped Wei Xiaochi from injuring himself.

Jiang Zhan took a few steps back, but he was perfectly fine, steadying himself quickly.

Though Wei Xiaochi had a close call, he was drenched in cold sweat, his face pale as a ghost.

A strange scent lingered in the air—faint, almost imperceptible, like a dreamy spring breeze, drawing Jiang Zhan’s nose to twitch.

Still shaken from the fall, Wei Xiaochi was breathing heavily when suddenly he felt warmth by his ear.

Two soft, moist things brushed against the back of his neck, accompanied by Jiang Zhan’s hot breath.

Wei Xiaochi froze, as if a giant beast had its fangs against his throat, and he forgot how to breathe.

Jiang Zhan sniffed the back of his neck a few times, his lips almost touching Wei Xiaochi’s skin.

Wei Xiaochi didn’t think it was intimate at all—he was terrified.

The sensation was hard to describe, almost as if a genetic memory had been triggered. Wei Xiaochi’s mind went blank, his heart pounding, and his body froze.

He didn’t dare move, accepting Jiang Zhan’s close proximity without resistance.

The moment passed, and Jiang Zhan furrowed his brows, unsure if he had smelled something wrong.

It was just a fleeting scent that disappeared before he could identify it.

Realizing what he had done, Jiang Zhan quickly released Wei Xiaochi, turning his face away, lips pressed tight, saying nothing.

Anyone who didn’t know might have thought he was the one taken advantage of.

As Jiang Zhan stepped back, the tension between them faded, and Wei Xiaochi felt like he could finally breathe again.

The whole encounter lasted only a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity to Wei Xiaochi, who was still dazed and trying to process what had just happened.

Meanwhile, Han Ziyang and the others just watched, clueless, only noticing that Wei Xiaochi had fallen and that Jiang Zhan had caught him before pulling away angrily.

They all sat in the break area, exchanging looks of curiosity.

They had no idea why Wei Xiaochi had made Jiang Zhan so mad, but Han Ziyang was convinced Wei Xiaochi must like him, and he’d probably taken advantage of the situation.

“Amazing,” Han Ziyang muttered, shaking his head.

But none of them could have predicted that Jiang Zhan’s fury would be directed at them.

He approached them with a dark expression, kicking each of them in turn. “Full now, huh?”

He left with those words.

Han Ziyang fell off his seat, dazed. “Hey, what did we do wrong?” He rubbed his sore bottom, confused.

Jiang Rui groaned in pain, glancing at Han Ziyang, “Idiot, he’s mad we let the class nerd hang on the hoop.”

Han Ziyang, realizing what had happened, calmed down, but it took him a while to defend himself.

“I wasn’t just supervising his workout, you know?” he said, but his eyes were already drawn to Wei Xiaochi.

He couldn’t help but feel that there was something strange between Wei Xiaochi and Jiang Zhan.

Han Ziyang, overcome by curiosity, gestured at him, “Hey, what was that about with Jiang Zhan just now?”

Wei Xiaochi didn’t feel like answering and ignored him, walking away.

Han Ziyang was stunned. He couldn’t believe Wei Xiaochi was actually upset. He rushed after him like a curious animal, laughing and calling out, “Hey, look, he’s mad!”

Wei Xiaochi: …

Zhao Zifeng: …

Jiang Rui: …

The last two didn’t understand the dynamic and didn’t get why Han Ziyang was so excited.

Wei Xiaochi didn’t know what was going on, but his neck had been uncomfortable since earlier, and when he looked down for too long, it felt like needles pricking him.

He wondered if he had a neck problem.

During class, he kept massaging the back of his neck.

Luckily, this discomfort didn’t last long, and Wei Xiaochi didn’t think much of it.

After school, Li Suilin had something urgent to take care of, so he told Wei Xiaochi to head to his house first.

Wei Xiaochi always felt awkward visiting other people’s homes, especially when the host wasn’t there, making him feel even more uncomfortable.

He hesitated and said, “Class monitor, maybe I should wait for you.”

Li Suilin was unsure when the student council meeting would finish. After thinking for a moment, he said, “Wait, I’ll call Han Ziyang and have you go back with them.”

The thought of Han Ziyang made Wei Xiaochi groan internally.

Honestly, he’d already given up so much just to earn money.

Author’s Note:

Wei Xiaochi’s glands are awakening, congratulations!