Chapter 29

The monthly events included not only the monthly exams but also seat rearrangements.

While the students were taking their exams, Guo Hairuo, who didn’t have to supervise the exams for half a day, began arranging the seating.

She emptied the opinion collection box, unfolded a slip of paper, read it, and then located the student’s name on the original seating chart. Next to the name, she briefly noted down the student’s preference.

She unfolded the next slip of paper.

Guo Hairuo’s gaze was instantly drawn to the name signed in the bottom right corner.

Ji Wenchen.

A wave of astonishment rose in her heart.

When Ji Wenchen had just transferred to the class, Guo Hairuo had specifically consulted his former homeroom teacher, Teacher Luo, about various aspects of this student. One of the things Teacher Luo mentioned was that Ji Wenchen preferred sitting in the back corner of the classroom.

Could it be that Ji Wenchen had grown tired of sitting in the back row?

Guo Hairuo looked at his preference:

“I want to sit with Qin Xiaoxiao.”

The eight characters were written slightly smaller than his name.

Guo Hairuo’s astonishment grew even stronger.

Could there be something going on between the two of them?

It wasn’t her being overly sensitive, but as the homeroom teacher of a group of seventeen or eighteen-year-olds, such thoughts naturally crossed her mind.

Guo Hairuo thought about it carefully and then dismissed the idea.

Not to mention that Ji Wenchen was often absent from school, even judging by Qin Xiaoxiao, it didn’t seem like they were in an early relationship—since the second semester of her second year, she had been focused and diligent in her studies. Several teachers had praised her, saying her attitude toward learning was proper and her progress significant.

As for whether to arrange for Ji Wenchen and Qin Xiaoxiao to sit together, Guo Hairuo wouldn’t make such a decision based solely on one person’s preference.

She set Ji Wenchen’s slip of paper aside, skipping the step of noting his preference on the chart to save time.

Then, she continued reading the remaining slips of paper.

When she reached the fifth one—

“Teacher Guo, I want to change my seat. I don’t want to sit with Qin Xiaoxiao anymore.”

It was from Yang Min.

This…

Guo Hairuo retrieved Ji Wenchen’s large slip of paper and placed it together with Yang Min’s smaller slip.

What else could she do?

When Guo Hairuo first took over this class, she had said: Students who have no preferences about changing seats don’t need to write a slip of paper and will follow the teacher’s arrangement by default; those with specific requests for seat changes should write a slip, and the teacher will try to accommodate them.

In the book she occasionally referenced, 《On How to Be a Good Homeroom Teacher for a Non-Elite Class》, it emphasized that as a homeroom teacher, one must treat all students equally and keep one’s promises.

As a democratic homeroom teacher, she had no choice but to adhere to their wishes.

…

On the day of the seat rearrangement, after listening to the homeroom teacher announce the new seating chart from the podium, Qin Xiaoxiao was a little dumbfounded.

“Xiaoxiao,” Yang Min said, hugging Qin Xiaoxiao’s arm, “I really don’t want to be separated from you!”

She had already checked—the school bully wasn’t in the classroom right now, so she didn’t need to lower her voice too much.

Qin Xiaoxiao pulled her arm away. “Goodbye.”

“Xiaoxiao, are you mad at me?” Yang Min, suddenly channeling her inner drama queen, grabbed Qin Xiaoxiao again and half-jokingly whimpered, “I didn’t want to be separated from you either—it’s… it’s someone who forcibly took you away!”

“Let go,” Qin Xiaoxiao said, a mix of annoyance and frustration on her face. “I need to pack my things.”

“Whimper, whimper… I still love you, you know. During breaks, I can come find you—or no, you can come find me to hang out! Even if it’s just to go to the restroom, just call me, and I’ll definitely go with you.”

“Declined.”

Qin Xiaoxiao picked up a stack of books and headed to her new seat.

In an attempt to salvage their fragile friendship, Yang Min eagerly helped her carry the remaining miscellaneous items.

“Thanks,” Qin Xiaoxiao said.

Yang Min quickly replied, “No need to thank me, don’t be so formal.”

“Still not leaving? Or do you want to help me unpack?” 

Yang Min, relieved to confirm that Xiaoxiao wasn’t mad at her, relaxed and said, “Nope, I’m not helping. I haven’t even moved my own stuff yet!”

After tidying up her new seat, Qin Xiaoxiao glanced at the spot beside her.

Ji Wenchen didn’t have many belongings. The student who had originally been sitting there not only cleared their own things but also helped bring over Ji Wenchen’s items.

Qin Xiaoxiao wasn’t naive; she knew whose “masterpiece” this seat change was.

She wasn’t angry with Yang Min, just a bit frustrated about having to sit next to Ji Wenchen.

Halfway through the self-study period, after finishing two English reading exercises, Qin Xiaoxiao’s mood returned to being calm and bright.

A deskmate is just a deskmate, she thought. After all, Ji Wenchen hardly came to the classroom more than a few times a week.

Then, toward the end of the self-study period, Ji Wenchen showed up.

He pulled out the chair and sat down, his lips slightly pressed together.

The third group, fifth row—this spot was uncomfortably close to the center, and he wasn’t very pleased with the location of his new seat.

Faintly, a light and subtle fragrance lingered near his nose.

Ji Wenchen’s lips relaxed slightly. At least, in terms of his deskmate, things had gone just as he wanted.

He yawned, rested his elbow on the desk, and turned his face to the side, closing his eyes as he leaned on it.

Out of the corner of her eye, Qin Xiaoxiao caught a glimpse of Ji Wenchen’s face tilted toward her. She quietly shifted her whole body further away from him.

Next time they changed seats, she would make sure to write down her preferences on a slip of paper too.

The self-study period ended.

“Qin Xiaoxiao, someone’s looking for you.”

Qin Xiaoxiao put down her pen and stood up.

She didn’t notice her deskmate’s eyelashes tremble slightly, nor the faint crease that appeared between his brows.

“How did you end up sitting next to him?” Feng Maoxing immediately pulled his cousin aside and asked bluntly.

“The teacher arranged it,” Qin Xiaoxiao replied.

Feng Maoxing frowned. “Why would she arrange for you to sit next to him? What kind of lousy arrangement is that?”

“Go talk to your teacher and ask her to change your deskmate, okay?”

“No, it won’t work,” Qin Xiaoxiao calmly stated. “To switch deskmates individually, someone has to be willing to sit with me, and someone has to be willing to sit with him.” Finding someone to negotiate with would be troublesome, and it likely wouldn’t succeed. She could only wait for the next full-class seat rearrangement.

Feng Maoxing’s baby face drooped. “Then what are you going to do?”

He knew his cousin truly disliked the school bully and had already broken up with him. Yet now, his gentle and soft-spoken cousin had to sit next to that fierce and intimidating school bully.

Indeed, the impression of the school bully in Feng Maoxing’s mind was still in the negatives.

Even though it was the school bully who had gone out of his way to appoint him as the school basketball team’s vice-captain, Feng Maoxing stood firmly on his cousin’s side. He didn’t like the school bully and united with her against him.

“Just let things be,” Qin Xiaoxiao said with a slight, indifferent smile.

Someone passed by in the hallway, and Feng Maoxing stepped back and to the right, still talking to his cousin. “Alright, but don’t let him…”

“Watch out.”

“Ah!” A soft, faint exclamation was heard.

Feng Maoxing quickly said, “Sorry,” and turned to look.

A petite girl with short hair was holding a water cup without its lid. There were a few drops of water on the outside of the cup and on the back of her hand.

She was looking up at him with slightly panicked almond-shaped eyes.

“Sorry,” Feng Maoxing apologized, realizing he had bumped into her while stepping back. A few drops had splashed onto his back as well.

Fortunately, the water was just lukewarm.

“It’s fine, it’s not your fault,” the girl said softly, her voice gentle and tinged with a hint of self-reproach. “I forgot to put the lid on and wasn’t watching where I was going.”

Feng Maoxing scratched the back of his head and moved closer to his cousin, making way for the girl and the passing crowd.

Qin Xiaoxiao glanced at her cousin’s back. It wasn’t very wet, and on a summer night like this, it wouldn’t take long to dry.

The girl who had bumped into Feng Maoxing blinked and said, “Wait a moment, I’ll go get you a tissue.”

“Uh, no need—”

But the girl had already jogged into the classroom with her water cup in hand.

“She… What’s that senior’s name?”

“Bi Chun.”

“Oh. Is she a new transfer?”

“How did you know?”

“Uh… she looks unfamiliar.”

Bi Chun quickly came back out and handed a tissue with little strawberry and apple patterns on it to Feng Maoxing. “Here you go.”

“Uh, thanks.”

“No need to thank me, it’s what I should do.”

Qin Xiaoxiao directed her gaze outside the railing.

“Qin Xiaoxiao…”

Qin Xiaoxiao raised her delicate eyebrows slightly, unsure why the girl suddenly called her.

“About the physics test paper handed out yesterday, there are two questions I don’t quite understand. Can I ask you for help?” Bi Chun asked shyly.

“Now?”

Bi Chun’s almond-shaped eyes curved slightly. “Would it be okay during the next break? It seems like class is about to start.”

Qin Xiaoxiao nodded indifferently, neither agreeing nor refusing.

The bell rang, and Qin Xiaoxiao returned to her seat.

Her new deskmate was still asleep.

It was understandable—spending nights drinking, clubbing, and gaming naturally meant catching up on sleep during the day.

In the original novel 《The Cool and Arrogant School Bully Falls for Me》, around this time, the kind-hearted female protagonist couldn’t stand watching her deskmate constantly sleep in class and reminded him several times to pay attention and do his homework. The male lead, annoyed at having his naps interrupted, became very impatient…

The original novel didn’t delve directly into the male lead’s inner thoughts but instead described the events from the female protagonist’s perspective.

The female protagonist felt that at first, the male lead was very harsh toward her, speaking coldly and rudely. Gradually, though, his attitude shifted to ignoring her altogether—which, in her view, was already a significant improvement.

If he liked to catch up on sleep, so be it. It didn’t affect her studies, so why should she care what he did?

Qin Xiaoxiao pulled out her chemistry workbook.

Well, she wasn’t as kind-hearted as the female protagonist, after all.

Maybe that’s why she was never destined to be the protagonist.

After resting on one side for too long, her shoulder felt slightly sore. With people seated in front and behind, this seat seemed cramped for his long legs. Ji Wenchen, still with his eyes closed, shifted the angle of his legs and adjusted the direction of his upper body.

In less than three minutes, he shifted back to his original position.

His narrow, almond-shaped eyes opened slightly.

Always keeping her head down, writing away—didn’t her eyes ever get tired from not looking at anything else around her?

Copper-silver alloy and a certain concentration of nitric acid solution… This problem was a bit tricky. Qin Xiaoxiao put down her pen and began doing eye exercises while thinking it over.

Ji Wenchen’s eyelashes lowered again, and the corners of his lips tugged into a faint, not particularly pleasant curve.

During the break, as expected, Bi Chun came over with her physics test paper to ask for help.

Qin Xiaoxiao had already completed this test paper, but the teacher hadn’t provided the answers. Bi Chun was asking about two of the more difficult questions.

“I’m not sure if I got them right,” Qin Xiaoxiao said cautiously.

Bi Chun replied softly, “That’s okay. Can you explain your thought process to me?”

“Alright.” Qin Xiaoxiao picked up her pen and opened a blank page of scratch paper.

“You can write directly on my test paper; it’s fine,” Bi Chun said.

Qin Xiaoxiao switched to a pencil and began marking on Bi Chun’s test paper while explaining her thought process.

Bi Chun followed along with Qin Xiaoxiao’s steady explanation, occasionally responding softly with an “Mm.”

“So, can you calculate the speed of the ball the first time it passes through point C?”

“Mm… I’ll give it a try.”

Bi Chun took the pen and began calculating and pondering on the scratch paper.

Qin Xiaoxiao picked up her water cup and drank two sips of cool water to soothe her throat.

She screwed the lid back on the cup and placed it on the left side of the desk. Out of the corner of her eye, she inadvertently noticed her new deskmate.

At some point, he had woken up, his face half-turned in her direction.

Qin Xiaoxiao lowered her gaze and focused on Bi Chun’s calculations.

She smiled faintly to herself. See? The female lead’s charm over the male lead was no small thing—even he wasn’t sleeping anymore.