Chapter 4:

Wen Susu held her breath for a few seconds before suppressing the question that was already on the tip of her tongue, “How come you’re here?”

But she still couldn’t believe what she was seeing there.

—

Anxious and uneasy all morning, she hadn’t seen Su Miao Miao transferred to her class.

Before coming, she had breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that it was due to certain circumstances that her parents had changed their minds about having Su Miao Miao transferred to her class.

But she never expected to see Su Miao Miao here!

And… it seemed that the other person had come out of the office of the computer training group where Shang Yan was.

The thought of Shang Yan and Su Miao Miao being in the same office all morning made Wen Susu feel like her heart was being scratched by a cat.

She couldn’t control her expression, which became ugly.

But Shang Yan had already turned to look at the training group office behind him, not noticing Wen Susu’s change in expression.

“Kid?” He raised an eyebrow, teasingly, “Why the rush?”

“…”

Having been discovered, Su Miao Miao had to silently withdraw her hand from pushing open the door.

She turned around, not looking at the two of them, and quietly walked towards the opposite library.

In no time, her petite figure disappeared at the entrance of the library.

Shang Yan retracted his gaze, only to see Wen Susu looking at him with a complicated expression.

The hint of a smile in his eyes faded, and Shang Yan lazily furrowed his brows.

“Anything else?”

Wen Susu lowered her head, “…That girl just now, is she a new member of your group?”

With this question, Shang Yan remembered his earlier nonsense.

He couldn’t help but smirk.

“She doesn’t count, she’s just a kid.”

This statement sparked a glimmer of hope in Wen Susu’s eyes.

She tentatively asked in a low voice, “Is this new member of yours always wearing a hat like that?”

“…”

There was no response for a while. Wen Susu looked up in confusion, only to see the boy standing with his hands in his pockets, his eyes cast downward, staring at her.

His deep and handsome features were coated with a faint gold from the thin light coming in from outside the window. The straight bridge of his nose cast a faint shadow on his pale skin, and his thin lips were pressed into a very subtle arc, impossible to tell if it was a smile or just mockery.

As Wen Susu looked up, her dark eyes seemed to chill, and her thin lips parted slightly.

—

“Do people from our group have anything to do with you?”

“…”

Wen Susu’s face went pale.

After a few seconds, she stood there with clenched fists, tears welling up in her eyes as she glared at Shang Yan, then turned and ran down the stairs.

Watching her disappear, the boy’s already faint emotions dissipated further.

He turned around expressionlessly and walked back.

As he reached the door, his long legs paused.

Behind the door, someone muttered, “Looks like he’s back,” followed by a flurry of hurried footsteps and murmurs.

Shang Yan pushed the door open with his toe and glanced down.

A chair lay overturned on the floor.

And in front of each computer desk, people were diligently working, completely absorbed in their tasks.

Shang Yan stepped inside without lifting his eyelids.

“Who knocked this over, pick it up yourself.”

He walked back to his computer.

The other four boys in the group listened attentively for a while, seeing that Shang Yan didn’t get angry. Wu Hongbo dragged his swivel chair over, his face concerned.

“Brother Yan, did the little peacock leave?”

“Yeah.”

The person at the computer replied lazily without even pausing.Wu Hongbo asked, “Hey, have you guys… reached any conclusions?”

“What conclusions?”

Shang Yan finally slowed down his typing speed and lazily glanced sideways.

“The little peacock didn’t come all the way here to confess to Brother Yan, did she?… After waiting all summer, she couldn’t even wait for you to finish your afternoon classes before coming to the training group—Brother Yan, didn’t you give her any indication?”

Wu Hongbo nudged him with a raised eyebrow.

Shang Yan remained silent for two seconds, then suddenly smirked.

Just as Wu Hongbo was caught off guard by this smile, he heard a magnetic voice in his ear that felt like frozen ice shards:

“Since you couldn’t find that script bug, I just went ahead and fixed it for you, so you won’t have to delete it yourself.”

Wu Hongbo: “??”

“At the latest this afternoon, you can start rewriting.”

Wu Hongbo was bewildered for a few seconds, then instantly felt weak in the knees:

“No no no—Brother Yan, I was wrong, that’s something I’ve been busy with all summer—please spare my life from your keyboard!”

Amidst Wu Hongbo’s cries, the door of the training group was pushed open, and a girl holding a book quietly walked in.

Shang Yan, feeling annoyed, got up and walked over to the girl.

He lowered his eyes to assess her.

“Kid, what book did you get?”

Su Miao Miao silently looked at the hand that reached under her eyes: the knuckles were long and distinct, covered with thin muscles, even when stretched out, they looked fair and strong.

She pursed her lips and didn’t move.

“Now you’re my apprentice, you have to listen to me.”

Shang Yan coaxed.

“…”

Su Miao Miao hesitated for two seconds before slowly placing the book back up, being careful not to press it against him.

Shang Yan couldn’t help but curl his lips upwards.

His gaze fell on the book cover.

” ‘C Language – From Beginner to Master’?”

The end of his tone lifted slightly, with a hint of hoarse laughter in his throat.

Shang Yan’s voice was clean and clear, even reading a book title sounded particularly pleasant.

Su Miao Miao was a bit distracted, then she heard the voice turn to the side:

“Can someone find her a more suitable book?”

Several people looked at each other.

Lu Wenze from the group spoke up, “Brother Yan, this book should be fine for beginners, right?”

In the face of Shang Yan’s authority, which was comparable to Teacher Huang, Lu Wenze questioned with caution.Shang Yan chuckled softly.

“Get her a different one.”

Wu Hongbo was curious too: “… What should we change it to?”

” ‘C Language – From Beginner to Giving Up.’ “

Wu Hongbo: “…”

Wu Hongbo: *chuckles*

Su Miao Miao: “…………”

After a quiet two seconds, the girl raised her hand, forcefully grabbed the book back from Shang Yan’s hand, and then walked into the room without looking back.

Wu Hongbo couldn’t hold back his laughter and walked over, “Brother Yan, you managed to annoy even the most obedient newcomer.”

“…Indeed, she’s really angry.”

Shang Yan smiled, retracting his gaze and looking at the inside of his thumb.

A white mark was slowly oozing blood from where the pages had cut it.

Beside him, Wu Hongbo lowered his head and was startled to see the wound on Shang Yan’s hand.

“How did you hurt your hand?”

After a moment of daze, he came to his senses, recalling the rumors about Shang Yan at school, and his voice trembled, “By… by the new recruit?”

Their new team member wouldn’t cause bloodshed on her first day in the group, right.

However, Shang Yan seemed to be in a good mood, just smiling and lowering his eyes.

He raised his hand, casually licked away the bloodstain, then turned back to his computer.

Wu Hongbo was even more astonished, “Brother Yan, you’re not angry at all? Have you been fasting these days?”

Shang Yan glanced at him.

Wu Hongbo shrank his neck, sat back in his seat for half a minute, but couldn’t help but turn his head back, “Brother Yan, if I had caused this wound on your hand, what would you do?”

“…”

The person typing code chuckled lazily.

An inexplicable chill.

“I wouldn’t do anything, but you might.”

Wu Hongbo: “…”

The previous night, after being dragged to the internet cafe by Li Zhe and the others, Shang Yan finished coding and fell asleep at the desk.

When he woke up, it was already noon, and no one dared to disturb him in the training group. The room was empty by now.

He rubbed his stiff neck and was about to leave when he caught sight of something on the corner of the desk—A cartoon band-aid.

—

The brown little monkey hugged its own balled-up tail, its shiny black eyes gazing at him.

Shang Yan raised an eyebrow slightly, feeling a slight tickle in his heart from that little tail.

And on the corner of the nearby table, there was also a small sticky note, with delicate handwriting that said “Sorry.”

Shang Yan scoffed softly, lifted his leg, and walked out.

As he reached the door, somewhat inexplicably, he glanced sideways at the open inner room.

Naturally, there was no one there.

The boy paused for a moment, picked up the band-aid from the table, and then left the office.

Outside the window.

The leaves of the trees lay in the sunlight, swayed by the summer breeze, casting quiet shadows into the room, swaying on the sticky note on the corner of the table.

After dinner, Su Miao Miao returned to her room early.

The new bedding in the guest room hadn’t been arranged yet, so tonight she would still sleep in the same room with Wen Susu.

The soundproofing in the Wen family’s villa was very good.

But even with the door closed tightly, Su Miao Miao could still faintly hear the argument between Wen Susu and her parents in the dining room downstairs.

However, she couldn’t make out the content clearly.

Sitting at the small desk, the girl extended her delicate white hand and adjusted the hoodie’s hat, distancing herself from those voices a bit further.

Vague and elusive.

As if coming from another world.

As Su Miao Miao flipped through page 42 of “From Beginner to Master”, the door behind her was forcefully pushed open.

Wen Susu walked in with an unpleasant expression.

Upon entering, Wen Susu stopped in her tracks. Her gaze was complex as she glanced at the figure at the desk, then she walked to the other side of the room with some resentment.

The room fell silent.

The girl at the desk even breathed so lightly that it was imperceptible, as if she didn’t exist at all.

After several hesitations, Wen Susu couldn’t help but be the first to break the silence.

“Miao Miao,” she suppressed the emotion in her voice, “How did you end up in our school’s computer group?”

“…”

The fingertip holding the neutral pen paused.

“Arranged by Teacher Li.”

After a few seconds of contemplation, Wen Susu realized that the “Teacher Li” Su Miao Miao mentioned was their class teacher, Li Shijie.

She felt somewhat unwilling, but could only frown.

“Did Shang Yan see you at school today… I mean, did you take off your hat?”

“No.”

The girl turned a page of the book gently.

As her gaze fell on the corner of the page with “From Beginner to Master”, Su Miao Miao inexplicably recalled that clear and mocking laughter.

Her fingertips paused on the edge of the book, appearing almost transparent in the light.

“…He didn’t notice me.”

She lowered her eyelashes and spoke softly.

“…”

Wen Susu breathed a sigh of relief. Like sparks of hope rising from dead ashes, her eyes became lively again.

She was already considering how to apologize to him tomorrow for her impulsiveness today.

Lost in such excitement, Wen Susu forgot to pay attention; she had only asked a few discreet questions, yet the girl had already said what she most wanted to hear from her heart.

Under the dim light of the lamp, Su Miao Miao closed the book. Wen Susu, who was already asleep on the large bed behind her, made the room so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Su Miao Miao lifted her head and glanced at the digital alarm clock. It was already nearing midnight. She wouldn’t be staying up late tonight… If the housekeeper knew about this, she would surely be scolded again. Su Miao Miao stood up silently. She took out the gray hoodie and clean underwear neatly folded by the maid from the wardrobe. Quietly, she walked out of the room and headed to the guest room’s bathroom.

The master bedroom was just a few steps away. The lights were already off inside, indicating that Wen Chengzhou and his wife had already gone to sleep. Su Miao Miao slowed her steps even further, trying not to make as little noise as possible. As she was about to pass by the door of the master bedroom, a hysterical female voice, muffled by the soundproof walls, came through the crack of the door.

“Wen Chengzhou, am I a maid from the Su family?! The Su family’s child doesn’t take care of herself. Why should we take her in? Is this place a shelter or a recycling bin?!”

“…She’s just temporarily staying with us for two years. Don’t say such harsh things.”

“Two years? That’s easy for you to say… with the temperament of that old lady from the Su family, it’s strange if she agrees to take her back!”

“The Su family helped us a lot in the past, consider it as repaying the favor.”

“But she’s sick! What if one day, she dies in our house—”

* slap *

“…Wen Chengzhou! How dare you hit me for the sake of a bastard from the Su family—her own grandmother doesn’t even want to see her. Why are you so fond of her? Is she your daughter!?”

“That’s enough!… I don’t want to hear your nonsense anymore.”

Wen Chengzhou stormed out of the room, his face dark with anger. As he reached the door, he twitched his ears, turning alertly to the side—only to find an empty corridor at the end, bathed in moonlight shining through the glass windows. Finding nothing, Wen Chengzhou frowned, then turned to the balcony to smoke. The door of the guest room, a few meters away, slowly closed, leaving only a narrow gap.

Su Miao Miao sat slowly on the cold floor. She hugged her knees, resting her chin on the towel in front of her, quietly watching the sky outside the French window. The dark branches reached out as if trying to touch the stars and the moon in the sky.

“…You can’t reach them,” the girl whispered softly in the dark room. Just like the love that Wen Susu could easily obtain meant nothing to her. But for her… it was out of reach. So she didn’t want to hope for it.

Sanzhong is a closed-day school.

According to the regulations, all students must have lunch in the school cafeteria unless they have requested leave.

“—Conspiracy! This must be a conspiracy by the school cafeteria!” Turning away from the serving window, Li Zhe held the tray with one hand and stirred the food in the tray with the chopsticks in the other. Then he disdainfully put down the chopsticks. “If it weren’t for this mandatory rule, the cafeteria would go bankrupt in three days due to unsold meals.”

At the next window, Shang Yan, who took the tray, also frowned. But he didn’t say anything, took the chopsticks, and walked towards the dining area.

“Hey, Brother Yan, wait for me.”

A few steps away, the two met Wu Hongbo and Luan Wenze.

These two were not only in the same training group but also in the same class. It seemed that they had just finished class together. Seeing Shang Yan, Wu Hongbo immediately came forward with flattery. “Hey, Brother Yan, you’re personally coming out to eat?”

Shang Yan glanced at him, his lips twitched slightly, a smile that wasn’t quite a smile. His eyes were also dark and cold. “Not ‘personally’ coming out to eat, waiting for you to feed me?”

“I wouldn’t dare, I’ve already taken Shu Wei’s spot. She’d tear me apart if she found out,” Wu Hongbo looked around, “Hey, why isn’t Shu Wei with you at lunch today?”

Li Zhe said, “Probably because the senior three teachers dragged the class again.”

Before his words fell, Shang Yan had already walked to the dining area. Wu Hongbo and Li Zhe, who had a few acquaintances, didn’t mind and approached. “Hey, Brother Yan, is he in a bad mood?”

Wu Hongbo sighed. “Do you know what our last class was?”

Li Zhe sighed, “Chinese.”

Li Zhe pursed his lips and nodded silently, sighing inwardly before turning to follow.

The others at the food counter gradually gathered, some responsible for saving seats. At this moment, they stood at the innermost part of the dining area, waving their arms in their direction.

“Brother Yan.”

The voice wasn’t particularly loud, but those who heard it, each and every one of them, cast curious or fearful glances towards the leading boy among them.

Even freshmen at Sanzhong High School who hadn’t heard of the nickname “Business Yama” were now shifting their gaze from admiration to fear amidst the rumors circulating about him.

Li Zhe’s expression darkened slightly.

But Shang Yan seemed oblivious, his pale face calm, devoid of emotion, as he lazily made his way towards the inner dining area with his tray.

Seeing Shang Yan’s lack of anger, Li Zhe breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly followed suit.

However, just a few meters ahead, the boy in front suddenly halted, then stopped, his gaze shifting to a nearby table askance.

Li Zhe followed his line of sight.

“Oh, Brother Yan, isn’t that Mr. Huang from your computer group?… Who’s the shorty sitting next to him, his son?”

“…”

After receiving no response for a while, Li Zhe curiously turned his head back.

Only to see the boy standing there with a smirk in his eyes, a slight curve on his thin lips.

As if his mood had suddenly improved.

Li Zhe hesitated, then turned his head and took two steps forward, stopping at the table.

He bent down, wearing a playful expression— “Good afternoon, Mr. Huang. Taking your son out for lunch?”

“…”

Hearing this unserious tone, Huang Qisheng frowned and looked up.

Seeing it was Li Zhe, he wasn’t surprised at all.

Li Zhe grinned, “Every time you see me, you always have that look of dissatisfaction.”

“Do you know why?”

Li Zhe’s eyes glanced at the child in a David shirt next to Huang Qisheng, who was blocking most of his view— “Is this your son next to you? Looks like he’s about fourteen or fifteen, right?”

Huang Qisheng turned his head back, ignoring him.

“Focus on your meal.”

Li Zhe stood up.

“Well, Mr. Huang, enjoy your meal—”

Before he could finish, a metallic tray made a “clack” sound, pressing down on the table.

Li Zhe was stunned for two seconds, “Brother Yan, our table is over there.”

With slender fingers, the tray was placed down and calmly pushed towards the girl next to the one wearing the David shirt.

Shang Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly, a soft chuckle escaping his lips.

“Don’t you know to accompany the teacher during meals… understand?”

The words were directed at Li Zhe.But those dark eyes didn’t blink, staring unwaveringly at the girl next to Huang Qisheng.

Li Zhe: “…………?”

He had no idea that in Shang Yan’s dictionary, there was even a word like “understand”?