A few of the boys clearly hadn’t expected Qi An’an to suddenly stand up and scold them. Not just them— even Jiang Lu, who had just sat down with a calm expression, furrowed his brows slightly when he heard her voice and looked forward.

Qi An’an, unaware of this, continued lecturing the little brats, “What are you sitting here for, wasting air? Did the school teach you to gather around and gossip? And to gossip in such an ugly way, too. Mind your own business instead of constantly thinking about how to mock and insult others. You must be the ones who slipped through the cracks of nine years of compulsory education.”

The boys turned red from her scolding. In truth, they didn’t really understand much themselves. They had just parroted things they’d overheard from adults without knowing any better.

One of them, unable to save face after Qi An’an’s tirade, couldn’t help but snap back, “Why are you so worked up? Did we say anything wrong? Clearly, the two of you have something going on, otherwise, why would you defend him like that?”

What kind of thinking was that? Qi An’an retorted mockingly, “Yes, we do have something going on— we’re friends. Is that so strange? I have a mother-daughter relationship with my mom, a father-daughter relationship with my dad, and a sibling relationship with my brother. Are all of those ‘weird’ to you too? Is that thing growing on your neck really a head?”

As she spoke, Qi An’an deliberately shifted all the attention onto herself, framing it as if she were upset for her own sake.

It sounded like Jiang Lu had been implicated because of her, not the other way around.

“You lot, apologize to Jiang Lu.” She said firmly once they fell silent.

“Huh? What did you say?” One of the boys reacted like he’d just heard a joke. He looked incredulous. “You want us to apologize to that wild— to him? Are you kidding?”

Qi An’an gave him a baffled look and asked in return, “Do I look like I have time to joke with you? You said something wrong and hurt someone— isn’t an apology the normal thing to do?”

The boy looked as if he had just been deeply insulted. “Apologize? Why should I apologize to him? What is he to me? I—”

“Apologize means apologize.” Qi An’an’s face darkened. “Don’t push me. You should know I’m not someone you can mess with.” She didn’t care anymore. People already saw her as a rich and arrogant bully anyway. She might as well use that image to her advantage.

The boy still wanted to argue, but one of his friends tugged at his sleeve from behind. It was obvious Qi An’an came from a powerful background. She was always dropped off in luxury cars, and when she transferred to the school, the principal personally brought her to her seat. All the teachers treated her with the utmost politeness. Clearly, ordinary students like them couldn’t afford to offend her.

At last, the boys who had been gossiping lowered their heads reluctantly. Facing Jiang Lu, they mumbled like mosquitoes, “……Sorry. We— we shouldn’t have said those things about you.”

Qi An’an felt immensely satisfied as she watched from the side. She had expected this moment to come sooner or later. In front of the whole class, she needed everyone to understand that Jiang Lu was her good friend and that she would protect him. No one had the right to bully him.

This was a rare opportunity, so she had to seize it. If she could later change her unlikable image, maybe she could bring Jiang Lu into the class’s inner circle too and help him make a few genuine friends.

After all he had been through, she believed that beneath the hardened shell of his heart, there was still a soft part. He was, by nature, a gentle person. He was bound to find real friends someday.

……

Jiang Lu never imagined things would unfold this way. Ever since he was young, he had long stopped caring about others’ insults. If he confronted people every time they cursed him and demanded fairness, that would only make him look like a fool.

He never thought he would one day receive an apology. The very idea felt absurd, even laughable.

He sat up slightly straighter, his gaze lazily sweeping past the boys before landing on Qi An’an’s eyes.

They looked at each other. Her eyes remained bright and clear, like they held tiny, sparkling lights, and she looked at him with a hint of expectation.

Jiang Lu’s fingers whitened at the knuckles. Only he knew how much force he was using to grip his pen, and only he heard the faint crack as the plastic casing began to split.

“It’s fine.” Jiang Lu said in a low voice at last. He lowered his gaze, his dark lashes casting a faint shadow beneath his eyes like crow feathers.

────ρя


When class began, Qi An’an was initially attentive and focused for a few minutes. But she quickly began daydreaming. They were studying content from the third year of middle school, with just a few months to go before the high school entrance exams. For someone who had once been considered a top student, the material was just too simple.

She was still thinking about Jiang Lu’s expression at the end. Those boys had apologized to him, but he hadn’t seemed particularly happy— nor had he looked angry.

Ah, forget it. It was too complicated. Qi An’an couldn’t figure out her cub’s thoughts. All she could say was— as expected of someone destined to become a future big shot. He already had a deep and unreadable aura at such a young age.

Propping up her chin, she fell into deep thought. With that matter set aside, another problem came to mind— Jiang Lu’s deskmate situation. According to the novel’s description, no one had ever wanted to sit next to him. No matter who was placed beside him, the parents would always call the teacher to ask for a change after a few days. And each replacement ended the same way.

Eventually, it was Book Qi An’an who gave the teacher a ‘great idea’. They had Jiang Lu sit alone in a corner of the classroom, completely isolated and with no deskmate. That way, no one would be offended.

That was how it happened in the novel, but Qi An’an definitely wouldn’t let that happen now. There were a few decent classmates in this class, but just because the kids were okay didn’t mean their parents would agree. After thinking it over, the only suitable candidate seemed to be herself.

She was more than happy to do it. No one at home would object anyway.

But…… would that come off as too forward? Jiang Lu already misunderstood her a lot. If she volunteered to sit next to him, would it seem like she was plotting something again?

After class ended, Qi An’an trudged toward the water room with her cup in hand, looking deeply troubled. As she passed by the teachers’ office, a few keywords from a conversation inside caught her attention. She stopped and quietly stood outside the door.

Inside the room, a few teachers were chatting casually. The door was ajar, and their words landed clearly in Qi An’an’s ears.

“Wang Minhui’s mother called me again today, insisting on changing her child’s seat no matter what. I mean, what is this even about? We’ve switched the seating how many times already? Doesn’t it always end up the same?”

“Still, you have to change it, Teacher Zhang. That Wang Minhui in your class is a promising student. Her grades are excellent. Don’t let this issue delay her progress.”

Teacher Zhang let out a helpless sigh. “She does study well, that’s true. But if we’re talking about good students, isn’t Jiang Lu also top of the class? He ranks first in every exam.”

“Tch.” A scoff came from a greasy-sounding male voice. “What use is being good at studying these days? How many top students from prestigious universities are still struggling to find a job after graduation? Take Jiang Lu in your class, with his gloomy and withdrawn personality. He looks like he was born to rebel. How’s someone like him going to survive in society?”

He lowered his voice slightly, “And besides, whether he even gets into college is still up in the air. Our family has lived in this old district for over a decade. Have you heard about his mother’s mess? That woman hasn’t cared for him a single day since giving birth. The kid has just stubbornly survived on his own, scraping by. Since he was little, all his tuition came from picking up bottles and selling old newspapers bit by bit. The further he goes, the more expensive it gets. How long can he keep it up? With no money, how can he keep studying?”

A female teacher couldn’t help but interject, “That’s strange. If she wasn’t going to raise him, why give birth in the first place?”

When gossiping, people tended to get animated. The male teacher now sounded a bit excited, “She wanted to latch onto someone powerful, of course. I heard his father’s a big shot— owns a film company in the capital, filthy rich, and way out of our league. She thought having his child would win him over. But in the end, he just treated her like nothing. And look at how wild she is now— bringing three men home in one night.” The male teacher clicked his tongue, chuckling. “That kid, who knows how he’ll turn out in the future……”

The more they spoke, the more outrageous it got. Qi An’an couldn’t listen anymore. Frowning, she pushed the door open, and the voices inside came to an abrupt halt. All the teachers turned to look at her in unison.

Seeing it was her, they all immediately put on warm smiles. The female teacher seated in the center stood up and asked kindly, “Qi An’an, what’s wrong? Do you need something?”

This must be their homeroom teacher, Teacher Zhang. Qi An’an pursed her lips and got straight to the point, “Teacher, I want to sit with Jiang Lu.”

Teacher Zhang was momentarily stunned, and the other teachers behind her exchanged glances. She didn’t immediately understand Qi An’an’s intention but kept a gentle smile. “You…… want to sit with Jiang Lu? Are you sure? Do your parents know about this?”

Qi An’an said, “I really want to be his deskmate. My family won’t interfere in these things.”

If Qi An’an’s family didn’t meddle, then she was indeed a great candidate. She brought it up herself, and her parents wouldn’t step in. It was a relief, really.

With this, the Jiang Lu problem was basically solved, but Teacher Zhang still couldn’t quite wrap her head around it. “Qi An’an, why do you want to sit next to Jiang Lu?”

Qi An’an couldn’t exactly say that anyone who became his deskmate would end up making the poor boy suffer, and she didn’t trust anyone else. Qi An’an pursed her lips again and looked earnestly at Teacher Zhang. “Because Jiang Lu is the best student. I want to study with him.”

Teacher Zhang was finally reassured. The little girl seemed genuinely obedient. She didn’t act at all like a spoiled rich kid. Soft and well-mannered, she was hard not to like.

Teacher Zhang nodded. “Alright, Teacher will arrange it for you. You can go back for now.”

────ρя


The last class that afternoon was a self-study period. As soon as the bell rang for the second-to-last period, the girl sitting beside Jiang Lu began packing her books and stationery at lightning speed, her excitement barely concealed.

Jiang Lu didn’t look at her. He didn’t have to. He already knew that this deskmate who hadn’t even lasted long was finally escaping from the mess beside her. Worth celebrating.

In truth, sitting alone was just fine for him. Others found him repulsive that even being near him made them feel sick. But what they didn’t know was that his own disgust toward them was no less.

“Thud.”

A tall stack of books landed heavily on the adjacent desk, breaking his train of thought. The pile was so high that a few pens on top wobbled and rolled, bouncing all the way to his desk.

Jiang Lu didn’t lift his head. He glanced at the pen that had rolled near his hand— colorful and covered in cartoon patterns. A girl’s pen.

The last time a pen accidentally rolled onto his desk, its owner had thrown it away without hesitation. He assumed this time would be no different.

Because he was dirty. Anything that touched him became tainted.

But this time, the ending he expected didn’t come. A small hand reached over, quickly scooping up the pens and clutching them in her palm. She even accidentally brushed the back of his hand.

It was soft and warm.

Jiang Lu’s hand froze for a moment. For others, such accidental contact might be nothing, but for him, it was almost an unprecedented experience.

At last, he couldn’t help but look up.