Chapter 4

Song Cheng hesitated and said, “Well… I’m afraid you might misunderstand.”

Wen Xiangyi casually nodded as if she really believed it, and continued on her own way.

She should have believed it, right?

Song Cheng felt a bit nervous, but Wen Xiangyi was still so young this year, just a child, her thoughts probably weren’t as profound as they would be in the future.

Thinking this way, Song Cheng felt more at ease.

Wen Xiangyi didn’t speak, and the two walked in silence until they reached the office. The teachers were out for a meeting and hadn’t returned, so they waited in the office.

As they walked, the cold wind cooled Song Cheng’s heated thoughts. Without that rush, she started feeling uneasy again.

She had analyzed the pros and cons, but walking a path she had never walked before made her feel uncertain.

She glanced secretly at Wen Xiangyi.

Wen Xiangyi didn’t waste any time. While Song Cheng was daydreaming, she had already placed the physics exam papers on the desk and started sorting through the practice books. Seeing that some had already been corrected, she picked them up and organized them.

The physics teacher liked to sort the papers by grades, so Wen Xiangyi used the waiting time to organize them.

When He Nianyao mentioned that all the teachers liked Wen Xiangyi, Song Cheng wasn’t surprised at all. Wen Xiangyi could always get things done.

It seemed she had always been calm and collected since high school, as if she always had a set of guidelines in her chest, knowing exactly what to do and achieving it to the fullest.

Song Cheng hesitantly called out, “Wen Xiangyi.”

Saying the name was much smoother than she had imagined, and she hid any difficulty well.

Wen Xiangyi didn’t lift her head and replied, “Hmm?”

“You think…” Song Cheng gathered her courage, “What if I stop being a sports student?”

Wen Xiangyi looked up at her.

Song Cheng quickly added, “I mean, do you think if I start focusing on my studies now, I can get into college?”

She just wanted to hear Wen Xiangyi’s opinion.

It was just a question. Wen Xiangyi wasn’t a freak who would get upset over a single question.

How should I put this? Wen Xiangyi was indeed impressive. Even though she was still young and not an adult like herself, she was already a top student.

Anyway, she had asked, and if she regretted it later, she would have already said it.

Song Cheng looked at Wen Xiangyi with both anticipation and anxiety, but Wen Xiangyi didn’t answer immediately.

It felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head. Song Cheng hung her head, feeling a bit disheartened.

They weren’t close yet, and Wen Xiangyi usually ignored people who weren’t important. She had forgotten this.

She picked up her self-esteem: “Actually, I’ve already decided. I was just asking you casually. No need to reply—”

“Why can’t you get in?”

!

Song Cheng raised her head.

Wen Xiangyi said calmly, “Is it very hard to get into college?”

The confidence of being the top student in the grade was contagious.

Yes, is getting into college really that hard?

Song Cheng’s eyes lit up.

A group of teachers came in, and she lifted her head proudly, recognizing the homeroom teacher from her vague memories.

“Teacher, I don’t want to be a sports student anymore!”

The homeroom teacher, Mr. Li, with his round reading glasses, looked at her from under the lenses:

“Not a sports student?”

“I want to focus on cultural subjects and get into college,” Song Cheng quickly added, “I want to study science.”

Science and engineering are good for employment.

After listening, Mr. Li pondered for a moment.

“Song Cheng, your enthusiasm for studying is commendable. But don’t you think getting into college might be too difficult for you?”

“?”

Song Cheng was deeply hurt.

Even Wen Xiangyi was kinder than Mr. Li!

Feeling defeated, Song Cheng pursed her lips and stubbornly stood her ground.

Mr. Li observed her.

Song Cheng’s silence revealed her stubbornness. Even when faced with his gentle refusal, she hadn’t wavered, indicating she had already made up her mind before coming.

But why?

Mr. Li was focused on the majority of students preparing for the college entrance exam. Sports students had very little study time. Aside from being recognized, Song Cheng was the most graceful girl in the class. Training in sports with Teacher Xu, Mr. Li knew almost nothing about her.

She usually came quietly, left quietly, and didn’t disrupt the class. At most, she slept at the back of the classroom, making her a low-maintenance student.

Mr. Li’s impression of her was limited to the time he had caught her bag hanging from her chair when he entered the class through the back door last month.

The all-black bag was as thin as a piece of hard cloth, with frayed edges and dust, probably thrown on the ground every day. Mr. Li had thought that Song Cheng didn’t seem like a typical girl, not particular about her belongings.

But as the homeroom teacher, he knew at least that the sports team teacher was very satisfied with Song Cheng.

It was clear that Song Cheng had a future in sports.

After some thought, Mr. Li called Wen Xiangyi from the physics teacher’s desk:

“Have you collected the papers? Bring me Song Cheng’s.”

Wen Xiangyi flipped through the papers and brought them over.

Mr. Li examined the back of the test papers and, after a quick glance, felt confident.

He spread the papers out on the desk.

The answers were sparse, like the broth from the second cafeteria, with fewer words than the questions.

Song Cheng kept her head bowed low.

What made her more uncomfortable than Mr. Li’s scrutiny was that Wen Xiangyi was standing right next to her.

She saw it too.

Mr. Li said, “Think it over some more. By the way, have you told your family?”

Song Cheng replied, “Not yet.”

Mr. Li responded with an “oh” and said, “You’ll need your parents’ approval for this.”

The bell rang for class.

“Alright, you can go back to class now. Wen Xiangyi will take the assignments back and distribute them.”

After Mr. Li finished speaking, he lowered his head to continue writing his lesson plan.

The stack of practice books, weighing about forty to fifty, was a bit heavy. Normally, Wen Xiangyi would split the load with another girl.

Wen Xiangyi reached out for the practice books on the desk, but before she could pick them up, another pair of hands had already lifted them.

Hmm?

Wen Xiangyi glanced to the side and saw that Song Cheng was already ahead, carrying the practice books.

She followed Song Cheng through the office door and ran a couple of steps down the hallway to catch up with her, walking side by side.

The two of them were about the same height, so how could Song Cheng walk so fast while carrying the heavy practice books?

Moreover, why was Song Cheng interfering with her?

After a series of events today, Wen Xiangyi really couldn’t figure out what Song Cheng was up to.

Was she uncomfortable seeing Wen Xiangyi carrying the assignments alone? Couldn’t bear to watch?

With curiosity and observation, Wen Xiangyi said, “Let me help you with some of them.”

Song Cheng absentmindedly replied, “Forget it, with your strength.”

She could easily grip both of Wen Xiangyi’s wrists with one hand.

?

Wen Xiangyi asked, “How do you know how strong I am?”

Song Cheng chuckled softly, “Others might not know, but I…”

Wait.

The students rushing to their classes and the nearby classroom suddenly made Song Cheng come to her senses.

She almost bit her tongue. “… Can’t I just pretend a bit?”

“…”

It seemed that Song Cheng was indeed easygoing and even had a sharp tongue.

Unable to make sense of Song Cheng’s nonsense, Wen Xiangyi couldn’t be bothered to argue further and let her carry the books alone.

Seeing that Wen Xiangyi wasn’t competing for the books, Song Cheng relaxed and held the practice books tightly.

With Wen Xiangyi around, was there really a need for Wen Xiangyi to carry something?

She was clumsy and often ended up bruised from bumping into things, so who knew what would happen if she had to carry something heavier!