“Aunt Wang said she was afraid she would be bullied alone at the new school, so she specifically transferred her to the senior year, hoping I could take care of her a little.” Bai Qiming did not look up, still flipping through his calculus book.

“Huh? You? Take care of her?” Jiang Zheng scoffed as if he had heard a joke. “Might as well go pray to Buddha. He’d be more reliable than you.”

Bai Qiming didn’t respond.

────ρя

This translation is by Pocketrobbin at S h a n g h a i f a n t a s y . c o m

“Hello, everyone. My name is Yu Qian. I just transferred from Jiang City.”

After a brief self-introduction on the podium, Yu Qian fell silent. Her gaze swept casually across the classroom and quickly landed on Bai Qiming, Jiang Zheng, and Lin Niannian, who sat by the window.

Lin Niannian, Bai Qiming’s deskmate, was fast asleep on the desk, oblivious to the noise in the classroom.

Jiang Zheng sat behind them, sharing a desk with another boy.

“Let me see where you should sit.” Teacher Xu scanned the room before settling on a seat towards the back of the middle group.

“You can sit next to Lin Li. Lin Li!” The teacher raised his voice, prompting a boy to stand up.

Yu Qian followed his gaze. The empty seat beside Lin Li happened to be next to Jiang Zheng, with only an aisle separating them.

She thanked the teacher and walked to her new seat.

“Hello, Yu Qian.” Lin Li greeted her shyly, hurriedly clearing his books off the desk. Since he had been sitting alone, his books were scattered everywhere.

“Hello, please take care of me from now on.” Yu Qian gave him a bright smile.

“Oh? Little Sister Yu Qian, why aren’t you greeting me?”

Hearing that lazy, teasing voice, Yu Qian tensed slightly. She took a deep breath and turned to her left.

“Hello, Brother Ming.

Hello, Student Jiang.”

Yu Qian casually acknowledged Jiang Zheng.

“Why not call me Brother Zheng? Such blatant favoritism is heartbreaking, you know.

After all, I’m both your neighbor and your classmate now. Acting so distant isn’t very nice, is it?”

Yu Qian took another deep breath and tuned out Jiang Zheng’s voice, focusing on organizing her desk instead.

When it came to Jiang Zheng, she was self-aware enough. She couldn’t outtalk him, nor did she want to provoke him.

“Jiang Zheng, shut up.” Bai Qiming turned around, shooting him a look of disdain.

Jiang Zheng was about to retort when the class bell rang.

Bai Qiming gently nudged Lin Niannian to wake her up for the lesson.

Lin Niannian groggily shook her head, then turned to see Yu Qian sitting diagonally behind her. Her sleepy eyes instantly brightened with delight.

Since it was class time, Lin Niannian didn’t make a big fuss, but she kept glancing back at Yu Qian with a beaming smile that made Yu Qian slightly uneasy.

Bai Qiming helplessly reminded Lin Niannian to focus on the lesson.

Meanwhile, Jiang Zheng, sitting to Yu Qian’s left, had no intention of paying attention in class. He simply turned his head and openly stared at Yu Qian the entire period.

Yu Qian, who was feeling the constant gazes from both of them: “……”

These two had issues.

Lin Niannian was one thing, but didn’t Jiang Zheng need to attend class? He hadn’t even flipped a single page of his book.

Yu Qian secretly grumbled to herself while diligently taking notes.

But then again, he really didn’t need to. She suddenly remembered that Jiang Zheng and Bai Qiming had both been guaranteed admission to Peking University since their first year of high school.

Bai Qiming stayed in this class to accompany Lin Niannian, while Jiang Zheng attended purely out of boredom……

Hiss…… She suddenly felt a little envious.

Yu Qian remained expressionless as she listened to the lecture, but her grip on the pen unconsciously tightened.

Jiang Zheng watched Yu Qian sit there like a model student, completely unaffected by his presence as she focused on taking notes, and his eyes gleamed with interest.

When class finally ended, Yu Qian stretched her sore wrist. Math was truly her nemesis. One lesson and she was already overwhelmed.

“Qianqian! You’re my classmate now!”

The moment the bell rang, Lin Niannian eagerly rushed to Yu Qian’s side, her face full of excitement.

“That’s great! Now we can go to and from school together!”

Her expression was pure joy. She had always gone to school with Bai Qiming and Jiang Zheng, but now she could go with Yu Qian instead.

In her mind, Lin Niannian had already envisioned holding hands with Yu Qian, chatting and laughing on the way home, going shopping together, and eating delicious food.

Yu Qian looked at Lin Niannian, her tone unconsciously becoming lighter, “Mhm, we can go to and from school together from now on. I’ll be relying on you to take care of me, Niannian.”

Compared to boys, she definitely preferred girls.

Yu Qian gave Lin Niannian a big, bright smile.

Bai Qiming watched the two girls getting along so well and said nothing, quietly continuing to read his book.

After three more classes, the morning lessons finally ended.

“Qianqian, let’s go eat!”

Lin Niannian, a little excited, grabbed Yu Qian’s hand and pulled her outside. Bai Qiming silently followed behind them, while Jiang Zheng attempted to sling his arm over Bai Qiming’s shoulder, only to be pushed away with a look of disdain.

“Where should we eat?”

Yu Qian let Lin Niannian lead her along.

“Well…… Qianqian, do you want to eat at the cafeteria or go outside?” Lin Niannian hesitated.

Hengcheng High School was an open-campus school, allowing students to go out at noon. The school cafeteria also had good food.

“Let’s go to the cafeteria. I’d like to try the food there.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

Lin Niannian changed direction and continued leading Yu Qian forward.

After walking for over ten minutes, they finally arrived at the cafeteria. Lin Niannian took Yu Qian straight to the third floor.

Looking at the cafeteria, which was as large as a basketball court on each level, and the upscale interior design, Yu Qian couldn’t help but be amazed. Once again, she felt the overwhelming power of capital.

Since Yu Qian had just arrived at school and hadn’t gotten a meal card yet, Bai Qiming naturally stepped forward and swiped his card for three portions of rice.

One serving of rice was one scoop. Bai Qiming glanced at Yu Qian, hesitated for a moment, and then swiped again.

Yu Qian: What kind of look is that? Why do I feel insulted?

“Is this enough?” Bai Qiming, for once, asked considerately.

Although he hadn’t been paying special attention, he had a general idea of Yu Qian’s appetite.

Unlike Lin Niannian who was picky with food, Yu Qian loved rice. She always had at least two bowls per meal, and if she liked the dishes, she could even have another.

“It’s enough, thanks, Brother Ming.” Yu Qian thanked Bai Qiming under Lin Niannian’s surprised gaze.

“I say, Ah Ming, you’re playing favorites too much. You got rice for both of them, so why not for me?”

Jiang Zheng poked Bai Qiming with a finger, looking as if he was demanding equal treatment.

Bai Qiming silently took a step back. Ever since Yu Qian said they weren’t normal that day, he had found it difficult to look at his friends the same way.

After a few jokes, Jiang Zheng casually took out his own card and swiped for two servings of rice.

Unlike Bai Qiming, who was like a block of wood, Jiang Zheng was still growing. If not for the fact that he found the cafeteria food mediocre, he could have easily eaten another serving of rice.

After getting their meals and picking out their dishes, the four of them found an empty spot and sat down. Yu Qian immediately started eating.

She had chosen three dishes— spicy pork ribs, stir-fried shredded potatoes with green peppers, and winter melon soup. Jiang Zheng had picked the exact same dishes.

Lin Niannian only took fish-flavored shredded pork and pork rib soup. Bai Qiming had the same as Lin Niannian but added a dish of stir-fried corn.

Yu Qian took a bite of the pork ribs and her eyes instantly lit up. Her eating speed visibly increased.

“Can you two stop staring at me while I eat?”

The two burning gazes made Yu Qian feel like the ribs didn’t taste as good anymore.

“Little Sister Yu Qian, it’s a shame you’re not a food livestreamer.” Jiang Zheng remarked as he looked down at his identical meal. Why didn’t his food taste as good as Yu Qian’s?

“Qianqian, is it really that delicious?” Lin Niannian looked doubtfully at Yu Qian’s food. It didn’t even look that appetizing to her.