"Why not?" Lu Guixin blandly answered. "It's not like you're the only guy in the world."

  　　Zhou Fu narrowed his eyes and stared at her calm and indifferent face before smirking a couple of seconds later. "I'm not the only guy, huh? You get to whatever you want, and that includes Tan Ying waiting on you when you eat, him opening the car door for you, and him going to a hotel with you."

  　　She said she understood and that she'd keep her distance from Tan Ying when I asked her to be careful and not cause trouble for herself. How is this keeping her distance? Zhou Fu glared at her. "Why did you get into the car and hotel on your own? You should've gotten Tan Ying to carry you in. He shouldn't tire his princess, no?"

  　　When Lu Guixin heard that, she lifted her head to look at him. She broke into a chuckle after that, her eyes forming crescents. All of a sudden, she went back into her obedient persona. With her aloofness faded, she became so gentle and docile that it seemed unreal. She asked him softly, "Do you mind it a lot?"

  　　Zhou Fu didn't say anything, but his expression was dark.

  　　"But…" Lu Guixin slowly continued. "What does it have to do with you?"

  　　"What does it have to do with me?" Zhou Fu gritted. "Lu Guixin, weren't you the one who said you wanted to woo me? Doesn't that concern me, then?"

  　　"This is what you said to me." Lu Guixin smiled. "There's nothing between us."

  　　Zhou Fu had initially suspected that she was angry because of something he had said, but he was certain of it now. However, just as he was about to explain, she tilted her head and said, "You only mean something when I'm interested in you."

  　　Zhou Fu's eyes dimmed as he gazed at her, and the words that came to his lips disappeared. His voice was low and deep as he asked, "So you weren't being serious when you approached me and wooed me? Was it a game to you? So it was just an act the entire time?"

  　　"Does that matter?" Lu Guixin nonchalantly asked.

  　　Zhou Fu quietly waited for her answer.

  　　The silence stretched as they stared at each other.

  　　"Yes." Lu Guixin nodded and perfunctorily answered, "It was a game as well as an act. Are you satisfied now? If you are, then move aside."

  　　The words felt like a blow to Zhou Fu. His breathing stopped as he looked into her cold eyes furiously. He kept his temper in check as he slowly said, "No. I don't believe it, either. Lu Guixin, I'm not so free to act and play with you."

  　　Lu Guixin took her hands out of her pockets and straightened her legs as she met his gaze with irritation. "Get out of the way."

  　　"I'm serious about you," said Zhou Fu stiffly while feeling angry and complicated. I wasn't the one who pestered her. She was the one who kept appearing in front of me. She made me—someone who didn't care about the future—start planning it.

  　　Zhou Fu took a deep breath, and he seemed calmer when he spoke again, albeit his tone was still a bit harsh. "Can't you stop and think about what happened in the morning?"

  　　"Think, my *ss!"

  　　As soon as she said that, a fist came flying toward Zhou Fu's face. He swiftly blocked it with his hand. After nearly getting kicked by her, he dared not to underestimate her and, thus, used his full force to grab her wrist.

  　　Lu Guixin tried to remove her hand, but she couldn't break free in one go because his grip on her was too strong. Hence, she swung her left arm towards his neck.

  　　Unfortunately, she was stopped once again just as her fist was about to reach his neck. The next second, she was spun around with her arms crossed in front of her chest. Her back bumped into Zhou Fu's chest, sticking closely to it. She could feel his body heat even through the clothes, and she was trapped in his embrace.

  　　She reacted immediately and kicked her leg up towards his head.

  　　While hugging her, Zhou Fu turned around and took a step back to reflect her attack.

  　　Lu Guixin's vision blurred. The next second, she was trapped in between the metal door and Zhou Fu. She struggled to break free, but his grip remained tight on her, and his hands wouldn't budge. She frowned and turned to glare at him.

  　　"My mother died when I was nine," said Zhou Fu all of a sudden in a deep and complicated voice. Even though he hid his emotions, it was like a thick black mist that wouldn't go away, and it felt suffocating.

  　　Lu Guixin stopped struggling, her long dark eyelashes fluttering slightly. She opened her lips as if she wanted to apologize, but she decided against saying anything in the end.

  　　It was quiet and tense, and all that could be heard were the sounds of their breaths. After a while, Lu Guixin could feel his chest heave behind her.

  　　Zhou Fu's attitude softened as he calmed down. "Things were so chaotic online, and it was only a matter of time before the entire school knew about it. If you run around, you'll hear a lot of nasty things. There are more people who want to see you become the butt of the joke than people who use their brains."

  　　Although he could delete the posts and comments on the school forum, he couldn't stop people from gossiping. He was explaining what he said back then: 'There's nothing between us, so why did you come all the way to give me an explanation?' He had said that partly out of pique and because he didn't want her to run around. He didn't like seeing her together with Tan Ying, but whatever happened with Tan Ying had nothing to do with him, and she was all he cared about.

  　　"I knew that there was nothing between you and Tan Ying," Zhou Fu continued. "So there wasn't a need for you to explain things to me."

  　　He started explaining the things he said from the moment she acted differently around him. "You were acting oddly when you beat Xia Cheng up. There were many people secretly taking videos of you from the classrooms. If the public put pressure on the school, the school would take the matter seriously, and you'd be given a severe punishment. Given how advanced the internet is nowadays, even the smallest matters are magnified infinitely. You'll still have to attend school, so you won't be able to avoid criticism and gossip."

  　　Zhou Fu paused for a few seconds before saying with much difficulty, "I was worried about you. I was worried this whole thign would blow up."

  　　The last sentence was spoken rather stiffly—he wasn't good at saying such things.

  　　He could handle all sorts of consequences. They could transfer to another school if she didn't want to stay in Ming City High School, but it couldn't be because she was expelled for beating a student up and was being cyber-bullied.

  　　"Was my explanation clear enough?" Zhou Fu asked carefully as he looked into her eyes with bated breath. This was the first time he had spoken so much all at once. Having been alone for such a long time, he had almost forgotten how to express his emotions. All he knew how to do was numbly move forward. It was only after meeting Lu Guixin that he had his emotional ups and downs.

  　　"Are you done speaking?" Lu Guixin remained calm as ever. "Let me go if you are."

  　　From her indifferent expression, it seemed that whatever he did was useless.

  　　"If you're still mad at me after hearing my explanation, you can hit me until you're appeased."

  　　"I'm not interested." She wriggled her wrists. "Let go."

  　　"Then what about the wish you wanted me to fulfill?" Zhou Fu pressed on as he looked at the side of her face. "I saw what you wrote in that letter. You don't have to get into the top three hundred. I can fulfill your wish right now."

  　　Lu Guixin inclined her head and looked at her wrists, which Zhou Fu was gripping tightly. Her gaze lingered on his long and slender hands for a few seconds before looking up. Her bright eyes stared into his as she said blandly, "Zhou Fu, I won't take back what I've thrown away. There's no point in a forced relationship. I don't want it anymore."

  　　"I picked it up," Zhou Fu blurted. Then, in an almost interrogative tone, he asked, "If there's no point in a forced relationship, then why did you still woo me?"

  　　Just then, a vibration sound could be heard in the quiet office. It was Lu Guixin's phone.

  　　The tense atmosphere between them broke.

  　　A few seconds later, Zhou Fu released her and turned sideways with his body still blocking the door. His gaze was fixed on her all the while.

  　　Lu Guixin could feel the strong stare coming from him, but she ignored it and massaged her wrists.

  　　Zhou Fu frowned when he noticed the startling red marks around her fair and slender wrists that were left behind from his strong grip.

  　　Lu Guixin, however, nonchalantly took out her phone from her pocket.

  　　While staring at her wrists, Zhou Fu noticed the caller ID on her phone. The call was from Ms. Xi, and there was one teacher with the surname Xi who was teaching the Year Ones.

  　　Lu Guixin answered the call. "Yes, Ms. Xi?"

  　　Xi Yan's gentle voice was heard over the line. "Guixin, if you've decided to go back to your parents' side, you don't have to take part in the monthly exams this time. Go take a few days off to adjust your mood. I'll contact your parents to do the transfer procedures for you."

  　　The call wasn't particularly loud, but Zhou Fu managed to hear everything Xi Yan said as he'd undergone training on hearing before and was rather standing rather close to Lu Guixin. His throat immediately tightened as he stared at Lu Guixin in panic. She's leaving?

  　　"Take some time to think about it," added Xi Yan.

  　　Lu Guixin kept mum for a couple of seconds before softly saying, "Got it, Ms. Xi. Is there anything else you want to say?"

  　　"That's all," Xi Yan answered. "Go back to your dorm and take a nap if you're tired. If you don't want to attend the afternoon classes, I'll sign a leave slip for you."

  　　"Okay. Thank you, Ms. Xi."

  　　The moment Lu Guixin ended the call, she felt Zhou Fu pulling her arm to make her face him.

  　　"Are you transferring to another school?" Zhou Fu asked through gritted teeth.

  　　When Lu Guixin looked up, she found herself meeting Zhou Fu's slightly reddish eyes. From the way he stared at her, it was clear that he was panicking—about to lose control.

  　　She calmly responded, "What does it have to do with you?"

  　　Zhou Fu's emotions instantly turned to hostility as he calmed down all of a sudden.

  　　Lu Guixin couldn't tell whether it was the calm before the storm or after.

  　　"What does it have to do with me?" Zhou Fu repeated her question while narrowing his eyes. He let out a throaty laugh, though it was hard to tell if it was out of happiness or anger. The next second, he suddenly lifted his hand and cupped her jaw, forcing her to lift her head and move it closer to his as he lowered his head.

  　　Lu Guixin was caught off guard. All she saw was a dark shadow overhead and his features magnifying in front of her.

  　　The faint minty cigarette scent got closer to her, and she felt a pair of scorching lips pressing harshly against hers.

  　　Her mind drew a blank the moment their lips touched. She forgot to breathe, and her heart felt like it was about to jump out of her chest. Her body was on fire as he pried open her teeth and shoved his tongue into her mouth, sucking and nibbling her tongue.

  　　When Lu Guixin came back to her senses, she frowned and bit down on his tongue. A sweet metallic scent instantly filled their mouths.

  　　Zhou Fu hissed in pain. He could see the fury in her eyes, but he ignored it and kissed her even harder. He felt her push him away.

  　　Slap!

  　　His head turned to the side from the impact of the slap, and blood instantly oozed out from his torn lips.

  　　"Are you out of your mind?! Lu Guixin coldly asked.

  　　Zhou Fu tilted his head and looked at her while pushing his tongue against the inner side of his cheek. The smirk made his poker face look wicked and sinister.

  　　He raised his hand and wiped the corners of his lips with his thumb. When he saw the blood on it, his throat bobbed, and he looked up to see Lu Guixin's face.

  　　Lu Guixin's lips were really red as if they were stained with blood, and they made her beautiful face look even more alluring. Her clear eyes were filled with hostility at the moment as she glared at him.

  　　"Is there something between us?"

  　　Lu Guixin pursed his lips. She didn't answer his question.

  　　"Lu Guixin, you were the one who messed with me first, but now you want to leave?" Zhou Fu stared at her and laughed. "Dream on."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　"You want to transfer to another school? Sure." He nodded and pointed outside. "All the schools are fighting to take me in. I'll transfer to whichever school you're transferring to. My name isn't Zhou Fu if I can't settle this score."

  　　Lu Guixin clenched her fist and was just about to take action, but she heard someone pressing the keypad to the office just then.

  　　The door was opened from the outside the next second, and Zhou Fu's finger landed on Tian Rong's forehead.

  　　Tian Rong gripped the door handle out of shock as he stopped at the doorway. His jaw dropped when he noticed the two people inside the office. He didn't know why they were in there. His eyes bulged when he suddenly noticed the blood on Zhou Fu's lips. "What the?! You—"

  　　Expressionless, Lu Guixin retracted her gaze, turned around, and walked out of the office while exuding a hostile aura.

  　　Tian Rong scrambled to make way for her.

  　　"Lu Guixin, I dare you to transfer to another school." Zhou Fu's voice floated over.

  　　Lu Guixin ignored him and wiped her lips with the back of her hand as she stormed out of the office.

  　　Tian Rong watched Lu Guixin's cold figure disappear into the distance before carefully sneaking a glance at Zhou Fu and asking hesitantly, "Did you get slapped by Guixin?"

  　　Zhou Fu licked the corners of his lips and nonchalantly said, "No. I used my face to hit her hand."

  　　Tian Rong was speechless. That mouth of yours. No wonder Guixin slapped you. But then again, she sure is bold! I can't believe she dared to do that!

  　　Zhou Fu took out his phone and called a restaurant to order a few dishes. It just so happened that he received a message after ending the call. While responding to the message, he said to Tian Rong, "Get your sis to collect the takeout later and give it to Lu Guixin."

  　　Tian Rong couldn't believe it. He's buying lunch for Lu Guixin even after getting slapped by her?!

  　　When Zhou Fu didn't receive a response from him, he looked up and saw Tian Rong's wide-eyed expression. He frowned and gave him a kick.

  　　Tian Rong's knees buckled for a moment, and he immediately snapped out of it. "…O-Okay. I'll let my sis know."

  　　"Thanks." Zhou Fu put his phone away and moved to leave.

  　　"Wait…" Tian Rong hurriedly stopped him and looked at him with a complicated look. "Um… Should we do something about your face before you go out?" Rumors are going to spread if the students and teachers see his face.

  　　Zhou Fu turned around and walked to the mirror in the office. The mark on his cheek wasn't obvious if one wasn't paying close attention to it. His lips, however, were torn and still bleeding, so he looked like he had been slapped in the face.

  　　He frowned in pain as he rubbed a corner of his lips with his knuckle. She's quite strong for her size, huh?

  　　Tian Rong lifted his chin as he passed him a plaster. "Why don't you use it for the time being?"

  　　Zhou Fu took the plaster from him, tore the packaging, and pasted it at the corner of his lips to hide the wound. With just one plaster, his aloof expression now appeared slightly sinister and hostile as well.

  　　Having never seen such an expression on Zhou Fu before, Tian Rong was in awe. "What the…" Why does it seem like… he looks more handsome now…?

  　　…
　　Right next to the staff building was the parking area.

  　　As soon as Zhou Fu left the building, he saw Xia Cheng being escorted to the police car by the police officers, but he nonchalantly walked back to his academic building.

  　　"Zhou Fu," Xia Cheng called his name all of a sudden.

  　　Zhou Fu didn't stop, though, and just continued walking at his pace.

  　　"Thanks for helping me earlier," said Xia Cheng in a weak and trembling voice.

  　　Zhou Fu slowly stopped and turned around. Although there was no expression on his face, he exuded an unapproachable aloofness. His voice was devoid of warmth as he said, "You're thanking me for helping you?"

  　　Xia Cheng, who was wearing a mask, nodded, her eyes moist and red. "My injuries would've been way worse if you hadn't pulled Lu Guixin away. Thank you."

  　　Zhou Fu suddenly understood why Lu Guixin had flown into such a huge rage. He looked at Xia Cheng and said slowly and clearly, "The reason I pulled her away was because I didn't want the matter to be blown up as that would affect her. I didn't want her to dirty her hands because of you."

  　　When Xia Cheng heard that, her mind drew a blank, and all her delusional fantasies were instantly shattered. She stared at him in disbelief as a tear fell from her eye. Her exposing of Lu Guixin ended up with her getting cyber-bullied, and she nearly fell apart when she saw all the nasty comments about her. Still, she managed to endure it all because she thought that Zhou Fu was on her side. Now, he's telling me that he did all that for Lu Guixin's sake?

  　　"What did I do to give you the impression that I'd help you, someone who paid people off to spread false rumors and gather netizens to bully a schoolmate on the internet?" Zhou Fu's eyes gleamed coldly at that.

  　　A hint of disgust flashed across the two female officers' eyes when they heard that.

  　　Xia Cheng was shaking even more. Every word Zhou Fu said was akin to a knife slashing at her ego. She felt so humiliated to the point of shame. Her legs nearly buckled under her weight, and she only managed to support herself upright by embedding her nails into her palms.

  　　After saying his piece, Zhou Fu turned around and continued walking toward the academic building.

  　　The two female officers glanced at Xia Cheng, who seemed to have lost her soul. One of them urged her in an indifferent tone, "Get in the car."

  　　The officer's voice pulled Xia Cheng back to reality. She glared at Zhou Fu and yelled madly at him, "Lu Guixin can't be any decent girl!"

  　　Zhou Fu's expression darkened. He stopped and spun around on his feet, looking hostile.

  　　Xia Cheng, who seemed to be going all out, said, "Yeah, it was my mistake this time. But who's to know whether she's done the deed with Tan Ying before?"

  　　Zhou Fu smirked, his tone sarcastic. "Who are you to compare with her?"

  　　Indignant, Xia Cheng bit her lips and retorted, "I'm better than her. I'm pretty, and my results are way better than Lu Guixin's. She's the one who can't be compared with me!"

  　　"I care everything about her." Zhou Fu smirked, his tone icy as he said, "But whatever happen to you is none of my business."

  　　After saying that, he turned around to leave without so much of a head turn. But before he walked away, he paused and turned sideways slightly with a hand in his pocket. "Oh, and I don't want to hear you mention Lu Guixin's name again. It sounds awful coming from you."

  　　He had no expression on his face, and his tone was light and airy as he said that. However, the plaster on his face made his aggressive-looking features all the more menacing. Thus, Xia Cheng's face paled when she heard that. She was also filled with embarrassment.

  　　Zhou Fu pointed a finger at her. "Mark my words."

  　　Although he didn't sound threatening, his words made Xia Cheng tremble in fear all the same.

  　　…
　　In each grade's academic building, there were many people standing on the balconies of each floor watching Xia Cheng be taken away in the police car.

  　　The details of the entire incident were reported on the internet, and a video of Tan Xicheng's response was put up on the national TV station's official Weibo page.

  　　The elderly man had a kind and peaceful appearance. The background showed a bookshelf and calligraphy paintings that exuded a scholarly aura that somehow made people calm down.

  　　Sitting behind a desk with his hands placed on the table, Tan Xicheng slowly said, "In a generation that partial information can be taken out of context, I hope that the younger ones will learn to understand the entirety of a matter and its truth before making a judgement. A moment of impulse can lead one to be misled by others and lose their composure and judgement."

  　　That video was shared by many major media outlets, and the comment section was flooded with apologies toward Lu Guixin.

  　　With the truth out now, the buzz soon died down. All information about Lu Guixin was quietly deleted from the internet, and only God knew how many people were involved in taking down her information.

  　　…
　　Meanwhile, in Ming City High School.

  　　By noon, nearly the entire school population had found out that Xia Cheng had landed herself in the police station for trying to make use of public opinion to pressure the school into expelling Lu Guixin. It caused quite a commotion on the school forum, and similarly, many people expressed their apologies to Lu Guixin.

  　　Students were gathered in groups as they made their way around the campus.

  　　"I didn't expect Xia Cheng to be so good at doing such dirty deeds. She usually had such a good image," said a girl in disgust.

  　　"Don't even mention her! It'll just ruin our mood!" said another girl who was hugging the other girl's arm.

  　　When a student got into trouble, it was the school that suffered the worst damage to reputation. People would instinctively associate Ming City High School with this scandal, so the students naturally found it disgraceful as well. Everyone was quite angry, so there was a lot of criticism towards Xia Cheng.

  　　Tian Lu heard a lot of people scolding Xia Cheng on her way back to the classroom after collecting the takeout, and she secretly thought that the latter deserved it.

  　　There weren't many people in the classroom at the moment. As Lu Guixin was currently sleeping with her head on the table and her earphones on, Tian Lu didn't wake her up when she got back to her seat.

  　　However, the slender figure who was sprawled on the table suddenly sat straight up and stared at the food on the desk. Moved, Lu Guixin looked at Tian Lu and gushed, "You're so kind, Tian Lu. You bought such expensive food to cheer me up."

  　　Before Tian Lu could say anything, Lu Guixin opened the paper bag, which contained quite a few expensive dishes—sushi, spicy seafood, lobster patty, and soup.

  　　Tian Lu was initially quite worried that Lu Guixin wouldn't have much of an appetite and had planned to persuade her to eat a few mouthfuls if she refused to eat. Hence, she was a bit taken aback to see her seemingly unaffected by the earlier incident and with such a good appetite.

  　　Lu Guixin took a bite of the lobster patty before ripping the receipt off the paper bag to take a look at the price. When she saw that the food cost more than two thousand yuan in total, she said, "This is too expensive. I'll transfer you the money."

  　　As she said that, she took out her phone with her other hand.

  　　Tian Lu, who snapped right out of it just then, hurriedly said, "No need, no need. I wasn't the one who bought the food."

  　　Lu Guixin froze and narrowed her eyes slightly, only to hear Tian Lu secretly whispering in her ear, "It was Zhou Fu who bought it."

  　　As soon as she said that, Lu Guixin tossed her chopsticks into the food container and put all the food back into the paper bag before getting up and tossing it into the trash bin at the back of the classroom. She then returned to her seat, shoved her earphones into her ears, and went back to sleep on the table.

  　　The speed at which Lu Guixin's mood changed rendered Tian Lu speechless. She didn't even dare to ask the former anything as she took her phone to text her brother.

  　　…
　　When Tian Rong received the message, he went out of the classroom with his phone and passed it to Zhou Fu, who was leaning over the railing while smoking.

  　　While holding a cigarette between two fingers, Zhou Fu looked at the phone screen.

  　　[Foe: Bro, she took a bite, but she dumped the rest of the food as soon as she heard that it was from Zhou Fu.]

  　　When Tian Rong saw Zhou Fu keeping quiet, he hesitated whether he should ask his questions or not, and he couldn't resist asking them in the end. "Zhou Fu, what's going on between you and the campus belle? How come the two of you suddenly become… so close?" There weren't any signs before.

  　　Zhou Fu looked at him with an expressionless face and said, "I'm going to woo her."

  　　Those five words sent Tian Rong reeling in shock, and he only somewhat came to his senses after a while. His voice was trembling like crazy. "What did you just say? I couldn't hear you clearly."

  　　Zhou Fu pressed his lips together and repeated, "I said I'm going to woo Lu Guixin."

  　　Kaboom!

  　　Tian Rong's mind exploded once more. He reckoned that there would be no other matter in his life that was as shocking as this, and he wondered if he imagined things because he wasn't fully awake yet. He thus proceeded to pinch himself hard on his thigh.

  　　Ow, that hurts! The pain nearly made him jump.

  　　Seeing that, Zhou Fu frowned. "I said I'm going to woo Lu Guixin, not you. Why the hell would you go pinch yourself?"

  　　Tian Rong finally snapped out of it and hurriedly said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I just couldn't believe it."

  　　Zhou Fu turned around and rested his arms on the railing while looking at the Year Two's academic building that was across theirs as if he could see through it and see the Year One's academic building. He took a puff of the cigarette and said in a rather deep voice, "I made her angry this morning. What should I do to appease her? She threw away the food I bought for her, and she refused to hear me out. Did I really go too far? She wouldn't even hear my explanation."

  　　Tian Rong's eyes bulged. "So you were together with Lu Guxin during the second night study period for the past few weeks? You're wooing her?"

  　　Zhou Fu nodded.

  　　That made Tian Rong all the more surprised. In that instant, he managed to connect the dots of the earlier incidents, from Zhou Fu speaking up for Lu Guixin, buying breakfast, to the basketball match. Everyone's saying that it's impossible for them to be together, but they've been flirting with each other since a long time ago.

  　　Just then, he realized a problem. He sounded really excited when he asked, "Wait. Does that mean you haven't won her heart even though you've spent three weeks with her?"

  　　Zhou Fu shot him a withering look. "Get off my back if you can't be of any help."

  　　So, it turns out that the seemingly omnipotent genius is troubled by love. Tian Rong was secretly delighted to hear that Zhou Fu needed his help. He let out a confident laugh at the thought that he had secretly dated twice behind his family's backs. "To be honest, you've asked the right person."

  　　Zhou Fu glanced sideways at him.

  　　Tian Rong adjusted his collar and cleared his throat. "If you want to appease her, then you should stop putting on that look as if people owes you money."

  　　He continued rambling on as Zhou Fu stayed silent. "Shower her with sweet nothings, and be more thick-skinned, more considerate, and gentler."

  　　Just then, Tian Rong slapped the railing the moment he remembered something. "If you don't know, you should learn from Tan Ying! He's good at chasing girls! You should learn everything except his flirtatious nature!"

  　　The corners of Zhou Fu's lips twitched slightly as he clenched his jaw and spat, "Get lost."

  　　…
　　Meanwhile, at the Year One's side.

  　　The classroom was getting louder as more and more people came back, and it became so noisy that even the earphones weren't able to block it out.

  　　Lu Guixin furrowed her eyebrows in irritation as she sat up. The next second, she realized that there was a pile of snacks, such as lollipops, chocolates, chips, biscuits, spicy strips, and juice, on Tian Lu's desk.

  　　The packaging made a crinkling sound as Tian Lu pushed the snacks over to Lu Guixin's table. "These are from our classmates."

  　　Upon hearing that, Lu Guixin raised her eyebrows in confusion.

  　　The class chairperson was the first person to stand up, and he said to Lu Guixin, "I apologize for the nasty things we said about you this morning."

  　　With the class chairperson taking the lead, the others then took turns to apologize to Lu Guixin. From how nasty the rumors were, everyone knew how damaging they could be to a girl's reputation. But just as much as they were young and straightforward, they were quick to admit their mistakes as well. When the truth was out, everyone wanted to apologize to her, so they bought her a bunch of snacks.

  　　Lu Guixin remained her usual good-natured self and said gently with a smile, "It's okay. Thanks for the snacks."

  　　Everyone sighed with relief at that.

  　　A guy then said, "I bought that packet of purple chips. It's a new flavor, and it's slightly spicy, but it's good."

  　　Lu Guixin picked up the snack and opened the packaging.

  　　"That one, that one." A girl pointed to a bottle of drink. "I bought that red fruit tea. It's delicious."

  　　Lu Guixin then politely opened the bottle and took a sip of the fruit tea. After that, she told them that she wouldn't be able to finish all the snacks on her own and asked everyone to share them with her.

  　　The atmosphere in the classroom was very good. The pile of snacks was all eaten up just before the start of the next class, so the trash bin was full. The student on duty clapped their hands and happily took the bin out to empty it.

  　　Tian Lu took out her math textbook and glanced at Lu Guixin, who was drinking water out of her thermal flask. Her glance turned into an outright stare. She wanted to ask Lu Guixin something, but she eventually decided against it and flipped open her textbook instead. The moment she flipped to the first chapter, though, she turned her head around again and asked somewhat agitatedly, "I'm sorry, friend, but I just can't resist anymore."

  　　Lu Guixin twisted the cap back in its place and looked at her. "Can't resist what?"

  　　Tian Lu took out her notebook, flipped to the last page, and quickly wrote on it with a pen. [My brother told me that Zhou Fu's wooing you. Is that true?]

  　　Lu Guixin averted her gaze and then took out her math textbook, flipping it open. In a cold voice, she said, "Whatever he wants to do is his business. It has nothing to do with me."

  　　Tian Lu felt that Lu Guixin was a very magnanimous person, seeing how she could treat their classmates who had scolded her this morning with kindness. When she figured that Zhou Fu must've done something wrong to make her so angry, she instantly lost her desire to know the answer. Just like before, she didn't hesitate to take Lu Guixin's side. "That's right! There are plenty of people who want to woo you! He should get in the line!"

  　　…
　　At the end of the last afternoon class, everyone except the students who were on cleaning duty and who had to set up the exam rooms left the building.

  　　"Let's go eat at the food street," said Tian Lu while hugging Lu Guixin's arm.

  　　They didn't have evening study that night, so time wasn't so tight.

  　　"Okay," replied Lu Guixin with a nod.

  　　The moment they arrived at the food street, Tian Lu brought Lu Guixin to a noodle stall with simple furnishing. "Don't judge the shop by its appearance. My brother told me that the beef noodle and side dishes here are really good, but I didn't have the time to come."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　The stall wasn't crowded at the moment—only four tables were filled. Thus, Tian Lu pulled Lu Guixin inside to find an empty table.

  　　The lady boss happened to come out from the kitchen with two bowls of noodles just then. When she spotted Lu Guixin, she smiled happily at her. "Oh, you're here, Guixin."

  　　Lu Guixin smiled back. "Auntie."

  　　Tian Lu looked at the lady boss and then at Lu Guixin. "You know the boss here?"

  　　Lu Guixin nodded. "Yeah, I've been here once."

  　　Tian Lu was slightly surprised by that. She's so close to the boss even though she only came here once?! Hm… But then again, given her looks, it's understandable that people would have a deep impression of her.

  　　After serving the two bowls of noodles to other customers, the boss walked up to them with the empty tray. She propped the tray up on the table and said to them with a smile, "What do you girls want to eat? I'll get my husband to make it for you."

  　　Tian Lu smiled. "Two bowls of beef noodle, and one plate of mala beef. Thank you."

  　　The lady boss shouted their orders to her husband in the kitchen before saying to them, "Your food will be right out. Is there anything you want to drink? My treat."

  　　Tian Lu didn't want to take advantage of the owners who were making a small profit from running a small business. Thus, she rejected them, "Water will do. Thank you."

  　　"You don't have to stand on ceremony with me…" As soon as the lady boss said that, another two customers entered the shop.

  　　Tian Lu hurriedly said, "You should tend to the other customers, Auntie. We'll let you know if we need anything else."

  　　The lady boss nodded. "Sure. I'll go back to work, then."

  　　Tian Lu then poured two cups of water and put one in front of Lu Guixin. She was just about to say something when someone with a tall and slim build suddenly entered the shop. "Zhou Fu?"

  　　Lu Guixin frowned as she sipped on her cup of water.

  　　The next second, a faint cigarette scent wafted over from the side. She looked sideways, only to see Zhou Fu sit right next to her. With a stretch of his arms, he placed two milk teas in front of the girls. She turned and looked at him coldly. "You followed me here?"

  　　Zhou Fu took the cup of caramel milk tea, tore open the straw packaging, poked the straw into the cup, and then placed it in front of Lu Guixin. "Can't I come here to eat?"

  　　Lu Guixin gave an expressionless reply. "Sure, just don't sit at my table."

  　　"Go tell Aunt Yang that you're buying this table."

  　　The lady boss came out of the kitchen with a plate of mala beef just then. As she placed the dish in between the girls, she asked with a smile, "Buy what?"

  　　As if complaining to the lady boss, Zhou Fu said, "She won't let me sit next to her."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　When the lady boss noticed that Lu Guixin was looking down, she understood what was going on right away. She chided Zhou Fu, "You think you can appease Guixin with just a cup of milk tea after making her angry?"

  　　"No." Zhou Fu looked at Lu Guixin's face from the side. "I'll coax her until her anger subsides."

  　　Tian Lu lowered her head and drank her water. She couldn't believe that Zhou Fu was capable of saying such mushy things. Damn it. This is unbelievable…
　　Despite the amusement in her eyes, the lady boss maintained a stern expression on her face. "Do a good job at it. You must've done something really wrong for a good girl like Guixin to get so angry that she want to ignore you."

  　　"I did make a rather huge mistake," said Zhou Fu. "I didn't think before I talked. I'm not good at languages, and I'm bad at expressing myself. It's my fault for making her angry."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　"Cough, cough, cough…" Tian Lu choked on her water, and it nearly spurted out of her nose.

  　　Lu Guixin took a piece of napkin and handed it to her.

  　　Tian Lu thanked her as she looked at Zhou Fu with a complicated gaze. How are his languages considered bad? Looks like geniuses and ordinary people really aren't on the same level…
　　"I'm glad you know your mistake." The lady boss then turned to Lu Guixin and said gently, "Guixin, he's already 18, and yet he doesn't even know how to speak properly to his girlfriend. Don't forgive him so easily."

  　　Tian Lu almost split her sides from holding back her laughter.

  　　Lu Guixin looked at the lady boss and said, "I'm not his girlfriend, Auntie."

  　　"He still hasn't won your heart?" The lady boss widened her eyes in surprise.

  　　"No, I'm still wooing her."

  　　Even though Tian Lu had already heard about this from her brother, she couldn't help but be shocked when she heard Zhou Fu admit it.

  　　He was Zhou Fu, after all. He was supposed to be the unattainable genius.

  　　The lady boss regarded Zhou Fu with disdain. "How useless."

  　　"I'll work harder, then," said Zhou Fu while staring at Lu Guixin. "I'll keep wooing her until she accepts me."

  　　It was only then that the lady boss nodded with satisfaction. "It's okay if you're not good with language. Put yours words into actions instead."

  　　"Mm, thank you, Aunt Yang." Zhou Fu then put a pair of chopsticks in front of Lu Guixin.

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　Lu Guixin didn't take them. She took another set for herself.

  　　…
　　After the meal…
　　While Zhou Fu was settling the bill, Lu Guixin said goodbye to the lady boss and left the shop on her own.

  　　Tian Lu looked at the milk tea which Lu Guixin hadn't touched and then at her own unfinished cup of milk tea. After much conflict, she picked her own cup up and immediately went after Lu Guixin.

  　　The girls hadn't walked far when Zhou Fu caught up to them in just a few steps while holding Lu Guixin's milk tea in hand.

  　　Being the tacit person she was, Tian Lu said, "Ah, my stomach hurts. I need to leave first to go back and use the school toilet. Take your time to walk back."

  　　Tian Lu then sprinted off before Lu Guixin could say anything.

  　　Zhou Fu passed the milk tea to her. "Take it and finish it."

  　　"Get lost," said Lu Guixin as she walked forward in big strides.

  　　Zhou Fu matched her pace. "If you don't take it and drink it, I'll feed it to you with my mouth. We've already kissed, anyway."

  　　Lu Guixin's ears turned slightly reddish as she stopped in her tracks and turned her head to glare at him in annoyance. "Jerk. Go see a doctor if you're mentally unwell."

  　　Zhou Fu lifted the milk tea and said, "Do you want it or not?"

  　　Lu Guixin pursed her lips.

  　　Both of them were in a stalemate for a long time before Lu Guixin narrowed her eyes and reached her hand out to take the cup from him.

  　　Zhou Fu, however, moved his hand to the side and leaned down slightly to stare into her eyes. The plaster at the corner of his lips moved slightly as he slowly said, "If you throw it away, I'll buy another cup and feed it to you."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　…
　　A little past 8 pm.

  　　When Lu Guixin came out of the bathroom after her shower, she glanced at the cup of milk tea she was forced to drink that was sitting on the table. Her lips curled slightly in an ambiguous manner at that.

  　　Just then, several message alerts were heard. Lu Guixin walked over to the table and picked up her phone, only to see that Zhou Fu had sent her four documents concerning the question types for the upcoming monthly exams over WeChat.

  　　[Creditor: Look over these questions the night before your exam. I've explained the key points to you before.

  　　[Creditor: No need to pay me back the one million yuan. In exchange, don't block me on WeChat, my future girlfriend.]

  　　Lu Guixin smirked and deleted him as a friend.

  　　…
　　Meanwhile.

  　　Zhou Fu typed a message, saying, [Go to bed early. I'll buy you breakfast tomorrow.]

  　　Then, he pressed the 'Send' button.

  　　[Lu Guixin has activated the friend verification mode. You're not her friend yet. Please send a friend request first. You'll only be allowed to chat with them after you pass the verification.]

  　　Zhou Fu was rendered speechless, but he felt even more so when he received an alert saying, [Account 6866 has sent 1,000,000.00 yuan to you.]

  　　Exasperated, Zhou Fu swiftly operated his phone.

  　　…
　　Lu Guixin had just put down her phone when its screen suddenly lit up, and a bank transfer notification came in.

  　　[Account 8199 has sent 1,000,000.00 yuan to you.]

  　　It was Lu Guixin's turn to be at a loss for words this time.

  　　[Sleep early. I'll buy breakfast for you tomorrow. Do you want milk tea or soy milk?]

  　　Although every word seemed to ooze concern for her, Lu Guixin somehow managed to sense a hint of a threat in them—her accepting the money or not determined how he was going to make her drink the drink he was buying. Lu Guixin slammed her phone face down on the table and then turned around to go to bed.

  　　…
　　The math exam was the last monthly exam to take.

  　　In Lu Guixin's exam venue.

  　　The invigilating teacher didn't come, so Zhou Fu and Tian Rong were responsible for invigilating the exam again.

  　　The people in the classroom were excited yet restrained at the same time.

  　　Lu Guixin showed no reaction as she rest her cheek on her arm and doodled on the draft paper.

  　　Tian Rong kept yawning nonstop as he handed out the exam papers in resignation.

  　　When the radio announced the start of the exam, Tian Rong yawned again. "Zhou Fu, keep an eye on them. I'm taking a nap."

  　　His much anticipated two-and-a-half-week break had arrived, but he got dragged here to supervise the exam even before he could even catch up on his sleep debt.

  　　"Mm," Zhou Fu nonchalantly responded while staring unblinkingly at Lu Guixin, who was doing the exam paper with her head on the table.

  　　When the students noticed that Zhou Fu was taking the invigilation seriously instead of playing a mobile game, their eyes bulged in disbelief. Embellished stories about his previous invigilation had made their way around the school, so everyone knew his habit now.

  　　When the guy sitting behind Lu Guixin inadvertently noticed that Zhou Fu was staring in their direction and recalled what had happened before, he hurriedly kicked Lu Guixin's chair in a warning.

  　　He lifted his chin toward the front of the classroom when the girl turned around to look at him.

  　　Lu Guixin followed his line of sight and saw Zhou Fu staring at her. Expressionless, she shook the die on her pen and started filling in the answers again.

  　　…
　　After the exam, someone walked up to Lu Guixin while she was packing her things.

  　　She glanced sideways and noticed a pair of long legs with impeccably clean shoes. She could also smell a faint cigarette scent.

  　　Zhou Fu put two pieces of folded paper right next to her hand and said softly, "I've written the reflection you need to read for tomorrow."

  　　Lu Guixin didn't say anything.

  　　Tian Rong, who was in the corridor, rested his elbows on the windowsill and propped his face up in his hands while saying teasingly, "It's the first time he's ever done that. You should keep it and frame it up on the wall…"

  　　Lu Guixin gave no response and just accepted everything he gave. She then left the classroom through the back door with the two sheets of paper in hand.

  　　She happened to run into Tian Lu at the doorway.

  　　Tian Lu wasn't surprised to see Zhou Fu there. After greeting her brother and him, she followed Lu Guixin out for lunch right away. While they were on their way to find food, she noticed the papers in Lu Guixin's hand. "There's no need for us to keep the rough paper. Aren't you going to toss them?"

  　　Lu Guixin softly answered, "It's not rough paper. He helped me to write the reflection that's needed for tomorrow."

  　　"Zhou Fu?" Tian Lu asked in disbelief.

  　　Lu Guixin nodded.

  　　Tian Lu, who couldn't hold back her curiosity, asked, "Since you're going to read it out to everyone tomorrow, you won't mind letting me read it first, right?"

  　　Lu Guixin passed the papers to her. "Go ahead."

  　　Tian Lu laughed. The moment she unfolded the papers, she saw the words [I'm sorry, princess. Please don't be angry anymore. —Zhou Fu.] written in powerful handwriting.

  　　Both she and Lu Guixin were speechless when they saw that.

  　　Tian Lu's sides were in stitches. "You're really something, Guixin. Nobody will believe that Zhou Fu's capable of doing such a thing."

  　　Tian Lu then looked at the second sheet of paper. That was the one with the proper reflection, and it was even written in Lu Guixin's handwriting. "Two sets of reflection—his and yours. Ahhh~ Finally, some lovey-dovey stuff from the both of you! How sweet!"

  　　Lu Guixin said nothing.