Chapter 3 Suffering in the Summer Heat His name is Lin Xiaqing

In September 2012, first-year high school students at Suzhou No. 1 High School started their new semester.

The key high schools in Suzhou are no match for some schools in her rural hometown; you can tell just by looking at their exterior decorations.

The night before school started, Shen's mother pulled her aside and told her to keep an eye on her older sister and take care of Shen Qingyun at school.

Early in the morning, Shen Qingli walked into the campus while thinking about this matter, and she suddenly found it a little funny.

One is in the second year of high school and the other is in the first year. They are completely unrelated and can't possibly take care of each other. Besides, who took care of Shen Qingyun before she was in this school?

Under the scorching sun, she squeezed through the crowded throng and squinted uncomfortably in the shade of a tree. She declined Shen Qingyun's offer to personally escort her to her new class. Looking at the person in front of her, whose face had turned pale from standing in the blazing sun for too long, she sighed from the bottom of her heart.

Before leaving, she handed her a bottle of mineral water and said, "I know the way, don't worry about me. You should hurry back to your class, or you'll get heatstroke."

"Okay, I'm in the second class on the first floor. If you need anything, come find your older sister, okay?" Seeing that her younger sister was unusually concerned about her, Shen Qingyun was initially surprised, but then a happy smile appeared on her face.

"Um."

She casually agreed, then watched as Shen Qingyun, who was in a much better mood, walked away step by step.

Then, she found her class according to the class list displayed on the bulletin board. It was Class 2 of Grade 1, on the fourth floor of the teaching building.

Following the bustling crowd to the classroom door, Shen Qingli discovered that there were many parents standing at the door and inside the classroom. They seemed to be giving their children instructions, and some parents were still looking inside with concern before leaving.

She stared at the scene in surprise, as if she were somewhat taken aback.

Would normal parents still accompany their children to the registration?

Shen Qingyun is a second-year high school student and is very familiar with the school, so she probably doesn't need it.

And what about her?

She wasn't sure if she should tell her parents beforehand, but she had almost never had that awareness since she was little. Except for kindergarten and the first or second grade of elementary school, when she was too young and her grandmother took her there, she went to the reporting sessions almost always by herself.

Needless to say, her parents were so busy during her three years of junior high that they didn't even have time to attend her parent-teacher conferences. However, it seems that it wasn't that they never attended. Her father apparently came back once for the last parent-teacher conference, which was close to the high school entrance exam, but that was the only time.

Forget it, she's not the same as them, so there's nothing to compare her to. Just like before, she told herself this, and that's how she managed to calm herself down.

-

When she entered the classroom, many students were already seated, leaving only one seat at the very back. She had no other choice.

When she sat down at the back, she realized that many of her classmates seemed to know each other. They sat together chatting and talking about their fun summer vacation experiences.

In comparison, it seems that Shen Qingli sitting alone in her seat is the most incongruous and the loneliest.

People around her were glancing at her discreetly, then turning away to whisper something to the people next to them.

Shen Qingli naturally noticed the gazes directed at her. She nervously clenched her hands on her lap and lowered her head, trying to ignore the awkward stares.

After a while, the school bell rang, and the sound of conversation could be heard from the classroom door.

"Okay, I got it. Stop acting like a mother hen, okay? Don't worry, I'll be fine on my own. Class is starting, so you should hurry back to your classroom."

"I was just worried about you. You're so heartless."

"Okay, okay, you can go now!"

"Okay, okay."

A man and a woman stood at the doorway talking. The woman sounded a little impatient, but if someone were to get closer to them, they would see that although they were arguing, their eyes were always full of smiles.

At that time, Shen Qingli couldn't understand the relationship between them, but she vaguely sensed that something was wrong between them.

For the next three years of high school, countless people in the high school said that they were a perfect match made in heaven, so much so that she never expected that the two people in front of her would end up like that.

-

Shen Qingli looked up when she heard the sound and watched the girl enter the classroom as the school bell rang.

Someone in the class recognized her. The girl diagonally in front of her waved and called out her name: "Yi Qiu! Over here."

The girl named Yi Qiu chuckled upon hearing the sound and said, "Coming."

After saying that, she ran over in small steps, picked up her schoolbag from her seat, and sat down.

The boy outside was still peeking in, and only after seeing her sit down did he finally turn around and leave, relieved.

"Oh, it's your Zhao Yixiao who brought you here again?" The girl at the table in front of me glanced outside and said teasingly.

"Don't talk nonsense!" Luo Yiqiu nudged her friend next to her with her elbow in embarrassment and indignation.

"Huh~"

The two bickered for a while before the teacher finally came in from the doorway.

"Ahem. My surname is Chen, and my name is Chen Wei. I will be your class teacher and Chinese teacher from now on." The teacher on the stage had a very serious look. He cleared his throat, said his name, and then continued to talk about the precautions for the start of school.

Shen Qingli didn't listen carefully; it was all the same old, tired advice about studying hard.

After the brief class meeting, Chen Wei directed the students to clean up and collect their books.

"The students in the odd-numbered rows will follow me to the hall to get the new books, while the students in the even-numbered rows will clean the classroom."

After Chen Wei finished speaking, the students in the odd-numbered rows let out a wail of misfortune.

As luck would have it, Shen Qingli was also in an odd-numbered line. She followed a few people and walked out of the corridor to join the queue.

Luo Yiqiu sat in front of her. She watched her friend next to her waving at her gleefully. She glared at the friend with a smile of irritation before following the group out.

-

As she walked down the stairs, a large group of people surrounded Luo Yiqiu and started talking to her.

"Hey Yiqiu, we'll be classmates again this time."

"Yes, Class Monitor Luo, we'll be counting on you to protect us from now on."

People around her were joking, and Luo Yiqiu smiled sheepishly and said, "It's not as exaggerated as you guys are making it out to be."

The group chatted as they walked, creating a lively scene. Shen Qingli lagged behind, slowly keeping up with the others.

She could vaguely glean from their scattered conversation that these people must have all gone through junior high school together.

Thinking about this, she began to drift off again as she walked, wondering how she should spend her three years at Suzhou No. 1 High School. Her original junior high school wasn't a very prestigious school, and very few students were able to get into top high schools from there.

But even if she does know someone, it won't help. She's never had many friends since she was little and is used to being alone. Now, she guesses that the next three years will probably be the same as when she was in junior high school.

Lost in thought, she didn't notice that the girl walking in front, surrounded by people, had noticed her at some point. She suddenly stopped and casually walked up to her.

"Hello classmate, my name is Luo Yiqiu. Do you remember me? I sit right in front of you." She walked up to Shen Qingli and greeted her with a smile.

Shen Qingli was taken aback when she heard her speak suddenly. She paused for a moment before finally saying, "My name is Shen Qingli. I remember you."

"You remember me! Your name is so lovely..."

"No... Your name is quite nice too."

...

-

Luo Yiqiu seemed to be a natural at making friends; after only a few words, the other person affectionately pulled her along.

Shen Qingli was somewhat overwhelmed by her enthusiasm and could only smile awkwardly most of the time.

It wasn't until they both had books in their hands, and because the things were so heavy, that she finally ran out of energy to walk and talk.

The weather in Suzhou in September was still very hot and dry, with no sign of summer leaving.

As noon approached, the sun overhead was blinding, and the other students around them kept complaining that the books in their hands were too heavy and suffocating.

Shen Qingli's forehead was covered in sticky sweat from the bright sun, and her face felt like it was covered in a layer of sticky paper, making her frown uncomfortably.

The book in Luo Yiqiu's hand was heavier than the one in her arms. Her arms ached, and she repeatedly called for Shen Qingli to stop, saying that she needed to adjust her grip on the book, otherwise she wouldn't be able to hold it.

She crouched down somewhat awkwardly, her skirt falling just above her knees, making it easy for her to expose herself as she squatted.

Students passing by on the roadside would occasionally glance at the two of them. Shen Qingli quickly noticed this and casually moved her feet to stand behind Luo Yiqiu to block her view and also to shield her from the sunlight.

Her shadow fell on the other person, and the sweltering heat from the direct sunlight behind her suddenly disappeared. Luo Yiqiu noticed that she paused in her packing.

Shen Qingli stood silently behind her, waiting quietly. The midday sun shone on her, and even the back of her neck was covered in a thin layer of sweat, but she never urged the other person.

Just as she adjusted the book in her hands and stood up frequently, a commotion suddenly arose in front of her.

Shen Qingli and she both subconsciously looked towards the source of the sound and found that a class was walking in a line towards them. There were many boys in the line, so their voices were a little louder.

Luo Yiqiu turned her gaze away and stood up. She was about to thank Shen Qingli behind her when she turned her head and found that her gaze was fixed on the group not far away.

At the very front of the line was a boy with very sharp features. He was taller than the people behind him and stood out conspicuously in the crowd.

He just had a stern face and didn't seem very approachable.

Shen Qingli and he looked at each other across the noisy crowd. He was wearing a white shirt and walking towards her under the blazing sun.

One step... two steps... three steps...

She didn't look away from him until he walked up to her.

Seeing him approach her, Shen Qingli opened her mouth, as if hesitating about something.

But to her surprise, the boy didn't give her any extra time to think. He turned away and brushed past her without stopping.

But in the crowded throng, they were so close that she could even smell the laundry detergent on his clothes, a fruity scent. But upon smelling it, she turned around with him and stared at his departing figure, momentarily lost in thought.

The whispers around her reached her ears.

"Who's that? He's so handsome!"

"This class looks like Class 1."

The classmates next to her all looked in the same direction, and their hushed conversations continued.

Then someone said, "You don't recognize him? Lin Xiaqing, he's the top student in our year! But..."

As he continued, the man's voice softened slightly: "I heard that he's not only number one, but also the son of one of our school's investors. Look, do you see that newly built library? It was built with his dad's money. Tsk tsk tsk, what a rich kid."

Many people looked in the direction the man was pointing and exclaimed in disbelief, "No way! Not only is he academically gifted, but he's also so handsome and rich?! What could possibly be a problem for someone like that? God is so unfair to me..."

"Is he handsome? I think he looks pretty arrogant."

"What do you know? They have the right to be arrogant!"

...

Shen Qingli didn't listen carefully to what he said after that. She just stared at his back, which had already walked away and was no longer visible. The image of his narrow eyes, which had looked at her earlier, floated into her mind. They looked dark and cold.

"His name is Lin... Xia Qing..." She stood there, stunned, not knowing which direction she was facing, and murmured softly.

Seeing that she had been lost in thought for a long time, Luo Yiqiu called out to her worriedly, "Qingli? What did you just say?"

Shen Qingli's voice was too soft for her to hear.

Hearing someone call her name, Shen Qingli finally came to her senses. She looked at Luo Yiqiu, forced a smile, shook her head, and said, "It's nothing."

"Okay, let's hurry back to the classroom."

"good."

-

Not far away, just as they were about to reach the lobby, a boy walked up to Lin Xiaqing. He put his arm around Lin Xiaqing's shoulder with ill intent and asked in a smug tone, "Hey Lin Xiaqing, you really are a big celebrity at our school, huh? I saw a girl staring at you the whole time. What? Do you know her?"

Upon hearing this, his face remained expressionless. He dodged the other person's movement with a hint of disgust, then said in a tone as cold as still water, "I don't know him."

A note from the author:

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The arrogant guy (bushi) makes his appearance.