Chapter 10 This little cat cares.

The bell rang to signal the end of morning reading.

Niu Chongtian stood on the podium, watching the students slam open the door and rush out like zombies. He raised his voice and tirelessly emphasized, "Don't run! Be careful! Don't slide on the handrails when going downstairs!"

His response was nothing but meaningless squeaking and chattering from the students.

It's far away from people now.

But it's quite close to the monkeys.

In those brief five minutes, Shi Miao chatted away and got a little closer to Zou Yuanyuan, even making plans to have breakfast together in the cafeteria.

Zou Yuanyuan is shy and moves slowly. She only stood up after tidying up the textbooks on the table.

There were only a few people left in the classroom.

She was a little embarrassed. "Miaomiao, I'm a bit slow. If you can't wait, you can go first."

Shi Miao waved her hand dismissively, "It's okay, take your time, no rush."

Before leaving, Shi Miao glanced at the seat behind her.

Jiang Yingxu's desk was very clean. On the left were neatly stacked textbooks, and on the right were two ballpoint pens, one black and one red.

The familiar black backpack was leaning against the back of the chair, its zipper meticulously zipped up.

Shi Miao nudged Zou Yuanyuan's arm. "Yuanyuan, I have a question for you."

Zou Yuanyuan: "You go ahead."

Shi Miao: "Are you familiar with Jiang Yingxu?"

Zou Yuanyuan, who was intently looking down at the stairs, looked up at Shi Miao with a hint of surprise upon hearing this.

"You're new here, how do you know Jiang Yingxu?"

Before she could think of a reason, Zou Yuanyuan suddenly realized something.

"By the way, he always gets first place in the joint exams, so it's normal that you've heard of him."

The illiterate kitten didn't understand the significance of being number one in the joint entrance exam, but subconsciously felt that Jiang Yingxu was exceptionally talented.

This is the villain that will give the male protagonist a lot of trouble to deal with in the future.

Shi Miao didn't know what she was so proud of, so she suppressed the urge to get cocky and listened to Zou Yuanyuan continue.

"He has a rather cold personality, doesn't like to talk, and doesn't participate in class activities. To be honest, most people don't know him very well."

"However, he has excellent grades."

Zou Yuanyuan, who is also a top student, doesn't know much about Jiang Yingxu's personal situation, but she knows his academic achievements like the back of her hand.

"The teacher who just contacted him, Mr. Lei, is the head of our senior year physics group and also the teacher in charge of the physics competition at No. 1 High School. Jiang Yingxu was selected by him to participate in the physics competition from the first year of high school."

Ningcheng No.1 High School has the largest education funding in the city, making it quite wealthy compared to other public schools that don't receive any funding at all.

Students who win first prize in a provincial competition receive a reward of 1,000 yuan, while those who win first prize in a national competition receive double the reward to 10,000 yuan.

Jiang Yingxu started participating in competitions in his first year of high school. Despite frequently missing classes and never attending training sessions on evenings or weekends, he directly won the national first prize.

The same applies to the second year of high school.

At the same time, Jiang Yingxu also made sure to take advantage of the rewards that the top three students in the grade received at the end of each semester, and he was able to get the highest reward almost every time.

Zou Yuanyuan clenched her fingers. Actually, she had another guess, but it might not be accurate, so she didn't say it.

She had previously tried the physics competition exam and had also seen Jiang Yingxu's scores in the competition class's quizzes.

She suspected that Jiang Yingxu had controlled his score in the final round of the physics competition, or that he hadn't fully demonstrated his true abilities.

The top 50 gold medalists can enter the national training team and have the opportunity to be recommended for university admission.

Jiang Yingxu probably wanted to stay at No. 1 High School to win more awards, as he ranked in the 50s in both finals, just missing out on the training team.

Seeing how Jiang Yingxu usually buried himself in practicing college entrance exam questions, Zou Yuanyuan had no doubt that Jiang Yingxu probably had no intention of being recommended for admission.

After all, the No. 1 High School offers generous rewards to the top scorers in the college entrance examination. If a student can become the top scorer in the provincial examination, the combined rewards from the street office, the municipal government, and the provincial government could amount to four or five hundred thousand yuan.

"...Anyway, he is really talented."

Illiterate kitten: OvO!

Shi Miao recalled the abstract actions of college students who used to spread out textbooks on advanced mathematics and mathematical analysis in front of her, calling her "Senior Sister Cat" and asking her for tutoring.

The kitten looked serious as it stared at the textbook that looked like a magic book, its eyes almost turning into mosquito coils from the dizziness.

Aren't you studying math?

Why is everything in English?

Shi Miao still remembers the horror she felt when she sneaked into the classroom and saw that both blackboards were covered with calculations written by the bald professor.

The kitten avoids learning like the plague.

The main villain is surprisingly adept at handling things.

Absolutely amazing!

Shi Miao and Zou Yuanyuan chatted for a few more minutes. Just as they walked out of the teaching building, a girl hurriedly caught up with them.

It was Deng Yi, a classmate.

Deng Yi's fingers were still a little wet, so he casually wiped them on his pants.

"I went to the restroom and came out to find no one there. Luckily, you guys were walking slowly and I caught up with you. Come on, the taro and purple rice sesame balls at the third canteen are especially delicious. I'll treat you two to them as a welcome to our new classmates."

Unlike Zou Yuanyuan's gentle and shy nature, Deng Yi has a loud voice, loves to talk and laugh, and is also a self-proclaimed food connoisseur.

He talked non-stop about the signs of the three canteens, the oden from the convenience store, and the delicious little shop outside the school gate.

Shi Miao listened with longing, calling out in her heart, "Master! Master! Have you written it down? Write it down quickly, I want to eat at each and every one of them!"

The system was speechless: [Is my memory meant for this kind of thing?!]

He was grumbling and cursing, but his actions were quite honest; he even categorized everything into a table.

Shi Miao was touched: [Tong, you're so kind. Next time I have snacks, I'll definitely share half with you.]

system:【……】

Please suggest something edible, thank you.

The school's canteen, teaching buildings, and dormitory area are arranged in a triangle. The three of them chatted as they walked, and it took them seven or eight minutes to arrive.

The first floor was incredibly crowded, especially when freshmen were leaving school. Looking through the glass door, you could see people wearing camouflage uniforms everywhere.

Deng Yi pulled the two of them toward the stairs on the side.

"Let's go to the third floor; there are fewer people up there."

Shi Miao was a little curious, "Isn't the third canteen supposed to have the best food? Why are there so few people there?"

Deng Yi suppressed a laugh and pointed down the stairs.

"There's no other reason, it's just that people are too lazy to climb the stairs, and breakfast time is short, so many people would rather squeeze in on the first floor."

Shi Miao: "!"

What a simple and unpretentious reason.

But it is indeed very convincing.

As soon as I stepped onto the stairs, after only a few steps, a group of people rushed down from upstairs, young men and women mingling together, laughing and playing.

To avoid them, Deng Yi had to let go, and the three of them walked up the wall.

Zou Yuanyuan tried her best to stay close to the wall to avoid it, but when she looked down at the stairs, she was still bumped on the shoulder by a boy who was gesturing wildly.

She instinctively flinched, but lost her footing on the slightly greasy cafeteria stairs, slipped, and fell down.

"Yuan Yuan!"

Shi Miao, with her sharp ears, caught Zou Yuanyuan's low cry of pain and reacted incredibly quickly, turning around and grabbing Zou Yuanyuan's wrist.

At the same time, a tall figure emerged from the crowd, his well-defined knuckles slamming against the wall, using his arm for protection.

Zou Yuanyuan bumped her shoulder into the man's arm, but Shi Miao grabbed her and helped her regain her balance.

She was still in shock, her face slightly pale, her almond-shaped eyes brimming with tears as she turned her head to look at him.

The person blocking her way was a tall, long-legged boy, wearing a black work vest and work pants, with a thin silver chain around his neck. His short, black hair framed a rebellious look in his eyes, giving him a carefree and cynical air.

Are you alright?

The boy frowned, asked in a low voice, then raised his other hand and pointed at the person who had just caused trouble, his voice casual and cold, "Come here and apologize."

The boy who was pointed at scratched his head, bowing and saying sorry.

Zou Yuanyuan: "...It's okay, thank you."

She wasn't used to being the center of attention and didn't know how to deal with such an overly flamboyant person. She thanked him softly and quickly walked back to Shi Miao's side.

"Miaomiao, thank you for stopping me."

Zou Yuanyuan moved closer to Shi Miao, taking her arm, like a soft little lamb, instinctively drawn to the presence that made her feel safe.

The tone of her thanks was far more sincere than when she spoke to the boy.

The boy standing still glanced at Zou Yuanyuan, who was avoiding him like the plague, raised an eyebrow slightly, clicked his tongue, and couldn't hide his roguish air.

"Brother Zhou, you've saved the damsel in distress!"

"No, no, no, this was Brother Zhou's act of kindness and bravery."

A group of people were still laughing and joking.

Zou Yuanyuan slightly pursed her lips.

The boy lazily tilted his head, curled his lips into a smile, and the next second, slapped the person who caused the trouble on the shoulder.

There was a loud crack.

"I'm cleaning up your mess."

His thick eyebrows furrowed, and although his tone remained nonchalant, it carried a hint of fierceness. "You still have the nerve to laugh? He apologized, and you were blocking his way. Shouldn't you have said something?"

"..."

The crowd, which had been laughing loudly, suddenly fell silent. Some people, not taking it seriously, tried to laugh it off, but when they met the boy's fierce gaze, they shut up again.

One by one, people spoke up and said they were sorry.

Some people couldn't stand it and were unwilling to apologize. They muttered that they were all playing together and were acting like big shots, giving orders. They squeezed out of the crowd and left.

The boy didn't seem to care, put one hand in his pocket, and walked out on his own.

Deng Yi pulled Zou Yuanyuan over to check on her, and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that she was just startled and not injured.

She peeked at the boy's back and whispered gossip.

"That's Yan Zhaozhou, a second-year high school student. He transferred here halfway through last semester. I heard his family is extremely wealthy. He's driven around in a Maybach and has a personal driver who wears a suit and white gloves."

"Tsk tsk, a rich kid from a privileged family, he's definitely arrogant."

“Oh right,” Deng Yi remembered, “he seems to be a math competition student too, just like you, Yuan Yuan.”

Zou Yuanyuan hummed in agreement, "He usually gives one-on-one private lessons and rarely appears in our classroom."

She was quiet and shy, and usually sat in the corner of the classroom.

I have never met Yan Zhaozhou.

Deng Yi and Zou Yuanyuan were still talking, but Shi Miao wasn't paying attention.

She looked towards the stairwell.

Yan Zhaozhou walked with an air of nobility amidst the crowd, exuding arrogance and unrestrained confidence as he stepped into the bright sunlight.

On the other side, a boy in a blue and white school uniform walked alone, his long eyelashes drooping and his expression cold and lonely, brushing past them and walking up the dimly lit stairs.

It's as if their fate was ordained by the plot.

Yan Zhaozhou was enjoying immense success.

Jiang Yingxu was down on his luck and in dire straits.

Everyone was celebrating Yan Zhaozhou's victory, congratulating him on his success, and wishing him well for the future.

No one cared about Jiang Yingxu's dejected departure.

Successful people should rise to power by stepping on unsuccessful people.

"..."

Jiang Yingxu steadily walked up the stairs past them, but suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He lowered his eyes, looking at the cuff of his sleeve that had been swiftly grabbed by someone.

The girl's fingers were slender, soft, and white. She gripped his sleeve tightly, and her neatly trimmed nails were a pinkish-petal-like color.

I don't know where it got rubbed, but there are a few tiny, slightly reddish scratches on the back of my warm white hand, like minor flaws in white jade.

"Jiang Yingxu".

Her voice was sweet and clear, yet it concealed a seriousness that no one knew about.

"What a coincidence! Shall we grab some breakfast together?"

But this little cat cares.