Chapter 31: You Spoil Me Too Much

The school selection process for calligraphy competitions has always been transparent.

The entries are uploaded anonymously to the forum for open voting, and combined with subsequent scoring by on-site judges, the final contestants are selected to represent the school in the national competition.

Less than three days after the voting channel was opened, two works took the lead with a clear advantage. The votes were very close and neither side was ahead of the other.

Although it was an anonymous vote, it didn't take long for someone to uncover the authors of the top two.

Pei Heng from the Department of Literature and Sun Yumo from the Department of Calligraphy.

As soon as the news came out, Pei Heng's votes soared rapidly, directly widening the gap.

I don’t know if the person who broke the news was deliberately causing trouble, but soon many people who claimed to be students of calligraphy department flocked to the forum and compared and commented on the two people’s works word by word.

[In terms of skill, Sun Yumo's official script is the real test, right? ]

[Excuse me for being blunt, Pei Heng's handwriting looks beautiful, but upon closer inspection, the strokes are frivolous and it's obvious he hasn't put in any hard work!]

[Sun Xuezhang's calligraphy is truly skillful, with rigorous structure and powerful strokes that can be felt through the paper. This is calligraphy!]

[I agree with the above! Pei Heng's calligraphy only looks good in photos. When you zoom in, the strokes are unstable. He's just an outsider trying to join in the fun. A calligraphy competition isn't a beauty pageant. Why should someone like him take up a spot?]

"What's the literature department doing here? You only have pretty faces. Don't let them embarrass the school when you go to the national competition!"

For a time, posts questioning Pei Heng's calligraphy skills and the fairness of the competition flooded the market.

There were even many posts claiming that Pei Heng had some kind of privilege to participate in the competition.

The wind direction changed so quickly and so uniformly. No one would believe that there was no one behind the scenes fanning the flames.

Yan Ke was extremely anxious in the group and sent a message to Chen Shi.

[Your Highness, have you seen the forum? Are you not affected?]

Shen Shi raised his eyes.

At the desk, Pei Heng was practicing calligraphy. The ink on the rice paper was not dry yet. He frowned slightly, as if he was struggling with a certain stroke.

There was also a small sticky note on the corner of the table, with two big words written by Pei Heng himself on it: Write it hard!

Shen Shi tapped the screen with his fingertips: [No problem.]

After replying, he @ed Ling Yue separately.

[Find out who is behind the manipulation of public opinion.]

Ling Yue: [Yes.]

Pei Heng put down the last stroke, seemed not very satisfied, and clicked his tongue lightly.

He put down his pen, stretched his sore wrist, and when he turned around, he met three pairs of eyes.

Pei Heng: “?”

The atmosphere is a bit weird.

He tilted his head in confusion, "What's wrong?"

Zhou Jingming and Chen Yu exchanged glances and looked at Shen Shi at the same time.

Shen Shi met Pei Heng's gaze, and before he could speak, Pei Heng narrowed his eyes sharply, "Shen Shi, don't hide anything from me."

Shen Shi felt helpless.

He had never been able to deal with Pei Heng's requests, so he quietly unlocked his phone, clicked on the discussion post that had become a hot topic, and handed it to Pei Heng.

Pei Heng took the phone and browsed the comments full of analysis and indignation.

He looked at it unhurriedly, his expression didn't change much, but his brows were slightly furrowed.

I feel like a cat that has been stroked against its fur, and I feel uncomfortable all over.

"Isn't this a calligraphy competition?" Pei Heng asked.

Chen Yu replied, "Yes, of course."

Pei Heng was confused. "Then why do they insist on calling me a pretty face? If they don't mention this, won't their computers explode?"

"Pfft..." Zhou Jingming couldn't help but laugh out loud. "After all, no one can objectively or subjectively criticize you, so I can only use this as an excuse to write a fuss."

Pei Heng: “…”

He was silent for two seconds, then snorted, "Then I hope their computers explode."

Zhou Jingming and Chen Yu were amused, thinking he was just joking. They felt relieved a little and the atmosphere became a little more relaxed.

Only Shen Shi's eyes fell on Pei Heng's slightly drooping mouth.

"Okay," Shen Shi said to Zhou Jingming and Chen Yu, "We've almost finished practicing today, let Ah Heng rest for a while."

Zhou Jingming and Chen Yu immediately understood, packed up their things and slipped out of their room with a laugh.

The door closed gently.

Shen Shi turned around and saw Pei Heng still sitting in the large armchair, his whole body slumped in, his head slightly lowered, his hair covering his eyebrows and eyes, and his whole body exuding a kind of...

The low pressure of "I'm unhappy but I'm cool and I don't say it."

Shen Shi walked up to him, squatted down, and looked at him at eye level.

Pei Heng raised his eyelids and looked at him, his eyes showing a bit of grievance and stubbornness.

Shen Shi felt soft and bitter in his heart, and he couldn't stand Pei Heng's look.

“Hubby,” Shen Fang softened his voice, “Actually…it doesn’t matter if you don’t participate in this school selection.”

"Teacher Yan and the others will always find a way to help you get a spot in the national competition."

Shen Shi leaned closer and said, "Or, let them think of another way and just bring the calligraphy set and the ring back to you?"

This is totally unprincipled.

Pei Heng was feeling a bit depressed at first, but upon hearing this, he couldn't help but laugh, and his low mood instantly dissipated.

He leaned forward and sniffed the clean, crisp scent on Shen Shi's neck, then raised his eyes and commented, "Not good. I don't want to escape at this critical moment."

Then he said, "Chen Shi, you're a little too indulgent to me."

Shen Shi also curled up the corners of his lips, his eyes seemed to be filled with a pool of water under the moonlight, swaying gently, "Are you still angry now?"

Pei Heng: “……?”

He was stunned for a moment, carefully considering his emotions, and suddenly felt a little dazed.

Is he so easy to coax?

But Pei Heng held himself together and said stubbornly, "I'm not angry."

Shen Shi chuckled and placed a light kiss on his cheek, "That's good."

Pei Heng took a deep breath and muttered softly, "Little fox Shen..."

He pulled Shen Shi's hand and placed it on the top of his head, then looked up into his smiling eyes, staring at him without blinking.

Shen Shi felt a warmth in his heart, and he slowly tightened his fingers, gently massaging him to relax him.

Pei Heng narrowed his eyes and suddenly realized that a long time ago, Shen Shi had been very different to him.

He lowered his head and gently kissed the joints of Shen Shi's fingers as he massaged the top of his head.

The quiet moment is so warm that it makes your heart warm.

Pei Heng raised his head and looked straight into Shen Shi's eyes, suddenly becoming serious.

He gently stroked the corners of Shen Shi's eyes.

"When I get the calligraphy set and the ring, I'll have something to tell you."

Shen Shi's heart skipped a beat, as if he had guessed something, and the expectation in his heart spread.

"……good."