And it was clear he didn't want her to bother him. That's why she missed Ding Lan's initial look of confusion…

After a long while, Mu Zixi finally heard her own voice dry as she uttered four hollow words: "Long time no see."

All she could say was, "Long time no see."

That was eight years ago.

A City No.1 High School. Grade 11, Class 4.

The spacious classroom was filled only with the teacher's enthusiastic lecture and... Li Haoyu's furious roar in Yan Ziqian's ear: "Damn it, Yan Ziqian, why aren't you dead yet!"

But the latter didn't even lift an eyelid, until—

"Wow! Holy crap! Ziqian, you're so handsome! I'm totally a fan of yours!" Li Haoyu snatched the phone from Yan Ziqian's hand, completely absorbed in his own self-admiration, ignoring the glares from his classmates. Their eyes clearly said: What's wrong with you now?! You're dead meat!

Yan Ziqian just wanted to cover his face. Oh, my bad friend! He's dragging this newbie down with him again. It's just another first place! Why are you so excited? But…

A slight smile played on Yan Ziqian's lips as he rested his chin on his hand, staring at Li Haoyu with a half-smile. Perhaps his charm was too strong, for Li Haoyu finally noticed something was amiss. His mouth was agape, his jaw agape, and he looked left and right before finally fixing his gaze on the podium.

The teacher had reached her breaking point: "Li Haoyu, Yan Ziqian, you two get out of here!" As the saying goes, even grandpa can tolerate it, but grandma can't. These two rascals are always causing him trouble!

At this moment, Li Haoyu lowered his head and said to Yan Ziqian, "Let's go outside and continue. Remember, it's my turn to shine in the next round."

Yan Ziqian shrugged, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Without a word, the two got up and walked out of the classroom. As they passed Ye Chen, who sat in front of them, Yan Ziqian glanced at him and his lips twitched. This brat, all he does is read books. Didn't he see that his brother was kicked out of the classroom? No loyalty!

As the teacher walked out of the classroom, he met Yan Ziqian's ambiguous smile. The encounter lasted exactly three seconds, yet it sent a chill down the teacher's spine. A shiver ran through him; what was this killing machine planning now?

Yan Ziqian smiled mysteriously and stepped out the door.

Outside the classroom, Li Haoyu shouted excitedly, "Hurry up and take it out!"

Yan Ziqian slapped him on the head: "You're spineless!"

"Hiss... You're no different!" Li Haoyu pointed at Yan Ziqian's nose and cursed.

Yan Ziqian's eyes were full of laughter. "I'm not like you."

But Li Haoyu still foolishly asked, "What's different?"

"Smack—"

Upon hearing this, Ye Chen, who had just come out of the classroom, couldn't help but slap Li Haoyu on the head. This idiot, he'll be played to death by Ziqian sooner or later.

"Which bastard is this?!" This time, Li Haoyu was furious. Damn it, just because I haven't shown my teeth doesn't mean I'm a pushover! He turned and threw a punch at Ye Chen's face. "Seriously?!" Ye Chen quickly dodged. Only then did Li Haoyu realize it was Ye Chen, and he immediately gritted his teeth, "Damn it, Ouyang's not here, and you two are just bullying me. Don't you dare run away!"

Ye Chen struck a perfect pose, turned around and ran away, shouting as he did so, "You're inherently dumber than us. According to Ye's Law, that's an eternal truth. Besides, Ouyang is my deskmate, you know. Do you think he'd help you?"

"Ah, Ye Chen, I'll kill you!"

"Catch up with me first!"

Watching the two figures recede into the distance, Yan Ziqian shook his head and chuckled, then turned and walked in the opposite direction. Gradually, his tall, slender figure disappeared at the end of the corridor…