Chapter 10 P - Declaration of War
Wang Caiyan reminded the students to remember the class times, the extra material fees and class fees that needed to be paid for school, the arrangements for freshmen military training, the class rules and learning direction, and to elect temporary class committee members.
Everyone volunteered for the temporary class committee. Chu Beiling, relying on his basketball skills, volunteered to be the sports committee member, but Wang Caiyan rejected him: "With your small frame, you want to be the sports committee member? Basketball will beat you, or you will play basketball."
The whole class burst into laughter.
Xing Yu frowned, put down his pen, and glanced at Chu Beiling. He was actually not small or short, about 180 cm tall. His only flaw was that he was a little thin, but not frail.
These offhand remarks, while not explicitly insulting, were also devoid of goodwill, stemming from disdain and utter contempt.
This disdain was not only a disregard for his poor grades, but also a warning against his disobedience, with an element of deliberately embarrassing him. Chu Beiling was used to it; that's how Ms. Li treated him.
Tell him frankly and directly, in your attitude and words, that people who are not good at something don't have love.
Why are adults always like this? Do they have to meet certain requirements to get even a glance or a bit of attention?
Chu Beiling was unconvinced, her stubborn temper flaring up again, and she blurted out, "I fly on a basketball."
The class burst into laughter again.
"What are you laughing at?" Wang Caiyan's face was ashen as she looked at a tall, dark-skinned boy in the class: "Liu Jiaxiang, the sports committee member."
Liu Jiaxiang: "Okay, teacher."
Chu Beiling noticed Xing Yu's gaze and glared at him: "What are you looking at? Did I tell you to look wherever you want?"
Xing Yu took out two five-cent coins from his pocket and placed them in front of Chu Beiling.
He looked bewildered, glanced at the coins, and then looked up at Xing Yu again: "What do you mean?"
Xing Yu said unhurriedly, "Do you think two yuan and fifty cents is enough?"
"Fuck it then." Chu Beiling angrily threw the sketchbook on the desk.
Just then, Wang Caiyan finished speaking, and the sound of him slamming the picture book on the table echoed in the classroom.
It was extremely loud.
Wang Caiyan was very dissatisfied: "Chu Beiling, either stay put or get out."
Chu Beiling stopped talking, lowered her head and played with the malleable eraser in her hand, treating him like Xing Yu and kneading him at will.
After going through the process, all class committee members were appointed, and no one dared to take the position except for the academic representative, probably because everyone believed that the academic representative had to have good grades.
The top students in the class were basically all appointed as temporary class committee members, except for the first and second place students.
Wang Caiyan's gaze swept back and forth between Li Dong and Xing Yu, finally settling on: "Xing Yu, the academic representative."
Xing Yu looked up: "Teacher Wang, the class committee is supposed to supervise the students, but I don't have that ability."
Wang Caiyan said gently, "You can give it a try. Your teacher believes in you."
Xing Yu still refused, and Wang Caiyan, though embarrassed, still smiled and said, "Okay, then the teacher won't force you."
He then looked at Li Dong: "And you?"
Li Dong shook his head and refused: "Teacher Wang, I have a bad temper and I can't be a class committee member."
Wang Caiyan nodded: "Okay, then the academic representative position will be put on hold for now, and we'll decide on a later date based on performance. The class monitor will temporarily take over."
Chu Beiling's nose stung with tears; he felt both wronged and wanting to laugh, but he couldn't. He stared blankly at the podium.
The same attitude, but vastly different results.
He was completely refuted by everyone simply because he failed one exam.
Li Dong was also one of the students who received special attention. He also refused the homeroom teacher's offer, but he was particularly annoyed by Xing Yu, feeling that Xing Yu's refusal was a provocation and a declaration of war against him.
I just can't stand it.
Noticing Xing Yu's gaze, Chu Beiling turned around instantly.
Their eyes met—
Xing Yu's gaze was indifferent and straightforward, as if he could see right through him.
Without thinking, Chu Beiling blurted out something she really wanted to do, but which sounded incredibly childish: "Xing Yu, I'm declaring war on you. If I get a higher score than you in the first monthly exam, you transfer schools; otherwise, I do."
Xing Yu chuckled: "You're Chu Yuxun, and you dare to declare war on me!"
Chu Beiling's face had already turned green, but she hadn't even had a chance to retort.
Xing Yu's cold and annoying voice rang out again: "I won't play this kind of boring game with you. It's childish to joke about your future just to spite me."
He and he were natural enemies.
That nameless anger, fueled by Xing Yu's embellishments, instantly turned to ashes.
Chu Beiling rolled her eyes at him and lowered her head to continue rubbing the limp eraser.
Wang Caiyan cleared the mulberry leaves and gave her final speech: "All of you here are art students. Don't think that academic subjects are unimportant for art students. Xigao follows the principle of 'walking on two legs.' While taking art classes, academic subjects cannot be neglected. Your academic scores cannot be lower than those of students in regular academic classes. So get on your feet, you hear me?"
"Understood." The voices of the forty-two students echoed in the classroom.
The homeroom teacher hastily set up a makeshift group and explained the important points for the start of the semester. After that, the first evening self-study session of high school ended. The boys were assigned to collect their textbooks, while the girls, who had found their partners, walked out of the classroom in twos and threes.
The week-long military training officially began the next day, with the first-year high school students standing under the scorching sun in inappropriate camouflage uniforms.
The sun was scorching in early September, and the students were all sweating profusely, their faces flushed red. They complained that the military training was under the blazing sun for a whole week, with no sign of rain.
Under the blazing sun, everyone's brains were buzzing, their vision was filled with halos of light, and they were on the verge of collapse, yet they still had to be on high alert, wary of the instructors suddenly prying open the hands that were stuck to their legs to check how tightly they were attached, or kicking the back of their calves to check if they were standing straight.
The boys who didn't pass the test did push-ups, while the girls did frog jumps.
After enduring a long and difficult period, they were finally allowed to disperse and rest for twenty minutes. The group of boys and girls, like wild monkeys, quickly scrambled for shady spots. Those who couldn't find a spot could only sit down anywhere and fan themselves with their camouflage hats, trying to cool themselves off.
Chu Beiling went to a corner to pick up her sketchbook, using one hand to shield herself from the sun and the other hand to fan herself with her hat.
"It's so hot! If this keeps up, I'll definitely end up in the hospital." Li Dong plopped down next to Chu Beiling. "Why doesn't it rain? Even a drizzle would cool things down."
Xu Tunan was scorching from the sun, so he suggested, "Bei Ling, why don't you unfold your picture album and help everyone block out the sun?"
“This picture book is Prince Fanfan’s lifeblood, he treasures it dearly, give up!” Li Dong raised his chin at the picture book and said with a smile, “Do you know how Prince Fanfan and Xing Yu got into a fight? It was because of this picture book, he tore out a page.”
Chu Beiling warned with a dark face, "Li Dong, don't call me that again, you hear me? If the rest of the class finds out, I'll beat you up."
Li Dong ignored Chu Beiling's warning: "It depends on my mood."
Xu Tunan was more curious about the reason why he was called "Little Prince Fanfan" than about the feud between the two.
Chu Beiling: "Li Dong is not allowed to say it."
Li Dong: "Fanfan is his nickname."
Chu Beiling: "Li Dong, you're dead."
Li Dong chuckled a few times, completely unconcerned, and proceeded to expose Chu Beiling's other secrets.
It's because he's too easy to get along with and rarely gets really angry. If it were Xing Yu, Li Dong would never provoke him or joke with him. It's not that he's afraid of him, but Xing Yu is cold and boring, and there's no fun in teasing him.
Only with Chu Beiling would she dare to recklessly expose his secrets without any restraint.
Chu Beiling was quite annoyed by her and retorted directly, and the two began to bicker back and forth.
Xu Tunan revealed his true colors: "What's the big deal? It's just a nickname. My nickname is Tutu!"
He reached out and tugged at his prominent ears: "My classmates used to call me Hu Tutu, but unfortunately I don't know how to move my ears, so I can only move them by hand."
The bickering paused for a moment—
The three of them burst into laughter at the same time.
Xing Yu, who had been sitting quietly not far from them, had a barely perceptible smile playing on his lips.
He shifted to a more comfortable position, resting his head on his knees with his arms, and continued to watch them chat and laugh in a relaxed manner.
On the other side, Xue Ziang, who had already taken the initiative to act as the class monitor, walked over to the three of them carrying several bottles of water. "Do you want some?"
"Thanks, buddy." Xu Tunan took the bottle, unscrewed the cap, and gulped down the water, drinking almost half of it in one go.
Chu Beiling casually asked, "Did you buy this water yourself?"
I vaguely overheard other classmates saying that the water was purchased by the class monitor at his own expense for the students.
"Yes, I'm the class monitor, so it's only right that I take care of everyone. Buying water didn't cost much. If you need anything, remember to tell me right away, don't be shy." Xue Ziang's tone was very low, sounding like he was just saying it casually, but it also revealed a hint of his superiority.
"Thank you for your thoughtfulness." Li Dong took two bottles, kept one for himself, and handed the other to Chu Beiling.
Chu Beiling took it and said smugly, "At least you still have a conscience, knowing to give me a bottle."
"Then you're wrong." Li Dong withdrew his hand and slapped the mineral water bottle back into his hand: "I don't have a conscience."
Xue Ziang glanced at them and then looked away, preparing to sit down among them. He saw Xing Yu sitting not far away, keeping some distance from everyone else: "Do you want some?"
Xing Yu shook his head.
Xue Ziang, always considerate of everyone, insisted on inviting them, "Come and sit down with us, don't sit alone."
Xu Tunan turned to look at Xing Yu and beckoned him over: "Come on over, it's so boring sitting there alone, come and chat with me."
Xing Yu smiled politely, but still shook his head.
Xue Zi'ang insisted that no one should be left out: "Come on over."
Chu Beiling was already used to Xing Yu's aloofness: "Squad leader, don't call him anymore, he won't come."
Li Dong chimed in, "Don't bother calling the class monitor. He prefers to be alone and won't come."
They had been in the same art studio for six or seven years, but no one could pull Xing Yu, who voluntarily stayed on the edge of the crowd, into their lively atmosphere. There was no way he would come over just because of a few words from the class monitor he had only known for less than two days.
"Classmates should get along well," Xue Ziang said with a smile, then turned to call Xing Yu, but the latter ignored him.
Xue Zi'ang was persistent, as if he wouldn't be a proper class monitor if he didn't call Xing Yu over and integrate him into the group.
He got up and walked to Xing Yu's side, just reaching out to pull him up from the ground and bring him to their side.
Xing Yu frowned slightly and quickly dodged Xue Ziang's touch: "No need, thank you."
Xue Ziang chuckled dryly, "You look out of place sitting here all by yourself. Come and join us."
Xing Yu looked at Xue Ziang expressionlessly and refused, word by word: "No need to thank me."
Xue Ziang didn't plan to leave and insisted on inviting Xing Yu to come over: "It's so boring to be alone. Come sit down and talk and chat together. New classmates can get to know each other faster."
Chu Beiling was engrossed in watching the spectacle, and it was rare to see his nemesis's face clearly filled with impatience and annoyance.
Yet he still had to politely and amicably deal with Xing Yu's enthusiastic, troublesome, and awkward situation, while secretly gloating over Xing Yu's frustration.
Perhaps sensing his gaze, Xing Yu looked over, and Chu Beiling raised his chin at him with a provocative expression.
Xue Ziang was still trying to persuade him when Xing Yu frowned unhappily and muttered, "Troublesome."
I got up and went to another place to be alone.
As he passed by Chu Beiling, he accidentally knocked over the water bottle that Xu Tunan had left uncapped on the ground.
Chu Beiling quickly picked up the picture book from the ground, but he still couldn't avoid getting it wet. He checked the picture book inside and out, and fortunately only the outer kraft paper was wet, and the water did not seep into the picture book.
Xing Yu's indifferent and stiff voice came from above: "Sorry."
Chu Beiling stuffed the picture album into Li Donghui's arms: "Keep it safe for me."
The next second—
Chu Beiling quickly stood up and pounced on Xing Yu, grabbing him by the collar: "Xing Yu, are you looking for death?!"
Li Dong and Xu Tunan quickly got up to try and break up the fight, but Chu Beiling ignored them.
He had already put up with Xing Yu to the limit. He could let it go and accept his fate. Even if he was not convinced, he could admit that he was not as good as him.
But his art book is his life's work, his very life.
Tearing up one of his drawings wasn't enough for them, now they're planning to destroy his entire sketchbook. Do they really think he's easy to bully?!
Xing Yu grabbed Chu Beiling's hand and tried to pull it away: "I didn't mean to, and I've already apologized."
Chu Beiling understood the unspoken meaning: "So what else do you want?" Seeing Xing Yu's dismissive and uninterested attitude, his temper flared up along with his stubbornness.
Ignoring the advice of those around him, he increased the pressure on his hand, insisting that Xing Yu give him an explanation: "If you do something wrong, apologize. What do we need the police for?"
Xing Yu grabbed Chu Beiling's wrist and pulled him away slightly, trying to say, "What do you want? Tell me and I'll do it."
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