Chapter Five
The saying goes, "No fight, no friendship."
Through that farcical brawl, Cheng Xiangbei and Zhou Mu became acquainted.
After several interactions, they discovered that the other person was actually a good person. Zhou Mu was the student council president, and he directly recruited Cheng Xiangbei, a first-year student, into the student council. Cheng Xiangbei didn't seem to care much about this, but Lu Nan was very excited. She pulled out a comic book, pointed to the characters in it, and said to Cheng Xiangbei, "Look, that's the student council president. How impressive!"
"What's so great about that kind of position?" Cheng Xiangbei scoffed. "Look at Zhou Mu, he hasn't accomplished anything either!" In a school with an extremely strong academic atmosphere, the student council president is just a figurehead.
"If he's not good enough, then you're not good enough either!" Lu Nan pointed at the handsome guy in the comic and laughed, "Look at the president behind him, there are flowers everywhere, how gorgeous!" Cheng Xiangbei leaned over to look and saw that not only were there flowers fluttering behind the characters, but even the school was a magnificent castle-like building. He then rubbed Lu Nan's head and sighed, "Nan Nan, can you read less shoujo comics?"
“I’m a boy, what else should I read if not shoujo manga?” Lu Nan asked matter-of-factly.
Cheng Xiangbei leaned on the table, poking at the cover covered in lily patterns, and advised, "Didn't you watch Slam Dunk the other day? It's all about youthful energy and passion, it's better than this, right?"
"I also want to read something new, but we've been locked up for a month without any fresh air. Where am I supposed to get a book?" Lu Nan absentmindedly turned the pages and continued, "This book was borrowed from a second-year student by Xiao Jing. I need to finish reading it quickly and return it to her."
What was said in jest was taken seriously. Cheng Xiangbei asked Zhou Mu if there were any book rental shops nearby. Zhou Mu, with a half-smile, asked him, "Since when did Tiger Cheng start reading 'leisure books'?" Cheng Xiangbei laughed, "You, Chairman Zhou, are allowed to read erotic books, but I, a lowly soldier, am not allowed to read comics?" Zhou Mu's expression changed. "Damn! How did you know?" Cheng Xiangbei smiled wickedly, thinking to himself, "I was just trying to trick you, and sure enough!"
The bookstore was rather hidden, so Zhou Mu decided to take him there. Before evening self-study, Zhou Mu, familiar with the area, led Cheng Xiangbei over a low-lying section of the school wall. After several twists and turns, they found the bookstore. The store wasn't large, and it was crowded with students borrowing and returning books. Zhou Mu was the last person who should be there; some students even thought the chairman was coming to inspect and were about to leave after putting down their books. But Zhou Mu leaned against the door, waved his hand, and said, "It's okay, I didn't see anyone."
Cheng Xiangbei suppressed a laugh as he stood in front of the bookshelf, browsing through comics. Some of the students, being rather timid, hurriedly borrowed books and ran off. Zhou Mu, feigning boredom, looked around, and when fewer people were around, he pulled something from the shopkeeper's drawer and stuffed it into his shirt. The shopkeeper chuckled and scolded, "You little rascal!" Zhou Mu shrugged smugly.
Cheng Xiangbei picked out his comics and paid the deposit. Zhou Mu pointed at him and said, "This is my little brother, give me a discount!" The shop owner punched him and laughed, "Bringing someone here doesn't make you your little brother, damn it, how am I supposed to do business?!" "Alright, alright, two books count as one, come back often!" Cheng Xiangbei thanked him with a smile.
Back in the dorm that night, I secretly gave the comic to Lu Nan.
Lu Nan was delighted to see the new book and hugged Cheng Xiangbei's neck, kissing him twice. Lin Xiaotian, seeing this, exclaimed, "Lu Nan, you're so thirsty!" Lu Nan looked at him with a smile and said, "Come on, give me a kiss too!" Lin Xiaotian was so startled he almost fell off the bed, exclaiming, "That's not fair! If you fall and hurt me, you'll have to pay for it!"
Lu Nan looked up and laughed, "You didn't fall, did you?"
Cheng Xiangbei watched the two of them bickering, patted Lu Nan's head, and went out to wash up. Lu Nan and Lin Xiaotian exchanged a few more words, then Lu Nan rolled back into bed to read. The light from the inside was blocked by the bed frame, and Zhou Pu, seeing that Lu Nan was so engrossed in his book, quickly called out to him, "Lu Nan! Come outside to read! Be careful not to ruin your eyes!"
Lu Nan hummed in response, without moving. Seeing this, Zhou Pu kindly went over to pull Lu Nan away. The comic book had a slightly suspenseful beginning; he silently approached and pulled Lu Nan's arm, startling her so much that she screamed. The other students all turned to look. Zhou Pu shrugged innocently and said, "I really didn't do anything!"
Lin Xiaotian laughed loudly, "If you really do something, Boss Cheng will definitely destroy you!"
Amidst their laughter and playful banter, Cheng Xiangbei returned. Seeing Zhou Pu standing by the bed, Lu Nan stared at him with wide eyes, raising an eyebrow and asking, "What's wrong?" Zhou Pu rubbed his forehead, "I just wanted to ask Lu Nan to read under the lamplight." Lu Nan nodded, waving the book in her hand. Then she added, "He's like a ghost, reaching out his claws to pull me..."
Everyone turned to look at Zhou Pu's ghostly claw. Zhou Pu raised his hand and argued: This really is a hand!
The crowd stared at the hand and continued their discussion: "So Zhou Pu wasn't called Zhou Pu, he should be called Zhou Youling!" "No, no, shouldn't it be 'Ruthless Flower-Destroying Ghost Claw'?" "Zhou Youling, Zhou Youling! How come he looks so much like King You of Zhou?" "You're all wrong! Actually, Zhou Pu wasn't called Zhou Pu, he was King You of Zhou's beloved concubine, Zhou Baosi!" "Baosi's surname isn't Zhou, is it?" "You idiot! A wife takes her husband's surname, don't you know that?" "Oh, oh, it's Zhou Baosi, Zhou Baosi!"
Seeing that everyone's discussion was getting increasingly outrageous, Zhou Pu sensed something was wrong. He tried to stop them, but it was too late; the name Zhou Baosi was now definitively established. Zhou Pu looked at the instigator with a mixture of tears and hope, only to find that the guy had already settled down on Cheng Xiangbei's bunk and continued his research.
The long-awaited winter vacation is finally here.
A week before the holiday, Lu Nan couldn't hold back anymore and was jumping around every day.
Lin Xiaotian asked him, "What are you so excited about?" Lu Nan replied with a smile, "It's Chinese New Year! I'm home! My grandparents, parents, and I all gave me lucky money! And Aunt Li will cook delicious food for me!" Su... wiped his drool.
Zhou Pu and Zhou Baosi said helplessly: There are still more than half a month until the New Year! Let's talk about the midterm exams first?
Lu Nan, who was lost in a pleasant daydream, suddenly froze. After scratching her head for a while, she blurted out: "Oh, right, I still have to take the exam!"
Zhou and Lin exchanged a helpless glance. What on earth was going on in this immortal's head?!
Lu Nan wasn't too concerned about the first midterm exam after starting school, and Cheng Xiangbei, being a diligent student, was confident he'd be in the top ten of the class. Neither of them worried about their grades, so Lu Nan continued daydreaming, engrossed in his comics. However, on his way to return the book, Cheng Xiangbei encountered a group of thugs from town and got into a fight—one against four—and they didn't come out on top. Cheng Xiangbei had a bruise on his shoulder, and the book he'd borrowed had been torn up. When he returned and saw Lu Nan, he looked very apologetic.
Lu Nan retorted angrily, "Are you stupid?! If this stupid book makes you fight, I'll never read comics again, okay?!" Cheng Xiangbei was secretly delighted to hear this! He chuckled and said to Lu Nan, "It's okay, look, I chased them all away!" Lu Nan patted him and asked, "Are you hurt? Where does it hurt?"
Cheng Xiangbei shook his head, maintaining a smile to avoid worrying Lu Nan. Lu Nan had witnessed almost every fight Cheng Xiangbei had been in since childhood, so she couldn't believe him and immediately pulled open his down jacket to rip it off. Lu Nan was always single-minded and did whatever she wanted, especially towards Cheng Xiangbei, showing no mercy whatsoever. However, she was so focused on checking if Cheng Xiangbei was hurt that she forgot they were in a classroom. She grabbed Cheng Xiangbei's sweater and tried to pull it up, but Cheng Xiangbei kept dodging. Seeing his resistance, Lu Nan yelled, "It's not like I'm asking you to sell yourself! Why are you dodging!"
Just as Cheng Xiangbei was caught between laughter and tears, the homeroom teacher walked in. He cleared his throat and asked, "Who wants to sell themselves?"
Lu Nan was startled and stumbled forward, losing her balance. Caught off guard, Cheng Xiangbei tumbled to the ground, chair and all. Lu Nan, however, wouldn't let go of his sweater and yanked hard, snapping two loose threads. Cheng Xiangbei, still dizzy, fell to the ground, his head hitting the ground, and didn't see what Lu Nan was doing. Once the dizziness subsided, he saw Lu Nan tearing two holes in his sweater with both hands…
The homeroom teacher adjusted his glasses and said mysteriously, "So your sweater is showing your nipples."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
