Chapter 15
Unsurprisingly, an accident occurred.
The three of them were late. Guan Nan and Jiang Li stood at the classroom door, holding their books.
Guan Nan covered her lips with a book, feeling deeply guilty, and said, "I'm so sorry, you wouldn't have been late if it weren't for me."
"Not necessarily." Jiang Li looked at her pitiful eyes and lazily curled the corners of his lips.
"ah?"
Jiang Li raised an eyebrow slightly, but offered no explanation.
During the break, shortly after returning to her seat, someone called her from the doorway, saying someone was looking for her.
Guan Nan held her pen, having just copied down the homework questions, her hands still busy writing the answers. She glanced up at the door, taking a moment to think it was just Jiang Li's admirers again.
Unexpectedly, the person who came was Qi Yang, and Guan Nan immediately got up and went out.
"Wow—" Upon seeing who it was, some classmates started to cheer.
Yu Shu: "Holy crap, Qiyang?"
"Who?" Jiang Li put down his pen and looked outside.
"He's a senior in high school, the top scorer in the high school entrance exam two years ago, a well-known top student in Fuzhong," Yu Shu said, seemingly very knowledgeable about gossip. "Now all the teachers at the school are betting on him, betting that he will definitely pass the high school entrance exam this time."
Jiang Li replied calmly, "Is that so?"
"Yes," Yu Shu nodded confidently.
Just as Jiang Li thought he still had some kind of spiritual communication, he heard him mutter incoherently, "But then again, how did he get to know Guan Nan? Aren't there any barriers between top students? Is it purely through brainwaves? Or telepathy? Has it really gotten to that level?"
"......"
Upon hearing this, the idea seemed plausible for less than three seconds before completely collapsing.
Once outside the classroom, probably because there were too many people in the corridor, Qi Yang suggested that they go downstairs to talk, as it wasn't very convenient here.
Guan Nan understood what he meant, took the test paper and put it in the classroom, then followed him downstairs.
"We're on holiday starting this Friday afternoon. There are part-time jobs at the New City Plaza. Are you free?" Qi Yang is very busy. He's busy with his studies at school, busy with part-time jobs on holidays, and also has to keep an eye out for his classmates.
Guan Nan grew up in the same building as him, and after some things happened, she also worked part-time with him for several years.
"Yes." Guan Nan nodded.
"Okay," Qi Yang said. "I'll register you first, at the usual time."
The same time, the same place—Guan Nan knew this place by heart.
The event starts at 10:00 AM, and participants gather at the square at 9:00 AM for roll call, changing clothes, and familiarizing themselves with the part-time job.
Because he was very skilled at his part-time job, the "old time" Qi Yang mentioned was actually 9:30.
Guan Nan: "Okay. Thank you, Brother Qiyang."
After saying this, the two remained silent for a while. Since Qi Yang didn't leave immediately, Guan Nan guessed that there must be other things going on. Otherwise, it wouldn't be just a small part-time job, and he would be so discreetly avoiding the crowd.
"The hospital called," Qi Yang said slowly, glancing at her again.
Guan Nan lowered her eyes, paused for two seconds, and asked, "Is it... all done?"
Her body was somewhat stiff, her fingers clenched until they turned white, and her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.
Qi Yang lowered his voice, "He didn't say anything, he just told you to call the hospital when you have time, or go see her."
“I,” Guan Nan’s throat tightened, “I’ll go on Friday afternoon. I’ll call the hospital back.”
"Mm." Qi Yang was about to leave, but he couldn't help but reach out and rub her head gently, soothing her softly: "Don't worry, it will be alright."
He dragged his heavy steps back to the classroom, which aroused the curiosity of many people.
The first to speak was Yu Shu, the king of gossip. He leaned forward and couldn't help but ask, "Class monitor, something's up? Are you two top scorers in the high school entrance exam planning to join forces and dominate the top tier in the city?"
Guan Nan was in a very low mood and tried her best to adjust, but she couldn't. She simply shook her head and denied it.
"How did you two meet?" Yu Shu couldn't contain his curiosity.
Guan Nan: "They came from the neighbors."
"Wow, that's amazing! What kind of neighborhood is yours? The feng shui is so good!"
Guan Nan nodded silently.
Her phone vibrated, and she took it out while looking down.
The SMS notification page covers the screen.
No more than three people knew her number: Jiang Li, who sat next to her at the same table, Qi Yang, who was her neighbor, and her homeroom teacher.
However, both of the latter had notes, but the number saved at noon had no notes.
As expected, it was a text message from Jiang Li.
—【Let's go home together after school.】
Together?
They're not going that way either...
Guan Nan hesitated, then tentatively replied, "Don't you have self-study tonight?"
The text message had just been sent when I heard a soft laugh.
"......"
Did I say something wrong? What is he laughing at?
Guan Nan frowned.
--【Um. 】
How can we be together then?
Guan Nan felt a little confused, but assumed it was just his quirky sense of humor and didn't investigate further. She simply turned off her phone and put it away. Then she picked up her water cup to get some water. The water dispenser was in the corner to the right of the podium, and there were several water bottles on the floor.
Halfway through dispensing the water, the water dispenser ran out of water.
Guan Nan tried to change the water, but the bottled water was too tightly secured and too heavy, so she gave up because she couldn't move it.
When Guan Weimin came home from school in the evening, he opened the door with a dark expression.
Guan Nan entered the room, still acting as if she had no presence, and washed the kitchen dishes and swept the floor.
Lin Zhaozhao, coaxed and pleaded by her two parents, burst into tears of grievance.
It was confirmed that she had told the teacher, and hadn't kept it from her parents either; she explained everything clearly.
I also heard about Guan Weimin's conversation with the teacher at Fushi High School today. He said that since there were many of them and they were young, the law wouldn't punish them because of the large number of people involved, and calling the police would be useless. In the end, he said in extreme anger, "Transfer schools, they must transfer schools. How dare they treat my daughter like this."
Although these words made Guan Nan feel a pang of sadness, she also secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
After what happened, they had no desire to have Guan Nan tutor Lin Zhaozhao anymore, and Guan Nan silently returned to the balcony.
The balcony door couldn't be closed, so she sat on a small stool, bent over against the folding bed, quietly writing the test paper that Qi Yang had given her, separated by a wall.
It wasn't until 1 a.m. that Guan Nan came out after taking a shower and found Lin Zhaozhao still sitting on the sofa.
Lin Zhaozhao said awkwardly, "Thank you for today."
Guan Nan was surprised to hear her say that. It was the first time she had seen her like this. In order not to hurt the self-esteem and face of the awkward child, she nodded lightly.
“But,” Lin Zhaozhao glared at her again, “don’t think you can bribe me like that!”
Guan Nan remained silent: "..."
He's still just a kid.
The way they tried to show goodwill was also clumsy.
"I will not stop liking my mother because of you!"
"Okay," Guan Nan said, her tone almost imperceptibly indulgent, "I understand."
After saying that, Lin Zhaozhao blushed and went back to her room, moving quietly as if she had never been there that night.
Guan Nan smiled, went back to the balcony, turned on her phone, and wanted to check the latest news headlines in her browser to avoid missing out on current events.
As soon as I turned on my phone, a text message popped up.
It was that same number again, from noon.
Guan Nan pressed the back button, but struggled with what to write when saving the number. After hesitating for a long time, she solemnly wrote "deskmate".
It wasn't a stranger, nor was it the famous Jiang Li; it was my deskmate.
The deskmates were neither too close nor too distant; the relationship was just right, perfectly balanced.
Then open the text message.
Desk mate: [?]
The inexplicable question mark, coupled with the inexplicable suggestion to walk together at noon, left Guan Nan feeling bewildered for a moment.
I glanced at the time and guessed the other person was already asleep.
Guan Nan then inexplicably replied with a question mark.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Li on the other end of the phone was not asleep, and a text message immediately popped up, taking up the small screen.
Desk mate: [Why are you running?]
What's running away?
Guan Nan didn't understand what he meant. After hesitating for a moment, she replied: "I didn't run away."
Desk mate: [Then why aren't you waiting for me?]
Guan Nan realized what was happening and went back to the text messages, staring at the one that said "Let's go together after school." It was at this moment that she realized Jiang Li wasn't joking out of nowhere or playing a prank.
But the other side must be speechless right now.
She suddenly didn't know how to reply. She tried to brush it off as usual, pretending she hadn't seen the message, but the other party seemed to read her mind and immediately replied with "Don't pretend you didn't see it."
"......"
Guan Nan, who had the same idea, was immediately stumped.
Guan Nan frowned, not yet having figured out how to reply, when the other party called, seemingly to interrogate her.
Without thinking, I hung up quickly.
Guan Nan felt a little guilty, so she replied hastily, "[Okay, goodnight.]"
After replying, Guan Nan put her phone under her pillow and couldn't help but grin.
It seems she really met a very, very good deskmate.
Even though that person was once a "bad student" she avoided at all costs.
......
The next day, Guan Nan went to the classroom.
The water bottle on the water dispenser has been removed since last night, but no one has changed the water.
She wasn't too thirsty, so she wasn't in a hurry. She simply put down her water glass, opened her book, previewed the key points of the first math lesson, and then looked at the extension exercises, circling the formulas and filling them in.
But this time, Jiang Li, who always went through the back door and around the corridor to get his seat, tapped her desk with his finger.
Guan Nan looked up and met his ambiguous smile. Thinking back to her behavior last night, she pursed her lips in embarrassment, lowered her eyes, and got up to make way for him.
Just then, a student standing in front of the water dispenser turned around and called out "Jiang Li" in their direction.
Amidst the teasing from others, Jiang Li frowned, turned around, and glanced at them expressionlessly.
"There's no water left." The girl's eyes were filled with adoration, and her face was flushed with shyness.
Jiang Li propped himself up in his seat. "And then?"
Perhaps sensing the softened attitude in Jiang Li's reply, she responded with a somewhat arrogant tone that seemed to take it for granted: "Change it."
"..." Perhaps finding it absurd, Jiang Li curled his lips into a mocking smile and said, "Are you ordering me around?"
The girl didn't detect the sarcasm in his words and nodded heavily: "Mm."
Jiang Li scoffed dismissively after hearing this, then stepped into his seat, glancing at his classmate standing to the side.
The classroom was noisy. Those dark, bright eyes looked across most of the desk and met Guan Nan's gaze. For a moment, Guan Nan pretended to be calm and looked away, then sat down as if nothing had happened.
Everyone assumed Jiang Li was going to change the water.
The female classmate who went to fetch the girl came in with a smug look on her face, glancing sideways at the surprised classmates as if to say, "See? I still managed to win her over."
However, Jiang Li simply sat upright in his seat.
"Jiang Li," the female classmate called out quickly, pointing to the water dispenser and reminding him, "Change the water!"
Jiang Li raised his head and asked, "Did I say I'd change it?"
"Then, then," the female classmate said coquettishly, as if she hadn't expected Jiang Li to tell people not to come to Taiwan in public. She was also unwilling to be laughed at. "Since you're already here, just change it."
"I'm physically weak," Jiang Li said lazily, pulling out his notebook and handing it to the group leader, who sat in the first row in front of him. "I can't move it."
After he finished speaking, he ignored everyone else.
The female student blushed with embarrassment and stomped her foot angrily, shouting, "Jiang Li!"
Then, amidst the laughter and teasing about Jiang Li's "weak constitution," Guan Nan still heard Chen Aimei's sarcastic remarks.
She said, "He brought shame upon himself."
"With so many people, why do they insist on looking for Jiang Li?" Chen Mengjie, who was not far away, chimed in.
"Everyone knows that Jiang Li hates it when people order him around."
Guan Nan kept her head down, as if she hadn't heard anything, and continued to look at the knowledge points she hadn't finished reading earlier, working on them while referring to the exercise book she had bought.
After some time, a notebook was pushed towards me. It was completely blank, with nothing on it.
"?" Guan Nan was puzzled.
Immediately afterwards, Jiang Li's voice came from next door, "Classmate."
"ah?"
His tone was accusatory, tinged with frustration, dissatisfaction, and a hint of irritation: "You're disloyal."
"Why?" Guan Nan was a little puzzled, wondering where she had been disloyal.
Why didn't you answer the phone yesterday?
Guan Nan doesn't use her phone at home, and she definitely won't answer calls at night, so she said softly, "I didn't do it on purpose."
"You did it on purpose," Jiang Li said in a lazy, teasing tone.
Guan Nan was speechless for a moment.
That's incredibly unreasonable of him.
Jiang Li twirled the pen between his fingers, seemingly deep in thought. Just as the pen fell to the ground, he said, "See that notebook?"
"Hmm." The notebook was beside her elbow, and Guan Nan saw it as soon as she looked down.
Jiang Li: "Help me write a character."
"Why don't you write it yourself?" Guan Nan noticed that he practiced calligraphy whenever he had free time.
"I waited for you for so long last night," Jiang Li said, putting down his pen and complaining unhappily, "and you wouldn't even help me write?"
"......."
No matter how you look at it, she seems to be feeling guilty.
"I didn't say..." She paused for two seconds, not wanting to be misunderstood, and quickly explained awkwardly, "That's not what I meant."
"So what do you mean?"
Guan Nan ignored his follow-up question, "What words do you want to write?"
"Just write," Jiang Li said slowly, his eyes fixed on the notebook, still looking lazy and unfocused. "Jiang Li—"
He paused, straightened his posture, and uttered the following words as Guan Nan began to write.
"The most handsome man in the world and the universe."
Guan Nan had just added the three dots of water to the inner title page when his hand froze in mid-air, ready to make the next stroke.
She thought Jiang Li was joking with her, and was wondering whether to continue writing when she heard a muffled chuckle behind her.
Turning his head, Jiang Li's face showed a forced, suppressed smile, as if it were intentional.
Behind him, Yu Shu laughed so hard that his shoulders trembled as he leaned against his arms.
"......"
After glancing at him for a few seconds, Guan Nan neatly wrote down "Jiang Li's" name and returned the notebook to him.
The next second, she stood up with a stiff face, took her water cup and went to get water.
Chen Aimei leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Hey, is there no Sprite today?"
"What Sprite?" Guan Nan was still immersed in her earlier frustration and didn't realize what she was talking about.
Glancing at her seat, Chen Aimei's voice lowered even further: "Didn't I buy you Sprite today?"
Coming to her senses, Guan Nan pursed her lips and remained silent.
Guan Nan filled her water glass and it was her turn to fill it. She grabbed Guan Nan's sleeve, preventing her from leaving, and asked mysteriously, "Do you know who put the Sprite on your table?"
Guan Nan paused for a moment and shook her head.
"It's Jiang Li," Chen Aimei said proudly, raising her chin. "Surprised, aren't you!"
Tightening the lid, Guan Nan hesitated whether to be honest with her, but looking at Chen Aimei's current state, she remained silent for two seconds before finally saying, "I'm very surprised."
"I knew it was him who bought it a long time ago."
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