Chapter 5 Seeing the Way
Chapter Summary: This is a duet recitation with Fu Xianyin.
Teacher Fu's mango pomelo sago mini-class continued until the start of the next class, and she seemed reluctant to stop.
Gu Linzhao was forced to listen to a lot of knowledge. Before class, he subconsciously took a sip of mango pomelo sago on the table.
The crisp, chewy texture of the popping boba, mixed with the sweet and sour mango puree and rich coconut milk, adds a lot of flavor.
It tastes really good, he thought.
This class was a self-study period. After the bell rang, Fu Xianyin didn't say anything. She focused on doing practice problems and secretly used her phone to search for and list the extra practice problems she wanted to buy five minutes before the get out of class ended.
After class, Cheng Zhaozhao, who was in the front row, immediately came over to Fu Xuanyin: "Yinyin, do you want to go have lunch together!"
Fu Xianyin thought for a moment: "Are you going to eat on campus? I'm planning to go out before lunch break to buy some books. I might not have enough time to eat on campus, sorry."
As they were talking, Song Yaoge walked around from the back row, took a water cup, and squatted down at the last water dispenser to fill it up.
While claiming to be fetching water, her gaze kept drifting towards Gu Linzhao.
Lin Anxu overheard Fu Xianyin's words and interjected, "Beautiful sister, if your leg is injured, don't go out so far. What books do you want to buy? Just tell me, I'm going out to lunch with Brother Zhao anyway, and I'll buy them for you on the way."
Cheng Zhaozhao then realized that Fu Xianyin's leg was injured. She looked down and saw a clear mark on the girl's knee, exclaimed "Ah!" and said:
"Yinyin, how did you get so hurt? Lin Anxu is right, you shouldn't go out anymore and walk less."
Fu Xianyin smiled and said, "It's alright, it's not a big problem, it'll be fine in a few days." She winked at Cheng Zhaozhao and said, "I was planning to go see the cultural performance this afternoon, didn't you say we were missing one act?"
Gu Linzhao reminded him at the right moment: "There are classes in the afternoon. Skipping class without permission will be considered truancy and will result in a deduction of five points."
He said meaningfully, "Lin Anxu is only nine points now."
The implication is that you should calculate the total score yourself.
Fu Xianyin maintained her smile on the surface, but in her heart she cursed Gu Linzhao a thousand times. She handed the note on the table to Lin Anxu: "Then I'll have to trouble you. Tell me how much it costs after you buy it, and I'll transfer it to you."
Song Yaoge seemed to be carrying a large thermos, as she hadn't even finished filling a cup of water. Fu Xianyin glanced at the afternoon schedule and suddenly asked, "What if there aren't enough performances?"
Cheng Zhaozhao said, "If there aren't enough programs, the director might come to our class to assign some? But it'll probably just be singing or recitation programs."
Fu Xianyin nodded, then suddenly had a mischievous idea. She picked up the mango pomelo sago on the table, took a sip, and said, "Then I'll go take a look. I sing pretty well, maybe I'll get selected?"
Gu Linzhao rubbed his temples with a slight headache. He lowered his gaze and said succinctly, "Your leg."
These words were spoken so simply, they didn't even seem to express any concern. To Fu Xianyin, it sounded more like Gu Linzhao was putting her down.
However, when it reached Song Yaoge's ears, it had a different meaning.
She pursed her lips, took her water glass, and went out through the back door. Fu Xianyin couldn't help but find it amusing.
That's incredibly childish.
But it was fucking awesome.
Fu Xianyin hadn't originally planned to perform at the arts festival that afternoon; she was just being mischievous to have some fun. After Song Yaoge left, she also expressed her sincerity to Gu Linzhao, making it clear that she wouldn't skip class that afternoon.
Outside the school, Lin Anxu looked at the neat handwriting on the note and exclaimed in admiration, "I never expected that this beautiful lady would be such a good student."
Gu Linzhao glanced at him: "Didn't you just copy someone else's homework this morning? Only now do you realize that person is good at studying?"
“That’s a different matter.” Lin Anxu shook his head: “The main thing is that the first impression is too deeply ingrained, you know? I thought the pretty lady wanted me to buy her cigarettes.”
Gu Linzhao walked into the bookstore: "He wouldn't buy cigarettes in front of me."
Even if you gave Fu Xianyin ten times the courage, she probably wouldn't dare.
The two browsed through the bookstore. Lin Anxu focused on helping Fu Xianyin choose books, while Gu Linzhao glanced at them and then took an extra copy of each of the reference books he had bought.
Then I got an extra biology question that wasn't on the list.
Fu Xianyin seems to be bad at biology; her reading list also shows that she should focus on improving her biology skills.
When checking out, Lin Anxu was shocked to see Gu Linzhao carrying a huge pile of books: "Wait, you bought so many books?"
Gu Linzhao said casually, "I also brought one for my deskmate."
He patted Lin Anxu on the shoulder, pointed to the empty cashier counter, and said succinctly, "Checkout."
The lunch break wasn't long; Fu Xianyin ate her meal, took a nap, and it was almost time to go.
She glanced at the time and deliberately went to the convenience store again. In addition to buying Lin Anxu a cup of mango pomelo sago, she also bought two bags of dried mangoes for Gu Linzhao.
As she expected, Lin Anxu refused to accept her money no matter what.
So Fu Xianyin handed the mango pomelo sago to Lin Anxu: "Here, let me treat you to a cup of milk tea first. I'll treat you to a meal another day when my leg is better."
Lin Anxu took the mango pomelo sago and glanced at it, then clicked his tongue: "Why do you all love mango pomelo sago? No, it's you who loves mango pomelo sago, right? Brother Zhao bought you a cup of mango pomelo sago this morning too."
Fu Xianyin didn't deny it: "Yes, I love mango pomelo sago, but the one I bought is different from the one he bought for me." She pointed to the label on the cup, somewhat proudly: "I added crispy boba, the one he bought for me didn't."
Lin Anxu was also very interested in milk tea: "Would it taste much better with crunchy boba?"
Fu Xianyin tossed her ponytail: "Of course, you can ask the class monitor if you don't believe me." She poked Gu Linzhao's arm and pointed to the milk tea on the table: "Class monitor, the mango pomelo sago I bought for you with extra crunchy pops, isn't it better than..."
She drawled out her words, pointing to the regular version of the drink on her table: "Isn't it much better than the one you gave me?"
Gu Linzhao surprisingly didn't refute her, but nodded instead: "Mm."
As soon as she finished speaking, Fu Xianyin suddenly looked up and unexpectedly met the gaze of Song Yaoge, who was passing by behind Lin Anxu.
The other person's eyes held undisguised jealousy, along with a hint of sadness.
Song Yaoge's eyes darkened as she looked at the mango pomelo sago on Gu Linzhao's table.
She knew that Gu Linzhao didn't drink milk tea. She had bought him a drink before, which coincidentally was mango pomelo sago, but Gu Linzhao refused it because he didn't drink it.
Lin Anxu, who was always by his side, only bought things for himself each time, which further solidified Song Yaoge's belief that Gu Linzhao was judging the matter, not the person.
However, now, that cup of creamy yellow mango pomelo sago seems to be blatantly mocking her.
It's not that he doesn't drink beverages, nor that he doesn't drink mango pomelo sago.
I just won't drink what she gives me.
Song Yaoge pursed her lips and ran away.
Fu Xianyin: ...
Damn it, she really didn't mean it this time.
Lin Anxu, oblivious to this, took a sip of Fu Xianyin's version of the world's most perfect mango pomelo sago and sighed contentedly.
"It really tastes good."
Nothing else went wrong in the afternoon. Song Yaoge went to participate in the second round of the arts festival performance before the second period.
After the second class ended, the teacher had just put away the textbooks when there was a knock on the front door, and a middle-aged man walked in.
The middle-aged man looked around and asked, "Who is your class's arts and culture representative?"
Cheng Zhaozhao stood up: "Me."
The person who came was the director in charge of the arts festival. Cheng Zhaozhao knew his purpose. Before the other party could ask any more questions, Cheng Zhaozhao said, "Our class submitted five programs, but only Song Yaoge's was selected. The homeroom teacher said that we'll put on one first."
The director frowned, then suddenly noticed Fu Xianyin and Gu Linzhao in the last row.
Not only are these two good-looking, but the boy on the right is the class monitor, so he must be of excellent character and morals. The girl on the left is said to be a new transfer student, whose father paid a lot of money to the school.
After a moment's thought, the director had an answer. He pointed to Fu Xianyin and Gu Linzhao and said, "You two come out here for a moment."
Gu Linzhao put down his textbook, stood up, and looked at Fu Xianyin, who had long been lost in thought. He tapped on her desk and said, "The director wants you to come out for a moment."
Fu Xianyin said "Oh" and followed Gu Linzhao out of the classroom.
The director looked the class up and down several times, and said with satisfaction, "Your class is still missing a performance. I'd like you two to recite the closing remarks. Here's the speech; take a look and come rehearse it next class."
Gu Linzhao took the speech manuscript and nodded.
Fu Xianyin was still out of it. After the director left, she quietly asked, "Does this mean it was pre-arranged?"
It's not uncommon for shows to be pre-selected; she's encountered this before.
It's simply because she's pretty, which enhances the school's image, and also because Fu Dongyuan is wealthy and generous, giving her a lot of money.
Gu Linzhao hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He looked at Fu Xianyin's right knee and said, "The director wants us to rehearse in the small auditorium next period. The small auditorium is on the top floor."
Fu Xianyin: "Okay, wait for me a moment, I'll go get a water glass."
The injury on her knee was still painful, so Gu Linzhao walked ahead of her, keeping a slow pace. Fu Xianyin followed him to the entrance of the small auditorium. She was holding her speech and familiarizing herself with it, unaware of the rather high threshold at the entrance.
Clang
Fu Xianyin was caught off guard and tripped. She leaned forward and stumbled forward.
Then I fell into a strong embrace.
Gu Linzhao reacted quickly, knowing from the sound that Fu Xianyin had fallen. Many had stumbled at the threshold of the small auditorium, and he had even been wondering on the way there if Fu Xianyin would fall.
It really did fall.
He caught the woman's voice as she lunged at him and supported her forearm.
The two were very close; Gu Linzhao could even smell the laundry detergent on her.
It's the apple flavored one I bought yesterday when I went shopping.
The sweet scent of apples instantly enveloped him, and the girl's soft hair brushed against his neck, making him feel a little itchy.
Fu Xianyin used a little leverage to stand up on her own, but her injured leg suddenly strained, causing her to wince in pain: "Hiss!"
Gu Linzhao's arm was still there, his warm palm pressed against her arm, the rough calluses on his palm gently rubbing against her fair skin.
A boy's clear voice came from above: "Be careful, watch where you're going."
Fu Xianyin smiled and said in a frivolous tone, "Thank you, class monitor. I can't repay your kindness enough. I will definitely be careful not to lose points for the class."
Gu Linzhao seemed amused by her and chuckled softly.
On the podium, Song Yaoge looked at the two people at the door, her fingernails digging into her palms.
A short while later, the director came over and assigned tasks: "You'll have ten more minutes to rehearse, one class at a time."
Each class found an open space to start rehearsing their program. Gu Linzhao and Fu Xianyin also walked up to Song Yaoge and started rehearsing in the area designated by the director.
Song Yaoge was performing a solo dance. She glanced at Gu Linzhao and mustered her courage to ask, "Gu Linzhao, what's your performance?"
She was asking about "you," not "you all."
She implicitly acknowledged that Gu Linzhao and Fu Xianyin were not on the same show, or rather, she didn't want it to happen, so she said it with a hint of wishful thinking.
However, Gu Linzhao's words shattered her last shred of hope.
The boy unfolded the folded paper with his long, slender fingers. He said, "It's a duet recitation with Fu Xianyin."
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