At noon.
"Luoyi, let's go eat. If we wait too long, there won't be any seats left in the cafeteria."
"Okay."
The two of them walked out of the classroom one after the other, strolling side by side along the stone path of the campus. In a school brimming with youthful energy, the two of them naturally drew a great deal of attention.
For one thing, Luoyi Zhao was exceptionally pretty; by only her second day at school, she was already universally acknowledged as the campus belle.
Another reason was that Mufeng Su, the school's legendary figure who had ranked first in their grade ever since entering high school, was actually walking side by side with a girl—and a girl who happened to be the newly crowned campus belle, no less.
It wasn't as though girls had never confessed their feelings to Mufeng Su before, but he had rejected every single one of them. Yet now, the campus belle who had only transferred yesterday had appeared right by his side, and the events of that morning had already spread throughout the entire school.
"What do you want to eat? We agreed I'd treat you today, so anything you want is fine."
Mufeng Su took out his meal card and handed it to her.
Luoyi Zhao took the meal card with careful hesitation.
She quickly picked out a few vegetable dishes, turned to Mufeng Su, and said, "Seatmate, you pay. I've already chosen."
Mufeng Su looked at the dishes Luoyi Zhao had selected: stir-fried greens, shredded potatoes, and winter melon. They were entirely vegetables, completely different from the meat dishes he had eaten yesterday.
Mufeng Su looked at her. Seeming to read his thoughts, Luoyi Zhao explained, "Eating meat every day makes you fat. I had fried noodles this morning, so I want something light at lunch—it's just right for dieting."
Mufeng Su ordered a plate of shredded pork with peppers and some spicy chicken for himself. After swiping the meal card, the two of them found a corner seat, as they didn't want to attract attention.
While they were eating, Mufeng Su pushed his own bowl over, signaling for Luoyi Zhao to eat some meat.
Luoyi Zhao shook her head and said she was on a diet.
Without a word, Mufeng Su split the meat in his bowl into two portions and slid the larger share over to her.
"You're not even fat, why are you dieting? You're still growing, you shouldn't be a picky eater."
Seeing how persistent Mufeng Su was, Luoyi Zhao stopped refusing.
"You should eat quickly too, don't give me all your meat."
As she spoke, Luoyi Zhao picked up pieces of meat and put them into Mufeng Su's bowl.
A passing student muttered, "You guys are too much, rubbing your romance in our faces. I just came to the cafeteria for a meal, and I'm already full before I even start eating. Who did I offend?"
"Auntie, why doesn't the food taste good today?"
The cafeteria worker glared at him and snapped, "Take it or leave it! Do you think I gave you too much food?"
Hearing the worker put it that way, the student immediately backed down.
"Auntie, you're the prettiest and you cook the best!" With that, he grabbed his tray and ran off.
"Mufeng Su, can you promise me one thing? Can you help me review after school? I heard from the others that you're the top student in our grade, so could you teach me some problems I don't understand?"
After saying this, she didn't dare raise her head to look at him, unsure whether he would refuse...
Mufeng Su thought for a moment and replied, "Alright, leave it to me. From now on, whenever you have questions after school that you don't understand, just ask me." With that, he shoveled a mouthful of rice into his mouth and ate ravenously.
Hearing him say that, Luoyi Zhao couldn't help laughing out to herself.
"Pfft—"
"Mufeng Su, anyone watching would think you hadn't eaten in days. Eat slower, nobody's going to take it from you. If it's not enough, I still have some here—I'm a girl, I can't eat that much."
Luoyi Zhao didn't know why she liked watching him eat, why she enjoyed the feeling of being with him. It felt so relaxing and peaceful, even though the two of them had only met yesterday.
Feeling unaccustomed to being stared at like that and growing thoroughly ill at ease, Mufeng Su looked up and locked eyes with Luoyi Zhao. Both of their faces flushed red.
Luoyi Zhao stared down at the food in her bowl, poking at it aimlessly.
"I'm done eating. Let's go back to the classroom, I want to take a short nap," Mufeng Su said.
Luoyi Zhao nodded. "Let's head back now, then. I happen to have some problems I haven't finished yet." The blush on her face hadn't faded; if anything, it had grown even more pronounced.
"I wonder if he noticed me just then? Surely he didn't realize I was looking at him," Luoyi Zhao consoled herself.
When the two returned to the classroom, Mufeng Su, whether genuinely exhausted or not, slumped face-down onto his desk the moment he sat down and drifted off to sleep.
After a little while, Luoyi Zhao heard the faint sound of steady breathing coming from beside her. She turned her head to look at the sleeping Mufeng Su, then carefully stood up and pulled down the window shade, terrified that the harsh midday glare might disturb his rest.
Once she had adjusted the shade, she subconsciously stole a covert glance at Mufeng Su, who was fast asleep against the desk.
Gazing at his cheek, an unexpected urge to reach out and pinch it welled up inside her. Fortunately, reason temporarily gained the upper hand.
Having settled the shade, Luoyi Zhao finally got down to her problems.
"Luoyi Zhao, are you and Mufeng Su going out now?!"
Qi Yue sidled up and whispered in a low voice, startling Luoyi Zhao.
Luoyi Zhao cast a stealthy glance at Mufeng Su, who was still deep in slumber beside her.
"We're not together. I'm just new to the school and don't know anyone yet, so I had no choice but to ask my seatmate to help me get familiar with the campus."
Qi Yue's face lit up with delight. "Really? Then can I ask you a favor? Could you help me find out what kind of girls Mufeng Su likes, or if he has any hobbies or favorite things?"
Qi Yue's tone was somewhat hurried, her voice no louder than a mosquito's buzz.
Luoyi Zhao reassessed the girl before her.
She was around 160 centimeters tall with very cute features—the kind of look most boys would probably find appealing.
The fact that she was asking her about Mufeng Su made a bad thought pop into Luoyi Zhao's mind.
*It shouldn't be what I'm thinking, right?*
Luoyi Zhao was suddenly shocked by the idea running through her head.
"Can you help me? I'll buy you something delicious."
For a moment, Luoyi Zhao didn't know what to say.
"I honestly don't know what type of girls he likes or what kind of things he's into, seeing as we only just met."
Qi Yue nodded. "I see. That's alright, then. Please just keep an eye out for me." With that, she handed Luoyi Zhao a bottle of drink, placed a carton of milk on Mufeng Su's desk, and turned to leave, looking thoroughly satisfied.
Suddenly, Qi Yue glanced back at the sleeping Mufeng Su and whispered to Luoyi Zhao, "Oh right, don't mention this to Mufeng Su. Don't let him know I asked you about it. Thanks."
With one last lingering, reluctant look at Mufeng Su, Qi Yue returned to her seat with a blushing face.
Mufeng Su didn't wake up until afternoon classes had already started, and even then, only because the teacher prompted Luoyi Zhao to wake him. Truth be told, if not for the teacher, Luoyi Zhao would have loved to let him sleep a bit longer; she had the feeling he must have stayed up very late last night—when she sat across from him at lunch, she had noticed dark circles under his eyes.
Aside from finishing his homework and reviewing last night, Mufeng Su had also been studying economics-related material, including stocks and investments.
He had lost track of time and hadn't fallen asleep until four in the morning, so naturally, having to come to school so early in the morning meant he was bound to have dark circles and feel exhausted.
Of course, Luoyi Zhao knew nothing of this.
Seeing Mufeng Su wake up, Luoyi Zhao patted him to signal the drop of saliva at the corner of his mouth. When the rest of the class saw that the grade's top student had fallen asleep and actually drooled, they burst into a roar of laughter.
Realizing how uncool he looked, Mufeng Su turned red with embarrassment, lowered his head, and wiped away the saliva.
"Luoyi Zhao, why don't you come up and solve this problem?" The math teacher called her name to tackle a problem on the board—after all, teachers always like to test the waters with new transfer students.
Using the most concise method, Luoyi Zhao solved the problem in no time, and every single step was correct.
Even a strange expression appeared on the teacher's face. This particular problem was taken from a recent college entrance examination and was notoriously difficult; yet the new transfer student had not only solved it, but her steps were completely flawless.
Zhong Xia asked in mild astonishment, "Student Zhao, what did you score on your last math test?"
With a hint of pride, Luoyi Zhao replied, "Teacher, I got 95 on my last math test."
Luoyi Zhao's academic performance had always been exceptionally good. While she might not have been a freak of nature like Mufeng Su, she was still remarkably impressive—after all, she had formerly ranked first in her grade at her old school.
When Luoyi Zhao returned to her seat, Mufeng Su remarked, "I wouldn't have guessed that someone who looks as dazed as you could be so good at studying."
*Me, dazed? Mufeng Su, you're probably the only one who doesn't realize you're the truly dazed one here.*
Luoyi Zhao fumed inwardly.
She offered him a backward glance and a smile, but to Mufeng Su, that smile looked utterly chilling, as if Luoyi Zhao were staring at an inmate condemned to death.
With a hostile glint in her eye, Luoyi Zhao said, "Student Mufeng Su, if there's anything you don't understand in the future, feel free to ask me. After all, I am a good student."
Mufeng Su replied, "Right, then why is someone as good at studying as you asking me to help you review after school?"
Hearing those words, Luoyi Zhao's face darkened a shade.
"..."
Luoyi Zhao was momentarily struck dumb. Why *had* she wanted him to review with her anyway?
Unable to come up with a reason on the spot, she could only retort, "Didn't the teacher say classmates should help each other? Since your grades are so good, naturally I have to consult you for the problems I don't understand. Besides, you're my seatmate—surely you wouldn't refuse to do me this little favor?"
Her words brought a flush to Mufeng Su's cheeks.
"Understood. If you have any questions you can't figure out, remember to ask me. After all, I am your seatmate."
"By the way, is this bottle of milk on the desk yours?"
Only then did Mufeng Su notice the milk carton sitting at the corner of his desk.
"Uh... Qi Yue gave it to you."
Gritting her teeth, Luoyi Zhao forced herself to tell the truth.
Mufeng Su glanced over at Qi Yue's seat. Qi Yue happened to be looking back at him, and Mufeng Su gave her a nod in acknowledgment.
Watching that exchange, Luoyi Zhao felt a bitter, deeply unsettled churning in the pit of her stomach.