No matter who had sat there before, Lin Wangye was already in that seat, and it would definitely be inappropriate to kick him out now. The problem was that nearly all the seats in Class 7 were taken, with only the two desks at the very back, by the wall, still vacant.
Shi Shi had just gotten over her nearsightedness, she wasn’t very tall, and being a girl, it didn’t feel quite right to make her sit there.
Everyone in Class 7 quickly realized the problem, and an unusual silence fell over the classroom.
The homeroom teacher also looked troubled, his eyes drifting between a few of the students—those with the worst grades, tall, not nearsighted—and it seemed like he was preparing to randomly choose someone to give up their seat.
Lin Wangye felt a bit uncomfortable. A sense of moral pressure hit him out of nowhere. He closed his book quickly, about to stand up and offer to move to the back row, but just as he was about to, he heard a soft voice from beside him.
“Don’t move.”
Lin Wangye was slightly surprised. Turning his head, he saw Lu Chengxuan still in the same position, head lowered, pretending nothing had happened, completely engrossed in his book.
Though he didn’t know why, there was something almost naturally authoritative about Lu Chengxuan. It was as if you couldn’t help but trust him.
Without hesitation, Lin Wangye sat back down, quietly accepting the situation.
Shi Shi had been paying close attention to Lin Wangye the whole time. Seeing him cleaning up his desk, she thought he would stand up and offer the seat, but instead, it was all just a fake gesture, and before she knew it, he was flipping open his math book like nothing had happened.
A complex emotion flickered in her beautiful eyes but was quickly hidden.
Just as the atmosphere in the room became a bit tense, Lin Wangye suddenly heard the sound of a chair scraping across the floor from the back row.
Jiang Bowen stood up, raising his hand. “Teacher, let Shi Shi sit in my seat.”
The homeroom teacher turned to look at him, leaning against the podium. “If you sit in the back row, can you still see the board?”
Jiang Bowen’s voice was loud and clear. “I can.”
The teacher nodded. “Alright, go ahead then.”
Jiang Bowen’s seat was in the fifth row, a little toward the back. It was a perfect fit to give it to Shi Shi. Besides, he was the only athlete in the class, and his college entrance exam score requirements were much lower, so the pressure on him was minimal.
After the teacher nodded, he quickly packed up his desk and drawers, gave Shi Shi a grateful glance, and then grabbed his bag, heading toward the back row.
As Shi Shi passed the third row, Lin Wangye noticed that she lingered for a second longer near Lu Chengxuan’s desk.
But Lu Chengxuan didn’t react. He didn’t even spare her an extra glance.
The strange expression on Lin Shen’s face and Lu Chengxuan’s unusual behavior made it glaringly obvious to Lin Wangye that something was going on here.
However, the class had just started, and Lin Wangye couldn’t exactly ask about it. So, he forced himself to push the thoughts aside and focused on the lesson instead.
Math, Chinese, and English were all back-to-back for two periods. During the ten-minute break between math lessons, the teacher didn’t waste any time and always gave everyone a few problems to solve. The only thing allowed was a quick trip to the bathroom.
Every math class felt like a battle, and once the bell rang, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.
Before long, Shi Shi’s desk was surrounded by classmates, all chatting eagerly about her experiences abroad. The scene was almost as lively as when Lin Wangye had first transferred in.
Shi Shi answered every question with a warm, gentle attitude, but her eyes revealed no signs of familiarity or closeness with anyone.
As a new student, Lin Wangye, of course, greeted her.
But it was just a greeting.
Lu Chengxuan’s earlier ‘don’t move’ had a lot of hidden meaning, making Lin Wangye subconsciously feel like he shouldn’t get too close to Shi Shi.
Even though she was stunningly beautiful, and it was hard not to steal a few glances.
After class, Lin Shen left without saying a word and didn’t return for a while. Lin Wangye couldn’t ask about it, so when he returned to his seat, he leaned in close to Lu Chengxuan, blocking his mouth with a book, and quietly asked:
“What’s going on? Why didn’t you let me give up my seat earlier?”
The sunlight streamed through the window, casting a cold, icy light on Lu Chengxuan’s side profile. From Lin Wangye’s angle, his finely sculpted features almost looked like the perfect piece of art.
He quickly withdrew his earlier, highest compliment for Shi Shi’s looks.
Upon closer inspection, Lu Chengxuan was even more striking.
When Lin Wangye asked his question, Lu Chengxuan didn’t seem surprised at all. In fact, he answered somewhat distractedly: “To avoid affecting a classmate’s grades.”
“Tsk…”
Lin Wangye didn’t buy it for a second. With a sarcastic grin, he scoffed, “Aren’t you worried I’ll start failing my classes?”
Lu Chengxuan turned to look at him. “You?”
“Aha~” Lin Wangye shrugged, his eyebrows dancing as he continued, “If I wrote you a love letter, would you read it?”
Lu Chengxuan didn’t respond. Instead, he gave a look that was hard to put into words.
After seeing through Lu Chengxuan’s seemingly cold exterior and realizing that he didn’t like to argue, Lin Wangye became addicted to teasing him, much like the female demons in ‘Journey to the West’ enjoyed having fun by messing with Monk Tang.
He deliberately raised his voice, bumped into Lu Chengxuan’s shoulder, and then leaned in close, playfully nudging him.
“Big brother~”
Just at that moment, Lin Shen, who had returned to the classroom, walked in and saw the scene.
“What’s going on here?” Lin Shen breezed in like a gust of wind, snatched the book Lin Wangye had been holding up to his face, and shot a glare at Lu Chengxuan. “Stop messing with the kid.”
Lu Chengxuan’s expression remained calm. ‘You’re the one messing with whoever you want.’
Lin Shen crossed his arms and looked down at Lin Wangye, his gaze full of suspicion, as if silently asking, ‘What’s going on here?’
“He came over himself,” Lu Chengxuan added casually.
Lin Wangye, sitting up straight, didn’t flinch.
“I asked Brother Lu if he’d read a love letter I wrote to him.”
“To him?” Lin Shen instantly understood that it was all nonsense. He raised his hand and gave Lin Wangye a solid smack on the head. “You’ve lost your mind. You can write me one, but not him.”
Lin Wangye shrank back, then turned his head to look out the window.
He had actually written something like that before, but it wasn’t a love letter. It was an elementary school essay titled ‘My Father,’ describing how his father had carried him, feverish, to the hospital in the rain.
Meanwhile, as usual, Fu Xuexue took the classwork to the teacher’s office. Seeing that Lin Shen was sitting alone, Lin Wangye sneaked around Lu Chengxuan, slid over to sit next to him, leaning in close to Lin Shen, and subtly gestured toward the back before whispering, “That new girl, Shi Shi, do you know her well?”
Lin Shen didn’t find it strange at all that Lin Wangye was interested in Shi Shi. His gaze didn’t linger on the school beauty, who was shining in the back, and his expression remained indifferent.
“Not really.”
The tone didn’t reveal much.
But for some reason, Lin Wangye got the feeling that his father didn’t like this beautiful and charming female classmate.
After spending some time with him, it was still hard to fully read Lu Chengxuan, but Lin Wangye had pretty much figured out his father’s temper.
To put it simply, Lin Shen was an idealist who knew exactly who and what he cared about.
He’d take extra care to support a street vendor granny’s business.
He’d help out a newly met orphan from an orphanage.
And he’d stand up for a deskmate being taunted, nearly getting into a fight with students from the neighboring class.
No matter what he did, Lin Shen was all about the process and didn’t care about the result. His motives were almost always clear, and his stance was always firm. Lin Wangye had never seen him have such complicated feelings for anyone. Shi Shi was the first.
It was hard not to be curious.
“Really?” Lin Wangye pressed on. “Are you being honest with me?”
Lin Shen sighed, then turned his eyes to him. After a brief internal debate, he finally spoke in a low voice. “…I don’t like her much.”
Actually, Lin Shen also wanted Lin Wangye to stay away from Shi Shi.
No one wanted the people close to them to get too close to someone they didn’t like. But ever since Lin Wangye transferred here, he had been popular with the classmates, getting along with everyone.
After thinking it through, Lin Shen figured he didn’t have the right to tell Lin Wangye who he could or couldn’t be friends with.
Especially with someone like Shi Shi, who naturally attracted boys.
Lin Wangye simply stared at his father for a few seconds, then snapped his fingers and whispered in his ear, “Got it. I won’t hang out with her.”
The lighthearted words carried a firm, reliable tone.
What Lin Shen heard beneath the words was clear—
“No matter what, I’ll always have your back.”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
drama keeps rolling in my head… lol
what if: shi shi likes sir lu. offered marriage between families, and grandpa lu was like “okay.” but sir lu and lin daddy like each other. daddy lin is mad that sir lu wont reject grandpa lu.
what if: baby lin is daddy lin’s half brother? maybe the mom left when she realized that baby lin wont inherit anything? bcuz idk why daddy lin took in baby lin without relations.