IWHBDR Chapter 14

When the first class ended, Rong Shu stood up and walked out with Chen Jing immediately following him: “What was up with that omega this morning?”

“What do you think?” Rong Shu glanced at him with disdain, his overall demeanor reflecting his frustration.

Seeing Rong Shu’s sudden shift from energetic to dejected, Chen Jing asked, “What happened in the last class to make you like this?”

“Shen Huaixiu has something on his mind,” Rong Shu replied as he headed downstairs, having missed breakfast due to getting up late.

Chen Jing, hearing this, couldn’t help but roll his eyes: “His worries are affecting you now?”

Rong Shu nodded, giving him a look that said, “You wouldn’t understand,” and took out his phone to message Jiang Huan:

「Rong Shu: Are you there?」

「Jiang Huan: School heartthrob?」

「Rong Shu: Yes. Has Shen Huaixiu had breakfast?」

「Jiang Huan: We didn’t eat with the boss this morning. Why don’t you ask him directly?」

Looking at the message, Rong Shu turned to Chen Jing and said, “Shen Huaixiu didn’t have breakfast with Jiang Huan and the others, so it’s probably not the North Campus issues affecting his mood.”

Chen Jing, still stunned by Rong Shu’s conclusion after a long silence, asked, “How did you come to that conclusion?”

Rong Shu showed him the phone.

After reading Jiang Huan’s last message, Chen Jing said, “If you care this much, why not just ask him directly?”

“Do you think he would tell me directly? He’s like an ice block; I haven’t managed to thaw him yet. I need to be subtle and gradual!”

“…Only someone like a top-tier figure could withstand your elaborate pursuit.”

“Exactly. How could an ordinary person understand?” Rong Shu smiled, his expression reminiscent of a little fox that had just found a treasure.

“Is that Cao Weiyu over there? It looks like he’s talking to that omega from this morning,” Chen Jing said, tugging at Rong Shu’s sleeve and pointing to the two people standing under a large tree near the water bar.

At that moment, the two were outside the teaching building. It had been sunny in the morning, but now the sky had suddenly clouded over.

Rong Shu stood on the steps, observing the two not far away. The omega who had confessed to him earlier was frowning and shaking his head in rejection, while the Alpha in front of him, with a ring of brown fur around his chin, looked both unappealing and fierce.

“Let’s go. I’m hungry,” Rong Shu said, his brow furrowing slightly before he relaxed and casually headed toward the supermarket.

Chen Jing glanced back at the scene with lingering concern, “Aren’t you worried about what they might say?”

“What could they say? At most, they’ll just find out I have someone I like. What else could it be?” Rong Shu’s lips curled into a cold smile.

Moreover, judging by the omega’s resistant demeanor, it didn’t seem like he would be the type to spread rumors.

As for Cao Weiyu’s intentions, his true colors would reveal themselves sooner or later!

After buying some takoyaki at the supermarket, Rong Shu stood there, poking one into his mouth. Just as he took a bite, a rumble of thunder echoed through the sky.

“What’s with the weather? It was so sunny this morning, and now it’s thundering. Let’s head back before we get caught in the rain.”

Rong Shu, with his cat ears drooping in a sign of displeasure, knew that rainy days always dampened his mood.

As he and Chen Jing went back, they saw the omega who had confessed earlier standing at the entrance of Class 3, looking inside.

When he saw Rong Shu approaching, his eyes brightened, and he smiled as he walked up, “Xu Shu, I need to talk to you about something. Can you come with me for a moment?”

Chen Jing, hearing this, said to Rong Shu, “I’ll head back to the classroom first.”

Rong Shu nodded, “Okay.”

As Chen Jing entered the classroom, he saw Shen Huaixiu coming out. When Shen Huaixiu noticed him, his gaze coldly swept over Chen Jing’s head before he moved on. Even that brief glance made Chen Jing feel like a mouse in the presence of a cat.

He really didn’t understand why Rong Shu would like someone like this.

Shen Huaixiu walked out of the classroom and saw Rong Shu standing with the omega from this morning.

Upon seeing Shen Huaixiu, Rong Shu’s cat ears perked up, and he turned to the omega, saying, “I understand. Thank you for telling me this.”

The little omega’s cheeks flushed. “It’s okay. No need to thank me. I’ll be going now, as class is about to start.”

Rong Shu waved at him. “Alright, goodbye.”

He then turned and followed Shen Huaixiu. “Where are you going?”

Without turning around, Shen Huaixiu entered the bathroom. Rong Shu, understanding the hint, didn’t follow him inside.

When Shen Huaixiu came out, he saw Rong Shu waiting by the door and looked a bit surprised. “You…”

“Waiting for you.” Before he could finish, Rong Shu continued, “You seem a bit unhappy today.”

“I’m not.” Shen Huaixiu’s expression was as calm as the surface of a lake. He said two words and turned to walk back. Rong Shu followed him and, almost instinctively, said, “The omega who came earlier…”

“I know,” Shen Huaixiu suddenly interjected, lowering his gaze to look at Rong Shu.

Rong Shu looked up at him in surprise. “You know what?”

“I saw him confessing to you this morning.”

When Shen Huaixiu said this, his gaze never left Rong Shu. Hearing those words, Rong Shu’s expression became slightly unnatural. He shrugged and said, “Yes, but I rejected him. He was looking for me about something else.”

“Is this kind of thing common?” Shen Huaixiu seemed quite curious about the topic. Rong Shu belatedly sensed something unusual in his tone. He lifted the corners of his mouth and slightly raised his chin, showing a somewhat proud expression, “What do you think?”

At that moment, Shen Huaixiu’s gloomy mood seemed to be dispelled by something. His cold black eyes showed a fleeting hint of helpless amusement, though it was brief, it was at least momentarily present: “Not really noticeable.”

Rong Shu: “…”

Watching Shen Huaixiu leave and head back to the classroom, Rong Shu touched his own cheek, wondering what was going on. Was his charm gone?

How could that be!

The cat ears on Rong Shu’s head twitched uncomfortably at those words.

As he walked in from outside and passed by Cao Weiyu, Rong Shu cast a seemingly casual glance. He happened to catch Cao Weiyu’s gaze, which revealed a noticeable flicker of panic. Cao Weiyu quickly averted his eyes.

Chen Jing saw him return and, holding up his English book, asked, “We have Zhao Yan’s class later. Did you memorize the vocabulary?”

After Rong Shu sat down, he pulled out his English book from the desk and placed it on the table. He then turned to Shen Huaixiu and asked, “For Zhao Yan’s class later, did you memorize the vocabulary?”

Chen Jing: “…”

Shen Huaixiu: “…”

“It’s okay, I didn’t memorize it either,” Rong Shu said, glancing out the window. “It’s raining!”

“… I did,” Shen Huaixiu said, pulling out his English book and opening to the vocabulary page, as if to say, “You can test me anytime.”

Feeling that Shen Huaixiu said this on purpose, Rong Shu asked, “How do you spell ‘like’?”

Shen Huaixiu: “…”

Chen Jing: “…”

Can’t they just be normal?

“Buzz buzz!” Chen Jing’s phone, which he had tossed onto the desk, started vibrating. Rong Shu instinctively picked it up, opened it, and then turned the screen toward him. “He replied!”

Rong Shu looked up, their eyes met, and they wordlessly exchanged the phone.

「%&2234: Afternoon after school, meet at the black alley on the north side of the No. 1 Middle School gate.」

「…557&%: Okay, see you there!」

Chen Jing took back his phone and glanced at it. “Are you really going? What if the other party…”

He trailed off, glancing nervously at Shen Huaixiu, and decided not to continue.

Rong Shu rested his chin on his hand, looking nonchalant. “Not going would be rude.”

“Then I’ll go with you—”

“No need, I can go by myself.” Rong Shu looked up at Chen Jing. Though he didn’t say more, Chen Jing understood. He nodded, gave Rong Shu a reassuring thumbs-up, and wearily turned away.

Zhao Yan entered, wearing black high-top Martin boots. He glanced over the class, sneered, and then looked down. “Let me inform you all that after the merger of the South and North campuses this year, the school has implemented a new policy. Starting from the second semester of sophomore year, we will have monthly exams. Your homeroom teachers will explain the details. Now, I’ll distribute the papers…”

“Monthly exams? Are you crazy? I thought the cutthroat environment only started in senior year!”

“I can already foresee the dark future!”

“Is anyone else curious why Old Zhao isn’t giving us a vocabulary test today?”

“…”

Zhao Yan turned back, placing his hand on the podium. “If you have something to say, don’t whisper down there. Stand up and speak.”

The classroom fell silent immediately.

Rong Shu stuffed his book into the desk, folded the test paper, and placed it on the table. He then rested his head on his arms and wrote his name.

Unlike Rong Shu’s laid-back demeanor, Shen Huaixiu always sat with his back straight.

The sound of Zhao Yan’s heels clicking on the floor echoed through the quiet classroom.

Rong Shu watched as Zhao Yan lingered behind Shen Huaixiu, his gaze falling on Shen Huaixiu’s test paper with a hint of mockery in his eyes.

With a smirk, Rong Shu slapped his desk loudly, drawing the attention of many in the room.

“Xu Shu, what are you doing?”

“Could the teacher move? I’m feeling a lot of pressure!” Rong Shu twirled his pen in one hand, his pretty peach blossom eyes blinking innocently at Zhao Yan, looking as if he were completely innocent.

Hearing this, Shen Huaixiu turned his head to look at Zhao Yan.

Zhao Yan’s face visibly darkened, and he shot Shen Huaixiu a glare. “That means you’re not focused enough. If you were concentrating on your work, you wouldn’t even notice me!”

As Zhao Yan walked away, Rong Shu leaned closer to Shen Huaixiu and whispered, “Hurry up and finish your test. Once you’re done, let’s head to the cafeteria!”

Shen Huaixiu gave a slight smile and replied, “Okay.”

 

Author’s note:

Shen Huaixiu: There seem to be many competitors.

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