The afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, occasionally causing a breeze that lifted the pages of books on the desks.
In this crisp autumn season, many students in the classroom were drowsy, especially with the teacher’s lecturing, akin to a lullaby.
A row of students lay on the back of the classroom. The teacher at the podium glanced a few times and, unable to bear it any longer, picked up a piece of chalk and threw it around, demonstrating impressive accuracy.
“Who the heck!” Hu Ying suddenly raised her head, glancing around with a fierce look. When her eyes met the teacher’s on the podium, she instantly settled down.
“Everyone, go stand outside!” Liu Juan angrily slammed the textbook on the desk, raising a cloud of chalk dust. The front row suffered, and those dozing off in the back row were now wide awake.
A procession of students filed out through the back door, arranging themselves naturally in a line.
Liu Juan turned her gaze and saw someone still lying motionless in the corner. Her eyebrows furrowed, and she shouted, “Mu Qi!”
Mu Qi, waking up from her nap, raised her head and looked at her with a somewhat dazed expression. It was clear that the recent series of events, such as the chalk-throwing and desk-pounding, had not affected her.
“You, too, go stand outside!” Liu Juan pointed to the back door.
“Oh.” Mu Qi lazily yawned, simultaneously stretching, before leisurely sauntering out of the classroom. She had initially intended to wash her face but was halted when Hu Ying, standing by the wall, grabbed her, forcing her to stop and lean against the wall.
For the teachers dealing with a group of students who were more spirited during breaks than in class, it was a constant headache.
Failing exams was one thing, but not paying attention during class, and sometimes disrupting the order of the class, made it even more exasperating. However, no matter how exasperated they were, there was nothing they could do but endure.
“Seventh Brother1The author used ‘ge’. I don’t know if it is typo but yes, they are referring to her., do you think Dàyǎn (Big Eyes) is annoying, pulling this stunt every time?” Hu Ying stood next to Mu Qi, glancing through the rear window towards the classroom podium.
The nickname “Big Eyes” was actually coined by Hu Ying and her friends privately for Liu Juan because every time she got angry, her eyes would widen and become round. Not only were they round, but they were also large. So, someone remarked that she had big eyes, and since then, the nickname stuck.
In the corridor, feeling bored, they leaned against the wall and started chatting. Even Liu Juan in the classroom could hear them. She walked to the doorway and shouted, “Stand properly! No whispering!” Her loud voice echoed through the entire floor, eliciting sighs from everyone.
Hu Ying and her friends, however, disdainfully rolled their eyes, stood upright, and once Liu Juan left, they resumed leaning against the wall, though this time with less talking.
“Seventh Brother, look at that!” Hu Ying nudged Mu Qi with her elbow.
Following her gaze, Mu Qi looked towards the end of the corridor. Their homeroom teacher, Li Wei, was walking towards them, accompanied by a new student.
“What’s going on?” Li Wei, upon seeing them, furrowed his brows.
Realizing there was a new student behind him, he didn’t linger with Mu Qi and her friends. He continued towards the front door, saying, “We’ll settle this later.”
As the new student passed by them, she glanced at them, especially at Mu Qi. When their eyes met, the girl blushed and obediently followed the homeroom teacher into the classroom.
Mu Qi: “…”
Hu Ying nudged her shoulder and whispered, “Seventh Brother, did you notice? This new student is so cute!”
Mu Qi gave her a disdainful glance.
Hu Ying, hearing the self-introduction of the girl in the classroom, smiled and said, “Even the name is cute, Su Yanxi.”
“Isn’t it annoying?” Mu Qi couldn’t stand her infatuated expression.
After dealing with the transfer student, Li Wei came out of the classroom, looking at them. His temples were throbbing, and he gritted his teeth, saying, “Come with me.”
They lifted their feet and followed the homeroom teacher to the office.
In the office, there were two other teachers chatting. When they heard the noise from the doorway, they all looked over. Seeing Mu Qi and her group, one of the teachers teased Li Wei, “Teacher Li, is it your class of monkeys again?”
Li Wei sighed and turned to look at Mu Qi and her friends, then said with annoyance, “Stand properly!”
So, from the comfortable positions leaning against the wall outside the classroom, they moved to the office, enduring various teasing from the teachers.
When the bell rang, Li Wei finally let them go back to the classroom, threatening that if they slept in class again, they wouldn’t be standing in the office but on the school’s playground, surrounded by the entire school.
As they walked out of the office, Hu Ying sneered, “This old Li is really crazy.”
Mu Qi, who had just awakened from a drowsy state, put her arm around Hu Ying’s shoulder and teased, “Should we let the air out of his old man’s tires?”
Hu Ying laughed, waving her hand, “How could we do that…” Then, realizing Mu Qi’s reference, she became annoyed, “Seventh Brother, you shouldn’t make fun of people like that. That was seven or eight years ago. How do you still remember?”
The two of them grew up together, and the countless things they had done together were beyond counting on both hands.
Mu Qi laughed, hands in pockets, entering the classroom through the back door, saying, “Because you mistakenly let the air out of the principal’s tires that year, causing us to stand under the national flag for a week. The memory is too deep!”
“Hell!” Hu Ying thought about it and felt embarrassed about that incident.
Then her gaze fell on the transfer student, and her eyes instantly lit up.
Mu Qi noticed a new girl sitting in her seat. Her eyebrows furrowed as she walked over and stood in front of the girl, looking down at her.
Su Yanxi was reading a book, sensing the shadow beside her. She raised her head in confusion, and when she saw Mu Qi, she blinked.
“Who are you?” Mu Qi obviously forgot that they had just made eye contact. It could only be attributed to her drowsiness at the time, as her mind was still not clear.
“Su yanXi,” the girl said softly. Then, in a fluster, she stood up. However, because she didn’t stand firm, her body tilted towards Mu Qi. In a reflex, Mu Qi stepped back, and the girl fell directly to the ground. Her palm was scratched on the ground, causing a bit of pain. When she raised her hand, she found that her palm had a small cut, and a trace of blood oozed out.
“Are you okay?” Hu Ying, who saw it from the side, quickly helped her up.
Su Yanxi lowered her head, gently shook it, and covered the injured palm.
Mu Qi frowned slightly, pursing her lips, standing still.
“Seven Brother, why didn’t you help her just now?” Hu Ying blamed Mu Qi with a glance.
Mu Qi looked at her and said nothing, walking to the window seat and sitting down.
Originally, she occupied two seats by herself, but now, because of this girl, she could only have one.
Seeing Mu Qi like this, Hu Ying didn’t say anything more. She turned around and asked someone for a band-aid, then handed it to Su Yanxi.
“Thank you,” Su Yanxi smiled at her.
“No… no need to thank me.” The girl’s smile was too radiant, even Hu Ying was stunned, and her face turned slightly red.
Just then, the bell for class rang, and Hu Ying had to return to her own seat. Before leaving, she said to the girl, “Put it on quickly.”
“Okay.”
Su Yanxi turned around, looking at Mu Qi, who was leaning against the window with her hand on her cheek, a hint of a smile in her eyes. However, she pouted, clearly feeling aggrieved about Mu Qi not helping her just now.
While the teacher was giving a lecture, Su Yanxi quietly tore open the band-aid and slowly applied it to her palm. It was a bit painful, causing her to frown and inhale softly.
Mu Qi, who was looking at the scenery outside the window, turned her head and glanced at her. Especially those wounds that were still exposed despite the band-aid.
Watching the girl frown unconsciously due to pain, Mu Qi couldn’t stand it and felt irritated. In the quiet classroom, she suddenly stood up, and the chair fell to the ground, making a loud noise. Everyone looked at her in surprise.
Su Yanxi was clearly startled, her eyes widened, and she looked up at her.
“Move aside,” Mu Qi said to her.
Su Yanxi quickly stood up and moved to the side as Mu Qi walked out.
“What are you doing, Mu Qi?” The teacher, who had just come back to his senses, quickly said.
“Going to the restroom,” Mu Qi replied without turning back and went out through the back door.
Su Yanxi hadn’t recovered for a long time, but everyone had already turned their heads and continued to listen to the class as if it were commonplace.
Mu Qi was away for more than ten minutes. The subject teacher had become accustomed to it, giving her just a glance as she entered through the back door.
“Seven Brother, where did you go?” Hu Ying pulled on Mu Qi’s school uniform sleeve and asked softly.
“It’s nothing.” Mu Qi pulled her sleeve out of Hu Ying’s hand and walked to her seat. She placed the bag in her hand on Su Yanxi’s desk and said, “Make room.”
Seeing a small roll of bandage and a small bottle in the bag on the desk, Su Yanxi was puzzled for a moment. Then, she quickly stood up to give way.
Mu Qi stepped in, sat down abruptly, and Su Yanxi followed. She placed the bag on the desk underneath, took a discreet look at Mu Qi, and whispered, “Thank you.”
Hu Ying had been watching the whole time. When she saw Mu Qi handing a small bag to Su Yanxi, she quickly came over after class, her face full of curiosity. “Seven Brother, what did you buy for the new classmate?”
“Mind your own business.” Mu Qi glanced at her.
Hu Ying had played with her since childhood, and the two were already too familiar with each other. Seeing Mu Qi like this, it was evident that she was shy. Hu Ying grinned and asked Su Yanxi, “What did your desk partner buy for you?”
“I won’t tell you.” Su Yanxi glanced at Mu Qi, then looked at Hu Ying.
Mu Qi: “…”
Hu Ying: “…”
“Pfft!” Hu Ying burst into laughter, making the nearby desks tremble.
“Laugh quietly to the side!” Mu Qi scolded her.
Hu Ying laughed while holding her aching stomach, waving her hand and saying, “Hahaha, I can’t take it, Seven Brother. This new classmate is too cute!”
“Are you stupid?” Mu Qi looked at her speechlessly.
“I didn’t expect that on the first day this new classmate arrived, she would already be leaning towards you,” Hu Ying said with a click of her tongue. “Sure enough, Seven Brother’s charm is powerful!”
Seeing this nonsense, Mu Qi shook her head with a headache and turned her face away, not wanting to look at her.
Su Yanxi’s face turned a bit red at this moment, whether from embarrassment or anger, no one could tell.
