IPDAOLR Chapter 14

As soon as school was over, Yan Mu walked out of the classroom.

“Yan-ge.” Xie Qiu called out to him, “What do you plan to have for dinner?”

At the same time, Yan Mu’s phone vibrated continuously with messages from Jiang Zhihuo.

Yan Mu lowered his eyes.

Jiang Zhihuo: Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up.

Jiang Zhihuo: I’m waiting for you at Zhuangyuan!

Jiang Zhihuo: I’ll give you five minutes. If you’re not out by then, I’m coming in!

Yan Mu turned off the phone screen and didn’t reply. He said to Xie Qiu, “Just grab something to eat. Do you need me to bring you anything?”

“No need, no need.” Xie Qiu quickly declined. He didn’t dare let Yan-ge bring anything, as he always ended up being surrounded by a group of girls giving him death stares. “I’ll squeeze into the canteen myself!”

Outside of the gate of No. 1 High School, there was a food street. Every mealtime, a long row of small stalls was set up, and the bustling street was crowded with students out searching for food. At the gate of every high school, there were always a few stores named ‘Zhengyuan’ or after various famous schools. The ‘Zhengyuan’ Jiang Zhihuo mentioned was a milk tea shop with a great location in the center of the street, separated by a small alley between buildings.

Yan Mu walked to the entrance of ‘Zhengyuan’ but didn’t see anyone. He opened WeChat, ready to ask when he was suddenly being pulled into the nearby alley by a hand.

A rich aroma of wine wafted from the alley. Jiang Zhihuo hugged Yan Mu’s waist from behind, leaning against the side of his neck with his back tensed.

After inhaling several breaths of pheromones to calm down, Jiang Zhihuo complained, “Why are you so slow?”

Yan Mu slowly released his pheromones, waiting for Jiang Zhihuo to feel better, then said, “I can’t fly, you know.” He paused and looked down with a frown. “Where did you go?”

“Huh?” Jiang Zhihuo raised his hand and sniffed his sleeve, which had a smell of tobacco and alcohol.

Jiang Zhihuo said nonchalantly, “Just smoking and drinking. Our school bully loves to gather a bunch of troublemakers and hang out on the roadside acting cool.”

“…….” Yan Mu really didn’t know what to say and just wanted to end the conversation quickly. He directly held the back of Jiang Zhihuo’s head and kissed him.

On a summer evening, it was still stifling hot. In the narrow alley, two boys were kissing, their completely different pheromones interwining, while people came and went at the mouth of the alley.

After kissing so many times, both of them had become accustomed to it. They quickly got into the rhythm and could estimate the time roughly without needing a timer.

Three minutes later, the two parted.

The streetlights flickered on just in time, casting a dim, warm orange glow from above.

Yan Mu stood in the light, his sharp features etched with a hint of coldness. In the interplay of light and shadow, a faint outline of darkness was cast.

Yan Mu asked quietly, “When will you be back?”

“I don’t know. Anyway, I’ll come find you again in three hours.” Jiang Zhihuo said, surprised that Yan Mu actually took the initiative to start a topic. “What’s the matter? Is something wrong?”

“Yes,” Yan Mu replied with a cold smile, “Makeup lessons.”

“…….” Jiang Zhihuo was at a loss for words. “Are you serious?”

When Jiang Zhihuo asked this question, he still harbored a bit of belief that Yan Mu was just bored and looking for trouble. No one knew where Jiang Zhihuo had missed class to go. Three hours later, he came back to ask for another kiss from Yan Mu. He deliberately stayed longer, thinking that with classes the next day, Yan Mu should be asleep by this time.

However, when he quietly pushed open the door, he found the light was still on inside, and Yan Mu was actually still working on his questions?!

Seeing Jiang Zhihuo return, Yan Mu’s expression changed. He tossed the test paper in front of Jiang Zhihuo and said coldly, “Do the questions.”

Jiang Zhihuo: “…………”

Jiang Zhihuo glanced at the test paper, and his vision went black.

It was a placement test, and the questions weren’t difficult. Jiang Zhihuo pulled over a chair to sit beside Yan Mu, spread out the paper, and fixed his gaze on the words.

He recognized every word and knew how to solve every problem. It was ridiculously easy, and he could get them all correct with his eyes closed.

Jiang Zhihuo hesitated to start writing. After a while, he poked Yan Mu’s arm with his pen and said, “So…just asking, how many points do you think I could get on this test?”

Yan Mu looked up; his eyes were deep and dark.

Jiang Zhihuo felt a bit guilty under the other party’s gaze and asked again, “Don’t you have any expectations when you tutor someone? Like, uh…how bad do you think I am? I’m afraid I might frighten you.”

“Whatever.” Yan Mu turned his head away and continued with the test paper in his hand.

The implication was that he could teach regardless of how bad it was.

Alright, alright, alright, the god of learning did have confidence.

Jiang Zhihuo started writing randomly, following his usual exam method.

First, he filled in the simple ones, then for the multiple-choice questions at the end, he didn’t even look and just selected C for all of them. For the fill-in-the-blank questions, he answered the first one, and for the remaining three, he just guessed 0 or 1. Next were the big questions; Jiang Zhihuo lifted his hand and wrote a few elegant ‘solutions’. The whole process took less than ten minutes. Finally, he slammed the pen down on the desk with a loud ‘thud’, looked up, and said, “I’m done.”

Full of confidence and with great momentum.

Yan Mu spread out the test paper, scanned the words with a furrowed brow, and stayed silent for a long time.

“How is it?” Jiang Zhihuo asked.

Yan Mu put down the test paper, his gaze complicated, and said, “Jiang Zhihuo, are you an idiot or something?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo seized this moment, slammed the table, and pretended to be furious. “If you don’t want to tutor me, fine. There is no need for personal attacks. It’s not like you’ve just met me; I’m at this level!”

Just as he was planning to use this excuse to make a quick escape, appearing furious on the surface but feeling pleased inside, Yan Mu grabbed him by the collar and said, “Come here.”

He immediately started explaining the questions.

Yan Mu’s explanation was straightforward and efficient. He covered everything in a simple, thorough manner, with each sentence clear and concise, leaving no room for confusion, even for someone who truly was an idiot. After finishing each question, Yan Mu politely asked, “Did I explain it clearly?”

“?”

“Ah?” The questions on this test were so easy that even if he were given a competition paper, he might not make many mistakes. Jiang Zhihuo was so preoccupied with figuring out how to act naturally and appropriately and playing the role of a poor student but not an idiot—that he didn’t take in a single word of Yan Mu’s explanation.

To Yan Mu, this look was pure cluelessness. He asked again, “Did I explain it clearly?”

Hearing the question, Jiang Zhihuo jolted awake. Unsure of his own level of understanding, he decided to ask directly, “Let me ask… where do you think I should be able to understand?”

Yan Mu: “…………”

Jiang Zhihuo said, “Oh, I mean, what I’m asking is, with my level of performance, where do you think I should be having trouble understanding?”

Yan Mu: “………”

Filling out the test paper was easy; writing down any word would do. Being called into the office was simple too; no matter the question, just respond with ‘I don’t know, I understand now.’. Playing the role of a poor student was straightforward as well: sleep, skip class, and play games; just act like you don’t care.

However, when it came to one-on-one tutoring, Jiang Zhihuo got goosebumps all over. This was like acting like an idiot right in front of someone. He had to listen repeatedly to questions that could be solved with his eyes closed. He couldn’t act; it was impossible to pretend.

Back in junior high, it was Zong Bei. He questioned Jiang Zhihuo about every single problem, asking exactly how he thought through each one and what method he used to solve them. Jiang Zhihuo made up excuses, and once, when cornered, he blurted out, “I don’t have any thinking methods, but I do know quite a few girls named Si Lu¹T/N: “Si Lu” (思路) can be interpreted differently in various contexts. In the translation context, if you’re referring to the name “Si Lu” (思路), it translates to “thinking method” or “line of thought” in Chinese. So, in this part, the author probably makes it humorous.. They have all kinds of thinking methods. I’ll introduce you to them if you let me off, okay?'”

Of course, Zong Bei would never give up his friends for a girl. One was pretending to be clueless, and the other was helping him through it. At that time, the two of them were constantly on the brink of collapse, crazily hanging on the edge every day.

Now it’s the same!

Why bind yourself in a cocoon²T/N: It implies questioning why someone would willingly create complications or constraints for themselves.?

Just telling the truth is better than using the excuse of makeup lessons!

If there’s truly a crime, please use the law to punish, not makeup lessons!

Jiang Zhihuo closed his eyes and pointed blindly, “I don’t get the first question.”

Yan Mu: “……”

This question was the easiest on the entire test. Even someone who hadn’t attended high school could solve it.

Yan Mu stood up, and Jiang Zhihuo thought to himself, did the god of learning give up this quickly?

Three seconds later, Yan Mu pulled out a first-year high school math textbook from a nearby cabinet and threw it in front of Jiang Zhihuo. “Take a look.”

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo had never imagined that he would one day live with his love rival, sleep in the same bed, kiss his love rival, be tutored by his love rival, and even be forced by his love rival to study a first-year high school textbook all night!

The next day, Chang Luo saw Jiang Zhihuo with two dark circles under his eyes and asked in surprise, “Huo-ge, what happened to you?”

Jiang Zhihuo, exhausted, covered his face and sighed deeply. “Someone… murdered me with knowledge.”

Jiang Zhihuo had stayed up too late last night and ended up sleeping through two classes. He only opened his eyes when the class bell rang. His body began to heat up, and his pheromones leaked out. Jiang Zhihuo covered the back of his neck and hurriedly rushed out the back door.

The second period ended with a long break for morning exercises. The boys had already gone downstairs, while the girls, moving more slowly, took a while to get organized after the assembly music started. They tidied up their desks and got ready to leave the classroom, hand in hand with their friends.

As she passed by Jiang Zhihuo’s seat, one of the girls paused.

“Anmiao, what’s wrong?” Another girl asked.

Tang Anmiao sniffed for a moment and asked, “Is someone in our class drinking? There’s a smell of alcohol.”

The other girl didn’t smell anything and replied in confusion, “I don’t smell anything.”

“Really?” Tang Anmiao’s expression shifted slightly. Since no one else smelled it, it must have been pheromones. She masked her emotions with a smile and said, “Maybe I just mistook the smell.”

For several consecutive days, Jiang Zhihuo came back later and later. Eventually, he stayed out until the symptoms of heat appeared from exhaustion, only returning home when he could no longer tolerate it.

Compared to the heat, he feared one-on-one tutoring even more.

He could pretend to be a poor student, but he truly couldn’t pretend to be an idiot!

However, Jiang Zhihuo still underestimated the god of learning.

The god of learning truly didn’t need sleep.

No matter how late he returned, every time he opened the door, the room lights were always on, and a stack of first-year high school textbooks and test papers was always in front of him.

Jiang Zhihuo tried to ignore those two stacks and grabbed some clothes to head for the shower, but was caught by Yan Mu’s hand on his arm as he turned around.

He only said, “Study.”

After being in the air-conditioned room for a long time, Yan Mu’s palms were cool, and his grip made Jiang Zhihuo’s heart feel cold as well. He shook off Yan Mu’s hand and said, “I won’t study! I can’t! I don’t know any of it! Not even the junior high school stuff!”

Yan Mu still looked at him with that calm expression and then took out another first-year junior high school textbook.

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo broke down and said, “Ge, please let me off this time, okay? Ge!!”

Yan Mu looked up and asked in return, “And what about me?”

Jiang Zhihuo gritted his teeth and said, “I promise you, I’ll improve by 10 points on the midterm exam. 20 points? 30 points! Anything more would be a lie!”

Yan Mu asked, “How will you improve?”

Jiang Zhihuo came up with a general excuse. “I have plenty of room for improvement with these few points. I can use cheat papers! Us poor students are experts at making cheat papers!!”

Yan Mu pointed out, “You don’t even know how to do it. How are you going to make cheat papers?”

Jiang Zhihuo almost wanted to shut himself off. “I can write 30 pages!”

Yan Mu: “How will you manage it?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “I can create an outline!”

Yan Mu: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo, feeling unnerved under Yan Mu’s intense gaze, threw his clothes aside and said angrily, “What exactly do you want? Are you just determined to make things difficult for me? Look, I’ll share some information about Yujun that I’ve gathered recently. Will you let me get a good night’s sleep tonight? Look at my dark circles; if I keep this up, I’ll turn into a different species! Poor students need sleep; we really do!”

Yan Mu remained unmoved and, after listening to Jiang Zhihuo’s long-winded plea, simply responded with three very indifferent words. “Do the problems.”

Jiang Zhihuo dragged his nearly exhausted body to school.

After catching up on sleep during class, Jiang Zhihuo leaned against the classroom door to cool off during the break. Zong Bei, who was also on break, saw him and asked, “How have your makeup lessons been going lately?”

Jiang Zhihuo shook his head and pointed to the dark circles under his eyes, his face full of misery, and said, “It’s unbearable, absolutely dreadful, and inhumanly awful.”

Yan Mu wasn’t as easy to fool as Zong Bei. His eyes were intense, and when he stared at someone, it felt like he could see through everything. Every time Jiang Zhihuo said, ‘I don’t know,’ he felt as if he was being scrutinized like every cell in his body was being painfully sliced open by Yan Mu’s gaze.

Jiang Zhihuo was mentally and physically exhausted. It was just too hard, really too hard.

Jiang Zhihuo: “Sigh.”

Zong Bei patted his shoulder and said, “Huo, hang in there! I can see all the effort you’re putting in. The midterm exam will definitely reward you!”

“Hehe,” Jiang Zhihuo let out a pale, weak smile.

Studying indeed wasn’t really enjoyable, and Zong Bei understood that. Despite his efforts over the past two years, he could only rank around 100th place in this school full of geniuses.

Just as he was about to offer more comfort, the door to Class 2 was pushed open, and Bai Yujun walked out of the classroom. At that moment, Zong Bei saw Jiang Zhihuo, who had looked pale and exhausted just a moment ago, suddenly brighten up and regain his energy. He took a step towards Bai Yujun, pulling out a box from somewhere, and said, “Yujun!”

Zong Bei: “……”

“Mhm?” Bai Yujun took the box and asked, “What did you buy?”

“A bracelet,” Jiang Zhihuo said straightforwardly. “The one you like.”

During these days, Jiang Zhihuo had been inquiring about Bai Yujun, asking around everywhere without keeping a low profile. He was so blatant that he might as well have had a sign on his head saying, ‘I’m pursuing the school beauty, so keep your distance!’

“Thank you,” Bai Yujun said with a faint smile.

Even though it was clearly summer, Bai Yujun still wore a long-sleeved school uniform. Only a slender section of her arm was visible extending from the sleeve.

Jiang Zhihuo asked, “Wearing something so thick, isn’t it hot?”

“It’s alright,” Bai Yujun said.

“True,” Jiang Zhihuo replied with a smile. “Fairies don’t sweat.”

Bai Yujun asked with a smiling expression, “I heard that you’ve been asking about me lately.”

“Yeah,” Jiang Zhihuo admitted frankly, “I’m pursuing you.”

“Is the pursuit of the school bully so overbearing?” Bai Yujun smiled and said tactfully, “Actually, you didn’t need to ask around.”

“Is that so?” Jiang Zhihuo’s eyes narrowed slightly as he glanced at the tightly covered sleeves. Pretending not to understand, he asked, “Then can I just ask you directly and have you tell me?”

Bai Yujun was amused by Jiang Zhihuo’s directness and smiled, “You can give it a try.”

Xie Qiu had just gone to the bathroom, and when he came back, he saw Jiang Zhihuo happily chatting with Bai Yujun at the door of Class 2.

On that day, the last period for Class 4 was canceled as the teacher was absent, so it became a self-study period. Xie Qiu, having thought about it all day, decided to sit in front of Yan Mu before school ended. He was anxious for Yan Mu, knowing that Yan Mu’s cold manners meant he wasn’t as proactive in pursuing a girl as Jiang Zhihuo.

Xie Qiu asked, “Yan-ge, Jiang Zhihuo has been pursuing quite aggressively lately. Aren’t you going to make a move?”

Yan Mu finished writing the problems on his desk with indifference and replied, “No need.”

“No need?” Xie Qiu was puzzled. Yan Mu hadn’t done anything lately. Hearing that Jiang Zhihuo was asking about information, he asked, “Yan-ge, why not?”

Just as the words left his mouth, the class bell rang, and a group of students rushed out eager to get their meals. Yan Mu unhurriedly finished the last stroke on his test paper, capped his pen, and packed up.

In the crowded hallway, someone tapped on the window of Class 4. Xie Qiu looked up and was surprised to see Bai Yujun. Bai Yujun nodded at Xie Qiu and then said to Yan Mu, “Shall we go buy some books together?”

Xie Qiu: “!!!!!”

Xie Qiu: As expected of Yan-ge! He really doesn’t need to do anything!

The competition was approaching.

Recently, Yan Mu had been preparing for a competition in the neighboring city, and Bai Yujun was also preparing for another event.

Although the two competitions were different, they tested similar material. Since there weren’t many participants in these types of competitions, Bai Yujun always went with Yan Mu to buy textbooks.

The bookstores near No. 1 High School mostly sold supplementary materials, with few competition-related books available. Therefore, they had to go to the Book Center in the city center.

Yan Mu’s driver had been waiting at the school gate early in the morning. Seeing his young master let a girl into the car, he was curious and glanced in the rearview mirror a few more times.

The girl was indeed beautiful, especially with her manners—composed, gentle, and calm.

Curiosity aside, the driver didn’t ask any further questions about Young Master Yan’s affairs.

The car drove into the driveway and, twenty-five minutes later, stopped in front of the Book Center.

The Book Center had a designated area for self-study. After selecting the materials, the two of them headed there together.

Bai Yujun sat across from Yan Mu.

The girl’s hair fell down, only to be gently brushed aside. The light shone on the pristine desktop, and the red ribbon from the air conditioning vent fluttered gently. The self-study room was exceptionally quiet.

The moment he looked up, Yan Mu felt a bit dazed.

Bai Yujun’s gentle and serene manners always reminded Yan Mu of the scenes from his memories, despite the appearance and gender.

As he worked on his exam, a shadow fell across the desk. The pen’s tip created characters that were both fluent and strong.

The boy sat next to him, writing carefully and meticulously, stroke by stroke.

The only sound in his ears was the soft scratching of the pen tip against the paper.

It was winter. The cherry blossoms had already fallen, and the outside was covered in a blanket of snow. The boy, with his pale complexion, wore a light-colored down jacket. The soft fur of the jacket brushed against his fair, slender neck.

He was quiet and well-behaved, sitting on the floor bathed in the sunlight streaming through the window.

In front of them was a table with a ceramic vase on it. The vase’s mouth was slightly tilted, a result of their joint efforts in shaping it. Inside the vase, an unnamed flower bloomed with white petals.

“Yun Zhou.”

“Mhm?” The boy across from him looked up.

These eyes were very beautiful, their depths clear and reflecting the snow and sunlight outside the window.

“What’s wrong?” The weather was too cold, but he didn’t want to turn on the heater. He found the room stuffy and preferred to bundle up tightly. When he spoke, a thin mist formed at the edge of his lips.

Yan Mu shook his head and said, “It’s nothing.”

The boy gave a gentle smile and then leaned against him, like a well-behaved, fluffy little animal.

Sensing the gaze from across, Bai Yujun also looked up, her eyelashes gently curling. “What’s wrong?”

Yan Mu snapped back to reality, finding that there was no falling snow, no ceramic vase, and no quiet, well-behaved boy before him.

A hint of disappointment showed in his eyes, but soon he adjusted himself again, as if nothing had happened, and said, “It’s nothing.”

• 1
  T/N: “Si Lu” (思路) can be interpreted differently in various contexts. In the translation context, if you’re referring to the name “Si Lu” (思路), it translates to “thinking method” or “line of thought” in Chinese. So, in this part, the author probably makes it humorous.
• 2
  T/N: It implies questioning why someone would willingly create complications or constraints for themselves.