Chapter 8: The Blonde and the Aloof Class President

They held each other’s gaze for a few moments; the initial surprise of their first meeting gradually gave way to an awkward silence, unsure how to break the ice.

“Do you… need help?” Jiang Mo took the initiative to ask.

“No, no need. I—I can manage on my own,” Chen Yajie hurriedly shook her head.

Her ponytail hung low, resting between her chest and shoulders, brushing against the unopened buds beneath. Her embarrassed expression, gentle eyes, and graceful demeanor—all of it added up to… a married woman!

Ugh… Classmate, your hairstyle is quite risky.

Ignoring her politeness, Jiang Mo stepped forward a few paces and carefully took the desk and chair she was holding so cautiously.

“Are you moving up to a new class too?”

“Ah… yes,” Chen Yajie tried to hold onto her desk, her small hands fluttering anxiously.

“Which class are you going to?”

“Top-tier Class Two… but, I—I can manage on my own.”

“I’m a very possessive person; when I see something I want, I just take it.”

“Ah? But that’s mine…”

“Did you write your name on it?”

“No…”

“Then it’s mine.” Jiang Mo smiled mischievously and carried the desk and chair upstairs.

Chen Yajie stood frozen, her eyes wide open. When she finally realized what had happened, she curled up timidly and followed after him.

By the time she saw Jiang Mo again, he was already at the classroom door, grinning happily at her.

“That’s, that’s mine…”

Chen Yajie frowned, hurried over to hug the desk, then noticed that the others inside were still resting after lunch. She quickly covered her mouth with one hand and clung to the desk with the other.

“Here you go.” Jiang Mo patted the desk, accidentally brushing against her fingers. Chen Yajie shivered as if touched by electricity.

“Qin, Qin Shi Huang… you just touched me.”

She seemed still lost in the kindness of his little white lie. “But I can’t, I shouldn’t give it to you, I’m not yours…”

Now it was Jiang Mo’s turn to be dumbfounded.

He thought briefly about why Chen Yajie had called him Qin Shi Huang — then recalled the note he’d left her earlier when giving breakfast, where he’d nicknamed himself so.

Then he understood her meaning: he’d just touched her, and he’d said he was possessive…

No way, girl, you’re way too innocent.

Not knowing the Qin Shi Huang joke is one thing, but I was sincere about giving it to you!

Not only does she look and act like a silly wife, but her personality too? Is this really still the same country?

Of course, Chen Yajie wasn’t really foolish. The moment the words left her mouth, she realized her mistake and turned a deep red.

“Uh, sorry, sorry. I didn’t know you were… helping me. Now I understand…”

Afraid of disturbing the classmates resting inside, she lowered her voice and gestured awkwardly, but worried that Jiang Mo wouldn’t hear or understand, she flushed deeper and waved her hands nervously.

In her flustered state, she almost burst into tears. Once they started welling up, she panicked even more.

“No, it’s not that… uh… I’m crying on my own… it’s not your fault…”

Chen Yajie wiped her eyes and whispered faintly, then gradually lost the will to explain and just cried outright.

Crying is cute, after all.

Seeing this, Jiang Mo didn’t know what to do.

When he was little and upset Jiang Wan Feng, he usually just bought her a little pudding to make things right.

What to do now?

Suddenly remembering he had just bought a bottle of Pulse in the cafeteria, Jiang Mo took it out and placed it on Chen Yajie’s desk, offering a last-ditch effort.

“Uh, it’s lime-flavored. Take a sip and you’ll feel better.”

“I don’t have any money… sob…”

“Found it on the way here. No charge.”

“Thank you…” The girl accepted the bottle but found she had no strength in her hands and began dropping small pearls of tears again. “My hands are numb from moving the desk…”

Jiang Mo was speechless. She had just been pushing herself so hard, and now her hands were numb. He reached over and helped twist open the bottle cap.

Seeing that she seemed to have stopped crying, he was about to turn back to carry his own desk when the girl’s soft hand caught his.

“Qin Shi Huang…”

I’m not Qin Shi Huang, I’m Chu Yu…

“My name’s Jiang Mo.”

“Oh, Qin Shi Huang, uh, no, Jiang Mo…” She held up the bottle cap to show him, her tears turning to laughter. Her peach blossom eyes glimmered brightly after being washed by tears.

“There’s another one inside.”

Beautiful—referring to the cap… and the lovely girl.

Free drinks don’t always cheer her up, but the promise of another bottle brightened her mood instantly.

Wife material? More like a social media darling who’d be roasted by the fans!

Jiang Mo suddenly felt the urge to ask for her address. She seemed like the type who could be coaxed home just with a motorbike.

Is it still not too late to dye my hair blonde?

***

“I haven’t drunk it yet. I should give it back to you.”

“Keep it. I’m immune to Pulse. If I drink it, I’ll turn into a basket case, always wanting to take a Pulse back from any girl I see.”

“Huh?” Chen Yajie’s smile faded slowly, confused.

Jiang Mo waved his hand and went downstairs to move desks and chairs.

When he returned with the furniture, Chen Yajie was already sitting obediently by the door, flipping through a book. Her chest was quite prominent, almost like a built-in bookshelf.

“Jiang Mo, you’re in Class Two too?” She smiled gently at him, lowering her voice out of consideration for others, which was quite amusing.

Such a heavy ‘stealing feelings’ vibe; baby, give me your address, I want to steal your heart too.

“Yeah, we’ll be in the same class from now on.”

“What a coincidence.”

“How did you know I was hungry after the Chinese exam?”

“I bought extra breakfast and just handed it out randomly.”

“Oh…” Chen Yajie looked a bit disappointed but quickly changed the subject, flashing her cute little tiger teeth smile.

“Is that bun shop pretty good? You bought so many?”

Jiang Mo thought for a moment, recalling the owner’s suspicious and sarcastic looks this morning, which had spoiled his appetite.

“Just so-so. The owner’s a bit intense.”

“…”

Jiang Mo waited for her reply but got nothing. Instead, he felt a chill down his spine, as if something dirty was staring at him.

He turned to see Chen Yajie pursing her lips and staring at him with a sinister look, identical to the bun shop owner’s from this morning.

I will watch you forever, always watch you, forever!

Stare—

“What’s wrong?”

Chen Yajie bit her lip lightly, lowering her eyes.

“Jiang Mo, that owner is my dad.”

Uh-oh, the big boss’s kid is coming for revenge. What now?

Should I try to impress the little one too?

Or just dye my hair blonde and ride the motorbike to the bun shop, showing off for the owner?

“Old Deng! I won’t buy your buns anymore, and I’m taking your daughter with me! Yajie, want to ride the motorbike?!”

“Steamed buns, you mad? Old Deng, drop some coins! Hahaha!”

That’s pretty wild, but not a bad plan.

“Is it really not good?”

While Jiang Mo was lost in thought, Chen Yajie asked quietly, looking like she might cry again.

“Uh, well, I’m just stubborn. Even if it’s good, I have to say it’s average.”

To stop the girl, who in his future was already lost to him, from crying again, Jiang Mo borrowed a leaf from Jiang Wan Feng’s playbook.

“Is that so?”

Chen Yajie’s eyes immediately brightened.

“Yes… it is.”

After a short chat, with the girl cheered up, she returned to reading her book. Jiang Mo followed suit, pretending to study vocabulary.

He had already memorized the words long ago, but used the reading as an excuse to sneak glances at the beautiful girl.

Such a smooth and rounded book—this question I know, answer C.

Caught peeking by Chen Yajie, she smiled foolishly and shyly, showing her cute dimples and tiger teeth.

Keep smiling like that, and I’ll know your bra size next.

High school students rarely skip their lunch break, but this girl seemed like a mortal striving to be an immortal, even competing during recess.

The two sat quietly by the classroom door, each absorbed in their own reading, undisturbed.

Suddenly, shouts erupted from inside, breaking their concentration:

“Damn, Jian Bi! Li Yu, you’re seriously sneaky!”

“Take this—Big Boob Spiral Strike! Damn it! Kekeke!!”

“Guo Huowang, keep your voice down! Don’t attract the teacher!”

“……”

The classroom’s curtains were drawn, windows and doors tightly shut, airtight.

It was supposed to be lunch break, but judging by the noise, something mischievous was probably going on…

Jiang Mo and Chen Yajie exchanged looks, both surprised.

“Your whispering seems pointless. They’re definitely not resting.”

“Should we check?”

“Okay. Be careful though.” Chen Yajie was clearly startled by the racket, looking at Jiang Mo with the worried eyes of a wife sending her husband off to battle.

Baby, don’t be so gentle.

…

In the top-tier Class Two, the classroom was dark except for the glow of a computer.

High schools usually used computers for teaching, with a large screen embedded in the blackboard.

Two students, one tall and one short, were fiercely battling each other on the stage, each holding a keyboard. A crowd had gathered around to watch.

The computer, meant for displaying study materials, instead flickered with the game “Death God vs. Fire Shadow.”

“Damn, Guo Huowang, can you not? You turned a wheelchair into a rocking chair. Switch players!”

“No way! The leaf village’s falling leaves, fire burns eternally!”

“Whoa, the door seems to be moving!”

“Teacher’s coming!”

At those words, the crowd around the podium dispersed instantly, leaving only Guo Huowang, tall and lanky like a bamboo stick, and Li Yu, short and thin like a stubby one, looking flustered.

In the next moment, the classroom lights blazed on. Jiang Mo slid in, seeing the elite students of Biyang’s top class engrossed in playing Death God vs. Fire Shadow on the all-in-one computer.

One tall, one short, both skinny: one with wide, wild eyes, the other wearing glasses and a thick mustache, looking rather sinister.

What’s going on here? Is this really the elite class?

“Holy crap, Kobe!” Guo Huowang saw Jiang Mo and widened his eyes dramatically.

“What Kobe? Has Lao Da been resurrected by Tang San?” Li Yu asked.

“He ran the morning exercises and with just one Iron Mountain move elbowed someone flying. I saw it with my own eyes. Lao Da’s reincarnated,” Guo Huowang shouted.

“You’re not… a supervisor team member, are you?” Li Yu realized and asked.

Jiang Mo didn’t answer, scanning the room. Some were reading novels, others playing cards or chess, and even playing Three Kingdoms Kill.

“Those who violate our great Wu territory shall be crushed without mercy!”

“Dumbass Dabao’s playing Kill cards; the supervisor’s here!”

“Ah?”

Jiang Mo quickly accepted the reality, a smile creeping up his lips. He knew he’d come to the right place.

Perfect timing.JPG

“No, I’m here to join the fight,” Jiang Mo told Li Yu, then closed the door behind him. “Add me in—I’m a death god pro.”

“See? I told you he’s Lao Da. He knows Death God well too,” Guo Huowang cracked a hellish joke, and the class’s lively atmosphere returned.

……

“Whoa, whoa, dream combo! Awesome, Jiang Lao Da!”

“I admit defeat!”

“Take this—Storm Pear Needle!”

“Revive, my dear!”

“No way… Sasuke!”

Jiang Mo was having a blast inside, completely forgetting that Chen Yajie was still outside.

The little girl was hiding under a desk, clutching her Chinese book, trembling.

Since Jiang Mo went in, he never came out. She thought,

He closed the door and all that noise of fighting kept coming out, even louder than before. Is Jiang Mo getting beaten up?

She should have stopped him earlier… The girl began blaming herself.

If she had stopped him, none of this would have happened. Now she was outside worrying while Jiang Mo was inside getting hurt.

He must be pretty strong though, judging from the sounds, it seemed Jiang Mo was winning.

But fighting is still wrong!

And… she couldn’t help. If she went in to save Jiang Mo, she’d only make things worse. With such chaos inside, she’d definitely cry from fright…

What to do, what to do…

The girl’s peach blossom eyes remained moist and misty, though tears didn’t fall, it was heartbreaking to see.

She couldn’t even read the Chinese book properly—couldn’t memorize the ancient poems.

Just then, a tall girl appeared at the end of the corridor.

Chen Yajie looked and thought this girl was very beautiful and cool.

“Going in?” the tall girl asked, tilting her head as she approached Chen Yajie.

“Ah, no, I won’t go in,” Chen Yajie replied just as the tall girl turned and reached to open the door.

“Wait! Someone’s fighting in there…”

“Fighting…”

Chen Yajie’s words couldn’t stop the tall girl. As the door opened, the shouts and clashes inside burst into her ears. She covered her face with the Chinese book and curled up like an ostrich.

But the little ostrich didn’t stay scared for long.

Once the tall girl entered, the classroom suddenly fell silent. The curtains were drawn back, doors and windows all thrown open.

“?”

Chen Yajie’s clear, moist eyes filled with a pure, innocent bewilderment.

…

“Line up!”

“One bow! Two bows! Three bows!”

The students immediately shut down the computer and stopped their play. Under Guo Huowang’s command, they bowed respectfully.

Jiang Mo didn’t know what was going on but sensed someone important had arrived and followed suit.

“Greet the class monitor!”

“Class—monitor—hello!”

The tall girl glanced around, nodded faintly, her expression cold and aloof.

Then, under the respectful gazes of everyone, she walked to a window seat at the back, sat down, propping her head up as she looked out, as if nothing had happened.

Only her icy gaze seemed to cut through the noisy, sweltering summer.

Her stunning beauty tore at Jiang Mo’s muddled thoughts…

The aloof class monitor of the new class, Li Qingran, might not be as simple as she seemed…