Chapter Thirty-Three: A Meaningful Smile

Wei Xinyu was feeling irritable. Glancing at Li Chao, he replied dismissively, “What does it matter to me who you ran into? Say it or don’t, whatever.”

Li Chao’s eyes flashed coldly, but he still smiled. “Alright, I’ll tell you. On my way here today, I saw Haichen heading home, looking lost and angry. I asked him what was wrong. Turns out, he’s upset because of Zhou Xuan. Apparently, he got played by Liu Yixue and Zhou Xuan this morning.”

“What happened?” Wei Xinyu knew Haichen liked Liu Yixue as well.

“What else could it be? Haichen wanted to invite Liu Yixue to lunch, but she refused, saying she’d already promised Zhou Xuan to eat together,” Li Chao explained.

“That’s normal. Liu Yixue never eats with boys.” Wei Xinyu thought it was something serious; in these past two years, Liu Yixue had refused at least eight or ten people.

Li Chao shook his head. “That’s where you’re wrong. The key is, when Haichen was heading home, he saw Liu Yixue and Zhou Xuan riding a tricycle toward the riverside—probably to have lunch together. Maybe they even went shopping or on a date in the afternoon.”

“What the hell! You’re not kidding?” Wei Xinyu exclaimed.

“Haichen saw it with his own eyes, and plenty of other people from school saw it too. The county’s small—just a few streets. It’s Sunday, everyone’s out, and you can bump into classmates with just a few steps,” Li Chao clicked his tongue. “I bet the news has already spread throughout No. 2 Middle School.”

“Damn… Liu Yixue actually had lunch with Zhou Xuan.”

“Haha, Wei Xinyu, you’d better take care of yourself.”

“Bang!” Wei Xinyu stormed out, slamming the door behind him. “Forget it, you guys play. I’m leaving.”

Li Chao watched Wei Xinyu angrily stride out of the billiards hall, sneered, then turned to the group, “Come on! Let’s keep going! Boss, set up the balls!”

“Li Chao, shouldn’t we be worried about Wei?” someone asked cautiously.

“Pfft! Let him be. We should stay out of this jealousy nonsense. Better to just enjoy our game,” Li Chao said indifferently.

As an acquaintance, Li Chao had long disliked Wei Xinyu—always acting like the boss just because he had good grades and a privileged background.

If something happened between Wei Xinyu and Zhou Xuan, all the better; he’d get to watch a good show.

Wei Xinyu walked down the street, his anger bubbling like a volcano, ready to erupt at any moment. What should he do?

He’d always had a smooth ride in life, never faced something like this. To be trampled on and then watch someone else laugh and chat with the girl he liked left him seething.

Should he really have someone teach Zhou Xuan a lesson? Wei Xinyu immediately dismissed the idea.

Zhou Xuan wasn’t some random kid from last time; he couldn’t use such low tactics. Besides, Zhou Xuan had a reputation with the principal—being first in the grade was no joke. In NC, this small county, the education industry had grown thanks to No. 1 Middle School, and students with good grades always got special treatment.

Ever since No. 1 Middle School’s rise, NC County had attracted many transfer students, boosting the local economy. Security in NC had always been good, with hardly any criminal cases.

If a top student got beaten outside, it would be a big deal. The principal would investigate thoroughly, and Wei Xinyu wouldn’t dare take that risk.

Yet, just thinking about Zhou Xuan and having no way to deal with him made Wei Xinyu all the more agitated.

With only half a year until the high school entrance exam, he had to focus and aim for good results.

The exam!

Suddenly, Wei Xinyu’s eyes lit up, a cold smile curling at his lips.

“Your greatest pride is your grades, isn’t it? If you don’t do well on the entrance exam, let’s see how you compete with me then.”

At five in the afternoon, Zhou Xuan had just finished his essay and was about to head for dinner.

Zhou Lin came into the classroom and spotted Zhou Xuan. “Hey, Xuan, is it true?”

“What’s true?” Zhou Xuan asked, puzzled.

“Come on, the rumor about you and the campus beauty going on a date!”

“What date? We just had a meal together, nothing special. Seriously, you’re more excited than I am,” Zhou Xuan said, unconcerned.

Seeing Zhou Xuan’s calm, Zhou Lin looked at him with a mixture of disdain and admiration. That was the campus beauty, after all. If anyone else had lunch with her, they’d brag about it for days.

Zhou Lin was impressed. “Only you can be so composed, Xuan. You have no idea—the whole school’s talking about you and the campus beauty eating at the riverside.”

“Heh, nothing happened between us. Let them talk. It won’t affect me,” Zhou Xuan replied, grabbing his lunchbox. “Let’s go eat!”

“Hey, wait up, Xuan! Where’d you eat with her this afternoon? What did you do after?”

Zhou Xuan and Zhou Lin had dinner together and returned to the classroom.

By then, many classmates were already there, and Zhou Xuan couldn’t avoid their curious glances.

Even as he reached his seat in the last row, students kept turning to sneak peeks, making him uncomfortable.

Zhou Xuan couldn’t help but sigh at Liu Yixue’s influence in school, especially among the boys.

What he didn’t know was that his own fame now rivaled Liu Yixue’s—particularly among the girls.

After a while, Liu Yixue suddenly appeared at the classroom door.

As if it had been rehearsed, the class fell silent; most boys and a few girls stared in surprise at Liu Yixue.

Shy by nature, Liu Yixue blushed scarlet in the face of such attention, darting to her seat in three quick steps and burying her face in a book.

Seeing this, many boys felt as if their hearts had shattered, turning to glare at Zhou Xuan with angry eyes.

But Zhou Xuan ignored them—just a bunch of kids, bursting with adolescent hormones.

Most boys wondered if Wei Xinyu would confront Zhou Xuan once he arrived, maybe even start a fight.

Perhaps it was the classic “sour grapes” attitude—hoping for others’ misfortune.

But Wei Xinyu disappointed them.

With only five minutes left before evening self-study, Wei Xinyu entered the classroom.

He merely cast a long, cold glance toward Zhou Xuan at the back, a chilling smile curling at his lips.

At that moment, Zhou Xuan sensed something, looking up.

Their gazes met, sparks flying.

Zhou Xuan caught the fleeting hatred in Wei Xinyu’s eyes, and the meaningful, cold smile before he sat down.

Zhou Xuan thought to himself: last time’s account is still unsettled. If he tries anything again, I’ll make sure he pays.