Xie Yu had never realized he still had the potential to be a pure-hearted youth after living for so many years. Back when Zhou Dalei and the others secretly rented those kinds of DVDs, they would hide from Madam Gu and Dalei's parents, locking the door and not daring to make a sound.

At that age, Dalei would watch with a flushed face and a racing heart, unable to look away. Xie Yu, on the other hand, only glanced at it for a moment before returning to playing the old-fashioned video game on the other TV.

At the time, Dalei said something like, "Boss Xie...you're not frigid, are you?"

"What's so special about it?" Xie Yu remained unfazed. "Isn't it just mating?"

Dalei: "..."

Da Mei: "..."

And now...isn't it just dating?

Isn't it just sharing a bottle of water? 

Why does it feel like my heart rate is a bit fast. 

As a clear whistle sounded, the physical education class was coming to an end.

The sports teacher walked out of the gym and waved to Luo Wenqiang. Liu Cunhao had a ball in his hand and, in the last few seconds, he hurriedly tried to score another goal. He jumped up and threw the ball, hitting the basket perfectly.

"Class is over, disperse now," the sports teacher instructed. "Sports committee rep, keep the equipment."

The entire class's sports equipment was the responsibility of the sports committee representative, and Luo Wenqiang couldn't handle it alone. He Chao jumped down from the flower bed and offered to lend a hand. "I'll take the racket, Old Xie, lend a hand too?" 

Xie Yu took half of the rackets, and they all walked towards the equipment room. Liu Cunhao still held onto a basketball, absentmindedly spinning it on his palm with a few fingers. "Hey, do you guys think they'll really cancel the basketball competition this year?"

"It's all because of those two classes last year. They were idiots, fighting for no reason. There was nothing good about it."

"I was there, and the atmosphere was really intense. In the end, they just threw the ball and both teams started fighting. Even the referees were dumbfounded."

The equipment room was quite large, with different types of equipment organized by category. The badminton rackets were on the shelf at the very back, and He Chao lifted his hand to put them away. Then he stepped aside to make room for Xie Yu and said, "I was also at the basketball competition last year."

Xie Yu replied, "Oh, no wonder your class didn't make it to the finals."

"..." 

"In the second class, some kids played dirty and it wasn't fun. We withdrew from the competition in the first round," He Chao began to reflect on how he became a burden, "It's not because we lack the ability."

"Yes, yes, you're strong," Xie Yu put the rackets back and compulsively straightened them, saying, "Very strong."

The shelves were close together, barely accommodating two people. He Chao didn't know when he started leaning against the opposite shelf, and when Xie Yu turned around after tidying up, he almost leaned into his arms.

He Chao laughed, "Little friend, are you throwing yourself at me?"

"No way," Xie Yu said, "A good dog doesn't block the road, can you move aside?" 

He Chao held onto his waist and lightly pinched him through the fabric, leading him towards the corner. Both of them were not small in stature, but luckily the corner was secluded enough that Luo Wenqiang and the others chatting by the basketball court didn't notice them.

It was precisely because of this secrecy that the thought that had arisen on the court earlier, due to a bottle of water, resurfaced.

"I'm not a dog," He Chao said, "I won't move."

The atmosphere was just right, and the location was well chosen. Xie Yu slowly closed his eyes, then opened them again to see He Chao's face getting closer and closer. He directly slapped He Chao's stupid head and said, "Idiot, there's surveillance."

He Chao: "..." 

The equipment room had surveillance cameras, and not just one. Because it was difficult to manage, students had to be responsible and register their borrowing and returning of sports equipment on a form to be completed by the sports committee representative for each class.

Looking towards the direction Xie Yu indicated, there was one camera directly facing them.

He Chao cursed in his heart.

After Luo Wenqiang and the others finished filling out the form, he came over and patted He Chao on the back, "Hey, have you guys finished yet?"

Aside from Luo Wenqiang's loud voice, Xie Yu also heard He Chao muttering under his breath. He was basically saying something along the lines of "screw teenage dating, I'm in a serious relationship."

As He Chao continued to curse, he saw the sports committee representative approaching and was about to let go of Xie Yu's hand. However, Xie Yu suddenly leaned in and gave him a kiss on the ear.

It was warm and soft. 

From the surveillance footage, it looked like one person was leaning in to whisper something in the other person's ear, and it was unclear what they were up to.

He Chao's cursing got stuck in his mouth.

Xie Yu stepped back and leaned against the wall, squinting at him.

Luo Wenqiang walked over to the shelf, completely unaware that something was off. "Did you finish putting away the rackets? Let's head back to the classroom together. The others are waiting outside."

It wasn't until Xie Yu kicked He Chao that he finally snapped out of it. "Oh, right, let's go back to the classroom. Shall we go then?"

With midterms approaching, Class 3 had quieted down considerably. During breaks, everyone was cramming and hoping to achieve better-than-expected results. 

In front of Xue Xisheng's seat, there was a constant stream of people asking him questions, leaving him no time to catch the two major offenders in his class.

Wan Da knew he wouldn't be able to squeeze in line during break time, so he found an empty seat in front of Xie Yu and sighed, "You two have the leisure to play games."

Xie Yu remained calm amidst the unprecedented tension in Class 3, saying, "Why bother reviewing when you can just burn incense and pray to Buddha?"

He Chao was even more composed, saying, "I bought a couple of lucky couplets online that guarantee success in exams. They should arrive before midterms. The master has blessed them, so I'll give you two when they arrive?"

Wan Da: "..." 

These two aren't human at all. 

What the hell, what lucky couplets blessed by a master.

But he was honest with his words, saying, "Then, can you give me two?" 

The day before, He Chao's purchased couplets arrived in a bag of ten, with a bright red background and bold golden characters, looking quite luxurious. In the lower corner, four small characters were printed: Master Linghui.

All the students in Class 3 were amazed, feeling that their imagination was not rich enough to come up with such a thing.

The day before the mid-term exam, it rained all day long, and even in the morning, the road was still wet.

There was no extra time for them to prepare, and they had stayed up late studying so much that they didn't even have dark circles under their eyes to prove their efforts. The exam was upon them.

"Students, the weather has turned cold, remember to wear an extra layer of clothing and face today's exam with a warm heart." The school's Mad Dog gave his usual care to the students through the broadcast. "As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. Don't leave any regrets for yourself, come on, students!" 

With ten minutes left until the exam started, Tang Sen was putting up the seating chart on the podium. The other students were racing against time to memorize poems and formulas. When the bell rang, everyone grabbed their stationery and headed to their designated exam rooms.

Xie Yu and He Chao were still in the last exam room, with the exact same layout as the previous monthly exam. 

The students who usually gathered in this room for underachievers had hardly changed, except for a few seat swaps.

Even if they cheated on the last exam, copying answers from someone in the same room wouldn't make much of a difference in their scores. It was a toss-up in their results, and moving up a few spots from the bottom was already worth celebrating.

Xie Yu sat down in his seat, with He Chao sitting behind him. The two were side by side. "Old Xie, I feel like I'm in great shape today. I think I can score well," said He Chao.

"Well, you can just feel that way," Xie Yu replied. "You can only live in your feelings." 

He Chao asked, "You can still feel superior, Second Last?"

Xie Yu replied, "I'm still better than you."

He Chao patted Xie Yu's head.

After a while, He Chao asked again, "What do you want to eat after the exam?"

"I'm fine with anything, just don't invite Shen Jie," Xie Yu played with his pen and said casually, "Every time he comes, we end up in a fight."

He Chao remembered the two times he had invited Xie Yu to a meal. He didn't reflect on his own behavior and Xie Yu's, and instead also agreed, thinking it was Shen Jie's fault. "Okay, I won't bring him along."

The mid-term exam was much more important than the monthly exam, as it directly affected their safety. There was a parent-teacher conference after the results were out. 

So, these students who usually cheated during exams came up with a new idea: "Um, we're selling answers. Anyone need them to avoid getting beaten up?" A group of people rushed over, asking, "What answers? How much are you selling them for?"

"Two hundred yuan per set, sent to your phone immediately." 

"...Two hundred? Are you taking advantage of the situation?" 

The answer seller shrugged and said, "I am just taking advantage of the situation."

Despite the gathering of struggling students, no one was willing to buy the answers due to the high price.

"The first exam subject is Chinese. Neat handwriting and standardized answers are required, and the exam lasts for 120 minutes."

The invigilators were their own Teacher Tang, and the history teacher from the neighboring classroom. If it weren't for Old Tang, no one would be willing to seriously monitor their exam.

As other teachers would say, even if they copied from each other, their answers would still be mediocre. 

"Pay close attention to the instructions, especially for the essay, don't go off-topic," Tang Sen said, his eyes fixed on He Chao. He was genuinely worried that He Chao might not meet these requirements. "And your writing, if it can't be understood, we won't be able to give you any points."

After receiving the test paper, Xie Yu first looked at the essay question, thinking about how to go off-topic, while also wondering how some idiot might do the same.

The zero-point essay from last time is still circulating among their year.

The difficulty of the test paper at No. 2 High School was not as high as that of other schools, and the questions were relatively conservative and standard. Xie Yu finished the test and estimated a score of fifty or sixty, planning to take a nap.

Just as he was about to lie down, he heard He Chao calling him.

He Chao called him twice in a low voice and tapped his finger under the table, "Old Xie." 

Outside the window, the rain began to patter against the glass, and a chilly breeze seeped in through the cracks.

Thinking back to the last monthly exam, Xie Yu stretched his hand back and asked, "Passing answers again?"

He Chao didn't respond.

But as Xie Yu reached his hand under his desk, he didn't grope around in empty air for long before He Chao grabbed hold of it. He first caught Xie Yu's fingertips, then continued upwards, taking hold of his hand.