You ask me why I like him?

It's simple because he was the first person to stand up for me when I came to this city.

So, I must also stand up for him.

—Little Monster's Diary

Towards Liu Xiaofeng, this boy with a buzz cut and ordinary looks, Ding Xian was grateful. He had saved her from trouble several times, so why couldn't she feel the same kind of affection for him as she did for Zhou Siyue?

In Kong Shadi's words, it was—looks.

Ding Xian didn't believe she was such a superficial person. Moreover, men shouldn't be judged by their looks; their character and conduct are the foundation of who they are.

Kong Shadi held up a finger and wiggled it. "Try putting what Zhou Siyue did for you onto Liu Xiaofeng. Wouldn't you find that kid incredibly annoying?"

Thinking about it, it was really true.

Kong Shadi clapped her hands, giving her closing statement: "There you go."

Ding Xian was always unwilling to admit that her feelings for Zhou Siyue actually stemmed from such a superficial reason.

Kong Shadi also once comforted her, "Don't be sad, which teenage girl hasn't been captivated? And who can guarantee that Zhou Siyue won't turn ugly later? I have an older sister whose crush in school was handsome, had good grades, and was dashing, with a group of followers. Many girls even wrote secret admiration diaries for him every day. Now, three years into work, she met him at a class reunion last year, and he had turned into a foul-mouthed social youth. Many girls threw up when they got home after dinner, wondering how they ever liked such a thing back then. So, don't worry, a man's peak attractiveness is usually in high school, but girls are different. A girl changes dramatically as she grows older, becoming more beautiful. Maybe in the future, Zhou Siyue will be chasing after you. Just imagine a balding, pot-bellied middle-aged man with a mouth full of yellow teeth chasing after you."

Ding Xian was disgusted by that scene for a long time that day.

While she was lost in thought, Liu Xiaofeng smiled and took the exercise books from Ding Xian's hands.

Ding Xian wanted to say no, but Liu Xiaofeng was quick and had already started distributing them. She could only softly say, "Thank you."

Song Ziqi spread his hands and left, dropping a very soft remark before he went. From Ding Xian's perspective, it was like ventriloquism, very soft, and she didn't catch it, but Zhou Siyue heard it clearly.

"You don't treat her like a girl, but someone else does."

Zhou Siyue looked at her, let out a sarcastic scoff, pulled out his chair, and sat down. The chair emitted a grating "creak—".

Ding Xian felt a strange sense of guilt.

Zhou Siyue's expression gave her the feeling of being caught red-handed in an affair.

Liu Xiaofeng quickly finished distributing them. The last two books belonged to Zhou Siyue and Ding Xian. The book was handed to Ding Xian, who thanked him again. Liu Xiaofeng habitually scratched the back of his head. "You're welcome, it was no trouble at all."

After speaking, Liu Xiaofeng glanced at Zhou Siyue and found that the 'great god' was working on a math competition paper. He solved problems in just a few moves; multiple-choice questions seemed as if he knew the answers beforehand, scanning and then writing. There was a large-digit multiplication problem, and he directly wrote the answer on the side. These types of problems are usually solved by carrying digits, but his direct calculation truly stunned Liu Xiaofeng.

Actually, Zhou Siyue wasn't usually like this. He only solved problems so quickly when no one was around. Ding Xian knew this because only she knew how fast he solved problems. When someone was chatting with him, he would take his time, looking at one problem and writing one answer, treating it as a way to pass the time. First, he was pondering the knowledge points behind the questions; second, he didn't want to put too much pressure on others.

"You can do mental math?"

Although he didn't want to disturb him, Liu Xiaofeng was genuinely a bit startled and spoke up.

Zhou Siyue didn't look up, nodding lazily. "Mm."

Liu Xiaofeng clapped in his heart, starting to chat like a little fanboy. "Does doing problems all the time get particularly tiring? Does it use up a lot of brainpower?"

For some reason, Ding Xian instinctively felt that Zhou Siyue in his current state definitely wouldn't say anything nice. She couldn't help but feel anxious for Liu Xiaofeng. 'What's there to ask? He's a 'study god'; he's definitely different from us.'

Sure enough, she heard someone say indifferently, "It's alright. When I get tired, I just do a few reading comprehension exercises to relax."

"..."

"..."

Ding Xian: "Liu Xiaofeng, class is about to start."

"Oh, right, then I'll head back."

Despite this, Liu Xiaofeng was still very polite and said goodbye to Zhou Siyue with an expression of admiration. Compared to He Xingwen, he was simply an innocent sweetheart.

After National Day, the baseline tests were over. Next came the mid-term exams, which would be another fierce battle. Ding Xian truly admired the students in the Elite Class. They had just finished the baseline tests and were already fully immersing themselves in preparing for the midterms.

You Keke had come to find her several times during this period. Kong Shadi didn't get along with her; the two would bicker as soon as they met, exchanging sharp words without holding back. But it seemed they both enjoyed it, and Ding Xian just smiled.

Ding Xian occasionally visited Class Ten a few times. The atmosphere was relaxed, with students gathered in small groups, chatting and laughing.

This day, after Ding Xian finished using the restroom, she was chatting with You Keke at the entrance of Class Ten.

During the break, a group of tall boys gathered at the entrance of Class Ten, chatting, laughing, and playfully pushing each other, all smelling of sweat.

Suddenly, someone called out, "He Xingwen."

There were many boys at the door, and two of them blocked Ding Xian's view. She could only see a pair of old, black canvas shoes emerging from the boys' restroom, which were indeed the ones He Xingwen often wore.

The calling boy seemed to have been He Xingwen's deskmate before. He hooked his arm around He Xingwen's shoulder and introduced him, "Hey, I've told you guys before, he's our school's top scorer, in Class Three, He Xingwen."

A boy said, "Class Three? Isn't that the same class as Zhou Siyue?"

He Xingwen didn't see Ding Xian, his attention fully on this group of boys. He nodded and said, "Yes, it's the same class."

"Wasn't Zhou Siyue the one who came in second last time?"

"Yeah, he came directly from Affiliated High School, and he used to be in the same class as Jiang Chen and a few others. Those guys just have rich families, what else? They paid three years' tuition to buy scores, wasting several spots in the Elite Class."

You Keke looked back. "These people are just like this, sour grapes. Don't mind them." After saying that, she pointed to someone. "That guy with glasses, he was a hooligan in junior high, and he bought his way in too. And he's talking about others?"

Ding Xian turned her head. Under the boy's glasses, his eyeballs bulged like a frog's, and jealousy had distorted his appearance.

"Zhou Siyue?"

A familiar voice spoke up. It was He Xingwen.

"Yes."

He Xingwen pushed up his glasses and said, "I don't have much contact with him. His math seems pretty good, but our classmates say he's quite arrogant and likes to pretend to know what he doesn't. Last time, he explained a problem incorrectly and still said the answer was wrong." After that, he feigned an innocent look, spreading his hands. "I don't know, it's all what others said."

As soon as he said this, the 'frog boy' scoffed even more disdainfully, seemingly deriving pleasure from others' confirmation of his disdain for Zhou Siyue.

So, it wasn't just girls who loved to gossip.

So, boys could also be jealous.

Unfortunately, Ding Xian's hands were empty at the time. She firmly believed that if she had any object in her hand then, she would have unhesitatingly thrown it at He Xingwen's hypocritical, artificial face, adding a furious curse—

'Go to hell. Are you talking about yourself?'

However, when people are extremely angry, they sometimes maintain an inexplicable calm. Not only that, she also pulled back You Keke, who was about to rush forward and argue, and gave her a 'trust me' look.

It was strange. The girl, who usually seemed so timid and soft, inexplicably gave her a sense of security. You Keke also nodded, as if by some strange impulse.

Ding Xian returned to the classroom.

Zhou Siyue sat at his desk with his feet propped up, chatting casually with Song Ziqi, occasionally looking down and smiling. His loose T-shirt was blown by the wind against his firm abdomen, which was flat and showed no trace of extra flesh.

He wore a black hoodie jacket over it, with a hood and an open zipper, featuring an 'adi' logo.

Song Ziqi: "A few days ago, I ran into that fortune-teller Blind Man Li at the Hutong's entrance. I heard he's back. I asked him to tell my fortune, guess what he said?"

Zhou Siyue: "What did he say?"

"He said I'm going to have twins!"

Zhou Siyue curved his lips, his attitude perfunctory. "Impressive."

Ding Xian walked over and sat down. Song Ziqi deliberately said, "Siyue, how about I let Old Li take a look for you? Will you have twins or triplets later? I heard girls with big butts have easy births! You need to look for someone accurate."

As a result, Zhou Siyue laughed, cursed, and kicked him away.

Without that annoying Song Ziqi, silence quickly returned. Zhou Siyue glanced at her. "Why do you girls always have such a grim expression?"

"You girls?"

Zhou Siyue tilted his head and pointed his gaze towards Kong Shadi over there.

Ding Xian followed his gaze. "What's wrong with her?"

Zhou Siyue: "Liu Jiang called her over for a talk, and she's been like this ever since. Probably said something unpleasant." He turned back to her. "What happened to you after going to the restroom?"

Ding Xian forced a smile. "Nothing, I'm fine."

"Don't try to hide it with me. What is it that I don't know about you? It's all written on your face."

'Really? Then do you know that I like you?'

Do you know?! Idiot!'

He waved his hand. "If you don't want to say, then don't. I'll just assume your 'relative' arrived early."

"..."

"How do you know when my 'relative' is coming?" Ding Xian perked up her ears.

He mused, "Not quite sure, but there are always a few days each month when your temper is especially irritable."

"...You're a pervert."

Ding Xian cursed.

Zhou Siyue burst out laughing, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. His shoulders shook with laughter, and he didn't stop.

Outside the window, warm sunlight streamed through the gaps, spilling over the desks and chairs in the classroom, casting a hazy yellow glow. On those desks and chairs was the boy she liked. This Zhou Siyue was exceptionally radiant, filling the emptiness in her heart.

For a person like him, if I don't stand up for him, then who will?