This noon, Ding Xian and Kong Shadi were eating in the cafeteria when You Keke came over with her tray. As soon as she put it down, Kong Shadi glared at her and grumbled, "So many empty seats and you just have to sit here?"

You Keke smiled nonchalantly, tilting her head. "I want to."

Kong Shadi slammed her chopsticks down. "Hey, you..."

You Keke ignored her, picked up a small chicken wing, placed it in Ding Xian's bowl, and smiled, "Eat more. You always eat only vegetables; no wonder you're so thin."

Before Ding Xian could react, Kong Shadi was already displeased. She also picked up a small chicken leg from her own bowl, put it into Ding Xian's bowl, and scoffed at You Keke, "What's wrong with a chicken wing? Eat a drumstick."

You Keke picked up another.

Kong Shadi, not to be outdone, picked up several more pieces in one go.

Back and forth they went, and in no time, a small mountain of food was piled in front of Ding Xian.

"..."

Behind them, Song Ziqi and Zhou Siyue came over with their trays.

They arrived late, and the cafeteria was full. Song Ziqi simply took his specially prepared lunchbox and sat down next to Kong Shadi. Zhou Siyue glanced at the seats, then sat down next to Ding Xian with his tray, silently starting to eat his rice.

Kong Shadi grabbed Song Ziqi's ear. "Why aren't you eating with Jiang Chen today?"

Song Ziqi gasped in pain. "Gently, Jiang Chen didn't come, he took a leave of absence."

Ding Xian suddenly thought of that gourd, looked sharply at Zhou Siyue, and blurted out, "...He didn't... that thing, did he?"

Only then did Zhou Siyue look up from his meal at her, confused. "What thing?"

"Didn't he shave his head?"

Zhou Siyue smiled. "You think men are too fragile. For something like this, what could he do? Something happened at his home, so he took leave."

Boys in adolescence all liked to call themselves men, making others feel especially secure.

Song Ziqi suddenly looked at You Keke, who hadn't spoken the whole time. "Who's this beauty? Why hasn't anyone introduced her?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Song Ziqi let out a pig-like shriek, yelling at Kong Shadi, "Are you crazy! Why are you stepping on me?"

Then came another kick.

Song Ziqi bristled, grabbing Kong Shadi's ponytail from behind. "Are you sick?"

Kong Shadi stomped on him again. "You're the one who's sick!"

"Didn't you sit with me, and now you miss me? Kong Shadi?"

"Miss your mom."

Ding Xian glanced at You Keke, then gently tugged at the corner of Zhou Siyue's shirt.

The young man, who was eating his rice, didn't even lift his head. "What?"

Ding Xian leaned back, creating a space that just revealed You Keke's face. "This is You Keke, from Class Ten."

Zhou Siyue looked at Ding Xian, slowly chewed the rice in his mouth a couple of times, then his gaze swept over You Keke for two seconds. Politely, he said, "Oh, hello."

Zhou Siyue's presence was indeed captivating, but You Keke was also a sharp girl; she noticed something during the meal.

"Hello. I've heard much about you, Zhou Siyue."

Zhou Siyue smiled, spit out a fish bone, didn't respond, quickly finished his meal in a few bites, stood up with his tray, and left. He didn't even wait for Song Ziqi, simply leaving with "I'm heading back to the classroom first."

After lunch.

The three girls walked around the campus once to help with digestion. Kong Shadi, as always, found You Keke annoying. "Why are you so irritating? You follow us wherever we go."

You Keke said indifferently, "I'm with Ding Xian, not you. If you find it annoying, then leave."

'Why should I leave?' This remark truly infuriated Kong Shadi.

"You!"

You Keke put her hands behind her back, walked backward, and provocatively bent over to say, "Kong Shadi, do you hate me so much because I'm prettier than you? Are you afraid I'll steal your boyfriend?"

"Bullshit!"

There's a saying, "one thing suppresses another." If Kong Shadi could handle Song Ziqi, then You Keke could handle Kong Shadi. This girl was often rendered speechless by her. The Kong Shadi who usually had explosive combat power in front of Ding Xian could only exert less than fifty percent of it in front of You Keke.

"Anyway, don't come looking for us anymore." Kong Shadi said in a shrill voice.

You Keke: "I'll look for you, na na na..." After saying that, she deliberately provoked her, "Not only will I look for you guys, I'll also look for Zhou Siyue, and that... 'Qi' guy."

Kong Shadi went crazy, rolling up her sleeves to rush over and fight, but Ding Xian, who had been silent for a long time, held her back. "That's enough, stop making a scene. You should go back to the classroom first."

On the campus at noon, the sun was just right, freely spilling onto the mottled path.

Ding Xian's hair was slightly yellowish, gleaming golden under the brilliant sunlight. With her petite figure, she made a decision in her heart: "Keke, let's find somewhere to talk."

You Keke smiled faintly. "Okay."

...

While on the way, Ding Xian kept wondering what would happen if You Keke knew she also liked Zhou Siyue?

Would she mock her for overestimating herself, or would they completely fall out, or would she calmly tell her to compete fairly?

But she didn't expect the scene before her.

Kong Shadi was sent back to the classroom, and the two of them went to the football field.

The field was empty, not even a runner was present. The football field was lush green, the blades of grass softened by the sun, drooping limply.

Ding Xian suddenly felt something.

This was truly a good place for a confession.

The wind was strong, and a few yellowing autumn leaves were blown down. You Keke walked ahead, then suddenly turned around and said to her, "No one's here, let's talk here."

And so, in this yellowing expanse of golden autumn, accompanied by the wind, she voiced those thoughts that shouldn't have been.

"I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing?" You Keke squinted at her, arms crossed over her chest. "For liking him, who have you wronged?"

Ding Xian looked at her, her eyes bewildered.

You Keke dropped her hands, swung them back, and smiled. "All right, I'm the one who should apologize. I also lied to you before. Actually, at first, I really wanted to get close to him through you, but later I found out that you're more fun than him. Plus, after eating lunch today, I also realized that while that guy has a captivating aura, I really don't like someone so aloof and boring."

Ding Xian explained, "He's actually quite interesting, you'll know if you interact with him more—"

"...Forget it. I probably prefer the boisterous type of guy like Song Ziqi."

"...No, no, no, Song Ziqi won't do either."

You Keke's eyes gleamed mischievously, startling her. "I won't steal your person, but I never said I wouldn't steal Kong Shadi's person."

"...Don't do that."

Ding Xian was about to cry from anxiety.

You Keke laughed heartily. "All right, I'm not teasing you anymore." She put her arm around Ding Xian's shoulder and said, "Be more confident. You're actually very pretty. Just get some bangs. Your forehead is too big."

"..."

That sounded a bit familiar?

"You and Kong Shadi will definitely become good friends," Ding Xian said.

You Keke scoffed disdainfully.

Back in the classroom.

Just as Ding Xian was about to sit down, a Beijing accent voice reached her ear, "Wait a moment."

Huh?

Zhou Siyue turned around, pulled her chair, kicked it against the wall, then leaned back in his own chair like a big boss, raised his chin at her, motioning for her to sit.

'Was this the setup for an interrogation?'

Ding Xian sat down, wanting to secretly drag her stool back to the edge of the desk.

He blocked her with his foot, his long legs casually stretched under her desk. He raised an eyebrow, his expression indifferent, signaling her to drag it back.

'Your legs are long, you win.'

Ding Xian obediently dragged it back again, placed her hands on her knees, adopting a dutiful posture for class.

Zhou Siyue: "What's going on with that You Keke?"

"...She's my friend."

He sneered, "Helping someone deliver a love letter makes you friends?"

'Oh, how could you know the twists and turns of that story?'

That situation in the cafeteria had actually happened once before, in junior high. Back then, he had just won an award in the National Mathematics League. He couldn't remember who the other person was, had no impression of her name or appearance. Jiang Chen had a good relationship with that girl and said she greatly admired Zhou Siyue and wanted to meet him.

Jiang Chen, presuming on his good relationship with him, readily agreed and even arranged to eat together in the cafeteria the next day.

During the meal, Jiang Chen tried every means to draw attention to the girl. The girl said she also liked mathematics, so Zhou Siyue casually asked two questions, which left her bewildered. He just smiled, lowered his head, stopped talking, quickly finished his meal, and left.

Actually, normally, he wasn't like this. He was knowledgeable yet low-key. Others liked chatting with him, and he preferred listening to people talk about things he didn't know, to supplement his knowledge base. From all corners of the world, he could exchange a few words with anyone he clicked with.

He just really disliked this forced way of getting together, and even more, he disliked someone acting as a matchmaker for him.

Especially since this person was Ding Xian. He thought this girl was silly, a bit simple-minded, but not lacking in common sense.

Zhou Siyue gave her a sharp flick on the head without ceremony.

"I never realized before that you're quite enthusiastic about matchmaking. I'm not interested in that You Keke. Don't go setting me up with random people anymore, got it?"

Ding Xian nodded vigorously.

Seeing his expression soften a bit, she dragged her stool and pursued him, asking, "Why? You Keke is so pretty?"

Zhou Siyue turned his head to look at her. "There are so many pretty people. If I liked everyone who was pretty, how could I like them all? Would it be love at first sight with everyone I see?"

Ding Xian pretended to applaud. "I wouldn't have thought it; you're quite devoted."

Zhou Siyue scoffed in disdain, then lowered his head to work on problems. Ding Xian, beside him, looked at the blooming osmanthus outside the window and suddenly wondered, 'What would he be like when he likes someone?'

'He'd probably be very doting.'

The days that followed were for preparing for the mid-term exams.

Ding Xian took a few practice tests, and the results were not ideal. She hadn't known what she was doing for the past half-semester and realized she had missed many practice problems. She then looked at Zhou Siyue, who was discussing with Song Ziqi where to go after the mid-terms, and a wave of pity rose in her. How was he completely unaffected?

Kong Shadi bounced out from the side. "Let's go together! After the mid-terms, how about we go play billiards?"

Song Ziqi nodded approvingly. "Sounds good! Let me show you the King of Yansan Snooker."

Zhou Siyue: "Whatever."

Kong Shadi ran over to Ding Xian, who was slumped on her desk, and draped herself over her shoulder. "Come with us, okay?"

Ding Xian sighed and took her hand off. "I don't know how to play."

Kong Shadi: "I don't either! Just hit the ball when you see it. What's there to be afraid of?"

Song Ziqi shrieked, "You can't do that! I won't play with you."

"Hmph, as if I want to play with you," Kong Shadi retorted.

Ding Xian was about to say something else.

"Go, I'll teach you how to play."

Ding Xian turned her head at the sound.

Zhou Siyue was casually leaning back in his chair, one arm crossed over his chest, the other awkwardly touching the tip of his nose.