SW - 25

“Ine-sister, this Lu Chi is way too cold,” one of the boys couldn’t help but comment.

It had been nearly two months since everything started. Even after being teased like that, he still remained so aloof. If it were anyone else, they would’ve agreed in a heartbeat.

In his opinion, although Lu Chi seemed perfect on the surface, perhaps he wasn’t as great as everyone thought.

“Yeah, yeah, he didn’t even respond. Not even a single expression.”

“Why not just wash him up and tie him down at home? Save all the trouble.”

Everyone suddenly grew excited, throwing out suggestions as if hoping their ideas would be adopted.

Su Kexi smacked them lightly, scolding, “You’re all meddling too much. Do you even know what’s going on in his mind? Mind your own business.”

Tang Yin sat back in her chair, leaning casually on the desk, her eyes brimming with quiet delight.

It was better that they couldn’t see.

Lu Chi belonged to her alone.

She was satisfied just seeing him herself.

________________________________________

The long break ended quickly, and Tang Yin continued to rest her chin on her hand, gazing outside the window.

For the past few days, the weather had been overcast, but today the sun finally peeked through, bright and comfortable.

Just before class started, Lu Chi’s figure finally appeared.

Perhaps influenced by earlier events, Lu Chi stood leaning against the farthest edge of the corridor, more than a meter away from Class 14.

Tang Yin didn’t call out to him, simply watching quietly.

The back door of the experimental class was open.

“Lu Chi, why do you look so nervous?” Luyang happened to see him and casually asked.

Lu Chi paused mid-step, his lips moving slightly, but no words came out. He simply returned to his seat without responding.

Luyang watched his retreating figure, utterly baffled.

The closer it got to the holiday, the more relaxed people became.

Many students had brought their phones this time. Class 14, being a gathering place for underachievers, often had people playing on their phones during class, hiding behind stacks of books piled high on their desks.

And today, being the holiday, they grew bolder.

Lin Ru was still lecturing about hyperbolas, her voice gentle and soft. Many boys were staring into space, lost in thought.

Though the class’s overall performance was poor, their math scores were decent, at least not among the bottom three. This was one reason Lin Ru could remain as the homeroom teacher.

“I’m heading to Third High after school. Are you coming?” Su Kexi scribbled on her test paper, asking Tang Yin.

Before Tang Yin could answer, a sudden phone ringtone blared through the classroom, jolting everyone awake.

A few seconds later, silence returned.

Lin Ru put down the chalk but hadn’t spoken yet when the voice of the grade-level discipline director suddenly rang out from the back door. “Whose phone is it? Hand it over.”

No one expected the discipline director to show up for an inspection during the last class before the holiday. He was notoriously strict.

Under his watch, countless punishments—detention, standing in the corner, calling parents—were handed out.

What students feared most was having their parents called in.

“Hand it over voluntarily,” Lin Ru could only say.

Though she wasn’t harsh, she couldn’t tolerate such blatant violations. The school had clear rules prohibiting electronic devices, especially phones.

And with the college entrance exam approaching, indulging in distractions was unacceptable.

No one in the class dared to speak.

Seeing the discipline director’s stern expression, Lin Ru stepped down from the podium. “Turn yourselves in and admit your mistake.”

At the same time, the discipline director entered through the back door, hands clasped behind his back, scanning the room slowly as he paced.

He was trying to figure out where the sound had come from earlier.

Recently, the weather had been cold, and the windows had been closed, as had the back door. Perhaps the sound hadn’t been accurately located. He first headed toward the middle row.

Yu Chun sat near the back window, close to the wall, his hands trembling uncontrollably.

His phone had been used extensively the night before and hadn’t been charged. Just moments ago, it had run out of battery and emitted a loud shutdown sound. In reality, he hadn’t been using it.

This phone was secretly bought with his New Year’s money—his parents had no idea. If caught, calling his parents was inevitable.

“Hide it well,” his deskmate whispered urgently.

Yu Chun nodded instinctively.

Determined to find the loud phone, the discipline director lingered in the middle row for a long time. After confirming there was nothing to be found, he finally turned his sharp gaze to the row by the window.

Class 14’s seating arrangement consisted of two students per row, with Yu Chun sitting on the inside.

The discipline director stood at the front, his piercing gaze fixed on this area. “Take out your bags now. If I catch you instead of you turning it in yourself, you know the consequences.”

Small murmurs of complaint arose, but mostly, the sounds of bags being taken out filled the room.

As the director approached the back rows, Yu Chun’s heart began pounding violently.

In an instant, he slipped the phone into his hand and passed it under the desk to the student behind him. The latter, who had been looking down, was startled.

“Give it to Ine-sister,” Yu Chun whispered hoarsely.

The student behind him, initially unsure what to do, quickly followed suit, passing it to the next person.

Senior three textbooks were numerous, and to make napping easier, they had stacked thick piles of books on the corners of their desks, blocking the view from the podium to this side.

Naturally, it also obscured the discipline director’s line of sight.

All eyes in the class were focused here.

With only two rows separating them, the phone was quickly passed along, reaching Tang Yin’s hands.

A quick glance told her it was Yu Chun’s phone. She looked up, locking eyes with him. Yu Chun made a pleading gesture, his face tense.

Tang Yin sighed softly and casually slipped the phone into her pocket.

By the time the director reached the last row, he finally stopped, his gaze fixed on the last two students.

Tang Yin was infamous for being a troublemaker, and her father was the principal. Normally, he avoided dealing with her, especially since her grades were good enough to overlook minor issues.

But now, with so many people around and such a serious offense as bringing a phone, ignoring it wasn’t an option—it would damage his authority.

Knowing this, Tang Yin didn’t intend to embarrass him. She voluntarily opened her bag for him to inspect. Though he left the classroom suspiciously empty-handed, the matter was resolved.

The class remained deathly silent, afraid to make any noise.

Lin Ru, seemingly aware of everything, said gently, “This incident ends here. I don’t want to see it happen again. You all know whose phones you brought. The college entrance exam is approaching. I’m not asking you to study every day, but at least respect the effort you’ve put in these past three years.”

She glanced toward Tang Yin, then resumed teaching and writing on the board.

After class, the holiday officially began. Outside, the atmosphere was lively with cheers of excitement as students prepared to head home.

Yu Chun finally exhaled in relief, rushing to the back row and grinning. “Thanks to Ine-sister. My heart was racing the entire class.”

Tang Yin placed the phone on the desk. Yu Chun reached out to take it, but before his fingers could touch it, Tang Yin pressed her hand firmly on top of the device and spoke slowly, “You can have it back, but there’s a condition.”

Yu Chun froze, his face falling into a pout. “What condition?”

“Improve your ranking by 100 places in the next exam,” Tang Yin said, tilting her neck slightly. “That’s not too hard, right? If you can’t do that, then I’ll have no choice but to hand this over to the discipline director.”

Compared to facing the discipline director, improving his ranking seemed like the simpler option...

He was already at the bottom of the class, so moving up 100 places wouldn’t require much more effort if he paid attention in class. It wasn’t impossible.

Yu Chun quickly agreed.

Suddenly, Tang Yin thought of the neighboring class. She slipped the phone into her bag, picked it up, and headed for the door. “Su Kexi, I’m leaving first.”

“Go ahead, go ahead—I knew you’d prioritize him over me,” Su Kexi rolled her eyes.

During this time, she had visibly noticed that Tang Yin and Lu Chi’s relationship had warmed up significantly. Just recently, they had still seemed distant.

The experimental class’s homeroom teacher, Mr. Wu, had extended the class period.

Tang Yin leaned against the back door, peeking inside where she could easily see Lu Chi sitting in the corner, diligently working on his assignments.

She loved watching him when he was focused.

Tang Yin couldn’t help but recall how Lu Chi sometimes looked at her—as if she were the only person in the world. Though he might not mean anything by it, it made her deeply infatuated.

At that moment, Lu Chi seemed to sense something and turned his head toward the door.

Tang Yin, caught in the act of sneaking a glance, locked eyes with him.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, she suddenly stuck out her tongue and made a funny face at him.

Lu Chi: “...”

He frowned, tossing aside the reference book he had accidentally marked with a stray line. After flipping to the next page, he hesitated for a moment before folding the corner of the page.

________________________________________

Not long after, school finally ended.

Lu Chi felt that Tang Yin seemed to be talking even more than usual.

Because as soon as he stepped out of the classroom, she blocked his way.

From the classroom to the school gate, she recounted every little thing that had happened during the week, including the near-discovery of the phone earlier that afternoon. Somehow, the conversation eventually veered toward tofu pudding.

“That shop’s is really good.”

Tang Yin tugged Lu Chi by the hand and led him to a small stall run by an elderly woman. The woman was over sixty, her hair streaked with gray, but she was full of energy.

Since Tang Yin started high school, this grandmother had been running her stall here. Almost all the students at Jia Shui Private School knew her.

Outside the school gates, especially during holidays, there were always many small stalls. Though the grandmother was the oldest vendor, her stall attracted plenty of customers.

By now, many students had already left, leaving a few empty spots.

Tang Yin glanced around and asked, “Do you want sweet or savory?”

Before Lu Chi could respond, Tang Yin suddenly added, “Never mind—I know you should have sweet. After all, you’re such a girly-hearted Chi.”

Lu Chi: “...”

The grandmother scooped out a spoonful of tofu pudding and casually remarked, “This young man is quite handsome.”

Tang Yin giggled. “I’m pretty too.”

The grandmother laughed. “You’re both good-looking, both of you.”

On the stall sat some salted duck eggs, all homemade by the grandmother. The yolks were particularly delicious, and anyone who tried them would buy one or two to take home.

Lu Chi had never eaten one before. He rarely indulged in such foods, and his mother didn’t let him eat them either. Unsure of what they tasted like, he hesitated.

Meanwhile, Tang Yin continued chatting with the grandmother.

Just as Lu Chi prepared to leave, his feet stopped mid-step. Turning his head slightly, he saw Tang Yin’s smiling eyes and cheerful expression, and he found himself staying.

He suddenly thought that maybe this wasn’t so bad after all.

The consequence of this realization was—

That night, Lu Chi had a dream.

He dreamed that he was being chased relentlessly by a giant duck egg. The egg had Tang Yin’s face, with two legs sticking out from its shell, running incredibly fast.

In the end, it caught up to him. No matter how hard he tried, the shell wouldn’t break, and the dream was filled with strange laughter.

Lu Chi woke up in a cold sweat.

He decided that the thing he might fear most in the future... was probably duck eggs.