DXXZL - 11

As soon as the exam ended, Jiang Tu got up and left.

“Hey, your pencil.”

Zhu Xingyao turned her head to call him back.

He glanced sideways and looked down, his gaze falling on the girl’s fair, slender fingers. “Keep it,” he said.

Zhu Xingyao watched him walk away and stuffed the half-pencil into her pencil case. Zhu Yunping had a hobby of collecting fountain pens, which had rubbed off on her. Her pencil case was filled with all sorts of fancy pens, quickly burying that half-pencil among them.

Every New Year’s Day, Jiangcheng No. 1 High School held a welcome gala. After the mid-term exams ended, the notice came down: each class had to prepare one performance for rehearsal, and only acts that passed the rehearsal could make it onto the stage. Of course… if no one signed up, there was nothing they could do about it.

After receiving the notice, Cao Shujun stood on the podium and smiled as he asked, “Do you guys have any ideas?”

Before his words even faded, a surge of adrenaline rushed through the boys below, and the entire class erupted in excitement. Ding Xiang was the quickest to respond, blurting out, “What’s there to think about? Zhu Xingyao should play the cello! She’ll absolutely steal the show!”

“Yeah! That’s our class’s only act—we’re guaranteed to win!”

“I’ve always wanted to see our goddess play the cello! I’ve only seen videos before—it’s not enough!”

“It’s settled! No need to discuss further!”

...

It wasn’t just the boys; the girls also turned their gazes toward Zhu Xingyao.

Those who had seen videos of Zhu Xingyao’s performances knew she was an undisputed talented musician. With her around, no one else needed to worry. In that moment, almost the entire class stared at Zhu Xingyao. Unable to hold back, Li Xixi blurted, “You can’t decide this on your own! Sure, Xingyao can definitely steal the show, but you still need to ask if she agrees!”

Cao Shujun’s original intention was also to let Zhu Xingyao perform alone so their class wouldn’t have to waste time rehearsing another act. He cleared his throat and said, “Zhu Xingyao, what do you think? If you agree, I’ll submit your name.”

Under everyone’s expectant gazes, Zhu Xingyao nodded lightly. “Alright.”

The news spread throughout the grade in no time. Everyone learned that Zhu Xingyao would be performing at the welcome gala. In Class 8, Zhou Yuan patted Lu Ji on the shoulder and excitedly suggested, “Should we do something flashy during the performance?”

After being rejected last time, Lu Ji had actually become a bit downcast. Later, he reflected on it and realized he had been too hasty. He slapped Zhou Yuan’s hand away. “With all the teachers and students watching, what exactly do you think we can pull off?”

Zhou Yuan replied, “A confession! Sending flowers!”

Lu Ji tilted his head and looked out the window, just in time to see Zhu Xingyao walking past with two other girls. He watched for a few seconds, then turned to Zhou Yuan with a look that seemed to say, “Are you stupid?” “She’s playing the cello, not singing. Wouldn’t sending flowers up there just be ridiculous?”

Zhou Yuan: “...”

What he said made sense.

…

Three days later, the mid-term exam results came out. The study committee member and the class president ranked first and second, respectively. Zhu Xingyao ranked third in the class and ninth in the grade.

What shocked everyone the most was Jiang Tu. Despite missing nearly two months of classes, he still managed to rank fourth in the class.

During Friday’s class meeting, Cao Shujun praised him in front of the class. “Jiang Tu missed over a month of classes, yet he still performed so well. Moreover, he scored full marks in math and physics. Those of you who attended classes regularly didn’t do as well—you need to reflect on yourselves.”

Ding Xiang looked at Jiang Tu and reflected, “I don’t deserve to be your desk mate.”

The next second, Cao Shujun announced, “We haven’t changed seats since the start of the semester. Let’s rearrange them now, based on rankings to select seats and desk partners.”

Ding Xiang: “...”

He looked at Jiang Tu and fawned, “Brother Tu, you won’t abandon me, right?”

Although Jiang Tu was cold and spoke little, his grades were excellent, and he even let Ding Xiang copy his homework! Where else could you find such a desk mate?!

Jiang Tu glanced at him and said indifferently, “Whatever.”

Li Xixi’s performance was average—she ranked twelfth in the class. She nudged Zhu Xingyao happily and said, “Let’s sit in the back of Group Four.” They had arrived late at the start of the semester, so their seats were taken, leaving them no choice but to sit in the second row.

Zhu Xingyao also didn’t like sitting too far forward. Since the study committee member and class president didn’t want to move, it was her turn to choose.

She asked Li Xixi, “How about the second-to-last row?”

Li Xixi: “Yes, yes!”

Zhu Xingyao said, “I’ll sit with Li Xixi at the second-to-last desk in Group Four.”

Upon hearing this, Ding Xiang looked at Jiang Tu again and continued to fawn over him. “Brother Tu, Brother Tu, let’s take the last desk in Group Four!” Right behind the goddess!

This time, Jiang Tu didn’t even look up. “Whatever.”

His voice wasn’t too loud or too soft—just enough for everyone in the class to hear.

After everyone had made their choices, they began moving the desks. Two boys helped Zhu Xingyao and Li Xixi move their desks to the back. The desk was a bit crooked, so Jiang Tu went over to adjust it. As he turned around, his sleeve brushed against her face.

He paused for a moment, looking down at her. Zhu Xingyao tilted her head up and smiled brightly at him. “Thank you.”

The girl’s smile was sweet and radiant. Jiang Tu stared at her face for a moment before stepping aside. “It’s nothing.”

The two students sitting in front of Zhu Xingyao were boys. After Cao Shujun left the room, Zhang Sheng came over and asked to switch seats with them. When he was rejected, he walked away with a dark expression but suddenly turned back to sneer at Jiang Tu. “Jiang Tu, how about I give you two thousand yuan to switch seats?”

Zhu Xingyao frowned. “Zhang Sheng, are you insane? Who cares about your money?”

Zhang Sheng glanced at Jiang Tu. “Maybe he’d be willing?”

Jiang Tu stood up, his gaze cold as he stared at Zhang Sheng. “Get lost.”

Stay away from Zhu Xingyao.

He still wore that indifferent and disdainful expression, just like the time in the equipment room. That single word, “get lost,” enraged Zhang Sheng, who swung his fist and charged forward, cursing, “Fuck you! Who do you think you are, telling me to get lost?”

The people around didn’t even see how Jiang Tu moved. All they saw was Zhang Sheng’s arm twisted behind his back, his head pressed onto the desk. Jiang Tu’s expression remained calm, showing no sign of being provoked. He simply said, “I already said I don’t want to fight at school.”

Fighting at school would result in disciplinary action and self-criticism. He was already in such a sorry state—he didn’t want Zhu Xingyao to see him like this again.

There were still more than ten people left in the classroom, all staring at them in shock.

The class president and Cao Ming hurried over to separate them. Zhang Sheng’s face turned red, his neck veins bulging. If it weren’t for the class president and Cao Ming holding him back, he would’ve rushed forward to hit Jiang Tu. Cao Ming, secretly intimidated by Jiang Tu, dragged Zhang Sheng away.

Ding Xiang finally snapped out of it and looked at Jiang Tu with an expression of awe. “Now I’m truly convinced. You’re not called ‘Brother Tu’ for nothing.”

Jiang Tu ignored him and glanced down at Zhu Xingyao, who seemed stunned. He quietly asked, “Are you scared?”

Zhu Xingyao shook her head. “No…”

Jiang Tu didn’t know what she was thinking and didn’t plan to ask further. After a brief silence, he said, “That’s good then.”

Jiang Tu picked up his bag and walked out of the classroom.

Li Xixi was the one who was truly stunned. After he left, she exclaimed, “Holy crap, Jiang Tu looked pretty cool just now.”

Zhu Xingyao turned to look at his retreating figure. She thought of Chen Yi. If Jiang Tu wasn’t afraid of Chen Yi, how could he possibly fear Zhang Sheng? He really didn’t want to fight.

________________________________________

The next day, the entire class knew that Jiang Tu and Zhang Sheng had almost come to blows the previous night. The reason given was that Zhang Sheng had tried to humiliate Jiang Tu with money, but only Jiang Tu himself knew the real reason.

The weather grew colder, and December arrived—it was officially winter.

Zhu Xingyao still hadn’t decided on the piece she would perform at the welcome gala. During a break between classes, she said to Li Xixi, “How about you join me on stage? You sing, and I’ll accompany you on the cello.”

Although Li Xixi was still only 158 cm tall and looked like an adorable little boy, her singing voice was exceptionally beautiful.

“No way. Everyone wants to see you, not me,” Li Xixi refused, pulling Zhu Xingyao’s headphones toward her. “I’ve already told you, just sit on stage with your cello and play whatever—you could even play something random, and everyone would say it’s great. Stop overthinking it. Let me help you pick a piece.”

Ding Xiang leaned forward with a mischievous grin. “Let me help choose too!”

Li Xixi rolled her eyes at him. “You? Do you even have an artistic bone in your body? Forget it.”

Ding Xiang: “...”

“I do have basic aesthetic sense, okay?” He turned to Jiang Tu. “How about letting Brother Tu choose?”

Jiang Tu looked up. Having just finished the eye exercises, he wasn’t wearing his glasses. His dark eyes stared directly at Zhu Xingyao.

Zhu Xingyao was momentarily stunned. Resting her chin on her hand, she turned back to look at him. Jiang Tu was wearing a black sweater under his school uniform. His neck was long and smooth, with a band-aid stuck to the side. Earlier, when Ding Xiang had asked him about it, he’d said he accidentally scratched himself.

How could someone accidentally scratch their neck? Zhu Xingyao didn’t believe it was an accident.

Though he showed no outward signs, Zhu Xingyao felt that he was quieter today than usual. They said music could bring hope to the heart. She wondered if Jiang Tu liked music. Looking at him, she suddenly smiled, her eyes crinkling. “Brother Tu, want to help us choose?”