DMMY Chapter 11: Zigui

Since when did you like sweet things?

Sheng Yan clearly remembered that Qin Zigui didn’t like sweet things.

But it didn’t matter whether he liked it or not, he could just buy an extra cup for himself.

He didn’t do this because he forgave Qin Zigui. After all, there was no logic in suddenly breaking off the friendship without warning, then having a cold war for a year, and then simply apologizing.

He did value the brotherhood he had with Qin Zigui over the past ten years, but that didn’t mean he would blindly believe everything Qin Zigui said. Besides, Qin Zigui obviously hid a lot of things from him. If he just let himself be fooled like this, it would be too spineless and lacking in principles.

But what Qin Zigui said was also true, each matter should be treated separately.

Not forgiving Qin Zigui for his previous actions was one thing, but Qin Zigui fighting for him yesterday, getting punished, and injured, that was another matter. So, it was only natural to treat him to a cup of milk tea.

But there wouldn’t be anything more than that.

Sheng Yan was a mature man with principles and integrity. Until Qin Zigui showed his attitude, he wouldn’t easily surrender.

Thinking this, as if to show that he wasn’t giving any special treatment, Sheng Yan stood up, glared at Zhu Peng and Gou You, and said, “You, and you, each get a cup. Come get it at noon.”

Then he flipped the chair onto the already cleared table by Qin Zigui, grabbed one side of the table, lifted it, and headed straight to the back of the classroom.

Shiwai High School, full name Nanwu Experimental Foreign Language School, was one of the top private schools in Nanwu, with a success rate of over 90% in the national college entrance examination.

It wasn’t a school that focused solely on competitions or relied on cramming tactics. It emphasized high-quality teaching, with each grade admitting no more than three hundred students, and the admission rate to top universities depended on the quality of students and teaching.

Classes were arranged according to class numbers from large to small, with students’ academic performance improving from one class to the next.

For example, Class 6 was the worst in science subjects, mostly aiming for tier-two universities or struggling for tier-one universities or 211 Project universities.

Class 1, on the other hand, consisted of top students, with 25 students, each one a potential candidate for prestigious universities. If they performed poorly, they would have to settle for lesser-known universities or repeat a year.

So, for Sheng Yan, a rebellious and free-spirited rich second-generation student who had always been sponsored by his family to study, being suddenly transferred to Class 1 by Huang Shuliang was no different from a white rabbit being thrown into a pack of wolves.

Thinking about being confined in a classroom full of nerds who didn’t play with phones, didn’t play games, didn’t eat snacks, didn’t slack off, and only buried their heads in studying, for a whole month, Sheng Yan felt like he was descending into hell.

His once handsome face grew increasingly sullen, so much so that by the time he reached the back door of Class 1, he might as well have written “I’m going to jail” on his face.

Carrying the table, he stood in front of the closed back door of Class 1, with a blank expression, not wanting to take another step.

Qin Zigui, carrying his backpack, stopped behind him. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Sheng Yan said expressionlessly, “just psychological preparation.”

Qin Zigui seemed to find his reaction amusing, but didn’t rush him. He just stood behind him and looked at his tightly furrowed brow, casually asking, “What psychological preparation? Tell me.”

Sheng Yan, with a serious expression, said, “Do you guys talk more than ten sentences a day besides discussing problems?”

Qin Zigui: “?”

“Do you even go to the bathroom during breaks?”

“…”

“Do you eat your meals with your papers?”

“…”

“Do you study and do nothing else all day, not even downloading mobile games?”

“…”

Qin Zigui didn’t say a word behind him, seemingly unable to respond.

And Sheng Yan was convinced that this was a tacit agreement.

So he took a deep breath, intending to bid farewell to this wonderful world in the best way possible. Then a strong and slender hand reached over his shoulder, pressed against the door, and gently pushed.

All twenty-four heads in the classroom immediately turned towards the door, their eyes like torches.

Meanwhile, Sheng Yan, carrying the table, held his breath and froze at the doorway.

Was this the legendary school bully?

Was this the legendary top students?

Who was he going to fight?

Would they attack him with mathematics?

Fifty pairs of eyes met, filled with mutual respect and fear, neither daring to make the first move.

It wasn’t until Qin Zigui casually walked past Sheng Yan and entered the classroom, pushed his own desk back, took the desk from Sheng Yan, and placed it in front, casually explaining, “Huang Shuliang sent him to our class to experience the study atmosphere. There’s nothing else. Just do what you’re supposed to do.”

“Oh, okay.”

With Qin Zigui’s words, everyone in Class 1 finally breathed a sigh of relief and continued to use the remaining time of morning self-study to catch up on sleep, eat, gossip, and even two girls were standing in front of a mirror, fixing their hair.

Sheng Yan stood empty-handed at the back door. “…”

This world didn’t seem much different from the human world.

Qin Zigui took out books and items from his backpack, neatly arranged them, and categorized them before placing them back. Without looking up, he seemed to guess what Sheng Yan was thinking, “Don’t worry, we use phones too, we eat too, we go to the bathroom too, for now, we’re just normal human beings, we won’t eat you.”

“…”

As if he was afraid of being eaten.

Sheng Yan felt a bit awkward and reluctantly sat in the seat that was almost as honorable as the throne, feeling uncomfortable everywhere.

Just as he was about to take out his phone and complain to Zhu Peng and Gou You, a hand reached out in front of him and lightly tapped his shoulder twice.

“?”

Sheng Yan looked up.

Qin Zigui looked down at him, his tone calm, “Phone.”

“???” Sheng Yan’s expression changed, “Didn’t you just say that everyone in your class uses phones?!”

“Yes, but they only use them after class, and even if they use them during class, it’s only to check study materials and past exam papers. Can you do that?” Qin Zigui’s tone was so calm that it didn’t sound like a question at all.

Sheng Yan felt like he was being blatantly insulted.

Qin Zigui, this man, was playing with fire!

He sneered and was about to teach Qin Zigui how to write “big brother,” but Qin Zigui casually said, “Give it to me, and I’ll give it back to you after class. Otherwise, when Huang Shuliang comes later, you can wait until graduation to get it back.”

“Oh, yes.” Chen Yubai in the front row sipped his soy milk leisurely and turned around, saying, “I heard this morning when I went to the grade office that Huang Shuliang is planning how to confiscate your phone, you’re being fooled like a dog.”

“???”

Sheng Yan couldn’t believe it.

It wasn’t the first time he had ranked last in his grade, so why was Huang Shuliang playing hardball this time? Planning to confiscate his phone?

He wasn’t worried about not being able to buy a new phone after it was confiscated. The main concern was losing the Wish app. Without it, how could he have fun stepping on Qin Xiaogui and punching Qin Dagui? What would be the meaning of life then?

Just as he was thinking, the familiar footsteps of Huang Shuliang could be heard approaching down the corridor, getting closer and closer, until they were about to reach the door of Class 1. The decision had to be made quickly.

Sheng Yan gritted his teeth and reluctantly handed his phone to Qin Zigui, “Fine, take it, but remember to give it back after class. If it’s confiscated by that Weasel, we’re not finished.”

Qin Zigui casually put Sheng Yan’s phone in his pocket.

Just as he finished, Huang Shuliang, along with the class teacher, Liang Jie, entered through the back door. Without wasting a moment, they launched a surprise attack: “Sheng Yan! Stand up! Turn around! Hands out of pockets! Lift your backpack! Shake it upside down three times! Show me your drawer! Hey, where is it?”

After Sheng Yan obediently followed all of Huang Shuliang’s instructions, Huang Shuliang found nothing and frowned, saying, “This shouldn’t be.”

Despite the illogical situation, after thoroughly checking, Huang Shuliang confirmed that Sheng Yan indeed didn’t have his phone. Could it be that the kid had truly turned over a new leaf?

Huang Shuliang, in his middle age, still had a childlike belief in fairy tales. After a brief moment of thought, he patted Sheng Yan’s shoulder reassuringly, “Well done, keep it up.”

Sheng Yan seemed to see a glimmer of hope. “Teacher, does this mean I can…”

“Looks like the study atmosphere in Class 1 is indeed effective! So, you stay here and focus! You don’t need to worry about anything else!” Huang Shuliang, in an extremely rare display, showed a friendly and hearty smile to Sheng Yan.

Sheng Yan: “???”

This was definitely not the effect he wanted.

But Huang Shuliang only cared about whether he was performing well academically, not whether he was exhausted from the effort, so he didn’t pay attention to Sheng Yan’s thoughts at all. After instructing Liang Jie in detail on “Ten Precautions to Prevent Sheng Yan’s Misconduct” and the “Firm Policy of Not Being Merciful to Study Slackers Like Sheng Yan,” he left in high spirits.

Left behind, Liang Jie sighed and patted Sheng Yan on the other shoulder. “Dean Huang is determined to reform you this time, so you better take care of yourself.”

With that, she took her notes and, in high heels, clacked her way to the lectern.

Leaving Sheng Yan feeling desolate in place.

Lin Qian, sitting nearby, empathized with Sheng Yan’s situation and asked softly, “How did you manage to offend Huang Shuliang? He actually went to such lengths to send you to this hellhole?”

“It’s nothing, I just scored 327 on the final exam this time,” Sheng Yan said listlessly as he pulled out a chair and sat down.

Lin Qian: “…”

After a brief silence, she said, “You deserve it.”

After all, not everyone could achieve such a perfectly symmetrical axis with the top scorer in the class.

“But if I may ask,” Chen Yubai, holding his soy milk pouch, turned around with a somewhat unsure expression, “how did you manage to score only 327?”

Sheng Yan: “…”

Did you consider if your question was polite?

But Chen Yubai’s expression showed no hint of mockery, only genuine curiosity.

Because at Shi Wai, leaving the exam paper blank was not allowed, so how could one score only 327 when the exam papers were completed?

Chen Yubai was filled with curiosity about this answer, which exceeded his understanding of life.

Before Sheng Yan could respond, Liang Jie tapped the desk twice from the podium. “Alright, no more talking. Finish your breakfast quickly, swallow your buns and fried dough sticks, and bring out your final exam papers. Especially Chen Yubai, no matter how good-looking Sheng Yan is, don’t daydream in class. First, find out why you only scored 121 in Chinese this time!”

So, without getting an answer, he could only turn his head back with a sullen look.

Meanwhile, Sheng Yan furrowed his brow.

Exam papers? What exam papers? Did he even have final exam papers?

Before he could start rummaging through his things in confusion, Qin Zigui’s voice came softly from behind him, “I just tidied up for you. The final exam papers are in the second folder from the left, and the first page is Chinese.”

“?”

Sheng Yan adopted a skeptical attitude as he flipped through, and indeed, there they were.

So when did Qin Zigui tidy up for him?

Just as he was pondering, Liang Jie, on the podium, called his name, “Sheng Yan, speaking of which, I’ve had a question that’s been bothering me because your paper was so different. Even after I sealed the papers, I unfortunately still recognized yours, so I’ve been wondering about this question until now. Can you answer it now?”

“Huh?”

Sheng Yan had a foreboding feeling.

Liang Jie continued without changing her expression, “Could you please explain what frame of mind you were in when you answered the question on imagery analysis in ancient poetry appreciation, ‘In Shu, one hears of the Zigui bird; in Xuan, one sees the Zigui flower,’ and wrote, ‘The Zigui symbolizes something extremely annoying, same as the Zigui flower.'”

T/N: Here the Zigui refers to Cuckoo Bird and Cuckoo flower which sounds the same as Zigui’s name.

Sheng Yan: “…”

Qin Zigui: “…”

The entire class: “…”

Sensing the sudden drop in pressure behind him and feeling like he was being stared at like a block of ice, Sheng Yan couldn’t help but turn his head back, “Um, Qin Zigui, let me explain…”

But before he could finish, Liang Jie on the podium interjected in her unhurried manner, “There’s also a second question. Why do ancient poets often use the cuckoo bird to express sorrow, and how did you answer it?”

Sheng Yan froze in place. “…”

He felt he had the right to remain silent.

But obviously Qin Zigui didn’t think so.

He raised his eyebrows slightly, pinched Sheng Yan’s phone, and shook it gently, indicating that if he didn’t come clean, he’d lose his phone.

After a brief hesitation, Sheng Yan lowered his head, ears burning red with guilt, and reluctantly uttered eight words, “Because the cuckoo is not a good bird.”

“…”

At that moment, the entire classroom fell silent.

Finally, Chen Yubai understood why Sheng Yan had scored 327 on the exam.

Because while others were taking exams, Sheng Yan was merely engaging in a verbal sparring match.

Author’s Note:

Cuckoo Bird: ??? What did I do wrong???