NASAY CH 2

At the entrance of the No 1 high school, there was a bus stop with a sign rusty enough that it had worn off part of the school’s name, leaving only “No 2 Highschool” faintly visible, as if it had been hastily replaced with “No 1 Highschool” by accident.

Huo Xingzhou looked at the wobbly bus stop sign, standing in the shadow of the building and worrying that if the wind blew it over, it might collapse right there.

If it fell on him, how many days of leave would he need to take?
“Breaking bones takes 100 days, at least two months of leave.”

Before he could finish his thoughts, a bus screeched to a stop right in front of him.
Someone “fell” out of it.

The person was carrying a small, bulging backpack, unsure of how many things it held, and each hand was holding a bag.
Maybe it was because someone had pushed him, but the kid bounced out like a ball, almost stumbling as he came out—quite a comical sight.
“My God, that’s a heavy crime!”

Huo Xingzhou, who had been in a bad mood all afternoon, was immediately amused.

The air conditioning on the bus was broken, and for some unknown reason, it was packed with people the entire trip.
He had stood for several stops, sweating profusely, and as soon as he got off, he exhaled heavily, releasing the stagnant, musty air from his lungs.
Because the bus was so crowded, he didn’t dare stand too far in, fearing he wouldn’t be able to hear the stop announcements. So, he stayed by the back door, but because of the crowd, he couldn’t reach the pull-ring. He stood there stiffly the whole ride, his legs nearly numb.

As soon as the bus stopped, he hurried to get off, but his legs were a bit numb he almost tripped.

Luo Xing raised his head and squinted his eyes, looking at the old teaching building in front of him. He blinked in the bright light, and a suppressed smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
He had finally transferred to No 2 high school.

“Luo Xing?”
Luo Xing froze for a moment—this voice!

He slowly looked up, nearly losing his grip on the bags in his hands. Instinctively, he tightened his grip, feeling his chest swell with the sound of that voice.
The person who came to pick him up was actually him!

He thought he’d only be in the same school as him and would be satisfied just seeing him during morning exercises or activities. But unexpectedly, they were in the same class!

Huo Xingzhou.
He knew his name, and remembered his face—every change from ten years ago up to now, he knew it all.

Huo Xingzhou saw him standing there in a daze, as if his feet had rooted to the spot, not speaking or moving. He walked over to him.

It was evening, and the bus had come from the East, with the brilliant sunset casting a soft golden glow on him. When their eyes met, he seemed to dodge slightly, lowering his head.
When Huo Xingzhou stood in front of him, he raised his eyelids slightly and looked him over.

The person in front of him looked very young.
He had an incredibly small face, with light-colored hair that complemented his almost same-colored eyes. When he lifted his head slightly, his sharp chin was visible.
His simple white shirt was buttoned up neatly, with not a button out of place, leaving no room for imagination.
But, his face was blushing a little too much. Was it really that hot? “Are you Luo Xing?” Huo Xingzhou asked again.

His voice had settled after the voice change, now deep but still somewhat careless, as if lightly pressing on someone’s heart before quickly releasing it.

Luo Xing hid the fluttering feeling and the smile in his heart carefully, “Yes, I am. Excuse me, who are you?”

“Huo Xingzhou. Teacher Cheng had something to attend to, so he sent me to pick you up.” Huo Xingzhou looked behind him, “You came by yourself?”

Luo Xing almost choked on his words for no reason, but still didn’t take his eyes off Huo Xingzhou’s face. He only lightly said, “My mom is very busy.”

Huo Xingzhou casually responded with an “oh” and didn’t think much about it, glancing at him with eyes that softened. He looked like a well-behaved student, a bit of a fool, but obedient.

“Let’s go,” Huo Xingzhou turned and walked ahead, casually asking, “Hey kid, why did you transfer to No 2 high school?”

Luo Xing took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart, and replied with an effort to stay calm, “It’s a provincial support program. I was selected to come here as an exchange student.”

No 2 high school was an old school, weathered by decades of history. The buildings, new and old, looked like a beautiful woman without makeup, framed by over a hundred-year-old magnolia trees and brightly colored flags flying in the wind.
The two of them walked across two buildings before reaching the back of the school, the senior high school building.

After the self-study session, it would be dinner time. Teacher Cheng hadn’t said anything about where to take the new student, so Huo Xingzhou simply led him directly to the classroom. They happened to bump into Teacher Cheng around the corner.

“You must be Luo Xing,” Teacher Cheng greeted him warmly with a smile.

Luo Xing nodded and obediently greeted him. His manner was polite and humble, a sharp contrast to the casually dressed Huo Xingzhou.

“Did you bring all your daily necessities?” Teacher Cheng asked, looking at the few things Luo Xing was holding, which didn’t seem like the kind of things one would bring for daily living.

“How about this,” Teacher Cheng said, “I’ll give you a daily necessities application form. Go to the dorm supervisor and pick up what you need. There should still be some left for the new students this year.”

“Thank you, teacher,” Luo Xing gently moved his fingers, which had been pinched for too long, and the blood was no longer circulating properly. They had started to feel numb.

Just then, Huo Xingzhou, who had been watching, kindly reached out to take the bags. He almost stumbled and blurted out, “So heavy, did you pack a corpse in here?”

“It’s..it’s books,” Luo Xing moved his fingers, feeling the blood rush back causing his fingers to heat up and tingle, unable to stop himself from fidgeting.

Teacher Cheng gave Huo Xingzhou a glare. “Do you think he is like you? Go open the door.”

Huo Xingzhou turned around, and since both of his hands were holding the bags, he lifted his foot and kicked the door open, doing it right in front of Teacher Cheng.

Teacher Cheng took a deep breath and restrained himself.

The jump startled the students who had been sleeping, playing on their phones, or quietly writing their notes.
A few students in the back saw him enter with two large red plastic bags and nearly laughed themselves silly.

Zhang Xuan, woken from his sleep, looked up and exclaimed, “I swear, Huo Xingzhou, where did you just come from, a local drama set? Those bags are so festive, hahaha!”

“If something has been touched by Young Master Huo’s hands, it should be offered up as a sacred object, at least with three incense sticks every morning and evening, followed by a respectful kowtow.”

“Kowtow? Might as well get married, brother!”

Cough! Cheng Limin walked in from the back and gave a heavy cough. “Quiet down! Do you think this classroom is your family’s marketplace?”

The classroom instantly fell silent. The students watching the commotion turned their eyes toward Huo Xingzhou and curiously stared at Luo Xing, their gazes rising in unison from behind their desks.

“Go back to your seat,” said Cheng Limin.

Huo Xingzhou put the items under the podium without saying anything to Cheng Limin. He leisurely walked back to his seat and kicked Zhang Xuan’s desk as he passed by.

Zhang Xuan quickly grabbed the desk to steady himself, whistled softly, and opened his drawer, revealing an assortment of drinks like a mini convenience store. “Brother, take whatever you want.”

“Move aside.” Huo Xingzhou sat in his seat, propped his arm on a “Five-Year Gaokao^[1]” workbook, stretched out his long legs, pulled out his phone, and started replying to messages.

“Class, this is our new transfer student, Luo Xing. He’s been selected for the provincial support program,” Cheng Limin said. Turning to Luo Xing, he added, “Write your name on the blackboard.”

Luo Xing nodded, picked up a piece of chalk from the podium, and wrote his name in a beautiful, flowing script on the board.

These senior students were already struggling to finish their homework, let alone write neatly. Seeing his elegant handwriting, some female students started whispering.

“Wow, his handwriting is really good.”

“And he’s quite good-looking, too. He looks like a diligent student.”

“Not necessarily. If he was selected for a support program, why would he transfer to our class? Class 8 next door and Class 6 downstairs are Elite classes. Even Class 11 is a honor class. Our class is worse than a regular class.”

“Transferring a month after the semester started? Maybe he got expelled from his previous school and used this as an excuse to hide out here.”

The discussion was loud enough for Huo Xingzhou at the back to hear. He looked up at Luo Xing on the podium. He couldn’t tell what Cheng Limin was saying to him, but Luo Xing nodded obediently, looking every bit like a well-behaved student.

Boring. Huo Xingzhou scoffed and muted his phone before starting a game.

On the podium, Cheng Limin nodded thoughtfully. “Alright, if you need anything, just let me or the class monitor, Ye Qiaoqiao, know.”

“Okay,” Luo Xing replied.

Cheng Limin looked around the room and pointed to the window-side seat in front of Huo Xingzhou. “You can sit there, next to Zhang Xuan.”

Luo Xing glanced at Huo Xingzhou, who was busy with his head down, then nodded slightly. “Okay.”

The class was about to explode again, but Cheng Limin slammed the desk and said, “should I talk, or do you want to talk?”

The room fell silent again.

“The new classmate just joined us. You should all get along and avoid exclusionary behavior. Especially you, Zhang Xuan—don’t secretly play games during class and distract Luo Xing. If I catch you, you’ll do 100 frog jumps and clean all the classroom windows. Got it?”

Zhang Xuan snorted, drawing out his response: “Yes, teaacher.~”

Cheng Limin ignored him and turned to the second row. “Ye Qiaoqiao, go get a copy of this month’s test paper from Teacher Zhang and have Luo Xing complete it. Bring it to my office afterward.”

After giving his instructions, Cheng Limin left for a meeting, telling them to study quietly for evening self-study. But as soon as he left, the classroom exploded with chatter.

“Why did the teacher make him sit with Zhang Xuan?”

“Zhang Xuan always picks on the weak. This new guy looks like a soft target. He’s doomed.”

“If not with Zhang Xuan, should he sit with Huo Xingzhou? With that temper, Luo Xing would transfer out in two days!”

“True.”

Luo Xing picked up his two bags from under the podium and walked toward Zhang Xuan. He slightly nodded and said, “Excuse me.”

Zhang Xuan, still angry from being reprimanded earlier, leaned on his desk and refused to move.

“Nope. What can you do about it? Bite me?”

Zhang Xuan raised an eyebrow and stretched his leg into the aisle, blocking the way. “Tell you what, call me ‘big brother,’ and I’ll let you pass.”

Someone in the back yelled, “Zhang Xuan, are you even bigger than him? Don’t take advantage!”

Among guys, questions about size and capability were a sensitive issue. Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up, and he clapped his desk, staring at Luo Xing. “Well? Are you going to call me or not?”

The noise caught Huo Xingzhou’s attention. He lazily lifted his gaze from his game and looked at the new student being cornered.

Luo Xing calmly placed his bags on the floor, removed his backpack, and hung it over Zhang Xuan’s desk, directly facing him with an unyielding look.

From Huo Xingzhou’s angle, Luo Xing’s neck was slender, his long eyelashes curled up, and his soft lips pressed into a thin line. He looked so well-behaved that it made people want to “bully” him.

Huo Xingzhou smirked. Zhang Xuan really lucked out this time with a soft target.

“Zhang Xuan, are you done yet?” someone whistled. “Just let him go already. He’s been standing there forever. Or are you afraid you’re smaller than him?”

Zhang Xuan felt humiliated. He hadn’t intended to go that far, but with forty classmates watching, he couldn’t back down.

“If you don’t want to call me ‘big brother,’ call me ‘father’ Beg me, and I’ll let you pass. It’s that simple.”

That was too much.

Huo Xingzhou raised his eyes.

“Say that again!” Luo Xing’s pale eyes sharpened in an instant, and the veins on his fair hand tensed.

Everyone had thought he was a pushover, but it turned out he was a wild card.

Interesting.

Huo Xingzhou retracted the foot he was about to kick with and leaned back, waiting to see how Luo Xing would handle the situation.

Zhang Xuan kept laughing and went even further with his words. Luo Xing clenched his fingers tightly, his knuckles cracking.

Just as he was about to make a move, Huo Xingzhou suddenly jumped forward and kicked Zhang Xuan in the back.

Zhang Xuan fell onto his desk, clutching his chest. “Damn it, who kicked me?”

“Me,” Huo Xingzhou said, looking up.

Zhang Xuan immediately backed down. “Just joking! New classmate, please, go ahead.”

Luo Xing relaxed his hand, his sharp expression vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. He bent down to pick up his things and softly said, “Thank you” to Huo Xingzhou.

Watching Luo Xing transform from a little wolf into a harmless bunny, Huo Xingzhou found it amusing. He crooked his finger at Luo Xing.

Luo Xing paused, then leaned in, confused. His eyes suddenly widened.

“How are you going to thank me?” Huo Xingzhou smiled. “How about calling me ‘big brother’?”

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Author’s Note:
Huo Xingzhou: Did you think I’m like him? No, I’m even more eager to bully you.