YMW CH 23

I don’t like him

Meng Liangping had already entered the classroom. He didn’t believe for a second that Xie Guilan would steal anything and frowned as he questioned Zhou Ye.
“You can’t just make accusations like that. You need proof.”

“Teacher,” Zhou Ye said, glaring at Xie Guilan with undisguised contempt. “I left my watch in the classroom last night. He was the last one here, and his seat’s the closest to mine. Who else could it be?”

Zhou Ye’s seat was indeed just across the aisle from Xie Guilan’s.

The students crowded in the back of the classroom to watch the commotion. Among them, Lu Wang spotted Cen Wu and struggled out of the group, grabbing onto his arm.
“I got here earlier and heard Zhou Ye accusing Brother Xie of stealing his watch,” he whispered.

The divide between social classes was always glaringly obvious, even though school uniforms tried to mask it. Wealthier students might look a bit more polished, but it was easy to see how inexpensive Xie Guilan’s clothes were.

Yet his tall stature and striking, cold features made him the kind of person who’d still look dashing even in a burlap sack, distracting people from his worn-out backpack and scuffed sneakers.

“You’re short on money,” Zhou Ye said mockingly, with an air of feigned pity. “I could lend you some if you’d asked. The watch isn’t worth much, but my dad bought it for me. How about I give you ten thousand yuan, and you return it?”

Xie Guilan stared at him, his voice cold. “I didn’t take it.”

Zhou Ye sneered. “We’ll know if you did or didn’t after we check your bag. Right, Teacher Meng?” He turned to the homeroom teacher. “It’s not too much to ask to search his bag, is it?”

Meng Liangping’s expression soured. Zhou Ye, despite his decent grades, was as much of a headache as Cen Wu used to be—though not as arrogant, given his family wasn’t nearly as wealthy as the Cen family.

This wasn’t about finding the watch; Zhou Ye just wanted to humiliate someone.

Before Meng Liangping could respond, Xie Guilan tossed his bag onto the floor by Zhou Ye’s feet, his face cold and unreadable.

His deep-set eyes were dark and stormy, carrying an air of unshakable hostility. His voice was just as icy.
“Go ahead. Search it.”

Zhou Ye froze for a moment, his jaw tightening. He hated this look on Xie Guilan’s face the most.

A bastard child, living a life worse than the lowest horse in the Xie family’s stables, yet still looking down on everyone like they were nothing but dogs.

If Zhou Ye wanted to check his bag, he’d have to bend down and pick it up. Who would really be humiliated then?

His anger peaked, and instead of searching, he raised his foot, aiming to stomp on Xie Guilan’s bag.

Before he could, Cen Wu’s voice rang out from outside the classroom.
“Are… are you sure it was him?”

His tone was slow and deliberate, almost as if giving Zhou Ye one last chance. But Zhou Ye didn’t pick up on it. Instead, he frowned.
“Second Young Master, you’re not trying to cover for him, are you?”

Cen Wu raised his head, his face still pale from his recent illness. His skin was as white as snow, his delicate demeanor reminiscent of a fragile bird perched on a branch. His wide, innocent eyes blinked as he replied softly, “I… I’m just asking. If you’re so sure, why not check the surveillance cameras?”

He paused for effect. “If he really took it last night, would he… would he be dumb enough to bring it to school today?”

Before Cen Wu could finish, a sudden chill ran down his back.

The student council was doing a classroom inspection, and leading the group was none other than the student council president, Xie Shangjing. As he passed behind Cen Wu, his presence was impossible to ignore.

Cen Wu instantly turned his head and smirked coldly at Xie Guilan.
“Top of the class, but this is how your brain works?”

Xie Guilan: “…”

Xie Shangjing glanced over briefly, frowning, but didn’t stop. The council was already finishing up their inspection at the far end of the hall and heading back to their classroom.

Once Xie Shangjing was gone, Cen Wu turned his attention back to Zhou Ye, his tone as slow and deliberate as before.
“But considering you’ve never even made it into the top ten, it makes sense you wouldn’t think of that.”

Zhou Ye: “…”

Who are you to talk about scores?!

Zhou Ye, like any honors student, could not stand having his grades mocked so brazenly. And everyone knew the classroom cameras were just for show, only turned on during exams.

But before Zhou Ye could argue, Cen Wu preempted him.

He tugged at the curtain by the back door, pointing upward with a deliberate gesture.
“I was talking about that camera.”

The small surveillance camera hid in the top corner behind the curtains, nearly impossible to notice unless you looked carefully.

Even Meng Liangping froze for a moment. The classroom had only two cameras—one at the front and one at the back—but he hadn’t realized this extra one had been added.

“This makes things easy,” Meng Liangping said, his face darkening. “Alright, everyone stop arguing. Let’s go watch the footage. I’ll see what really happened.”

Zhou Ye looked up at the camera, and panic struck him. He suddenly realized why Cen Wu had repeatedly asked if he was sure Xie Guilan had taken his watch.

But with everyone watching, he couldn’t back out now. He gritted his teeth and followed the group out of the classroom.

The surveillance room stood in another building.

Meng Liangping walked ahead, and Zhou Ye hesitated, but eventually decided to go along.

The watch had sat in Xie Guilan’s desk drawer the night before, part of Zhou Ye’s prank to get back at him. Zhou Ye hadn’t planned to escalate things, but when he found the watch missing this morning, he accused Xie Guilan of stealing it.

Now, he feared the footage might reveal something else.

Cen Wu walked beside him and lowered his voice. “Zhou Ye… your real name is Zhou Yuan, right?”

Zhou Ye’s face drained of color.

The truth was, Zhou Yuan had always been a troublemaker. Xie Guilan, however, never forgot a grudge. He made sure to hold Zhou Ye accountable every chance he got.

Zhou Yuan was a bastard child, born after his mother confronted his father’s family, demanding a divorce. This caused a tragic accident in which his mother died in a car crash, taking her unborn child with her.

His father had once been a small-time businessman, but after the scandal, he moved his business to Huaijing, changed Zhou Yuan’s name, and started over.

Zhou Ye hated his background—he had always felt like he had to serve others, much like Xie Guilan, who also came from a broken family.

Xie Guilan’s cold stare made him furious.

“I’m just asking,” Cen Wu’s voice remained calm, but his eyes were chilling. “What do you want to do? I know what you’ve done. Stay away from Xie Guilan, and I won’t say anything more.”

Zhou Ye clenched his jaw. “What do you want from me?”

Cen Wu’s gaze turned cold. “That depends on you. If you leave Xie Guilan alone, I can stay silent. Otherwise, I can’t promise I’ll keep quiet.”

Zhou Ye’s breath quickened, and his fists clenched.

They reached the surveillance room, and with many teachers present, Cen Wu returned to the classroom.

The footage was clear. It showed Zhou Ye placing the watch in Xie Guilan’s desk drawer, throwing trash on his desk, and tearing up Xie Guilan’s papers.

The watch had been taken by one of Zhou Ye’s lackeys from Class 8, who had come to Class 3, completed their task, and then stolen the watch to frame Xie Guilan.

“Get the person from Class 8 here!” the discipline director barked.

He then reviewed older footage, showing someone sneaking outside the classroom door.

Meng Liangping’s face darkened. “How many troublemakers do we have in this class?!”

But when the person in the footage looked up, it turned out to be Cen Wu.

Cen Wu had been lingering outside the classroom for over a minute, peeking inside. When he saw it was empty, he entered and began wiping Xie Guilan’s desk.

The teachers, including the discipline director and the school secretary, exchanged puzzled glances.

After cleaning, Cen Wu placed a piece of lychee-flavored candy on Xie Guilan’s desk, arranged in a heart shape. But as he ate more candies, it became clear that he had consumed most of them himself.

Eventually, realizing what he had done, Cen Wu snatched the remaining candies and, without thinking, flipped through Xie Guilan’s papers, copying a few questions.

When Xie Guilan arrived, Cen Wu turned to watch him take out a practice book from his bag.

That stormy night, when Xie Guilan left early, Cen Wu had tugged on his sleeve, slipping an umbrella into his hand.

Xie Guilan had remained cold and unaffected, but Cen Wu’s warm, affectionate gaze made Xie Guilan’s eyes briefly soften.

The surveillance room fell silent.

The discipline director wanted to speak but hesitated, finally muttering, “Xie… you… I…”

Xie Guilan stayed quiet.

“I don’t like him,” Xie Guilan’s dark eyes looked up, and no one’s reflection appeared in them. “I won’t date anyone.”

The discipline director sighed in relief. “Good. You should focus on your studies at your age.”

Meng Liangping patted Xie Guilan’s shoulder. “Alright, go back to class. We’ll take care of the rest.”

Xie Guilan ignored Zhou Ye and left without a second glance.

Cen Wu had been confident the footage would clear Xie Guilan’s name, but he hadn’t realized it would capture him, too.

Back in the classroom, Xie Guilan sat quietly for a few minutes. After seeing nothing amiss, Cen Wu relaxed.

The egg pancake Cen Wu had bought him that morning had gone cold. Xie Guilan reached for it, eating it bite by bite.