“Accelerating scientific and technological advancement is necessary to promote high-quality development and achieve a high quality of life for the people. It is necessary in order to create a new development pattern, and to successfully begin the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country…..”

Class A1, sophomore year, politics class.

The politics teacher’s voice was the same as before, echoing in the classroom without any ripples.

It was the fourth class of the morning that day, and since it wasn’t a main subject, this class always had the most people asleep.

But now, no one in the entire classroom could sleep peacefully.

Whether they were taking meticulous notes or hiding their phone under the desk and furiously pressing the keyboard…..the absent-minded students would get distracted from time to time and glance at the uninvited guest at the back of the classroom.

A tall, handsome boy with an unusually poor expression had simply occupied a corner of the classroom.

The crooked, empty desk in front of him looked very awkward, destroying the originally neat arrangement of the classroom desks. There were a few scratches on the ground, making it obvious that this desk and chair had been temporarily dragged from another classroom.

Fang Qian’an didn’t do anything out of the ordinary in class A1. He chose to sit directly at the back of the classroom, likely to reduce his sense of presence. However, his stature, appearance, and even his status in the school and various rumors made it impossible to ignore his existence. Not to mention the classmates in attendance, but even the politics teacher Wan Nian, who had a straight face and lectured as if reciting scriptures, looked as if he had seen a ghost when he walked into the classroom and saw Fang Qian’an.

After all, everyone in Qiming knew that as long as Fang Qian’an stayed at the school safe and sound, it could be seen as a favor to the school. As for making Young Master Fang study seriously…..haha, was that a joke?

For the most part, Fang Qian’an only needed to show his face in the morning, and could then leave at any time. Qiming had luxuriously decorated student lounges and study rooms on each floor, and that was where Fang Qian’an usually spent his time.

After teaching at Qiming for so long, the politics teacher didn’t even know the last time he had seen Fang Qian’an in class.

Yet now, not only had Fang Qian’an come to class, but he also seemed to be listening.

…..This was a bit terrifying.

While the politics teacher was lecturing, he was shocked to see Fang Qian’an turn away, casually snatch the politics text from the student beside him, and read it with a frown for a long time.

“Hey, Xiu-er—”

Fang Qian’an was so sleepy that he was battling against his eyelids. He reached out and poked Li Xiu.

“I’ve found that your method is really useful. Now I can only think about being sleepy, and nothing else at all,” he mumbled vaguely.

Li Xiu: “……”

“Why don’t you look like you’re dozing off at all? How are you doing it?”

Li Xiu reached out and retrieved his textbook from Fang Qian’an’s hands with a blank expression.

The youth frowned and said in a brief whisper: “Don’t call me Xiu’er.”

Fang Qian’an yawned. “Then…..yawn…..Xiuxiu?” he said nonchalantly, leaning his head toward Li Xiu to read the notes he had written.

Li Xiu closed his notebook. He glanced at Fang Qian’an and expressed his disgust for the nickname with frigid eyes.

Fang Qian’an was cut by Li Xiu’s eye knives.

If others dared to look at him like this, Fang Qian’an wouldn’t hesitate to let them know how powerful he was.

But as it happened, this was Li Xiu.

He was clearly being looked down upon, but his heart felt itchy, as if something was scratching it.

Unpleasant, but also a bit pleasurable.

En, he inexplicably wanted to make this person become a little more displeased.

“If you’re still not satisfied, ah, then I’ll just call you…..” As Fang Qian’an thought about it, the title appeared in his mind like a brand.

“A-Xiu.”

[A-Xiu]

Yes, ah, the slender young man currently sitting next to him should be called A-Xiu.

[Poor A-Xiu, ah]

Although it was a bit girly, A-Xiu was A-Xiu.

[…..My A-Xiu]

……

“Hey, A-Xiu, don’t ignore me.” 

The boy’s voice at this moment was extremely low and hoarse.

It was clearly the brisk voice unique to young people, but when he called “A-Xiu,” his tone was permeated by a touch of sinister greed.

Fang Qian’an didn’t notice the change in his tone at all. He cracked open his mouth and whispered with a smile: “ “Since you have no objections, I’ll call you A-Xiu from now on.”

At the sound of “A-Xiu,” Li Xiu’s hand suddenly shook. The red pen he was using to mark key points fell onto the notebook, and the tip of the pen splashed a small bit of scarlet ink on the snow-white paper. 

He subconsciously turned his head to look at Fang Qian’an.

In fact, his grandmother would also call him A-Xiu. However, when this title came from Fang Qian’an’s mouth, Li Xiu felt inexplicable discomfort.

The hair on the back of Li Xiu’s neck stood up, and he pressed a hand to his temple.

The low-grade fever was starting to give him tinnitus.

When Fang Qian’an said “A-Xiu” just now, the sound seemed to create an echo deep in his ear canals, the repetitions small and vague.

Picking up the pen, Li Xiu tore off the ink-stained notebook page and said to Fang Qian’an expressionlessly: “You’re so noisy.”

“Also, don’t call me A-Xiu.”

But Fang Qian’an had no intention of changing his tune.

“A-Xiu, tell me, what happened back then? Did we really bump into ‘that?’…..Politics class is really useful, that kind of thing shouldn’t follow us…..”

The tall boy didn’t maintain an air of aloofness with Li Xiu now. In order to communicate smoothly with Li Xiu, he had even unscrupulously pushed his desk next to Li Xiu’s. However, Fang Qian’an completely forgot about the size difference between he and Li Xiu. Squeezed in like this, such a big person was directly touching Li Xiu’s thigh and arm.

The situation was extremely odd.

Countless gazes believed to be covert fell upon them, and the probing and curious intent inside them was oppressive and scorching hot. Fang Qian’an could obviously turn a blind eye to these observers, but Li Xiu’s feelings differed greatly.

“I have a method that can effectively drive away ghosts,” Li Xiu said to Fang Qian’an with a taut face.

“If you want to know, just shut up and listen to this lesson.”

……This time, Fang Qian’an was finally silent.

*

Fang Qian’an closed his mouth tightly, but he didn’t leave.

Even through the school uniform, Li Xiu could feel that Fang Qian’an’s body was completely different from his own. Scientific training and high-quality food intake had allowed the nearly-adult young man to grow broad shoulders and strong thighs.

Even Fang Qian’an’s body temperature was much higher than Li Xiu’s.

Li Xiu silently exerted some force to push Fang Qian’an away, but it was no use.

Instead, Fang Qian’an stared at him. He had noticed that small movement and wanted to say something—knowing that it would just be some stupid teasing, Li Xiu immediately put a finger in front of his lips and mouthed, ‘silent.’

A method to expel ghosts.

Fang Qian’an pursed his lips, leaning back in his chair resentfully.

But his body was still pressed against Li Xiu.

Li Xiu lowered his eyes and stared at the reassuring sentences in the politics textbook. What came to mind was the look of the boy next to him, so terrified that his face was ashen.

Whatever.

Li Xiu sucked in a deep breath, decided to stop resisting, and focused on listening to the class.

Of course, the class was a complete mess at the end, and he didn’t remember a single useful word—first of all, halfway through the class, there were suddenly more people outside the window. They seemed to just be passing by, but if they really happened to pass by inadvertently, they wouldn’t all be looking carefully through the window.

When their eyes fell on Fang Qian’an, it was as if they were dreaming, with expressions of complete disbelief.

[Boss, what happened?]

Fang Qian’an’s phone vibrated. He was bored stiff, and took it out to have a look. It was from one of his closer little brothers.

[If you want to teach the little cripple a lesson, we’ll absolutely handle it. Why does Young Master Fang have to deal with it and stay in that kind of place?]

Fang Qian’an frowned.

In addition to Li Xiu, Class A1 also had other high-scoring students who were recruited by Qiming from other schools. Although those people were not as poor as Li Xiu, they were also “poor people” from a completely different circle in the eyes of others. Although they were only words, the message sent still revealed something unconcealable, disdain for the entire class and even the “cripple,” Li Xiu.

“Tsk.”

Li Xiu suddenly heard a disdainful scoff from the young master beside him.

He glanced at Fang Qian’an, who also happened to be looking at him.

“Ai…..”

Under Li Xiu’s baffled gaze, Fang Qian’an shook his head.

This person, with his skinny, solitary appearance, was indeed easily bullied.

A certain young master felt a little tight in his chest when he recalled what Li Xiu had suffered before.

Subsequently, he took his phone and began to type.

[Firstly, I can stay wherever I like, and it has nothing to do with you.]

[Secondly, mind your eyes. Are you treating me as a monkey when you walk back and forth outside?]

[Thirdly, don’t just call other people “cripple.”]

After typing, Fang Qian’an clicked the group send button.

As expected, before too long, there were fewer people looking from outside the window.

When Fang Qian’an noticed this, he closed the WeChat dialogue box with satisfaction and exited the phone screen.

Then, in the next second, Fang Qian’an’s hand shook and the phone fell to the floor with a crisp sound.

Everyone jumped, including Li Xiu, who had just calmed down and was listening to the lecture.

As he met Li Xiu’s gaze, Fang Qian’an’s expression was a bit stiff.

“I accidentally dropped my phone,” Fang Qian’an said dryly.

While he was talking, someone had already picked it up for him.

Fang Qian’an eyed the phone and hesitated before taking it back.

“What is it?” Li Xiu asked.

Fang Qian’an shrugged. “It’s really nothing.”

It was just an accidental lapse in sight, Fang Qian’an told himself.

The smooth digital screen would show its owner’s reflection when it went dark.

This was a normal state of affairs.

And just now, at the moment the phone screen turned off, it also reflected a dark, blurry figure.

Fang Qian’an hadn’t seen anything clearly, but for some reason he felt that it…..was not his face.

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Chapter 13 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 15