Chapter 42
Distance really can create beauty.
The two of them had simply known each other for too long. In Lin Huaixi’s impression, Sun Baiyi was like an energetic big dog, forever huffing and puffing as he ran over, throwing himself at him and rubbing all over him, or dragging him around campus at full speed, never once seeming to tire.
Now that they had been apart for several months, seeing Sun Baiyi again felt almost like looking at a stranger, and Lin Huaixi suddenly thought he had gotten much more handsome.
Sun Baiyi had now turned over a new leaf and become a good young man of the new era, but as a former scum gong, he really did have excellent natural capital.
His hair was fluffy and soft, his skin a healthy wheat color, his eyes sincere and bright. When he smiled, he looked sunny and handsome. His body proportions were especially good too—broad shoulders, long legs—and he had shed the childishness of youth. Every gesture seemed to radiate youthful hormones.
But in essence, he was still just a big dog.
Sun Baiyi leaned all his weight onto Lin Huaixi. Lin Huaixi nearly lost his balance and stumbled backward a few steps, helplessly bracing a hand on his shoulder. “Get off me first. I’m about to fall over.”
Sun Baiyi held him tightly, his eyes sparkling. “Xixi, I just knew you couldn’t bear to leave me and would definitely come find me. You have no idea how much I missed you during this time—I even lost five jin!”
Lin Huaixi instinctively glanced at the handsome line of Sun Baiyi’s biceps, deeply envious of that healthy wheat-colored skin. No matter what he did, he just wouldn’t tan. Obviously he had muscles too, but because he was so fair, they only looked especially soft and full. Even when he wanted to show off, he could never find the right moment.
The moment Sun Baiyi noticed what Lin Huaixi was looking at, he immediately spread himself out like some male peacock going mad with display, unconsciously striking one pose after another and continuously radiating his own charm.
Sadly, Lin Huaixi’s train of thought was not on the same track as his. With a regretful sigh, he withdrew his gaze.
Sun Baiyi draped an arm around Lin Huaixi’s shoulders without the slightest care and kept chattering nonstop. “How have things been at school for you lately? Have you made any new good friends?”
“I’m not bragging, but you’ll have a hard time finding another good friend as righteous and reliable as this young master!”
“Xixi, what class are you in? How about we become deskmates?”
“This damned school, sorting classes by grades again. Just wait—I’ll definitely study hard and come find you soon.”
…
Lin Huaixi wasn’t deliberately ignoring him. It was simply that Sun Baiyi talked too fast and said too much. He could not get a word in edgewise and could only maintain a polite smile.
As if hearing the thoughts in his heart, Qi Wang came over to rescue him. “It’s getting late. Xixi still has to go report to the grade dean. Go back to your class first.”
Sun Baiyi immediately looked ready to flare up again.
Qi Wang had transferred in a while earlier than Lin Huaixi. At that time, Sun Baiyi hadn’t known Lin Huaixi was coming too, and he had been so angry his nose nearly twisted crooked, feeling that enemies really did meet on narrow roads for the two of them to end up here together.
Who would have thought heaven really had eyes and sent Lin Huaixi right back to his side again? The only problem was that this eyesore Qi Wang was still jammed between the two of them. Wasn’t that exactly the same as junior high all over again?!
They knew each other far too well. The moment Lin Huaixi saw one of Sun Baiyi’s brows lift, he knew he was about to start a fight again. He hurriedly reached out and nudged him. “Go back to class first. I’ll come find you during break, and you can properly introduce this school to me. Out of the three of us, you’re the most familiar with it.”
The word most successfully pleased Sun Baiyi. His invisible tail shot high into the air, and he glared triumphantly at Qi Wang before finally walking off with his schoolbag.
Qi Wang withdrew his gaze indifferently and said to Lin Huaixi, “Let’s go.”
Lin Huaixi nodded.
They first went to see the grade dean. The dean had already received Lin Huaixi’s file and knew he had excellent grades, outstanding ability, and was an exceptionally good student. Now that he had seen him in person, his favorable impression only increased. After offering a few words of encouragement, he led him to meet the homeroom teacher.
The homeroom teacher also treated him very well, but when she saw Qi Wang, she froze for a moment. Her gaze moved between the two boys, who were clearly very close, and when she turned back to Lin Huaixi, her attitude carried a faint trace of ingratiation and flattery.
It was very subtle, but in a relationship like that between teacher and student, even the slightest trace of such a thing would be magnified without limit.
Lin Huaixi’s brows drew together slightly. He didn’t understand why the homeroom teacher’s attitude had changed, but since it didn’t affect him, he didn’t pursue the matter.
The teacher brought him into the classroom. After Lin Huaixi finished introducing himself, he officially became a part of the group.
The two of them were about the same height, and since there was only one empty seat, Lin Huaixi naturally ended up sitting beside Qi Wang.
You weren’t supposed to whisper during class, but when Lin Huaixi was putting away his bag, he truly couldn’t hold back and turned around, blinking at Qi Wang.
Qi Wang passed over the neatly organized notes he had prepared and smiled too.
How wonderful—they got to be deskmates again.
Lin Huaixi adapted very well. The pace at the provincial key high school was extremely fast, leaving him no time to overthink anything, and he quickly blended in.
During the long morning break, just as Lin Huaixi had packed up his things and was about to honor his promise and go find Sun Baiyi, Sun Baiyi came rushing over in a fluster, sweat all over his forehead, looking at him with bright eyes like a dog that had spotted a bone.
“Come on, come on, the break is only twenty minutes. I’ll take you around the whole campus,” Sun Baiyi called out enthusiastically, waving to him.
Lin Huaixi smiled and agreed, then turned silently to ask Qi Wang what he thought.
Qi Wang had already stood up and went with him.
Sun Baiyi’s brows furrowed hard. He really couldn’t stand the sight of Qi Wang. “What are you coming for? Haven’t you already transferred here for a whole week? Even an idiot should have figured out the campus by now!”
Qi Wang refused to quarrel with him. He simply looked at some empty point in space, not even bothering to put him in his eyes.
Lin Huaixi was all too familiar with this scene. Naturally stepping between them, he grabbed both of their arms. “Didn’t you say time was limited? Stop talking here and hurry up.”
Sun Baiyi was so carefree it bordered on brainless. The moment Lin Huaixi gave him a smile, he brightened right up, immediately throwing Qi Wang to the back of his mind. He dragged Lin Huaixi around everywhere, talking nonstop the whole way.
At first, Lin Huaixi tried hard not to interrupt him, but far too many people were staring. Keeping up his strained smile, his scalp tingling, he tugged at Sun Baiyi’s sleeve. “Lower your voice a little. I think you’re disturbing people.”
It was free activity time, and students were all outside, so the campus was far from quiet. Just as Lin Huaixi spoke, two boys charged past them with strange cries, completely swallowing his voice.
Sun Baiyi paused. “What did you just say?”
Silently, Lin Huaixi swallowed back his words and instead asked, “Is there something on my face? Why does it feel like everyone is looking at us?”
“Really?” Sun Baiyi turned and looked over openly. The moment their eyes met, everyone awkwardly looked away.
Lin Huaixi really didn’t admire Sun Baiyi’s way of handling things. He turned to look at Qi Wang instead. Qi Wang had never cared about this sort of thing and only smiled reassuringly at him. “You don’t have to mind it.”
Every year, the arrival of the new first-year students drew a lot of attention. The moment Sun Baiyi reported to his class, quite a few people already knew there was one especially sunny and handsome boy among the new students.
Most people didn’t know about Sun Baiyi’s doglike temper. Relying on his face and figure alone, he was already extremely popular in school. But that changed when Qi Wang appeared.
During school years, students had to face dull studies every day, yet were also at the age of being most fond of fantasy. Because of that, they were especially drawn to people who were cold and mysterious.
Both Qi Wang and Sun Baiyi were very good-looking, and everyone was curious about what kind of relationship they had. Now that Lin Huaixi had appeared as well, the three of them walking together were so beautiful it looked like a painting. Everyone was secretly hoping for one more handsome boy to appear so they could form the campus F4.
Lin Huaixi knew nothing about any of this. He could only passively endure all the attention, smiling until his face turned stiff.
Although it made him feel awkward and out of his depth, everyone’s attitude toward him was still very good. On top of that, out of the three of them, Lin Huaixi had the best personality. Even if someone tried with all their might to dislike him, they simply couldn’t find a single thing about him that was actually irritating.
But exceptions existed in everything.
Besides all those friendly gazes, Lin Huaixi could always hear voices behind him. It wasn’t curious whispering. It sounded more like plotting to do something bad.
Lin Huaixi sensed the malice in it. When he turned his head, he saw several tall, sturdy backs and a few vicious pairs of eyes.
He had known since he was very young that he would one day have to face three scum gongs. To him, this amount of hostility was no more than a drizzle. He wasn’t afraid—he only found it baffling.
He had only just transferred in. He recognized just a few familiar faces and hadn’t offended anyone or clashed with anyone. So why were people targeting him?
Not being afraid didn’t mean Lin Huaixi would carelessly dismiss it.
He was afraid Qi Wang would worry and Sun Baiyi would overreact, so he never told either of them. He simply became extra cautious.
Two weeks passed, and nothing bad happened. Gradually, Lin Huaixi let his guard down.
He didn’t want to be a class officer and had only taken on the role of subject representative. One day, he went to the office to carry back a stack of graded exercise books.
The books were thick, and there were nearly sixty students in the class. Stacked together, they made a tall pile. Lin Huaixi wasn’t struggling to carry them, but they blocked his line of sight so that he couldn’t see his surroundings clearly.
There was no one fooling around on the stairs. Lin Huaixi was carrying the books upward when, from the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of a dark figure.
The person wasn’t wearing a school uniform. In weather this cold, he still had on a black T-shirt, and on his arm there seemed to be some sort of black birthmark.
His attention was pulled away. He was distracted for no more than a second when he felt a gust of wind roar toward him.
Something slammed hard into his shoulder. His hands were full of exercise books, so he couldn’t use them to steady himself. His body tipped backward. But Lin Huaixi had practiced martial arts for years. His coordination was excellent. In a bizarre posture, he managed to reclaim one second of balance—only for his leg to be viciously tripped. The person even kicked him in the knee.
Lin Huaixi winced sharply in pain, his brows knitting together. His body fell straight backward, the exercise books spilling all over the floor, and his vision cleared again. Before the piercing pain fully arrived, he saw a face that was both unfamiliar and strangely familiar.
It was handsome, but because it carried too much darkness, the features looked somewhat twisted.
Lin Huaixi’s pupils widened slightly as he stared at the brows and eyes of that face.
This person actually looked extremely similar to Qi Wang!
