Chapter 1: An Unexpected Reunion

“Liu Ya, we’re changing classrooms for the fourth period!”

“Coming…”

Liu Ya took out a tissue to wipe her sweat, then pulled out the textbooks and pens she needed from her desk. She grabbed the delicate pink envelope on the table and jogged over.

“Sorry, Qu Lin! Kept you waiting.”

“No worries. You had to help clean up after class. Let’s go!”

“Mm.”

Liu Ya was sixteen, a sophomore at the provincial key private girls’ high school, Xingcheng Girls’ High School.

She was petite and slender, with an incredibly captivating face.

Her manners were elegant and refined, her demeanor warm and approachable, like a young lady from a distinguished family.

She had entered the school with the highest scores in the province’s middle school exams and was personally welcomed by the principal. Since then, she had excelled in every area.

Because Liu Ya became student council president in her freshman year, even seniors would instinctively address her as “President Liu Ya,” as if she were an unclimbable peak.

The two walked toward the science building. Along the way, Qu Lin noticed the envelope in her hand and sighed with a smile.

“Again?”

“Hm? What?”

“Here!”

Qu Lin gestured with her chin toward the crumpled envelope in Liu Ya’s hand. Liu Ya followed her gaze and understood.

“Oh, right. Another one…”

“That’s the sixth one since the start of sophomore year, and it’s only the second day. You’re really popular.”

“Come on, it’s probably just someone’s prank. This is a girls’ school, so it can’t be a love letter.”

“There you go again. Do you think I believe that? You know the truth.”

Qu Lin shook her head dismissively. She was silent for a moment, lost in thought, then laughed again.

“But… I hope we can be in the same class next year in junior year. I’m not that good at studying…”

“Why bring that up all of a sudden? And Qu Lin, if you want something, you can achieve it. After all, you got into this school with your grades…”

“Liu Ya… saying it out loud ruins the romance.”

“Heh… fine, fine.”

Liu Ya laughed in response. Qu Lin pouted, rolled her eyes in discontent, and let out a long breath.

“Forget it! So, what do you say? Same as usual? Not even a glance?”

“If it’s a prank, there’s no need to look.”

“A prank, huh… Liu Ya, you’re pretty cruel. Be careful not to miss your true love.”

“Heh… those words meant for coaxing kids don’t work on me anymore…”

Liu Ya said lightly, but her lively, enchanting eyes dimmed significantly, and her eyelids drooped a little.

As she spoke, she finally spotted the familiar trash can. She walked over and tossed the envelope in without a second thought.

When she turned back, she saw Qu Lin staring into the distance with a puzzled expression. Qu Lin tugged her sleeve and pointed.

“Hey, Liu Ya, isn’t that your dad?”

“Huh?”

Liu Ya turned to look. At the entrance of the science building, a man was talking to a woman. Upon closer inspection, it was indeed her father. She recognized the woman as well, the school principal.

“It is… What’s he doing here?”

“Something must have come up. Look, there’s a girl next to your dad… Wow, what is she wearing? Isn’t she hot? That’s so tacky…”

“A girl?”

Liu Ya stared. She noticed her father occasionally reaching behind him. Following his gesture, she saw a girl standing a short distance away. She looked like a student, wearing what seemed to be a uniform from another school.

It was a classic blue long-sleeved jacket matched with baggy blue trousers, decorated with a few white lines. It couldn’t compare to her school’s custom uniform.

In the heat of September, it looked stifling and shabby. The girl was constantly wiping sweat from her face…

Liu Ya’s father waved at her with a smile. The girl saw him and jogged over.

“Liu Ya, do you know her?”

“I don’t…”

Before she could finish, the girl in the distance turned and spotted them. She smiled and waved. Qu Lin looked confused, but Liu Ya’s eyes widened, her mouth slightly open, trembling.

“She’s greeting us! But I don’t remember ever meeting her… Liu Ya, is she waving at you? Liu Ya?”

Qu Lin turned to find that Liu Ya had already walked away, heading toward the back door of the science building.

“Hey! Wait for me…”

Qu Lin hurried after her, while the girl watched Liu Ya leave with a puzzled expression.

“Ugh, it’s so hot! What… what’s going on? Why did she suddenly walk so fast? And why the back door? Isn’t that the long way around…”

“Class is about to start! The classroom is in the west building, so we need to hurry! Plus, the back door is closer to the stairs…”

Qu Lin was panting heavily. She took a tissue from her pocket and wiped her sweat. Glancing at her watch, she was stunned.

“What? Only two minutes left? Let’s go, Liu Ya! We’re going to be late!”

They sprinted up the stairs and managed to step into the classroom just as the bell rang.

The class bell rang. The teacher asked Liu Ya to stay and help, so she waited a while before leaving. The once crowded hallway was now empty, with only Liu Ya left.

Thinking that an entire class had passed, she decided to take the front door instead of the long way around.

But as she turned the corner, she saw the girl from earlier, eyes closed, head tilted back, leaning against the wall, breathing heavily. She was tugging at her collar and fanning herself with her hand, clearly suffering from the heat.

Liu Ya froze, biting her lip hard, her hands trembling. She clutched the books in her arms tightly and turned to leave.

“Hey? Liu Ya?”

As soon as she turned, she heard a soft, gentle call behind her. Liu Ya sighed in frustration and turned around. The girl was running toward her with a happy expression.

The girl stopped in front of Liu Ya, took her free hand in both hands, and shook it vigorously. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at Liu Ya, and she couldn’t help bouncing on her toes.

“It really is you, Liu Ya! Long time no see! Was that you I saw at the door earlier? You’ve become so beautiful now; I almost didn’t recognize you! When you turned and walked away, I thought I had mistaken you for someone else. How awkward, haha…”

“If I hadn’t asked Uncle Liu, I wouldn’t have been sure!”

“Hey, I saw everyone else leave. The bell rang a while ago, so why are you only coming out now? I looked for you in the crowd but couldn’t find you. What happened? Is it because you did poorly on your studies and the teacher kept you after class? Hehe…”

The girl chattered excitedly, but Liu Ya stared at her with a dark expression. She let out a cold laugh, shook off the girl’s hand, tucked her book under her arm, and took out a tissue to wipe the hand that had been held.

(Think I mistook you? I recognized you at first glance! And you have the nerve to appear before me as if nothing happened?)

(Heh… that’s right. You never cared about me anyway. Just like when you left without even telling me…)

“Heh, thank you for your concern. But my grades are the best in the entire school! I’ve been first since freshman year. I was, I am, and I will always be.”

“I-I see…”

“…What are you doing here?”

“It’s too hot outside. The building has air conditioning, so…”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“Ah! I…”

Before the girl could finish, Liu Ya interrupted forcefully.

“Forget it! It doesn’t matter! It’s none of my business anyway! You’ll disappear from my sight before long, just like before! And don’t act so familiar! Are we that close? What if someone gets the wrong idea?”

“W-What’s wrong, Liu Ya? Why are you suddenly like this? Besides, we’re both girls. What misunderstanding could there be?”

Liu Ya’s cold words crushed the girl’s spirit. Her previously lively voice dwindled under the icy, oppressive atmosphere, until she shrank back like a timid rabbit, her head drooping as she murmured.

Liu Ya glared at her with wide, furious eyes and shouted, “Don’t you know?!”

The girl was stunned by the yell. Liu Ya came to her senses, quickly looked around to make sure no one was there, and let out a long sigh.

“Sorry, I don’t have time to talk to you! Class is about to start!”

“Oh… okay…”

With that, Liu Ya ran off, leaving the girl staring blankly at her retreating figure.

“Hey? That’s not right… It should be lunchtime now…”

Liu Ya ran back to the classroom. It was empty; everyone had gone to the cafeteria.

She was panting heavily, her fingers gripping the book turning white, the cover wrinkled. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm her racing heart, then dragged her tired body slowly to her seat.

As she set down her things, she noticed a new desk next to hers. Liu Ya was confused but didn’t think much of it. She pulled out the chair and sat down, letting out a long sigh before burying her head in her arms on the desk.

The morning’s physical education class, organizing equipment, grading homework for the teacher, and what had just happened, all of it exhausted Liu Ya.

She thought she’d rest her eyes for a bit before going to lunch, but soon she drifted off…

“…”

“We’re so lucky! We get to see Liu Ya sleeping!”

“Yeah, yeah! Liu Ya is so cute…”

“Cute is too childish. Why is it that even when she sleeps, she looks so elegant? Such a magnificent face…”

“She lives up to her name! Liu Ya, elegant…”

“What’s that? A pun? But it’s true! So beautiful…”

“She’s pretty and a great student. It’s just unfair…”

“I heard Liu Ya skipped a grade…”

“Mm…”

“Shh! Keep it down. Liu Ya is waking up.”

After who knows how long, Liu Ya slowly opened her eyes to the sound of whispers around her. She sat up, still groggy, and the classroom instantly fell silent.

She looked around. Everyone had turned to stare at her. When their eyes met Liu Ya’s, they quickly looked away, though some stole glances back.

(Still the same as before… heh.)

Liu Ya’s thoughts cleared, and a charming, elegant smile appeared on her face as she returned the gazes of those sneaking peeks.

“Wow…”

Some of the younger girls were captivated, letting out soft exclamations. In their hearts, they marveled: How could anyone be so perfect?

Her smile held the wisdom of a mother and the cold grace of a queen.

Her long eyelashes stirred hearts, her moist, glossy lips shimmered, and her narrow, upturned eyes contained an indescribable, profound charm that enraptured anyone who looked.

Meeting her eyes was like drinking the richest, most fragrant honey wine, lost in fantasies, transported to a dreamlike realm.

Outside the corridor. The crisp sound of high heels grew closer, breaking the spell of indulgence. Everyone’s thoughts returned from that dreamy land. The teacher slowly walked up to the podium, and the students turned to sit properly.

“All right, everyone! Today, we have a transfer student joining our class…”

“Huh? A transfer student?”

“In the middle of sophomore year?”

“Transferring here in the second year? Must be something special…”

“Who is it?”

The class buzzed with discussion, but the teacher raised a hand to quiet them.

“Alright, alright, stop talking! She’s already here, at the door. Let’s give her a warm welcome!”

The teacher smiled and beckoned toward the door. The students turned curiously, clapping enthusiastically.

Suddenly realizing something, Liu Ya quickly turned to look at the new desk beside her. Her eyes widened. She turned back, her vision blurring slightly.

Her lips trembled as she swallowed hard. She lifted her head and stared intently at the open doorway.

The new student slowly walked in. The applause gradually faded, replaced by gasps of admiration.

When she stopped at the podium, the entire room fell silent. Everyone was stunned, their eyes fixed on the girl standing quietly on the platform…

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