Chapter 5: Copying Homework

A black sedan had been waiting downstairs for a while.

The sky was still dim, the rain lighter than last night but still falling steadily.

Uncle Wang tilted his black umbrella to shield Ling Yuan and Yan Xi from the rain as they approached the car.

“Young Master, Young Miss, good morning.”

“Morning, Uncle Wang!”

Ling Yuan stayed silent, while Yan Xi waved politely.

Uncle Wang settled into the driver’s seat, closed the door, and pulled a bank card from his pocket, turning to Ling Yuan.

“This is from Madam Yan for your living expenses. The PIN is your birthday.”

Before Ling Yuan could refuse, Yan Xi snatched the card with a smile.

“I’ll thank Mom for Brother!”

She shot Ling Yuan a look and stuffed the card into his backpack.

But Ling Yuan acted like he hadn’t seen her expression, his voice cold.

“How much is on it? If it’s too much, I don’t want it.”

Uncle Wang gave an awkward smile.

“Madam Yan anticipated this. She said there’s five thousand yuan for your extra expenses this semester. She also asked me to tell you that Master’s fortieth birthday is in ten days. She hopes you’ll attend the celebration and not embarrass him.”

“We’ll see.”

Ling Yuan brushed it off, leaning back in the seat.

Rich people’s cars were something else—the seats were ridiculously comfortable.

Of course, compared to a certain part of Yan Xi…

Ling Yuan instinctively glanced at Yan Xi beside him.

She was wearing her summer school uniform again, and it seemed she’d forgotten to button the top of her collar.

Being a head taller than her, he could clearly see her pale, peony-like skin.

His heart suddenly raced.

‘Tch—’

Realizing where his mind was going, Ling Yuan quickly averted his lecherous gaze.

He had no clue about bra sizes, but he knew Yan Xi’s chest was… substantial.

It was a frequent topic among the boys in class.

“Brother, just go. Dad talks about you all the time.”

Since getting in the car, Yan Xi’s tone had shifted, her voice carrying an air of control.

“Uh…”

Ling Yuan looked at her, exasperated. She tilted her head slightly, nodding politely.

“Got it.”

Not wanting to dwell on it, Ling Yuan turned to stare aimlessly out the window.

He wouldn’t ask why Yan Xi changed her tone.

She’d just say, “Outside, I’m a refined young lady. I can’t do anything to tarnish that image.”

Yan Xi only showed her true self when she was alone with him.

Whenever she stayed at his place, Ling Yuan was never late to school. But today, his head felt heavier than usual.

Blame that ranked match from last night…

At 6:50 a.m., the classroom was mostly empty.

The early birds were either the top students or those scrambling to finish homework—like Lan Feng.

His pen was flying across the page, probably copying Chinese homework.

Ling Yuan dropped his bag on the floor and slumped onto his desk, ready to catch up on the sleep he’d lost last night.

“Hey, Yuan, you’re not doing homework today?”

Lan Feng turned, looking at him in disbelief. Normally, this wouldn’t be surprising.

Ling Yuan was the type teachers gave up on. Turning in homework was a miracle in itself.

But just two days ago, the class president had chewed him out. Yesterday morning, he was still copying homework. And today, he was just… giving up? Or had he actually done it at home?

No way.

Lan Feng had seen Ling Yuan’s fifteen-game losing streak last night.

He must’ve been gaming nonstop. No chance he did any homework.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Ling Yuan lifted his head, irritated.

Those awful teammates from last night still had him fuming.

“You’re not scared of the class president…?”

“Let her come. I don’t care anymore.”

Ling Yuan was past caring, like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.

Nothing mattered more than sleep right now.

If he didn’t rest, he’d drop dead.

But no sooner had he laid his head down than someone knocked on his desk.

“Didn’t do it.”

Ling Yuan didn’t even look up.

“Oh? Really?”

It was Yixin Xue’s voice.

Ling Yuan peeked up, and a few test papers landed in front of him.

“Here, copy quick~”

Yixin Xue wore a gentle smile, her attitude toward him completely different from before.

She looked almost… motherly, making the sleep-deprived Ling Yuan feel like he was hallucinating.

His brain wasn’t fully awake, and his mouth answered without thinking.

“Okay.”

“Eh? So obedient today. But don’t forget our agreement from last night. It’s Friday, you know.”

The moment Yixin Xue spoke, a dozen pairs of eyes in the class snapped to them.

Why’d she have to emphasize that?

Is she actually planning something!?

This feels scarier than her yelling!

Especially that look in her eyes—Ling Yuan had never seen her look at him like that before.

Everyone could see Ling Yuan’s pupils dilate, witnessing what true “horror” looked like.

Satisfied with his reaction, Yixin Xue nodded, switched back to her icy expression, and returned to the front to organize the collected papers.

“Hey…”

Lan Feng whispered, “What’d you agree to with the class president? Why’s she acting so… different with you?”

“Yeah?”

A classmate behind them leaned in, curious.

“Spill the details. I wanna know.”

“Is this the class president’s homework!?”

Lan Feng finally noticed the papers Yixin Xue had given him were hers.

“Holy crap! The class president’s actual homework!”

He glanced back at Yixin Xue on the podium, only to be met with her icy glare. Instantly, everyone around Ling Yuan shut up and slunk back to their seats.

Those who needed to copy homework copied. Those who needed to read studied.

Only Ling Yuan sat there, miserably propping up his head, staring at the homework.

He hadn’t done a single bit of it.

Daily assignments covered six subjects: Chinese, English, Math, Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. With ten minutes until morning reading, there was no way he could finish.

Especially Chinese—those dense pages were the last thing he wanted to tackle.

He looked helplessly at Yixin Xue at the podium, his eyes pleading, [Just let me off, I really don’t want to copy.]

Noticing his inaction, Yixin Xue tilted her head slightly, her gaze filled with concern.

[Why aren’t you copying?]

Ling Yuan rolled his eyes and reluctantly picked up his pen.

[Fine, fine, I’ll copy English and Chemistry, okay?]

In the time left, he scribbled down the answers for English and Chemistry, changing three-quarters of them to avoid suspicion.

That way, the accuracy looked more like his own.

He had to admit, Yixin Xue’s handwriting was beautiful—neat, precise, with a unique flair.

Her homework was practically a work of art, pleasing to the eye.

Unlike Lan Feng’s homework from yesterday, which was so messy only he could decipher it.

After finishing English and Chemistry, Ling Yuan passed Yixin Xue’s homework to the group leader to return it.

After all the interruptions, he couldn’t sleep anymore.