The girl who spoke was named Zhang Jing, and she was Chen Tingting’s middle school classmate.

Chen Tingting had been a good student at one of the top high schools in Hedong, so Zhang Jing was a little surprised to see her former classmate transfer here.

As soon as Chen Tingting arrived at school, she told Zhang Jing her reason for transferring, leaving her speechless.

When the morning exercise break ended, Chen Tingting ran in Xue Rui’s direction.

But who would have guessed—Xue Rui took off running as if she were the plague.

"What are you running for?" Chen Tingting gritted her teeth, stomping her small feet hard on the turf a few times.

But she wasn’t very tall, and on top of that, her face was round and chubby.

Right now, she looked like a child throwing a tantrum, which was exceptionally cute.

This scene caught the attention of quite a few boys.

Of course, Xue Rui was already long gone.

"What are you running for?" Qiu Mengze had instinctively bolted after Xue Rui and was now panting as he followed behind him.

"Chen Tingting’s here, and it’s all your damn fault," Xue Rui muttered.

If things hadn’t gone wrong during Qiu Mengze’s "hero saves the beauty" attempt, he wouldn’t have gotten entangled with Chen Tingting.

"Chen Tingting?"

It’s always hard to forget a beautiful woman.

Qiu Mengze instantly remembered. She was the girl they had run into that night, the one being harassed by punks.

"How is it my fault?" Qiu Mengze asked, looking confused.

Xue Rui couldn’t be bothered to explain and hurried back to the classroom.

Of course, it wasn’t his own classroom, but the classroom of Class One next door.

He sat down in Gu Muxue’s seat, figuring he’d go back once class started.

As expected, Chen Tingting did indeed show up at the second-year building.

She scanned the Class Two classroom for a good while but still couldn’t spot any sign of Xue Rui.

Zhang Jing had come along with Chen Tingting. After hesitating for a long time, she offered a tentative reminder, "Xue Rui likes Gu Muxue. The whole school knows."

Even though Chen Tingting was sweet and cute, Zhang Jing felt her chances weren’t good. Xue Rui’s standards were just too high.

"Gu Muxue," Chen Tingting murmured.

Before she transferred, she had asked around with classmates she knew, so she was aware that Xue Rui liked Gu Muxue.

However, her impression of Gu Muxue was based solely on her classmates’ descriptions.

"That’s her." Zhang Jing saw Gu Muxue approaching and motioned to Chen Tingting with her eyes.

Gu Muxue was stunningly beautiful—not just her face, but also her confident and elegant bearing.

As she walked, many boys stole glances at her from a distance,

but when Gu Muxue drew near, the boys would shyly turn their heads away, only daring to gaze at her back after she had passed.

"Hello, senior," Chen Tingting said, greeting Gu Muxue.

Gu Muxue was a bit surprised; she didn’t know this adorable-looking girl. She nodded politely and smiled at Chen Tingting.

Chen Tingting was a little stunned. Gu Muxue was too perfect—not only was she beautiful, but her grades were also among the very best.

’I was in an advanced class at Yanchi Middle School,’ she had thought. ’At a bottom-tier school like No. 2 High, I should at least rank in the top few.’

But she had looked at the grade rankings posted in the hallway and discovered that the top students at No. 2 High weren’t far behind those at the top-tier schools.

Gu Muxue’s score would have placed her in the top three, even at her previous high school...

In truth, although No. 2 High’s overall student body was weaker and students’ motivation to study was low,

it was precisely because of this that the students who did want to learn received a disproportionate amount of educational resources.

Furthermore, unlike the oppressive learning environments at top schools, the top students at No. 2 High could develop very quickly...

"I... don’t seem to measure up to her in any way," Chen Tingting said, feeling a bit dejected.

Zhang Jing shook her head with a wry smile. Any girl would feel a little insecure after seeing a goddess like Gu Muxue.

She thought this was a normal reaction and was about to comfort Chen Tingting, "Actually..."

To Zhang Jing’s surprise, Chen Tingting suddenly started laughing.

"What does that have to do with me? I’m going to pursue Xue Rui."

"Don’t you feel a little intimidated?" Zhang Jing asked curiously.

"Nope," Chen Tingting said confidently.

"..." Zhang Jing didn’t know how to explain it to Chen Tingting.

Although Gu Muxue had never accepted the pursuit of any boy,

the only male classmate allowed to be by her side was Xue Rui.

The male students just assumed that Xue Rui and Gu Muxue had a good relationship, since they had been classmates for a long time.

In reality, this was a form of self-deception, a way to keep a little hope and longing alive in their hearts.

But the female students could see it clearly: Xue Rui’s place in Gu Muxue’s heart was absolutely not ordinary.

She hadn’t explicitly agreed to be with him, but she had tacitly accepted him.

Zhang Jing really wanted to explain all this to Chen Tingting, but she was afraid of hurting her good friend, so her expression was a little complicated.

"I know what you’re trying to say." Chen Tingting waved her hand dismissively.

"But my mom told me, ’A man chasing a woman is like climbing a mountain, but a woman chasing a man is like piercing a veil.’"

’Anyway, Gu Muxue hasn’t accepted Xue Rui,’ Chen Tingting thought.

’And even if she had, it’s no big deal. As long as I’m by Xue Rui’s side, there will always be an opening to take advantage of.’

Zhang Jing was stunned. ’So Chen Tingting knows everything?’

’What’s so attractive about Xue Rui that she’d go to such lengths?’

"My mom also said that men are dogs," Chen Tingting said with a grin.

"What does that mean?"

"They’re not picky eaters. They’ll eat meat, but they’ll also eat poop," Chen Tingting said with a laugh.

This was the secret her mom had passed down to her.

When chasing a guy, the key isn’t what you have to offer;

it’s whether you’re easier to get.

If a boy looks back and there’s always a girl waiting there for him,

over time, he’ll eventually be moved.

Even if that girl is as ordinary as can be.

"What kind of twisted logic is that?" Zhang Jing looked incredulous. What kind of mother teaches her child such things?

Actually, this theory was correct.

But in reality, girls like that were often the ones who got hurt the most.

Chen Tingting’s mother had just been lucky, hooking a straight-laced guy like Officer Chen on her first try.

But she herself didn’t know this.

And now, she had passed her own successful experience on to Chen Tingting.

Zhang Jing felt that something was off, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She glanced at her watch.

"Let’s go back. Class is about to start."

Xue Rui poked his head out of the back door of the Class One classroom. Seeing that Chen Tingting was gone, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Who are you hiding from?" Gu Muxue asked, looking curious.

Xue Rui frowned. "Someone I can’t afford to offend."

Chen Tingting was very cute. If it were anyone else, Xue Rui wouldn’t have minded being a bit of a scumbag and helping the girl "grow up."

But Chen Tingting’s dad...

In short, he didn’t want to end up in a jail cell.

Xue Rui nearly ground his teeth to dust, cursing Chen Shen countless times in his head.

’How could he agree to such a request?’

’He should have taken a belt to her! How can he spoil his child so much?’

Gu Muxue didn’t pay it much mind. Xue Rui was always unpredictable; who knew what he was up to today.

She had confirmed with Gu Qingshan that she and Xue Rui were having a meal together outside of school this weekend...

She hoped time would pass a little faster.

...

For the next two periods, Xue Rui listened to the lecture with a serious expression.

He even raised his hand and answered a question, much to everyone’s surprise.

"What’s gotten into you?" Qiu Mengze asked, stunned, looking at Xue Rui as if for the first time.

"I’m just... trying to make time pass a little slower."

Xue Rui sighed, a look of frustration on his face.

Lunchtime was already going to be a disaster. He had to ditch Lin Ruoxi to go eat with Gu Muxue.

He had eaten a breakfast handmade by Lin Ruoxi, and now he had to ditch her for lunch. This made Xue Rui feel a tiny bit guilty.

And now, he had Chen Tingting chasing after him too.

It was too chaotic...

"Why are you pulling at your hair?" Qiu Mengze whispered.

He felt that his good friend had been acting too differently lately.

Maybe, like the students who had taken leave from school these past few days, he was having some psychological problems. Pulling his hair could be a form of self-harm.

A male teacher passed by the back door of the classroom and noticed that Xue Rui was actually awake, and that he didn’t look too well.

He asked with concern, "Xue Rui, are you not feeling well? Do you want me to contact your aunt?"

Xue Rui clutched his hair. "Teacher, I just can’t solve this problem..."