Bella, who was originally listening to Ma Xin'er check answers, raised her head upon hearing this.
The sunlight outside the window fell on her fair profile. Bella blinked, her long eyelashes fluttering gently, and looked at the boy who asked the question with clean, clear eyes like water.
The boy seemed a bit nervous. His prepared academic discussion instantly stuttered. The other boys around him, though looking at the test paper, kept stealing glances at Bella's face from the corner of their eyes.
Um, if it is bothering you, never mind. We were just asking in passing.
Another boy added, his voice growing quieter and quieter until he finally scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.
Bella did not notice anything unusual. She simply pushed her test paper to the middle of the desk generously, pointed at the question, and said,
There are quite a few traps in this question. I calculated it several times and finally chose C.
As soon as she said this, the expectant boys around her instantly looked like frosted eggplants, letting out a collective wail.
Ah! I knew it! My first instinct was C too. Why was I possessed enough to change it to B right before handing in the paper!
Me too. If I had known, I would not have changed my answer! My heart is breaking...
The boy leading them, who was already blushing from being so close to Bella, now scratched his head in frustration, looking as if he wished he could travel back five minutes and slap himself.
Seeing their agonized expressions, Bella could not help but burst into laughter. Her exhaustion from the exam was completely washed away by their clowning around.
With her smile, the boys who were still mourning their lost points could not help but let their gazes drift over again.
After all, compared to a few lost points, the vivid smile before them was clearly much more lethal.
As the saying goes, everyone loves beauty.
In a dull academic life, having a pleasingly beautiful classmate was indeed something that could greatly improve one's mood.
It was not just these blushing boys crowding around; even the girls checking answers on the other side occasionally glanced over.
After all, when tired of reading, looking up and encountering such a face made even the exam questions look much more agreeable.
Bella was used to these kinds of gazes and did not feel any pressure.
Do not just listen to me, maybe I chose the wrong one.
The correct answer to this question is indeed C. I just came back from the office and asked the math teacher personally, a girl squeezed in from the outer circle.
For a moment, Bella was surrounded by these energetic classmates. The sounds of discussion, regret, and laughter intertwined, as lively as the cicadas on a summer afternoon.
She lowered her eyes and pointed at the auxiliary lines on the paper, patiently communicating with the people around her, her face full of smiles. She was completely unaware that,
outside the window of this noisy corridor, a cold figure silently swept past.
The person paused slightly, his gaze lingering for a moment on the smiling face surrounded by the crowd through the clear glass window, before disappearing at the end of the corner.
Brother, I am organizing a party this Saturday to celebrate the start of school. You should come too.
Gu Yunzhou walked with his hands behind his head, following closely behind.
He was actually just bored and wanted to throw a party, finding a high-sounding excuse to drag his brother along to relax.
Not going.
Fine... Gu Yunzhou shrugged, not taking it to heart. He knew this would be the result.
Watching his retreating figure and thinking of his mother's task, he sighed, thinking to himself that his brother really had no worldly desires at all.
Growing up, he had never found anything that could truly pique his brother's interest.
Wealth, fame, or even the confessions of countless girls flocking to him were probably no different from bricks on the roadside in his brother's eyes.
No, to be accurate, there was one thing.
Only when facing the doll at home would his brother's mask of having no desires crack, revealing inch by inch a fanaticism and paranoia that could almost drown a person.
A dusty and even somewhat terrifying scene surfaced in his mind.
It was from many years ago.
He remembered it clearly. That day, his mother took him to his uncle's house.
His brother seemed to have just finished a piano lesson, but he did not know what happened. He only heard a scream.
Then, the piano teacher ran out of the piano room in terror, entirely oblivious to the fact that she had lost one of her high heels.
He suppressed his wildly beating heart and gathered his courage to peek through the crack in the door.
There was no mess as he had imagined; the room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
His brother sat with his back to him. There was no roaring, no smashing.
His brother was just tightly gripping a beautiful doll. He leaned in closer before he could hear clearly that his brother kept whispering in a low voice, repeating only that one sentence over and over:
The fairy left... she left.
His mother looked at his brother, who was almost possessed, her eyes turning slightly red. She sighed, seemingly speaking to him, or perhaps muttering to herself:
Baby, go out first... Your brother just... just misses his aunt too much.
...
Bella finished her second exam of the morning. She carried her tray and sat by the window with Ma Xin'er.
The ingredients in the First High School cafeteria were surprisingly substantial. Today, she ordered a serving of stir-fried pork.
The rich and saucy stir-fried pork took center stage. The evenly sliced pork belly was rendered until the edges of the fat were slightly charred, coated in a bright red and tempting thickened sauce, rich but not greasy.
Next to it was a spoonful of tender green stir-fried choy sum, the stems so crisp they dripped water, carrying the sweetness of a quick stir-fry over high heat.
To cut through the richness, she specifically ordered a serving of tomato and egg. To be accurate, there was so much egg that it was entirely egg stir-fried with tomato, the bright yellow and vivid red intertwining, the broth so thick it coated the spoon.
She scooped up a large spoonful of soft white rice and mixed it.
The rice grains were soaked through with the broth from the stir-fried pork, taking on a tempting sauce color, paired with a piece of sweet and sour tomato.
With this bite, the salty, fresh, sweet, sour, and fatty aromas exploded on the tip of her tongue, with distinct layers of flavor.
Bella narrowed her eyes, chewing with a look of pure happiness.
After eating, Ma Xin'er had other things to do, so Bella digested her food by herself and took a stroll around the campus.
Walking and browsing, she realized that the heritage of First High School was all hidden in these plants.
Unlike ordinary schools with only bare concrete grounds, this place was like a miniature Suzhou-style garden.
A winding, shallow river cut across the teaching area, the surface rippling slightly, with large patches of lotus flowers sleeping peacefully.
A gentle breeze blew by, bringing a faint scent of moisture and vegetation in the air.
What surprised Bella the most were the trees here.
Camphor trees and weeping willows provided ample shade on campus, their dense branches and leaves intertwining in mid-air, propping up natural giant sunshades.
Even now, the blazing sunlight was sifted into fine fragments, gently sprinkling on the brick paths.
Pacing slowly, she crossed a small stone bridge and stopped at a quaint little pavilion hidden behind green bamboo.
Before her eyes was a field full of hydrangeas. The coziness of finding quiet amidst the noise instantly revived her brain cells that had just been drained by the exams.
Not long after she sat down, she saw Ye Jinzhi walking over.
Bella, why did you smile at them?
Seeing the newcomer, Bella was a bit surprised.
After hearing what Ye Jinzhi said, she was completely baffled.
What the heck?
He saw her smile. The curve of her lips was as light as a breeze, yet it tore a bloody gash across his heart.
His Bella was only ever allowed to smile at him. She should never give her smiles to anyone else.
Ye Jinzhi walked over and sat down beside her. He lowered his head to look at her, his fringe hiding his gradually unfocusing eyes, while a twisted smile crept onto his lips.
"Since you like being a teacher so much, from now on... just teach me and only me, alright?"
Hearing this, Bella knew he was having another episode. His sense of logic had completely crumbled.
Even though it was merely a nodding acquaintance, in his distorted perception, Bella's fleeting gentleness was nothing short of a blatant betrayal.
His long, slender fingers traced her collar, his movements so gentle that it was spine-chilling.
"Don't smile at them, Bella... You are mine..."
