The projector in the classroom hummed softly.
Lu Huainan leaned against the door and quietly watched her.
He couldn’t help thinking back to her high school days. She had worn a white shirt and a black pleated skirt—nothing more than an ordinary school uniform—but back then, he had always felt that there was something different about her.
She had stood on the podium, her hair tied in a high ponytail, with a few loose strands fluttering in the breeze. Every now and then, she would tuck them behind her ear. Her voice had carried through the speakers, reaching every corner of the sports field.
He had stood among the crowd, surrounded by people discussing her. Just like now, he had said nothing, merely watching her in silence.
He had heard the rumors about the two of them as well. The first time, his heart had tightened for a moment, and he had thought someone else had discovered something.
Though he never did figure out why, when he heard their names being mentioned together, he had indeed felt a shameful thrill.
But that was completely impossible now.
The person Lu Huainan hated most in the world was Ji Zhaoxi.
“You’re up.”
After Ji Zhaoxi came down from the stage, she was extremely pleased with her performance.
Lu Huainan glanced at her before going up.
The moment Ji Zhaoxi heard him speak, she knew he had lost. With that tone of his, the students below would be falling asleep in no time.
Everyone was tired. Could this man who loved pretending to be cool please stop hypnotizing the students?
A few girls secretly waved at Ji Zhaoxi. She gave them a reserved smile.
Lu Huainan had lost completely.
After Lu Huainan finished speaking, Ji Zhaoxi said seriously, “That was very well said, but you lost!”
Lu Huainan: “…”
There hadn’t even been a competition.
After class, several girls came running over to Ji Zhaoxi, their faces flushed with excitement.
“Baby, we’re your student fans!”
“I’m one of your student fans too, Xixi!”
The expression on Ji Zhaoxi’s face froze for a moment.
What were the odds?
Didn’t that mean her impassioned speech just now had completely contradicted her aloof image?
She had almost cried while giving it.
The girls took photos with Ji Zhaoxi and then asked her for autographs. By the end, she was completely numb.
There were actually fans of hers among the students at Haizhong.
Seeing the utterly listless look on Ji Zhaoxi’s face, Lu Huainan’s mood suddenly improved.
Sure enough, seeing Ji Zhaoxi unhappy made him happy.
After Ji Zhaoxi and Lu Huainan left Haizhong, a video began gaining traction online.
“So everyone, you have to believe in yourselves. Don’t let pressure crush you…”
“I truly understand how everyone feels. When I was in my third year of high school, I did badly on my first exam. At the time, I…”
In the video, Ji Zhaoxi’s eyes were moist. As she spoke, her voice began to catch. The students below the stage had red-rimmed eyes as well.
Why had the school asked Ji Zhaoxi to speak at the entrance-exam rally in the first place? Because the grade director had discovered long ago that she was extraordinarily stirring when she gave speeches and could easily influence other people’s emotions.
The video grew more and more popular.
[??? What’s going on? Isn’t Ji Zhaoxi supposed to be the cold and aloof type?]
[I can’t believe the person giving such an impassioned speech is Ji Zhaoxi. I didn’t like her before because her voice was always so soft and quiet during livestreams, like she was about to stop breathing…]
[Holy crap, she’s our senior from Shen High! How did I miss her? Please let me run into her!]
[Why did I find it kind of funny when her eyes turned red? ［covers face］]
The video continued to trend, while its subject remained completely unaware of it. Her advisor had already begun pressuring them.
Ji Zhaoxi and Lu Huainan had to hurry back immediately.
The moment they stepped out of the school, Ji Zhaoxi felt as though all her energy had been drained again. She had to go back to running experiments.
Lu Huainan unlocked his phone. His hand paused as the video played silently. He glanced at the comments section and accidentally bookmarked it.
“Do those experiments really fall apart the moment I leave?” Ji Zhaoxi muttered.
She hadn’t expected Lu Huainan to answer. She was merely venting.
“Yeah.”
A voice suddenly came from beside her.
She looked at him in confusion. Seeing that she still hadn’t figured out what was happening, Lu Huainan felt even more pleased with himself.
“I think so too.”
With that, he walked ahead.
Ji Zhaoxi stared silently at his back.
Had Lu Huainan gone crazy? Who had even asked him?
On the way to the airport, they took a taxi. Ji Zhaoxi called her mother to ask about the verification code.
“Yeah, my alternate account got reported. Mom, I want to use your phone number to register another account,” Ji Zhaoxi admitted honestly.
Her mother immediately refused. “Xixi, you can’t use my number. What if your antis start harassing me online? Use your father’s number.”
People online were terrifying these days.
Ji Zhaoxi’s father took the phone. “Xixi, use Dad’s number. I’m not afraid of any online harassment.”
Hearing the sound of mahjong tiles clacking in the background, Ji Zhaoxi said, “Okay, Dad. Send me the verification code later. Don’t worry, no one’s going to harass you. My alternate account hasn’t been harassed either.”
After hanging up, Ji Zhaoxi immediately registered herself an alternate account.
She noticed a seemingly constant gaze coming from beside her. Frowning, she met his eyes.
“What are you looking at? Do you know what I’m doing? Internet celebrities don’t use their main accounts to browse online.”
Lu Huainan couldn’t be bothered to argue with her. When he opened Weibo, he suddenly found that he had gained a follower.
The profile picture was a puppy, and the username was “Ji Zhaoxi’s Biggest Fan.” The account’s following list was growing, but every account it followed was related to Ji Zhaoxi.
Ji Zhaoxi kept her head down, far too busy to look up. As she searched her own name, she bragged to Lu Huainan, “I’m telling you, people like me can’t find anything by searching our full names. You have to search for JZX. That way, I can not only see what my fans say privately, but also the posts made by my antis.”
It had taken her a long time to figure that out. She had noticed that searching her full name never turned up much, but one day she had searched the initials of her name and felt as if she had discovered a whole new world.
Cars flashed past the window. When the vehicle jolted, Ji Zhaoxi’s phone slipped from her hand and landed with a muffled thud.
“Oh!”
The two of them bent down to pick it up at almost exactly the same time.
In the cramped footwell, Ji Zhaoxi’s hand landed unprepared on the back of Lu Huainan’s. The warmth of the contact spread through him at once.
Lu Huainan’s fingers curled inward of their own accord, and his entire body went rigid.
“Thanks.”
Ji Zhaoxi retrieved her phone and went right back to using her alternate account.
Lu Huainan remained bent over. He stared at the back of the hand she had just touched, suddenly irritated.
He sat back in his seat, his eyes lowered the entire time.
What a hopeless fool…
