A Quiet Homecoming

Bai Yan pulled a lollipop from his pocket, stuck it in his mouth, and said vaguely, "Zhongcheng? Wouldn't have guessed. You've got some skills."

Ju Jinghuan, standing by the front desk, leaned forward slightly, his eyes bright. "You know stocks? I'm actually quite interested in that. Could I ask you for advice?"

The boy had a clean-cut look, and when he smiled, there was a fresh, youthful quality that lifted one's spirits. Fu Liangxia couldn't help but look at him a moment longer, a small smile curling on her lips. "I'm not really that good at it. It was just luck."

"That's still impressive," Ju Jinghuan said with a laugh. "Far better than I could do."

He seemed to remember something, glanced at Bai Yan and Bai Xin beside him, and said calmly, "I know that hiring a tutor for stocks usually costs tuition. I can pay you five times the market rate. It's not much, but it should still be better than a few thousand euros an hour."

At that, Bai Yan's lollipop paused mid-suck, and Bai Xin let out a cold laugh, casting a sidelong glance at him. His opinion of Ju Jinghuan darkened.

This guy... he's being all sweet and subtle.

Bai Xin had a fairly good temper, and Bai Yan stayed pleasant as long as his bottom line wasn't crossed, but Little A was different.

He drawled, "Stock trading is her livelihood. You think you can just buy that with a bit of money?"

At this point, even the most oblivious person could sense the undercurrents between the two.

Fu Liangxia felt a pang of helplessness, wondering how the conversation had gone from discussing camping groups to this.

Hearing that, Ju Jinghuan didn't get angry. He crouched down, his eyes gentle, and asked, "Fu, do you mind?"

"Hmm?" Fu Liangxia blinked. "Not really?"

After all, she wouldn't agree anyway, and he wouldn't really be looking for her to teach him. With Ju Jinghuan's wealth, hiring a better teacher was trivial, let alone that Saintland already offered economics courses. As far as she knew, the microeconomics professor was known as the "Stock God."

Hearing her reply, Ju Jinghuan's eyes deepened with a smile. He straightened up, spread his hands toward Bai Xin, his face clearly saying, "See? She doesn't mind. Why are you making a fuss?"

Then he turned to Fu Liangxia and said, "I've had a friend plan out two routes. Want to take a look?"

She had to admit the offer was tempting; after all, who wouldn't want to travel with someone who planned everything perfectly?

Maybe it was worth a look.

The English teacher had said they could form groups and then left them alone, now sitting behind the podium sipping tea leisurely. The classroom was noisy, with people standing around everywhere.

Fu Liangxia stood up, ready to follow Ju Jinghuan, but just then, both her sleeve and her left wrist were grabbed at the same time.

She turned to see who it was. A broad hand gripped her wrist, its owner leaning slightly to the side, his neckline graceful, pink hair falling by his ear. He grinned, saying nothing.

The hand that had tugged her sleeve had already let go. When she looked back, she saw Su Xingshu's lips pressed tight.

He stared at her, his expression growing dark and complicated when he saw she seemed eager to leave with Ju Jinghuan. "Are you choosing him?"

Then what about the kiss in the club that day?

The grip on her wrist was firm but not painful, his body heat slightly higher than hers, a warm touch that insisted on its presence.

It was as if asking without words.

Fu Liangxia felt a headache coming on. Were they really going to make her decide right now? On the spot, in front of everyone?

Didn't they feel awkward?

She lowered her head, looking at the two of them, whose combined behavior didn't add up to more than eighteen years old, and sighed.

"Even if you tie me here, can you really stop me from making a choice?"

When Fu Liangxia's gaze dropped, her eyes took on a slight watery sheen, but beneath them flickered a firm resolve, as if she would only ever do what she wanted, never bowing to anyone.

Caught in that look, Su Xingshu felt instinctively uncomfortable. He frowned, realizing he couldn't keep her trapped, and fell silent.

But his body language showed his displeasure.

He'd come to realize that Fu Liangxia was truly heartless. She could kiss Fu Langshu one moment, then turn around and kiss him the next. It had nothing to do with whether she liked him; she was probably just toying with him.

Su Xingshu pressed his lips together, face dark as water.

That was... his first kiss.

Even if he didn't regret it, her cold indifference afterward bothered him. A subtle irritation pricked at him.

Was she really so unmoved?

"I'm not implying anything. I'm just curious about Ju's plan. Mind if I take a look too?"

Bai Xin slowly released his hold and stood up. His tall frame suddenly took up space, making Fu Liangxia beside him seem smaller.

He was slightly taller than Ju Jinghuan. Across the desk, they faced each other—one aggressive, one gentle, an invisible hostility spreading between them.

Finally, Ju Jinghuan looked away first, smiling. "Of course, I don't mind. As long as you don't mind the humble plan."

But the tension in the air didn't dissipate.

Fu Liangxia was already thinking about how the female lead in the original story had handled this situation. Back then, she'd found it entertaining, but now that she was in the thick of it, she couldn't find it funny at all.

For the sake of ease in fulfilling her quest, choosing Bai Xin and Bai Yan was obviously better.

But Ju Jinghuan was her type—the gentle kind—and Fu Liangxia found it a little hard to refuse him outright.

As for Su Xingshu? Who cared about him?

...

Ju Jinghuan's friend's plan was indeed perfect. Apparently, that friend's family was in tourism planning, so she knew her stuff. The more Fu Liangxia looked, the brighter her eyes became. If not for the consideration of her quests, she would've almost nodded in agreement.

Alas, completing the task was more important.

After class, she found Ju Jinghuan and tactfully explained she couldn't be in his group, wishing him a good time.

But Ju Jinghuan seemed to have expected it. He stood by the corridor, his head bowed to look at her seriously, looking like a god bathed in sunlight.

"I figured as much. It's fine," he said. "If Bai Yan and them are threatening you, you can come—"

"You're overthinking."

A male voice came from behind him. Fu Liangxia saw Bai Xin approaching with his hands in his pockets.

His tone was flat. "No one's bullying her. Mind your own business."

Another silent standoff. Fu Liangxia was getting PTSD from these moments.

Luckily, this time, Ju Jinghuan seemed down from her refusal and didn't hold out long. He said goodbye and went into the classroom.

That left only Bai Xin facing her in the corridor, with students around pretending to chat but actually sneaking glances their way.

This seemed to be the first time the two had a chance to talk alone today.

"Why you?" Fu Liangxia leaned against the windowsill.

The boy mirrored her posture, leaning against the sill, and understood her question—why him, not the main personality, Bai Xin.

"Disappointed?" He raised an eyebrow.

Fu Liangxia felt a rare ease when talking to Little A. Perhaps because his self-identity came from the bottom of the Lower City, he shared a similar reckless streak with her.

That wildness wasn't in ordinary special admits either, because they'd never known the desperation of being trampled and struggling to climb up.

"No," she said. "It's interesting."

He was trying hard to play Bai Xin here at Saintland, but it looked clumsy. Fu Liangxia guessed he rarely surfaced during school hours.

"Is that so? You find me more interesting than him?" Bai Xin deliberately twisted her words.

Fu Liangxia: "I didn't say that."

"So heartless," he said mockingly, clutching his chest. "And here I was, fighting tooth and nail for you."

Hearing that, she glanced at him. "So why were you fighting them? It might not even be you on the camping day."

Bai Xin choked on her words, and for some reason, his eyes dimmed. After a long pause, he said slowly, "Who knows?"

Just then, the pre-lesson bell rang. Fu Liangxia walked back into the classroom and tossed over her shoulder, "Good luck."

"I will," he said, his gaze dark and unreadable.

And so the camping matter seemed to settle, with the next class peaceful until the bell rang, and a clear female voice came from the doorway.

"Is Fu Liangxia here?"

Fu Liangxia looked up to find an unfamiliar girl, yet this girl acted like she knew her, quickly waving her over.

She walked over and was pulled aside by the girl. "Hi, I'm Ge Lingling, vice president of Su Xingshu's fan club."

"I saw your application form and noticed you have many skills. Passing as a regular member would be easy," Ge Lingling said. "But since you applied for a special position, we need to have a quick interview. I happen to be in the next class, so I came to tell you directly."

Though Fu Liangxia had expected her position wouldn't be approved easily, this interview invitation seemed rather casual—no text notification, no nothing, and the vice president personally delivering the news.

Maybe it was just a Saintland thing; she didn't think much of it.

Meanwhile, Xu Ke noticed that Fu Haoyao had been staring at his phone since class started, his expression conflicted.

Xu Ke tried to guess what was on his mind, likely related to his tutor, and said, "Why not just contact her? She should be off class by now."

Fu Haoyao's face tightened as he flipped the phone face-down on the desk, pretending nothing was wrong. "What are you talking about? Contact who? I'm just thinking about what to have for lunch."

Xu Ke: "..."

Who thinks about lunch while staring at their contacts? Was the person a chef?

He narrowed his eyes. "If you want to ask her to lunch, it's been seven minutes since class ended. With the distance from building two to the cafeteria, she might be at the doors by now."

Fu Haoyao: "No such intention."

Xu Ke stared at him, silent.

A few seconds later—

"...But if I suddenly ask to eat, wouldn't that be rude?"

Fu Haoyao said hesitantly, and when he saw Xu Ke's knowing look, his expression froze, then he raised his voice. "What are you thinking? It's just that I have some academic questions to ask."

Xu Ke: "Oh."

"Fine, maybe there's a little something," Fu Haoyao said, covering his face with his hand. "But not much."

Xu Ke didn't reply, just grinned at him.

A moment later, he saw the guy roughly run a hand through his hair, jump up from his seat, and say, "Alright, maybe a bit more."

With that, he stormed toward the door, using his long legs to cover distance, and disappeared in seconds.

Xu Ke, left completely forgotten: "..."

Hey, wait for me!