Chapter 54-Part 1

Perhaps due to the first snow, the students were excited the whole morning, and some even took advantage of the ten-minute break between classes to have snowball fights on the playground.

However, Shen Zhi didn’t speak to Ji Ran the whole morning.

Even when Ji Ran had the chance to turn and look at him, he would quickly avert his gaze after their eyes met.

There was a rare shyness about him, as if he were hiding from her.

Ji Ran couldn’t help but feel amused. She hadn’t expected her confession in the first snow to stimulate him like this. So, the two of them hardly exchanged a few words the entire morning.

At noon, Wen Qianxia pulled Ji Ran outside of school to have lunch.

Various beautiful boxes were displayed at the entrance of the school mini-market, each containing bright red apples. Many students were gathered around the stall, seemingly interested in buying.

Wen Qianxia went up to take a look and came back, gasping, and whispering, “They’re asking for fifteen yuan for one. It’s like they’re robbing us.”

At this time, high school students generally didn’t have much pocket money, so spending fifteen yuan on an apple seemed a bit extravagant.

Ji Ran whispered back, “It’s just a gimmick.”

In China, apples sound similar to “peace,” so they are often considered as fruits of peace, symbolizing wishes for safety and happiness. Even though people knew that the price of these apples wouldn’t be as high after today, they still wanted to buy them.

“You think everyone is buying apples?” Wen Qianxia whispered, “Many people choose to confess their feelings today.”

Christmas, especially a snowy Christmas, despite the cold, was romantic. Perhaps the romantic atmosphere would stir emotions, and the chances of a successful confession would be much higher.

Although 4th Middle School was a good school, its students were still in their youthful years.

Ji Ran asked curiously, “Are you going to confess too?”

Wen Qianxia was startled by her question, shaking her head vigorously as if denying it. “No, I’m not.”

Ji Ran chuckled. “Are you sure? Christmas and the first snow only happen once a year, you know.”

She rarely teased Wen Qianxia like this. Wen Qianxia, feeling embarrassed, widened her eyes and reached out to pinch Ji Ran’s waist. “Ran Ran, I’ve noticed you’ve become naughty. Tell me, Did someone lead you astray?”

Actually, Wen Qianxia wanted to ask directly if Ji Ran was influenced by Shen Zhi, but she was still a bit afraid of him.

Even though he wasn’t here.

But when Ji Ran glanced back, she was somewhat surprised and said, “What are you doing here?”

Wen Qianxia’s legs went weak, feeling nervous. She couldn’t believe her luck. She teased Ji Ran once, and now Shen Zhi happened to see them.

She nervously looked around, but there was no one.

When she turned back to Ji Ran, she saw the girl in front of her laughing so hard that she almost bent over, her eyes filled with indescribable joy.

“Ran Ran, how could you be so naughty?” Wen Qianxia choked back a sob, almost on the verge of tears.

Ji Ran looked at her, surprised by Wen Qianxia’s reaction, and quickly reassured her in a soft voice, “Don’t be upset; I was just teasing you.”

She really didn’t mean to scare Wen Qianxia; she just didn’t expect her to be so afraid of Shen Zhi.

Neither of them bought any apples, and they slowly made their way to the snack shop, where they usually had their lunch.

Ji Ran turned to look at Wen Qianxia, whose color had just returned, and couldn’t help but whisper, “Are you really that afraid of Shen Zhi?”

Wen Qianxia looked at Ji Ran with a complex expression.

It was more than complex; it was a mixture of emotions.

Shen Zhi had quite a reputation even before he entered 4th Middle School. There were lines of girls waiting outside his classroom door before he even joined the school. The school had to issue several warnings, all related to fights, and there were rumors that he detested girls bothering him, so girls who liked him kept their distance for their own safety.

Wen Qianxia belonged to the group of people who simply admired Shen Zhi’s beauty and charm without any ulterior motives, but she would never dare to approach him. Even if they passed each other on the road, she would keep her distance.

Before Ji Ran appeared, there was not a single female around him.

Although students from other classes only knew that they were desk mates and speculated about their relationship, Wen Qianxia had witnessed their journey firsthand.

Especially for those who didn’t understand, they thought Ji Ran made the first move, but they didn’t know it was actually Shen Zhi who had fallen for her first.

So every time Wen Qianxia heard others discussing their relationship, she wanted to shout out that Shen Zhi was the one who pursued her friend.

But… she didn’t dare.

“Ran Ran, let me tell you.” Wen Qianxia draped her arm over Ji Ran’s shoulder and whispered, “Before you came along, no girl dared to get within a meter of Shen Zhi.”

In their freshman year, their class teacher reportedly surrounded Shen Zhi with only boys to prevent the girls in the class from getting too infatuated with him.

Not a single girl dared to approach him.

But when they were reassigned to new classes in their sophomore year and ended up with Mr.Qiao as their rather clueless class teacher, he didn’t even understand the rule about separating boys and girls.

Ji Ran chuckled helplessly. “He’s not that scary.”

She remembered Shen Zhi’s expression when they rode the roller coaster together, clearly a bit scared but quietly keeping his eyes closed, gripping the safety bar tightly.

When the sunlight fell on his eyelashes, he seemed inexplicably fragile.

How could someone like him be scary?

Ji Ran pursed her lips and couldn’t help but smile again. He was so cute.

During the evening self-study, the snow, which had stopped for a day, gradually started to flutter down again. Shen Zhi returned to the classroom just before the evening self-study, his hair and clothes damp, with quite a few snowflakes on him.

Ji Ran had been stealing glances at him from the moment he sat down.

But Shen Zhi just kept his head down, looking at the test paper in front of him, showing no intention of reaching into his desk.

When Ji Ran started to feel anxious, Shen Zhi turned his face towards her, lowering his voice. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

As he spoke, he intentionally turned his face from side to side, as if to let her see clearly. His slightly damp, short hair swayed lightly as he did so, looking a bit fluffy.

A little soft.

“See anything on my face?” Shen Zhi whispered, “Or should I get a little closer for you to have a better look?”

With that, he leaned closer, his palm resting on the desk, gradually getting nearer to her. Most of the students around them were focused on their own tasks, so no one noticed them, allowing Shen Zhi to approach her even more.

Ji Ran widened her eyes. She had only wanted to see when he would notice the things in his desk.

She was prepared.

As she subconsciously turned her head, Shen Zhi chuckled.

Suddenly, Ji Ran regretted it a bit. Why did she chicken out?

During the evening self-study, the duty teacher came and left, reportedly for a grade-level meeting tonight. Almost all the teachers had gone to the auditorium for the meeting.

At first, the classroom was relatively quiet, but gradually the noise level increased, buzzing with chatter.

Clearly, without the supervision of the duty teacher, the students weren’t as well-behaved.

It wasn’t until a girl across the aisle held up her phone and exclaimed, “Oh my gosh, in Class 10, a girl personally wrote a love letter to a top student from Class 1!”

“Love crossing the boundaries of science and the humanities?”

Class 1 was a science experimental class, while Class 10 was a humanities class. Generally, students from science and humanities classes didn’t interact much.

“Did the Class 1 boy agree?” another girl asked curiously.

“They exchanged love letters, and it was the girl who took the initiative. What boy could resist such an onslaught?”

“After all, he’s a top student from Class 1. What if he’s solely focused on his studies?”