He watched as Fei Cheng finished writing the last symbol before asking, "There are only three weeks left until finals. What are your plans?"
Fei Cheng pulled away his physics paper, revealing a brand-new chemistry worksheet underneath. He rubbed his eyes. "Are we going out to have some fun?"
Cheng Yifei nodded, then paused and shook his head with a touch of helplessness. "I’m asking what your plans are for the final exams."
"Ha, Brother Cheng, are you trying to make me brag? Setting my rank before I’ve even taken the test? I’m confident I can stay in the top five of the class. As for the whole grade, I couldn't say. I’ll just do my best and not worry about the rest." Fei Cheng idly doodled lines on his scratch paper.
Cheng Yifei found that reasonable. He had really just wanted to strike up a conversation. Regarding going out, he said with some hesitation, "After the exams, I’ll probably go to my parents' place. I won't be back until after the Lunar New Year."
Fei Cheng was a bit surprised. "So you go out of town for the New Year?" Usually, people traveled from the cities back to their hometowns for the holidays.
Cheng Yifei replied, "That’s the plan, but it’s not set in stone yet. We’ll see when the time comes."
"Mm." Fei Cheng didn't think much more of it. He wasn't particularly desperate to go out, but if he stayed home all day without a phone, a computer, or the internet, it would be a grueling stretch of time. Hanging out with Cheng Yifei and Yu Qing was a much better way to pass the time.
Cheng Yifei’s gaze slowly drifted to Fei Cheng’s nonchalant face. After watching him for a moment, he asked, "With exams approaching, are you going to keep corresponding with Qiu Minmin?"
Fei Cheng didn't even look up. "Depends on her. If she writes, I’ll reply."
Cheng Yifei: "..."
Fei Cheng was already looking at the fill-in-the-blank questions, muttering about how easy the test seemed.
Cheng Yifei glanced at him, then scribbled a problem onto his scratch paper. He tore it off and placed it in front of Fei Cheng. "If it’s too easy, try this one."
Fei Cheng picked it up. *Using iron as the anode and copper as the cathode to electrolyze a sufficient amount of NaOH solution; after a period of time, 0.2 mol of Fe(OH)3 solid is obtained.*
*(1) Please write the electrode reactions for both poles.*
*(2) Calculate how many grams of water were consumed during this process.*
Fei Cheng stared blankly. "Brother Cheng, are you messing with me or is this a real question? Have you gotten so good that you’re writing your own problems now? I don't even understand the prompt!"
Cheng Yifei looked satisfied. "It’s from the Senior Two curriculum."
Fei Cheng looked at the problem, then back at him.
Cheng Yifei continued, "I saw it on a Senior Two exam paper."
Fei Cheng felt a bit more balanced mentally. He looked at the problem again. "Do you know how to solve it?"
Cheng Yifei nodded. "I do now."
Fei Cheng ground his teeth and snatched the scratch paper away. "I don't know how yet, but I will soon."
A hint of a smile appeared in Cheng Yifei’s eyes. He nodded. "Mm. I have high expectations for you."
As soon as the bell rang, most people put down their pens. Fei Cheng stood up and stretched. "Want to get food? Food?"
Yu Qing was slumped lazily over his desk, driven half-mad by math and physics. He looked at the energetic Fei Cheng with a resentful expression. "Eat what..."
"Meatballs, meat rolls, hot dogs... hmm, I wonder if they have salt-baked chicken thighs. Wings would work too." As he spoke, Fei Cheng picked up his water bottle and took a large gulp of cold water.
Yu Qing immediately straightened his back, turning his grief and indignation into an appetite. "What are we waiting for? Let’s go!"
Just as Fei Cheng set his bottle down, a student in the front row called out, "Fei Cheng, someone’s looking for you."
He looked toward the classroom door. *Huh? Why are Jun Ting and Li Lijuan here?*
They were Qiu Minmin’s best friends—the ride-or-die type. Had something happened to her?
"Wait for me a second." Fei Cheng ran out of the classroom, looking quite hurried.
Because it was break time, the hallway was packed with people, mostly boys. Jun Ting and Li Lijuan looked very uncomfortable standing at the entrance of Class 1.
Fei Cheng glanced at them and said softly, "Follow me."
Amidst the whistles of his male classmates, Fei Cheng led them downstairs. Time was limited, so once they reached the second floor, he asked, "Did something happen?"
Seeing that Fei Cheng was easy to talk to, Jun Ting summoned her courage out of loyalty to her friend. "Are... are you on good terms with that guy in your class named Yang Kaikai?" Before Fei Cheng could answer, she rushed on, "Is he sick in the head? He keeps writing letters to harass Minmin, and he even scribbled all over her notes!"
Fei Cheng froze for two seconds. "What notes?"
"Her English notes. He used a thick red marker to write a huge... 'I love you.'" Li Lijuan added, looking a bit embarrassed but quickly puffing out her cheeks in anger. "He ruined three pages of Minmin’s notes! And he threatened her!"
Fei Cheng frowned. In his past life, his own notes had been the victim of similar pranks, and he had never known who did it.
Jun Ting, thinking he was afraid of trouble, said guiltily, "We know you’re not the one who’s crazy, but we don't know anyone else in Class 1. You see Minmin often, and she says you’re her friend. If you’re her friend... maybe you could help pass a message? This is a letter we wrote to that Yang Kaikai. If he keeps this up, we’re really going to tell the teacher!"
Fei Cheng took the letter from her. "I understand. I’ll handle it. What did he threaten her with?"
Jun Ting and Li Lijuan looked at each other, hesitant to speak. Under Fei Cheng’s steady gaze, they whispered, "He said if she keeps associating with you, he’ll tell the teacher that you and Minmin are in a 'puppy love' relationship."
Puppy love? Just who liked whom here?
Fei Cheng let out a cold laugh. "Does Minmin know you came to find me?"
"No. We saw that Yang Kaikai wouldn't stop, and we just couldn't take it anymore. He even cornered Minmin after evening self-study yesterday. What if Lijuan and I hadn't been with her? It’s scary. Class is about to start—please give the letter to Yang Kaikai. And you’re not allowed to look!"
Fei Cheng nodded. "I won't. Go back to class."
Fei Cheng stuffed the letter into his pocket and returned to the classroom just as the bell rang. The teacher saw him but said nothing.
As Fei Cheng walked back to his seat, he looked toward Yang Kaikai in the back row. The other boy was staring back at him. Neither looked away, as if the first to blink would be the one to admit defeat.
After a long forty minutes, evening self-study ended. Fei Cheng turned to look at Yang Kaikai. Seeing him preparing to leave, he quickly said to Cheng Yifei, "Brother Cheng, I have something to take care of. You guys go on ahead!"
Cheng Yifei’s hand paused while packing his books. First the girls, and now this?
Yu Qing, thinking he understood, winked at Fei Cheng. Fei Cheng ignored him and bolted, pulling his chair out. Yu Qing hurriedly shouted, "Hey! Do you want me to bring you a late-night snack?"
"Two cream buns and a bottle of milk!"
Yu Qing clicked his tongue. "Choosing girls over your bros. Right, Yifei? So many girls have been looking for Cheng-cheng lately. It seems they’ve been intimidated by your cold aura and decided to switch targets. Sunny boy Little Cheng-cheng—man, he really is good-looking."
Cheng Yifei stood up, his face expressionless. "It’s rare to hear you praise a guy’s looks."
Yu Qing rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I’m just telling the truth. Cheng-cheng’s features are... delicate. He’s usually easy on the eyes, but when he’s not talking or smiling, he looks cool, and when he’s serious, he’s surprisingly stunning. It makes me..."
Cheng Yifei watched him, waiting for the rest.
Yu Qing scratched behind his ear. "It makes me subconsciously want to imitate him. So it’s not strange at all that people like him!"
Cheng Yifei said nothing. No one was more aware of Fei Cheng’s transformation than he was—from cowardly to resolute, from the bottom of the class to the top, from taciturn to eloquent. One could say he had a hand in managing Fei Cheng, but he had a faint feeling that even without him, Fei Cheng would have eventually become like this anyway.
Yu Qing continued his rambling. "Luckily Cheng-cheng is a bit short. Otherwise, if all the girls followed him, how would I find a girlfriend? Sigh, I’m a handsome guy too, but you two are always stealing my spotlight."
Cheng Yifei gave a dry chuckle. Seeing the desktop Fei Cheng hadn't had time to clear, he reached out and helped tidy it up.
Meanwhile, Fei Cheng, who had rushed to intercept his target, felt another headache coming on when he saw Liu Yucong standing in front of Yang Kaikai, glaring at him. This guy was like a ghost that wouldn't leave!
"I’m not here for you. Don't get involved." Fei Cheng looked past Liu Yucong at Yang Kaikai. "We need to talk."
Yang Kaikai hid behind Liu Yucong, crossing his arms smugly. "I have nothing to talk to you about."
Fei Cheng felt he finally saw Yang Kaikai for what he was. He curled his lip into a mirthless smile. "Regarding Qiu Minmin—you really have nothing to talk about?"
Hearing a girl’s name, Liu Yucong turned to look at Yang Kaikai.
By then, Yang Kaikai had uncrossed his arms. He gritted his teeth, putting on an act of suppressed indignation. "You have the nerve to bring up Qiu Minmin? If you hadn't interfered, would she have rejected me?"
"You really are sick. Do you want to talk here or somewhere else? Your choice." Fei Cheng looked at Yang Kaikai lazily, making no effort to hide the mockery in his expression. Qiu Minmin didn't want this kind of "affection" from someone like Yang Kaikai!
Yang Kaikai probably guessed that whatever Fei Cheng was going to say wouldn't be pleasant. With so many people in the hallway, he didn't want to lose face. He said to Liu Yucong, "Cong-ge, I’ll go talk to him. I’ll tell you what it’s about when I get back."
Fei Cheng laughed out loud at that. *Tell Liu Yucong later?* Fine, he’d wait to see how Yang Kaikai would exaggerate and twist the facts.
As for Liu Yucong, he looked toward Lai Xinhui and the other two who were coming from the back door. They saw him too, nodded briefly, and walked past him as if nothing were wrong, not even giving him a second glance.
Fei Cheng led Yang Kaikai to the back alley of the classroom building. In the dead of winter, the biting wind ensured no one set foot here. Only scattered light filtered in, creating a hazy dimness that allowed them to see only each other’s silhouettes.
They stood facing each other with a meter between them; neither wanted to be any closer.
Fei Cheng faced the night wind and warned Yang Kaikai, "Stop harassing Qiu Minmin. She already said she doesn't like you. Writing letters to harass her will only make her more repulsed. Furthermore, scribbling on her notes is affecting her studies. If you had even a shred of genuine feelings for her, you wouldn't cause her this much distress."
Yang Kaikai was stunned for a moment. He truly hadn't expected Qiu Minmin to tell Fei Cheng what he’d done so quickly. He felt he had misjudged her; Qiu Minmin wasn't bright and straightforward at all—behind his back, she was just like those other girls who loved to tattle!
He was both angry and annoyed. "What does this have to do with you? What right do you have to speak for her? So what if I write her letters? As long as she stays close to you, if I can't annoy you to death, I’ll annoy her to death!"
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 吹皮 | Brag / Boast | Slang for talking big. |
| 早恋 | Puppy love | Specifically refers to romantic relationships between students, which are often discouraged in Chinese schools. |
| 晚自习 | Evening self-study | A supervised study period in Chinese schools. |
| 高二 | Senior Two | Equivalent to Grade 11 in the US system. |
| 有异性没人性 | Choosing girls over bros | Literal: "Having the opposite sex, lacking humanity." Used when a friend abandons friends for a romantic interest. |
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