novelraw Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Chapter 9 Coward“Hey, wait a minute…”
Li Xiang stared dumbfoundedly in the direction Wen Yufeng had walked off in. It took him a few seconds to snap out of it and catch up—
“Yufeng, we’ve moved up to the second year. Why are you heading towards the first-year building?”
Wen Yufeng didn’t stop walking, his lazy voice drifting back.
“I know.”
“Then why are you still—”
Before Li Xiang could finish, Zhao Zirui, who had caught up, smacked him on the back of the head.
“Are you stupid?” Zhao Zirui gave Li Xiang a sideways glance, his eyes filled with pity for his friend’s lack of intelligence. “It’s obvious Yufeng is going to the first-year building to find someone.”
“…”
Li Xiang blinked a few times before finally catching on. For once, he didn’t argue back about Zhao Zirui’s snide remark and asked instead, “Who’s he looking for?”
Zhao Zirui didn’t answer right away. He raised his gaze to look at the boy walking ahead of them.
After a few seconds, he turned back to Li Xiang.
“I heard that yesterday Yufeng asked you guys to look into someone from the middle school division?”
“…”
Li Xiang frowned, thinking for a moment. “Yeah, he did. He told me to find out about that transfer student who came out of nowhere and topped the third-year ranking. Yufeng even mentioned that he only knew how to pronounce the person’s name but wasn’t sure which exact characters were used. He asked me to clarify that.”
Zhao Zirui’s eyes flashed. “What’s the name?”
“Qin Qing. Qin as in the Qin dynasty, and Qing as in clear skies.”
Zhao Zirui fell silent for a few seconds.
“So it really is her, huh.”
“You know her?”
Li Xiang’s eyes widened in surprise.
Zhao Zirui glanced at Li Xiang. “Not just me. You know her too.”
“…”
This time, Li Xiang was so shocked that he couldn’t even find the words to speak.
Zhao Zirui didn’t leave him hanging. “Do you remember that time outside the school gates, when we saw a girl wearing a baseball cap who was later taken away by Sun Xing from the middle school division?”
Li Xiang wracked his brain for a few seconds before smacking his forehead.
“Of course, I remember! That super cute junior girl, she looked—” He suddenly paused mid-sentence. “Wait… Could she be the Qin Qing that Yufeng was asking about?”
Zhao Zirui nodded.
Li Xiang frowned, his expression puzzled.
“But how did you know her name?”
Zhao Zirui didn’t rush to answer. Instead, he smirked and gave Li Xiang a cold look.
“All thanks to you. That time when you asked Yufeng to meet Ling Yu at the entertainment center, Yufeng left after you pissed him off. I followed him out and, not far from the exit, I saw that girl. A middle schooler was confessing to her at the time and called her by name.”
Li Xiang, sensing there was more to the story, immediately perked up and leaned in closer—
“And then? What happened next?”
Zhao Zirui smiled slightly. “Take a guess.” With that, he turned and walked away.
“—Damn it! Zhao Zirui, you bastard—finish the story before you go!”
…………
Almost all the students entering Yishi High School’s senior division were from the middle school division. Even though the old classes had been broken up and reorganized, that didn’t stop the students from seeking out their old “comrades” in their new classes. The classroom was abuzz with reunions, with groups of three or five chatting away.
Meanwhile, Qin Qing, who was an outlier, found herself sidelined.
So when Wen Yufeng arrived outside the classroom of Class 15, the first thing he noticed was his “little classmate,” sitting alone at a desk, her head down, looking like her mind was somewhere far away.
She looked a bit dazed… and incredibly cute.
A lazy smile tugged at Wen Yufeng’s lips as he leaned casually against the front door of the classroom.
He raised his arm, and his long, slender fingers curled into a fist as he knocked on the classroom door.
“Knock, knock,” the sound was neither too loud nor too soft.
However, someone in the classroom had already noticed who was standing at the door, and the room fell silent.
After all, Wen Yufeng’s reputation was well-known throughout Yishi High School, both in the junior and senior divisions.
Not to mention, his handsome face made him even more recognizable than the so-called “school prince.”
“Senior Wen… may I ask who you’re looking for?”
A girl sitting near the door mustered the courage to ask, her face flushed with embarrassment, voicing the question everyone was curious about.
Wen Yufeng didn’t respond. Instead, he glanced into the classroom with a faint smile, his gaze settling on the girl in the middle who remained oblivious to his presence, her head resting on the desk.
Following his gaze, the others in the classroom also looked toward that corner.
In that corner, several girls were either looking around curiously or shyly lowering their heads. But there was one girl who stood out—she remained lost in her own world, lying lifelessly on her desk.
She looked like a little lamb who had been cornered by a fierce wolf, her fur licked off, and now had an expression of utter despair.
“…”
Wen Yufeng couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Without waiting for the girl to notice him on her own, he took a step forward, hands in his pockets, and walked into the classroom.
He walked in under the admiring and discreet glances of the girls.
Finally, he stopped in front of the girl’s desk.
His tall figure blocked the morning light, casting a shadow over Qin Qing.
Qin Qing froze for a moment before finally coming back to her senses, looking up in confusion.
Seeing the familiar profile in the backlight, Qin Qing let out a soft “Ah,” instinctively standing up and taking a step back.
Then, with a slightly panicked expression, she glanced at the back door of the classroom.
It was locked.
Qin Qing, feeling hopeless, turned back around, her black and white eyes filled with a mix of innocence and helplessness, hesitating as she looked at the boy in front of her.
Wen Yufeng’s eyes darkened.
…
He thought he must be going crazy. Otherwise, how could just one look from this girl, who didn’t even reach his shoulder, make him feel so restless and unable to hold back?
She had barely uttered a soft “Ah,” and the emotions he had been suppressing began to surge uncontrollably.
And yet, at the brink of losing control, when the girl merely took a step back—just one step—he didn’t dare to do anything.
All the thoughts he had on the way here, about satisfying his selfish desires, melted away the moment she took that step.
“…Are you really only fifteen?”
His voice was husky, his gaze intense.
Qin Qing stared at him in confusion, tilting her head slightly, her expression innocent.
“Tsk.”
Wen Yufeng raised his hand, covering her eyes.
“…”
Qin Qing blinked at the clean, beautifully jointed hand in front of her.
Then she heard Wen Yufeng speak—
“Don’t look at me with those eyes.”
After a moment of hesitation, Qin Qing nodded, “Okay.”
Her voice was soft and gentle.
Wen Yufeng’s eyes darkened further. “And don’t talk to me in that voice.”
Qin Qing: “…”
There was a moment of silence before Wen Yufeng clicked his tongue again.
“Take care during military training.”
With that, he withdrew his hand and turned to leave.
The last glimpse Qin Qing caught of him showed a hint of what seemed like frustration—or maybe it wasn’t just frustration—etched between his strong brows.
After his figure disappeared outside the classroom door, Qin Qing sat down in a daze, replaying Wen Yufeng’s behavior in her mind.
Her eyes were filled with confusion.
——
Man Xue only mentioned that he smoked, fought, skipped classes, and hung out at clubs. Why didn’t she mention that his brain might not be all that sound?
Meanwhile, outside the classroom…
Zhao Zirui and Li Xiang, who had witnessed the whole scene, quickly followed in Wen Yufeng’s footsteps. As they walked, Li Xiang couldn’t help but laugh—
“Did you see that? I thought Yufeng was going to pick her up and carry her out, but he actually chickened out in front of a little girl!”