Chapter 27 The Tenderness of Bowing

Chapter 27: The Softness in a Lowered Gaze

Lu Guifan's seemingly casual remark of "not difficult" no doubt piled on the pressure for the remaining examinees.

Especially Ye Jiaming, who was currently stuck on the final problem. He had just realized a miscalculation and was frantically trying to locate his mistake in the last ten minutes. Meanwhile, he could only watch as Lu Guifan pocketed his pink pen and casually walked out of the exam hall like he had all the time in the world.

Lu Guifan descended the stairs. The campus was quiet at this moment; the world felt like it held only him.

He went down two floors and stopped outside Jiang Ruotang's exam room window.

Tall enough that Lu Guifan only needed to lean back against the corridor wall to see Jiang Ruotang, seated in the third-to-last row of the third-to-last exam room.

The guy’s brows were tightly furrowed, letting out frustrated sighs—obviously stuck.

*Dummy. If you can’t solve it, just skip it and double-check what you’ve already done.*

Perhaps the math exam was too difficult this time. In Jiang Ruotang’s exam room, many students, embodying the spirit of "beyond caring" or "nothing left to lose," were either propping their heads up in a daze, napping on their desks, or even flicking pens over hastily scribbled ABCD choices in the margins of their scratch paper—letting fate decide their answers.

To Lu Guifan, who was accustomed to the top exam room, these reactions were the forgotten side of school life.

Jiang Ruotang was the only one still burning brain cells.

It seemed Jiang Ruotang was serious about gunning for the Central Academy of Fine Arts.

But that cutoff score… Nah, he wasn’t stupid at all. If he put in the effort, he could make it.

*I wonder if winning that art competition will give him extra points for the entrance exam.*

As the exam-ending bell rang, the students in the room seemed to snap out of a daze.

Some hurried to submit their papers, others broke into relieved smiles—only Jiang Ruotang remained frowning, tipped his head back with a sigh.

Students began filing out of the classroom. Spotting Lu Guifan leaning against the corridor, they did double-takes.

"Who’s that? Since when does our school have such a handsome guy… Which class is he from?"

"Is he waiting for someone?"

"Yeah, looks like it. If it’s a girl, isn’t this way too bold?"

"Hahaha, Principal’s gonna bust them for PDA!"

Jiang Ruotang stepped out, followed by Xie Jin from the neighboring class, who was hounding him about answers.

"You picked C for question three, but I chose D—I think you’re wrong! And for question six, you said B, but I double-checked and it’s C… Why is the first calculation problem √3? I got 9!"

Jiang Ruotang took a deep breath. "We’re both in the third-to-last exam room, and you’re ranked one spot above me! Girl, maybe trust yourself a little more?"

When Xie Jin caught sight of Lu Guifan, she almost short-circuited, grabbing Jiang Ruotang’s arm. "Bro, am I hallucinating? Who is this god standing outside our exam room? He’s 100% my type!"

Jiang Ruotang was stunned too. He hadn’t expected Lu Guifan to wait for him outside.

Leaning against the corridor with his hands in his pockets, sunlight glinting off his shoulders and a breeze lifting his slightly long bangs—if this were a scene from Director Jiang’s films, the vibes alone would’ve wrecked audiences.

"Cla—Class President? What are you doing here?"

"Didn’t you tell me to wait for you after the exam?" Lu Guifan turned his face slightly toward him.

At that moment, Lu Guifan’s gaze seemed to shift from a spaced-out stare back to reality, his eyes carrying a subtle, warm crinkle. Jiang Ruotang’s hands in his pockets clenched into fists.

*Holy crap. Compared to the Class President, Bai Yingchuan’s trash!*

Xie Jin’s delayed realization hit hard. "Wait—Jiang Ruotang, you called him *Class President*? That gloomy, black-framed-glasses-wearing, *Criminal Minds* villain-lookalike who’s always first in the grade… *Lu Guifan*?"

"Bullshit villain!" Jiang Ruotang wanted to cover her mouth.

Since when did Lu Guifan look like a villain?

Luckily, Lu Guifan didn’t seem bothered. Calmly, he walked up to Jiang Ruotang. "Do you think you’re a dumbass?"

"Huh? Compared to you, the whole school’s probably scrubs." Jiang Ruotang scratched the back of his head.

"But you got question three (C), question six (B), and the first calculation (√3) right." Lu Guifan met his eyes.

Jiang Ruotang hadn’t expected their answer-checking as "fellow losers" to have been overheard.

"Shit—Lu Guifan’s word is gospel! I’m doomed. Out of 150, I’ll probably score 45 again!" Xie Jin faked a heart attack as if about to yeet herself into the sun.

"Let’s go." Lu Guifan turned and walked ahead.

Jiang Ruotang hurried after him, whispering, "I really got those three right? You’re not just saying that to get back at Xie Jin for the *Criminal Minds* villain comment, are you?"

"First, you did get them right. Congrats—you’ve secured 24 out of 150 points."

"Wow, so moved."

"Second, if I were a *Criminal Minds* villain, the FBI would still be clueless in season 12."

"Someone’s cocky."

"Third, as the villain, my first move would be offing you."

"Eh? Why?" Jiang Ruotang blinked.

"Because you touched my eyes."

"Why?"

"Because I’m unhinged."

Watching Lu Guifan’s retreating figure, Jiang Ruotang snorted, planting hands on his hips.

Wasn’t this the high school life he’d once imagined?

—Getting close to Lu Guifan, knowing him, joking with him like friends.

"Then I must be unhinged too."

"Oh?" Lu Guifan glanced back. "How so?"

"Wouldn’t you like to know." Jiang Ruotang smugly walked past him.

*Everyone dies eventually. Rather than rotting in some hospital bed like in my past life, I’d rather die by your hand.*

Jiang Ruotang deliberately shot a text to Xiao Gao, asking him to pick him up later.

That way, he could walk with Lu Guifan to the glasses store.

Though they hardly exchanged words, the quiet companionship filled Jiang Ruotang with a serene happiness.

As they passed by the entrance of No. 14 High School, Jiang Ruotang caught a whiff of an incredibly delicious, mouthwatering smell.

"It's chives egg jianbing! Monitor, wait for me—I want some!"

Lu Guifan watched Jiang Ruotang’s excited figure run ahead before slowly following after him.

The jianbing was made by a middle-aged couple—the husband mixed the batter and cracked the eggs, while the wife did the cooking and seasoning.

It was between classes, but most students weren’t interested in chives egg jianbing, instead crowding around nearby stalls for grilled hot dogs or fried snacks.

Only Jiang Ruotang stood in front of the food cart, grinning as he said, "Boss, one chives egg jianbing—with two eggs, please!"

The boss, who was beating eggs, paused when he saw them. Probably grateful for the business, he smiled and said, "I remember you! You stopped by a couple nights ago and bought our jianbing too! Here, uncle, I'll throw in a free sausage for you—to thank you for coming back!"

"Thanks, uncle! You’re the best!" Jiang Ruotang beamed.

A moment later, the wife folded the eggs and chives into the crepe, quickly folding it shut while warning, "Don’t take a bite right after it’s fried—it’ll burn your mouth."

"Thanks! The wife is beautiful inside and out!"

Coming from anyone else, it might’ve sounded insincere, but Jiang Ruotang said it so naturally and warmly.

The wife turned a little pink at the compliment.

"Oh, stop… I’m hardly beautiful. You're such a sweet talker, young man."

"Seriously! You can question me about anything, but never my taste." Jiang Ruotang nudged Lu Guifan lightly with his elbow, eyes smiling. "Right, Monitor?"

For once, Lu Guifan smiled, his lips curving in a rare smile. Maybe it was Jiang Ruotang’s earthy charm that dissolved any distance between them. He gave a faint nod. "Yes. Kind and beautiful."

Jiang Ruotang waited eagerly. His praise wasn’t just empty flattery—the wife’s gentle features and quiet diligence reminded him of a poem. He tilted his head toward Lu Guifan.

Somehow, Lu Guifan bent down, bringing his ear close, and heard Jiang Ruotang whisper, *"The tenderness in that lowered gaze—like a lotus flower shy of the cool breeze."*

Lu Guifan stiffened slightly, glancing at him. "Why are you suddenly quoting Xu Zhimo’s *‘Saying Goodbye’*?"

Jiang Ruotang murmured, "Don’t you think the boss’s wife is really lovely?"

"But that poem praises a young girl."

"Haven’t you heard? ‘Men are boys till the day they die,’ so women are forever girls."

"Why not say it louder and make them happy?"

"I’m afraid the boss might mistake me for a flirt and hit me with his spatula."

Lu Guifan lowered his gaze, smiling slightly where Jiang Ruotang couldn’t see.

Who could ever misunderstand Jiang Ruotang? His bright eyes and guileless tone made every compliment feel like genuine appreciation.

In Jiang Ruotang’s world, beauty was beauty—no ranks, no fakeness.

Just then, a piece of chive flew into the hot oil with a sharp *sizzle*, sending up splattering oil. Jiang Ruotang had leaned in too close, eyes wide with curiosity. Lu Guifan’s heart lurched into his throat—for a split second, he saw sharp shards piercing fragile glass, shattering everything beautiful.

His hand moved faster than thought, covering Jiang Ruotang’s eyes and pulling him back.

But the boss had already snatched up the lid and covered the pan.