Chapter 44

Chapter 44

The news of Jiang Songen tutoring someone in Class Two reached Zhang Chun's ears before noon.

Zhang Chun's hand twitched, poking a small hole in the paper.

"Who in Class Two?" Zhang Chun's voice was calm, seemingly unchanged.

His follower, having been by his side for a long time, knew his boss well and recognized this calm as a sign of anger.

The follower swallowed, "It's... the transfer student in Class Two, the one named You Nan."

The follower had no idea how Jiang Songen had started associating with You Nan.

Their boss and Jiang Songen had never been on good terms, which meant that aside from Li Qiutian, whom he'd grown up with, Jiang Songen basically had no friends at school.

When they first started high school, some students had tried to befriend Jiang Songen, but their boss had dealt with all of them. After that, no one dared approach Jiang Songen again.

Anyone close to Jiang Songen was an enemy of their boss, defying him!

This You Nan must be too new to understand the intricate power dynamics among the older students.

The follower's mind raced with jumbled thoughts, but he maintained a composed expression, revealing nothing.

"You Nan, huh."

Zhang Chun repeated You Nan's name under his breath. He leaned back against the desk, propping his legs on his own table, drawing envious glances from his followers.

They thought their boss's posture was so cool, so handsome!

So captivating!

The girls in class couldn't help but glance over!

Even though they were looking at Zhang Chun, the followers felt a shared sense of pride, straightening their backs as if the girls were looking at them.

Zhang Chun remembered You Nan. Over half a month ago, he'd discussed him with Cheng Mi and Yi Jiahe in the cafeteria.

He'd also seen him eating in his usual spot in the cafeteria a few times after that, but he'd only glanced briefly and hadn't paid much attention.

It was surprising that You Nan had ended up hanging out with Jiang Songen.

Zhang Chun was in a bad mood. He put his legs down, stood up, and lightly brushed off nonexistent dust from his clothes. "Let's go check it out."

The followers quickly followed.

When Zhang Chun reached the outside of Class Two's classroom, he slowed his pace. He intended to scan the room carefully for You Nan's figure, but he hadn't expected to spot him immediately in the crowd.

You Nan was leaning over his desk, following Yi Jiahe's method to solve problems. He was very quiet, his exposed profile gentle and delicate, his skin fair, standing out from everyone else.

Jiang Songen had offered to help You Nan with problems, but since Jiang Songen wasn't in the same class, You Nan actually preferred to ask Yi Jiahe.

Yi Jiahe was very kind. Every time he handed out assignment books, he would return the error correction notebook You Nan had given him at noon along with the assignment books.

You Nan got a bit anxious every time he received the error correction notebook, afraid that others around him would notice this interaction between him and Yi Jiahe.

Because Yi Jiahe didn't want anyone to know they had any contact, worried that people might gossip.

You Nan didn't fully grasp why he felt that way, but he was obedient and didn't ask.

Just earlier during class, Yi Jiahe had come over again to hand him the notebook. The problems he hadn't understood had all been solved step by step in detail by Yi Jiahe.

As usual, You Nan took the notebook and immediately tucked it under his textbook. No one noticed.

But he forgot that the student behind him could see Yi Jiahe handing him the notebook every time he looked up.

He noticed that every time Yi Jiahe handed assignment books to his front desk mate, he would pull out a notebook with a small polished pink heart on the cover out of nowhere.

And this notebook wasn't given to anyone else—it was exclusive to You Nan.

The student behind him was stunned.

His mind filled with countless guesses.

Yi Jiahe was good-looking and never lacked secret admirers in class, but no one had ever managed to get close to him.

And Yi Jiahe was so smart, he must be very perceptive. He weighed his actions carefully, and everything he bought had its own meaning.

This notebook must have a deeper meaning too.

The student behind him couldn't help but narrow his eyes. He boldly speculated—maybe it was the meaning behind the pattern on the cover!

The student behind him's eyes widened in disbelief.

He gritted his teeth tightly, keeping this secret to himself.

He knew nothing!

You Nan used the break time to go over the problems in the error correction notebook, making sure he understood everything, then closed the notebook he'd bought randomly at the school supermarket.

"Bang, bang, bang!" The classroom window was knocked on. You Nan and the other students in class instinctively looked up and saw Zhang Chun, the boss of Class One.

Everyone immediately looked away quickly, pretending they hadn't seen him.

You Nan, noticing that the other's gaze seemed to be fixed on him, felt a jolt of anxiety.

Who is this?

Zhang Chun's follower pushed open the unlocked window and shouted inside, "You Nan, you—get out here! Our boss wants to talk to you!"

You Nan fell silent.

You Nan had experienced the real world and a long-term mission world, but this was the first time he'd encountered a situation like this.

His nervousness vanished, replaced by a sense of novelty.

Under the gaze of all his classmates, You Nan stood up. He didn't know the boys outside and asked, "What do you want with me?"

The follower spoke arrogantly, "Just come out when you're told!"

You Nan didn't move, only tightening his grip on the pen in his hand.

"Zhang Chun! What are you doing here!" Jiang Songen, coming out of the teachers' office, had heard Li Qiutian's report and immediately rushed over.

He'd hurried over, not even taking the elevator. He ran down eight floors from the office, covered over a thousand meters, then climbed six floors up the teaching building, arriving slightly out of breath.

Li Qiutian had long been left far behind. He didn't have Jiang Songen's stamina and was already panting, too exhausted to run.

Jiang Songen disliked Zhang Chun. The other was arrogant and domineering, always picking fights with him for no reason. It was absurd.

Upon hearing Jiang Songen's voice, Zhang Chun's scalp prickled.

His gaze shifted from You Nan's innocent and gentle face to Jiang Songen's strikingly handsome one.

When he met the other's disgusted look, his heart skipped a beat, like a cold draft rushed through him, sending a chill down his spine.

"I just came to see what your new friend looks like."

Zhang Chun was dazed for a moment before plastering on his usual cheerful and sunny smile.

To those unfamiliar with his true nature, his demeanor could easily be misleading, making him seem like a lively and outgoing good-looking guy.

Jiang Songen wasn't buying it.

He walked up to Zhang Chun until they were face to face, their heights nearly matching, allowing them to look each other in the eye.

"Do you have a problem?" Jiang Songen lowered his voice, so only Zhang Chun's lackeys standing close by and the students near the window could hear their exchange.

Jiang Songen wasn't the least bit intimidated by Zhang Chun; he was the only one in the whole school who dared to openly challenge him. "No matter who I hang out with, you always have to butt in. Do you hate me that much?"

"After school this afternoon, let's settle this on the basketball court. If you lose, you have to apologize to You Nan."

Jiang Songen didn't lower his voice this time, and everyone present could hear him.

Hearing that Jiang Songen was taking a stand for You Nan, Zhang Chun's anger grew even more. He gritted his teeth tightly. "And what if you lose?"

Jiang Songen brushed it off. "We'll talk about that when I lose."

Zhang Chun tried to force a smile but failed. Without confirming whether he'd show up or not, he turned to leave.

As he turned sideways, he gestured vaguely in You Nan's direction, his fierce gaze sweeping over You Nan briefly.

This silent warning made You Nan's heart clench, and he felt a headache coming on.

He couldn't believe he had to deal with such high school drama.

Jiang Songen originally wanted to go in and talk to You Nan to reassure him, but the class bell rang at that moment. Jiang Songen could only point to his phone, hinting that he would text You Nan later.

You Nan sat down, ignoring the stares from all around, and expressionlessly put away the books on his desk, replacing them with the textbooks for this class.

He was fed up, truly fed up.

The "showdown" between Jiang Songen and Zhang Chun spread throughout the entire school in less than two class periods.

Jiang Songen, Zhang Chun, Yi Jiahe, and Cheng Mi were the four most prominent figures in the school. They came from the best families, were the most handsome, and were dubbed the "School F4" by the looks-obsessed students.

But in reality, only three of them were truly close.

Zhang Chun and Jiang Songen had a feud and never hung out together, only exchanging a few words when they happened to cross paths.

The news of Jiang Songen and Zhang Chun's after-school basketball match immediately drew a lot of attention.

Cheng Mi's classroom was upstairs, and upon hearing the news, he rushed down to find Zhang Chun.

"Why are you picking a fight with Jiang Songen? Didn't you say you weren't going to cause trouble lately?"

Cheng Mi couldn't sit still after hearing the news.

Basketball could really amp up the hormones and lead to a lot of physical contact between players.

Cheng Mi had severe mysophobia, and the thought of the person he liked getting physical with his good friend made him furious.

His pretty face twisted momentarily in frustration.

"He challenges you to basketball, and you just go? He only said what you have to do if you lose, but he didn't say what he'll do if he loses!"

Cheng Mi took a deep breath, suppressing his intense emotions, and pretended to be concerned for his friend. "You're putting yourself in a passive position! You fell for his provocation!"

Zhang Chun, feeling irritated, snapped, "I didn't want to play him. He's always protecting You Nan, and it's annoying. I don't know what You Nan did to win his favor."

Cheng Mi dug his nails into his palm, feeling unstable due to his friend's sudden interest and the unexpected "rival." He bit his lip, first making sure to shut down any budding ideas his friend might have. "If you can't stand You Nan, why not talk to Yi Jiahe about it?"

"Yi Jiahe is the class monitor of Class 2, same as You Nan. If he doesn't want You Nan to have it easy, it'd be a piece of cake! Why do you have to handle it yourself?"

At this point, Cheng Mi didn't know that Yi Jiahe was already giving You Nan one-on-one tutoring. Though he was somewhat concerned about You Nan because of this, he kept on undermining his friend.

"Forget it. When the time comes, have your lackeys play first. Offer a reward to anyone who can beat Jiang Songen. Make Jiang Songen beat all your lackeys before he can face you."

Zhang Chun thought Cheng Mi's advice made sense.

If he fought Jiang Songen over Li Qiutian, there might be some justification, but fighting over You Nan would just lower his own status.

So let Jiang Songen deal with his lackeys first.

Zhang Chun made a hasty decision.

He didn't consider how Jiang Songen would feel—his opponent originally said he would play, but then sent underlings instead, claiming Jiang Songen had to beat them all before facing him.

This approach was downright disrespectful and insulting!

Seeing that Zhang Chun had taken his advice, Cheng Mi silently breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhang Chun was smart, but whenever it came to Jiang Songen, his judgment clouded.

Maybe it was better that way.

Cheng Mi sneered inwardly. The more trouble they caused Jiang Songen, the more annoyed he would be, and the greater Cheng Mi's chances of winning over You Nan.

Once Zhang Chun was no longer a threat, he would approach You Nan himself and see who this You Nan really was.