Chapter 17

Chapter 17

After Pei Ruji left, the assistant Beta, expressionless, glanced at Meng Shijiu before hurriedly exiting the office and closing the door, leaving only Meng Shijiu and Shen Huaixu in the quiet space.

The Alpha sitting behind the desk looked nothing like one would expect a principal to look—with heterochromatic eyes, earrings, and a gentle, youthful fox-like face. Yet, if his resume were examined alone, it was stunningly impressive to the point of astonishment.

Shen Huaixu came from a prestigious family. At 13, he was tested and found to have S+ level mental strength, becoming one of the rare double-S-class Alphas. At 15, he graduated from St. Maria with top honors in every subject. At 16, he enlisted in the military, where he racked up numerous military honors, rising through the ranks from second lieutenant. By 22, he was appointed as the Qi Yu First-Class Mecha Commander, becoming the Federation's youngest first-class commander.

No one expected him to retire at the height of his career to become the principal of an elite academy.

Many privately believed this prodigy who seemed to come out of nowhere must have some grand plan, claiming he had great ambitions... Yet, Shen Huaixu seemed to have coasted after that, collecting his paycheck and living under the radar, only appearing once during the first opening ceremony.

When Shen Huaixu graduated, St. Maria did not yet have the policy of recruiting merit scholars.

Meng Shijiu had browsed the school's archives in his spare time. Three years ago, when the expansion of the merit scholarship program was proposed, the seemingly laid-back and figurehead Principal Shen firmly cast a dissenting vote for the first time.

Unfortunately, this vote did not have much effect. St. Maria was never just a simple noble academy—the society that maintained surface-level equality did not allow it, especially since those who truly controlled the resources held absolute authority.

"I've been a little busy lately and haven't contacted you. How are you adjusting to school?"

Shen Huaixu smiled, the familiar laugh lines appearing at the corners of his eyes again, his voice clear and calm. "—Handsome Meng?"

At this moment, the bit of seriousness he had casually displayed earlier vanished once more.

The scene of their first meeting still felt vivid. Being called "handsome" again, Meng Shijiu accepted it quite well.

"Principal Shen." Meng Shijiu gave a slight nod.

His gaze swept over Shen Huaixu's heterochromatic eyes a couple of times, and suddenly, out of curiosity, he ventured to ask—

"Do eyes of different colors differ from other eyes in any way?"

Shen Huaixu wasn't particularly taken aback by his forwardness.

—From their very first meeting, Shen Huaixu had felt that Meng Shijiu resembled a cat.

He would probe nonchalantly, ask playful follow-up questions, and also develop a dangerous interest in the unknown, revealing a cold, inquisitive gaze.

"Yes." Shen Huaixu leisurely pulled out a piece of paper.

"Looking too much costs money."

Meng Shijiu: "How much?"

"Oh, I forgot that young Meng is actually quite wealthy..." He sighed, his pale moon-colored eye and deep violet eye both looking at Meng Shijiu, like the two sides of the moon.

The Alpha's gentle tone suddenly shifted. "—Perhaps I may call you Shijiu? You can call me 'brother.'"

Meng Shijiu: "See that? He's already trying to get close."

See: "Devious, cunning, a smile hiding a dagger, honeyed words concealing a sword..."

Meng Shijiu interrupted him: "You should learn more from him."

See: "—?"

Meng Shijiu pretended to be angry: "Think back to your attitude when we first met. Was that the attitude of someone asking for help?!"

See: "Can we move past this segment now? orz"

Meng Shijiu: "^^"

Meng Shijiu remained silent. Shen Huaixu handed the paper he was holding to Meng Shijiu.

Meng Shijiu glanced at it and paused.

The silver-haired Alpha reached out to take it, lowering his head, his emotions hidden in the shadow cast by his eyelashes—

It was his entrance exam paper.

A thin sheet of paper, carefully preserved. The sharp handwriting on it was still clear, though the latter half showed some hasty scribbles that did not detract from its quality. The machine-printed '19' at the top, and the crumpled marks from being stuffed into Meng Shijiu's pocket had faded.

When his fingernail brushed over the paper, the texture felt like stroking a dried rose petal, a testament to the care taken by the person who preserved it.

"...Thanks, brother." His lazy tone was like the soft rustle of turning an ancient page.

The silver-haired Alpha still had his head lowered, but Shen Huaixu suspected he heard a very, very soft sigh, melting away like snow on a candlewick, so faint that even a top-tier Alpha's hearing couldn't fully catch it.

Although he knew this principal likely wasn't that kind-hearted and surely had ulterior motives, Meng Shijiu was indeed in a good mood as he took a sip of the pomegranate juice Shen Huaixu had bought for him.

See, still reeling from being teased by its host again, said gloomily: "...Calling everyone 'brother.'"

Meng Shijiu couldn't be bothered to respond.

See looked up at the sky: ...Did it really have to learn from Shen Huaixu? Why did it feel like its host was quite fond of this sweet-talking approach?

Shen Huaixu smiled slightly: "You're welcome."

He was still dressed as he was when Meng Shijiu first met him, bundled up as if he were always cold.

—Shen Huaixu sometimes gave Meng Shijiu a strange sense of familiarity.

For instance, the comic book hidden in his pocket during their first meeting—who still had palm-sized comic books these days? Even reading comics online was rare.

Meng Shijiu slowly finished the last bit of pomegranate juice.

Time seemed to briefly stand still.

As if simply admiring a precious painting, Shen Huaixu said nothing. His deep, narrow eyes rested on the Alpha who was focused on drinking the juice, quietly sweeping over the silver hair falling by his cheek and the juice staining the corner of his mouth.

Only the sound of the straw hitting the cup wall remained in the office.

With an Alpha's hearing, he could likely easily hear the subtle sucking sounds, like a kitten lapping milk, and the sound of swallowing, like morning dew sliding off a leaf tip.

Under Shen Huaixu's increasingly peculiar gaze, Meng Shijiu calmly spoke.

His fingertip landed on the answer to the first question on his exam paper.

"So, Brother Shen," he uttered the address somewhat awkwardly, raising his eyes to meet those heterochromatic ones, smiling slightly, "What do you think of my answer to the first question?"

Meng Shijiu could understand Shen Huaixu's vote three years ago.

Opposing the admission of merit scholars was essentially a form of protection for them, even though it also directly blocked commoners' access to better resources.

—Hard to say whether it was compassion or arrogance.

—And here, sitting before a principal who chose to oppose merit scholars entering the school, was a student who, when faced with a similarly themed question, wrote "suggest allowing the conflict to develop" in his answer.

No, not a test-taker, but a student.

Meng Shijiu didn't think Shen Huaixu had changed his opinion from three years ago. This principal demonstrated an uncanny intelligence in every aspect, while also silently revealing an identical brand of arrogance.

In Meng Shijiu's eyes, Shen Huaixu was actually no different from the others at this academy.

"I chose you," Shen Huaixu shook his head, "not because of your first question."

"It was because of your last question."

Meng Shijiu: "..."

Meng Shijiu didn't want to talk anymore and mumbled under his breath, "...If I'd known the exam paper was for someone like you to see, I wouldn't have written a single word."

*He's not calling me 'brother' again,* Shen Huaixu thought, feeling a bit amused.

The spacious office fell silent again for another few seconds.

"I don't want to ask about your past," Shen Huaixu said, "Are you willing to help me with this favor?"

He didn't specify what the favor was, but Meng Shijiu could guess.

Shen Huaixu wanted to resolve the internal conflicts at St. Maria.

But not necessarily for the commoners or the special scholarship students.

On his very first day at St. Maria, Meng Shijiu had seen the hollowness of this aristocratic academy. He wasn't wrong; Shen Huaixu did have a sense of belonging to St. Maria.

The reason remained unclear.

But this was also likely why Shen Huaixu was unwilling to remain at St. Maria as it is now.

"I refuse," Meng Shijiu said.

It was the answer he'd anticipated.

Shen Huaixu: "That's alright."

The heterochromatic Alpha Shen Huaixu slid the green pinky ring off his right little finger, took out a plain handkerchief, wiped the ring clean, and handed it to Meng Shijiu.

"Keep this ring; you can use it to find me anytime."

Shen Huaixu's fox-like eyes crinkled with a smile: "You've taken quite a liking to this ring, haven't you? I noticed you looked at it many times."

Meng Shijiu: "..."

"Does looking at it many times mean I like it?"

Meng Shijiu: "Then you must like me a fair bit too."

Meng Shijiu reached out to take it.

"I am very happy to have met you," Shen Huaixu said seriously, not yet releasing his grip, "Even if in the future... all it amounts to is that we met."

Shen Huaixu let go. Meng Shijiu took the ring; the half-open lotus inlaid with gemstones resembled a mermaid's tail, vivid and lifelike.

Meng Shijiu gently rotated the ring's surface. A dark green pattern glimmered, and a blue light screen simultaneously appeared before both Meng Shijiu and Shen Huaixu.

Meng Shijiu looked at Shen Huaixu's face on the screen and pinpointed the location of the other communication device.

He looked toward Shen Huaixu's neck.

Shen Huaixu didn't pull out the necklace, just nodded: "Ah. *Clever...* little cat."

Meng Shijiu stowed the ring away.

The silver-haired Alpha stood up to leave. He raised his hand, about to casually tuck the exam paper on the desk into his pocket.

The heterochromatic Alpha reached out and pressed the paper back onto the desk.

Meng Shijiu shot a sidelong, annoyed glance.

Shen Huaixu soothed the slightly bristling cat: "Didn't you give it to me?"

Meng Shijiu scanned the portraits lining the walls and said with a tone laced with sarcasm: "What, are you going to frame it and hang it in your office?"

Shen Huaixu narrowed his eyes: "Good idea."

"—It could give me a reason to come to school more often," he said with a laugh.

Shen Huaixu tucked the paper away. As the Alpha turned to leave, he suddenly asked: "In the second question, what did you mean by the de Broglie and those formulas?"

"Oh, because my teacher said if you don't know the answer, just write down the formulas..." Meng Shijiu shot back casually, "Didn't your teacher teach you that?"

Shen Huaixu, who had read too much into it: "..."

—

—

"Beep—Plot Point One has appeared."

Red subtitles began to scroll densely across Meng Shijiu's mind.

"Current Correction Progress: 0%

Current Points: 0

Worldline Deviation: 50%

Please begin correcting the worldline immediately..."

Meng Shijiu stepped onto the stairs: "What exactly does 'correct' refer to?"

See: "The protagonist shows no signs of turning dark."

Meng Shijiu: "And if he does?"

See: "The main system will continuously reassess whether he still has the potential to turn dark. I don't know the specific evaluation criteria."

See: "Anyway, once the correction progress reaches 100%, the mission is considered complete~"

The library was, as expected, nearly empty. The silver-haired Alpha made no secret of his path, walking openly around the rows of bookshelves toward the scene of the plot point.

Everything around was very quiet, as though all was calm.

Meng Shijiu had just taken allergy medicine, so his sense of smell was dulled. He wondered if he'd missed anyone's pheromone scent.

Meng Shijiu rounded the last row of bookshelves—

The scene before his eyes caused the Alpha to arch his eyebrows sharply.

Meng Shijiu had expected the confrontation between Ye Lingxi and Zong Geman to be tense, but he hadn't expected anyone else to show up.

—Zou Yun.

The tall, blue-haired Alpha stood with his back to him, the inhibitor patch Meng Shijiu had applied still stuck to the nape of his neck.

Zou Yun was gripping Zong Geman's hair, his expression unreadable.

—Meng Shijiu clearly saw a distinct gland on the Beta's neck, right beneath the Alpha's hand.

Meng Shijiu: ?

Meng Shijiu: A Beta? With a gland?

Meng Shijiu: "Do I need a refresher course on the basics of gender?"

See: "………"