Chapter 2 Pei Zhi

Chapter 2: Pei Zhi

Lin Xishan rushed into the classroom in the last second before the bell rang.

He had just settled into the only remaining seat in the front row corner when Professor Jin, infamous for being harsh and cold, was about to call roll.

Good thing I made it, he gave himself a mental pat on the back. Being tall really pays off.

Just then, the front door was pushed open, and a timid voice broke the silence of the classroom.

"Permission to enter."

The entire class turned their gaze toward the door, only to see Ye Jiaonan standing there, looking nervous and ill at ease, like a scared rabbit.

Lin Xishan sneered inwardly.

Everyone knew Professor Jin hated lateness the most. Ye Jiaonan had basically walked right into the line of fire this time.

As expected, Professor Jin on the podium didn't even look up and coldly spat out: "Tardy."

Ye Jiaonan's delicate face instantly drained of color, tears quickly welling in his eyes, his voice shaking: "Professor, I really had a reason for being late..."

For an ordinary student, a single tardy was no big deal, but for Ye Jiaonan, who absolutely had to secure the highest scholarship, it was a whole different story.

Lin Xishan propped his chin on one hand, watching the show with amusement.

Just as Ye Jiaonan's tears were about to spill, the back door was suddenly kicked open.

A loud bang echoed through the room, drawing everyone's attention, including Professor Jin's.

When they saw who it was, the classroom fell into dead silence.

It was Lin Jichuan.

The young master stood at the door, one hand in his pocket, looking totally unbothered, as if he hadn't just kicked the door in like a thug.

His handsome face was clouded with heavy, sleep-deprived irritation, radiating a "mess with me and you're dead" vibe.

Under the class's watchful gaze, Lin Jichuan ignored the professor on the podium, walked straight to the back row, tossed his backpack onto the desk, and then, as if all his bones had been pulled out, collapsed onto the desk and went still.

"Lin Jichuan!" Professor Jin's voice rose with anger, her palm slamming hard on the podium. "Do you think this is a playground? How dare you act like this!"

Everyone's attention instantly locked onto the young master lying on the desk, too lazy to even raise his head.

Most looks were ones of anticipation—though not expecting Lin Jichuan to be the one in trouble.

In this school, funded by the Lin Corporation, no one thought the young master would ever be the butt of a joke.

Lin Jichuan waved his hand lazily, his voice rough with sleep and impatience: "Sleepy. Don't bother me."

This attitude drew a wave of stifled snickers from the class.

Professor Jin's face went from pale to red, her fingers gripping the lesson plan trembling slightly: "You... you have no respect for authority! I'll definitely report this to the administration."

"Suit yourself." Lin Jichuan finally bothered to lift half his face, revealing a pair of cold, indifferent eyes. He looked at the professor and gave a smile with zero warmth. "But Professor, you seem to have forgotten the board chairman's last name is Lin. You really think I'd care about your report?"

A light, casual remark, but it landed like a silent slap to the face.

Professor Jin's words died in her throat, her expression shifting several times.

She knew all about Lin Jichuan's background and understood that if she kept pushing, she'd be the one packing her bags.

In the end, she took a deep breath, forced down her anger, turned around, and began the lesson, choosing to ignore the incident.

The whole farce ended with Lin Jichuan winning, no contest.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Ye Jiaonan quickly slipped into the empty seat next to Lin Xishan.

He patted his chest, still freaked out, and leaned in to whisper: "That scared me to death. Good thing Jichuan showed up... Xishan, I'm really sorry about yesterday. I had an emergency, and my phone was dead..."

While Ye Jiaonan was apologizing to Lin Xishan, his watery eyes kept darting toward the back row, staring at the back of Lin Jichuan's motionless head, a faint, unnatural blush creeping up his cheeks.

Lin Xishan kept his eyes glued to the projection screen, only letting out a cold "Mm" through his nose.

He knew damn well—that young master Lin had just woken up in a bad mood, kicked the door open to catch some sleep, and caused chaos as a side effect. He hadn't meant to help anyone out.

But Ye Jiaonan obviously saw everything Lin Jichuan did through rose-colored glasses.

He couldn't be bothered to point it out. He was tired of playing along.

Thinking back to the cold wind he'd stood in outside the bar last night, and that cheap love hotel, his last shred of patience for Ye Jiaonan was completely gone.

He pulled out his notebook and subtly shifted away from him, drawing a clear boundary with his body language.

Ye Jiaonan noticed the cold shoulder, bit his lip, and turned back with a hurt look.

Better not to poke the bear right now. Anyway, Lin Xishan would forgive him eventually—after all, Lin Xishan was his lapdog. He was smugly thinking this when he also felt a twinge of pity for Lin Xishan. He liked Lin Jichuan, so Lin Xishan was doomed to a broken heart.

Sure, they both had the last name Lin, but one was a rich young master and the other a broke student—any idiot knew which to pick.

Thinking about it, he almost felt bad for Lin Xishan. The guy must be too distracted by being blown off yesterday to focus in class.

Lin Xishan obviously had no idea what was going through Ye Jiaonan's head. If he had, he'd have been pissed and slapped the "delusional narcissist" label on him.

But throughout that whole class, Lin Xishan really hadn't been paying attention.

What kept him from focusing was the image that kept flashing through his mind uninvited: those stunning, wary eyes that had scrutinized him this morning.

Pei Zhi.

That guy should've left that dump of a hotel by now, right? They were from two different worlds. They'd probably never cross paths again.

Sigh. Looked like he wouldn't be getting his money back. Lin Xishan felt a twinge of regret.

After all his mind-wandering, the bell rang. Before Professor Jin could even dismiss them, Lin Jichuan, who'd been face-down on the desk, instantly lifted his head, his eyes clear and sharp, no trace of sleepiness.

He grabbed his bag, ignored everyone—including Professor Jin, who looked like she wanted to say something—and strode out.

"Jichuan!" Ye Jiaonan jumped up and chased after him, his tone urgent and groveling. "Just now... thanks for helping me out."

Lin Jichuan didn't slow down, didn't even glance at him, and coldly tossed over his shoulder: "Thank me for what? Who helped you? Don't flatter yourself."

Those words instantly drained the color from Ye Jiaonan's face. He froze, watching Lin Jichuan walk away without a backward glance, and his eyes reddened again.

Lin Xishan walked past him, face blank, wanting only to get out of this mess and head back to the dorm to sleep.

"Xishan!" Ye Jiaonan grabbed his sleeve like a lifeline, voice choked with tears. "I really didn't mean it last night! Can you believe me? I'll buy you dinner tonight to make it up?"

Same old routine.

Lin Xishan pulled his hand back without hesitation, his voice flat: "No need. I've been busy lately. Don't contact me unless it's important."

Without sparing another look at Ye Jiaonan's devastated face, Lin Xishan strode out of the teaching building.

Taking a deep breath of the fresh air outside, he'd barely gotten a moment of peace when his phone buzzed in his pocket.

It was a text from an unknown number. The message was concise but had a no-nonsense edge:

"Lin Xishan? This is Pei Zhi. Meet me at the '1997 club' at nine tonight. —Pei Zhi."

Lin Xishan stared at the screen, stopping dead in his tracks.

What the fuck?

How did this guy get my number? And what's with that demanding tone? Does he really think he's a prince or something?

Remembering that oppressive stare, Lin Xishan held his phone, his fingertip hovering over the screen for a moment. Finally, he let out a cold laugh, locked the screen, and shoved the phone back into his pocket.

Screw that. Better to avoid trouble than to court it.

Forget the money. I'm done with it.