It had been years since he’d last been here, and things had changed a bit. The violin stand once by the desk was gone; the shelf toys had been replaced by medals and certificates.
The overall layout and colors hadn’t shifted much—still bright pastels. It was clear the designer was still the girl-at-heart Lady Shu Qiu, who always treated He Siheng like a dress-up doll, and he let her.
Tan Jing’s eyes lingered on the photo wall lined with frames. He walked over, gaze stopping on one.
It was He Siheng from junior high, more boyish then, but the youthful contours were emerging. His features carried that clean, pure teenage vibe.
He Siheng wore a blue basketball jersey, standing with teammates, one arm hugging a basketball, the other holding the championship medal around his neck, basking in victory.
Tan Jing had snuck to that game, sitting far back in the audience to avoid being spotted—last row, too distant to clearly see his expression on stage.
Today, by chance, he saw it in the photo. Sure enough, He Siheng had been just as he imagined: flamboyant, handsome, sunny, and adorable.
Tan Jing snapped a photo of it with his phone, filing it into the album named for those four years.
As he continued admiring, his phone pinged with a message from Wang Yizhou: Jing Bro! Big news! Where’d you and He Siheng go?!
Tan Jing frowned slightly and replied: He’s not feeling well. Took him home.
Wang Yizhou: Big news! Check the school forum quick!
Tan Jing never browsed the school forum—full of boring, troublesome chatter. He said flatly: No account.
Wang Yizhou: You don’t need one to view. Only to reply.
He sent a link right away.
Tan Jing saw the post title, his thumb pausing from closing the chat. Instead, he clicked the link.
—[Hot Post Today] Are the two School Grasses really not dating? Today’s sports festival killed me with the CP!
-Run the 3000m, I’ll cheer for you personally from the broadcast booth. Everyone cheers your win wild, but only I catch your exhausted collapse. What rivals-to-lovers plot? I’m living for it!
-Not just today. TBH, I was shipping them since the start of term! Remember hsh dyed his hair blonde like two days in?
-What blonde? It’s light gold, same as my fave idol’s recent stage. Super face-testing color. Worthy School Grass. First sight that day, I wanted to send him to debut.
-Hair color’s not the point. Point is, hsh got stopped by the patrolling president for the dye job. When hsh bent to write his name, president’s look and expression… no words, pic! [Image]
-AAAAH such doting eyes! Can’t keep my smile down!
-So beautiful, my eyes are living longer.
-Any fanart? Feast time!
-And military training! Weren’t they both punished to run laps? Actually, instructor made losers do 20 laps pushups, but He Siheng won and still ran with Tan Jing!
-Shared hardship romance! Shipping hard!
-Ye Pianzhou: What are you all shipping? Jing Bro did all that today cuz he lost a bet and had to be his lackey, out of necessity. Not what you think!
-Who let this blind idiot in? Boot!
-Wuwu another point: Don’t Tan Jing’s last two exam scores seem weird?
-Class 1 insider: Our homeroom seats by one-on-one tutoring. First and last pair up, changes once a semester.
-OMG! Anyone know Maitreya Buddha was Tan Jing’s freshman homeroom?
-WTF genius catch!
-Ye Pianzhou: Don’t go too far. Jing Bro missed both exams cuz family emergency. Can’t spill details, but def not bc of He Siheng.
-Who’s this Ye Pianzhou? Acting like Tan Jing’s insider.
-Some clueless rando.
-Zhou Bu Xia Yu: Stop shipping everything. Heng Bro only likes pretty girls, and he’s had a crush for years. Impossible with Class Monitor!
…
Tan Jing’s gaze stopped on “Zhou Bu Xia Yu”‘s reply.
Wang Yizhou was still ranting in WeChat: Jing Bro, these posts are too much! Twisting facts, painting you as He Siheng’s simp!
Tan Jing didn’t bother arguing, just assigned him a task: Find the admin, delete these posts.
Wang Yizhou: On it!
No more annoying pings. Tan Jing returned to the forum, saved the school gate photo, and closed the post.
He Siheng emerged from the shower to find Tan Jing leaning against his desk, long legs casually planted, fiddling with something in his hand.
Before he could make out what it was, Tan Jing heard him and raised it to his eye, lens pointed at him. “Like this?”
“…”
He Siheng rushed over and snatched the binoculars back, forcing an explanation. “I forgot to put them away.”
Tan Jing gave a neutral “Oh,” unclear if he bought it.
He Siheng shoved the binoculars into a desk drawer and urged, “I’m done showering. Mark me if you’re gonna.”
Tan Jing glanced at him unhurriedly. “Dry your hair first. I don’t want to end up with a face full of water.”
He Siheng clicked his tongue. “What a hassle.”
He said that, but he still plugged in the hairdryer and started blow-drying his hair.
After his shower, he changed into a black T-shirt that made his exposed skin look even fairer. His soft hair strands were still damp, his shoulders slim and straight, and his shoulder blades arched slightly under the thin fabric with his movements.
Slender, lean, yet carrying an unyielding toughness.
Tan Jing stared for a moment before lowering his eyelashes.
Amid the roar of the hairdryer, He Siheng heard Tan Jing suddenly speak up. “My birthday is next month.”
He Siheng paused, habitually snarking back at him. “What, you wanna mooch a birthday gift off me?”
Tan Jing smiled faintly. “You can send one if you want.”
He Siheng huffed lightly. “In your dreams. If you treat me to a meal, I might barely consider it.”
He said this deliberately to shut Tan Jing down, but the latter agreed readily. “Sure.”
He Siheng turned off the hairdryer and looked back at him with a baffled, weird expression. “You really wanna treat me to dinner?”
Tan Jing shrugged. “Depends if you wanna come.”
He Siheng actually thought about it. Tan Jing had helped him out a few times, and he was about to ask for a temporary mark anyway—treating him to a birthday meal wasn’t out of the question.
He was about to say it was free food anyway, so why not, when he heard Tan Jing add, “Tan Wan might come back.”
His expression froze as he met Tan Jing’s gaze.
Tan Jing’s smile faded a bit, his dark eyes fixed on him unblinkingly, his tone carrying a subtle caution and probing. “If you mind, I won’t invite her. Just the two of us.”
Unaware he was being observed, He Siheng set down the hairdryer and said carelessly, “What’s there to mind? Wanwan Sis got a boyfriend, not like she cut ties with me. If I can eat with you, why not with her?”
He ruffled his now-dry hair casually and sat on the edge of the bed, urging impatiently, “Hurry up. Let’s get this marking done before my parents get back.”
He emphasized after, “Remember to bite lightly.”
Tan Jing followed unhurriedly and sat beside him, casually picking up the previous topic for confirmation. “I thought you were still upset about it.”
![Conquering the Psycho Villain [Quick Transmigration]](https://i3.wp.com/dobynovels.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/ins.jpg?resize=151,215 "Conquering the Psycho Villain [Quick Transmigration]")
