Chapter 4

Huh? One transfer student leaves, and another arrives? What were the odds?

The classmates exchanged glances but still followed the teacher’s instructions, clapping politely to welcome the newcomer.

The sparse applause rose unenthusiastically. At the same time, the classroom door was pushed open once more.

Sunlight from the corridor poured in through the doorway, spilling onto the boy who was striding into the classroom, as if the rays were chasing after his footsteps.

He was tall, with a slender figure and long legs encased in dark blue school pants. Jiaojiang No. 1 Middle School’s uniform was the standard athletic style, which classmates often mocked as “trash bags” or “ragged cloths.” But only now did they realize that the exact same uniform could look so different with just a change of face and physique.

One step, two steps.

The boy stepped onto the podium and stood beside the homeroom teacher.

His skin was fair but not sickly; his features were refined yet not overly delicate. He seemed too perfect—the kind of perfection devoid of any human touch. His handsomeness carried a strong sense of distance. Even standing on the podium in front of the blackboard, he felt impossibly remote, as if he belonged to a different world from everyone in the class.

Cold, aloof, arrogant—that was the first impression this unfamiliar transfer student gave everyone.

His presence was like a drop of cold water hitting a pot of boiling oil. The previously quiet classroom instantly filled with noisy chatter. The teenagers, still in the throes of puberty, eyed the handsome newcomer curiously. They had countless questions: Where was he from? What was his name? Why had he transferred here…?

Amid the clamor, one person’s reaction stood out awkwardly—Lu Ping, sitting in the last row, had gone pale as a sheet. His mouth hung open foolishly, as if he’d seen a ghost!

…No, no doubt about it—he had definitely seen a ghost!

Lu Ping thought that if he hadn’t seen a ghost, how else could “wonderland,” who was supposed to be far away in the Capital, appear right in front of him?!!

When he got a clear look at the transfer student, Lu Ping’s breathing stopped for several seconds.

There was no way Lu Ping could be mistaken… This was definitely wonderland in the flesh! Lu Ping knew him too well. His phone held all of wonderland’s photos; he’d even screenshot and saved every single one of his posts. Lu Ping clearly remembered his eyebrows and eyes, the small mole under his eye, and even the way he furrowed his brow when in a bad mood.

Was this a dream?

Lu Ping discreetly jabbed his compass into his fingertip. The sharp pain, connected as it was to his heart, instantly cleared his mind. A drop of blood welled up and fell onto the open notebook in front of him.

He stared at the bright red blood and finally realized this was no dream.

—The idol whose identity he’d stolen had truly descended into his world.

Fortunately, Lu Ping sat in the last row and was always a marginal figure in the class, so none of his bizarre reactions drew any attention from the others.

Seeing the class in chaos, the homeroom teacher slammed the desk a few times, barely managing to quiet everyone down.

“Alright, Shen Classmate is now part of our class. Save your questions for later. Quiet down now! Let him introduce himself.”

The boy’s gaze swept indifferently over his future classmates. He accepted everyone’s stares calmly, parted his thin lips, and uttered a brief introduction: “Hello, everyone. I’m Shen Yuze.”

Just eight words, and the self-introduction was done.

No one’s curiosity was satisfied. They were about to press further when the homeroom teacher interrupted for the second time.

“Shen Yuze, we have few boys in our liberal arts class, and you’re tall, so we’ll place you in the last row for now.” The homeroom teacher pointed to the empty seat beside Lu Ping. “Sit next to Lu Ping.”

Lu Ping: “…”

Lu Ping: “…………”

Lu Ping: “…………..”

Lu Ping jolted as if shocked by electricity. He sprang to his feet and stammered, “B-but Wang Bin’s desk is too dirty. The drawer is full of trash, and… and the surface is all scratched up…”

His voice grew smaller and smaller as the homeroom teacher’s brows furrowed tighter and her gaze turned increasingly stern.

“Lu Ping, tell me—is there any other empty seat in the class besides the one next to you? If the desk is dirty, take your new classmate to the logistics office after morning self-study to get a new one.” The homeroom teacher never tolerated defiance from her students. “Any more questions?”

“…No questions.”

In the end, Lu Ping could only lower his head and slink back to his seat.

His body went rigid; he didn’t dare move an inch, as if turned to stone by a spell.

From the corner of his eye, he saw wonderland… no, Shen Yuze now. He watched as Shen Yuze descended from the podium. The other boy’s pace was neither hurried nor slow as he wove through the two rows of desks, step by step, toward him.

He was coming, bringing with him the stares of the entire class.

Lu Ping could feel those burning gazes shift from Shen Yuze onto himself—a sensation utterly foreign to someone who’d always been invisible. The stares were viscous and heavy, pressing down on Lu Ping until he could hardly breathe.

Time dragged on agonizingly slow, each second stretching like a year; yet it also flew by. Before Lu Ping could blink more than a few times, Shen Yuze had stopped beside him.

Then, Shen Yuze pulled out the chair.

Then, Shen Yuze set down his bag.

Then, Shen Yuze sat.

Just like that, a figure and a source of warmth appeared beside him. Shen Yuze’s presence was overwhelmingly strong; Lu Ping couldn’t ignore him at all.

Shen Yuze didn’t initiate conversation with Lu Ping, and of course Lu Ping wouldn’t—or rather, didn’t dare—speak to him.

Lu Ping stared fixedly at the textbook open on his desk, but his hand quietly clenched his pants.

His heart pounded wildly, his face flushing from initial pallor to deep red.

When he was very young, he’d learned the idiom “Lord Ye’s love of dragons.” But what Lu Ping had done was a million times worse than Lord Ye.

He’d fantasized countless times about being wonderland, mimicking his tone in online posts, imitating his personality in fan interactions… Lu Ping had stood stark naked before a mirror, enamored with the fictional self reflected there. He never imagined the mirror would shatter, revealing the real wonderland stepping out.

If class weren’t in session, Lu Ping would have bolted from the room straight to the Jiaojiang Bridge to jump off!

So embarrassing… Utterly mortifying…

After the shame came a surge of panic.

Lu Ping wondered, were things really this coincidental? He’d posted online pretending to be wonderland, and now the very person he’d impersonated had become his desk mate? Had Shen Yuze found out beforehand and come specifically to confront and punish him?

If Shen Yuze wanted to beat him or yell at him, Lu Ping would accept it. But what terrified him was if Shen Yuze spread it around—to classmates, teachers, and worst of all, his parents.

Just imagining that possibility made Lu Ping want to jump into the river again.

From childhood, Lu Dad and Lu Mom had taught him that though their family was poor, the poor must have dignity and never take what wasn’t theirs. Lu Ping was sensible; he never coveted others’ toys, snacks, or cool clothes. But this time… he’d stolen wonderland.

If his parents found out about this absurd act, how disappointed they’d be!

Lu Ping didn’t dare move a muscle. Throughout the entire half-hour morning self-study, he stared at the textbook in front of him without turning a single page.

Only when the bell rang did the tension coiled in his chest finally release in a rush.

By then, his back was soaked with cold sweat.

But no sooner had one wave subsided than another rose.

The classmates were all fascinated by the new transfer student. During the brief break, a crowd swarmed him, eagerly asking questions.

“Classmate, you have a northern accent. Where in the north are you from?”

“Shen Yuze, you’re so tall. Do you play basketball? Count you in for the next game.”

“Shen Classmate, what are your hobbies?”

As Shen Yuze’s desk mate, Lu Ping was nearly shoved aside by the throng.

But Lu Ping was used to being invisible. Being overlooked was actually a blessing.

Hearing the questions, Lu Ping silently answered them in his mind for Shen Yuze: Capital, plays but doesn’t like it, hobby is horseback riding.

Shen Yuze’s responses were even more concise than Lu Ping had anticipated: “Capital. Don’t play. Horseback riding.”

The classmates: “…”

Only Lu Ping thought: Bingo! All correct!

But Shen Yuze’s aloofness didn’t dampen their interest; if anything, it made him seem more enigmatic. This cool transfer student was like a character straight out of a comic—who wouldn’t want to befriend someone like that?

The gossipy classmates fired off more questions: “Why’d you transfer to Jiaojiang?” “Do you game? Let’s add friends.” “Where do you live? Close to school?”

There were too many questions, and Lu Ping was curious about the answers too. He pricked up his ears to eavesdrop.

Just then, Lu Ping noticed a bob-haired girl appear in the crowd.

Her name was Chen Miaomiao, bubbly to the extreme and the class’s gossip queen. And—she was a fan of “fake-diaond”!

Lu Ping remembered how she’d excitedly recommended the fake-diaond account to her friends that day, praising him as a kind-hearted, handsome guy…

Why was Chen Miaomiao squeezing into the crowd now? Did he even need to ask?!

Sure enough, leveraging her small stature, Chen Miaomiao quickly wormed to the front and stood before Shen Yuze.

She cleared her throat, probing like it was a secret code: “Ahem… Are you fake…”

—He absolutely could not let her finish that question!

Lu Ping’s mind blanked with that single thought, short-circuiting completely. In a flash, he did something utterly shocking!

He shot to his feet, deliberately kicking his chair. It scraped across the floor with a piercing screech, making the surrounding classmates instinctively cover their ears and fall silent.

Even Shen Yuze, surrounded by the crowd, looked up at the sound, toward him.

The boy’s eyes were clear yet icy, like a bottomless cold pool.

Under that gaze, Lu Ping’s heart rate skyrocketed—thump, thump, thump. Would anyone else hear it?

But Lu Ping had no room to retreat.

“Sh-SHen Classmate,” he mustered the greatest courage of his life, meeting his new desk mate’s eyes—unaware that his cheeks burned brighter than the dawn—”The teacher asked me to take you to get new desk and chair. Let’s… let’s go!”