Chapter 46 Part 1

Shen Yuze lifted a corner of the blanket and patted the mat in front of him, looking utterly relaxed, as if he didn’t think Lu Ping would refuse him at all.

The empty spot on the mat still faintly retained some warmth and an indentation, evidence that another figure had nestled there just minutes before.

Gazing at the handsome boy extending such an invitation, Lu Ping’s mind flashed in that instant with countless tales of debauched rulers from his history books.

Things like Daji and King Zhou of Shang, the Beacon Fires to Amuse the Feudal Lords, a rider amid red dust as the consort laughed, from then on the emperor skipped morning court…

…Stop! Cut it out!

Lu Ping shook his head, shaking all the nonsense out of his brain.

No matter how good-looking Shen Yuze was, he was still a boy of the same sex! He absolutely had to hold his ground—Shen Yuze just had to crook a finger, and he couldn’t lose his head like that.

Even if he couldn’t be a wise ruler, he couldn’t become a tyrant either.

With that thought, Lu Ping wrapped his little blanket tighter around himself and shrank back onto his own mat, declaring (or so he thought) righteously, “I-I’m not sleeping anymore! You shouldn’t sleep either, Shen Yuze! The plan for the day starts in the morning—since we’re awake, let’s do some morning reading!”

Shen Yuze: “…”

The gymnasium was fully enclosed, with only a ring of skylights at the very top of the walls. Through them, he could see it was still pitch black outside, the rain showing no signs of letting up.

“The rain hasn’t stopped, and there’s no sunlight at all—where’s the ‘morning’?” Shen Demon Consort tempted him again. “Besides, you didn’t bring any textbooks. How are you supposed to read?”

“Wherever there’s a beach in my heart, it’s the Maldives.” Lu Mingjun was all for the nation, a tragic yet heroic figure. “By the same logic, wherever there’s sunshine in my heart, it’s a morning reading classroom.”

“…”

“Even without textbooks or lights right now, I can recite from memory quietly!”

Shen Yuze: “…” He sneered coldly. “Go ahead and recite. When you memorize your way to top of the grade, I’ll personally present you with a Model Student award certificate.”

With that, Shen Yuze ignored him and lay back down on his own. He found Lu Ping so obtuse—what a waste of a perfectly good morning on this infuriating guy?

He even rolled over deliberately, turning his back to Lu Ping, then closed his eyes and pretended to sleep.

Not long after, he heard rustling sounds from behind. The little mouse dragged his mat closer toward him, lay down, and draped the blanket over himself.

The two lay back-to-back, one facing left, the other right.

Without opening his eyes, Shen Yuze asked, “Not reciting anymore?”

“I’m reciting, I’m reciting.” The little mouse’s voice came from behind. “I’m doing it silently in my head.”

“Silent recitation counts as reciting? If you don’t say it out loud, how would anyone know if you’re spacing out or actually studying?”

“But if I recite out loud, won’t it disturb you?”

“…I’m not afraid of being disturbed.” Shen Yuze huffed. “I’m supervising you right now. I say recite, so you recite. No slacking.”

Lu Ping thought to himself, Why is the young master so hard to please? He gets mad if I recite, mad if I don’t! But what can he do? He’s my deskmate—I have to indulge him.

And so, Lu Ping began reciting the language arts passage they’d studied a few days ago in a voice as soft as a murmur. The boy’s naturally crisp voice was deliberately lowered to avoid waking the other classmates, giving it an added layer of ambiguity and softness. His voice mingled with the relentless patter of rain outside the windows, wrapping around Shen Yuze’s ears.

It was strange—those same dull, tedious lines that bored him senseless when the teacher droned them in class turned into pleasing poetry when recited from Lu Ping’s mouth.

The entire gymnasium was shrouded in darkness. From some distant corner came the faint mumbling dream-talk of a boy. In his ears was Lu Ping’s soft, hazy recitation. The irritation in Shen Yuze’s heart gradually faded, and sleepiness washed over him like a tide once more.

Shen Yuze hadn’t slept so soundly in a long time.

…

When he woke again, it was to the glare of the gymnasium’s overhead lights. His watch showed six-thirty. The PE teacher raised a megaphone, instructing everyone to pack up their mats and blankets, return them to the storage room, and line up quickly for the toilets and morning wash-up.

Shen Yuze sat up and looked beside him: Lu Ping had fallen asleep too, his entire head buried in the blanket, covering his eyes and ears completely. Even with such bright lights and blaring announcements, nothing woke him.

Shen Yuze dug him out from under the blanket and saw red marks pressed into his face from the fabric, with shiny drool traces at the corner of his mouth. He was both dumb and utterly adorable.

“Mm…” Lu Ping was clearly still half-asleep, staring at Shen Yuze with bleary eyes and letting out a huge yawn.

Shen Yuze raised an eyebrow. “‘The plan for the day starts in the morning,’ huh? ‘Wherever there’s a textbook in my heart, it’s a morning reading classroom,’ right?”

Lu Ping: “…………..”

He chuckled awkwardly. “W-Well, it’s raining.”

He hadn’t expected to fall asleep midway through reciting either!

The two carried their blankets and mats back to the storage room, washed up, and then collected breakfast.

The school handed out milk, bread, and an egg to each student, but for growing boys, it was barely enough to tide them over. Lu Ping sorely missed the massive glutinous cakes his mom made—thin-skinned and stuffed full of filling.

They’d just filled their stomachs to about half when the teachers herded them out of the gymnasium and back to the teaching building.

The rain outside hadn’t lessened a bit; it was like the sky had been punctured with a huge hole, pouring down relentlessly onto the earth.

At this rate, they’d probably be stuck overnight at school again tonight.

Some classmates grumbled, “If only we’d gotten the day off earlier. Wouldn’t staying home and sleeping be so much nicer with rain like this?”

But no—as it was, not only did they have to sleep on mats at night, they still had to endure classes all day!

This typhoon was massive; two trees on the playground had even been uprooted. Back in the teaching building, Shen Yuze was surprised to find that all the corridor windows had been taped up in rice-character patterns. Paired with the lightning flashes, thunder, and oppressive clouds outside, the once-bright hallway instantly resembled a scene from a horror game.

Shen Yuze asked, “Why tape the glass like that?”

Lu Ping explained, “It’s a typhoon precaution. Otherwise, the wind might shatter the glass. The tape disperses the pressure.”

Shen Yuze extrapolated, “Like crawling flat on ice in winter instead of standing upright, right? Same principle.”

Lu Ping hesitated. “Probably…”

His physics was just average, and most importantly: “…I’ve never actually seen a frozen lake.”

The two boys stared at each other. One came from the north, never having experienced a typhoon’s wrath; the other grew up in South City, only knowing snow and ice from textbooks.

Shen Yuze thought of something, a smile flickering in his eyes. “Pingping, for winter break this year, want to come play in the Capital? See a frozen lake with your own eyes?”

Lu Ping realized it then! Shen Yuze usually called him “Lu Ping,” but whenever he had some scheme in mind, he switched to “Pingping.”

Locals here often muddled front and back nasal sounds—even Lu Mom pronounced “Pingping” like “pp.” But Shen Yuze said it perfectly, the ending tone dipping gently, laced with that distinctive Capital accent, indescribably casual and tender.

Every time Shen Yuze called him “Pingping,” Lu Ping’s inner tyrant started stirring.

He knew that with just a nod, he wouldn’t have to worry about a thing—flights, lodging, local sightseeing plans—Shen Yuze would handle it all flawlessly.

“Talk about it later,” Lu Ping said, ears burning, afraid that hearing it more would make him surrender without principles again. “Winter break’s still far off.”

Far? Not really. Just a nod away.

Shen Yuze didn’t press. He was confident: No matter if Lu Ping agreed now or not, when snow fell in the Capital, they would definitely be there together.

…

The two entered the classroom one after the other. Lu Ping keenly noticed the atmosphere in the class was off.

The girls all sported heavy dark circles, their little faces pale as they huddled in their seats whispering. Even the most lively Chen Miaomiao was silent today… Weird. They’d stayed overnight in the classroom yesterday—based on what Lu Ping knew of Chen Miaomiao, shouldn’t she be bouncing around, eagerly sharing all the boarding gossip?

Because of the rain, they skipped morning exercises and stayed in the classroom.

An eerie mood hung over the room. The liberal arts class already had far more girls than boys; with the girls silent, the boys didn’t dare break it either.

A girl stood up and went to Chen Miaomiao, asking softly, “Miaomiao, wanna go to the toilet?”

Chen Miaomiao startled, shaking her head frantically. “N-No! I’m not going!”

Her water cup on the desk was empty—she hadn’t drunk a sip all morning, her lips cracked dry.

The girl bit her lip and turned to Chen Miaomiao’s deskmate. “Zhou Yue, you going?”

Zhou Yue hesitated. “Just us two…? Maybe call a few more.”

Led by them, several more girls gradually stood up. Seven or eight linked arms, forming a formidable human wall, and awkwardly shuffled out of the class.

Lu Ping found it very strange.

He nudged Shen Yuze. “The girls are acting really weird today.”

Shen Yuze didn’t speak, just glanced at him, signaling to continue.

Lu Ping said, “Normally, two or three go together to the toilet at most. Never seen so many head out at once.”

“You’re quite observant.”

“Aren’t you curious?”

“Not really.” Shen Yuze closed his textbook and asked calmly, “Why should I be curious about the girls?”

“…” Lu Ping suddenly realized Shen Yuze had never paid attention to the girls in class. After being deskmates for so long, Shen Yuze had never initiated a conversation with any girl. Even if they approached him, his response was always indifferent, never taking interest.