Chapter 36: That Gaze Is Sinfully Alluring

Students in grades 10 and 11 were still in class, their voices rising clearly in the silent campus.

Song Yao and Ding Jiahui had already arrived, along with Guo Zi, and they were chatting with several girls in the corridor.

But mostly the others were talking; Song Yao just accompanied them, nodding occasionally, maintaining a cold, aloof demeanor.

“Actually, I was surprised yesterday too—just after checking our scores, they showed up.”

Zhang Yuquan was there too; he seemed to be recounting how Tsinghua and Peking University had come to his house last night.

In the end, it was how hard he struggled before finally choosing Tsinghua University.

The surrounding classmates listened with great envy.

But the moment Xu Qingzhou arrived, the corridor fell silent; everyone inexplicably grew a little excited, as if expecting something, all turning toward him.

“Guo Zi, can’t you use a little common sense?”

Read!

Liu Ying was comforting a girl, talking to her about tutoring classes.

“Just come back to school for a look—afterwards, you won’t have many chances to come back.” Xu Qingzhou interacted naturally with Liu Ying; once he’d thought teachers were monsters, but after growing up, he realized they were just people too.

The two treated each other like ordinary classmates, offering no explanations, asking no questions.

Facing the curious stares of several girls, Song Yao remained calm, showing no trace of embarrassment or shyness at the teasing, and simply nodded to Xu Qingzhou.

“Thank you, Teacher Liu,” Guo Zi said.

The girls sighed in unison, looking smug—Song Yao had chosen Peking University, so Xu Qingzhou must have too.

Xu Qingzhou was genuinely exasperated; he knew explanations were useless now. Seeing Liu Ying still discussing school matters with several parents, he said, “Goodbye, Teacher Liu,” and left.

A girl curiously asked: “Xu Qingzhou, did you also sign with Peking University?”

No one expected a drama, but no one could say they weren’t disappointed—they’d all hoped for one last big scandal before graduation.

“Yeah, I did,” Xu Qingzhou nodded in confirmation.

Guo Zi said respectfully: “Teacher Liu, I’ve come to pick up the report guide.”

Especially Zhang Yuquan, who had long hoped Song Yao would directly dump Xu Qingzhou on the spot.

“Guo Zi, you did quite well this time,” Liu Ying smiled.

Liu Ying then turned to Xu Qingzhou and said with a smile: “You won’t need this, will you?”

!.

Liu Ying thought for a moment, nodded, and decided the school choice made sense: “Hmm, you’ve clearly done your research—Capital University of Transportation and China National Petroleum University both have admission scores above 635. With your score, it’ll come down to luck.”

He walked up to the group, gave a casual greeting, and Song Yao gave a slight nod in return. Even more frustrating, Zhang Yuxin treated him with indifference. In the end, he accepted it: when he got to university, there’d be plenty of beautiful girls—why waste time clinging to two crooked trees?

She was clearly a top-50 student in the province, yet now she suddenly felt like a free bonus item.

Xu Qingzhou stepped out of the classroom; Ding Jiahui and the girls immediately wore knowing expressions and followed him inside.

Liu Ying smiled gently and said: “Alright, go on, you’ve kept Song Yao waiting half the day.”

Xu Qingzhou remembered this girl usually ranked around tenth—now she was already asking about tutoring classes; clearly, she hadn’t done well.

“Wait, why are you pulling me?”

He was utterly baffled until Guo Zi came over and whispered: “Someone just saw Zhang Yuxin waiting for you at the door.”

Zhang Yuquan couldn’t stand this ridiculous fairy-tale romance—he waved his hand and slipped away.

He’d graduated years ago and still joked with friends about how cowardly he’d been in high school—if he could go back in time, he’d never have bowed and scraped before his teachers.

Zhang Yuquan’s molars ground together, but he was powerless—both families had already dined together.

Xu Qingzhou understood: these people wanted to witness a “caught in the act” scene. Too bad—they’d be disappointed. He and Song Yao had no relationship at all.

After greeting everyone, Xu Qingzhou and Guo Zi headed to the classroom. The class was still lively, with three or four parents still discussing things.

“Mm,” Song Yao nodded, paused, then whispered: “The admissions officer told me to make sure you don’t get poached by Tsinghua.”

Even Guo Zi, who had followed them out, was dragged back by Ding Jiahui again.

“What about the school?” Liu Ying asked.

The college entrance exam works like this: some students with average grades suddenly score high, while others who were top performers suddenly fall right to the borderline of the first-tier admission line.

Guo Zi quickly listed the five schools he planned to apply to, coming to pick up the report guide—and more importantly, to consult about school choices.

“Huh~” Xu Qingzhou exhaled, stopped beside Song Yao, placed his hands on the balcony railing, and gazed at the distant playground. “You’ve already signed with Peking University, right?”

“Not bad, not bad,” Guo Zi scratched his head, humbly replied. He was genuinely satisfied with his score: first, it matched his mock exam results almost exactly—even better than expected—and when estimating his score earlier, he’d deliberately underestimated it, so his actual score was over twenty points higher than he’d predicted.

Only Song Yao’s expression remained cold and unchanged; Ding Jiahui, however, looked at him strangely—as if she’d seen right through him and was warning him to be careful.

“Are you this year’s top science student?”

“Mm.”

Meeting Song Yao’s gaze, Xu Qingzhou was momentarily stunned—her eyes were beautiful, bright and sharp. They say the eyes are windows to the soul; now he truly understood that.

That gaze is dangerously tempting.

(End of Chapter)