Chapter 467

As soon as he entered the classroom, Jiang Nian fixed his gaze on Huang Fang.

"Good morning, Fangfang."

"Mm." Huang Fang was about to respond when she suddenly saw Jiang Nian crouch down and reach into her desk, "Y-you…?"

"Nothing, just checking if you bought any apples."

Huang Fang:

Jiang Nian relaxed, preparing to get hot water from his thermos. He looked up—there, on the desk, was a wrapped apple.

"Huh?"

It definitely wasn't there just now!

"That… I think it's better to give it to you," Huang Fang said. "Pay a friend fee—please don't torment me anymore."

Better to give it?

Then what about Tang? You're a damn iron fan, aren't you?

"What kind of talk is that?" Jiang Nian was speechless, staring at the apple with mixed emotions. "Fangfang, you really know how to speak."

Huang Fang: "I learned it from you."

Jiang Nian fell silent, thought for a moment, then accepted it.

"Then thank you."

Soon after, people began entering the classroom.

A few classmates who always woke early walked in carrying breakfast, and greeted Jiang Nian as they passed by.

"Good morning."

"Mm." Jiang Nian nodded, preparing to work on his problems.

But he suddenly felt uneasy, so he put the bag with the two apples into his book basket and covered it with a book.

Only then did he sigh in relief and continue solving problems.

Now that everything's hidden, no one should be able to bother me… right?

Morning self-study was about to begin.

"Hello hello!" Zhang Nenzhi arrived at the classroom, dropped her bag on her seat, and exclaimed, "Huh, you didn't bring your bag today?"

"Ah…" Jiang Nian's heart skipped.

What the hell is "Holmes-branch"?

Fortunately, Zhang Nenzhi only asked casually and didn't press further; before he could answer, she happily moved on to another topic.

"We have PE today—aren't you going to skip again?"

"I won't skip. What do you want to play?" Jiang Nian never refused outright—he mastered the art of advancing to retreat and retreating to advance.

By refusing, he handed the choice back to the other person.

He disliked passivity.

Many parents liked this too—agreeing to their child's requests first, then finding reasons later when it came time to fulfill them.

The difference was:

Jiang Nian didn't play mind games over small things; his use of advance-and-retreat in big matters was solely to seize control of the situation.

More importantly, he never broke his word—he would fulfill it, though exactly how remained to be seen.

"Teach me how to play basketball," Zhang Nenzhi suddenly said.

"Huh?" Jiang Nian

He was slightly surprised—why not badminton anymore? "Fine, the court should be big enough."

Don't think about it now—just agree first.

True to form, Zhang Nenzhi pursed her lips, her eyes crinkling with delight. Timely emotional value was like timely rain.

If they wanted water, give them water.

Don't worry about what comes after—just be happy now.

"Okay!" She pulled out a test paper from her desk, uncapped her pen, then double-checked, "You're serious, right?"

"Mm." Jiang Nian nodded. "I don't like playing with Li Hua and the others—they're too rough."

"Hehe." Zhang Nenzhi giggled, her face stern as she threatened, "I'll tell the group leader on you."

That was flirting.

Jiang Nian shot Zhang Nenzhi a glance, thinking she must be in a good mood. He pinched her leg and went back to writing.

"Hey!" Zhang Nenzhi puffed up in annoyance.

Morning self-study.

Li Hua arrived right on time and slid across the podium. He dropped his bag and started cursing nonstop.

"Fucking hell, I got my name written down downstairs."

Jiang Nian glanced at him. "Did you say thank you?"

"Say thank you to what?!" Li Hua said, grabbing his test paper. "But I used Yu Tongjie's name, so it should be fine." "You're pretty clever," Jiang Nian said indifferently. He'd used open-source code and directly ascended to Class Zero. Said he was an auditor, but wouldn't he still be in the graduation photo?

Still, he didn't envy them.

Class Zero's teaching pace differed from the Olympiad track—they were already preparing for their third round of review, meaning endless practice tests.

If he wanted steady progress, the Olympiad track suited him better.

Suddenly, Li Hua patted him.

"Nian."

"Huh?"

"Look what I've got!" Li Hua whispered mysteriously, pulling a wrapped apple from his bag under the desk.

"Send it to me?" Jiang Nian glanced over, reached out and grabbed it. "Didn't know you were such a faggot, Hua."

"Red Apple!" Li Hua dodged away, shoving the apple into his bag. "Get lost! This was given to me by someone else!"

"Who's so boring?" Ceng You grinned.

Hearing this, Li Hua felt as if sleep had met a pillow. He first smirked slyly, then immediately leaned back in tactical retreat.

"Of course it's a girl."

"Who sends apples in the morning?" Ceng You frowned. "Probably a neighbor or relative, just giving it out of politeness."

At this, Li Hua's expression changed instantly.

"Don't… don't talk nonsense."

A smile doesn't vanish—it just moves.

Seeing this, Ceng You immediately found his amusement.

His face lit up with an Aniya-style grin, and he began muttering out his deductions.

"Let me guess—if it's a friend, high school friends usually don't give gifts in the morning; they can just hand them over on the way home at night."

"If it's a relative, there must be an age gap. People close in age avoid suspicion—you wouldn't flaunt it."

"So it's a relative still in junior high. Since they don't have evening self-study, they gave it to you in the morning."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Hua was stunned.

"What the fuck have you been reading all this time?!"

Hearing this, Jiang Nian burst out laughing.

"Hua, didn't you say you had a pretty cousin?"

"Oh right, damn it!"

At this, everyone in the group burst into laughter.

Fuck, his life's got a lot of drama.

After a while, the exposed fool Li Hua perked up again.

"Regardless, I've got an apple."

"Mm." Jiang Nian didn't even look up.

"I think I'm probably the first person in our class—no… even the entire grade—to have an apple today!"

Li Hua beamed, slapped Jiang Nian on the shoulder.

"Nian, you agree, right?"

Hearing this, Jiang Nian paused his pen. He lifted his head and gave a serious look at Li Hua, who was ecstatic.

"Yeah, yeah."

Big break, running exercises.

The speaker looped music; the monitor had already left with others. Jiang Nian stood in place, thought for a moment, then asked Liu Yang for leave.

Stomach cramps about to give birth—special leave requested.

After going downstairs, he wandered over to the Science Office, sat at Qing Bao's desk, and casually brewed some tea to chat a bit.

On the other side.

Lin Yuxi pulled her best friend through the Gao San running formation, slipping over to Class Three of the Olympiad team while still in line.

She carried a bag, scanned the crowd, but didn't see Jiang Nian.

"Huh? Where's Senior?"

"Maybe he took leave?" her friend said, glancing toward the flagpole. "Let's go check over there."

"Okay."

Over at the office.

Jiang Nian was enjoying the peace, biting into a red apple he'd washed from Qing Bao's desk.

"Teacher, how many apples did you get last year?"

Qing Bao, grading papers, paused to think. Then, with both hands, she traced a shape on her desk.

"About this many."

"That many?" Jiang Nian was stunned. Qing Bao was popular. "Wait, all from students?"

"Some teachers gave too, but only once, then never again."

Qing Bao shrugged. "I don't even like apples."

"I see. Then I won't give you one." Jiang Nian had never planned to give one anyway—he'd even hoped to get one for free.

"Mm." Qing Bao didn't commit. After a moment, she added, "Come pick a few later, take them home to eat."

"Hah, fine." Jiang Nian replied.

As soon as the third class ended, everyone in Class Three rushed out of the classroom.

"PE class! Hurry and claim the court!!"

"Where's Jiang Nian?"

"Forget that guy, let's go!"

Sun Zhicheng slipped past them and walked out alone. He'd planned it: he'd give apples to only five people on Christmas Eve.

The four in his group, and Yu Zhiyi.

He didn't plan to give Chen Yunyun an apple—apples were too cliché. Days ago, he'd already bought a chocolate apple.

It looked smaller than an apple, hollow inside with chocolate.

The packaging was exquisite, plus a candy cane.

As for why he gave Yu Zhiyi an apple? Simple—it was his safety net. If the big prize missed, at least the small one would land.

At least I'll earn a smile, right?

On the sports field.

"Form up."

"No free activity today," the PE teacher glanced at them. "Finals are coming—there's a task."

"Huh?!!"

"No way, teacher!"

The whole class groaned in protest against this shameless act.

Suddenly, someone asked.

"Teacher, what's the task today?"

Hearing this, the PE teacher smiled and spat out two words.

"Physical test."

"Boys, fifteen hundred meters; girls, eight hundred! Everyone, turn left! Head for the bottom of the phoenix tree—march!"

"Fuck! Why's it the physical test?!" Yang Qiming's face fell in despair—he was a weakling; he'd probably die on the track.

"Bro, it's fine," Huang Cailang volunteered with a goofy grin. "Just run slow—I'll run with you."

Hearing this, Yang Qiming felt warmth in his chest.

"Good brother!"

When Sun Zhicheng heard "physical test," he tensed up. His heart pounded, and a metallic taste filled his mouth.

He looked at Lin Dong and swallowed hard.

"Dong-ge, slow down a bit when we run."

Lin Dong flicked his hair. "No problem!"

"Liu Yang, slow down, you bastard!" Li Hua was secretly forming alliances. "Don't run like a dead dog just showing off."

"Damn, I'm not fast!" Liu Yang looked aggrieved. "Why not tell Jiang Nian? He's still the long-distance champion."

Hearing this, Li Hua thought

it made sense, and turned to Jiang Nian.

"You heard that? Don't show off either."

Jiang Nian glanced sideways at him. "Why?"

"Fuck, fine! I'll give you an apple, okay?!" Li Hua gave up—he hated people who sprinted through physical tests.

Jiang Nian sneered. "I'm the Motivation Star, long-distance champion, captain of the soccer team—do I need your damn apple?"

Ma Guojun sidled up with a grin. "The track can't fit that many people."

The girls' side was filled with sighs. Facing the eight-hundred-meter test, they looked like wilted eggplants.

"Waaah, what do I do, Beibei?" Zhang Ningzhi nearly cried, hugging Yao Bei Bei. "I can't run fast!"

"It's fine—I'll just run slow," Yao Bei Bei comforted her.

"Wang Yuhe, run slow later," Nie Qiqi, also frail, said. "If you lap me, I'll grab your leg!"

Wang Yuhe thought for a moment. "Then I'll just avoid you, right?"

"You!!" Nie Qiqi nearly spat blood.

"Among the girls in our class, isn't the monitor the strongest?" Wang Yuhe glanced at her. "Why don't you tell the monitor to slow down?"

"Th-That's not the same!" Nie Qiqi instantly turned into a turtle girl. "The monitor has her own rhythm—what do you know!"

"That... that can't be the same!" Nie Qiqi instantly turned into a turtle girl, "The monitor has her own rhythm—what do you know!"

"Hmph! Then I'll run faster!" With that, Wang Yuhe cast a glance at the annoying Jiang Nian in the boys' line.

She thought—if only we ran together, she'd definitely beat him.

The girls ran first; the boys watched the girls trudge along. Their curiosity vanished; their faces turned pale.

Time wasn't long, but for the girls undergoing the test, it felt like years.

Li Qingrong had been leading, but after glancing back at the girls behind, she slowed down, running at a steady, moderate pace.

After two laps, the girls couldn't speak. Their hair turned into barcode stripes, stuck to their faces with sweat, indistinguishable between life and death.

Jiang Nian greeted Li Qingrong and casually complimented her.

"... You held back, huh?"

Nearby girls glanced at Li Qingrong. During the run, they'd only felt exhaustion—but at least their legs hadn't trembled.

Hearing the monitor had held back, they felt a faint warmth.

"Thank you, monitor."

"Waaah, I knew why I didn't die this time!"

"The monitor's so nice."

"So touching—I wanna hug the monitor!" Nie Qiqi reached out to embrace her.

Cai Xiaoqing yanked her away, pointing at her.

"Stop acting up."

"Pfft." Nie Qiqi pouted. "Bitch, why do you care so much? I won't give you an apple tonight."

Cai Xiaoqing shot her a look. "Heh."

"Boys, get ready!" Liu Yang shouted from over there.

Jiang Nian had no choice but to hurry back to his line. The PE teacher gave the order, and the boys' squad surged forward like horses broken free.

"Boys, get ready!" Liu Yang shouted from over there.

Jiang Nian had no choice but to hurry back to the team. The PE teacher gave the command, and the boys' line surged forward like a herd of wild horses let loose.

"Fuck! Li Hua, your mom!"

"Traitor!"

"Fuck, how the hell did Li Hua get first?"

"Aruba him!"

Li Hua was ferocious as a dog in the first lap, and every word he'd spoken turned out to be a lie.

In the second lap, he settled down, caught up by his teammates, each of whom gave him an elbow. He was immediately out and dared not show off anymore.

By the third lap, he was sticking out his tongue, questioning life itself.

At the final sprint, Jiang Nian was leading the pack. After crossing the finish line, he found this guy wasn't even breathing hard.

"W-wtf, you... fucking didn't even run, did you?"

Liu Yang came over with the stopwatch. "Jiang Nian, you're awesome—1500 meters, over ninety points on the physical test."

Li Hua:

3

The physical test was hectic, then came pull-ups. Liu Yang, seeing girls watching, did nine, drawing a chorus of gasps.

"Liu Yang's that strong?"

"He's the PE monitor—it's normal."

"Haha, Yang Qiming did half a rep."

The girls were also taking the physical test; only Yu Zhiyi and a few other lively girls finished early and came over to watch.

"Who's over there?"

"Let's go check."

Li Hua had only intended to half-ass the pull-ups, but seeing Yu Zhiyi there, he forced himself to do four or five.

His arms were numb and tingling; he wanted to find Jiang Nian.

Liu Yang said, "Oh, he did twenty and left."

Li Hua froze. "Twenty?"

Jiang Nian had no interest in showing off, but the physical test consumed seventy percent of PE class time—unintentionally helping him out.

On the boys' side, Liu Yang recorded the results.

On the girls' side, the class monitor handled it—after all, Cai Xiaoqing was taking the test, and Li Qingrong got a perfect score directly from the PE teacher.

The PE teacher gave a thumbs-up.

So Jiang Nian slipped back to the basketball court, met up with Zhang Nianzhi, who had finished early, and taught her how to play.

Saying "taught" was really just playing together.

The basketball court they were on was slightly isolated and hidden. Yao Bei Bei squatted under the hoop, head down, playing on her phone.

Jiang Nian was about to teach Zhang Nianzhi how to shoot, but then saw Chen Yunyun coming from the sports field—he had to give up.

He thought, "Got too cocky—it's Christmas Eve today."

Indeed, safety first.

So he returned to his serious demeanor, and only relaxed when Chen Yunyun and Wang Yuhe headed toward the side gate.

As dismissal neared, his courage grew a little.

"Come on, try a layup."

"Huh?" Zhang Nianzhi froze, holding the ball. "How do you even do a layup... I don't know how."

"You attack, I defend," Jiang Nian's mind wandered. "Just break past me and shoot."

"Oh, okay." Zhang Nianzhi nodded.

She bounced the ball, jogged over to Jiang Nian, tensed up seeing him block her, her delicate face flushed red.

She thought for a moment, then started walking with the ball.

Jiang Nian paid no attention, pretending to defend. His hands, which rarely touched the ball, feigned blocking her.

Under the hoop, Yao Bei Bei's face twisted in disgust.

"Ew, dirty pervert."

After school.

"Bye!" Zhang Nianzhi waved to Jiang Nian.

"Mm, be careful on your way," Jiang Nian replied smoothly, thinking: Baby Zhizhi really is sweet—especially during close defense.

Pfft...

Yao Bei Bei rolled her eyes and dragged the clueless Zhang Nianzhi away.

Poor girl, stuck with Jiang Nian—she's done for.

Jiang Nian noticed Yao Bei Bei's expression but didn't care—he thought: I'm openly a pervert, but I didn't take advantage of you.

I'm talking about you, Huang Beibei.

He watched Zhang Nianzhi and the other girl leave, then headed out of campus. He had a big delivery to drag back to Xu Qianqian's place.

While she was away at lunch, he'd sneak in and set things up.

Caring for a left-behind girl.

Just outside the school gate, he checked the parcel number at the delivery station.

"Senior!"

A low, soft voice startled him. He turned—sure enough, it was Lin Yuxi.

"Hm?"

"I brought you an apple," the girl smiled sweetly.