Chapter 94

"Power outage?" Sun Zhicheng's first reaction was to stand up. "Fuck, awesome! Really out?"

After confirming no power for three seconds, he joined the boys in the class shouting.

Someone squealed, "I, Sun Zhicheng, like Chen Yunyun!" It made him flush crimson; he immediately shouted back in denial.

He guessed it was Lin Dong, but Lin Dong was talking to Wang Yuhe.

Hearing the commotion, Lin Dong turned around with a look of surprise, lips curled in a grin.

Sun Zhicheng cursed silently, torn over whether he should explain to Chen Yunyun.

Someone brought a small desk lamp; dim lights flickered in a few spots at the back. The scattered glow couldn't illuminate the classroom—most had already left their seats to form small groups.

He glanced at Chen Yunyun's seat and his heart lurched.

Empty?

The classroom was dim; he couldn't spot Chen Yunyun. His heart trembled, unwillingly glancing toward the front-corner seat where Jiang Nian sat.

Good—only Yao Beibei, Zhang Ningzhi, Huang Fang, and a few other girls were chatting.

Oh—missed one: Ceng You, his school uniform pulled over his head, either playing on his phone or sleeping. Jiang Nian was nowhere to be seen, and Sun Zhicheng exhaled in relief.

Probably stepped out to the hallway.

Thinking this, Sun Zhicheng stood and walked out, then couldn't help glancing back at Lin Dong. He didn't understand what that afternoon's message meant—it made no sense.

Don't compete with Jiang Nian—what concrete info did Lin Dong get?

Nervous, Sun Zhicheng exited through the back door. Passing Dong Wensong's desk, he faintly heard B-ge complaining the noise was ruining his studying.

"What the hell? I was about to solve the last question on the math test—why now? Ugh, I'm done! How can I concentrate with all this noise?"

"Discipline Committee, where's the class monitor? Can't you control this?"

Sun Zhicheng silently cursed: Snowy horse, fucking dog.

The hallway was even darker; several couples hid behind pillars, covering their kisses with clothes. A few familiar faces stood in the neighboring class's hallway—boys and girls gathered, chatting.

For some reason—maybe because the weekly test papers were being graded—or because the homeroom teacher was in a meeting in the admin building and no teachers had shown up yet.

The entire Gao San floor was chaotic; the noise made him dizzy. He looked left and right—didn't see Jiang Nian or Chen Yunyun.

A sudden sense of crisis rose in his chest; it felt like a thin thread spreading from his chest, sour and creeping up to the crown of his head.

Fumbling through the dark, he kept walking, heart pounding.

Today was unusually hot—might rain. The power outage was probably for maintenance.

Ahead was the end of the hallway. Right was the restroom. Left was the stairs. But at the fourth-floor corner, there was a large open space with a floor-to-ceiling window.

During breaks, many boys gathered there to chat and play—spacious enough to dribble a basketball. Many bold girls also stood there, playing and talking together.

Could they be there? The two of them?

Just imagining it made Sun Zhicheng feel sick—his heart felt like it had been punched, aching fiercely. Nervous, he dragged his stiff body over.

He could already hear Chen Yunyun's laughter.

She asked, "Really?"

"Of course it's real—why would I lie?" Jiang Nian's voice drifted faintly; as he neared the corner, it grew clearer: "How expensive are the bride price payments?"

Boom!

A thunderclap exploded in Sun Zhicheng's mind; the seed of pain sprouted in his chest, tearing through flesh and blood in seconds, growing into a towering tree.

Has their relationship really reached this point?

He trembled all over, as if plunged into an ice cave, unable to bear listening further. Just as he turned to leave, he heard another girl's voice besides Chen Yunyun's.

"Jiang Nian, why are you asking about the bride price in Yunmu Town? Are you implying—"

Li Hua's voice suddenly cut in: "You're overthinking. I made a bet with Jiang Nian to prove not every place in Zhennan is this ridiculous."

"What's the bet?"

"A bottle of Screaming Eagle. Plus calling me Dad, and a surrender ritual."

"Pfft, Screaming Eagle tastes awful."

"It's not meant to be drunk," Li Hua countered. "Don't you think the bottle itself is more...? Forget it—just give me the numbers."

"You're sick, creepy guy."

"I know, I know," Sun Zhicheng stepped out of the darkness, smiling. "I know the bride price info for Yunmu Town and Liao Juan's side—just ask me."

"Sun Zhicheng?" Chen Yunyun looked startled. "What are you doing here?"

The dark stairwell corner.

The group fell silent. Jiang Nian, Li Hua, and Liao Juan turned their gazes toward Sun Zhicheng—the pressure slammed onto him.

Sun Zhicheng couldn't make out their faces; he grew tense—but he'd already prepared an excuse.

"Went to the restroom. Just passed by, heard you talking."

"Has the teacher arrived?" Chen Yunyun asked.

Logically, the three should've answered. When she asked again, they stayed silent—Sun Zhicheng was drowning in awkwardness, the pressure crushing him.

"Haha, not yet. Keep chatting, don't mind me."

"Oh, okay."

Sun Zhicheng excused himself to the restroom—this time, he actually went.

Jiang Nian watched the whole thing silently—he didn't speak because he wasn't close to Sun Zhicheng. If it was just casual chat, no need to interject; saying the wrong thing would ruin it.

Li Hua didn't speak because he was lazy—he wasn't even in the same group as Xiao Zhongge. He figured Chen Yunyun would handle it; they were teammates.

Liao Juan stayed quiet because she saw Jiang Nian and Li Hua weren't speaking. She assumed there was tension between the guys, and she wasn't the type to mediate.

So she said nothing, left it to Chen Yunyun.

Chen Yunyun was mortified—they'd been chatting so naturally. In the dark, with dim light hiding their expressions, their topics had been bolder than usual.

The moment Sun Zhicheng arrived, the other three fell instantly silent.

She was practically digging her toes into the ground, but then she remembered Sun Zhicheng hadn't meant it—he'd just come over to chat out of kindness, and they were on the same team; she couldn't take it out on him.

So she gritted her teeth and spoke, hastily ending the conversation.

After Sun Zhicheng left, silence lasted a few seconds—then Jiang Nian suddenly spoke, breaking it.

"Where were we?"

"I know—it's Yunmu Town," Li Hua turned and smiled at Liao Juan, "You might as well say yours too. We're just betting—it won't get out."

Liao Juan blushed slightly. Could she really say something like that? It made her sound like a commodity. True, bride prices were high across all townships in the south, but every family kept it strictly private.

"Two hundred sixty thousand," Chen Yunyun suddenly said.

"Ah!" Li Hua felt utterly defeated, turning to look at Liao Juan.

After a moment's hesitation, Liao Juan gave an even higher number.

Li Hua dropped to his knees right there in front of the two girls, assuming a half-kneeling posture, humiliated as he bowed his head and shouted.

"Dad, I lost!"

"Hahaha, rise, rise. Remember to bring a bottle of Scream tomorrow," Jiang Nian gloated, "Bro, born in the south and already half-defeated—still managed to lose a bet?"

Chen Yunyun and Liao Juan exchanged a glance, both struggling to keep their expressions composed, their gazes complicated.

Are all boys this childish?

"Let's go, let's go, back to class—the homeroom teacher'll be here any minute," Liao Juan urged, pulling Chen Yunyun to leave, "Looks like it's about to rain."

Chen Yunyun resisted slightly—she hadn't finished chatting. Not out of any special feeling, just because Jiang Nian was interesting, and talking with him was fun.

"If it's going to rain soon, they might dismiss early," Jiang Nian said, walking out too, turning to Li Hua, "Hua, you bring an umbrella?"

Li Hua's heart warmed. "Yeah, don't worry."

"Good. If it rains, lend me yours."

"You fucking—!" Li Hua cracked instantly, kicking air at Jiang Nian, "Go die!"

"Haha, I'm going to the bathroom," Jiang Nian headed toward the restroom, turning back to his buddy with a double-queue invite, "Hua, coming?"

"Nope, nope," Li Hua walked along the corridor toward the classroom.

Chen Yunyun and Liao Juan trudged slowly behind, halfway down the hall, Chen Yunyun suddenly leaned close to Liao Juan and whispered something, then turned and headed for the restroom.

At the end of the corridor, in darkness, Chen Yunyun simply waited outside the restroom.

She planned to surprise Jiang Nian, already anticipating what he might say. She didn't even notice the anticipation was slowly consuming her.

Jiang Nian had just finished urinating and looked up to suddenly see Chen Yunyun standing far away. He froze for a moment, then smiled, turning to wash his face.

Shaking water off his hands, he asked, "Sis, it's a blackout—don't scare me like that."

"Aren't you scared? What if I'm really a ghost?" She leaned against the wall, hands behind her, grinning in the dark, "Chen Yunyun's already back in class."

Jiang Nian walked toward her and reached out to pinch her cheek.

"I'll know if you've got warmth."

Chen Yunyun watched that handsome hand approach, grinned, and tilted her head to dodge.

"Did I scare you?"

"Yes, yes, scared me," Jiang Nian turned, walking toward the classroom while rubbing his damp forehead, "Let's go back."

"Hehe, lying—you weren't scared at all," Chen Yunyun skipped after him, her lips curled high, her tone unconsciously sweet.

Their figures faded into the distance, leaving only faint voices.

"Real ghosts' feet don't smell—dare you take off your shoes?"

"Wow, you're the real pervert."

"Thank you, thank you."

"Who praised you~?"

Back at her seat, Chen Yunyun's smile never faded.

Jiang Nian was so interesting—more interesting than any boy she'd ever met.

A thought suddenly popped into her mind—too bad their seats were too far apart. Otherwise, class and breaks would've been endlessly fun, never dull.

Sun Zhicheng felt uneasy—he kept staring at the classroom door. But he saw only Li Hua and Liao Juan return; Jiang Nian and Chen Yunyun were gone again.

Yet he dared not look, afraid of facing that same awkwardness again. Maybe they'd just run into other classmates and were still chatting?

He waited anxiously for a long time—time stretched unbearably thin.

The moment Chen Yunyun entered, even though the classroom lights were dim—only a few small desk lamps on—Sun Zhicheng still noticed. His heart recognized her first.

Chen Yunyun seemed not to notice him; her carefully prepared gaze met nothing.

Honestly, a little disappointed.

Fortunately, Chen Yunyun didn't seem to be looking for Jiang Nian—she returned to her seat and started chatting with Wang Yuhe, apparently about returning to the dorm.

Sun Zhicheng exhaled in relief, glad things had at least returned to normal.

He pulled out his phone, opened his chat with Lin Dong. He stared long at Lin Dong's message: "Acheng, give up." His fist clenched involuntarily.

His grades weren't bad—he could easily get into a good university. His family was wealthy, far surpassing Jiang Nian by tenfold. Except for his slightly weaker physique.

Where was he inferior?

Soon, homeroom teacher Old Liu arrived late. Seeing the chaotic classroom, students wandering around chatting, he sighed helplessly—but didn't bother to intervene.

"Announcement: power outage maintenance—school is dismissing early."

His words ended.

The class erupted in a chorus of "Ooo!" The liberal arts class down the hall was singing; girls' voices drifted faintly into the Olympiad Science Class Four.

"Ooo!! Fuck! Dismissal!"

Some stood up, others banged desks, many were already packing their bags.

"Quiet!" Old Liu silenced them forcefully, turning on his phone flashlight to scan the room, "I'll see who's banging desks—those people won't go home. Come with me to the office and wait until evening self-study."

That line worked — the class gradually quieted down.

Old Liu paused, then went on.

"There might be a heavy downpour tonight. Ah, the weather forecast isn't always accurate either. Go by the actual situation. Ah, don't linger on the road."

"Ah, head home early so you don't get soaked. Also, ah, tomorrow morning's self-study — if, ah, the rain is too heavy, day students are allowed to ask for leave. Ah, take note."

"Boarders are absolutely not allowed to skip morning reading. Only some day students who live relatively far away may ask for leave; those who live relatively close also cannot ask."

A burst of laughter went up in the classroom, and everyone started chiming in with the location of their own home.

Jiang Nian propped his head up, watching Old Liu at the podium, couldn't help but smile, and turned to look at his seatmate Zhang Nianzhi.

"Aren't you going to ask whether Nanjiang Bay counts for leave?"

Zhang Nianzhi shook her head vigorously. "My dad will drive me."

"The heavier the rain, the more you should ask for leave," Jiang Nian said. "If I were you, I'd just stay home and sleep in — no way I'd come for morning reading."

Hearing that, Zhang Nianzhi asked curiously.

"Then if it really pours tomorrow, will you ask for leave?"

"No," Jiang Nian shook his head.

"Why?" she asked curiously. "Eager to learn?"

"Ah, pretty much." Jiang Nian stared at her, half-joking. "From the school gate to the Gao San building, even with an umbrella you'll still get a bit wet."

"I'll help you— oops, I mean, let me wipe it off for you."

"Oh oh, thanks." Zhang Nianzhi was a bit dazed.

"Hahaha, what are you thanking me for?"

At the podium, Old Liu gave the word, and the whole class thundered into action, packing up and leaving.

Jiang Nian grabbed his bag and went downstairs to find Xu Qianqian, planning to ask if anything strange had happened with the power outage in her class. Just as he dashed to the stairwell, the quest panel popped up.

【Standing at the Crossroads of Thirty-Eight】

Begging for votes. My condition wasn't great yesterday; I'll write more today after waking up. Thanks, big shots.