Chapter 572: Xixi Is the Best

Li Luo and Ying Chanxi entered middle school.

They had great fortune, being placed in the same class—Class 1-5.

Although Ying Chanxi had always performed well in elementary school, since Ying Zhicheng had never enrolled her in any tutoring classes, her scores on the entrance exam were not outstanding, and the school did not place her in the elite class.

Of course, Ying Chanxi didn't care about this at all—she was delighted to be in the same class as Li Luo.

On the first day of school, when choosing seats, she pulled Li Luo over and sat beside him, becoming his desk partner.

Originally, Li Luo had wanted to sit with Zhao Rongjun, who was also incredibly fortunate, but one glance from Ying Chanxi made Zhao Rongjun obediently vacate the seat.

"Why do you insist on sitting next to me?" Li Luo asked, exasperated.

"If Zhao Rongjun sat here, you'd definitely whisper to him during class and ruin your studies," Ying Chanxi said, lifting her small, snow-white chin. "I promised Lin Yi I'd supervise your studies."

"Tch."

With Lin Xiuhong invoked, Li Luo had no rebuttal.

After all, if this guy reported him to his mom, and Lin Xiuhong got upset and cut his allowance, where would he go to complain?

"I wonder who it was that, as a kid, said they'd marry me—yet now won't even listen to me," Li Luo muttered under his breath, scowling.

Hearing this, Ying Chanxi's face flushed red, and she quickly clapped her hand over Li Luo's mouth: "Don't talk nonsense! Childhood promises don't count!"

"Ugh! Mmmph!" Li Luo slapped her hand away, spat twice, "Next time Ying Shu comes back, I'm going to report you to him."

"Hmph! Go ahead and report. I'd like to see what you have to complain about."

The two bickered noisily at their desks, and thus began their pleasant middle school life.

Yet, the years of middle school that followed would not be as idyllic as they had hoped.

Perhaps it was because she had finally awakened, or perhaps simply due to Ying Chanxi's innate talent and relentless effort.

In barely half a semester, Ying Chanxi secured the top rank in the entire school's mid-term exam, outperforming all students from the elite classes.

At first, the teachers thought it was just a fluke—after all, middle school material was simple, and the mid-term covered little content; it was normal for a student from a regular class to occasionally outperform others.

But in the days that followed, no one else ever touched that top rank again.

Only then did the teachers realize that this girl named Ying Chanxi was suspiciously talented.

Thus, just before the summer vacation of first year, Ying Chanxi received a notice from her homeroom teacher, Mr. Zhang Wei, who handed her a document to deliver to her parents.

……

"Xixi is so impressive—again, number one in the grade."

Back at Jincheng Community, Ying Chanxi walked through the Li family's front door with Li Luo, carrying her backpack. She placed it on the sofa as if it were her own home, then went into the kitchen to help Lin Xiuhong.

Lin Xiuhong asked about Ying Chanxi's final exam scores. Upon hearing the answer, she smiled happily and patted Ying Chanxi's head in encouragement.

Ying Chanxi pressed her lips together, staying humble, barely suppressing the upward curve of her mouth.

Still, being praised by Lin Xiuhong made her exceptionally happy.

For Ying Chanxi, the purpose of studying hard was not only to reassure her father, but perhaps also to earn recognition from Lin Xiuhong and Li Guohong.

But after Lin Xiuhong finished praising Ying Chanxi, her gaze fell on Li Luo, who was peeking nervously from the kitchen doorway.

Seeing this brat sneakily reaching for the freshly cooked cola chicken wings and shoving them into his mouth, Lin Xiuhong frowned and slapped his forehead: "Eat, eat, all you think about is eating—what did you score on your final exam?"

"Cough…" Li Luo, caught red-handed, chewed the chicken wing twice more, then gave Lin Xiuhong a thumbs-up.

"Not bad?" Lin Xiuhong raised an eyebrow, a flicker of hope rising in her heart.

"Mom, your chicken wings are delicious!" Li Luo shouted, giving a big thumbs-up.

Lin Xiuhong: "..."

Minutes later, upon learning that Li Luo had scored in the bottom ten of his class—with a total over a hundred points lower than Ying Chanxi's—Lin Xiuhong flew into a rage.

At dinner, she couldn't help but lecture him earnestly: "Look at Xixi—she walks to school with you every day. How can she get top rank while you only scored this little? Are you even studying properly at school?"

"We don't ask much of you—just try a little harder, aim for average, okay?"

"Next year, Xixi will go to the best high school in the district. If your grades stay like this, you won't be able to attend the same high school as Xixi."

At first, Li Luo felt a faint pang of shame and unease when he heard this, thinking he should try harder.

But after hearing it so many times, he now only felt irritated—her nagging buzzed in his ears, ruining his meals.

"Ugh, I get it already! You've said it a hundred times—you're not tired, but I am!"

"Then look at whether you've changed at all?" Lin Xiuhong rolled her eyes. "If you had half Xixi's obedience, I wouldn't be so worried about your grades."

"Then let Xixi be your daughter—I'll go live with Ying Shu." Li Luo scowled. "Look, Ying Shu never interferes with Xixi's studies—why don't you learn from him?"

"Does Ying Shu not interfere?" Lin Xiuhong glared at him. "He's just too busy with work. Your father and I at least keep an eye on you—appreciate it, okay?"

"Besides, even if you wanted to be Ying Shu's son, he wouldn't take you."

"Xixi is so well-behaved—unlike you, always disobedient."

"I'm done eating." Li Luo hastily shoveled the last of his rice into his mouth, slammed his bowl down, and stormed into his bedroom, slamming the door shut with a bang.

Ying Chanxi quietly finished her meal, then stood up to help Lin Xiuhong clear the table.

Afterward, she left the kitchen, knocked on Li Luo's door, and turned the doorknob—but it was locked.

"What?" Li Luo's voice came from inside.

"Are you doing homework?" Ying Chanxi asked. "I'll come to your room and do mine with you."

"No! Go do yours yourself—I'm playing basketball with Zhao Rongjun tonight!"

Ying Chanxi stood silently at the door for a moment, then said "Oh," slung her backpack over her shoulder, bid Lin Xiuhong goodbye, and turned back to her own apartment next door.

After finishing her summer homework, bathing, washing clothes, and tidying up, Ying Chanxi changed into a panda pajama set and got into bed.

She folded her blanket into a small square and placed it beside her pillow, hugged the panda doll close, pulled the covers over herself, then gently punched the panda.

"So annoying," Ying Chanxi muttered softly.

……

For Li Luo, summer vacation was one of the few happy times of his student life.

Every day, he slept until he woke naturally, then went downstairs to eat lunch at his parents' breakfast shop, before grabbing a basketball to find Zhao Rongjun.

In the afternoon, he sweated on the basketball court; after dinner at home, he slipped over to Ying Chanxi's house to play computer games.

For Li Luo, although Ying Chanxi was now somewhat annoying—always used by his mom to pressure him—she was still occasionally useful.

At least telling Lin Xiuhong he was going to Ying Chanxi's house to study together would surely avoid any objection.

Then he could slip off next door to play games under Ying Chanxi's cover.

But then again, Ying Chanxi didn't always oblige him.

"Li Luo, someone's looking for you!" someone on the sideline of the basketball court called out.

Everyone turned to look outside the court and saw a girl as ethereal as a fairy, standing gracefully, her expression serene as she gazed toward Li Luo's direction.

Many boys' gazes froze, stuck on Ying Chanxi and unable to look away.

Only Li Luo waved dismissively, glancing at his watch: "Still early. Keep playing. Ignore her."

"Who's she?" someone beside Zhao Rongjun nudged his arm and whispered, "Li Luo's girlfriend?"

Zhao Rongjun shook his head vigorously: "Classmate. Lives across from Li Luo's house."

"Oh~ Childhood friends?!"

"Sort of."

While they whispered among themselves, Li Luo had already taken the ball and launched an attack—a smooth three-step layup—the ball missed.

Li Luo clicked his tongue, shooting an irritated glance at Ying Chanxi by the sideline.

It was all her fault—standing there like that, he couldn't play well.

!

But then Ying Chanxi moved, cutting straight across the court to walk over to Li Luo's side.

Everyone else instantly froze their movements.

"What are you doing?" Li Luo held the basketball, frowning at her.

"Come home with me," Ying Chanxi reached out and grabbed his wrist.

"I'm only halfway through! It's only three o'clock!" Li Luo yanked his wrist free, annoyed. "Are you my mom, controlling me like this?"

"Lin Yi checked your summer homework," Ying Chanxi frowned and whispered, "You haven't written a single word. Lin Yi told me to come get you and take you home."

Hearing this, Li Luo's expression changed instantly.

"What the hell? Why'd she suddenly go through my stuff?"

"She said she was cleaning your room and happened to look through it," Ying Chanxi said. "You told me you were doing your homework, so I let you play computer at night—but you lied to me."

"If I didn't lie, how could I play computer?"

"Then you deserve it," Ying Chanxi glared at him. "It's all your fault—Lin Yi thinks I'm covering for you."

"You were an accomplice anyway," Li Luo suddenly smiled sweetly, gripping Ying Chanxi's shoulders and pulling her toward the court's edge, still calling back, "I've got something at home—I'm leaving! Keep playing!"

After saying that, Li Luo lowered his head again and begged for mercy: "Please, my lady, have a heart—put in a few good words for me later, alright? I'll buy you snacks."

"Who cares?" Ying Chanxi sniffed, but his pleading made her happy, and her lips curled up secretly. "Just admit you're wrong yourself."

"Then you've got to come back with me and stay there," Li Luo compromised. "If you're beside me, Mom won't dare hit me."

"Plead with me."

"Please."

"That doesn't sound sincere."

"Xi Xi~ You're the best~"

"Ugh, you're disgusting!"

The two walked home together; Ying Chanxi first pulled Li Luo to her house to wash his dirty hands and splash cold water on his face.

"You got your dirty hands all over my clothes," Ying Chanxi glanced at the black smudge on her shoulder and snapped.

"Just wash it off," Li Luo said after washing his hands and face, pulling Ying Chanxi toward his own house. "Come on, come with me."

"I can't deal with you," Ying Chanxi muttered, though her feet showed no hesitation as she followed Li Luo across the street.

Li Luo pulled out his key and opened the door to find Lin Xiuhong sitting on the sofa, her expression stern.

Seeing Li Luo and Ying Chanxi return, Lin Xiuhong immediately stood up, walked to the door, and pulled Ying Chanxi outside.

"Xi Xi, go home first. Come back for dinner."

After saying that, Lin Xiuhong walked back home and slammed the door shut with a bang.

"Hey, wait!" Li Luo panicked. "Why can't you say whatever it is in front of Ying Chanxi? Kicking her out is so rude!"

"Now you care about manners? Stand still, you!"

"Xi Xi, save me!"

…

"acddc, bdbac."

"Slower, slower, too fast."

"You might as well copy it yourself."

"I'm not copying," Li Luo said seriously. "I'm just writing my homework seriously while you're checking it. Understand?"

"Self-deception, huh?" Ying Chanxi rolled her eyes. "I told you to do your summer homework properly—you wouldn't listen. Now you're stuck scrambling to catch up?"

"But I had fun," Li Luo said. "The last week's just paying off the debt. Keep going."

"Next are fill-in-the-blank questions," Ying Chanxi recited her own answers one by one to Li Luo, soon reaching the math problems.

"Don't give me the steps for the big problems," Li Luo spun his pen. "Just tell me the answers."

"You won't get points for just writing the answer."

"Will Old Zhang even grade the summer homework seriously?" Li Luo chuckled. "Last winter, after I turned mine in, it was never handed back."

"That's way too half-hearted," Ying Chanxi said. "Summer homework is meant to keep your problem-solving touch sharp."

"I just want to keep my dribbling touch."

"Lin Yi still hits too lightly."

"How can you even say that?" Li Luo snapped. "I told you to stay with me and watch, and you just abandoned me like that!"

"Lin Yi pulled me out—what could I do?"

"Don't make excuses. I'm disappointed in you."

"Then write it yourself," Ying Chanxi said blankly, beginning to gather her homework off the desk, as if preparing to leave.

Seeing this, Li Luo quickly grabbed Ying Chanxi's arm and smiled apologetically: "I'm wrong, I'm wrong, Xixi~ Calm down, it's all my fault!"

"Later, go hang up the clothes I washed on the balcony."

"No problem! Leave it to me!"

(End of Chapter)