Nanning First Senior High School was located less than three kilometers as the crow flies from Nanning Experimental Senior High School. With winding roads and bridges, it was merely a four-bus-stop journey between them. Typically, two top-tier key high schools would not be situated so closely. However, due to the First High School’s early establishment, planning was scarce at the time, and two rivers still separated the two schools. In those days, the mantra was ‘get it done quickly.’ Not long after Nanning First High School was completed, the surrounding area was designated as a university town. Before bridges existed, rivers served as natural boundaries, yet once bridges were constructed, the prior planning appeared rather awkward.
Before he even reached the classroom, a notification chimed from his phone. Fang Qiyun saw a message from Qin Zixin; it was an image of an Onimusha character. The foolish fatty quivered with excitement, his entire body jiggling. Whether from heat or some other cause, he was drenched in sweat, which streamed ceaselessly from his body, soaking his chest and armpits.
“Fang Qiyun: Do you like this? I have the full set of resources, the officially localized version without mosaics.”
Qin Zixin did not reply. Her QQ status indicated she was offline. Fang Qiyun tugged at the collar of his school uniform to wipe the sweat from his chin, finding himself struggling to catch his breath.
A wave of belated realization washed over Fang Qiyun; his message felt utterly inappropriate. Who on earth sends resources as a first message? And to a girl as beautiful as a fairy, no less, to send such resources! Promptly, he recalled the message he had just sent, then quickly composed another.
“Fang Qiyun: Kinichō!”
He felt a dizzy spell overcome him. It might have been alkalosis brought on by emotional excitement and rapid breathing. Yet, a high schooler’s mind was oblivious to such medical explanations. He merely attributed it to Qin Zixin having touched his chest, and even as he wiped away sweat, he imagined he could faintly discern her fragrance lingering there.
Fang Qiyun restored the photos Qin Zixin had deleted. He secretly admired them once more. After arriving at the classroom, he first put down his bag. By this time, most other classes were nearly full; however, his own class was still sparsely populated.
He was enrolled in the “International Class” at Nanning First High School, which was humorously dubbed the “Export Class” by other students. Half of the students in his class might already be studying abroad before reaching their final year of high school. Consequently, foreign language classes were where they paid the most diligent attention. The International Class was an initiative of their principal, Kong Yucheng. To put it plainly, it was a revenue-generating project. In that year alone, Fang Qiyun’s tuition and miscellaneous fees exceeded 150,000 yuan. When factoring in other sundry expenses, it could be argued that the cost was barely less than living abroad.
Fang Qiyun impulsively sent all these photos to his cousin, Fang Bixian, who attended Nanning Experimental Senior High School. His cousin had been his playmate since childhood. Unlike Fang Qiyun, Fang Bixian had always been an academically outstanding student. Although his family wasn’t as wealthy as Fang Qiyun’s, they were by no means poor.
“Fang Qiyun: Bro, check out this beauty.”
“Fang Qiyun: She’s from your school.”
“Fang Qiyun: [Image], [Image], [Image], [Image]”
Moments later, a reply arrived.
“Fang Bixian: ???”
“Fang Bixian: Where did you get these?”
Fang Qiyun was about to confess that he had secretly taken them while waiting for the bus. However, he quickly realized such an admission would be too embarrassing, so he changed his statement.
“Fang Qiyun: From a forum.”
High school BBS forums and their associated Tieba communities often exhibited similar phenomena. Being high schoolers, beauties from rival schools were more likely to become viral topics than those from their own. Qin Zixin’s cousin, Tang Manwen, had numerous posts dedicated to her on the Nanning Experimental High School BBS. It was only with the emergence of a “bug-level” beauty like Qin Zixin that posts about beauties from other schools on the Nanning Experimental High School BBS and Tieba began to dwindle after her enrollment.
In previous years, posts containing secretly taken photos of beauties from Nanning First High School would be flooded with young men shamelessly asking the poster if the girl in the picture had a boyfriend, or similar inappropriate questions. The posters themselves, having resorted to clandestine photography, were typically the most contemptible of “rats,” preferring to lurk in the shadows. They were on par with the types who posted “Rate XXX” threads on forums, occupying the ecological niche of sewer rats even within the realm of otaku. Under normal circumstances, such individuals, upon encountering an attractive person of the opposite s*x, wouldn’t even dare to speak. Merely standing face-to-face without their legs trembling would indicate exceptional psychological fortitude. During middle school, a peculiar subconscious notion often arose: that there were more beauties in the adjacent class or at the neighboring school. Boys in two adjacent classes would frequently envy the “beauty resources” of the other class, believing them to be superior to their own. This was a collective consciousness bordering on urban legend; at its core, it was primarily an absurd illusion where distance bred beauty.
Consider Class 1, Grade 2 at Nanning Experimental Senior High School. Aside from a devastating beauty like Qin Zixin, the class also boasted nascent beauties like Li Jinjin and Zhao Qingzi. Li Jinjin possessed a sweet appearance and a good figure. However, rumors suggested she had entangled relationships with several boys. Zhao Qingzi, with her fairer skin and tall stature, had a pair of perfectly straight, long legs. Though lacking in curves, she was still considered pleasing to the eye. Nevertheless, when the boys in the class discussed girls, they would instinctively avoid mentioning the attractive ones within their own class. Even during late-night dorm chats, they would make every effort to overlook them, focusing instead on discussing the beauties from the adjacent classes. Even if a boy harbored affection for a classmate, they generally dared not confess it directly. They feared that if the girl discovered their feelings, they would be reduced to an awkward clown.
Boys of this age often grappled with a profound contradiction. Excessively high hormone levels, coupled with the pervasive romantic content online, fueled an uncontrollable longing for the opposite s*x. Concurrently, due to factors such as upbringing, heightened sensitivity, and insecurity, most only dared to bury their affections deep within their hearts. Even the bolder ones would only express such sentiments in a jocular tone.
“Fang Bixian: I knew it! The secretly taken photos show her wearing the same outfit as today; I actually thought you took them.”
Fang Qiyun’s heart abruptly skipped a beat. He glanced around his seat. Fang Bixian’s words created a strange illusion that his cousin was watching him. However, this was largely due to his recent misdeed, leaving him feeling unsettled.
“Fang Qiyun: Haha, how could that be? I’m an honest person.”
“Fang Bixian: True, you wouldn’t dare.”
“Fang Bixian: Her name is Qin Zixin. She sits right in front of me; we’re in the same class.”
“Fang Qiyun: Maji de?”
“Fang Bixian: Seriously, stop sending that dead language. Who understands katakana?”
“Fang Qiyun: You wouldn’t understand. I’m an otaku.”
“Fang Bixian: There’s also someone in my class who spouts Japanese all the time; he’s practically lost all chances of finding a partner.”
****
At that very moment, in the classroom of Class 1, Grade 2 at Nanning Experimental Senior High School.
Fang Bixian was slumped over his desk. Feeling drowsy, he simply picked up his phone to scroll. His cousin, Fang Qiyun, had just sent him a message.
“Fang Qiyun: Bro, check out this beauty.”
Fang Bixian paused. The words “big beauty” instantly brought Qin Zixin to mind. And it was no wonder, for she was unequivocally the most stunning, with the most “bugged” figure, in all of Nanning Experimental High School. Just as he was about to reply, he saw the photos. The phone used for the pictures boasted high resolution. The person captured in them was precisely who he had imagined.
Fang Bixian suspected these were candid shots, yet they didn’t quite seem to be. In some pictures, Qin Zixin was clearly looking directly at the camera. Her disdainful gaze, as if she were looking at trash, inexplicably resonated with Fang Bixian’s aesthetic. He, too, yearned for Qin Zixin to look at him in such a manner. In the images, Qin Zixin sported a white, wide-brimmed sun hat and a cotton mask. Yet, this did not diminish her exquisite beauty in the slightest. Instead, it added a veiled, elusive allure, like a pipa half-hidden by its player’s embrace. Her expressive eyes, pure as a cold moon reflected in an autumn pond, were also as tantalizing as a delicate willow swaying and a red apricot caressed by the spring breeze. Her chiffon blouse further accentuated her skin, which glowed like creamy white jade, making it even more dazzling. In the dappled morning light beneath the station, her skin appeared almost translucent. Her silk slip dress, moreover, outlined her exaggerated, almost unreal, bodily curves with exceptional allure.
Fang Bixian swallowed hard. Scrolling further, he found another close-up image: a photograph of Qin Zixin’s feet. For a peerless beauty, no part of her was anything but exquisite. Her delicate, fair skin, so lively, had nowhere to hide within her transparent sandals. Truly, her six-inch feet were perfectly rounded and gleaming, like slender jade shoots holding a cup. Her graceful steps, akin to golden lotuses playing in spring light, paused as she rested her jade-like feet against the breeze. Fang Bixian felt a fervent heat ignite in his heart, and he covertly downloaded all these photographs.
His cousin then sent him a barrage of katakana. Fang Bixian couldn’t read it, but he could guess. After all, those who enjoyed Japanese anime typically spouted the same few phrases, making them more predictable than a phone assistant.
While the teacher had yet to arrive, Fang Bixian created a new post on the anonymous board of Nanning Experimental High School’s BBS:
‘Goddess Qin-chan’s Latest Spy Photos Leaked: Summer Temptation Bonus Footage’
He assumed these were photos Fang Qiyun had downloaded from Nanning First High School’s BBS, so he uploaded all the pictures the foolish fatty had sent him, adding a disclaimer: [From Nanning First High School BBS; if anything happens, it’s unrelated to Nanning Experimental High School].
Not long after the post was created, several replies appeared, and soon the “Bonus Footage” thread shot to the top of Nanning Experimental High School’s BBS hot topics.
One user posted a reply:
“17th Floor: Beautiful. Is this Qin Zixin from Class 1, Grade 2?”
“19th Floor replying to 17th Floor: Yes, I secretly peek at their class every time I pass by, just to feast my eyes.”
“20th Floor replying to 19th Floor: Girls in my class are cursing her, saying she’s a slut.”
“22nd Floor replying to 20th Floor: What a classic case of GHG.”
Fang Bixian was not surprised. It was all too common for beautiful girls to be attacked. He had noticed Qin Zixin speaking mostly with boys these past few days, and he surmised that even girls in her own class were likely calling her a vixen. Now, even he couldn’t resist jumping into the comments.
“31st Floor replying to 22nd Floor: Some people are just triggered, aren’t they? The nastier their insults, the deeper their jealousy. It’s perfectly normal.”
“35th Floor: I wonder which brave soul took these photos. The girl noticed and they kept shooting.”
“37th Floor replying to 35th Floor: That look, like she’s staring at trash, is so evocative. I wish she would look at me like that.”
“47th Floor replying to 37th Floor: That’s too easy. Go squat in the girls’ restroom for her, and when she comes, beg her for help with homework.”
“50th Floor replying to 47th Floor: I’d rather not be invited for tea by the police.”
“52nd Floor: I’m from Nanning First High. Our BBS and Tieba don’t have these. The poster must have taken these photos themselves!”
“54th Floor replying to 20th Floor: Is it CYZ? I heard her saying QZX was a prostitute this morning.”
“57th Floor replying to 54th Floor: No, my classmate’s surname starts with Z. I heard her say Q was too promiscuous, and something about ‘chasing men’.”
“64th Floor replying to 57th Floor: Ugly people who aren’t liked attack pretty girls. She doesn’t hate QZX’s clothes or style; she’s simply jealous that QZX is beautiful. If Q looked like a mutated gourd like her, Q could even go naked and she’d still spout nonsense about ‘freedom to dress’ and ‘women’s safety’.”
“67th Floor replying to 57th Floor: Ugly people don’t insult those uglier than themselves; they encourage them, saying that ugly person isn’t ugly, but beautiful. Because they know if someone uglier exists, they appear prettier by comparison, like pigs wallowing in mud with other pigs. But if a peacock appears, the peacock’s very existence is a heinous crime.”