The Guardian Beast

Shi Sui naturally did not agree to Lu Huaizhi’s ridiculous suggestion of going home together.

In the end, both sides compromised, agreeing to a video call after Shi Sui finished his shower.

While showering, the image of the regret in Lu Huaizhi’s eyes when he learned he couldn’t go over kept surfacing in Shi Sui’s mind.

“What exactly is that guy thinking?”

Shi Sui closed his eyes, letting the water pour over his head.

His home didn’t even have a proper place to do homework together.

The sofa had two ugly holes, the floor tiles were cracked and yellowed, and the grime in the corners couldn’t be scrubbed clean.

Shi Sui could already imagine how out of place Lu Huaizhi would look in his house.

What could a pampered young master like that possibly see in his home?

To be precise, what did he see in Shi Sui?

Shi Sui pressed his lips into a straight line.

He finished rinsing off quickly, gave his hair a cursory rub with a towel, and walked out of the bathroom.

He picked up his phone from the coffee table in the living room and tapped it open.

Lu Huaizhi hadn’t sent a message yet.

Who was the one acting so impatient about tutoring earlier?

Shi Sui tossed his phone onto the sofa.

He went to the balcony to retrieve his school jacket, which had been neglected for several days, and stuffed it into his backpack.

Just as he finished, the phone on the sofa vibrated.

Shi Sui ignored it.

About a minute later, it vibrated again.

Only then did Shi Sui pick up the phone.

[Grade 11 Class 3 Lu Huaizhi: Done showering?]

[Grade 11 Class 3 Lu Huaizhi: Let me know when you’re ready, I’ll call you.]

[ss: .]

Almost the moment he sent the period, Lu Huaizhi popped up with a video call invitation.

Shi Sui pressed accept.

Lu Huaizhi seemed to have just finished showering as well.

His hair was slightly damp, and he sat at his desk with today’s homework laid out.

“You haven’t finished those tutoring problems I gave you yet, right? Do those first. Ask me anytime if there’s something you don’t understand.”

Lu Huaizhi gave Shi Sui his task in a straightforward manner and then lowered his head to work on his own problems.

Shi Sui had expected the video call to be awkward without Xin Xin there, but Lu Huaizhi’s expression was calm, which allowed his own tense nerves to relax.

Shi Sui took the previous pages of scratch paper from his bag and placed them on the coffee table.

He casually spread a piece of scrap paper on the floor and sat down.

The sound pickup on Lu Huaizhi’s end was excellent.

He could hear the friction of the pen tip against the paper when the other boy drew a firm line, as well as the occasional sound of breathing.

It felt as if Lu Huaizhi was exhaling right into his ear.

Shi Sui endured it for a while but found it truly annoying, so he turned his earphone volume down to the lowest setting.

But as he pulled his hand back from the volume button and looked up, he saw Lu Huaizhi staring at him.

Shi Sui kept a stiff face. “What?”

It wasn’t possible for Lu Huaizhi to see him lowering the volume from over there, right?

“Nothing.” Lu Huaizhi wrote a few more words. “I just wanted to ask if you finished a problem yet so I can explain it to you.”

Shi Sui, who had been too busy listening to Lu Huaizhi’s breathing to read a single word: “…”

Lu Huaizhi didn’t wait for an answer.

“That problem is quite difficult. I’ll just explain it to you directly.”

Just as Shi Sui was about to ask how he knew which problem he was looking at, he saw Lu Huaizhi prop up a small board on the desk.

A white sheet of paper was clipped to the board, showing the exact problem Shi Sui had been about to look at.

Shi Sui immediately shut his mouth.

Lu Huaizhi really remembered clearly.

In order to hear the explanation clearly, Shi Sui had to turn the call volume back up.

Lu Huaizhi saw Shi Sui’s hand moving toward the phone, and a very faint smile flickered in his eyes, which he quickly concealed when Shi Sui looked back at the camera.

Since it wasn’t face-to-face teaching, Shi Sui only had to endure Lu Huaizhi’s voice.

He didn’t have to worry about suddenly getting too close to someone, so his learning efficiency was naturally much higher than usual.

They continued the video call until eleven o’clock at night.

Shi Sui finally couldn’t resist his sleepiness and let out a yawn.

“Then we’ll stop here for today,” Lu Huaizhi said. “We’ll continue tomorrow.”

Shi Sui nodded. Just as he was about to hang up, he suddenly heard Lu Huaizhi say very softly: “Goodnight, Shi Sui.”

The way Lu Huaizhi said it sounded like he was talking to himself.

Wearing earphones, Shi Sui heard that murmur very clearly.

It traveled through the earphones to his eardrums, adding an inexplicable touch of tenderness to the quiet night.

By the time Shi Sui snapped out of it, the screen was already black.

He hadn’t been fast enough; Lu Huaizhi had already hung up.

Shi Sui took off his earphones and rubbed his ears.

That bit of sleepiness from earlier had been completely swept away by that short sentence.

Lu Huaizhi had a very good voice, possessing the unique clarity of a youth.

This quality was fully revealed during the voice call.

Accompanied by the faint static of the signal, his voice took on a hint of magnetism.

Especially that last sentence.

In all these years, this was the first time someone had said goodnight to him.

Wang Cheng and his lot never said such sappy things, which made Shi Sui feel strange hearing it now.

However, he could be certain that he didn’t feel any repulsion.

Had his tolerance for people increased after knowing him for a while?

Taking off the earphones, the sound of cicadas outside gradually flooded in.

Shi Sui sat on the floor for a while, spacing out.

Looking at the pages of scratch paper he had filled on the table, he felt that this was actually quite nice.

Shi Sui picked up the scratch paper to put it back into his bag.

Because the school jacket was in the way, he pulled it out first, but he accidentally dragged something out from the depths of the bag.

It fell onto the floor with a soft thud.

He looked down—it was a very familiar pink envelope.

…

Shi Sui suddenly remembered Lu Huaizhi’s action of rushing to help him zip up his bag before he left school.

Are all high achievers this full of schemes?

A week passed in a flash, and the sports meet arrived.

Shi Sui’s cold was completely gone, but Lu Huaizhi showed signs of his worsening, speaking with a heavy nasal tone.

At this moment, Lu Huaizhi was reading the speech.

Wang Cheng leaned back to whisper to Shi Sui, “The Top Student has a great stage presence! Even sick like this, he doesn’t even sound out of breath.”

His tone was steady. Someone unfamiliar with him might not even be able to tell his voice was off.

After speaking, Wang Cheng winked toward the teams at the edge of the field.

“Look at those girls from No. 3 High. Even with so many teachers around, they’re still secretly taking photos with their phones!”

There were more teachers present at this sports meet than in previous years.

The lineup was massive, and Wang Cheng didn’t even dare glance at his phone.

But those people from No. 3 High were truly bold, disregarding everything for a handsome face.

“But the Top Student really is handsome! Especially when he’s giving a speech on stage, he’s got that vibe instantly!”

Hearing this, Shi Sui glanced toward the stage.

Lu Huaizhi wore that clean, bright school uniform.

His posture was upright, making the somewhat dull clothes look very sharp on him.

He was tall with broad shoulders, standing on the stage as if he were walking a runway.

“Attention seeker,” Shi Sui muttered.

Just as he was about to look away, Lu Huaizhi on the stage seemed to sense something and glanced in his direction.

Their eyes met across the sea of people.

Shi Sui’s gaze was lazy.

Look all you want, it’s not like I’m scared.

Lu Huaizhi’s originally steady speech suddenly hitched for a second.

Shi Sui: “…”

Even the Dean followed Lu Huaizhi’s gaze and looked over.

“Holy sh*t!” Wang Cheng, who had just taken out his phone, quickly stuffed it back into his pocket. “Does the Dean have binoculars for eyes? He can even catch me like this!”

Shi Sui was forced to look away.

The speeches ended quickly.

The Dean said some platitudes even emptier than Lu Huaizhi’s and officially declared the start of the sports meet.

Shi Sui also took the field.

The two-day sports meet made Wang Cheng fully realize one thing: if he actually finished all the events he signed up for, he would definitely not leave the track alive.

Consequently, he covered Shi Sui’s internet cafe fees for a month and handed over the $4 \times 400$ meter relay and the three thousand meter long-distance run.

The two of them went down to the field, while Lu Huaizhi was given the heavy responsibility of watching their bags.

Before leaving, Wang Cheng didn’t forget to remind him, “Top Student, don’t forget to write us some cheer-up drafts!”

With Lu Huaizhi’s writing skills, the speakers would probably be filled with cheers for them in a while.

Lu Huaizhi nodded in agreement.

After they left, Lu Huaizhi glanced at the events where the two had stopped.

Since the sports meet had just begun, there weren’t many ongoing events.

Shi Sui’s side was assigned two teachers to watch over.

Once Lu Huaizhi was sure there were no problems, he withdrew his gaze.

Just as he was about to put on his earphones, Tian Hongjun’s voice suddenly came from beside him.

“Huaizhi, waiting for them here?” Tian Hongjun stood beside him, smiling.

Lu Huaizhi took off his earphones. “Yes, Teacher. I didn’t participate in any sports events.”

“I know. Your mother even specifically called to tell me that your health isn’t good and not to let you participate in this sports meet.” Tian Hongjun coughed. “I was thinking of letting you try earlier; I almost messed up.”

According to Lu Huaizhi’s mother, Lu Huaizhi came to Ancheng specifically to recover from an illness.

She hoped the teachers would take more care of him and not let him get too tired.

At that time, Tian Hongjun hadn’t thought of that. After hesitating for a moment, he told her about Lu Huaizhi tutoring Shi Sui.

As a result, after she heard it, she remained silent for a long time before finally saying, “I’ll talk to him then,” and hung up the phone.

“Huaizhi, your mother doesn’t seem very happy about you tutoring Shi Sui.” Tian Hongjun was an experienced man and immediately picked up on the wrong vibe. “If it’s truly difficult for you, just tell me.”

“It’s not difficult,” Lu Huaizhi said. “I will keep tutoring Shi Sui.”

If Shi Sui were here, he would surely have noticed the change in Lu Huaizhi’s expression.

His voice was also colder than usual.

Lu Huaizhi hadn’t chatted much with his mother lately and hadn’t mentioned the sports meet.

She must have found out on her own and even called the homeroom teacher.

Tian Hongjun also realized that Lu Huaizhi’s family relationship might not be as harmonious as he had imagined, so he changed the subject.

“I heard you suggested to the Dean that more teachers should be assigned to watch over this sports meet?”

“Yes.” Lu Huaizhi nodded. “When No. 3 High came to our school to practice last time, they were very hostile toward our students. Someone looked for trouble with Shi Sui on the first day.”

“I think arranging more teachers can not only ensure the fairness of the competition but also avoid many unnecessary troubles.”

Tian Hongjun smiled. “You have a point.”

Perhaps if someone else had spoken to the Dean, it wouldn’t have had such an obvious effect.

But this person was Lu Huaizhi, the school’s top student.

He was currently the star student with the best chance of getting into a first-rate prestigious university.

If his personal safety was threatened, it would definitely be a major issue.

The Dean would naturally take it seriously.

However, what surprised Tian Hongjun was that Lu Huaizhi was clearly worried about Shi Sui.

Tian Hongjun left with a look of gratification.

These two kids get along so well.

Wang Cheng and Shi Sui were at the shot put area.

Wang Cheng was warming up while Shi Sui watched the show with his hands in his pockets.

Shi Sui didn’t have any events in the morning; he was forcefully dragged here by Wang Cheng to back him up.

Chi Qing, on the other hand, had gone to another event location.

Wang Cheng chatted with Shi Sui while stretching his muscles.

“Shi Sui, look at those people from No. 3 High. They don’t even dare to let out a fart now.”

Those people from No. 3 High were very arrogant last year and always tried to pull dirty tricks when the teachers weren’t looking.

Now that there were more supervising teachers, most of whom were from No. 1 High, they had to behave themselves.

“I heard some Grade 11 student went to give the suggestion to Old Man Deng.” Wang Cheng chuckled. “They really did a good thing.”

Shi Sui asked, “Old Man Deng would listen to someone else’s suggestion?”

Old Man Deng was a stubborn and strict old man with his own style.

Setting aside whether he would listen to a student, just whether someone would take the initiative to approach him was a question.

Except for…

He turned his head and looked at the bleachers behind him.

Lu Huaizhi sat on the bleachers, holding a pen and concentrating on writing something.

Wang Cheng noticed Shi Sui’s gaze. “You’re saying the Top Student did it? It’s actually quite possible.”

Shi Sui met force with force, while Lu Huaizhi took away the foundation, leaving those people with no choice but to compete honestly.

The two of them were quite complementary.

After finishing the shot put, Wang Cheng wanted to take Shi Sui to find Chi Qing.

At this time, Chi Qing should have finished the eight hundred meter run.

When he and Shi Sui reached the finish line, they saw Chi Qing standing in front of Tao Lingwei, talking to her.

Wang Cheng looked at Shi Sui beside him in surprise. “Hm?”

Shi Sui, however, understood very quickly. “I have no relationship with her.”

Seeing Shi Sui and Wang Cheng approaching, Chi Qing felt inexplicably embarrassed.

He explained, “Tao Lingwei just had a stitch, and I was teaching her how to relieve it.”

“Mm.” Shi Sui had no reaction on his face. “Then Wang Cheng and I will head up first.”

Wang Cheng secretly gave Chi Qing a “keep it up” gesture.

Before the two had gone a few steps, they suddenly saw Lu Huaizhi coming toward them in the crowd.

Wang Cheng said in surprise, “Top Student, why are you here?”

They had agreed earlier that they would go up after finishing the shot put and told Lu Huaizhi not to leave.

After all, everyone from No. 3 High was here.

Lu Huaizhi was close with Shi Sui, and if he were alone, they were afraid he would be targeted.

Lu Huaizhi’s gaze swept behind the two of them.

Seeing Tao Lingwei chatting with Chi Qing, his expression hitched for a moment, but he reacted quickly.

“I saw the competition was over and you hadn’t come up yet, so I came to take a look.”

Wang Cheng didn’t have many schemes and simply accepted his explanation.

“Oh, then let’s go!”

Lu Huaizhi walked beside Shi Sui.

Shi Sui remembered Lu Huaizhi’s action of looking behind him.

Based on the direction, he should have been looking at Tao Lingwei.

Could he have thought Tao Lingwei came to look for him and wanted to cause trouble again?

Guarding his territory!

Shi Sui gave him a cold glance, wanting to warn this person not to do anything pointless, but Lu Huaizhi received the wrong signal.

“Tired?” Lu Huaizhi asked.

A question mark slowly appeared over Wang Cheng’s head.

“Top Student, Shi Sui was just watching me throw the shot put from the side. What’s there to be tired of?”

His own arm was almost strained from throwing, yet Lu Huaizhi hadn’t mentioned a word!

Lu Huaizhi paused. “Maybe from standing too long?”

Wang Cheng: “?”

Does his brother look that fragile?

Lu Huaizhi also knew what he said was a bit ridiculous. He covered his mouth and coughed.

“I saved a spot for you on the bleachers. You can rest well for a while.”

With the two schools co-hosting the sports meet, the bleachers were packed.

It was truly not easy for Lu Huaizhi to save a spot.

Wang Cheng was a bit moved, but Lu Huaizhi’s next sentence made his gratitude vanish into thin air.

“However, I only saved a spot for Shi Sui. Let Chi Qing accompany Wang Cheng to the next event location later.”

Wang Cheng laughed. “No, Top Student. If you want Shi Sui to stay and keep you company, just say so! Why take such a long detour?”

He originally thought this teasing would make Lu Huaizhi feel embarrassed, but to his surprise, Lu Huaizhi nodded seriously.

“You’re right.”

Shi Sui’s pace quickened instantly, wanting to escape this place, but Lu Huaizhi was quick to grab his sleeve.

He was instantly frozen in place.

Lu Huaizhi: “Can you keep me company later?”

Shi Sui’s temple throbbed.

This kid is actually for real.

Shi Sui wordlessly pulled his sleeve out of the other’s hand.

Just as he was about to refuse, he saw Lu Huaizhi lower his eyelids and whisper in his slightly raspy voice: “Forget it. I just saw several people from No. 3 High constantly looking at me and wanted to ask how you guys handle it.”

“It’s fine, I’m okay by myself.”

In the end, Shi Sui sat beside Lu Huaizhi with a cold expression.

Chi Qing returned and looked at Wang Cheng’s complicated expression. “What’s wrong?”

Wang Cheng hesitated before saying, “Don’t you think… the current Shi Sui looks like a certain something?”

Chi Qing: “What?”

Wang Cheng paused. “A guardian beast.”

The fiercest kind.