Heartbeats Behind the Curtain

Deng Weiben had genuinely not expected that the person climbing the wall with Shi Sui would be Lu Huaizhi.

The other party even greeted him warmly, making him almost reply with a “Good morning.”

“Lu Huaizhi, why are you fooling around with him too?” If Deng Weiben had a longer beard, it would probably be blowing upward from his anger.

He had originally planned to make the two wall-climbers stand in penalty at the flag-raising platform, but if Lu Huaizhi went there, who was going to give the speech?

Deng Weiben could only maintain a cold face, ordering Lu Huaizhi to line up with the group of latecomers to stand in penalty at the school gate for twenty minutes.

“Face the morning sun and reflect on yourselves properly.” Deng Weiben kept both hands behind his back. “At such a good age, yet you stay in bed and refuse to get up. Do you have even a shred of energy expected of a high school student? What, are you very satisfied with your results from this monthly exam?”

After speaking, he swept a cold glance over the group of students, his expression turning a bit awkward when his gaze fell on Lu Huaizhi, the rank one student standing on the far right.

The contrast was far too stark.

Lu Huaizhi looked completely out of place in this crowd, with his tall stance and perfectly neat school uniform.

Meanwhile, Shi Sui beside him stood lazily with one hand shoved in his pocket, his eyelids drooping as he dozed off with squinted eyes, showing a bit of bruising at the corner of his mouth left over from some unknown fight.

The two formed a sharp contrast.

But why did Lu Huaizhi seem to have such a good relationship with Shi Sui?

Whenever Shi Sui’s body tilted a bit too much, Lu Huaizhi would even reach out a hand to support him for a moment.

Deng Weiben felt a headache coming on just looking at them. “Shi Sui, stand up straight for me!”

Shi Sui finally opened his eyes, pulled his hand out of his pocket, and stood straight in a symbolic gesture.

Only then did Deng Weiben let him off, heading over to the nearby security booth to take shelter from the sun.

Even in the morning, the summer sun was extremely scorching. Shi Sui squinted, and just as he wanted to take a step back without drawing attention, the person beside him sensed it in advance and turned slightly, immediately covering Shi Sui’s face with his shadow.

Shi Sui tilted his head to look at Lu Huaizhi.

At this very moment, he had already calmly accepted the fact that the other party was taller than him.

The other party happened to stand against the light, making the perimeter of his face look as dazzling as the sun, resembling a luminous body.

Looking closely, his hair was also a bit messy; the two had gotten up too late and simply had no time to tidy up.

Unluckily, they had even been caught by old man Deng while being late.

“Didn’t you hear my conversation with old man Deng under the wall just now?” Shi Sui asked with squinted eyes.

He thought Lu Huaizhi was so smart that he would definitely be able to tell something was wrong, and then slip in through the back gate undetected.

How did this guy’s brain become so useless at a time like this?

“I heard it,” Lu Huaizhi said. “I also heard the dean say that the people under the wall were Wang Cheng and Chi Qing.”

Shi Sui raised his eyes to look at him. “So?”

“I felt it was necessary to clarify things.” Lu Huaizhi met his gaze. “The person climbing the wall and being late with Shi Sui wasn’t anyone else, it was me.”

Shi Sui: “?”

So the first thing this kid did after climbing over the wall was to introduce himself to Deng Weiben.

Was he marking his territory?

“If you keep whispering, you’ll stay behind to stand for another ten minutes!” Deng Weiben’s warning voice carried over.

Shi Sui pursed his lips and muttered in a very low voice, “What a nuisance.”

When the penalty standing ended, morning self-study happened to finish as well. The two had breakfast, skipping the cafeteria to visit the convenience store first to buy iced water.

Even with Lu Huaizhi blocking the sun for him, Shi Sui had still broken out in a sweat from the heat.

After paying, he gulped down a bottle of iced water in one go. Lu Huaizhi came out after buying his items just in time to see Shi Sui tossing the empty bottle into the trash can. “Don’t drink so fast.”

After saying that, he handed him a red canned beverage.

Shi Sui took a closer look—it was Wangzai Milk. He said disdainfully, “I’m not drinking that.”

It had a sickeningly sweet milk flavor.

“The portion of steamed buns this morning was a bit small, and the other milk in the supermarket was all room temperature,” Lu Huaizhi said. “This one is iced.”

Shi Sui hesitated for a second, but looking at the cheering little cartoon character on the bottle, he refused again, “Not drinking.”

He always felt like that little character was mocking him.

Lu Huaizhi fell silent for a moment. “Then help me hold it for a bit, it’s a little heavy.”

Shi Sui knew his arm still had an injury and didn’t think much of it, taking the milk. “Also, stay far away from things like yesterday. Getting hit once makes it hard for you to even hold a can of milk. If you had injured your right hand, you wouldn’t even be able to write.”

“Mm.” Lu Huaizhi nodded. “If I encounter others fighting, I’ll take a detour.”

“As long as you don’t fight, it’s fine.”

Shi Sui originally wanted to retort that he hadn’t promised not to fight, but remembering that he was busy disinfecting the guy with alcohol when Lu Huaizhi spoke last night, he had only given a few casual perfunctory replies.

Thinking carefully, he hadn’t actually refused either.

Right now, people were coming and going at the convenience store, so there was no need to argue with Lu Huaizhi over this matter.

Shi Sui shook off the water droplets on the milk can. “Forget it, let’s go back to the classroom.”

Returning to the classroom, Wang Cheng happened to be munching on instant noodles, and Chi Qing was there too.

“Wow! Shi Sui, you finally felt like showing up.” Wang Cheng stared with wide eyes. “I was worried last night that you were bluffing me and got beaten so badly by Chen Niu’s group that you couldn’t get out of bed.”

“The person who can make me unable to get out of bed hasn’t been born yet.” Shi Sui sat down at his seat. “I was just caught by old man Deng for being late and stood in penalty for the whole morning.”

Wang Cheng looked toward Lu Huaizhi. “Why didn’t you come this morning either?”

“I got caught too.”

Wang Cheng asked in confusion, “Why?”

“Why do you have so much nonsense to ask?” Shi Sui let out a sound as he placed the Wangzai Milk on the desk with a thud.

If he kept asking, Lu Huaizhi would likely say the two of them slept together last night.

He and Wang Cheng had grown up together and had never even slept in the same bed.

“Why are you being so fierce!” Wang Cheng rubbed his nose, preparing to reach out to take the milk on Shi Sui’s desk. “Didn’t you use to find this too sweet? Which underclassman girl gave it to you this time? Let me help you share the burden.”

Otherwise, it would be a waste if Shi Sui threw it away.

But just as he extended his hand, he saw Shi Sui press down on the bottle, preventing him from moving it. “Just munch on your instant noodles properly.”

Shi Sui was just about to return the Wangzai Milk to Lu Huaizhi when he heard Wang Cheng ask in confusion, “Cherishing it so much, did I guess wrong? It wasn’t forced on you by someone who likes you?”

“Or is that person very special?” Wang Cheng’s imagination was extremely rich. “Could it be the one from the sports meet who wrote the encouraging speech like a love letter? I knew something was wrong with you two.”

Shi Sui: “?”

Why didn’t Wang Cheng go join a theater troupe? His guesses hit the mark every single time.

Lu Huaizhi had already extended his hand to take it back, but he saw Shi Sui swiftly pull the milk back onto his own desk.

“I just think its bright red color looks festive, can’t I buy a bottle?” After Shi Sui finished speaking, he looked at Lu Huaizhi. “You extended your hand because you want to drink it?”

As long as Lu Huaizhi nodded, he could return this bottle of milk to Lu Huaizhi without drawing attention.

Lu Huaizhi glanced at him, seemingly understanding his meaning very quickly. Then, he withdrew his hand. “I’m not drinking it.”

Shi Sui: “…”

Chi Qing spoke up to smooth things over, “Alright, Wang Cheng, stop making wild guesses. Shi Sui, I came over to tell you that Sister Lulu wants you to avoid going to the internet cafe lately; she will handle this matter.”

Shi Sui nodded.

Li Lulu had sent him a message about this matter before, saying that once she confirmed those people were looking for trouble, she would have a way to deal with it.

Li Lulu grew up very beautiful and knew how to have fun, so there were many people with bad intentions, but there were even more people willing to cover for her and protect her. For a woman like Li Lulu to run a private internet cafe for so many years, the people backing her were not someone a high school student like Shi Sui could compare to.

Shi Sui was merely responsible for maintaining daily order at the internet cafe.

“Right, there’s one more thing. Did you send a message to threaten Qian Hao?” Chi Qing asked. “This morning he asked me if you were going to look for trouble with him, and he looked pretty scared.”

Shi Sui leaned lazily against the back of his chair. “Oh, I just added him as a friend to ask him out for a—” The word fight suddenly lost its sound.

Shi Sui felt Lu Huaizhi’s gaze from the side, shifting his words. “To ask him out to hang out in the future, look how cowardly he is.”

“Isn’t that just a threat?” Chi Qing laughed. “But it’s normal if you want to teach him a lesson, he really asks for it.”

“Let’s talk later.” Shi Sui had just finished a fight yesterday and felt refreshed, having no interest in getting his hands dirty again in the short term.

Moreover, his intuition told him that if they continued chatting about this matter, Lu Huaizhi would start nagging again.

Annoying.

After chatting for a while, Chi Qing returned to his own classroom, while Wang Cheng turned back around to continue munching on his instant noodles.

Shi Sui planned to play some mobile mini-games to kill time, but he noticed the person beside him holding a pen without moving for a long time, his expression completely blank, unknown what he was thinking.

What was wrong with this kid again?

Shi Sui opened Pop Star, starting a round but not playing it.

After enduring it for a while, he tilted his head again to glance at Lu Huaizhi.

The exercise book was completely clean, without a single word written yet.

Even though he looked over so many times, Lu Huaizhi showed no reaction.

“Lu Huaizhi.” Shi Sui ground his teeth, lowering his voice. “What kind of temper are you throwing now!”

Lu Huaizhi’s hand holding the pen moved slightly as he turned his head. “I didn’t say anything.”

Shi Sui: “Your emotions are written all over your face!”

Lu Huaizhi, who had no expression: “?”

Shi Sui kept a stern face. “Speak.”

Lu Huaizhi remained silent for a long moment before putting down his pen. “I’m just a bit concerned about you adding Qian Hao as a friend.”

Shi Sui: “I didn’t schedule a fight with him again.”

Lu Huaizhi: “I’m referring to the act of adding him as a friend itself.”

Shi Sui found it baffling. “We see each other all the time at school, what’s wrong with adding a friend?”

But right after saying it, he suddenly realized something was off, but Lu Huaizhi didn’t give him any time to change his words at all.

Lu Huaizhi said calmly, “You didn’t treat me this way back then.”

Shi Sui was left speechless.

However, he clearly didn’t have much patience left. “Forget it, whatever—”

“I still haven’t tasted the milk tea you bought for me yesterday,” Lu Huaizhi suddenly said. “Let’s go there again another day.”

Shi Sui realized Lu Huaizhi was giving him a way out, so he responded, “Sure.”

Buying a cup of milk tea was very simple.

Shi Sui prepared to continue playing his mini-game after speaking.

Because he hadn’t moved for too long, the little chick inside had already started jumping on its own to prompt him on how to play.

But just as his finger rested on it, Lu Huaizhi spoke up again.

“Drink the milk before playing?” Lu Huaizhi moved that bottle of Wangzai Milk right in front of Shi Sui’s eyes. “Otherwise it won’t be cold anymore.”

Shi Sui wanted to refuse, but his lingering guilt over the friend-adding matter hadn’t passed yet. After staring at the little cartoon character on the Wangzai Milk for three seconds, he finally picked it up and gulped it down in one breath.

He crushed the bottle flat, threw it into the trash can, and looked at Lu Huaizhi expressionlessly.

If there was anything else, he absolutely would not agree!

Lu Huaizhi very tactfully picked up his pen to write questions. “I won’t bother you anymore, I’ll remind you when the teacher comes.”

Shi Sui let out a breath, thinking that he could finally play his game. His hand just swiped once, before he even had time to hear the crisp clearing sound effect—

The class bell rang.

Shi Sui: 🙂

In June, the Dragon Boat Festival arrived as scheduled.

The school held a poetry recitation competition, scheduled for Wednesday evening.

Tian Hongjun had made Lu Huaizhi sign up.

On Wednesday afternoon, Wang Cheng was excitedly discussing with Shi Sui how to climb over the wall to go out and play. “What’s so good about listening to that recitation competition? It sounds like chanting scriptures, and we even have to feed the mosquitoes on the playground.”

Coincidentally, Lu Huaizhi was memorizing his script, raising his head to glance at him.

“Top student, even if you go up on stage, it’ll be just as hypnotic!” Wang Cheng looked completely innocent, even nudging Shi Sui with his elbow. “Hey, are we going to the internet cafe or not?”

Shi Sui originally didn’t have any strong thoughts, but seeing that Lu Huaizhi was also looking at him, he raised an eyebrow. “Why are you looking at me?”

“I have to go on stage, I can’t get away,” Lu Huaizhi said. “Ditching me to go to the internet cafe is not very loyal.”

Shi Sui let out a tsk, his tone quite slow. “You don’t want us to go?”

Lu Huaizhi nodded.

A wicked smile crossed Shi Sui’s lips. “Then we—”

“Of course have to go.”

He couldn’t just let everything go according to Lu Huaizhi’s wishes, or else he would lose face.

Besides, what loyalty did he have to talk about with Lu Huaizhi?

In the evening, the teachers organized the students to sit on the playground according to their classes. Shi Sui and Wang Cheng blended into the very back of the crowd.

Wang Cheng lowered his voice, “That kid Chi Qing forgot his brothers the moment he got a girlfriend. He said he’s going to be with Tao Lingwei later and won’t go to the internet cafe.”

His tone was filled with gritted teeth.

Shi Sui: “Isn’t Tao Lingwei a tenth grader? How are they together?”

“Slipping away just like us!” Wang Cheng replied. “The school is so big, and except for the twelfth graders, everyone is on the playground, so they can date anywhere.”

“Oh.” Shi Sui wasn’t interested in their matters. “Where’s Lu Huaizhi?”

He hadn’t seen him since the start.

Wang Cheng said, “The top student’s speech seems to be near the front, he went to change his clothes first.”

Shi Sui’s tone paused. “Change clothes?”

“Right, you have to wear formal clothes for the recitation competition,” Wang Cheng explained. “The kind with a white shirt and black trousers, just like going to work. If you can’t carry it off, it looks incredibly ugly.”

The two sat down at the very back of Class Three’s group, and the recitation competition quickly began.

Shi Sui very quickly understood what Wang Cheng meant.

This kind of white shirt worn on high school students gave off a feeling of children stealing adults’ clothes. Although it increased the formality of the competition, it still looked a bit comical.

Wang Cheng gasped in surprise, “Holy fck, that guy from Class One has a beer belly at this age? The buttons are practically bursting.”

Shi Sui looked over a few times and lost interest, lowering his head to play games on his phone, intending to slip away with Wang Cheng when the timing was right.

But after an unknown number of people had gone up, Shi Sui suddenly heard the whispers around him turn into gasps of admiration, and even Wang Cheng uttered a “Holy sh*t!”

Shi Sui subconsciously raised his eyes, suddenly freezing—

Lu Huaizhi, dressed in a white shirt and black trousers, slowly walked toward the center of the stage.

The lighting made it hard for Shi Sui to see his face clearly, but this only emphasized Lu Huaizhi’s figure and aura.

With broad shoulders and long legs, his shirt buttoned to the very top, and his back perfectly straight, he possessed a clean aura unique to youth amid his refined look, making people’s eyes light up.

Shi Sui heard the girls around him let out suppressed gasps.

“Lu Huaizhi looks too handsome in formal clothes! Ah ah ah ah!”

“He’s practically drop-dead gorgeous! A total visual feast!”

“I heard he not only has good grades but also a good family background, truly blessed by heaven, boohoo…”

“Have you guys noticed that Lu Huaizhi’s lip shape looks so good, and it even looks very soft! Who understands this, my family!”

Shi Sui felt completely numb. What kind of wild words were these?

And from so far away, he couldn’t even see Lu Huaizhi’s face clearly, so how did these people see his lips?

Did they come with built-in telescopes?

“Sisters, did anyone bring paper and pen? I’m going to write a love letter on the spot and hand it to him as soon as he steps off the stage!”

That girl’s tone was incredibly excited, and after speaking, she looked over toward Shi Sui’s side. “Class Three is right next to us. Lu Huaizhi will definitely come down later, so we can ask someone to pass it over then.”

After speaking, she even glanced at Shi Sui, as if selecting a helper to deliver the love letter.

Shi Sui kept a tense face and avoided her gaze.

As expected, a show-off would remain a show-off no matter where he went.

“Shi Sui, now is the perfect opportunity to slip away.” Wang Cheng societal-pulled at the hem of his clothes from behind. “Everyone is looking at the top student right now, shall we go?”

Shi Sui listened to the surrounding admiration, took another look at Lu Huaizhi who stood calm and composed on stage with a steady tone, bringing his show-off traits to the absolute maximum, and suddenly spoke up, “I’m not going anymore.”

Wang Cheng wanted to say something, but he suddenly saw that the artificial turf around Shi Sui was practically being plucked bald by him, showing that his mood wasn’t very pleasant, so he tactfully shut his mouth.

But waiting around was truly too boring for him, and there were quite a few mosquitoes around.

Wang Cheng sprayed some mosquito repellent on his wrists and ankles, but he was still bitten several times.

“I can’t take it anymore, I’m going to smoke a cigarette to escape. Remember to apply some repellent yourself.”

After Wang Cheng left, Shi Sui was just pouring mosquito repellent onto his hands when he caught a glimpse of someone walking up behind him and sitting down.

Shi Sui saw those crisp black trousers, and his expression turned even sourer.

He hadn’t seen anyone else who went on stage having their clothes ironed so perfectly without a single wrinkle like Lu Huaizhi.

Very quickly, Shi Sui’s shirt hem was tugged from behind.

Shi Sui ignored it.

It was tugged again.

Shi Sui yanked his clothes back.

“Shi Sui.” Lu Huaizhi finally spoke up. “There are so many mosquitoes.”

Remembering his mosquito-attracting physique, Shi Sui threw the mosquito repellent from his arms over with a cold face.

He still didn’t say a single word.

“Where’s Wang Cheng?” Lu Huaizhi asked.

Before Shi Sui could answer, the girl beside them spoke up.

“Are you talking about the person who was sitting in your spot earlier?” She said, “He seemed to tell the teacher he was going to the restroom and left.”

Lu Huaizhi nodded. “Thank you.”

“Lu Huaizhi, you were so amazing just now, you’ll definitely get a high score for this recitation competition!” The girl continued the conversation. “Congratulations to you in advance!”

“I’m from Class Two. I often run into you in the hallway or the office sometimes, do you have an impression of me?”

Lu Huaizhi subconsciously looked at her face, and before he could speak, Shi Sui in front turned around with a cold face. “Finished chatting?”

Lu Huaizhi blinked, first replying to that girl, “I’m sorry, I don’t remember.”

After speaking, he looked at Shi Sui and replied, “Finished chatting.”

“Return the repellent to me.” Shi Sui reached out his hand toward him.

Lu Huaizhi handed it to him. “I haven’t had time to use it yet.”

Shi Sui: “…”

He kept a stern face as he unscrewed the cap, pouring a generous amount into Lu Huaizhi’s palm. “Use it now.”

Lu Huaizhi obediently applied the mosquito repellent to all his exposed skin.

Shi Sui had poured a lot for Lu Huaizhi out of habit.

After applying it, Lu Huaizhi frowned. “The smell is so strong.”

He didn’t forget to extend his hand for Shi Sui to smell. “Isn’t it?”

The people nearby were all driven further away by the strong scent.

Shi Sui naturally pushed the person away with disdain as well. “Just sit properly.”

How could his posture be so good on stage, yet he kept leaning toward his side after sitting down under the stage?

That girl waited for the scent of the repellent to dissipate a bit, wrinkling her nose. Seeing that Lu Huaizhi and Shi Sui weren’t speaking to each other anymore, she plucked up her courage again to speak, “Lu Huaizhi, do you have a girlfriend?”

This time her question was extremely direct.

The expression on Lu Huaizhi’s face faded a bit. “No.”

“But I already have someone I like.”

After speaking, he glanced at Shi Sui.

Shi Sui keenly perceived Lu Huaizhi’s gaze, his entire back stiffening as he tried his best to look at the recitation competition on stage as if nothing had happened.

Hearing Lu Huaizhi’s answer, those girls let out disappointed gasps. “What kind of person are they? Can you tell us a bit?”

Lu Huaizhi looked at Shi Sui’s gradually flushing ears and replied, “Apologies, it’s not convenient to say.”

Several girls thought they could deduce who Lu Huaizhi liked from his description, but they didn’t expect the other party wouldn’t give them a chance, instantly looking full of regret.

They didn’t realize at all that while they wanted to confess to him earlier, now they only wanted to gossip, still softly discussing who the person Lu Huaizhi liked could be nearby.

“It should be the very well-behaved type, right? Short hair, straight bangs, with a very sweet smile?”

“No, no, I think it should be someone with long hair, the very gentle and soft type.”

Several girls kept guessing back and forth beside them, while Shi Sui expressionlessly watched the hysterical recitation on the stage ahead.

The voice was very loud and passionate, even cracking, practically deafening his ears.

But what on earth were they gossiping about?

There were actually girls who started looking around, attempting to find a clue in the sea of people, making Shi Sui feel tense.

Perhaps having truly no clue, those girls asked Lu Huaizhi from another angle without giving up, “Is it someone from our school?”

Lu Huaizhi didn’t hide anything regarding this point. “Mm.”

One of the girls boldly asked, “Are they nearby?”

Lu Huaizhi’s gaze never left Shi Sui. “Yes.”

As soon as his voice fell, a chorus of gasps echoed.

Shi Sui could no longer sit still, standing up abruptly while leaving behind a sentence, “I’m going to the restroom.”

After speaking, he yanked Lu Huaizhi up too. “You come over here as well.”

If they kept chatting, Lu Huaizhi was going to reveal his name.

Of course, going to the restroom was just an excuse. Shi Sui took a temporary turn, heading toward that abandoned multimedia classroom on the first floor.

Ever since he and Lu Huaizhi cleaned it up last time, it was much cleaner, and the place was spacious enough to allow him to smoke a cigarette in peace.

He felt he urgently needed to smoke a cigarette to calm down right now. Taking out a cigarette from his pocket, before Lu Huaizhi could speak, Shi Sui beat him to it, “Shut up.”

The culprit had no right to speak.

But just as he clicked the lighter, he heard footsteps coming from outside the door.

Shi Sui thought a teacher had come to check, subconsciously extinguishing the flame, hiding behind the curtains of the multimedia classroom, not forgetting to yank Lu Huaizhi in as well.

The curtains billowed and then very quickly returned to tranquility.

There were two sets of footsteps, one male and one female, their voices very young, clearly students.

Shi Sui just wanted to pull back the curtain to walk out, but his wrist was held by Lu Huaizhi, pulling him back. “Wait a moment.”

Because he was afraid of being heard, Lu Huaizhi spoke this sentence almost pressed against his ear.

His ears burned even more.

Shi Sui pressed his hand against Lu Huaizhi’s chest, just wanting to make the person step further away, when he suddenly heard a strange sound—

There was the very light rustling of clothing friction, along with suppressed breathing sounds from the throat.

It sounded like they were kissing.

Shi Sui suddenly remembered the dating spot Wang Cheng had mentioned.

Clearly, they had run into a little couple coming to the multimedia classroom for a date, and they were kissing passionately.

Shi Sui had never encountered such a scene before, and the blurry sounds from next door added an indescribable flavor between him and Lu Huaizhi.

The two were standing far too close; he was practically being half-held in Lu Huaizhi’s arms, with Lu Huaizhi’s perfectly buttoned collar right before his eyes, and he could even faintly feel the heat radiating from Lu Huaizhi’s body.

Strand by strand, it tangled together with his own body temperature.

Shi Sui stood up straight, wanting to distance himself from the person, but the force of Lu Huaizhi gripping his wrist suddenly tightened.

Shi Sui subconsciously raised his head, unexpectedly crashing into Lu Huaizhi’s dark eyes.

The multimedia classroom was very dark, but it didn’t prevent him from seeing Lu Huaizhi’s current appearance clearly. His eyes were completely pitch-black, his gaze tightly locking onto him, causing Shi Sui’s heart to skip a beat.

He shifted his gaze away rather spinelessly.

What unexpectedly popped into Shi Sui’s mind just now was—

Lu Huaizhi’s lip shape was indeed very perfect, resembling the letter M, though he couldn’t tell whether it was soft or not.

And the outstanding student who was just standing calm and composed on stage in formal clothes participating in the recitation competition was currently hiding behind a curtain with him, eavesdropping on a little couple kissing.

This intense contrast made Shi Sui’s scalp tingle.

He must be losing his mind.

Traces of hot currents surged in the air, mixing with the dust in the room and the scent of the mosquito repellent on Lu Huaizhi. The bizarre and strange combination made Shi Sui’s face feel like it was burning.

Shi Sui couldn’t explain this feeling.

He only knew that his heart hadn’t beaten this fast even when he was fighting last night; there was a suffocating sensation as if it were about to leap out of his chest.

By his ears were the passionate recitations of the students on the playground, along with the thumping, drum-like intertwining heartbeats.

The little couple left at some unknown point.

But neither of the two moved.

Lu Huaizhi’s Adam’s apple rolled, his voice a bit hoarse, “Shi Sui—”

But before he could finish speaking, his mouth was covered by Shi Sui.

“Can you please be quiet?” Shi Sui tilted his head, hiding his flushed face in the shadow as he said indistinctly, “The sound of your heartbeat is making my ears hurt.”