Seat Changes and the Unexpected Transfer Student

Another few days flew by in the blink of an eye.

Scorching sunlight filtered through the window, enveloping Chu Ci’s fingers and making his fair skin look even more dazzling.

He kept his eyes lowered, his thumb rhythmically clicking his mechanical pencil. The click-clack sound wasn’t particularly noticeable in the noisy classroom.

Chu Ci slumped on his desk, his chin resting on one arm. The faint dark circles under his eyes were proof that he hadn’t been sleeping well lately.

The protagonist gong, Song Qichen, had returned much earlier than he had anticipated. He hadn’t even managed to fully “conquer” Ji Yanli yet, and now with Song Qichen—the biggest obstacle—back in the picture, the mission felt like it had jumped to “nightmare” difficulty.

Furthermore, Ji Yanli was currently being kept on a tight leash by his parents, and Chu Ci himself was busy helping out at the coffee shop. The only time they could meet was at school, but thanks to Ji Yanli’s cursed “universal heartthrob” aura, he was surrounded by a crowd the moment the bell rang. Chu Ci couldn’t even find an opening to get close.

Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but let out a long, heavy sigh. His desk mate frowned and gave him a look, visibly shivered by the tooth-aching sound of that sigh.

Song Qichen was back, which meant the story was officially entering the main arc. As Chu Ci recalled the original plot, the more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt for some reason.

He shook his head to banish those strange thoughts and lifted his eyes, instinctively looking forward. His gaze eventually landed on the straight, upright figure in front of him.

Wait…

Chu Ci suddenly remembered something.

He sat up straight, his thick lashes fluttering, and began calling for the system, Xiao Ba, in his mind.

A moment later, the familiar black fuzzy ball appeared out of thin air before his eyes. Its two little white eyes blinked sleepily.

“What is it, Host—” Xiao Ba said, letting out a cyber-yawn.

Chu Ci raised an eyebrow. “You haven’t come out to give me a mission in ages. You’ve been slacking off, haven’t you?!”

Xiao Ba immediately looked offended. “I have not! I just haven’t received any new missions lately… though it might just require the right plot timing.”

“You mean missions are triggered by the plot?” Chu Ci asked. “But before, they seemed to be random.”

Xiao Ba flew over and perched on Chu Ci’s shoulder. “That’s true, but since the protagonist gong and all the key supporting characters have successfully appeared, it means the main storyline is officially starting! From now on, missions will only pop up under specific circumstances!”

Chu Ci rubbed his chin, his brow furrowing. “But doesn’t that make the difficulty even higher? According to the emotional bond between the leads in the original text, isn’t my chance of conquering Ji Yanli basically zero?”

“Please rest assured, Host! Xiao Ba will definitely help you succeed!” The little “coal ball” hopped onto the side of Chu Ci’s face, affectionately nuzzling his cheek with its fuzzy body.

“Besides, according to my scans, the protagonist shou’s favorability toward you is actually quite high!”

“Really?” Hearing this, Chu Ci breathed a small sigh of relief. Then, he did a double-take, shouting internally, “—You’re saying Ji Yanli’s favorability toward me is high?!”

Xiao Ba yawned again. “Aiya, anyway, you have a chance. Relax! I’m going back to sleep. See you next time, Host!”

With that, the black fuzzy ball vanished instantly.

Chu Ci remained dazed, still stuck on that last sentence.

A second later, the class bell rang. The homeroom teacher, Wang He, walked in carrying a stack of test papers. The noisy classroom fell into an immediate hush.

Wang He placed the papers on the podium, scanned the room, and then looked down to flip through them. “The results from the last exam are out. Some students have made great progress, but most are still stagnant, and some are even trending downward.”

He had a kind, approachable face. Trying to sound stern by lowering his voice didn’t come off as threatening; instead, it felt somewhat comical.

Sure enough, someone couldn’t help but let out a snort of laughter.

The teacher’s face darkened instantly.

He frowned and gave a mild lecture before quickly changing the subject. “I came to this self-study period for two things. First, I plan to rearrange the seating for a few students…”

Chu Ci propped his chin on his hand, staring out the window at the cloudless blue sky. Seating changes happened almost every week, usually based on grades—the top students moved to the front, while the average or poor students sat in the back.

He never cared about this. The original host’s presence was so low that even with good grades, he was always relegated to corner seats like this.

But then—

“Chu Ci.”

His drifting thoughts were snapped back to reality. He blinked blankly, looking at Wang He.

Wang He looked back at him, a gratified smile touching his lips. Likely due to Chu Ci’s personal circumstances, the teacher had always been supportive since Chu Ci mentioned wanting to stay in the dorms.

“A classmate mentioned that you have trouble seeing the blackboard from the back during class, so I’m moving you to the front.”

Then, he pointed at Xing Zhuo. “Xing Zhuo, you move back one row. Everyone behind him, move back accordingly.”

Xing Zhuo was the person sitting directly behind Ji Yanli.

The boy being moved looked visibly surprised, followed by a flash of annoyance in his eyes, but he didn’t dare say anything. He yanked his bag out of the desk and carried his books toward the back.

Chu Ci was still processing this.

Wang He urged him, “Why aren’t you moving? Get up and let the other students take their spots.”

The man’s voice reached his ears, and though Chu Ci’s mind was in a fog, his hands moved reflexively. He quickly packed his books, stood up, and walked toward the front.

“To make such progress, aside from your own hard work, you should also thank Ji Yanli,” Wang He continued. “I’m sure you know how much help he has been to you.”

Chu Ci knit his brows as he walked forward, his eyes meeting Ji Yanli’s.

A subtle smile played on the youth’s lips for a few seconds. Even though it vanished quickly, Chu Ci caught it clearly.

‘Ah—as I thought, it was this kid Ji Yanli’s doing.’

He paused abruptly at the empty seat in the third row.

Just as he was about to pull out the chair, Ji Yanli, sitting in the first row, spoke up softly. His lips parted slightly as he said, “Your seat is here.”

A slender finger pointed to the desk directly behind him.

Seeing that gesture, Chu Ci felt his temple throb several times.

‘—Can’t afford to provoke him, and can’t even hide.’

Under the gaze of the teacher and the entire class, Chu Ci felt miserable. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and resolutely walked over.

The moment he sat down, he heard a disdainful “hmpf” from beside him.

He blinked and stole a glance out of the corner of his eye. He realized the person sitting next to him was the same guy who had falsely accused him of stealing!

Sensing Chu Ci’s gaze, the boy rolled his eyes and snapped, “What are you looking at?”

Chu Ci retracted his gaze as if he’d been burned.

‘What a cursed fate. Truly cursed.’

He began hitting an imaginary wooden fish in his mind.

From the first second he sat there, he felt intense, burning stares fixed on him, making him feel like he was sitting on needles.

‘Is this the world of the protagonists…?’

‘So scary…’

He swallowed hard and began stacking his books one by one on the desk, trying to hide from those blatant stares.

“The second thing is…” The teacher cleared his throat and walked toward the door, gesturing outside. “We have a new transfer student in our class—”

“Come in.”

Just like the beginning of every school novel, following Wang He’s voice, a youth slowly walked through the door. He was tall, with a black backpack slung over one shoulder. His slightly ill-fitting school trousers hugged his long legs, revealing a flash of fair, elegant ankle.

The classroom went silent the moment he entered. Once Chu Ci saw his face clearly, he couldn’t help but gasp.

It was Song Qichen.

Unlike their last meeting, without the formal suit, the youth finally had some of the youthful innocence suitable for his age. He walked to the podium and gave an elegant, gentlemanly bow to the class.

“Introduce yourself,” Wang He said, stepping aside to give him space.

“Hello everyone, my name is Song Qichen.” The youth’s voice was warm and pleasant. He picked up a piece of chalk and wrote his name on the board. “I’m a transfer student. I’ve been living abroad until now. It’s an honor to be your classmate.”

After his short introduction, the classroom erupted into thunderous applause. Chu Ci reflexively looked at Ji Yanli in front of him to see his reaction, but the angle was too awkward; he couldn’t see Ji Yanli’s expression.

‘He’s probably pretty shocked. Even though they met recently, Song Qichen probably didn’t tell him he was transferring here.’

‘This glowing protagonist aura… he won’t be satisfied until he blinds everyone!’

‘Crap… why do I feel so inexplicably annoyed?! Is my mission really salvageable?!!’

‘Didn’t they say he’d be back in two months? It’s only been half a month! Kid, were you not happy abroad?!’

‘My Ji Yanli… my Ji Yanli… my Ji Yanli…’

Chu Ci ground his teeth silently, his eyes fixed on Song Qichen. The youth at the front had a soft smile on his face. Suddenly, his dark eyes shifted, and Chu Ci was caught off guard as their gazes locked.

?

Chu Ci’s brow furrowed.

Looking at me??

He suddenly felt a wave of guilt, as if his thoughts had been seen through. He quickly looked away, tilting his head to dodge the gaze.

But Song Qichen maintained that expression. Not only that, but the smile on his lips deepened.

Chu Ci realized something and breathed a sigh of relief.

Good, he wasn’t looking at him.

Wang He raised his hand to quiet the applause. “Let’s help each other out. If the new student has any difficulties, feel free to speak up.”

Then, he pointed to the only remaining empty seat in the room: “You can sit there for now.”

Song Qichen nodded and stepped down from the podium, approaching Chu Ci step by step.

Chu Ci’s eyes followed him uncontrollably until Song Qichen stopped right in front of him.

He looked up into Song Qichen’s ink-black eyes.

The other looked down and spoke in an extremely gentle voice—

“Classmate, could I switch seats with you?”