The basketball court fell into a brief silence.
“What the hell is this girl doing?”
“Isn’t this the same girl who asked Lu Xingyan to clean up last time?”
“YeAh it seems like her name is Shen Xingru, the transfer student everyone was talking about recently.”
“That’s her! Damn, do you think she’s hooking up with Lu Xingyan?”
“Pfft! No way! Dude, your words are ambiguous…”
Other boys nearby regained their senses, lowering their voices as they discussed, looking quite excited. Meanwhile, Xu Chengzhou, standing beside Lu Xingyan, went through a series of emotional rollercoasters from “Wow, this girl is so beautiful” to “Wow, this girl’s crazy about basketball” to “Wow, where did this girl come from,” before his brain went momentarily blank.
Then suddenly, he felt a sense of familiarity with this beauty.
Maybe good-looking people are all the same, Xu Chengzhou initially didn’t think much about it, but after looking for a while, he couldn’t help but discreetly take out his phone and open his photo album.
Lu Xingyan remained silent throughout.
The setting sun’s rays were a bit harsh, so he squinted as he examined Shen Xingru. After a while, he approached her.
Shen Xingruo was 165cm tall, which was normal for a girl, but Lu Xingyan was nearly 20cm taller than her. As he stood closer, he had to slightly tilt his head to meet her gaze.
It was the first time Lu Xingyan had examined Shen Xingruo at such close range.
Her fair skin was flawless, with soft and gentle contours that didn’t give off a sharp, glamorous visual effect. However, she rarely smiled, which, coupled with her cold temperament, easily created a sense of distance.
Seeing Lu Xingyan’s lack of expression, Shen Xingruo had already prepared herself to be grabbed by the collar and threatened with harsh words—”You’d better sweep this damn place.”
But then, Lu Xingyan nodded slightly. “Okay.”
Shen Xingruo waited for a moment, but when she didn’t hear the usual “You wait for me,” she realized that this “okay” seemed to be literal.
“Damn…”
Xu Chengzhou stood aside, his gaze shifting between the photos in his album and Shen Xingruo herself, unable to help but let out a sigh.
“Hey, beauty, you…”
Shen Xingruo didn’t even spare him a glance, didn’t say a word, and just walked away.
Xu Chengzhou was still immersed in excitement. Shen Xingruo had left, and he was still holding onto his phone, grabbing Lu Xingyan’s arm, eager to share his newfound discovery.
“Hey hey hey, isn’t this the girl who splashed water on you in the high-speed rail? Do you remember, she used your water and even gave you five bucks back? Look at this photo, it’s her! So, this is Shen Xingru! What a coincidence!”
Lu Xingyan remained expressionless. “Get me a broom.”
“Excuse me???”
“A broom.”
So, that evening, as students passed by the basketball court, they witnessed an eerie scene: Lu Xingyan, the well-known young master of the prestigious Mingli School, was sweeping the basketball court.
He was tall and slim, his sweeping posture somewhat careless. With the setting sun behind him, only his slender silhouette remained on the basketball court.
Shen Xingruo finished her dinner and went back to the evening self-study. By the side of the playground, she overheard passing girls discussing:
“Isn’t that Lu Xingyan from the sophomore class?”
“Yes, it’s him… Is he sweeping the floor? Oh my goodness.”
Some girls who didn’t know who Lu Xingyan was asked curiously, “Is he famous?”
“You don’t know? His dad is the chairman of Jinsheng.”
“Ohhh… him, I’ve heard about him.”
Jinsheng was the leading real estate company in Xingcheng and a prominent real estate developer nationwide. Even if one didn’t know the specifics, the name alone carried weight.
In Mingli School, coming from a good family background was a standard feature. University professors and corporate executives were common, and only those with special or exceptionally wealthy backgrounds attracted attention in terms of family background.
The girls slowed their pace, continuing their discussion:
“It’s so strange. Why do I see the words ‘repentance’ on him?”
“Where did he go astray? Hey, don’t you think he looks handsome sweeping the floor? Good-looking people are just different, even when sweeping.”
Shen Xingruo glanced towards the playground.
Indeed, he was different. A spot that a normal person could sweep in ten minutes, he had been sweeping for half an hour and still hadn’t finished.
During evening self-study, as darkness descended and the moon cast its faint light through the thin clouds, occasionally glimmering stars, Shen Xingruo and Lu Xingyan had switched seats to the last row of the fourth group, the most secluded corner.
Shen Xingruo opened the window.
The gentle breeze of early spring brushed through the night, causing pages of books to flutter with a faint rustle. Outside the window, the leaves rustled softly, and the branches swayed, while the bright lights from the buildings across the courtyard flickered intermittently.
During the first session of evening self-study, Shen Xingruo finished her homework and planned to spend the second session practicing math problems. However, as soon as the bell rang for the second session to start, Lu Xingyan casually slung his backpack over his shoulder and strolled in.
Until Lu Xingyan took a seat to her right, Shen Xingruo hadn’t written a single word.
—This young master had way too much presence.
Shen Xingruo glanced at him and noticed that he seemed to have showered, his hair was soft, not completely dry yet, and there was a clean scent of grassy shower gel lingering on him.
Lu Xingyan dropped his backpack and said, “I forgot.”
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