The girls in Gu Shiting’s class speculated that he was in a relationship.
"Is it Yang Mingming?"
"I don’t think so. He doesn’t seem to like Yang Mingming that much."
"Yang Mingming has been in our class for over a year now. If he liked her, they would have been together already."
"So the girl he likes is even prettier than Yang Mingming?"
"How pretty does she have to be?"
"Can’t imagine. There’s no girl in our school prettier than Yang Mingming."
"If she’s another level of beauty, she’d have to be as pretty as Lan Fei."
Gu Shiting happened to overhear their quiet conversation.
He frowned slightly.
In his heart, Sheng Tang was the most beautiful girl in the world. She was perfect in every way.
Her eyes were beautiful, she had a little dimple; her teeth were neat, and her hair was jet-black; her writing was brilliant, and her singing was captivating. There was no one better than her in the world.
Comparing other women to Tangtang was an insult to her.
No one was qualified to be compared to Tangtang.
Who was Yang Mingming anyway? Gu Shiting had no impression of her at all. She couldn’t match up to Sheng Tang, that was for sure.
Thinking this way, he couldn’t focus on the afternoon classes.
As soon as school ended, he immediately called Sheng Tang.
Sheng Tang was scrambling to pack her school bag while she answered the phone.
"Ready to go?" he asked.
Sheng Tang replied, "Okay, wait a moment. I’ll call my family first."
"Alright."
After hanging up, Sheng Tang texted him, telling him to wait at the next stop.
For some reason, Sheng Tang always felt like she was having a secret affair with Gu Shiting.
The thought made her shudder, and she quickly brushed it off.
The students in the classroom gradually left, and Sheng Tang called her mom from the stairway, alone.
"...I want to learn how to use a whip, so I might be home late. If it’s too late, I might not come home and just stay at his place," Sheng Tang said.
There was a long silence from her mother.
Sheng Tang continued, "The coach is really hard to book, Mom. I really want to learn."
"Well, you need to be considerate and not cause any trouble," her mother finally said after a pause.
Sheng Tang quickly agreed, hung up the phone, and happily went on her way.
When she exited the school gate, there were only a few scattered students. On the sports field, many boys were playing basketball while girls watched, not in a hurry to go home.
Sheng Tang first got on the bus, then at the next stop, walked two hundred meters to where she spotted Gu Shiting’s car.
Inside the car, it was very quiet. The late afternoon sunlight fell on his face, and under its light, his eyes appeared lighter, with a hint of aloofness.
Sheng Tang knocked on the car door.
The driver opened the door for her, and she quickly got in.
Gu Shiting was in a great mood. Suddenly, he pulled out a rose from his bag and handed it to Sheng Tang.
The red rose was vibrant and striking, the petals a vivid shade of flames, a subtle fragrance slowly wafting out.
Sheng Tang smiled, "Where did this flower come from?"
Gu Shiting gave a mysterious smile but didn’t answer.
"Thank you, it’s beautiful." Sheng Tang accepted the flower and held it in her hand.
She thought of the fairy tales she had read, especially Beauty and the Beast.
"...You know, if all the petals of the rose fall off, the prince will be turned into a beast forever," Sheng Tang said.
Gu Shiting: "..."
"Have you heard this story before?"
In this world, there was no Beauty and the Beast story, so Gu Shiting had never heard of it.
He shook his head.
Sheng Tang began to tell him the story.
The car drove on while Sheng Tang talked, and Gu Shiting listened with increasing attentiveness.
He felt like he was the cursed beast: once superficial and arrogant like the prince in the story; later, he was trapped in his "castle" forever, losing touch with the outside world.
And Sheng Tang was his Belle!
"You’ll save me, won’t you?" he suddenly interrupted Sheng Tang.