"Gu Nianyang, please take care of me this new semester."
While the other students were introducing themselves, Song Zheng quietly greeted Nianyang.
"You’re too kind, top student. It should be me asking for your guidance."
Nianyang returned his words with a polite smile, bright and sunny, stunning Song Zheng into a daze.
Thump thump.
This... is what a crush feels like.
Song Zheng thought as he held his rapidly beating heart.
"Everyone, we’re in our final year of high school now, and we must sprint towards the college entrance exam. After a school meeting, it’s decided that each class must organize into study groups of four for mutual help. After class, you can arrange these yourselves."
Wang Fugui finished speaking and began teaching. Though his character was questionable, his teaching was good, otherwise he wouldn’t have made it to the position of Director of Education.
Nianyang didn’t plan to meddle and expose the truth about this person, as long as he and Yang Haiyan eventually faced the consequences of their actions by themselves, and as long as he didn’t target her.
After class, Song Zheng took the initiative to ask Nianyang to form a study group. Although she has a photographic memory, Nianyang struggles a bit with advanced math, so forming a group with Song Zheng means she can ask him questions when she’s confused.
As it required four members, Nianyang added Luo Lanzhen and Jiang Tian to the group, thus forming the four-person study group.
The whole evening, Nianyang and her group discussed and exchanged study tips. However, in Yang Haiyan’s eyes, it seemed like a shameless attempt to get closer to Song Zheng.
"Haiyan, don’t you think Gu Nianyang is doing it on purpose? Isn’t she top of the class? Why would she ask Song Zheng questions then? Clearly, she just wants to pursue him!"
Gu Youlan added fuel to the fire from the side, knowing that Yang Haiyan liked Song Zheng and intentionally misled her to resent Nianyang.
Since she couldn’t directly confront Nianyang now, she intended to use Yang Haiyan as a pawn, inciting hatred towards Nianyang for them to fight each other while she reaped the benefits.
"That shameless girl, I won’t let her succeed."
Sure enough, Yang Haiyan’s reaction was just as Gu Youlan had hoped, causing her to smile triumphantly.
Back in the dorm, the awkward atmosphere from the day’s events lingered, and after some washing up, the lights went out for bedtime. Lying in bed, Nianyang’s thoughts were filled with Li Tingyan.
She wondered how things were on his end. She had given him so much medicine and disguises, he should be fine, right?
As time ticked by, once everyone was asleep, Nianyang quietly entered her space.
She started working on the medicinal herbs needed for her body training. Before long, she had prepared the herbal bath as instructed by the ancient books, a large tub filled with dark liquid.
Nianyang submerged herself entirely, leaving only her head above the surface.
The herbal water in the tub was warm, and soon after entering, Nianyang felt the temperature gradually rise...
At first, she could bear it, but within seconds it felt like she was being cooked alive, her fair skin turning bright red.
It was truly unbearable.
However, the real pain came afterward, as Nianyang soon felt a dense ache spreading from inside out.
Then it intensified, as though her bones were being extracted.
Nianyang’s face turned ashen with pain, she bit her lips tightly to suppress her cries.