Chapter 30: On Purpose
Morning Gossip and a Cold Shoulder
The morning campus buzzed with its usual energy. Students eagerly shared yesterday’s gossip, reigniting the fading topic of Lan Yi and Ye Sheng, now fueled anew by Lin Mu’s involvement.
However, Yu Li seemed disinterested. Ai Xinglan was still upset with her.
Since Yu Li’s feigned illness the previous day, Ai Xinglan had been ignoring her. Even now, despite Yu Li’s pitiful gaze from the seat beside her, Ai Xinglan only offered a huffing side profile.
“Xiao~ Ai~ Please don’t be like this… I really know I was wrong…”
Yu Li dragged out her words in a pleading tone, gently tugging at Ai Xinglan’s sleeve.
“Hmph…”
Ai Xinglan let out a soft huff, clearly determined not to forgive Yu Li so easily this time. She was resolved to make Yu Li truly realize her mistake—at least for a couple of days… or maybe just one day… perhaps just the morning would suffice…
Inwardly, Ai Xinglan wavered, though her face remained stern.
But Yu Li, evidently, had no intention of waiting even half a day.
A Bold Move in Class
“Eek!”
Ai Xinglan let out a startled gasp as Yu Li suddenly climbed onto her lap, wrapping her arms around her neck, heedless of their classroom surroundings.
“Yu Li! You idiot, are you crazy? Get down!”
She could feel the classroom chatter quieting as all eyes turned to their ambiguous display.
“You’re finally talking to me, Xiao Ai…”
Yu Li looked up, her silver eyes meeting Ai Xinglan’s. Normally, she had to tilt her head to meet her gaze due to their height difference, but in this position, she could stare directly into Ai Xinglan’s eyes, leaving her nowhere to hide.
“Because… Xiao Ai kept ignoring me, so I had to resort to this.”
A flicker of loneliness passed through Yu Li’s eyes, her lashes trembling slightly.
“Even I… can feel lonely, you know.”
Ignoring their classmates’ stares, Yu Li continued whispering softly in Ai Xinglan’s ear.
“Idiot… if you have something to say, say it privately! Get down already!”
“Then, Xiao Ai, will you forgive me?”
“…Fine! I forgive you, I forgive you! I won’t ignore you anymore, happy now? Just get down!”
Seeing Ai Xinglan’s flushed face and reluctant agreement, Yu Li smirked in satisfaction, released her, and returned to her seat.
A Flustered Reaction
“Ugh… you got away with it again…”
Ai Xinglan muttered in frustration, glancing at Yu Li, who was still smiling and staring at her.
“Why are you still looking at me?!”
“Because… you’re just so cute.”
Yu Li’s gentle smile seemed to prove her sincerity, her eyes filled entirely with Ai Xinglan.
“Huh? You idiot! Stop spouting nonsense… you!”
Caught off guard by the compliment, Ai Xinglan’s defenses crumbled. Though she called it nonsense, a blush crept from her ears, quickly spreading across her cheeks.
Perhaps due to Ai Xinglan’s exaggerated reaction, whispers erupted among their classmates.
“Do you think those two might actually…”
Hearing the comment, Ai Xinglan instinctively turned toward the speaker.
The classmate who spoke flushed with excitement but shyly averted their gaze when Ai Xinglan looked over. Their desk mate, bolder, gave Ai Xinglan a thumbs-up.
Flustered, Ai Xinglan quickly turned away, pretending nothing had happened. Normally, her classmates kept their distance out of fear—this was the first time someone had shown her friendliness instead.
‘But this isn’t the kind of friendliness I want!’
Gritting her teeth, Ai Xinglan shot a glance at the culprit, Yu Li, who was grinning as if nothing was wrong.
A Deliberate Tease
“You idiot… this is all your fault! Now the class is misunderstanding us. What are we going to do?”
Ai Xinglan’s cheeks were still red, and fearing further misunderstanding, she kept her complaints hushed.
Yu Li maintained her confident smile, seemingly unbothered by others’ opinions.
“A misunderstanding? Is it really a misunderstanding, Xiao Ai?” Yu Li asked softly, her tone suggestive.
“Of course it is…”
Ai Xinglan started to affirm reflexively but paused, a realization dawning on her face.
In truth… their relationship wasn’t exactly proper. It might even be more scandalous than what their classmates imagined.
“Xiao Ai… did you remember? Our relationship… is that of a kept girl and her benefactor…”
To avoid being overheard, Yu Li leaned close to Ai Xinglan’s ear, her voice tinged with ambiguity.
Ai Xinglan could feel Yu Li’s warm breath, as if she were anticipating some reaction.
For a moment, Ai Xinglan was dazed, glancing at Yu Li, who wore a teasing smile, clearly enjoying her flustered response.
Clenching her teeth, Ai Xinglan’s face burned. If they weren’t at school, she might have taught this reckless idiot a lesson.
Perhaps knowing she was safe, Yu Li acted so brazenly.
An Awkward Interruption
Cough, cough, cough.
A series of coughs broke the intimate moment between Yu Li and Ai Xinglan. Teacher Wang Si entered the classroom, looking slightly embarrassed, and shot them a pointed glance to rein it in before heading to the podium.
“Ugh…”
Having only been at school for a few days, Yu Li now found even the teachers viewing their relationship this way. Feeling it was impossible to explain, Ai Xinglan, in a fit of frustration, pinched Yu Li’s thigh hard.
“Hiss…”
“Hmph!”
Ai Xinglan huffed, her childish act of revenge complete, then turned away to focus on the lesson, ignoring Yu Li.
Seeing this, Yu Li gave a helpless smile and began listening attentively as well.
A Serious Announcement
At the front, Wang Si wore an unusually serious expression. He tapped the blackboard firmly, drawing the students’ attention, then spoke solemnly:
“As I mentioned before, the school has introduced a new course, and this course… is extremely important.”
Adjusting his glasses, Wang Si continued:
“The school has invited a professor specializing in this field, who is waiting outside. I urge you all to listen carefully.”
With that, he stepped down from the podium, opened the classroom door, and said softly:
“Professor Fu, you may begin.”
As soon as he spoke, a woman with silver-white hair and a warm smile entered. Her deep purple eyes exuded intellect, and her tall, curvaceous figure elicited gasps from the male students.
“Ohhh!”
“Oh my, you’re all quite enthusiastic, aren’t you?”
The woman chuckled, stepping up to the podium and writing her name.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Fu Kui, a… Disaster Beast Studies professor.”