Chapter 30: Student Union

Afternoon, Old Building

Perhaps it was lunch break, or maybe the school had few students to begin with, but when Xueqiu followed Su Xi out of the dorm, the campus was nearly deserted, with only a few leaves drifting in the wind.

Xueqiu hadn’t refused Su Xi’s invitation to meet.

Of course, the invitation wasn’t directly from Su Xi—she was just the messenger.

The one inviting Xueqiu was the student council president, Ou Ziyun.

Back in Qingtan, Xia Yin had warned her against joining the student council or dealing with “Ou Ziyun.”

Yet, that morning, after hearing Su Xi’s words, he didn’t object.

He just asked Xueqiu to grab his lunch from the cafeteria, then clicked “Start Game,” like a lord dismissing a servant.

“No need to be nervous. President Ou is great,” Su Xi said, smiling as she patted Xueqiu’s shoulder. “She even pays student council members an allowance out of her own pocket.”

Xueqiu nodded stiffly, feeling like a corpse, rigid and lifeless.

She followed Su Xi out of the dorm, across the campus path, and now toward an unfamiliar building.

Truthfully, it didn’t seem like a teaching building.

The iconic “1” of Teaching Building 1 was gone, replaced by a tattered red banner at the entrance reading “Valhalla.”

The building’s walls were stark white, newer than others, as if painted within the last five years.

Why bring me here? Xueqiu wondered, concluding the student council’s base must be in this oddly new yet old building.

“You’re roommates with Brother Xia. Getting used to living together? He hasn’t bullied you, has he?” Su Xi asked, breaking the silence as they approached the elevator.

Unlike the teaching building from the exam, this one had an elevator—like the office building’s, but newer, a rarity in the school’s outdated campus.

Xueqiu shook her head, saying nothing.

“Has he mentioned he’s been here since he was young?” Su Xi pressed.

This time, Xueqiu nodded.

She wasn’t deliberately silent.

She knew Xia Yin entered the Academy at fourteen, had been here five years without graduating, and was still a sophomore in his sixth year.

Right now, Xueqiu had dozens of questions—like why this building differed from others or why the banner read “Valhalla.”

But when nervous, she either misspoke or clammed up entirely.

Only with Xia Yin did she feel at ease, his chatter drowning out her mistakes.

“We’re here,” Su Xi said as the elevator opened.

She led Xueqiu down a corridor to its end.

Wind carried leaves through the railings, brushing Xueqiu’s neatly combed white hair.

A leaf landed below a plaque reading “President’s Office.”

The student council president had her own office?

Weeks ago, Xueqiu was just a high school senior.

Her old school’s student council was useless, managing only morning exercises and eye drills, not even fit to be teachers’ lackeys.

So, her ignorance here was understandable.

“I’ve got class, so I’ll leave you here. The president’s inside,” Su Xi said, pointing at the closed metal door with a smile. “Don’t worry, she won’t eat you.”

Xueqiu nodded, frozen by Xia Yin’s absence and the unfamiliar setting, reduced to nodding or shaking her head.

Before she could knock, a voice called from inside.

“Come in.”

Xueqiu took a deep breath and opened the door.

The office didn’t look like one.

A round table stood at the center, surrounded by thirteen wooden chairs.

A transparent planning board sat by the window, sunlight streaming in, making its contents unreadable.

Likewise, Xueqiu couldn’t immediately make out the figure seated by the board.

“Please, sit. Make yourself at home,” the girl at the table said.

Xueqiu recognized her—the tall, sword-wielding ponytail girl, Ou Ziyun, the president.

Her mind blank, Xueqiu didn’t know what to say.

Should she boldly declare, “I’m here to join the student council,” or meekly say, “Hello, Senior, I’m Xueqiu. Thank you for inviting me”?

In the end, she said nothing, sitting quietly.

She chose the seat farthest from Ou Ziyun—directly across the round table.

“I’ve reviewed your file from Chang Yi. Xueqiu, female, 18, unremarkable for your first eighteen years, yet chosen by the board and Principal Ling Jiming as an early-admission freshman alongside Chang Mu and Chisaki Takanotsume,” Ou Ziyun said, her smile calm, like a monarch greeting a subject or a king inspecting her army.

“But my rank…” Xueqiu mustered the courage to speak.

She wanted to confess she was ranked “E”—not S, not A, but a bottom-tier E.

“No, rank doesn’t measure talent. Strength does. You were handpicked by the principal and board. They’re stubborn, but their judgment of ability is flawless,” Ou Ziyun said firmly, cutting her off.

“The student council is the school’s only institution-level organization,” she continued, softening her tone to ensure clarity.

“From its founding, it’s existed to recruit talent. The past two years were a mess due to certain events, but since I became president, I won’t let it wallow in corruption or laziness.”

Xueqiu sat upright, expecting a proud speech from the confident president, but was surprised by this admission of the council’s “dark history.”

What happened to the student council in recent years?

Xueqiu felt it wasn’t her place to care, yet she asked, as if holding the question in would disrespect Ou Ziyun.

Or perhaps, she recalled seeing something similar before—a memory, a name, or…

“It’s always been an exceptional organization, from the school’s founding until it was taken over by its previous president, Wuyue Liuli,” Ou Ziyun said, her voice turning icy.

ps: Barring surprises, double updates start Wednesday. Begging for monthly tickets and tips at the month’s start! Even rants boost this book’s visibility (seriously).
(Your tickets are noted. Once I’m on break, I’ll repay with extra chapters—tentatively one extra per 100 tickets.)