34. The Arrival of the New Student

The last day of August, the day for new students to register.

As usual, Jiang Bei still appeared, in Fang Yuan's eyes, rather slovenly. Yang Xue, on the other hand, had made a slight effort—she chose her favorite dress and washed her hair. She wore no makeup; she had no need for it. The same was true for Fang Yuan.

With a bare face, she could put to shame those layered in heavy makeup.

Yang Xue hadn't seen Fang Yuan yesterday, so when she stepped out this morning and caught sight of her for the first time… Well, being a girl, she couldn't exactly use words like "stunning beauty" to describe her feelings; instead, she settled on "unbelievable."

Yang Xue stood frozen, unable to believe that such a beautiful girl could exist.

Fang Yuan was used to such reactions from strangers, especially since entering high school—her appeal was universal, captivating both boys and girls. Of course, she never felt prideful because of it; that wasn’t in her nature.

So she offered a gentle smile to the dazed Yang Xue and nodded slightly in greeting.

Yang Xue, still in a daze, nodded back. Yet her gaze couldn’t help but follow Fang Yuan, right up until Jiang Bei came out, walked over, and called to her, "What are you daydreaming about?"

Yang Xue blinked her own rather pretty eyes, took a beat or two to recover, and answered, "That girl… she’s beautiful, like a fairy."

Following the direction of Yang Xue’s pointing finger, Jiang Bei caught a glimpse of Fang Yuan’s back.

"Really? If you like her, go after her," he said.

Yang Xue: "…"

"It’s a new era—you should be bold."

Yang Xue: "!!! Jiang Bei, what nonsense are you talking about! I’m just saying she’s beautiful!"

Her cheeks flushed red.

Was it anger? Or embarrassment?

Leaving the gates of Peach Blossom Garden Villas, they walked a short distance to the main road, and after another five or six minutes, reached an intersection.

Huaqing was to the left, Imperial University to the right.

At the intersection, Jiang Bei and Yang Xue stood together, waiting for the left-turn signal. Fang Yuan stood alone, waiting on the right.

On the way there, Jiang Bei had already realized that the "fairy" Yang Xue spoke of was the same girl he’d seen yesterday afternoon—the one whose smile seemed to add special effects to her eyes.

He found it amusing.

Now, with several seconds left before the light changed, he turned and openly stared at Fang Yuan’s profile.

Whether someone was beautiful or not didn't make much difference to him; what he really wanted to see were those eyes… What kind of eyes could create that magical effect?

He was curious about this.

…

Fang Yuan almost instantly noticed Jiang Bei’s gaze… That inexplicable irritation she’d felt yesterday afternoon, seeing him lying in the courtyard, began to well up inside her once more.

She tried to ignore it, but the feeling only grew stronger, like a mischievous child persistently tugging at her nerves.

In the end, she couldn’t hold back and turned to face Jiang Bei, who was still brazenly staring at her.

Their eyes met, a silent tension stretching between them for several seconds.

Fang Yuan found herself disliking this shameless, messy boy even more.

"What are you looking at?" Fang Yuan broke the silence first, her tone unmistakably displeased.

Yang Xue noticed this and, realizing Jiang Bei was at it again, instinctively gave his foot a quick, light stomp.

There was little pain from the step. Jiang Bei ignored it and simply smiled at Fang Yuan. "I think your eyes are very beautiful."

Fang Yuan: …

What kind of attitude was this? Not the least bit flustered, not even apologetic?

How thick-skinned could this boy be?

"It’s very rude to stare at me like that."

"Is it?" Jiang Bei replied with a smile.

Fang Yuan’s expression darkened, her tone sharper. "Yes!"

"Then, I’m sorry. But your eyes really are beautiful. May I look at them?"

Fang Yuan: …

The light turned green.

Fang Yuan had no desire to exchange another word with this infuriating boy. She turned on her heel and strode away, her pace brisk, the hem of her dress fluttering.

"This girl is rather interesting," Jiang Bei commented, still standing in place.

Yang Xue heard this and decided she didn’t want to say anything either—she even felt like pretending she didn’t know the idiot at her side.

—

The registration process was straightforward: find your department’s registration desk, sign in, and, under the guidance of a senior student, complete various formalities before finally gathering at the gymnasium for the welcome assembly.

The senior students from each school’s student council—especially those who, as of today, still hadn’t managed to find a boyfriend or girlfriend—were especially enthusiastic about this task.

The senior leading Jiang Bei, a girl named Cheng Yun, was just such a person.

However, there was a slight difference in her case.

Cheng Yun was actually quite attractive—tall at one-seventy, slender, long-legged. The only reason she didn’t have a boyfriend yet was her pickiness, and the fact that, so far, no boy on campus had caught her eye.

Now, she had found one.

Not long ago, seeing Jiang Bei approach from afar, Cheng Yun seized the moment decisively.

What? Be reserved?

Please, times have changed!

"Junior…" Cheng Yun once again took the initiative, trying to strike up a conversation with Jiang Bei.

But just as the word "junior" left her lips, a lively, adorable girl came running up like the wind, stopping right in front of Jiang Bei.

"Brother Jiang! There are so many people here—I almost couldn’t find you," Mao Xiaobai said with a beaming smile.

This white cat’s acting skills weren’t much to speak of, but Jiang Bei never gave it any thought, so it was passable.

Jiang Bei smiled back at Mao Xiaobai, his eyes drifting to the small backpack on her back—he didn’t have to guess to know it was filled with snacks.

Soon, their little group heading toward the gymnasium grew from two to three.

Mao Xiaobai walked on Jiang Bei’s left, while the scheming Cheng Yun took his right.

Cheng Yun had already sneaked several glances at Mao Xiaobai.

The verdict was clear:

Mao Xiaobai was a bit taller than her.

Mao Xiaobai was a bit fairer.

Mao Xiaobai had a slightly better figure.

And Mao Xiaobai’s cuteness was beyond comparison.

But she was a proud, solitary senior after all—having finally found a "prey" she wanted to pursue, would she give up just because she couldn’t outdo Mao Xiaobai?

No, absolutely not!

After all—

What’s the use of being cute? Cuteness is worthless before sexiness!

Cheng Yun was convinced of this.

—

Imperial University.

Much like the way Jiang Bei was being targeted by that lonely senior, only with more intensity—almost frighteningly so—

Fang Yuan was surrounded by five boys.

Five boys, each trying a different approach one after another…

Some tried to show care and concern—those were the sycophants.

Some put on airs as seniors—those were the self-important show-offs.

Some said little, acted cool and aloof—those were the introverted posers.

Some sought out other ways in—those were the sly foxes.

Some simply walked ahead, leading the way—those were the ones with ambition but no courage.

So, with a faint smile on her lips, Fang Yuan truly began to miss her high school days.

Life was simpler then, without all these restless hormones—looking back, how wonderful it was.