Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan
The scene fell silent for a few seconds.
Then came the angry roar of the boy: "What did you say? Say it again if you dare!"
Xie Shu: "No need to act like you're hard of hearing at such a young age, but if you really can't hear me clearly face-to-face, I might consider engraving it on your tombstone."
"You…"
The other party, red-faced and fuming, dropped the basketball and was about to confront Xie Shu.
It looked like he was ready to throw a punch.
But he was stopped by a few boys next to him.
Anger is one thing, but no one was foolish enough to risk punishment by actually fighting.
The boy who was held back quickly regained his composure.
He glared at Xie Shu resentfully, nearly falling for his provocation. If he had thrown the first punch, it would have definitely been to his disadvantage, especially with so many classmates watching.
The boy cleared his throat to mask his embarrassment and continued, "Anyway, I'm telling you, Ruan Nianxi is from our faculty, so you better stop hitting on her!"
Xie Shu had no interest in continuing this meaningless argument.
Without a word, he pulled out his phone under the puzzled gazes of the crowd.
Seeing him tapping on his phone without speaking, Zhao Lin approached curiously and asked, "Xie Shu, what are you doing?"
"Looking up the number for the dog-catching team, thinking of having them pay a visit to our school."
"…"
"Xie Shu, don't go too far!!"
It took the boy a few seconds to realize that Xie Shu was insinuating he was a dog, and he was infuriated once again.
Zhao Lin, worried that Xie Shu might actually make the call, pressed down on his phone.
Taking the cue, Xie Shu put away his phone and then turned his attention back to the boy.
Compared to the boy's flushed and agitated demeanor, Xie Shu was the picture of calm.
Compete with him?
Did the boy really think Xie Shu had spent his past life berating superiors in the workplace for nothing?
One of Xie Shu's life principles has always been:
Rather than inconvenience oneself, it's better to trouble others.
In just a few minutes, the boy felt like he was about to blow his top.
But on campus, and under the watchful eyes of everyone, he couldn't do much.
After holding back for a while and calming down a bit, he said with a disdainful tone, "I didn't come here to make things difficult for you today. I just wanted to let you know that Ruan Nianxi has already accepted my confession not long ago, so you'd better stay away from her!"
As soon as he said this, not only Xie Shu's three followers but even the boy's friends showed incredulous expressions, all shocked.
The boy lifted his chin, hoping to intimidate Xie Shu into backing down.
The onlookers were still enjoying the drama.
Only Xie Shu felt like laughing.
Ruan Nianxi accepted his confession?
Was he playing a loudspeaker in the treetops, audible for miles around?
He probably hadn't even managed to become ordinary friends with Ruan Nianxi, right?
Even if Xie Shu hadn't been reborn and knew about Ruan Nianxi's past, he would still believe that she would never accept the boy's confession.
How well did he know Ruan Nianxi after spending so much time with her?
Because of a kidnapping incident in her childhood, she had been refusing friendships ever since.
When she transferred to his class in elementary school, she was already in a state of rejecting friendships.
The reason he managed to become her friend later on was that he had been protecting her during that time, and as they spent more time together, plus she was young, it was easy for her to accept him as a friend.
In middle and high school, as she grew older, she became even less sociable. Her so-called friends were actually his friends.
Because he knew them, she, who always followed him, got to know them too.
Her own friends?
As far as he could remember, he had never seen any.
In short, it was very difficult for anyone to become even ordinary friends with Ruan Nianxi.
And he had succeeded in confessing to her?
Couldn't he have bragged to someone else?
Why did he have to bring it to Xie Shu?
Hilarious!
Xie Shu didn't respond but simply scoffed at the boy, his disdain clear.
The boy frowned: "What are you laughing at?"
Xie Shu: "I just remembered something funny."
The boy: "What funny thing… Are you ever going to stop?"
The boy, realizing what was happening, shouted angrily again.
He took a couple of steps forward, his friends still worried he might act out and get punished, trying to hold him back.
He waved them off to show he was calm, and after they let go, he took a few steps towards Xie Shu.
"So you're set on opposing me to the end?" the boy paused, then continued, "You want to settle this once and for all, right? Well, everyone's here, so don't say I'm bullying you. Choose whatever you want to compete in."
Xie Shu had no intention of engaging with him, but after a brief glance in a certain direction, he changed his mind.
He asked uncertainly, "I get to choose?"
The boy nodded confidently without hesitation.
Since the boy was being so polite, Xie Shu didn't refuse: "Let's compete in speed sketching then."
The boy: "…"
Xie Shu: "If you don't have the tools, my friends can lend them to you."
The boy: "How can you choose something you're good at!?"
He had assumed Xie Shu would choose something like basketball, soccer, or some other sport, but to his surprise, Xie Shu chose his own specialty!
Xie Shu frowned, puzzled: "What are you talking about? You asked me to choose, so shouldn't I pick something I'm good at instead of something you're good at?"
The boy was at a loss for words; it was true that each should choose something they were skilled at, right?
That speed sketching…
"I've never studied art, how can I do speed sketching? Pick something else!"
"You can't do it?"
"No kidding!"
"Alright then, consider it your loss. If there's nothing else, I'll be on my way."
With that, Xie Shu turned to leave.
The boy, frustrated by Xie Shu's unconventional tactics, was already simmering with anger, and now felt toyed with. It was hard for anyone to endure that.
But with so many onlookers, he couldn't resort to violence no matter how angry he was.
Instead, he started to mock Xie Shu, hoping to shift the public's attention onto him.
"Fine, forget the competition. You won't be able to win over Ruan Nianxi anyway. I told you, she's already accepted my confession. You can't even win over a girl from your own faculty, so you think you can chase after girls from other faculties?"
The boy's voice was loud, and nearly all the onlookers heard him.
Xie Shu's three loyal followers were furious upon hearing this and were about to retort, but Xie Shu stopped them.
The three were puzzled: "Xie Shu, you can tolerate this?"
"Not really."
Xie Shu waved his hand lightly, not looking at them, but instead stared straight ahead and called out, "Ruan Nianxi, when did you tell me you had accepted someone's confession?"