Chapter 9

During the holiday, they chose to go to the school library. The collection here was rich, and the books were well maintained and managed. It was only open to the academy’s teachers and students. In terms of environment, it was much better than going to a library outside.

The library was very large, and there were unexpectedly many people inside. Everyone was either reading or burying their heads in practice problems. However, Xie Shuyun and Cheng Lingxue’s entrance attracted everyone’s attention.

There was no helping it. Two good-looking girls walking together were not only pleasing to the eye, they were also the two main characters of the biggest gossip this week: the young heir of the Xie family and the Xie family’s adopted daughter!

In an instant, these students no longer wanted to read. Their little eyes followed the two of them as they moved, reluctant to look away. Some people had even already taken out their phones and started taking pictures.

Xie Shuyun tugged at the strap of her crossbody bag and looked around. She discovered that there were basically no two-person seats left. There were quite a few single seats, but if they wanted to discuss things, those clearly were not suitable.

“What should we do? It seems like we came too late. There aren’t any seats.”

In order to keep quiet, Xie Shuyun did not dare speak loudly. She leaned close to Cheng Lingxue’s ear and whispered.

The sudden warm breath brushing against her ear brought a tingling sensation, making Cheng Lingxue’s body tremble. She almost picked up the book in her hand and slapped the culprit across the face with it. Her grip on the handouts tightened, almost crumpling the paper.

In the end, Cheng Lingxue endured it. She lowered her head slightly, her hair covering most of her expression. She took a step back before raising her hand to brush aside the loose strands of hair. Her fingertips lightly touched the slightly warm tip of her ear, and her gaze turned faintly toward Xie Shuyun, staring until Xie Shuyun shivered.

“Sorry… I didn’t mean to.”

Although Xie Shuyun did not know ​bailiantales.com​what she had done wrong, apologizing first was definitely the right choice.

Seeing how quickly Xie Shuyun lowered her head, Cheng Lingxue was momentarily speechless. She took out her student ID and lightly swiped it across the panel, then said calmly,

“I already reserved a seat in the discussion area on the second floor.”

Hearing Cheng Lingxue say this, Xie Shuyun immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

As expected of the female lead. She had foresight.

Seeing Cheng Lingxue walk upstairs, Xie Shuyun hurriedly followed.

The area upstairs was much better than downstairs. There were small spaces separated by flower walls one after another. The larger ones could accommodate more than ten people, while the smaller ones had four-person tables. They were all furnished with sofa chairs, making Xie Shuyun unable to help sighing at the school’s wealth.

Although the spaces were not completely closed off, as long as they spoke quietly, they would not disturb others.

There were only two of them, so naturally, they borrowed the smallest cubicle. Without hesitation, Cheng Lingxue sat directly in the innermost seat.

Xie Shuyun looked around. Sitting beside the female lead was impossible. After thinking about it, she still sat in the outer seat, diagonally across from Cheng Lingxue, keeping the farthest distance possible.

“Should we start discussing the problems now?”

Taking out a thick stack of papers, Xie Shuyun asked for Cheng Lingxue’s opinion.

The Mathematical Olympiad competition was divided into three parts.

The first round was an individual competition, ranked according to the scores on the answer sheets. At the same time, it also served as the basis for entering the next round. The individual scores of teammates would be added together, and only the top thirty teams could enter the second round. So although it was called an individual competition, working alone was unrealistic.

The second round was a team competition. The top thirty would be divided into ten groups. There would be fifty questions, answered in a buzzer-style format, and the highest-scoring team would enter the next round.

The third round was a relay competition, which tested tacit understanding the most. At the beginning, one person would answer questions while the other waited behind a curtain. After five minutes, they would switch. This would continue for one hour. This meant that the two people on a team had to understand each other’s thinking process well enough, or else they would greatly slow down their problem-solving speed.

“Let’s do the problems first, then discuss.”

Cheng Lingxue opened her pencil case, took out a pen, and spoke slowly.

“Okay.”

The sound of pen rubbing against paper immediately rang out in the small cubicle. Aside from that, there was no other sound. This was very different from the other cubicles, where faint whispers could be heard from time to time.

Xie Shuyun rested her chin on her hand and could not help sighing.

The original body was truly smart. She had not inherited the original body’s memories, but she had inherited her brain. As soon as she saw the problems, the steps surfaced in her mind.

Yet even with that, the original body Read on BaiLianTaleshad still been second place. From this, one could tell just how impressive Cheng Lingxue was.

Thinking this, Xie Shuyun’s gaze unconsciously landed on Cheng Lingxue.

That cold and aloof face was now full of seriousness, and her eyes revealed focus. Outside the window above her, faint sunlight scattered over her body, adding a hazy beauty to Cheng Lingxue. While giving the girl a trace of warmth, it also made her look as beautiful as a painting.

The girl lifted her slender wrist. Her fingertips gently brushed aside the loose strands of hair falling against her cheek, tucking them behind her ear and revealing a small, soft pink ear. Unfortunately, it lasted only for that instant. As soon as her fingertips moved away, it was covered again, causing the urge to explore further to fall, bringing with it a faint sense of disappointment.

Xie Shuyun’s gaze followed those hands, watching as Cheng Lingxue used the hair tie in her hand to tie up her smooth long hair. Her snow-white neck was immediately revealed. Matched with the warm sunlight above, it actually appeared somewhat translucent. The bite-prevention collar around her neck became even more eye-catching, making it impossible to look away.

Gulp.

For some reason, Xie Shuyun felt a little thirsty.

She somewhat understood why Cheng Lingxue was the female lead.

Who else besides her would be qualified?

It was just that her family background was tragic, and her days before meeting the female lead A were too miserable.

Sigh…

Being the female lead was not easy either.

“What are you looking at?”

The girl’s gaze swept over, carrying displeasure and scrutiny. Xie Shuyun instantly came back to her senses and hurriedly withdrew her gaze.

She had actually stared until she was entranced, and she had even been caught…

How shameful!

Cheng Lingxue looked at Xie Shuyun, who had shrunk her neck like an ostrich, revealing only the top of her dark head, as if doing that could let her escape everything that had just happened.

For a moment, Cheng Lingxue felt speechless.

She had only observed her for a few days, but Cheng Lingxue had already sensed many things.

The previous Xie Shuyun had been annoying, gloomy, sharp-tongued, and fond of playing petty tricks. Now, she had changed a lot. Her personality had softened, she was considerate of others, and she was a little cowardly. But in some ways, she also seemed to have become shameless.

Rubbing her temples, Cheng Lingxue still could not figure out what this person was trying to do.

If Xie Shuyun could continue staying like this, it would also allow her own pressure to ease a little.

But she had better not affect her plan. Otherwise…

A trace of coldness slipped through Cheng Lingxue’s eyes.

A chill rose from Xie Shuyun’s tailbone, making her shiver. She could not help rubbing her arms.

Who was thinking badly of her?

Just like that, one of them drifted off in thought while the other sank into contemplation. Neither of them placed their full attention on the Olympiad papers. However, their IQs were simply high. In about an hour, both of them forcibly completed one set of problems.

After a round of discussion, they discovered that their problem-solving thought processes had many similarities. This meant that the process of working together later should go quite smoothly.

Perhaps because they had a good start, the two of them finally placed all their attention on the problems. Their speed also increased significantly.

But even though they sped up their progress and had already completed nearly half of the work, it was already lunchtime.

“Do you want to take a break? The cafeteria is open today too. Should we go eat lunch first?”

Xie Shuyun neatly stacked the completed papers and lightly tapped them against the table to straighten them. Looking at the time on her phone, she made a suggestion to Cheng Lingxue.

“There’s a dining area in the library. Buy food and bring it back.”

As she spoke, Cheng Lingxue used the end of her pen to gesture in a certain direction.

Xie Shuyun stood up slightly and looked over. In a corner on the first floor, there was a space with floor-to-ceiling glass walls. Quite a few people could be seen eating from lunch boxes there.

Probably because it was still within the library, there was no noise inside. Many people were eating while reading.

“Then do you want to go to the cafeteria with me, or should I bring something back for you?”

Xie Shuyun looked outside. As noon approached, the sunlight grew hotter and hotter. She felt that it was not suitable for Cheng Lingxue to go out in this weather.

Just thinking that her fair skin might get tanned and affect the female lead’s beauty felt like a very great sin.

“I’ll go with you.”

Cheng Lingxue put down her pen without much hesitation.

She looked like she had changed, but who knew whether she was waiting for Cheng Lingxue to lower her guard? When it came to food, it was better for Cheng Lingxue to handle it herself.

“Okay. Please wait for me for a moment. I’m going to the restroom. I’ll be back soon.”

After receiving Cheng Lingxue’s nod, Xie Shuyun followed the signs overhead to find the restroom. Along the way, she also looked at the facilities here.

The more she looked, the more she felt that this place was [bailiantales.com]not only large, but that all the equipment looked as good as new. Could it be replaced regularly every year?

This place really felt that extravagant.

Xie Shuyun turned a corner and entered the restroom. Before long, she came out, wiping the water from her hands with a tissue. Then she threw the tissue into the small trash bin nearby and prepared to return to Cheng Lingxue.

But when she was about to return to their seats, something happened that she never expected.

There came a day when she, too, would be blocked by someone.

And it was because of romantic matters!

Looking at the omega boy in front of her, whose eyes were red and who wore light makeup, he was a head shorter than her. His appearance could be described as soft, sweet, and milky. He looked at her with a face full of accusation and grievance.

That tearful gaze, as if accusing her of being a scumbag woman, made goosebumps rise all over Xie Shuyun.

She told herself that this world was different from her original world. The other person was an omega, so she must not scare him.

However, before Xie Shuyun could finish hypnotizing herself, the boy had already spoken softly. His tone matched his image very well, delicate and gentle, carrying a faint sob.

“Senior Xie, you clearly promised to go out with me this holiday… How… how could you stand me up? I waited for you at the place we agreed on for three hours. Wu-wu… How could you do this…”

By the end, the little omega boy began sobbing. His appearance looked both wronged and pitiful.

The omega boy’s voice was not very restrained, and it quickly attracted many people’s attention. Immediately, everyone began pointing and whispering.

This situation left Xie Shuyun somewhat at a loss.

And when she met Cheng Lingxue’s dark, deep gaze after the other girl had, at some point, walked out from the small cubicle, Xie Shuyun shivered even more.

This…

This was all a misunderstanding!

It was the original body’s fault, not mine!