Jiang Xu had never specifically mentioned his midterm exams to Jin Jiayue. It was only during their chat yesterday that Jin Jiayue suddenly asked him if he would run every day. Jiang Xu replied that he wouldn’t be running for the next two days because of midterms.

Just that one sentence.

Yet, Jin Jiayue had remembered.

No wonder he hadn’t messaged Jiang Xu from yesterday morning until this afternoon.

Although the exams were over, everyone still had to return to the classroom to restore the desks and chairs, which had been rearranged for the exams. The students on cleaning duty also had to stay behind to tidy up.

Jiang Xu returned to the classroom, where his classmates were making a racket, and dragging desks and chairs with a deafening noise.

He walked to the back of the room, silently found his own desk and chair, and dragged them back to their original position near the trash bin.

As soon as he finished, the boy sitting in front of him reached out and slapped the surface of Jiang Xu’s desk but only ended up getting his hand covered in dust.

Boy: “……”

Boy: “Damn!”

Jiang Xu pulled a small pack of wet wipes from his pocket, tore one out, and handed it over: “Just say what you want.”

*What was with the habit of slapping people’s desks?*

"Wow, you're so meticulous? You even carry wet wipes with you." The boy looked astonished, even going as far as scanning Jiang Xu from head to toe in exaggerated disbelief. Clicking his tongue, he casually stuffed the dirty wet wipe into his desk drawer.

Jiang Xu: “……”

He frowned as he watched but held back from saying anything.

"How did you do on the exam?" The boy finally got to the point, half-joking, half-teasing. "You've been paying such close attention in class lately and even doing all your homework yourself. Moving up five places in our class ranking shouldn't be a problem, right?"

As he spoke, he stretched out his hand, fingers spread wide, showing the number ‘five’ in front of Jiang Xu.

The original Jiang Xu had always ranked in the lower-middle of the class. Their class had 54 students, and his final ranking last semester was 39th.

Jiang Xu thought for a moment, then said, “Multiply by seven.”

The boy didn’t get it: “Huh? What do you mean by multiplying what by seven?”

Jiang Xu: “Five times seven.”

"That’s thirty-five." The boy instinctively gave the answer, then suddenly realized and his eyes widened more and more until they were like bronze bells.

After a long moment of shock, he let out a “pfft” and said, "Moving up thirty-five places? You’re not joking, right? The top ten in our class are already in the top fifty of the whole grade. Moving up thirty-five places in the grade rankings, maybe, but in our class?"

Jiang Xu stayed silent.

The boy sighed dramatically and patted Jiang Xu’s shoulder in sympathy: “Bro, it’s great to have dreams, but you gotta be realistic too, right? Let’s talk about moving up five spots first. For us academic bottom-feeders, breaking into the top ten is practically impossible.”

Just as he was speaking, a sudden commotion arose ahead.

The two turned their heads and saw that the class monitor and Xu Zihui and the others had returned, with several people gathered around them, trying to check answers.

The boy patted Jiang Xu’s shoulder and squeezed his way over.

Jiang Xu withdrew his gaze and pulled out a wet wipe, beginning to wipe the desks and chairs. He still had things to do; his movements were quick, and in just a minute or two he had tidied up, putting his homework and the books he needed to preview for the weekend into his backpack. Without looking back, he left the classroom.

Zhan Huaixuan had just returned from outside; his first reaction was to look for Xu Zihui’s figure, but he saw that Xu Zihui was surrounded by a group of people, not knowing what they were talking about and Xu Zihui hadn’t noticed him entering the classroom at all.

This kind of thing had happened too many times.

Xu Zihui isn’t an ordinary rich kid; even in A City’s No. 1 Alpha High School, where wealthy students are as numerous as cattle, the Xu family behind him is certainly among the top names. His appearance, grades, physical fitness, and social skills are all excellent. Even if the school is full of alphas, Xu Zihui still stands out.

In contrast, he is very transparent.

He only has a presence when Xu Zihui notices him; if Xu Zihui doesn’t notice, he’s like a mushroom growing in a corner, completely ignored.

Zhan Huaixuan often felt this kind of inferiority, but today it was especially strong.

Until he thought of someone.

*Right.*

He wondered how Jiang Xu had done on the exams.

Zhan Huaixuan began to search for Jiang Xu’s figure again and saw Jiang Xu sling his black backpack over his shoulder and go straight out from the back of the classroom. As Jiang Xu walked, the little tuft of hair on his head swayed, looking somewhat childish.

But also a bit cute.

Suddenly, Zhan Huaixuan realized that Jiang Xu’s hairstyle was actually quite attractive.

*

Jiang Xu didn’t go back to the dorm; he headed straight for the school gate, and with his phone in hand, he began replying to messages from Jin Jiayue.

In the past, he never looked at his phone while walking or eating, let alone replied to messages. The strict rules imposed on the two brothers by the housekeeper extended to every aspect of their life and studies, Se believed one should focus on one thing at a time: if you’re walking, just walk; if you’re eating, just eat. Paying attention to your phone while walking or eating was considered very unseemly.

Jiang Xu was an obedient child, carrying out every word the housekeeper said to the letter.

Yet now, walking while looking at his phone, he actually found it quite enjoyable.

[Jiang Xu: Finished the exams!]

Jin Jiayue reappeared on his phone. As soon as the message was sent, the status showed that the other party was typing.

In no time, the screen refreshed.

[Jin Jiayue: What’s your plan next?]

Jiang Xu had thought Jin Jiayue would ask how he did on the exams, but instead, he completely skipped over that topic.

[Jiang Xu: First, I’m going out to get a haircut, then I’ll get a pair of contact lenses. After that, I’ll head back to school, have dinner at the cafeteria, read for a bit in the evening, and go to bed early. I have to wake up early tomorrow.]

Even though they had only known each other for a week, Jiang Xu had already gotten used to reporting his schedule to Jin Jiayue as if pouring beans from a bamboo tube. After all, even if he didn’t say anything, Jin Jiayue would end up asking bit by bit until he spilt everything like squeezing toothpaste.

But he didn’t want Jin Jiayue to ask further, so he changed the topic.

[Jiang Xu: The picture you sent this afternoon looks great. Weren’t you on a business trip? Why are you in the mountains?]

[Jin Jiayue: I am on a business trip, but a family friend’s son is getting married here, so I stopped by for the wedding. It’s being held at a private mountain estate to avoid media paparazzi.]

[Jiang Xu: So, are you staying at the estate tonight?]

[Jin Jiayue: Yes.]

[Jin Jiayue: I’ll go down the mountain tomorrow morning, then head straight to the airport back to A City.]

[Jin Jiayue: I’ll stop by the office in the afternoon.]

[Jin Jiayue: Then, I’ll meet you.]

Jiang Xu halted in his tracks, staring at the last message.

For some reason, his ears felt a little hot.

His experience with relationships was seriously lacking… *No, he had no experience at all.*

He had never even walked side by side with a girl before.

At first, he had seen Jin Jiayue as just another man like himself, but after reading those books about AOs, he could no longer think of Jin Jiayue as the same gender.

Alphas and Omegas weren’t the same sex to begin with.

Jiang Xu replied with a simple “Okay”, turned off his phone, and quickened his pace toward the school gate.

At the same time, the temperature was dropping in the mountains where Jin Jiayue was. The cold wind blew against his body, making him shiver. Assistant Wei quickly fetched a coat and draped it over his shoulders.

Jin Jiayue was dressed quite formally today, in a beige suit with a semi-long black woolen coat. However, instead of wearing it properly, he draped it over his shoulders.

His hairstyle was carefully styled, with both sides slicked back with hair gel, revealing his fair forehead and a pair of phoenix eyes hidden beneath long lashes. Unfortunately, the strong mountain wind had already messed up his bangs, with a few stray strands falling onto his forehead, making him look a little less distant and aloof.

The wedding was held in the evening, and the ceremony had just concluded. Now, it was time for the buffet reception.

Of course, this was also the best opportunity for guests to socialize and network.

Jin Jiayue had come here primarily for a business conference, spending the past few days busy with social engagements. He had only managed to finish work this morning, then immediately rushed up the mountain for the wedding. The sun had been scorching during the day, making it hard for him to keep his eyes open, yet the mountain wind was bitterly cold, stinging his face. The higher altitude wasn’t helping either, he still hadn’t fully adjusted and had been feeling lightheaded and off-balance all day.

He sat on an outdoor lounge chair, phone in hand, looking unusually drained. He had no intention of mingling with the crowd.

Assistant Wei had been by Jin Jiayue’s side all day and knew his boss wasn’t feeling well. However, since the bride and groom had yet to come over for a toast, leaving now would be somewhat impolite.

“President Jin, would you like some hot water?” Assistant Wei asked. “Shall I get you a cup of hot water?”

Jin Jiayue glanced at his phone, seeing that there were no new messages, and only then did he nod: “Go ahead.”

Assistant Wei quickly left.

Jin Jiayue sat for another half a minute, but the cold wind was giving him a headache. He decided to move indoors for now and return when the bride and groom came over for the toast.

He called Assistant Wei to inform him, but just as he started walking inside, someone called out to him from not far away.

“President Jin?”

The voice belonged to a woman. She looked to be in her early thirties, dressed in an elegant gown with a shawl draped over her shoulders. She eyed Jin Jiayue uncertainly for a moment before walking over with a smile.

“It is President Jin, isn’t it?”

Jin Jiayue stopped in his tracks and waited for the woman to approach before asking, “And you are?”

“I’m Xu Zihui’s mother,” the woman introduced herself. “My surname is Nie.”

Jin Jiayue was slightly surprised, though he didn’t show it on his face. His previously indifferent tone softened slightly: “Hello, Madam Nie.”

“Hello, hello! What a coincidence! I never expected to run into you here.” Nie Yan’s face was warm and smiling, her tone full of delight: “Which side of the guests are you with?”

“I was invited by Uncle Zhang.” Jin Jiayue replied.

“Oh, us too!” Nie Yan couldn’t help but steal another glance at Jin Jiayue. The more she looked, the more satisfied she felt, and the smile at the corners of her eyes and lips became impossible to suppress: “I hope I’m not being rude, but I recognized you because I’ve seen your photo before. Did you come alone?”

“Yes.” Jin Jiayue said, “My father and the others couldn’t make it, so since I happened to be on a business trip here, I came in their place.”

“Oh, what a pity! If I had known you were coming, I would’ve dragged that kid Xu Zihui along no matter what.” Nie Yan sighed with regret. “That boy, he’s still young and doesn’t like attending these kinds of events. But you two could always meet up privately for a meal or go shopping together. It won’t take much time.”