On the way there, Yun Jiumo started to conclude that something had definitely happened to Mo Xuan.

Otherwise, there was no way he would be acting like this now. So timid, constantly glancing around to cover up the tension in his heart.

It was too strange.

If this had happened before, and he was the one helping her to the infirmary, then he would've been nervous from excitement, not like now, where Yun Jiumo could so easily read a trace of resistance and fear from him.

He really was afraid.

Afraid of who? Me?

Yun Jiumo felt she had to get to the bottom of it. Only by keeping Mo Xuan firmly in the palm of her hand could she truly feel at ease.

And right now, the best breakthrough was today's seat change during self-study.

Why had he rejected it so out of character?

Under the bright sunlight, the girl's gaze turned deep and unreadable. A cold glint rippled through her rose-red eyes.

The boy standing so close to her, almost pressed against her, looked a little stunned. His expression was blank, as if this sudden question had caught him off guard.

So there really is a problem...

A faintly dark thought rose in the girl's heart.

Then the boy broke into a smile. His teeth were white, bright, and dazzling.

“That's because I don't want to cause you trouble anymore.”

What?

Yun Jiumo raised her pale chin in surprise, a little unable to process it.

Then she saw that the boy had already folded his arms with practiced ease. It was a gesture she remembered well. He lowered his head, a little embarrassed, and said, “Actually, if I did that, you probably wouldn't be willing in your heart, right, Yun Jiumo?”

“Let me think... I started switching to the seat next to you during self-study back in second year, didn't I? And sometimes I'd deliberately use asking questions as an excuse to talk to you. You should've noticed that, right?”

Mo Xuan gave an awkward smile. His cheeks were a little red.

“At the time, all I wanted was to get a little closer to you. I didn't need any special response from you. It was enough if you talked to me a little, or smiled at me. I didn't think too much about it. But in the end, it feels like I wasted a lot of your time. Neither of us got much homework done.”

“So over the summer, I figured it out. I can't keep bothering you like I used to. We're already in senior year. You have a university you want to get into too, right? It has to be a top one. If I keep coming over to bother you again and again, then I'm just wasting your time. And if you miss out on your dream university because of me, then I'll never forgive myself.”

After saying that, the boy gave her a playful smile. His tone was completely natural.

Yun Jiumo seemed to freeze. Her gaze moved back and forth across his face, not letting go of a single detail.

But no matter how she looked, she couldn't find any trace of a mask on that face.

If anything, those words sounded like they came straight from his heart, without a shred of falsehood.

Had she been overthinking it?

In the fresh breeze, the girl fell into a brief silence.

...

Mo Xuan looked at her and tried hard to keep his smile in place. The muscles in his face were taut. His hands rubbed against his pants as if by accident, but he was really wiping away the thin sweat in his palms.

That had been way too close. He'd almost raised the white flag on the spot.

Mo Xuan had to admit it. When Yun Jiumo had yanked him over and glared at him just now, he'd nearly spilled everything.

He couldn't help it. Every time Yun Jiumo looked at him, his heart sped up. He'd habitually nod and say yes. He'd subconsciously become obedient. Even after they got married, that never changed.

Or rather, even after being reborn, some reactions carved into muscle memory still couldn't be changed.

Luckily, at the instant the words were about to leave his mouth, he suddenly thought of that excuse. Only then had he barely managed to bluff his way through.

Yun Jiumo was still thinking, and Mo Xuan didn't disturb her.

He knew this girl's personality too well. If he interrupted her now, then no matter what he said, she'd suspect ulterior motives. The best thing to do was play mute and stay quietly to the side. Not too warm, and not too cold either.

After living a second life, he understood Yun Jiumo much better. Enough, at least, to stand on equal footing with her in the final stretch of high school.

After all, at this point, she still hadn't started taking the initiative yet.

“So that's how it is.” The girl laughed softly.

She raised her pale hand to her red lips. Her brows curved gently, her eyes shone like stars, and her laughter sounded as clear as wind chimes.

Mo Xuan instinctively relaxed for a moment, then abruptly focused again.

“It's rare for you to think of others on your own, Mo Xuan.”

Maybe it was just his imagination, but when she said his name at the end, Mo Xuan felt like she had deliberately drawn it out. It sounded soft and sweet.

That tiny change sent a chill down his spine. He couldn't help worrying whether she'd actually believed his explanation. No matter how he looked at her smile, it carried a hidden blade.

So he could only stiffen his face and force out a modest fake smile. “I've always been considerate of others. You can't be too selfish as a person.”

Yun Jiumo shook her head. Her hair swayed, gleaming under the sunlight.

“Actually, that's not a problem at all. Rather than worrying that asking me questions will waste time, I think mutual discussion makes studying more efficient.”

Mo Xuan's fingers twitched.

Yun Jiumo's gaze drifted somewhere unknown as she said casually, “Didn't the homeroom teacher say the same thing? If you run into a problem you can't solve, ask others more. If everyone discusses it together, you'll definitely come up with different solutions.”

“The math teacher also said that every problem has at least three different ways to think about it. If we switch your way of thinking with mine, then we'll get new ideas.”

“The English teacher also thinks—”

Big sis, if you want me to sit over there from now on, just say it already. Do you really need to drag this many teachers in as examples? And sure, the homeroom teacher and math teacher kind of make sense, but what the hell does this have to do with the English teacher?

Mo Xuan was a mess in the breeze. Looking at the girl in front of him rambling on unlike her usual self, he felt a helpless sense of being trapped with nowhere to run.

She seemed to realize she'd said a little too much. Yun Jiumo suddenly stopped.

When she saw the boy's bleak, stiff smile and his obedient posture with both hands hanging at his sides, that resigned look made her laugh out loud despite herself.

So cute.

She stopped talking, and her voice turned sweet and soft.

“No matter what, having someone to talk things through with is always good. Don't think you're always causing me trouble, okay? If I run into something I don't understand, I can ask you too. That helps me as well. Got it?”

Mo Xuan shook his head inwardly.

You ask me?

Come on.

You're a top student who always ranks near the top of the whole grade on every monthly exam, and I'm just someone hovering between 100th and 150th place. Who would believe that?

As far as Mo Xuan remembered, he had always been the one asking Yun Jiumo questions. Not once had it ever gone the other way around. That only deepened his suspicion.

This had to be an excuse.

This woman clearly didn't want to let him go that easily. If he refused, then who knew what impulsive thing she might do next.

But if he really sat next to her again, Mo Xuan felt like his own safety would be hanging by a thread.

Yun Jiumo's personality gave him the feeling of staying beside a tiger. More than once, he'd wondered how on earth he'd used to sleep so soundly while holding her.

Was it just because she was soft and fragrant, and her skin felt so smooth that holding her was simply too comfortable?

But wasn't that also another kind of restraint from her?

The boy scratched the back of his head. His eyes darted around, and he looked hesitant.

“Well... let's talk about it when the time comes.”

If something could be delayed, then delay it. Maybe if he dragged it out long enough, the problem would solve itself.

If he wanted to make Yun Jiumo happy, he could just nod and agree right now. She would definitely bloom into a radiant smile.

But if he agreed like that, no one could predict what she'd do next.

Sure, in his memory, Yun Jiumo had behaved herself all the way until graduation in senior year and never done anything too outrageous. But he had been reborn now. Who could guarantee that this life wouldn't bring some unexpected changes?

More importantly, whenever he thought back on the past, he always had this uncomfortable feeling that he had been the one desperately chasing from behind, while Yun Jiumo floated lightly ahead.

No wonder people in class had called him a simp behind his back.

He thought so too.

Who the hell wants to be a simp? All through high school, you kept me hanging like this, waiting on you, making me take every single initiative. In my last life, I didn't know any better. But in this life... heh. No way in hell I'm doing that again.

The more he thought about it, the brighter his face became. It felt like clouds had parted and sunlight was pouring over the earth.

He had figured it out.

“Come on. Let's get you to the infirmary first. If we keep wasting time, your wound might heal on its own.”

He turned around and, without another word, took the girl's wrist and strode forward.

Yun Jiumo stumbled as he pulled her along, letting him hold her wrist without a sound.

Only deep in her eyes, disappointment, gloom, and a faint trace of savagery surfaced.