Desk-mate, Do You Like Me? - Chapter 4

Chapter 4

At 6:30 PM, the dismissal bell rang. Day students went home, and boarding students returned to the classroom for evening self-study after dinner.

Li Mo was sitting slowly, spacing out on his chair.

Xu Qing patted him: “Move over, I need to go out for dinner.”

“Sure thing.” Li Mo got up, spun around, and sat down in the seat in front of him.

Xu Qing glanced at him and walked straight out of the classroom.

Li Mo wasn’t in a hurry to go home. After playing around for several days, he suddenly felt an unprovoked sense of emptiness. He had abruptly left the home he had lived in for seventeen years, and here, he had no friends and was unfamiliar with the place.

“Hah—”

Students were gradually returning from the cafeteria. Only then did Li Mo slowly get up and walk away like an old man on a stroll.

Not boarding was Li Mo’s own choice. On one hand, he didn’t like the feeling of group living. On the other hand, he knew Yu Wencheng wouldn’t get off work and come home until after the evening study session ended, giving him relative freedom.

Yu Wencheng wasn’t a traditional elder. Although their interactions were like friends, he couldn’t escape his passive skill as a teacher.

In junior high, Li Mo often skipped classes to fight or occasionally brought his phone to school. Since Yu Wenxiu couldn’t control him, she would call Yu Wencheng, who would chew him out for hours, his spit practically flying through the phone screen.

Back home, Li Mo changed his shoes, didn’t turn on the lights, skipped dinner, and went straight to his room to lie on his bed and scroll on his phone.

On his social media feed, Yu Wenxiu had posted several updates in a row, most of which were about his younger brother, Ye Jinlun.

Since Yu Wenxiu married Ye Zhong, their quality of life improved significantly, and Li Mo also reluctantly received a bit of paternal love. However, ever since Ye Jinlun was born, Li Mo didn’t even have maternal love left.

Yu Wenxiu and Ye Zhong both spoiled Ye Jinlun, often neglecting Li Mo, and even scolding Li Mo without distinguishing right from wrong.

This favoritism led to the seven-year-old Ye Jinlun being arrogant and bossy, not respecting his older brother or elders at all. Even if he were to literally insult Li Mo, Li Mo couldn’t do anything about it.

His move to City A this time was also because Ye Jinlun said he didn’t like his older brother and wanted him gone. Yu Wenxiu then thought of her younger brother in City A and sent Li Mo over under the guise of “better education.”

Another update popped up on his feed.

[Yu Wenxiu]: My darling son’s long-desired toy room has finally materialized!

The accompanying picture showed a lavishly decorated room filled with children’s toys.

Li Mo recognized it immediately as his former bedroom. While he was still living there, Ye Jinlun had always wanted a toy room and specifically demanded Li Mo’s bedroom.

You think I’m Hello Kitty if the tiger doesn’t show its might? Li Mo had refused to budge, and Yu Wenxiu and Ye Zhong couldn’t force him. Now that he was gone, Ye Jinlun’s wish was easily fulfilled.

Li Mo tapped the “like” button and stuck out his tongue.

Ye Jinlun’s birthday was a week ago, and the chat with Yu Wenxiu still showed the transferred money had been received. The little brat hadn’t even said thank you.

After scrolling through the feed for a while, Li Mo found it incredibly boring.

Just as he was about to put his phone down, a message notification popped up.

Yu Wencheng had added him to a WeChat group named “Grade 11 Class 4 Super Serious Official Website,” the official student group for Class 4.

Yu Wencheng sent a private message: This is your class group. I’ve joined the parent group. Do you need me to swap roles?

[Li Mo The Great Handsome Guy]: Can you pull me into that one too? I want to be my own parent.

—Get out of here. Your uncle is here.

Li Mo scrolled to the group member list and watched as a nickname changed from “x.” to “Xu Qing.”

Li Mo quickly added “x.” as a friend, and the request was accepted almost immediately.

[Li Mo The Great Handsome Guy: Xu Qing?! Aren’t you a boarding student??]

[x.: Yes, just sneaked my phone in.]

Li Mo’s expression cracked: Didn’t Yu Wencheng say the school strictly checks this? Why was it so easy for Xu Qing to bring it in without being caught?

[x.: Want to know how to bring it in? V me 50 [yuan] and I’ll tell you.]

[Li Mo The Great Handsome Guy: …You greedy merchant!]

[Transferred 50 yuan]

[Li Mo The Great Handsome Guy: Thanks, Brother Xu.]

Xu Qing sent a smug, slightly teasing emoji.

[x.: Hide it in your underwear. Even if someone frisks you, they won’t feel it.]

Li Mo: …

Imagining Xu Qing using that face to reach into his underwear and pull out his phone—the scene was bizarre beyond belief.

Xu Qing sent another message: Just kidding. I hid it in my luggage on the first day, and no one checked.

[Li Mo The Great Handsome Guy: Nice joke. Don’t make it again next time.]

[x.: I need to study now. Goodbye.]

Li Mo put his phone down, tossed it aside, and lay on the bed, spacing out.

He had always thought Xu Qing was the silent, serious type. That face, that demeanor—perfectly aloof.

After chatting with Xu Qing a few times, Li Mo felt his desk-mate wasn’t all that cold, nor was he difficult to get along with.

Around 8 PM, Li Mo was reading a novel when Xu Qing sent a message: Your books and clothes are here with me. Come early tomorrow, find me at the dorm, Boys’ Dorm 318, third floor.

[Okay, desk-mate.]

The school gate opened at 7 AM, and morning study started at 7:30 AM.

Li Mo calculated that if he wanted to avoid disturbing his desk-mate while he ate and studied, he’d have to wake up and rush to school around 6 AM.

Looking at the thick novel in his hand, Li Mo rolled over and decided not to sleep at all.

When Yu Wencheng returned from work, he first checked to see if Li Mo was asleep. Only when the lights outside had gone dark did Li Mo open his eyes and pull out the novel he had been reading from under the blanket.

Sneaking under the covers to read novels at night was something Li Mo did a lot in junior high. He managed to evade the dorm supervisor, his mother, and now his uncle.

…

The next morning, Li Mo rubbed his eyes and stumbled out of his room half-asleep.

Yu Wencheng, who had just woken up, was startled by him: “Why are you up so early? And what’s with the dark circles under your eyes?”

Li Mo yawned widely: “Didn’t sleep well… I have trouble sleeping in a new place.”

Yu Wencheng looked at him suspiciously: “When we traveled before, you seemed to sleep soundly in hotel beds.”

“Don’t talk about that.” Li Mo stretched. “I need to go to school. My desk-mate said my uniform and stuff are with him.”

Yu Wencheng acknowledged this: “Your desk-mate is Xu Qing, right? The grade’s number one student who’s incredibly smart.”

“Yep.”

“Oh, look at that kid—good grades, handsome, and he even won the ‘Three Goods Student’ award before… Hey, aren’t you going to eat breakfast?” Yu Wencheng activated his passive skill, and Li Mo covered his ears as he walked out the door.

“No, I’m good—”

The sky was bright by 6 AM, with a sharp, cool breeze.

Li Mo bought a hand-scallion pancake on the street—a luxury supreme version with double eggs, thick bacon, and double sausage—and strolled to school while eating it.

He spent a long time negotiating with the security guard, who absolutely refused to let Li Mo bring the pancake inside.

Li Mo simply abandoned the main entrance, circled to a familiar wall, and easily hopped over it.

The dorm building was unlocked, and the wake-up bell hadn’t rung yet. It was very quiet.

Walking softly to the door of Dorm 318, Li Mo peered in through the small window. The dorm had four beds. Beds were on the left, and desks and cabinets were on the right.

Despite being a four-person room, only bunk number two had someone in it; the other bunks didn’t even have mattresses.

Li Mo gently knocked twice: “Desk-mate?”

Xu Qing sat up, rubbed his slightly messy sleep-tousled hair, got up, and opened the dorm door in his slippers.

Closing the door, Xu Qing was still half-asleep, sitting on his bed with his eyes half-closed. Li Mo sat in a chair, chewing his fingernails while waiting for Xu Qing to wake up.

After a few minutes, Xu Qing rubbed his face: “Your clothes and books are in the cabinet over there. Go get them yourself.”

“Got it.”

Huaying No. 1 High School’s uniform was white and blue, very youthful and literary—immeasurably better than the bright red uniform Li Mo had in junior high.

Li Mo only changed his pants, keeping his black vest on, and just put on the uniform jacket over it.

The uniform size was a bit large, hanging loosely on Li Mo, making him look like an aimless delinquent, nonchalant and sloppy.

After changing, Li Mo sat back down in the chair and pulled out the unfinished hand-scallion pancake.

“Desk-mate, want a bite?”

Xu Qing glanced at the dog-chewed-looking pancake and politely declined: “I’ll go eat at the cafeteria later. You keep the pancake.”

“Oh, okay then.”

It was still early. Xu Qing pulled out his phone from under his mattress and started browsing TikTok.

“Desk-mate, aren’t you afraid of getting caught playing with your phone so openly?” Li Mo took a bite of his pancake, glancing at the small window.

“No.” Xu Qing changed his position on the bed. “There’s no dorm supervisor. Who’s going to check?”

“What? But I heard people say the checks are very strict.”

“It’s fake. I’ve had my phone since 10th grade. Only the dean occasionally makes rounds. If you have bad luck, you might get caught.”

Li Mo felt deceived: “What happens if you get caught?”

Xu Qing yawned: “It gets confiscated. They keep it in the office for two or three days and then give it back to you.”

…You’re a mean uncle! A mean, mean uncle! (Directed at Yu Wencheng in his thoughts).

At 7:50 AM, morning study had already ended, and Li Mo arrived fashionably late.

As soon as he sat down, Tang Dawei tapped him: “Hey, Brother Chivalry, where were you during morning study? Today was Goddess Nan Nan’s morning study session.”

“Overslept.” Li Mo scratched his head. He had finished his pancake at Xu Qing’s dorm and intended to nap, but accidentally slept through his alarm. Xu Qing was already gone when he woke up.

Li Mo nudged Xu Qing with his elbow: “Xu Qing, why didn’t you wake me up? Aren’t you supposed to be a good desk-mate?”

Xu Qing rolled his eyes: “You were sleeping like the dead. Who could wake you?”

Li Mo laughed: “I stayed up late reading a novel last night. I was dead tired.”

“Li Mo.” A girl walked up to him; it was the English class representative, Ji Lin. “You were absent without reason during morning study today. You need to go explain the situation to the teacher.”

Li Mo gave an “OK” gesture: “Got it, I’ll go in a bit.”

After Ji Lin left, Tang Dawei chuckled: “Brother Mo, you’re done for. Our English teacher is Ran Nannan, Goddess Nan Nan. She’s notoriously fierce.”

“I’ll just say I had a flare-up of hemorrhoids. It hurt so much, there was blood all over the bathroom—like a murder scene.”

Tang Dawei was shocked: “Will that work?”

Li Mo waved his hand: “She can’t ask me to drop my pants to check if I have hemorrhoids, can she? This method was 100% effective in junior high.”

Tang Dawei gave a thumbs-up: “Awesome.”

Xu Qing tutted: “Then you’d better act convincing. Ran Nannan is the harshest on students who fake illnesses.”

“Hey, Brother Xu, you were in Class 1 before, right?” Tang Dawei gossiped. “Do you know Bai Sheng? I heard he’s extremely handsome and super rich.”

Xu Qing pursed his lips: “I know him. We don’t get along.”

“Both handsome and rich?” Li Mo lifted his neck proudly. “Now I am the one who is both handsome and rich.”

Xu Qing gave a soft “Mhm”: “Having a thick skin is also an invaluable asset.”

“Qing Qing, friendship is the most precious thing in the world, especially being friends with a handsome guy like me.” Li Mo looked at Tang Dawei, who was stifling a laugh. “You too, Wei Wei.”

Tang Dawei let out a sound of disgust: “What’s with ‘Qing Qing’ and ‘Wei Wei’? Li Li, you’re so gross.”

Xu Qing mocked: “‘Li Li’ is quite nice too.”

Li Mo: “…My last name is Li! Li as in ‘dawn’! Don’t you know about Li Ming (the name of a famous Heavenly King singer)? He’s one of the Four Heavenly Kings!”

“We’ll name a Heavenly King for you too.” Xu Qing patted him. “The Shameless Heavenly King.”

“Then you’re the Reckless Heavenly King,” Li Mo said seriously. “You have a relaxed indifference that disregards everyone else’s existence.”

Xu Qing: “…”