Returning to the Shamate Era to Seduce the Top Student - Chapter 13

Even though the results of the Back-to-School Exam weren’t important, Yin Xu couldn’t help but get nervous. After all, this was the first exam he faced after making up his mind to study hard.

Maybe I can use this test to find some of that old feeling from back then?

But there was always a vast chasm between ideal and reality.

Never mind the useless adult version of Yin Xu who had been away from campus for over a decade. Even if the genuine seventeen-year-old Yin Xu were here, he would have to face the destiny of utter defeat.

Fuck!

Are these questions even answerable by humans?!

During the two-and-a-half-hour Chinese exam, Yin Xu felt like there were thorns in his back, like he was sitting on pins and needles, like there was a fishbone stuck in his throat.

He recognized all the Chinese characters on the test paper, but once they were put together, he was completely blind.

The dense clusters of characters huddled together made Yin Xu nearly have a breakout of trypophobia and faint on the spot.

It wasn’t until the test papers were collected that he realized his hands were shaking.

In the end, he didn’t even have time to finish the essay, yet he heard many students discussing after turning in their papers: “Great, this exam wasn’t difficult at all”…

After the exam, students left the classroom one after another to get lunch.

Pan Zheshuai stretched and turned back to knock on Yin Xu’s desk: “Let’s go, Old Yin. Time to eat, I’m starving.”

“Not hungry, no appetite. You guys go…” Yin Xu buried his red head on the desk and responded feebly.

Song Xingyun also walked over: “Brother Yin, what’s wrong?”

Yin Xu: “Nothing, I just feel like dying a little.”

Pan Zheshuai and Song Xingyun looked at each other, shrugged, and made no comment.

After all, they were all adolescent teenagers. It was common to have large mood swings and fall into an emo state at the drop of a hat.

Though it was mysterious, it was understandable. Who hasn’t had a moment where they wanted to end it all three hundred times a day?

Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so much cringey and bitter youthful pain literature born into this world.

So the two didn’t ask further, only saying: “Then you stay here and be depressed for a while. We’re going out to eat and we’ll bring something back for you. What do you want?”

Yin Xu still didn’t raise his head: “Whatever.”

More than an hour later, as many students were finishing their noon break and returning to school, Pan Zheshuai and Song Xingyun were rushing back, laughing and fooling around along the way.

The two were startled by a figure at the entrance of the Class 11-7 classroom.

The resentment emanating from that person was heavier than a ghost’s: “If you guys came back one minute later, I would have been reincarnated as a starved ghost…”

Seeing Yin Xu’s half-dead appearance from hunger, the two hurriedly helped him to his seat.

Pan Zheshuai: “Oh, sorry, sorry! It’s all Song Xingyun’s fault! He insisted on running all the way to that newly opened buffet on Qingmu Street! It wasted so much damn time! Look how hungry our little master got!”

“How can you blame it all on me?” Song Xingyun was indignant. “It’s clearly because you ate too slowly! Tao Mingzhao and I combined didn’t eat as much as you did alone!”

“I barely—burp…” Pan Zheshuai couldn’t help but let out a full burp and defended himself guiltily, “I was just afraid of not eating enough to get my money’s worth.”

“Enough, enough. Where’s my food?”

Yin Xu really didn’t have the energy to listen to their nonsense anymore.

Pan Zheshuai quickly handed him the takeout box he was carrying: “Here it is.”

Yin Xu opened it and felt a bit chilled: “The few of you went out for a big feast behind my back, and then you just brought back a box of fried skewers to deal with me?”

Song Xingyun: “Nothing we could do, that buffet doesn’t let you pack leftovers.”

“Oh, come on, you’re so hungry that having anything to eat is good enough,” Pan Zheshuai comforted him. “Besides, we didn’t just buy these randomly. These are from your favorite fried skewer place!”

Yin Xu was indeed starving, and the face-full of cumin aroma made him drool instantly. He stopped bickering and picked up a starch sausage to start eating.

After a few chews, the mouthful of familiar fragrance made him pause slightly.

A person’s sense of taste has memory.

Many flavors in this world are unique, hard to describe in words, and carry many specific imprints of time.

Like an old song, when you inadvertently encounter it again one day, memories so distant you thought you’d forgotten them will instantly be triggered, surfacing clearly in your mind.

Like these fried skewers Yin Xu was eating.

Salty and spicy with a hint of sweetness, perfectly garnished with the aroma of white sesame seeds; cumin and pepper colliding together, fragrant but not greasy.

He murmured: “Why do these fried skewers… taste a bit familiar?”

Pan Zheshuai said: “Duh, how could they not be familiar? Aren’t these the ‘Sister Qing’ fried skewers from the school gate that you always go to buy?”

“Sister Qing?” Yin Xu suddenly remembered something. “You mean that auntie with the scarred face?”

“Yeah, her. There are so many fried skewer vendors at the school gate, but you said all the others weren’t good, insisting her sauce suited your taste best. When are you ever going to fix your picky eating habit?”

Yin Xu spoke righteously: “I wasn’t wrong. Her skill is indeed good, it’s just her popularity that’s a bit lacking.”

In the small square in front of the Luhe No. 3 High school gate, various stalls and vendors selling snacks and treats gathered year-round. After all, students’ money was the easiest to earn.

Sister Qing was one of them.

She looked to be about forty years old and came here every day with a small pushcart to sell fried skewers, rain or shine.

Unfortunately, compared to her peers, her business was not booming.

Because there was a terrifying scar on her face, extending from her left temple all the way to her right cheek, deep and long, like a centipede quietly perched on her face.

Many students were too scared by her appearance to buy her things. There were even rumors from nowhere saying her skewers used gutter oil and were dirty, and would make you sick.

But Yin Xu didn’t care.

After all, his young master stomach was famously picky and fragile, yet he had eaten Sister Qing’s fried skewers many times and never had any problems.

Furthermore, Sister Qing was warm and generous.

Every time Yin Xu went to buy skewers, she would secretly give him two extra skewers of the things he liked or stuff a couple of pieces of fruit for him.

Over time, Yin Xu developed an inexplicable protective feeling toward this little fried skewer stall. If anyone said anything bad about it, he would definitely be the first to jump out and object.

To the point that even after more than ten years had passed, when Yin Xu tasted this white moonlight flavor again, he recognized it immediately.

The power of food is strong. After finishing his former favorite skewers, Yin Xu finally recovered a lot of his spirits.

He took the last fried chicken willow out of the takeout box: “Good! After this bite, I’m going to memorize ten more math formulas!”

Song Xingyun: “Going that hard?”

Pan Zheshuai, however, said: “You really do need to study hard, or else you’ll be letting Old Tang down.”

Yin Xu was puzzled: “What does this have to do with Old Tang?”

“Oh right, you don’t know yet. We heard it from Tao Mingzhao while we were eating lunch.”

Pan Zheshuai explained.

“He said our Class 7 had its discipline points docked because of the trouble you caused yesterday. Originally, Hu Yi wanted to give you a demerit, but Old Tang insisted on pleading for you, saying it was her fault for not disciplining you properly. Then Hu Yi used that as an excuse to dock Old Tang’s performance bonus!”

“What?”

A surge of nameless fire welled up in Yin Xu’s heart, making him both angry and self-reproachful.

Hu Yi could come at him however he wanted, and he wasn’t afraid of a demerit, but docking Tang Xiaotong’s salary was something he really couldn’t stand. Isn’t that like taking an employee’s life?

Yin Xu put down the unfinished chicken willow and stood up, heading toward Hu Yi’s office with an aggressive air.

But when he reached the office door, he found that Hu Yi hadn’t arrived at school yet and the door was locked.

As he was heading back, he ran right into Hu Yi in the hallway.

The noon break was almost over, and many students passing by in the hallway were politely greeting Hu Yi.

Hu Yi was carrying a briefcase and responding lazily to each one.

When he looked up and saw the eye-catching red-haired youth standing opposite him, his brow immediately furrowed.

He originally didn’t want to talk to this kid, but Yin Xu happened to block him in the middle of the hallway: “Teacher Hu.”

Hu Yi knit his brows and looked over: “Is something the matter?”

“I heard you docked our class’s discipline points and our head teacher’s performance bonus.”

“Yo, you’re quite well-informed.”

Hu Yi was a bit surprised.

“Yes. But I think your Class 7 should be used to it by now. After all, this isn’t the first time you’ve caused trouble for them.”

Yin Xu didn’t speak, so Hu Yi took it as tacit agreement and continued: “So? Are you here to admit your mistake and plead for mercy? That doesn’t seem like your style, kid.”

“No,” Yin Xu said. “I want to make a bet with you.”

Hu Yi was stunned: “What bet?”

Yin Xu looked at him, his tone steady and clear, carrying a sense of seriousness: “If I improve by fifty places in the next monthly exam, you can’t dock those points, and Teacher Tang’s salary will be paid to her normally.”

The hallway went subtly silent for a moment. Everyone turned their heads to look at him.

“Pfft—Hahaha!”

Hu Yi looked as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world. Even he, usually solemn and serious, couldn’t hold it in.

“Forget improving by fifty places—as long as you don’t rank dead last, I’ll consider it my loss!”

Yin Xu, however, insisted: “No, fifty places.”

Seeing Yin Xu’s rare serious expression, Hu Yi also set aside his joking thoughts.

He pondered for a moment and said: “Fine. Since so many students heard it, I won’t play around with you. I’ll make an exception and agree to this. But if you don’t do it, the men’s restrooms in this building will all belong to you alone to sweep next month! Oh right, and you have to obediently dye that red hair back. How about it?”

Yin Xu lifted his chin, his gaze firm: “It’s a deal.”

After saying that, he turned and left.

As soon as he turned around, he saw Tang Xiaotong standing behind him, staring at him blankly. She had even forgotten to nag, leaving only a face full of disbelief: “Fifty places… Yin Xu, are you crazy?”

Yin Xu walked over and patted her shoulder, sighing: “Old Tang, from now on, we are a community of shared destiny.”

Tang Xiaotong blinked, not understanding: “A community of what?”

Yin Xu didn’t explain further and returned to the classroom on his own.

Pan Zheshuai and Song Xingyun had followed him out the whole way. Now they only regretted not rushing up to cover his mouth earlier.

“Misfortune comes from the mouth! Old Yin, this is misfortune coming from the mouth!” Pan Zheshuai knocked on the desk in front of Yin Xu with a frustrated attitude.

Song Xingyun was pained: “Brother Yin, what were you thinking? It was fine to talk big like that yesterday, but why did you make a bet with Hu Yi today? I’m really worried about your mental state right now.”

“Yun-zi, you should be worried about the two of us right now, shouldn’t you?”

Pan Zheshuai looked like he was about to shatter.

“If Old Yin loses, he will definitely drag us to sweep the toilets with him for a month! No, no, no, that scene is just too terrifying! Yue! I absolutely refuse!”

“Holy shit?”

Song Xingyun followed the logic and realized.

“Brother Yin, is it too late for me to break off our friendship right now? Can we re-swear our brotherhood after you finish sweeping the toilets?”

Yin Xu was speechless: “Can’t you two hope for the best for me? For example, express some confidence in me winning this bet?”

“Don’t have the heart for it!”

The two spoke in unison.

“On the contrary, Young Master Yin, you should really develop a heart!”