Studying Is Such A Damn Thing - Chapter 1

The daylight was just right, the kind that belongs to youth. Green shade blanketed the sky, blocking out the streets and alleys. To put it poetically, the sun pierced through the leaves, casting shadows in street corners and lighting up the back alleys. We were vivid and unrestrained, blooming like flowers at the edge of the world, gazing at the moon in the mortal realm.

“Class! School has started! Everyone, wake up and welcome the beautiful sophomore year! Of course, the second year of high school is a vital milestone in life. You must take it seriously, no cutting corners. Prepare yourselves for junior year and the university entrance exams the year after next. Everyone, let’s go!”

Lin Qian stood on the podium, speaking with surging passion, spit flying everywhere, clearly in high spirits.

“Heh, she said the exact same thing last year,” You Cheche muttered under his breath. He casually pulled a manga from his desk drawer, adjusted his glasses, and tucked his head down. Without a word, he immersed himself in that incredibly melodramatic, old-school black-and-white Japanese manga produced who-knows-how-many years ago.

‘Even if a million people in this world love me, if you don’t, I’d rather those million people all die.’ You Cheche’s eyes sparkled as he read, the corners of his mouth curling up high.

Lin Qian squinted her eyes, her gaze locking onto You Cheche’s smile. She barked, “You Cheche! What are you doing down there? Hand that book over to me!”

You Cheche shivered. Under the watchful eyes of the entire class, he slowly walked to the front. Reluctantly, he reached out and handed over the manga, looking as if he were going through a tragic, life-and-death breakup.

After returning to his seat, his head collapsed onto the desk like he had died. In his heart, he silently lit a candle for his manga book, then wailed and howled internally as if he had just married a wife only to lose her immediately.

Just as Lin Qian collected the book, the bell rang. She began chanting the “Hypnotic Scripture”—Math!

“Come on, open your notebooks. Can anyone tell me what a set is? Good, Song Chaolian, you tell us.”

A cool, clear male voice rang out from the first row. “A set is a collection composed of elements. Elements are our objects of study. A set is simply called a ‘collection’.”

“Good, please sit. Class, follow me and take notes…”

The rhythmic scratch-scratch-scratch of Lin Qian writing on the board was the best lullaby. You Cheche’s head began to feel dizzy. What kind of stupid thing is Math? What are elements? What are sets? What are objects of study? He couldn’t understand, he just wanted to sleep.

The dismissal bell rang like a life-saving antidote. You Cheche rubbed his messy hair, squinted his eyes, stood up, and walked toward the first row.

“Yiyi, are you going to the playground?”

Shen Yiyi smiled. “You, you’re so playful. Weren’t you second to last again last time?”

You Cheche rubbed his nose, feeling guilty. “Well, don’t we still have our Great School Bully to cover the bottom for me?”

“Who is it! Calling me so loudly, I could hear you all the way in the hallway.”

Qi Yuan walked over with a playful grin, ruffling You Cheche’s hair. He teased, “What’s wrong? Has our Cheche not seen me for two months and spent his days pining for me, thinking of me day and night, tossing and turning, and falling sick with lovesick disaster?”

Upon hearing this, You Cheche turned his head and pretended he was going to hit Qi Yuan. His face was flushed red and he looked very cute. “Qi Yuan, stop being so cheeky! To think you actually know the phrase ‘tossing and turning.’ Who… who missed you!”

High school life was tightly packed, or perhaps it was because You Cheche slept too much, but the morning passed quickly. You Cheche pulled his phone from his pocket, skillfully opened a certain cloud drive, and clicked on a novel he had only finished halfway last time. He began to appreciate it.

Mmm! Novels make me happy! You Cheche thought.

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