Who Asked You To Deceive My First Love? - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Dark Horse: “Lu Zhen took first place in the grade!”

The sunlight on the windowsill crept inward inch by inch. One by one, students arrived at the classroom bathed in the dawn light, preparing for morning self-study.

However, most people were somewhat absent-minded. According to No. 3 High’s legendary grading speed, the exam results would likely be out today, making it impossible not to care.

Du Jingfei was always the most proactive when it came to scurrying to the office to sniff out grades, and today was no exception.

Within two minutes, he came sprinting back to the classroom, his hair a mess from the wind. He grabbed the window frame and waved frantically toward the back row: “Lu Zhen! Old Wan wants you in his office immediately! Fast, fast, fast!”

Lu Zhen, who had been napping on his desk, raised his head from the crook of his arm. He squinted as he woke up, asked no questions, and stood up to head to the office.

The scent of gossip filled the room. Curious eyes turned toward Du Jingfei.

Xu Rongcan put down her breakfast milk and was the first to lean in: “Weren’t you checking the grades? Why are you back so soon?”

“That’s exactly what you said! It’s dark… dark horse! 707!” Du Jingfei climbed through the window into the classroom, so excited he could barely speak clearly. “Lu Zhen scored 707!”

This sentence was like a thunderclap on a clear day, instantly causing Class 1 to boil over. Sounds of “Holy crap!” and “No way!” erupted everywhere.

“Damn!” “How many points?!” “For real? You didn’t misread it?” “Of course I didn’t misread it!” Du Jingfei emphasized loudly. “Several teachers were discussing it in the office. I heard it with my own ears! It’s written there in black and white on the transcript: his total score is 707! Ranked first in the entire grade!”

One second, Qiao Muyu felt the number “707” was surreal—something almost mystical.

The next second, the words “First in the Grade” hit his forehead like a bolt of lightning. His pen slipped, leaving an untimely black streak across his workbook.

No one noticed his lapse. Everyone was excitedly discussing the dark horse who had charged in out of nowhere, listening to Du Jingfei broadcast Lu Zhen’s god-tier scores in every subject over and over again.

A few minutes later, Lu Zhen returned from the office.

As if welcoming a returning hero, students immediately swarmed his seat until it was packed tight.

Qiao Muyu, sitting in front, became collateral damage. He was nearly squashed into a meat patty while listening to the flurry of flattery behind him, unable to stop himself from complaining inwardly.

“Brother Lu, you’re incredible! First place in the class as soon as you arrive!” You’ve known him for two days and you’re already calling him ‘Brother’?

“Be precise, it’s first in the whole grade!” Do you really have to mention those four words again? Can’t you hear the sound of my heart shattering into pieces?!

“Brother Lu, I knew you didn’t just write 700 randomly. You really are the man!” Hindsight is 20/20, isn’t it?

“Academic God Lu, how did you get such a high score? I wouldn’t even dare to dream of it!”

Hearing this, Qiao Muyu pricked up his ears, only to hear Lu Zhen ask back with utter sincerity: “Is this score hard to get? The questions weren’t that difficult.”

Everyone: “…” Qiao Muyu: “…”

Although the purpose of the back-to-school test was just to help students transition out of “holiday mode,” and thus the difficulty was never high, Lu Zhen’s answer was truly uncomfortable. It was a verbal “area-of-effect” attack that insulted everyone present, maxing out his “aggro” stats.

For a moment, no one knew how to respond. They could only offer awkward laughs and disperse as the school bell signaled the start of class.

…

This was the first time Qiao Muyu had ever been so distracted during morning self-study. His lips were reciting ancient poetry, but his brain wasn’t processing it. He was uncontrollably fixated on the exam results.

After class was the morning exercise period. Standing at the end of the line, Du Jingfei noticed Qiao Muyu swinging his limbs perfunctorily to the music, looking like a listless fish.

Once the group was dismissed, Du Jingfei habitually draped an arm over Qiao Muyu’s shoulder: “Handsome, why the long face? Bad mood?”

Qiao Muyu touched his face blankly. “Am I?”

“You are! Don’t you see the little sun over your head has turned into a storm cloud?” Du Jingfei teased. “It’s just one time not being first. It’s not that serious, is it?”

Qiao Muyu froze, then quickly hid the strange emotions in his eyes, laughing lightly: “You’re overthinking. It’s not because of that. I was just thinking about a math problem I couldn’t solve.”

Du Jingfei clearly didn’t believe him. He patted his shoulder and whispered: “Actually, you don’t need to care. When I was in Old Wan’s office, I heard him say Lu Zhen transferred from a key high school in Beishan City. You know, schools there have way better educational resources than a ‘broken place’ like ours. It’s not surprising they’d produce a 700-point student. It’s basically just education bought with money.”

Qiao Muyu knew he was trying to comfort him. He raised an eyebrow: “But didn’t you just call him ‘incredible’?”

“That’s two different things,” Du Jingfei said. “I admit he’s capable because it’s a fact. But don’t you think he’s a bit too arrogant? He ignores everyone; he’s clearly not one of us. I don’t like him. No matter how good his grades are, he isn’t even half as likable as our Monitor Xiao Yu!”

“Get lost! You’re being so cheesy my teeth are falling out!”

Amused, Qiao Muyu laughed and pushed him away. After a moment, he suppressed his smile and acted serious: “Cough. It’s fine to say that to me, but don’t say it to others. People might think Class 1 is bullying the new kid. It’s bad for our reputation.”

Inside, however, he was giving him a thumbs-up: You’re right, brother. This ‘Strong-ge’ truly has zero EQ.

Du Jingfei nodded. “Don’t worry, I know when to stop.”

…

Du Jingfei’s jokes helped relax Qiao Muyu’s stifled mood.

Returning to the classroom, he took out an English practice paper to grind some questions when someone tapped his shoulder lightly.

Qiao Muyu turned around to see Li Liang pointing at a spot in a workbook: “Monitor, can you teach me how to solve this one?”

It was a geometry problem.

Qiao Muyu glanced at the back of the head currently napping peacefully on the desk next to Li Liang and smiled: “Why didn’t you ask your seatmate? He got a perfect score in math.”

Li Liang scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed. “Actually, Brother Lu explained it to me once just now, but I couldn’t follow his logic. He solved it in two or three steps… it was just too fast…”

Qiao Muyu understood. In this world, some geniuses are only good at solving problems for themselves; they aren’t necessarily good at teaching others.

So he took the workbook and comforted him: “That’s normal. Some methods don’t suit everyone. There’s more than one way to solve this. I’ll show you one that’s easier to grasp.”

Li Liang: “Great, thanks, Monitor!”

Qiao Muyu leaned over to Li Liang’s desk and began drawing a diagram on scratch paper. To avoid disturbing Lu Zhen, he intentionally lowered his voice, explaining in a gentle, melodic tone.

Lu Zhen had his eyes closed, half his face buried in his arm. In his half-asleep state, he vaguely heard the soft, fragmented sounds of a voice nearby—the tone was gentle and pleasant to the ear.

Disturbed from his slumber, he frowned slightly. His eyelids lifted just enough to see a bright, soft side-profile against the morning light.

The boy’s long eyelashes were cast down, partially veiling his amber pupils. His soft hair had a warm chestnut tint under the sunlight. He spoke without haste, radiating a polished sense of earnestness.

Lu Zhen’s gaze shifted down to the hand holding the pen—slender, fair, with distinct knuckles. The skin on the back of his hand looked thin, with faint blue veins showing through.

Lu Zhen stared for a moment before suddenly realizing something was “wrong”—this was his left hand.

Having finished the explanation, Qiao Muyu habitually twirled his pen. He turned his head and abruptly locked eyes with Lu Zhen.

The other was staring at him, brow slightly furrowed, gaze deep.

Qiao Muyu instinctively apologized: “Sorry, did we wake you up?”

Lu Zhen didn’t answer. Instead, he looked back at the pen in Qiao Muyu’s left hand and asked: “You’re left-handed?”

Qiao Muyu blinked. This habit was indeed different from most people, and he was often asked about it.

“Oh, this. No one corrected me when I was little, so I never grew out of the habit.”

Seeing Lu Zhen still staring at his left hand with a strange expression, Qiao Muyu asked tentatively: “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” Lu Zhen withdrew his gaze and turned his head away. His voice was very soft, as if talking to himself: “Being left-handed is quite good.”

Qiao Muyu stared at the back of his neck, bewildered.

What does ‘quite good’ mean? Is he praising me for being ‘strong despite my disability’?!

…

According to Nanjian No. 3 High rules, there were classes on Saturday mornings.

But this Saturday was special. At 9:30 AM, all teachers and students gathered in the school auditorium for the opening ceremony and awards assembly.

The hall was cool and comfortable, and the seats were much softer than classroom stools. Many students yawned through the lullaby-like speeches from school leaders, their minds wandering.

Du Jingfei shamelessly tilted his head back to catch up on sleep, not forgetting to tell Qiao Muyu to wake him up when it was time to go on stage for the awards.

Qiao Muyu didn’t sleep, but he wasn’t listening either. He took out a sketchbook and pencil from his bag and began sketching out of boredom.

After finishing a sketch of the balding principal on the podium, he began drawing the peacefully sleeping, drooling Du Jingfei.

Suddenly, a piercing screech of microphone feedback echoed through the speakers. Many students covered their ears, and Du Jingfei was jolted awake.

He stumbled forward in his seat, regained his composure, and saw the nearly completed sketch in Qiao Muyu’s hand.

“Damn, you’re secretly drawing me again! And you made me look so ugly on purpose!” Du Jingfei hissed angrily.

Qiao Muyu’s pencil didn’t stop. He said nonchalantly: “I really didn’t uglify you on purpose. That’s exactly how you were sleeping.”

“Nonsense! Your Father Jing’s sleeping face is handsome! Erase it, erase it!”

Du Jingfei got a bit too loud in his excitement, immediately drawing a sharp “eye-dagger” warning from Wan Qianghai in the front row.

He shut up sheepishly.

Fearing Du Jingfei would actually tear the sketchbook, Qiao Muyu closed it and tucked it into his bag.

Du Jingfei stopped bothering him and watched the Dean of Students babbling on stage. He yawned. “Where are they at? Why isn’t it over yet?”

“Only halfway.”

“Tsk, that old man talks way too much.” Du Jingfei had a thought. “Hey, isn’t it almost time for you, the ‘Outstanding Student Representative,’ to go up and give your speech?”

“Yeah. I should be in the next segment.”

Thinking of this, Qiao Muyu stood up to leave his seat.

“Where are you going?” Du Jingfei asked.

“Restroom.”

…

The restroom was at the very back of the auditorium, separated from the main floor by several steps and a bright long corridor. No one was walking around; it was quiet, save for the distant chirping of cicadas outside.

As Qiao Muyu was washing his hands at the sink, he vaguely heard an argument coming from the hallway.

“Student, bringing a phone to school is a serious disciplinary violation. It must be confiscated!” a girl said righteously. “Which class are you in? I’m going to find your homeroom teacher right now!”

Two seconds later, a low, calm male voice replied: “Grade 12, Class 1.”

Qiao Muyu froze. Wait, that voice—

He peeked out and saw two familiar figures in the corridor.

The girl was the current Student Council President, Chen Qian. Standing across from her was the tall boy who was the new Rank 1 of the senior year: Lu Zhen.