Extra Story 4: Shen Mengxia & Ye Chen (1)

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The first day of tenth grade.

"Oh, Dad, this is all your fault! You’re the reason I’m late on my first day of school!" Shen Mengxia complained from the backseat to her father, who was driving.

Today was the first day of school, and her father, in high spirits, had insisted on driving her himself. However, he had misnavigated the campus location, causing a delay on the road that resulted in Shen Mengxia being late.

In her first year of high school, Shen Mengxia still retained some baby fat on her face, giving her a youthful, innocent look. At this moment, she was pouting, looking quite displeased.

She could have easily had the chauffeur drive her, but her father had insisted on doing it himself—and not only did he insist, but he also went to the wrong campus. She was supposed to be at the South Campus, yet he had dropped her off at the North Campus.

Although Shen Mengxia knew her father was just being caring, being late on the first day of school inevitably made her feel nervous and agitated.

Her father, keeping his eyes on the road, waited until they stopped at a red light before daring to respond. "Xiaxia, this time it’s Dad’s fault. I didn't look at the location clearly. Don't worry, it absolutely won't happen again. Just forgive Dad this once, okay? Don't be mad at me." His tone was gentle and patient as he tried to coax her. After all, he knew he had truly acted with good intentions but caused a bad outcome, making his daughter late.

Shen Mengxia’s pouting lips relaxed slightly. "Fine, then. But tonight when I get home, I want braised pork belly and sweet and sour ribs," she said, adding, "and you have to cook them yourself."

Her father’s expression eased, and he laughed happily. "Alright, alright, whatever you want to eat, Dad will make it for you."

Her father was a talented cook, but he was usually so busy with company affairs that he returned home late, so he rarely had the chance to cook. Shen Mengxia’s request was also a subtle way of reminding him to come home earlier.

Fortunately, the two campuses were not far apart, and it only took about ten minutes to drive there. After getting out of the car, Shen Mengxia hurriedly said goodbye to her father and ran toward the school gate.

Even though she was already late, she still wanted to reach the classroom as quickly as possible. Jiujiu was surely already waiting for her inside.

Everything went smoothly while she ran to the teaching building; she was quite confident in her running speed.

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However, just as she was about to head up the stairs, two boys wearing student council uniforms called out to her.

"Wait a second, classmate. Which class are you in? You’re late. Come over here and register your class and name."

When the two boys called out to her, Shen Mengxia thought to herself: It’s over. I’ve been caught being late.

Her body stiffened as she turned to face them. Both boys were tall, and Shen Mengxia had to tilt her head slightly to look at them.

The one who had called out to her was the shorter of the two. The other, taller boy remained silent, merely staring at her.

Although his gaze was neutral and he was simply performing his duty by having her sign the register, Shen Mengxia felt inexplicably nervous. The feeling made her feel as if she were facing the dean of students.

Shen Mengxia was not yet willing to give up, fearing that her tardiness would affect her entire class—after all, in middle school, besides grades, the thing that mattered most was the "Advanced Class" award.

"Um... seniors, could you just let it slide this once, considering it’s my first time being late?" Shen Mengxia looked at them with clear, innocent eyes, hoping to sway them.

She also noticed there was no one else around; even if they quietly let her go upstairs, no one would likely know.

"This..." The boy who had addressed her hesitated, unable to make up his mind, and looked toward the taller boy beside him.

The taller boy finally spoke: "It’s not impossible. If no one else is late within the next minute, you can go."

Shen Mengxia’s eyes lit up instantly. She immediately turned to look toward the school gate, praying that no one else would enter!

Her mindset suddenly shifted; after all, being one minute late was still being late, and being five minutes late was also being late, and she had no way to fly to her classroom anyway.

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Once she had come to terms with it, Shen Mengxia felt the weight lift, and she even found the mental energy to observe the two boys.

Both boys had distinct features, but the taller one had more striking, refined facial features and appeared to have a colder temperament.

As she stared at the boy in a daze, she didn't notice that he was observing her as well.

Just as Shen Mengxia saw that no one else was entering through the gate and was about to cheer internally, another late student dashed through the entrance.

Her excitement was instantly extinguished, and she slowly lowered her raised foot.

She looked up at the tall boy and saw him raise an eyebrow, gesturing for her to register her class and name in the logbook.

Shen Mengxia accepted her fate; so be it.

After registering, she sprinted up the stairs.

What she didn't know was that before she disappeared around the corner of the stairwell, one of them kept his eyes on her.

Only when Shen Mengxia was completely out of sight did the tall boy withdraw his gaze and look down at the register.

The handwriting matched the person; the final entry in the logbook was bold and elegant, reading simply: Tenth Grade (Class 6), Shen Mengxia.