“2018.01.02 Heavy Rain”
You and I, infinitely close, yet infinitely far.
—Excerpt from Tao Shuran’s Diary
A seat rearrangement sparked discussions throughout the class.
“Why does the new transfer student get to sit with Liang Yuanjing?”
“Speaking of which, why did Liang Yuanjing even come to our class?”
“You haven’t heard? Flight Class training ended, and the remaining time is all for Gaokao sprinting. The school doesn’t have enough teachers, so they split the two classes—one half in Arts Class 1, the other in Science Class 4.”
Tao Shuran carried her books on her back and silently listened to the others’ chatter.
So that was why Liang Yuanjing had come to their class.
Wen Fangfang, sitting in the front row, asked, “Then why did Teacher Zhou make Tao Shuran his desk mate?”
“It’s because she’s obedient, with a tight-lipped personality like a gourd.” Gu Shiyu lowered her voice. “Teacher Zhou isn’t worried about her getting into puppy love at all.”
Their unabashed laughter and the occasional bold glances they threw her way treated Tao Shuran like a true bookworm who only knew how to bury her nose in studies.
Tao Shuran endured it without a word. She lifted her head and silently glanced at the spot on the far right of the blackboard.
Zhou Wu had cordoned off a small section there, writing in bold red chalk: 157 days until Gaokao.
157 days.
She had to catch up to his pace.
No voices could halt Tao Shuran’s forward steps. A brief pang of sadness flickered in her heart for a second, then she raised her reading voice louder, drowning out all the gossip.
Liang Yuanjing lifted his head from the surrounding noise. He raised his hand and tapped the back of the chair in front of him. Freshly awakened from sleep, his voice was a bit hoarse.
“It’s a bit noisy.”
Wen Fangfang quickly turned back, carefully covering her mouth.
“Sorry, did we disturb you, Liang Yuanjing?”
Liang Yuanjing grunted an “Mm,” no longer sleepy. He propped his chin up, his double eyelids folding a bit deeply, softening his brows and eyes, reducing their usual aloofness.
Tao Shuran glanced once and hurriedly turned back, saying in a voice only the two of them could hear—
“Sorry, I’m memorizing.”
Liang Yuanjing said softly, “No, your reading voice is pretty good for sleeping.”
After that, they fell silent. Tao Shuran no longer spoke aloud, only quietly shifting her stool. Her arm, nearly pressed to the aisle edge, marked a clear divide between her and him, like the Chu River and Han realms.
Liang Yuanjing narrowed
his eyes, seemingly sensing her unusual distance from him.
An exceptionally distinct aloofness.
Liang Yuanjing did not attend integrated humanities classes with them, so the days Tao Shuran spent with him were actually quite limited.
Most of the time, she attended class alone, took notes, then went about her business after.
Due to the slow learning progress, Tao Shuran had gotten a long-term excused absence note from Zhou Wu for PE class, allowing her to stay in the classroom to study.
That afternoon, as usual, she remained in the classroom correcting test papers.
She never expected Wen Fangfang, arm linked with Gu Shiyu, to stand in front of her seat waiting for her.
Tao Shuran’s heart sank. Her toes paused, and she instinctively turned to leave.
But Wen Fangfang blocked her path, bossy and commanding.
“Transfer student, go tell the teacher you want to switch seats with me.”
Tao Shuran looked at her with relative calm and asked, “If you want to sit with Liang Yuanjing, why don’t you tell the teacher yourself?”
“Because…” Wen Fangfang faltered, then flew into a rage out of humiliation. “None of your business!”
What she hated most was Tao Shuran’s calm and composed demeanor, her temperament so mild it seemed nothing could ruffle her.
It was all just a facade. Wen Fangfang glared at her viciously.
“If you don’t, I’ll post all those photos of yours on the school’s confession wall, so the whole school can see what this new campus goddess is really like.”
Even though she had told herself countless times not to care, Tao Shuran still felt a stab in her heart.
She felt her fingers hanging at her side trembling. She tried to suppress the pain, but could only dig her fingertips into her palm, clenching into a fist.
“I don’t like being threatened.”
She looked at Wen Fangfang with forced restraint. “I’ve been keeping your crush on Liang Yuanjing a secret for you. In the same way, whatever you do is none of my business.”
“Stop pretending. Don’t you like Liang Yuanjing too?”
At those words, Tao Shuran couldn’t help but step back. She lowered her head slightly, a panicked feeling of having her secret exposed.
Her fingers dug deeper into her palm, forcing herself to calm down, her voice trembling faintly as a result.
Wen Fangfang vented all her resentment at once, even speaking without thinking.
“Don’t think I don’t know—you went to Teacher Zhou before the seat change, and you deliberately approached Fu Changpei under the pretext of studying. Isn’t it because you know Fu Changpei is good friends with Liang Yuanjing and want more chances to interact with him?”
“You just want Liang Yuanjing to like you!”
So she saw her as a rival.
Tao Shuran hooked her lips in self-mockery, gazing out the window, her voice light but firm.
“He won’t like me.”
The distance between them was like stars and moon across the Milky Way—seemingly within reach, yet separated by billions of light years.
In that moment, Tao Shuran suddenly envied them, for their courage to confess love so easily.
Just then, Liang Yuanjing walked in from the doorway.
Wen Fangfang’s eyes lit up in an instant, all her attention shifting to him as she shouted loudly, “Liang Yuanjing, Tao Shuran likes you!”
Tao Shuran’s heart skipped a beat. She never imagined Wen Fangfang would blurt it out like that—this secret even she herself dared not admit, unveiled in such an absurd way at this moment.
Her figure swayed unsteadily, no longer daring to lift her head to meet Liang Yuanjing’s gaze.
“What are you talking about?”
Liang Yuanjing walked over. Seeing her dazed, he tapped his knuckles on the desk edge, signaling her to move aside.
He stepped in, picked up the water cup from the desk, tilted his head back to drink, seemingly not taking the words to heart.
Wen Fangfang seized the chance to ask again, “Then do you like her?”
The question was terribly rude.
Liang Yuanjing hated answering these boring like-or-not questions. He crossed his arms and sat down, his black windbreaker zipped all the way up, revealing a pair of pitch-black, deep eyes.
His gaze turned cold, his voice indifferent.
“No.”
Liang Yuanjing did not notice that the moment those words fell, Tao Shuran, standing in the aisle, trembled sharply.
“I don’t like people bullying classmates in my name. Since you’re here, apologize for last time.”
He referred to the photo incident.
Wen Fangfang’s eyelashes fluttered. She had wanted to play dumb and muddle through, but upon lifting her head to meet Liang Yuanjing’s icy stare, her heart quaked, and she couldn’t help showing timidity.
She said softly, “Sorry.”
Liang Yuanjing raised his chin slightly, his tone carrying a warning.
“I don’t want you disturbing my new desk mate’s studies over these pointless things again.”
Wen Fangfang’s eyes reddened, as if greatly wronged. She shoved the desk aside and stormed out of the classroom.
Liang Yuanjing never understood people like this who bullied others—once justice was served, they instantly played the victim.
He scoffed disdainfully, turned his head to look at his new desk mate, but only caught a flash of her fleeing hem—and for a fleeting moment, faint sobs echoing in his ears.
Zhao Zhengnian paused, tugging at his sleeve.
“A Jing, why is your new desk mate crying too?”
Rumors about him and Tao Shuran’s romance had been swirling in the class lately, and the new seats only fueled them.
Liang Yuanjing stared at her retreating back for a moment, suddenly feeling a bit irritated.
“No idea.”
News of the study committee member and the new transfer student fighting over Liang Yuanjing spread like wildfire.
As one of the parties involved, Liang Yuanjing was called to the office.
Zhou Wu slammed the desk repeatedly. “Liang Yuanjing, what are you doing? It’s senior year, and you’re still causing so much trouble.”
Liang Yuanjing stood with hands behind his back, a regular here. He pressed his tongue against his cheek and grinned roguishly.
His tone was casual and flippant. “Teacher Zhou, you can’t blame me if others fall for my personal charm, right?”
“What personal charm? It’s this face of yours that’s too much trouble!” Zhou Wu slapped the desk and decided. “You two need to switch seats again. You can’t sit with a girl.”
Liang Yuanjing shrugged, no objections.
He was used to it anyway—these years of misunderstandings. He didn’t care much, just mentioned offhandedly.
“Teacher Zhou, after scolding me, don’t call the two girls in. It’s senior year; everyone’s emotions are unstable. No need for this.”
“Especially Tao Shuran—she doesn’t like me at all. Purely an undeserved disaster.”
…
Tao Shuran returned to the class and found the seats completely rearranged.
Liang Yuanjing had been moved to the back row with Zhao Zhengnian, while Wen Fangfang was shifted to the front. As study committee member, her grades had plummeted since senior year began—anyone with eyes could see her mind wasn’t on studying.
Tao Shuran’s new desk mate was Fang Qingyi, which was good news, yet she couldn’t muster any joy.
During Chinese class, the teacher had them quiz each other in pairs between front and back rows.
By coincidence, when Tao Shuran turned around, she once again met Liang Yuanjing’s eyes.
She panicked and looked away, her mind unconsciously replaying his “I don’t like you,” her heart aching sorely.
Liang Yuanjing watched her quietly the whole time, listening as she stumbled through the text. Whenever she got stuck occasionally, her eyes would drift upward evasively.
Somewhat cute. He couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
That laugh completely disrupted Tao Shuran’s rhythm. Her entire heart turned into a thin red thread, wistfully winding around his fingertips.
With a gentle tug from him, her whole heart swayed.
Liang Yuanjing said, “Sorry about Wen Fangfang. I’ll handle it.”
“It’s fine.”
Tao Shuran shook her head and said softly, “Others liking you isn’t your fault.”
Her voice was light and soft. Though she was the one wronged, no emotion seeped through.
Liang Yuanjing looked into her clear, serene eyes and paused for a second. Soon, he averted his gaze and responded indifferently.
Tao Shuran hesitated before asking, “I heard you used to not talk to any girls before.”
“Why…”
She cut herself off mid-sentence, even feeling it was hard to voice.