Chapter 5, high school life has begun

His sudden shock made An Ran feel even more ashamed, and she instinctively withdrew her gaze, pretending to read a book

However, the unparalleled attractiveness of the individual in question has somewhat diminished the topics of rivalry with others. Instead, it is their peers, Fang Zhe and Yuan Yuan, whose comparable looks have sparked discussions among the girls about who could succeed Bi Zerui as the campus heartthrob after his graduation. This has even led to the notion of a "Fang-Yuan rivalry." The generally accepted view is that Yuan Yuan's looks are slightly inferior, but once he removes his glasses, he immediately outshines Fang Zhe. However, when the typically aloof Fang Zhe smiles, the two become evenly matched once again.

Anran turned her head and looked at Fang Zhe from high school, familiar yet unfamiliar, as he stepped into the classroom to the rhythm of her anxious heartbeat

Ma Haochuan glanced around the classroom in search of a seat, and suddenly noticed An Ran sitting by the window, momentarily taken aback, displaying a look of astonishment

During that period, all the girls in the entire grade, and even the whole school, became inexplicably excited. When talking about this matter, each of them spoke as if they had witnessed it firsthand, eagerly interpreting Fang Zhe's blushing as shyness

"How did you come to this class?" Ma Haochuan finally took the initiative to speak to An Ran, but it was a question she least wanted to hear and least wanted to answer

Mushroom head, mushroom head, I am a mushroom head

Ma Haochuan, do you still need your pencil case

Anran was aware that with her current level, it would be quite difficult to keep up with the high school curriculum, especially in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. She had essentially forgotten everything as soon as she entered university. However, what she did not expect was that before the examinations for mathematics, physics, and chemistry even arrived, she had already stumbled in her originally strong subject, English.

"Are you studying or not? If you don't want to take notes, then return my pen to me," An Ran threatened in a low voice

What do you think?" She smiled and leaned against him

Although there is only one English class each day, she has little opportunity to interact with Fang Zhe. However, An Ran is uncertain whether she will appear natural when she meets Fang Zhe, thus her heart is filled with both anticipation and anxiety

Anran should redirect her attention from the brawling individuals and waved at the front door of the classroom, calling out: "Over here, Fang Zhe."

Anran recalled the glance that Fang Zhe had just given her, and it was not until she returned to the classroom to collect the books that she remembered the piece of paper that Ma Haochuan had slipped to her

Anran pretended to casually glance at the classroom door, listening to the familiar voices coming from the corridor. Only then did she realize that Ma Haochuan had entered the classroom, laughing and joking with two boys. It was at that moment she remembered that Ma Haochuan and Fang Zhe were in the same class.

After Anran and Fang Zhe got together, she also mentioned this matter as a joke to Fang Zhe, saying that at the beginning of their blind date, she had tested him in various ways, asking him if he had not realized it

Anran felt that she had not returned to high school, but had suddenly gone back to middle school, to the days when she sat at the front and back desks with Ma Haochuan

Ma Haochuan grinned at her and said, "Learning? Am I not writing it right now?"

Before the two had gotten up from the ground, the English teacher entered the classroom, stepping in time with the ringing of the class bell

Weren't you in Class A last semester? How many points did you score to drop down to Class C all of a sudden?" Ma Haochuan clearly did not realize the indifference in An Ran's response and continued to press for answers

Without a pen, Ma Haochuan was not particularly anxious; after all, even when he had a pen, he rarely took notes. He simply spread the book out on the table and leaned against the wall at an angle

Fang Zhe, realizing what she was saying, couldn't help but blush and smiled a little awkwardly

I did not expect that such a simple action would be seen by Yang Yang, who deliberately let out a few ambiguous coughs, the sound of which was so loud that it even attracted the teacher's attention, causing them to turn around and glance at him

Mentioning Fang Zhe, this girl from the newly formed liberal arts class, who was not very familiar with the others, immediately found a topic to discuss with the books, chattering away. Among high school girls, casual conversations are never complete without talking about the school heartthrob

One week after Valentine's Day, the second semester of the second year of high school begins

Fang Zhe probably really doesn't remember, and just smiled and said: "So how are you sure that my sexual orientation is normal"

Isn't it quite obvious? I just didn't do well on the exam, " Anran replied

"Who said the pen was given to you? I just borrowed it for a while," An Ran said as she reached out to take it. Ma Haochuan raised his hand and dodged it. It was unclear whether their argument had drawn too much attention, but Fang Zhe, who was about to leave the classroom, glanced over at her. An Ran quickly pretended to lower her head and tidy up her belongings.

"Damn it... you..." Ma Haochuan stood up abruptly to snatch it, but it was already too late. The pencil case was thrown from his companion's hand in a perfect arc, accompanied by exclamations and laughter as it fell downstairs

She once mentioned to Fang Zhe about her strong support for Yuan Yuan during the "Battle of Fangyuan" in high school. At that time, Fang Zhe scoffed at her in disbelief, mocking her poor judgment and questioning how she could like such a pervert

As an ordinary girl, An Ran also participated in the heated discussions of the "Fangyuan Controversy". Interestingly, at that time, she was on Yuan Yuan's side. She did not particularly like seemingly aloof boys, believing that it was all just a facade, an act.

Ma Haochuan leaned against the window, gazing longingly outside, then turned around and grabbed Yang Yang: "You better hurry up and bring it back to me..."

Everyone's attention on Fang Zhe was quickly drawn away by the increasingly intense battle between Ma Haochuan and the other person, as they began throwing objects at each other, first upgrading from rubber to signature pens, then from signature pens to pencil cases. In the final instance, the other person picked up the pencil case that Ma Haochuan had thrown at him, but instead of retaliating in kind, he walked over to the window and opened it

In those years, there were quite a few girls who liked Fang Zhe. He never responded to any love letters or invitations. The most well-known was Lu Yao, the class beauty in Fang Zhe's class, who had been pursuing him since middle school. For five or six years, Fang Zhe remained unmoved. After the "Yuan Yuan bear hug" incident, some girls began to question Fang Zhe's sexual orientation based on this.

As Ma Haochuan once again neglected his duties, using a pen as a curling iron for her hair, An Ran seized the opportunity when the teacher was not paying attention, suddenly turning around and reaching out to snatch the pen back. However, she was still not on the same level as Ma Haochuan in terms of agility

Despite having good English grades last semester, Anran was still placed in Class C. The liberal arts Classes 8 and 9, along with the science Class 7 where Fang Zhe is, attend English classes together. Fang Zhe, who struggles with English, has been in Class C for all three years of high school, which means Anran will have at least one semester of attending English classes with Fang Zhe.

Strictly speaking, Fang Zhe cannot be considered the school heartthrob of No. 1 High School. The universally recognized handsome figure of the school is his senior Bi Zerui, who is one year ahead. With a quarter Spanish heritage, he holds a significant advantage in terms of looks, consistently ranking at the top of the school heartthrob list. Even years after graduation, legends about him continue to circulate at No. 1 High School.

In the time that followed, Ma Haochuan truly did not cause any more trouble. An Ran thought he had realized his mistake, but little did she know that after class, Ma Haochuan tore a page from his notebook and handed it to her, saying: "How about this? A masterpiece from my class, a gift for you, as a token of gratitude for lending me your pen."

As expected, with an air of indifference, Fang Zhe walked straight to the boy who had called him over and sat down, completely disregarding the peculiar glances from the girls in the liberal arts class. It was this somewhat oblivious demeanor that led the once calm An Ran to resolutely choose the "Yuan" team.

"What are you doing sitting there? Come over here," shouted Yang Yang, who is in the same class as Ma Haochuan.

At the sight of his smile, Anran felt as if she had melted away; the thought that she could possess this smile, leaving all the other women in the world behind, filled her with an overwhelming sense of happiness that made her feel as if she could float away

Upon closer inspection, it depicts her silhouette during class, but her short hair is exaggeratedly illustrated as a large mushroom, with a small mushroom singing on top of it. From the mouth of that small mushroom, a string of words accompanied by musical notes floats out:

Yang Yang immediately threw an eraser at Ma Haochuan, who, not to be outdone, picked it up and threw it back.

As everyone quickly took their seats, the two who had been playfully fighting stood up to return to their places, still not forgetting to provoke each other with glances and gestures, which elicited laughter from some boys and a disapproving look from the teacher

The English teacher first led everyone in a brief review of the key points from the last class before starting new content. Taking advantage of the teacher's back being turned while writing on the board, Anran took one of her pens and placed it on Ma Haochuan's desk.

Anran truly felt embarrassed to mention the number 36, but fortunately, Ma Haochuan's companion called out to him from behind, giving Anran a reason to no longer continue this topic

Class C's English lesson took place in the classroom of Liberal Arts Class 8. During the first class after the division, An Ran entered the classroom and chose a rather inconspicuous seat by the window. This choice was partly due to her embarrassment over dropping from Class A to Class C, and partly to facilitate her covert observation of Fang Zhe.

Soon, Anran discovered that she was not the only one looking forward to seeing Fang Zhe. When the class assignment results were announced, the girl sitting in front of Anran sighed with a look of fate playing tricks on her, saying: "I thought I would be in the same class as Fang Zhe, why did the teacher promote me to a higher class!"

Ma Haochuan turned around and said: "I am willing"

Ma Haochuan hesitated for a moment, did not follow his companions to walk back, but instead walked straight to sit down at An Ran's back desk

It is said that back in the day, Yuan Yuan lost a game of Truth or Dare with her classmates and was asked by a girl to go to Class 7 and hug Fang Zhe for at least five seconds. This led to a sensational gossip at the time: the unsuspecting Fang Zhe was called out of the classroom, and before he could react, he received a bear hug from Yuan Yuan. According to the embellished accounts of the classmates present, Yuan Yuan not only hugged Fang Zhe but also spun around with him twice before running away, leaving the aloof male god blushing furiously.

The English curriculum at the school adopts a class division system, categorizing students into classes A, B, and C based on their proficiency levels. At the beginning of each semester, a placement test is conducted, and classes are rearranged according to the final grades from the previous semester. English has always been An Ran's strong subject; however, she has not used English for ten years, let alone prepare for an exam. Unsurprisingly, she performed poorly on the placement test at the start of the semester, scoring 36 points. This score was so low that it astonished her classmates, and An Ran herself found it somewhat unbelievable. The teacher even had a conversation with her about it.

Soon, Anran began to regret her momentary kindness in lending a pen to Ma Haochuan, not because of his few meaningful coughs, but because Ma Haochuan had not used the pen to take notes at all. He would drop the pen on the ground while twirling it; he would tap the heating pipe with the pen; he would poke her in the back with the pen, asking her how many points she scored in English. The most exaggerated moment was when he disassembled the pen, blowing air through the pen tube at her neck, as if all the distance and avoidance he had maintained for over a year had suddenly vanished into thin air.

The other party smiled and broke free, prompting him to push harder until he pinned the person down onto the chair. As he leaned to one side, losing his balance, both of them fell to the ground simultaneously, while the boys familiar with the two watched the commotion, laughing and slapping the table.

Later, she realized that Fang Zhe's aloofness was indeed just a facade, but it was not an act; it was purely due to his poor social skills. In official terms, it could be described as "communication skills needing improvement"

Upon hearing his classmate's call, Ma Haochuan seemed to remember his pencil case and said to An Ran, "I'm leaving now," before hurriedly exiting the classroom

The reason Fang Zhe refers to Yuan Yuan as abnormal is actually based on a story