"Damn, you're awesome! Holy crap, I didn't know you were such a top student!"
Evan Lin sat at his desk while Jason Liu beside him was already looking at him with an excited face.
Evan Lin had beaten Ryan Luo in front of everyone, and was originally about to be expelled by the school, but the series of events that followed completely blew everyone's mind.
Now that Evan Lin has both his grades and the commendation banner protecting him, there's no way he'll be expelled. As for Ryan Luo, getting beaten was all for nothing—he lost face completely.
"Not bad."
Evan Lin nodded slightly.
Not long after, school was over.
In front of the school, a boy in a white tracksuit stood with his hands in his pockets. He had a buzz cut and a sunny look, wearing a pair of limited-edition Adidas sneakers, glancing at his phone from time to time.
He watched as the gates of Capitalview First High opened and saw Ivy Liang walk out with a cold face. He immediately put on a big smile and walked up: "Ivy, hey, I texted you, why didn't you reply?"
"Oh, my phone died so it was off." Ivy Liang glanced at Leo Liu in front of before her, her expression unfriendly as she sized him up and down. "So eager to find Lynn Chen? She might not even bother with you."
"No worries, I'm totally mentally prepared. Besides, I've got you, right? When the time comes, help me out and put in a good word for me." Leo Liu grinned, making Ivy Liang raise her eyebrows slightly.
A moment later, Leo Liu's eyes lit up as he saw Lynn Chen walking out from the school side. He quickly bypassed Ivy Liang and hurried forward.
This scene made Ivy Liang, still wearing a cold face, secretly annoyed. She wished she could just stick out her foot and trip Leo Liu, sending him flying! But that was just wishful thinking.
"Lynn Chen!"
Leo Liu quickly crowded up to Lynn Chen, flashing what he thought was a handsome smile.
Lynn Chen wasn't in a great mood. Hearing his voice, she looked up at Leo Liu standing in front of her, frowning: "I've told you a million times, I don't want to know you, and I have zero interest in getting to know you!"
"Isn't that Leo Liu from Peiying High School?"
"Wow, it really is! He's chasing after Lynn Chen again?"
"Hasn't he tried a bunch of times before? But it looks like Lynn Chen doesn't even bother with him. And isn't Lynn Chen's relationship with Evan Lin kind of unusual?"
Passing students kept glancing over. Most of the girls looked at Leo Liu with starry eyes, while the boys focused more on Lynn Chen.
"Just take it slow and you'll get to know me. Besides, I'm not a bad guy." Leo Liu grinned, not taking it to heart.
He was about to say more when the crowd of students watching the drama seemed to sense something. One after another, they turned their heads to look toward the school.
Leo Liu kept hearing Evan Lin's name from the students around him, along with all kinds of weird comments.
More importantly, Leo Liu noticed that when those whispers started, Lynn Chen—who'd barely bothered with him—almost instinctively turned to look that way. Even Ivy Liang, who'd worn a cold face the whole time, lifted her head to look too.
"Evan Lin?"
Leo Liu narrowed his eyes, a bit curious. He followed everyone's gaze and saw that same boy walking out from the school, his expression calm, ignoring all the stares around him.
Not only that, but Lynn Chen's eyes seemed glued to Evan Lin, but he didn't even bother to slow down—he just walked right past her!
Lynn Chen bit her lip. Evan Lin hadn't gone far yet, Leo Liu was still thinking, and countless eyes were still focused on Evan Lin's back.
A BMW drove up from not far away, its engine deliberately revved extra loud, roaring and drawing attention. It came from a distance and stopped right in front of Lynn Chen.
The BMW door opened, and out stepped a boy in a small suit, hair slicked back with gel, his head gleaming, face full of confident smiles.
Ryan Ren got out of the car, his gaze quickly sweeping over Evan Lin walking past. Then, with a cold smirk at the corner of his mouth, he loudly announced as if making a formal declaration: "Lynn! Let's go eat! Auntie Lu said you promised last night to go with me to Peiying High School's Arts Gala!"
Peiying High School's Arts Gala!
The moment Ryan Ren spoke, the way people looked at him instantly changed.
Peiying High is a private 'noble' academy, a notch above Capitalview First High in prestige. At this moment, Ryan Ren was clearly dressed to impress, and with that BMW behind him—low-key but still flashy—he suddenly seemed mysterious to all the Capitalview First High students watching.
"Yo, Leo's here too." Ryan Ren nodded at Leo Liu, greeting him.
Leo Liu frowned slightly, but before he could say anything, another man and woman stepped out from the BMW's driver's seat.
The woman was dressed like a wealthy lady, and the man looked every bit the successful businessman. Both of them turned their gentle gazes toward Lynn Chen.
"Lynn, come on, school's just let out. Let's go eat together."
These two were none other than Derek Ren and Madam Han.
Today, they'd actually gone to find Lucy Lu, but she didn't seem keen on letting Lynn Chen go with Ryan Ren to the gala, so they decided to take matters into their own hands and invite Lynn out to eat first.
Lynn Chen wanted to refuse, but when she caught sight of Evan Lin walking away without looking back, she got angry. She brushed past Leo Liu and Ryan Ren, pulled open the car door, and got in.
Seeing this, Ryan Ren's face lit up with joy. After greeting Leo Liu, he shouted after Evan Lin: "Lynn, we're heading out to eat now!"
Ryan Ren hopped into the car, smug as ever. Madam Han and Derek Ren exchanged a smile, planning to persuade Lynn Chen over dinner.
They were sure that if Lynn Chen went to the arts gala and saw Ryan Ren playing piano, she'd fall for him instantly.
Everyone got in the car. Ryan Ren and Lynn Chen sat in the back; Ryan was still buzzing with excitement, but Lynn looked anything but happy, staring out the window the whole time.
As the car started up and drove past Evan Lin, Lynn Chen looked out the window at him walking calmly down the sidewalk. For some reason, her chest felt strangely tight.
Evan Lin watched the BMW disappear from view and shook his head slightly.