Brave, Brave My Friend

Stepping through the gates of Guangba High School, a familiar wave of bustling heat rushed over them.

Xie Yuling did not head toward the teaching building. Her gaze immediately locked onto the thick wall of people gathered in front of the notice board by the school gate.

They were standing before the class placement lists.

"So many people."

Lin Mo found a shaded spot under a tree and leaned against the trunk, looking completely uninclined to move.

The class placements had been decided long ago. He didn't even need to look; it would be Class Eight, unchanging as always.

Xie Yuling said nothing, nor did she make any move to squeeze into the crowd.

She simply stood quietly on the periphery, her calm gaze fixed on the giant red paper covered in names ahead.

A second later, a faint glimmer seemed to flash deep within her eyes.

It was the extension of her divine sense.

The noisy chatter and boiling discussions were instantly isolated from her.

Her divine sense acted like an invisible eye, effortlessly piercing through the obstruction of the crowd and sweeping over the densely packed list.

Rows of familiar and unfamiliar names flashed rapidly through her mind. Then, her divine sense locked precisely onto one of them.

Xie Yuling.

Found it.

She didn't retract her divine sense immediately but continued scanning down the list.

Soon, another name entered her consciousness.

Lin Mo.

A very faint, yet incredibly genuine smile quietly bloomed at the corners of Xie Yuling's mouth.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, and a single ray happened to fall on her face, making that smile look exceptionally captivating.

At school, such an expression rarely appeared on Xie Yuling's face.

It wasn't that smiles were rare for Xie Yuling, but rather that smiles were rare for the Xie Yuling who was at school.

After all, the Xie Yuling at school and the Xie Yuling outside of school had entirely different personas.

At this moment, a boy walked over, looking happily at Xie Yuling.

"Xie Yuling, I'm going to Class Eight too. We'll be in the same class again."

Originally, he hadn't dared to approach, but upon seeing Xie Yuling's smile, he somehow mustered up the courage.

Be brave, my friend!

So he went up to strike up a conversation.

However, Xie Yuling retracted her smile, didn't even glance at the guy, and turned to walk toward Lin Mo.

The guy froze for a moment. Was it still a no-go?

He had worked so hard to get into Class Eight with her.

"Done looking? Are you really that happy to be in the same class as me?"

Xie Yuling turned her head, the curve of her lips completely concealed, but the delight in her eyes couldn't be hidden.

"Mhm," she replied softly. "From now on, we can leave school together."

The two walked shoulder to shoulder toward the teaching building, leaving behind the new classmate who had joined Class Eight in total silence.

Meanwhile, in Grade 2 Class Eight.

Many new people had arrived, and many had left.

After all, Class Eight was now a science track class, but basically anyone from Class Eight who chose science was able to stay.

For example, Fang Jun, An Yuexin, and Cai Junhuang.

However, Lin Mo's former desk mate, Lin Jiajun, had been assigned to a different liberal arts class.

They were now worlds apart.

As soon as they walked into the classroom, they saw Xue Zigui still sitting in his original seat, holding a workbook in his hands.

Jiang Yunlu and Chu Miaomiao had already taken their seats.

Except...

Lin Mo's footsteps paused.

In his original seat sat a boy with a buzz cut, sprawled out dominantly with his feet resting on the crossbar under the desk, chatting animatedly with another boy who had occupied Lin Jiajun's seat.

"I'm telling you, the computers at that newly opened internet cafe are absolutely sick. I played a mean Zed last night and slaughtered the whole lobby..."

"For real? Bring me along next time!"

The volume of their voices wasn't too loud or too quiet, but just enough for everyone in the surrounding circle to hear them clearly, carrying an undisguised sense of showing off and arrogance.

It was as if this classroom wasn't a shared space, but their own living room.

Seeing Lin Mo enter, Jiang Yunlu stood up immediately and walked quickly over to him.

Her lips were pressed tightly together, and her beautiful big eyes carried a bit of grievance and annoyance. She tugged at Lin Mo's sleeve without saying a word, just continuously glancing in the direction of those two guys.

That silent accusation was more direct than any words.

Lin Mo understood immediately and looked over at Chu Miaomiao.

The young girl was also frowning, clearly having suffered some grievance.

Lin Mo wasn't surprised that she had chosen the science track; he was just mentally calculating that he would have to spend more effort tutoring her in the future.

"What's wrong?" Lin Mo walked over, his voice low and his expression normal.

The two guys who were chatting excitedly acted as if they hadn't heard or even seen him. They continued their loud conversation and even went so far as to slap the desk.

With a loud bang, the surrounding students couldn't help but turn to look.

Chu Miaomiao finally couldn't hold it in anymore. She lowered her voice, her tone full of grievance: "Lin Mo, that guy... he took your seat. Yunlu just told him, but he completely ignored her and said there are no names carved on the seats, so he can sit wherever he wants."

Oh, so it's a Mundo.

No, there should be two of them.

Just then, a figure walked past Lin Mo.

Xie Yuling slapped her backpack onto the empty seat next to Chu Miaomiao, sat down leisurely, and then tilted her head, raising an eyebrow at Lin Mo.

The meaning in her eyes couldn't be clearer.

"I'll leave this to you to solve."

Lin Mo smiled and said nothing. He lifted his foot and walked toward his desk at a steady, unhurried pace, every step seeming to land on the drumbeat of the crowd's heartbeats.

As soon as he got close, the loudly chatting buzz-cut guy finally shut his mouth.

The original noise in the classroom seemed to be choked by an invisible hand, instantly falling silent.

After all, it had been a long time since anyone had dared to cross Lin Mo.

The buzz-cut boy lazily lifted his eyelids, his cloudy gaze sweeping over Lin Mo with a reckless attitude of thinking he was the boss of the world. His eyes blatantly said: Who are you? Spit it out if you have something to say, or get lost if you don't.

The gazes of the surrounding students clung to them as if they had physical substance.

There was a good show to watch.

Lin Mo remained silent, merely extending his right hand and bending his index finger.

"Knock, knock."

He finally spoke, his voice not loud, but it clearly spread throughout the quiet classroom.

"You don't know me?"

"I know you're a rat!" The buzz-cut boy grinned, revealing a set of rather uneven teeth. That mug of his naturally carried a mocking look.

Lin Mo's brow furrowed imperceptibly.

Before he could make a move, the yellow-haired companion next to the buzz-cut guy grabbed his arm, lowering his voice, his tone full of wariness.

"He's Lin Mo! The top student in the grade, the one who fights like an absolute beast!"

The buzz-cut guy's expression stiffened for a moment. Obviously, he had heard of the weight behind the name Lin Mo.

But he had only heard of it. After all, he had just transferred here last semester and hadn't witnessed Lin Mo's special qualities firsthand.

Relying on his tall and burly physique, and being in front of a crowd, he couldn't bring himself to back down and lose face.

He sneered, forcing himself to keep up the tough act: "Oh, so you're Lin Mo. You don't look like much, just like a sickly weakling."