The First Elective Course

"I forgot my water bottle!"

As Su Cheng walked down the road, he suddenly realized this and stopped in his tracks, turning back toward the classroom.

His water bottle contained coffee.

Although he had taken a nap at noon, he was still sleep-deprived. Without coffee to keep him going during class, he might just fall asleep while listening.

Behind him, Li Guanqi quickly stepped aside to let him pass and then followed closely behind him.

She maintained a very subtle distance, close enough to follow without drawing Su Cheng's attention, and far enough to avoid any scent reaching him.

Just as Su Cheng was about to reach the classroom, he ran into Zhao Yan and Xuan Ying, causing all three of them to pause for a moment.

"Aren't you going to your elective class, Su Cheng?"

Zhao Yan greeted with a smile.

Xuan Ying, on the other hand, kept her head down, looking guilty and avoiding eye contact with Su Cheng.

She had been acting like this for the past few days.

"I forgot my water bottle,"

Su Cheng replied with a polite smile, nodded at the two girls, and then continued toward the classroom.

"Wha... what do we do now...?"

Xuan Ying looked at Su Cheng's retreating back, panicking.

If they went first, they wouldn't be able to sit with Su Cheng. They had been following him in the hopes of securing seats together first, then naturally sitting next to him as classmates.

It seemed very reasonable.

But if they went ahead, Su Cheng might just pick a random spot, making it difficult for them to sit together.

"Let's go to the bathroom,"

Zhao Yan suggested directly.

"Oh, right!"

Xuan Ying quickly agreed, nodding, and the two girls headed toward the bathroom together.

Meanwhile, Li Guanqi quietly observed their conversation without interrupting. Her gaze, however, remained fixed on Su Cheng as he entered the classroom.

Soon, Su Cheng emerged, and Li Guanqi silently followed, passing by the bathroom where two more girls joined in.

The lecture hall

Arriving late, the lecture hall was already packed, with no empty seats left. The constant coming and going of students meant his arrival went unnoticed.

However, a small golden retriever in the front row spotted him and her eyes lit up. She quickly looked around to see if there were any empty seats nearby, but to her disappointment, there weren't any.

To her left was Ailiya, and to her right was a classmate.

Though the lack of empty seats was disappointing, it didn't stop her from keeping her eyes on Su Cheng.

"What's wrong?"

Ailiya noticed Cornelia's gaze fixed on something and followed her gaze, spotting Su Cheng.

"Nothing, nothing,"

Cornelia quickly shook her head, not wanting to elaborate, but her gaze still occasionally drifted toward Su Cheng.

"Got it,"

Seeing this, Ailiya didn't press further, knowing Cornelia's feelings for Su Cheng.

Su Cheng scanned the room and found that the front rows were almost full, causing him to frown.

However, the back rows were relatively empty. Without hesitation, Su Cheng started walking toward that area.

But just as he took a few steps, he suddenly stopped, realizing why this corner was deserted.

There sat a human air conditioner, radiating a chilling aura that seemed to freeze the air around her.

This human air conditioner was none other than his eccentric club president.

Pfft, more like the ice sculpture president—Ji Qingyi.

She sat there alone, exuding a strong sense of oppression that made the entire area feel like her private domain, with no one daring to approach.

At that moment, Ji Qingyi also noticed him, her gaze fixed on Su Cheng as if deep in thought.

Su Cheng didn't pay much attention to Ji Qingyi's gaze. After all, his club president had been quite kind to him, protecting him and even helping him with his health checks.

Then, he walked straight toward the area near Ji Qingyi and sat down, greeting her casually, "President."

She nodded in response, then withdrew her gaze, continuing to stare at the front screen as if indifferent to everything.

The few girls following Su Cheng, however, were visibly startled and hesitated, unsure whether to sit near him, given Ji Qingyi's presence beside him.

Sitting next to such a woman was like having the homeroom teacher beside you. As Zhao Yan and Xuan Ying hesitated, Li Guanqi hesitated for only a second before sitting down next to Su Cheng.

A few seconds later, Xuan Ying finally made up her mind and was about to pull Zhao Yan to sit next to Su Cheng, but as soon as she moved, Ji Qingyi seemed to notice their hesitation and slowly turned her gaze toward them.

The two girls immediately retracted their steps and sat down in the nearest seats, looking like they had been caught doing something wrong by the teacher.

Ji Qingyi glanced at the two girls, then at Su Cheng, who was sitting three seats away from her, her eyes revealing an unreadable expression.

"Geez, could you give me a heads-up next time? You scared me,"

Su Cheng patted his chest, complaining slightly at the emotionless beauty sitting next to him.

He had been startled by her sudden presence.

"Sorry,"

Li Guanqi apologized lightly, then continued to stare at the front screen as if nothing had happened, and Su Cheng didn't say anything more, bowing his head to continue fiddling with his notebook.

However, Su Cheng and Li Guanqi's conversation was overheard by Ji Qingyi, who glanced at Su Cheng, then at Li Guanqi, her eyes revealing a hint of surprise. After recognizing the girl, her eyes flickered slightly, as if she had identified her.

"Look, someone's sitting next to the Ji family's young lady."

"No way, huh, there really is someone."

"Who is that guy? He's got guts."

"A freshman, I guess. But wow, he's really fearless."

"I remember seeing him in the campus newspaper. He's a first-year, Su Cheng!"

"The one personally tutored by President Ji?"

"Yeah."

"I see. No wonder."

………………

The murmurs from the crowd were very faint and far away, so Su Cheng didn't notice.

"Class hasn't started yet. Should we sit over there?"

From a distance, Xuan Ying glanced unwillingly at the empty seats around Su Cheng and whispered to Zhao Yan.

"Su Cheng already noticed us earlier. If we move now, it'll be too obvious that we're changing seats on purpose."

Zhao Yan shook her head, feeling hesitant.

"Alright."

Xuan Ying reluctantly looked at the empty seats next to Su Cheng before turning her gaze forward.

…………

"Look."

"Gu Ruoxue?"

"I didn't expect her to be in this law class too!"

……

At that moment, a stunning figure appeared at the door.