She was genuinely teased by Shen Nian until her face flushed crimson.

Xia Yanchun's nails were neatly trimmed. For some girls, keeping long nails is quite inconvenient and also considered unhygienic.

Shen Nian held the girl's fingertips, playing with them. He would gently squeeze her nails one moment, then examine the lines on them the next. The air was filled with the fragrance she had brought with her.

Who knows what he could possibly study by pinching and scrutinizing a single finger for so long.

Shen Nian must be one of those hand fetishists!

That's what Xia Yanchun thought, yet for some reason, she didn't want to pull her hand away from Shen Nian's grasp. Strangely, being toyed with so brazenly by him felt somewhat pleasant.

Why are his hands so warm? Are all guys like this?!

"Stop pinching, time to sleep." Xia Yanchun's heart was racing. Her small hand clenched, and she curled her pinky finger back, not letting Shen Nian play with it anymore. It felt like sparks were flying, way too weird.

"Don't be like that, I still want to peel off that dead skin for you."

"What dead skin?!"

"There really is."

Shen Nian fished her finger out again.

There really was.

The weather had been quite dry recently, plus the temperature had dropped. Several tiny bits of peeling skin had lifted around her nails, not just on the pinky.

It felt itchy when Shen Nian's hand brushed over them.

Xia Yanchun pressed her lips together. Oh no, now it's starting to bother her. It was like when someone points out your breathing or swallowing, and it suddenly becomes a manual process. She felt those lifted bits of skin itching.

This time, it wasn't just the pinky. Shen Nian held four of her fingers tightly, excluding the thumb. Xia Yanchun's heart skipped a beat, and she tried to pull them back, but Shen Nian's grip was firm. When she exerted force, he only frowned slightly, not loosening his hold in the slightest.

"If you dare peel it upwards, I swear you'll die a horrible death!" Xia Yanchun warned. The thought of accidentally peeling off a large piece of skin in the past made her heart flutter anxiously.

It felt like her life was in someone else's hands.

"Promise it won't hurt. You're lacking some vitamins. I'll buy you some fruit later." Shen Nian stopped leaning on his arms and bent his head closer to carefully peel the dead skin for his Chunbao. He was utterly focused.

He hadn't planned on doing this, but who told him to notice it? Anyone who can resist peeling such skin flakes is closer to a deity than a human.

Damn dead skin, get off my Chunbao's hand!

Xia Yanchun's almond-shaped eyes didn't blink as she watched Shen Nian peel off the tiny bits of skin little by little. Surprisingly, there was almost no sensation. Occasionally, there was a slight, sharp prick, but Shen Nian would cover it with his palm, give it a little rub, and that prickling feeling would vanish without a trace.

Ah, this is how a younger brother should be!

Xia Yanchun was thrilled.

But thrilled as she was, she was also embarrassed. She could fool herself, but not her heartbeat. Although she really didn't want to admit it, Shen Nian had indeed teased her to the point of blushing furiously!

"Touched? That's just how us kind-hearted high school boys are. Good grades, gentle, unique, popular—totally the male lead template."

"Protagonists in Japanese anime are usually loners, right... Someone like you would be a background character."

"How dare you!"

A hint of slyness flickered in Xia Yanchun's eyes. Taking advantage of Shen Nian's inattention, she yanked her hand back in an instant. "Had enough feeling me up? Okay, I'm going to sleep now!"

"What do you mean 'feeling up'? Wasn't I peeling your dead skin?"

A scholar's actions, can that be called feeling up?

Things between childhood friends, can that be called feeling up?

Things between rivals, can that be called feeling up?

Setting aside the fact that he actually was feeling her up, doesn't Xia Yanchun bear at least a little blame herself?

"Just too lazy to expose you, that's all!" Xia Yanchun snorted, then comfortably laid her head down again. Her fingers were warm from Shen Nian's pinching; surely she could fall asleep now.

If she couldn't sleep, she'd just wait until Shen Nian was asleep and pretend to accidentally wake him up, then start over.

"I'll watch you sleep." Shen Nian didn't argue further and also laid his head down, staring into her eyes.

Xia Yanchun looked at Shen Nian, thinking his eyes were quite nice—bright, clear, mixed with the unique vitality of a young man.

Such nice eyes, but whenever Shen Nian started acting annoying, they'd be full of mischief.

Xia Yanchun snorted and turned her face away. She was already used to being stared at like this by Shen Nian. She didn't really mind, since she was dressed modestly. No matter what angle he tried, he wouldn't see anything, so let him be!

Feeling content inside, she started to fall asleep comfortably. Xia Yanchun was quite pleased. Just as she closed her eyes, she heard Shen Nian mutter again.

"I peeled your dead skin. Aren't you going to give me a little reward?"

"Tch, it's not like I asked you to peel it."

"That won't do, that won't do. Behind the scenes, I put in a lot of effort."

Shen Nian said seriously, and it was true. Peeling skin always involves some pricking or itching. Usually, you'd try to clip it as close as possible with nail clippers. Doing it by hand now relied entirely on his deft touch to make it painless. A few more seconds of rubbing, and the peeled skin would have grown back.

"Reward this, reward that, every single day. Studying hard needs a reward, getting high scores needs a reward, now this needs a reward too. You're really something. Who am I to you?"

Xia Yanchun turned her little face back, a hint of expectation in her eyes. If Shen Nian answered correctly... a reward...

Shen Nian frowned. "You're my Chunbao."

You, Hachiki Chun, you think you can get a reward without even calling me 'sis'?

Dream on.

"Your reward is gone."

"I'm not asking you to do anything." Shen Nian's hand stealthily crept over, his pinky hooking hers.

Xia Yanchun, who had just closed her eyes, opened one halfway. After watching for a moment, she didn't speak. Just as she predicted, Shen Nian slowly started to hook her ring finger too...

"Shen Nian, I really need to make this clear. Rivals can't lie on the same bed!"

"Oh, I'm not lying with you. Aren't we just leaning on it?"

With their fair, pinkish fingers hooked together, Shen Nian felt completely at ease and managed to take a rare nap.

Rivals can't lie down together, but he never planned on being rivals with Chunbao forever.

We already said we'd be best friends forever. Are you an idiot, Xia Yanchun?

...

Shen Nian only slept for half an hour, waking up at 1:50 PM.

There were still twenty minutes before the bell.

Both his mind and body felt satisfied. He could have kept sleeping, but it wasn't necessary.

He was covered in Chunbao's scent, utterly intoxicating.

Chunbao was still asleep, her face slightly plump, looking sweet as she slept. You could only see the fine down on her face up close. So damn cute.

Shen Nian looked his fill, then quietly took a bottle of O'Pop fruit milk from his backpack and walked out of the classroom. He planned to kill some time in the hallway and wake Xia Yanchun up when the bell rang.

Ah, once idle, the urge to study hits.

Shen Nian felt his learning ability had been fully squeezed out by the system's cheat. For the midterms, his goal was top three in the class.

First, surpass that loli girl. Xia Yanchun was the undisputed number one in the class, an insurmountable mountain for the time being.

Before he could finish his future planning, a tall woman walked towards him. Shen Nian instinctively glanced over.

Hehe, it's my favorite, Teacher Yan. We have English class this afternoon.

"Hello, Teacher Yan. You're here so early?"

"Alright, we'll have a dictation later on the grammar points we covered last time. If you haven't memorized them yet, make sure to review."

"I've already memorized them all."

Yan Yuzhu nodded, then caught sight of the O bubble in Shen Nian's hand. After a moment of silence, she said nothing and walked straight into the office.

Shen Nian: ...?

Damn!

Yan Xi reminds you: Due to Tomato's request for over three million daily visits causing excessive server pressure, it is now recommended that you use sources from other big shots.