Redemption from the Abyss: The School Beauty Insists on Pulling Me Out of the Mire

The second self-study period in the afternoon.

The teacher on duty at the podium had her head down, one hand supporting her chin, and the thumb of the other hand rapidly swiping across the phone screen.

The students below were working diligently.

The amount of test papers in the second semester of senior year has reached an outrageous level, with seven or eight papers a day being the standard, bombarding students with Chinese, math, English, physics, chemistry, and biology in turn.

Xie Wang lowered his head and finished the last multiple-choice question in the comprehensive theory exam, then put his pen on the table.

He turned his head and glanced at Su Qinghe's desktop.

Su Qinghe was closing the last booklet of timed English practice exercises, with the completion time marked in red pen at the bottom of the page.

The two of them were progressing at almost the same pace.

Xie Wang gently poked Su Qinghe's back with the cap of his pen.

Su Qinghe tilted his head slightly, without turning around, but his ears perked up.

Xie Wang tore off a small piece of sticky note, wrote three words on it, and pushed it over.

To go or not to go.

Su Qinghe glanced down at the note, wrote a line of small characters in red pen, and pushed it back.

Where to go?

Xie Wang wrote again.

Let's go out for a stroll.

Su Qinghe paused on the sticky note for two seconds before writing down a single word.

it is good.

Xie Wang put away the sticky note and looked up at the teacher on duty at the podium.

The teacher was giving a cryptic smile to his phone screen, and the frequency of his thumb swiping indicated that he was completely absorbed in the world of short videos.

Xie Wang stood up calmly, picked up the water glass on the table, and walked towards the back door of the classroom.

Three seconds after he stood up, Su Qinghe calmly closed his textbook, picked up his thermos, and walked out the front door.

The two routes, going in different directions, meet precisely at the stairwell at the end of the corridor.

Su Qinghe leaned against the wall, watching Xie Wang walk over from the other end.

"The teacher didn't notice, did she?" Her voice was low, but there was a subtle hint of excitement in her tone.

Xie Wang took her hand and led her downstairs.

"He was so engrossed in writing that he might not even realize the classroom was on fire."

The two went down the stairs to the first-floor corridor.

On winter afternoons, the campus is sparsely populated. Most students are trapped in classrooms, battling with their exams, while only a few sparrows perch by the flowerbeds, basking in the sun.

Su Qinghe walked beside Xie Wang, his breath dispersing in the sunlight.

"I don't think I've ever skipped a class."

Her tone was calm, but the grip on Xie Wang's fingers was a little tighter than usual.

Xie Wang turned his head to look at her.

"Ms. Su, you now officially have your first record of skipping class. How does it feel?"

Su Qinghe pursed his lips, and a faint light flickered in his eyes.

"It's a little exciting."

After she finished speaking, she turned her face slightly away, and the tips of her ears turned slightly red.

Xie Wang laughed.

He led Su Qinghe around from behind the teaching building, through a bare ginkgo forest, where sunlight filtered through the branches, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

The two walked slowly, their footsteps making a soft, crunching sound as they trod on the dry, fallen leaves.

"You saw how Teacher Zheng treated me just now, right?" Xie Wang said.

Su Qinghe turned his head away.

"I saw it."

"His smile was so creepy, I was sweating bullets."

Su Qinghe couldn't help but smile slightly.

"That's because your Chinese score of 115 dragged down his class average. His performance bonus is tied to your Chinese score, so it's no wonder he's not nice to you."

"So the gentler he is, the more afraid I become."

"If you're scared, then study hard. Humph, you're not as serious as you used to be."

Xie Wang sighed.

The two walked along the ginkgo forest to the stone steps by the playground. Just as they were about to turn towards the library, they bumped into someone.

Principal Zhang.

He was strolling leisurely along the outer edge of the track with his hands behind his back.

Su Qinghe reflexively tried to pull her hand away from Xie Wang's, but Xie Wang's fingers tightened, firmly holding her palm without letting go.

"Don't panic," Xie Wang said softly.

Principal Zhang has already seen the two of them.

His gaze first fell on the two people's clasped hands, then he raised his eyes and glanced at their two young faces.

"Hey, isn't this Su Qinghe and Xie Wang?"

Principal Zhang laughed, his tone devoid of any reproach.

"You two are out for a walk to get some exercise, huh?"

Xie Wang nodded.

"Yes, Principal, you should move around a bit after sitting for so long."

Principal Zhang nodded, his hands still behind his back, adopting the posture of an elder chatting casually.

"Okay, okay, young people should be more active and prioritize their health. Take your studies slowly and don't push yourself too hard."

After he finished speaking, he reached out and patted Xie Wang on the shoulder twice, then nodded to Su Qinghe.

"You two are the pride of our school. Keep up the good work! With you two in the college entrance exam this year, Jiangcheng No.1 High School will definitely make a name for itself."

After saying that, Principal Zhang smiled and continued his walk along the track.

The two stood there watching the principal's figure disappear into the distance.

Su Qinghe let out a long breath.

"Why didn't the principal say anything?"

Xie Wang pulled her along as they continued walking.

"Of course it's because my teacher, Ms. Su, is so outstanding!"

The two walked along the stone steps through the small garden behind the basketball court and finally stopped in front of the side entrance of the library.

The two walked up to the top floor.

attic.

"It's been a long time since I've been here," Su Qinghe said, standing at the door.

"It's definitely all dust. I'll go in and take a look."

Xie Wang turned the doorknob and pushed the door open to go inside.

Then he froze.

The attic was spotless.

The floor had been mopped, the dust on the windowsill had been wiped clean, and the curtains had been replaced with new ones. Sunlight streamed in through the sheer curtains, casting a warm yellow glow across the floor.

An unexpected person was sitting in front of the old wooden table against the wall.

Zhao Zixuan.

He was doing his homework with his head down, and across from him sat a girl with pigtails, also quietly doing her homework.

On the table between the two people were two cups of milk tea and a small bag of opened preserved plums.

Zhao Zixuan looked up when he heard the door open, and his panic turned into relief when he saw who it was.

"Big brother, sister-in-law."

He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.

Xie Wang stood at the door, his gaze shifting from Zhao Zixuan to the girl across the way, and then back again.

"Zhao Zixuan, when did you discover this place?"

Zhao Zixuan scratched the back of his head.

"I stumbled upon this place by chance while taking shelter from the rain in the library last semester. I found the environment nice and started coming here often. I even tidied it up a bit."

Su Qinghe walked in, his gaze falling on the newly placed small green plant on the windowsill.

"No wonder it's so clean."

Xie Wang looked at Zhao Zixuan and the girl opposite him, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"You're something else, kid. You've found a girlfriend."

Zhao Zixuan's face flushed red, and he rubbed his hands together under the table.

"No, no, we're just ordinary friends."

Xie Wang raised an eyebrow.

Su Qinghe turned to look at him, and the two stared at each other for less than a second before their lips curled up at the same time.

"Oh~"

"Just ordinary friends."

The two people spoke in exactly the same tone, with the last syllable drawn out.

Zhao Zixuan wished he could shove his head into the hole in the desk.

The girl opposite put down her pen and nodded to Xie Wang and Su Qinghe first.

Hello, seniors.

Her voice was clear and crisp, and her tone was very polite.

Then she turned her head and gave Zhao Zixuan a crisp pat on the back of the head.

The force was considerable.

Zhao Zixuan was so shocked by the slap that he shrank his neck forward and froze on the spot.

"Who says we're just ordinary friends?"

The girl's voice turned three degrees colder.

"What do you mean by 'ordinary'?! Friend."

Zhao Zixuan stared at her with wide eyes.

He opened his mouth twice, but not a single word came out.

Xie Wang put his hand on Su Qinghe's shoulder, and the two of them took a step back in tacit agreement.

"I won't bother you any longer."

Xie Wang winked at Zhao Zixuan.

"You can continue."

He pulled Su Qinghe out of the attic and gently closed the door.

The moment the door closed, one could vaguely hear Zhao Zixuan's flustered explanations and the girl's persistent questioning from inside.

The two walked down the narrow staircase and pushed open the side door of the library.

The afternoon sun on a winter day bathed the steps in its warmth, making one's eyes slightly sore.

Xie Wang walked a few steps ahead, then suddenly stopped, turned around, and stood on the next step so that their eyes were level.

He looked at Su Qinghe's profile, which was translucent in the sunlight:

"I really miss it. I wonder how many people's youth was held in this attic."

Su Qinghe stood on the steps, brushing back the stray strands of hair that had been blown about by the wind, and said with a smile:

"After all, no one stays eighteen forever, but there will always be someone who's eighteen, right?"

"No, no, my Qinghe will always be 18!"

"Huh? Then my Xie Wang is also ≽^•༚• ྀི≼!"