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

Xie Wang rushed out of his own front door like a black hurricane, almost sliding to a stop at the door of apartment 1601 next door.

"Knock knock knock!"

He knocked on the door three times forcefully, his voice urgent but deliberately low, so as not to disturb the other neighbors:

"Qinghe! Wake up! You're late!"

No one answered.

The room remained deathly silent, not even a footstep could be heard.

They didn't care about manners anymore.

He crouched down, his long, slender fingers groping under the brown doormat with "Welcome" written on it until he touched a cold metal key—this was the last line of defense she had given him, to prevent them from being locked out if they both forgot their keys.

"Click".

The door lock turned, its crisp sound echoing through the empty corridor.

The door opened.

Xie Wang pushed open the door and rushed into the bedroom without even changing his shoes. Although he was furious with anxiety, he subconsciously slowed his steps as he opened the bedroom door.

The curtains in the bedroom were tightly closed, not a single ray of light could get in, it was so dark that it felt like it was still the middle of the night, and the air conditioner was running at full blast, making a slight hissing sound.

On that soft, large bed, Su Qinghe, who was usually aloof and self-disciplined, was now completely unreserved, wrapped up like a giant white silkworm cocoon. Most of her face was buried in the pillow, with only a section of her fair and delicate nape and a few strands of messy black hair showing.

She was sleeping soundly, her breathing long and even, seemingly unaware that it was already broad daylight outside.

Even as Xie Wang approached, she let out a very soft, kitten-like murmur in her sleep, turned over, and buried her face even deeper into the blankets.

Seeing this scene, Xie Wang felt his anxious fire extinguished by half, turning into a soft pool of water.

He glanced at the clock on the wall—7:35.

Those tender thoughts were instantly shattered by cruel reality; if they didn't wake up soon, they would truly be doomed.

Xie Wang walked to the bedside, knelt on one knee at the edge of the bed, not daring to be too rough, he could only reach out and gently pat her cheek that was exposed outside the blanket, his voice low and urgent:

"Qinghe, wake up."

"...Hmm?"

Su Qinghe groaned sleepily, her brows furrowed slightly, seemingly annoyed by the sudden disturbance. Instead of waking up, she instinctively shrank further under the covers, like a frightened little animal trying to retreat into its shell.

Xie Wang had no choice but to take a deep breath and reach out to pinch her delicate nose:

"Wake up! It's 7:35! Teacher Li is going to kill someone!"

The difficulty in breathing finally elicited a response from Su Qinghe.

"Seven o'clock..."

She muttered and repeated the number.

The next second she suddenly opened her eyes.

Those phoenix eyes, filled with the dazed look of someone just waking up and a thin layer of moisture, stared blankly at Xie Wang, who was so close to them, before slowly focusing after a full two seconds.

"...Xie Wang?"

Her voice was hoarse, soft and sweet, as if she hadn't woken up yet.

Xie Wang abruptly pulled back her blanket, yanked her out of bed, and his movements were swift, decisive, and left no room for argument.

"Hurry! You have three minutes to wash up! I'll wait for you at the door! If we don't leave now, we'll really miss the first class!"

Su Qinghe finally regained full consciousness.

Three minutes later, inside the elevator.

The mirrored stainless steel walls of the elevator car reflected two disheveled high school seniors with messy hair.

Su Qinghe was frantically tying her hair in front of the mirror, a black hair tie between her teeth, her hands quickly combing through her ponytail, when she asked indistinctly:

"Why did you oversleep too? Didn't your alarm go off?"

Xie Wang was buttoning his school uniform collar when he heard this. He sighed helplessly and raised his hand to straighten his collar, which was sticking up.

"I stayed up all night last night running code, trying to patch the vulnerabilities K gave me. I was still dreaming when my alarm went off."

"And you?" He turned to look at her, a hint of teasing in his eyes. "Didn't you say you'd go to bed early? How come you're up later than me?"

Su Qinghe tied her hair into a ponytail, straightened her collar, and pursed her lips somewhat shyly, a hint of embarrassment flashing across her face:

"That science exam paper... the last physics question was so interesting, the model was very novel, I couldn't resist and didn't figure it out until 3:30."

The two exchanged a glance.

In the chaotic morning, in the cramped elevator car, they looked at each other's disheveled yet vibrant appearance and suddenly burst into laughter at the same time.

"Fool," Xie Wang said with a laugh.

"Likewise," Su Qinghe replied.

Downstairs in the Yunding Piano Room.

Xie Wang looked around and his gaze settled on a row of shared electric bikes parked by the roadside.

"Get in the car."

He strode over, swept aside a small yellow electric scooter, and patted the somewhat cramped back seat:

"I'm afraid I'll have to make do with this for Teacher Su. This thing avoids traffic jams and allows us to take a shortcut."

Without saying a word, Su Qinghe straddled the seat, her movements so practiced that she didn't seem like a young lady at all.

"Hold on tight."

Xie Wang turned the handle, and the electric scooter shot off with a "whoosh".

The wind whistled into their ears and ruffled their hair.

In order to save time, Xie Wang rode his electric scooter, which had a speed limit of 25 km/h, like a race car, weaving nimbly through the traffic jams during the morning rush hour, like a swimming fish.

To maintain his balance, Su Qinghe had to hold Xie Wang tightly around the waist.

Her face was pressed against his back, and through the thin school uniform shirt, she could clearly hear the powerful heartbeat in his chest, the vigor and passion unique to teenagers.

The morning breeze lifted the hems of their school uniforms, causing them to entangle and become indistinguishable.

Although he was on his way to receive punishment, and although his hair was messy and his clothes were wrinkled, at this moment, Su Qinghe actually felt a kind of romantic feeling of being on the run.

"Thank you, Wang!" she shouted in the wind.

"What?" Xie Wang replied loudly without turning his head, focusing on the road ahead.

"Don't ride so fast next time! Be careful!"

"What are you afraid of! I'm here!"

The boy's voice sounded particularly arrogant in the wind, carrying an air of fearlessness.

……

[8:05 AM · At the entrance of Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School]

"squeak--"

The electric scooter braked sharply and came to a steady stop at the non-motorized vehicle parking area at the school gate.

The two jumped out of the car, locked it, and were about to rush inside when a figure like a gatekeeper blocked their way.

"stop!"

A middle-aged man with black-rimmed glasses and a serious expression stood behind the retractable gate with his hands behind his back and a dark face. He was Director Yan, the newly transferred director of the teaching affairs office.

He raised his wrist to check his watch, his gaze fixed intently on the two panting students before him:

"8:05. Morning reading is over, and the first class has already started five minutes ago! Which class are you in? Tell me your name!"

Director Yan's tone was so stern, it was as if he were interrogating a criminal:

"You dare to be late on the first day of school? Don't you have any discipline?!"

Xie Wang instinctively shielded Su Qinghe behind him, and was just about to make up an excuse to take all the blame.

However, Director Yan's gaze suddenly shifted downwards, fixing fixedly on the hands of the two men.

Because they had run so fast, the two hadn't let go of each other's hands since getting out of the car. At this moment, Xie Wang's large hand was tightly holding Su Qinghe's hand, their fingers interlocked, which looked particularly glaring under Director Yan's gaze.

Director Yan's eyebrows shot up instantly, as if he had witnessed something utterly outrageous, and he pointed at their hands, roaring:

"Still holding hands?! This is in front of the school! In broad daylight, what kind of behavior is this! Let go of me!"

The two then realized what had happened, and released their hands as if they had been electrocuted, leaving an awkward silence in the air.

"This is absolutely outrageous!"

Director Yan was so angry that he puffed out his beard and glared at the ground. He took out a small notebook with demerits and slammed the pen tip against the paper.

"Late! Dating! Inappropriate attire! Who is your homeroom teacher? What's their name? This isn't over yet; you must be publicly criticized throughout the school! Your parents need to come and pick you up!"

Just as Xie Wang was about to explain—

"Oh dear, Director Yan, why are you so angry so early in the morning?"

A gentle voice suddenly came from the side, breaking the deadlock.

Principal Zhang Jianguo was seen strolling out of the guardhouse with a smile, holding a thermos in his hand.

"Principal!" Director Yan immediately turned around, pointing at Xie Wang and Su Qinghe to complain, "You've come at the perfect time! These two students are outrageous! Not only were they late, but they also held hands and swaggered in. This kind of bad behavior must be severely punished!"

Principal Zhang looked in the direction he was pointing.

When the principal saw the two figures, covered in sweat and looking somewhat disheveled, he paused for a moment, then his serious expression instantly transformed into a kind smile:

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

"Thank...thank you for your presumption?"

Director Yan's hand holding the pen froze. Although he didn't recognize the person, the name was legendary—he was the fourteenth in the province and a gold medalist in the national competition!

He then glanced at the aloof-looking girl beside him: "And this lady is...?"

"Su Qinghe," Principal Zhang added with a smile, "our province's top science student."

Director Yan: "..."

The air fell silent for a few seconds. Director Yan looked at the two students with "bad records" in front of him, then at the notebook in his hand that he was about to write down major demerits, and his expression became extremely interesting.

Is this the legendary "two pillars of the school"? Why does it look so different from the image of a good student I imagined?

Principal Zhang glanced at the two of them, but instead of getting angry, he cheerfully waved his hand, blatantly adopting a double standard of protecting his own:

"Director Yan, I know these two kids. They must have stayed up late last night for the competition or to review, right? I've seen their study plans, and they're definitely very intensive."

He walked over and patted the bewildered Director Yan on the shoulder:

"Special talents deserve special treatment. As long as their grades don't drop, being late once or twice means they're too focused on their studies! That's called studying so hard they forget to eat and sleep! We should understand."

Director Yan opened his mouth, but a breath caught in his chest, unable to come out or come down.

They've caught the top student in the grade dating too early; how are they supposed to manage this?

"Alright, alright, go in now, don't be late for class." Principal Zhang waved to the two of them, his eyes filled with the kind of affection one would show to their own grandchildren.

"Thank you, Principal! Goodbye, Teacher Yan!"

Xie Wang reacted quickly, grabbing Su Qinghe and running before Director Yan could react, afraid that he would change his mind.

Watching the two figures run away, Director Yan pushed up his glasses and, after a long pause, finally managed to utter a sentence:

"...They're letting them go like that? Principal, they were holding hands just now!"

Principal Zhang took a sip of tea, watched the two figures walk away, and smiled meaningfully:

"Young people should help each other and make progress together. As long as we're still at the top of the class in the next monthly exam, what's wrong with holding hands? It's called... it's to prevent us from getting lost!"

Director Yan watched the principal's retreating figure, utterly bewildered.

……

[Classroom of Senior Three (1)]

"Report."

Two voices rang out simultaneously from the back door, accompanied by the slight panting of someone running upstairs.

The teacher, who was teaching the first biology class, paused for a moment. When she saw it was the two of them, she didn't ask any questions, but simply pointed to their seats and waved them in.

The eyes of the entire class instantly focused on it.

Xie Wang and Su Qinghe, under the scrutinizing gazes of dozens of people, walked quickly back to the last row with their heads down.

He had barely sat down and hadn't even had time to catch his breath when Shen Hao, sitting next to him, eagerly leaned in, his eyes wide like saucers.

"Holy crap... Brother Wang, God Su, what's going on with you two...?"

He glanced at Xie Wang's wind-blown hair, then at Su Qinghe's still-rosy cheeks, his tone filled with shock and gossip:

"Both of you were late? Or did you come in together?"

Lin Lu, who was in front, also turned around, using her upright English book to cover her face, revealing a pair of gleaming eyes, and teased in a low voice:

"Qinghe, tell me honestly, what did you guys do last night? How come even the top student overslept? This isn't like you."

Su Qinghe's breathing, which had just calmed down, became erratic again, and her ears instantly turned bright red. She didn't want to explain why she had stayed up all night, so she could only force herself to remain calm and open a book, trying to cover her embarrassment with the sound of reading aloud.

"...It's too late to review."

"Oh~~~~ Reviewing, huh?"

Lin Lu and Shen Hao exchanged a glance and uttered a long, meaningful sound, their expressions clearly saying, "Although I don't believe it, I don't dare to ask."

Xie Wang kicked Shen Hao hard under the table, warning him to shut up.

But a barely concealed smile played on his lips. He pulled a carton of milk from his bag, placed it on Su Qinghe's desk, and then lazily said to Shen Hao:

"What are you thinking? Your thoughts are filthy."

"Hurry up and memorize your vocabulary. If you don't get into the top 50 in the next monthly exam, Xu Youke won't bring you breakfast anymore. You'll be crying then."

Shen Hao, having his weakness exposed, immediately covered his mouth and slunk back to reciting his lessons.

Outside the window, the sunlight was just right, shining on the desk and making the carton of milk look warm and cozy.