Please, I'm Trying to Study, Your Highness! - chapter 17

So boring.

Xia Shiyu leaned against the cold wall, absentmindedly listening to Li Na’s shrill screams in her ear.

That angry, twisted face probably hadn’t even noticed her carefully drawn eyeliner had smudged a little. Hideous.

Her mouth kept repeating the same few words: “vixen,” “shameless,” “seducing.”

Her voice was off-key, and her vocabulary was pitifully limited.

As for why things had escalated to this point…

Hmm, now she remembered.

In the evening, the art studio at the end of the fifth-floor corridor, reserved for senior students, was a place Xia Shiyu occasionally used to kill time.

Not only was it quiet, but it also carried the distinctive scent of turpentine and paint.

She could temporarily escape the monotonous crowd of male creatures that always surrounded her.

Today, Zhu Peng had waited inside under the pretense of “wanting help with a few math problems.”

Not a bad excuse-smarter than those idiots who only knew how to give flowers.

His intentions had been obvious ever since last week’s basketball game.

Men, really, are such simple creatures.

Give them a little vague hope, and they’ll do anything for you, just like a dog following orders.

For example, volunteering to take on classroom chores.

She just hadn’t expected Zhu Peng’s girlfriend to have such a keen nose.

“Xia! Do you have no shame? You know he’s my boyfriend, yet you’re always clinging to him!”

Listen to these clichés. Tsk tsk.

Xia Shiyu couldn’t be bothered to turn around, slowing her steps, her fingertips lightly tracing the tiles of the corridor wall.

“Li Na, you’d better watch what you say.”

“When did I ever cling to Zhu Peng?”

“We’re… just in the same study group, occasionally discussing problems, that’s all.”

After a few harmless exchanges, Xia Shiyu turned around
and flashed the innocent smile she’d practiced tens of thousands of times at this mad dog of a girl.

“Maybe… you should reflect on whether you’re attractive enough to keep him? Also, getting this angry isn’t good for your skin.”

Look at her face, how furious she is.

So easy to get under her skin.

As for Zhu Peng behind her, the face that had looked somewhat heroic on the basketball court was now just helpless and lost.

He glanced here, then at his girlfriend who was about to lose her mind, his lips moving like a fish forced out of water onto the riverbank.

Really… so dull.

They couldn’t even put on a decent show of jealousy-
just a foolish woman ruled by her emotions, and a weak man unable to balance his own desires and guilt.

This couple was nothing but a boring performance with a script written long ago.

“Stop pretending to be innocent! If you didn’t bat your eyes at him every day and bring him water, would he be like this?!”

“I smile at him because he helps me with chores. I give him water because he’s thirsty after playing basketball.”

Xia Shiyu explained patiently, as if teaching a brat throwing a tantrum for a toy on the street.

“Isn’t that normal in our class?”

As she spoke, she subtly steered the conversation onto more familiar ground.

“Do you really have to control your boyfriend’s normal interactions with other girls?”

As soon as she finished, she saw Li Na’s reason snap completely.

Li Na let out a shrill scream and charged at her.

“You… you’re twisting the facts!”

A huge shove came suddenly.

Hmm, she’s pretty strong.

Xia Shiyu staggered backward with the force, crashing through the half-open classroom door.

According to the usual script, she should have fallen to the ground in a mess, maybe squeezed out a few tears, so Zhu Peng’s guilt would peak and he’d be thoroughly enraged at Li Na.

But Xia Shiyu didn’t want to play it that way.

Too dirty.

The other party wasn’t worth it.

She braced her left hand on the desk by the door, skillfully dissipating all the force.

With a spin, she steadied herself with ease.

Then, Xia Shiyu saw him.

The boy who always kept his head down, wearing faded sneakers-Lin Hui.

He was carrying an overstuffed, hideous backpack,
one hand on the back door handle, clearly about to slip away.

Oh?

The lonely classroom chore boy hadn’t left yet?

Xia Shiyu leisurely sat on the desk by the wall, relaxing her body.

Now this… this was truly interesting.

She looked at Zhu Peng’s face, written all over with “I’m doomed.”
She glanced again at Li Na, who was frozen in place after realizing there was an onlooker.

Finally, her gaze landed on Lin Hui, who looked as if he was ready to bolt at any moment.

This toy, whom she had only recently dismissed as “boring,” always seemed to bring her little surprises when she least expected it.

The next second, the boy moved.

He almost immediately grabbed the back door handle, stepping forward in an attempt to escape this farce.

The way he looked, as if he wished he could shrink into a speck of dust, guilty as a thief, nearly made Xia Shiyu burst out laughing.

How could he possibly get away?

“Stop!”

Sure enough, Li Na didn’t let Xia Shiyu down.

She dashed forward, reaching out to grab the boy’s sleeve tightly.

“I know you, Lin Hui, right? You’re in the same class as Zhu Peng. You’re not allowed to leave. You heard everything just now, didn’t you? You be the judge! Tell her, who’s the shameless one here!”

She actually wanted Lin Hui to be the judge?

Oh, dear~

Foolish women always manage to bring unexpected surprises.

She probably thought that any ordinary boy would side with the “victim” and join in condemning her, the so-called “homewrecker.”

Xia Shiyu looked at Lin Hui with unhurried composure.

What was he thinking right now?

Was he, like other men, mentally labeling her as “promiscuous” or “easy”?

“I… I didn’t hear anything.”

As she pondered, she saw him shrink his shoulders pitifully, head drooping, his voice softer than a mosquito’s buzz.

“I just finished cleaning and was about to go home…”

As he spoke, he pulled Li Na’s hand away, breaking free from her grip, looking just as timid as he had on the sports field last time.

“Don’t even think about running!”

Li Na grabbed his backpack strap again, dragging the boy back.

Her emotions were completely out of control now, and she started to blurt out whatever came to mind. “Are you involved with her too?! Were you two already hooking up, is that why you want to speak up for her?!”

Here it comes.

The smile at the corner of Xia Shiyu’s lips deepened.

This was the most exciting part of tonight’s drama.

When a woman can’t defeat another woman with words, she’ll turn her fire on any possible target who might stir up trouble.

Now, it was Zhu Peng the fool’s turn to perform.

Li Na’s accusation was utterly illogical, so stupid it was almost breathtaking.

But, it was effective.

Just as she expected, the moment he heard those words, his expression changed.

His face, already awkward, now darkened with a shadow of betrayal and anger.

Of course, at last week’s basketball game, he had personally witnessed Lin Hui’s “one-shot fame” and “stunning block.”

In his simple, straightforward mind, a “hero” who could attract the whole class’s attention naturally had the qualifications to catch the eye of his own “goddess.”

When faced with possessiveness toward the girl he liked, a man’s so-called shallow “friendship” was laughably fragile.

“Xiao Huihui.”

Zhu Peng spoke, his voice hoarse and low.

He stepped forward, deliberately closing the door to block the boy’s escape.

“You… you and Shiyu… what exactly is your relationship?”

Xia Shiyu saw Lin Hui’s body stiffen, his face full of incredulous confusion.

But she caught a fleeting, almost imperceptible emotion in his eyes.

It wasn’t panic, but something more like… annoyance at how troublesome this was.

Hmm?

It seemed this “boring toy” wasn’t as simple as she’d thought.

“I… we’re just classmates…”

On the surface, Lin Hui was still explaining with the logic of a self-conscious, inexperienced boy. “Zhu Peng, why would you ask that? Last week we still…”

“Don’t mention last week to me!”

Zhu Peng interrupted roughly, his jealousy clouding his judgment and making him say even harsher things.

“I’m asking you, does Shiyu often talk to you? Has she ever given you anything?”

“No, Xia… Xia Shiyu hasn’t…”

“Shut up! Don’t think I don’t know. After PE class that day, Miss Shen from Class One went looking for you too!”

“I, that… that was just…”

“What are you guilty about? I’m asking you! You, who never even dared to lift your head, how did you suddenly become so popular with the School Belle?!”
“…….”

Even Xia Shiyu was a little surprised by this string of words.

It seemed that sometimes, a man’s jealousy could be even more frightening than a woman’s.

She continued to observe with great interest.

The young man was cornered, continuously subjected to unreasonable questioning and suspicion from his “former comrade.”

At that moment, Xia Shiyu could sense cracks appearing in Lin Hui’s facade.

He seemed… genuinely a little angry.

Not because he was being falsely accused of having an affair with her, but because this ridiculous matter had disrupted his rhythm and wasted his precious time.

Gradually, Lin Hui’s previously trembling movements came to a halt.

The outward signs of panic vanished from his body language.

First, he pushed up his glasses-

This signature gesture, usually used to hide his nervousness, now appeared exceptionally composed.

“Zhu Peng.”

He spoke slowly.

The annoying stutter from before was gone.

“First of all, the relationship issues between you and Li Na are your private affairs. As a duty student who just happened to pass by, I have neither the obligation nor the right to ‘mediate’ for you.”

His gaze then shifted to the stunned Li Na.

His voice was not loud, carrying the same lifeless, weary tone as always.

“Secondly, Li Na, you accuse me of ‘flirting’ with Xia Shiyu. May I ask, what evidence do you have?

“Is it simply because I’m in the same class as her and happened to appear in the same space? That logic doesn’t hold up.

“Because right now, I could also accuse you and Zhu Peng of conducting some unspeakable criminal transaction behind my back.”

His reasoning was frighteningly clear, each sentence striking directly at the most absurd core of this farce.

After finishing, he turned his gaze back to Zhu Peng.

“Lastly, and most importantly-”

“Interactions between people are not entirely based on quantifiable metrics like ‘popularity.'”

“Shen Classmate greeted me because we were classmates in junior high. As for Xia Shiyu… she maintains a friendly distance with every classmate in the class.”

“You question me with ‘Why am I popular?’-this question itself is filled with baseless, malicious speculation.”

“As my classmate, and even a teammate who once fought side by side with me, you chose to interrogate me together with your girlfriend, just because of her irrational suspicion.”

Lin Hui let out a gentle sigh.

There was no anger in his tone, only a faint weariness-like an adult looking at a child’s mischief.

“To be honest, I’m a little disappointed.”

After saying this, he no longer looked at the plastic couple.

He simply stood there, silently waiting for an ending.

The entire classroom was deathly silent.

Li Na’s face alternated between red and white.

She opened her mouth, only to find she couldn’t even utter a single word in rebuttal.

Zhu Peng looked even more ashen.

Lin Hui’s “I’m a little disappointed” was like a loud, silent slap across his face.

All the jealousy and anger instantly turned into unbearable shame.

In the end, Li Na could no longer endure this silent judgment. She glared at Xia Shiyu first.

Without looking at her disappointing boyfriend beside her, she covered her face and ran out crying.

Zhu Peng hesitated for a few seconds, then, biting his lip in shame, chose to chase after her.

In the now empty classroom, only Xia Shiyu and Lin Hui remained.

This entire dramatic farce was ended by the other party in just a few words.

Xia Shiyu, still leaning against the wall, looked over.

Lin Hui seemed to have withdrawn from that almost coldly rational state from earlier.

When he realized there were only the two of them left in the classroom, his previously straightened back slumped again.

The cold pallor on his face instantly turned into the red of a “boiled crab.”

“Xia… Xia Shiyu… S-sorry… I-I didn’t mean to… overhear you…”

He reverted once more to the awkward boy who couldn’t even speak clearly.

He bowed in a fluster, not daring to look at her again.

With his heavy backpack, he stumbled out, arms and legs moving in sync.

Xia Shiyu watched Lin Hui’s clumsy figure as he fled in panic.

The corners of her mouth were no longer fixed in that formulaic smile from before.

Instead-

A genuine curve of delight rose from the depths of her once-hollow heart.

How impressive, Xiao Huihui~