Chapter 5: You wouldn't want them to find out, would you?

The sun was setting in the west.

Layers of rosy cumulus clouds stretched across the entire sky.

The eaves of the school building blocked the light,

casting the entire corridor into shadow.

A slender boy in school uniform had the girl pinned against the wall in the corner.

This was the first time Xia Wei had been this close to Zhou Ziyang.

No, this was the first time Xia Wei had ever been this close to a boy.

In the distance, the setting sun still cast a rare golden glow,

slightly blinding.

Eighteen-year-old Zhou Ziyang had inherited all the best qualities from his parents.

Standing 181 centimeters tall, his lean figure looked even slimmer in the white school uniform.

He had double eyelids and a pair of deep, jet-black eyes.

When Zhou Ziyang pinned Xia Wei against the wall, she felt a little frightened, too afraid to look at him, shrinking herself tightly into the corner.

But Zhou Ziyang made no further move, arousing her curiosity.

She glanced up secretly,

just as their eyes met.

So handsome...

The sunset painted two clouds across Xia Wei’s cheeks.

Although Xia Wei was the daughter of Zhou Ziyang’s father’s remarriage,

the truth was they had never truly interacted before.

Zhou Ziyang was raised by his mother.

His mother’s relationship with his father had ended cleanly ten years ago.

It was merely by chance that they were placed in the same class.

In three years, they had exchanged only a few words.

Until today…

As Zhou Ziyang closed in,

Xia Wei’s heart pounded fiercely.

Beneath her skirt, her white-socked legs involuntarily pressed closer together.

She shrank into the corner with all her might.

Then, forcing calm, she grit her teeth and asked, “What... do you want?”

“What do I want? What do you want me to do, my dear little sister?”

Zhou Ziyang smiled lightly at the corner of his mouth, his right hand naturally resting on Xia Wei’s waist.

“Ugh...”

At that moment, Xia Wei’s whole body stiffened.

Her face flushed deeply.

After all, she was still a girl, her body sensitive as ever.

Moreover, the boy opposite her was the son of her stepfather.

This thought made her mind race uncontrollably.

But,

But this was forbidden...

If the adults found out...

Thinking about all the things Zhou Ziyang might do to her,

Xia Wei suddenly felt parched.

Her legs pressed even more tightly together.

“You look really nervous, don’t you?”

Zhou Ziyang kept his hand on Xia Wei’s waist, naturally sensing her tension.

Ashamed and angry, Xia Wei dared not meet his gaze.

Cornered against the wall, her voice was barely a whisper.

She softly begged him not to do this.

But Zhou Ziyang ignored her pleas.

He seemed to be doing it on purpose.

His hand, caressing her waist, slowly slid further behind her.

Xia Wei, being taken advantage of by a boy for the first time, was terrified.

She finally couldn’t hold back and said:

“If you keep doing this...

I’ll call someone!”

Zhou Ziyang only chuckled upon hearing this.

He said, “Go ahead and call.”

Leaning close to Xia Wei’s ear,

he whispered, “Tell me, what do you think Zhou Guowei would feel if he knew that you and I were dating at school?”

Xia Wei felt as if the sky was collapsing!

Zhou Ziyang was insane!

Zhou Guowei was Zhou Ziyang’s father,

and also Xia Wei’s stepfather.

If they really were dating,

and the parents were called...

With Zhou Guowei, a leader at the Procuratorate, coming to the school...

Xia Wei couldn’t even bear to imagine!

For a moment, anger welled up inside her.

She glared at Zhou Ziyang furiously:

“Don’t dream on. I would never like you!”

“I like you just fine.”

“What?”

Xia Wei was stunned, unable to believe her ears.

She looked at Zhou Ziyang in disbelief.

He?

With a cynical smile, Zhou Ziyang said,

“Does it matter whether you like me or not?

What matters is what the classmates think, what the teachers think.

Isn’t that right?

My dear little sister.”

One sentence after another, words tinged with mockery,

blown warm and straight into Xia Wei’s ear by Zhou Ziyang’s breath.

Xia Wei thought Zhou Ziyang was simply crazy!

Yet why did her heart beat so wildly?

Looking at her flushed face,

Zhou Ziyang felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

Sorry, but Zhou Ziyang was just that despicable.

In his past life, he was only 29—

a failure in a big city.

In a small city, he was just a pretty face,

a puppet controlled by his father,

wearing a false mask every day,

enduring Xia Wei’s cold glares.

Reborn, why shouldn’t he be despicable once?

He had held on to ideals for so long—

people say poverty doesn’t crush ambition, so he wouldn’t seek out a worthless father.

But in the end, he still obediently called Zhou Guowei “Dad.”

So why continue deceiving himself?

Zhou Ziyang didn’t know why he had returned in this life.

But since he would acknowledge his father anyway,

why not do it sooner?

He was Zhou Guowei’s biological son.

Why should such good resources go to that wretched woman?

Zhou Ziyang had no grand vision; he was utterly despicable.

He intended to completely mess with this woman’s mind.

“So, my dear little sister,

you wouldn’t want the teachers and classmates to find out our secret, right?”

Zhou Ziyang whispered this teasingly into Xia Wei’s ear.

“I…”

Xia Wei felt her head burning fiercely, utterly at a loss for how to respond.

At this moment, she seemed to collapse into Zhou Ziyang’s arms.

One of his hands still wrapped around her waist.

Xia Wei had never known a father’s love,

nor had she ever been so close to a man.

Now, being bullied like this by Zhou Ziyang,

she found no will to resist.

More than that,

her mind grew hazy.

She didn’t understand why...

being held by Zhou Ziyang like this felt somewhat comforting.

He said...

he liked her?

Xia Wei didn’t know what she was thinking.

She became strange.

On one hand, Zhou Ziyang’s embrace was warm.

On the other, she feared being seen like this.

If other students saw them now,

then...

“The scrambled eggs with tomato in the cafeteria today were terribly bad!”

Just as she thought this, voices came from the staircase.

Two girls from the class were chatting and laughing as they climbed the stairs.

Their eyes met.

Although Zhou Ziyang and Xia Wei had instinctively separated at the first sound,

to the two classmates,

it still looked like Zhou Ziyang was pinning Xia Wei against the windowsill.

“What are you two doing!?”

The two girls immediately ignited their gossip.

My god!

“I—” Xia Wei was like a caught cat, dumbfounded and speechless.

“What are you talking about? There’s no way the class monitor would like a poor student like me.”

At this critical moment, Zhou Ziyang unexpectedly came to her rescue.

Xia Wei looked at him in confusion.

Why would he say that?

Wasn’t it his wish to see her embarrassed?

But facing the two girls, Zhou Ziyang wore a bright, carefree smile,

completely different from the cruel one he had shown her moments ago.

His tall stature, good looks, and neat uniform,

combined with that radiant smile,

made him seem like a sunny youth with no ill intentions.

Zhou Ziyang laughed.

He said, “I just can’t attend evening self-study tonight, so I’m asking the class monitor for leave.”

“Right? Class monitor?”

Zhou Ziyang looked at Xia Wei.