Chapter Fifty-Two: Defending Her Honor

Looking at Wen Yichen’s message, Jiang Muwen’s gaze dimmed—yes, she had failed her math test again, so how could she still hope to ask him if he wanted to see the exhibition together? Wen Yichen’s reply was so resolute, and their relationship lately seemed awkward, making Jiang Muwen too embarrassed to plead any further. She could only reply, defeated, “Alright.”

The next time they met was Monday morning. Jiang Muwen stepped outside and immediately ran into Wen Yichen, who was dressed almost identically to her—he wore a mask just like hers, and then wrapped a scarf of the same style and color around his neck.

The mask and scarf were both chosen by Su Yu; neither of them realized she had picked out matching couples’ items.

Wen Yichen paused, staring at Jiang Muwen for a moment before averting his gaze awkwardly. He said nothing, simply lowered his eyes and walked silently ahead.

The atmosphere was awkward, yet beneath that awkwardness lurked a subtle, indescribable feeling. Jiang Muwen glanced at Wen Yichen and secretly smiled—being able to wear the same mask and scarf as Wen Yichen, even by accident, was its own kind of tacit understanding.

This delicate atmosphere persisted all the way to the classroom door, where they arrived together. Inside, their classmates’ gazes fell on them in unison. They didn’t say much, but Jiang Muwen could feel a wave of gossip surging toward her.

Naturally, Wen Yichen sensed this odd feeling too. He looked around, then feigned calm as he took off his mask and unwrapped his scarf, walking slowly to his seat.

He couldn’t pinpoint when he’d started paying attention to the rumors among classmates—especially those about him and Jiang Muwen.

When he passed by Jiang Muwen’s desk, he unconsciously glanced at her desk, and seeing the special bottle of orange juice sitting there, his mood grew more restless.

These past days, he felt close to losing his mind. The night he first realized he liked Jiang Muwen, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep. The next night, he lay in bed counting sheep for hours. By the third night, he teetered on the edge of despair—not because his feelings for Jiang Muwen kept him awake, but because he didn’t know how to face her the next day. He’d turned down her invitation during the day, and when night fell… he began to regret it.

Now, Wen Yichen sat at his desk, looking every bit the person who didn’t want to be disturbed.

“Wen…”

A soft, sweet voice suddenly reached Wen Yichen’s ears, causing him to lift his gaze instinctively—it was Xia Manman again. He looked at her, his eyes deep and inscrutable.

“You didn’t reply when I asked you about the math problems the other day,” Xia Manman whispered, placing her exercise book on Wen Yichen’s desk. She leaned in slightly, as if they were quite familiar. “Were you busy?”

Wen Yichen didn’t respond. He glanced at Xia Manman, then at the problems she’d circled in her book.

Just as he was reading the questions, Xia Manman’s voice came again: “Have you been sleeping poorly lately? Your dark circles look so heavy.”

Her comment startled Wen Yichen, as if she had uncovered a secret.

After a moment, Wen Yichen looked up at her, his large, well-defined hand closing her exercise book. “The teacher didn’t assign these problems. No need to do them.”

He had no intention of teaching her. Moreover, Xia Manman’s constant use of “Wen” made his skin crawl. “Just call me by my name. Calling me ‘Wen’… doesn’t feel right.”

Xia Manman was confused. “But… Bai Xu and the others always call you that…”

“We’re not close,” Wen Yichen blurted out, then realized he might have sounded too harsh. He paused, looked at her, and handed back her exercise book. “Sorry.”

For the next few days, Wen Yichen barely spoke to Jiang Muwen—not because he didn’t want to, but because he didn’t know what to say. He was naturally reserved and struggled to find topics of conversation. Jiang Muwen, too, was unusually quiet, as if afraid that saying too much would upset Wen Yichen. When he did ask her something, she replied only with a few brief words.

This made Wen Yichen feel even more uneasy—not in an unhappy way, but in a way he couldn’t describe, as if a feather was constantly brushing over his heart, leaving him restless.

Time slipped by to Friday. After PE class, everyone gradually returned to the classroom. Jiang Muwen came back first with Gu Nianxi; the classroom was empty except for Zhou Yao and Xia Manman. Shortly after, Wen Yichen walked in.

Jiang Muwen took her seat and opened her pencil case. No sooner had she done so than she cried out in alarm, her whole body instinctively recoiling, nearly tossing the pencil case from her hands.

Wen Yichen’s attention snapped to her immediately. He saw Jiang Muwen staring at her pencil case, her clear eyes filled with terror, as if she was about to burst into tears.

A snicker from Zhou Yao drifted over, and Wen Yichen glanced at her, then swiftly went to Jiang Muwen’s desk and looked into her pencil case.

Inside, a bug was wriggling.

Jiang Muwen had always been afraid of insects, and now, some classmate had slipped one into her pencil case.

Seeing the bug and Zhou Yao’s gloating expression, Wen Yichen’s eyes narrowed.

Without hesitation, he reached in, grabbed the bug from Jiang Muwen’s pencil case, strode over to Zhou Yao’s desk, and deftly opened her pencil case, stuffing the bug inside in one fluid motion. Zhou Yao was left frozen in shock.

The air seemed to thicken in that moment, and the few remaining students in the classroom were all stunned by Wen Yichen’s actions. For the first time, an anger none of them had ever seen appeared on his face.

Before Zhou Yao could react, a cold voice tore through the silence. Wen Yichen’s brows were drawn tight as he stared intently at the girl before him: “Keep your own things in order.”