Maintaining the Dignity of the Female Supporting Character - Chapter 8

Lu Jing sat with a listless expression on his face, ignoring the group of people milling about at the doorway.

Liu Yiheng and the others were still engaged in playful banter when Lin Sen, who had just come out of Class 1, joined the group: “It’s all small potatoes. If it weren’t for Jing considering us younger brothers still too young, he would have skipped grades and soared ahead long ago!”

Hearing their increasingly exaggerated boasts, Lu Jing wore a look of utter despair: “What on earth are you guys talking about? You all know perfectly well that my mom bribed her way to get me into the advanced class.”

Lu Jing’s drawling, monotonous tone barely registered amidst the noisy chaos, but it was enough for everyone to hear.

The group of enthusiastic citizens dedicated to cultivating an atmosphere of academic excellence couldn’t hold back their laughter: “Seriously though, can we interview you? What was your aunt thinking? Didn’t she used to not care much about your studies before?”

Lu Jing sighed at the mention: “Madam Xia has recently adopted the ‘caring mother’ approach. She’s worried that if she doesn’t manage my studies enough, I’ll feel neglected.”

Liu Yiheng and Lin Sen burst into laughter, and even Wang Chengshuo, who had been quiet until now, turned his head away and let out a short chuckle.

These guys often visited Lu Jing’s house during holidays and were quite familiar with Madam Xia. She changed her parenting strategy every week, and not only did the old and young at home suffer, but they too had experienced their fair share of it.

Now hearing this, it indeed sounded like something Madam Xia would do.

Liu Yiheng grabbed Lu Jing by the throat: “Come clean, did you take someone else’s spot? We’ll go report you to the principal’s office and have you transferred to our Class 7 right away.”

Lu Jing elbowed him in the waist: “Please, go ahead. I’m begging you. It’d be best if you could get me transferred by tomorrow.”

Lin Sen laughed with a face full of schadenfreude: “Dream on. Your aunt directly had the principal add an extra spot. You didn’t squeeze anyone out or take anyone’s place. Who’s going to listen to your report?”

Unable to think of a solution, Liu Yiheng could only pat Lu Jing’s shoulder in consolation: “It really is a bit tragic.”

Lu Jing: “Isn’t it? The homework is several times more than the regular classes.”

Lin Sen found this even more amusing: “Don’t worry, you’ve still got Shuo-ge covering for you, right? If worst comes to worst, you can come find me in Class 1.”

“Forget it, forget it. I’ll be back after the next class placement exam,” Lu Jing waved his hand, resigned to his fate.

He casually glanced away and unexpectedly caught sight of Wen Shuangmu at the other end of the corridor.

The class genius was walking down the stairs, holding onto the strap of a boy’s backpack from the neighboring class. The setting sun cast a shimmering light on the ground of the teaching building as the silhouettes of the boy and girl slowly disappeared below the horizon.

Lu Jing thought to himself that the main issue was that his new classmate’s grades were a bit too good.

Lu Jing didn’t go to play basketball, but the path to the gymnasium was in the same direction as the school gate.

The group made their way downstairs in a grand procession.

Liu Yiheng tapped on his phone a few times and called out to everyone: “Zeng-ge says he’ll be five minutes late. Their class’s math teacher is holding them back.”

Lu Jing asked Wang Chengshuo beside him: “Who’s Zeng-ge?”

“Zeng Shuran, the senior we used to play basketball with often in middle school. He’s in second year of high school now. Don’t you remember?”

“Oh.” Lu Jing nodded, having a vague recollection. After a moment, he asked again, “Which class is he in?”

Wang Chengshuo thought for a moment: “Class 1 spring semester, if he didn’t drop down after last term’s final exams.”

At the gymnasium.

Liu Yiheng was stretching his legs by the rest chairs, teasing Lu Jing: “Didn’t you say you weren’t coming earlier? Getting itchy hands now? Want us to help you put together a highlight reel?”

Lu Jing had just changed into a T-shirt under his school uniform after finishing PE class in the afternoon. He wasn’t in much mood to play ball now, and only asked: “Where’s that senior you mentioned? How come he’s still not here?”

Liu Yiheng pulled out his phone, also wanting to send a text to ask.

The sound of running shoes squeaking against the floor came from the entrance, and Liu Yiheng said: “Here he comes.”

Lu Jing wasn’t as familiar with this senior as Liu Yiheng and Lin Sen were.

He joined the basketball team, diligently passing the ball to others, and occasionally throwing in some casual banter, managing to strike up a brief conversation with the senior.

“Senior, is there anyone handsome in your class?”

“Why do you ask?”

“I want to play ball with the school heartthrob.”

Senior: “?”

The next morning, before seven o’clock, Lu Jing and Wang Chengshuo had already arrived at school early by appointment.

Wang Chengshuo went through the thought process of the big questions on the homework for Lu Jing, who then filled in the answers in the solution area.

Wang Chengshuo said: “It’s okay if you don’t quite understand this question. It involves knowledge points from today’s class. I’ll find a few more example questions to explain to you later.”

Lu Jing shook his head and sighed while writing: “Don’t you think the teachers all assume we’re super smart? They make us write about content we haven’t learned yet. If I were that good at self-study, why would I even come to school?”

Wang Chengshuo: “It’s hard to say. Wait until later when the teachers make the questions even harder, then we’ll need it.”

Lu Jing: “…”

Lu Jing finished dealing with the blank questions, and more students started to fill the classroom.

Lin Sen peered into Class 2 from the doorway, saw that the morning reading teacher hadn’t arrived, and walked straight into their classroom carrying books.

“Jing-ge, I’ve brought all the books you wanted.”

Lin Sen’s family ran a bookstore, and upon receiving the list of bestsellers Lu Jing sent him last night, he immediately found them all.

Lu Jing pushed his homework to the side, making room: “How much?”

Lin Sen put down the books and waved his hand casually: “Don’t worry about it. Just treat me to a few more drinks at lunch in the future.”

Lu Jing didn’t stand on ceremony with him either, picking up the topmost book and starting to read.

Lin Sen seemed genuinely curious. He lowered his body slightly and whispered near Lu Jing: “Seriously though, does reading books really work? For that kind of thing, people usually prefer watching movies.”

Lu Jing was stunned for a moment, then quickly pushed him away, saying with disdain: “What on earth is going on in that head of yours?”

Lin Sen looked hurt: “What did I do wrong?”

Wang Chengshuo hadn’t paid much attention to the book covers at first, but hearing their conversation, he pulled out a book and flipped through it.

“Love Me, Hurry Up”

Wang Chengshuo was taken aback by one of the chapter titles and after a long while, managed to give a tactful comment: “You’re quite wild, Lu Jing.”

“Right?” Lin Sen immediately agreed, “Shuo-ge thinks so too.”

Lu Jing shoved the books into his desk drawer, shooing them away: “Get out of here, both of you. Go to class and stop blocking my way.”

Wen Shuangmu walked into the classroom just as the bell rang, passing Lin Sen on his way out. She was a bit surprised to see a student from Class 1 coming out of her classroom.

From a distance, she saw Lu Jing reading a thick extracurricular book nestled inside his Chinese textbook for morning reading. Wen Shuangmu looked envious, realizing that Lu Jing was even more academically capable than she had imagined.

Wen Shuangmu was a typical specialist student. The Chinese teacher had assigned memorization of “The Banquet at Hongmen” last night for a written test in class, but for subjects she wasn’t good at, she would rather cram for twenty minutes before class than prepare a day in advance. She was only now picking up her textbook to memorize.

On a whim, Wen Shuangmu reached across the aisle and tapped on the neighboring desk: “Classmate, we have a writing test in class later. If the teacher asks us to grade each other’s papers, could you be a bit lenient?”

Lu Jing turned to look at her, his dark eyes falling on her face. After a long pause, he slowly nodded.

In all her years of schooling, Wen Shuangmu had seen all sorts of people. She had suffered many times from those who would mark her wrong for the slightest imperfection in her strokes or unclear handwriting, forcing her to rewrite passages from the textbook after class.

Although Lu Jing’s agreement came after some hesitation, Wen Shuangmu still felt touched.

However, when the Chinese class began and the writing test started, Wen Shuangmu finally realized what Lu Jing’s pause meant.

This guy had memorized the wrong text entirely and was writing “Spring in a Qin Garden – Changsha”! That look in his eyes was clearly questioning how she could need leniency for such a simple modern poem!

Turning her head, she saw Lu Jing looking a bit confused himself as he poked Wang Chengshuo’s back with his pen cap: “Did the teacher assign ‘Spring in a Qin Garden’ or ‘The Banquet at Hongmen’ for homework yesterday?”

Wang Chengshuo turned sideways, pausing awkwardly for two seconds, his eyes filled with pity: “You memorized ‘Spring in a Qin Garden’?”

The answer was now obvious. Lu Jing fell silent, quietly flipping to the back of the book to check against the original text as he graded Wen Shuangmu’s paper.

Wen Shuangmu inexplicably felt like laughing. She stared at the test paper for a moment, truly at a loss for how to grade it. She could only return the notebook as it was to her neighbor, kindly saying: “The class representative will be collecting them soon. You’d better copy it down quickly to get by.”

Lu Jing gave a soft “Mm,” without looking up. After two seconds, he put away his black pen and drew a red check mark on Wen Shuangmu’s test paper before handing it back to her.

Wen Shuangmu took the notebook back and noticed that Lu Jing had used his black pen to correct two characters for her. Opening it to check, she saw they were both phonetic loan characters she had accidentally reversed.

Wen Shuangmu had been so shocked by the discrepancy in their recitations that she only now noticed the power and style contained in Lu Jing’s handwriting as she compared it to her own.

Wen Bingyi had recently been practicing calligraphy, with his family buying him many tracing papers, which had also influenced Wen Shuangmu quite a bit.

Lu Jing’s handwriting seemed to be a combination of the Shoujin and regular script styles. It not only incorporated the slender vigor and ethereal spaciousness of both, but also integrated some of his personal brushwork habits, creating a stunning visual effect.

Wen Shuangmu looked at Lu Jing with a hint of admiration, only to see him flip to the “Feast at Hong Gate” page, read for a few minutes, then close the book and start reciting from memory again.

Wen Shuangmu: “!”

He’s so competitive.

The Chinese teacher, Liang Jie, had already opened her PowerPoint on the podium and started explaining the historical background of the Feast at Hong Gate story.

Lu Jing handed his newly written recitation to Wen Shuangmu for correction, then continued reading the book he hadn’t finished during morning reading, hiding it in his desk drawer.

The long break after the second class lasted twenty-five minutes. Since running exercises hadn’t started this week, it became free time for students.

Wen Shuangmu and Ji Jiahui went to the school store to buy snacks. On the way, Wen Shuangmu couldn’t help but mention Lu Jing’s excellent memory several times.

Meanwhile, the “memory genius” Lu Jing that Wen Shuangmu was talking about was sitting in the classroom with one chair leg suspended, shaking his head as he looked at the pocket-sized notebook in his hand.

Wang Chengshuo returned after fetching water for Lu Jing and, seeing him engrossed in reading, asked, “What are you up to?”

Lu Jing heaved a long sigh, tossing the notebook onto the desk like a dart. He interlaced his fingers behind his head and drawled, “Playing with fire, but alas, I’m already burnt to a crisp.”

Wang Chengshuo took a moment to process this, then chuckled, “Where did you get that lame joke?”

As he spoke, he picked up the notebook and glanced at it, immediately feeling “burned” himself. He choked out, “You’re reading romance novels, and even taking notes?”

Lu Jing didn’t seem too concerned about his friend’s teasing. He let the chair leg fall back to the ground and adopted a contemplative expression. “You know how in novels they always emphasize how different the male lead is from others by describing how aloof he is and how good his grades are? But I’ve been observing the boys in our spring class, and basically nine out of ten are aloof, and all of them are top students. They all fit the description, so how am I supposed to tell who the real male lead is?”

Wang Chengshuo found Lu Jing’s perspective odd, as they weren’t living in a novel where such things mattered. However, after some thought, he replied, “Well, not everyone is aloof, actually.”

Lu Jing: “For example?”

Wang Chengshuo initially wanted to use himself as an example, but seeing Lu Jing’s “don’t try to fool me” expression, he changed his answer: “Lin Sen.”

Lu Jing laughed, “He doesn’t count. Of the ten top students I mentioned, nine are aloof. That one spot is specially reserved for him.”

Wang Chengshuo tried to think of another name, but he realized that whether it was the spring class in their building or the one in the neighboring sophomore building, they all remained as quiet as mice even during breaks. He wasn’t sure if it was due to personalities or academic pressure, making it hard to provide evidence. So he decided to approach the topic from a different angle: “Then maybe it’s mainly about looks. The male lead should be the most handsome one.”

Lu Jing shrugged, “I’ve considered that too.”

He had asked Zeng Shuran for a group photo of the sophomore spring class last night.

Lu Jing rubbed his nose, trying to sound modest: “But I feel like none of them are as handsome as me.”

He had originally wanted to inquire about photos of the senior spring class too, but the senior student told him that once they reached the senior year’s hellish training, concepts like “handsome” would cease to exist. So he gave up on that idea.

Wang Chengshuo laughed, “Are you sure you’re not just trying to compliment yourself on having a face fit for a TV drama lead?”

Lu Jing, finding their conversation amusing, chuckled as well, “I didn’t say that.”

Wang Chengshuo inadvertently flipped a couple of pages further in the pocket notebook and asked curiously, “Who are Han Lizhi and Gu Sifan?”

Lu Jing replied, “They’re female supporting characters from two campus novels I’m reading.”

Wang Chengshuo read Lu Jing’s character analysis notes in the margins, amazed at the depth of his insights and the neutrality of his evaluations. He suspected even the authors hadn’t thought that deeply about their characters.

Wang Chengshuo said, “Have you recently become obsessed with fictional characters?”

Lu Jing didn’t directly answer this question. He turned his head to look out the window. From the third floor, he could only see a corner of the frantically upward-reaching branches of the trees in the garden beside the teaching building.

The branches looked incredibly fragile, yet the leaves adorning them were lush and green.

Lu Jing stood up, snatched the notebook from Wang Chengshuo’s hand, crumpled it casually, and tossed it into the drawer. “Why are there always idiots everywhere who want to play God, criticizing and interfering with other people’s choices?”

Wang Chengshuo: “?”

Wang Chengshuo: “Who?”

Lu Jing didn’t want to elaborate. He put his arm around Wang Chengshuo’s shoulder and headed out, “Never mind, let’s go play ball.”