I Might Have Fallen in Love With My Childhood Sweetheart
Chapter 147 - 143: Fang Jin’s Collapse

Chapter 147: Chapter 143: Fang Jin’s Collapse

Having experienced the atmosphere of the playground once, Qingran never dared to go again.

A bit of noise in the classroom is fine—it’s certainly better than the clamorous voices on the playground; at least there isn’t a smell of sweat.

People who habitually gathered around the playground also noticed that their school’s heartthrob was only briefly passionate about playing basketball; now, he has reverted to his previously lax demeanor.

As Friday came around, after eating lunch, Qingran, toting her books, planned to head to their physics study room early.

She was leaving through the back door and happened to run into Wen Shiyi, who was making her way around from the front door.

If we’re really getting into the details, there was no actual tension between them. Qingran nodded to her cordially as a way of greeting.

Wen Shiyi paused in surprise and forced a smile, seeming like she wanted to say something. Still, in the end, she didn’t speak and simply stepped back to give way to Qingran.

Qingran had no desire to get too involved with the female lead. She couldn’t avoid the male lead, but the female lead was someone she could steer clear of.

She walked past Wen Shiyi and, as expected, saw Liang Fan waiting for her at the stairway’s turn.

Liang Fan glanced at her, his eyes reeking of undisguised loathing.

Qingran almost wanted to sneer. What was with this ridiculous secondary male character, looking at her with disgust? What had she done to warrant this?

Qingran acted as if she hadn’t seen anything, serenely turning to go downstairs.

It was still early, and the classroom was empty.

Li Qingmo and Xie Ying’an wouldn’t be back until the preparation bell rang, and as for Fang Jin, Qingran had no clue when he might show up.

Fang Jin arrived earlier than Qingran had anticipated; she had barely worked through two problems before Fang Jin came over with his books.

Those who had interacted with Fang Jin knew him to be a quiet character, not talkative either at home or at school.

But Fang Jin was also competitive, which was evident from the fact that his grades always managed to secure him second place in the entire year.

This time, Fang Jin ranked fourth in the year, and everyone thought he would be upset. Even his homeroom teacher didn’t blame him and had a bunch of consoling words prepared, but Fang Jin wasn’t overly saddened at all.

Without the stress of constantly being in second place, Fang Jin seemed more relaxed.

The spacious classroom contained only Qingran and Fang Jin.

Two girls with quiet personalities unexpectedly became good friends after spending just a week together.

Fang Jin began sharing his "sorrowful past" with Qingran, and she listened attentively.

"...At that time, I was on the verge of breaking down..."

Qingran’s eyes widened with curiosity and she asked, "If you were second in the year, why did you feel like you were about to break down?"

Fang Jin momentarily lost focus, gazing at the young girl sitting beside him. Her almond-shaped eyes were round and clear, her nose and teeth luminous. Perhaps because she had just drunk water, her lips shone with a tender glow. She also had that kind of porcelain-white complexion, creating a smoothness that was so tempting to touch, to test if it was as soft as it appeared.

Fang Jin swallowed involuntarily, thinking to himself: Li Qingran is so beautiful; why is Luo Lan from senior year still considered the school beauty?

He’d seen Luo Lan and didn’t think she measured up to the girl before him.

Fan-crazed thoughts aside, Fang Jin still remembered to answer Qingran’s question: "It’s exactly because I always ranked second. After a while, I didn’t even need to look at the rankings when the results came out. The title ’eternal second place’ was firmly attached to my name."

Fang Jin shrugged his shoulders, sharing that piece of his past he’d never told anyone before: "Qingran, your grades fluctuate, so you might not understand that feeling."

Qingran genuinely couldn’t comprehend why scoring second place in the grade could bring someone to the verge of a breakdown.

"Maybe I’m being a bit melodramatic," Fang Jin scratched her head, a shy smile appearing on her gentle face: "Ever since I stepped into high school, my grades have been stuck at second place in the grade. There hasn’t been a time when my grades increased, nor a time when they’ve dropped. I feel like I’ve already worked hard, but the results always remain the same..."

"Ah~" Fang Jin sighed and said languidly: "It’s pretty crushing."

Qingran chuckled and then shared something that had been hidden in her heart for a long time: "Before the midterm exams, there was a period when my grades severely dropped, I was somewhat breaking down then."

Her breakdown during that time was known to no one but God Ji, but what good did it do that God Ji knew? He couldn’t even console himself, let alone others.

Fang Jin became interested, she poised herself as if all ears: "I heard about your grades dropping on the school forum, and I was really curious back then. Why did your grades suddenly go down so much? Later on, I was inspired by you. I don’t want the title of ’eternal runner-up.’ After all, I can drop it anytime. No matter how hard I try, I can never catch up with Xie Ying’an’s grades, but if I don’t try that hard or make a little mistake during the exams, I definitely won’t be the ’eternal runner-up’ anymore."

Qingran didn’t understand: "So you don’t feel pressured now that you are the fourth in the grade?"

"There’s pressure!" Fang Jin nodded: "That’s why I have been studying extremely hard. Actually, during the last preliminary competition, I saw your true strength, and your problem-solving approach is definitely above mine. I have no complaints, I’m convinced by your skills."

Qingran was momentarily stunned.

Open-minded.

That’s what Qingran saw in Fang Jin.

It was rare for someone at the age of sixteen or seventeen to live as open-mindedly as Fang Jin.

Fang Jin’s way of thinking was: If someone’s skills are better, just work hard; and if hard work doesn’t yield results, maybe it’s because one is not trying hard enough, or maybe the rival is just too strong. In that case, just work harder.

Qingran prided herself on always striving hard, yet she never managed to achieve the open-minded attitude that Fang Jin had. She cared about her own grades and was deeply troubled by the influence of being the main character’s peer.

She had even thought about escaping it all, but fortunately, in the end, she always persisted in facing it head-on.

Lost in her thoughts, Xie Ying’an and Li Qingmo walked into the classroom together.

Fang Jin tugged at Qingran’s sleeve and whispered: "Actually, there’s one thing about Xie Ying’an that’s really annoying..."

Qingran guessed the reason and asked Fang Jin enthusiastically: "Is it because he hardly studies, but his grades are always the best?"

Fang Jin nodded heavily, resentment in her voice: "A big part of the reason I was verging on a breakdown was because of Xie Ying’an!"

She would grind away at problem sets day and night, not differentiating between day and night, to the point where even her biological clock became disordered.

But in contrast, what was Xie Ying’an from Class One doing? If he wasn’t the last person to enter the classroom after the bell, he wouldn’t be Xie Ying’an!

As for homework, it was even less likely he’d do that. During that period, Fang Jin had gone over to Class One to inquire and found out that Xie Ying’an never handed in homework, to the point where even his teachers had come to expect it.

Qingran and Fang Jin were sitting at a desk, so Xie Ying’an had no choice but to go to the back and sit with Li Qingmo.

When Xie Ying’an sat down, the two girls in front were still whispering about something. As soon as he took his seat, the two girls simultaneously turned to give him a look.

Their eyes conveyed some resentment.

After a brief glance, both turned their heads back again.

Xie Ying’an: "..."

Xie Ying’an was puzzled and reflected on whether he had provoked them in any way.

It would make sense if Fang Jin looked at him with such eyes, but why would Li Qingran give him the same look?