Chapter 113: Su Yuxi's Prank

The rumors spread through the school at an incredible speed. The gossip about Goddess Su and the "creep" living together traveled through text messages, whispers, and conversations to every corner of the campus. Envy, long buried deep, immediately took root and sprouted under the irrigation of filthy thoughts, growing into ugly vines.

At the eye of this storm, Cheng Xiaoyu and Su Yuxi seemed peacefully oblivious. After the first period, Cheng Xiaoyu received a text from Su Yuxi asking him to meet her after school to pick up Xu Qinning at Fengxian Girls' High. Today, May 27th, was her birthday, and she had invited the siblings to celebrate.

Cheng Xiaoyu replied "Okay," and the two agreed to meet at the back gate. When the second period ended in the afternoon, Cheng Xiaoyu quickly packed his bag, said goodbye to Wang Ou, and headed out of the classroom, completely failing to notice the concern in Wang Ou's eyes.

At this time, the flow of students from various classes had not yet flooded the corridors. Cheng Xiaoyu hurried to get downstairs before the crowd, but by the time he reached the third floor, he had hit the peak of the student exodus.

As he reached the landing of the third floor, he saw Su Yuxi standing there, looking in his direction.

The temperature in S City at the end of May was pleasant—neither too hot nor too cold. Over her white summer school uniform shirt, Su Yuxi wore a white heart-neck sweater vest. A dark red bow tie was fastened beneath her fair neck, and her dark blue hair was tucked behind one ear while the other side draped over her shoulder. Her porcelain-like, beautiful face was composed and calm. Cheng Xiaoyu felt the sunlight today was exceptionally dazzling, spilling onto Su Yuxi in patches that left him spellbound.

The massive crowd could not obstruct their line of sight. Su Yuxi smiled slightly at Cheng Xiaoyu, and the rushing crowd seemed to freeze. Everyone stared in bewilderment at this pair of protagonists rumored to be involved with each other. Their eyes were filled with contempt, jealousy, and envy.

In truth, setting aside their status as siblings, if Cheng Xiaoyu had been a more striking individual, perhaps there wouldn't have been so much criticism. Most ordinary people always assume that behavior inconsistent with their own values must be driven by some immoral transaction. They never seek to understand why—that isn't important to them; they simply want to openly vent the pent-up cruelty and dissatisfaction with the injustices of reality hidden within their hearts.

The hourglass of time poured down with an indescribable force, and even the faint scent of youth in the air began to grow restless. The hostile gazes around them shot toward Cheng Xiaoyu and Su Yuxi like clusters of sharp arrows. Yet, the two acted as if none of this existed; the crowded people around them were merely a group of dull lambs, and those ugly words were nothing more than the chirping of sparrows in the treetops.

Su Yuxi had never cared about how others saw her. Even her aloof image today was simply a product of her nature, not something she deliberately cultivated. Her intellectual superiority made it difficult for her to integrate into these mediocre crowds, so she preferred loneliness.

As for Cheng Xiaoyu, he was indifferent. A lion does not mind a flea or two itching its hide. However, he subconsciously ignored a glimmer of joy within his heart—a sweet joy born from these misunderstandings. That matcha-flavored sweetness was faintly fermenting in the deepest part of his soul; perhaps this was what people called a "sister-complex."

Cheng Xiaoyu also smiled at his sister, walking through the crowd as if traversing time and space.

Seemingly unaware of the hostile gazes surrounding them, Su Yuxi smiled beautifully and said to Cheng Xiaoyu in German: "A great person is often ostracized, suppressed, or even mocked by the masses as a show-off, falling into loneliness. As one climbs higher on the perilous peaks of truth, the number of companions dwindles. So, would you mind drawing an insurmountable chasm between yourself and these ordinary souls?" (Most of this passage comes from Nietzsche.)

Cheng Xiaoyu finally understood that Su Yuxi had deliberately waited for him here. This was her prank, a playful experiment on human nature. Perhaps she had long grown weary of her own loneliness; philosophers often isolate themselves from all traditions, placing themselves in an eternal glory. Yet, surrounded by the hypocrisy of mortals, this nonconformity leads one to become either a saint or a madman. Clearly, Su Yuxi wanted to make Cheng Xiaoyu feel this cold loneliness, or perhaps she wanted to confine him within her empty and silent domain.

Cheng Xiaoyu sensed Su Yuxi’s deep "black-bellied" nature. Was this the prelude to her turning dark? A tremor ran through him, but he thought, no matter what, he would stand in front of her.

Being isolated was not that terrifying to Cheng Xiaoyu, and he had never cared about those trivial malicious thoughts. So, he answered without hesitation: "How can the light of the day understand the depth of the darkness of the night? Then, let us walk side by side in the darkness, each on our own pilgrimage." (The first half of this sentence comes from Nietzsche.)

The surroundings fell silent. Everyone pricked up their ears to listen to the dialogue that no one could understand. Unfortunately, no one knew what it meant, nor could they even identify the language. Only one person understood; it must have been German. Cheng Xiaoyu had written lyrics in German, and she was intimately familiar with every tone of those lyrics.

Everyone felt that Su Yuxi and Cheng Xiaoyu were perhaps not from the same world as them. The siblings were clearly operating in "group taunt" mode, but unfortunately, such profound pretentiousness was lost on everyone—it was as if they were wearing embroidered robes in the dark.

After hearing Cheng Xiaoyu’s reply, the corners of Su Yuxi’s mouth curved into a beautiful arc, revealing a playful smile as if her prank had succeeded. She took Cheng Xiaoyu’s hand and led him running downstairs. Cheng Xiaoyu could feel the joy in her heart—a delight like a child who had received a beloved toy. The only terrifying thing was that Su Yuxi seemed to enjoy manipulating people's hearts.

The frozen tide of people in the hallway was split apart by the two. No one could understand the siblings' German conversation, but they felt as though these mundane days had been marked by an indelible memory. This incomprehensible and incredible scene drifted through their minds like a hypnotic melody, lingering long after.

As the sun set, the school bell rang, calling everyone home. Xia Sha Mo stood in front of her bicycle, unable to insert the key into the lock for a long time. For the first time, a sense of loss brewed in her heart. She didn't know why she felt sad watching the backs of Cheng Xiaoyu and Su Yuxi as they walked away.

Perhaps it was because she had been doing too many practice papers, or the pressure of the college entrance exams was too great, or perhaps it was because she couldn't pursue the music major she loved—there were too many reasons to be sad.

Thinking this, Xia Sha Mo’s mood calmed slightly. She inserted the key and unlocked the bike. In the distance, the cherry blossoms had withered, leaving only a tree of green leaves swaying gently in the breeze. But that was fine; the cherry blossoms would continue to bloom next year, and tree after tree would still make this spring brilliant, wouldn't they?

Xia Sha Mo thought to herself.

Summer is coming soon. Summer should be my season, right?