Moving On from the Tsundere, I Choose the Perfect Sweetheart

Teacher He couldn’t help but frown. Filled with doubt, he took the test paper from Teacher Zhou’s hands.

He spread it open and took a look.

Just like Teacher Zhou, the first thing that caught his eye was the forceful yet elegant handwriting on the paper.

"To be fair, this handwriting really is quite good!"

He nodded slightly, though a new doubt surfaced in his mind. ’Just having good handwriting shouldn’t be enough to get a forty-something-year-old like Teacher Zhou this worked up, right?’

Suppressing his doubt, he lowered his head and continued to read.

"Hmm, the multiple-choice and recitation sections are all correct!"

"Not bad, not bad at all!"

He Qingsong nodded and muttered under his breath.

Beside him, Teacher Zhou remained silent. She picked up the thermos on the lectern, took a sip of water, and simply watched him quietly.

A moment later.

HISS...

He Qingsong sucked in a sharp breath. He looked up at Teacher Zhou, his face a mask of shock. "Teacher Zhou, this student’s score is nearly perfect on the first sections, isn’t it?"

"Yes!"

"As far as I’m concerned, if I were the one grading it, I’d have given him a perfect score on those sections!"

Teacher Zhou said, looking at him.

"Tsk."

"You’re right. I can’t find any flaws in his reading comprehension answers either!"

As a fellow Chinese language teacher, He Qingsong nodded in agreement.

"Well... Teacher He, you should read the essay before you say anything else."

Teacher Zhou, having calmed down by now, looked at He Qingsong and said calmly.

"Oh?"

Hearing her say that, He Qingsong’s interest was instantly piqued.

"Alright!"

He nodded, then picked up the page with Gu Yifan’s essay and started reading.

"The Time is Now, We are the Rising Tide, We are the Light!"

Just like Teacher Zhou before him, his eyes lit up the moment he saw the title.

As he began to read the body of the essay, he was immediately captivated by its contents.

Standing to the side, Teacher Zhou watched his expression shift, his brow furrowing at times. A slight smile played on her lips, as if she had forgotten that her own reaction moments ago hadn’t been much different from his.

...

After a long moment.

"Teacher Zhou, this..."

He Qingsong let out a long, deep breath. He slowly raised his head to look at Teacher Zhou, momentarily at a loss for words.

He finally understood why Teacher Zhou had been so worked up she couldn’t help but cry out earlier.

Holy shit!

To finish in an hour and get a near-perfect score... anyone who saw this would have to admit it was fucking awesome!

Like Teacher Zhou, as a Chinese language teacher with over a decade of experience, he completely understood how she felt.

He flipped the test paper over for a look.

Grade 12, Class 1, Gu Yifan...

He’d be sure to remember the name Gu Yifan.

"Each generation brings forth new talent!"

He Qingsong couldn’t help but sigh with emotion as he looked at Teacher Zhou.

It was just as Gu Yifan’s essay title said: *We are the Rising Tide, We are the Light!*

They were getting old. This world would ultimately belong to the young.

That was something they had to admit.

...

"ACHOO—!"

Just then, in the milk tea shop by the school gate, Gu Yifan sneezed as he was stubbing out his cigarette in an ashtray.

"Damn it, which son of a bitch is talking shit about me now?"

Gu Yifan casually grabbed a tissue, wiped his nose, and muttered a curse.

"RING-RING-RING—RING-RING-RING—"

At eleven-thirty in the morning, the ringing bell signaled the end of the morning exam session.

A short while later, students who had turned in their tests began to file out of the school gates.

That was the one good thing about exams for the third-years: they got out of school earlier than usual.

Gu Yifan checked the time and figured it was about right.

So, he grabbed his cigarettes and lighter from the table, stood up, and headed back toward the school.

Weaving through the crowd, he made his way to Su Qinghe’s exam hall.

He had already texted Su Qinghe, telling her to wait for him by the classroom door.

From a distance, he spotted Su Qinghe standing by the door, seemingly lost in thought.

Su Qinghe was in her school uniform today, as usual, one that was slightly faded from countless washes. Even so, it couldn’t conceal her unique presence.

In any crowd, she would be the first person you noticed.

Gu Yifan smiled and walked straight toward her.

Just then, Su Qinghe saw him approaching from a distance. Her beautiful peach blossom eyes brightened, and a flicker of joy flashed within their crystalline depths.

"Hanhan, what’re you thinking about?"

Gu Yifan said with a smile as he walked up to her.

"N-nothing."

Su Qinghe said softly.

She automatically ignored the fact that he had called her "Hanhan" again.

"Let’s go. It’s still early, so let’s get some lunch at the school cafeteria."

Gu Yifan didn’t press the matter, just stretched and spoke.

"Mhm."

Su Qinghe nodded gently.

She then fell into step beside him, and the two walked toward the cafeteria together.

For the past month or so, things had been like this between them almost every day.

She no longer felt as shy or awkward as she had in the beginning.

She had, without even realizing it, grown accustomed to Gu Yifan’s presence.

Since they were practically inseparable, many students in their grade assumed they were already dating.

Because of this, no one bothered to gossip about them eating or studying together anymore; everyone had long since gotten used to it.

But!

Only Gu Yifan and Su Qinghe, the two people actually involved, knew their relationship hadn’t reached that stage yet.

If one had to put a label on it, it would be "more than friends, less than lovers."

And by some tacit understanding, neither of them brought it up.

After all, the college entrance exams were just around the corner. Neither of them wanted to cause unnecessary complications for the other at such a crucial time.

...

"Hanhan, how did you do on the Chinese language exam this morning?"

Gu Yifan asked casually in the school cafeteria, eating his freshly served meal.

That’s right!

Since it was still early, the cafeteria was only open to the third-years. This meant that, for once, they didn’t have to make do with scraps and leftovers like they usually did. They could finally enjoy a fresh, hot meal!

"It was probably fine."

Su Qinghe replied after tilting her head and thinking about it seriously.

After a moment’s thought, as if feeling that wasn’t precise enough, she added, "The essay prompt was a little difficult."

"Oh, I see..."

Gu Yifan nodded and didn’t press further. Instead, he grinned at Su Qinghe and said, "Don’t forget our bet!"

"Mhm."

"I... I remember."

Su Qinghe said, nodding earnestly.

"Good, as long as you remember!"

"This time, I’m pretty sure you’re destined to wear those black stockings!"

Gu Yifan said with a faint smile.

"Huh?"

Su Qinghe froze for a second. "Black... stockings?"

"Er..."

Gu Yifan realized he had just let it slip.

But it didn’t matter.

’Either way, Su Qinghe is definitely going to have to wear those black stockings!’

"Oh!"

"That’s right, didn’t we make a deal?"

"Aren’t black stockings a type of clothing?"

Gu Yifan spouted this nonsense with a perfectly straight face, his expression unchanging and his heart rate steady.

Su Qinghe: "...-_-||"