Chapter 25: The Best Frenemy

“Oh, Sister Yao Yao, look, I won!”

Chen Yushu said to Chu Mengyao upon seeing Lin Yi.

“What do you mean you won?”

Chu Mengyao was somewhat bewildered.

“I bet Lin Yi would win!”

When Chen Yushu looked at Lin Yi, her face couldn't help but flush red.

Chu Mengyao said nothing; clearly, she hadn't yet recovered from what had just happened.

“I didn't win. They just went to change clothes,” Lin Yi said before returning to his seat.

He felt that he had been a bit embarrassing today.

Zhong Pinliang hadn't reappeared all morning, and Gao Xiaofu and Zhang Naipao had also vanished. It was likely that the three of them were showering or buying clothes, which wouldn't be finished quickly.

During the lunch break, a bespectacled boy sitting in the desk in front of Lin Yi turned around. “Hey, man, where are you eating lunch?”

“I don't know. Does the school have a cafeteria?”

Lin Yi had been worrying about where to eat, so when someone kindly struck up a conversation, he asked immediately.

“It does! I'll take you!”

The bespectacled boy extended a hand in a friendly manner. “Let's get acquainted. My name is Kang Xiaobo.”

“Lin Yi. Nice to meet you.”

Lin Yi reached out and shook Kang Xiaobo's hand.

Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu had vanished as soon as class ended, but Lin Yi didn't need to worry about them within the school; basically, no one could harm them.

The two walked out of the classroom side by side. It was evident that Kang Xiaobo was quite a chatterbox. “Man, which school did you come from originally?”

“I'm from the mountains,” Lin Yi replied, not hiding his past. “I didn't really attend formal schooling. It's very poor there; there are no proper schools.”

“Ah! Then your grades must be incredible!”

Kang Xiaobo looked at Lin Yi in surprise. One had to know that students who could enter No. 1 High School fell into one of two categories: those who entered through high payments, and those who entered through high scores.

The ones who entered through high payments went without saying—as long as you were willing to spend money, the school would surely accept you.

As for those who entered through high scores, there were several types. The most outstanding ones had all their tuition and fees waived and received a monthly scholarship of one thousand yuan.

Since Lin Yi said his hometown was so poor that there weren't even proper schools, it must have been an extremely impoverished and backward place.

Looking at Lin Yi's attire, he didn't seem to have a powerful background, so it was even less likely that he had paid his way in.

The only remaining possibility was that he had entered based on his academic performance.

“It's just average...”

Lin Yi gave a bitter smile. He couldn't explain too much about his identity, so he let Kang Xiaobo think whatever he wanted.

“Ha, brother, you're too modest.”

Kang Xiaobo had also been admitted to No. 1 High School through exams, and in his heart, he looked down on students like Zhong Pinliang who just paid to kill time. Seeing that Lin Yi had also entered through merit, he immediately felt a sense of kinship.

The two walked toward the cafeteria together. Along the way, beautiful young female students were visible everywhere, giving Lin Yi a sense of dazzlement.

“Man, so you like that kind of thing too!”

Seeing Lin Yi's eyes scanning around, Kang Xiaobo gave a sly grin and whispered, “But let me tell you, there are only a few truly top-tier beauties in our school!”

“What do you mean by top-tier?” Lin Yi asked, momentarily stunned. Although his gaze had swept over the girls, he had mostly been looking at the school's facilities and environment.

“Hey, man, are you playing the innocent act with me?”

Kang Xiaobo patted Lin Yi on the shoulder and said, “At our age, it's normal to have thoughts about pretty girls. But hey, looking is fine, and fantasizing in your head is okay, but if you actually try to pursue them, you'll probably just end up getting rejected!”

Hearing Kang Xiaobo's words, Lin Yi could only smile bitterly. This kid was actually a wolf in sheep's clothing! He looked quite refined and even wore glasses, but he turned out to be a closeted player.

Seeing that Lin Yi remained silent, Kang Xiaobo thought he was being defiant, so he continued, “I'm telling you, man, don't be stubborn. Actually, these days, good grades aren't everything. Well, that's one part of it. What girls love most is being handsome and dashing, and most importantly, having money in their pockets! As for us, let's not even dream about it!”

“Haha, your theory is quite interesting,” Lin Yi laughed, though he didn't agree in his heart. For girls like Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu, money had already lost all meaning; otherwise, how could someone like Zhong Pinliang have failed to pursue them?

“Of course. But theories are useless; the standards of those top-tier beauties in our school are incredibly high!” Kang Xiaobo shook his head.

“What top-tier beauties? Who are they?”

Lin Yi became a bit curious. Since he was bored anyway, and since this Kang Xiaobo seemed intent on befriending him, having another friend in school wasn't a bad thing.

“Ha, man, no way! Did you not see? They're right here in our class—they take up two spots!” Kang Xiaobo said, sounding quite proud of himself.

Even though the beauties had nothing to do with him, they were in the same class, and being able to say that was enough to make others envious. If nothing else, they were easy on the eyes!

“You don't mean Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu, do you?”

Lin Yi only knew the names of these two girls. Furthermore, when he had seen Chu Mengyao's profile, he knew she was the school beauty, and her close friend Chen Yushu was naturally one in a million as well.

“Holy crap, no way! Man, you've only been here for one morning, and you've already gotten their names?”

Kang Xiaobo's mouth formed an "O" shape, his face instantly filled with shock.

Looking at Kang Xiaobo's expression, Lin Yi realized he had definitely misunderstood.

“You don't need that look. Actually, I'm certain that eighty percent of the boys in class have those two as their dream girls!”

Kang Xiaobo smiled and adjusted his somewhat faded gold-rimmed glasses. “But as for who actually dares to pursue them... it's only Zhong Pinliang!”

“Zhong Pinliang's family is very wealthy, right?”

Lin Yi knew that he had formed a grudge with Zhong Pinliang. As long as he continued his role of protecting Chu Mengyao, this grudge could not be resolved unless Zhong Pinliang gave up on pursuing her himself. Therefore, Lin Yi intended to learn more about Zhong Pinliang from Kang Xiaobo.

“What, you didn't know?”

Kang Xiaobo froze, then laughed. “Right, you're from the mountains, I forgot. Zhong Pinliang's family is incredibly rich. His father, Zhong Sanguo, is the owner of the Katy Grand Hotel and has several other businesses in this city, like Echo KTV and Kakadi Bar.”

(End of Chapter)