Stop Chasing the School Belle, My Shy Deskmate is Sweet and Soft - Chapter 9

Chen Jiayi’s attitude left Ye Ningyu momentarily stunned.

She glanced at Xia Tian, intending to muster the courage to speak up again.

She didn’t want Xia Tian to be punished because of her!

But under the desk, Xia Tian gently held her hand and gave her a reassuring smile before shaking his head slightly.

Then, he turned to face Chen Jiayi.

“Sure, I’ll explain it. Who’s afraid of who? You really call this the hardest cloze test?”

His smug demeanor immediately elicited a sneer from Chen Jiayi.

“Xia Tian, your arrogance is astounding. If I remember correctly, you only scored 41 points on your last mock exam, right? I could score higher than you with my eyes closed.”

Even Ms. Dai Zihan frowned slightly. “Xia Tian, this cloze test is indeed more difficult than usual. With your level of English, you might be overestimating yourself.”

The rest of the class looked on with expressions of malice, eager to watch Xia Tian embarrass himself after talking so big.

“Just give me a minute. I’ll go over it,” Xia Tian said calmly, looking down at the cloze test and organizing his thoughts.

After all, the vocabulary he knew might be beyond the grasp of these high schoolers.

But as soon as he said that, Chen Jiayi burst out laughing.

“I admit that Ye Ningyu is smart, but someone like you, Xia Tian? Even if she explained it to you ten times and gave you all the time in the world, you’d never understand!”

Chen Jiayi’s voice was filled with certainty.

She was already imagining Xia Tian’s pathetic expression as he was made to copy the cloze test ten times.

Serves you right for deliberately upsetting Little Yuan with your childish antics. Why aren’t you treating her well like you used to?

Meanwhile, Ye Ningyu looked at Xia Tian with worry, feeling a deep sense of regret.

She tugged at his sleeve, whispering, “I’m sorry, Xia Tian. If you can’t explain it, it’s okay—I’ll help you copy it…”

“Shh, neither of us will need to copy anything. Just watch me perform.”

Xia Tian held the paper in front of his face and flashed her a confident smile.

Beneath the sunlight, his grin was dazzling.

For a moment, Ye Ningyu found herself in a daze.

She knew that Xia Tian wasn’t exactly bad at school, but that mostly applied to subjects like literature and math.

When it came to English and science… well, those were another story.

But now, for some reason, she felt like Xia Tian might actually be able to explain it.

A minute passed, and Ms. Dai Zihan’s brows furrowed.

“Xia Tian, if you can’t do it, don’t waste everyone’s time. Just start copying.”

Cough, cough. “Sorry about the wait, Ms. Dai. I’ll go ahead and explain it now.”

Xia Tian cleared his throat, sat up straight, and began explaining the first question of the cloze test.

“For the first question, ‘speak’ is usually followed by a language as the object. ‘Say’ is followed by the content of what’s being said. ‘Tell’ usually takes a person as the object… So, the correct answer for the first question is C.”

“For the second question, based on the previous sentence…”

Xia Tian walked through the entire cloze test, explaining each question one by one without a single pause, finishing in about ten minutes. His explanations flowed smoothly, and his pronunciation was impeccable.

The classroom was silent, with only Xia Tian’s voice breaking through the stillness.

The students’ expressions shifted from mockery to surprise, and then, finally, to astonishment.

No one could believe it—Xia Tian had actually explained the entire cloze test perfectly!

Even the students in the middle of the class, those who knew the correct answers, found themselves unable to grasp his explanations.

Xia Tian’s insights were just too advanced for them!

Chen Jiayi stared at Xia Tian, utterly speechless.

Her English was quite good, so she could tell that not only had Xia Tian explained everything correctly, but his explanations were even better than the provided answers!

She wouldn’t have been able to explain it as well as he did.

When did Xia Tian become so good at English?

Could it be that Ye Ningyu actually managed to teach him?

—

Clap!

Clap, clap!

Clap, clap, clap, clap!

The silence was shattered by Ms. Dai Zihan, who was the first to applaud.

Soon, the rest of the class joined in, their applause growing louder.

“Well done, Xia Tian! That was excellent! You even pointed out some nuances that I hadn’t considered. I didn’t expect you to be such a hidden English genius!”

“It’s really impressive. You’ve completely changed my opinion of you. If you can maintain this level, getting into a decent university should be no problem.”

Ms. Dai was clearly taken aback.

But there was no denying that Xia Tian had flawlessly explained the entire cloze test, without a single error.

Even as the English teacher, she felt a bit humbled.

Xia Tian smiled modestly. “Thank you for the praise, teacher, but my goal is much higher than just an average university.”

Arrogant!

So arrogant!

But, frustratingly, none of the students could argue with him.

After all, Xia Tian had just confidently and completely explained a cloze test that none of them could solve on their own!

Turning his attention back to Chen Jiayi, Xia Tian raised an eyebrow provocatively.

“Chen Jiayi, did I miss anything? Were you able to follow along?”

Chen Jiayi was so angry she could have ground her teeth into dust. She hadn’t expected Xia Tian to explain everything so perfectly.

“Hmph, you were just lucky that Ye Ningyu taught you well. I already knew the answers before you explained them. What’s there to be proud of?”

“Oh really? In that case, why don’t you explain it to the class again?”

Xia Tian smiled wickedly at her.

Immediately, the other students turned their gazes toward Chen Jiayi.

After all, Xia Tian’s explanation had been so advanced that many of them didn’t fully understand it.

Chen Jiayi froze, her face turning red with embarrassment.

Although she was good at English, she didn’t fully understand this particular cloze test.

How could she possibly explain it to the class?

She suddenly felt like she had just dug her own grave, hoisting a rock only to drop it on her own foot.

“I… I…”

“What’s the matter, Chen Jiayi? Don’t waste everyone’s time. There are 45 students in this class. Every minute you waste is like wasting 45 minutes of everyone’s time!”

Xia Tian’s expression was playful as he pretended to be serious.

Chen Jiayi was completely at a loss, standing there with her face flushed, not knowing what to do.

In the end, it was Ms. Dai Zihan who stepped in to end the awkwardness.

“Chen Jiayi, it’s alright. If you can’t explain it, that’s okay. I’ll go over the cloze test with the class again. The grammar and vocabulary Xia Tian used might be a bit advanced for you all right now.”

Chen Jiayi nodded, her face still red as she sat back down, feeling utterly humiliated.

She had tried to put Xia Tian in his place, only to end up embarrassing herself.

Now everyone knew that Xia Tian could explain the test, while she, Chen Jiayi, couldn’t.

It was mortifying!

“I’m sorry, Little Yuan. I didn’t expect Xia Tian to know this specific question so well.”

“It’s fine, Jiayi. It’s not your fault.”

Xu Yuan comforted Chen Jiayi, appreciating her friend’s attempt to stand up for her.

However, as she glanced back at Xia Tian, her expression grew more complicated. Biting her lip, she felt a tinge of bitterness in her heart.

—

After sitting down, Xia Tian turned to look at Ye Ningyu.

“Well, Little Ye, how was my performance? Didn’t I tell you to just sit back and watch me work?” he said with a smirk.

Ye Ningyu nodded enthusiastically.

“Xia Tian, you’re amazing!”

Seeing her serious expression, Xia Tian felt an overwhelming urge to hug her right then and there.

From the way things had played out, it was clear that Ye Ningyu, despite her shy and timid personality, would push herself to stand up for him when it mattered.

Although she was terrified of confrontation, she didn’t hesitate to break her own boundaries to protect him.

In her past life, Ye Ningyu had quietly poured all her love into him, even when no one else noticed.

Feeling a warmth in his chest, Xia Tian rubbed his hands together expectantly, looking at her with a mischievous grin.

“Since I’m so amazing, can I get a little reward? Like, maybe a pinch of that soft face of yours?”

Ye Ningyu’s face turned red as she glanced around nervously.

“Hmm… But there are so many people around right now. Maybe… maybe we can do it later, when no one’s looking?”