Before Solving for X

Slow burn, ensemble cast, proud and independent x gentle and steadfast

Coming soon: Please Break Up With Your Online Boyfriend First (blurb at the end)

Blurb:

Although math always lets her down, Jiang Nan still ranks first in five individual subjects at school.

On the day the midterm results are announced in the first semester of her junior year, Jiang Nan is kept after class by her math teacher until the end of the school day because of her severe weakness in the subject.

As she leaves, she spots Cong Ye, a new transfer student, at the end of the hallway.

He has his back to Jiang Nan, bathed in the setting sun, his voice calm and clear.

Jiang Nan thinks she has stumbled into a confession, and takes a few curious steps forward.

But the next second, she hears Cong Ye say her name.

"Cong Ye, you got it wrong again. I told you during practice yesterday, don't call her Jiang Jiang. Call her Jiang Nan."

His tone is full of complaint and reproach.

At the time, Cong Ye is clear-voiced and upright, brimming with youthful energy. His switch from science to humanities has caused quite a stir at school.

He doesn't talk much, but the pink envelopes in his desk drawer keep piling up.

They don't know each other, so Jiang Nan naturally assumes that too much math has made her start hearing things.

But the next morning during self-study, Cong Ye suddenly comes to her with his almost-perfect math test.

"Jiang Nan, could you teach me..."

Amid the astonished voices around them, he starts over. "Could I learn from you?"

Reading notes:

The heroine is an excellent student, exceptionally clear-headed and independent.

Slow burn, ensemble cast.

Liking someone and being liked in return are both long processes.

While they're underage, they are just ordinary classmates.

Please Break Up With Your Online Boyfriend First

Sharp-tongued queen x sensitive romantic

Blurb:

On the third day of her sophomore year, Li Jinyi, after gaming all night, shows up at a hometown association gathering with enormous dark circles under her eyes.

During the new students' introductions, an older girl from her club holds Li Jinyi back as she keeps turning the lazy Susan to grab food.

"See that guy who's 185 centimeters tall? His name's Cheng Yi. He's incredibly aloof, but I heard he knows you."

Li Jinyi looks up and meets Cheng Yi's gaze across the table.

The older girl gets excited. "You two can trade! Go get to know him. Our cooking club needs a handsome face!"

Before the dinner is over, an enthusiastic senior sends Li Jinyi Cheng Yi's WeChat contact.

Seeing the familiar background in his profile picture, Li Jinyi remembers that the younger student everyone's talking about went to the same high school as her.

So, in hopes of quitting the club as soon as possible, Li Jinyi embarks on a long campaign to befriend him.

For instance, she turns up on Cheng Yi's way back to his dorm with three jin of grapes.

"Missing home, Cheng? The club often cooks dishes from our hometown."

Or she writes him a long message in the middle of the night, forcing him to listen to a made-up tragic love story.

"That scumbag said online that he liked me, but he had another girlfriend here in town. At first I was really sad, but cooking changed me..."

After nearly two weeks of this, Cheng Yi still has no interest in joining the club. He even blocks Li Jinyi.

[For three days straight, all he replied was "Mm." And now he's blocked me!]

[I'm at a loss. So who was the one saying he knew me in the first place?]

Seeing a screen full of messages marked as sent but rejected by the recipient, Li Jinyi angrily sends the older girl ten messages.

The older girl doesn't reply, but Cheng Yi's profile suddenly pops up in the chat again.

[Li Jinyi, yesterday you said you'd break up with that guy.]

[If you get back together, you're a dog.]

Li Jinyi freezes, then replies almost against her will.

[If I don't get back together with him, will you join our club?]

As soon as the message is sent, the "typing" indicator at the top abruptly stops.

?

Li Jinyi tentatively sends a question mark.

Sure enough, she's blocked again.

Blurb two:

Cheng Yi thinks that getting into Min University will let him see Li Jinyi again.

At the hometown association gathering, he plans to approach her, but hears her chatting listlessly with her friends.

"Those dark circles are from staying up late last night."

"I wasn't gaming. I had an online romance."

The reunion he's looked forward to for a year falls through once again. Cheng Yi crumples the phone number he was about to get and hides it in his pocket.

But unexpectedly, before the dinner is over, a new friend request appears on his phone.

It's from Li Jinyi.

After learning they went to the same high school, Cheng Yi feels that Li Jinyi seems to have become more enthusiastic.

She gives him grapes to cool off.

She cuts a pear into small pieces for him to take to military training.

The only downside is that she keeps bringing up her club that no one wants to join, and loves telling him about her failed online romance.

After a week of this, someone in the dorm asks Cheng Yi:

That senior who's pursuing you, doesn't she already have a partner?

Pursuing me?

Cheng Yi automatically ignores the rest of the question.

Theme: If you don't have talent, just keep repeating it.