[A star of the hour, Liang Yuze, is a handsome, flashy rich kid. He shows off and poses whenever he gets the chance, and his fangirls go wild. Xie Shuangming runs straight for the edge of the galaxy.]
*
Xie Shuangming has always been a modest, polite, and exceptionally well-mannered model student. He's never had much patience for spoiled rich kids, and has always behaved himself. Wherever he goes, people praise his good temper and manners.
Then, after the class reshuffle in his second year of high school, he ran into Liang Yuze, an obnoxious troublemaker. And the guy was his deskmate, to boot.
Liang Yuze: Hey, what's up? What's your name? (nonchalantly)
Xie Shuangming: ... (rude) Xie Shuangming. (smiles)
Liang Yuze: What? Makeup remover pads?
Xie Shuangming: ... (turns away)
Liang Yuze, the culprit, watched Xie Shuangming sulk all day. He rubbed his nose and thought, This guy sure has a temper.
*
Everyone thought Xie Shuangming didn't like Liang Yuze much, and that he only put up with sitting beside him because he was so good-natured.
Whenever the two argued, Liang Yuze would insist he was right, rattling on like a machine gun, while Xie Shuangming would just press his lips together, say nothing, and stare coldly at him.
Xie Shuangming's best friend felt awful watching it.
"Oh, come on, Liang. Can you shut up? Do you really have to get the last word in?"
Everyone thought he was feeling sorry for Xie Shuangming.
It wasn't until after school, when they saw Xie Shuangming hurl his schoolbag at Liang Yuze, who had skipped evening study but showed up at the school gate anyway, that they realized the one being pitied all along wasn't Xie Shuangming, but Liang Yuze.
They watched in astonishment as Liang Yuze, who usually acted like he owned the world, got pinned down and smacked around by Xie Shuangming, the one who always followed the rules.
*
1. Xie Shuangming only seems mild-mannered because he was raised well. In fact, he has a worse temper than anyone, and once he blows up, it takes ages to soothe him. He's also stubbornly tsundere, and straight-laced Liang Yuze can never guess what he's thinking, so... it becomes a vicious cycle.
2. Weibo: @Su Nanyuan
3. Check out the short historical BL novel next door, The Brother Who Took My Place as the Bride.
Theme: Study hard and make progress every day.
