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Holy crap!!

The moment she looked up, it was as if all the birds shared a collective consciousness, wildly spraying droppings everywhere.

Droppings landed on Tong Qingyan’s face, hair, shoulders...

The surrounding girls who had been complimenting her screamed and hurriedly fled like the wind.

Even the clever Tong Qingyan was stunned into shock. She had grown up like a little princess, never having encountered anything like this before.

Bird droppings!

At this moment, all she could think about was bird droppings!

The hot, foul stench blossomed wildly on her body. Unable to bear it, Tong Qingyan screamed and dashed around downstairs.

The strange thing was, the birds seemed to recognize her and targeted only Tong Qingyan, sparing everyone else.

Someone from the crowd shouted, “Tong Qingyan, duck your head! Stop screaming with your mouth open!!!”

Disaster!

This was truly a disaster!

News of Tong Qingyan being attacked by a flock of birds outside the teaching building quickly spread throughout Henghua No. 1 High School. Every classroom window was crowded with onlookers, some even recording videos on their phones.

“Goddess Tong is so unlucky!”

Even Duan Xingye, who was eating a bun, couldn’t help but be drawn in. He stood up, leaning over the balcony to watch.

Class 9 was fully gathered to watch. Bai Chuwei sat leisurely alone in her seat, reclining against the chair back, flipping through a hardcover edition of “Chronicles of the Mountain Moon.”

“Stop watching!” a boy shouted from below.

A tall, broad-shouldered youth strode quickly toward the besieged Tong Qingyan. While running, he unbuttoned his school jacket and decisively took it off. He threw the oversized jacket over Tong Qingyan’s head, wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and dashed toward the first floor of the teaching building.

“Security uncle, quickly close the glass door!” Xu Xingchen shouted, holding Tong Qingyan.

The security guard, attracted by the commotion, immediately shut the glass door. A flock of birds crashed into it, nearly dazed from the impact.

Xu Xingchen removed his jacket from over Tong Qingyan’s head and asked with concern, “Are you okay?”

Tong Qingyan remained silent. Did she look okay like this? Covered in bird droppings, she had no idea where so much came from.

She looked up at Xu Xingchen, who was also splattered quite a bit, and for the first time met his gaze. “Thank you.”

Xu Xingchen smiled. “It’s nothing.”

He was about to return to the Duan family. Tong Qingyan was the niece of his future third aunt, Tong Yunrou. Helping her now could very well earn Xu Xingchen her support, making his life easier in the Duan family.

Before leaving, he had fully understood the stakes.

Besides... gaining the admiration of the entire school community for just a little bird droppings was a pretty good deal.

The entire teaching building erupted in a drawn-out, meaningful murmur.

“As expected of Xu Xingchen, he’s really so kind to everyone—a classic scene from a school idol drama.”

“A hero saving the beauty! Ahhh, I suddenly wish I were Tong Qingyan, that’s so lucky!”

“Covered in bird droppings? Even if Xu Xingchen came to save me, I wouldn’t want it.”

“...”

Tong Qingyan suddenly blushed, coughed, and quickly ran toward the girls’ restroom.

Duan Xingye, who had watched the whole spectacle, felt conflicted. He returned to his seat beside Bai Chuwei and quietly said, “Weiwei, Xingchen is nice to everyone. Am I just being petty?”

Since learning about that incident, he hadn’t spoken to Xu Xingchen for days.

Bai Chuwei kept her eyes on her book and gave a light chuckle. “He’s just playing the role of the helpful, kind guy.”

Duan Xingye blinked. “Role?”

Bai Chuwei’s fingers lightly brushed the book’s pages, a faint, mocking smile playing at her lips. “If those were bees instead of birds, he wouldn’t have come at all.”

Xu Xingchen—a refined egoist. Everyone else was merely a rung on the ladder he climbed.