### Chapter 182: Feelings and Duties
The opening ceremony was dragging on, practically half the morning gone!
As it was coming to a close, the host noticed that Jiang Kekai had already packed up her laptop and was leisurely sitting in her seat. Ah! Isn’t this the perfect chance to let our dazzling Miss Jiang say a few words?
You see, Jiang Kekai, the genius young lady, had a reputation that rivaled top-tier celebrities! Just think—if she spoke a few words, the school could record it and post it online. Talk about free advertising!
With that thought in mind, the host strutted over to Jiang Kekai with a beaming face, microphone in hand: “It’s well-known that Director Jiang is a three-time champion of the World Math Olympiad. Do you have any study tips to share with everyone?”
Jiang Kekai confidently accepted the microphone and sauntered to the center stage, head held high: “Sure.” The crowd went wild! Zoom in on Miss Jiang for the camera!
Meanwhile, the poor cameraman captured that moment and panicked a little, worried he wouldn’t get the shot right. Awkward!
But Jiang Kekai wasn’t about to wait for them! With a sunny smile, she casually answered the question: “It’s not hard—just sleep early and wake up early. It’s good for your health!”
Boom! Not only were the dignitaries at the podium shocked, but all the students below who had their eyes glued to Jiang Kekai were in disbelief, thinking, “Is that really her?”
The host quickly recovered, picking up another microphone to save face: “Director Jiang is hilarious! But she’s right, good sleep is essential for…”
Seeing the host take over, Jiang Kekai casually dropped the mic and strolled back to her seat, thinking it felt good to mess around a bit. After the host wrapped things up, the ceremony was a wrap, and students could head straight to the cafeteria!
This time, Jiang Kekai didn’t sneak out from the backstage; she made a beeline for her friends, “Hey, having a good chat, huh?”
The girls chatting with Xia Yu had been wanting to invite her, Jiang Hanhang, and Xia Ling out to lunch. After spending so much time together, creating friendships is kind of inevitable, right?
But with Jiang Kekai’s arrival, they chickened out—what they had planned to say just evaporated into thin air, and they awkwardly left.
Due to the high number of students, the two main exits couldn’t accommodate everyone at once, so Jiang Kekai calmly sat next to Xia Yu and pinched her cheeks, asking, “What do you want for lunch today?”
“I dunno, anything’s fine.”
Xia Yu’s face contorted in a slight frown. Truth be told, she also suffered from decision paralysis! And now Jiang Kekai was putting her on the spot? Wasn’t that just adding to her woes? Xia Yu thought she was pretty easygoing, or at least tried to be.
“So, Xia Yu, you’re that easy to please? Well then, we’ll just head to the cafeteria—perfect time to check out the food there!”
As Jiang Kekai said that, she suddenly noticed some books by Xia Yu and her face lit up with a sweet smile as she ruffled Xia Yu’s hair, “I told you, no need to study early. Take your time, we’re not in a rush.”
“I…”
Xia Yu was left speechless. She had been planning to surprise Jiang Kekai later, and now she’d been found out!
Jiang Hanhang felt a bit helpless about the situation, so she chimed in for Xia Yu: “Forget it, sister, didn’t you want Xia Yu to be your secretary? Let her study early, it’s like doing some pre-class preparation!”
“You guys are impossible! Alright then, see to your own matters. I won’t meddle, let’s just go eat,” Jiang Kekai said, pulling Xia Yu along to the cafeteria.
As expected, the cafeteria was bustling and hot without air conditioning, so lingering there would definitely lead to sweating. A typical young lady would have long bolted for the hills, refusing to eat this communal fare.
But Jiang Kekai? She’d do anything for a good meal, even flirt with the risk of being ‘kidnapped’—and she never learned her lesson.
Of course, her bodyguards secretly advised against eating this food, suggesting they could have someone cook her a meal instead. But Jiang Kekai refused, insisting that it wouldn’t taste the same!
So, after loading up their trays, she took the three girls back to their dorm where it was cooler and more appetizing.
Her bodyguards had a real headache with Jiang Kekai’s eating habits, so they took a portion of the food for urgent testing. In the end, only some items were slightly off, but thankfully, nothing harmful was found.
During nap time, Xia Yu was still sharing a room with Jiang Kekai while Xia Ling and Jiang Hanhang roomed together.
Xia Ling had slowly given in to Jiang Kekai’s demands; she knew she couldn’t win against her. All she could do was poke fun at Jiang Hanhang. Remembering Jiang Hanhang’s earlier war declaration, she stayed alert.
Sure enough, the moment Xia Ling opened the door, Jiang Kekai couldn’t wait to attack! Time for some playful revenge—what goes around comes around, right?
The afternoon classes rolled around and, unsurprisingly, Xia Yu, Xia Jing, and Jiang Hanhang were all looking pretty out of it. If they kept quiet, no one would know what they’d been up to during lunch.
“Hey, wanna go gaming?” Gao Xiaotian asked with eager eyes.
Xia Yu just stared blankly.
Seeing her silence, Gao Xiaotian thought she wasn’t interested, so he shifted the subject, “I’ve heard you and Jiang Kekai are really close! How did you two meet?”
“Kidnapping.”
Finally, Xia Yu seemed ready to talk, letting out a sigh. Who knew if she was just exhausted? Gao Xiaotian’s curiosity shot up again: “Wait, what? Tell me, I wanna hear the story!”
“Not interested.”
Xia Yu shot back, turning her gaze to the window.
Truly, Gao Xiaotian was a bit bored and annoyed, “Hey, why are you acting all high and mighty like a girl? You’re so cold! I’m not trying to hit on you or anything!”
Before Xia Yu could respond, the two older girls in front of them turned around with sparkles in their eyes, “Hey, what were you two just talking about? Hitting on someone?”
“Did I just hear someone trying to hit on Xia Yu? Go Gao Xiaotian!”
Caught off guard by their teasing, Gao Xiaotian’s cheeks flushed red as he quickly defended himself: “Hold up! Xia Yu and I are just bros, okay?”
“Stop with the excuses! Excuses are just disguises!”
“Yeah! Isn’t Xia Yu super cute? Why would you complain about her?”
As they chattered animatedly, the girls completely missed the grin spreading across Gao Xiaotian’s face, as if he was anticipating something.
Just then, their English teacher had somehow arrived right next to their desk without them noticing.
“Ahem! Is my class not engaging enough? Or did you all master the material? If so, come up here and write some words. I’ll read them out!”
The teacher’s microphone was blaring at full volume. From a distance, it wasn’t a big deal, but standing next to it? Those two girls were thoroughly freaked out!
Now they understood why Gao Xiaotian was smiling so much earlier—he was in on the teacher’s prank! Even with a hundred reasons not to go, they had no choice; the teacher had spoken, and up they had to go, reluctance evident in every step.
Gao Xiaotian remained blissfully relaxed, until the teacher had to nudge him again: “Did you not hear? They were talking to you! Time to go up.”
“Wait, I’m going too?” Gao Xiaotian’s smile vanished as he paled. He was not inclined to embarrass himself, as his grades were far from stellar. “Do I have to?”
“Of course! Go on up!”
The English teacher’s gaze shifted toward Xia Yu.
However, upon catching a glimpse of the English text on Xia Yu’s purple bracelet, her expression changed drastically. She quickly averted her gaze and decided against calling Xia Yu up.
That’s right! During class earlier, she had noticed Xia Yu’s purple bracelet, but when she saw it from the podium, she hadn’t been able to make out the English writing. She had assumed it was just a normal bracelet.
Little did she know that the rumors surrounding the chaos in Class 15 were true, and Xia Yu was indeed the culprit! So, the English teacher, wishing to avoid trouble, hastily moved her books away from Xia Yu, scared she might have an episode.
But really, it’s not surprising. A teacher’s job is to educate. They’re not equipped to handle someone with a psychological issue like Xia Yu’s; helping is considered extra work while leaving them off the hook is all part of the job.
Thus, the teacher made this swift move, realizing that it’s always better to leave well enough alone—why get involved in someone else’s trouble, right?
