My Sister Is Acting Strange

Xia Xinya, as usual, approached Shen Yiqiu to request a seat next to Tang Huaijin. This time, Shen Yiqiu wasn’t as accommodating. Narrowing her eyes, she studied Xia Xinya for a moment before saying coolly, “If your grades don’t improve after the monthly exam, I’ll have to talk to your parents.”

The comment made Xia Xinya shrink her neck slightly, but after some thought, she realized that with Tang Huaijin’s academic prowess and her own intelligence, improvement was inevitable. Relieved, she nodded and took the seat next to Tang Huaijin.

Hearing Xia Xinya reluctantly call Shen Yiqiu “teacher” a few more times, Tang Huaijin finally stepped out of the shadow cast by the beautiful counselor and began explaining questions to Xia Xinya.

Tsk, finding satisfaction in teasing a kid-how unbecoming for someone destined for greatness.

Tang Huaijin silently reflected on his behavior, then cheekily made Xia Xinya call Shen Yiqiu “teacher” a few more times.

Meanwhile, Shen Yiqiu continued her lecture in a calm, detached tone. Whenever Xia Xinya didn’t understand something, she would turn to Tang Huaijin for clarification.

Since the next period was also a self-study session, Xia Xinya decided not to return to her own seat and stayed beside Tang Huaijin.

Bai Yuerou’s expression remained composed, showing no signs of unusual emotion. However, she occasionally glanced in their direction.

The atmosphere between Tang Huaijin and Xia Xinya was surprisingly harmonious. Xia Xinya refrained from causing trouble and listened attentively to Tang Huaijin’s explanations. This was largely because the beautiful counselor would occasionally walk down to their row, standing near Tang Huaijin’s desk for a while, making Xia Xinya too cautious to act out.

When class ended, Tang Huaijin packed his bag and was about to head home when Bai Yuerou approached him with a curious look. “Not joining the club activities?”

“Oh, I almost forgot. Still not used to it,” Tang Huaijin replied, pausing in surprise before letting out a helpless chuckle. “My old school didn’t have anything like this.”

“Well, that’s because our principal believes that, more than academics, students should enjoy a relaxed and fulfilling youth,” Bai Yuerou said with a gentle smile. She continued, “His exact words were: The reason I founded this school was to ensure that years from now, when students look back on their high school days, they remember the vibrancy of their youth-not just endless studying.”

She blinked playfully before adding, “Of course, academics aren’t unimportant either. That’s why our teachers are either highly paid recruits from other cities or headhunted from other schools.”

Tang Huaijin chuckled lightly. “Our principal really is quite the character.”

Bai Yuerou nodded with a cheerful smile. “That’s why, even though Rose Elite High School has shorter study hours compared to other schools, the talent it produces far surpasses that of most schools in Jizhou City. We’ve even had several students top the college entrance exams.”

Indeed, a truly admirable principal. Having spent two weeks at this school, Tang Huaijin had grown quite fond of this unseen figure.

Despite the abundance of wealthy students, there was surprisingly little arrogance or unruly behavior. Fights were rare, and most of the affluent students were well-mannered, showing respect for everyone regardless of their background. Relationships among classmates were generally harmonious.

The teachers were highly professional, never resorting to physical punishment or verbal abuse. Even the cafeteria staff were well-trained-the aunt serving food never hesitated or skimped on portions.

The campus environment was clean and well-maintained, with state-of-the-art teaching facilities. It was evident that the principal had poured his heart into the school.

As for the matter of early relationships, the school took a balanced approach. As long as things didn’t go overboard, most counselors turned a blind eye.

Spending his senior year here, Tang Huaijin felt genuinely content.

Bai Yuerou packed up her things and led the two out of the classroom. Instead of heading to Shen Yiqiu’s office, she walked straight toward the neighboring class.

At the doorway of Class Two, Bai Yuerou called out softly. A girl with a ponytail walked out with light, graceful steps, her face lighting up with a smile as she met Tang Huaijin’s utterly bewildered expression.

“Yuerou, what’s this about?” Tang Huaijin suddenly felt a headache coming on.

“Hmm?” Bai Yuerou glanced at him with a natural expression, her lips curving into a gentle smile. “Xi also passed my test. She can join the reading club.”

Lin Ruoxi blinked playfully at Tang Huaijin, her tone cheerful. “That other club wasn’t much fun. Since I enjoy reading too, I decided to join Rou’s club. Jin, I’ll be in your care from now on!”

“…” Tang Huaijin couldn’t bring himself to blame Bai Yuerou. He could only cast her a helpless look, but she simply gazed back at him with wide, innocent eyes, as if she had no idea what the fuss was about.

Meanwhile, Xia Xinya’s brows furrowed deeply. Her wary gaze darted back and forth between Lin Ruoxi and Bai Yuerou. Xi? Rou?

Like a little cat guarding its food, she sidled up to Bai Yuerou, clutching her arm possessively and shooting Lin Ruoxi a warning glare.

Lin Ruoxi glanced at Xia Xinya but said nothing, merely curling her lips in a faintly disdainful smirk.

With their varied expressions, the group arrived at Shen Yiqiu’s office. Shen Yiqiu nodded in agreement, though she cast Lin Ruoxi a slightly puzzled look, thinking to herself, “Another pretty girl?”

At the club, Bai Yuerou, as usual, brewed tea for everyone. Tang Huaijin picked up his cup and took a leisurely sip, feeling a bit more at ease. Perhaps he was overthinking things. Bai Yuerou was such a sweet, soft, and adorable girl-how could she have any ulterior motives? She probably hadn’t given it much thought when she let Lin Ruoxi join the club.

Lin Ruoxi, meanwhile, spent quite some time browsing the bookshelf before finally selecting a book. She plopped down on the sofa beside Tang Huaijin, so close that they were practically leaning against each other.

“Hey! The teacher’s still here!” Tang Huaijin nearly spat out the tea in his mouth.

He swallowed the tea with some difficulty, coughed twice, and glanced awkwardly at the icy beauty of a teacher who was now scrutinizing him with a sharp gaze. Turning to Lin Ruoxi, he said, “The sofa’s huge. Why are you sitting so close?”

“Huh? Isn’t this a reading club? Aren’t we supposed to share our thoughts on books? Or do you expect me to stand far away and read aloud to you?” Lin Ruoxi looked at him in mock surprise, as if he were the one making a big deal out of nothing.

Hearing this, Shen Yiqiu cast her another cool glance and said softly, “Boys and girls should still maintain some distance.”

Only then did Lin Ruoxi reluctantly scoot a little farther away, though her displeasure was written all over her face.

Xinya couldn’t hide her amusement when she saw Ruoxi being put in her place, letting out a stifled laugh.

Ruoxi, however, paid her no mind. She opened her book and turned to Huaijin, asking, “Do you think Chu Ming still has feelings for Lan Ya?”

The book she was holding was one Huaijin had read before-actually, they’d read it together. Lan Ya was the male protagonist’s first love, but they had broken up due to misunderstandings. The story revolved around Chu Ming’s indecision between the two female leads.

Huaijin rubbed his temples and replied, “Well, they broke up, so naturally, he shouldn’t have feelings for her anymore.”

“Really?” Ruoxi held up the book, flipping to a passage describing Chu Ming’s inner thoughts. She read aloud, “‘Seeing Lan Ya stumbling away in the pouring rain, tears streaming down her face, Chu Ming’s heart twisted in pain. He wished he could reach out to her, shield her from the storm.’ This is how Chu Ming felt after their breakup. How can you say he doesn’t have feelings for her anymore?”

Huaijin was momentarily at a loss for words. After a brief silence, he finally said, “Well, maybe he still has some lingering feelings. They were together for quite a while, after all.”

Though the conversation was about the book, Ruoxi’s eyes lit up, and a joyful smile spread across her face. She eagerly pulled Huaijin into another discussion about this pair of ex-lovers.

Meanwhile, Xinya was working on her reading comprehension questions, already frustrated by the cryptic nature of the exercises. Seeing Ruoxi’s radiant smile only fueled her irritation. She snapped at Huaijin, “Tang Huaijin, help me with my questions.”

“Which one?” Huaijin perked up immediately, his mood lifting. For the first time, he found Xinya endearing and didn’t mind her commanding tone.

As Huaijin hurried over, Xinya’s expression turned smug. She pointed at a question with an air of authority and said, “This one.”

Ruoxi initially ignored Xinya, knowing full well that Xinya didn’t actually like Huaijin but simply enjoyed provoking her. However, she couldn’t resist firing back this time. With a cold laugh, she said, “Xinya, are you deliberately picking a fight? I’m discussing the book with Jin here, and you’re interrupting us. Is that polite? Why don’t you ask the literature teacher instead? Teacher Shen is right here-do you think Huaijin explains things better than her?”

Xinya’s expression faltered as she stole a glance at Teacher Shen, who was still calmly reading and seemed uninterested in intervening. Emboldened, Xinya retorted, “If I recall correctly, the book you’re discussing features Lan Ya as the second female lead, right? What’s there to discuss? Honestly, Lan Ya is so shameless, clinging to someone after a breakup.”

Her words were clearly aimed at Ruoxi, and the mention of “second female lead” only added fuel to the fire. Ruoxi stood up, furious, and snapped, “If it weren’t for people like you-privileged young ladies like Xu Wanrong, meddling like vixens-Lan Ya and Chu Ming wouldn’t have broken up in the first place!”

“Who are you calling a vixen?!” Xinya slammed her pen down and stood up, confronting Ruoxi.

Huaijin’s face turned as dark as coal. He hadn’t anticipated things escalating like this.

Yuerou, who had been quietly sipping tea and reading, had been keeping an eye on the situation. She quickly stepped in to mediate, saying, “Hey, it’s not that serious. It’s just a book…”

Teacher Shen, who had been unaware of the dynamics between Ruoxi and Huaijin until now, glanced at Huaijin with a meaningful look. Her voice was cold as she reprimanded them, “What kind of behavior is this? This is a reading club, not a quarrel club. Sit down and focus on your books.”

The two girls exchanged heated glares before reluctantly sitting back down on the sofa.

With the teacher present, Huaijin knew better than to intervene. He focused on staying out of the crossfire.

Ruoxi’s anger subsided after a while. She realized it wasn’t worth it-Xinya posed no real threat. Huaijin disliked girls who were stubborn and arrogant; his type was gentle, nurturing women. Besides, Yuerou had already told her that Xinya didn’t actually like Huaijin and was simply targeting her out of spite.

With this realization, Ruoxi’s mood improved significantly. She sat quietly on the sofa, reading her book, though it was clear she was plotting something in her mind.

Xinya also settled down, focusing on her questions. Seeing Huaijin’s dark expression, she dared not provoke him further. When she encountered difficulties, she asked him for help in a much more subdued manner.