If the world had no daytime (GL) - Chapter 3

A week into their first year of senior high school, the initial excitement that had stirred the school began to gradually subside.

After all, the first monthly exam was not far off. And at No. 7 High School, every exam was of utmost importance, as it directly impacted the rankings between classes.

For a time, the corridors were much quieter during breaks. The area in front of Class B was particularly deserted. Students from Class A who went over to chat with their acquaintances were startled to find that almost everyone was staying in the classroom to study.

Someone commented with a chuckle, “Maybe they still remember the shame of being overtaken by the bottom-ranked Class F.”

Everyone laughed heartily, then tacitly returned to their textbooks to review.

The classroom was a bit noisy after the morning self-study session. Bai Tian sat in her seat, half-asleep, being relentlessly bombarded with chatter by Liu Ran.

She sometimes couldn’t understand why Liu Ran could talk so much without taking a breath. Did being a little overweight give you bigger lung capacity?

“Boss, boss, do you know why Old Bald Li was transferred to the senior high school department?”

“How would I know? Could it be to torture me?”

Bai Tian was annoyed just thinking about it. She had been so happy thinking that she could finally escape his clutches after graduating from junior high school. She had been so elated that she felt like she could fly. Who would have thought that she would have jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire?

Glancing at the empty chair on her right, Bai Tian felt a headache coming on.

“I heard it was because of the principal’s daughter,” Liu Ran lowered his voice.

When Bai Tian suddenly heard those words, her temples started throbbing.

She just wanted Liu Ran to shut up right now.

But Liu Ran couldn’t read her mind and poured out all the information he had gathered.

No. 7 High School, as the city’s top-performing high school, had countless people vying to get in every year.

The threshold was equally high for both the junior and senior high school departments. Because compared to taking the entrance exam from an external school, it was easier to be directly promoted from the junior high school department. This indirectly led to even more people wanting to squeeze into the junior high school department, creating a vicious cycle.

But no matter how high the threshold was, students still flocked to it.

A prestigious school, in addition to gathering thousands of outstanding students, was more importantly defined by its faculty.

The fact that No. 7 High School could consistently maintain the city’s top admission rate was undoubtedly a testament to the capabilities of its teaching staff.

For Bai Tian, Old Bald Li was a fat, bald, grumpy old man. He had a hot temper and was very picky, always picking on her. He could be considered the nightmare of her junior high school life.

But this didn’t stop Bai Tian from knowing that Old Bald Li was a good teacher.

Because Old Bald Li – Mr. Li Xuemin, was the ace teacher of No. 7 High School.

Rumor has it that Old Bald Li was supposed to retire right after his students finished their junior high school exams this past semester. Given his age, it was about time.

But for some unknown reason, not only did he not retire, but he was actually transferred to the senior high school department.

You know, the pressure in the junior high and senior high school departments is on completely different levels. Many well-behaved junior high students enter a prolonged period of adolescent rebellion in high school, causing much more trouble than the naughtiest kids in junior high.

And the academic pressure at No. 7 High School is especially intense. Students with poor stress tolerance can easily go to extremes, and even the most trivial conflicts can lead to irreversible tragedies.

So, logically speaking, Old Bald Li is really too old to teach in the senior high school department. If something happens to his health, no one can be held responsible.

However, not only did this rather unusual thing happen, but the principal’s daughter also happened to be assigned to his class.

On the surface, these two things seem unrelated and even quite reasonable. After all, he’s a teacher exclusive to the Class A, and she’s always been the top student in her grade.

But in reality, this top student only entered the Class A for the first time in senior high school. For all three years of junior high, she had been stuck in the Class C. It was as if she were a child who had been switched at birth, living in a place that wasn’t hers, and yet no one, including herself, had objected.

No. 7 High School is different from other schools; it’s a place where everything is based on merit.

To get into the Class A, ranking in the entrance exam is just a basic qualification. The real key is the student’s overall performance for the entire previous academic year.

Not only that, but even after getting into Class A, you could still be replaced by someone who scored higher in the new academic year—at No. 7 High School, anyone has the chance to get into the Class A, as long as you can score high enough.

So that’s where things get illogical.

Someone who could have entered the Class A at any time in the past three years but seemed to disdain it, suddenly got into the Class A.

At the same time, a top-notch teacher who was originally going to retire was suddenly transferred to the senior high department and continued to lead the Class A.

It’s hard not to connect these two events and speculate.

Liu Ran told this gossip with great confidence, while Bai Tian listened, half-asleep.

“So, Old Bald Li was probably kept on by the principal. He’s our school’s top teacher after all. With him teaching the principal’s daughter in senior high, it’s definitely better than having any other teacher,” he mumbled, slurring his words as he shared the gossip he had heard.

Not interested in hearing gossip she didn’t care about, Bai Tian yawned and said impatiently,

“How can you keep your mouth shut while you’re eating? Try to say less about this kind of gossip in the future. Don’t forget that the people involved are in our class.”

Liu Ran wiped his mouth, looked up at her, and was completely shocked. “I can’t believe I heard such a serious statement from you. I must not be awake.”

Bai Tian raised her hand and hit him hard on the fleshiest part of his arm. Liu Ran let out a yelp and jumped up.

You hit a snake, you hit its head. Liu Ran wasn’t a snake, but his upper arm was his head.

“Such a cruel woman!” Liu Ran took a bite of his pancake and quickly left before Bai Tian could kick him.

The bell rang for class, and Bai Tian strongly suspected that the school’s timetable lived in Liu Ran’s head, otherwise, how could he always be so punctual.

The first class was most likely Old Bald Li’s. Bai Tian rubbed her neck, put her textbook under her desk, and buried her head in it to sleep.

The seat to her right was gently pulled out, and a cool breeze blew past, carrying a familiar scent.

A light fragrance, not as strong and pungent as perfume, nor the chemical smell of shampoo.

For a whole week of school, Bai Tian had gotten used to smelling this scent every day when she sat in the classroom.

It was better than the smell of sweat from the stinky boys, she comforted herself, and then closed her eyes and continued to doze off, turning her back on the person next to her.

In contrast to her, the person who had just sat down took out their textbook and stationery neatly, placed them on the desk, and then looked at the teacher who had already entered the classroom and said, “Stand up.”

Sparse voices sounded. Bai Tian, hidden in the corner by the window in the last row, didn’t stand up.

“Salute.”

A neat and tidy “Good morning, teacher” was drawn out. Bai Tian yawned quietly and remained motionless, lying on her desk.

The seats in the class were arranged according to height. Girls developed earlier than boys, so most of the tall students at this time were girls, occupying the back few rows.

But Bai Tian was an exception.

Her height was neither tall nor short in the class, and her developing body was on the thinner side, making her look like a little girl. She should have been sitting in the front three rows.

But Old Bald Li had been her homeroom teacher for three years and knew her character all too well, so he simply sent her to the corner so she wouldn’t disturb others.

As for sitting next to the class monitor, it’s hard to say if there was any intention to suppress and control her.

But he was destined to be disappointed.

For a week since the start of school, Bai Tian has remained exactly the same. She had no intention of learning from her deskmate, and her deskmate seemed to turn a blind eye to it.

Old Bald Li stood on the podium, taking in everyone below. The eyes hidden behind his thick glasses swept across his students, pausing for a moment in the corner.

He sighed inaudibly and clasped the textbook behind his back with one hand, while the other hand picked up a piece of chalk and began lecturing.

“…When a > 1, the exponential function is monotonically increasing…”

Bai Tian actually enjoyed listening to Old Bald Li’s lectures, because his voice had a hypnotic quality. Soon she was fast asleep and had a good dream for the first time in a long time.

Ten minutes later, the snoring from the corner grew louder and louder. Old Bald Li on the podium couldn’t stand it anymore and turned around, throwing the chalk eraser at the dark, fluffy head.

“Ouch!” Bai Tian sat up instantly.

“Who hit me!”

The classroom was quiet for a moment, then burst into laughter.

The person sitting next to Bai Tian couldn’t help but laugh. She picked up the chalk eraser from Bai Tian’s desk and whispered, “Teacher Li is watching you.”

Bai Tian finally came to her senses.

She blinked, looked at Old Bald Li’s increasingly dark face, and very consciously stood up and went to the back of the door.

Whenever this happened, she was always exceptionally obedient, leaving others with no way to vent their anger.

The person holding the chalk eraser watched her while playing with the small white chalk, then put away her smile.

Bai Tian, very unfortunately, caught this moment. She reflexively avoided the other person’s gaze and stiffened her back, beginning her silent reflection.

For the rest of the class, Bai Tian felt like a deer caught in headlights, extremely uncomfortable.

She was very sensitive to the gazes others directed at her, and she could feel them even with her back turned. And she knew that the other person felt the same way about her.

That was why she had avoided making eye contact with the other person as much as possible for a week, even avoiding any extra glances. If she could, she hoped that they would have no interaction until graduation.

Probably only Bai Tian was so afraid of her. Because in fact, in everyone’s eyes, Bai Tian’s deskmate was a perfect person.

From a good family, top grades, and beautiful, she seemed to have everything.

And yet, she was also so kind that it was impossible to fault her. She would never refuse anyone’s request, she was generous with her knowledge, she was articulate, and she was kind to everyone. So kind that even girls of the same age couldn’t feel jealous.

If someone is a little better than you, you might feel unbalanced, you might develop a dislike for them, and even hate them because of it.

But if that person is so much better than you, you’re left with nothing but admiration, because that feeling of being out of reach is just too powerless, and there’s not even room for a bit of jealousy.

Even Bai Tian herself, during this time together, had gradually been bewildered by everything the other person had revealed.

She was too harmless, so harmless that Bai Tian had unconsciously doubted herself several times.

Was the person she saw that day really Ye Wan?

Ye Wan propped her head up with one hand and wrote out the solution process on her notebook in two or three steps with her left hand, then drew a perfect answer at the end.

Questions of this level were already boringly simple.

She focused her eyes on the person on the podium, and occasionally when her eyes met the other person’s, she would give them a more serious look, which would earn her an appreciative look from the other person.

A smile spread in her heart, then turned into boredom the next second.

She couldn’t help but glance at the person standing in the corner behind the door. Her gaze was straightforward and full of concern, but it made the other person even more resistant.

Yes, resistant.

Her new deskmate was very resistant to any contact with her.

And yet, she thought she was hiding it well, but she didn’t know how obvious the contrast was when she was polite and distant to herself while being indifferent to everyone else.

Ye Wan retracted her gaze and lowered her head to outline the key points of this chapter in her textbook.

So-called details determine success, and beautiful class notes were also one of the hallmarks of a “top student.”

••••

“Boss, boss, I’m here!”

Liu Ran’s voice came from the crowd, and Bai Tian looked at the various gazes directed at her, mentally whipping the little fat boy eight hundred times.

She walked over and sat down with her tray, throwing the Yakult to him.

“Thanks, boss!” Liu Ran happily took it and inserted a straw to drink.

The cafeteria was already full of people. Liu Ran was always one of the first to rush to the cafeteria, although his size didn’t seem to suggest it. Whenever the cafeteria auntie mentally counted down “The enemy has three minutes to reach the battlefield,” Liu Ran had already rushed into the cafeteria door. The so-called flexible fat man was none other than Liu Ran himself.

His plate was already empty. The reason he was sitting here waiting for the slow-moving Bai Tian was so he could drink another bottle of Yakult.

“Starting next week, the school won’t be giving out Yakult anymore. They’re switching to pure milk.”

Bai Tian watched with satisfaction as Liu Ran’s face fell in disappointment. She picked up her chopsticks and began to eat her braised beef noodle soup.

Liu Ran loved to eat anything and everything, and although he was chubby, he was not picky. If there was anything he absolutely wouldn’t eat, it would be pure milk.

This stemmed from a traumatic childhood incident, but we won’t go into that now.

But Liu Ran’s heart was as big as his waistline. He quickly forgot about this setback and started his daily gossip.

“Do you remember that class flower from Class D we saw at the snack street on the day of our junior high graduation ceremony?’ he lowered his voice, sounding mysterious.

Bai Tian paused, then stuffed a piece of beef into her mouth and asked slowly, “What about her?”

“She transferred schools. It happened last Friday.”

Today was Monday, so it had only been a few days.

Bai Tian had a faint guess in her mind, but she didn’t think too deeply about it. This matter had nothing to do with her originally, and now she didn’t want to get involved.

“Why did she transfer after the school started? I remember her parents were both teachers at the neighboring No. 3 High School. It definitely wasn’t because of a move. My cousin goes to No. 3 High School, and his homeroom teacher is her dad.”

Bai Tian ate her noodles without responding.

But Liu Ran didn’t think anything was wrong. They had grown up together since childhood, and he was used to Bai Tian’s personality. Although it was impolite in the eyes of others, Bai Tian’s flaws were more than just being impolite.

Liu Ran sucked on the already empty bottle, reluctantly put it down, and continued to talk to himself, “I think it must have something to do with that vocational school boy. This is big news! I have to go find out if that boy transferred too.”

“Alright, alright, so what if she transferred? Just take care of yourself. The monthly exam is coming up, if your grades don’t improve, be careful your mom spanks you.”

Liu Ran was unmoved. He looked at Bai Tian indignantly and said confidently, “You can question my academic performance, but you can’t question my professional sense as a news gatherer!’”

“My gut tells me this is big news.”

‘Kid, your gut is right,’ Bai Tian thought to herself, but she couldn’t say it, and she couldn’t let Liu Ran continue to focus on this matter.

“I heard that once they hand out the pure milk, we have to drink it, we can’t throw it away or take it home. Why don’t you go ask Old Bald Li about the truth of this matter?”

Liu Ran groaned and quickly slipped away with his tray.

Bai Tian shook her head and sighed again, thinking that this kid was so easily fooled.

No. 7 High School gave students plenty of time for lunch breaks, after all, the school was also concerned about the students’ physical and mental health. They had to give the children enough rest time in order to study efficiently.

When Bai Tian was in junior high, she would skip class starting from lunchtime. There was a short wall behind the junior high school building, and Bai Tian could easily climb over it. She would often make Old Bald Li search for her all over the place, and then she would be punished by copying the school rules a hundred times.

Usually, it was Liu Ran who copied and handed in the assignment, just so he could eat a meal cooked by Bai Tian.

Because of this, Liu Ran’s ability to imitate Bai Tian’s handwriting had reached a point where it was almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

Bai Tian finished her meal and strolled leisurely behind the auditorium of the senior high building.

She hadn’t fully explored this area yet and hadn’t found the most suitable place to slack off.

There were too many people in the senior high building, and it was the time when the broadcast station was most active during lunch break, so it was really difficult for Bai Tian to find a quiet place.

Luckily, the auditorium was very close to the swimming pool, and it was completely away from the teaching buildings. She couldn’t hear the annoying sound of the broadcast station anymore.

Bai Tian wandered into the small grove behind the auditorium and found that this place was very cool, but there were a lot of mosquitoes. She was still hesitating about whether to stay here for a while when she heard footsteps coming from the corridor on the right-hand side.

Bai Tian stopped and listened to the sound getting closer. Soon, a small figure ran out crying, quickly crossed the corridor, and ran towards the teaching building.

She frowned, staring at the dirty and brownish-red bloodstains on the other person’s white uniform, and hesitated a little.

Was she just unlucky?

Or was it not a good idea to be in a secluded place?

Bai Tian thought for a moment, but decided not to go any further. She changed direction, walked up the steps onto the corridor, and started walking back.

The building next to the grove was the experimental building, which was not very large, and there was another corner after a few steps. Bai Tian was lost in thought and walked forward with her head down, unexpectedly bumping into someone.

She didn’t expect anyone to be there and was startled. She looked up and before her surprise could subside, her expression froze.

The other person gently supported her and, seeing her expression, raised her slender and gentle eyebrows. It was a subtle movement, but in Bai Tian’s eyes, it was magnified infinitely.

Bai Tian quickly came to her senses. The image of the girl who had just run past flashed through her mind. She pretended not to notice anything and greeted the other person as usual, “Class monitor, it’s you. Sorry, I wasn’t looking.”

As if realizing that she seemed too friendly, Bai Tian returned to her usual indifferent look, and without waiting for the other person to reply, she turned around and left on her own.

After all, she had always been averse to socializing, and in everyone’s eyes, she was impolite and uneducated. It would be strange if she suddenly became polite.

Bai Tian didn’t know how late her realization was. If she had realized this earlier, no, there were no ifs in this world.

So when she was grabbed by the person behind her, Bai Tian was momentarily stunned and forgot to react.

“Did you see it?” the person behind her asked, her voice completely lacking the usual gentle pretense.

Bai Tian wasn’t sure what she was asking about.

She had seen both things, but she definitely couldn’t admit it.

So she took a deep breath without a trace and turned around, asking blankly, “What?”

The girl who was slightly taller than her looked at her, and Bai Tian only then realized that her eyes were a pure black. When she wasn’t smiling, this black was very unsettling.

But Bai Tian had no way to retreat. At this moment, any evasive expression would be evidence.

So she looked at the other person calmly, and the air between them suddenly became completely still.

A long, unknown period of staring ended with the broadcast from the teaching building in the distance, and the bell rang for the end of lunch break.

So the person who was holding Bai Tian’s hand let go.

As the class monitor, she had to return to the classroom for her lunch break.

Bai Tian breathed a sigh of relief, but the next second she knew she had relaxed too soon.

“Come back to the classroom with me.”

The girl standing in front of her showed a slight expression between a smile and no smile. Her eyebrows lifted slightly, and a hint of a mischievous smile appeared in her black eyes.

“Teacher Li asked me to help you, so let’s start by not skipping class.”

Bai Tian had known from the first day of school that her senior high school life would not be easy.

But in her imagination, her biggest enemy was Old Bald Li, who was always watching her.

Even though she saw an unknown side of her deskmate, Bai Tian felt that it had nothing to do with her. No matter how scary a person was, as long as she didn’t provoke them, she could protect herself.

But Bai Tian didn’t know, or rather didn’t know yet.

The most common thing in the world is the thing you don’t want to happen.

T/N: Exactly, because everything happens for a reason.