When the Tsundere Rival Turns Into a Cat - Chapter 13

Jiang Qingyue averted her gaze, pretending to remain composed as she continued reading her book. She didn’t want others to know she was staying at Li Xingcan’s place—getting involved with Li Xingcan always seemed to invite more trouble.

Just then, their homeroom teacher, Old Yang, entered through the front door. Fu Duosui went to take her seat first, while Lin Xie stood at the back. Having just returned this semester, she didn’t have an assigned seat yet.

“Lin Xie, you’re back?” Yang Liusong noticed her standing there and came over for a closer look. “You haven’t changed a bit. Did you adjust well abroad?”

“It was alright, just the climate took some getting used to,” Lin Xie nodded. She, Fu Duosui, and Li Xingcan had grown up adapting to studying in different countries in phases, so it wasn’t much of an obstacle now.

“Good. Now that you’re back, focus on your studies.” Yang Liusong nodded, glancing at Lin Xie’s backpack. “No seat yet, right? We’re about to rearrange the seating anyway. Just set your things down for now—we’ll assign spots soon.”

Lin Xie agreed. Yang Liusong returned to the podium, checked the time, and saw that almost everyone had arrived. He clapped his hands. “Enough chatting. We’re reshuffling all seats today. If anyone has preferences, speak up now.”

Some wanted front-row seats due to poor eyesight, others preferred the window side, and a few hoped to sit with friends—discussions broke out in a lively clamor.

Yang Liusong sent someone to fetch an extra desk, then walked toward the back, eyeing Li Xingcan and Jiang Qingyue.

“Alright, no need for the two of you to keep glaring at each other. Today’s the day you get separated—new seats for both.”

Hearing this, Li Xingcan looked up at Yang Liusong. “I never said I wanted to switch.”

“Changed your mind now?” Yang Liusong pointed at her accusingly. “Weren’t you the one arguing with her earlier? So, switching or not?”

Li Xingcan glanced at Jiang Qingyue and cleared her throat. “Actually… staying is fine.”

“I want to switch.”

Before Li Xingcan could finish, Jiang Qingyue closed her book and addressed the teacher, ignoring Li Xingcan’s darkened expression.

Yang Liusong nodded. “Fine, we’ll move you. With your grades, sitting in the back isn’t ideal anyway. This’ll also keep Li Xingcan from bullying you.”

“Since when have I bullied her?” Li Xingcan nearly laughed in frustration. If anything, she was the one being bullied here!

Yang Liusong waved her off. “Right, right, none of your business. But Jiang Qingyue wanting to switch isn’t your concern either. Pipe down—you’ll stay here, and I’ll assign you a new deskmate.”

“No! I never agreed to that.” Li Xingcan crossed her arms defiantly. “No one’s taking this seat.”

Exasperated, Yang Liusong smacked the desk. These spoiled kids nowadays—so willful and unruly! “Fine, no one joins you. Enjoy sitting alone then. Jiang Qingyue, pack your things—you’re moving.”

If others couldn’t join, at least Jiang Qingyue could leave.

Jiang Qingyue opened her bag and began clearing her desk.

Frowning, Li Xingcan snatched her textbook. “You’re really leaving?”

Jiang Qingyue paused for a moment, reaching out to snatch back her textbook, but Li Xingcan dodged and kept it away. Meeting Li Xingcan’s insistent gaze demanding an answer, she bit her lower lip and replied firmly, “Change.”

Having gotten her answer, Li Xingcan’s furrowed brows relaxed, her expression turning blank. She stood up, slammed Jiang Qingyue’s textbook onto her desk with a loud thud, then turned and stormed out, the back door crashing against the wall with a deafening bang.

The classroom fell silent instantly. Yang Liusong, who had been discussing seating arrangements with other students, turned around and glanced around. “Who pissed her off this time?”

Jiang Qingyue watched Li Xingcan’s retreating figure, puzzled. She didn’t understand why Li Xingcan was so angry. Wasn’t it better for them to keep their distance and avoid recalling those awkward memories?

Li Xingcan left the teaching building and headed to the deserted laboratory building. Sitting by the floor-to-ceiling window on the top floor, she gazed at the bustling traffic outside the school, wanting some time alone to think.

Why was Jiang Qingyue so eager to stay away from her? She couldn’t figure it out.

The image of that beautiful little cat surfaced in her mind. As a cat, it had actively approached her, snuggling and acting affectionate in her arms. But as a human, Jiang Qingyue was desperate to put distance between them—was she trying to draw a clear line?

Was Jiang Qingyue really that cat? What was going on in her head? How could one person have such contrasting behaviors?

Her mind was full of questions, but then Li Xingcan suddenly realized something—Jiang Qingyue’s identity as the cat had been discovered purely by accident. Jiang Qingyue had never intended to tell her.

She had appeared before Li Xingcan in two forms—as the cat and as Jiang Qingyue. When Li Xingcan didn’t know they were the same, the cat had freely gotten close to her, while Jiang Qingyue kept her at arm’s length. Which of these two completely opposite attitudes was the real one?

The answer seemed obvious. As a cat, she didn’t have to consider past grudges, human interactions, or others’ judgments—she could act as she pleased.

In other words, her true feelings were reflected in the cat’s behavior. The distance she maintained now was only because of external pressures.

A sudden clarity washed over Li Xingcan. She felt she had uncovered the truth.

This also explained why the kitten had approached her so eagerly the first time they met, and why Jiang Qingyue had acted so awkwardly and strangely around her after their intimate moments as cat and human.

But why had she chosen to get close to Li Xingcan as a cat?

The image of Jiang Qingyue lying in her arms last night, flustered and blushing, flashed through Li Xingcan’s mind. She abruptly straightened up. No way…

Her heart pounded so hard it felt like it might leap out of her throat. Just the thought of this possibility made her dizzy, yet there was no other explanation.

After eliminating all impossibilities, the remaining answer, no matter how absurd, had to be the truth.

Did Jiang Qingyue… like her?

Wanting to be close but held back by shyness and their string of misunderstandings, she had deliberately taken the form of a cat to be by her side.

The more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed. A smile unconsciously crept onto Li Xingcan’s face, and her mood lightened considerably. So this was how it was—all the recent distancing was Jiang Qingyue’s way of avoiding her out of embarrassment after the accidental exposure of the incident, mixed with a dose of her usual reserve.

It absolutely had to be this. Jiang Qingyue had always been the awkward type—reserved and introverted. There was no way she’d admit her feelings directly, hence all this contradictory behavior.

Come to think of it, if Jiang Qingyue had confessed outright… Li Xingcan probably wouldn’t have accepted it anyway?

Before this, Li Xingcan had never given romance a single thought. She hadn’t even considered whether her future partner might be male or female, let alone the possibility of Jiang Qingyue—someone she’d only known for a short while, and with whom she’d had numerous misunderstandings until recently.

So should she actually develop feelings for Jiang Qingyue?

Her thoughts spiraled further as Li Xingcan began carefully considering Jiang Qingyue’s character. Admittedly, though she always wore that cold expression and said things Li Xingcan didn’t want to hear, she was undeniably beautiful—cool and elegant as her name suggested, especially when she blushed, which brought her features to life.

Yesterday, standing before her in borrowed clothes with flushed cheeks and lowered gaze, Jiang Qingyue had bitten her lip slightly when looking up to whisper her request for secrecy—those moist eyes filled with nervous fragility, like a timid kitten.

Her heart skipped a beat, and Li Xingcan felt her own face grow warm. Shaking her head to regain composure, she chided herself—how shallow to focus only on appearances!

But what if Jiang Qingyue, now human, approached her like an affectionate kitten seeking attention?

Just the thought made her face burn crimson. Li Xingcan clutched her head—she really couldn’t entertain these thoughts any longer!!

Two class periods passed before Li Xingcan slowly returned to the classroom. Upon entering, she noticed a major seating rearrangement—her neighboring desk stood empty again. Looking forward, she saw Jiang Qingyue had been moved to the second row, now seated beside a classmate Li Xingcan barely knew.

Lin Xie’s seat was also in the front rows—her academic performance being notably better than Li Xingcan’s or Fu Duosui’s—placing her just one aisle away from Jiang Qingyue.

“Where were you?” came Fu Duosui’s voice. Li Xingcan turned to find Fu Duosui and her deskmate relegated to the spare seats in the very back row.

“Skipping class, obviously,” Li Xingcan replied, taking her seat and opening the drink Fu Duosui had tossed her earlier. Her gaze remained fixed on Jiang Qingyue’s upright posture in the front—even without seeing her face, she could picture her diligently taking notes.

Fu Duosui opened her mouth to say more, but the class bell interrupted. A unfamiliar teacher entered—a young woman in her twenties wearing glasses and a white maxi dress, her intellectual elegance drawing awed murmurs from the class.

“Good morning, students. Your previous teacher Mr. Zhang has taken extended leave, so starting today I’ll be handling your English curriculum. Let me introduce myself—I’m Zheng Wenbai. I hope we’ll have a pleasant term together.”

Jiang Qingyue looked up, meeting Zheng Wenbai’s gaze directly. The teacher smiled at her, surprising Jiang Qingyue—she’d assumed “Auntie Zheng” would be middle-aged, never expecting someone so youthful.

Similarly, Li Xingcan in the back row also turned her gaze to Zheng Wenbai, noticing the interaction between Zheng Wenbai and Jiang Qingyue—they seemed to know each other.

Her eyes filled with curiosity, Li Xingcan hadn’t yet figured it out when Zheng Wenbai suddenly looked her way. Their eyes met briefly before Zheng Wenbai casually averted her gaze as if nothing had happened.

The novelty of the new teacher made the class unusually lively. After an initial glance, Li Xingcan spent the rest of the time catching up on sleep, having had a poor night’s rest and no chance to nap that morning.

The class passed quickly, and the ringing of the bell woke Li Xingcan. She lifted her head to see that Zheng Wenbai hadn’t delayed the dismissal, ending right on time. However, instead of leaving, Zheng Wenbai walked over to Jiang Qingyue’s desk, tapped on it, and then Jiang Qingyue followed her out.

So, they really did know each other.

Li Xingcan’s drowsiness vanished instantly. She stood up and slipped out through the back door, trailing after them.

The moment class ended, the hallway flooded with students like a swarm of locusts. Despite the short distance between the front and back doors, the crowd was so thick that Li Xingcan lost sight of the two. Frustrated, she kicked the corridor wall.

Meanwhile, Jiang Qingyue followed Zheng Wenbai toward the faculty office, chatting as they walked. With only ten minutes between classes, they skipped the pleasantries. Zheng Wenbai briefly explained her relationship with Xuan Yu and mentioned that the items were in her teacher’s apartment, which Jiang Qingyue could retrieve anytime. She also brought up the offer for Jiang Qingyue to move in again.

The teacher’s apartment was located within the school grounds. Fuhua High School, being well-funded, provided excellent accommodations—the apartment was designed for comfortable living, more than spacious enough for both Zheng Wenbai and Jiang Qingyue.

This time, Jiang Qingyue didn’t hesitate and agreed immediately.

After the awkward incident the previous night, she had no idea how to continue living under the same roof as Li Xingcan. Moving out now was the best solution.

“That’s great. Let’s move your things over this afternoon,” Zheng Wenbai suggested, knowing Jiang Qingyue was a day student and could easily manage the move during dinner break.

“My belongings are still at the Li residence. Maybe tomorrow? I can just bring my suitcase—there isn’t much to move anyway.”

Evening self-study sessions ended late, and though the Li household wasn’t far from school, Jiang Qingyue didn’t want to trouble anyone with an extra trip. She preferred handling things herself without inconveniencing others.

“That works too. Here’s a spare key.” Zheng Wenbai handed her the key and gave her the apartment number.

Just as the next class bell was about to ring, Jiang Qingyue nodded and turned to leave.

Li Xingcan, still sulking in the hallway, spotted Jiang Qingyue returning and immediately stepped forward to speak—only to be cut off by the shrill bell.

She had no choice but to return to class. There was only one more period before lunch break anyway—she could ask then.