Chapter 55: Entering Your Heart

Wen Xiao stared at Huo Zhanyan, then glanced at the drenched Ye Heng, and finally took a soft breath, saying in a low voice, "You really haven't changed at all."

Meeting his gaze, Huo Zhanyan felt as if his heart had been gently pricked, experiencing a pain he had never felt before.

He never cared what other people thought of him—whether they liked him or hated him—yet only Wen Xiao possessed the power to stir his emotions.

What infuriated him even more was that the look Wen Xiao had just given him felt less like he was looking at him, and more like he was looking right through him at someone else.

He took a step forward, wanting to say something more, but ultimately could only watch as Wen Xiao pulled Ye Heng away, without casting a single glance back at him.

Huo Zhanyan scratched his red hair, an indescribable irritability churning in his chest.

He desperately wanted to grab Wen Xiao's hand and tell him not to look at him with such unfamiliar eyes; he was truly on the verge of going crazy.

Wen Xiao grabbed Ye Heng's arm, only releasing him after they had walked a certain distance.

Even now, his emotions remained somewhat turbulent. Probably only he knew in his heart that the things he had said to Huo Zhanyan were not nearly as cold as his expression suggested.

On the contrary, massive ripples were crashing within his own heart.

He hadn't wanted to speak to Huo Zhanyan like that, but when the other man overlapped with the image of Huo Zhanyan in his mind, he couldn't help but overthink and act in ways that felt completely out of character.

Was Huo Zhanyan's targeted hostility toward Ye Heng due to a clash of personalities, or was it because of the plot—the fact that Huo Zhanyan was simply bound to pay more attention to Ye Heng?

Ye Heng also stopped, offering him a shy smile. His round apricot eyes still held a trace of gratitude. "Thank you."

If not for Wen Xiao, he would still be trapped in that spot, being harassed and mocked by those people.

Wen Xiao sighed, his tone tinged with helplessness as he said, "I'll apologize to you on Huo Zhanyan's behalf. He actually... doesn't have a bad heart at heart."

In the line of sight of both Ye Heng and Wei Nanxing, Wen Xiao gently bent his waist and bowed to Ye Heng to express his apology.

Regardless of whether Huo Zhanyan was still the Huo Zhanyan of the past, he probably could no longer stand aside and do nothing.

Because they were friends; if Huo Zhanyan made a mistake, he would do everything in his power to make up for Huo Zhanyan's faults.

"Xiaoxiao." Wei Nanxing walked over and pulled Wen Xiao back. He didn't understand why Xiaoxiao had to apologize so solemnly to Ye Heng.

Because in his eyes, Ye Heng wasn't worth it, and neither was Huo Zhanyan.

Ye Heng had ulterior motives in approaching Xiaoxiao, while Huo Zhanyan had caused Xiaoxiao countless amounts of trouble since they were kids.

Ye Heng's pupils contracted slightly. Looking at the young man before him who was apologizing on Huo Zhanyan's behalf, a flash of light flickered in the depths of his eyes, resembling self-mockery.

Why on earth did an idiot like Huo Zhanyan have someone so single-mindedly devoted to treating him well?

Because of good fortune? Because he was the eldest young master of the Huo family, because they had grown up together, sharing ten years of history?

It was truly enviable.

Ye Heng sneered inwardly, yet his face revealed not even a hint of it. Instead, he looked at Wen Xiao, his eyes filled with curiosity.

Wen Xiao, you don't know. They only hide their sharp fangs and claws in front of you. It's only when facing others that they tear off their facades.

Ye Heng fluttered his hands in a flustered manner, looking somewhat at a loss, and whispered, "Classmate Wen, you don't need to apologize for anyone. I'm not blaming you guys..."

Seeing Wei Nanxing holding his hand, Wen Xiao couldn't help looking up at him, soothing him with a counter-gesture before blinking playfully.

"Whether Huo Zhanyan made a mistake or you made a mistake, I would still do this."

Wen Xiao pondered for a moment. As for why—if he couldn't change anyone else, he would simply do what he ought to do. If Huo Zhanyan truly hurt someone, as his friend, he would do his utmost to help the victim and secure their forgiveness.

Who told him to have claimed this friend so long ago? Doing this could lessen some people's hostility toward Huo Zhanyan while simultaneously soothing the emotions of the classmates hurt by him.

Wei Nanxing's grip tightened slightly, and he suddenly felt a strong impulse to hug Wen Xiao. But remembering that other people were present, Wei Nanxing looked up and glared at Ye Heng instead.

Sensing Wei Nanxing's mood, Wen Xiao patted the back of his hand and said, "Alright, if it breaks your heart and you don't want me to do this, then don't make mistakes yourself, understand?"

Wei Nanxing remained silent upon hearing this, earning a surprised look from Wen Xiao. Seeing Wei Nanxing press his lips together without uttering a word, Wen Xiao couldn't help asking, "Don't tell me you want to learn from Huo Zhanyan too?"

Hearing Wen Xiao put it that way, Wei Nanxing shook his head.

He only wanted to ask Xiaoxiao... did the act of loving you count as making a mistake?

The group of them stood on the path beside the lawn. On one side was the spacious lawn basking in sunlight, while on the other side stood tall phoenix trees.

Students coming out of class walked past in groups along the main path nearby, while some students in sportswear were playing football on the lawn.

Wen Xiao saw Ye Heng standing under the tree with lowered head; because he was completely drenched, he repeatedly attracted the gazes of passing students. Yet he seemed helpless under such scrutiny, merely clasping his hands tightly together like a student awaiting punishment.

That appearance made one want to bully him.

For some reason, Wen Xiao thought of Wei Nanxing. A long, long time ago, Wei Nanxing had seemed just like this—looking like an abandoned little animal, not daring to look up at him, as if entirely out of place with the surrounding environment.

At this thought, he glanced at Wei Nanxing. The other was now a head taller than him, looking at him with a gaze that remained forever focused, never wandering anywhere else.

Although Wei Nanxing was vastly different from his childhood self, through the familiarity of years spent together, Wen Xiao could still recognize at a glance that young, frail shadow lingering within him.

He thought to himself that Wei Nanxing was still different; he was not like Ye Heng.

Wen Xiao said to Ye Heng, "Go back and change into a dry set of clothes first. If you run into something like this again, absolutely do not swallow your anger in silence. It's their problem for bullying you, it's not your fault."

"If Huo Zhanyan continues to trouble you, you can tell me."

Thinking of what Huo Zhanyan had said to him earlier, Wen Xiao internally lamented Huo Zhanyan's peculiar train of thought—wondering why he cared so much that he was standing up for Ye Heng, and getting mad at him on Ye Heng's behalf.

The point that angered him was clearly the fact that Huo Zhanyan was bullying a classmate.

Even if it wasn't Ye Heng, if it were switched to any other classmate, he would still be angry. Did Huo Zhanyan really not understand at all?

After Ye Heng left first, Wen Xiao turned his attention back to Wei Nanxing.

Remembering how he had clearly promised Wei Nanxing in the classroom last time that he would stay away from Ye Heng, he hadn't expected that they would bump into each other every single time instead, and not only that, he would even step forward to help.

By doing so, was the promise he made to Wei Nanxing invalidated?

"Last time in the classroom I clearly promised you that I'd stay away from Ye Heng..." Wen Xiao had barely started when Wei Nanxing pressed down on his shoulders.

Wei Nanxing's lips moved slightly, struggling to control the heartbeat pounding in his chest. Stepping in close, he whispered softly by his ear, "Xiaoxiao, I love you just like this."

I love you when you protect others, I love you when your heart softens, and I love you when you step forward no matter the time.

And precisely because Xiaoxiao was this kind of Xiaoxiao, they had met in the first place, and Ye Heng was merely exploiting the innate traits of Xiaoxiao's character.

If Xiaoxiao weren't this kind of Xiaoxiao, he wouldn't have been held so deeply in his heart and yearned for across all these years.

Assuming a person had a thousand different faces, he would love Xiaoxiao's one thousand and first face, with that extra one always waiting in the very next second.

"You are never the one who needs to change," Wei Nanxing said softly.

On the way walking toward the dining hall, Wen Xiao spotted Song Jingbai from afar. The other was standing in front of a corridor covered in climbing roses, waving at him from a distance.

This corridor was the mandatory route from the teaching building where they had just had class to the dining hall. The walkway was blanketed with blooming pale purple climbing roses, exuding a rich fragrance.

Benches were arranged on both sides, and many students frequented the spot to take photos and rest.

Song Jingbai walked up to Wen Xiao, observed him for a moment, and then asked, "Xiaoxiao, who made you mad?"

"No one," Wen Xiao replied, shaking his head. He had no desire to turn his recent incident with Huo Zhanyan into common knowledge.

"Then let's go eat first. What class does Xiaoxiao want to grab slots for later?" Song Jingbai asked with a smile, looking up at Wei Nanxing as he spoke.

Aside from regular academic major courses, students at Slanert Noble High School were scheduled for two to three physical education classes every week, and after-class time was frequently spent engaging in various extracurricular activities to maintain a balance between academics and life.

Wen Xiao thought for a moment. "Fencing."

Unlike other schools, Slanert Boys' High School offered over sixty physical education courses, requiring students to snatch up slots for certain classes as a regulatory measure.

This prevented the majority of students from concentrating on the same single course and kept teachers from being overwhelmed by excessive class sizes, leading to the establishment of enrollment caps.

Consequently, grabbing classes had become an absolute necessity.

Upon returning to his dormitory, Wen Xiao opened his computer and logged into the campus official website backend.

There were still eight minutes left before course registration opened, so Wen Xiao casually clicked on the adjacent forum. Aside from information exchange and academic discussions, the majority of the content consisted of casual chatting and idle water-cooler talk.

To categorize these contents, the forum featured specific sections, and he quickly noticed a striking thread title.

[Did the F5 have a falling out? Is the sky at Slanert about to change?]

What kind of bizarre title was that? Wen Xiao clicked inside to take a look and discovered that all the discussions referred to the exact scene of his argument with Huo Zhanyan earlier.

Floor 2: I saw it with my own eyes; the two of them actually got into a fight? Did the sun rise from the west today?

Floor 5: Huo Zhanyan getting angry isn't strange, but getting angry at Wen Xiao is weird. Built on a brotherhood of growing up wearing the same pair of pants, are they really going to sever ties here? Looks like wearing one pair of pants isn't secure enough; you've got to wear a few extra layers.

Floor 6: Don't want to get caught in the crossfire—seeing Huo Zhanyan and walking the other way is definitely the right move.

Floor 10: It's just Huo Zhanyan acting up; your title is quite misleading. The relationship between the rest of them is as good as ever. This morning I even saw Wei Nanxing feeding Wen Xiao food.

Floor 20: How did it become F5? Wasn't it F4?

Floor 21: Didn't you know? Ever since the Leng family's young master came back, we've all started calling them F5.

Floor 23: You're all saying they've broken up, but I bet they'll make up immediately. Just wait and watch if you don't believe me.

...

Seeing this, Wen Xiao withdrew his gaze. Huo Zhanyan, the person who usually loved sending him messages the most, hadn't sent a single thing. Wen Xiao tossed his phone aside and began logging into the course selection backend.

Suddenly, a knock sounded at the door. Wen Xiao opened it to find Song Jingbai, who was tucking his laptop under his arm and gave Wen Xiao a smile. "Xiaoxiao, can I come in and grab our classes together here?"