Chapter 6: I Also Choose Liberal Arts

Wen Wan Ning was just about to stand up when the bell rang, signaling the end of class.

Shen Jia Yan tugged at the corner of her clothes and said slowly, “It’s fine, I’m feeling much better. No need to trouble yourself.”

“You’re coughing like that. You need to drink some water to soothe it. You can’t keep dry-coughing like this.” Wen Wan Ning insisted.

Shen Jia Yan glanced at Wen Wan Ning’s water cup. “Don’t go.” A sly smile crept onto the corners of her mouth. “Can I drink your water?”

Wen Wan Ning had a mild case of germaphobia, but looking at Shen Jia Yan, she didn’t seem to mind her drinking from it the way she would if it were someone else touching her things. She smiled faintly and said, “Sure.” Then she picked up her own water cup and handed it to her.

Shen Jia Yan knew about Wen Wan Ning’s mild germaphobia. She had only asked tentatively, fully prepared for rejection. But unexpectedly, she got permission. She was so happy that it was as if her earlier discomfort had never happened. She took the cup and gulped down a big mouthful.

“Ss—ha—” She immediately spat out half of it. Sticking out her tongue, she held the cup in her left hand and fanned her tongue with her right. “It’s so hot.”

Wen Wan Ning watched her antics and couldn’t help but chuckle. “Don’t rush. Drink slowly. The water in the cup is hot—I just filled it not long ago.” She took the cup and set it on the desk. “Let it cool for a bit before drinking.”

“Okay.”

Wen Wan Ning sat back down in her seat and asked Shen Jia Yan, “I heard Liu Mingxun and Jiang Hanyu didn’t finish the whole run. You didn’t complete it either, right?”

Judging from Shen Jia Yan’s exhausted appearance and the time she returned, she figured Shen Jia Yan must have run the full distance.

Coughing as she replied, Shen Jia Yan said, “Yeah, cough cough, that five kilometers was no joke. It nearly killed me, cough cough. When I saw Liu Mingxun and the others give up, I wanted to quit too. But I thought, we’re already here, and if none of the three from our class finish, it wouldn’t look good. So I gritted my teeth and pushed through.”

Shen Jia Yan always managed to surprise Wen Wan Ning. She hadn’t expected a girl to accomplish what two boys couldn’t, and she admired her for it.

But as her desk mate, classmate, and friend, Wen Wan Ning didn’t fully approve of her approach.

With a mix of heartache and reproach in her tone, she said, “Some things can’t all depend on you alone. Others can give up when they should—why can’t you? Your physical condition isn’t suited for long-distance running. You should have stopped there and not done anything that could harm your body.”

Shen Jia Yan was about to say something when she coughed a few more times.

Wen Wan Ning quickly continued, “See? Coughing again.” She picked up the cup and blew on the rim for a while.

Shen Jia Yan watched Wen Wan Ning’s face, misty with steam, flushed and delicate, her lips blowing on the cup’s edge, red and glossy. It was such a beautiful sight that she couldn’t look away.

She zoned out for a moment, her heart inexplicably racing, until Wen Wan Ning held the cup in front of her and asked, “I’ll taste it to check the temperature. Do you mind?”

Snapping back to reality, Shen Jia Yan’s ears turned red. Shyly, she stammered, “N-no, I don’t mind. It’s your cup. If you don’t mind, why would I?”

Wen Wan Ning tested the temperature. “Mm—it’s good now. Drink up, but slowly. Don’t rush.”

“Okay.”

Shen Jia Yan held the cup with both hands, sipping the water while recalling Wen Wan Ning’s earlier appearance. A faint blush colored her cheeks.

Wan Ning is so gentle and so pretty.

A week flew by in the blink of an eye.

With the seat change, Shen Jia Yan and Wen Wan Ning were now separated, one on the leftmost row and the other on the rightmost row in Classroom 302.

Shen Jia Yan spent every day looking forward to the next week. She still wanted to be desk mates with Wen Wan Ning.

Not long into the second evening self-study session on Wednesday, she suddenly felt her stomach churning, the pain unbearable.

She figured it was because the weather had been cold lately, she hadn’t wanted to go out, skipped most of dinner, and now her stomach was acting up. She thought some hot water might help her endure it, but the intense pain made it impossible.

She slumped over her desk, clutching her stomach tightly with her right hand, cold sweat beading on her forehead.

Tang Zhihan noticed her agony and leaned in close, whispering, “What’s wrong? Stomachache? You look miserable. Let me ask the teacher for a leave of absence for you. Don’t tough it out.”

Shen Jia Yan never took leaves lightly—she worried the teacher would think she was getting special treatment. But this time, she silently agreed with Tang Zhihan’s suggestion. She really couldn’t bear it.

Tang Zhihan quietly left her seat and went to the back, where their homeroom teacher Yang Hua was sitting. “Teacher Yang, Shen Jia Yan’s stomach hurts really bad. She wants to go home and check it out.”

Yang Hua stood up immediately and followed her back to the seat. Seeing Shen Jia Yan’s pained expression, she bent down and said, “Jia Yan, don’t hold on. I’ll contact your parents to pick you up right now. Pack up and go home, take some medicine, and rest.”

“Okay, thank you, Teacher Yang,” Shen Jia Yan replied weakly.

After the third evening self-study session ended, Wen Wan Ning habitually glanced toward Shen Jia Yan’s side and saw she still wasn’t at her seat. There were no books on the desk either.

She had noticed after the second session that Shen Jia Yan was gone. At first, she thought she might be in the bathroom or getting some air, but now it seemed she had left early.

She grabbed Lü Xin’s arm softly. “Where’s Jia Yan? Why isn’t she here? Xin Xin, go find out.”

“You’re only this sweet when you need something from me. We’re desk mates and childhood friends—how come you don’t care about me like this?” Lü Xin rolled her eyes at her.

Wen Wan Ning smiled, trying to hide her flushing cheeks, and urged, “You’re the best. I care about you too. Go ask quickly.”

Unable to resist Wen Wan Ning’s gentle persuasion, Lü Xin got up and went to Tang Zhihan.

“Zhihan, where’s Jia Yan? Did she leave early?”

Tang Zhihan looked up at her. “Yeah, she left early. Her stomach hurt too much.”

Lü Xin hadn’t expected Shen Jia Yan to leave due to feeling unwell. Concerned, she asked, “Is it serious? Why did her stomach suddenly hurt?”

Tang Zhihan frowned. “She looked pretty bad. Probably because she didn’t eat dinner. She went home to take medicine and rest.”

Lü Xin returned to her seat and relayed the situation to Wen Wan Ning.

Wen Wan Ning’s delicate eyebrows knitted together upon hearing it.

During the final evening self-study, Wen Wan Ning couldn’t focus on studying, her mind on Shen Jia Yan.

When the dismissal bell rang, she quickly pulled Lü Xin along and hurried out of the classroom toward home.

Lü Xin was panting heavily and stopped to catch her breath. “Wan Ning, slow down. Why are you in such a rush today? You bolted right after the bell.”

Wen Wan Ning was caught off guard by the question. She had only been thinking about getting home fast to message Shen Jia Yan on WeChat and check on her, so her steps had quickened unconsciously.

“Uh, my mom said to come home early today. Something came up.” She made up an excuse to brush it off.

Once home, she dropped her bag and immediately went to her room, pulled out her phone, and typed a WeChat message to Shen Jia Yan.

[Heard during evening self-study dismissal that your stomach hurt. How are you? Taken medicine? Feeling better?]

Shen Jia Yan had gone home, taken her medicine, drunk a cup of hot water, and had Jiang Jing give her a hot water bottle to place on her stomach for warmth. After resting for over an hour, she felt much better.

Propped up in bed with the hot water bottle, scrolling on her phone—a luxury she only allowed herself when sick—she saw a new WeChat notification.

She opened it and saw the red dot on Wen Wan Ning’s avatar. Excitedly, she sat up.

Reading the message and noting the send time—just after dismissal—she realized Wen Wan Ning had messaged right away to check on her. She really cared.

She replied immediately: [All good now. Took medicine and feel much better. Don’t worry. (Heart emoji)]

[That’s a relief. Rest early tonight, no studying. See you tomorrow, good night.]

[Okay. You rest early too. See you tomorrow, good night.]

Though they hadn’t exchanged many words, Shen Jia Yan clutched her phone and grinned for a while.

Jiang Jing wondered if the kid had gone delirious from the pain…

High school first semester was already more than halfway through, and it was time for everyone to decide between liberal arts or sciences.

Though the classes hadn’t split yet, they needed to decide early to focus on their chosen subjects going forward.

All the subject teachers were well aware of this unwritten rule.

For students not choosing their subject, as long as they passed, it was fine—no need to master it fully, since they wouldn’t study it after the split anyway.

Some students had decided on liberal arts or sciences from the start of high school; others explored over the semester to see their strengths.

Shen Jia Yan should have been the first type. She’d excelled in sciences since junior high, so high school sciences made sense. But she hesitated. She wanted to know Wen Wan Ning’s choice.

The bell rang at the end of the last afternoon class, and most students headed out for dinner.

Lü Xin said to Wen Wan Ning, “Let’s go, grab some food and get some fresh air.”

Wen Wan Ning showed no sign of getting up. “I’m not very hungry. Don’t feel like going out. I’ll rest in the classroom and do some math problems.”

Wen Wan Ning had been studying diligently lately, making the most of every spare moment.

Though her middle school exam scores weren’t as high as Shen Jia Yan’s, through several monthly exams, she had surpassed her and even pulled far ahead.

It was clear Wen Wan Ning was someone with a plan for her studies. From the moment she started high school, she knew her goal and worked toward it steadily.

As someone with poor self-discipline, Shen Jia Yan always felt inferior by comparison.

Lü Xin turned to Shen Jia Yan and Tang Zhihan. “Then the three of us go?”

Shen Jia Yan thought for a moment. “I’m not going either. Too lazy to move.”

She looked at Tang Zhihan. “Secretary Tang, didn’t you just say you were hungry? You and Lü Xin go eat.”

Tang Zhihan playfully rolled her eyes at Shen Jia Yan. “Fine, Lü Xin, just us two. These two are too lazy.”

After they left the classroom, Shen Jia Yan quietly slipped into the seat in front of Wen Wan Ning, turned around, rested her arms on the desk, and watched her do problems.

Wen Wan Ning saw Shen Jia Yan propped on the desk watching her and paused her pen.

Lowering her gaze, she looked up with a smile. “What’s up? Something wrong?”

“Um~~~ Yeah, a little thing,” Shen Jia Yan mumbled.

Wen Wan Ning eyed her somewhat serious expression curiously. “What is it?”

Shen Jia Yan blurted it out. “Well, have you decided on liberal arts or sciences?”

Wen Wan Ning burst out laughing with a “pfft.” “I thought it was something big, the way you look so serious. You’re too cute, hahaha.”

Shen Jia Yan’s cheeks flushed. “Hey, stop laughing. I just wanted to know what subject you’re choosing.”

Wen Wan Ning teased slyly, “You wanna know?~~~ Not telling.” She picked up her pen, pretending to do problems.

Shen Jia Yan gently shook Wen Wan Ning’s arm, coaxing her. “Wan Ning’s the best. Tell me, please. I won’t tell anyone.”

She assumed Wen Wan Ning didn’t want to say because she didn’t want others knowing her choice.

Defeated by Shen Jia Yan’s coquettish plea, Wen Wan Ning softened and smiled faintly. “Alright, just teasing. Nothing to hide. I’m choosing liberal arts.”

Shen Jia Yan’s answer seemed expected—from Wen Wan Ning’s usual study focus, it was clear she leaned toward liberal arts. But Shen Jia Yan had wanted to hear it from her directly, just in case.

After answering, Wen Wan Ning tilted her head at her, suddenly thinking of something. “I answered yours, so you should tell me what you’re choosing, right?”

“I’ll choose liberal arts too.”

That was the decision Shen Jia Yan had just made, after learning Wen Wan Ning’s choice.