Living Only For Myself: Make Those Who Hate Me Regret It-Chapter 116: She’s Not a Petty Person

Ever since Xu Su had acknowledged her feelings for him, aside from eating with Qian Jia and Huang Feng in the cafeteria, Xi Zirong would wait for her outside the girls’ dormitory to walk to class together. After evening self-study ended, the two of them would also walk back together.

She no longer came and went everywhere with Qian Jia and Huang Feng like before.

Xu Su and Xi Zirong weren’t the only "young couple" in the Rocket Class. Perhaps influenced by them, several other couples in the class who had previously hidden their relationships had recently become more open, starting to appear everywhere together.

After the New Year, most of the students in the class were seventeen. Some, like Xu Su, who had started school a year late, were now eighteen, so dating didn’t seem like such a terrible crime.

A new trend of forming study groups had recently started in the class. Close friends formed small groups on their own, creating study circles to help each other with their weak subjects. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

The teachers were happy to see this. Even in the Rocket Class, where overall scores were high, there were still students who struggled with certain subjects. It was better for them to tutor each other than to find cram schools or private tutors outside of school.

As study groups became all the rage in the class, Xi Zirong, the top-ranked student in their year, took the initiative to approach Xu Su, the second-ranked student, and form a special two-person study group.

The teachers didn’t lecture during evening self-study, so students would gather in small groups to study on their own. It was common for people to switch seats.

Every evening during self-study, Xi Zirong would switch seats with the boy sitting behind Xu Su, just to be closer to her and make studying together more convenient.

In Xi Zirong’s mind, the plan was simple: he would just continue tutoring Xu Su exclusively, like before. He never expected that, within a few days, their group would gain another member.

Xu Su’s new deskmate: Wu Qianqian.

The girl had previously been in Class 1 before being placed in the Rocket Class in their second year. She became Xu Su’s deskmate, and they had been sitting together for several months, developing a strong friendship.

After being tutored by Xi Zirong for over a year, Xu Su had ranked second in their grade for several exams in a row. She no longer had any weak subjects. Wu Qianqian, however, was a different story. The girl had chosen the science track, but her grades were merely average, and she was struggling with her studies.

So when Xi Zirong came over, he found both girls looking at him with pleading eyes.

Xi Zirong, who hadn’t even sat down yet, froze. The gentle smile on his face slowly vanished.

Sensing his bad mood, Xu Su spoke up first. "Xi Zirong, could you teach Qianqian? I was going to do it myself, but I’m just not as good a teacher as you are. Her rank dropped by nine places in the last joint exam. If she doesn’t work harder, Old Wu might kick her out of the Rocket Class next semester."

Wu Qianqian gave an embarrassed, awkward laugh. She hadn’t wanted to be a third wheel; she’d actually just wanted to ask Xu Su for help.

Unfortunately, while Xu Su knew how to solve the problems herself, her explanations weren’t detailed enough. Wu Qianqian often felt lost in a fog, becoming more confused the more she listened.

Xu Su thought it over. ’My teaching skills really are just so-so. It’s one thing to teach my middle-school cousins, but in comparison, Xi Zirong’s explanations are much clearer. He’s also very patient—a really qualified teacher.’

But what Xu Su didn’t know was that Xi Zirong wasn’t this patient and meticulous with just anyone.

Hearing Xu Su’s words, Xi Zirong hesitated for a moment. Then, he reached out, took the test paper from Wu Qianqian’s hands, and asked, "Which problem don’t you understand?"

Wu Qianqian was a little intimidated by Xi Zirong, the seemingly unapproachable top student of their grade. She glanced at Xu Su first and saw the encouragement in her deskmate’s eyes.

Only then did she lift the hand holding her pen and point to the test paper. "Susu just explained it, but I’m a bit slow and still don’t quite get it," she said. "God Xi, could you walk me through the logic?"

Xi Zirong didn’t look up. He pondered for a moment before beginning to explain his thought process, his voice cool and detached, devoid of emotion.

Usually, when he tutored Xu Su, Xi Zirong was always worried his explanations weren’t detailed enough. After going through a problem, he would lean in closer, gently ask if she understood, and then give her a similar problem as a quiz.

But now, he sat with perfect posture, and while he did his best to explain the problem clearly, that was as far as it went.

Listening from the side, Xu Su pursed her lips. She noticed his tone was completely different from usual.

She rarely saw this serious and cold side of him, but she couldn’t exactly ask him to be warmer to her friend.

Xu Su’s grades were already quite stable; she had a thorough grasp of the high school curriculum. She was a gifted student to begin with—otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten into City No.1 High School as the top scorer from Kang County—and on top of that, she’d had Xi Zirong tutoring her for so long.

With her current skill level, it had been a long time since she’d encountered a problem that stumped her.

After going over a few problems with Wu Qianqian, Xu Su got bored. She turned back to her own desk, pulled out a math test, and started grinding through problems by herself.

And so, their three-person study group was reduced to just Wu Qianqian and Xi Zirong, sitting face-to-face as he went over the problems.

During the break between evening self-study periods, Xu Su picked up both of their water bottles and said thoughtfully, "You must be thirsty after all that explaining. I’ll go get you two some water."

Xi Zirong stood up, stopping her. He took the water bottles she was holding and said, "I’ll go."

’Xi Zirong had taken charge of getting water recently, but... why does he seem like he’s in a bad mood?’

Wu Qianqian leaned over. "God Xi seems angry, Susu. Maybe I should just ask you if I don’t understand something from now on. He’s so cold, I’m a little scared of him."

Wu Qianqian was a local from Chang City. Like Huang Feng, she had attended the junior high division of City No.1 High School and had been in a different class during their first year of high school, so she didn’t know Xi Zirong well. Seeing how cold and indifferent he’d been all evening, she was too embarrassed to trouble him for more help.

"..." Xu Su was at a loss. ’If I were any good at teaching, I wouldn’t want to bother him either,’ she thought.

Wu Qianqian was usually very cheerful and outgoing, so it was rare to see her so timid. Xu Su smiled reassuringly. "He’s not angry, that’s just his reserved personality. Xi Zirong is actually pretty good-natured. You just don’t know him yet. It’ll be fine once you get more familiar with him."

In truth, Xu Su didn’t understand it herself. ’Why does he have to be so standoffish just because I asked him to explain a problem to my friend?’

’I wouldn’t get mad even if he was a little warmer and more considerate toward Wu Qianqian,’ she thought.

’I’m not the petty type who gets angry just from seeing him help someone else with their homework.’

’The other study groups are all like this. Helping with problems has nothing to do with being a boy or a girl; it’s all about improving our grades.’

Reassured by Xu Su, Wu Qianqian continued to ask Xi Zirong for help whenever she ran into a difficult problem during the next two self-study periods.

Meanwhile, Xu Su was lost in her sea of practice problems, completely oblivious to the world around her.

Xu Su didn’t look up until the bell rang to signal the end of evening self-study, her eyes never leaving her test paper.