NOVEL NEXT Chapter 133: That Strange Boy_2
However, over the recent period of time, she had gradually become aware of another person in the library—a boy, one she had a bit of an impression of.
He had helped her out during the Culture Festival a few months ago, something Hong Siyu had only recently remembered.
She didn't know when exactly this boy had started studying in the library, since the past version of her had never paid attention to which other students were there.
It was just that a few days ago, this boy and another beautiful girl came to the library together.
Whether it was the handsome boy or the beautiful girl, had they appeared in the library on their own, they might have merited a subconscious couple of glances, but nothing more.
But when the two of them appeared in the library together, they became the focus of everyone's attention.
Surrounding them were doubtful, envious, and contemptuous gazes, and many students even found it hard to concentrate on their studies, feeling embarrassed to be in the same room; they closed their books and left the library that day.
Even though that boy and girl were only studying and hadn't done anything extra.
Hong Siyu didn't leave.
It wasn't that she didn't want to leave; rather, she couldn't. Her mother wouldn't be picking her up until much later, and unless she went back to the classroom, she had nowhere else to go.
It was on that day that she overheard the quiet conversation between the beautiful girl and the boy and learned the boy's name.
Lin Yun. Discover exclusive tales on empire
It was a name that suited his appearance very well. Like gentle sunshine, not dazzling, but not hiding its luminous essence, either.
Afterwards, Hong Siyu gradually discovered that Lin Yun was also a regular visitor to the library.
Moreover, he seemed to be genuinely focused on his studies.
Apart from that time he studied with the beautiful girl, Lin Yun always came and went alone, silently picking out reference materials and sitting quietly in a corner of the library, working through problems and reading books.
He didn't initiate conversations with others and didn't care about the looks from the people around him, coming to the library and leaving at the same time every day, like a robot.
Of course, there were a few days when he wouldn't show up at the library.
That was normal; everyone has their own life after all.
Hong Siyu was simply aware of this boy, nothing more; in fact, their interactions had never gone beyond the "Thank you" and "You're welcome" exchanged during the Culture Festival.
There was no reason for them to interact more.
That's what Hong Siyu thought, until one day in the library when she fell from the air while trying to grab a book that was placed very high up.
She had stood on a chair and stretched herself to reach for the book, but lost her balance when the chair slipped from under her.
In that critical moment, a hand reached out from behind her and caught the collar of her neck, saving Hong Siyu from crashing to the floor.
The fright of falling made her heart beat uncontrollably; it took a while before she could calm herself down, turn around, and see who had helped her, only to find it was the boy named Lin Yun.
"That... thank you?" she said weakly, uncertainly, not knowing what else to say, so she offered her thanks to him in a tone even she wasn't sure about.
"No problem." Lin Yun replied just as succinctly, "Be careful."
His voice was calm and clear, and it sounded quite pleasing—probably because it was just the two of them and very quiet, his voice carried clearly into Hong Siyu's ears.
Once he confirmed that Hong Siyu was steady on her feet again, he let go of her collar, straightened the chair on the floor, and then, without saying anything more, he left just as easily.
Hong Siyu watched his retreating back until he disappeared among the bookshelves, then slowly turned her head back in a daze, looking again at the bookshelf.
It was only after she had selected the books she needed and moved away from the bookshelf area that she realized Lin Yun had left the library. Contrary to his usual habit of neither arriving late nor leaving early, he had departed at an atypical time.
Hong Siyu didn't ponder it deeply and continued with her usual study routine in the library, reading and solving problems until it was time for her mother to pick her up from school, at which point she stood up from her seat and packed her study materials.
However, before leaving, she suddenly noticed something on Lin Yun's seat.
She approached it and found a book.
It was a junior high school textbook.
The edges of the textbook were curled, showing it had been flipped through many times, and opening the cover, one could see "Lin Yun" neatly written on it.
Flipping through the pages, she could see dense annotations and notes, even using different colored pens to indicate which revision round each note was made in.
It was evident that the book's owner was very meticulous and serious about his studies.
Perhaps because he left in a hurry, he had left the textbook behind, or maybe he didn't want to bother and intentionally left it in the library.
Hong Siyu didn't know the specific reason, but that didn't stop her from placing the book inside the library's storage cabinet. After all, no one could guarantee that the book wouldn't be thrown away during cleaning or picked up by other students.