Noble Academy's Mob Character: Reborn as the Campus Heartthrob - Chapter 29

Chapter 29: Returning to School

What does that even mean?

What do you mean you don’t like the me I am now?

Qi Yuan struggled to understand, but suddenly, a thought struck him.

Could it be…

Does He Zhou remember the Dreamscape?

Qi Yuan’s heart shook violently, like an earthquake, though his expression remained calm.

If his hunch was correct, considering the dreams he had experienced, he might very well ascend to another realm on the spot—and he meant it.

He feigned confusion, looking genuinely puzzled by He Zhou’s words.

“President He… oh, I mean He Zhou, um… I’m a bit confused by what you said.”

Qi Yuan pinched his fingers together, indicating a tiny amount.

“Never mind. My apologies. I misspoke,” He Zhou replied, his expression unchanged, as if it truly were just a slip of the tongue.

Hmph.

Qi Yuan scoffed inwardly, feeling like the other man was treating him like an idiot. He swallowed his anger.

For the rest of the encounter, He Zhou made no further moves.

After a pleasant farewell, Qi Yuan’s smile vanished instantly.

He truly disliked dealing with people, especially these privileged young masters. Not only were they a nuisance, but he had to constantly walk on eggshells, fearing that any mistake would undo all his previous efforts.

He bought some food for Qi Meng on the way home, reminding her not to cook dinner that night.

Night fell.

At a raucous banquet, He Zhou sat at the head of the table, a wine glass in his hand, listening to the surrounding dandies boast and trade low-tier jokes.

He’d intended to endure the evening in silence, but someone, utterly oblivious to the danger, dared to inquire about the young man he’d dined with at noon.

He knew eyes were always on him, tracking his every move. Yet this was the first time anyone had brazenly brought it up.

The fool, utterly blind to He Zhou’s darkening mood, pressed on: “If Young Master He is bored, why not invite him over to play?”

This presumptuous suggestion made He Zhou raise his head and fix his gaze on the speaker. The coldness in his eyes remained hidden, but the greedy, foolish face burned itself into his memory. He smiled.

From their very first meeting yesterday, he had already claimed Qi Yuan as his own. He loathed anyone who could stir his emotions, yet he found himself utterly powerless against Qi Yuan.

How could he allow anyone else to covet what he himself wouldn’t dare harm?

Setting down his wine glass, He Zhou asked a single question, his voice soft and gentle: “What’s your name?”

The smile on his face betrayed nothing. But anyone who knew him well would have recognized immediately: this man is furious.

He Zhou never got his hands dirty himself; there were countless ways to torment someone, and resorting to violence was the crudest.

The crowd, initially laughing and chatting, fell silent as they noticed He Zhou. Their eyes, filled with mockery and anticipation, turned toward him, ready for the spectacle to unfold.

The fool, believing he had captured He Zhou’s attention, wore a fleeting smirk of triumph on his fleshy face.

“Young Master He, my name is Wang Ming,” he said ingratiatingly.

He Zhou rose, glanced at him, and said, “Fine.”

Then he simply walked away, leaving the onlookers baffled.

Strolling through the streets, he chose not to drive.

The night was thick and dark, a cool breeze rustling through the air.

Lost in his dreamlike state, he pressed a hand to his pounding heart, longing to remain in that dream forever.

In the real world, He Zhou was always alone. The more masks he wore, the less he knew which one was his true self.

His heart always felt incomplete.

Until the hazy dreamscape emerged. He had forcibly retained fragments of its memories, resulting in his beloved appearing sporadically, calling out to him—just like now.

“He Zhou!”

A smiling young man stood beneath a streetlamp, his figure bathed in its warm glow.

“I’m here.”

What was illusion, and what was reality?

He Zhou no longer cared to distinguish between them. Only this way could he feel truly alive.

Time always flies by, and the holiday ended in the blink of an eye, bringing with it the moment of parting.

With his backpack slung over his shoulder, Qi Yuan first took Qi Meng back to school for evening self-study before heading to the high-speed rail station.

To his surprise, he ran into Cheng Xinyi, a teacher from Weilika Academy.

Cheng Xinyi was quite well-known, hailing from a scholarly family. At just 28 years old, she possessed striking looks and a gentle demeanor, and no one had ever seen her angry.

Teaching was merely her hobby; she taught elective courses rather than core subjects, but her classes were immensely popular.

Qi Yuan hadn’t fought for a spot in Cheng Xinyi’s classes, though he genuinely admired her abilities and found her lectures both interesting and engaging, with a great atmosphere.

However, for him, vying for popular classes was too time-consuming and troublesome. Even those who failed to secure a spot would still attend, crowding the room and making the experience inconvenient. From the start, Qi Yuan had passed on Cheng Xinyi’s elective courses.

Their seats happened to be next to each other.

Qi Yuan recognized Cheng Xinyi.

But Cheng Xinyi didn’t recognize Qi Yuan.

And Qi Yuan had no intention of trying to ingratiate himself with her.

He was content to remain a passing stranger, each minding their own business.

Cheng Xinyi held a book written entirely in English, leisurely flipping through its pages on the high-speed train.

It was obvious that he preferred reading physical books to using his phone.

Everyone has their own habits.

Qi Yuan stared at the all-English book and quietly swallowed.

For him, physical books were too much of a hassle; reading on his phone was much simpler.

The train car was quiet; everyone behaved civilly, keeping their voices down and minding their own business.

Qi Yuan played on his phone for a while, but drowsiness quickly set in. He rubbed his eyes, adjusted his posture, set an alarm, and, with a tilt of his head, drifted off to sleep.

He slept soundly, his head gradually sliding down until it came to rest on Cheng Xinyi’s shoulder.

Feeling the sudden weight on her shoulder, Cheng Xinyi’s thoughts were pulled away from her book. She frowned, intending to wake him, but when she turned her head and saw him sound asleep, something shifted in her. For reasons she couldn’t quite understand, she decided not to wake him.

A faint, unfamiliar fragrance wafted over, and Cheng Xinyi couldn’t help but inhale deeply several times. It was a scent that perfectly suited her taste.

Realizing what she was doing, her ears flushed crimson. She knew her actions were inappropriate, but she couldn’t resist.

Cheng Xinyi forced her thoughts back to her book.

And so they remained until Qi Yuan’s alarm rang.

Qi Yuan jolted awake, frantically silencing his alarm. He sat up slowly, squinting against the light, his mind gradually clearing. Then he remembered—he’d apparently woken up with his head on the shoulder of the person next to him.

Embarrassment washed over him.

He turned to Cheng Xinyi, his tone earnest. “I’m sorry, I was completely out of it.”

Cheng Xinyi rested her book on her lap, her shoulder slightly stiff from being used as a pillow. She rubbed it absently. “It’s fine. I’m Cheng Xinyi. If you don’t mind, let’s add each other.”

This was the first time she had ever proactively asked someone to add her as a friend. Her voice sounded stiff.

Qi Yuan readily agreed. “Not at all. I’m Qi Yuan.”

He pulled out his phone, displaying his QR code.

After they successfully added each other, the train arrived at their stop. Though Qi Yuan didn’t know why Cheng Xinyi had added him—and the atmosphere between them had been a little strange—he didn’t dwell on it.

“This is my stop. I’ll get off here. See you around.”

Qi Yuan waved, grabbed his bag, and hurried off with the crowd, leaving Cheng Xinyi staring after him, her words unsaid.

She murmured to herself, “I’m getting off here too…”

But before she could finish, Qi Yuan had already vanished into the crowd.

She shook her head with a rueful smile. “Such a hurry…”

By the time Qi Yuan reached Weilika Academy, it was past midnight.

Spotting the familiar school gate, he stepped inside, heading straight for the dormitories.

The academy had no curfew, which was why he dared return so late without fear of being locked out.

After a long, exhausting day, Qi Yuan was genuinely tired. But because he’d slept so much on the high-speed train, he found himself wide awake after unpacking, unable to fall asleep.

Not sleeping at night would inevitably affect his energy during the day.

Fortunately, his classes were in the afternoon. If he really couldn’t sleep tonight, he could catch up on some rest in the morning.

Qi Yuan didn’t touch his phone; scrolling through it only made him more restless. He closed his eyes and started counting sheep, reaching a thousand before finally drifting into a hazy dream.

In the classroom…

Every seat was occupied, with some students even sitting on stools in the aisle and at the back of the room.

Qi Yuan lowered his head in resignation, instantly realizing this was another dreamscape involving Cheng Xinyi.

Is it her boyfriend again?

They just met!

Qi Yuan was speechless, yet powerless to change it.

On the podium, Cheng Xinyi’s large, almond-shaped eyes shone with clarity as she spoke. Her tone and expressions conveyed her genuine passion for the subject. A unique scholarly aura radiated from her.

This was the first time Qi Yuan had attended Cheng Xinyi’s class. In his previous life, he had always found her troublesome—a sentiment that persisted even now.

As Qi Yuan listened, he found himself unexpectedly drawn into Cheng Xinyi’s world—a strange and captivating sensation.

He immediately regretted not signing up for her class. He shouldn’t have dismissed it as troublesome without even experiencing it, prematurely labeling her.

Cheng Xinyi truly was an excellent lecturer; Qi Yuan now understood why Weilika Academy’s most popular course lived up to its reputation.

Time always seemed to fly by when one was fully immersed.

Before he knew it, the class had ended.

As Cheng Xinyi gathered her things at the lectern, her gaze landed precisely on Qi Yuan, and a small dimple appeared on her right cheek when she smiled.

Students swarmed her with questions.

Cheng Xinyi answered a few before packing up and leaving. As she turned to go, she winked at Qi Yuan several times.

There must have been some meaning behind that.

But Qi Yuan didn’t understand it.

He could only grab his belongings and hurry after her.

The teaching building was crowded. Though she had been right in front of him, by the time he looked again, she had vanished.

Confused, he exited the building.

Leaving the crowd, he stepped onto a narrow path.

“Honey,” someone called from behind.

Qi Yuan turned to see Cheng Xinyi, the very person who had disappeared.

Cheng Xinyi looked slender in photos, but standing before him, her figure was imposing, likely around 1.9 meters tall, Qi Yuan estimated with a glance.

She took the backpack from Qi Yuan’s shoulders.

Their fingers intertwined naturally. “What would you like to eat?”

“Nothing in particular,” Qi Yuan replied.

“Hmm, since my darling doesn’t want to eat out, let’s head home. We’ll stop by the market for some groceries, and I’ll cook for us.” Cheng Xinyi said, her eyes brimming with happiness as she looked at Qi Yuan.

“Okay,” Qi Yuan agreed.

The two strolled leisurely down the street. Passersby only glanced at them, as if this were a common sight.

Qi Yuan couldn’t understand Cheng Xinyi. She was different from You Qinghe and the others.

In every previous Dreamscape, Qi Yuan had clearly understood You Qinghe and the others’ emotions, and the point at which the Dreamscape ended had been unmistakable.

But Cheng Xinyi was different. Her emotions were simple—unrestrained joy, almost impossibly carefree. Could someone so carefree harbor the same kind of lingering regrets as You Qinghe and the others?

Perhaps he hadn’t spent enough time with her yet. Qi Yuan decided to take things slowly.

As he studied Cheng Xinyi, his gaze involuntarily drifted to their intertwined hands.

Was that a ring?