Liu Xingyu arrived at school still thinking about clinging to Shen Yuan's leg and getting him to agree to teach her. She quickly went to her seat and sat down, looking over at Shen Yuan's desk, where he was sitting in the same posture as yesterday.

she sighed almost audibly; it seemed to her that the villain was extremely fragile. She knew that Shen Yuan lived alone and that his life was empty, with no family or anyone waiting for him at home. That's why he came to school early; he hated staying in that big, empty villa. Maybe having noise around him made him feel less lonely.

Luckily, her desk was in the middle, and Shen Yuan's desk was by the window, both at the back of the classroom. Without much thought, she pushed her desk over beside Shen Yuan's. Perhaps because everyone in the class was still asleep or tired, no one even turned around after hearing the sound of the desk being dragged. Only Shen Yuan opened his eyes and looked at Liu Xingyu.

When Liu Xingyu felt that death glare, she got a little nervous and tried to put on a friendly smile. Unfortunately, Shen Yuan wasn't falling for that beauty trick, and with a kick, he sent her flying back, desk and all, further than where she had been before.

"..." Liu Xingyu.

Well, this was somewhat expected, but her eyebrows still twitched with anger and embarrassment.

Liu Xingyu felt wronged; she hadn't even said a word to him, and just by getting close, he kicked her away like something worthless and unwanted.

Liu Xingyu lowered her head slightly, feeling a heavy weight of injustice upon her. Her sparkling eyes, which shone with exquisite beauty, were soon filled with a deep sadness, and tears threatened to fall, making her rosy cheeks flush even more. She tried her hardest to hold back her tears, her facial expressions shifting between strength and vulnerability, as if she were a complex painting of pain and hope, with slight creases forming on her brow as she clenched her lips tightly, determined not to break down in the face of his cruelty.

Liu Xingyu was surprised by her own feelings. She knew herself well; she wasn't the type to get affected or cry just because of someone's reaction. Even if harsh words were spoken to her, she wouldn't cry but would respond in one way or another.

While she was trying to understand the reason behind this, Xiao Jiu, who had been observing the situation, spoke up.

"There's no need to worry, Host. These are mild side effects from the mermaid's golden finger. Your emotions will become more sensitive, especially toward the villain. This is normal; there are other side effects , but as long as you're near Shen Yuan their intensity will decrease greatly."

"So that's why."

"I knew this power was useless from the beginning, but now it has side effects."

Liu Xingyu gritted her teeth and held back her anger. While trying to restrain her emotions, a tear fell from her eyes. But before it could reach her cheek, it suddenly turned into a beautiful pearl, shimmering with rainbow colors, and fell elegantly, hitting the desk with a delicate sound.

As Liu Xingyu watched the pearl hit the desk repeatedly, her eyes widened unusually, reflecting all her conflicting emotions. Her eyebrows raised with an astonished expression, her lips parted slightly in a moment of shock, showing two rows of gleaming teeth. Her cheeks flushed slightly, with faint creases on her brow.

Stolen story; please report.

"Damn," Liu Xingyu cursed nearly out loud as she came to her senses. She quickly picked up the pearl and hid it.

She looked up and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that no one had witnessed the scene.

Then, she began scolding the system in her head; it should have warned her about something like this beforehand. The system replied that it wasn't its fault and that there was no set time for the mermaid's power to activate. This was something beyond its control.

Liu Xingyu was busy reprimanding Xiao Jiu and didn't notice that Shen Yuan was watching her with an intense look, his dark, ink-colored eyes becoming even deeper and more intense.

The teacher entered the classroom and started his lesson immediately since he was running a bit late. Liu Xingyu, finally calm, looked at the math teacher as he explained, almost as if she were studying a foreign language; she didn't understand a thing.

She looked over at Shen Yuan, who was staring forward without any emotion, then at her classmates—some were sleeping, others were playing around.

After a minute, she tried pushing her desk next to Shen Yuan's again. This time, he didn't push her away, maybe because the teacher was there, or maybe he wanted to see what she was planning.

When she saw he didn't react, she smiled innocently, then poked his arm with her pen. "Hello, fellow classmate, I forgot my book. Can you share yours with me?"

Shen Yuan didn't move or acknowledge her.

She tried poking him again, but there was still no response. After several failed attempts, Liu Xingyu she got angry and stopped moving, waiting until the bell rang and the teacher left.

The students started moving around, grumbling about their exhaustion. Amid the noise, Liu Xingyu she looked at Shen Yuan and finally decided to ask him to teach her. So, she raised her pen and tapped Shen Yuan's arm, who once again ignored her…

"..." Liu Xingyu.

"This bastard."

Due to her disregard, Liu Xingyu she reached out and pinched Shen Yuan's arm directly.

He looked at her angrily, but she wasn't scared. Instead, she smiled provocatively at him.

Suddenly, Shen Yuan stood up from his seat, causing a great commotion and confusion in the classroom. The desk shook, and books rolled to the floor, as if a bomb had exploded in the middle of class, making everyone turn to look at him in astonishment, and the room fell silent.

Shen Yuan leaned over Liu Xingyu's desk, trapping her between his arms, ignoring the gasps and surprise.

He looked into her eyes and said in a threatening tone, "Liu Xingyu you seem to be enjoying yourself quite a bit, don't you, hmm?"

She shivered intensely. She didn't even think about how the villain knew her name; his eyes staring at her like she was dead meat weren't a joke at all.

With a trembling voice, she tried to stay defiant, "N..No, I..I'm not."

"Oh, really? Then why are you clinging to me and bothering me since early in the morning?"

"That's...that's because I want you to teach me." In a moment of shock, Liu Xingyu she blurted out those words.

"I'm done for; I'm completely done." Her plan was to get close to him slowly and then, after some time, ask him to teach her, but she got nervous and didn't know how the words just slipped out.

Unable to take her words back, she stared at Shen Yuan in silence, cursing her bad luck.

Shen Yuan moved closer and stared at her face. More precisely, he was staring into her eyes. For a moment, Liu Xingyu felt like he wanted to extract her eyes and examine them. She shook her head to rid herself of such a foolish thought.

"No way, I'm imagining things out of fear."

Shen Yuan moved back, leaving behind one sentence.

"That depends on your performance."

Liu Xingyu she snapped out of her thoughts at his words.

"Did Shen Yuan say he would teach me? I mean, he didn't say it, but he didn't refuse either." Her smile widened.

Then she said to him, "I'll do my best, so please agree to teach me."

Shen Yuan didn't look at her again, nor did he refuse. While Liu Xingyu she was overwhelmed with joy, she saw that everyone was staring at her, especially the girls. Their gazes were full of envy, disgust, and jealousy.

She remembered the ambiguous situation she'd just had with Shen Yuan and her face turned red.

Su Yue came beside her, looking excited, as she asked, "Xingyu, do you and Shen Yuan know each other?"

"Oh my god, I can't believe that the school's god, Shen Yuan, spoke more than two sentences to you. You're new, so you don't know, but Shen Yuan is nicknamed the Golden Silent God because he barely speaks, even with the teachers."

"We're not that close; I just asked him for help."

One of the girls came forward, saying, "Tsk, tsk, some people really lack morals."

"Yeah, yeah, how can you try to seduce our god Shen Yuan without shame?"

Liu Xingyu she was about to respond to these girls when the bell rang. The students took their seats, and the girls left as well.

Liu Xingyu she sighed; this was the last thing she needed—to fight with a bunch of brainless admirers.

She looked at Shen Yuan, who hadn't moved again after returning to his seat, acting like a spectator, as if he wasn't the one who started this whole issue.

"This ba..." Liu Xingyu looked away. "One day, I'll make him kneel and apologize; just wait. Let's see how long you plan to keep that poker face."