Chapter Two: Matching the Code Isn’t Always a Blessing
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On the school playground, He Tianran stood alone, sweeping scraps of paper and gravel off the rubber track with a broom.
“Tianran, thanks for working so hard. This big playground must take you forever to clean by yourself.”
Xue Yong grinned, sitting on the parallel bars nearby, while another boy playing on his phone looked up after receiving a message.
“Yong’s leaving. Some girls from the next class invited us to karaoke.”
Xue Yong shook his head. “It’s boring hanging out with girls from our own school. My girl called me to Space tonight—table’s already booked.”
“Start with karaoke, then swing by and we’ll all head there together. You’re hitting the club around six or seven?”
“Yeah, sounds good. Let’s go.”
Xue Yong hopped down from the bars, slinging an arm around his buddy’s shoulder as they headed off campus.
“You guys…”
He Tianran stopped sweeping and called after them. They turned with annoyed expressions.
“Dude, we asked you to sweep, and you actually came. Shows you’re an honest guy. We don’t want to bully you, so why are you making such a fuss?”
Hearing that, He Tianran swallowed the urge to ask if he should keep sweeping. Instead, he said, “So… aren’t you staying for evening study?”
The two paused, then burst out laughing.
“You really are a total idiot.”
Leaving him behind, their figures faded into the distance. He Tianran stood there with his broom, then quietly walked onto the lawn and sat down.
“People really are different. Is this what winning at life looks like? Forget it, I’m going home to play games. Evening study… not today.”
At Gang City High, evening study wasn’t mandatory, but as a senior preparing for the college entrance exam, making every minute count was essential. He Tianran had never missed one before. But today, he was clearly rattled.
He stood up and walked back gloomily, intending to put the broom back in the classroom. When he opened the door, he saw a girl standing on the platform, writing something on the blackboard.
In his blurred vision, dust particles floated in the light, and the girl, backlit, seemed outlined in a halo of gold.
She had shoulder-length short hair, perfect for sixteen or seventeen years old. Her delicate features easily evoked images of rainbows after rain, sunlight through prisms, or a garden bursting with vibrant blossoms.
“Wen?” he tentatively called out. The girl turned, surprised and pleased to see him.
“He… He Tianran? You’re still alive?”
Her words were so random that He Tianran was momentarily stunned.
“I know I’m usually low-key, but that was a bit…”
He muttered to himself, putting the broom away and preparing to leave.
“Wait!”
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A hand grabbed He Tianran’s arm. He looked down and saw slender fingers, fair with a rosy flush, nails unadorned—soft and pink.
But…
Eh? Eh?! Eh?!!!
He Tianran jerked away like shocked by electricity. The owner of the hand smiled sheepishly, sticking out her tongue playfully.
“Ahem, He Tianran, I spoke without thinking. Long time no see. Didn’t expect you to still be the same.”
“Long time no see?” He Tianran repeated. “Didn’t you just start that training class last Tuesday?”
“Performance training class,” the girl corrected.
“Right, well, that’s not the point. I… we’re not really close, are we?”
Nervous, He Tianran surprisingly snapped back.
The girl before him was Wen Liang, one of Gang City High’s two school beauties. Unlike the aloof and cool Cao Aiqing, Wen Liang was bright and straightforward, popular even among girls. A former child star, she naturally drew attention.
Wen Liang grinned mischievously. “Haven’t you heard the saying, ‘A day apart feels like three autumns’?”
He Tianran wasn’t used to her sunny personality. His usual approach was simple: if you don’t talk, I won’t talk, and we can all just quietly do our own thing.
Maybe that was why he preferred Cao Aiqing — if he stayed silent, she had no reason to dislike him.
Besides, when she spoke first, He Tianran never knew how to respond. Like now…
His eyes didn’t know where to look—at Wen Liang’s T-shirt? Would people think he was a pervert? At her face? No, meeting her gaze only made him more nervous.
Unconsciously, his eyes drifted to the words Wen Liang had just written on the blackboard: a line in English—
“Hero’s Come Back!”
After a moment, He Tianran blurted out, “You… you… you like Naruto too?”
“What?”
Wen Liang was momentarily confused.
He Tianran felt like dying. His brainwaves must be seriously scrambled. He forced himself to explain:
“The first opening song of Shippuden is called that…”
As expected, she didn’t reply. His embarrassment mounting, He Tianran felt suffocated and quickly said,
“I… I’m going back.”
He turned and took two steps, then heard Wen Liang’s voice behind him:
“I like it, but Boruto is really not exciting! Even 4.1 stars is too high!”
Correct password!
He Tianran spun around and looked at her with a pleased smile, agreeing, “I read the manga. The manga’s okay.”
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Wen Liang spread her hands. “It’s okay, but Kishimoto is just the supervisor. In some ways, it’s a completely different work from Naruto.”
“Really? If you bring that up, we’ve got a lot to talk about. Have you heard about Kishimoto’s latest samurai-themed manga…”
Once discussing his specialty, He Tianran transformed, speaking at length. But Wen Liang cut him off:
“Speaking of samurai, my favorite is actually Takehiko Inoue’s Vagabond—no contest!”
A knockout!
This girl not only matched He Tianran’s brainwaves but delivered a decisive blow.
Especially those four words—“no contest”—felt like two samurai facing off by the sea, drawing swords, and He Tianran was instantly defeated.
Takehiko Inoue’s Vagabond was He Tianran’s ultimate favorite. While some boys in class liked anime, this was a niche work, only available as manga, so few knew it. Hearing it from a girl was as rare as gathering all seven Dragon Balls to summon the dragon!
“You don’t have to look at me like that. I know this because you told me.”
“Me?”
He Tianran pointed at himself in disbelief. Over three years of high school, his interactions with Wen Liang could be counted on one hand—
No, almost none!
Wen Liang nodded. “Right. If I met you in the future, maybe I’d say it differently, but facing the… chuunibyou you now, I think it’s better to just tell you straight.”
He Tianran swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
Wen Liang pointed at the words on the blackboard calmly:
“Actually, I’m the reborn Wen Liang.”
“…”
“What’s wrong? Scared?”
“I knew it…”
“What?”
“I! Knew! It!”
He Tianran shouted angrily, clutching his head, his gaze unfocused, mumbling something.
Wen Liang leaned in, listening carefully:
“I knew it, I knew it. How could there be a girl in this world who matches my code?! Impossible, impossible... If there is, it must be a time traveler, or from another world, or with superpowers, sequence potions, reincarnators—anything but normal! It must be something bizarre!”
Wen Liang listened, amused and exasperated.