OHD Chapter 14: Money is All That Matters

Chapter 14: Money is All That Matters

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Walking leisurely along the main road of the school, Zhou Kai was in a particularly good mood, his lips curled into a smile. If a dog tail had been attached to his backside, it would surely have been wagging by now.

“Zhou Kai!”

Hearing the class president’s voice coming from behind, Zhou Kai didn’t turn around, just raised his right hand and moved his fingers to signal that he had heard. Once he lowered his hand, a slap landed on his butt, causing his flesh to jiggle with a satisfying bounce.

After slapping his backside, the class president threw an arm around his shoulder, grinning as he asked, “Hey, why are you swaying your hips while walking?”

Zhou Kai gritted his teeth and glanced at him, still smiling, “Did I? Are you sure it wasn’t you swaying while walking?”

The class president, laughing, bumped his head against Zhou Kai’s, “I’m absolutely sure. You were swaying. Otherwise, why would I slap you? Just giving you a little reminder.”

Zhou Kai raised his arm to push him off, irritated by his clinginess. He was clearly a straight guy, yet he acted more “gay” than Zhou Kai, who was actually gay. No wonder the rest of the class was always gossiping.

The class president released Zhou Kai’s shoulder but still walked beside him, their shoulders touching as he said, “Tomorrow’s Sunday. Got any plans?”

Zhou Kai didn’t answer and instead asked, “You guys already have plans, right?”

The class president grinned and snapped his fingers, “Got it all planned. Basketball. Let’s go!”

Zhou Kai replied with a disinterested “Oh,” “Hope you guys have fun.”

The class president turned to look at him, “You’re not coming?”

Zhou Kai shook his head, “No. You know my dad’s home, and with the midterm exams coming up, I need to focus so I don’t get scolded if I mess up.”

The class president raised an eyebrow, “Come on, with you? Fail? What does that make me?”

Zhou Kai waggled his finger, “We’re not the same. Our parents are different.”

The class president clapped his hands and sighed, “Fine, do what you want. I was going to mention we’ve got a match with another class tomorrow, and there’s also some girls…”

Zhou Kai raised his hand to shield his eyes from the sun. Hearing about the girls made him even less interested.

He stared ahead at the two people walking closely together, chatting and laughing. He Ye’s face darkened, growing more and more annoyed. He walked forward with heavy steps, both physically uncomfortable and mentally twisted. He alternated between wanting to drag them to the library’s back corner or simply running up to pin them to the ground.

Neither thought was appropriate, so with each step, He Ye was forcing himself to hold back, his head pounding with the effort.

It was when they reached the stairs that the class president spotted He Ye first. He Ye happened to be looking up at him from below.

When the class president locked eyes with He Ye, he felt a cold chill sweep over his back and couldn’t help but shiver.

“Zhou Kai, Zhou Kai…” The class president secretly rubbed his arm, nudged Zhou Kai’s shoulder with his own, and gave him a meaningful look to glance down. He whispered, “Damn, what’s up with his eyes? He looks like he’s about to kill someone!”

Zhou Kai turned his head and looked down, meeting He Ye’s gaze. Due to his reckless behavior the night before, he felt a bit guilty now. He quickly scanned He Ye before shifting his eyes away, blushing slightly, and licking his lips. “It’s the same as usual. You’re overthinking it.”

The class president held his neck stiffly and took another glance at He Ye. This time, He Ye wasn’t looking at him, but the class president still felt uneasy. He could tell that He Ye seemed even more terrifying than usual today.

His teeth clenched together, making a soft clicking sound.

He Ye wasn’t trying to kill anyone—he just wanted to eat someone. Especially when Zhou Kai’s carefree glance swept over him, he wanted it more than ever.

Zhou Kai realized He Ye was sick during the morning exercise break. In the science class, there were more boys than girls, so the boys lined up in two rows and the girls in one. He Ye always chose to stand at the back of one of the boy’s rows, while Zhou Kai usually stood at the back of the other row, with his thoughts occupied.

Today, the class president had been scared by He Ye’s stare, so he didn’t stand next to Zhou Kai. Without anyone watching him, Zhou Kai loosened up a bit. While doing the side stretches, he kept glancing toward He Ye.

When He Ye took a sharp breath and covered his mouth to cough, Zhou Kai lost his rhythm and turned the wrong way. When He Ye stopped coughing and looked over, Zhou Kai jumped in surprise and flailed his arms awkwardly.

While doing the jump exercises, Zhou Kai felt uncomfortable in his chest. He thought to himself, This damn snake, how does he endure so much? With that face, you wouldn’t even guess he was sick. Tsk, I wonder if he’s taken any medicine?

He snorted, thinking He Ye was probably too stingy to buy medicine, much less take any.

As his mind wandered, Zhou Kai continued doing the cool-down exercises, mimicking the movements with a bit of distraction.

After lunch, Zhou Kai told the class president and the others to head back to the classroom while he went to the school’s medical office. When he arrived, the nurse wasn’t there, so Zhou Kai sat on a chair and waited. Getting bored, he pulled out his phone to play. After a while, it felt pointless, and he mindlessly swiped left and right, accidentally opening his WeChat.

Seeing the few screenshots he had sent earlier, Zhou Kai’s face turned red. He raised his hand to cover his eyes, muttering softly, “Damn… is that really me? Why is it so…”

No wonder He Ye called him “flirty.” It was true.

He bit his lip and chuckled, letting out a sigh as he quickly put his phone away, too embarrassed to look at it again. After sitting for a while, he stood up and stretched his legs. Just as he was about to stretch, the nurse walked in, followed by someone else.

At the sight, Zhou Kai froze, his words spilling out instinctively. He quickly dropped his hand and stood upright, his face turning an unusual shade of red.

He Ye looked at Zhou Kai with a hot, fiery gaze, furrowing his brow. He genuinely didn’t want to see this guy, yet Zhou Kai kept bouncing right into his line of sight.

How can I bear this?

Just screw it!

Who could tell him how to hold back?

The school nurse was a middle-aged woman. Upon seeing Zhou Kai and hearing him swear, she couldn’t help but feel a little disgusted. She ignored him and instead asked He Ye about his condition.

He Ye, having barely drank any water that morning, spoke in a hoarse voice, “Headache, sore throat, a bit of a fever.”

The nurse pulled out a thermometer, handing it to He Ye, instructing him to hold it under his arm for five minutes to check his temperature.

Zhou Kai was still stuck in the awkward situation of having run into He Ye. He just stood there, frozen and unsure what to do with his hands and feet. The nurse asked him what was wrong, but he stammered, unable to answer.

What was wrong? He wasn’t sick. He was just thinking about how He Ye, that sneaky snake, wouldn’t spend money on medicine, so he had come here to buy it for him. But now, here they were, running into each other like this—what could he even say?

It was impossible to explain.

The nurse, becoming slightly impatient, tapped her pen on the table and asked again, “What’s wrong with you?”

Zhou Kai’s face was bright red, his eyes darting around. Finally, he had no choice but to mumble, “I’m fine now, I think it’s already better… I, I’ll leave now.”

With that, he turned and practically ran out of the nurse’s office, feeling completely frazzled. His expression shifted with every step.

When he reached the stairs of the teaching building, he glanced back at the nurse’s office building, feeling a little relieved.

It wasn’t so bad. He knew He Ye was sick enough to need medicine, so it was good that he came here.

He Ye, holding the thermometer, turned to face the door, his expression dark. The nurse continued to complain about Zhou Kai being one of those students who faked illness to get out of class, but he didn’t respond. He leaned back against the wall, taking deep breaths to calm his overly agitated mind.

During the afternoon self-study session, the homeroom teacher called He Ye out. He asked about his health and then reminded him to come to school tomorrow at 3 PM.

The school was going to distribute the financial aid, but first, He Ye had to attend a meeting. The leaders would speak, followed by the donors, and then a representative from the students receiving aid would give a speech. Finally, there would be a photo session and the distribution of money.

It was the third year, and He Ye was already familiar with the process. He was too tired to complain like he had during his first year. He thought to himself, As long as I get the money, that’s all that matters.

The homeroom teacher, worried that He Ye might go off to work, reminded him, “You have to be there in person to get the money. Make sure you pay attention to the time. If you have something else to do, let someone know first.”

He Ye was fine, and he’d quit the job at the milk tea shop, so he needed to find something new to do. The timing worked out well—he didn’t need to take any time off.

After school, Zhou Kai walked with the class president and a few others. On the way, the sports committee member brought up Zhou Kai again, asking him to join tomorrow, since they were short on people. There were rewards for the game, and it was fairly official, so they needed substitutes.

Zhou Kai wasn’t very keen on the idea, so he repeated the excuse he had told the class president in the morning.

The sports committee member said, “Well, in that case, I’ll come to your house with the class president. Your dad definitely won’t give you a hard time with us there, right?”

The class president thought the idea was good, “I think so too. Your dad seems to like me.”

Zhou Kai hesitated. He didn’t want to go, complaining about the heat. It was a sunny day, and the wind was strong—what kind of game could they play in such weather?

“Oh, I almost forgot to ask you, why did the homeroom teacher call you to the office this morning?”

“Oh, it was about financial aid. He told me to come to a meeting tomorrow afternoon before three.”

“Lucky you, a meeting and you get money.”

“It’s alright, but it’s kind of annoying. But there’s five thousand, just enough for me to buy a computer…”

The two girls chatted carelessly as they walked by.

Waiting for the crowd ahead to disperse, Zhou Kai turned to the class president and asked, “What time did you all set up with them?”

After being persuaded for a while, the sports committee member jumped in to answer, “Three-thirty, we set it for three-thirty. By then, the sun will be on the other side, with trees blocking it, so it won’t be too sunny. If you’re worried, you can borrow sunscreen from my sister. Come on, come on?”

Zhou Kai, eyes rolling, put down his book and happily responded, “Alright, count me in.”

Upon hearing this, the class president’s eyes widened, “Damn, so after all that, you were just waiting for a bottle of sunscreen?”

The sports committee member laughed heartily, slapping the class president on the shoulder. “Well, how do you think our class president got to be such a refined guy? We’re just different.”

Zhou Kai grinned, feeling pleased, and hummed to himself. He thought, Sunscreen? I don’t even need that. I’m naturally immune to tanning. Look at me, I’m so proud of it!