On the stage, the school leader was still delivering an impassioned speech. In previous years, the homeroom teacher of Class Seven had been relatively low-key at this time. But things were different this time. With Li Tongzhou securing the top spot in the grade, the homeroom teacher now had a radiant face, brimming with pride.
Guo Jingyu stood there motionless, only moving his lips slightly. “How do you plan to spend it?”
Li Tongzhou cast a glance at him and whispered, “Buy a pair of wrist guards.”
Guo Jingyu nodded in agreement.
Now that Li Tongzhou was playing for the school team, his equipment wasn’t quite complete. It would be good to buy more.
During daytime classes, Guo Jingyu had a strong desire to pay attention, but the teaching proficiency of various teachers varied. Some could capture his interest, but for the most part, the lectures sounded like recitations, and the warm autumn sunlight filtering through the windows made him struggle to stay awake. The effort not to doze off already demanded significant self-discipline and concentration.
He lowered his head to read the book. The key points had been marked Li Tongzhou already, coincidentally it aligned with what the teacher covered today.
Curious, he asked Li Tongzhou how far he had self-studied.
Li Tongzhou replied, “I’ve gone through the entire textbook.”
Looking at it now, there wasn’t an exaggeration in his claim. He really read through all the textbooks and thoroughly grasped the knowledge.
As Guo Jingyu contemplated Li Tongzhou’s refreshing advice, his eyelids engaged in a fierce battle. Unable to resist any longer, he took out a pencil and started writing the gypsum statue from memory in the blank space of his exercise book.
With years of foundation in painting, he quickly found the feeling. Suddenly feeling energetic, he no longer felt drowsy. Over there, he started to draw a small-scale figure gypsum statue from memory.
This was the basic skill of an art student. He had drawn so many of them that even with his eyes closed, he could recall precisely where each line of a person’s face and hair should be. The shadows under different lighting conditions were etched clearly in his mind.
He was so focused on drawing that he only put down the pencil when the bell signaling the end of the class rang. He even still felt somewhat unsatisfied with the unfinished ideas in his mind.
Guo Jingyu felt like he had discovered a great study strategy. If he could focus on the lecture, he would listen attentively. if the material was hard to grasp, he would use that time to draw. In any case, he wouldn’t let anything go to waste.
Scanning the entire class, his gaze settled on the podium. He touched his chin, contemplating, “What excellent models we have here! In the future, hiring models in the art studio will surely cost money.”
Following this notion, Guo Jingyu experimented with this approach for a day. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much progress in his class listening skills, but he managed to accumulate a small stack of sketches.
As evening approached, the homeroom teacher called Guo Jingyu into the office.
The homeroom teacher of Class Seven had taught them before, and it was clear that he was familiar with Guo Jingyu’s reputation. After all, this person was known for everything besides studying. The teacher sat there, observing him for a moment, and spoke in a gentle tone, “Jingyu, today I heard from other subject teachers that you’re distracted and your focus in class seemed a bit scattered. Were you daydreaming?”
Guo Jingyu thought for a moment and decided to be straightforward, “Teacher, I draw during class.”
The homeroom teacher was about to offer some guidance when he heard Guo Jingyu continue, “I plan to apply for the art program. As you know, with my grades, just making it into the accelerated class is already a challenge. I don’t have many extravagant expectations. Looking at the scores from previous years, with my current grades, I won’t make it into a good school. So, I want to take a chance and try a different path.”
The homeroom teacher said, “Don’t think that art is easy to get into. There are fewer school choices and fewer majors. When you graduate and start looking for a job, you’ll need to consider many factors…”
Guo Jingyu smiled, “I understand. Don’t worry, I won’t mess things up. You know how I am. I won’t disturb the class order. I’ll just focus on my studies.”
After thinking for a moment, the homeroom teacher added, “If you really want to study art, you’ll need your parents’ signed consent. It is also important to connect with the specialized teachers early on and focus yourself in the art studio for proper learning.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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In truth, the homeroom teacher was quite satisfied. After all, Guo Jingyu’s current performance was much better than in his freshman year. As long as he didn’t cause trouble and peacefully drew some small figures while leaning on his desk, it was acceptable. Even so, the teacher still had to give the routine guidance. Just as he was delivering a lecture, they heard someone at the door shout, “Report!”
The homeroom teacher looked up and immediately smiled when he saw the newcomer. “Li Tongzhou? Come in, what brings you here?”
Li Tongzhou walked over and said, “I’m here to pick up the self-study class test papers.”
The homeroom teacher acknowledged and quickly got up to fetch them. “Blame me, I almost forgot. Wait a moment, this time your chemistry teacher left some papers for you.”
There were quite a few test papers, and Li Tongzhou took half of them. He asked the teacher if Guo Jingyu could help with the rest.
The homeroom teacher, who was called over for a brief comment, waved his hand and said, “Go ahead. Carry them back together. Li Tongzhou, as the class monitor, you’re responsible for maintaining good class discipline. Don’t slack off during self-study either.”
Li Tongzhou agreed with a nod and carried the test papers back.
Guo Jingyu walked alongside him, lightly bumping his shoulder and chuckled, “Hey, class monitor, did you drop from the sky as a savior?”
Li Tongzhou replied, “No.”
Guo Jingyu drawled, glancing at him teasingly, “Oh~, did you come specifically to find me?”
The bell for self-study just rang. Guo Jingyu looked at Li Tongzhou’s profile, and he uttered a single word. The sound was just drowned out by the ringing bell, but by the lip movement alone, one could guess what he said.
He said, “Yes.”
A smile tugged at the corner of Guo Jingyu’s mouth, like savoring a bite of sweet longan, cool and refreshing, and sweetness lingering on the tip of his heart.
Life in the second year slowly returned to its usual rhythm after the class assignments, a mix of tension and busyness, but with the strange calmness of school.
On campus, no one needed to worry about anything other than one thing, studying. This was the most distressing aspect of breaking through the sky. Everyone’s gaze was clear and innocent, an age where they wished their every thought could be written on their faces, green and cute.
The school basketball team continued its training two or three times a week, and Li Tongzhou had been consistently attending.
He used his scholarship to purchase a pair of sports wrist guards—his interpretation differed from Guo Jingyu’s. Li Tongzhou bought a set of white wrist guards, four in total, perfectly combined to make a pair with Guo Jingyu.
Guo Jingyu led the team in running, while Li Tongzhou positioned himself at the back. As Guo Jingyu shouted slogans, he slowly moved to the back and ran with Li Tongzhou.
Whether it was a misconception or not, Guo Jingyu couldn’t shake the feeling that Li Tongzhou seemed to have grown taller again.
During training, the coach instructed them to split into two teams to play against each other.
Guo Jingyu was on Team One, and Li Tongzhou was on Team Two.
The match kicked off with He Xiangyang using their previous playing style. He bulldozed through with his strong and tall stature, forcefully using his weight to charge towards the basket, aggressively broke defense to the basket, and seized every opportunity to pass the ball to Guo Jingyu. The main scoring force still revolved around Guo Jingyu, with several players surrounding him.
Most of the players on Team Two were substitutes, including some freshmen who recently joined the school team in their freshman year. Clearly, they lacked the tacit understanding of Team One. But after Li Tongzhou scored the first three-pointer, they slowly began to move closer around him.
“Jingyu!”
He Xiangyang called out, tossing the ball he had just grabbed over to Guo Jingyu.
Guo Jingyu’s fingers barely touched the ball when he sensed a figure shadowing closely behind him, almost jumping in sync. In quick succession, a simple hook shot followed, clean and graceful, but also decisively sharp. The person smoothly snatched midway the ball and seamlessly made another shot.
Swish! The ball went in!
Li Tongzhou landed beside him, close enough to hear each other breathe.
Guo Jingyu stumbled for a moment, and Li Tongzhou reached out to steady him, whispering, “Be careful.”
The coach’s whistle echoed, and the scoreboard on the court changed. Team Two caught up, tying the score.
Guo Jingyu looked at him, his heart beating rapidly. He suddenly became excited.
In the following exchanges, two teams did a back-and-forth battle. Guo Jingyu instructed He Xiangyang and others to closely monitor Li Tongzhou, and it indeed achieved some results. Li Tongzhou struggled to find good opportunities, faced difficulty in linking plays, and ultimately only managed to make a three-pointer from the corner.
As soon as this shot went in, it sparked a barrage of questions from He Xiangyang and the others after the game. They simply couldn’t believe that Li Tongzhou had just started playing basketball.
“No way! The coach said this shot is really difficult!” He Xiangyang imitated Li Tongzhou, jumping up in a small space for a layup. “Handling the ball in such a small space requires not only quick hand speed but also strong wrist strength and the ability to spin the ball simultaneously…”
Li Tongzhou turned around, almost in the exact same posture as before, and made another shot!
This time, not only He Xiangyang was dumbfounded but even the coach couldn’t help but walk over. “Li Tongzhou, can you do that move again just now?”
Li Tongzhou nodded, “I can, but the accuracy may deviate a bit.” He said as he made another shot. This time, it grazed the rim, spun a few times, and narrowly dropped into the basket, a thrilling yet successful attempt.
The coach looked at him like he had just discovered a treasure, squeezed to the front and asked him, “How did you do that?”
Li Tongzhou honestly said, “I’ve calculated it.”
He went on to explain a formula, mentally calculating it for the coach and even attempting to draw a diagram when discussing force analysis. The coach was already feeling dizzy just listening to the beginning. Although he admired what Li Tongzhou said, he quickly shook his head, expressing regret, “It seems like I can’t teach this to other players.”
The faces of those around them changed. He Xiangyang and the others, as soon as they heard this, especially expressed a post-crisis sense of gratitude. They already found their daytime classes challenging and had no desire to calculate formulas when they just wanted to play basketball. This was too much!
There was a locker room in the gym, with a small shower room that could accommodate about five or six people at a time. Everyone took turns going in for a shower.
Guo Jingyu would sometimes take shortcuts and go home to shower, but with Li Tongzhou around, he felt awkward showing up all sweaty. He began competing with others for a shower stall, but before he could enter, Li Tongzhou grabbed his arm. “Jingyu, help me massage my back.”
Guo Jingyu agreed, rolled up his pants, first washed his feet, and then went to find Li Tongzhou.
Li Tongzhou had already prepared a mat and sat cross-legged waiting.
Guo Jingyu couldn’t stand his studious appearance. Every time he saw it, he felt the urge to tease him a bit. He cleared his throat and said, “Lie down.”
Li Tongzhou obediently lay down, letting Guo Jingyu work on relaxing his muscles.
As Guo Jingyu massaged, he shamelessly stole glances at Li Tongzhou. After looking at him from head to toe, his gaze couldn’t help but follow the shoulder line down to the waist. Li Tongzhou’s basketball jersey was slightly damp, clinging to his body, making his waistline especially distinct. Despite appearing slim, when Guo Jingyu pressed down, he could feel his defined muscles.
Guo Jingyu wiggled his toes, and took the opportunity to gain a little advantage.
Li Tongzhou wasn’t as sensitive on his waist side, but there was still a slight reaction. When Guo Jingyu touched that area again, he whispered, “Jingyu, no need for that.”
Guo Jingyu acknowledged with a sound, considering giving him a back massage but feeling a bit embarrassed… In the end he sat on Li Tongzhou’s back and pressed his shoulders.
In an instant, Li Tongzhou’s shoulders tensed up.
Guo Jingyu applied a bit more force. “Relax a bit. I can’t even exert any strength. You’re too delicate, all stiff after just one day of training. Let me help loosen you up. Otherwise, you won’t be able to lift a pen tomorrow.”
Li Tongzhou: “…”
Li Tongzhou endured a few pinches from Guo Jingyu and agreed. He wanted to reciprocate by giving Guo Jingyu a massage, but Guo Jingyu declined, happily declaring, “I don’t need it! I go jogging every morning, perfectly fine! Look, I’m in great shape!”
Guo Jingyu truly enjoyed his current teenage body. Being young was fantastic. He is full of energy, jogging felt effortless, and even after playing three basketball games and collapsing for a nap, he’d wake up the next day feeling refreshed! After coming back, the most satisfying things for him, aside from seeing Li Tongzhou every day, were the condition of his body. Maybe because of his age, any casual exercise was noticeable. He even had a hint of abs now!
Guo Jingyu couldn’t be more satisfied.
They were the last ones to go to the bathroom, and everyone else had left. Guo Jingyu casually picked a stall, while Li Tongzhou went to the one next door.
Li Tongzhou rarely showered outside, only bringing a change of clothes. He borrowed body wash from Guo Jingyu. After coming out, the two of them had the same scent, carrying a refreshing hint of mint.
Guo Jingyu and Li Tongzhou went home together. Once they were in the car, they continued chatting quietly. “Li Tongzhou, why do I feel like you’ve grown taller recently?”
Li Tongzhou nodded. “Grew three centimeters.”
“I knew it! This year, you stole the ball from my hands so quickly, just a quick move, and it was gone!”
“I won’t snatch it from you next time.”
“Hey, don’t say that! What’s the fun in playing basketball then? My jumping ability is pretty good, but I didn’t perform well in today’s friendly match. Next time, I’ll show you my real skills!”
“Mmm.”
“You don’t usually engage in much physical activity. Joining the training suddenly makes you prone to leg cramps. When you get home tonight, do some muscle stretches a few more times. After the next training session, I’ll give you a massage to help you relax.”
Li Tongzhou chuckled lightly. “Sure.”
Guo Jingyu stood in front of him, and Li Tongzhou slightly lowered his head. He could catch a hint of the fragrance of mint leaves. The scent made him soften his gaze.
______________________
K: LTZ calculating his shots… World of geniuses ╮ (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.) ╭
That’s some view of the world, when you instinctively calculate…but I guess the artists have also their own way of viewing things around them that lets them express them through drawings. I wish I could do something like that too 🤷🏻♀️I don’t know who’s hooked more at this point 🤣Truth be told, they seem ready to move in together 😅As always, thank you for the chapter! 💕
Ah, seems like my comments forgot how to do the formatting… hopefully the bug’ll be fixed soon, otherwise I’d have to start writing shorter comments 😭🤣