The sports competition had officially ended, and 9th High School returned to its old self the following day.
Everyone went their separate ways, returning to their respective factions and cliques. Each group of them, whether picked at random or not, wasn’t a pushover, to say the least.
After the flag-raising ceremony on Monday, Zhai Yao found himself standing on the podium.
He was very familiar with this view; only this time, he was not there to read a self-criticism reflection report, but to receive an award certificate from Director Liu.
“Your performance was commendable. I hope you can channel the same dedication from the sports competition into your studies moving forward,” Director Liu said. As soon as he finished speaking, his eyebrows shot up as he exclaimed, “Stand up straight, what’s with that lackadaisical posture!”
Clutching the award certificate between his fingers, Zhai Yao lazily adjusted his posture, though it hardly made a difference.
Director Liu truly couldn’t bear the sight anymore, so he waved his hand to dismiss him from the podium, then proceeded to deliver a few words of gratitude for the award before dispersing the assembly.
Upon returning to the classroom, Hou-ge enlisted the help of several tall male students to hang the award certificate directly above the blackboard.
During class, he would often raise his head to steal a glance at it, barely suppressing his laughter after each look.
Meanwhile, Shen Heng was sitting in the corner, flipping through a book as usual. He was almost finished with “How The Steel Was Tempered,” and today there was another book on his desk— “Red Crag.”
Zhai Yao stirred from his slumber and woke up, casting a casual glance at the book before taking out his phone to check the time.
Seeing there was still a while before the end of class, he readjusted his posture, intending to continue napping.
Immediately after he stowed his phone away in the drawer, it buzzed.
Zhai Yao opened the chat.
It was a message from Lu Liang.
【Deer in Sheep’s Clothing: Free tonight?】
Zhai Yao typed a reply—
【Out-of-reach: Free. See you at the skating rink at 8 PM.】
After sending the message, Zhai Yao put away his phone and used a textbook as a pillow. Resting his elbow on it, followed by his head, he turned his face to the side and prepared to close his eyes.
It was then he met Shen Heng’s profound gaze.
Zhai Yao frowned. “Are there words on my face?”
Shen Heng’s lips tightened as his eyes fell on Zhai Yao’s phone.
Coincidentally, at that instant, another message from Lu Liang popped up on the lock screen.
【Deer in Sheep’s Clothing: ^_^ Great, see you there!】
Shen Heng’s lips tightened into an even finer line.
After a moment of silence, he asked, “Lu Liang?”
“Mm,” Zhai Yao responded and was about to lie back down on the desk when Shen Heng’s hand reached out and blocked his forehead.
“Are you asking for a beating?”
“Where are you two going?” Shen Heng’s tone turned somber.
Zhai Yao didn’t know what was up with this guy today, suddenly being so nosy and sticking his nose into so much of his business. So, he casually replied, “My family’s skating rink.”
“Oh.”
Zhai Yao closed his eyes.
“What for?”
“.”
This nap is damn near impossible.
Zhai Yao didn’t bother opening his eyes, answering dismissively, “He said he wanna set up a membership card.”
“Mm.”
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.
After a moment’s silence.
“What kind of…”
“If you dare ask one more bullsh*t question, I’ll dare beat you to death.”
“…membership card.”
Zhai Yao took a deep breath and rolled up his sleeves.
“Shampoo, haircut and blow-dry, wanna set up one? If you do, I’ll shave your head right away.”
…
*
That evening, Zhai Yao didn’t wait for Shen Heng after school and leave together.
When he arrived at the skating rink, Lu Liang was already waiting at the entrance gate.
Upon seeing Zhai Yao, Lu Liang approached and enthusiastically greeted him.
Zhai Yao’s demeanour remained indifferent as he led Lu Liang inside. Opening a drawer behind the counter, he retrieved a stack of cheap cards and casually selected one before handing it to Lu Liang.
“Fill in your name. As for the date, just today’s will do.”
Lu Liang took the card and a ballpoint pen, quickly wrote his name, and handed it back to Zhai Yao.
Zhai Yao proceeded to fill in the expiration date with the same date of the next month, then paused to give it a thought before extending it by an additional week for Lu Liang.
“Consider the extra time on the house.”
“So generous.” Lu Liang grinned. “Thanks, Boss Zhai.”
Zhai Yao then plugged in the laminator and inserted the card inside to seal it. While swiping through his phone, he asked, “Why learn to skate if you’re already learning fencing?”
“Actually, it was because of you that I had this idea,” Lu Liang explained. “Fencing demands high coordination and agility—areas I noticed you quite excel in when we competed.”
He took a short pause before continuing, “Later, I heard your family owns a skating rink, and that’s when it dawned on me that skating is simply perfect for specialized training for these attributes. I thought it’d be convenient to get a card from your place, so I could also ask for advice if I encounter any problems.”
Zhai Yao nodded. Once the laminator finished processing the card, he handed it to Lu Liang, pointing to the QR code on the table with his finger. “Normally 120 yuan a month, but I’ll charge you 100.”
“Okay.” Lu Liang scanned the code to pay, then put the card away. He turned to Zhai Yao and said, “Sorry for making you come all the way here.”
“No worries, not many people are getting membership cards nowadays. Thanks for your business,” Zhai Yao said, taking an umbrella from beneath the counter and handing it to Lu Liang. “It’s probably gonna rain soon. Take this with you and return it next time you come.”
“Alright.” Lu Liang took the umbrella. “I’ll head off then. Say hi to Shen Heng for me.”
Suddenly hearing Shen Heng’s name, Zhai Yao’s hand paused briefly as he scrolled on his phone. He lifted his eyes and asked, “Did you get acquainted with Shen Heng at the fencing arena?”
“Yeah.” Lu Liang nodded, then chuckled moments later. “We almost ended up as classmates, too.”
Upon hearing that, Zhai Yao’s gaze lingered on Lu Liang momentarily. No matter how he looked, the latter just didn’t seem to fit the mold of a 9th High School student.
He said lightly, “Good thing you didn’t. You’d be wasted at 9th High School.”
“9th High School?” Lu Liang took a moment before quickly shaking his head. “You misunderstood.”
He paused and continued, “It wasn’t me going to 9th High School; it was Shen Heng who almost came to 3rd High School.”
Ding—
The little animated figure on Zhai Yao’s phone accidentally pushed the box into a hole.
A huge “GAME OVER” appeared on the screen.
Zhai Yao stared at the “GAME OVER” for a moment before quietly asking, “Why didn’t he go?”
With a light sigh, Lu Liang responded, “I found it strange too. He used to be very good at studying. We even met at the International Mathematics Olympiad competition, where he outperformed me with a problem—that problem was pretty challenging, too.”
Zhai Yao stayed silent.
Lu Liang: “Zhai Yao, I don’t mean anything by it, but I feel that compared to 9th High School, Shen Heng should actually come to 3rd High School instead.”
After a brief pause, he looked at Zhai Yao once more. “I see that you two get along well. If possible, could you help persuade him? …If he truly does wish to come to 3rd High School, I might be able to help.”
Outside the skating rink, distant thunder rumbled.
Zhai Yao didn’t know why, but it always seemed to rain whenever Shen Heng was mentioned at the skating rink.
After a while, Zhai Yao spoke up, “Got it. You should go now before it pours.”
…
*
Sure enough, the rain intensified after Lu Liang left.
Business was slow at the skating rink, as usual, with only two remaining non-mainstream patrons without umbrellas. Eventually, they gritted their teeth, stomped their feet, and decided to hurry out and brave the rain.
In the blink of an eye, Zhai Yao became the only presence in the now-deserted skating rink.
Resting his elbows on the counter, he stared at his phone screen with lowered eyes.
The screen still displayed the game paused on the exact round from earlier.
In his mind, the scene of him helping Shen Heng lift the bed platform board as the latter searched for fencing attire resurfaced.
Beneath the bed and inside the unintentionally opened storage box lay a thick stack of completion and award certificates.
At first, he thought they belonged to Shen Heng’s mother.
Now, upon further consideration, he realized that if they truly belonged to his mother, Shen Heng wouldn’t have treated them with such dismissive attitude, as if they were just a pile of waste paper.
The thunderous downpour echoed in his ears like a waterfall, seeming as though it wouldn’t stop anytime soon.
His phone screen lit up, showing a new message from “111.”
Zhai Yao immediately tapped to open it—
【111: When are you coming home?】
【Out-of-reach: Soon.】
Silence followed on the other end for a while.
【111: I’m cold.】
Without much thought, Zhai Yao replied briefly—
【Out-of-reach: Turn on the heater.】
Right then, his hand suddenly froze as a realization washed over him. He muttered a “f*ck” and hit the dial button, swiftly turning to rush out of the skating rink.
The call was quickly answered from the other side.
Zhai Yao’s outburst rang out as soon as the line was picked up, “Idiot, where are you?!”
Just as the words left his mouth, he spotted Shen Heng standing under a streetlamp not far away, holding an umbrella.
The soft light cast upon his body and enveloped him, making him look even taller.
Zhai Yao briskly approached Shen Heng, who glanced at him and then shifted the umbrella towards him.
“Are you fricking brainless?!” Sometimes, Zhai Yao genuinely couldn’t understand this guy’s peculiar way of thinking. He grabbed Shen Heng and pulled him towards the skating rink, asking as they walked, “How long have you been standing here?”
“Not long.”
“Why didn’t you come inside?”
“Lu Liang talks too much, annoying.”
Zhai Yao’s confusion deepened. “If you find it annoying, why’d you bother coming here?!”
Shen Heng fell silent.
What he actually wanted to say was: Because the idea of him seeing you annoys me even more.
Back at the skating rink, Zhai Yao immediately turned on the warm air from the air conditioner.
“Are your clothes soaked? Take them off.”
Shen Heng hesitated briefly before raising his hand to slowly begin unbuttoning his shirt.
Zhai Yao looked at his drenched shirt and frowned. “Weren’t you using an umbrella?”
“I didn’t use it at first. I bought one nearby after it started raining.”
“Why didn’t you seek shelter inside when it began to rain!”
Shen Heng paused. “Lu Liang talks too much, annoying.”
“……”
For f*ck sake, it’s going in circles again.
Zhai Yao dragged a chair over to the air conditioner and hung Shen Heng’s drenched shirt over its backrest to dry. He then returned to the counter to play Spider Solitaire on his own, all the while pretending Shen Heng didn’t exist.
Shen Heng watched him play for a while and then asked, “Got any cigarettes?”
“No.”
Shen Heng pursed his lips, scanning the area with lowered eyes, but found no spare chairs available.
He wasn’t keen on sitting on the floor either.
Just then, a “scrapeee—” friction sound was heard from not far away.
Zhai Yao stood up and moved the chair he was sitting on over to Shen Heng.
“Sit.”
Shen Heng nodded and obediently sat down.
The two of them fell into a shared silent understanding once again.
Zhai Yao stood there and finished the game of Spider Solitaire, suffering a miserable defeat.
He closed the game window, his gaze deepening as he stared at the computer desktop. Finally, he couldn’t hold back any longer and broke the silence, saying, “Lu Liang told me…”
“Don’t listen to his groundless nonsense.”
Their sentences overlapped.
Zhai Yao’s tone turned cold. “Whose certificates are beneath your bed?”
“My mom’s.”
“She also participated in the International Mathematics Olympiad competition and won first place?”
“.”
Shen Heng was unusually at a loss for words.
“Still wanna make things up?”
Shen Heng was silent for a while, then raised his gaze again. “What do you want to ask?”
Zhai Yao didn’t bother with roundabout questions and asked directly, “Why did you come to 9th High School?”
“It’s close to home.”
“Why not go to 3rd High School?”
“What for?”
Zhai Yao was dumbfounded by his counter-question, letting out a frustrated laugh. “What else but to aim for those damn key universities and pursue higher education!”
“Huaicheng only has junior colleges.” Shen Heng paused. “I can get into one even from 9th High School too.”
“Junior college, my ass. You should go to 3rd High School and aim for Tsinghua or Peking University.”
“Tsinghua or Peking…”
Shen Heng muttered under his breath, a thick veil of sarcasm passing fleetingly through the depths of his profound gaze.
After a moment, he looked up and sneered at Zhai Yao.
“Attend Tsinghua or Peking University? And leave Shen Ziyao to fend for himself?”
…
🥺 hopefully this is where the mutual redemption begins! Shen Heng doesn’t necessarily have to go to Qinghua or Beida (maybe somewhere closer to home?), but unfortunately staying in their hometown probably wouldn’t yield many prospects for him. It’d be great if he and Zhai Yao could attend the same college actually
Tysm for the update! I had a blast reading ur tl notes on 陆良’s handle
This is so cuteeeee they’re starting to care for eachother…. kinda of I love how their relationship is slowly growing closer also thankyou for the update your updates just brighten my Sundays! ♥️
It’s all for grandpa shen’s sake 😭 shen heng you good boy you 😭
I’m speechless, so I’m gonna say just one thing;
Thank you for the chapter!
Ssssscccccccrrrraaaappppeee…. Lmao, so cute. Thanks for the update ❤️❤️❤️