There was no denying that Zhai Yao meant genuine business regarding the matter of taking down 2nd High School. Immediately after the school ended, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and asked Sheng Heng, “Where did you use to practise fencing?”
With a calm composure, Shen Heng unhurriedly closed his book. “There’s a fencing centre in the eastern city.” After a momentary pause, he continued, “But I don’t want to go there.”
“Then where do you wanna go?” You sure like to complicate things.
Shen Heng rose to his feet as well, taking off his glasses. “Let’s find a random empty space, maybe near the abandoned railway.”
Zhai Yao envisioned the scene briefly: both clad in that kind of attire, brandishing small swords amidst the wild bushes, playing around like fricking morons…
He immediately objected, “Nope.”
He lapsed into silence briefly, then said, “I know a place.”
…
*
The roller shutter gate made a “whoosh” sound as it was pulled open.
The desolate Flying Dragon Skating Rink resembled a vast black expanse, stretching endlessly in all direction.
Zhai Yao walked towards the circuit box and flipped the switch, instantly illuminating their surroundings.
He tossed his backpack aside and pulled the foil from its blade cover, swinging it as he asked, “Let’s start then; how do we practise?”
Shen Heng unzipped his backpack and took out the protective clothing, tossing it over to Zhai Yao. “Change your attire first.”
“No need, too troublesome.”
Shen Heng threw a casual glance at him. “Have I not thrust you painfully enough just now at noon?”
“.” Somehow, Zhai Yao felt that those words, when phrased in that way, just sounded kind of weird and awkward; he quickly took off his school outerwear and put on the protective clothing with a darkened face.
“That’s not how you wear it,” Shen Heng said. “First, put on the fencing pants, then the plastron. After that, wear the protective clothing and glove. For now, we don’t have socks and shoes, so there’s that. As for the body wire and electric jacket, we don’t need them right now.”
“You’re not gonna stab at the crotch anyway, so why bother changing the pants?” Zhai Yao didn’t want to take off his pants in front of Shen Heng, and there was no restroom in the skating rink for him to change in either.
Shen Heng fell into a brief silence. “Zhai Yao, I’m not joking around with you.”
Zhai Yao sneered. “Don’t fricking act tough; who’s gonna f*ck up who later is hard to say.”
Shen Heng didn’t argue back. Instead, he turned around and unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his well-defined, sturdy, and lean muscles, along with the ghastly sight of the terrifying scar on his right upper arm.
It had to be said, this guy’s physique was truly enviable.
Zhai Yao seldom saw him exercise, so just how exactly did he train to even have this kind of physique?
“Hurry up.” Shen Heng urged without even looking back and loosened the drawstring on his sweatpants.
Zhai Yao shifted his gaze back. Seeing how Shen Heng was already undressing so openly, if he still continued to be so hesitant, wouldn’t that make him appear somewhat unmanly? So, he simply removed his pants and quickly changed into the fencing pants.
“What are these straps for?” Zhai Yao awkwardly held the suspenders tied on the waistband, frowned, and said, “They’re ugly as hell.”
Shen Heng turned around, his gaze lightly grazing over Zhai Yao’s legs.
The special material of the fencing pants made his legs appear straight and slender.
“Turn around.”
Zhai Yao turned around with a tense expression, his back now facing Shen Heng.
From behind, Shen Heng took the suspenders from Zhai Yao’s hand and helped him adjust and fasten them securely across his shoulders.
“Is the tightness alright?”
Zhai Yao responded with a “Mm.” He was still not yet accustomed to being in close physical contact with others, and his entire back stiffened a little as a result.
Right after finally donning the cumbersome attire, Zhai Yao was already starting to feel warm. He walked to the counter and grabbed the remote control for the air conditioner, switching it on.
A refreshing breeze wafted from the air conditioning unit, sending the red ribbons tied to the air vents to flutter along with the wind.
“Come over.” Shen Heng had also finished changing his attire, and was now leisurely pulling on a glove.
Zhai Yao felt as if he was being beckoned over like a dog. His grip on the foil tightened as he pondered just how many holes he should thrust into Shen Heng later.
“I won’t teach you specific moves for now. Just aim to strike me using your own tactics.”
Shen Heng explained slowly, “Foil fencing rules aren’t complicated; as mentioned before, points are scored by touching the opponent’s target area with the foil’s tip. Contact made with the side of the blade from slashing won’t be counted. One important thing to note is that hitting the opponent first doesn’t necessarily result in a score; only the fencer with the ‘priority’ will earn a point with their touch.”
“Slow down a bit.”
Shen Heng pursed his lips. “You, attacker. Me, defender. You score if you land a hit on me; I don’t if I hit you.”
“Understood.” Zhai Yao nodded. “How do I gain ‘priority’?”
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.
“The ‘priority’ is first given to the attacker. If the opponent successfully deflects or if the attacker misses their attack, the ‘priority’ switches. The match is 3 x 3 minutes; the first to reach 15 points wins.” Shen Heng raised his eyes and looked at Zhai Yao. “Back when we first fought, your agility was pretty good; it’s going to be your advantage.”
“Got it,” Zhai Yao said as he pulled the mask over his head. “Anything else?”
“That’s all,” Shen Heng replied, donning on his mask as well. “Pay attention to my movements, learn as much as you can. We’ll review the rest after the practical rounds.”
“I’ll be the attacker first?”
“Sure.”
A subtle smirk played on Zhai Yao’s lips under the mask as he murmured softly, “You’re dead.”
Before the words had even left his mouth, his foil’s tip was already thrusting towards Shen Heng’s chest with unwavering speed, not a slight hesitation in his movement.
Shen Heng sidestepped the attack, then immediately advanced, before following up with a lunge, propelling his body forward as he aimed his foil’s tip at Zhai Yao’s abdomen. Zhai Yao hurriedly retreated half a step, parrying with his own foil.
The clash of the blades echoed with a sharp “clang.”
“Just like that.” Shen Heng gave out a praise, once again deftly avoiding Zhai Yao’s next attack and seizing the new-found opportunity to thrust at Zhai Yao’s shoulder.
Zhai Yao’s shoulder was touched, but the other party’s force was well-controlled, so he didn’t feel any pain.
The blood within his body started boiling, swiftly coursing through the veins towards his limbs.
Zhai Yao couldn’t help but exclaim, “This is quite interesting, huh.”
Shen Heng distanced himself from Zhai Yao. Due to the masks they were both wearing, Zhai Yao couldn’t discern the expression Shen Heng currently wore.
Shen Heng said to Zhai Yao, “Again.”
In the late-night silence of the skating rink, devoid of the usual deafening music, the clash of blades appeared to echo with a piercing clarity.
Amidst their sidestepping, the soles of their shoes would occasionally graze the polypropylene flooring, emitting sharp frictional noises.
As the rounds progressed, Shen Heng gradually stopped yielding to Zhai Yao without reservation.
His foil’s tip successively struck Zhai Yao’s chest, abdomen, lower ribs, back, and side waist… eventually igniting Zhai Yao’s anger.
Each move surpassed the previous in speed and force, gradually forsaking the initial formality.
Seizing an opportune moment, Shen Heng swiftly executed a flick and directly knocked Zhai Yao’s foil out of his hand.
Under the lamplight’s glow, the blade shimmered with metallic brilliance, resonating with a sharp “clang” upon landing on the ground.
Zhai Yao muttered a curse under his breath, and his expression darkened as he flexed his sore wrist.
At that juncture, his stamina had been somewhat depleted; his shoulders rose and fell in sync with chaotic gasps, undulating with each breath.
Zhai Yao removed his mask, revealing his sweat-dampened hair, with some strands seen sticking untidily to his forehead.
He raised his hand to wipe away his sweat, and just as he was about to bend down to retrieve his foil, his butt suddenly received a sharp “smack.” Although the force wasn’t that strong, the sound of the impact still reverberated loudly throughout the expansive sporting arena.
“F*ck!” Zhai Yao sprang away like a coiled spring. “Are you courting death?!”
“Don’t raise your butt when you’re retreating; it’ll disrupt the balance of your centre of gravity,” Shen Heng said, then used his foil’s tip to point at Zhai Yao’s shoulder. “Relax the joint here, and use your wrist to control the tip’s direction.”
Next was the waist.
“It’s too stiff here”
Back of the knee.
“Here, maintain a natural bend.”
Zhai Yao waved off Shen Heng’s foil. “Just say what you have to, no need to lay hands on me.”
Shen Heng also removed his mask, meeting Zhai Yao’s gaze squarely. In stark contrast to Zhai Yao’s simmering annoyance, Shen Heng maintained an unperturbed composure.
“Overall, not bad. It’s not easy to reach this level so quickly after just picking it up.”
Zhai Yao humph-ed; what a rare treat to hear such a beautiful comment from this person’s mouth.
But then Shen Heng continued, “Keep practising, and there shouldn’t be any issues entering the junior division.”
“……” You motherf*cker!
Zhai Yao grabbed his foil, swiftly twisted his body, and thrust towards Shen Heng’s chest, landing the foil’s tip directly at the location of his heart.
“This is payback for the thrust back at noon,” he said coldly.
Shen Heng quietened for two seconds. “Did you win your way to becoming 8th High School’s Boss through ambushes?”
“Shut up, think your heart’s racing too fast? Want me to make it stop instead?” Zhai Yao pressed the tip deeper. Seeing Shen Heng’s eyes darkened slightly, as if he was starting to feel pain, Zhai Yao retracted his foil and put the mask back on. “Continue.”
Shen Heng cast down his eyes, raising his hand to smooth and straighten the clothes over his chest.
“Nuisance…”
With a mutter, he suddenly lunged forward from behind Zhai Yao.
Zhai Yao dodged Shen Heng’s attack with a lean, sneering, “So, 9th High School’s Boss also resorts to ambushes?”
As Zhai Yao spoke, he extended his arm and bent his wrist down with pressure, striking hard at Shen Heng’s blade before swiftly shifting his movement to aim at the other party’s exposed area.
Shen Heng evaded by sidestepping, counterattacking with a powerful swing of his foil—so forceful that it even made a “whoosh” sound, slicing through the air.
Later on, Zhai Yao simply decided not to bother with the competition rules anymore. Every part of Shen Heng’s body became a valid target for his attacks. Shen Heng continuously parried Zhai Yao’s successive strikes with his foil, and ultimately, he also began to retaliate.
Somewhere along the way, the foils had been thrown to the side by their owners. Zhai Yao rammed his head into Shen Heng’s abdomen, while his other hand reached for the back of the other party’s knee, attempting to topple him over.
Shen Heng gripped the nape of Zhai Yao’s neck and pressed downward, as if taming a wild steed. Eventually, both of them collapsed together onto the polished floor…
…
——Their surroundings had fallen quiet.
For a moment, only their breathing could be heard.
Above them, the harsh glare of the light prompted Zhai Yao to lift an arm, shielding his eyes.
Then, a twitch tugged at the corners of his lips, eventually curling into a smile.
“What are you smiling at?” Shen Heng’s voice, low and slightly breathless, wafted from beside him and into his ears.
Zhai Yao shut his eyes, and before him lay a veil of darkness tinged with crimson.
“It just felt so damn satisfying as hell.”
He said.
Indeed, it had been ages since he last let loose in such an unrestrained manner.
The person beside him didn’t respond further; soon after, the surroundings echoed with the sound of rustling.
First, the clatter of a foil being picked up, followed by the zip of a backpack being unfastened… until finally, a lighter clicked, igniting the tobacco and filling the air with a dry, acrid scent.
“Pass me one,” Zhai Yao said, still lying down, addressing Shen Heng.
The cigarette pack was tossed over by Shen Heng.
Zhai Yao sat up, taking one and placing it between his lips.
“Still training?” Shen Heng leaned against the wall with a cigarette in hand, casting a downward gaze at Zhai Yao.
“Of course.” Zhai Yao’s expression melded with the swirling smoke as he took a few more puffs.
He said, “Shen Heng, is this the best you can do?”
Shen Heng averted his gaze. “I’m done teaching you a lesson.”
“Bullsh*t.” Zhai Yao’s voice, laced with smoke, in turn sounded more lazy, “This is basically just an old monk competing with a thug in knocking the wooden fish. If we were to switch to steel pipes, who knows who’d come out on top.”
Shen Heng offered no response, taking one last drag again before extinguishing the cigarette.
“Get up, let’s debrief.”
“Mm.”
…
Right then, two figures—one big and one small—emerged from the alleyway.
The big figure was pushing a bicycle, while the small figure was holding onto the corner of her skirt.
Yup, they were Zhai Bing and Xiao Lajiao.
Zhai Bing had noticed how Zhai Yao had been walking to school over the past few days, and that was when she later discovered that his bicycle had been stolen.
Zhai Bing was worrying about how to reconcile with Zhai Yao. With this new opportunity right in front of her, she hurriedly went to the bicycle shop to buy a replacement for Zhai Yao’s stolen bicycle.
This brother of hers had been riding that bicycle since forever; it was definitely time for a replacement. Although she would often inadvertently neglect Zhai Yao because of Liang Hao and Xiao Lajiao, she still deeply cared for and loved her little brother.
Zhai Bing held the handlebars with one hand and communicated with Xiao Lajiao using sign language with the other hand: —When Mama was young, your grandparents bought me a pink bicycle. Your uncle also made a fuss about wanting it, but Grandpa and Grandma said he could just borrow mine to ride. Your uncle refused to accept it no matter what because he felt only girls would like pink, and cried at home. In the end, he got beaten by Grandpa with a whisk broom.
Xiao Lajiao: —Uncle was so pitiful. Grandpa and Grandma didn’t like him?
Zhai Bing: —Actually, it wasn’t that they dislike him. But since Mama is a girl, Grandpa and Grandma tend to pamper me more. Your uncle is a true man.
Xiao Lajiao nodded in agreement: —I also think Uncle is a true man!
Zhai Bing: —Later, Mama used her saved pocket money to buy a bicycle for your uncle, which was the one he had been riding ever since. Your uncle cherished it a lot.
Xiao Lajiao: —This newly bought one looks even nicer. Uncle will definitely like it!
Zhai Bing smiled as her phone, tucked away in her bag, suddenly rang.
She took out her phone and answered, “Hey, Xie-zi!”
Xie Ziming’s voice came from the other end. “Jie, have you found Zhai Yao? He’s probably at the skating rink, I guess!”
Zhai Bing looked towards the Flying Dragon Skating Rink in the distance, where the roller shutter gate was left slightly open, with light leaking from within.
“Yeah, he should be. I’m reaching there soon!”
“Gotcha, that’s what I thought! I’ll hang up now, jie.”
“Thanks a bunch, Xie-zi.”
“Nah, it’s all good! Have a proper chat with him when you two meet. Zhai Yao’s temperament is simply like that; he only listens when you speak to him with kind words. No matter what, it’s also because he cares about you and Xiao Lajiao. Yeah, jie?”
“Mm, yeah, I know.”
“Alrighty then!” With that, the other side hung up the phone.
Zhai Bing stowed her phone back in her bag and quickened her pace alongside Xiao Lajiao.
Arriving at the entrance, as she was about to park the bicycle and lift the roller shutter gate, she suddenly overheard voices emanating from within.
Zhai Bing gave a quick blink. How come… at this hour, there’s still someone else besides Zhai Yao?
The conversation paused momentarily before resuming.
“Ouch, damn it! …Be a little more gentle!”
It was Zhai Yao’s voice.
“You’re too tight, relax.”
Another male voice.
“Like this?”
“Legs, open up.”
“I dare you to fricking try thrusting me with that thingy again?”
The conversation was quite short, the breaths rather uneven, and the information conveyed was remarkably astonishing.
—Zhai Bing was dumbfounded.
Both her hands loosened, instinctively shielding Xiao Lajiao’s ears, only to remember belatedly that the little one couldn’t hear.
With a “crash,” the bicycle hit the ground, and the sounds inside the skating rink stopped abruptly.
As footsteps drew nearer, the roller shutter gate was lifted from the inside by someone.
Zhai Bing got startled and subconsciously moved to cover Xiao Lajiao’s eyes.
A glimmer of surprise flashed past Zhai Yao’s expression as he looked at Zhai Bing and Xiao Lajiao, who had unexpectedly shown up at the entrance. He furrowed his brows slightly and asked, “What are you doing?”
…
The author has something to say:
Zhai Bing: QAQ What are you doing!!
Ceatbg: Zbvfgjabg, kf kfgf gfjiis pera qgjmalrlcu ofcmlcu, cbatlcu firf HCH
From Yunz:
Yunz: QAQ Nothing happened, guys. *( ¬‿¬)>⌐■-■… (⌐■‿■)*
Long ass rambling
This chapter took me twice as long as usual chapters to finish because I had to spend some time researching and watching fencing videos. Thankfully, the author’s writing is (really really really) well-structured, comprehensible, and has smooth sentence fluency. Taking this chance to express my love for the author’s prose. (I hope I managed to capture and convey them); otherwise, I would’ve had a harder time putting the sentences and terminologies together.
Nonetheless, I’ve had the most fun doing this chapter. Tiring but enjoyable (+ point for learning something new). Hopefully, I got all terminologies right *nervous chuckles* To readers who have some knowledge on fencing, if you encounter any mistakes, please do tell!
Thank you for the chapters, such an interesting novel.
Thank you for reading~ It really is an interesting one, please look forward to the future chapters! ଘ(∩^o^)⊃━☆゜❤️
It’s not what you think sis! Well… not yet 😋😇
For the translator: what is the name of the other novel you translate ( EFTHR) ?
Escape from the Human Realm! It’s a suspense story with a little sprinkle of romance. Here’s the link for it.
Thx 🙏
These kinds of misunderstandings always crack me up
Thanks for translating! This is a great novel and I hope the author knows it
Thank you for reading ଘ(∩^o^)⊃━☆゜❤️ And yeahh, I hope the author knows it too! The novel is slowly getting known and loved by the CN community, so I hope to bring this novel to the EN side too. Good things must be shared with peeps, after all 😌
And it works so well when you translated the misunderstood scene in English 😂 thanks for your hard work translating!!
Ahh yes, the classic Ambiguous Fencing Duel 🤣 probably the reason the author chose that sport LOL. As someone who used to fence very briefly, the info seems accurate to me! Props for doing so much research, thanks for this excellent translation!