Waiting for a rabbit to run into a tree stump

As the sun rises above the horizon, bathing the world in golden light, the dawn breaks through the darkness, waking the sleeping city and its inhabitants. But of those who awaken so early, how many are truly awake?

On the empty tennis court, young girls huddled together, discussing the latest literary magazines. Qingcheng sat quietly on a bench, basking in the sun, her expression indifferent, revealing no emotion. Last night, after meeting with her cousin, her cousin told her to stay calm and approach Zhang Lulu at her own pace.

Let her cousin handle Xu Qiao's henchmen. After Qingcheng got Zhang Lulu's schedule from her cousin, she discovered that this big star's playing time was very irregular. However, whenever she came to play, she usually chose to play early on weekend mornings, probably because there were fewer people there.

As the weather gets colder, there will be fewer and fewer people around. Therefore, Qingcheng plans to stake out the stadium starting this week. In her dictionary, there are two ways to handle interpersonal relationships: one is to take the initiative, and the other is to wait in place.

Most people choose to take the initiative for various reasons. The advantages of taking the initiative are obvious: you don't have to wait, you can contact whomever you want, and your goals are clear and specific. However, the biggest weakness of taking the initiative is that it is difficult to build trust, because people always reflexively reject people or things that take the initiative to approach them.

I didn't have that much time to build relationships, so I could only resort to the seemingly foolish method of "waiting for the rabbit to run into the tree stump." Today, my luck was good; the "rabbit" finally emerged...

Through the window, Qingcheng saw a woman dressed in a dark red embroidered gold cheongsam with a white fur vest being escorted by servants into the lounge. She didn't know which family's mistress she was. However, even after entering the room, she still didn't take off her sunglasses, but instead removed her mask and began applying lipstick as if no one else was around.

"Chengcheng, what are you still doing here? Everyone's been waiting for you." Her friend Tan Baozhen's voice rang out from behind her.

"Oh dear, I told you guys to go first, I'm going to rest for a bit." Kiyosumi said, yawning weakly. Tennis is a team sport, it would look strange for her to play alone, so she specifically invited her group of girlfriends to play together. Besides, being in the team would reduce her presence.

"The colder it is, the sleepier you get. If you move around, you won't be sleepy anymore. Come on." Zhenzhen tugged at Qingcheng and shook her affectionately.

"Alright, alright." Kiyosumi sighed and took out a mirror to fix her hair. At the same time, she adjusted the angle so that she could see the woman behind her. She saw that the woman in red in the mirror seemed to have moved her sunglasses down her nose a little, as if she was peeking at her.

"Wait a minute, you're not warming up at all. Come and do it with me." Baozhen took out a thin ribbon from his pocket and tied it around his forehead. "The magazine said that if you don't warm up, you're more likely to get injured when you exercise."

"Alright, alright, little housekeeper, I'll listen to you." Qingcheng agreed indulgently.

"One, two, three..." With the slogan of "guaranteed authenticity", Kiyosumi also began to stretch her arms and twist her waist.

Thinking of the information in the report, Qingcheng had a bold idea. She grabbed Zhenzhen, who was warming up, and ran forward. Then she turned around to look for water on the chair. The movement was so big that Tan Baozhen was pulled around. Fortunately, Zhenzhen didn't seem to care. She grabbed the glass bottle, and the two of them ran hand in hand towards the field.

On the green court, white squares were painted on it, commonly known as boundaries. A group of guests arrived at the previously empty court next to it, but instead of getting rackets or changing clothes, they stood neatly outside the boundary, motionless.

"Is this meant to be used as a human stake?" The little girl, Huang Qi, curiously peered through the barbed wire fence.

"I wonder who's going to fetch the ball? Who's making such a big fuss?" Xia Shiyu also craned her neck and stood on tiptoe to look curiously.

Both of them were Tan Baozhen's students, and they started discussing again, oblivious to everyone else.

"Could it be some big star who's here?"

"How could that be? Didn't you see the magazine cover? Big stars all love playing mini-golf."

"Tsk, it's just an advertisement. Movie queen Zhang Lulu likes to play tennis."

"Yeah, do you think it could be Zhang Lulu?"

The two girls screamed with joy at the thought of this possibility. Qingcheng, holding a racket, sighed that it was so good to be young, to laugh when you wanted to laugh and cry when you wanted to cry. Fortunately, her best girlfriends from middle school were still by her side, one of whom became a middle school teacher and the other a pharmacist.

"Girls, girls, have you forgotten what I've taught you? What should a lady be like? Look at your sister Zisu, and look at yourselves." Zhenzhen pouted, pretending to be angry. "How can a lady be so crazy, shouting without considering the occasion? If Principal Huang sees this, he'll deduct your credits again."

Hearing about Principal Huang's reputation, Qingcheng recalled some amusing anecdotes from her school days and decided to help the two girls out: "Stop talking. These girls are just curious at this age. Who wants to go first?"

"I'll do it, I'll do it." Perhaps because they were too cute, Zhenzhen's anger had no effect, and the two girls immediately focused their attention back on playing ball.

"Double match, Zisu, let's go!" Qingcheng pulled Zisu over, and Zisu readily took the racket with a flick of her ponytail. The ends of her hair swayed, adding a touch of playfulness to Zisu's somewhat aloof temperament.

"Ugh, you guys won't let me play with you, you're bullying me," Zhenzhen said, somewhat annoyed.

"Taking you along would be really bullying that young girl," Zisu added, adding insult to injury.

"Is the teacher very good at playing ball?" Xia Shiyu asked curiously, as she had never seen the teacher play ball before.

"Her nickname in school was 'Little Cannonball.' Even if you two combined, it wouldn't work," Qingcheng said seriously. "Hmph, that damn man thinks she's strong? He's so ignorant. We should send Zhenzhen to arm wrestle him and show him what true superhuman strength is."

"Wow, is it that strong?" Huang Qi's eyes sparkled. "I never imagined that the teacher, who is usually so gentle and sweet, would have such a heroic nickname."

"If you don't believe me, just watch from the sidelines. Zhenzhen will give the little girls a performance." After Qingcheng finished speaking, the two little girls nodded vigorously.

"If the two of us go together, we might be able to fight Zhenzhen," Zisu added to the two girls.

Tan Baozhen remained pouting until the serve, then suddenly her expression turned extremely serious. The tennis ball bounced and fell on the court like a shooting star, seemingly in a straight line, but then suddenly spun and flew towards the corner. Fortunately, Qingcheng and Zisu were standing on either side and managed to save the ball in time.

Watching their teacher's explosive power and the two older girls' superb skills, the two little girls couldn't help but clap their hands. Watching a thrilling game live was just as enjoyable as playing it themselves.

When Zhenzhen, drenched in sweat, waved her hand to indicate that she couldn't go on, Huang Qi immediately handed her a towel and water.

"Zhenzhen, how long has it been since you last played ball?" Zisu asked, wiping the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief.

"You two ganged up on me, and you still have the nerve to say that?" Tan Baozhen replied, panting heavily.

“You used to be able to take on two people at once with ease, but you still lack training.” Qingcheng handed Zisu a bottle of water as well.

"I haven't exercised in a long time. I'm grading those kids' homework every day, and I'm almost getting cervical spondylosis," Zhenzhen complained at the opportune moment. When she heard Baozhen complaining about work, Zisu silently lowered her head.

"Teacher, then we'll play ball with you from now on," Huang Qi said happily.

"And teacher, our school has a tennis club, right? Let's join together," Xia Shiyu comforted her.

Perhaps moved to tears by hearing how much her two beloved students cared for her.

"Alright, you two can play by yourselves. We're going to take a break." Zisu folded the towels and gently draped the large bath towel over Baozhen and Qingcheng, reminding them, "Sweating can easily make you catch a cold, so be careful to keep warm. Also, drink less cold water."

"Zhenzhen, I really want to marry Zisu." Qingcheng pretended to look at Gu Zisu with a lecherous grin.

"Chengcheng, I want some too, please save half of the perilla leaves for me." Baozhen said, giving Zisu a flirtatious wink.

"You two are such idiots, I'll go get you some hot water." Zisu was amused by their antics.

After Zisu left, Tan Baozhen gave He Qingcheng a mysterious wink.

"Tell me honestly, is there a brave man pursuing you? How's it going?" Zhenzhen instantly channeled the gossipy nature of her aunts and grandmothers. When women get together, they either discuss trends or men.

"Huh...what...who?" Kiyosumi feigned ignorance. She didn't quite agree with the title; how did pursuing her become a warrior?

And so what if he's a warrior? Does that mean I have to accept him?

"You two, the ones in military uniforms, were dating... right?" Zhenzhen asked, blinking at her.

"Stop, hold on, I don't know where you got this information from, I'm single now." Kiyosumi quickly cut off her friend's gossipy mind.

“That would be the first Chinese man to extend an olive branch to you, think about it.” Zhenzhen nudged Qingcheng while suppressing a laugh.

"I'm not considering it. I'm destined to be a nun." Qingcheng said helplessly. She went to all-girls schools from junior high to high school, and then worked part-time in college while writing articles and completing her studies. She also had many random hobbies. Now she's her cousin's informant. When she's busy, she wishes she could turn into two people. She doesn't have time to think about this.

"Chengcheng, it's not that no one likes you." Zhenzhen said with a hint of exasperation, "Hey, you don't know, every time our poetry club goes out to compete with other schools, male students always ask the teachers about your name."

"Then let me tell you what happened next. After they found me, they all asked me about you." Qingcheng couldn't help but complain about Tan Baozhen.

This friend was the complete opposite of her. Since they were in the same class, boys from other schools had been sending her love letters. Some of them even set up candles at the school gate to express their love. During that time, Tan Baozhen could only apply to the school to allow her family's driver to enter the campus to pick her up.

"Then why didn't they ask about my name from the beginning?" Baozhen asked, voicing her doubts.

"How would I know what they're thinking? People who like you are all a bit bookish, maybe they like to beat around the bush," Kiyosumi said seriously.

"That's just sophistry. They just think you're someone to admire from afar, not to be trifled with. Don't be so distant and polite with people. Girls should be a little softer and cuter at the right time." Tan Baozhen deliberately pouted.

"Feudal! You've been brainwashed by feudal ideas for too long." Kiyosumi tapped Bojin's head.

"Ugh, I happened to see you guys talking in the alley last time. I only glanced at you, but that guy was quite good-looking, and his height was a good match for you." Tan Baozhen said, somewhat puzzled.

"Can good looks put food on the table? Do you even know what kind of person he is?" He Qingcheng became increasingly angry as she spoke; the man's character was quite awful.

"What did he do to make you so angry?" Tan Baozhen asked cautiously.

"It's nothing. The farther he goes, the better. I'm going to rebel against feudal society by being single. This unfair system of marriage will eventually disappear." Kiyosumi's words almost made Yasujin choke.

"I never expected your ideas to be so fashionable and progressive. I am completely impressed," Tan Baozhen said, bowing slightly.

While chatting with Tan Baozhen, Qingcheng kept a low profile, observing the situation next door. The arrival of the new young master almost made Qingcheng's eyes pop out—Xu Xiye had also arrived.

What an unexpected bonus! So this is the "sister-in-law" bringing her brother-in-law out. Qingcheng couldn't help but sigh, "You people in the entertainment industry really know how to have fun."

According to the information, Xu Xi is Xu Qiao's younger brother, born of the same mother, while Zhang Lu is one of Xu Qiao's mistresses with whom he openly cohabits. Moreover, she has secretly given birth to two sons and a daughter for Xu Qiao, who are being raised in their hometown of Huzhou by his first wife.

If Xu Qiao's first wife passes away in the future, she is the most likely candidate to become his legal wife.

Rather than digging into the relationship between the two, the important thing now is how to strike up a conversation with Zhang Lulu. The group of people around her are obviously Xu Qiao's henchmen, so it's not advisable to openly confront them. However, their current task is to help their two masters retrieve the ball.

"I need to touch up my makeup, you guys go ahead and have fun," Zhang Lulu said to her manager.

"Miss Zhang, I'll go buy it for you." One of the henchmen rudely stopped Zhang Lulu.

"Get lost! If you block my way again, believe me, I'll have Mr. Xu fire you!" Zhang Lulu said arrogantly, her voice so loud that Qingcheng could hear her clearly.

"Mr. Xu told us that we must take good care of Miss Zhang." The henchman was a bit dumbfounded, trying to show his loyalty but misinterpreting the situation.

"Hey, you guys are so silly. Touching up your makeup is like going to the toilet. Don't you know how to say it politely?" Zhang Lulu's agent chimed in.

Upon hearing this, the henchmen reluctantly made a gesture of invitation. Zhang Lulu rolled her eyes at them and went out, presumably to use the restroom.

Zhang Lulu has left the venue, without any henchmen following her—a perfect opportunity. Qingcheng didn't pay much attention to what Zhenzhen was muttering behind her; she made an excuse to find Zisu and went out.

Sunny days always bring joy, especially in the south after winter sets in. The sunlight outside always seems particularly beautiful, with soft, white clouds like brocade draped over the light blue sky, adorned with golden tassels of light.

He Qingcheng squinted, enjoying the warmth of the moment. She needed to figure out a way to make a stake for the "rabbit" to run into. But what kind of stake should she use...?