Chapter 4, "What kind of girl do you like?"...
In a corner of the vast playground, the physical education teacher led the students through basic warm-up exercises before starting training for the 800-meter and 1000-meter distances.
Tang Ci was unable to engage in strenuous exercise due to health reasons, so she took a long leave from physical education classes starting in her first year of high school. However, she was not completely idle; she would help the teacher with small tasks within her ability, such as carrying equipment and keeping time.
The PE teacher, understanding that the girls were afraid of getting sunburned, let them run first. Tang Ci took the timer from the teacher, adjusted it, and stood by the track waiting.
As the whistle blew, Tang Ci pressed the timer, following the girls' rushing steps.
Running 800 meters takes at least three minutes. During this time, the person keeping time usually relaxes and only focuses when the runner is right in front of them.
Tang Ci, however, was different. From the moment the numbers on the timer started jumping, she entered a meditative state, staring at the track without moving, always ready to start the countdown.
The boys sat or stood, scattered in twos and threes on the lawn, waiting.
Zhou Yiyang happened to be sitting near the track, and when he looked up, he saw Tang Ci's profile.
She was wearing a slightly worn baseball cap, the lower half of her narrow face completely obscured by the shadow of the brim, making her features unclear, though her outline was delicate and soft.
Zhou Yiyang tugged at the hem of Sheng Yu's T-shirt and whispered, "Don't you think Tang Ci is pretty?"
Sheng Yu didn't lift her eyelids. "I didn't notice."
Zhou Yiyang stood up, his palms braced against the lawn, and smirked, "Why did you say she offered to tutor you and even moved next to you?"
Sheng Yu looked up at him but didn't reply.
Zhou Yiyang put his arm around his shoulder and laughed frivolously: "I like you, of course. I'm going to miss my chance in my senior year of high school, so I'm seizing this opportunity to spend time with you."
He was used to being carefree, and when he said something nonsensical, he couldn't control his voice. Tang Ci, who was a few steps away, obviously heard him, and turned his chin slightly in their direction before quickly stopping.
The setting sun slipped in, casting a small patch of golden light on her cheek beside her nose as it bypassed the brim of her hat. Her trembling eyelashes fluttered for a few seconds, more like fear than shyness.
Sheng Yu scoffed and slapped his hand away. "If you keep talking nonsense, you'll be at the bottom of the countdown again."
Zhou Yiyang slumped his shoulders. He had poor lung capacity and struggled to run for long distances. Thinking about the upcoming 1,000-meter race, he quickly adjusted his breathing and stopped talking nonsense.
Tang Ci focused intently on the girls running towards her, timing them and recording their results. When she looked up, the boys were already standing on the track.
Sheng Yu stood at the end of the line, casually assuming a ready stance. His long, strong leg muscles were faintly visible inside his sports pants. With a whistle from the PE teacher, he sprang up like an agile leopard and followed the crowd at a leisurely pace.
The situation on the field changed rapidly. After 500 meters, Sheng Yu was already far ahead and had pulled away from the second place, running forward at a steady pace.
He must have just had a haircut; as he ran, only the short, dark strands of hair on his forehead swayed in the wind, and there were no other signs of strenuous exercise.
Several girls stood outside the track, cheering him on. As he approached the finish line, their cheers rose up, finally attracting Sheng Yu's attention.
He turned his head to look over, the thin layer of sweat on his forehead and nose shining golden in the twilight, making his dark pupils appear deep and affectionate.
Some girls couldn't help but raise their phones to take pictures.
The click startled Tang Ci out of her daze. She hurriedly lowered her eyes and pressed the timer, her hand moving a second slower than Sheng Yu's steps.
Tang Ci pursed her lips in annoyance, looked up and focused intently on the track, but still instinctively held her breath for a second when Sheng Yu walked past her.
Jiang Chan had been sitting on the lawn behind her, waiting for her to finish before pulling her to go to the convenience store together. As soon as they left the playground and were away from their classmates, Jiang Chan asked her anxiously, "Why did you move next to Sheng Yu? Do you know it's all over the school forum?!"
Tang Ci told her about the scholarship, and Jiang Chan breathed a sigh of relief. "So that's how it is. But you were too impulsive. Sheng Yu hasn't even agreed yet, how could you move there on your own?"
“I think this will make it easier for him to agree,” Tang Ci said sincerely.
Jiang Chan gasped, biting her ice cream scoop and mumbled, "I suddenly realize you're quite daring."
Tang Ci licked her chapped lips, opened the bottled water on sale at the convenience store (buy one get one free), and took a sip. "Do you have any?"
“Yes,” Jiang Chan said in a low voice. “You asked Lao Chen for leave, saying you were studying at home during evening self-study, but you actually went to work at the billiards hall, didn’t you?”
During the summer vacation, Tang Ci often worked at a billiards hall. Jiang Chan visited her several times and thus knew that she had been doing part-time work.
Tang Ci choked on her water and whispered, "You can study at the billiards hall and make money at the same time."
Seeing her earnest explanation, her clear, round eyes widened slightly, looking innocent and pitiful.
Thinking of Tang Ci's complicated family situation, Jiang Chan clutched her chest sadly and said, "You're already in your final year of high school, why are you still thinking about making money every day? Your illness isn't serious, is it? You need to save money for college?"
Tang Ci lowered her eyes and nodded vaguely.
When we arrived at the playground, a basketball game had already been played, and the boys in sports uniforms were resting against the wire mesh.
Surrounded by her sisters, Zheng Shuyao entered the basketball court to hand Sheng Yu water. Sheng Yu bent down and picked up his water bottle from under the basketball hoop, silently refusing.
Zheng Shuyao had been pursuing Sheng Yu for two years, and had been rejected many times, but she felt a little better when she thought that Sheng Yu had never accepted the kindness of other girls, and still smiled and talked to him.
Sheng Yu replied casually, and at the start of the match, he raised his chin to signal to Zheng Shuyao before turning around and going onto the field.
Zheng Shuyao tactfully walked out of the court, but didn't go far. She and her friends were still watching from outside the wire fence. One of the girls saw Tang Ci entering the playground and suddenly nudged Zheng Shuyao's arm.
Several girls turned their gazes to Tang Ci. Zheng Shuyao's gaze shifted from Tang Ci's face to the mineral water bottle in her hand, and she raised her eyebrows in surprise before looking away.
Tang Ci noticed the girls' gazes, pinched the flimsy body of the cheap mineral water bottle with her fingertips, and realized that they had misunderstood that she was going to deliver water to Sheng Yu.
Out of the corner of her eye, Tang Ci glanced at the basketball court and saw that Sheng Yu's half-empty bottle of mineral water was still on the basketball hoop.
The bottle has a pink English label printed on it.
Tang Ci had seen this brand of mineral water many times in the freezer of the convenience store, but she had never bought it.
Mineral water that costs eighteen yuan a bottle.
It turns out that people actually buy them.
The mineral water bottle in her hand was slightly warm, and Tang Ci unconsciously quickened her pace.
/
When school was over, Tang Ci helped the PE teacher tidy up the equipment room. There were only a few people left in the classroom. She glanced at Sheng Yu's empty desk, picked up her bag, and left the classroom.
As the weekend approached, the billiard hall became busier, with several tables occupied by students from nearby universities and vocational high schools.
Tang Ci's original job was to handle cashier duties and card processing, but she would also help out when the staff at the counters were too busy.
Just as she finished setting up a pool table, Awen called out to her from behind, "Xiao Ci, help me set up table number nine too—"
Table number nine was right behind her. Tang Ci gave Awen an OK sign, but her movements froze when she turned around.
Zhou Yiyang's eyes widened. "Tang Ci? You skipped class to play pool too?"
Tang Ci's gaze lingered for a second on the figure next to Zhou Yiyang, then she raised the ball-setting frame in her hand to show Zhou Yiyang, "I'm here to do part-time work."
Zhou Yiyang smiled and said, "No wonder you're a top student. You work hard to support yourself while studying."
Tang Ci awkwardly gestured for Zhou Yiyang, who was blocking the pool table, to move aside. Zhou Yiyang moved aside, revealing a petite but imposing girl standing next to Sheng Yu.
The girl's features were perfectly proportioned with exquisite makeup, and her smooth, curly hair cascaded down her chest, making her the kind of beauty that leaves a lasting impression.
Qiao Xi smiled broadly and said to Sheng Yu in a sweet voice, "You and Tang Ci were high school classmates? What a coincidence! She and I were junior high school classmates."
Tang Ci looked at the familiar smile on Qiao Xi's face, and her blood froze for a moment, even her movements of placing the ball stiffened.
She vaguely remembered that Qiao Xi would always give her that innocent smile in junior high school, leading all the girls in the class to isolate her, claiming that it would give this good-for-nothing who only knew how to study a quiet environment.
Whether it was a blessing in disguise or not, the time she spent without friends and being ostracized in junior high school actually allowed her to get into a top high school with excellent grades, despite attending a bottom-tier junior high.
Jin Ming still harbored some resentment towards Tang Ci because of his previous argument with Song Ke. He snorted coldly and muttered under his breath, "Why is there this bookworm everywhere?"
Qiao Xi keenly grasped the meaning behind Jin Ming's words. She coldly sized up Tang Ci and happened to see Tang Ci carefully shifting her gaze away from Sheng Yu.
She curled her lips in disdain.
It was their first time playing billiards. After watching Tang Ci set up the table, Zhou Yiyang asked her about the basic theory of playing billiards.
Tang Ci patiently explained the rules of scoring to him, and Zhou Yiyang then asked, "Can you teach us the moves?"
With all the practice partners busy, Tang Ci had no choice but to pick up the cue stick and bow to demonstrate. Because she wasn't very familiar with it, her movements were a little clumsy.
Qiao Xi chuckled and joked in a sweet voice, "Tang Xueba, are you sure you know how to do this? This pose is hilarious!"
Tang Ci glanced to the side and saw Sheng Yu standing with his hands in his pockets, looking at her expressionlessly.
Her ears suddenly burned, and she awkwardly put away her golf club, saying softly, "I'll go find you some practice partners."
Tang Ci said goodbye to the sparring partner at table number three who was about to finish, and then returned to the front desk. Miao Miao, her eyes sparkling, leaned close to her and said, "You saw that, didn't you? That handsome guy at table number nine is so good-looking."
Without stopping the action of taking the homework out of her bag, Tang Ci gave a mumbled "hmm".
Miao Miao cupped her cheeks and gossiped, "That pretty girl at their table practically had her eyes glued to him. She's obviously interested in him."
Tang Ci raised her eyelids and saw Qiao Xi standing on tiptoe to speak to Sheng Yu.
Sheng Yu kept his head down, so his facial features and expression could not be seen.
Anyone who sees this scene would think the two are a perfect match.
Tang Ci squeezed the zipper of her backpack tightly, blinking her sore eyes as she looked away.
Miao Miao lingered for a while longer, then looked at her watch and said, "Let's go, let's go. I'm already half an hour late getting off work today."
Tang Ci smiled at her and said, "Be careful on your way home."
Miao Miao was charmed by her well-behaved appearance and reached out to pinch her cheek. "Little Ci is the one who knows how to care about people."
She walked to the door, then glanced reluctantly at table number nine, suddenly tilting her head and muttering, "Why do I feel like this handsome guy looks familiar..."
Tang Ci had already started solving the problem and didn't hear what she said.
After finishing her physics homework, before she could even close the workbook, Tang Ci heard someone knocking on the table.
"Is there anything you need?" she asked, looking up and pausing as she held the pen in her hand.
Sheng Yu tapped the cigarette case on the table and asked with downcast eyes, "Where can I smoke?"
Tang Ci glanced at the no-smoking sign on the wall, pointed to the backyard, and said, "There."
Sheng Yu didn't move. "Lead the way?"
"Oh... okay, okay." Tang Ci put down her pen, hurriedly stood up from the stool, and led him towards the gate leading to the backyard with her limbs somewhat stiff.
With a soft whoosh, Tang Ci gently pushed open the door, finally lifting her gaze from the floor, but only stopping at the boy's collar. "You can smoke outside; there are ashtrays above the trash cans."
With a click of the lighter's flint, a crimson dot appeared in the dim light of the backyard.
Sheng Yu held a lit cigarette between his fingers, but didn't smoke it. His thick eyelashes were lowered, and his dark eyes coldly scrutinized Tang Ci, who dared not look at him.
Tang Ci swallowed hard and said, "I'll go back first."
Thud—
No sooner had he finished speaking than Sheng Yu slammed the sliding door shut, pressing his well-defined knuckles against the doorframe and encircling Tang Ci, who was standing by the door.
Tang Ci instinctively held her breath.
Sheng Yu asked her in a flat tone, "Nothing else to say?"
Tang Ci bit her lower lip and asked in a low voice, feigning ignorance, "Do you agree to the tutoring?"
Sheng Yu raised an eyebrow. "Stop pretending. Aren't you good at acting first and asking questions later?"
"I'm sorry," Tang Ci immediately apologized, then thought for a moment and asked awkwardly, "...So, do you agree?"
Sheng Yu scoffed coldly, then leaned down and said in a low, magnetic voice, word by word, in her ear: "Listen, I don't have time to play games with you."
His soft breathing brushed against her ear, and Tang Ci felt every nerve ending in her body tremble. She looked up in a panic and met his deep, unfathomable eyes.
Like some kind of cold-blooded animal, Sheng Yu stared at her emotionlessly and warned her again in a deep voice.
"Once the weekend is over, move your tables and chairs out of my sight and don't bother me again."
The sliding door opened again, and Tang Ci's eyes were blurred by the smoke exhaled by Sheng Yu. Her steps slowed slightly, and her shoulder was gripped by his cool palm, which easily pushed her into the room.
Tang Ci stumbled, glanced back at the blurry, upright figure outside the glass door, and returned to the front desk, clutching her aching shoulder.
/
For the next two hours, Tang Ci did not glance at table number nine.
Even with their heads down, you could still hear their laughter and chatter; the young boys and girls talked about everything under the sun.
Qiao Xi was very talkative, and she would often strike up a conversation with Sheng Yu. After asking a few irrelevant questions indirectly, she would then ambiguously bring up the question she really wanted to ask.
"What kind of girl does Young Master Sheng like?"
Sheng Yu said coldly, "Ignore me."
Qiao Xi chuckled softly, clinging to him with her beauty, and joked, half-jokingly, "Looks like Young Master Sheng is the one who gets clung to the most. Who's so tactless..."
Tang Ci put on headphones to block out the surrounding noise and didn't stop writing until she had solved a difficult problem.
She lowered her eyes, bit the pen cap, and pondered for a while. Sheng Yu must really hate her.
A bitter, unspeakable ache filled her chest; the math test, which she usually handled with ease, took her twice as long to finish.
As it was nearing the end of her shift, Tang Ci was relieved that Sheng Yu and the others were still there. Otherwise, if she were to pay the bill for table number nine, she was afraid that Sheng Yu would become irritated again just by seeing her.
As she walked home with her bag, Tang Ci, her mind filled with a jumble of thoughts, unconsciously took the shortest route out of habit. It was only when she heard the bustling sounds of people around her that she snapped out of her daze and realized she had ended up on the food stall street.
The tables and chairs of the barbecue restaurants along the road were haphazardly placed on the sidewalk, and a middle-aged man sitting a few steps away was taking off his tank top.
Tang Ci turned her face away and tried to return to the fork in the road, but found that two drunken, burly men had followed her and were walking towards her, supporting each other and stumbling along.
Tang Ci clenched her fists and hurriedly stepped off the sidewalk, trying to cross the road. The two drunkards followed her, muttering to themselves.
"Little girl, are you... are you an adult?"
"Don't go! Want some midnight snack...?"
She gritted her teeth, turned around and walked quickly forward, her schoolbag strap being suddenly tugged by the drunk behind her.
Tang Ci steadied herself with a strong tug, letting out a soft cry of fright. She looked around and saw people engrossed in their drinking party, with no one paying any attention to what had happened in the middle of the road.
She quickly calmed herself down, gripped her backpack straps tightly, and ran forward with her head down.
Tang Ci felt a tightness in her chest due to tension and the sudden movement, but she dared not stop.
Suddenly, a blinding beam of light shone on the dark asphalt road, and the long, buzzing sound of a motorcycle reached my ears.
The moment Tang Ci turned around, she felt a gust of wind rush past her ear, and a huge, black motorcycle sped past her.
The two drunkards behind him had already fallen to the ground and were cursing as they tried to get up.
The motorcycle turned around and rammed into the two men again. The two burly men were so frightened that they instantly sobered up, staggered to their feet from the greasy ground, and quickly ran onto the sidewalk, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Three or four more motorcycles came along. Zhou Yiyang, who was leading the way, pushed up his helmet visor and called out to Sheng Yu, who had turned around for no apparent reason, "Brother Yu, aren't we going to go for a ride around Beishan?"
Sheng Yu didn't say anything, turned the handlebars, and drove past Tang Ci again.
Tang Ci swallowed hard, brushed aside the stray hairs sticking to her forehead, and only caught a fleeting glimpse of Sheng Yu's eyes and eyebrows inside the helmet.
Cold and aloof.
I didn't mean to help her.
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