Chapter 12 Fame
Unexpectedly, out of the nearly one thousand people in the audience, he was the one staring at her.
Peng Chengyi paused for a moment, then lowered her eyes awkwardly and muttered softly, "His eyesight is strangely good."
"Just not as blind as you." Chen Yubai chuckled softly, lowered his gaze, walked to the last row, and rejoined the line.
"..."
How long is this dog going to hold a grudge against her for saying he's ugly?!
Peng Chengyi pursed her lips speechlessly and clenched her hands hanging at her sides.
The first day of military training was not very intense. After standing as punishment in the morning to listen to speeches by school leaders and instructors, we were dismissed to have lunch.
Having learned her lesson from yesterday, Peng Chengyi sent Chen Yubai a WeChat message early this morning, informing him that she planned to eat with her roommates during the 10 days of military training.
Because if you fail to integrate into the group at the beginning, it won't be so easy to integrate again later.
In response, perhaps it was because of her words, "I'm not going to live with you anymore," that Chen Yubai stopped making sarcastic remarks about her being fickle and simply replied, "Whatever."
But as the team disbanded, she still subconsciously turned around and glanced at Chen Yubai.
Seeing him being led away by Ling Baizhou with his arm around her shoulder, she quickened her pace and caught up with Zheng Xinyue and Chen Wei.
Today, day students also need to stay on campus for meals, so the cafeteria is even more crowded than yesterday.
The three people who couldn't get a small table had to sit at the long table in the middle.
"Hey, Chengcheng, your childhood friend is on the school forum!" Zheng Xinyue, who was eating and scrolling through her phone, suddenly stopped and looked up excitedly.
"Huh?" Peng Chengyi held up her chopsticks, stunned. "Really?"
"I'll send you the link." Zheng Xinyue, who had already exchanged WeChat contacts last night, quickly forwarded the post to her.
Peng Chengyi clicked on it incredulously.
A photo of a boy giving a speech on the podium caught her eye.
Cell phones are not allowed during military training, so the photo must have been taken secretly by someone using their phone, hence the slightly blurry image quality.
In addition, due to the backlighting, the boy's facial features were also too dark to be clearly seen.
But his sharply defined features and the broad shoulders and narrow waist accentuated by his camouflage uniform were enough to cause an uproar on the forum—
"Is this a representative of the first-year high school students?"
"Wow! That's so handsome!"
"Could you female students take more high-resolution photos?"
"Which high school did he attend? Does he have a girlfriend? Does anyone know the details?"
...
If we're talking about insiders, no one knows more than her.
But she had no desire to participate in the discussion at the moment; she only felt it was somewhat absurd.
It's like having an ordinary toy that you've owned for many years, only to have it suddenly labeled as a luxury item and placed in a glamorous display case.
Peng Chengyi scrolled down again and saw that one of their junior high school classmates had popped up to reply—
"Chen Yubai, from No. 16 Middle School, didn't have a girlfriend, but he had a female childhood friend who was always by his side."
"There's no need to emphasize the gender of childhood friends. They're more like brothers. I've even heard him call her 'boss' before."
"??? Suddenly I'm a little curious about his childhood friend."
"I'm curious too."
"Is anyone going to say something?"
Unexpectedly, the forum's tone suddenly shifted towards her, and Peng Chengyi was taken aback, her feelings becoming even more complicated.
She had no desire to debut on the forum because of her connection with Chen Yubai.
But soon someone replied—
"Dude, are you sure you heard me right? His childhood friend is clearly a pretty well-behaved and quiet girl."
"Yes, she's in the same class as Chen Yubai now."
Wow! Are they all top students from the honors class?
"No, they're all in Class 7."
"Huh? Aren't student representatives usually the top scorers in the city?"
"Yes, but I don't know why Chen Yubai didn't go to the experimental class."
Upon seeing this, Peng Chengyi finally couldn't hold back and anonymously replied with a hint of resentment: "Because he didn't even get into the experimental class; he probably just got lucky and became the top scorer."
But as soon as she finished replying, she heard Zheng Xinyue laugh and say, "Look at the latest reply, it's so sour, are you jealous of your childhood friend's enemy?"
"..." Peng Chengyi was taken aback, quickly turned off her phone, and then laughed awkwardly twice, "Maybe."
So, was the inexplicable feeling she had in her heart jealousy?
Before she could even process what was happening, a hand with distinct knuckles placed the plate on the empty table next to her, and a tall figure sat down beside her.
The familiar scent of soapberry wafted into her nostrils, and Peng Chengyi turned her head sharply, seeing the person who was stirring up a storm in the center of the forum.
"...Didn't you go to dinner with the class monitor?" Peng Chengyi asked in surprise.
“Yeah, he’ll be here soon, and there aren’t any empty seats around.” Chen Yubai casually gestured with his chin toward her back.
Peng Chengyi turned around and saw Ling Baizhou walking over with a tray of food.
"Hi." Ling Baizhou greeted her in a friendly yet somewhat cautious manner.
Suddenly, a stranger who had barely spoken to him joined in, and Peng Chengyi awkwardly replied with a "Hi".
"Ah, the class monitor is here." Zheng Xinyue waved her chopsticks at him as if she were old friends, but she only gave Chen Yubai, who sat down next to Peng Chengyi, a forced smile.
Chen Wei nodded to the two of them, then lowered her head and continued eating.
Not daring to directly ask Chen Yubai about gossip, Zheng Xinyue turned the conversation to Ling Baizhou: "Class monitor, have you checked the forum?"
Ling Baizhou: "What forum?"
"It's the forum at No. 1 High School. There's a post about our class," Zheng Xinyue explained.
"Send it to me so I can take a look." Ling Baizhou's curiosity was piqued immediately, and upon receiving the link, he forwarded it to Chen Yubai.
Chen Yubai glanced at the pop-up message on his phone screen, picked up his chopsticks listlessly, and started eating.
"Wow, you're a celebrity at our school now! You should check out the forum." Ling Baizhou nudged Chen Yubai's arm with his elbow as he opened the post.
"What's so interesting about this?" Chen Yubai scoffed, casually picking up a piece of braised pork.
“Hey, this also mentions your childhood friend! Is it referring to Peng Chengyi?” Ling Baizhou said as he scrolled down.
Chen Yu paused with his chopsticks, then finally picked up his phone.
Peng Chengyi's heart tightened; she was inexplicably afraid that he would see the anonymous reply she had posted.
Although she had said to his face that he was lucky, there is a difference between openly criticizing him and secretly talking badly about him.
She didn't want him to think that she was like a rat in a sewer, unable to bear seeing him doing well.
He couldn't help but jump out and say, "I just mentioned that we're just brothers and we're still in the same class, that's all."
"Is that so?" Chen Yubai glanced at her sideways.
"Yeah, don't play on your phone while eating, eat quickly." Peng Chengyi pursed her lips guiltily and even gave him a piece of braised pork from her plate, "It's for you, I can't eat this much."
Chen Yubai stared at her for a few more seconds before putting down his phone, picking up the braised pork she had given him, and putting it in his mouth.
Peng Chengyi silently breathed a sigh of relief.
A moment later, I realized that I didn't really need to be so nervous.
After all, her reply was anonymous, and he might not be able to guess that it was her who posted it.
-
The military training officially began on the second day and immediately became more intense.
In the morning, we stand at attention under the scorching sun; in the afternoon, we practice marching and military boxing.
After a day of training, everyone's military training uniforms looked like they had been pulled out of the water.
So as soon as the evening was over, the girls' dormitory's bathhouse and washroom were packed with people.
Since there was only one public bathhouse on the first floor, while there were washrooms on every floor, Peng Chengyi planned to wash the camouflage T-shirt he had taken off first, and then take a bath when there were fewer people at night.
Zheng Xinyue, who shared the same idea, also brought her a plate and went with her to the restroom at the end of the corridor.
After waiting in line for less than two minutes, the person in front of them exclaimed, "Ah! There's no water!"
"Oh my god, is the water going to be cut off?!" Zheng Xinyue pushed her head forward to see what was going on.
Peng Chengyi: "No way, how are we going to wash our clothes then...?"
"I wonder if there's still water in the bathhouse downstairs." Zheng Xinyue frowned and pulled her head back. "Let's go check it out quickly."
"good."
The two quickly walked out of the bathroom and bumped into Chen Wei, who was returning with foam in her hair, just as they reached the stairwell.
"The water in the bathhouse suddenly stopped, and I had just finished washing my hair," Chen Wei explained calmly, seeing the shocked looks on their faces.
Zheng Xinyue: "Oh my god, the whole dormitory building is without water!"
"Ah, I was thinking of going to the bathroom to wash my hair..." A crack finally appeared on Chen Wei's calm expression.
Peng Chengyi thought for a moment and said, "I remember there's a row of faucets behind the teaching building, but there's no hot water. Do you want to go take a look..."
Chen Wei: "As long as it can be washed, that's fine."
Zheng Xinyue: "Let's go, let's go."
However, when the three arrived, a long line had already formed in front of the water tap.
"Damn, when are we going to get this?" Zheng Xinyue said speechlessly.
"I wonder if there's water in the boys' dorms. If the dorm management isn't strict, maybe we can sneak in?" Peng Chengyi pondered.
"..."
Zheng Xinyue and Chen Wei exchanged glances, seemingly surprised that someone who appeared so well-behaved would make such a suggestion.
But it seems like it's not impossible.
After all, they weren't going to the boys' dorm room; they were just going to the washroom in the corridor to borrow some water.
"Then why don't you ask your childhood friend first?" Zheng Xinyue said.
"Let me ask."
Peng Chengyi took out her phone and quickly messaged Chen Yubai on WeChat: "Do you have water in your dorm?"
A moment later, Chen Yubai replied, "Yes, what's wrong?"
Peng Chengyi: "The water supply to the girls' dormitory is cut off, and we want to wash our clothes and hair."
Chen Yubai: "There is a water tap behind the teaching building."
Peng Chengyi: "There are so many people queuing up, I don't know when the queue will end. We even had an emergency situation where someone was halfway through washing their hair and still had suds on their head."
Chen Yubai: "So you guys want to come to the boys' dormitory?"
Peng Chengyi: "Yes, are your dorm supervisors strict? Is there any possibility that they might sneak into your washrooms?"
Chen Yubai: "...Even if the dorm supervisor's eyesight is bad and he let you sneak in, our first-floor washroom is connected to the public bathhouse. I think you're just trying to become famous on the school forum."
Peng Chengyi paused for a moment, then quickly replied, "Who wants to become famous! I didn't know your dorms were connected; we're all in separate dorms."
Chen Yubai: "Really? Then that person's sour grapes in their reply are practically overflowing the screen."
Peng Chengyi's breath hitched, and she pretended to be clueless: "What are you replying to? I don't understand what you're saying."
A few seconds later, Chen Yubai sent over a screenshot.
Above was her anonymous reply saying he got lucky.
Peng Chengyi bit her lip lightly, making a last-ditch effort: "I didn't post this."
Chen Yubai: "What a coincidence, she speaks exactly like you."
A note from the author:
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Peng Chengyi: I'm drenched in sweat...
Thank you to Haha Monster, 07, Little Green River (my precious treasure), and Sunshine for the nutrient solution! There will be another update at 12 PM~
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