Duoduo
The 1500-meter race is about to begin at two o'clock in the afternoon of the next day.
Xu Zhiyi stood at the starting line, doing his final warm-up.
Her heart was beating fast, with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.
"Everyone, get ready—"
The referee raised the starting gun.
As the gun went off, sixteen contestants rushed out of the starting line like arrows.
According to the plan, Xu Zhiyi did not follow the leading team, but remained in the middle and rear position.
In the first lap, she felt pretty good, with steady breathing and powerful steps.
The cheers from the stands rose one after another, and she could hear the shouts of her classmates.
In the second lap, my strength began to decline and my breathing became heavy.
She overtook a girl who had slowed down and moved up to seventh place.
Faintly, it seemed as if her name was heard on the radio, but at this moment, all she could hear in her head was discomfort and the sound of heavy breathing.
The third lap was the most difficult. My lungs were burning and my legs felt like they were filled with lead.
The only sounds in my ears were my own breathing and heartbeat.
Another contestant fell behind, and she is now sixth.
"Xu Zhiyi! Come on!"
Suddenly, a familiar voice penetrated all the noise and reached my ears.
She tilted her head to look and saw Song Chengrui running after her at the edge of the infield, shouting as he ran, "The last half lap! Speed up! You can do it!"
With strength coming from nowhere, Xu Zhiyi gritted his teeth and started to sprint.
She surpassed one person and then another.
The finish line was in sight, and she could hardly feel her legs anymore, just rushing forward desperately.
Third place! She narrowly surpassed the girl in front of her and took third place!
After crossing the line, she almost couldn't stand steadily, and a pair of hands supported her in time.
It’s Song Chengrui.
"Water...drink slowly." He handed her an opened bottle of water, his other hand still holding her steadily.
Xu Zhiyi was panting and unable to speak, just looking at him with gratitude.
In the sunlight, beads of sweat on his forehead sparkled, and his smile was brighter than the sunlight.
"Third place! You surpassed two athletes! Oh my God!" Zhang Ningxia rushed over and hugged her excitedly. "Did you hear the cheering script I wrote? The radio read three of them! I was there waiting for them to read!"
Xu Zhiyi finally caught his breath and said with a smile: "I heard it, it's well written!"
At the award ceremony, Xu Zhiyi stood in third place. When she received the certificate, she looked at the audience.
Song Chengrui nodded approvingly to her, the pride on his face obvious.
The sports meet came to an end in the afterglow of the sunset.
The classmates left the playground one after another, and Xu Zhiyi slowly packed up his things.
"Are you going to the playground for training after school tomorrow?" Song Chengrui appeared beside her at some point.
Xu Zhiyi tilted his head and thought for a moment, "Maybe I can take a day off?"
"Then I might take a day off from playing basketball." Song Chengrui said casually.
Xu Zhiyi couldn't help but laugh, "You still have time to rest when playing basketball? Can't you play whenever you have time?"
"Oh, you know it quite clearly."
“…”
Xu Zhiyi found that Song Chengrui was quite bold when he confronted her.
The setting sun stretched the shadows of the two people very long and close.
The campus gradually quieted down, but something was just beginning.
After school, the alley next to the school was bustling with activity. It was the weekend and there were many people at the snack stalls.
"Let's go, let me treat you to a barbecue, do you want to?"
Zhang Ningxia was so proud of herself that she kept showing off the table tennis racket keychain in her hand.
"So happy? What's the good news?"
Xu Zhiyi was pushed out by her, and she did not forget to pick up her schoolbag in her hand.
Zhang Ningxia couldn't hide the smile on her face at all, and whispered in Xu Zhiyi's ear:
"Oh, that's the freshman from last time. He also participated in this sports meet and signed up for the table tennis competition. He actually won a prize. Look, this is his prize. He gave it to me as a thank you for cheering him on."
Xu Zhiyi then remembered that there seemed to be such a competition, but the time of this competition seemed to conflict with her running, so she didn't pay much attention to it.
No wonder Zhang Ningxia said at the time that she had to read the cheering script. It seems that she is not the only one who needs encouragement.
"Which place?"
"second."
"not bad!"
"That's right!" Zhang Ningxia hugged Xu Zhiyi. "You two came in second and third, both of you are great! So, I've decided to pay for everything today! You can eat as much as you want."
In the October evening, the breeze brought a little coolness, blowing away the heat in the air.
The alley was filled with fragrant smells, crowded with people, and the sounds of hawking were endless.
Zhang Ningxia took Xu Zhiyi through the crowd with ease and came to a "Laotie BBQ" stall. The benches next to it were already full of people.
"Uncle Tie, is there any room left?"
Zhang Ningxia is obviously a regular here.
"Yes, yes, yes, in the usual place. You can make the table yourself."
A middle-aged man was busy with his hands, looking at Zhang Ningxia with a smile and greeting her warmly.
Under a big tree nearby, Zhang Ningxia opened a small folding table and stool. She couldn't wait to order a bunch of meat skewers and chicken wings, and also took two bottles of ice soda.
"Here you go." Zhang Ningxia opened it with a screwdriver and handed a bottle to Xu Zhiyi. He also tilted his head back and gulped down half of it, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
"Wow, that feels great~"
"So, after running 1,500 today, do you have any special thoughts? I see you looked like you were fished out of water after the race."
"Don't even mention it. During the last half lap, I felt like my legs weren't my own, and my lungs felt like they were on fire." Xu Zhiyi took a sip of his soda and continued, "If there weren't so many people cheering me on, I wouldn't have pushed through with all that energy. I might have collapsed halfway through."
"Oh, I heard from the class that Song Chengrui was running with you, cheering you on, and even offering you water. Does he really like you?"
"Stop talking nonsense."
Xu Zhiyi felt her cheeks burning, and even a little embarrassed, "He treats others the same way. Don't talk nonsense, it's not good if others hear it."
"Who could have heard it?" Zhang Ningxia looked around. There were hardly any classmates she knew. "Besides, this kind of thing happens all the time in school. You have good grades, so the teacher won't say anything if you talk about it. Maybe if you two do better in your studies, the teacher will be even happier."
"Tsk." Xu Zhiyi sighed helplessly. Just then the barbecue was served. The lamb skewers were sizzling with oil, and the roasted eggplants were still steaming, emitting a rich burnt aroma. Zhang Ningxia's attention was instantly diverted, and she began to feast on the food.
After eating the delicious food, Zhang Ningxia was so happy that she couldn't help gossiping again.
"Honestly, Song Chengrui is handsome and plays basketball pretty well. Although his grades aren't as good as yours, your levels are pretty evenly matched. What do you think? Would you consider him?"
Xu Zhiyi bit a chicken wing and mumbled, "What are you thinking about? You're going to take the college entrance examination soon. You're always thinking about this and that. Why don't you think about how to improve your scores and get into a good university?"
"Ouch," Zhang Ningxia took two pieces of tissue paper and quickly wiped her mouth. "I told you some gossip, and you started talking about your grades. Why are you acting like my mom?"
Xu Zhiyi rolled his eyes at her and teased her, "Then call me mom."
Zhang Ningxia ignored her angrily.
After a while, Xu Zhiyi went to pull Zhang Ningxia's clothes, "Hey, are you really angry?"
"Yes, angry."
Zhang Ningxia didn't take any action, but turned her body and ignored Xu Zhiyi.
"Oh, I was wrong, wrong. I shouldn't have mentioned the grades. I shouldn't have disobeyed you. I'm not your mother, you are my mother. Is that okay?"
"puff--"
Zhang Ningxia was amused by this sentence. She could no longer pretend to be cool and simply turned around.
"No, I'm not old, and I don't have a habit of being someone's mother."
"How can you be old? You are young and in the prime of your life! Everyone loves you, flowers bloom when you see them, and cars get flat tires when they see you!"
"Xu Zhiyi! Still telling the same old joke!"
Xu Zhiyi was laughing so hard that her body was shaking. Suddenly, she saw a familiar figure. She quickly sat up straight and took a few pieces of tissue to wipe the corners of her mouth.
Zhang Ningxia noticed her action, looked back in confusion following her line of sight, and immediately revealed a meaningful smile, and hurried to say hello.
"Hey, Song Chengrui! What a coincidence, you're here to eat too?"
Song Chengrui was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and light blue shorts. His hair was half-dry, as if he had just taken a shower. He was holding two bottles of milk in his hand.
"Um...I came here to buy some barbecue for my sister. She likes this place."
"younger sister?"
Zhang Ningxia frowned, "Sister? I haven't heard you mention that."
"Ah, no, it's my cousin, my aunt's little daughter, who has been staying at my house to play these days."
He pointed at the little girl leaning against the store door not far away, looking at this side eagerly.
Zhang Ningxia saw the little figure and quickly greeted him, "Tell your sister to come sit over here. You left her alone over there. What if she runs away?"
Xu Zhiyi also naturally made room for him and took apart a folding chair. "Ask your sister to come and eat with us. There's room for her."
"She..." Before Song Chengrui could finish his words, Zhang Ningxia stood up and ran to the door of the store.
I could hear her voice from a long distance away.
"Sister, come over and eat with me, okay?"
"The sisters ordered so many delicious dishes!"
Song Chengrui also nodded and waved at her.
The little girl was about six or seven years old. She was wearing an orange short-sleeved shirt and long pants, with two pigtails. She followed Zhang Ningxia shyly.
Soon, seeing Song Chengrui, she squatted beside him again.
"This is Sister Xu Zhiyi and Sister Zhang Ningxia. They are both my brother's friends."
Song Chengrui pointed at the two people opposite and said, "Say hello quickly."
All I heard was the little girl showing a pair of round eyes, and she took a long time to react before calling out cautiously.
"Hello, sister~"
“Hey~”
Zhang Ningxia felt like her heart was about to melt. "Oh my god, the voice is so soft and cute!"
"Her name is You Qiaoxi, which means clever and skillful, and full of hope. Her nickname is Duoduo."
Zhang Ningxia exclaimed again: "Wow, what a nice name~"
Xu Zhiyi smiled gently: "Duoduo, what do you want to eat? Sister will order it for you."
Duoduo pointed at Xu Zhiyi's half-eaten chicken wings and said that she wanted this one.
"Chicken wings, ok, order them right away!"
After saying that, she stood up and walked towards the boss.
Zhang Ningxia arranged Duoduo next to Song Chengrui, and as a result, she heard Duoduo speak.
"Brother, I have seen the sister just now, right?"
Zhang Ningxia immediately sensed something was wrong and turned her head quickly.
"Hey, Duoduo, where did you see that sister from before?"
As soon as Xu Zhiyi sat down after ordering, he heard Duoduo talking.
"There are so many photos of that sister in my brother's phone!"
In an instant, the air froze.
Song Chengrui was a little embarrassed for a moment and hurriedly explained, "I took a lot of photos for the sports meet these past two days, and she found them."
He looked at Duoduo and explained, "Duoduo, those people in the photo are all my brother's classmates. This sister is also my brother's classmate, so she must have been photographed."
He quickly glanced at Xu Zhiyi, who also seemed a little embarrassed, with his head down, biting the straw and saying nothing.
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