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Chapter 10: A New Blind Date
When did Zhang Canyang start caring so much about Qin Shi?
Li Huanhuan couldn’t help but feel suspicious.
“He won’t,” she said.
“That’s a relief. I was really worried that my presence would affect your relationship with Qin Shi,” Zhang Canyang said with a sigh of relief on the other end of the line. Then he suddenly asked, “But why were you with Qin Shi? Are you two dating?”
“We’re not.”
Li Huanhuan thought of Qin Shi’s cold expression at the end, “And there won’t be any dates.”
“That’s a relief,” Zhang Canyang mumbled.
“What did you say?” Li Huanhuan didn’t catch that.
“Nothing.”
Zhang Canyang quickly brightened up, his voice warm and cheerful. Li Huanhuan could almost picture his angelic smile. “Sis, last night at the basketball court, did you have something to tell me?”
His quick topic switch caught Li Huanhuan off guard.
She immediately thought of his coach, Cao Xufang—the one with issues. She wanted to warn Zhang Canyang to be careful; that his coach wasn’t a good person. But then she realized… she had no evidence.
Cao Xufang had brought Zhang Canyang back from the U.S. and had coached him long before he became a pro. Compared to someone he’d known only a few days, Zhang Canyang would naturally trust someone he saw every day.
While she was hesitating, a pained groan came from the other end of the phone, followed by the sound of a metal pipe hitting tile.
Li Huanhuan was startled.
“Zhang Canyang, what’s that sound on your end?”
“Sorry, sis. I just accidentally knocked something over.”
Li Huanhuan didn’t question it. Just as she was about to speak again, Zhang Canyang said,
“Sis, we’re so close—could you not call me by my full name?”
“Huh? What do you want me to call you then? Fox?”
“Just call me by my name.”
“Alright then, I’ll call you Canyang,” Li Huanhuan said.
A soft chuckle came through the phone.
Li Huanhuan rubbed her ear, a little uncomfortable.
“Canyang, did you live in C City when you were little?”
“Yes, this is my hometown,” Zhang Canyang replied cheerfully.
“Then do you…” She wanted to ask if he remembered “Sister Circle,” but before she could, Zhang Canyang interrupted to apologize.
“Sorry, sis. My coach needs me. I’ve got to go.”
“Where are you now?”
“The bathroom.”
“Oh, alright.”
Li Huanhuan hung up feeling a little disappointed. She still didn’t get the chance to ask.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Fox, open the door! What are you and Wang Hao doing in there?!”
The men’s restroom door at the CoolPlay Club was being pounded on, but it was barricaded from the inside with a mop and bucket.
Zhang Canyang, in the club’s purple uniform, stood at the sink with one foot on a contorted face. If anyone from Team Sirius was there, they would’ve recognized the guy under his foot—someone who had punched Zhang’s teammate backstage at a match.
Gone was the warm, sunny Zhang from the phone call. His expression was cold and dangerous now, like a venomous blade.
Ignoring the people outside, he pressed harder on the man’s face.
“You had someone secretly photograph me?”
“And spread the pictures around?”
He pressed down harder.
The man begged for mercy.
But Zhang Canyang’s gaze only grew colder.
“You stalked and took pictures of me—fine. But you never should’ve dragged my sister into this! You even sent the photos to Team Sirius!”
“Sob… I was wrong, Fox, I…”
“Wrong? You know you were wrong now? Too late!”
He bent down and grabbed the guy by the throat, glaring coldly.
At that moment, he was no longer an angel—but a demon.
Crash—
“Fox, what are you doing?!”
The bathroom door was finally forced open.
A man with a hooked nose around forty appeared at the doorway. Seeing Zhang grabbing the guy’s throat, he frowned.
“Coach Cao, save me…” the man gasped.
This was Coach Cao Xufang. After a brief frown, he quickly calmed down. He walked in, shut the door, and approached Zhang and Wang Hao.
“Fox, what are you doing?” he asked harshly.
Zhang Canyang glared at him coldly.
“Always causing trouble.”
Coach Cao took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves.
“If you want to shut him up, you should do this.”
He punched Wang Hao.
Li Huanhuan’s life seemed to return to normal—back to her usual self.
No more Qin Shi, no more Zhang Canyang, no one suddenly asking her out.
No surprise outings, no dodging fans at bars, no awkward breakups on the street, no being misunderstood as dating two guys…
Without the main characters or supporting ones, her life became plain and uneventful. She returned to her role as just another extra in the story—no more excitement, no more drama.
That’s the difference between a protagonist and a background character.
When the people destined for the spotlight stop reaching out, the ties between them and her vanish.
And that’s how the world should be.
Li Huanhuan had simply returned to her rightful place.
Soon, it was time for a hospital check-up. Her mom, Su Mei, and stepfather Liu Shu returned to the city. They stayed overnight and went with her the next day for the appointment.
Results would take two weeks.
While waiting outside the exam room, Su Mei asked about the kid who got her number through Zhao Auntie—Qin Shi’s mom.
“How’s it going with that kid?” Su Mei asked.
Seeing the smile on her mom’s face, Li Huanhuan realized she’d forgotten to tell her: she and Qin Shi hadn’t spoken in a while.
She hesitated, then said, “We’re not talking anymore.”
Su Mei was shocked. “Why not? You said he was picky and didn’t like you, but then he asked for your number, so he clearly had some interest. Since you said he was handsome, why not give it a shot?”
“Mom, relationships aren’t that simple.”
Things were too complicated to explain in a few words. In the end, she fell back on the usual excuse:
“We just didn’t click.”
“Didn’t click again…” Su Mei sighed, disappointed. “Huanhuan, do you even want a relationship? Are you still thinking about…”
“Next!”
They were called in for the exam. Su Mei dropped the topic and went in.
While waiting, Huanhuan texted her and went outside.
An hour later, she came back in and saw Su Mei chatting happily with another woman of similar age. Su Mei called her over to say hi.
On the way home in Liu Shu’s car, Su Mei suddenly brought up that this woman’s nephew—30, good job, good looks, good character—wanted to meet Huanhuan.
“You didn’t like Zhao Auntie’s son because he was younger. This one’s perfect—four years older, mature, considerate.” Su Mei cut off her objections.
Huanhuan looked helplessly at her.
“You’re not against it, are you?” Su Mei asked.
She glanced at Liu Shu in the driver’s seat, then sighed, “Alright.”
Su Mei beamed. “Great! I’ll tell your Aunt Luo to set it up.”
Su Mei was always fast with matchmaking. That same evening, everything was arranged. The date would be Saturday afternoon, at a dessert café in the city.
But before Saturday, Su Mei and Liu Shu left the city for the countryside.
That day, Li Huanhuan finished writing her content for her side gig and worked on a new video. The topic: Cats and Dogs—exploring their interactions.
She had a cat, but not a dog. She browsed videos online, but something felt off.
She decided that after meeting Bachelor #81, she’d go observe the neighborhood dogs.
Around 2 PM, she got ready to head out.
At the Sirius Club.
The team had just finished a scrimmage match. It was Saturday, and the players were discussing afternoon plans.
“Where’s Star? Isn’t he coming?” someone asked, seeing Qin Shi packing up.
“Qin Shi, want to do a murder mystery game?”
He waved and slung his bag over his shoulder, leaving.
“I’m out too,” Hu Xun said, following him.
Zhou Jianyu, A Kun, and Sasha also left.
“What’s with them?”
“You should ask what’s up with Star. He’s been in a bad mood lately.”
Left behind, they started gossiping about their rivals, CoolPlay.
“Heard someone over there got in a fight last week.”
“Who?”
“Rumor says it was Fox.”
“Fox? Then no surprise. Will he get banned?”
…
“Qin Shi, where you going?”
Outside, Hu Xun caught up and threw an arm around him.
“Just taking a walk,” Qin Shi said, brushing him off.
Hu Xun stuck to him like glue. “Are you upset because you broke up with Sister Huanhuan?”
Qin Shi stopped and frowned.
“Seriously, wrong topic, man.”
Zhou Jianyu facepalmed from behind, pretending not to know him.
“You don’t want murder mystery? Then food? What should we eat?” Hu Xun wondered aloud.
Suddenly, he saw Coach Yang Shantai riding off on a scooter.
“Huh? Where’s Coach Yang going?”
The others looked out too.
Coach Yang usually stayed at the club, rarely leaving. His departure surprised everyone—except A Kun, who pushed up his glasses and said mysteriously:
“Word is, his family set him up with someone. He’s going on a blind date.”
Coach Yang… on a date?
They couldn’t quite imagine it.
“Qin Shi, want some afternoon tea? There’s a good place nearby,” Hu Xun asked, still pestering him.