18. A fight has broken out! (inverted V)

On another Monday, the atmosphere in Class 3 of Xuncheng Second High School was gloomy, resembling a collective recitation during morning reading.

Before the first class in the morning, He Tangyue was chatting with several girls from other classes in the corridor. It’s unclear what they were talking about, but when she came back, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes sparkled.

Liang Yi couldn’t help but guess, “Do you have a new crush again?”

He Tangyue sat down with a thump and said, “Nonsense, I’m devoted to someone.”

As she spoke, she whispered in the ear of the girl next to her, causing her to blush uncontrollably.

Liang Yi was incredibly curious. “What’s so interesting? Tell me about it.”

He Tangyue considered Liang Yi her sister and turned to her, saying, “We were discussing how it would feel if Xu Yanhuan forcibly kissed someone.”

It was rumored to be a plot from a recent popular romance novel, where the male protagonist, misunderstood by the female lead and unable to express himself, endured for a long time. Finally, on a dark and stormy night, he pinned the crying female lead against the wall and kissed her forcefully.

Upon hearing this, Liang Yi felt embarrassed. “What? How did you associate it with Xu… Xu Yanhuan?”

He Tangyue confidently replied, “He’s good-looking. If not him, then who else would we think of?”

“Forget about a forced kiss,” Liang Yi peeked towards the northwest corner of the classroom, “he seems calm and uninterested, not like someone who would kiss someone.”

“… You have a point.”

During the break, their discussion became somewhat loud. It seemed like Yu Xinqiao, who was sleeping in the back row, heard it. He raised his head, shifted his gaze, and continued to lie down in another direction.

He Tangyue immediately fell silent and gestured towards Yu Xinqiao, using lip movements to ask Liang Yi, “Is he feeling better?”

Last Friday, after being stood up, Yu Xinqiao confronted Xu Yanhuan. The phrase “Then why did you chase me?” had already spread throughout the city. It was even posted on the school forum with the title “Classic Dialogue Between a Dog and a Heartthrob,” attracting countless outsiders to watch.

Thinking about it, Liang Yi felt a headache. “I’m afraid not.”

“But he’s so strong, he hasn’t even cried.”

“We men do not shed tears easily.”

“He must be feeling terrible.” He Tangyue remembered the love letter she had been thrown into the trash can and empathized, “I wonder how we can make him happy again.”

Liang Yi pondered for a moment. “Maybe only a forced kiss from Xu Yanhuan can make him happy.”

…

Representing the enthusiastic masses, they left consolation items such as meat buns, apples, lollipops, and others on Yu Xinqiao’s desk. With less than three minutes left before class, Liang Yi hurriedly took out his phone and patrolled the forum, heading straight to the comments section.

“Hahaha, ‘Then why did you chase me,’ it cracked me up. Truly the epitome of a lapdog—insult reported.”

“Who gave him the courage to pry open Xu Yanhuan, our class flower has been chasing him since sophomore year and still hasn’t succeeded—irony reported.”

“What do you mean lapdog? Our Xiaoqiao is handsome and kind-hearted. None of you are allowed to say that—looking at the ID, it’s definitely Shen Da, a true brother for life.”

“If someone doesn’t reply to your messages, the meaning is quite clear. Asking why they didn’t answer the phone is just embarrassing—mockery reported.”

Wow, you’re really brave. Xu Yanhuan seems like a straight guy no matter how you look at it—report… never mind, I’ll keep this one. I’ll show it to Qiao later and make him realize.

Unaware of the outside voices, Yu Xinqiao remained oblivious.

Or rather, not seeing or hearing could be treated as not knowing. In certain situations, he was skilled at playing dumb. After all, he believed that everything could be resolved with time. Just endure and get through it.

On the way home from school that day, Yu Xinqiao received a call from his father.

Yu Hanzhang said, “I talked to Teacher Fang today. He said that the progress of the practice videos you sent recently is good, but the quality is slightly lacking. It seems like you can’t calm your mind.”

Even after coming to Xuncheng, Yu Xinqiao continued to practice the piano every day and sent a video of his performance to his piano teacher in the capital once a week. Last time, Teacher Fang also raised the same issue, mentioning that his playing sounded detached and the rhythm was inconsistent.

“Then I’ll start using a metronome today,” Yu Xinqiao said.

Yu Hanzhang never had many demands for his son. In contrast to Yao Qiongying’s strictness, he placed more importance on Yu Xinqiao’s physical and mental well-being and was more willing to listen to his thoughts.

“So, have you made up your mind? Are you coming back or not?”

Yu Xinqiao bit his lip. “Not coming back.”

Returning after only a few months would make him appear fickle. He had to at least endure this semester.

“Are you sure you won’t come back?” Yu Hanzhang spoke gently. “Dad can see that you really want to play the piano well, but learning the piano isn’t just about practicing alone. Not only do you lack the guidance of a master, but you also lack the experience of cooperating with orchestra conductors.”

Yu Xinqiao had already considered these things. He said, “I signed up for the piano competition in Xuncheng during the summer and the school’s art performance.”

Yu Hanzhang smiled. “That’s good. You can make more friends through these activities, and that’s a good thing.”

Towards the end of the call, as an old father, Yu Hanzhang couldn’t help but worry. “How was the last performance? Did anything happen with that classmate you like…”

Changing the subject, Yu Xinqiao quickly interrupted, “If I have time, I’ll come to visit you… if I can find the time.”

Yu Hanzhang didn’t ask further and happily agreed, “Before you move back, Dad will definitely talk to Mom.”

After hanging up the phone, Yu Xinqiao put his phone in his pocket and caught a glimpse of a tall and slim figure passing by.

It was Xu Yanhuan.

Since that day, they hadn’t spoken to each other. Even their encounters were limited to occasional eye contact during morning assembly.

At this moment, Xu Yanhuan was taking large and fast strides, avoiding like he was dodging a plague. The surrounding students noticed, and the news spread like wildfire. They looked in this direction and began whispering and discussing.

Yu Xinqiao, as if he hadn’t seen anything, walked briskly through the crowd.

Although not as fast as Xu Yanhuan.

Although, while turning into a sparsely populated path, Yu Xinqiao quickly and subtly wiped the corner of his eye with the back of his hand, releasing a bit of accumulated bitterness in secret.

This summer came earlier than previous ones.

In the dim twilight evening, Xu Yanhuan carried a woven bag filled with daily necessities and climbed up the winding narrow stairs. He encountered the neighbor aunty on the way.

“Are you feeling better? You were taken away in an ambulance. You’re already back in school so quickly?” the aunty said.

Xu Yanhuan replied, “Yeah, I’m fine now.”

“I heard from the landlord that you’re moving to the fourth floor? There are many residents here, not easy to find, and the fourth floor is relatively quiet. The only problem is that the roof leaks, but it should be fine once summer is over,” the aunty said.

Xu Yanhuan responded with another “yeah.”

After being found by Xu Zhen, Bai Wei contacted the landlord to terminate the lease and planned to find another place to live. The landlord was reluctant to lose the rent money, so he mentioned that he also owned two rooms on the top floor of the tenement building and suggested that they move there.

Sudden termination of the lease was a breach of contract on their part, and it was difficult to find such affordable housing nearby. After some consideration, Bai Wei agreed.

With only a few belongings, mother and son finished moving in three trips.

The top floor was hotter than the second floor. Xu Yanhuan was about to take out a fan, but Bai Wei stopped him, saying, “Your injury hasn’t fully healed. Let me handle the heavy lifting.”

Bai Wei took the electric fan out of its cover, plugged it in, pressed the power button, and the fan blades started to rotate, accompanied by a clicking sound as the head oscillated, bringing a faint cool breeze to the stuffy room.

While tidying up clothes, Bai Wei found two tickets in the pocket of Xu Yanhuan’s sweatpants.

“Oh dear, I forgot about this,” Bai Wei turned around and said, “The last concert, we didn’t go together with that classmate.”

Xu Yanhuan, who was arranging bowls and chopsticks, looked up. The tickets were no longer in their original pristine condition. They were crumpled, with dark stains on the edges, remnants of blood from his hand that had grazed the wound on his shoulder when he reached into the pocket.

After hesitating for a moment, Xu Yanhuan finally accepted the two tickets.

Bai Wei had an injury on her face and had been wearing a mask outside these past few days. Only now did she remember to take it off as she bent down to reach for the pickled vegetable jar.

That’s where the money was hidden, so Xu Zhen couldn’t find it.

She took out a paper package wrapped in a handkerchief from inside, opened it, and pulled out two one hundred yuan bills. Bai Wei said, “Go and apologize to them, and invite them to a concert or maybe watch a movie.”

Xu Yanhuan declined, “I have money.”

“You gave me all the money you earned from your part-time job. Where did you get money from?”

“I saved a few hundred for myself.”

“Well then, remember to apologize sincerely to the people at school. They don’t mind our situation and are willing to be friends with you. It’s your good fortune.”

“…Okay.”

The oscillating fan turned toward Xu Yanhuan, and the wind gently brushed his bangs, along with the two slips of paper in his hand.

He found a thick dictionary, opened it, and inserted the two tickets together before closing it.

The fan turned elsewhere, and everything became quiet.

At the beginning of June, Xuncheng No. 2 High School’s boys’ basketball semifinals took place as scheduled.

This time, Class 2 (3) was up against Class 2 (8).

There were few male students in the liberal arts class, so it was not easy to form a basketball team. In the previous round, Class 8 narrowly advanced by defeating Class 11, which was also a liberal arts class. However, this time luck was not on their side. After all, Class 3 had Wang Kun, an athlete who was also the team captain, and Xu Yanhuan had joined. It was an easy victory for Class 3, and Class 8 clearly lost.

After the match, the spectators by the court began to disperse.

Xu Yanhuan put down the empty bottle of mineral water and glanced toward the sidelines. Wang Kun asked him, “What are you looking for? I saw you looking around while on the court.”

He didn’t know what he was looking for either. After all, it was like that, so how could it still…

Xu Yanhuan retracted his gaze. “It’s nothing.”

When most people had left, Xu Yanhuan walked alone towards the direction of the teaching building.

The match took place during the afternoon self-study period, so it was time for classmates to pack up and go home.

Xu Yanhuan walked slowly, occasionally moving his right shoulder.

He had felt pain while shooting on the court. He might have strained the wound.

He had been taken to the hospital by an ambulance to clean and stitch the wound. The doctor said it was close to reaching the bone. The doctor also recommended at least a week of hospitalization for observation, but to save money, Xu Yanhuan was discharged on the fourth day.

Fortunately, he could still play basketball.

Gritting his teeth, Xu Yanhuan slightly quickened his pace and headed for the first-floor men’s restroom.

He thought there would be no one inside at this time, but perhaps others thought the same. As he approached, Xu Yanhuan overheard two male classmates talking loudly.

The one with a rough voice was Xie Fei. He had also been watching the basketball game and angrily exclaimed, “What a stroke of luck! If we had encountered Class 8 first, we would have definitely made it to the semifinals!”

The other male classmate’s voice sounded familiar too, and he seemed to be from the Class 4 basketball team. He said, “Yeah, it’s true. We’re not lacking in skills, but just unlucky.”

Xie Fei sneered, “It annoys me to see that bug showing off on the court. Those girls are cheering for him until their voices go hoarse, making it seem like he’s the only guy on the entire court.”

“Are you talking about Xu Yanhuan?” the male classmate sarcastically said, “Can’t help it. He’s the ‘campus heartthrob’ that even boys pursue.”

Speaking of being pursued by boys, Xie Fei suddenly remembered something. “No wonder, that transfer student from Class 3, Yu Xinqiao, who hit me with a basketball last time, I bet it was a performance for Xu Yanhuan.”

“The one who’s pursuing Xu Yanhuan, right? Hahaha!” the male classmate burst into laughter. “I don’t know how it feels to be pursued by guys, but just thinking about it makes me sick.”

“Speaking of Yu Xinqiao…” Xie Fei squinted his eyes, savoring the memory. “During his basketball game, his sports uniform lifted up. Did you see? His waist is not only slim but also fair… damn fair.”

“What, you want to touch him? He’s a guy.”

“I’ve never seen a guy with such delicate and tender flesh, like a little girl. His face is pretty too, with big eyes. I wonder what it feels like to get intimate with him. Maybe even better than those girls—fuck!”

Before he could finish his sentence, Xie Fei was suddenly kicked from behind, causing him to land on the urinal with his entire body. He hit his forehead on the wall, narrowly missing his groin.

“Fuck, who the hell ambushed Laozi…”

Clutching his head, Xie Fei turned his head with curses, only to see Xu Yanhuan standing there with his hands in his pockets, looking down at him with a condescending gaze. It didn’t seem like an ambush but rather a passing kick, whether it was light or heavy depended on Xu Yanhuan’s mood.

His tone was as indifferent as if he were saying, “The weather is nice today.” Xu Yanhuan’s thin lips parted slightly. “Sorry, kicked the wrong person.”

Class 2 (3) was located on the west side of the first floor, quite far from the restroom.

Taking advantage of the empty classroom, Yu Xinqiao explained an English question to Liang Yi. After finishing, he packed up his bag, and Liang Yi asked while collecting his books, “When this semester ends, are you still staying in Xuncheng?”

A few days ago, Yu Xinqiao had mentioned that he wouldn’t stay in Xuncheng for too long. Liang Yi, who had developed a revolutionary friendship with him, remembered this and asked him every day if he had made a decision, whether he wanted to stay a bit longer.

Yu Xinqiao flicked away the eraser crumbs stuck in his book pages. “Why? Do you want to stay in Senior Year with me?”

“Yes, studying is so boring, I need someone to accompany me in the mortal world.”

Shen Daye, who had just finished the basketball game, chimed in, “Aren’t I a person too?”

Yu Xinqiao smiled. “I’ll probably stay for two more months and spend the summer vacation here.”

Since the public rejection by Xu Yanhuan, it was the first time Yu Xinqiao smiled.

Good things come in pairs, and Liang Yi was so happy that he almost jumped up. “Then after the exams, let’s go to your house together? I’ve never been to a villa area in my life.”

Shen Daye also raised his hand. “I want to go too!”

Yu Xinqiao replied, “Sure. But just to make it clear, when you come to my house, make yourself at home. No bringing your own alcohol.”

“No problem, I’ll just bring some sausages.”

“Bring more, I can eat ten by myself.”

“Are you a pig?”

…

After making a fuss for a while, the three of them shouldered their bags and stood up. Liang Yi leaned closer to Yu Xinqiao, as if afraid of hurting him, and asked in a low voice, covering his lips, “What about Xu… Is he still pursuing you?”

Yu Xinqiao was momentarily stunned, about to answer, when suddenly they heard Wang Kun’s voice from outside, loud and clear, “Something’s wrong!”

His booming voice echoed through the corridor and into the classroom. Wang Kun was drenched in sweat, running a short distance

 that seemed more tiring than playing a basketball game. Gasping for breath, he said, “Something’s wrong. Xu Yanhuan and Xie Fei are fighting!”

TN:

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