Chapter 007

Ji Chen had not yet taken his gaze away from Meng Li’s face when his group of subordinates had already gathered around him. Two of them reached out and helped Zheng Hang and Xiao Jianguo up, while two others reached out to pull him up.

At this moment, Zhuo Xi’s group had also gathered together, standing in a row not far from Ji Chen. Some were casually holding their hockey sticks, playing with them, while others had them slung over their shoulders. They all looked like a bunch of troublemakers.

The whole row of people wore expressions full of mockery, their faces displaying wide grins of amusement.

Zhou Nan chuckled and sarcastically said, “So, are you guys really good for anything or not? Playing ice hockey, and yet instead of just playing the game, you end up pushing and shoving each other, turning it into a human pyramid? Lucky for you, the ice on Shichahai is thick, or you’d have fallen right through!”

They were all passionate individuals, and hearing this, who could hold back?

Xiao Jianguo grabbed a hockey stick and was about to charge forward when Ji Chen raised his hand to stop him.

Seeing that Ji Chen’s side was about to make a move, Zhuo Xi and his group naturally prepared themselves as well.

However, Ji Chen did not let his subordinates take action. He only glanced briefly at Meng Li, then turned his gaze to Zhuo Xi and the others, speaking calmly, “They don’t deserve to fight me.”

Zhuo Xi and his group were enraged by his words, and the atmosphere grew even more tense.

It seemed like a fight was about to break out when, suddenly, Meng Li appeared.

She glided onto the ice in her skates and stopped between the two groups, disrupting the charged atmosphere.

Stealing a quick glance at the fierce faces of both sides, Meng Li felt her legs go a little weak. Her heart was a mess, thumping so hard it felt like it might choke her.

But despite her fear and nervousness, she figured it was still better than watching them fight and quietly slipping away. She was using Meng Li’s body now, and she couldn’t ruin the hard-earned position that Meng Li had fought for.

Meng Li took a deep, steadying breath, trying her best not to let her legs tremble.

She turned on her skates and glided over to stand beside Zhuo Xi, facing Ji Chen. “I’ve been cooped up for a while and finally came out today. I just want to enjoy myself and have a good time, not get into a fight. How about we schedule another day to settle this?”

She spoke these words with the authority of a leader, though Meng Li could feel her voice trembling. After all, she had lived for sixteen or seventeen years—when had she ever had this kind of presence? Behind her were all the passionate young men who called her “Third Master,” and she was someone whose words carried weight!

After speaking, Meng Li deliberately straightened her posture, trying to appear strong and not come off as too timid or weak.

Her voice might have wavered, but her expression had to remain firm!

Ji Chen looked at Meng Li, and for some reason, he couldn’t summon the urge to punch her.

His fall had left his waist sore, and wasn’t really in the mood for another fight, so he went along with Meng Li’s suggestion. “Fine, we’ll do it your way. Pick a day, any day—Temple of Heaven, Temple of the Moon, Temple of the Earth, Chaoyang Park, or the zoo. Name the place, I’m always ready!”

Meng Li, channeling her best Beijing boss energy, nodded and replied confidently, “Alright.”

But in her heart, she thought, Yeah, right! Like I’d actually agree to meet you anywhere. You might be ready anytime, but I have zero interest in humoring you.

As she left Shichahai, she made a mental note to always steer clear of Ji Chen in the future and avoid crossing paths with him again in Beijing.

Everything she said earlier was just a hasty excuse to call a truce in that moment—there was no way she was going to follow through with any of it!

Meng Li’s words had achieved their goal, and both groups began to disperse.

Ji Chen, still bothered by his sore waist, decided not to play hockey anymore. He led Zheng Hang and Xiao Jianguo toward the lake shore.

Once they reached the lake’s edge, they sat on a bench to change their shoes.

Xiao Jianguo, irritated, yanked at his shoelaces. “We should’ve taught those bastards a lesson. Those wild brats from the alley really think they’re something. The more we show them respect, the more they start thinking they actually have some face!”

Ji Chen didn’t respond to his words. He simply took off his skates, put on his black leather boots, and stood up to wheel his bicycle over to the nearby tree.

Behind them, a few people had changed their shoes and, in small groups, began to push their bikes and follow along.

Like Meng Li, Ji Chen, although capable of gathering hundreds of people when it came to a fight, usually only hung out with a few close friends. As the leader, he spent most of his time with four guys—Zheng Hang, Xiao Jianguo, Zhang Yue, and Qian Yan’er.

Zheng Hang and Xiao Jianguo sat in the back seats of Zhang Yue and Qian Yan’er’s bikes, chatting away as they braved the winter chill. As they talked, they started singing, their voices and expressions full of youthful energy. They sang in unison:

“These brothers of ours, they all have noble blood. These brothers of ours, they’re all something special. Yesterday, we gathered together, today we’ve ended up at the Haidian Police Station. This little sister is mine, but when I went to the study class, someone else took her. Yesterday, we were all together, and today, who knows where we are…”

Just as Zheng Hang finished singing, he heard two faint voices from behind, “Wait up, wait a minute! Hey, you guys, wait!”

He stopped singing, turned around, and saw two girls.

The girls were both dressed in neat, eye-catching military uniforms, red scarves around their necks, and their hair tied into two braids.

The two girls were riding women’s bicycles and were chasing after them from behind.

Zheng Hang quickly realized what was happening. He raised his hand and gave Zhang Yue’s shoulder two quick pats. “Zhang Yue, Zhang Yue, slow down, slow down!”

Zhang Yue eased up on the speed and glanced back.

The two girls had caught up, their faces flushed from the cold, breathing heavily.

One of the girls, with fair skin, smiled and spoke, “Why are you guys riding so fast?”

Seeing the pretty girls, Zheng Hang grinned widely. “Were you calling for us?”

The fair-skinned girl replied, “So, who were we supposed to be calling?”

Zheng Hang, sitting on the back seat of the bicycle, turned to look at the girls and, with a teasing tone, asked, “What do you want us for?”

The fair-skinned girl glanced at Ji Chen in the front, then turned back to look at Zheng Hang, speaking straightforwardly, “We saw you guys playing hockey earlier and thought we’d come over and make friends. I’m Yu Sitian, and this is my friend Wan Hong. We’re from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs compound. What about you?”

Usually, it was them chasing after girls, but being pursued by girls like this was a first.

The group perked up, and Zhang Yue spoke up first. “I’m Zhang Yue, and this is Zheng Hang. We’re from the Navy compound.”

As soon as Zhang Yue finished speaking, Xiao Jianguo added, “I’m Xiao Jianguo, and this guy here is Qian Yan’er. We’re from the Planning Commission compound. Of course, we can be friends and hang out together sometime.”

Yu Sitian smiled, but with a hint of modesty. She glanced ahead at Ji Chen again before turning back to Xiao Jianguo. “What about him?”

Xiao Jianguo and Zheng Hang exchanged a knowing look, instantly understanding each other. They both grinned and looked toward Yu Sitian. “Oh, him? His name’s Ji Chen, and he’s from the General Staff Department compound. But he doesn’t like making friends with girls—he thinks it’s a hassle. You’d better keep your distance from him.”

Yu Sitian lowered her gaze for a moment, then looked back at Xiao Jianguo. “Are you guys heading home? Since we’re friends now, how about I treat you to a meal? And next time you go out, invite me along.”

Of course, it was always a good thing when someone offered to treat to a meal, especially when it was a fair-skinned and pretty girl doing the inviting. Zheng Hang, Xiao Jianguo, and the others all raised their hands in agreement. The four of them quickly decided and then called out to Ji Chen, shouting, “Brother Chen, Sitian’s treating us to a meal. Are you coming?”

Ji Chen, still riding his bike, didn’t even look back. “I don’t feel like going.”

Zheng Hang craned his neck and asked, “What are you going home for?”

Ji Chen replied, “To take care of my waist.”

Zheng Hang and the others: “……”

What the hell does that even mean, “taking care of your waist?”

…

Ji Chen didn’t join Xiao Jianguo and the others for the meal. Instead, he rode his bike home alone. Once at home, he collapsed onto the wooden sofa and lay there.

His waist really hurt from the fall, and he needed to lie down for a while before it would feel better.

He stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought, but there wasn’t much to think about.

After lying there for a while, the sudden sound of “Chen gege” broke his train of thought. Meng Li’s face flashed before his eyes, and he jolted upright in surprise, sitting up quickly on the sofa.

It seemed that just zoning out wasn’t going to work. So, he reached for a book from the coffee table to read. First, he picked up Song of Youth, flipped through a couple of pages, and then put it down. After that, he picked up How the Steel Was Tempered, The Gadfly, and The Bitter Herb, flipping through each one.

He didn’t even know how many times he had read these books. After a few minutes, he tossed them back onto the coffee table, feeling like there was no point. He got up, grabbed his clothes, towel, and soap, and headed to the communal bathhouse in the courtyard.

He spent a long time in the bath, chatting aimlessly with the attendant while scrubbing himself. By the time he returned home, Zheng Hang, Xiao Jianguo, and the others had finished their meal and come back.

It was clear that they still planned to spend the night at Ji Chen’s place.

Ji Chen lived in a traditional courtyard house with several sections, a residence that clearly belonged to a wealthy family before the Liberation.

His home had four rooms in the courtyard. His parents were temporarily assigned to work in another city and rarely came back, so he usually lived there alone.

Naturally, his friends often came over to hang out.

Zheng Hang and Xiao Jianguo treated the place like their own home. After washing up at the bathhouse, they came back, played for a while, and then went to sleep.

Ji Chen slept in one room, while the remaining rooms and the living room sofa were shared by Xiao Jianguo and the others.