Chapter 11: The Fall

In the two days that followed, Jiang Cheng was preoccupied with his studies. Ji Shuyi, immersed in military training, didn’t see that annoying “bad thing” again.

Even so, the intensity of the military training was proving too much for Ji Shuyi, who had been pampered since childhood. She had already lost five jin (approximately 2.5 kilograms or 5.5 pounds) in less than a week of training, and the soft baby fat on her face had diminished slightly.

Another day dawned, bright and sunny. The instructor ordered them to line up and run laps around the sports field. The students grumbled as they ran, complaining that the instructor was too strict and that they would get heatstroke in such scorching sun.

Ji Shuyi was already too hot to speak. She focused on running, following the line, sweat dripping from her forehead, her face growing increasingly pale.

“Hey, look, look! Ji Shuyi and her group are running on the outer track,” one of the boys shouted from the soccer field where they were training. “This instructor is way too harsh! Making them run on a day like this? It’s just military training, a formality. They should take it easy.”

“I gotta say, there are a lot of beauties in that group. Getting to date one of them would be a dream come true.”

“Oh, come on, you just want to date one?”

“I s-s-swear, I only want to date Ji…Shuyi.”

The boy’s words trailed off. He suddenly felt a chilling gaze sweeping towards him. He looked up and met Jiang Cheng’s deep, unfathomable eyes. The boy’s last word came out extremely softly, laced with inexplicable timidity.

The other boys’ chatter also died down abruptly.

The noisy space fell into an eerie silence. Jiang Cheng frowned uncomfortably. Why did this atmosphere feel like he was jealous over Ji Shuyi? He had merely…merely glanced over when he heard her name, that’s all.

“Holy crap!”

The silence was shattered by a sudden shout of astonishment.

Chen Xingyi, who was watching the running freshmen, saw Ji Shuyi suddenly sway and collapse to the ground. Stunned, he slapped Jiang Cheng on the shoulder and shouted, “Ji Shuyi fainted!”

Kacha—

The sound was the crinkling of the mineral water bottle in Jiang Cheng’s hand as he unconsciously squeezed it, the moment Chen Xingyi shouted out.

Seated on the ground, Jiang Cheng’s eyes widened visibly, his gaze sharpening instantly. He quickly looked over, only to see the instructor rushing over and picking up the collapsed Ji Shuyi. At that moment, the water bottle in his hand crinkled again.

He watched the instructor carry Ji Shuyi quickly towards the infirmary. His eyes darkened, but he put on an indifferent facade, his tone casual and cold: “Doesn’t concern me.”

Chen Xingyi looked at his brother’s odd expression, rubbed his nose awkwardly, and repeated Jiang Cheng’s words with a smile: “Oh, right. Doesn’t concern you.”

Jiang Cheng glanced at Chen Xingyi’s strange smile and felt inexplicably more agitated. It wasn’t until the soccer training resumed that the inexplicable irritation began to dissipate slowly.

Soccer was a high-intensity sport that tested an athlete’s explosiveness and physical endurance even further.

Jiang Cheng, wearing a black number 7 jersey, moved with lightning-fast speed at one moment, dodging an opposing player. With a powerful kick, he shot the ball, catching the goalkeeper off guard. Cheers erupted from his teammates and the students watching, igniting the passion of the entire green field to new heights.

As the match neared its end, the score was 3-2. They were one point away from tying. Perhaps because the opposing team saw that time was running out, they became overly aggressive. Someone ruthlessly stuck out a foot and tripped Jiang Cheng. Usually, Jiang Cheng would have sensed the danger and avoided it in time. But today, perhaps distracted by something, he fell directly to the ground.

A crowd of people immediately swarmed around him, vying to help Jiang Cheng up, filled with worry and fear.

“Cheng-ge, are you okay?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I really didn’t mean to.”

“Where does it hurt?”

…

Everyone chimed in with their concerns. The boy who tripped Jiang Cheng was filled with panic and unease. He had personally witnessed Jiang Cheng’s reaction when players from another school had played dirty and then cursed about it. Jiang Cheng hadn’t said a word, but had simply gone up and beaten the guy to a pulp. Even the teachers who tried to intervene couldn’t stop him until the guy was on his knees, begging for mercy.

So, at this moment, the boy felt like six of his seven hun and po (traditional Chinese spiritual components of a person) had fled.

Chen Xingyi was also startled, not so much worried about Jiang Cheng’s injury, but about Jiang Cheng’s explosive temper flaring up and him starting a fight. He hurriedly tried to smooth things over when he heard Jiang Cheng say, without a hint of anger, “It’s nothing. You guys continue. I’ll go to the infirmary to get it checked out.”

Chen Xingyi raised his eyebrows in genuine surprise. Jiang Cheng was being so mild-tempered today? Not that he could dwell on it too much. Seeing that Jiang Cheng’s mood hadn’t been affected and that it was only a scraped elbow, he immediately said, “Why go to the infirmary? Wait here. I’ll go get some iodine and a band-aid to clean it up and patch it up.”

“No way!” Jiang Cheng blurted out, rejecting the suggestion. “I’m going to the infirmary.”

Chen Xingyi: “??!?!?”

What was up with this guy? Had he taken the wrong medicine? Or had he become a drama queen?

Chen Xingyi clearly remembered the last time Jiang Cheng was injured and bleeding. He had simply poured some mineral water on it and wrapped it up himself. Now, with just a scrape, he needed to go to the infirmary?

Before he could figure it out, Jiang Cheng had already strode off towards the infirmary.

Chen Xingyi quickly followed, taking only a few steps before suddenly remembering something. He laughed in realization and said, “Could it be that someone wants to go to the infirmary to see Ji Shuyi?”

“Who wants to see her?” Jiang Cheng hastily retorted, trying to hide his intentions. “If it’s not cleaned up properly, and the wound gets infected, I’ll replace your arm!”

“Alright, alright…” Chen Xingyi waved his hand, acting as if he couldn’t be bothered to listen to his excuses. He grabbed Jiang Cheng and quickened their pace, deliberately saying, “Hurry up, I’m afraid the wound will heal if we’re too slow.”

“Cǎo!” (fuck) Jiang Cheng raised his foot and kicked Chen Xingyi in the butt.

Chen Xingyi clutched his butt in grievance and retorted, “No class!” In front of the infirmary door.

In front of the Jing University infirmary, where cars were prohibited, a black Rolls-Royce was parked. On either side of the car door stood a burly man in a black suit.

Inside the infirmary room, Ji Shuyi, who had finished her IV drip, had already woken up. She was holding a stuffed animal, her face still pale and weak. Her elbows and knees were wrapped in white bandages, and her eyes were wet, as if she had just been crying.

“Does it still hurt?” Her older brother, Ji Jinghang, sighed softly, his heart aching for her.

Ji Jinghang had rushed over as soon as he received the call from the school. When he arrived, his sister was still drowsy and unconscious. He anxiously stayed by her side as she received the IV drip. Fortunately, her condition was mild, and she slowly woke up.

However, after waking up, the pain from the wounds on her body was amplified. And since she was a pampered girl who had never experienced any hardship, her skin was delicate, making the cleaning of the wound unbearable. She couldn’t help but shed tears, especially when they cleaned the small pebbles from her knees, which made her eyes red and tearful. Ji Jinghang’s heart ached for her.

Now, having calmed down a bit, Ji Shuyi saw her brother’s worried brow furrowed and, not wanting him to worry, sniffed and said, “It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“Then your brother will take you home now to rest,” Ji Jinghang said, seeing that his sister didn’t want him to worry. He didn’t ask any more questions, but raised his hand and gently stroked her hair. “I’ve gotten you a leave of absence. You can come back to class after military training is over.”

“Okay.”