Chapter 111 – Extra

Xi Huai’s idea of exercise for Chi Muyao was simple: playing basketball.

Unfortunately, Chi Muyao didn’t know how to play, making things difficult for both of them.

After trying to teach Chi Muyao for a while, Xi Huai stood there, dribbling the ball, lost in thought. It seemed like he had no idea how to continue teaching.

In all his years, Xi Huai had never encountered such a troublesome “student.”

Finally, Xi Huai handed the ball to someone else and led Chi Muyao to the running track, asking, “Can you run?”

Xi Huai had already given up hope regarding Chi Muyao’s athletic abilities, and his voice lacked confidence when asking this question.

“I can run,” Chi Muyao forced himself to answer, fearing that Xi Huai might give up on him if he didn’t.

“Follow me,” Xi Huai said, positioning himself next to Chi Muyao on the track. “Just follow my movements. After running for a while, jump as if you’re trying to grab something. Stretch your muscles as much as you can.”

Xi Huai demonstrated the movements, and Chi Muyao carefully watched, nodding seriously.

Back when he was at Hehuan Sect, he could run well, but his real-world body wasn’t as flexible, and his stamina was lacking. After running for a while, he was already exhausted, not to mention jumping. Just managing to keep running was a challenge.

Xi Huai ended up having to push him from behind to keep him going. Eventually, Chi Muyao began begging for mercy: “Ah, I can’t do it anymore… Let me rest for a bit, my throat is dry…”

“Exercise requires consistency. You’re not doing it long enough to achieve any results. We’re only doing the most basic exercises right now.”

“It’s about… gradual… progress…” Chi Muyao panted heavily.

“Just keep it up for twenty minutes.”

The school’s rubber track was 800 meters per lap, with white lines painted on the dark red surface. However, due to heavy foot traffic, the white lines had faded over time.

In the middle was a lawn, covered with soft artificial grass, evergreen all year round. The contrast between the sandy red track and the bright green grass was striking.

At night, several large lights illuminated the field. The area near the exercise platform was particularly bright, while the corners of the school were shrouded in darkness.

The two of them ran two laps around the track, already drawing the attention of other students.

It was hard not to notice how mismatched they were together.

A famous goody-two-shoes from the school and Xi Huai, known for causing trouble, hanging out together—it seemed their relationship wasn’t bad?

When they reached a darker part of the track, Chi Muyao simply stopped, planting his feet on the track and refusing to move. He pressed his back against Xi Huai’s hand, acting stubbornly. “I’m done running.”

Xi Huai, frustrated, let go of him, ready to give up. But seeing Chi Muyao about to collapse, he quickly reached out to steady him.

Chi Muyao fell into Xi Huai’s arms, his back against Xi Huai’s chest. He tilted his head up to look at Xi Huai. Taking advantage of the darkness where others wouldn’t notice unless they looked closely, he didn’t immediately move away from Xi Huai’s embrace.

Xi Huai looked down at him, his expression unfriendly. “If you can’t keep up, I’m not teaching you anymore. You’re just wasting time.”

“I’m learning!” Chi Muyao quickly emphasized. “I definitely need to improve my stamina. You’re so energetic, I can’t keep up with my current endurance.”

“Me? Energetic?” Xi Huai was puzzled.

Chi Muyao quickly stood up, reflecting on whether he had said too much.

It wasn’t exactly appropriate to talk about this with a 17-year-old boy.

“Never mind.” He waved his hand, avoiding further explanation.

Xi Huai narrowed his eyes, his gaze becoming more hostile.

They stood there quietly on the track. The sound of others playing basketball echoed faintly in the background.

They weren’t particularly close, so after falling silent, they found they had nothing to say to each other.

After a moment of hesitation, Xi Huai asked, “Why do you always come to talk to me? We’re not even close, right?”

“Because I want to pursue you!”

“…”

“Don’t worry. Once we get to know each other better, I’ll confess. Just wait a little longer.”

“Wait… I’m a guy.”

“I know that!”

“I’m not gay.”

“Oh, that doesn’t matter.”

Xi Huai was shocked. “It doesn’t matter?!”

“Yeah, because you’ll fall for me soon enough.”

Xi Huai laughed in disbelief, staring at Chi Muyao with wide eyes. “You… How are you so shameless? I’ve never been swayed by anyone before!”

Chi Muyao remained calm. “Yeah, I know.”

“What do you know?”

“I know you’re stubborn, but you’ll eventually give in.”

“I admire your confidence, but there’s no chance between us. I don’t like guys.”

Chi Muyao looked at Xi Huai, showing no signs of sadness despite being rejected. Instead, his expression was filled with a forgiving warmth, as if he could overlook everything.

Back when they were in the cave, Xi Huai had told him to get lost, always gruff and hostile, but later on, hadn’t he clung to him, unwilling to let go?

Chi Muyao stretched his body, saying, “I’m not trying to bend you. You’ll do that on your own. I’m rested now, let’s keep running.”

Xi Huai’s voice rose in frustration. “Why do you assume I’ll bend on my own?!”

Chi Muyao soothed him like a child. “Alright, don’t yell. Let’s go.”

“…” Xi Huai was left speechless, realizing he was being led by the nose by this kid.

*

After evening self-study, Xi Huai would often play basketball with his friends on the field.

Recently, Chi Muyao had to prepare for a physics competition, something the school had high hopes for. He couldn’t exercise with Xi Huai anymore, giving Xi Huai more time to play basketball with his friends.

Whenever they played basketball, there would always be a few people watching from the sidelines, some girls even bringing them water. Despite their bad reputations, they were still very popular, especially since the more “troublesome” they looked, the more attractive they seemed.

Maybe Chi Muyao had heard about this because he still came, sitting conspicuously in the stands.

Xi Huai played for a while before glancing toward the stands.

Song Weiyue came over, sighing. “This must be what it’s like to be a straight-A student who’s great at multitasking.”

Chi Muyao sat in the stands, holding a rechargeable desk lamp, seriously reading a book under the light.

The cool night breeze rustled the pages on his lap, while moonlight bathed the campus in silver. His spot was particularly bright.

Perhaps because of the small lamp, Chi Muyao attracted a lot of bugs. After reading for a while, he had to wave them away.

After playing basketball for a bit, Xi Huai stopped, ignoring the girls calling his name, and walked over to sit beside Chi Muyao. “You don’t have to come if you need to study.”

“I heard some girls were bringing you water, so of course I had to come.” Chi Muyao handed him a bottle. “Here, I brought you some too.”

“I already told you, I won’t agree. You don’t need to keep chasing me.”

“Have some water first. I’m not rushing to chase after you, so why are you in such a hurry to reject me?”

Xi Huai reached out and took the water from Chi Muyao’s hand, unscrewed the cap, and took a sip. Then, he heard Chi Muyao say, “Now that you’ve drunk my water, you’re mine.”

Xi Huai nearly choked, screwed the cap back on, and returned it to him. “No thanks.”

“But you’ve already taken a sip, so a part of your body belongs to me now.”

“You plan to chop me into pieces?”

Chi Muyao shook his head, reached out, and held one of Xi Huai’s hands. “For now, I just want this part. Until we return to the dorm, this hand is mine.”

Xi Huai tried to pull his hand back, but Chi Muyao quickly clasped his fingers around Xi Huai’s, not letting him leave. He continued holding Xi Huai’s hand while reading his book.

Xi Huai looked at their intertwined hands but didn’t want to make a scene and draw the attention of others, so he just let it be.

Chi Muyao’s fingers were slender, fair, and soft, like a girl’s hand. In contrast, Xi Huai’s hand, hardened by playing sports, had a thin layer of calluses. Holding Chi Muyao’s hand felt delicate and smooth, his skin cool to the touch.

After holding his hand for a while, Xi Huai leaned over and asked, “You seem pretty experienced with this. How many people have you chased before?”

“You’re the first.”

“Do you think I’ll believe that?”

“I’m so good at studying. Do you think I’d have time to chase anyone else?”

Xi Huai found himself unable to argue. This guy was a master at humblebragging, yet oddly convincing.

The two sat side by side, holding hands for a while. Xi Huai didn’t leave; instead, he used his free hand to shoo away any bugs flying around.

Chi Muyao, on the other hand, sat quietly beside him, continuing to read his book.

Xi Huai grumbled, “Wouldn’t it be better to read inside? You’re just making things harder for yourself by sitting here.”

“I can’t see you if I stay in my dorm.”

“You’re not even looking at me here.” You’ve been staring at that book the whole time, don’t think I didn’t notice!

“But I’m sitting close to you.”

Xi Huai leaned over to glance at the book Chi Muyao was reading. “Can you really tutor me?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“You live in a single dorm.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Then I’ll come to your dorm. The university I signed with has a minimum score requirement, and I’m still a bit short.”

“Sure!”

Chi Muyao agreed without hesitation, but this brief moment of carelessness would later make him realize the dangers of the world.

*

Chi Muyao looked at Xi Huai’s test paper and fell into deep thought, staring at it for so long, as if he was rooted to the spot.

After a long silence, he finally asked, “What’s the minimum score requirement?”

“210 points.”

Chi Muyao glanced again at the test paper, which had a total score of 78 points, and took a deep breath.

He figured that those 78 points were probably thanks to fate. The multiple-choice section gave Xi Huai a glimmer of hope, but if Xi Huai had to choose again, their bond would be severed, as he’d likely pick different answers.

Chi Muyao adjusted his mindset and began rummaging through his things to find his notes. “Let’s start with the basics. I’ll teach you as much as I can, since there are still ten months left until your exam.”

“Okay.”

The university had single dorms, but there weren’t many of them. You couldn’t get one just by paying a higher accommodation fee; your academic performance had to be excellent for the school to approve it.

These dorms didn’t cut off the electricity at night, allowing students to study late. Naturally, someone like Chi Muyao, who ranked first in his grade, could get one.

However, the room was small, with only a single bed, a desk, and a private bathroom. There was very little space to move around, and once the two of them were inside, they had to constantly make way for each other.

The small dorm room was also packed with books, so they were forced to sit very close together.

When Chi Muyao stretched up on his tiptoes to look for his notes in the upper cabinet, his body extended, revealing a portion of his slender waist. His skin was pale, and Xi Huai couldn’t help but stare for a moment before quickly averting his gaze, taking a deep breath.

Chi Muyao was very patient while tutoring, explaining things in great detail, and always wearing a gentle smile.

What really got to Xi Huai was Chi Muyao’s eyes. They were full of emotion, and when his gaze swept over Xi Huai, it felt like it was stripping away half his skin, even though there was no physical contact. His skin tightened and began to feel hot.

After studying for a while, Xi Huai began to wonder if learning from Chi Muyao was such a good idea. This guy was a bit too flirty, always gazing at him with such affection—who could handle that?

Especially since he had already turned this person down, and now they were alone in the same room?

What was he thinking? Why on earth did he voluntarily ask to study with him?

Maybe it would be better to find a proper tutoring service. Who knew that even someone standing 193 centimeters tall had to worry about being flirted with by their tutor?

He closed the book, sighed, and said, “I’ll just borrow your notes and head back.”

“Okay.” Chi Muyao stood up to see Xi Huai out. Just as Xi Huai was about to step out, Chi Muyao grabbed his wrist. “Xi Huai, are you still straight today?”

“Yes.” His reply was straightforward.

“Oh… then I’ll hold back a little longer.”

“Hold back?”

“Yeah, I really want to kiss you…”

“…”

Chi Muyao always managed to shock him in new ways.

Before Xi Huai could even respond, Chi Muyao leaned in closer, standing on his tiptoes. “Or can I do it now?”

Xi Huai’s breath caught in his throat. Watching Chi Muyao’s face suddenly come close, his heart pounded fiercely, and a fiery sensation surged from his chest, shooting straight to his head, making his cheeks and ears burn.

In the end, this tall, broad-shouldered guy found himself so startled by the school’s “model student” that he bolted out of the room, fleeing in a panic.