Camping (II)

He opened the front door.

"Holy shit, Lu Mingfei, did you get plastic surgery?" His younger cousin, Lu Mingze, was startled by Lu Mingfei's new look after his haircut.

Over the past week, his older cousin Lu Mingfei had changed so much that his transformation could only be called inspiring.

But now Lu Mingfei was even more unrecognizable than before. Last week, Lu Mingze could still believe he was looking at Lu Mingfei. Now he couldn't help wondering if someone had switched him out.

"I just got a haircut," Lu Mingfei replied casually.

Looking closely, you could still make out Lu Mingfei's familiar features. They just looked sharper after the haircut.

Lu Mingze had no choice but to accept the fact.

Damn it, why couldn't I be a handsome guy in disguise like Lu Mingfei?

If Lu Mingfei had known what he was thinking, he would have told Lu Mingze to lose some of the weight he'd put on before dreaming about being handsome. Then he might have a chance.

Dinner was unusually quiet.

Lu Mingfei wasn't sure what was going on. His uncle and aunt were especially silent today, so he kept his head down and focused on his food.

"Mingfei, have you started dating someone recently?" His uncle finally broke the silence.

"No, I haven't, Uncle. What makes you think that?" Lu Mingfei was stunned.

"You've changed a lot lately. You've even started dressing up. We thought you were just growing up, but with your new look today, why would you change so much if you weren't dating someone?" His uncle spoke earnestly. "It's fine if you are. Just don't let it interfere with your studies. You'll be taking the college entrance exams soon."

Lu Mingfei could only laugh helplessly. "I really haven't. I just thought my hair was getting a bit long, so I went to get it cut. Who knew that barber shop was way too good at its job? They gave me this look."

"Really?" His aunt sounded a little doubtful.

"Really, I swear!" Lu Mingfei raised his right hand.

"That's good." His aunt was relieved. Lu Mingfei hadn't secretly gotten himself a girlfriend behind her back, which made her feel that her position as the head of the household hadn't been threatened.

Lu Mingfei had changed so much lately. She thought he was doing well, but it still made her feel as though her position in the family was becoming less secure.

"Okay, I'm done. I'm going back to my room." Lu Mingfei quickly finished his meal and went into his bedroom.

The next day.

Lu Mingfei put on a black jacket over a white T-shirt and headed out.

He carried a black camping backpack. Besides a one-person tent, a flashlight, and a windproof lighter, it also held a compass, a small pair of binoculars, and pepper spray—things that looked useful but were frankly ridiculous.

He figured they were only going to have a picnic somewhere scenic outside the city. It wasn't like they were going to survive in the wilderness!

But his uncle had said it didn't matter whether he needed the gear. What mattered was looking like a pro.

When you went out with your classmates, you could casually show off your equipment. Wouldn't they look at you with admiration and say, "Lu Mingfei, you're a real pro!"

Lu Mingfei was speechless. It reminded him of something.

His uncle was a man with a keen sense of style. Lu Mingfei had once had the good fortune to accompany him to a dinner party. He watched his uncle place his phone in his left hand and his lighter in his right, then set them down on the table with just the right amount of force. As they chatted, his uncle casually rolled up his sleeve to reveal a high-end Montblanc knockoff he'd bought in Guangzhou. Everyone praised his taste.

"Uncle, you really are passing your tricks for showing off down to your nephew without holding anything back!" Lu Mingfei felt like making a comment.

Carrying his backpack, he arrived at the school gate. Their class had arranged to meet there, and a chartered bus would pick them up.

Quite a few people had already gathered outside.

"Lu Mingfei, over here!"

Lu Mingfei looked toward the voice and saw Su Xiaoqiang waving to him from among the crowd.

She wore a white baseball cap, a white Burberry sweater, jeans, and a pair of sneakers. She looked full of energy.

Lu Mingfei hurried over.

When he reached Su Xiaoqiang, her eyes lit up.

Lu Mingfei's outfit fit him well, making him look tall and handsome. And after his haircut, all his best features stood out. He looked fresh and sharp.

"Lu Mingfei, you look great! You're way more handsome than before!" Su Xiaoqiang circled around him, inspecting him from every angle.

"Stop, stop! If you keep going around me, I'll get dizzy!" Lu Mingfei protested.

Only then did Su Xiaoqiang stop.

"Holy shit, is that Lu Mingfei?" Xu Yanyan cried out.

When the other students heard him, they all turned to look.

Then a chorus of "Holy shit!" rang out.

After Lu Mingfei had changed his look earlier, people had said he was a strong contender to be the next Chu Zihang. Before him, Zhao Menghua had been the other candidate.

But now, Lu Mingfei's looks were every bit as good as Chu Zihang's. If Chu Zihang was ranked second, Lu Mingfei had already earned the spot. And if he improved his grades, wouldn't he be the next number one on the List of People Who Should Be Executed?

Zhao Menghua was in trouble!

Everyone looked at Zhao Menghua with pity.

Why are you all looking at me like that? So what if Lu Mingfei's a little better-looking than me? His grades are still bad. What good is being handsome?

Zhao Menghua scoffed.

"Mingfei, when the bus gets here, could you sit with me? We can discuss how to arrange the supplies when we get there."

Chen Wenwen twirled a lock of hair around her finger, her cheeks slightly flushed, and walked up to Lu Mingfei to look at him.

Zhao Menghua stiffened. He'd been about to ask Chen Wenwen if she wanted to sit with him.

Su Xiaoqiang's expression darkened at once. She stared at Chen Wenwen. Why does she have to compete with me over everything? And "Mingfei"—she's acting so familiar with him. I haven't even called him that!

Then she started to worry that Lu Mingfei might agree. After all, Chen Wenwen was the girl he liked. The whole school knew it.

"Sorry, club president. I'm pretty lazy, so you'd better ask someone else to handle all that class equipment."

With everyone watching, Lu Mingfei turned down Chen Wenwen's suggestion.

"All right, then." Chen Wenwen walked away, disappointed.

Seeing Chen Wenwen turned down, some of the other girls in the class started getting ideas of their own.

Lu Mingfei wasn't the same unlucky loser he'd been before. Sitting next to him might not lead to anything, but at least they could enjoy the view.

When Su Xiaoqiang saw Lu Mingfei reject Chen Wenwen, her resentment vanished.

Then she pretended not to care and asked, "So, have you decided who you're going to sit with?"

"Of course. You," Lu Mingfei answered without hesitation.

He remembered that Su Xiaoqiang had said yesterday she'd bring food and he didn't need to prepare anything. Didn't that mean they'd be sticking together? Why was she asking such a strange question?

When Su Xiaoqiang heard him, her heart warmed and her smile brightened.

"Here, these are the snacks I brought for us. We can eat them on the bus."

Su Xiaoqiang pulled Lu Mingfei over to where she'd put her things. Like a child showing off her toys, she excitedly told him what she'd brought.

Then she took a black baseball cap out of her bag. "I got this baseball cap for you. Here, put it on!"

"Oh, okay!"

Lu Mingfei lowered his head and let Su Xiaoqiang put the cap on him.

"Yeah, you look really handsome in that!"

Su Xiaoqiang was delighted to see Lu Mingfei wearing a cap that matched hers.