"Come on! Bottoms up!"
Outside the barbecue restaurant, smoke billowed as a large blower blasted greasy fumes skyward.
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A dozen or so large, round wooden tables stood on the artificial lawn, surrounded by pink plastic chairs. Under the bright floodlights, eight or nine students clinked their beer glasses.
"Why didn't Jiang Nian come?" someone asked.
"Out of money, probably. Who knows?" a boy said casually. The little hot pot on the table bubbled and steamed. "He hasn't even talked to us these past few days."
Le Zhi sat there looking uncomfortable. He was on good terms with Jiang Nian and knew the reason. As the conversation veered further off course, he couldn't help explaining.
"Hey, it's just because of what happened last time. He overheard us joking around, remember? Jiang Nian's probably a little upset. We just need to talk it out."
"What's there to talk about? He can come or not. Whatever," Zhou Yuting said suddenly.
"Huh?" Le Zhi hadn't expected Zhou Yuting to speak up, and he looked awkward.
This group had only come together because they all hung around Zhou Yuting. Now that she had spoken, the others naturally grew even harsher, tearing into Jiang Nian.
"A broke loser's a broke loser. So what if we give him a little shit?"
"Exactly. Why act so fragile? What's the point of hanging out with someone who can't take a joke? He can stay away if he wants. Is our class academic representative supposed to go coax him back?"
Zhou Yuting was their class academic representative, and her grades consistently ranked in the top five. Her family had money, she was smart, had a great figure, and knew how to have fun. She had always been popular with boys.
Le Zhi did like Zhou Yuting, but as he listened to everyone at the table relentlessly belittling Jiang Nian, his mood changed. At first, he had thought they would stop after a few remarks. Then they even started dragging Jiang Nian's mother into it.
They kept cursing, getting more worked up and more vicious by the moment.
"Uh, isn't that going a bit far?"
"What do you mean, going too far? Did we say anything wrong? A broke loser's a broke loser. Poor bastards breed poor bastards. They'll never amount to anything."
Le Zhi and Jiang Nian weren't actually that close, and he certainly didn't want to contradict Zhou Yuting in front of everyone. Still, hearing that, he couldn't quite control his temper.
With a bang, Le Zhi shot to his feet and snapped.
"Enough!"
"Are you people fucking sick? Just because Jiang Nian didn't come doesn't mean you get to drag his family into it! Anyone who didn't know better would think he'd fucking murdered your mothers!"
"I'm so fucking sick of you stupid assholes. I'd rather be friends with a dog than any of you. Drink your fucking beer!"
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Le Zhi spat all that out in one breath, slapped three hundred-yuan notes onto the table, and walked away without so much as looking at them.
Dead silence fell over the table.
A few seconds later, someone finally reacted.
He grabbed a beer bottle and sprang to his feet with a smack, glaring after Le Zhi with bloodshot eyes as he roared.
"Asshole! Don't fucking walk away if you've got the guts!"
"What are you doing?" Zhou Yuting glared at him in displeasure. "He's already gone. What's the point of saying that now?"
"But..."
"Sit down!" Zhou Yuting folded her arms and shot him a sideways glare. "Do you know who Le Zhi's dad is? Lay a hand on him and you won't get out for at least fifteen days. Do you want to stay in school or not?"
Liu Feipeng was sipping his beer unhurriedly, listening to the conversation with a silent smile. The curl of his lips mocked not only Jiang Nian, but also the other boys at the table.
A bunch of broke, brainless mutts. Did they think freezing Jiang Nian out would win their goddess's favor?
He saw things clearly. Le Zhi's father was a senior official at the county public security bureau. Although Le Zhi usually acted rather effeminate, Liu Feipeng hadn't expected him to show some backbone now and then.
That made Liu Feipeng think a little more highly of Le Zhi. At least he wasn't one of those brain-dead simps. He qualified as a rival.
Besides, he knew Zhou Yuting was smart enough not to distance herself from Le Zhi over this. What she valued was his family background. In a small county town, connections and clout mattered most.
The spoils of victory belonged to someone steady and capable like him.
"Ahem." Liu Feipeng smiled and broke the oppressive silence. "How did the exam go, Yuting? Any chance of moving up a class?"
That one question restored the table's normal atmosphere.
Zhou Yuting frowned. "I did okay. I just don't know whether I have a chance."
"Don't worry." Liu Feipeng chuckled, looking every bit the dependable big brother. "I asked around. This exam was pretty hard overall. A score of 530 might be enough to move up."
"Really?" Zhou Yuting's eyes lit up. "I estimated 510. If I'm lucky, I might just scrape 530."
"Mm. Even if you're a little short, it's fine." Liu Feipeng smiled and added, seemingly casually, "My father's pretty close with our head of year."
"He was the one who told me that today. If it doesn't work out, I can put in a word for you."
"Okay. Thanks in advance, Feipeng." Zhou Yuting looked sweet and demure.
The educational resources available to the Olympiad Class and the Parallel Class were worlds apart. It wasn't that the teachers played favorites; the students in the two tiers simply had different foundations.
Zhou Yuting had consistently remained in the top five of her class. Her homeroom teacher had even spoken with her last week, telling her to prepare well for the exam and try to move up so she could take lessons in the Olympiad Class.
If she could move up and hold her own in the Olympiad Class, admission to a first-tier university would practically be guaranteed, and a key university would be within reach. She had always wanted to attend Luda University in a seaside city.
Under the light, Jiang Nian opened a white box and solemnly took out the ointment for bruises and sprains.
As soon as he unscrewed the lid, a strong medicinal smell hit him.
He turned around and shook his head.
"How did you manage to twist your ankle out of nowhere? Xu Qianqian, were you daydreaming about boys while you walked upstairs?"
In the Xu family's living room, Xu Qianqian sat on the sofa and gritted her teeth at his words!
"You're the one daydreaming about girls! It was because... because there was a mouse!"
"Mice are so cute, and you're actually scared of them?" Jiang Nian kept sighing as he walked over and looked down at her. "Tsk, tsk."
That clicking of his tongue infuriated Xu Qianqian, and she hurled a cushion at him.
"Get lost! I'll put it on myself!"
"No can do. Old Xu hasn't finished work yet, so I have to help you apply it." A wicked grin appeared on Jiang Nian's face. "Besides, how could I pass up an opportunity this good?"
"Don't worry! I'll be gentle!"
Xu Qianqian's face visibly paled. No girl was unafraid of pain.
"Just leave it there. I'll do it myself."
"You need to treat a sprain right away. You're not strong enough, and you'll leave trapped blood under the skin." Jiang Nian pulled over a small stool and raised his eyebrows. "Hand over that stinky foot."
"Your feet are stinky!
"Smell it if you don't believe me!" Reluctantly, Xu Qianqian stretched her little snow-white foot toward him.
Perhaps because girls loved washing their feet, there wasn't any dead skin on her sole. Instead, it was rosy with a pinkish tint, and her toes curled like little snow-white glutinous rice balls.
As Xu Qianqian stretched her foot out from the sofa, the hem of her pajamas pulled taut, outlining the full mounds of her chest and making her look especially alluring.
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Jiang Nian withdrew his gaze after a single glance, thinking, When did they get so big?
He poured some liniment into his palm and focused on pressing it against the edge of Xu Qianqian's swollen ankle. Applying a little pressure, he began rubbing in circles.
(End of chapter)
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