Chapter 34

Angry, he thought the kid looked adorable like this.

When He Qinghuan sat up the first time, they came face-to-face. Unlike Gu Wang's accidental collision, He Qinghuan did it deliberately, keeping the distance intimate without making Gu Wang uncomfortable.

Gu Wang's eyelashes fluttered a few times, and he looked awkwardly to the side. Having just exercised, he still had a sheen of sweat on his face, and the tips of his hair were damp. He Qinghuan's expression darkened slightly.

He only teased Gu Wang that first time. Fifty-five sit-ups was a fairly demanding requirement, but it was hardly a challenge for He Qinghuan. Some of the other boys could manage around fifty without a problem, too.

When the timer went off, Gu Wang had counted seventy-five.

He Qinghuan asked him, "Wasn't it seventy-six?"

Gu Wang frowned. He shouldn't have miscounted. It was seventy-five...

He Qinghuan leaned down to meet his eyes and asked softly, "Think carefully. Didn't you miss the first one?"

Gu Wang froze. It seemed he had. As for why he had missed it, He Qinghuan's sudden approach had thrown him into such disarray that he had completely forgotten to count. He had started with the second one.

He smiled and put some distance between them. "It was seventy-five. I counted wrong."

He went to report the number to the sports representative, who gave He Qinghuan a thumbs-up. "Impressive, class president!"

He Qinghuan gave a polite smile.

After the sit-up test, they could either stay in the Comprehensive Building to do some other exercise or return to the classroom. Gu Wang waited for Song Zhiyan so they could go back together. Song Zhiyan's partner was Yang Yu. Yang Yu was a little weak and dawdled several times before finally finishing. He reported fifty for himself and got chased around by the sports representative.

"Twenty at most. I'd stake my life on it." The sports representative thumped his chest. In PE every previous semester, Yang Yu had ranked last in their class in every test.

Song Zhiyan tugged at Gu Wang. "Wang, let's play some badminton. Shen Zhao and the others are in the badminton hall next door."

Gu Wang asked curiously, "Do they have PE too?"

"No, their homeroom teacher gave them a period to play badminton." There was some jealousy and envy in Song Zhiyan's voice.

Shen Zhao's homeroom teacher was a strong, masculine middle-aged man with a fierce face. At first glance, you would think he was very strict, but he was the most easygoing homeroom teacher in the school, occasionally patting students on the head in encouragement. Conversely, Li Shuya, who looked the gentlest and most refined, was the most demanding homeroom teacher.

Giving them a whole period to play? You would have to be drunk out of your mind to imagine anything so outrageously impossible.

Shen Zhao was playing against his deskmate, a girl named Ranran. Unable to beat a boy, Ranran had called over two of her girlfriends. Three against one, they had Shen Zhao chasing the shuttlecock all over the court.

Song Zhiyan: "..."

Gu Wang couldn't help laughing either.

While picking up the shuttlecock, Shen Zhao spotted Gu Wang and Song Zhiyan and waved happily. "Wangwang, you're here! Come play against me!"

Ranran pouted. "Didn't you say you'd play with us?"

Shen Zhao rested his racket on his shoulder and raised his chin. "Didn't we agree at the start? No hard feelings when we part. You really..."

Gu Wang found Shen Zhao's manner a little familiar. "Who did he learn that from?"

Song Zhiyan said expressionlessly, "You."

Gu Wang: "..."

Gu Wang had messed around with girls from several schools. He could run into an ex-girlfriend or ex-boyfriend just by going out, and even now, Mei Li was still pursuing him relentlessly. Yet someone like him had fallen for He Qinghuan.

It was a little unbelievable. Even more unbelievable was that, despite He Qinghuan giving him no response whatsoever, Gu Wang had still fallen deeper and deeper, as though possessed. Yet he had pulled away just as quickly, unbelievably quickly.

Shen Zhao couldn't beat Gu Wang, even when he teamed up with Song Zhiyan. The original Gu Wang had already been quite good, and Gu Wang himself could play too. Shen Zhao and Song Zhiyan had barely returned any shots before they were red-faced and practically at each other's throats.

Gu Wang sat on the floor, watching their argument in amusement.

"Shen Zhao, can you stay away from me? Why do you have to crowd me? I'm afraid I'll hit you!"

"God, be reasonable. Are you afraid of hitting me, or afraid of hitting the shuttlecock?"

"Are you ever going to stop?"

"Wangwang, Song Zhiyan's going to hit me!" Shen Zhao couldn't beat Song Zhiyan in a fight. He wasn't even as tall as Gu Wang, only 175 centimeters, while Song Zhiyan was ten centimeters taller and more solidly built. When they play-fought, Shen Zhao generally lost unless Song Zhiyan went easy on him.

Gu Wang stood and brushed the dust off his hands. Just as he was about to go break up the fight, two people entered the court opposite.

Yue Feng hauled Shen Zhao aside. "Out of the way, you little brat."

Shen Zhao whacked Yue Feng with his racket.

Yue Feng: "..."

He Qinghuan had his own racket in the changing room. Standing opposite Gu Wang, he said, "Wangwang, let's play a round."

Gu Wang paused, then tightened his grip on his racket and smiled. "Sure."

Gu Wang had never feared a fair match. Putting aside their identities, positions, and everything else, they were completely equal now. Gu Wang was quite looking forward to it.

After all, playing against Shen Zhao and the others really was no different from playing against elementary schoolers.

Shen Zhao was dragged away, and Song Zhiyan left the court of his own accord. Yue Feng patrolled the sidelines, keeping score and helping pick up shuttlecocks and the like.

Shen Zhao was rather worried. Sitting in the front row of the spectator seats, he said, "He Qinghuan's really good at badminton. Didn't he once hit someone in the face with a shuttlecock and make it swell up?"

Song Zhiyan frowned and thought for a while before saying slowly, "I think something like that did happen. I remember Wangwang was there that day too. Then Wangwang didn't come to class afterward that day."

Shen Zhao asked, "He hit Wangwang?"

"Bullshit. Why would he hit Wangwang? I don't know why, but he hit someone. That bald guy from Class Eleven. The fucking pervert who likes tossing mirrors on the floor so he can peek when female teachers in skirts walk past."

Shen Zhao covered his mouth. "Him? He told me yesterday that I looked good wearing a hair clip!"

Song Zhiyan said, "Oh, then he'll soon be telling you that you look good naked."

The silence between them lasted less than a second before Shen Zhao snatched up a racket beside him, grabbed Song Zhiyan, and started swatting him wildly.

Gu Wang served. Wearing a T-shirt and a sweatband, he practically overflowed with youthful energy. As he swung his racket, He Qinghuan seemed to see the Gu Wang from before.

Gu Wang didn't hold back. He was facing He Qinghuan, not Shen Zhao, and without hesitation, he served at the trickiest angle, making it as difficult to return as possible.

He Qinghuan could judge the shuttlecock's trajectory. He returned it, looking just as merciless to everyone else. As his shot sliced through the air, Shen Zhao broke into a nervous sweat on Gu Wang's behalf.

Their shots were fast and powerful. The two of them looked ready to kill each other.

Song Zhiyan was numb. "Why was Gu Wang going so easy on us earlier? Does he look down on us?"

Shen Zhao was numb too. "Wangwang's gotten even better. Boo-hoo-hoo."

"Stop boo-hooing. It's so annoying."

"Boo-hoo."

"..."

Yue Feng leaned beside them and nodded. "Has Gu Wang always been this good?"

Song Zhiyan found it hard to chat with people he didn't know well, and so did Shen Zhao. But Shen Zhao differed from Song Zhiyan in one respect: if someone praised Gu Wang, he could always strike up a conversation with them. Yue Feng had found Shen Zhao's weak spot.

Shen "Wangwang's biggest fan" Zhao said, "Yeah, Wangwang's always been this good."

Yue Feng said, "Not bad."

Shen Zhao said, "Of course."

Beside them, Song Zhiyan wore a complicated expression, a jumble of feelings churning inside him.

Gu Wang braced one hand on his knee and wiped the sweat from his face. He picked up the shuttlecock on the floor. This was the last one, and compared with the first rally, it was only fiercer.

As he returned the shots, fragmented images flashed through his mind.

They belonged to the original owner of this body, yet also seemed to be his own.

He didn't know the person. It was a bald guy, and the location was also the Comprehensive Building, on the badminton court where he was standing.

He was seeing things from He Qinghuan's perspective, not Gu Wang's.

The bald guy licked his lips sleazily. "He Qinghuan, do you actually like Gu Wang or not? He's been chasing you for so long. At least give him an answer."

He Qinghuan sent a shot over. "None of your business."

The bald guy grinned as he hit it back. "I just think it's pretty pointless for you two to keep dragging this out. If you don't like him, let me have him."

He Qinghuan put more force into his shots. "You want him?"

The bald guy looked so sleazy taking it for granted that even Gu Wang felt sick watching him. He heard him say, "Sure. He's so good-looking. His temper's pretty shitty, and he's reckless, but he's got a pretty face. It's just for fun anyway. Who cares? If you want a turn, I can wait until you're done before I..."

The badminton court was wide open, and the bald guy's screams echoed throughout the hall.

The tennis courts were beside the badminton courts, with tennis balls flying everywhere. Some rolled over to He Qinghuan's feet. He Qinghuan used his badminton racket to strike a tennis ball at him. There was no telling how much force he used, but the bald guy collapsed on impact, clutching his face and howling.

Several of the transparent synthetic strings on He Qinghuan's racket had snapped and come loose. As he walked, they fell away along his path.

"Don't get any ideas about Gu Wang..."

He Qinghuan said something else afterward, but Gu Wang didn't hear it. The scene cut off. His final rally with He Qinghuan should have been nearing its end too.

Gu Wang increased his power, returning the shuttlecock at increasingly tricky angles.

He Qinghuan could still return every shot.

He Qinghuan's gaze fell on Gu Wang's face. Gu Wang was focused on what he was doing, and He Qinghuan's distraction gave him an opening. The corner of Gu Wang's mouth twitched. With a swing of his racket, he sent the shuttlecock straight at He Qinghuan's face.

He Qinghuan didn't return that shot.

It wasn't that he couldn't. He wanted to lose to Gu Wang. He wanted Wangwang to win.

Perhaps the pointed part of a feather had scraped He Qinghuan's face. A very noticeable bloody scratch appeared along his jaw. Yue Feng saw him push his tongue against his cheek.

He walked over, intending to ask if he was all right, but before he got close, he heard He Qinghuan chuckle softly and say, "Well done, Wangwang."

Yue Feng: "..."

Served him right!

Once Gu Wang and He Qinghuan finished playing, Yue Feng grabbed Shen Zhao. "Come on, play with me for a bit."

Yue Feng said, "I'm not very good. Teach me. I was watching you play against Gu Wang earlier. You were pretty impressive."

It was the first time anyone had praised Shen Zhao's skills, and he didn't even realize he had stepped into someone's trap. Pretending to agree reluctantly, he said, "Fine, then. I'll only teach you a little. I'm not that good either."

Song Zhiyan: "..." He couldn't bear to watch.

Gu Wang handed his racket to Song Zhiyan and headed back to the classroom first. He still had problems to work on, while Song Zhiyan could keep playing for a while.

Gu Wang's seat was beside the window. The window was open, and people occasionally passed through the corridor.

He had just opened his math workbook. It contained some fairly basic problems. He planned to work through them himself, find methods that were relatively simple and easy to remember, then break them down for Shen Zhao and Song Zhiyan.

A girl appeared in the corridor. She looked very young, like a first-year.

With long hair and big eyes, she was the innocent-looking type most boys liked. She rested both hands on the windowsill beside Gu Wang and called his name.

She startled Gu Wang.

"Can I help you?"

There were only a handful of people scattered around the classroom, all with nothing to do. At the sudden appearance of an unfamiliar girl outside their classroom, they all looked over.

Gu Wang already had some idea of what was coming.

"Um, Gu Wang, I'm Lin Meng from Class Two, Year One. I... I really liked your performance for National Day." After stammering for ages, she finally managed that sentence, changing what she had meant to say halfway through.

First-years were only fifteen or sixteen. Gu Wang was already composing his response in his head: Study hard and keep improving. You'll meet someone you like more, someone better, at university.

Blushing, the girl hesitated for a long time before whispering, "Gu Wang, I like you. Um, could you... could you consider me?"

Gu Wang pretended to think for a moment before turning her down. Rejecting someone without even thinking would hurt their feelings badly.

"Your studies come first. You're still young."

Lin Meng was on the verge of tears. "But you're only seventeen too."

Gu Wang: "..."

While Gu Wang was still thinking about how to turn her down, Lin Meng suddenly leaned her head through the window and brushed his cheek with her lips. Gu Wang dodged quickly, so it was barely a graze.

His expression cooled. "Sorry, I'm not looking to date anyone right now."

Even when he was unhappy, Gu Wang found it hard to give someone an outright cold shoulder.