Ding Yiheng

Biodata

Background / History

Ding Yiheng comes from a wealthy family and is an only child. His family employs a driver, whom he calls for transport after outings. Through his acquaintances, he has access to a capital racetrack owned by a friend’s older brother 8 9 16.

Despite his extensive social connections, Ding Yiheng distinguishes himself from Kanlitel’s most privileged students, whom he finds harder to approach. His unnamed roommate belongs to a higher social circle and habitually finds fault with him; Ding takes considerable pleasure in seeing that roommate disciplined during dorm inspections 5 23.

Appearance

• Facial features: A round face, small eyes, and a mole above one eyebrow make him easy to recognize 4.
• Racing attire: Wears a red-and-white racing suit during his outing with Cen Xia 9.
• Party styling: Arrives at the Archery Club’s welcome event with glossy hair meticulously combed into place, aiming to look “mature and dependable” 24.

Personality

Ding Yiheng is outgoing, talkative, and quick to treat new acquaintances as friends. On the day he partners with Cen Xia in chemistry, he adds him as a contact, follows him to their next class, requests his notes, and invites him to dinner. Cen Xia initially finds this enthusiasm overwhelming 4 5.

He enjoys attention and cares about looking impressive. He poses after watching Cen Xia race, joins the Archery Club partly because archery looks cool, and puts exaggerated effort into basketball when girls arrive courtside. After helping rescue Shi Su, his complaint about the circulating photograph is that it captured him looking bedraggled while Cen Xia looked heroic 9 32 39 43.

His dramatic complaints rarely turn into lasting resentment. He vows to stop speaking to Cen Xia after a missed phone call, then immediately answers him the following day. Beneath the joking, he is willing to support his friends: he follows Cen Xia into the storm to help Shi Su despite his usual nervousness around powerful students 35 43 44.

His outlook reflects Kanlitel’s class hierarchy, which he describes bluntly when explaining hostility toward special-admission students. Nevertheless, he has no personal prejudice against Shi Su and respects his resistance to harassment 12 14.

Abilities & Skills

Social Networking

Ding Yiheng’s strongest demonstrated skill is making connections and keeping up with campus affairs.

• Can move between groups discussing games, gossip, and other interests 4.
• Obtains information about Shen Si through a friend of one of Shen Si’s acquaintances 7.
• Uses an Archery Club connection to secure admission for himself and Cen Xia without screening 12 18.
• Knows enough about players across several classes to assess much of the basketball competition roster 43.
• Remains intimidated by prominent students such as Shen Zhong and Pei Huaiyi 31 44.

Racing

A racing enthusiast, Ding Yiheng owns a modified car and brings Cen Xia to what he describes as the capital’s largest racetrack.

• Drives a standard black sports car alongside Cen Xia during their outing 9.
• Recognizes that Cen Xia has more racing experience than his quiet demeanor suggests 9.
• Is highly protective of his own car, choosing not to use it for their session 9.

Gaming

Ding Yiheng is an enthusiastic but weak player who relies heavily on more skilled teammates.

• Cen Xia carries him past a long-standing rank bottleneck and raises him three tiers over two days 14.
• Organizes regular evening sessions with Cen Xia, Shi Su, and Fang Sheng 14.
• Often selects support, but still struggles as their matchmaking rank rises 15.
• Aspires to reach King rank; the supplied chapters do not show him achieving it 14.

School Sports and Academics

• Basketball: Earns a substitute position through PE tryouts and participates in the required team training 30 43.
• Archery: Begins with the club’s newcomer instruction and later asks Cen Xia to teach him after witnessing his victory over Qian Yuan 31 32.
• Fencing: Takes fencing as his specialty class; no competitive results are documented 12 15.
• Academics: Describes his grades as poor. During the chemistry experiment, he assists Cen Xia by handing over materials and recording data 5.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Modified racing car — A low, wide-bodied vehicle with sharp lines and matte-red paint. Ding calls it his “precious baby” 9.
• Phone — Used extensively for contacts, campus gossip, group gaming, and recording basketball footage for his cousin 5 7 14 45.
• Small black umbrella — Brings it from the classroom during the storm and uses it to shelter Shi Su during the rooftop rescue 35.

Relationships

• Cen Xia — Classmate, chemistry partner, and regular companion. Ding initiates their friendship and comes to admire Cen Xia’s gaming and archery abilities. Their friendship is marked by teasing, outings, and Ding’s persistent invitations 4 5 9 14 32.
• Shi Su — Friend and gaming teammate. Ding respects his resilience, helps shelter him during the rooftop rescue, and fetches medicine afterward 14 35 36.
• Fang Sheng — Fellow member of their four-person gaming group and a source of social news, including information about the banquet for Lu Mian 14 46.
• Qi Jiayan — Older female cousin involved in Student Council recruitment. Ding offers to recommend Cen Xia to her and later supplies basketball footage at her request 8 45.
• Lin Jiandu — Someone Ding eagerly wants to befriend because of his beauty and popularity. He initially asks Cen Xia for Lin’s contact information rather than approaching him himself, fearing Pei Huaiyi’s reaction 11 12.
• Unnamed roommate — A higher-status student whose complaints and late-night outburst keep Ding awake. Ding openly enjoys the embarrassment of his roommate being made to write a self-criticism 23.
• Pei Huaiyi — A student whose athletic ability Ding admires but whose reputation frightens him. Ding tells Cen Xia about Pei’s reported national-team history and injury 43 44.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Befriending Cen Xia

• Approaches the usually solitary Cen Xia to partner for chemistry, then exchanges contact information with him after the successful experiment 4 5.
• Falls asleep in their next mathematics class and is ordered to copy the notes ten times; he asks Cen Xia to send him a copy 5.
• Introduces Cen Xia to small local eateries and takes him racing, where they learn that Wen Ci has returned to the country 8 9.
• Visits Cen Xia in the infirmary with a fruit basket, shares school gossip, and encourages him to join the Archery Club 12.

Forming the Friend Group

• Becomes Cen Xia’s regular gaming partner, then welcomes Shi Su and Fang Sheng into the team 14.
• Takes the group to a beef noodle shop after the monthly examinations 15.
• Gets drunk after a very small amount of beer and has to be carried back to dormitory room 503 by Cen Xia. The following morning, he asks Cen Xia to request leave for him 16.
• Interprets Cen Xia’s explanation that their world is a melodramatic novel and that they are “NPCs” as a joke rather than a literal revelation 23.

Archery Club

• Secures Cen Xia’s admission through a friend and brings him to the club’s villa welcome event 18 24.
• Supports Cen Xia during Qian Yuan’s challenge, initially fearing an embarrassing defeat after learning that Qian is a youth archery bronze medalist 31.
• Celebrates Cen Xia’s three-round sweep and asks for lessons 32.
• Secretly plays a phone game with Cen Xia at the back of the club’s presidential changeover meeting; their match ends in defeat 32 33.

Rooftop Rescue

• Discovers that Shen Si is tormenting Shi Su on the rooftop and urgently informs Cen Xia 35.
• Follows Cen Xia into the rain, holds the umbrella over Shi Su, and asks about his condition while Cen Xia carries him away 35.
• Helps disperse the spectators after Chi Zhao interrupts the confrontation, then fetches medicine at the infirmary 36.
• Stays overnight with the group and later protests the unflattering photograph of him circulating on the school forum 39.

Basketball and His Cousin’s Video

• Trains alongside Cen Xia as a class substitute and assesses the opposing teams 30 43.
• Goes to watch He Wangsheng play, then asks the taller Cen Xia to record him because he cannot get clear footage through the crowd 44 45.
• Sends the recording to Qi Jiayan and identifies Cen Xia as the person who filmed it. Her group subsequently examines the footage for He Wangsheng’s repeated glances toward the camera 45 46.
• Unknowingly has his dinner invitation declined because Cen Xia and Shi Su have arranged to go out alone. His frustration is diverted by Fang Sheng’s news about Lu Mian’s family banquet 46.

Notable Quotes

“Being rich doesn't make us stupid. If it tastes good, why wouldn't we eat it?” 8

“With two big shots carrying me, there's no way I won't reach King!” 14

“Fuck, you think you're the only NPC?” 35