Chapter 51

Oh my gosh, did you all see the long jump competition? It was amazing!

It’s such a loss for the sports school that Huo-ge isn’t practicing sports!

OMG, OMG! Everyone! I’m shipping them so hard!! At the 3000-meter check-in! The god of learning is helping Huo-ge put on a bandage!! OMG, the way he’s carefully holding his ankle! How can he not say yes! Say yes to him!!

The 3000-meter run! It’s still the 3000-meter run! Oh my god! The God of Learning Yan is running alongside him!

Hahaha, I’m right here at the scene, and the participant next to them is shocked!

It’s hilarious! Look at the guy next to them—he looks like he’s eaten a ton of dog food. And the key point is that Huo-ge won’t even let him run in the inner lane; he’s pushing him to the outer lane.

So sweet, so sweet! Running side by side like that—it’s totally a boyfriend thing!

On the third day of the sports meet, the shipping post was pushed to the top of the forum again.

After the 3000-meter run, Jiang Zhihuo stood stiffly at the edge of the field, surrounded by a large group from Class 1. They supported him from all sides—those who couldn’t physically help were handing him glucose water and massaging his muscles.

Anyone who ran 3000 meters was a hero. Huo-ge took on the event alone, saving another classmate from possibly being drafted for it. He was an angel—a savior! And he even finished first! While others crawled like dogs in the final lap, Jiang Zhihuo still had the energy to sprint the last 100 meters, overtaking the participant from Qixing High School just before the finish line.

When he crashed through the red finish line, the athlete was stunned. He had thought first place was locked up and relaxed a bit in the final steps. He never expected the guy next to him to pull a swift one and overtake him by a step, pushing him into second place.

After such an intense long-distance run, it was not good to sit down right away. A group helped Jiang Zhihuo walk half a lap around the field before returning to the main camp.

As soon as he sat down, his muscles suddenly relaxed. He felt sore all over, especially in his lower abdomen, which throbbed with pain.

After running, he might be experiencing intestinal cramps. During training, a girl on the relay team had severe pain after running 800 meters and only felt better after a long rest. It was a normal situation. Jiang Zhihuo thought this and didn’t take the pain seriously. He lay weakly on the table—anyone who had just run 3000 meters would be as limp as a salted fish.

Yan Mu waited until the crowd left before approaching Jiang Zhihuo. He placed a cup of warm water down.

“Are you okay?” Yan Mu asked.

Jiang Zhihuo lifted half his face to look at him.

Apart from the twisting pain in his lower abdomen, he didn’t have many other problems.

He stretched out his legs and hooked a chair over to his side. He slightly lifted his chin, signaling Yan Mu to sit down.

Yan Mu gently patted his back and slowly released his pheromones.

A gentle, fresh scent, like rain, wrapped around him. It smelled comforting. In this long-lost, reassuring feeling, the pain in his lower abdomen seemed to ease a bit. Jiang Zhihuo slowly closed his eyes.

After a moment, it felt like someone slipped something in. He realized it was a small ice pillow.

“Yan-ge.” Jiang Zhihuo shifted to a more comfortable position. His cheek rested on the ice pillow. “How come you have everything?”

Yan Mu replied, “It’s just a pillow.”

No one else came over now. On any other day, the area would have been as noisy as firecrackers. But today, thanks to the God of Learning Yan being here, he could rest quietly.

As Tang Anmiao had said, no one wanted to disturb the beautiful atmosphere between the two.

Having been shipped as a couple for so long, Jiang Zhihuo was used to it. He dodged the attention, and just yesterday, a certain someone even confessed to him. He adapted quickly. After a night’s rest, he could joke about it. “You running side by side with me earlier— the forum is probably going to ship us again.”

Yan Mu went along with him. “Let them ship us. They will anyway.”

The CP girls could find sweetness merely from the two of them standing together.

If all the CP girls’ self-made content could turn into real food, Grandpa Yuan¹[T/N: Yuan Longping was the father of hybrid rice. In the 1970s, he developed high-yield, disease-resistant rice varieties that helped solve major food shortages in China and other parts of the world.] wouldn’t have needed to research hybrid rice, and the world probably would’ve never had a food crisis.

Jiang Zhihuo opened his eyes to look at Yan Mu. This person was calm and composed, no different from usual.

“I realize you’re quite shameless,” Jiang Zhihuo said with a smile.

“Am I?” Yan Mu replied.

Jiang Zhihuo didn’t answer, but a smile tugged at the corners of his lips. The boy’s smile was bright and gentle. The corners of his eyes curved slightly. His gaze was clear.

However, when his eyes caught sight of someone approaching behind Yan Mu, his smile slowly faded.

He Xiezhou approached Jiang Zhihuo with a dark expression.

He couldn’t take it anymore!

For the past two days, everyone seemed to avoid him like the plague. He knew that if he stayed offline and didn’t check the forums, he wouldn’t see the discussions about him. However, he couldn’t help himself. He kept clicking and refreshing. Each new comment felt like a dagger stabbing into his eyes.

Jiang Zhihuo glanced at Yan Mu, who stood up and picked up the untouched thermos. “I’m going to get some warm water.”

Seeing Yan Mu leave, He Xiezhou slammed the table angrily. “Jiang Zhihuo, delete the post!”

His lower abdomen still hurt, and Jiang Zhihuo didn’t want to get up. He remained sprawled on the table, lazily replying, “Mhm?”

He Xiezhou clenched his fists. He kept his tone restrained. “I’m sorry; I apologize to you. Please delete the post.”

Jiang Zhihuo didn’t speak. His gaze was calm and unruffled.

He Xiezhou was provoked by his expression. The anger he’d held all night erupted instantly. He shouted, “Do you even know what you’re doing? You’re inciting online harassment! You could easily delete the post and end all this, but you’re indifferent. It’s because of you that I’m being unfairly ostracized!! I’ve already apologized to you! Why won’t you delete the post?!”

Jiang Zhihuo: “?”

Jiang Zhihuo was taken aback by He Xiezhou’s logic.

“Does this place look like a pond to you?” Jiang Zhihuo asked.

He Xiezhou: “What?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “Well, since this isn’t a pond, why do you think I resemble a pure white lotus standing in the middle of it?”

He Xiezhou: “……”

If he didn’t clarify things, this idiot wouldn’t even know where he’d gone wrong. Jiang Zhihuo endured the pain and said, “Not to mention, your apology was so fake I could barely call it one. However, let’s talk about you accusing me of inciting online harassment.”

“Weren’t you the one trying to manipulate the forum to smear me? The night I was being insulted, you must have been pretty pleased, right? Just about ready to set off firecrackers at my doorstep, weren’t you?”

“I only posted the truth, nothing more. Did I ever say a word to stir things up? Why is it that you can slander me, but I can’t speak up for myself?”

“And, my friend, you do know this, right? Spreading malicious rumors online becomes defamation once a post hits over five thousand views. That’s punishable by up to three years in prison. Take a look at your post—it’s past five thousand views, isn’t it? Honestly, I think I’ve been pretty generous. You wouldn’t last half a month in a detention center, let alone three years.”

The pain in his lower abdomen persisted, like a dull knife grinding against his flesh, making his whole body uneasy. Facing the idiot, Jiang Zhihuo’s tone grew sharp. “I said from the start, what happens on the forum stays on the forum. I won’t accept your apology, nor will I delete the post. Next time before you do something stupid, check the legal consequences. If you have no moral bottom line, at least respect the legal one. Thank you.”

Jiang Zhihuo lazily closed his eyes, not wanting to waste more words on this idiot.

He wondered why Yan Mu hadn’t brought the water yet. He was thirsty and wanted a drink.

He Xiezhou couldn’t think of a single retort. His eyes widened with a fierce glare, his mouth twisted, and his veins bulged. He clenched his fists, slammed them on the desk, and stormed off in a rage.

Yan Mu had just finished getting hot water and walked into this scene.

One was furious, the other calm and composed.

“That’s how he is,” Jiang Zhihuo said, holding the cup, warmth spreading through his palms. His chin rested on the desk, eyes fixed on the rising steam.

“In the second year of junior high, I beat him up. The next day, he showed a medical report to force me to drop out, making a big fuss everywhere—claiming a tiny scratch was a serious injury. I had to release the recording simply to shut him up.”

“Later, this got to Zhu You’s mom. He’s from a single-parent family, and his mom was too busy with work to notice his mental state. It wasn’t until she heard the recording that she realized how serious the problem was.”

“That day, even the police came. Zhu You’s mom had called them. She rolled up his sleeves right there, revealing marks all over from the electric shock baton.”

“I can’t meddle in other people’s business. At most, I might beat up He Xiezhou a few more times. I heard they went to court later—school bullying is taken seriously. They had to pay compensation, but since he was under sixteen, he wasn’t criminally charged. He Xiezhou ended up expelled and got a record.”

“Too lenient,” Jiang Zhihuo said. “Even after being expelled, he hasn’t changed.”

Jiang Zhihuo blew away the steam. “Someone like him, even if I accepted the apology and deleted the post, he’d just think it’s what I should do.”

“But this matter ends here. High schoolers don’t have much time for gossip. It’s only because of the recent sports meet that things have been slow. In a few days, the post will sink. The forum has an anti-trending system, so unless many people push it up at once, it won’t resurface. I’ve done all I can. People like that never show gratitude anyway.”

The worst moods were often caused by those who lack self-awareness, and he still had a stomachache.

Jiang Zhihuo slumped over the table, listless.

Yan Mu reached out, intending to touch his hair, but Jiang Zhihuo turned his head to avoid it. “I’m all sweaty.”

Yan Mu changed the topic and asked, “Want to hang out tomorrow?”

“Hold on, let me check.” Jiang Zhihuo reached for his phone, found the group chat with the bar staff, and sighed, “I can’t make it; I’m scheduled to work tomorrow.”

He turned the screen towards Yan Mu.

The schedule was clear: Sunday, 2:00 PM to 9:00 PM, Shin.

Jiang Zhihuo said, “From afternoon to evening.”

Yan Mu returned the phone to him and sent a couple of messages.

Two minutes later, Qu Xiao mentioned Jiang Zhihuo in the staff group chat.

Qu Xiao: @Shin, the bar has enough people tomorrow; you don’t need to come.

Jiang Zhihuo: !

This excuse sounded very familiar; Qu Xiao had used the same reason to give him time off a week before the sports meet!

Jiang Zhihuo caught on right away. “Was that you last time too? No wonder the boss suddenly gave me a break!”

This question could lead to many revelations, like how Yan Mu had been interested in Jiang Zhihuo since then…

This person was too clever; Yan Mu couldn’t let him think too deeply about it; thus, he pretended to play with his phone to avoid the topic.

Jiang Zhihuo dragged out his words, curling his knuckles to hook onto Yan Mu’s sleeve cuff. “Losing your ambition over toys, Yan-ge.”

Yan Mu looked up, feigning innocence despite the teasing tone, and sincerely invited Jiang Zhihuo, “Come out tomorrow, and we can talk about everything else then.”

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  [T/N: Yuan Longping was the father of hybrid rice. In the 1970s, he developed high-yield, disease-resistant rice varieties that helped solve major food shortages in China and other parts of the world.]