Chi Wang stared at the simple period on his phone screen and chuckled to himself.
He had guessed this reaction, but didn't expect it to be even more abbreviated than imagined.
He looked up at the passing night scenery of Fog City, inexplicably recalling the scene from earlier. At that time, Su Lian had been sleeping restlessly, head tilted against the car window with eyes closed, brows furrowed as if harboring endless troubles.
As the car drove over a speed bump, it shook slightly, and there was a dull thud as the head next to him hit the glass.
A loud bang - it sounded quite painful.
Chi Wang tugged at his sleeve, shifted over a bit, and curved his hand around to cushion the back of Su Lian's head with its fine, soft hair. Suddenly, the furrow in Su Lian's brow relaxed.
Asleep, Su Lian looked as if he had retracted his usual cold prickliness, revealing the softness and vulnerability within. Even the smallest movement made one's heart ache for him.
Chi Wang didn't move, just kept his hand there shielding him the whole way.
When they reached their destination, he patted Su Lian's shoulder to wake him, and heard a soft, gentle "Brother" that he almost thought was an illusion.
That voice was quite different from the usual icy tone, carrying a hint of intimate clinginess.
He must be very dependent on that person, to the point of seeming lost and dazed upon waking.
Did Su Lian have an older brother? He didn't seem to have ever mentioned one.
Chi Wang had no desire to pry into someone else's private affairs, he just didn't want Su Lian to remain in low spirits for too long.
Thinking it over, he realized he knew very little about this person, so he could only send a video of exercise routines to lighten the mood.
Chi Wang: I sent that out of kindness, and this is how you react?
My Nemesis Deskmate: I didn't need your reminder.
Chi Wang: So fierce.
Just like a cat, extending its claws to scratch as soon as it wakes up.
There was a pause for a few seconds on the other end, with no reply.
Chi Wang blew on his hair while tapping the screen, waiting for a while. After a good long time, Su Lian slowly sent back: Thanks for taking me home, be careful on your way back.
In the end he hadn't lost his conscience. Chi Wang smiled and replied: Remember to do the exercises, I'll be checking.
When Su Lian received this message, he had just gotten home not long ago. Su Huasheng was holding his diagnostic test results in utter shock, unable to speak for quite some time.
"This is... did you take someone else's exam paper?" He looked at the score over and over, trusting that his son wouldn't cheat, but the results were simply unbelievable.
Su Lian didn't know how to explain, so he made something up: "I did a lot of practice questions over summer break, and this time I happened to guess correctly on quite a few."
Su Huasheng wasn't fooled: "You can guess your way to a perfect score?"
"If not, you can look at my scores again next time," Su Lian brushed it off while replying to Chi Wang: You've gotten addicted to exercising, want to extend for another month?
Chi Wang: You think you can escape? The men's pair exercise routine has your name on it.
Su Lian: I'll just call in sick on Monday, you can enjoy it alone.
Chi Wang: Don't do that, I've prepared a surprise for you.
Su Lian's brow twitched, as an ominous feeling welled up inside him again.
Su Lian: What kind of surprise?
Chi Wang: If I tell you, it won't be a surprise anymore, will it? You'll find out when the time comes.
Su Lian: ......I'm warning you, don't try anything funny.
"Did you make a friend at Third High?" Su Huasheng stared at his ceaselessly typing hands, putting down the test paper with a surprised expression.
Su Lian vaguely mumbled an affirmative: "Not really, just my new deskmate."
"You've gotten close to your deskmate quite quickly." Su Huasheng half-reclined in the lounge chair, was silent for a moment, then said pointedly, "In all those years at Eighth High, I never heard of you having any friends."
Su Lian looked up from the string of exasperated emojis in the chat window: "It's mainly that he's quite outgoing."
In the intervals between speaking, Chi Wang was still spamming messages non-stop, annoying to the point where one wanted to block him.
"If you're really dating someone, just don't let it affect your studies," Su Huasheng stared at that face which was beginning to show angular lines emerging from its youthful features, appearing very open-minded.
Su Lian's fingertip paused, and he said with exasperation: "He's a guy."
Su Huasheng raised an eyebrow: "A guy? You don't need to lie to me."
After half an hour of explanations, he finally convinced his father that there was no early dating, his grades were improving normally, and he was just an ordinary, positive, pure and innocent high school student. At last he was allowed to go to his bedroom to sleep.
This whole day had truly been physically and mentally exhausting. Su Lian took a shower, and as soon as his head hit the pillow he fell into a groggy sleep.
In his hazy state, he saw Chi Wang standing under the five-starred red flag making a gesture, back straight and movements precise, like an orchestra conductor.
Su Lian blinked in confusion and sincerely asked: "What are you doing?"
"It's the surprise for you, see, isn't it magnificent?" Chi Wang grinned mischievously.
The next second, as if a switch had been flipped, all the teachers and students of the school began chanting in unison.
"Su Lian, Su Lian, you're the best, your posture is so beautiful."
"Su Lian, Su Lian, you're amazing, the school's brightest exercise leader."
Embarrassment made his toes curl, digging straight through to Peking University Hospital. He jolted awake suddenly, his back drenched in sweat.
In the end, Su Lian couldn't call in sick. He might dodge the first, but he couldn't escape the fifteenth. The face he was destined to lose would come sooner or later.
When the familiar between-class exercise music started playing, he felt as if the funeral dirge for his dignity was sounding, filled with grief and despair.
"Third High's dazzling exercise leader, are you ready?" The hallway was packed with people. Chi Wang reached out to tug at Su Lian's clothes, but his fingers slipped and caught the nape of his neck instead.
His fingers naturally gave a little squeeze, earning him a glare as sharp as daggers.
Su Lian's face was expressionless as he asked irritably: "What's with that excited look on your face?"
"I guess I've come to terms with it. Rather than resist, might as well enjoy it." Chi Wang withdrew his hand and stuck both hands in his pockets, looking quite nonchalant.
He was particularly good at seeing the bright side. The first time he felt embarrassed, but by the second time around, he had become thick-skinned.
Gu Anjiu squeezed in between the two of them, forcibly inserting himself into the already narrow hallway. The air grew increasingly thin.
He grinned as he hooked an arm around each of them: "Today's scene is sure to be spectacular. Go for it, you two have all of Third High's students as your loyal fans."
Su Lian inexplicably recalled his dream from a few nights ago and felt a pang of dread: "If there are any chants, I will take up a knife and kill you all."
"Oh, there aren't any." Chi Wang's expression was very regretful. "I forgot to prepare that for you. My mistake."
Su Lian: "......Can't we just let this matter pass quietly and low-key?"
Chi Wang lowered his eyes and smiled, saying softly: "That's probably impossible."
Su Lian passed through the crowd with an icy expression, stepped onto the stairs, and took his place in the center of the flag-raising platform of his own accord.
A cool breeze blew past, lifting the hem of his school uniform. His whole being exuded an air of tragic heroism, like a warrior embarking on a journey of no return.
Q: What mood of the protagonist does this description of the wind express?
A: Extremely bitter, and a strong desire to die.
The crowd below the flag-raising platform was buzzing with noise, staring curiously at the new exercise leaders and whispering amongst themselves.
"Holy crap, the exercise leaders have changed to Chi Wang and Su Lian, what kind of surreal scene is this?"
"I heard Principal Song personally chose them. Chi Wang is really expanding his influence, reaching new heights of glory, haha!"
"Actually, if they had switched to such handsome exercise leaders earlier, I could do exercises from morning till night."
"I demand they turn around, what's there to see with their backs to us! Outrageous!"
Chi Wang took his place on the left side, turned and whistled at Su Lian, looking smug: "Look down there."
"I won't look." Su Lian refused to turn around, staring blankly at the school emblem in front of him, stubbornly presenting only the round back of his head.
"Just one glance, it's the surprise I prepared for you." Chi Wang tilted his head slightly, his voice very low. "I went to a lot of trouble."
His expression looked unusually serious, not like he was just teasing.
Su Lian hesitated for half a second, then turned his head slightly to look down at the crowd. The densely packed formation had shrunk to the size of ants. At the front of each class's line-up were several vaguely familiar faces that seemed to have been seen somewhere before, though he couldn't quite place them at the moment.
Chi Wang spoke up to remind him: "That group of my underlings, you've met some of them before, at the internet cafe."
Su Lian: "?" One of the top ten surreal scenes.
That group of normally extremely arrogant delinquent youths were now all properly dressed in school uniforms, each with a flushed face, looking very ill at ease.
Surrounded by classmates from various grades staring and discussing animatedly, subjected to countless probing gazes, where was that lawless aura now? They looked like frost-bitten eggplants.
Su Lian's expression shifted slightly: "What did you do to them?"
"Didn't you feel embarrassed? So I picked a representative from each class to help you share the burden of public opinion."
Chi Wang raised his chin, sighing languidly: "You should have seen how ridiculous it was yesterday when I forced this group to practice the exercises. Wouldn't let them go home until they got it right."
Su Lian imagined the scene, feeling it was a pity to have missed such an exciting moment.
"How's this surprise?" Chi Wang's expression was cocky, but his tone was incredibly gentle. "Nemesis, are you happy? Do you like it?"
Su Lian felt a bit touched and sincerely said, "Thank you, it's quite creative."
Rarely hearing even half a compliment from this guy, Chi Wang paused for a second before explaining further, "I told them if they didn't do well and got replaced by teachers, there'd be punishment. In short, however long we do it, they have to accompany us for that long."
"Is the punishment running 3000 meters or drinking that health porridge?" Su Lian zipped his school uniform all the way up, unable to hold back a laugh.
"Fuck, don't mention that." Chi Wang's face changed, his expression solemn as he stared straight ahead. "Let's just do the exercises."
As the music started, the students of Third High had never been so excited during between-class exercises before. The scene was truly stimulating.
The two leading the exercises in the center of the stage were good-looking, with broad shoulders and long legs. Their every move was pleasing to the eye. The exercise leaders below, in stark contrast to their usual arrogance, were doing their absolute best to stay in perfect sync, terrified of missing even half a beat.
After eight sets of radio calisthenics, the whole school nearly died laughing.
"Never thought I'd see the day. That exercise leader from Class 7 in first year who once beat me up is getting his comeuppance."
"The one from our class used to talk back to teachers, now he's as docile as a cat."
"Chi Wang is still badass, actively improving himself while not forgetting to motivate his underlings. He's truly moving Third High, moving China."
"So I'm curious, does anyone know what's gotten into Chi Wang?"
Apart from the whole of Room 403, no one knew the answer for now.
The two on stage maintained identical cold expressions, like the Black and White Impermanence of Chinese folklore, following the beat and mechanically completing the whole routine.
As long as we keep a straight face, no one will see how embarrassed we are inside.
As soon as the music stopped, they quickly tried to slip away. Halfway down the stairs, Principal Song personally came over to praise them: "You two did really well, you've lifted the spirits of the whole school. I saw everyone doing the exercises very seriously today. Keep up the good work in the future."
Su Lian's heart skipped a beat: "In the future... how long do we have to keep doing this?"
Principal Song calmly replied, "Tentatively until you graduate."
The two exchanged a glance, silently cursing at the same time.
It was indeed true that practice makes perfect. At first, Su Lian didn't quite believe it, but later he learned the truth through experience.
From initially blushing as soon as he got on stage due to shyness, after a few days he became completely nonchalant, purely an emotionless exercise-leading machine.
After the preliminary exams, the new semester's curriculum was packed tight, without even a moment to catch one's breath.
After finishing the third class in the afternoon, Su Lian was starving and hurriedly urged everyone to go to the cafeteria. As usual, braised pork was a must.
Arriving early, he filled up an entire plate. While contentedly eating his meat, he reminded Chi Wang, "When are you going to pay back the 3000 meters you owe from last week?"
"I'd forgotten all about it until you mentioned it." Chi Wang guiltily rubbed his nose, realizing he couldn't escape and compromising, "How about tonight?"
Hearing their conversation, Lin Yan looked up, somewhat shocked as he glanced at him: "You're so health-conscious lately? That's not like you."
"Well, I've got this health-nut deskmate, don't I?" Chi Wang propped up his forehead, complaining half-resignedly, "At the drop of a hat he's making bets with me about exercise. Anyone would think he's already in his twilight years."
Su Lian put down his chopsticks and glared sideways: "You got a problem with that?"
"Yeah, I've got a big problem, but you've got the emperor's decree, so I don't dare disobey." Chi Wang leaned back against his chair, sighing at his own miserable life.
Their eyes met, and they both looked away in annoyance.
Gu Anjiu, his mouth full of food, was scrolling on his phone with one hand when he suddenly exclaimed "Holy shit!", attracting everyone's attention.
"Always so dramatic, when will you learn to be mature and steady?" Lin Yan turned his head to look, involuntarily blurting out "Holy shit" as well.
Song Jiaci craned his neck to peek, wanting to copy and paste, but unfortunately stuttered and got stuck, managing only "I-I-I" for quite a while without getting out the next word.
Chi Wang stretched out his long legs, asking lazily, "What is it now?"
"That exercise video of you two has gone viral." Gu Anjiu turned the screen around, placing it between the two of them, pointing at the red hearts beside it. The outrageous number was still rapidly climbing.
Lin Yan's finger scrolled, analyzing rationally: "680,000 likes, as for views, it must be in the millions by now."
The video popped open, showing the two focal points standing below the flagpole, one on the left and one on the right, doing stretching exercises with icy expressions.
The title was alarming: "Once-in-8000-years beautiful boys doing exercises together, watch and you'll want to relive high school."
Su Lian's expression cracked, his right hand slightly trembling as he opened the comments section, which had already turned into a massive screaming chicken coop.
"Aaaah save me, which school are these boys from? I want to go see in person!"
"I can't decide which one to choose, I'll just call them both hubby."
"I found out, they're Chi Wang and Su Lian from Second Year at Fog City Third High, super famous!"
"Their looks are too perfect, if you two aren't in this year's talent show I'm not watching. You both better debut!!"
"Mom I want to transfer schools, now, immediately, right away!"
Su Lian: "????"
Wait, how many people have seen this again? A new round of social death was unexpectedly unfolding.
His fingers pressed hard, the tips turning white, nearly breaking his chopsticks: "Who posted it?"
"Don't know, this blogger just reposted it. I'll look for the original source." Gu Anjiu lowered his head, searching and fiddling.
Chi Wang narrowed his eyes, casually glancing over, and somehow felt the angle of this video was particularly familiar. His heart suddenly skipped a beat.
He had previously registered an account specifically for when he practiced drums. Fearing loss of phone data, he had a habit of uploading private videos as backups. A couple of days ago, Chi Qing had recorded a video of the two of them leading exercises and shared it with him, sarcastically telling him to enjoy watching it.
He had watched it on the spot, found it quite interesting, and wanting to keep a memento, habitually backed it up as well.
Now it seemed that when saving, he must have accidentally set the privacy settings to public due to a slip of the finger.
Not only had he unintentionally sent it out, but it had been endlessly reposted and gone viral.
"There are too many reposts." Gu Anjiu muttered, "To be able to film from this angle, this person is most likely a student from our school. An inside spy, that's what this is."
"If I find out who it was..." Su Lian lost his composure, gritting out the words through clenched teeth, his face dark as if he was about to commit murder.
Chi Wang instantly felt a chill down his spine, surrounded on all sides by an overwhelming murderous aura.
He quickly fished his phone out of his pocket, swiftly changing his ID from "Human Delusion" to "Taro Bubble Tea Cutie".
Then he reached out to pat Su Lian's back, outwardly nonchalant as he said, "It's probably some little girl who has a crush on you. Don't hold it against her."