Noon on Saturdays is the most exciting time for students at No. 1 High School. This afternoon was different from usual, with far fewer students taking their lunch break, as most chose to finish the assignments given by their teachers.
After all, they would be dismissed in the afternoon, and everyone wanted to enjoy a pleasant and relaxed weekend.
But Sheng Qingxi was not, as usual, burying her head in homework. Instead, she was propping her chin up, lost in thought.
Chen Yi glanced over. A beauty looks good no matter what she’s doing, even when she’s daydreaming. Her brow was slightly furrowed, her long, curled eyelashes gently drooping, and even the corners of her eyes hinted at a trace of sorrow.
Not to mention her slightly pursed red lips.
Chen Yi quietly withdrew her gaze and continued with her homework.
Sheng Qingxi had been preoccupied all morning. Why had Lin Ran gotten upset that day? It seemed like she could still hear Lin Ran’s words echoing in her ears: “Do you like me or Song Shiman?”
Could it have been because of that sketch?
In her previous life, after Lin Ran’s death, Sheng Qingxi had focused all her energy on studying. After graduation, she devoted herself to her work, and in her spare time on weekends, she investigated the fire incident from those years, leaving very little personal time.
Sheng Qingxi had suitors, and some colleagues even tried to introduce her to potential partners, but back then, she had no mind for romance. She couldn’t let go of that fateful fire.
She was clueless about matters of love.
Even though she liked Lin Ran, she only dared to like him in secret.
The changes in this life caught her off guard.
She let out a small sigh, and her beautiful eyes held a bit of confusion. Lin Ran… is he easy to cheer up?
On Saturday afternoons, they only had two classes, and the bell rang right at 2:45.
Sheng Qingxi slowly gathered the homework she needed to take home. While packing her bag, she found a sandwich. She had forgotten to eat it that morning when she picked up her sketch. She had to wait until the others finished copying the notes on the blackboard before she could erase it.
By now, Song Shiman could walk in and out of their classroom without changing her expression. As soon as she entered, she saw Sheng Qingxi holding the sandwich in a daze, her mind completely elsewhere.
She had even forgotten she was supposed to erase the blackboard.
Song Shiman walked up to the podium, gave the blackboard eraser in her hand a disgusted look, covered her nose with one hand, and stood on her toes to wipe the board clean. Then she rushed to the sink by the door to wash her hands twice before returning to call Sheng Qingxi.
“Xiao Xi, Xiao Xi, Xiao Xi! Wake up!”
Song Shiman was almost tempted to pinch her face, but rationality kept her from doing so.
By the time Sheng Qingxi snapped out of it, she was already sitting in Song Shiman’s family car, heading to Shengkai Orphanage Institute. Until the college entrance exam, Song Shiman had to attend tutoring at Shengkai every weekend.
Sheng Qingxi sighed with worry, then pulled out the sandwich and started eating.
Song Shiman looked at Sheng Qingxi, who was gloomily chewing the sandwich in a mechanical manner, and twitched the corners of her mouth. She couldn’t help but reach out and flick Sheng Qingxi’s forehead. “Xiao Xi, it’s fine if you were daydreaming at lunch, but you’re still doing it after school. What’s on your mind?”
Sheng Qingxi raised her eyes to glance at her and answered honestly, “I think I made Lin Ran angry.”
“Huh? Really?”
Song Shiman’s voice almost overflowed with joy, but she restrained herself, remembering that she and Sheng Qingxi were best friends, and quickly pulled back her happy expression.
Song Shiman forced down the corners of her mouth that were trying to rise and said seriously, “How did you make Lin Ran angry? But it’s normal. Lin Ran has a bad temper; he gets mad easily.”
As she spoke, Song Shiman started counting Lin Ran’s flaws on her fingers. “At the start of the first year of high school, he got into a fight with second-year students within the first week over a basketball court. From then on, his classmates were happy to call him Brother Ran.”
“Once, a junior girl gave him a love letter, and he didn’t even glance at it. He said he couldn’t read Chinese. So, the junior girl devoted herself to studying English and eventually got so caught up in learning that she forgot all about Lin Ran.”
“Last year, on Lin Ran’s birthday, a senior who was about to graduate confessed to him. He said he didn’t like girls with poor grades. The senior was deeply affected and, before the final exams, studied hard enough to get into a top university.”
“And there’s more. Last semester, someone from another school specifically came to block Lin Ran at the school gate. Lin Ran said he didn’t like people who couldn’t beat him. That girl disappeared for a while and suddenly made it into the provincial team.”
The more Song Shiman talked, the more something felt off. How come the more she thought about it, the more Lin Ran sounded like a positive, inspiring young man?
Sheng Qingxi listened for a while and suddenly asked, “Shiman, do you know how to cheer Lin Ran up?”
Song Shiman was taken aback. “Cheer up Lin Ran? With his temper, how could that be possible? It’s been almost two years, and I haven’t seen him smile much. He’s always wearing a cold face; I don’t even know what he’s upset about.”
At this point, Song Shiman couldn’t help but wonder—what exactly did she like about Lin Ran?
He had a bad temper, loved to fight, and hated studying. The only good thing about him was his face.
But Song Shiman still thought seriously for a moment. “Lin Ran… well, he seems to like motorcycles. Oh, and he enjoys boxing. Other than that, I don’t know.”
As they talked, the two arrived at Shengkai Orphanage Institute.
This time, Song Shiman felt much more comfortable than last time. She pulled out her bulging schoolbag, which was packed with snacks for the kids. There were also plenty of toys in the back seat.
Song Shiman smiled along with the happy children, but her smile faded quickly when she realized it was time for tutoring.
.
10:00 p.m., Guangnian Auto Shop.
Lin Ran came out of the shower, and He Mo and Xie Zhen were sitting in front of the computer, shouting at each other, claiming to be each other’s “dad,” while the computer screen kept going black again and again.
The two were almost ready to fight.
Lin Ran glanced at the living room. Lin Yanyan was sitting on the sofa watching TV, holding a can of teddy bear-shaped cookies. When she saw him come out, she turned and asked, “Brother, tomorrow at noon, my classmates invited me to have lunch and then go see a movie. I’ll be back before dinner. Can I go?”
Lin Ran sat down on the sofa and stared at the little girl. “Which classmate? Where are you having lunch?”
Lin Yanyan answered obediently, “My deskmate. You’ve met them several times. We’re going to Starlight Plaza for lunch and the movie. I’ll call you after we finish.”
Seeing how well-behaved Lin Yanyan was, Lin Ran’s tense mood eased a little. He patted her head. “If anything happens, call me. Send me the movie showtimes, and I’ll come to pick you up early.”
Lin Yanyan nodded.
It was Saturday, and the club next door was lively.
Lin Ran could hear the cheers from next door, even while sitting in the auto shop. He hadn’t been on the track since the school year started. The club called “Addiction” had come by for two nights in a row. After not seeing Lin Ran either time, they seemed to have given up on trying to recruit him for their racing team.
Lin Ran sat quietly, lowering his gaze and fiddling with a lighter, listening to the celebration next door.
Lin Yanyan sneaked a glance at her brother. She could sense that Lin Ran was in a bad mood.
Just then, one of the staff members from the club next door suddenly ran to the door, panting and shouting, “Lin Ran! Another racing team is looking for you. They said they won’t leave tonight if they don’t see you. You better come take a look.”
Lin Ran didn’t even lift his eyelids at the news.
Xie Zhen, who had been immersed in his game, was also startled by the commotion. He released the mouse and his expression darkened. “Which racing team? How rude. Don’t they know the rules of the game?”
The staff member replied awkwardly, “It’s ‘Poison.'”
With a sharp “click,” the lighter that Lin Ran had been fiddling with suddenly fell to the ground, making a crisp sound as it hit the floor.
The staff member’s reluctance to act wasn’t without reason.
“Poison” had a terrible reputation in the racing scene, though their skills were top-notch. Most of them joined the team before even finishing high school and raced like they didn’t care for their lives. Apart from “Addiction,” few teams were willing to play with a group like them.
They were all sharp and vicious, covered in thorns.
But in their eyes, Lin Ran was the same kind of person.
Lin Ran instinctively glanced at Lin Yanyan. His tightly strung nerves reached their peak, and his tone unintentionally turned harsher. “Lin Yanyan, go upstairs!”
His voice echoed through the spacious living room, sounding sharp and unpleasant, with a trace of fear if one listened closely.
Lin Yanyan froze for a moment, but without asking why, she grabbed her can of teddy bear cookies and hurried up the stairs. It seemed she was startled by his sudden raised voice, and the little girl ran up quickly.
He Mo couldn’t help but speak up. “Brother Ran, you scared Yanyan…”
The last word got stuck in his throat as he suddenly caught sight of Lin Ran’s expression.
In Lin Ran’s black eyes, uncontrollable darkness was growing, and the hostility in his gaze was almost tangible. The veins in his neck bulged, a clear sign of his barely-contained rage.
Seeing Lin Yanyan safely upstairs and hearing the door close, Lin Ran stood up and walked out. Xie Zhen and He Mo followed closely behind, but Lin Ran threw back a command over his shoulder: “Mo, stay with Yanyan. Don’t leave her alone.”
He Mo halted his steps and replied with a quick “Got it,” staying behind.
He ruffled his hair in frustration. So it really was Yanyan that had been bothering Lin Ran lately.
…
At the club.
The captain of “Poison” was a man called Tiger Fang. He sported a buzz cut, with tattoos running from his neck down to his wrists. His muscular build was accentuated by the tight t-shirt he wore, and a worn, sharp tiger fang pendant hung around his chest.
Tiger Fang, with a cigarette between his teeth, had his arm around a woman’s waist as he listened to the information his teammates had gathered.
“Brother Fang, seems like Lin Ran has no intention of joining ‘Addiction.’ But that kid’s no pushover either. Word is, his dad is some bigshot in Chucheng, though he doesn’t get along with his family. He’s been living on his own with his sister.”
Tiger Fang let out a chuckle and leaned over, blowing a cloud of smoke into the face of the woman beside him. She giggled and kissed him on the cheek, making him laugh even more.
Inhaling deeply from his cigarette, Tiger Fang rasped, “A sister, huh? How old is she?”
“She’s still in middle school. Just a little girl.”
Tiger Fang’s lips curled into a smirk. “A little girl, huh? That’s perfect.”
Not far away, a shadowy figure approached them against the light.
His expression and features were obscured in the darkness, his steps steady but slow. Yet with each step, it felt like a heavy weight pressed down on them, an icy, oppressive tension spreading in the air.
Slowly, inch by inch, the creeping dread gnawed at their bones.