“Brother Chen, I really like you.”
That familiar voice confirmed it: it was the boy from last night.
As Jiang Yu approached, the boy suddenly became mute, standing there with a flushed and restless face. Jiang Yu sneered, telling him to continue, while waving his wrist to signal Chen Zhiyan to step aside and not interfere with his performance.
Given Jiang Yu’s reputation, this stance made it look like he would not stop until he had beaten the person to death.
“Jiang, Senior Jiang.”
“You look older than me. How do you have the nerve to call me senior?”
“Chen Zhiyan does not like guys. You gays stay away from him. No, I am seriously puzzled. Everyone’s equipment is the same,”
“You speak so crudely and unpleasantly. Brother Chen hates that.”
Disgusting. Truly disgusting.
Jiang Yu leaned against a tree and vomited up all the water he had just drunk. Chen Zhiyan stepped forward to pat his back, asking with a frown, “Why do you hate them so much?”
“Opening their mouths to talk dirty, with eyes as lewd as perverts, smelling of cheap perfume, strong body odor, and sweat. I just, ugh, I cannot stand it.”
“It is not like that at all! This is completely your bias!”
Jiang Yu pointed at the boy and shouted angrily, “Have you even had contact with Chen Zhiyan before saying you like him? You just like his face. Confessing to him in front of so many people yesterday morning, did you think you were being brave? Now half the school is gossiping about him. Do you know how much this will affect his future! Get lost right now. If I see you again and do not knock your teeth out, my last name is not Jiang!”
After the boy left, Chen Zhiyan said, “You said before that if you ever cared about me again, you would be a dog.”
“Who is caring about you? Stop being so narcissistic.” Jiang Yu snatched the mineral water from Chen Zhiyan’s hand, unscrewed it, held it slightly away from his mouth to pour it in, and only drank after rinsing his mouth. “Doing nothing useful all day. You just stood here listening to his confession while I was over there dying of thirst. Why did you not think to bring me water first?”
“I was just standing here.”
“I do not believe you. You have been out for seven or eight minutes.”
“Only three minutes.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“I still do not believe you.”
“How do you plan to solve the phone number leak?” Jiang Yu reached out toward Chen Zhiyan. The latter almost instantly understood what Jiang Yu wanted and pulled out two wet wipes to hand over. Jiang Yu wiped his face. “Speak up.”
“Call the police.”
“Did you call them yet?”
“Not yet.”
“How can you be so slow?”
“There are still classes. I will wait a bit.”
“Unbelievable. What is so good about going to class?”
Jiang Yu poured the remaining water over his head. Chen Zhiyan’s own scalp tightened just watching him. Before Jiang Yu could finish pouring, Chen Zhiyan snatched the bottle. “Jiang Yu, are you an idiot?”
Jiang Yu raised his eyebrows with a look of disbelief. “I am hot.”
“Even if you are hot, you cannot pour water from the top of your head. A few drops would be fine,”
“Do you live by the seaside? You manage things so broadly.”
Chen Zhiyan lowered his eyes, looking at the wet patch on Jiang Yu’s chest where the fabric clung to his skin. He used a tissue to dab at it. “You really do have a craving for streaking.”
“Holy fuck? Are you sick? I am exhausted and hot after running. What is wrong with pouring a little water on my head? Besides, I did not pour it on your head. You have so many issues.”
“Fine, I will not manage it. Keep pouring,” Chen Zhiyan said, handing back the mineral water bottle with his other hand. “If you get a brain hemorrhage that causes your IQ to drop, I will definitely set off fireworks for three days and nights and hang banners for you on my social media.”
Near 4:40 PM, Jiang Yu saw the professor on the podium turn his back. He secretly left his seat and began to crawl across the floor. Chen Zhiyan grabbed him by the back collar and asked with his eyes, “Where are you going?”
Jiang Yu rolled his eyes, slapped Chen Zhiyan’s hand away, and gave him the middle finger. “None of your business.”
He crouched on the floor and moved slowly. When he reached Li Heng, he pinched his arm. Li Heng suppressed a cry of pain. He did the same to Xu Zile. Next, the scene turned into the three of them sneaking out of the door like penguins.
Down the stairs, Jiang Yu led the two of them to hide behind a flower bed.
Li Heng asked, “Brother Jiang, what are we going to do?”
Xu Zile held his face. “The first time skipping class. This is so damn exciting.”
“Do not talk.”
“Oh.”
As soon as it was 4:45 PM, people began to emerge from the staircase in front of Jiang Yu. He opened his phone photo album and showed it to Li Heng and Xu Zile. “This person has a grudge against me.”
One sentence, brief and clear.
Li Heng clenched his fists and said, “A grudge against Brother Jiang is a grudge against me.”
Xu Zile silently raised his hand and asked, “If a fight starts later, can I hide in the back a little?”
After receiving two death stares, Xu Zile added aggrievedly, “Look at my small frame. I cannot even take one punch.”
“Useless.”
“Useless!”
About two minutes later, Li Heng saw Fang Bozhou. “Brother Jiang, is that him?”
Jiang Yu hummed in response, put his phone away, and walked over with his hands in his pockets. A playful smile hung on his face as he ran a hand through his hair. The black ear cuff on his pale ear reflected the light. Li Heng and Xu Zile followed behind. Seeing this formation, people automatically cleared a path.
At this time, Fang Bozhou was looking at a threatening text message from an unknown number. He almost tripped. Just as he looked up, an arm was draped over his shoulder. He jumped in fright. “Jiang, Senior Jiang.”
“You know me?”
Who in the whole school did not know him?
“It is good that you know me. It makes things easier. I am looking to chat with you and talk about something.” Jiang Yu jerked his head toward the north, pointing out the direction they were going next. His voice was nonchalant. “How about a trip to the woods?”