Tang Mo was doing warm-up exercises with the rest of the basketball team. During a brief break, he stole a glance at his phone.
The last message on WeChat was from Su Chengning, saying he was a bit busy with work and might arrive a little late.
At that moment, Tang Mo felt a flicker of disappointment.
However, considering the game would last at least two hours, he felt Su Chengning would still make it in time.
After hesitating for a moment, he sent a message to check.
Tang Mo: Brother, are you here yet?
“Has your great beauty not arrived yet?” The basketball team captain immediately noticed him looking at his phone with a hint of nerves and walked over to ask.
“He’s already here,” Tang Mo said on impulse, his facial expression turning a bit stiff.
“Where?” The captain scanned the spectator stands. “You didn’t forget to arrange a seat for him, did you?”
The stands were nearly packed, a sea of bobbing heads. A few girls holding up cheering banners stood out prominently.
Those girls seemed to notice Tang Mo looking in their direction and began to scream with excitement.
Hearing the screams, Tang Mo subconsciously frowned, but his eyes unexpectedly met a pair of familiar, heart-piercing peach-blossom eyes.
Su Chengning brandished his phone at him and mouthed silently: “I’m here.”
Only then did Tang Mo notice an unread message on WeChat; it was Su Chengning replying that he had arrived.
In that instant, Tang Mo felt immense joy. Even the noisy cheering suddenly seemed inconsequential.
In his wide field of vision, it felt as if only that handsome, elegant man remained.
He raised his hand toward Su Chengning, waving with a restrained sense of excitement.
“Wow, is he waving at us?”
A few of the girls were so excited they became incoherent. Barely able to believe their eyes, they turned to ask one another.
“Definitely.”
“He must have seen the banners we made and heard us cheering.”
“Tang Mo looks so handsome when he smiles.”
“Should we give him a response?”
The girls excitedly began to wave small flags, each printed with Tang Mo’s headshot.
Tang Mo naturally noticed the girls’ behavior, and his expression soured.
Lowering his head, he sent a message directly to Su Chengning.
Tang Mo: Let me have someone change your seat. It’s very noisy over there.
Su Chengning looked at the excited girls with a smile and replied that it wasn’t necessary.
Curious, he asked the girls, “What are those in your hands? May I see?”
One of the bolder girls proactively handed one over. “This is a cattail leaf fan; we made them ourselves.”
The fan looked simple, but Su Chengning could tell it required a delicate touch; it wasn’t something that could be made so exquisitely and beautifully without effort.
“It’s a very beautiful fan,” he complimented, his gaze lingering on the rather cute and amusing patterns.
“These portraits…”
The girls seemed to blush, their voices losing their earlier boldness and turning shy. “Thank you. We drew the portraits ourselves; they are all chibi versions of Tang Mo.”
Noticing that Su Chengning didn’t look like a fellow student from the school, the girls became a bit constrained.
“We just really like Tang Mo. He’s incredible at playing basketball.”
“Is that so?” Su Chengning smiled. “This is my first time watching a game, so I don’t know much about it.”
“For ordinary games, the team doesn’t even need Tang Mo to play,” the bold girl replied. She was the calmest of the group, but her words couldn’t hide her admiration for Tang Mo.
“But as long as Tang Mo is there, this game is bound to be spectacular.”
“Then I’ll have to watch closely,” Su Chengning said, his anticipation growing because of their words.
One of the girls secretly tugged at the girl next to her and whispered, “This person is so good-looking.”
In truth, they had noticed long ago how handsome he was, which was why they were all so stiff and shy.
It wasn’t until Su Chengning stopped chatting with them that they reluctantly returned to their seats.
When Wang Shu came looking for him, Su Chengning was focused on the two teams’ players on the court, who were about to start the match.
“That… Mr. Su.”
Wang Shu hesitated for a moment before addressing him as Mr. Su.
Hearing the voice, Su Chengning turned his head and saw a young man with flashy dyed hair whose features looked somewhat familiar.
He thought for a moment and quickly remembered who this person was.
“I’m Tang Mo’s childhood friend.” Wang Shu patted a student sitting on the other side of Su Chengning. That student knew him and politely gave up the seat.
After sitting down, he smiled shyly. “My name is Wang Shu. You don’t know me, but you definitely know my brother. My brother is Wang Pu.”
“So you’re President Wang’s younger brother.”
He let out a couple of chuckles, then heard Su Chengning say, “President Wang often praises you, saying that although you’re young and impetuous, you’re a person who values loyalty.”
Wang Shu clearly didn’t expect to hear such words and was stunned for a moment.
“My brother… he really praised me like that?” He found it hard to believe.
Normally, his brother would lecture him the moment they met. Who would have thought he was the type to brag about his brother to outsiders?
“He praised you quite a lot,” Su Chengning said with a smile, spinning a series of compliments that left Wang Shu feeling a bit light-headed.
“I didn’t realize I held such a high evaluation in my brother’s heart. Usually, he’s either scolding me or undermining me he’s just so duplicitous.”
Wang Shu complained while feeling secretly pleased. He glanced at Su Chengning. “Since my brother would tell Mr. Su so much, it seems your relationship must be quite good.”
“Your brother is indeed a fine man.”
“His looks aren’t bad either.”
Su Chengning was just speaking casually. He had only collaborated with Wang Pu in business a few times; if you were to say they were close, that wouldn’t be true.
However, he had a good impression of Wang Shu. After all, Wang Shu was one of the few friends who treated Tang Mo with genuine sincerity.
Wang Shu was originally feeling a bit smug, but upon hearing Su Chengning’s words, his thoughts went off track.
“My brother only looks okay on the surface. He’s actually a bit boring his head is full of old-fashioned ideas, and he doesn’t understand young people.”
“My mom is always complaining that he’s dull and lacks any sense of romance. He’s thirty and still single.”
Wang Shu observed Su Chengning’s expression as he spoke. “A person like him just uses his looks to trick naive people. If someone actually tried to develop a relationship with him, I bet they’d be scared off within a week.”
Su Chengning looked at him with amusement. “Does your brother know you’re slandering his reputation like this outside?”
Wang Shu was suddenly intimidated and stammered, “I’m not slandering him; I’m stating facts.”
“These ‘facts’ of yours don’t seem very factual,” Su Chengning replied, still smiling, yet finding it interesting. “Why are you telling me all this?”
He looked into the distance at Tang Mo, who was making final preparations before the game. This seemed to be his first time seeing Tang Mo in a basketball uniform. Without pants to cover them, his two long legs appeared exceptionally long and full of power.
Every step Tang Mo took onto the court showcased a hidden and startling charm. With broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and a perfect physique, the way the jersey draped over him made Su Chengning feel a sudden dryness in his throat.
He subconsciously flicked his bright red tongue to lick his lips, his eyes fixed tightly on the handsome boy. His burning gaze felt almost tangible.
“Tang Mo! So handsome!”
Screams suddenly erupted around him. Nearly half the basketball stadium was shouting Tang Mo’s name, making it clear just how popular he was on the court.
At this moment, Su Chengning’s heart was incredibly fervent. He felt an inexpressible sense of pride swelling in his chest, seemingly eager to burst out.
His hands tightly gripped the chair beneath him, restraining the urge to shout along as he tried to keep himself calm.
Wang Shu, on the other hand, was momentarily dazed by the deafening cheers. By the time he recovered, he had forgotten what he had just been saying to Su Chengning.
Seeing Su Chengning focused intently on the game, he opened his mouth, but realized he had forgotten that Tang Mo had asked him to come and move Su Chengning to a different seat.
By the time he remembered, Tang Mo executed a sharp, clean slam dunk that stunned the entire audience, instantly drowning out the words in his mouth.
Wang Shu: “…”
Forget it. The game has already started; does it even matter if he moves seats now?
The basketball hoop seemed to wobble under the immense power. Tang Mo let go of the rim and landed gracefully.
The basketball fell through the hoop and bounced several times, the force of the impact keeping it in motion for a long time.
Amidst the cheers of the crowd, Tang Mo lifted his head and looked toward Su Chengning.
With a single glance, he saw Su Chengning mouth the words: “You’re amazing.”
Tang Mo was momentarily dazed until the captain gave him a heavy slap on the back from behind.
“You brat, being this flashy right at the start! Those girls are going to lose their voices from screaming later.”
The captain flashed a wide, toothy grin, looking quite happy.
An opening like this had naturally sent the team’s morale soaring, making them feel unstoppable.
Su Chengning’s eyes were filled with pride. Watching Tang Mo so passionate and brave on the court, he felt that this was exactly the kind of youthful life Tang Mo deserved to have.
Consequently, when his phone rang and he answered it, his voice still carried an irrepressible excitement.
“Chengning, you’re finally willing to pick up my call.”
That incredibly familiar voice, however, was like cold water in the middle of winter, instantly extinguishing the fire in Su Chengning’s heart.
It was Tang Chen.