13、
Anning rarely participated in the class group chat, though she occasionally lurked.
Student C: I went home the day before yesterday and my dog actually didn’t recognize me anymore! We’d only been apart for such a short time! Ungrateful little thing!
Chaoyang: Well, after all, it’s not biologically related to you…
Qiangwei: Got any AV?
Student D: I went to the cafeteria today and ate cabbage and winter melon. It was insanely spicy. Did they secretly replace the chef with someone from Sichuan or something? Couldn’t they at least warn us first?
Student E: Couldn’t you just use your eyes to look at the layer of chili floating on top?
Qiangwei: Got any AV?
Student C: Swine flu is flaring up again in Mexico. Does that mean we can’t eat pork again?
Mao Mao: Then just become vegetarian. I’ve happened to be practicing Buddhism lately anyway, hahaha!
Chaoyang: China and Mexico are separated by the Pacific Ocean. We’ve got plenty of time. Eat away!
E: Yang, don’t you know pigs can travel by ship too?
Qiangwei: Got any AV?
……
C: Qiangwei, aren’t you participating in that campus ambassador competition tomorrow? How do you still have time to watch AV?
D: Exactly. You’re representing our graduate school at least. Don’t get eliminated in the first round.
E: Otherwise those undergrads will keep saying we’re old and washed up, damn it!
D: Speaking of which… is A-Miao around?
Chaoyang: …She was just here. She’s gone to play Ikariam now.
C: Speaking of that web game, I’m furious! When I was playing, I accidentally provoked an alliance that’s unbelievably vindictive and clingy. They kept blockading my harbor, attacking me eleven times a day, and threatening me with armies 300 times larger than mine to force alliances on me—I seriously don’t understand. Are all online gamers this trashy nowadays?!
Chaoyang: You just met the wrong people.
Mao Mao: So sleepy… it’s already eleven. Let’s sleep, let’s sleep!
Suddenly, tons of people flooded the chat.
“It’s still early!”
“No one’s answered Student Fu’s question yet!”
……
Qiangwei’s support group was enormous…
Chaoyang turned to ask Anning, “She’s doing that on purpose, right?”
Anning had already closed her game because her cousin had accidentally fallen off a building in-game.
“Mm… intentionally.”
The day of the competition—meaning the next day—Anning had two elective classes in the morning, so by the time she arrived at the arts and sports center, the event had already begun.
The venue was packed with people. Truly, appetite and lust were fundamental human desires… Back when she’d participated in the mechanics competition, there’d been fewer than twenty audience members, including eight contestants. Both were school-level competitions, yet the difference was like heaven and earth.
Anning called Chaoyang and learned they were already inside. The entrance was packed layer upon layer with people, and after much difficulty squeezing through, she finally spotted Mao Mao occupying seats near the center.
The reason Anning could locate her so quickly was entirely because Mao Mao was dressed today in bright red on top and green on the bottom… painfully eye-catching…
Chaoyang: “You’re here! Someone just sang ‘The East Is Red.’ This isn’t the Spring Festival Gala. Why so political?”
Mao Mao: “Probably personal preference.”
Chaoyang: “Ha! Then I’m definitely singing ‘Invincible from the East’!”
Anning: “What number is Qiangwei performing?”
Chaoyang: “Third from the end. Which means we’re stuck here until the finale.”
Mao Mao: “Could be worse… Look at the judges’ table. Second from the left. Even if it’s just his back… hehe… hehe…”
Chaoyang: “I thought he looked familiar when the host introduced him earlier. Now I remember… it’s actually him. Also, Mao Mao, your laugh is way too obscene.”
Anning looked toward the stage. Sitting in the first row beneath it was a certain person. Straight-backed and dignified, his entire bearing radiated righteousness…
Mm… he was probably the kind of person with firm willpower, rigor, and clear logic. Like… a military officer or something.
Anning pondered deeply:
XX must be very difficult to walk, right?
The next second, she received a text message.
“Want to use the back door?”
Anning: “……”
Had Xu Moting’s phone been stolen…?
“Who are you…”
This time, the reply took a long while.
“Xu Moting.”
Anning could practically imagine his sharp, steady gaze. She’d tried to be clever and ended up ruining things… But it was her first time trying to use connections through the back door too…
So, following her own understanding of bribery etiquette, she obediently sent:
“I’ll give you a gift, okay? What do you want?”
His reply:
“Keep me company tonight.”
Anyone who didn’t misunderstand that wasn’t human…
Anning turned to stone.
Mao Mao: “Oh my god, the way he’s sitting sideways with his hand against his lips is so sexy!”
Chaoyang: “Where did you even get binoculars?!”
Mao Mao remained completely absorbed…
Two hours later, it was Qiangwei’s turn onstage.
“Someone asked me why someone this ‘old’ is still making a fool of herself here. Can’t help it—I just love showing off! Life is like a cassette tape: birth, school, graduation, work, marriage, old age, death—fast-forwarding all the way through. So why not enjoy ourselves in these youthful years and do whatever we want? Therefore, anyone who asks me that question is obviously just asking for a beating!
“Well then, the next song is dedicated to my fellow graduate students, my comrades in the Physics Department, the brothers and sisters of Class Ten, the six girls in my dormitory, and my beloved classmate A-Miao!
“For the Sake of Meeting You. Thank you.”
“Within the vast sea of stars
I hold onto a dream
The warmth in your hands
I long so much to touch
Amid the endless crowd
Who will I encounter
The gentleness in your eyes
Is it all meant for me
For the sake of meeting you
I cherish myself
I crossed through wind and rain
To offer you my heart
Until I met you
I believed in destiny
This future is worth striving for
For you…”