That “Emei Mountain Monkey King Competition,” unilaterally initiated by He Sui with Xiao Yu reluctantly participating, ultimately ended in a dismal defeat for Xiao Yu, who was both physically exhausted and completely outmatched in skill.
Xiao Yu was so furious his face turned red and his neck thickened. For a full half-hour, he hurled long-distance verbal abuse at He Sui, who had long since skated away, his retreating figure exuding a smug, carefree air. Xiao Yu’s limited vocabulary and intense agitation drew frequent sidelong glances from the few foreign skiers scattered around.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, after enduring countless tumbles onto her backside, Tong Hua finally—barely—mastered the most basic snowplow stop under Jiang Mo’s repeated, hands-on guidance.
Although her movements still appeared somewhat stiff and clumsy, and her stopping distance was laughably long, at least she could now consciously control her speed and come to a stop on that gentle, short slope—as long as she wasn’t given any opportunity to accelerate.
“Alright, that’s starting to look like something. Just keep practicing slowly on this gentle area, get a feel for it, and solidify the basics,” Jiang Mo said, watching Tong Hua’s excited little expression that screamed “I finally did it!” She ruffled Tong Hua’s cat-ear hat as if petting a cat.
“We’re going to ski a few laps over there. Be careful on your own, and whatever you do, don’t go any higher up, got it? Be careful not to have another accident.” She emphasized the last two words with well-meaning teasing.
“Got it, got it! Go have fun!” Tong Hua was brimming with confidence at that moment, eager to try skiing down from a slightly higher spot to experience that dashing, wind-whipping feeling.
She cautiously moved a few meters upward, adjusted her stance, took a deep breath, and began her descent.
Results… there certainly were.
She did ski down, and she did use the snowplow to stop, without crashing into anyone or anything.
It’s just that the entire process—her body stiff as a board, arms flailing unconsciously to maintain balance, eyes glued to her feet—resembled less a person skiing and more an overexcited, panicked husky pulling a sled for the first time, filled with an inexplicable sense of comedy.
“Pfft…”
A clear, unmistakable laugh escaped from nearby.
Tong Hua looked up to see He Sui, who had somehow skied back, standing on one ski with a particularly irritating smirk on his face.
Behind him, Xiao Yu, Nan Chao, and Si Jin all wore expressions of suppressed laughter, their facial muscles twitching.
Tong Hua’s face flushed instantly with a mix of embarrassment and annoyance.
She stiffened her neck, trying to defend her newly established, fragile confidence. “What’s so funny?! Never seen a skiing genius before?! I stopped successfully, didn’t I?”
He Sui raised an eyebrow, not only not holding back but actually taking off his skis and walking over to her in a few strides.
He was tall; even with Tong Hua in ski boots, there was still a noticeable height difference between them. He looked down at her with a somewhat condescending scrutiny, his tone laced with undisguised mockery. “Alright then~ little genius. Seems your coach isn’t doing a great job. How about I teach you instead?”
“You?” Tong Hua eyed him suspiciously, instinctively retorting, “Could you teach better than Jiang Mo? Even she couldn’t teach me…” As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized her mistake—wasn’t that indirectly admitting she was slow?
He Sui was indeed provoked into a laugh by her words. He pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek and, not bothering to waste any more words on her, simply reached out to grab the sleeve of her ski suit. Without giving her a chance to protest, he pulled her toward the slightly steeper practice slope nearby.
“Daring to question me?”
“Hey! What are you doing? Jiang Mo told me not to go up there! It’s too high!” Tong Hua struggled, but her strength and balance were no match for his, and she could only be dragged along.
He Sui didn’t even look back, his lazy voice drifting over: “What? Afraid that standing higher with a better view will make it easier to lock onto your target and pull down their pants?”
“You, you, you…!” Tong Hua was so angry her tongue tied itself in knots. Was this guy’s mouth dipped in poison? He always knew exactly where to hit her where it hurt!
When they reached the top of the slope, He Sui let go of her, ignoring her puffed-up, angry expression, and began explaining the key points to her.
Surprisingly, his explanations were exceptionally clear and professional. From weight distribution and the points of force in the legs to where she should focus her gaze, he covered everything succinctly and precisely.
He even demonstrated a few segmented movements himself and personally adjusted Tong Hua’s clearly incorrect stance and arm positioning.
“Oh~~ So that’s how it’s done! I get it now!” After his guidance, Tong Hua truly felt as though the clouds had parted to reveal the moon—everything suddenly became clear, and her eyes brightened noticeably.
“Don’t get too cocky yet,” He Sui unceremoniously poured cold water on her enthusiasm, pointing his ski pole down the slope. “Save the big talk for after you can smoothly ski down without grabbing onto any obstacles as brakes.”
“…” Tong Hua internally vented: If he ever becomes a teacher, won’t his students collectively fall into depression from enduring his verbal blows?
Standing at the top of the slope, looking down at the noticeably steeper incline compared to the practice area, the confidence she had just built up began to waver again. Her calves felt a bit weak, and her voice carried a hint of fear: “…It’s too high. I’m a little scared.”
Seeing her timid expression, He Sui surprisingly refrained from further mockery. He simply patted her shoulder, his tone calm yet carrying a strangely soothing power: “What’s there to be afraid of? This sport is all about boldness and attentiveness. Remember what I just taught you. I’ll be waiting for you down below. Ski with confidence—you won’t fall.”
With that, he deftly strapped on his own skis, executed a smooth turn, and skied down, coming to a steady stop at the bottom of the slope. Then he looked up and shouted at her: “Are you standing up there preparing to ascend to immortality? Stop dawdling and ski down already!”
Provoked by his words, Tong Hua’s competitive spirit was reignited. She muttered under her breath, grumbling: “Fine, I’ll ski. Are you rushing me to my death?”
She took a deep breath, trying hard to recall the techniques he had just taught her, adjusted her posture, steeled her heart, pushed off with her ski poles, leaned slightly forward, and skied down!
The speed was much faster than before, the wind whistling past her ears, her heart pounding wildly.
She firmly remembered He Sui’s instructions, controlling her skis into a wedge shape and trying hard to keep her weight back.
Although her final braking motion was still somewhat rushed and clumsy, and she even slid forward a short distance due to momentum, in the end, she successfully came to a stop right in front of He Sui, who was standing at the bottom of the slope—steadily braking right into his arms, the impact not too strong.
The anticipated fall never happened.
Tong Hua cautiously opened her eyes, which she had tightly shut from nervousness, and what came into view was the metal buckle of He Sui’s ski suit zipper.
She froze for two seconds before immense joy washed over her.
“Oh! I’m fine! I did it! I really did it!” She looked up, her face showing undisguised astonishment and ecstasy. Her large eyes widened with excitement, their clear pupils reflecting the snow’s glow, strikingly similar to the curious, wide-eyed gaze of a startled kitten, brimming with vivid brilliance.
“Ahhh! I did it! Jiang Mo! Ling Xi! Qingyu! I did it!” She was so excited she could barely speak coherently, hastily removing her skis without a care that He Sui was still nearby. Like a frolicking kitten, she dashed toward her roommates resting not far away, plunging into Su Qingyu’s arms, gesturing animatedly with flushed cheeks as she recounted the thrilling skiing experience and the immense achievement of succeeding on her first try.
“Really? That’s amazing! As expected of our little genius~” Su Qingyu laughed, catching her and offering generous praise.
“Tsk tsk, seems like it takes a master to train a skilled student after all~” Jiang Mo stroked his nonexistent beard with an air of profundity, his teasing gaze drifting toward the black figure at the bottom of the slope.
“Mmm~ So impressive! It’s mainly because our little genius has such strong comprehension and practiced so diligently~” Xia Lingxi also smiled, giving a thumbs-up.
The three of them chimed in one after another, their tacit understanding [repeated many times]…