Thirteen Wonders (ShíSānYāo) : Chapter 2 - Clauses Four, Five, Six
Chapter 2: Clauses Four, Five, Six
“Hey, did you hear? That new student in our grade knows Chen Xuze and his group!”
“Seriously? No way!”
“At the stir-fry restaurant, during dinner…”
Thanks to that coke bottle, Zhou Yao became the center of gossip on her first night after transferring. Although Chen Xuze didn’t say a single word to her, and apart from Jiang Jiashu waving goodbye when they left, his group finished their meal and left without a second glance.
On the way back to school for the evening classes, Zheng Yinyin and her two friends—usually chatterboxes—were strangely quiet. They kept glancing at Zhou Yao, as if wanting to ask her something, but perhaps they couldn’t find the right words. In the end, they didn’t say a thing.
With their earlier behavior as a precursor, Zhou Yao wasn’t entirely unprepared for the faint whispers she heard around her while sitting in class that night.
The evening classes ran back-to-back. When school ended, Zheng Yinyin rushed over like a whirlwind. After a whole evening of brewing questions, she unleashed them all at once.
“You know Chen Xuze?”
“How do you know him? When did you meet him?”
“Why would he give you a coke? His temper is so strange! Most people in our grade don’t even dare to talk to him!”
“I……”
Before Zhou Yao could explain, Zheng Yinyin’s curiosity steamrolled on, leaving her no room to respond. “Did you know each other before, or did you just meet after transferring here?”
“If it’s just today, then how is it possible? With his personality, he’d never act like that with someone he just met…”
Zhou Yao slowed her packing due to Zheng Yinyin’s incessant chatter. A faint smile of helplessness tugged at her lips. She was about to explain when shadows appeared at the classroom door.
About a third of the students hadn’t left yet. Noticing who had arrived, they all turned to look.
Zheng Yinyin, with her back to the door, suddenly had a revelation and exclaimed in shock, “Ah! Could it be that Chen Xuze likes you?!”
“......”
The classroom fell silent. Sensing something amiss, Zheng Yinyin followed Zhou Yao’s gaze and turned to look behind her. She instinctively shrank back.
Chen Xuze stood at the doorway with Jiang Jiashu and his group, clearly having overheard her exclamation.
Zhou Yao glanced at them and then back at the frozen, embarrassed Zheng Yinyin. Just as she was about to clarify, “Actually not…” Chen Xuze called her name.
“Zhou Yao—”
She stopped and looked up. He spoke calmly, “Time to go.”
They were waiting for her. Zhou Yao had no choice but to quickly shove her things into her bag and nod to Zheng Yinyin. “I’m leaving. See you tomorrow.”
Amid Zheng Yinyin’s stunned expression, Zhou Yao slung her bag over her shoulder, joined the group at the door, and gradually walked out of sight.
Zheng Yinyin’s embarrassing guess had been cut off by Chen Xuze, leaving Zhou Yao with no chance to explain.
……
Zhou Yao and Chen Xuze lived in the same alley. Their families had known each other since before they were born. Later, because Chen Xuze’s parents were busy with work, they moved to a new apartment near the city center. For most of the time, his grandparents cared for Chen Xuze, visiting his parents once a week.
After his grandparents passed away, his parents asked him to move into their city-center apartment, but he stubbornly refused, preferring the alley where he had grown up.
The neighborhood was close-knit. Sometimes, neighbors would invite him over for meals when they cooked something special. But without his grandparents around, Chen Xuze grew increasingly reserved, preferring solitude. He usually declined politely except for festive occasions when he couldn’t refuse the neighbors’ goodwill.
In the alley, there were many kids, both older and younger. Among those his age, the only one he stayed somewhat close to was Zhou Yao, who had been his playmate since childhood. Perhaps because of this, whenever Zhou Yao’s mom invited him over for a meal, he would agree about four or five times out of ten.
Zhou Yao didn’t elaborate much, simply saying she had known Chen Xuze since they were kids. Zheng Yinyin gasped in exaggerated admiration. “That’s amazing! So amazing!”
Her reaction baffled Zhou Yao. “What’s so amazing about that?”
The awkward scene at the end of the previous evening’s classes lingered in Zheng Yinyin’s mind. Driven by curiosity, she had sought out Zhou Yao during the first break in the morning to clarify things.
Hearing Zhou Yao’s account, Zheng Yinyin clicked her tongue. “Chen Xuze…he…” She hesitated, glanced around, cupped her hands over her mouth, and whispered cautiously, “He has such a bad temper! Since our first year of high school, apart from Jiang Jiashu and a few others, no one dares to hang out with him. Someone like me wouldn’t even dare to talk to him!
“Why’s that?”
“Don’t you feel a chill down your spine when he talks to you? Like a gust of icy wind! And his gaze—so cold it’s almost scary!”
Zhou Yao frowned slightly and shook her head. “Not really.”
“That’s why I said you’re amazing.” Zheng Yinyin looked at her as though she were a brave warrior who had survived untold hardships.
“…” Zhou Yao couldn’t help but laugh, unable to find the words to refute her. Judging from her classmates’ attitudes toward her, it was clear that Zheng Yinyin’s claims were mostly true. Since the incident the day before, no one had spoken to her that morning. Even the class monitor collecting homework had been silent, simply tapping her desk lightly with a stack of papers, their gaze hesitant.
It seemed that Chen Xuze’s reputation at No. 7 High School was so notorious that it rivaled that of a mythical demon.
……
That evening, only Jiang Jiashu and his friends came to find Zhou Yao. Seeing them, she glanced past them toward the back. Jiang Jiashu quickly explained, “Xuze got called to the teacher’s office to discuss this year’s guaranteed placement students. It’ll probably take a while. He told us to go ahead without him.”
Zhou Yao remembered Chen Xuze mentioning this and nodded. “En.”
Amid the crowd of students leaving through the main gate, Jiang Jiashu and his group accompanied Zhou Yao to the bus stop.
They had first met during a weekend gathering. Since Chen Xuze always brought Zhou Yao along, she eventually became friends with them. However, it was rare for her to spend time alone with them without Chen Xuze, making the situation slightly awkward as they struggled to start a conversation.
Thankfully, Jiang Jiashu was a chatterbox. He broke the ice by asking Zhou Yao about her impression of No. 7 High School, and soon the atmosphere became lively.
Jiang Jiashu suddenly remarked, “By the way, the next exam will be interesting. I wonder who’ll rank higher, you or Xuze?”
Zhou Yao smiled. “No idea.”
“I think it’ll be you.” He confidently analyzed, “Look, you were always number one at No. 5 High School—steady as a rock! As for Xuze, his performance depends entirely on his mood. He bounces between first, second, and third. Last semester, he was stuck at second and third. I bet he can’t beat you.”
The others laughed and teased him, “If Xuze hears this, you’re in trouble!”
Jiang Jiashu straightened his posture. “Let him hear! I’d say it to his face! A true man speaks the truth, come what may. Got anything to say to that?”
“Pfft, you’re just bluffing…”
They bantered back and forth while Zhou Yao quietly observed, smiling without joining in. When the bus arrived at their stop, Zhou Yao reminded them, “Isn’t this your stop? Time to get off.”
“No rush. It doesn’t matter if we go back later today. Xuze asked us to take you back.”
Zhou Yao was surprised. “That’s not necessary. I know the way…”
Jiang Jiashu stood tall, exuding an unyielding resolve. He ignored the open bus door and insisted on accompanying her all the way.
After a few stops, they finally arrived. Zhou Yao’s house was at the end of a narrow alley, and for safety, Jiang Jiashu and his friends formed a semi-circle around her, marching gallantly to escort her home.
Fortunately, it was nighttime. If it had been daytime, the neighbors would have questioned what was happening.
The glow of the mahjong parlor’s lights was visible ahead, and just as Zhou Yao was about to suggest stopping there, Jiang Jiashu received a phone call.
Seeing the caller ID, his eyelids raised slightly. He brought the phone to his ear and said only one word, “Hello,” but the relaxed tone immediately disappeared.
“Is everything okay?”
“......”
“Anything serious?”
“......”
Whatever the other person said made Jiang Jiashu glance briefly at Zhou Yao. He then said, “I’ve dropped her off. Alright…” His brows furrowed slightly, and just before ending the call, he said, “We’ll head over right away. Wait for us.”
The rest of them, including Zhou Yao, were left puzzled. Zhou Yao couldn't help but ask first, “Was that Chen Xuze?”
“...Ah.” Jiang Jiashu’s response was ambiguous. “You’re home now, so get inside. It’s late, and we’re heading off. See you at school tomorrow.”
With a wave of his hand, the other boys seemed to sense something urgent. Without lingering, they hurried off.
Zhou Yao didn’t manage to stop them. She stood there momentarily, and within minutes, their figures disappeared into the distance. Seeing no other option, she turned and headed home.
Her parents were in the front running the mahjong parlor, so she entered through the side door at the back and went straight upstairs to her room. After freshening up and changing into pajamas, Zhou Yao climbed into bed and picked up her phone. A message she had sent to Chen Xuze earlier asking when he would be back had received a reply. It was a brief response.
He said: [Staying in the city today.]
Zhou Yao began typing a reply, but halfway through, she hesitated. She wanted to ask what had happened, whether something was wrong. After thinking about it, she deleted the message one character at a time until the chat box was empty again.
In the end, she sent just three words:
[Goodnight then.]
What she wanted to ask wasn’t important. What mattered was whether he wanted to tell her. If he did, she wouldn’t need to ask—he’d tell her everything himself.
……
Most mornings, Zhou Yao had breakfast with Chen Xuze. Even during their first two years of high school, when they attended different schools, they would start their day by walking together under the dim morning sky and heading toward their respective schools.
They would sit at the same breakfast shop just outside the alley, eating face-to-face. Sometimes it was soy milk and fried dough sticks, other times congee with buns, along with some pickled vegetables on the side.
After finishing breakfast, they would catch the bus together. At the transfer station in the middle, they would part ways and each board their next bus.
Today, Zhou Yao was on her own. She didn’t feel like sitting down to eat, so she bought a fried dough stick and two small vegetarian buns to eat on the go.
Saving quite a bit of time, she arrived at her class while more than half the seats were still empty.
The atmosphere this morning felt a little different. Several lively girls were huddled together in twos and threes, whispering and stealing glances in her direction. At first, Zhou Yao thought she was imagining it, but when their gazes kept meeting hers, only to have them quickly look away, she pursed her lips, clearly displeased.
There were still fifteen minutes before the morning bell when Zheng Yinyin burst into the classroom.
“...You’re here early?”Zhou Yao asked in surprise. Zheng Yinyin often complained about how hard it was to wake up on time. She’d been habitually late since freshman year, regularly getting scolded for it.
“D-Did you hear about it?”
Zheng Yinyin hadn’t even caught her breath. Seeing her state, Zhou Yao handed her an unopened water bottle from her desk drawer. “Want some water?”
Zheng Yinyin took two deep breaths and shook her head frantically. “How can you be so calm!”
“If not…”
“Did you hear about Chen Xuze getting taken to the police station last night?!”
Zhou Yao froze, completely caught off guard.
Zheng Yinyin leaned closer and whispered, her voice both urgent and hushed. “Last night, Deng Jiayu ambushed Chen Xuze! She even brought some guys she knew from outside school and cornered him in an alley near campus.”
“Deng Jiayu’s always had a thing for Chen Xuze, right? Last night, she ambushed him! Word is, she showed up with a whole entourage and then confessed her feelings to him, but Chen Xuze just stood there, deadpan as always. And then, in a fit of desperation…”
Zhou Yao stared at Zheng Yinyin, her eyes shadowed and unreadable.
“And then?”
“——And then she jumped on him and kissed him!”
Zheng Yinyin clutched her collar dramatically. “Can you believe it? She actually did that! My god, how shameless can she get?! If it hadn’t been for a patrolling officer passing by at that exact moment, who knows what other nonsense she and those thugs would’ve pulled! Poor Chen Xuze even got dragged in to give a statement afterward.”
“Though... I wonder if she really did manage to kiss him?”
Zheng Yinyin’s face twisted with conflicted emotions. “You don’t know how smug Deng Jiayu was. She spent last night bragging about her ‘great achievement’ in group chats. It spread like wildfire from one group to another, and by now, nearly every senior in the school knows about it!”
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