Thirteen Wonders (ShíSānYāo) : Chapter 18 - East Wind, South Wind
Chapter 18: East Wind, South Wind
Jiang Jiashu’s home had practically become their gathering place. With their studies keeping them busy, they only got two or three days off in a week—or even a month. Instead of thinking about going somewhere else to have fun, they might as well find a good place to rest and recharge.
To be precise, it was because none of them wanted to move. Hiking, playing in the water, raising dogs, or cockfighting—these kinds of activities no longer suited these ‘old folks’ who were about to step into society.
“Hey?” Not long after they sat down, sipping on the high-end fruit tea at Jiang Jiashu’s place, someone noticed that a person was missing. “Where did Ying Nian go? Where is she? Why isn’t she here?”
Jiang Jiashu sat cross-legged on the floor of his home, looking annoyed. “Her? She went to Yingcheng.”
“Yingcheng?”
“SF and some other team are having a match there today.” He glanced at the clock. “It’s starting in seven or eight minutes.”
“Can Ying Nian make it back in time? The trip alone takes more than half a day. If she doesn’t show up tomorrow morning, she’ll get scolded, won’t she?”
“She deserves it if she does!” Jiang Jiashu wished she would get chewed out, but unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen. He took a slow sip of his fruit tea and said, “The teacher gave her leave.”
“Leave? For—”
The person who asked didn’t finish their sentence because they already understood. Why else? The school’s number one genius, guaranteed to win awards in competitions—skipping half a day of class was still more effective than struggling students spending an extra half a year studying.
Having a good brain really was an advantage.
Everyone couldn’t help but sigh.
Zhou Yao knew that Ying Nian liked esport teams, but she didn’t know much about it. She asked at the right moment, “The team she likes, SF—has she been a fan for a long time?”
“No, she just started this year. She’s got a crush on some pretty boy and chases every match he plays, completely forgetting she’s a senior in high school. And yet, the teacher praises her and gives her leave! I swear, our teacher must be blind!”
Jiang Jiashu had never shown much awareness of being a senior either, but when it came to criticizing Ying Nian, he had a whole arsenal of words—almost like he was scolding himself.
As they were talking, everyone started hyping him up, telling him to switch the TV channel to the one broadcasting the match. His house had a wireless signal, so they could watch any online program at any time.
The screen switched to the broadcast, and the commentators were speaking. Those who didn’t understand esports couldn’t really follow, and Jiang Jiashu, who deliberately avoided paying attention to esports because of Ying Nian, was about to change the channel out of boredom—when suddenly, the live feed cut to the audience.
Typically, the camera would focus on good-looking audience members, people holding signs, or fans with something eye-catching and entertaining for viewers to discuss.
But this time, as soon as the camera panned, a familiar face appeared on the TV screen in the living room.
Ying Nian’s beautiful, youthful face was displayed not only on the big screen at the venue but also on Jiang Jiashu’s TV.
She wore light makeup, her smile radiant, and her eyes were locked onto the SF team’s support player’s seat, staring as if she were trying to burn a hole into it.
That wasn’t even the worst part. What truly set Jiang Jiashu off—what made him leap up and throw the remote to the ground—was the sign she was holding.
“Damn it! That embarrassing idiot! I’m going to kill her! She better not come back—I swear I’ll end her!!!”
A few guys rushed up to hold him back. “Brother Jiang, Brother Jiang, calm down, come on—it’s just your little sister.”
Zhou Yao stared, dumbfounded. Above Ying Nian’s head, she was holding up a large rectangular sign, its glowing letters flashing brightly for everyone to see. There was no way anyone could miss it.
It read—
“Yu Linran, marry me!”
Next to the word ‘me,’ a red arrow pointed downward—directly at herself.
And that wasn’t all. Ying Nian had brought reinforcements. The girls sitting beside her, who seemed to be fellow longtime fans, had also joined in. The girl to her left held a sign that said, “Yu Linran, marry her,” with a big red arrow pointing toward Ying Nian. The girl to her right had a matching sign, also saying, “Yu Linran, marry her,” with another red arrow pointing at Ying Nian.
The entire scene was displayed on the big screen, sending the venue into an uproar. Even some SF team members seemed to have noticed and were nudging Yu Linran, talking about it.
Ying Nian, on the other hand, showed no shame at all. She rested her chin in her hands, beaming at the players preparing for the match.
Jiang Jiashu struggled in the grip of the guys holding him back, completely losing it. “That shameless idiot! I’m telling her parents, her brother—she’s dead! She’s absolutely dead!!!”
……
They didn’t continue watching the esports match. If they had, Jiang Jiashu might’ve smashed the TV. Once he finally calmed down, they switched to something else. At some point, someone brought up a mobile game that had been trending recently.
After checking Jiang Jiashu’s expression and seeing that it was still normal, they boldly continued the discussion.
Da Xiong took a sip of fruit tea and suddenly said, “Oh, that one? I know about it! Zhou Yao is super good at it!”
The others were curious. “What?”
Da Xiong glanced at Zhou Yao and said, “Last time, I accidentally added her in-game. I checked her stats—her solo record is all wins.” Afraid that they wouldn’t believe him, he added, “Flawless victories! She hasn’t lost a single match!”
“No way.”
“That good…?”
Everyone asked Zhou Yao to show them.
Chen Xuze suddenly coughed. “It’s nothing special. Forget it.”
But the group was too excited to listen. Jiang Jiashu was the closest, and when Zhou Yao took out her phone and opened the game, he leaned in to check her records.
“They’re all solo wins, seriously.”
Winning every single one-on-one match—this was impressive. Zhou Yao turned out to be a mobile gaming expert!
But soon, Jiang Jiashu noticed something. “Wait a second… The opponent in all these matches… It looks like…” He squinted at the username, then looked up in shock. “Xuze?!”
He still recognized Chen Xuze’s game account.
Chen Xuze casually took a sip of his fruit tea without responding.
“Yeah,” Zhou Yao said. “I only play solo matches against Chen Xuze. If I play with random people, I might run into toxic players who curse a lot.”
So that was the reason. Even so, for her to beat Chen Xuze every time was impressive—after all, Chen Xuze was the best gamer in their group.
Jiang Jiashu and the others got excited and challenged Zhou Yao to one-on-one matches. They settled the order with rock-paper-scissors, and based on luck, Jiang Jiashu ended up going last.
Da Xiong was the first challenger, and one after another, they took their turns. But strangely enough, from the very first match, Zhou Yao kept losing.
“Something’s not right…”
The others were utterly baffled. Why was Zhou Yao so easy to kill? Her gameplay was way too bad! Unable to wrap their heads around it, more than half of the group had already beaten her in a one-on-one match.
Zhou Yao didn’t understand it either. But after losing so many times, she couldn’t help but blush a little.
Before Jiang Jiashu’s turn even came, he suddenly paused and waved his hand. “Forget it, I’m tired. Let’s watch some anime instead…”
As soon as he suggested it, the others thought watching a show sounded more interesting than beating up a noob, so they all agreed.
Over on the side, Chen Xuze was saying something to Zhou Yao, while Da Xiong and another friend whispered with their heads close together. “I don’t get it. With Zhou Yao’s skill level, how did Chen Xuze manage to die so many times?”
Jiang Jiashu had already seen through everything. He calmly finished his cup of fruit tea and gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head.
How did he die?
He let himself die, obviously.
……
On the way home, the streetlights cast a warm yellow glow. Chen Xuze and Zhou Yao decided to walk for a while before catching the next bus at the following stop.
They had known each other for years, yet there was always something to talk about. The clouds in the sky, the moon at their edges, the stars beneath them—Zhou Yao found interest in everything, and whatever she spoke about, Chen Xuze was willing to listen.
When they passed by a convenience store, Zhou Yao went inside to buy some water. She asked, “Wanna come in with me?”
Chen Xuze was too lazy to move, so he stayed outside to wait.
Most of the time, he didn’t smoke. But occasionally—very rarely—he would light one up to relieve some tension. He gestured toward the side, and Zhou Yao understood, nodding slightly.
After paying, she glanced at the receipt and stepped through the automatic doors as they slid open with a ding, heading in the direction where Chen Xuze had gone.
“Xuze—?”
There was no response. Not a single sound. Zhou Yao froze for a second, a bad feeling creeping over her.
She stood there for two seconds. Then, from the alleyway, she heard a muffled groan. Immediately, she bolted forward. “Xuze?!”
The sound of fists or some heavy object landing on flesh was unmistakable. Chen Xuze grunted twice and shouted, “Run—!”
But it was too late. In the middle of the alley, a group of men had cornered him against the wall, raining blows upon him. When they noticed Zhou Yao, one of them started striding toward her.
As if a trigger had been pulled, the previously defenseless Chen Xuze suddenly sprang up, delivering a fierce kick to the man in front of him. The guy hadn’t even reached Zhou Yao before he collapsed forward onto the ground.
The other two turned back to hit him again, but Chen Xuze dodged, his bloodied fist slamming into one of their faces. One clutched his bleeding nose, another doubled over clutching his stomach—neither in great shape.
Chen Xuze grabbed the stunned Zhou Yao and pulled her behind him, inching toward an exit. After taking two steps, he took off running.
The attackers realized what was happening and quickly gave chase. Chen Xuze, now outnumbered three to one, struggled to hold them off, yelling once more at Zhou Yao, “Run—!!”
Whoever these people were, they were out for revenge. On this chilly late-autumn night, with winter approaching, every punch and kick felt even more brutal.
Chen Xuze managed to hold out for over a minute, taking down two men. But the last one grabbed an iron rod from the ground, eyes glaring fiercely as he swung it toward him. The rod cut through the air. In that moment, Chen Xuze’s heart sank.
—But then.
With a loud crack, a brick shattered against the man’s forehead. Zhou Yao had rushed forward at some point, trembling slightly. Her fingertips quivered as well, her face pale as mist.
The iron rod clattered to the ground, and the man collapsed with a thud. The three of them lay motionless.
Zhou Yao turned around in a daze, her movements sluggish. “Chen… Xuze… are you okay?”
She raised her stiff hands to touch his face, tracing from his temple back, covering half his head. Suddenly, she flinched and pulled her hand away, staring at the blood on her palm. Her eyes instantly reddened.
“You’re bleeding?”
“Did you get hurt on your head?”
“Where? Does it hurt? Is it serious?”
With each word, her voice trembled more.
“Zhou Yao.”
“Zhou Yao—”
“Zhou Yao!”
Chen Xuze grasped her shoulders, calling her name over and over until she finally calmed down.
“This isn’t my blood,” he said. “It’s yours.”
She stared at him blankly before slowly looking down at her own injuries. The shattered brick had cut her fingers, and blood had seeped between them.
She froze. Then suddenly, tears welled up in her eyes. She looked at him, and out of nowhere, she laughed.
“It’s fine… It’s fine as long as you’re okay.”
Her eyes shimmered with laughter and tears, merging together until they completely filled Chen Xuze’s heart.
Or maybe, it had been like this all along. Maybe, ever since years ago, every vein in his body, every pulse of his blood, had been tangled up in her.
Chen Xuze covered her eyes with his hand and, in the cold alley of this early winter night, gently pulled the shaken girl into his arms. Zhou Yao was scared. She cried softly, never noticing anything else. She clutched his clothes tightly, trembling like a frightened little animal.
Perhaps she had never realized, and Chen Xuze had never told her— But in moments like these, her beautiful, star-like eyes were filled entirely with him.
Only him.
This wasn’t the first time. And perhaps, it wouldn’t be the last.
Something was stuck in Chen Xuze’s throat. For so long, he had never spoken of it. He was afraid they wanted different things.
And yet, still—
Tonight, on this cold early-winter evening—
In her eyes, he saw many things.
Fear. Panic. Concern. Everything.
And also—
A lifetime that belonged to them both.
Just as they had wished—long and lasting.
Just as he had imagined, just as he had hoped.
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