Thirteen Wonders (ShíSānYāo) : Chapter 27
Chapter 27
During the lunch break, Zhou Yao, Chen Xuze, and a group of friends decided to go for a walk. Despite the cold wind, everyone was bundled up like bears, so no one really felt the chill.
A park was about a ten-minute walk from the school, and it had two basketball courts where people occasionally played.
The park was empty when they arrived, except for a few elderly men strolling leisurely.
Sitting on the stone benches, Jiang Jiashu fidgeted restlessly and complained, “Don't you guys think the bench is freezing?”
“Would you die if you stopped saying vulgar things?” Ying Nian was the first to snap at him, so used to it that the words came out instinctively.
“Vulgar, my ass. You're not cold?” Jiang Jiashu shot her a glance and sneered. “Oh, right, you’re the kind of fangirl who can line up outside an arena all night in the freezing cold just to watch a game. With how obsessed you are, you probably don’t even feel the temperature. Even if it’s freezing, you wouldn’t die from it!”
Jiang Jiashu made a face at Ying Nian. She was so furious she threatened, “Say that again, and I'll kick you into the river to drink cold water!”
The two of them started chasing and playfully fighting, making the quiet park suddenly come alive with laughter.
Zheng Yinyin was close with them but had gone home for lunch, so she wasn’t there. Zhou Yao and Chen Xuze, always inseparable, sat next to each other. They exchanged a glance before Zhou Yao turned to watch the others fool around, her lips curling into a soft smile.
Amid the chaos, someone suddenly suggested, “Hey, it’s freezing. Why don’t we move around a bit?”
“Move around?”
“Let’s play basketball.” The person pointed toward the empty court. “No one’s using it. Let’s play a game.”
Jiang Jiashu dodged Ying Nian’s flying kick and said, “Sounds good, but where’s the ball? You gonna magically summon one?”
As soon as he finished speaking, the usually silent Da Xiong wordlessly took off his backpack, unzipped it, and pulled out a basketball.
“......”
“......”
“......”
Jiang Jiashu scoffed, “What kind of hobby is this?? Carrying a basketball around everywhere?”
Da Xiong explained, “My cousin gave it to me a few days ago. It’s signed by my favorite player. It was really hard to get. If I leave it at home, my younger cousin keeps using it like a balloon. I’m afraid he’ll pop it, so I just carry it with me…”
That was some serious dedication. Everyone knew Da Xiong was a basketball fanatic, especially when it came to NBA games. He was the type to yell at the TV while watching, making people around him feel like they were actually courtside. This behavior wasn’t too ‘weird’ for him—though, to be honest, it still kind of was.
With a ball in hand, the boys got excited and geared up to play. Jiang Jiashu asked Chen Xuze, “Xuze, you playing?”
Zhou Yao answered for him, “Of course he is. Why wouldn’t he?” She was worried he’d get cold just sitting there, so she tilted her head up and smiled at Jiang Jiashu. “What, are you trying to exclude Xuze?”
“Like I’d dare…” Jiang Jiashu muttered. Then, looking at Zhou Yao, he said, “Zhou Yao, don’t smile at me like that. Damn, when a girl smiles at me like that, I really can’t handle it. Seriously, you—”
The slight smile that had been forming on Chen Xuze’s face at Zhou Yao’s words immediately vanished at Jiang Jiashu’s next ones.
Jiang Jiashu felt a sudden chill, shivered, and rubbed his arms. “Weird… why did it suddenly get so cold?”
He unintentionally glanced at Chen Xuze’s expression, froze for a moment, then suddenly understood. He coughed and quickly pretended nothing had happened, hastily making his way to the court.
The boys started an intense game, quickly working up a sweat. Zhou Yao and Ying Nian, sitting on the bench, still felt cold, but the guys on the court had already started shedding their jackets. Some were even sweating.
Ying Nian sighed, “Being a guy seems great. You can even go shirtless. If I did that, people would think I was crazy.”
Zhou Yao chuckled, “If you were a guy, then Yu Linran would…”
At the mention of the pro gamer’s name, Ying Nian immediately straightened her back. “Being a girl is great! Being a girl is great!”
Her idol, Yu Linran, had clearly stated that he liked girls. And wasn’t she a girl? So by that logic, he liked her! Perfect!
As they chatted, they watched the game. Jiang Jiashu led one team, while Chen Xuze led the other, and the match was evenly matched.
Just as they were getting into it, a group of people entered the park.
“Yo, someone’s already playing here?”
Hearing the voice, Zhou Yao and Ying Nian turned around. It was a group of boys and girls. A few of them were wearing school uniforms, showing they were students from No. 8 High School nearby.
The newcomers didn’t seem hostile, but the boys naturally glanced at the girls. Seeing that Zhou Yao and Ying Nian were with the players, they felt the urge to challenge them.
One of them walked over and suggested, “How about we play together? We brought a ball too.”
There was another empty court, so they could have played separately. But if they declined, it would seem like they were afraid. The unspoken competition between boys was always interesting. Jiang Jiashu accepted right away, “Sure. How many on how many?”
The other team gathered its players, and since there were many of them, it even had a bench for substitutes. About seven or eight girls from No. 8 High School weren’t as enthusiastic as the boys and had no intention of chatting with Zhou Yao and Ying Nian. Instead, they found a nearby bench and sat in a row.
The game started soon, and the No. 8 High School girls wasted no time cheering for their team.
The only thing they would hear all over the place was their shouting:
“Go, Zhou Hao!”
“Lin Ming, go for it!”
“......”
Before long, they even started chanting their school’s name:
“Go, No. 8 High School!”
“Go, No. 8 High School!”
“No. 8 High School! No. 8 High School——”
Ying Nian, being highly competitive, refused to be outdone. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, “Go, No. 7 High School! Go, No. 7 High School! Go, No. 7 High School—!!”
Her last shout nearly burst the No. 8 High School girls' eardrums. No helping it—Ying Nian was a veteran at cheering, having attended countless esports matches in person. These amateurs were no match for her.
She cast a smug ‘queen’s disdain’ glance at them. Hmph. When she cheered for Yu Linran, these girls didn’t even know how to properly project their voices!
Zhou Yao, amused by Ying Nian’s self-satisfied look, tugged at her sleeve. “Be careful, or you’ll lose your voice.”
“I won’t.” Ying Nian waved her off. “There’s a technique to cheering. Otherwise, do you think I could attend so many matches and still have such a beautiful, sweet voice? It’s all about skill.” She patted her chest proudly. “With my cheering technique, forget Yu Linran—even all of Team SF knows me.”
“You know, last time I went to a match, their jungler saw me at the venue entrance and said—’Look, that girl’s here again. This time, we definitely won’t lose to the other side in cheering volume. She alone is worth half the arena!’ Now tell me, isn’t that impressive?”
Ying Nian raised an eyebrow smugly.
Zhou Yao's smile was so stiff that her face felt frozen. Unable to hold back, she spread her arms and pulled Ying Nian into a hug. “Niannian, oh, Niannian, why are you so cute—”
While they were chatting, the girls from No. 8 High School were not to be outdone and started another round of cheering:
“No. 8 High School, go!”
“No. 8 High School, go!”
“No. 8 High—”
Ying Nian fought against them alone. Though she possessed strong skills, her opponents outnumbered her. She nudged Zhou Yao with her elbow. “Yaoyao, don't just listen, shout too! Follow me, come on—”
Zhou Yao panicked. “But… but I don't know how…”
“You just take a deep breath and yell ‘Go!’ What’s so hard about that? The first time is unfamiliar, but it gets easier. No big deal—quick! We might lose, but we can't lose in spirit!”
Under Ying Nian’s encouragement, Zhou Yao’s face turned slightly red. She glanced at the boys playing hard on the court, took a deep breath—
And, under Ying Nian’s expectant gaze, she gathered all her breath and shouted:
“Chen—Xu—Ze—”
She was so loud that the whole court froze. Even the boys playing stopped and turned to look. Ying Nian was dumbfounded for a second before tugging at Zhou Yao’s sleeve. “What the heck? I told you to cheer for No. 7 High School! Why are you shouting Chen Xuze’s name?”
Zhou Yao realized the mistake the moment she shouted, but…
She was used to it. No matter what, Chen Xuze was always her first thought. Even cheering—her instinct was to cheer for him. His name just slipped out naturally.
Her face turned bright red, and she shrank behind Ying Nian’s shoulder. Ying Nian patted her. “Alright, alright, first-time mistakes. Leave it to me, you take a break.”
And so, Ying Nian unleashed her full cheerleading power. The girls from No. 8 High School couldn't compete at all—her voice rang loud and clear, even though she sounded like she was using a megaphone.
Comparison really is frustrating!
On the court, the boys kept running. Da Xiong jogged alongside Jiang Jiashu and asked, “Why did Zhou Yao shout Chen Xuze’s name?”
“Cheering for him, obviously.”
“Why not cheer for us?”
“My sister is cheering, isn’t she?” Jiang Jiashu wiped his sweat, unwilling to waste time explaining emotions to this dense guy.
Da Xiong nodded thoughtfully, then lowered his voice. “I just saw something scary… Chen Xuze… he kind of smiled. Right?”
Jiang Jiashu gave him a helpless look, patted his shoulder, and ran ahead.
Da Xiong was left in confusion. Zhou Yao called Chen Xuze’s name, the whole court looked at him, yet he wasn’t embarrassed. What was he smiling about?
The match between No. 7 and No. 8 High School was evenly matched. As they played on, the pace slowed, and the players took breaks to drink water before returning to the court. Before the game resumed, the leading player from No.8 High School patted Jiang Jiashu on the arm and asked, “That really fair-skinned girl over there—is she from your school?”
Jiang Jiashu glanced over. The whiteness was almost blinding—wasn’t that Zhou Yao?
He frowned slightly. “Yeah. Why?”
“Well… let’s be friends. Can you give me her contact info?” the guy asked. “I think she’s really pretty and super cute.”
Before Jiang Jiashu could respond, a cold gaze from the side made the guy turn his head. He found himself staring at a tall, handsome boy who rarely spoke and often had a gloomy expression.
The No. 8 High School’s player froze. The other guy bounced the basketball against the ground with a loud smack and strode onto the court. “Game on.”
One by one, everyone else walked away. No. 8 High School’s player was baffled. What was with all these weird No. 7 High School’s students?
But the real strangeness came later. Before, both teams had been playing casually, keeping the score fairly even. But in the second half, led by that gloomy yet strikingly handsome boy, No. 7 High School’s players suddenly went all out, playing with intense offense and defense. No. 8 High School’s team was completely overwhelmed, unable to fight back.
By the end, the score was embarrassingly lopsided.
No. 7 High School players didn’t seem interested in chatting. Jiang Jiashu checked the time and said, “It’s about time—we should head back to class.”
They packed up their things and left.
No. 8 High School players wanted to call them back, but they walked too fast, not even glancing back.
Chen Xuze stopped in front of Zhou Yao, who was sitting down. His tall figure cast a shadow over her, blocking the sunlight. Backlit, his face appeared dark, yet there was a trace of warmth in his expression.
“Let’s go,” he said softly.
Zhou Yao smiled up at him, like a delicate white flower—gentle and elegant.
“Okay.”
……
That evening after school, Ying Nian waited at the door of Zhou Yao’s classroom. She found her sitting at her desk, staring at her phone in a daze, and crept up to scare her.
“Boo!”
Zhou Yao shuddered and scolded, “You nearly scared me to death…”
“What are you looking at so seriously?”
Zhou Yao looked conflicted, unsure whether to say anything. Under Ying Nian’s intense gaze, she finally said slowly, “Chen Xuze told me that tonight, we won’t be walking home with you guys. He has something to talk to me about.”
……
That night, Zhou Yao and Chen Xuze really didn’t go home with the group. Ying Nian, knowing the inside story, was dying of curiosity about the gossip between the two. She couldn’t bring it up with the other guys, so she spent the whole night restless and unable to sleep.
The most frustrating part? Zhou Yao didn’t pick up her calls all night. She didn’t even reply to her messages.
The next day, Ying Nian arrived at school with dark circles under her eyes. Finally, during the big break, she cornered Zhou Yao in the pavilion and interrogated her. Before she even asked, she noticed something different about Zhou Yao’s smile—there was a deeper warmth to it than before.
Zhou Yao said, “We talked about something we’ve been wanting to discuss for a long time.”
“What was it?”
“It’s complicated. I’d rather not tell you.”
Ying Nian pouted, unhappy.
But really, their conversation had been very simple—just two questions.
On a quiet street late at night, Chen Xuze had asked, “Are you nice to me because you pity me?”
And Zhou Yao had asked in return, “Then what about you? Are you good to me because of guilt or a sense of debt?”
—The answer was neither.
Zhou Yao looked at Ying Nian’s tired, listless face and flicked her forehead.
“But,” she said, “we made a promise—to walk out of that old alleyway where we lived, grew up, and carried so many memories.”
And then, hand in hand, they would go somewhere better.
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