Chapter 30

Chapter 30

The ride back was filled with silence.

In the passenger seat, Yan's mother glanced first at her husband, whose face was stern, and then turned to look at her son.

Yan Zhun appeared relaxed, leaning lazily against the car seat with his eyes lowered, staring at his phone.

"Little Zhun, try not to use your phone too much in the car, it might make you dizzy," his mother reminded gently.

Yan's father snorted coldly. "If he listened to you, you wouldn't have to rush to the hospital late at night to ask the police for him."

His voice was icy, and his expression was sour.

He shot a glance at Yan Zhun through the rearview mirror. "Only your mother bothers to care about you."

Yan Zhun replied, "Aren't you here too?"

Yan's father choked for a moment before saying after a long pause, "I brought her here, not to see you."

Accustomed to Yan Zhun's tough exterior and soft heart, he nodded in agreement, not engaging in an argument.

Yan's mother held her purse and asked, "Little Zhun, were those boys you just met your gaming friends?"

Yan Zhun replied with a nonchalant "Mm-hm."

She continued, "The one who was talking to you, is he a new teammate?"

"He's not," Yan Zhun said.

His mother nodded and added, "Remember to thank others when they go out of their way for you, especially at this hour."

Yan Zhun acknowledged her words.

After a long silence, Yan's father asked, "Why were you fighting with someone tonight? Were you bullied?"

"No," Yan Zhun replied. "I was the one bullying them."

Yan's father frowned, giving him a stern look through the rearview mirror. Abandoning indirect questions, he went straight to the point, "What did that person do to you? Why did it escalate to physical violence?"

Yan Zhun looked out the window and said, "Indeed."

"Alright, it's over now. Don't give our son a stern look anymore," Yan's mother said as she turned back. "Little Zhun, was it something precious? Mom can get you another one."

The phone in his hand vibrated softly, and Yan Zhun lowered his gaze.

Pei Ran: I've arrived at my dorm. Are you home yet? Be careful of your wound and don't let it get wet.

Yan Zhun tapped on his phone: "Not necessary."

After returning home, Yan Zhun went straight to his room.

His father wasn't a nagging person, so the matter was dropped after a few words in the car. After his shower, he returned to find his wife sitting at the head of their bed, staring into space with a worried expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he sat down beside her.

"Nothing," Yan's mother paused before suddenly saying, "I haven't seen Little Zhun playing with his friends in a long time."

When he was in his senior year of high school, she had attended a parent-teacher conference for him. After a two-hour meeting, Yan Zhun had been leaning against the railing of the corridor, waiting without speaking to anyone along the way from the school gate to the classroom.

At the end of his freshman year, on a whim, she went to pick her son up from school. The other students were in groups, teasing each other. He was sitting alone on a bench in the school garden, greeting her with a mere "Let's go" when he saw her.

Yan Father furrowed his brows. "Isn't that how his personality has always been?"

Yan Mother replied, "But before, at least he was willing to communicate with his friends."

In truth, the couple had never objected to Yan Zhun playing games before. It wasn't until Yan Zhun's severe gastric problem nearly required surgery, leaving Yan Mother fainting by the bedside and both mother and son admitted to the hospital, that Yan Father strictly forbade Yan Zhun from continuing his esports career.

Yan Zhun initially resisted, but after seeing his mother lying in bed, her hair suddenly grayer, he left the club silently, his face expressionless as he carried his luggage.

After that, Yan Zhun's demeanor became even more aloof.

Yan Father fell silent for a long while before saying, "Don't overthink it. Go to sleep."

The next day, after class, Pei Ran bought a massage device and received a WeChat message from Lin Xuhuan on his way back to school.

-

"Lin Xuhuan: Baby Ran, we're having dinner near your school. Do you want to join us?"

"Pei Ran: Is Yan Zhun there too?"

"Lin Xuhuan: No, he's not at school again. Isn't he supposed to come back the day after tomorrow?"

"Lin Xuhuan: We're here, just follow the map. [Sharing location]"

Pei Ran was taken aback and hesitated for a moment.

"Pei Ran: I still have some illustrations to work on, so I won't be able to make it. Enjoy your meal."

"Lin Xuhuan: ? You're not coming just because my brother isn't there?"

Pei Ran felt his eyelids twitch, about to explain himself.

"Lin Xuhuan: Wait, are you working on sketches for my fans? In that case, hurry back then, and draw me well, make me look even more handsome than in that Weibo post!"

"Pei Ran: ...Okay."

After getting out of the car, Pei Ran went straight to the studio.

He wasn't lying to Lin Xuhuan; he indeed had assignments to complete, but his mentor had given him ample time.

The art studio was deserted. Closing the door, tranquility enveloped the entire world.

After an indeterminate period, Pei Ran held his paintbrush, gazing at the painting before him with pursed lips.

One couldn't paint well with an unsettled heart.

Just as he was about to crumple the drawing paper, the phone he had left on the table rang.

Pei Ran washed his hands and picked up the call just as it was about to disconnect.

"Hello?" Pei Ran said. Receiving no response, he called out again, "Yan Zhun?"

Yan Zhun softly hummed in acknowledgment.

Pei Ran asked, "What's wrong?"

There was a moment of silence from Yan Zhun, who then suddenly questioned, "Why didn't you keep your word?"

Pei Ran paused, "What?"

A few seconds later, Pei Ran saw the package beside him and realized, "I bought it, but you weren't at school."

Yan Zhun hummed in response, sounding unenthusiastic.

Holding the phone, Pei Ran took a long time before asking, "Are your injuries better?"

After playing this game once, there was no shame in repeating it. Yan Zhun replied, "It still hurts. I didn't sleep well."

Pei Ran frowned, about to say something when the door to the studio was pulled open.

The teacher wasn't surprised to see him and merely raised an eyebrow. "Pei Ran, you're here? Perfect, I need to discuss something with you. Come with me."

Pei Ran said, "Alright, just give me a moment..."

"Go ahead," Yan Zhun said. "I'll hang up now."

Pei Ran listened to the busy tone for a few seconds before putting his phone away and carrying the massage device box as he followed his teacher's pace.

The teacher didn't summon Pei Ran for anything significant; it was simply to invite him to participate in a competition. As he left the office with the registration form in hand, he took out his phone and glanced at the screen, which was barren of any messages.

He turned into the adjacent supermarket to buy a bottle of water, casually placing it on a shelf, and then checked his phone again.

"Pei Ran: Should I deliver it to you?"

After two seconds, Pei Ran typed "Is it convenient?" but before he could send it, his phone vibrated.

"Yan Zhun: [Location]"

"Yan Zhun: I've hailed a car for you. Wait at the station for a bit."

In the car, Pei Ran tidily bundled up the registration form and was just about to inform Yan Zhun that he had boarded when he noticed several unread messages in WeChat.

"Lin Kang: Pei Ran, are you there?"

"Lin Kang: Ah, what's going on... You should take a look."

Lin Kang had sent over a few images, chat records from a group discussion.

It began with someone in the discussion group starting a rumor, claiming that Yan Zhun and Luo Qingshan had gotten into a fight.

"Good heavens... What on earth did Luo Qingshan do to provoke Yan Zhun into resorting to physical confrontation?"

"One can never tell, but Yan Zhun has always been an enigmatic character."

"It must be Luo Qingshan who provoked someone. With his temper, he could argue with others even over a trivial game of ball."

After a brief exchange, the "insider" made an appearance.

"Su Nian: You're quite amusing. Wasn't it that person who committed the foul in our last game? How can you blame Brother Qingshan for it? And this time, Yan Zhun was the one who initiated the conflict. Let's not indulge in victim-blaming, shall we?"

"You tell me then, why did Yan Zhun hit him? He couldn't have just had idle hands, right?"

"Moonchild: Alright, if you really want to know. At our kid's birthday party last time, do you remember when Yan Zhun suddenly disappeared halfway through? Pei Ran took him away. They were playing games together every day, and Pei Ran even gave gifts to Yan Zhun."

Pei Ran zoomed in on the selfie profile picture of this person named Moonchild, vaguely recalling that she was Luo Qingshan's classmate, a girl who had been quite close to Su Nian at a previous gathering.

"Moonchild: Yan Zhun was trying to snatch someone else's girlfriend, acting as a male third wheel. Do you understand now? Luo Qingshan is relatively decent; he only scolded Yan Zhun verbally. Never expected Yan Zhun to have the audacity to strike first."

The subsequent comments were filled with astonishment and insults. Pei Ran didn't want to read any further and simply closed the image.

Lin Kang was also in a dilemma. He couldn't understand why he had sent the screenshot to Pei Ran. It was just that deep down, he felt that neither Pei Ran nor Yan Zhun would do such a thing.

After hesitating for a while, he tried to retract the message, only to be reminded by the system that it was already past the two-minute mark.

"Pei Ran: Is this chat group still active?"

"Lin Kang: ...Yes, it's a group for organizing basketball games. There are hundreds or even thousands of members. Yan Zhun is in there too, but he seems to be muted. He hasn't said anything anyway."

"Pei Ran: Can you add me to the group?"

"Lin Kang: Maybe not... They're still discussing that topic."

"Pei Ran: It's alright, I just want to say a few words."

"Pei Ran: Thanks for your help."

After a long internal struggle, Lin Kang finally closed his eyes and added Pei Ran to the chat group.

Moonlight: Never mind, it's just the nature of triangles. It's better to know sooner rather than later. I feel sorry for the money Luo Qingshan spent on Pei Ran though. Su Nian mentioned it was at least a six-figure sum.

Pei Ran: @Moonlight Don't worry about it, everything is settled. If there's anything owed, let Luo Qingshan come to me.

The spectators in the group chat fell silent instantly, sensing the drama unfolding and eagerly holding onto their phones.

Moonlight: ...Dizzy, who dragged me into this? Lin Kang? That's not funny, you know.

Pei Ran ignored her response and glanced over the list of group members. All faces were familiar, mostly classmates from Luo Qingshan and Yan Zhun's department.

Pei Ran had always been an indifferent person since childhood, rarely bothering to explain himself when misunderstood or misjudged. It was troublesome and unnecessary, and he usually didn't hold grudges even if wronged. However, his typing speed was unusually fast at that moment.

Pei Ran: The reason for my breakup with Luo Qingshan is because he cheated on me with @Su Nian, so we agreed to separate amicably.

Pei Ran: This matter has nothing to do with Yan Zhun.

Pei Ran: Also, @Moonlight, I'm a man, not Luo Qingshan's wife.

Everyone in the group was stunned. Pei Ran generally kept his distance from others, and while he spoke politely, there was always a sense of detachment in his conversations. Nobody expected him to openly declare, "I was betrayed," and even tag the third party involved.

A string of ellipses appeared in the minds of the onlookers.

"Pei Ran: Apologies for the interruption, carry on."

With that, Pei Ran exited the group chat.

Soon after, Su Nian and Yue-er also hastily left the group.

The chat exploded with messages, many urging Lin Kang to re-invite them back.

But Pei Ran was oblivious to all this. As the car arrived at its destination, he got out of the vehicle.

Yan Zhun stood by the entrance of the park, engrossed in scrolling through his chat history.

Upon hearing the door shut, Yan Zhun lifted his gaze to see Pei Ran stepping out of the car with a medium-sized gift box in hand, his brows slightly knitted and lips taut.

As Pei Ran drew near, someone took the box from him. Yan Zhun opened Pei Ran's palm and slipped a candy inside.

Yan Zhun said, "Teacher Pei, please don't be upset."