Chapter 160

Chapter 160

After the winter break, Lou Sheng made a decent sum from his tutoring gigs. Combined with the money returned to him by that family, he suddenly had some extra cash.

"017, stop getting stuff from the service point. I have money now."

017 couldn't promise anything and said, "I'll try my best..."

Thus, Lou Sheng's desk drawer was still packed with all kinds of snacks.

Since Lou Sheng didn't take on any physical labor jobs in the second half of the semester, 017 was concerned that the heavy academic workload would take a toll on his health and suggested that Lou Sheng go to the sports field in the evening to get some exercise.

What was initially just a casual suggestion turned into a routine for Lou Sheng, as he’d run a few laps every night.

By the end of the semester, Lou Sheng had bulked up quite a bit. His already good build was now complemented by well-defined muscles, paired with his handsome face, making him impossible to overlook when he sat at the back of the class.

Girls heading to the trash during breaks would often steal a glance at him.

Lou Sheng wasn’t as lively as the other guys his age. Put simply, he wasn’t much of a talker. He never horsed around with Zhang Antong and the others during breaks, always with his long lashes lowered, focused on the test papers in front of him.

Only on very rare occasions, when nothing particularly special was happening in the classroom, he’d just slightly lift the corner of his mouth for no reason, showing a faint smile.

But Lou Sheng wasn’t standoffish. He’d held the top spot in the class for nearly a year and never hesitated when someone asked him about a wrong answer.

Even occasionally, when people were discussing something nearby, he’d jump in and ask, "What's the problem?"

Lou Sheng’s standing in the class shot up. Both his classmates and teachers trusted him.

There were many more eyes on him now, some of which were from girls who had a crush on him. But thanks to Lou Sheng’s quiet and reserved nature, no girl had worked up the courage to talk to him yet.

Sometimes, people would ask Lou Sheng for his socials, but he always turned them down, saying he didn’t have a smartphone.

But 017 suggested he jot down their numbers and add them later when he got a phone.

Make more friends... that’s what 017 told him.

So Lou Sheng collected the contact information of those around him, including Liu Xing's.

Liu Xing was shocked: "Brother Sheng, don't you already have my phone number? Did you delete it?"

"It's not the phone number."

"Oh, did you get a smartphone?"

"No."

Liu Xing, full of doubts, gave Lou Sheng his social media account.

To be honest, 017 was a little taken aback by how quickly Lou Sheng acted.

Lou Sheng was too obedient. Whatever 017 said, he would do it immediately without any delay.

For a long time after that, 017 didn't dare to casually give Lou Sheng any more suggestions, worried that he might say something wrong and his host would foolishly follow through.

...

After May arrived, the girls in Class 7 didn't want to leave the classroom during PE class.

The summer in Beiyang hadn't arrived yet, but the temperature at noon had already soared to 34 or 35 degrees.

The sports meet at Beiyang High School was happening right then, and it was also the last big event for the second-year students. After a few months, when they entered their third year, all activities would no longer be relevant to them.

Lou Sheng was tall and lanky, and you could tell he was in great shape. Liang Ban told him to sign up for several events. Thinking that winning might earn him more gratitude points, Lou Sheng agreed to all of them without hesitation.

Lou Sheng’s burst of speed was way beyond what anyone expected. He took first place in the sprint event and helped Class Seven nail a good spot in the 4x100 relay.

The toughest event was the 3000-meter long-distance run.

Lou Sheng had been hitting the track almost every day this semester, but he’d never run this fast before.

Four laps, five laps…

The wind was like a knife in his throat.

Lou Sheng had never picked up any long-distance running techniques. He just kept pushing forward, relying on sheer willpower.

On the last lap, there was still one guy ahead of him.

He heard Class Seven cheering, heard his name being called out.

He knew someone was watching him, probably holding their breath, not wanting to mess up his rhythm.

But Lou Sheng knew 017 was watching him.

He saw the finish line ahead, his heart and lungs ready to burst, but Lou Sheng didn’t care, like this body wasn’t even his.

Faster, come on, faster…

He was neck and neck with the guy ahead.

He crossed the line!

Lou Sheng was hugged by a bunch of Class Seven guys, and the water bottles handed to him were a blur.

Did he get first or second?

"Ahhhhhhh!"

"Brother Sheng, you killed it!!"

"Holy crap! Brother Sheng, you’re first!!"

"Class Seven rocks!!"

"017, I’m a bit thirsty…"

Surrounded by Class Seven, Lou Sheng’s legs were shaking.

He clutched a no-name water bottle, and no one saw who gave it to him.

Liu Xing was hanging out in the Class Seven crowd, "Brother Sheng, let me help you walk, okay?"

He occasionally came to Class Seven to find Lou Sheng. When Zhang Antong saw him, he waved, "Go away, this is our class’s first place. If anyone’s going to help him, it should be someone from Class Seven."

Liu Xing: "..."

Several boys took Lou Sheng back, still excited and full of energy.

Liu Xing watched Lou Sheng get mobbed, hearing the guys call him "Brother Sheng" over and over, and he was stunned for a moment.

Since when did Brother Sheng get so popular in class?

Lou Sheng paused for a couple of minutes, then said, "I... can walk on my own."

There were other events going on that also needed volunteers. The boys exchanged glances and eventually left Zhang Antong to walk with Lou Sheng around the field. When they returned to Class 7, the cheering in the classroom was ear-splitting.

Liang Ban, rarely seen smiling, gave his shoulder a gentle pat. "Go sit down and rest..."

Lou Sheng heard the sound of gratitude points increasing in his mind—three points, five points—so frequent that the system's announcements seemed to glitch.

He sat back in his seat, slowly drinking the water 017 had given him.

Eyes kept turning toward him from all directions, from his own class, from other classes... mostly girls.

Lou Sheng sat in the bleachers for a while, uncomfortable under all the stares, and got up to go outside the field.

Normally, you weren’t supposed to wander off, but Liang Ban, seeing it was Lou Sheng, let it slide.

He’d won two first places, after all. Those two wins ensured Class 7’s total score would be high.

Lou Sheng found a bench outside the field and plopped down, downing the bottle of water in one go.

017 asked, "Need more water?"

Lou Sheng hesitated, then nodded.

A few seconds later, another bottle materialized beside him.

"Brother Sheng!"

Liu Xing strolled over, ice pop in hand.

"What’re you doing here?"

"Resting."

Liu Xing sat down next to him, checking if your class is nearby.

"What are you looking for?"

"Checking if your class is around. I tried to help you earlier, but they stopped me. Brother Sheng, how’d you get so famous without me noticing?" Liu Xing took a bite of his ice pop, thinking about Lou Sheng's momentum as he crossed the finish line.

Lou Sheng couldn’t see his own expression, but to others, his sheer determination was striking. Liu Xing, at the finish line, was completely blown away.

"..."

"A girl from my class just asked for your number."

Lou Sheng's eyes moved slightly, "You gave it to her?"

"Of course! If I didn’t, you’d kill me, right?"

"..." Lou Sheng wanted to hit him right now.

"Don’t give it to anyone else."

"Huh?" Liu Xing was stunned, "Are you serious? She’s the class beauty, the hottest girl in Class 3."

Lou Sheng ignored him.

Liu Xing thought he was just begging to get punched. Does he even know how many guys in our grade are after her? She asked for his number first, and he wouldn’t even give it?

"Sheng, you’re not into someone, are you?" Saying it like that, it seemed to make sense.

"No."

"I don’t believe it."

Lou Sheng didn’t feel like humoring him. Whatever, he didn’t care.

Liu Xing noticed the water bottle in Lou Sheng’s hand and the empty one beside him, and suddenly it clicked. "Was it the girl who gave you the water?"

Lou Sheng froze for a second.

"...What?"

"Oh, now he’s reacting!"

Liu Xing was thrilled, sure he’d hit the nail on the head.

Lou Sheng snapped out of it and smirked. "Liu Xing, if you’re sick, go get treated."

Liu Xing sputtered and shot back, "Why’d you only take hers when so many people offered you water? And you even took two bottles..."

"..."

Lou Sheng was at a loss for words.

When he crossed the finish line, tons of people were handing him water, both guys and girls.

And 017 had to pay a price to exchange water from the service point... He usually didn’t let 017 grab stuff for him from the service point, but for some reason, even though there were water bottles right in front of him, he straight-up told 017 he was thirsty...

Had running made him lightheaded?

Lou Sheng frowned and said, "I bought it myself."

"Cut the crap." Liu Xing pointed his index finger in front of Lou Sheng’s face and played it up like he was being deep, swinging it left and right twice. "Our school doesn’t carry this brand. It must’ve been bought from outside."

Lou Sheng’s lip twitched. "You even know that?"

"I was in charge of buying the water for our class during the sports meet."

Liu Xing joked, "Go for it, Sheng. Maybe she’s into you. Look, she even bought two bottles from outside just for you..."

017: "..."

Lou Sheng paused for a second and quickly explained to 017, "He’s just messing around."

"Huh? Of course I know that..." 017 didn’t mind at all and laughed, "Besides, I’m male."

Only then did Lou Sheng belatedly realize that there was actually no need for him to explain at all.

What an idiot.

Lou Sheng suddenly felt a bit irritable and lost the desire to speak.

Liu Xing saw his expression change and thought Lou Sheng was annoyed by his joke, so he hurriedly said, "Sorry, Sheng, don’t be mad. I was just kidding."

017 was a bit surprised because his host wasn’t the type to get angry over a joke, especially since Liu Xing didn’t mean any harm.

"Host, are you angry?"

"No."

Lou Sheng wasn’t sure how he felt.

To reassure 017, he grinned.

Liu Xing, seeing this, was first surprised because he had rarely seen Lou Sheng smile, and then couldn't help but make a teasing comment: "Sheng, why are you suddenly grinning like that?"

The smile on Lou Sheng's face disappeared. "Shut up."

017 disliked Liu Xing's words and was even a bit angry.

He had always hoped that Lou Sheng would smile more.

He said, "No, your smile is nice."

Lou Sheng paused. He had drunk half of the water bottle, and the previously calm water surface inside rippled.

The irritation in Lou Sheng's heart inexplicably dissipated, replaced by a strange, restless feeling.

He lowered his head and rubbed his burning ears.

Why’s it so warm...