He Yang felt a mix of emotions: “Why are you bringing it to me?”
Chi Yao: “Is there a problem?”
He Yang: “Big problem. Look around the entire basketball court—who the hell brings water to another guy?”
Chi Yao, expressionless: “So you have more prestige than them.”
He Yang: “…Thank you so much.”
Chi Yao: “Others only attract some girls’ attention, but you’ve conquered your opponent.”
He Yang: “…I thank you very much.”
Chi Yao released his grip: “You’re welcome.”
A few minutes later, the basketball court changed players.
The scoreboard was reset to zero, and City’an Second Middle School’s match officially began.
Lin Zhexia sat in the stands. In the first half, City’an was behind. In the second half, at match point, they substituted players. Chi Yao seemed ready to go on court. Amidst a chorus of voices chanting “Chi Yao” from who knows where, she saw He Yang’s return message—
I give up—
As soon as I came off the court, many people asked me who had brought me water—
Some even wanted contact information, but I couldn’t keep up with all the requests.
The first thing Lin Zhexia caught in these lines was the phrase “I couldn’t keep up.”
She typed back: You gave it out?
Da Zhuang: Of course I did. So many people were asking, I didn’t know how to refuse, so I gave it—
“Many people are shouting Chi Yao’s name,” said Chen Lin, who had finished all her events and returned to her seat. “The most ridiculous thing is, Chi Yao hasn’t been on the court for five minutes, and even the girls from the neighboring school are trying to get information.”
Tang Shuxuan also joined the conversation: “I just heard it too. Some people from Experimental Affiliated were talking about it.”
Chen Lin was amazed: “This popularity—I never imagined that Chi Yao not only dominates our school but could even extend his influence outside.”
Lin Zhexia listened without saying anything.
Chen Lin noticed her reaction and asked: “What’s wrong? You don’t look very happy.”
Lin Zhexia looked up: “Huh?”
Then she instinctively denied it, “No, I’m fine.”
Chen Lin: “You call that fine? Your mouth is drooping.”
Lin Zhexia hadn’t even realized she was unhappy.
Her chat with He Yang was still at “I didn’t know how to refuse, so I gave it.”
At Second Middle School, except for when school first started, when some people still dared to try, afterward, no one dared to ask for Chi Yao’s contact information anymore.
Everyone gradually accepted an unspoken rule: don’t get close to Chi Yao.
But the students from Experimental Affiliated School didn’t know this, so they hadn’t faced this kind of situation for a long time.
When school first started, she had also felt a little displeased, but that displeasure was more like not wanting to share a friend.
The unhappiness now seemed very different.
Lin Zhexia thought about it and still felt she had no reason to be unhappy about this, so it must be something else: “The sun is probably too hot. I feel a bit stuffy.”
Chen Lin reached out to feel her forehead: “You don’t have a fever. Would you like to switch seats with me? My spot has a bit more shade, not so sunny.”
Lin Zhexia: “Sure, if you feel hot later, just tell me, and we can switch back.”
After changing seats, Lin Zhexia continued watching the basketball game.
To be fair, there was a reason for Chi Yao’s popularity.
Even with the crowded venue, when he appeared, everyone’s attention was automatically drawn to him.
City’an had fallen behind quite a bit in the first half, but after he went on court, the situation began to change.
The young man in the number 0 jersey broke through the opponent’s defense after going on court, creating scoring opportunities—
On the scoreboard, City’an’s score steadily climbed.
The sun was at its peak, all the midsummer light seemed to pour onto that young man on the court, passing behind his back, tearing through the opponent’s defensive network, and scoring the final buzzer-beater. The score was completely reversed.
Lin Zhexia heard screams around her: “Chi Yao—”
If she wasn’t mistaken, from the moment Chi Yao appeared on the court, the neighboring cheerleaders who had been cheering for Experimental Affiliated seemed to lower their volume. After lowering their volume, some whispers began to emerge: “Who is he?”
“From the neighboring Second Middle School…”
“They’re all shouting, Chi Yao? Which Chi, which Yao?”
“…”
After a while.
Their topic changed to: “He’s off court now. How strange, no one’s bringing him water. If I had known, I would have gone.”
Among the whispers, someone else said: