Chapter 8
#“Xu Jingyou, I think I found the person who wrote me the love letter.”#
School always let out one period earlier on Friday afternoons, and this extra period became the time for students’ club activities.
As a key high school, Normal U Attached High had rich and colorful extracurricular clubs.
From the Musical Theater Club to the International Chess Club, from the Walking the Dog After School Club to the Collecting Cat Hair for Felting Club, from the Alien Friendly Exchange Promotion Club to the One-Handed Handstand Rubber Band Skipping Club… No matter how niche your hobby was, you could find “Niche Bros” and “Niche Sists” just like you in the school.
It was said that a few years ago, there was a famous “Brother Xun Club” (Lu Xun Club) in the school.
Externally, this club claimed to be composed of students who loved Lu Xun’s literature. In reality, every time the night was quiet and people were still, they would climb over the wall into the school and move the Lu Xun bust from the flowerbed…
By the next day, the bust would randomly appear in any location. Including but not limited to: inside a stir-fry wok in the cafeteria, at the top of the flagpole, next to the skeleton model in the biology classroom, on the rooftop terrace, and once it even appeared on the Principal’s office chair!
Unfortunately, the Brother Xun Club was wiped out in one fell swoop during a “club activity.”
That was on a dark and windy night. The Principal led a few security guards to lie in ambush by the flowerbed, finally catching this group of students who had inexhaustible ox-like energy. Under the encirclement of bright flashlights, the leaders of the Brother Xun Club revealed their true faces—they were actually the Chinese Class Representatives from various classes!
At the moment of “arrest,” a certain girl who ranked first in the grade for Chinese raised her arms and shouted: “If not bursting forth in silence, then perishing in silence!!”
Later, the Principal made her copy the full text of Memorial to Miss Liu Hezhen five times. It was still pasted in the Principal’s office to this day.
From that day on, the Brother Xun Club announced its disbandment, historically known as the “Battle Royale Incident.”
As for that Lu Xun bust, the school later reinforced it, using superglue to stick it ruthlessly to the base.
Hearing this eventful history, Xu Jingyou looked at Yuan Man and couldn’t help suspecting, “Xuezhang, you know the history of the Brother Xun Club so clearly. Could it be you were also a member of the statue movers?”
“How is that possible!” Yuan Man kicked a pebble at his feet. “When the Brother Xun Club was most active, I was still studying in the Junior High division next door.”
Xu Jingyou realized he had presumed, and quickly apologized, “Sorry, I misund…”
“So I couldn’t be a formal member of the Brother Xun Club.” Yuan Man shrugged his shoulders and spread his hands. “I was only in the first year of junior high then. I was small and weak, couldn’t move the statue at all. I could only be a reserve member, helping them scout locations and keep a lookout. On the day of the ‘Battle Royale,’ I was the one responsible for the lookout. Luckily I slipped away fast back then, otherwise, I would have been punished to copy Lu Xun’s collected works too!”
Xu Jingyou: “…………”
Yuan Man: “Why are you looking at me with those eyes?”
Xu Jingyou pushed up his glasses. “Is it possible that it was precisely because you slipped away too fast that they got caught?”
Yuan Man: “…………………”
Xu Jingyou: “……………………”
Yuan Man: “Ah!”
Xu Jingyou looked at him in surprise. “You don’t mean to say you only realized now that it was your problem?”
Yuan Man let out two hehe chuckles, changing the subject. “Speaking of which, you’re going to the Anime Club interview soon. Are you nervous?”
It had to be said, the way he changed the subject was truly too stiff.
However, Yuan Man never knew how to write the word “guilty.” He put his hands on his hips, acting like a rolling stone that gathers no moss. “Alright, alright, I admit I shouldn’t have run away back then. But yesterday is dead and gone, Student Xu. We cannot immerse ourselves in nostalgia for the past; we must stand in the present and look to the future! Your future is the impending Anime Club interview!”
Xu Jingyou raised his eyebrows slightly. “You aren’t planning to dump me at the Anime Club entrance and run away by yourself again, are you?”
“I call that a strategic retreat, how can you call it running away…” Yuan Man muttered a few words, but the condemnation in Xu Jingyou’s eyes was practically tangible, making Yuan Man’s voice smaller and smaller until he finally compromised. “Fine, fine, I’ll accompany you to the interview.”
Xu Jingyou reminded him, “Hope you haven’t forgotten, I am attending the Anime Club interview as a ‘substitute’ for you. You accompanying me is only right.”
“Aiya, no need to remind me, I know!” Yuan Man hooked both arms around Xu Jingyou’s shoulders, starting his tried-and-true spoiled act again. “Bestest, bestest, bestest xuedi in the world, just help xuezhang out! You’ve already boarded my pirate ship; now you couldn’t get off even if you wanted to!”
The boy’s body was warm. Through the thin summer uniform, the body heat transferred without obstruction. Xu Jingyou’s back stiffened, trying hard to put distance between them. But Yuan Man was too shameless and too good at torturing people. Xu Jingyou blocked his left arm, he stuck his right arm on; Xu Jingyou pulled away his right arm, he hung his left arm back on… In short, the more Xu Jingyou tried to distance himself, the closer Yuan Man got.
After struggling for a while with no result, Xu Jingyou could only accept his fate and surrender.
Thus, the owner of those hands hung most of his weight on him, swaying as he was dragged along the corridor by Xu Jingyou.
It was currently dismissal time on Friday, and the campus was crowded everywhere. Both of them were celebrities in the school—one a cheerful xuezhang with friends all over the world, the other a high-cold Academic God devoted only to books. No one had ever imagined they would appear together, especially acting so intimate.
When other students passed them, they couldn’t help but look sideways, whispering about how on earth these two polar opposites knew each other.
However, neither of the parties involved cared about the gazes of those around them.
Yuan Man didn’t care because he was electricity, he was light, he was the only myth, he was a superstar—people paying attention to him was only natural.
Xu Jingyou didn’t care because… he only cared about the xuezhang.
After trekking over mountains and rivers along the way, Xu Jingyou finally “dragged” Yuan Man to the entrance of the Anime Club.
This was the activity classroom the Anime Club had applied for from the school.
Yuan Man had investigated clearly beforehand: every Friday after school, the Anime Club members would gather here for activities. As for the content of the activities, naturally, it was watching anime together!
When they arrived, all the windows in the classroom were tightly covered by curtains. Occasionally, a few arguments leaked out through the gaps in the curtains.
“If you ask me, Gojo Satoru and Fushiguro Megumi are the…”
“Ahhh I’m the first to disagree! Clearly, Gojo Satoru and Geto Suguru are the…”
“Can you guys stop arguing? Didn’t we agree that today we’re watching Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Shoyo…?”
“By the way, I recently discovered a treasure of an artist (Tai-tai), her style fits the original so well! Dazai Osamu and Nakahara Chuuya…”
Yuan Man eavesdropped while explaining to Xu Jingyou, “The ones they’re discussing are all hit animes. There’s Jujutsu Kaisen, Haikyuu!!, and Bungo Stray Dogs. I haven’t had time to tutor you on these; hope they won’t test you on them during the interview.”
But it’s really strange, he thought. Why are there only girls in the Anime Club? Not a single boy? Aren’t there any otaku boys in our school who like watching anime?
Xu Jingyou raised his hand and knocked on the door.
The activity room went solemn and quiet. After a few seconds, a female voice came: “Who is it?”
Yuan Man cleared his throat and answered for Xu Jingyou, “Is this the Anime Club? I submitted an application to join yesterday!”
“Application to join?”
Inside the door, a sudden flurry of panic and whispering arose.
“How is it a boy?”
“What application? Who saw it?”
“Ah, could it be this piece of paper? Wang Shanshan shoved it to me yesterday, saying there was a Grade 1 junior who wanted to join our club. I thought she was joking.”
Hearing the discussion inside, Xu Jingyou frowned slightly. He turned his head to look at Yuan Man, who was hanging on him. “Wang Shanshan? That deskmate of yours?”
“You have such a good memory. I only mentioned my deskmate’s name once and you remember it so clearly.” Yuan Man said nonchalantly, “Wang Shanshan knows Yang Meng, so I asked Wang Shanshan to help me submit the application. Wang Shanshan said leave it to her, and told me to come directly after class on Friday…”
He said Wang Shanshan’s name three times in one breath, completely failing to notice the xuedi’s face getting darker and darker.
Fortunately, before Yuan Man could say Wang Shanshan’s name any more, the activity room door in front of them was pushed open.
A girl with a ponytail poked her head out and whispered, “Student, you might have found the wrong place… Ah!”
Her gaze landed on Xu Jingyou, and on Yuan Man who was stuck to Xu Jingyou like a koala.
Her eyes locked onto them firmly. Suddenly, a strange light burst from her eyes. Her mouth twitched incessantly, revealing a smile that was three parts excitement, three parts twisted, and four parts suppressed.
“Hi, hello, ohayou, can you hear me?” Yuan Man waved his hand in front of her face, trying hard to recall her gaze. “I’m Wang Shanshan’s deskmate, Yuan Man. This beside me is Xu Jingyou who submitted the application. Is your Anime Club President Yang Meng here?”
Unexpectedly, the high-ponytail girl became exceptionally enthusiastic. The weird smile on her face expanded further, and she spoke in a floating tone, “I am Yang Meng! You guys are here for the interview, right? Quick, come in quickly!”
With that, she pushed the door wide open. As if stepping on clouds, she floated inside with shallow and deep steps.
Xu Jingyou stepped forward to follow, but Yuan Man suddenly grabbed his hand.
Xu Jingyou looked down at their interlaced fingers.
Yuan Man didn’t notice the xuedi’s unnaturalness at all, whispering, “Xu Jingyou, I think I found the person who wrote me the love letter.”
Xu Jingyou: “…?”
Yuan Man: “It’s probably this Yang Meng!”
Xu Jingyou was quiet for three seconds, then asked him, “How do you know?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Yuan Man said with absolute certainty. “She acted so nervous when she saw me appear, staring at me without blinking. She was forcing herself to be calm when talking to me. If that isn’t liking me, what else could it be?”
Xu Jingyou: “…Xuezhang, how about you think it over again?”
[Author’s Note] Yuanyuan, clearly there is another person in this world who was scared nervous when you appeared, stared at you without blinking, and feigned calmness when speaking to you!!!! [Chin rest] [Chin rest]
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