A hundred flavors of life

Chapter 1375 Drawing Chen Xun! (Please Subscribe!)
Zhao Ye, Qiao Ran, and Chen Xun, three close friends, have had the habit of having lunch together since junior high school, which continued into high school. Now, two more people have joined them—Lin Jiamo and Fang Hui.

The main reason was that Lin Jiamo and her deskmate Hua Shier continued their cold war because of what happened on the first day. She didn't want to sit in her own seat during lunch, so she ate with Fang Hui every day.

Lin Jiamo is an outgoing person, and apart from Fang Hui, she doesn't get along well with the girls in her class. Ever since she watched Zhao Ye and his friends play basketball, she has liked to hang out with the trio. As a result, Zhao Ye invited her to have lunch with the trio, and she also insisted on pulling her new friend Fang Hui into this group.

Young people usually get to know each other very quickly when they get together.

Every time they ate, it became the liveliest corner in the classroom. Zhao Ye would crack jokes, Chen Xun would occasionally launch into a long talk, Qiao Ran would gently add to the conversation, Lin Jiamo would laugh non-stop, and even Fang Hui, under their influence, especially Lin Jiamo's, started to smile more often.

The air of youth filled the dining table, and a subtle attraction began to quietly grow between the young men and women.

Zhao Ye fell in love with the bright and cheerful Lin Jiamo at first sight, and his feelings were almost written on his face.

Chen Xun and Qiao Ran's gazes were more focused on the quiet and shy Fang Hui. The former's eyes were filled with inquiry and initiative, while the latter's gaze was more gentle and concerned.

A delicate balance and undercurrent were maintained among the five people having lunch.

At the same time, Hua Shier and Fang Hui maintained a tacit understanding that was difficult for outsiders to perceive.

Since the time their relationship thawed and they started going to school together, they would "unexpectedly meet" at the entrance of their residential compound almost every school morning.

Even if Hua Shier was late coming out sometimes, Fang Hui's slender figure could be seen not far from the gate of the community, holding her bicycle and waiting quietly.

This occasionally made Hua Shier feel a little strange, but he never asked too many questions, and Fang Hui never explained.

On their way to school together, they still didn't talk much. When they arrived at the school gate, Fang Hui would slow down and let Hua Shier go in first. Once in the classroom, the two barely interacted, so no one knew that they went to school together every day.

Lin Jiamo also interacted with Hua Shierling. Because of the unpleasantness on the first day, the relationship between the two classmates was as solid as a rock, and as cold as a rock.

Until the Nike Cup High School Basketball League arrived.

In the 2000 Nike High School Boys' Basketball League, a total of 12 teams participated in the Beijing division, including traditional powerhouses such as Beijing No. 4 High School and Beijing Experimental High School.

Two weeks before the start of the competition, the school team began training every day. Hua Shier and Zhao Yezuo, as members of the school team, also had to participate in training every day, so they had to suspend their "anything goes" business. Of course, the two of them hadn't been open for business for a while.

As a basketball enthusiast, Lin Jiamo would drag Fang Hui to watch whenever she had time during the school team's training sessions.

At this point, they would notice that while the other school team members were training hard or playing in groups, her annoying deskmate was sitting alone on the sidelines, engrossed in a martial arts novel.

Lin Jiamo pursed her lips and whispered to Fang Hui:

"Qiao Ran and the others said that Hua Shier is the best basketball player in our class. Look at him, reading books instead of training. The coach doesn't even care about him. I think he's only good enough to be the water boy on the school team!"

Fang Hui gave a gentle, serene smile: "He's really good at playing ball!"

Lin Jiamo pursed her lips, clearly still not quite believing it. Her gaze fell on Su Kai, who was dominating the competition on the field.

Watching Su Kai dribble past defenders, shoot mid-range jumpers, layups, and three-pointers, seemingly capable of anything, and with skills far surpassing those of other players, Lin Jiamo's eyes sparkled. She put her hands to her mouth and shouted loudly:

"Su Kai, you're the best basketball player in the whole school!"

Su Kai, who was breaking through, suddenly tripped over his right foot with his left foot and almost fell to the ground. By the time he regained his footing, the ball had already been stolen, and the opponent made a fast break layup to close the gap to 2 points.

Su Kai glanced guiltily at Hua Shier on the sidelines, only to see that he seemed not to have heard and was still leisurely reading his book. He then gave Lin Jiamo a wry smile, clearly annoyed.
"Don't talk nonsense, I'm not!"

In order to improve his strength, he challenged Hua Shier to one-on-one duels every day. He wanted to improve himself by being beaten, and the effect was very significant. He has gone from not getting a single point in the initial one-on-one duels to not getting a single point now.

Well, although the score in the one-on-one match remained the same, there has been improvement. Haven't you seen how easily he beats others now?

So when Lin Jiamo called him the number one in the whole school in front of Hua Shier, who was taller than him, he felt extremely embarrassed. He thought to himself, "This girl is quite pretty, how come she can curse without using any swear words?"

But Su Kai didn't know that Lin Jiamo became his fan from that day on, and even developed feelings for him because of his football skills.

The league started in the blink of an eye.

This year's league brings together top basketball teams from twelve high schools, including Beijing No. 4 High School, Experimental High School, No. 50 High School, Miyun No. 2 High School, No. 25 High School, International School, Dongcheng Vocational Education School, Xuanwu Vocational Education School, No. 22 High School, and Hepingjie No. 1 High School. The schedule is packed and the competition is fierce.

The competition adopts a home-and-away system, with a total of 10 rounds of regular season games. Each game is divided into four quarters, each lasting 10 minutes.

Led by captain Su Kai and key player Zhao Ye, the No. 4 Middle School team fought their way through the competition with great momentum.

As Lin Jiamo said, Hua Shier did not play a single game from the first match until the final.

Because he had already told the coach before the start of the competition that unless they encountered a really tough opponent, they shouldn't ask him to play.

The coach knew his abilities and agreed to his proposal, treating Hua Twelve as a secret weapon, to be released as a nuclear weapon when the battle was at a stalemate or when defeat was imminent.

Su Kai and other players were happy to keep this trump card to themselves until the end. This way, they would not only have the opportunity to showcase their abilities, but also have a guaranteed trump card. Why not?

Therefore, since the start of the competition, Hua Twelve has spent most of his time leisurely sitting on the bench, watching his teammates fight on the field.

Zhao Ye is one of the absolute core players on the court. He is aggressive in his tackling and has a strong scoring ability, which often draws cheers from Lin Jiamo, who is watching from the sidelines.

Lin Jiamo is a basketball enthusiast and comes to cheer on her classmates from No. 4 Middle School almost every game.

As the competition progressed, No. 4 Middle School successfully advanced to the finals, where their opponent was the formidable Experimental Middle School.

The final was held at No. 4 Middle School, and almost half of the students from No. 4 Middle School came to watch the match. The competition was extremely fierce.

During an offensive play, Zhao Ye, who was jumping for a layup, was accidentally bumped by the opposing player number 10. He lost his balance in mid-air and fell heavily to the ground, clutching his arm in great pain.

The school doctor immediately examined the patient and concluded that the arm was dislocated and could not play ball for the time being even after it was reset.

The coach of No. 4 Middle School checked the time and requested a substitution: Zhao Ye was substituted, and Hua Shier came on.

As Zhao Ye left the field, he shouted to Hua Shier on the bench:

"Big brother, you have to win!"

Lin Jiamo, who was still concerned about Zhao Ye's arm, retorted when she heard him shout, "You should say that to Su Kai, not to a water dispenser manager!"

Hua Shier slowly took off his coat, stretched his wrists and ankles, and walked onto the court. The moment he stepped onto the court, the somewhat dejected cheerleaders from No. 4 Middle School, especially his classmates who knew him, couldn't help but let out a murmur of discussion and anticipation.

Su Kai laughed on the field and said, "I thought we wouldn't need you anymore. Now that you're on the field, hurry up and do your best to leave the trophy with No. 4 Middle School!"

Hua Shier made an OK sign: "You guys just need to pass the ball to me later!"

As expected, Hua Shier took over the game in the following period, turning a fierce competition into his personal show.

Hua Shier's speed is astonishing, his breakthroughs are unstoppable, his shooting is incredibly accurate, whether it's a mid-range shot or a three-pointer, he makes them all with ease, and his passing is unpredictable, always finding teammates who are open.

The Experimental Middle School's defense was practically non-existent in front of him.

Hua Shier not only scored consecutive points, but also revitalized the entire team, quickly turning the tide of the game.

Lin Jiamo, sitting on the sidelines, was dumbfounded.

Her mouth was agape, her eyes fixed on the figure of her classmate, whom she had previously labeled as "Durian Mango," "unreliable," and the water dispenser manager.

His fluid movements and effortless, commanding presence were completely different from the composure of Su Kai and the passion of Zhao Ye that she had previously admired. It was a higher level of overwhelming, invincible power.

The resentment that had been building up against Hua Twelve because of the "foot-massaging" comments vanished like a balloon being punctured by a needle.

Instead, a complex emotion arose, a mixture of shock, admiration, and a barely perceptible flutter of excitement.

She suddenly realized that this Hua Twelve was far more capable and charming than she had imagined.

Seeing that Hua Shier's performance could not be stopped, the number 10 who had just committed the foul had other ideas.

When he broke through Hua's defense, he pretended to block the shot, then extended his right knee and aimed it at Hua's knee. This move was very subtle, clearly intended to cripple him.

But the next moment, when his knee, bent at a sharp angle, collided with the side of Hua Shier's knee as he ran, the number 10 player suddenly screamed, clutched his knee, and fell to the ground, screaming in pain.

After making contact, Hua Shier took a step and soared into the sky, leaping from the free-throw line and over the center of the Experimental Middle School, slamming the ball into the basket with a one-handed tomahawk dunk.

That dunk was so amazing that all the basketball enthusiasts in the audience, whether they were students from No. 4 Middle School or Experimental Middle School, stood up, their faces full of shock.

Lin Jiamo was so shocked she couldn't close her mouth. Was this her annoying deskmate? This was Rukawa Kaede!

No, Lin Jiamo immediately dismissed her own idea. Even in the NBA, few could pull off Hua Shier's dunk, so Rukawa Kaede was nothing special.

The way she looked at Hua Shier was different now. Only then did Lin Jiamo believe that the claim that Hua Shier was the best player was actually true.

At this moment, a commotion broke out behind Hua Shier, because number ten from the experimental middle school was still screaming in agony behind him.

The school doctor rushed over to examine the person and found that the person had a fracture in the knee and needed to go to the hospital immediately.

This caused an uproar at the Experimental Middle School, who believed that Hua Shier had intentionally injured someone. However, the Fourth Middle School had video footage of the incident, and the physical education teacher who recorded it played it back directly.

After watching the replay, the students from Experimental Middle School fell silent. In the replay, they clearly saw that it was their teammate, number 10, who aimed at Hua Shier's knee and crashed into him. It was obvious that he was deliberately trying to cripple him.

In this situation, who can he blame for his own broken bone?

Player number 10 was carried away. What no one knew was that the impact from Hua Shier would definitely not heal him properly, and he would have to walk with a limp from now on. He could forget about playing basketball again.

This was a lesson Hua Shier taught him for deliberately injuring someone, because such a person doesn't deserve to compete in sports.

Ultimately, led by Huashi No. 12, No. 4 Middle School not only won the game, but also dominated the second half by fifty points, winning the Nike Cup championship in the Beijing area.

On the podium, Su Kai raised the trophy high, and his teammates cheered. Hua Shier, however, simply stood in the corner, his face bearing his usual lazy smile, as if he hadn't been the one who had just dominated the field.

From that day on, Lin Jiamo's attitude towards Hua Shier underwent a complete 180-degree turn.

At lunchtime, she no longer went to sit at the same table as Zhao Ye and Chen Xun, but instead sat obediently in her own seat, took out her lunchbox, and occasionally glanced at the classroom door out of the corner of her eye, waiting for Hua Shier to return.

When Hua Shier leisurely strolled into the classroom and sat down to eat, Lin Jiamo would take the initiative to approach him and make conversation.

Lin Jiamo: "Hey, Hua Shier, you play basketball so cool! How did you do that behind-the-back dribble? Can you teach me?"

Hua Shier: "I'll teach you Iron Head Kung Fu!"

Lin Jiamo: "Do you want some water? If you're thirsty, you can drink mine first!"

Hua Twelve: "Did you soak goji berries?"

Lin Jiamo: "."

She not only switched sides herself, but also insisted on bringing Fang Hui along as well.

So, the lunch lineup changed again.

Hua Shier, Lin Jiamo, and Fang Hui became a fixed group at the table, while the original group of five became a group of three, leaving Zhao Ye and Chen Xun feeling depressed.

Looking at Hua Shier sitting opposite Lin Jiamo and Fang Hui, Zhao Ye felt a pang of jealousy and lost his appetite.

Chen Xun and Qiao Ran were also visibly sullen.

Chen Xun, in particular, felt uneasy watching Fang Hui sitting quietly next to Hua Shier. Although she still didn't say much, their natural interaction made him feel uneasy.

What annoyed Chen Xun even more was that one morning when he arrived at school early, he saw Hua Shier and Fang Hui riding their bikes to the school gate together, then tacitly separating and entering the campus one after the other.

This discovery was like a thorn stuck in his heart.

So they went to school together every day?
How far has things progressed between Fang Hui and Hua Shier?

An anger of being kept in the dark and excluded, mixed with resentment at being threatened by Fang Hui's vague sense of affection, fermented in Chen Xun's heart.

One night, driven by an irresistible impulse, he sneaked back to school and, using his familiarity with the terrain, climbed through a window into an empty classroom.

The next morning, the first few students to arrive at school saw five glaring characters on the blackboard as soon as they entered the classroom:
Fang Hui loves Chen Xun!

The news spread like wildfire throughout the class.

When Fang Hui walked into the classroom with her schoolbag on her back, she was met with all sorts of strange looks, whispers, and undisguised pointing and whispering.

Her face turned deathly pale instantly, as if the blood rushed to her head and then receded just as quickly, leaving only a cold numbness.

Those gazes and those discussions were like keys, instantly unlocking the dark door in the depths of her heart that she had tried to lock forever.

The unbearable memories of being harassed by thugs, isolated by classmates, and hurt by rumors during junior high school flooded back like a tidal wave, instantly engulfing her.

She stood frozen in place, feeling the air around her thicken and grow cold. Everything before her eyes began to blur and spin, and the whole world seemed to consist only of boundless darkness and suffocating despair.

She was like a soulless sculpture, motionless, even her fingertips trembling slightly.

Just as she felt she was about to be completely swallowed by the darkness, a strong and warm hand firmly grasped her cold hand.

It is Hua Twelve.

He appeared beside her without her noticing. His palms were dry and warm, and the power transmitted through her skin was like a strong beam of light, suddenly tearing through the heavy darkness that enveloped her, forcefully pulling her back from that cold and desperate inner world.

Hua Shier didn't ask anything, but simply tightened his grip on her hand, his gaze sweeping over the line of words on the blackboard, his eyes instantly turning cold. He pulled Fang Hui, who seemed like a puppet on a string, through the complicated gazes of the crowd, and walked straight back to their seats, letting her sit down.

Then, he turned around and strode toward Chen Xun, who was sitting in his seat and whose expression was also somewhat unnatural.

Under the watchful eyes of the entire class, Hua Shier walked up to Chen Xun, and without any further words, raised his hand and delivered a crisp slap to Chen Xun's face.

The classroom was deathly silent.

Hua Shier stared at Chen Xun, whose head had been turned to the side by the blow. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling undertone:

"Was that fun? If you do something this silly again, I'll slap you."

Chen Xun covered his face, turned his head sharply, his eyes filled with anger, humiliation and a hint of panic at being exposed, but he clenched his teeth and remained silent.

At this moment, Men Lingcao, who had always secretly loved Chen Xun, jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, rushed to Hua Shier, and screamed:

"Hua Shier, what are you doing! Why are you hitting me! How do you know it was Chen Xun who wrote it?!"

Hua Shier didn't even glance at Men Lingcao; his gaze remained fixed on Chen Xun's face. He pointed at Chen Xun, and addressed Men Lingcao, and also the entire class:
"Let him tell you for himself whether he did it or not."

Facing Hua Shier's icy gaze and feeling the stares of all his classmates, Chen's cheeks burned with pain, his pride trampled into the ground. He opened his mouth, wanting to deny it, but under Hua Shier's all-seeing eyes and faced with that clear accusation, he ultimately couldn't utter a word, only stubbornly turning his head away.

His silence was almost tantamount to an admission.

But Menlingcao persisted, crying out:

"It wasn't him! He didn't write it! Hua Shier, you're framing me!"

Chen Xun's pent-up anger and shame finally erupted at this moment. He shoved aside the doorbell grass blocking his way and roared, "Who asked you to meddle! Get out of my way!"

Men Lingcao stumbled as she was pushed, staring at Chen Xun in disbelief, tears welling up instantly.

Chen Xun didn't look at anyone else, grabbed his schoolbag, lowered his head, and rushed out of the classroom.

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