A Beijing socialite stole my boyfriend; she went crazy after I got married.

Jiang Chu was still annoyed by her own nonsense, but she was stunned when she heard this.

Jiang Chu: "...Do you think this is fair?"

Xie Jing crossed his arms. "In weight-based events, the lighter you are, the more advantageous you are. So, you're still the one who benefits from me."

Jiang Chu narrowed her eyes. "You can't calculate it like that, can you?"

Xie Jing looked at her defiant expression, and the smile in his eyes deepened.

"Why not?" he said slowly. "Do you weigh a hundred pounds? I weigh more than twice as much as you. For every extra person I do, I'm carrying one more person's weight than you. Isn't that an advantage?"

Jiang Chu opened her mouth, "You're twice as thick as me, isn't it normal to bring one more person along?"

Xie Jing nodded. "So what you just said about being able to do it was just bragging."

Jiang Chu's lips twitched. "Of course I can do it! Any one of my classmates could do it, but—"

Xie Jing gave him an understanding look.

Jiang Chu: "..."

She was acutely aware that this was a poorly executed attempt to provoke her.

But she couldn't help but fall into the trap.

Jiang Chu: "...Fine, let's compete. Don't cry if you lose."

Xie Jing looked down at her. "Of course. You set the rules. Forehand, backhand, one-handed, two-handed, it's up to you."

Jiang Chu hesitated for a few seconds, trying to come up with some tricky rules, but that would only make things difficult for herself.

"One chin over the cue," she said helplessly. "A standard forehand will do."

Xie Jing nodded readily, slightly raising his chin. "Shall we begin?"

Jiang Chu stared at the thick iron pole for two seconds, then dragged a small vaulting box from the side, stood on tiptoe, and stepped onto it, just touching the pole.

"Wait a minute," Xie Jing suddenly said, "What's the bet on in the competition?"

Jiang Chu coughed lightly, "No need, after all you've given me so many things, how could I possibly take yours again? I'll consider it a win—"

Xie Jing looked at her with a half-smile.

Jiang Chu: "...Even if you win, it will just be a friendly and harmonious exchange of skills. There's no need for all those fancy tricks."

Xie Jing looked at her sly little expression and chuckled softly, "I want to get some, what should I do?"

Jiang Chu felt a chill run down her spine from his gaze. "Well... you win first, then we'll talk."

Damn.

Why are you still making threats!

Why can't I control my mouth?!

Xie Jing smiled and said, "Okay."

The pull-up bar is wide enough that two people can easily grip it side-by-side.

They were less than half a meter apart.

Jiang Chu turned her head slightly, feeling the heat emanating from the man's body, as well as the lingering scent of shower gel and laundry detergent.

Xie Jing turned to look at her. "Ready?"

Those dark eyes reflected the warm light from the overhead lamp, like two stars submerged in deep water.

Jiang Chu nodded silently.

The pole felt cold to the touch and was thicker than she had imagined.

Her hands weren't big; when you clasped them, the fingertips barely gripped the opposite side, and the grip was about shoulder-width apart.

Xie Jing didn't use anything to help him; he simply raised his hand and gripped the iron bar. His grip was much wider than hers, with about 70 or 80 centimeters between his hands.

His fingers were long and strong, easily and completely enveloping the thick iron rod in his palm.

"Three. Two. One."

Jiang Chu's feet left the vaulting box.

She steadied her swaying body and then began to pull upwards with force.

First.

It paused at the highest point for less than half a second, then slowly descended.

With arms fully extended and hanging, perform a full standard pull-up.

At the same time, a muffled sigh was heard from the side.

Jiang Chu glanced to her left out of the corner of her eye.

Compared to her, his ascent was much smoother, with almost no unnecessary swaying throughout.

His tall, strong body seemed to be pulled upwards by an invisible force, from the lowest point to the highest point, cleanly and efficiently, in one go.

The veins on his forearms became even more prominent under the pressure of gripping the bar, winding from his wrist to his elbow like coiled dragons and snakes.

Jiang Chu refocused and continued working.

After doing a few more, her breathing began to become rapid.

Each pull-up seemed to burn much more calories than the last, my arms started to ache, and my palms felt a burning stinging sensation from the friction.

The man next to her was breathing much more steadily than she was, his exhalations low, hoarse, and restrained.

Jiang Chu quickly lost her rhythm and began to pull with brute force, panting as her chin passed the bar.

As she turned her head, Xie Jing happened to be looking over as well.

He looked at her cheeks, slightly flushed from exertion, at the fine beads of sweat on her forehead, at her bitten lower lip, and at her stubborn, unyielding eyes.

"Is it alright?"

The man's voice was deep, with a hint of panting and laughter.

Jiang Chu was almost speechless.

But she decided that even if she didn't want to win, she wanted to prove herself, so she squeezed out three words with all her might.

"Enough with the nonsense—"

Xie Jing chuckled softly and slowly descended.

His laughter lingered in Jiang Chu's ears for a few seconds, like a feather gently tickling her eardrum.

Jiang Chu almost lost her grip.

She took a deep breath and tried her best to do another one.

The soreness spread from my upper arm to my shoulder, and my body began to sway uncontrollably. My core strength was trying its best to keep it stable, but the swaying was getting bigger and bigger.

As she descended, her fingers slipped on the iron bar.

The sweat on her palms made the grip extremely unstable, forcing her to pause at the bottom for an extra second to readjust her grip.

Jiang Chu looked up at the person next to her.

Xie Jing's speed was slightly slower than at the beginning, but the quality of each one was still impeccable—smooth ascent, pause at the top, and controllable descent.

Moreover, this is a fatal angle.

She could see the complete outline of his jawline and Adam's apple, a small puddle of sweat accumulating in his collarbone, and the two pectoral muscles at the neckline of his vest rising and falling with his breathing.

His abdomen would tighten sharply with each pull, stretching the fabric of his vest like a second layer of skin, revealing the clear outline of his six-pack abs.

As it descends, those muscles slowly relax, like rocks exposed after the tide recedes.

A bead of sweat fell from the man's chin and landed on the floor mat between them.

Jiang Chu suddenly came to her senses.

She pulled one more with all her might.

His chin was about three centimeters away from the pole.

Just a little bit.

Jiang Chu clenched her teeth, and the veins in her neck bulged out.

But her body froze at that height, as if she had hit an invisible wall.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't go up those last three centimeters.

Her forearm began to spasm.

One by one, the fingers slipped off the iron bar.

When her foot landed on the vaulting box, her legs went weak, she stumbled, and almost fell.

Jiang Chu quickly reached out and grabbed the support pillar next to her to steady herself.

She was breathing heavily.

My entire arm was shaking, and the muscles on the inside of my forearm were so sore that I almost lost all feeling in them.

And someone nearby—

After she fell, he calmly did three more.

Each one was so clean and neat, so perfect it made you want to curse.

Then he let go and jumped down from a height of more than two meters.

The sound of it landing was dull and steady.

He didn't even stumble; as soon as his feet touched the ground, he stood firmly on his feet.

Jiang Chugang had just come down from the vaulting box and was leaning against the pillar, panting heavily.

Xie Jing turned around and took a step toward her.

His breathing was heavier than usual, and his chest was rising and falling more.

His vest was slightly damp with sweat, clinging to his chest and abdominal muscles, the fabric turning a darker gray, almost becoming translucent.

A few strands of the man's sideburns were damp with sweat and stuck to his temples.

On that cold and deep face, there was an extremely rare, almost languid and dangerous sensuality.

As he walked towards her, Jiang Chu smelled the scent on him that had become stronger due to exercise.

—The scent of oak-based incense and shower gel, dry, warm skin, and a certain hormonal aroma that makes her heart race.

Xie Jing stopped in front of her.

He leaned down slightly, his voice low and husky, "The loser should pay the bill."