“Ding Ling—”
The silent classroom was suddenly disrupted, and many heads turned towards the source of the sound. Ying Huan quickly lowered her head and silenced her phone. Her phone had run out of battery earlier, so she borrowed Zhong Weiwei’s power bank to charge it. After the phone automatically turned on, it made a sound.
With the heavy workload of their final year of high school and less than a hundred days until the college entrance exam, everyone glanced at the source of the sound and then turned back to bury their heads in their studies.
A message popped up on WeChat. Ying Huan opened it and saw that it was from her younger brother, Ying Chi, sent a little after seven o’clock:
【Sis, can you pick me and the prize money up after evening self-study!!!】
Three exclamation marks indicated that Ying Chi had an eighty percent chance of winning the prize money.
Ying Huan cursed inwardly, “That brat is skipping class again!” She checked the time. There were a few minutes left until self-study ended. She quickly packed up her various papers and exercises, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and hurried towards the back door as soon as the bell rang. Passing by the next classroom, she casually placed the power bank on Zhong Weiwei’s desk through the window. “I’m leaving now.”
Zhong Weiwei looked up at her, understanding dawning in her eyes. “Is your brother skipping class again to compete?”
Ying Huan nodded. “Yeah, if he went home alone in this state today, he’d probably get beaten up. I have to go keep an eye on him. He said there’s prize money tonight.” Her eyes brightened slightly as she spoke, and she smiled, then waved her hand and hurried away.
The so-called competition was an underground boxing match. According to the rules, winning the match would earn the fighter prize money, and Ying Chi had been competing for half a year already.
Ying Huan squeezed onto the subway, found a seat, and placed her black backpack on her lap. Her teeth weren’t aligned properly, especially her two incisors, which hadn’t grown straight. She habitually pressed her tongue against them, trying to flatten them.
Hooking her fingers around the backpack strap, lips pursed, she licked her little pointed teeth habitually. She lit up her phone screen to check the time, wondering if Ying Chi had finished his match yet.
At that moment, the atmosphere in the boxing club was heated. Ying Chi, clad in blue boxing shorts, leaned against the edge of the ring, panting slightly. He tilted his head back to let someone tend to the cut above his eyebrow. The final match of the night was already underway, and it was currently a one-minute break.
He was a handsome boy with fair, cold skin and peach blossom eyes. Even a small injury on him stood out conspicuously.
The coach raised a water bottle, and Ying Chi obediently tilted his head to let him pour some water in. Glancing down at the crowd below, the coach knew what he was looking at and grumbled to himself, wondering why this guy was so fixated on his sister. He slapped him on the shoulder forcefully, “Your sister isn’t here. Focus on the match. There’s one round left, and if nobody challenges you, the twenty thousand yuan prize money is yours.”
Ying Chi nodded.
He had studied free combat for over a year in his first year of junior high, and this boxing club was where he had learned. It was said that the underground matches were organized because the club was running at a loss. Each match had a betting pool, and anyone could participate by paying an entry fee. The competition cycle was biweekly, with last week’s winner having the opportunity to win twenty thousand yuan if they won again this week, provided no one challenged them.
In the least noticeable corner of the audience, three people sat. Xu Jingyu lounged lazily in his chair, half-heartedly watching the ring without much interest.
Zhou Baohao nodded towards Ying Chi. “How does he seem to you?”
Xu Jingyu shifted his posture, crossing his legs as he heard his coach, Wu Qi, say, “Around 180cm tall, probably not more than 70 kilograms in weight, good arm span, powerful punches with a high accuracy rate. His physical condition fits the requirements for the 69-kilogram weight class, which our team currently lacks.” He paused for a moment. “However… his opponent is weaker, and he currently has the advantage. I wonder how he’ll react when facing a strong opponent.”
Boxing requires athletes to have high demands in terms of strength, speed, agility, coordination, and equally important, psychological resilience.
Zhou Baohao raised an eyebrow and smiled, patting Xu Jingyu on the shoulder. “That’s simple, let our King Jing give it a try.”
Xu Jingyu immediately refused, “I’m not going. If you want to, you go.”
The one-minute break ended, and the final round began.
There was no suspense; Ying Chi won.
After the performance of the boxing baby wearing a revealing outfit, as was customary, the host livened up the atmosphere: “Is there anyone in the audience who wants to challenge? Successfully challenge, and the ten thousand yuan prize money will be yours.”
The audience cheered continuously, looking around in hopes that someone would step up to challenge, igniting the next wave of excitement in the match.
Ying Chi stood on the stage, his peach blossom eyes smiling warmly, a very welcoming expression as if inviting a brave challenger. In fact, he had just beaten his opponent to a bloody pulp; ordinary people wouldn’t dare challenge him easily.
He felt extremely pleased: Ah, just waiting for my sister to come pick me up with the prize money. Tonight is really great.
Wu Qi nudged Xu Jingyu’s shoulder. “You go, give it a try.”
Xu Jingyu knew Wu Qi had his eye on Ying Chi. He could refuse Zhou Baohao, but he couldn’t refuse the coach. He moved his fingers and stood up when the host asked for challengers for the third time, raising his hand casually.
The host immediately excitedly pointed in his direction. “Ah, it looks like someone wants to challenge.”
As soon as the words fell, everyone turned their heads, looking towards the corner of the audience seats. All the lights in the club gathered on the boxing ring, with the audience seats becoming darker the further back they went, and he happened to be standing in the darkest corner.
Under the gaze of the audience, the tall figure in the red baseball jersey walked step by step towards the center, the blurry silhouette gradually becoming clear. His unexpectedly handsome and youthful face, at most twenty years old, with short hair cut very close to the scalp, a hairstyle that really tested one’s facial features and face shape, which most people couldn’t pull off. His eyes were beautifully shaped single eyelids, with deep black irises, sharp and piercing. Glancing at the boxing ring, he smiled calmly, “I’ll give it a try.”
Ying Chi stopped smiling. Looking at Xu Jingyu, his gaze was full of scrutiny. After a few seconds, he smiled, “Welcome.”
Xu Jingyu glanced at him and went to change clothes with the staff.
He picked a red boxing suit. After warming up, he put on his robe and jogged out. Stopping beside the ring, he took off the robe, revealing his slender and muscular body. He stretched his arms, and with each movement, every muscle was activated, undulating as if alive. The muscles on his arms were particularly strong, showing obvious strength.
He stepped onto the edge of the ring, and the staff lifted the ropes. He bent down and got in.
In the audience seats, a girl whispered, “Wow, his body is so damn good! Makes you want to commit a crime.”
“Typical ‘looks thin in clothes, but has muscles when naked’. Why do I feel like he looks familiar?”
“Hmph, you find handsome guys familiar. You even said Ying Chi looked familiar last time.”
“Ying Chi is still underage, wouldn’t dare to harm the country’s flowers… this one is different.”
…
On the boxing ring, Xu Jingyu stood face to face
Xu Jingyu naturally said, “Zhou Baohao.”
Zhou Baohao: “…”
He looked towards the boxing ring and couldn’t help but curse, “Idiot.”
Wu Qi chuckled and said, “Xiao Zhou, don’t be angry. He’s an active-duty athlete. He still has to participate in matches in the future. Using an alias is also good, it’ll be easier to disclaim later…”
Only Xu Jingyu dared to use the boss’s name because of his good relationship with Zhou Baohao. If it were someone else, who would dare?
Zhou Baohao: “Heh, is my name an alias?”
Wu Qi: “…”
On the boxing ring, Xu Jingyu and Ying Chi walked to the center, looking at each other, each with their own thoughts. Xu Jingyu was thinking about how to test and provoke him, while Ying Chi was thinking about not losing the prize money, not even hearing what the referee said clearly.
They fist bumped and then stepped back, and the match officially began.
The audience below started speculating—
“Who do you think will win? Red or blue? The one in blue is the recent undefeated boxer, looks like a pretty boy, but when he throws punches, it’s very aggressive, and he has strong explosive power.”
“I guess the one in red. His presence is much stronger, it feels like he’s a king just standing in the ring.”
“It’s definitely Zhou Baohao. He has the advantage in height, weight, and arm span. His gaze is also more fierce. He exudes a temperament that only professional boxers in professional matches have. Ying Chi is a bit lacking in comparison. I bet on Zhou Baohao to win!”
In the first round, Xu Jingyu didn’t initiate attacks, but Ying Chi’s assault was fierce, making it seem like Xu Jingyu was being pushed back continuously with no strength to fight back.
The audience below cheered continuously. Tonight, most people bet on Ying Chi to win. Some even rushed to the stage shouting, “Ying Chi, come on! Don’t be timid! Just go for it! KO him!”
Ying Chi stared at “Zhou Baohao” intently, then threw another powerful punch from close range. The speed and accuracy of the punch were excellent, but Xu Jingyu reacted faster, tilting his waist back quickly to dodge.
His boxing style was somewhat strange. Sometimes, he could clearly throw punches or defend, but he deliberately took Ying Chi’s heavy punches.
At the end of the first round, Ying Chi won, but his face was dark. Because this person wasn’t taking the match seriously at all, constantly throwing punches at him without any real effort. Was he observing his boxing style? Or was he despising him? Regardless of the reason, being restrained by the opponent felt frustrating, and he began to feel pressured.
At the end of the third round, some spectators also noticed that Xu Jingyu seemed to be toying with Ying Chi. His waist and abdominal strength were excellent, dodging Ying Chi’s punches from different angles several times. In the last minute of the third round, Xu Jingyu started to counterattack, forcing Ying Chi to the ropes with a series of combinations.
Wu Qi frowned, “His defense is not good, and he’s consuming too much energy. He probably won’t be able to break free.”
Zhou Baohao smiled, “He’s still young, inexperienced, and without a coach’s guidance. This performance is already not bad…”
As soon as he finished speaking, Ying Chi suddenly broke free.
Wu Qi raised his eyebrows somewhat unexpectedly.
…
Forty minutes later, Ying Huan rushed to the club’s entrance. She stood under the big tree at the entrance, placed her backpack on the grass, took off her school uniform, and stuffed it into the backpack. She pulled out her hair tie, letting her slightly curled long hair fall around her waist, thick and jet black. Then, she bent over and rolled up the cuffs of her blue-striped school pants, revealing slender and clear ankles.
Fluidly completing these actions, as if undergoing a transformation, she picked up her backpack from the grass and briskly walked towards the club’s entrance.
The security guard at the gate obviously knew her. He glanced her up and down, saying unkindly, “Don’t think that rolling up your pants cuffs will make me not recognize the uniform pants of First High School. My daughter also goes to First High School! The school uniform pants are hung on the balcony every day!”
Ying Huan: “…”
She bent over again, pulling up the pants cuffs by another inch, revealing a glimpse of her slender white leg. Then, she lifted her white thin sweater, tied it on one side, revealing a section of her slender and clear waist. After that, she looked up at him, “Can I go in now?”
The security guard waved his hand impatiently, “Hurry up and go in. If you wear a school uniform next time, I won’t let you in.”
Ying Huan smiled gratefully and immediately ran inside.
As soon as she entered, she heard the crowd in the stands shouting loudly, “Ah, he got KO’d.”
Ying Huan couldn’t help but smile. Was Ying Chi really that good? She looked up at the boxing ring and saw a motionless young man lying on the ring, wearing blue shorts. She widened her eyes in astonishment and quickly walked through the stands towards the boxing ring.
The blue robe and shorts were bought by her two months ago. Ying Chi liked them very much and wore them for every match.
The referee announced the result of the match: “Zhou Baohao wins.”
Zhou Baohao? Ying Huan looked at the man standing with his back to her on the boxing ring, confirming that it was the first time she heard this name here. Was he really that good?
On the boxing ring, the man in red shorts squatted down in front of Ying Chi, seemingly saying something. Ying Chi raised his hand to cover his forehead, propped himself up, and said something back. Then the man stood up and left.
The coach and medical staff carried the medical kit and went up to the ring. Ying Huan followed them onto the steps and bent down, stepping onto the ring before them. She squatted down in front of Ying Chi, threw away her backpack, and looked at her brother, who was beaten into a daze, his face covered in blood. She couldn’t help but furrow her brows. This was the most beaten up Ying Chi had been.
“Feeling dizzy?”
Ying Chi nodded, “A little.”
Ying Huan patted his shoulder, “Lie down.”
Ying Chi obediently lay down. Xu Jingyu’s punch was too heavy, and he still felt dizzy. Ying Huan turned around, grabbed the medical kit, took out the hydrogen peroxide, and washed the dirt off his eyebrow bone and forehead, then wiped it dry. After that, she applied some gentian violet and checked his nose and earlobes.
She was very skilled, and the coach and medical staff were already used to it. Every time Ying Chi was injured, Ying Huan personally took care of it. This little girl didn’t know where she learned it from, but her handling of boxing match injuries was comparable to the medical staff they hired.
Making sure there were no major issues, she took out an ice pack and applied it to his forehead.
Another ice pack was pressed against his cochlea. “Press it yourself, a little harder.”
Ying Chi shivered, feeling much more awake immediately. He blinked, looking pitifully at Ying Huan, “Sis, we lost the prize money.”
Ying Huan half-knelt on the edge of the ring, glanced at the beaten-up Ying Chi, and quietly removed his gloves and bandages. She comforted him softly, “As long as you’re okay.”
Ying Chi held his ear with one hand and gave his other hand to Ying Huan, continuing to complain, “My nose was almost broken.”
Ying Huan checked his hands and found that they were trembling slightly, obviously from the intense competition earlier, and exerting too much force. She felt somewhat helpless, her voice soft and gentle like soothing a kindergarten child, “It’s not broken, it’s still fine. It’ll be better in a few days.”
“Zhou Baohao must have more experience than me, he must be a professional.” The young man, unwilling to admit defeat, sighed deeply, his face full of frustration.
“Yeah, right,” Ying Huan said.
Little did they know, it wasn’t Zhou Baohao who KO’d Ying Chi; it was Xu Jingyu, who had stolen Zhou Baohao’s identity.
The people nearby were at a loss for words. The siblings were only a year apart in age, and Ying Chi wasn’t usually so childish. Why did he act like a three-year-old when he was with his sister?
Xu Jingyu came out after changing his clothes and met the club’s manager at the door. The manager smiled and said, “Mr. Zhou, about your prize money…”
“I don’t want the prize money,” Xu Jingyu interrupted him. He didn’t go on stage for the sake of that ten thousand yuan prize money.
The manager was stunned. “Don’t want it?”
“No, give it to whoever deserves it.”
With his hands in his pockets, Xu Jingyu dropped those words and left.
He remembered the kid lying on the ring just now, muttering with his eyes blackened, “My prize money…”
Feeling somewhat speechless, he rubbed his shaved head.
As he walked out of the corridor and glanced towards the ring, he saw a fair-skinned girl with her waist and legs exposed, taking care of Ying Chi’s injuries. He didn’t see her face clearly, but he could tell that she was skilled. His gaze paused on her school uniform pants and recognized them as the uniform of First High School.
Still a high school student.
Are high school students nowadays all this wild, even wearing their school uniforms?
Author’s note:
Ying Xiaohuan: Where’s my prize money? Where’s my twenty thousand yuan?
Ying Chi: Ask him!
Xu Jingyu: …
