Lin Xinyuan suddenly felt an icy chill run down the back of his neck, goosebumps rising all over him, startling him so much he almost stood up.
He struggled to shake off the yellow-haired guy’s hand, his almond-shaped eyes wide open, ready to give him a hard slap.
But just as he swung his hand out, it was blocked by that big hand.
Qin Nanfeng chuckled, “Noticed you were drowning in your gloomy thoughts again, so I thought I’d clear your head a bit! How’s that? Effective, right?”
Lin Xinyuan rolled his eyes, utterly speechless. “Alright, alright, stop messing with me. I’m really annoyed right now!”
Saying that, he withdrew his hand, looking like he was giving up. Qin Nanfeng also relaxed his grip, seemingly lowering his guard.
Suddenly, a soft, pale hand struck back, heading straight for the back of Lin Xinyuan’s neck.
Just as it was about to reach its target, Lin Xinyuan unexpectedly blocked it.
“You…” Lin Xinyuan was frustrated. He had wanted to catch Qin off guard, but the annoying yellow-haired guy had anticipated it all along. Since he failed, he could only sulkily pull back his hand.
“Tsk tsk tsk… you’re too inexperienced,” Qin Nanfeng sneered. It was unclear whether he was mocking Lin Xinyuan’s attempt or something else…
“Hmph…” Lin Xinyuan turned his head, refusing to look at the yellow-haired guy anymore. He wanted to fall silent again, but this guy clearly wasn’t going to give him any peace, continuously teasing him until he was utterly annoyed.
In such an atmosphere, time seemed to drag on endlessly for Lin Xinyuan, though in reality, it hadn’t been long before their group was finally called.
“Group Three boys, come over and get ready!” From afar, Baldy Li blew his whistle and shouted.
Hearing this, Lin Xinyuan quickly got up and walked away like escaping from hell. That yellow-haired guy had been so hateful, stubbornly holding him back just now. Finally, this torment would end!
But obviously, Lin Xinyuan was premature in his joy, because the upcoming one-thousand-meter run was going to be torture for him as well.
Forget finishing it within five minutes—if he could just complete the run, it would be a victory.
With his weak physical condition, now worse than before, he was already in the lower ranks even among the girls. Being asked to run a thousand meters made Lin Xinyuan feel like he might collapse halfway.
But there was no choice—he had to grit his teeth and go for it.
Standing at the starting line, Lin Xinyuan sighed. What used to be a trivial one-thousand-meter run now made his legs tremble just looking at the track.
He glanced at the yellow-haired guy beside him, who looked relaxed and carefree…
Forget it… the more he looked, the more annoyed he felt.
“Ready—go!”
With Baldy Li’s command, everyone on the track started running along the innermost lane.
Before completing a full lap, just after halfway around, Lin Xinyuan already felt like he couldn’t hold on.
After one lap, he was gasping for breath. Looking at Qin Nanfeng beside him, running easily in step, the contrast was glaring.
“A few days off and you’ve gotten this bad? Want Daddy to come carry you?” Qin Nanfeng mocked in his usual sarcastic tone, making Lin Xinyuan want to kick him down on the spot.
But clearly, he was barely managing to keep himself upright, and even speaking felt like a luxury. He could only try to conserve his strength, refusing to give up too soon.
Like this, the distance between the two and the rest of the group widened. By the time everyone else finished, Lin Xinyuan hadn’t even completed the second lap.
“Almost there, keep it up!”
Qin Nanfeng showed no intention of helping, only offering encouragement when Lin Xinyuan was about to give up—but the encouragement felt tinged with mockery.
Lin Xinyuan felt like his legs were no longer his own. His head swam, his body wobbled, and his throat burned as if it were being torn apart.
All he could see was the red rubber track, his vision blurry. He had no idea how long he had been running until he heard Baldy Li’s voice: “Number six, five minutes forty seconds; number seven, five minutes forty-one seconds.”
Lin Xinyuan almost collapsed but was caught by Qin Nanfeng beside him. His legs ached fiercely, he was out of breath, and felt as if one breathless moment away from meeting Buddha Tathagata.
Baldy Li finished recording the results and approached, holding a sheet. He first turned to Qin Nanfeng with a sharp look, glaring at the young man holding up Lin Xinyuan.
“Qin Nanfeng, what’s your problem this time? Stirring up trouble again?”
Qin Nanfeng chuckled. With no one else around, he showed no respect: “Old man Li, I’m just helping a classmate. Look at how exhausted he is!” He gestured at the figure he was holding.
“Old man, respect your elders! How many times have I told you, ‘Teacher, teacher!’? If you keep this up, next time I’ll tell your family,” Baldy Li scolded, blowing his whistle and glaring.
“Please do, Teacher Li,” Qin Nanfeng replied indifferently. He knew Baldy Li was joking, but even if he did tell his family, it wouldn’t matter.
Seeing this, Baldy Li shook his head and sighed inwardly. He knew that Qin Nanfeng’s relationship with his old classmates was poor these past few years, though he didn’t know the details.
In the end, Baldy Li said no more. He looked at Lin Xinyuan, still being supported by Qin Nanfeng:
“Lin Xinyuan, huh… so exhausted… Qin Nanfeng, take your classmate to rest properly. Don’t sit or lie down immediately. And exercise more in the future. Even though the final long-distance running score won’t determine pass or fail, it still accounts for a significant part of the grade.”
With that, Baldy Li left directly. The long-distance running practice wasn’t over yet; he still had to oversee the girls’ eight hundred meters.
But just as he walked away, the two faintly heard his mumbling: “I thought it was a girl…” Then it became indistinct.
“………”
“Let’s go, don’t stop. Move around, don’t sit down immediately.”
“Okay…”
After the girls finished their night long-distance running training and everyone had rested a while, Baldy Li led them to review Tai Chi movements, marking the end of Physical Education class.
At Baldy Li’s signal, everyone scattered like birds and beasts. Lin Xinyuan and Qin Nanfeng prepared to go to the cafeteria for a meal before returning to the dorm.
Recently, Lin Xinyuan had been going to the cafeteria more often because several new stalls opened at the small cafeteria, offering more choices that suited his taste.
Walking to the cafeteria, Lin Xinyuan’s legs still ached, and his throat felt scratchy. More than an hour had passed, yet he hadn’t fully recovered from the intense exercise, though the discomfort had lessened.
His body was terrible now…
Especially since the changes weren’t over. If this continued, things would probably get worse…
Lin Xinyuan couldn’t understand. Before, his physical condition as a boy wasn’t great, but because he ran often, it wasn’t bad. How did it become worse than many girls after his transformation?
“Eh…” Lin Xinyuan exhaled, genuinely happy that Physical Education class was over, but thinking about the coming weeks made him feel discouraged.
“Heh heh, what’s wrong? Still not recovered? You were short before, now you’re even shorter and your physical condition’s gone downhill?” Qin Nanfeng drew close to the small figure and whispered.
The young man’s conspiratorial tone made Lin Xinyuan feel like he had committed some unforgivable sin…
But regardless of anything else, though he was drained from exercise, Qin Nanfeng’s words alone annoyed him enough to snap back, “You! Are you not happy unless you insult me?”
“Good! You’re spirited!” Qin Nanfeng mimicked a famous mischievous expression, answering irrelevantly before raising his eyebrows. “Just asking if you’re lively or not?”
Lin Xinyuan thought this guy was both obnoxious and childish. Just as he was about to retort, a voice behind them interrupted his words…