Chapter 0065: Zhou Zhexiao, Offensive Kaleidoscope

Xia Chiyi didn’t know what everyone was shouting about. Were they laughing at his cross-dressing for being too unprofessional, so comical that it gave him away at a glance?

Zhou Zhexiao’s thumb gently squeezed the back of Xia Chiyi’s hand, as if saying to him, “Don’t be nervous.”

When Xia Chiyi sat down properly in his seat, he let out a breath. As long as he sat in the right place, he hadn’t made a mistake.

“Xia Chiyi… you’re wrong, the bride sits on the right! The bride sits on the right…” the Class Monitor’s voice came over.

The classmates around them who were preparing to sing and dance also reminded him in low voices: “Wrong, wrong! Xia Chiyi, sit on the chair next to it!”

The students in the audience also let out a burst of roaring laughter.

Xia Chiyi really wanted to beat himself up. He almost forgot that he was currently the “bride.” His mind was entirely immersed in the groom’s position he had seen in TV dramas.

The transition music was currently playing, so Xia Chiyi hurriedly lifted his skirt and stood up. He wasn’t wearing any wig or headpiece, so there was no friction, and seeing that the bridal veil was about to fall off again, he raised his hand to hold the veil down. As a result, the hem of his skirt fell down, and he stepped on it when he stood up…

No way, is this an unavoidable dramatic life?

“Oh—”

Another wave of exclamations came from the audience, making Xia Chiyi suspect if he had already face-planted.

One hand reached behind his back, and the other wrapped around the back of his knees. With a single lift, he was picked up.

Screams rose and fell in the stands.

“Who is the bride?! Who on earth is the bride? To actually be carried by Zhou Zhexiao!”

“So alpha! Don’t stop, don’t stop, just carry her like this, I can watch until the cultural performance ends!”

“Zhou Zhexiao is carrying the bride so effortlessly; she’s like a feather in his arms! This is true boyfriend power!”

Xia Chiyi was completely dazed.

What happened? Why does it feel like I’m moving without walking?

Where’s the chair?

Just as Xia Chiyi was about to struggle, he heard Zhou Zhexiao’s voice saying “Don’t move” dropping from above his head.

Xia Chiyi immediately didn’t dare to move a muscle, until his back rested against the back of another chair, his legs were lowered, and his feet touched the floor of the stage.

He didn’t know how to exhale the breath held in his chest, and even more sweat broke out on his back.

Waves of clamor sounded from the audience, but Zhou Zhexiao remained completely unmoved.

All of Zhou Zhexiao’s hair was tucked into his hat, revealing his forehead and facial features. His expression was composed, and under the illumination of the lights, his eyes looked as if liquid glass was flowing within them. He had no makeup on his face, yet possessed an aesthetic appeal that drew everyone’s gaze.

With delayed realization, Xia Chiyi recognized that he had just been carried by Zhou Zhexiao.

Even though it was only a single step between the two chairs.

The students in the audience had already entered discussion mode.

“Isn’t Zhou Zhexiao too handsome? Usually, with his icy demeanor, I don’t even dare to take a second look at him.”

“Hahaha, now that he’s on stage, we can look all we want.”

“He really is the most handsome groom in the history of Ningchang University!”

Many people took out their phones and snapped pictures to their hearts’ content.

“Then who is the bride beside Zhou Zhexiao? Her face is covered by the bridal veil, so we can’t see!”

“Zhou Zhexiao is about 1.94 meters tall, right?”

“Wow… then the bride must be played by a guy. If a girl sat down, she probably wouldn’t even reach Zhou Zhexiao’s shoulder!”

“He’s definitely taller than that now, right? My boyfriend is 1.82 meters tall, and when he passes by him, he suddenly looks like he’s 1.7 meters.”

“That was his height before enrollment, right? He must have grown by now! So who is the bride next to him?”

Everyone entered Sherlock Holmes mode.

The first to be ruled out was Ye Zhaoying. This guy was wearing a suit, holding a camera, and gleefully taking pictures of Zhou Zhexiao.

“Do we even need to guess? I saw the basketball shoes the bride revealed when she lifted her skirt!”

“Basketball shoes? If it’s not Ye Zhaoying, then it must be Xia Chiyi!”

“I’m going crazy, is my baby Chiyi getting married? Mommy hasn’t even prepared a dowry for you yet!”

“The most highly anticipated ship of our Economics and Management Department actually got married today?”

Xia Chiyi sat on the stage with his back straight, his mind buzzing.

The music had already started. Surrounding him were opera vocals, and the shadows of water sleeves constantly swept across the floor, but Xia Chiyi couldn’t feel any of it.

He felt like he had been placed in a sealed little jar, simmering over low heat. A certain indescribable feeling continuously gathered and expanded in his chest, giving him the impulse to lift the cover in front of him and see Zhou Zhexiao’s expression.

This scene was sung for about four or five minutes, but to Xia Chiyi, it passed in a flash.

Before he could even adjust his breathing, or even let the heat dissipate, the music stopped.

The students in the audience were making a ruckus.

“Do it again! If you can’t do it again, leave the groom and bride behind!”

“Groom and bride, don’t leave!”

“You guys are the school anniversary mascots—”

“Lift the bridal veil! You haven’t performed lifting the veil yet!”

“Let us see the bride’s face!”

Hearing their jeers, Xia Chiyi wanted to grip the bridal veil tightly and never let go.

Xia Chiyi sat in his place, not knowing when he was supposed to stand up. It was too noisy around him, and he couldn’t hear the Class Monitor’s cue.

It wasn’t until Zhou Zhexiao walked over, grabbed his hand, and led him step by step toward the passageway.

Upon reaching the entrance of the passageway, Xia Chiyi impatiently pulled off the bridal veil, which made him a little dizzy.

“Let’s go, go inside and change clothes,” Zhou Zhexiao said.

“Was I really embarrassing just now?” Xia Chiyi pinched the bridal veil, looking up at the ceiling and sighing deeply.

At this time, the Class Monitor had already gone on stage with the others to perform the next act. The other students in the backstage were still busy, leaving only Xia Chiyi and Zhou Zhexiao changing clothes in the corner.

“Not embarrassing,” Zhou Zhexiao replied.

“Really? I heard them going ‘oh oh oh’ in waves.”

“Because you fulfilled their fantasies,” Zhou Zhexiao said indifferently.

“What fantasies?” Xia Chiyi looked up and asked.

Zhou Zhexiao took off that layer of red gauze from behind Xia Chiyi. When the knot at the lower back was pulled open, the rope rubbed against the fabric, much like someone’s breath sweeping across Xia Chiyi’s heart.

“They should be shipping a CP,” Zhou Zhexiao said indifferently.

Next were the knot loops of the innermost layer of clothing. When Zhou Zhexiao’s fingers pinched them, Xia Chiyi immediately grabbed his wrist.

“I… I’ll do it myself…”

“What’s wrong?” Zhou Zhexiao turned his face and looked at him.

“What do you mean, what’s wrong?”

Zhou Zhexiao, do you have any concept in your head? If the knot loops of this last layer are also untied by you, doesn’t that mean… my entire bridal outfit was taken off by you?

“Consummating the marriage?” Zhou Zhexiao’s fingers were still pinching that knot loop. The three words that suddenly popped out sent a shiver through Xia Chiyi’s entire body.

“What kind of nonsense are you spouting again!”

“It’s not like you’re going to consummate the marriage with me, what are you nervous about?”

After saying that, Zhou Zhexiao untied the last knot loop.

After the unbreathable bridal clothing was taken off, Xia Chiyi took a deep breath, feeling the air become much fresher. He found a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed the cap, and gulped down several mouthfuls, finally catching his breath.

Taking another look, Zhou Zhexiao had already taken off the groom’s clothing he was wearing. When he turned his face sideways to take off the final piece of clothing, his neck stretched out with tension-filled lines, and the muscle lines of his shoulders and back presented a pleasingly extended look.

When Zhou Zhexiao’s eyes looked over, Xia Chiyi was desperately chugging water.

Their class’s performance ended smoothly, and they could finally return to the audience seats to watch the performances of other classes.

As Zhou Zhexiao and Xia Chiyi bent down to walk to their seats inside, he saw the students in the rows ahead turning their heads to look at him. That inexplicable smile made Xia Chiyi lower his head even further.

After they sat down, the Anime Club’s performance began.

Ye Zhaoying cosplayed as an anime character who appeared pure but was actually dark inside; a vigilante killer by night and a newspaper reporter by day.

Wearing retro round glasses and a suit, he danced a very rhythmic dance on stage. Every move was handsome and flirtatious, making Xia Chiyi extremely envious.

“If only I could be that handsome…” Xia Chiyi sighed.

The Class Monitor in the row behind leaned toward him and consoled, “You have your own kind of handsomeness. I have a premonition that our class’s program will be the most popular!”

“Really?” Xia Chiyi expressed his doubts about this.

This wasn’t a prince kissing a sleeping beauty awake. There were no handsome men and beautiful women, nor was there a dreamy romantic scene.

The school anniversary’s cultural performance ended. What Xia Chiyi didn’t expect was that the performance photo of him and Zhou Zhexiao wearing the bright red wedding attire actually made it to the front page of the school’s official public WeChat account.

The number of likes instantly broke a thousand, and the number of forwards made Xia Chiyi feel like he was going to become an internet-famous bride.

Even Ling Huanzhen sent a congratulatory message: [The child has grown up, why didn’t you tell your coach and master when you got married? You haven’t even kowtowed to us yet, this is called a private lifelong commitment!]

This photo quickly spread to Xia Chiyi’s fan group and was inevitably downloaded by Yang Huaiyu and Ke Yan, who were lurking in the group.

After seeing it, Yang Huaiyu laughed until tears almost came out, and immediately sent a WeChat message: [I treat you as my own younger brother, couldn’t you even tell your older brother when you got married? Your older brother has prepared several large boxes of dowry for you!]

Receiving this WeChat message, Xia Chiyi sighed heavily and replied: [What dowry? Gold bars?]

Yang Huaiyu: [Pan-fried oyster cakes.]

Xia Chiyi: [You just wait, I’m going to block you right now.]

Ten minutes later, Yang Huaiyu actually sent a WeChat red envelope. When he clicked to open it, it was only 0.88 yuan.

Xia Chiyi almost got so angry he puffed up like a pufferfish.

Yang Huaiyu: [Just testing to see if you would really block me.]

Xia Chiyi gritted his teeth; now he really wanted to block him.

The next day, the voting results for the cultural performance came out. Their Economics and Management Class 1’s performance received over three thousand votes, leaving the others far behind in the dust, and won first place in this cultural performance. Everyone who participated in the performance could receive a super deluxe breakfast voucher.

The Class Monitor almost wept tears of joy, not expecting to achieve such results in her first year organizing a school anniversary activity.

Even Xia Chiyi was surprised by the overall voting results.

“Was that program of ours really that good?”

“It’s more than good, it was full of atmosphere,” Ye Zhaoying said with a grin. “If there are any school anniversary activities next year, I suggest directly putting on a wedding dress fashion show. Just you and Zhou Zhexiao walking up arm in arm, and you’ll sweep all the rankings…”

Xia Chiyi pulled out a tissue, pretended to blow his nose, then crumpled it into a ball and threw it onto Ye Zhaoying’s bed.

“Xia Chiyi, that’s disgusting! You bad thing!”

Xia Chiyi couldn’t be bothered to care. Lying on his bed, he was swiping through match videos again.

“Bro, I kindly advise you, when you sleep at night, really don’t watch Liu Suchen anymore. Do you know you call out his name even in your dreams?” Taking advantage of Zhou Zhexiao not being in the dorm, Ye Zhaoying couldn’t help but directly remind him.

“R-Really?”

“Really, why would I lie to you about this? I’m almost suspecting you have a secret crush on Liu Suchen.”

Just as he finished speaking, the dorm door opened. It was Zhou Zhexiao coming up carrying a bubble tea delivery.

As he closed the door, he asked, “Who has a secret crush on Liu Suchen?”

Ye Zhaoying and Xia Chiyi suddenly pointed at each other with great tacit understanding, saying in unison: “Him—”

“Holy crap, we really can’t be bros anymore!” Ye Zhaoying fiercely threw Xia Chiyi’s tissue ball back.

But actually, Xia Chiyi wasn’t watching Qing University’s match, but rather the match of their next practice match opponent, Xiangnan University of Technology.

While sipping bubble tea, Zhou Zhexiao walked to the side of Xia Chiyi’s bed. Accommodating Xia Chiyi’s posture of lying on his side and holding his phone, he finished watching this match together with him.

“This isn’t Qing University.”

“There’s nothing left to watch of Qing University. This is Xiangnan University of Technology’s match. Isn’t our practice match this week at Xiangnan?”

“Oh. Are they strong?” Zhou Zhexiao asked.

“They excel at fast breaks, their forward line is very strong, and their guards also have excellent performances. But I don’t know if it’s because I’ve gotten carried away after playing the practice match with Qincheng University…”

Ye Zhaoying asked with great interest, “Be bold and speak your mind, how are you getting carried away?”

“I think I should be able to score 30 points off them by myself. I don’t mean the kind where you guys feed me the ball. I don’t need Ye Zhaoying to distribute the ball possession; I can rely on myself to score.”

Ye Zhaoying whistled. “Sounds a bit inflated, but I like it.”

Zhou Zhexiao put down the bubble tea, climbed onto Xia Chiyi’s bed, and squeezed him toward the wall. “Show me.”

“Did you take a shower? And you just… come in…”

Catching the familiar scent of body wash, Xia Chiyi originally thought he had found a chance to attack Zhou Zhexiao.

Zhou Zhexiao took Xia Chiyi’s phone, removed one of his earphones, and leaned against the headboard to watch.

That feeling of his heart expanding from the cultural performance returned.

This feeling gave one palpitations, yet Xia Chiyi could repeatedly feel it around Zhou Zhexiao.

He wanted to find the answer, but his intuition told him this answer might be a bit dangerous.

Just like a silent and soundless sea; if you didn’t know the answer, you might be able to float safely on the surface, enjoying the sea breeze and sunlight, joyful and leisurely.

But once you knew the answer, you would be dragged into the pitch-black depths of the sea and swallowed up…

There was a bit of fear, but more of it was an uncontrollable anticipation.

Xia Chiyi kept his eyes on his phone screen, but the knee of his right leg shifted sideways bit by bit, until it rested against Zhou Zhexiao’s body.

Just as they finished watching the second quarter of the match, Zhou Zhexiao spoke up: “I think you can get a little more inflated.”

“Ah? Scoring 30 points isn’t inflated enough?”

“You can set a goal of 50 points for yourself,” Zhou Zhexiao said.

Hearing this, Ye Zhaoying smiled and said, “How about this, if we beat Xiangnan University of Technology by more than 30 points, let’s make Coach Ling dance a girl group dance for us.”

Zhou Zhexiao gave a cold snort. “He’ll say ‘I’ll treat you to watch a girl group’s live performance’.”

“That works too.”

At the same time, Xu Mi reported the news on her Weibo that Ningchang University was about to have a practice match with Xiangnan University of Technology, and wished both universities good results.

In the past, when Xu Mi posted news about the Ningchang University basketball team, either no one paid attention, or there was cynical ridicule. This time, however, the level of discussion was unusually lively.

[Ningchang University is not bad; after changing coaches, they have completely transformed!]

[I originally thought winning the Jin Province grassroots tournament championship was already a miracle, I didn’t expect them to repeatedly refresh my perception in the practice matches!]

[Can someone popularize for me, which practice matches has Ningchang University played? How did they suddenly become a dark horse?]

[I’ve tallied up the current news. In practice matches, the opponents they have defeated include Shenghai University, Shenghai Jiaotong University, and Chujiang University. They lost to Qincheng University, but only lost by 2 points, and that was with Yang Huaiyu playing the entire game! Tell me, is that awesome or what?]

[Now they’re going to play a practice match with Xiangnan University of Technology? If it were last year, it would be called cross-division clout-chasing. Now, it might be cross-division dojo-crashing!]

Because there were suddenly more people touting Ningchang University, calling them things like “dark horse” or “upstarts of the Southeast Division,” it pissed off the people in the Southwest Division.

Many university students from the Southwest Division came to leave comments.

[It’s just practice matches, whether those so-called strong schools gave it their all is a question! If they gave it their all and still played like that, it only shows that the Southeast Division this year isn’t much either!]

[Xiangnan University of Technology is known as the “wolf pack” of the Southwest Division. The louder a team like Ningchang University is blown up, the more likely they are to be a sheep entering the wolf’s mouth!]

People with different opinions started a war of words in the comments section.

As coincidence would have it, Ke Yan scrolled past this Weibo post. He originally wanted to post a comment to support Ningchang University. Who knew he would see a comment saying: [Yang Huaiyu was crushed by Liu Suchen last year. If he played the entire game and only beat Ningchang University by 2 points, it only shows that Yang Huaiyu has an undeserved reputation. This year, Qincheng University will probably be gang-beaten by the three great powerhouses!]

The three great powerhouses naturally referred to Qing University, Yandu University, and Southwest Aviation University.

When Ke Yan saw this comment, he directly blew his top!

What was even more infuriating was that this comment actually had a fucking over a thousand likes!

What does this mean? What does this mean? Looking down on that guy Yang Huaiyu is one thing, but for so many people to look down on Qincheng University?

How can I endure this, how can anyone endure this!

The frenzied way Ke Yan typed on his phone, it looked as if he was going to press until his phone exploded.

His roommate Yang Huaiyu was playing a game. He glanced at Ke Yan’s furious appearance and couldn’t help but laugh: “A-Yan, if you’re going to be a troll online, remember to switch to your alt account.”

“I’m so mad! I’m really so mad! These people online don’t know anything, why do they love to run their mouths so much? Yang Huaiyu, you really are the emperor who isn’t angry, angering the…”

“Angering what to death?” Yang Huaiyu asked back with a chuckle.

“Look at what they’re saying about you, undeserved reputation! Saying Liu Suchen has the face of a kept man, yet his playing style is very fierce and sharp! Making it out that you have the face of a sea king [playboy], yet you play basketball so softly!

So that’s why we only beat Ningchang University by 2 points!”

Ke Yan rushed over and almost shoved his phone into Yang Huaiyu’s face.

“Stay calm, stay calm. If it were me, I definitely could score 50 points off Xiangnan University of Technology by myself,” Yang Huaiyu said casually.

“Last time Zhou Zhexiao was also super hyped up; he definitely can score 50 points off Xiangnan University of Technology by himself too!”

After saying that, Ke Yan went to clap back at those comments.

[You guys just wait! Ningchang University’s Zhou Zhexiao can definitely crush Xiangnan University of Technology! Scoring 50 points by himself will be no problem at all!]

Ke Yan felt embarrassed to brag about his own team’s ace, so he bragged about an opponent on par with their ace.

Rather than making things difficult for himself, it was better to trouble others. The technical job of shutting these people’s stinking mouths up would be left to Zhou Zhexiao!

Actually, Zhou Zhexiao’s face was very good at attracting fans, plus his boyfriend power of effortlessly picking up Xia Chiyi at the school anniversary made him very highly watched recently.

Many people liked and cheered on Ke Yan’s comment.

The rumor of scoring 50 points single-handedly continued to spread on the internet.

On the weekend, when the Ningchang University basketball team arrived at Xiangnan University of Technology’s stadium, Xia Chiyi and his teammates sensed a subtle atmosphere.

The players of Xiangnan University of Technology seemed to have been looking at them, seemingly searching, yet also seemingly scrutinizing.

Xia Chiyi couldn’t help but ask Ye Zhaoying beside him, “Do we have vegetables stuck in our teeth? Why do they have to look at us like this?”

Ye Zhaoying ran a hand through his hair full of hairspray and replied, “This might be the gaze from the wolf pack of the Southwest Division, signifying that we are the prey and have already been locked onto.”

“Hehe…”

Ling Huanzhen was communicating with the other party’s coach. A boy from Xiangnan University of Technology with a sunny and brilliant smile walked toward them, with the entire varsity team following behind him like a group of bodyguards.

Xia Chiyi recognized him; that was their captain, and also their point guard, Yuan Yang.

“Welcome, welcome!” Yuan Yang looked extremely enthusiastic, yet Xia Chiyi remembered that during matches, he had almost no expression, like a passing machine that accurately analyzed the situation.

Yuan Yang first shook hands with the basketball team captain He Bin and smiled, “He Bin, it would be hypocritical to say I’ve long looked forward to meeting you. You are very low-key. Although your limelight was stolen by the first-year Xia Chiyi, you are neither haughty nor humble. As long as you take the court, you can score by relying on superb positioning; you are a very stable turret.”

Holy crap, isn’t this too passive-aggressive?

What does ‘Although your limelight was stolen by the first-year Xia Chiyi’ mean?

Moreover, the phrase ‘neither haughty nor humble’ shouldn’t be used in this context, alright!

Xia Chiyi looked at He Bin, hesitating to speak. Deep down, he respected He Bin very much, well aware of He Bin’s hard work and dedication to their entire team.

He Bin looked at Xia Chiyi, nodded very slightly, and then said to Yuan Yang with a flat expression, “Thank you. You are also a master at organizing fast breaks.”

Trying to sow discord within our Ningchang University? No way.

Yuan Yang shook hands with Shuai Bei again. “It was too much of a pity last year. You were clearly the most capable person on the team, yet you were delayed for a year by a garbage coach like Ma Wenhua. This year, your expressive force under the basket is vigorous. I look forward to your contest under the basket with our power forward.”

This was the first time someone from outside the team had affirmed Shuai Bei like this. Shuai Bei had no expression on his face, but inwardly gave Yuan Yang a very high evaluation—This guy has taste.

In this way, Yuan Yang went through the names, specialized positions, and technical characteristics of the Ningchang University players one by one. This not only demonstrated their understanding of their guests, but on a deeper level, it was actually a show of strength to Ningchang University: We have already studied you thoroughly.

When Yuan Yang passed by Ye Zhaoying, he slung his arm over his shoulders, introducing him to his teammates with an air of familiar ease.

“This guy here, not to mention in Jin Province, even in the Southeast Division, he’s a ranked point guard, Ningchang’s Steal King.”

“You flatter me, you flatter me.”

Yuan Yang turned his head, his originally smiling face instantly turning ice-cold. “If any of you has a ball stolen by him, you will be penalized with a hundred frog leaps. If two balls are stolen, you will be penalized with two hundred frog leaps. The same goes for me.”

“Yes, Captain!”

Ye Zhaoying rubbed the tip of his nose, thinking to himself that since everyone was so guarded against him, the difficulty of stealing the ball would increase quite a bit.

With his hands stuffed in his pockets, Xia Chiyi was also observing the players of Xiangnan University of Technology while Yuan Yang introduced them.

One by one, he matched them with the people he had seen in the videos.

“Xia Chiyi, Ningchang University’s sharpshooter, a shooting guard who even makes Li Shunchuan feel his position is threatened. Do you know what your nickname here is?” Yuan Yang leaned forward slightly, looking at Xia Chiyi with a meaningful smile.

“I… I even have a nickname?” Xia Chiyi looked baffled.

“Look at this handsome face, it truly is the template for a male lead in a campus idol drama. So your nickname here is ‘First Love Killer’.”

“Cough, cough, cough…” Xia Chiyi choked again.

How innocent am I? Jokingly called Yang Huaiyu’s ‘first love’ by Ke Yan and the others, and arriving at Xiangnan University of Technology, I’m called the ‘First Love Killer’ again.

“I haven’t even experienced my first love yet… Why don’t you guys tell me where my face grew wrong, and I’ll go back and change it.”

Yuan Yang laughed. “Such a deceptive face, looking so pure, good, and gullible, better not change it. It would be such a pity to change it.”

This was saying Xia Chiyi was good at deceiving people with fake moves.

Finally, in the entire Ningchang University varsity team, only Zhou Zhexiao had yet to be introduced, leaving everyone waiting expectantly and extremely curious.

With his hands in his pockets, Yuan Yang dropped a bombshell: “I heard someone from your side boasted about scoring 50 points off our Xiangnan University of Technology single-handedly?”

Xia Chiyi instantly choked on his own saliva. Ye Zhaoying, Shuai Bei, and the others all looked at Xia Chiyi with surprised gazes.

“It wasn’t me! I didn’t!” Xia Chiyi almost blurted out that he only said he could score 30 points.

Yuan Yang smiled and patted Xia Chiyi’s shoulder. “Relax, First Love Killer, I know it wasn’t you.”

Then he continued walking, passed by all the players of Ningchang University, and stopped in front of Zhou Zhexiao.

“This must be the legendary Zhou Zhexiao, who is on par with Qincheng University’s Yang Huaiyu, right?” Yuan Yang still had a smiling face. “You think so highly of our Xiangnan University of Technology, wanting to score 50 points off us single-handedly?”

Everyone was stunned, looking at each other.

“It was actually Zhou Zhexiao who boasted? Fake, right?” Du He found it hard to believe.

“If Zhou Zhexiao wanted to make a boast, he would say it directly to the opponent’s face. Most importantly…” Shuai Bei frowned.

Zhou Zhexiao acted as if he hadn’t heard what Yuan Yang said; his gaze remained indifferent the whole time.

“Most importantly, he doesn’t even have a smartphone, how did he put the word out?” Xia Chiyi was completely clueless.

“Is there some misunderstanding there?” As the captain, He Bin had to quickly resolve this misunderstanding.

Who knew Yuan Yang would laugh, “Whether it’s a misunderstanding or not isn’t important. It’s only interesting if there’s a challenge. By the way, competing just like this is too boring, there needs to be a wager.”

With the opponent proactively bringing up a “wager,” a bad feeling welled up in Xia Chiyi’s heart.

Everyone tacitly maintained silence, as if by not touching upon that “wager,” it wouldn’t exist.

Who knew Zhou Zhexiao would speak up: “What wager?”

In that instant, Xia Chiyi and the others felt that their effort to hold their breath was all in vain.

“How about the losing team dances a girl group dance? I’ve recently scrolled past several videos of boys dancing girl group dances on short video websites; it’s both energetic and handsome,” Yuan Yang said with a smile.

Oh dear lord, a girl group dance?

Shuai Bei’s eyebrows were twitching.

Du He whispered, “I don’t think we can learn a girl group dance that quickly? Do we have to dance it on the spot?”

Speechless, Shuai Bei pinched the back of Du He’s neck: “Have some spine, okay? Conceding defeat before we even compete?”

Although that was the logic, everyone had already uncontrollably started imagining themselves dancing a girl group dance in their minds.

Xia Chiyi thought to himself, It would be better to be penalized to eat vegetarian for three months.

“Oh, I have to add one more condition. Regardless of winning or losing, if student Zhou Zhexiao fails to score 50 points, he also has to perform a girl group dance.” A sly light glinted in Yuan Yang’s eyes.

Ye Zhaoying and Xia Chiyi kept repeating “don’t agree to him” in their hearts, hoping this telepathic power could be transmitted to Zhou Zhexiao’s brain, but clearly, they both failed.

“Okay, I agree,” Zhou Zhexiao replied in a very flat tone.

Holy crap, as expected of Zhou Zhexiao.

This was Xia Chiyi’s only thought at the time.

“Ah, being impulsive provides a moment of pleasure, always being impulsive provides constant pleasure,” Ye Zhaoying sighed.

Xia Chiyi smiled. Remembering Zhou Zhexiao’s fifty-point promise, he started warming up on the spot.

“Now this is interesting. Otherwise, everyone would think it’s just a practice match, and losing wouldn’t matter. Moreover… if Zhou Zhexiao made the boast, it’s because he has the confidence to do it.”

At this time, Ling Huanzhen, who knew nothing about the wager between the two teams, walked in. Sensing the bizarre atmosphere, he asked curiously, “What’s wrong with you guys?”

Zhou Zhexiao walked toward him and patted his shoulder. “If we lose, or if I fail to score 50 points off Xiangnan University of Technology single-handedly, Coach—you have to dance a girl group dance with us.”

Ling Huanzhen felt as if he had been struck by lightning. “How could you guys accept a wager recklessly without the coach’s permission!”

However, this wager indeed ignited raging flames of war within the entire Ningchang University varsity team.

The girl group dance must be left for the opponents!

Ling Huanzhen selected his troops, deploying the lineup used against Qincheng University in the very first quarter. His only parting words before they took the court were: “Hit them hard for me!”

Whoever implicates me into dancing a girl group dance, I’m not done with you!

The practice match kicked off.

Du He engaged in the jump ball, evenly matched with his opponent.

The ball eventually dropped near Yuan Yang. Just as he thought he could initiate a fast break from there, the ball was knocked away!

The one who intercepted the ball wasn’t Ye Zhaoying, but actually Xia Chiyi!

“Charge—”

Xia Chiyi shouted loudly, rapidly dribbling the ball past half-court.

The players of Xiangnan University of Technology were shaken. They had thought the fastest dribbler was Ye Zhaoying, but didn’t expect it to actually be Xia Chiyi.

Realistic fake moves and nimble changes of direction made him like a sharp needle piercing through Xiangnan U of T’s defense. Seeing that he was about to lay the ball up.

The instantly erected human wall and angry roars were Xiangnan U of T demonstrating their might to this first-year student.

Xia Chiyi appeared as if he was going to lay it up, but very calmly threw the ball backward.

“Defend Zhou Zhexiao—” Yuan Yang’s shout rang out.

But it was already too late. Zhou Zhexiao took the shot calmly before two players could arrive, and the ball swished into the basket.

Xia Chiyi turned around and pumped his fist at Zhou Zhexiao.

This ball was like adrenaline, giving the opponents a severe stimulation right at the opening.

The players of Xiangnan U of T truly acted like a pack of wolves, swiftly launching a counterattack and fiercely biting back at Ningchang University.

Only, before the physical strength and patience of the wolf pack were worn down, the hunter had already revealed his sharp blade.

Zhou Zhexiao used pure offense to crush the arrogant flames of the wolf pack. When he charged under the basket, the area under the basket turned into a chaotic brawl. Even the referee was about to approach and prepare to blow the whistle. Yet Zhou Zhexiao stood out from the crowd, scoring a hit with a hook shot.

Turning his face, he saw Xia Chiyi beside him revealing an expression of focus and yearning.

Ever since Xia Chiyi watched the clash between Yang Huaiyu and Liu Suchen, for a very long period of time, his attention had been attracted by Liu Suchen’s showy and sharp playing style, making one suspect he had long forgotten there was a master right beside him.

Now, the opportunity had finally arrived.

Zhou Zhexiao activated his point-scoring mode, because he finally realized the method to tightly grip Xia Chiyi’s gaze—was to score.

Receiving a pass from Xia Chiyi, when the opponents thought he would cut to the basket again, he executed a dry pull-up jumper from a triple-threat position, scoring directly.

Ye Zhaoying sensed Zhou Zhexiao’s will to fight. Although a girl group dance wouldn’t stump him, he felt that Du He and Shuai Bei dancing would definitely be an eyesore.

When Yuan Yang made a fast pass, Ye Zhaoying leaped into the air for the steal!

This young master isn’t just Ningchang’s Steal King. Even if I can’t claim the national title, I’m still the Steal King of the Southeast Division!

The entirety of Xiangnan U of T was stunned; their offense was cut down midway. Ye Zhaoying passed the ball to Zhou Zhexiao, and also raised an eyebrow in passing—Show them your skills again!

Zhou Zhexiao posted up for a one-on-one, then suddenly spun around and executed a fadeaway jump shot!

Xiangnan U of T finally realized: sending only one player to defend Zhou Zhexiao was giving away points!

Zhou Zhexiao turned sideways and looked at Xia Chiyi near the three-point line.

Xia Chiyi’s mouth was still maintaining a “Wow—” shape.

Then he couldn’t help but ponder that turn-around fadeaway jump shot on the court.

Zhou Zhexiao gave a very faint smile, and Ye Zhaoying’s fist lightly punched him in the back.

“Not bad, not bad, not bad. Ever since that guy opposite you became infatuated with Liu Suchen, I haven’t seen you in such good form.”

Upon hearing that name, Zhou Zhexiao coldly scoffed, “Heh.”

Next, Zhou Zhexiao continuously refreshed Xiangnan U of T’s impression of him, or perhaps he was reminding Xia Chiyi—Don’t forget who I am.

After a lightning-fast fast break, Zhou Zhexiao suddenly braked hard, swayed left and right, mobilizing the double defense. Following closely, he drove straight into the heart of the enemy, throwing the ball out from under the defender’s arm under the basket, scoring easily.

Xiangnan U of T was so angry their teeth itched, yet they had no way to deal with Zhou Zhexiao. The rhythm of the match was completely controlled by Zhou Zhexiao.

During the break, the players gathered around their coach. Every single one of them was covered in sweat, head to toe, forcefully adjusting their breathing.

Their coach, on the other hand, was very calm, saying with a beaming smile: “Didn’t you guys think you were very capable? Previously, when Ningchang University came to arrange a match, you always looked down on them. Now you’ve been beaten silly, haven’t you?”

“Old Zhao, at a time like this, don’t kick us while we’re down. Hurry up and help us think of a solution, we can’t just let him keep scoring like this.”

“Hahaha, as long as you haven’t given up, it’s fine. If you haven’t given up, then have three people defend him. But can the rest of you stop Xia Chiyi? Ningchang University’s scoring triangle is very obvious. Zhou Zhexiao and Xia Chiyi make their inside and outside lines blossom everywhere, and Ye Zhaoying will continuously supply the ball. Even if you cut off this highly efficient scoring triangle, each of them has independent ball-stealing, breakthrough, and scoring abilities.” Holding his arms, Coach Zhao was actually quite happy inwardly.

The kids had won too many matches; it was time for a powerful opponent to come and dampen their aggressive spirit.

Having a clear and definite opponent walking in front of them gave them a concrete goal to chase after.

The three big guys on the team patted their chests, volunteering to defend Zhou Zhexiao.

But this didn’t shake Zhou Zhexiao’s desire to score in the slightest. He dribbled into the area under the basket. Even when surrounded by three people, he still forcefully jumped up. The higher these three jumped, the more space they gave him. He actually passed through these three while suspended in the air, sending the ball into the basket before landing.

Xia Chiyi had originally moved to a spot not far away, planning to receive a pass from Zhou Zhexiao, but who knew this guy was actually so badass.

The ball landed. Zhou Zhexiao lifted his collar to wipe his sweat. Lifting his eyes, he met Xia Chiyi’s gaze.

That piercing gaze made Xia Chiyi instinctively afraid, as if what was being pierced through was his own heart. Yet the more dangerous it was, the more uncontrollably his mind was attracted and dragged over.

This incredibly formidable guy was his teammate, and also the person who said he would play basketball with him forever and ever.

A bright smile gradually appeared on Xia Chiyi’s face. With an exaggerated expression, he shook his head and uttered a single word: “Bravo—”

Even Ye Zhaoying was amused. “Bro, pay attention to your image. You’re the first-love face of our Ningchang University, don’t be so comedic.”

Coach Zhao walked up beside Ling Huanzhen and asked curiously, “This Zhou Zhexiao of yours, his playing style is very mature, and his will to score is also very resolute. He can be called an offensive kaleidoscope.”

“Thank you for the compliment.” Ling Huanzhen smiled.

When the match reached the middle of the third quarter, Zhou Zhexiao had already scored 50 points as promised.

He passed by Xia Chiyi’s side, grabbed his head, and said in a low voice, “Your turn.”

That deep voice, coupled with his breathing during exercise, made Zhou Zhexiao’s voice full of magnetism. Xia Chiyi even suspected his heart would fly out of his ear, and then be fiercely bitten by Zhou Zhexiao.

—

[The author has something to say]

Zhou Zhexiao: We’ve bowed in the wedding ceremony, so you are my person now.

Xia Chiyi: Doesn’t count! I didn’t even receive any wedding gift money!

Zhou Zhexiao: Everyone hand over the wedding gift money, right now!

Everyone: Is it really wedding gift money, or protection fees?