“?!?!?!?”
Su Zhiyan felt like he was a crumbling cookie, completely thunderstruck.
“You’re not just drunk talking, are you? Have you been sleepwalking this whole time?” He hooked his finger against Shen Nianjing’s, but the other remained motionless, as if he had passed out.
So he stood up again and gave Shen Nianjing’s stretched-out long legs a hard kick.
The “passed-out fish” twitched slightly, barely lifted his head, then quickly drooped back down.
He was completely drunk.
Su Zhiyan crouched in front of him.
“Get up.” He tugged at Shen Nianjing’s hair.
Shen Nianjing didn’t move.
“Come wash your face in the bathroom with me.” He pushed at Shen Nianjing’s shoulders.
Shen Nianjing still didn’t respond.
Su Zhiyan forcefully hauled him up with both hands and dragged the half-dead Shen Nianjing to the bathroom.
This guy worked out well…
The muscle definition he felt under his hands was impressive. Su Zhiyan felt a bit sour inside. He shouldn’t have neglected his regular exercise routine after sophomore year.
He used to have well-defined pecs and abs too!
In the bathroom, Su Zhiyan tried to make him bend over, but this stubborn guy wouldn’t even lower his head.
“I’m trying to wash your face!”
Shen Nianjing thrashed around like a fish out of water, refusing to cooperate.
In the end, face-washing turned into head-washing.
With a thud, Shen Nianjing slipped to the ground.
Su Zhiyan instinctively reached out to catch him, but got pulled down too, almost hitting his head against the wall.
“…”
Looking at his soaked hem of his shirt, Su Zhiyan gave up on the whole “head-washing” idea.
He might as well ask him tomorrow when he wakes up.
“Hey!” He shook Shen Nianjing, who was leaning against the wall.
Still no response.
Could it be… he actually kicked the bucket?
Su Zhiyan’s pupils constricted as he carefully reached out.
He was still breathing, and steadily at that.
Damn, he fell asleep again.
The outstretched hand changed course and pinched Shen Nianjing’s cheeks hard several times.
How annoying!! This guy was really annoying!!
Ever since “Shen Nianjing” appeared in his life, there hadn’t been a single peaceful day.
Hmph. Su Zhiyan stood up with his hands on his hips, glaring down at him in anger.
Shen Nianjing’s upper body was soaked too, vaguely showing his defined abs.
Su Zhiyan stole a few glances before reluctantly looking away.
Shen Nianjing had his head against the cold, hard bathroom tiles, sleeping on the floor as if this wasn’t a bathroom but a basketball court after practice.
Could drunk people really sleep anywhere, even on a curb?
Su Zhiyan grabbed his arm and put it over his own shoulder.
So heavy… if those muscles turned to fat, he’d probably be lighter.
Su Zhiyan gritted his teeth, unable to stop himself from grumbling inwardly.
—
The next day was Saturday, but there were make-up classes because of the upcoming holiday.
“Good thing we’re only making up one Monday morning class!!” Wen Bei walked into the classroom with Su Zhiyan and found empty seats in the back row.
“You still haven’t told me about any fun stuff that happened during the competition.” After sitting down, Wen Bei kept chattering in Su Zhiyan’s ear.
“When you came back last night, you were all wet and looked awful. You just showered and crashed.”
“I thought you failed at playing hero or something.”
Just mentioning last night gave Su Zhiyan a headache.
It was his first time realizing how troublesome drunk people could be.
That damn Shen Nianjing, after being dragged back to the private room with great effort, he started his “second wind” party mode. He grabbed the mic to sing. He started jumping around the whole place and running wild with an equally drunk Qin Qi. No one could hold them back.
He was so angry last night he almost left him to sleep on the street.
“So how was it?” Wen Bei kept asking while munching on a red bean bun.
Su Zhiyan: “…”
“It was fine,” he said.
“Think you can get first place? The competition seems pretty fierce this time. I saw all the top students from B University joined.”
“Of course.”
As Wen Bei kept asking questions, Su Zhiyan checked his phone.
He looked at Shen Nianjing’s class schedule.
Shen Nianjing also had classes for the first two periods, in Building B Room 401.
Su Zhiyan put away his phone and whispered to Wen Bei, “I’m going to sneak out the back door ten minutes before class ends. Help me watch the teacher.”
Wen Bei gave him a knowing look. “You’re going to find Shen Nianjing again.”
It wasn’t even a question. He sounded completely sure.
Su Zhiyan was surprised. “How did you know?”
Wen Bei: “Well, since you met him at the start of semester, your relationship has progressed at lightning speed. You even signed up for the competition just because you heard he was competing.”
What kind of phrasing was that…
Su Zhiyan’s expression turned bitter. “It’s complicated, really complicated.”
“If you want to meet him today, why not just message him? You could have lunch together or something.”
“Do you really need to go pick him up after class?”
Su Zhiyan’s mouth twitched.
What do you mean “pick him up”…
But he had a point. They were friends now, so why was he still acting like he needed to ambush Shen Nianjing?
“You’re right, you’re so smart.” Su Zhiyan stuck a straw in his soy milk and presented it to Wen Bei like he was honoring a hero.
Wen Bei: “…” Why did this compliment make him feel so uncomfortable?
Su Zhiyan took out his phone and typed with one hand.
[S: After this morning’s class, we’re officially on break. You heading straight home?]
After typing, he turned off the screen, occasionally glancing at his phone while listening to the lecture.
Why wasn’t he replying?
Was he really that focused in class that he wouldn’t even take a break between periods?
Su Zhiyan sent a few more stickers, but there was still no response from Shen Nianjing, and he was getting anxious.
Class was almost over!
“No good.” He quietly packed his things and slowly slid down from his chair to crouch under the desk. He turned to Wen Bei, “I’ll sneak out after all. See you later.”
Then he carefully tiptoed out the back door, hunched over.
Leaving behind a confused Wen Bei.
“What’s going on here?” he muttered.
Ever since Su Zhiyan met Shen Nianjing, he’d often do things that were unlike him, and sometimes his mood would inexplicably turn sour.
“So weird, are their zodiac signs incompatible or something?”
But if they were incompatible, why did they meet every day?!
After going downstairs, Su Zhiyan rushed to the other teaching building. He finally caught Shen Nianjing sneaking out the back door three minutes before class ended.
“Why didn’t you reply to my messages?” he got straight to the point.
Shen Nianjing pressed against the wall, stammering, “I… I didn’t see them.”
Huh? Su Zhiyan checked the time suspiciously. Class hadn’t ended yet, so why did he come out early?
He snuck out early to wait for Shen Nianjing, but what about him?
Su Zhiyan: “……”
As the bell rang and students poured out of the classroom, Su Zhiyan pulled Shen Nianjing to an empty corner of the hallway.
Whether they were hiding or not didn’t matter anymore. He cared more about something else now.
“You were drunk last night.”
Shen Nianjing avoided his gaze and nodded. “I know.”
“And you said something earth-shaking[mfn]”横绝峨眉巅” (héng jué Éméi diān) is a line of classical Chinese poetry. Literally, it means “(Something) stretches across and cuts off the summit of Mount Emei.” The phrase suggests something so vast or imposing that it seems to block or dominate the very peak of this mountain.[/mfn].'”
Su Zhiyan crossed his arms and asked in a flat tone, “Want to guess what it was?”
Although he didn’t think he was being particularly aggressive, Shen Nianjing visibly tensed up, his ears turning red.
“I think I know… I heard I was singing the ‘Strong Army March'[mfn]I’m not sure what the English title of it is. It’s a military song. You can listen to it here.[/mfn].”
Su Zhiyan raised his eyebrows. It seemed like this guy really couldn’t remember anything.
“Being patriotic runs in every citizen’s blood. What’s so earth-shattering about that?” he said.
“Oh… okay.” Shen Nianjing carefully studied Su Zhiyan’s expression and chose his words carefully. “I… didn’t curse at you, did I?”
Su Zhiyan: “…” If only you had just cursed at me!
Seeing Su Zhiyan’s speechless look, Shen Nianjing’s tense muscles gradually relaxed.
Looks like he hadn’t said anything that triggered the other’s anger.
But then what did he say?
His mind was still racing when Su Zhiyan gave him the answer in the next second.
“You said I’ll kill you.”
Su Zhiyan stared at him expressionlessly.
“…” Shen Nianjing blinked, suddenly feeling like he couldn’t hear the surrounding sounds or see Su Zhiyan’s face clearly anymore, as if all his senses were drifting away.
“And then?” he asked, keeping his composure.
“There is no ‘and then’!”
Seeing him so calm, Su Zhiyan lost his own composure. “I came here to ask you why.”
“You’re not leaving until you give me a reasonable explanation.”
Su Zhiyan could see the exact moment Shen Nianjing tensed, his lips pressed into a line, his eyes showing panic.
“Your 30 seconds thinking time is up. Start explaining.”
After a pause, he added, “Need me to remind you of your exact words?”
“No need.” Shen Nianjing said with a faint smile.
“Actually, it was from a TV drama.”
Su Zhiyan: ?
Shen Nianjing took a deep breath, his whole body relaxing as he straightened his back like someone about to give a speech. His eyes were determined, his voice loud and clear.
“There was this cannon fodder character who willingly let himself be used by a supporting role, who was someone completely heartless and ruthlessly decisive.”
“The cannon fodder thought the supporting character was an upright good person, and swore to follow him for life.”
“But when the protagonist discovered the supporting character’s evil deeds, he cleanly killed the cannon fodder to cover his tracks.”
At this point, Shen Nianjing shook his head deeply, tears welling up in his eyes. He fully immersed in the story, his voice even choking up.
“Before dying, the cannon fodder’s eyes were filled with confusion that couldn’t be resolved even in the next life.”
“Looking at the supporting character who had just stabbed him, he asked with a trembling voice.”
“‘Why did you kill me?'”
Shen Nianjing’s telling was passionate and tearful, while Su Zhiyan listened in complete confusion, almost wanting to laugh.
“So you were acting as the cannon fodder?” he asked.
“Ah… yes.” Shen Nianjing sighed dramatically. “Because his fate was just too tragic.”
Su Zhiyan: “…”
His brain froze for five seconds, feeling once again that he couldn’t keep up with this person’s train of thought.
But somehow… it wasn’t completely unreasonable?
After all, there were plenty of stories online about people coming out of surgery, still under anesthesia, rambling about the plots of TV shows they’d been watching.
Made sense, actually.
Su Zhiyan nodded, “Alright, you pass.”
Shen Nianjing nodded with a smile, “That’s really how it was!”
“Will you be coming to school during the break? Wen Bei and I usually go out for dinner in the evenings since the shopping street near campus is pretty empty. Want to join?”
“I probably won’t come to school.”
Su Zhiyan frowned slightly.
“But maybe I will!” Shen Nianjing quickly changed his answer.
“We’ll talk about it tomorrow then, bye~” Su Zhiyan turned and went downstairs.
Only after his figure disappeared around the stairwell did Shen Nianjing take his eyes away.
Then his whole body went limp as he slowly slid down the wall…
“Alcohol is the death of me…”
Shen Nianjing held his head.
The kind of death that could actually happen.
I changed a lot of the story’s plot, Shen Nianjing thought, I wonder if he noticed.
Then he shook his head frantically, forcefully cutting off that train of thought.
This was his own dream, how would others know about it.
Even the protagonist in the dream couldn’t possibly know.
The students on this floor had almost all left, while those coming for the next class started arriving. They all looked at Shen Nianjing who was sprawled on the ground.
Shen Nianjing: “!”
He sprang up, dusted himself off, and strode away, avoiding everyone’s eyes as he headed downstairs like nothing had happened.
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