"Why should I listen to him?" Xie Shi'an slung his golf bag over his shoulder.
Aren't you hungry?
Jian Changnian's stomach rumbled at just the right moment.
"Yes... a little."
"Whoever wants to clean can clean, I'm going to eat anyway."
Xie Shi'an said, walking towards the door.
Jian Changnian thought about it for a moment, then made up her mind.
"Hey, Shi'an, wait for me! I'm coming too."
The two walked out of the training room into the night.
"What if Coach Wan finds out we sneak off to eat like this?"
Xie Shi'an sneered.
"Heh, at worst I'll just go back to the Binhai provincial team. I'd like to go back, but will he let me?"
Jian Changnian felt that her whole demeanor was a bit off; once her outward indifference faded, her inner sharpness was clearly revealed.
This side of Xie Shi'an was somewhat unfamiliar to her.
Jian Changnian stopped in her tracks, looked at the back of her head, and called her name softly: "Shi'an, are you really alright?"
Xie Shi'an's lips curled into another sarcastic smile.
"I can have..."
Before she could finish speaking, Jian Changnian ran up and stuffed a piece of candy into her hand.
"I've seen you eat this often before. I secretly bought it. Don't let Coach Wan find out, or you'll get scolded again. Go ahead and eat it. Eating something sweet will make you feel better. No matter what others say, I see your hard work and dedication. I believe you can definitely win the championship."
Xie Shi'an looked at the candy in her palm. Jian Changnian had accidentally bought her favorite lollipop. She didn't know when Jian Changnian had memorized her preferences.
The phrase "eating something sweet will make you feel better" briefly overlapped with what someone from my childhood said: "eating something sweet will make the pain go away."
The boy paused slightly, clenching the candy in his palm, and his previously hardened brows finally softened for a moment.
Jian Changnian took the opportunity to link her arm with hers and drag her away.
"Let's go eat first, and then I'll practice with you some more. We'll definitely win tomorrow's match!"
***
Yin Jiayi rarely goes out to buy some daily necessities at a convenience store, but she never expected to run into the person she wanted to avoid at all costs.
Kim Nam-ji walked ahead, smiling broadly, and linked arms with her male teammate beside her, speaking in Korean.
"Don't talk. Just do whatever I tell you to do."
The boy looked completely bewildered.
"Huh? Oh, okay."
As soon as she finished speaking, Kim Nam-ji began her performance, shaking the boy's arm and deliberately raising her voice in an incredibly cloying tone.
"Oppa~~~ Buy me that~"
Even though Yin Jiayi couldn't understand Korean, she could tell that she was being coquettish. Her teammates next to her felt a chill run down their spines and got goosebumps all over.
"Wow, Kim Nam-ji has a boyfriend again?"
"What do you mean 'again'? She's changed several times already, haven't you looked at her Instagram?"
"I can't see it..."
Several teammates also started teasing her.
Besides being a professional gamer, Kim Nam-ji is also the daughter of a South Korean chaebol family, so her personal life and gossip naturally fall under the media's spotlight.
Yin Jiayi had heard rumors, but this was the first time she had ever seen her flirting and being affectionate with someone else.
In just a few months, the eighteen-year-old girl had matured like a peach. Wearing a mini-skirt and crop top, and strappy wedge heels, she showed off her great figure with her slender shoulders, narrow waist, and thin legs. After cutting her hair short, her slender and fair neck could also be seen from behind.
Every step she takes exudes charm.
She would occasionally lean close to the boy's arm as she spoke, and the boy would lower his head in response, her lips almost touching his ear.
Yin Jiayi watched from behind, almost crushing the bag of instant noodles in her hand, just as she was about to take that step.
A teammate next to him said, "Captain, tomorrow we..."
That one word, "Captain," abruptly pulled her back to reality.
Yin Jiayi turned around, followed her teammates, and left this place of trouble.
Kim Nam-ji swaggered around for a while, but the person behind her didn't follow. She was secretly furious and turned around to see that the person had already left the convenience store.
The boy said, "Nan Zhi, didn't you just want to buy this?"
Kim Nam-ji shoved the person away and walked angrily toward the cashier.
"What are you eating for? I'm not eating anymore!"
The boy was completely baffled.
"Damn it, how can her expression change faster than flipping through a book!"
As Yin Jiayi walked out of the convenience store, she was clearly distracted. Her teammates had to call her several times before she came back to her senses.
"Huh? What's wrong?"
"Captain, this is the way back to the apartment."
Upon seeing the road sign, Yin Jiayi withdrew her foot from the sidewalk, turned around, and returned to the dormitory with them.
***
A four-hour long-haul flight.
When Qiao Yuchu returned to Jiangcheng City, it was almost dawn. She immediately took a taxi to the police station.
She thought it was just a simple traffic accident, but the reason behind it left her speechless and unable to accept it. This incident changed the trajectory of her life from then on. It was like a perfectly fitting machine; when one screw malfunctioned, the chain reaction was enough to turn the world upside down.
As soon as Qiao Yuchu stepped into the mediation room of the police station, her mother stood up abruptly, rushed over, hugged her, and burst into tears.
"Yu Chu...you're finally back! Your dad is such a scoundrel...he lied to us so badly!"
Mr. Joe sat dejectedly on the other side, his face bruised and his arm in a sling, smoking incessantly.
Qiao Yuchu helped her mother up and glanced at him.
"Dad, are you alright?"
Her greeting reignited the resentment in Qiao's mother's heart.
"Don't call him Dad! He doesn't deserve to be your dad. Ask him yourself what good deeds he's done all these years!"
Besides them, there were two police officers and the family members of the person who was hit in the mediation room. Various eyes were scrutinizing them, and even the staff passing by in the corridor stopped in their tracks.
Qiao Zishan threw away his cigarette butt, stood up, and roared angrily.
"Yes, I'm sorry to you, but have I wronged Yu Chu?! From childhood to adulthood, what have you ever cared about her? Besides playing mahjong all day long, what else can you do?! Let me tell you, I've wanted to get a divorce for a long time now. This life is better off without it!"
Qiao Yuchu looked at her usually gentle and refined father, who seemed like a completely different person, and unconsciously took a step back.
"Dad, Mom, what do you mean by this?"
Mrs. Joe hysterically pounced on him and began to tear at him.
"Let me tell you! You can forget about getting a divorce and being with that bitch, that little bastard. As long as I'm alive, you'll never have an easy time!!"
The two started fighting, hurling insults at each other with vile language, and bystanders couldn't stop them.
Qiao Yuchu's head was buzzing as she watched what was happening. Without thinking, she rushed forward and stood between them.
There was no time for Mrs. Qiao to retract her raised hand.
With a snap.
Her face burned with pain.
Qiao Yuchu screamed through her tears.
"Enough! Aren't you all ashamed of yourselves?!"
Upon seeing his daughter being beaten, Qiao Zishan became even angrier.
"Take your anger out on me! Isn't this enough?! Why are you hitting our daughter?! Let me tell you, you're getting a divorce whether you like it or not, I've had enough!!!"
Mrs. Qiao is about to launch into another tirade.
The police slammed their fists on the table with a deafening roar.
"This is a police station, a place for handling traffic accidents, not for mediating family disputes. If you want a divorce, go to court! If you continue to cause trouble here, you'll all be detained!!!"
His words finally calmed the two of them down.
The victim's family members sitting nearby became agitated and began to wail and cry.
"Oh my god! Your life is so miserable! It's all your fault, you two. If you're going to die, find a quiet place to die. Arguing on the highway, you two are tired of living, but others want to live!"
"Let me tell you, my mother is still in the operating room, being rushed to the hospital. If anything happens to her, I'll never forgive you!"
As the victim continued to sob, Qiao Yuchu's heart sank. She wanted to comfort this heartbroken man, but felt she had no right to do so, and any words she could utter would be futile.
Upon seeing the dashcam footage and the surveillance video, she, like the man, was on the verge of a breakdown.
The car accident occurred because the two people had an argument while the vehicle was in motion. Qiao's mother, who was sitting in the passenger seat, tried to hit him without any regard for the consequences. In his panic, Qiao Zishan lost control of the steering wheel and crashed into the vehicle in front of him. The car was thrown off course, spun around on the highway, and crashed into the guardrail on the side of the road.
The utility pole collapsed, and the victim's family of three was in the car. The wife and her baby, who was less than a month old, were sitting in the back seat and luckily escaped. The man was sitting in the front passenger seat. His mother, who was over eighty years old, was not so lucky and is now lying in the emergency room, her life hanging in the balance.
The man knelt on the ground, crying his heart out.
Mr. and Mrs. Joe were still blaming each other.
Qiao Yuchu's vision blurred as she looked at the photos of the scene. After a long while, her eyes reddened, she gripped the policeman's wrist tightly and spoke, word by word.
"How is the person?"
The policeman shook his head.
"They're still trying to save him, but..." He paused for a moment.