The infirmary called to say that Liu Hu's injuries were not serious, except that his front teeth were loose and he needed to adjust his diet for a while.
Liu Hu insisted that it was impossible and demanded to go to the hospital for a medical examination to get an explanation from Xiang Yu.
Judging by the time, Liu Hu should already be at the hospital for a check-up. Xiang Yu wasn't afraid; he was experienced in fighting. Apart from a ruptured nasal mucosa from his beating, the other party only had a normal nosebleed, and the check-up should show no problems whatsoever.
"Are you alright?" Xiang Yu helped Gu Chen to the infirmary to check her injuries. "Leave her there alone."
She was referring to Xu Youqing, who was still crying in the grade-level office when they left.
"You need to give your teammates full trust." Gu Chen seemed carefree. "Don't worry about the disciplinary action you have. Just submit a 3,000-word self-criticism and read it aloud under the national flag on Monday. Old Tang will see your sincere attitude and cancel the disciplinary action."
Xiang Yu sighed.
It would be better not to cancel it at all. A self-criticism is easy to write but hard to read. Making him read it under the national flag next Monday is not as good as making him stand there as a human punching bag for Liu Hu.
On the parents' side, the child caused trouble just two days into the new semester. When Ms. Sun, the mother of the child, received the call from the grade level department, she simply replied casually, "I know, I'm busy here, teacher, I'll hang up now."
The phone call was abruptly ended with a "beep," and Tang Weijin's face immediately turned ashen.
Gu Chen found Tang Weijin's appearance amusing, his eyes crinkling with laughter. He asked, "Auntie is just like my mom. She always gives perfunctory answers to anyone's calls during work hours."
It wasn't exactly a perfunctory response, but rather a way of saying, "My job is special, I'm very busy."
Gu Chen: "What a coincidence, my mom is the same."
After receiving a call from Director Tang of the second-year high school department, the school doctor, Zhao, was waiting at the door with a boxed lunch for the arriving injured patient. He yawned several times, and from a distance, he saw two boys walking towards him, chatting and laughing.
Finally, the person we were waiting for arrived.
"You're injured, right? I heard from Director Tang that you got hit by a soccer ball?" Zhao, the school doctor, was a male medical student who had just graduated. He got along well with these high school boys and could speak more casually. "It hit your back? Take off your shirt so I can see."
"..." Xiang Yu felt that the school doctor had probably misunderstood something.
Gu Chen: "Doctor, I'm the one who got hit by the ball."
"Ah? Oh, I'm sorry." School doctor Zhao realized he had made a mistake and pushed the medical record sheet in front of Gu Chen. "I saw you smiling so happily at the door just now, and I thought he was an injured patient."
"Hey, one should be optimistic." Gu Chen couldn't bend down, so he stood up and wrote on Xiang Yu's shoulder. Xiang Yu ignored him because he was injured.
“That’s right.” School doctor Zhao took the medical record sheet, glanced at it and laughed, “It’s a pity you’re not studying medicine with your naturally beautiful handwriting.”
"Hey, I think so too." Gu Chen responded jokingly, crossing his arms and pulling at the hem of his hoodie to take it off, but his expression changed as soon as he exerted force, and he awkwardly put his hands down.
School doctor Zhao was busy looking for medicine in the cabinet. Hearing the noise, he didn't turn around but asked with experience, "Is it too painful to take it off?"
Gu Chen raised his voice.
"I suspect he injured his scapula." After searching for a long time in the cabinet, Dr. Zhao pulled out a bottle of bone-setting liniment, dusted off his hands, and asked Gu Chen, "Can you raise your arm?"
Gu Chen: "Yes." He slowly moved his arms and raised his hands above his head.
School doctor Zhao: "Come on, friend, don't just watch, help him lift up his clothes and take them off."
Xiang Yu was efficient and followed orders, but Gu Chen suddenly twisted and turned like a caterpillar, refusing to be touched, without even getting a hair on his clothes.
"...What are you doing?" Xiang Yu's hands were awkwardly out of place.
Gu Chen held up his hands in silence for a long time before finally saying, "I'm ticklish."
"..." Fine, Xiang Yu was afraid he would say something surprising. After mentally preparing herself for a long time, she couldn't help but roll her eyes at him when she suddenly heard this answer.
"Don't act like a girl, you big guys." Dr. Zhao shook the sediment in the bone-setting water and urged, "You two haven't eaten yet, have you? If you dawdle any longer, the cafeteria will be out of food."
"Then let's do it." Gu Chen resigned himself to his fate, letting Ren Xiangyu lift up his clothes and take them off, revealing his well-defined muscles.
"Not bad, young man, you have a good physique," Dr. Zhao joked, then had him lie face down on the hospital bed and poured some bone-setting liniment onto his injured area.
The herbal water, a reddish-brown liquid, had an indescribable smell. When applied to the center of both shoulder blades, the stench made Gu Chen feel uncomfortable.
"It smells a bit unpleasant, can we ask for a replacement?"
"Yes, would you like some safflower oil?"
"Never mind."
School doctor Zhao chuckled at him.
"Take it three times a day, morning, noon, and night. I'll also get you two strips of anti-inflammatory medicine. Take them together, and you should be almost fully recovered in two or three days." After saying that, he turned around and went to the cabinet to get the medicine.
Gu Chen had a hard time getting up, and after trying for a while, he finally asked Xiang Yu for help: "Classmate, help me up."
His position made it difficult to make a move, so without touching or aggravating Gu Chen's injuries, he put his arm under Gu Chen's neck and used his other hand to pull Gu Chen's legs, turning him from a prone position to a sitting position.
Throughout the process, Gu Chen just kept laughing. "Hey deskmate, don't we look like a wife taking care of her paralyzed husband?"
Xiang Yu glanced at him briefly without saying a word, picked up the hoodie and put it on him. In the process of doing so roughly, she 'accidentally' touched the injured area, causing Gu Chen to let out a loud yelp.
"Just kidding, don't be angry, don't be angry." Gu Chen winced in pain.
When Dr. Zhao turned around, Gu Chen was already dressed. He handed him the Kaifeng Zheng Gu Shui (a traditional Chinese medicine for bone setting) and two strips of capsules, and gave Xiang Yu a thumbs up, saying, "You're my deskmate, right? You're really good."
Gu Chen: "Right? My deskmate is great in every way. Let me tell you, the first time I saw him, he was..." Gu Chen was about to tell others about his deskmate's great achievements when Xiang Yu interrupted him.
"Let's go eat."
"Okay." Gu Chen stood up, put his arm around Xiang Yu's neck as usual, and said goodbye to School Doctor Zhao. "Goodbye, I'll tell you the story of my deskmate another time."
Seeing their happy expressions, Dr. Zhao said, "Okay, come often when you have time."
Gu Chen: "Then let's not. The doctor said it's unlucky to come too often."
Dr. Zhao found him amusing from the bottom of her heart and jokingly scolded, "Get lost."
They were just past the end of the mealtime rush, but they were still a step too late. As soon as they entered the cafeteria, they saw elderly people sitting on chairs chatting idly, not even glancing at them. Helpless, they each bought a bread and headed home.
Hearing a cacophony of noise from inside the dormitory, Gu Chen pushed open the door and saw a four-person meeting taking place, with people sitting on chairs and tables. Gu Chen exclaimed in surprise.
Wang Zehao quickly stood up to offer him a seat, but Gu Chen waved his hand, indicating that it wasn't necessary, and continued to stand with his arm around his deskmate.
The boys in Class 2 were all holding back their questions, and the person in question wanted to ask them as soon as they walked in.
"I'll go first!" Wang Zehao took the lead. "Brother Chen, Luozai said that Brother Yu got a disciplinary action, is that true?" He had changed his address for Xiang Yu from "new classmate" to "brother".
The others, having witnessed the dominant moments on the court, now hold Xiang Yu in high esteem for the two days since his transfer.
"Old Tang, no way? This is clearly not Yu Ge's fault, why is he being punished!" Zhang Zitong protested, "This afternoon, the brothers came with me to the next grade, let's get justice for Yu Ge."
“Yes, we must go!” Zhang Boyuan agreed.
Xiang Yu wanted to stop them, but since she wasn't familiar with them, she didn't know how to start the conversation. She could only purse her lips and look at them, and unconsciously nudged Gu Chen, asking him to say a few words.
It's rare for a deskmate to take the initiative, so Gu Chen patted his shoulder with the hand that was around him, indicating that everything was alright.
"Go where?" Gu Chen continued, "A temporary disciplinary action. Just write a self-criticism tomorrow, hand it in, and it'll be over. Old Tang has done enough."
"He still has to write a self-criticism." Xu Youlu muttered, "Liu Hu deserves it."
Seeing his expression, Gu Chen sighed helplessly, "Luo Zai, your sister asked me to warn you not to do anything reckless. She said she would help handle things on her end."
This reason clearly failed to convince Xu Youluo, and she pouted, feeling miserable. After feeling miserable for a long time, she finally came to her senses and said, "I'm treating everyone to dinner this weekend, come on over." Then she stared intently at Xiang Yu and added, "I especially want to invite Brother Yu, you must come!"
Xiang Yu didn't want to socialize and didn't really want to go, but he nodded in agreement for the occasion.
"Are you alright?" Gu Chen looked around. "If you're alright, go back and rest. You have classes this afternoon, so make sure you're well-rested. Can we not take a nap in class this afternoon?"
The conversation then steered the topic to afternoon classes, which noticeably eased the slightly heavy atmosphere.
“Exactly, it’s the first political class. If we don’t go back and rest soon, we might fall asleep all afternoon.” Jiang Wensong spoke up at the right time, following Gu Chen’s words and nudging Zhang Zitong and Wang Zehao next to him.
"Hey, why are you pushing us? Why don't you push Luo Zai instead!" Wang Zehao shouted exaggeratedly.
Jiang Wensong: "Luozi has a serious attitude towards learning and never sleeps in class."
“He’s starting to complain about my lack of seriousness in studying, Huanhuan, look at him!” Wang Zehao dramatically leaned towards Yang Shuhuan.
"Go to sleep." Yang Shuhuan pushed his face away.
The joking group from the opposite dormitory left, and the four-person room instantly became empty. Zhang Boyuan and Yang Shuhuan wanted to chat with Xiang Yu for a bit, but the other party always had a cold expression. Thinking that they weren't familiar with each other yet, there was nothing to say between them. There would be plenty of time in the future, so the two of them went to bed.
Xiang Yu wasn't very hungry, so he put the bread on the table and went to bed to rest.
Unable to fall asleep for a long time with her eyes closed, she wondered why Gu Chen hadn't come up yet, whether his injury was causing him pain or inconvenience. The more she thought about it, the more worried she became, so she looked down.
As expected, Gu Chen sat upright, standing in front of the table writing something.
What is it written?
"What did you write?" Xiang Yu asked as soon as he thought about it.
"A self-criticism?" Gu Chen looked up at him with a smile while munching on bread. "Don't worry about it, I'll write it for you, and you can just read it on stage later."
Xiang Yu was taken aback. For some reason, he suddenly found this guy's smile particularly pleasing to the eye.
[Author's Note: Xiang Yu: If you could read this for me while you're at it...]
Chapter Thirteen: Something's Wrong with You, Xiang Yu
Chapter Thirteen: In a Corner: Something's Wrong With You
Xiang Yu didn't sleep all afternoon, and stayed up with Gu Chen, who also hadn't slept all afternoon, to piece together a three-thousand-word self-criticism.
It was truly pieced together; he focused on writing the last 1,500-plus words, which was the result of mutual compromise between the two. Gu Chen originally planned to write all 3,000 words without leaving any for him.
Gu Chen: "Don't ask why, it's just the right thing to do."
Screw you, I shouldn't have trusted him in the first place.
Xiang Yu read from the beginning to the end of the 1,500-word book, and reading difficulties persisted throughout, as if the two were writing in completely different languages.
Yesterday's geography class had handwriting that, while not exactly beautiful, was at least legible. What is all this nonsense now?
If Gu Chen hadn't looked so serious and sincere while writing his self-criticism, Xiang Yu would have suspected that this guy was deliberately trying to mess with his mentality.
After lunch break, the two had been in the classroom for a while. Xiang Yu was busy browsing through his self-criticisms, occasionally asking the person next to him a question.
What character is this?
Squad Leader Gu has done all sorts of good deeds in his life. With his looks, his grades, and his personality, everyone who sees him would praise him. The only weakness he has is his handwriting.
"This?" Gu Chen himself was a little unsure, scratching his head and saying, "How about I read it through again to get a feel for the language?"
"You..." You even have a sense of language? You're studying a foreign language.
I'm numb and disillusioned.
Wang Zehao could tell what Xiang Yu was worried about from their conversation. "Haha, Yu-ge, don't look down on my Chen-ge's handwriting. My mom used to always praise Chen-ge for being so outstanding and asking me what I could do that I could do better than him." He laughed, his voice rising eight octaves, and said excitedly, "I immediately disagreed. My handwriting is at least eight streets better than Chen-ge's!"