Chapter 12: Gift? Surprise?

Tonight the sky was clear; in Jingcheng it was rare to see the spectacular sight of ten thousand miles of rosy clouds, beautiful beyond words.

Before night had fully fallen, Chen Ci gave one last reminder: "Pang Zi, is everything ready?"

Pang Zi checked the equipment's power and returned an "OK" hand signal.

At that moment, Lao Zhao was chatting casually with Shi San: "Hey, guess how long Master Ci will stay interested this time?"

Shi San glanced sideways at Lao Zhao: "Didn't I say? Brother Ci is truly in love."

"True love?!" Lao Zhao made an extremely comical face, poked Shi San's back with his arm, and chuckled lightly: "You're not really taking it seriously, are you?"

Shi San lowered his head to tend to his drum, not glancing at Lao Zhao again.

"How about this: since you said Master Ci is truly in love this time, let's make a bet. I won't bully you—if after a year Master Ci hasn't dumped her, you win."

Shi San still ignored him; seeing this, Lao Zhao upped the ante: "How about half a year?"

"Four months? Three? Two… you don't even dare two months, and you still claim true love?"

Lao Zhao said all this with a sneer, then switched to goading.

"Come on, this tactic actually works on Shi San a bit: 'What's your stake? What will you bet against me?'"

"Damn, you're looking down on my handsome brother, huh? I—"

Lao Zhao's face flushed with anger as he frantically patted himself down—apparently he really had nothing to produce.

"Fine, now even you little brat look down on me. Brother Zhao, I've got nothing else—just this…"

"Cut it out, pay attention—time's about up, I'll go check."

Chen Ci walked over and interrupted the two; based on his past flirting experience, Yang Tongxue and the others should be heading back from the cafeteria to the dorms soon.

Sure enough, a moment later several figures came into view, though far enough that their faces couldn't be made out…

"Phew—so full, I feel great."

"How did you eat so much tonight? Aren't you worried about gaining weight?"

"It's fine, Xiaofei—come walk with me to aid digestion."

At dinner, Yang Tongxue turned her sorrow into appetite; after eating her fill, her mood improved greatly.

"Hmph, it's just a man, old lady… am I seeing things?"

As they walked, Yang Tongxue suddenly stopped; she seemed to see Chen Ci smiling at her.

"What's wrong?"

Zhang Xiaofei voiced her question, then followed Yang Tongxue's gaze and looked into the distance.

Immediately afterward, she seemed to hear the sound of bones rubbing together.

Zhang Xiaofei seemed to instantly grasp something; in the sunset, Chen Ci's smile appeared even more radiant than the evening clouds as he approached leisurely.

When they drew near, Chen Ci first waved at Zhang Xiaofei: "Xiaofei, long time no see."

Zhang Xiaofei also returned a smile: "Chen Ci, you're here for Mi Mi, right?"

"Eh, you already knew."

Chen Ci feigned surprise, but then heard a cold snort—only to see Yang Tongxue already turn and stride away.

Zhang Xiaofei couldn't help but smile, telling Chen Ci: "Hurry up and go after her."

Although Yang Tongxue's steps were quick, they were all small, so her speed wasn't actually fast.

Chen Ci gave a light smile: "No rush, let's go together."

"What?"

"…"

On the campus path bathed in the afterglow of the sunset, a tall male student walked ahead, with two slender figures behind him, their arms linked.

"Xiaofei, why are you also with him, speaking up for him?"

"Come on, let's go see—it's no big deal, and there might actually be a surprise."

"All right, but as agreed, I'm doing this for your sake…"

Having overheard the two behind him the whole way, Chen Ci struggled to keep a straight face.

It seems the female comrades' influence can indeed be significant; Chen Ci pondered how to improve his relationship with Zhang Xiaofei.

Finally arriving at the destination, Chen Ci hadn't even gotten a word in before hearing Yang Tongxue's question.

"You said you had a gift for me—why are we heading back to the dorm?"

"She's really impatient," Chen Ci glanced at her, said nothing, and kept walking forward.

At that moment, the anger Yang Tongxue had barely suppressed was about to flare up again.

Fortunately, Zhang Xiaofei beside her kept a hand on her, applying slight pressure to push Yang Tongxue forward.

A large off‑road vehicle was parked in front of the dormitory building; after walking a bit farther, Yang Tongxue discovered a band hidden behind the vehicle.

"Sister‑in‑law, hello."

Lao Zhao and the two others greeted her proactively; Yang Tongxue paused, her eyes glazing as if she realized something, and replied: "Oh, you're good…"

Chen Ci stepped forward on his own, while Zhang Xiaofei whispered behind him: "Mi Mi, are these the ones you mentioned…"

"Yeah, the Broken Guitar Band."

"Brother Ci, here's your mic."

Shi San handed Chen Ci a microphone; the sound equipment was ready.

School had already let out, and a crowd had gathered in front of the dormitory building, noticing them.

Gawking at the excitement is human nature—men and women alike.

But here, below the girls' dormitory, naturally the proportion of female onlookers is a bit higher.

"Mi Mi, is Chen Ci going to sing a love song to confess to you? That's so romantic."

Zhang Xiaofei really showed up big today; Chen Ci said he'd definitely repay her double.

Yang Tongxue lifted her proud face: "Tsk, what era is this, still so old-fashioned?"

Zhang Xiaofei chuckled lightly: "I think you're just talking."

"No way..."

Chen Ci said he certainly wouldn't use such an unsophisticated method—singing to cheer up a girlfriend—that's what normal people do?

"Welcoming another dawn, bringing fresh air……"

Without any prelude, Chen Ci's a cappella singing came from the speakers.

Then came the light guitar sound, accompanied by the music, and the next line was Pang Zi's.

"The breath changes, the feeling remains……"

Yang Tongxue couldn't help but be stunned; Pang Zi had grown up like this, at first glance he's quite amusing, and his singing is actually so good?

Not only her, but most of the crowd gathered in front of the car were also stunned by Pang Zi's rich, magnetic voice.

Just as she wanted to listen closely, Pang Zi only sang a line before switching to someone else…

Beijing, welcome you.

"Huh?"

From the first line, Yang Tongxue felt increasingly off; the lyrics sounded nothing like a love song.

When the chorus came, Yang Tongxue was completely bewildered: "What is this?"

"Where's the promised gift? Where's the surprise?"

She's a native of Jingcheng, born and raised there—who's welcoming whom?

She unintentionally turned her head to glance at Zhang Xiaofei beside her, who happened to be looking at her as well.

The two locked eyes; Zhang Xiaofei was clearly holding back laughter, not knowing what to say…

"With courage comes~~~miracle, trace……"

This song is very long, its melody and lyrics are quite catchy, so by the second half, some people had already started singing along.

Finally, the four band members joined forces to hit high notes, drawing a round of applause and cheers.

By this point, if anyone still couldn't tell this was an Olympics-related song, that would be a matter of comprehension.

The Olympics atmosphere permeated all of Jingcheng; even Beiying couldn't avoid it, and the venue was filled with jubilation.

But at the edge of the crowd, two figures seemed somewhat out of place amidst all this.

Yang Tongxue was naturally one of them, needless to say.

And Zhang Xiaofei, who was with her, now had a somewhat complicated reaction.

Undeniably, this is certainly a highly infectious good song.

But…