Chapter 363: Do You Like Athletes or Not

Jiang Nian had figured it out by now.

Yao Bei Bei — lifelong nemesis!

This woman wasn't some brainless brute like Li Hua at all, but a rather cunning, sharp partner who was a real handful.

A blade from within is often sharper than one from without.

After all, five thousand years of history had already proven it.

Expert at infighting.

Undoubtedly, Yao Bei Bei had gotten his intel from somewhere unknown. She'd shoved him straight into the captain's seat, step by step.

"Fine then, the captain is Jiang Nian." Old Liu was quite perfunctory — after all, he didn't hold much hope for this match either.

But no matter what, the pleasantries still had to be said.

"Ah, this football thing — it's a sport the school strongly supports, backed by national policy. Everyone, the important thing is to participate."

Huh?

Is that right?

"But then again, everyone's identity right now is still student. The most important task is still studying."

Old Liu shifted his tone and began summarizing the results of the joint exam among six cities that had ended at the end of last month.

He first listed a few people with the biggest improvements, then highlighted Jiang Nian for special praise. From 590 to 616 — that counted as a big leap.

The class immediately buzzed with discussion, reactions varied.

"Wait, isn't this supposed to be the homeroom meeting?"

"Old Liu's f*cking slacking off for his paycheck again, but that's fine. The second Chinese class starts I get sleepy — let him ramble."

"How does Jiang Nian keep scoring higher and higher? Blink and he's already over six hundred. Did he take something? Is he about to ascend to heaven?"

"That transfer student, isn't she also over six hundred? No wait, she's been at six-thirty-something the whole time — that's insane."

"F*ck, how many people in our class are over six hundred now?"

Yang Qiming listened to the chatter around him, turned his head to look at Zhou Yuting. He grinned for a moment, then went straight for the sore spot.

"Hey, didn't you also transfer up? Rounding up, doesn't that mean you're about to hit six hundred too?"

Zhou Yuting immediately forced a smile, not knowing what to say.

Internally: *What an idiot! What the hell are you saying! *

But on second thought, she really did need to double her efforts. Among the transfer-ups, Yu sealing barrier had already run off to the elite class.

Only she was still stuck at a pitiful five-hundred-something. In the parallel class she might pass for a top student, but in this class it just wouldn't cut it.

Seeing that the first mock exam would be over in a few days, and after this month they'd be rushing toward New Year, there really wasn't much time left.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help glancing toward Jiang Nian's seat in the front row.

She recalled again the matter of him asking her to find someone at the hospital. Her uncle had said he brought a little girl in for a checkup —

Who could that be?

More importantly, where did he get all that money?

Zhou Yuting suddenly felt that too many mysteries swirled around Jiang Nian. In all fairness, he really did seem like he'd taken some kind of drug.

Could it be that he really was some hidden-variant Urban Dragon King?

She shook her head, shaking the unrealistic thoughts out of her mind, and began reorganizing her somewhat scattered thoughts anew.

Mm... heaven rewards the diligent!

In the noisy classroom.

Sun Zhicheng was quite indignant — he was also on Old Liu's roster this time, thinking to himself: how could Jiang Nian possibly play football?

But they were in the same class, so he couldn't exactly break the move.

He could only try to perform well, relying on his skilled step-over technique. No matter what, he ought to be able to grab a forward spot.

As for Jiang Nian — he'd just have to wait and see.

Chen Yunyun lowered her eyes to the copied grade sheet on her desk, glanced at the scores not far from her own,

and couldn't help pressing her lips together.

The sense of urgency instantly cranked up.

Jiang Nian's ever-rising scores had already begun pressing against her walls. For various reasons, she had to pull ahead of him.

Suddenly, Wang Yuhe in the seat in front turned around, face dead serious.

"Yunyun, my score is way higher than his."

"Huh?" Chen Yunyun was dumbfounded.

"It's nothing impressive either — my score will always be higher than his." The foolish Wang Yuhe clenched her fist and said through gritted teeth, in a fit of pique.

Most of the class was still discussing another piece of news Old Liu had brought.

The final joint exam.

In the truest sense, aside from the first mock, it was the provincial joint exam closest to the gaokao — after the scores came out, it would be highly referential.

More importantly, Zhennan High School simply didn't have the right to set the questions.

So there was no question of cheating. Forget getting the questions — even bringing books to copy wouldn't guarantee a high score.

After class.

Jiang Nian found Yao Bei Bei and forcibly dragged her out just as she was about to lie down and sleep.

"What are you doing! What are you doing!" Yao Bei Bei thought he was here for revenge, so she struggled desperately. "Rape!"

"What the hell are you yelling about." Jiang Nian was done.

"Rape... the body, duh." Yao Bei Bei did a stretch, then turned to glance at Jiang Nian. "What do you want with me?"

"At school, it's not convenient right now."

Yao Bei Bei: "???

She wondered what kind of car Jiang Nian was driving, but wasn't overly shy—just a bit guilty, since she'd tricked him twice today.

Yes, she was very much in the know internally.

No other motive; she just thought her class's soccer team was terrible. Especially those two idiots, Li Hua,

Couldn't even look at them.

She'd happened to hear someone say Jiang Nian had played defense in first-year high school and even won some award.

Since it wasn't anything bad, she just went ahead and announced it. Even if Jiang Nian really didn't want it, she could ask Old Liu to cancel it.

"What the hell are you doing? Stop dawdling." Yao Bei Bei gritted her teeth, speaking sharply, yet stepping back a pace.

"You little..." Jiang Nian was speechless, but hesitated a moment. "Cough, cough—back in that last class, I told you to get lost."

"I'm really sorry. I just found out you stood up for me in PE class, Beibei-jie, I was wrong."

Yao Bei Bei had already stepped back two paces, and at this, she snapped back to awareness.

"That's it?"

"What else would you think I wanted? Jiang Nian didn't crack a dirty joke—he only did so if Yao Bei Bei did first.

Both of them loved to joke around. You say your favorite thing to do is... getting up at midnight to do homework?

Then you're really something.

Funny enough, there were two "something" people standing here, staring at each other, frozen in awkward silence.

Soon, Yao Bei Bei burst out laughing.

Lin Dong, having finished urinating, walked past the hallway and glanced at the two by the railing, then casually said:

"Did she accept your confession?"

"Confess your mom!" Yao Bei Bei shot back without hesitation. "Say another word, I'll break your legs."

Lin Dong: "Hehe."

Yao Bei Bei turned her head and saw Jiang Nian was still there. Not a trace of embarrassment on his face—he leaned casually against the railing, tall and broad.

A breeze blew, stirring his soft black hair.

Total natural-born scumbag.

She cursed him silently in her mind, then took a deep breath. Facing his sincerity, she carefully said:

"Alright, fair's fair. I just tricked you in class too—call it even."

"Ojbk." Jiang Nian was about to leave, then paused. "Hey, should I make it up to you?"

"How so?" Yao Bei Bei raised an eyebrow.

"How about I introduce you to a PE student?" Jiang Nian's suggestion grew increasingly absurd, as if reaching for his phone to send her a message.

"Who?" Yao Bei Bei looked puzzled.

Jiang Nian said, "I've taken a few PE classes—I'm basically a PE student too."

Yao Bei Bei: "?"

After two boring physics classes in the afternoon, everyone's brains were numb; as soon as the bell rang, they collapsed onto their desks.

"Bro, play soccer after school?" Li Hua asked.

Before Jiang Nian could refuse, Ma Guojun chimed in.

"Only four days until the match—let's get a little practice in."

Jiang Nian glanced at the two and immediately realized he was still this damn team captain—he felt a headache coming on.

"After self-study, is there even a field?" Jiang Nian was exasperated. "Either skip self-study,

or don't go at all."

Hearing this, the two were momentarily stunned.

"Then what do we do?"

"Skip it, what else?" Jiang Nian thought for a moment. "Six or seven of us, sneak out quietly—no one gets punished the first time."

Li Hua and Ma Guojun exchanged glances.

In the Science and Math Office.

Qing Bao didn't have class in Class Three today; she'd just returned from Class Two. Leaning back in her chair, she sat quietly, tilting her head backward.

Not a single sigh escaped her—she held it for three seconds.

Suddenly, a male teacher entered the office, shouting loudly: "Teacher Zhong!" then burst into laughter.

"Good news—I heard you're up for Teacher of the Year!"

Qing Bao: "????"

She sat upright, bewildered, staring at the male teacher.

"When did this happen?"

"Rumor—year-end excellence evaluations happen this month," the teacher leaned against his desk. "I heard they've switched to an algorithm now."

"Based on attendance and outstanding performance in school teaching projects—like that advanced tutoring program a while back."

Hearing this, Qing Bao leaned back again.

"That was all up to the students—I didn't do anything."

She finally understood what he was congratulating her for, but wasn't sure if he was being sarcastic.

So Qing Bao gave a vague reply and said nothing more.

She pulled out her phone and scrolled—sure enough, her name appeared in the work group's documents, but only as a nomination.

She scanned back and forth, seeing few connections or favoritism.

She sat up again, as if... her chances of winning were actually decent. Who didn't want excellence? Especially young teachers.

Qingbao was cautious, not passive.

Soon after, congratulations flooded her phone; she felt a headache coming on, frantically replied, then slumped helplessly into her chair.

As she stared at the ceiling, she thought of Jiang Nian again.

Thanks to him, she probably wouldn't have even been eligible this year. Maybe she'd have gotten a mediocre evaluation at best.

With one student showing massive improvement, that's no longer mediocre.

After all, this is Gao San—if her method works, it might be rolled out en masse, even warranting a special meeting.

She stood up and brewed a cup of tea; hot steam curled gently from the cup. She lifted it to drink, then paused, wondering whether she should pay Class Three a visit.

She checked the time: the small self-study session was about to end.

School was about to let out; students would be heading to eat soon. After thinking it over, she decided against it.

"Shoot!"

"Fuck!"

"Sun Zhicheng, you piece of shit, are you even capable?!" Li Hua cried in anguish. "How the hell are you already impotent at your age?!"

Sun Zhicheng turned beet red, stammering awkwardly on the twilight-lit field.

"Missed it."

"Shut up, Hua," Jiang Nian said, wearing only a thin shirt. "Just kick. There aren't many games left."

Whoosh—the wind howled across the sports field.

On the muddy, bare football pitch, the light was dim. Many students from Gao Yi and Gao Er stood around, but Class Three had only half the field.

A tiny pitch with one goal, seven or eight men standing in the cold wind, kicking.

The fat boy Ma Guojun hadn't taken off a single garment—he still wore that dark blue, jacket-like leader's coat.

"We skipped small self-study. Do you think they've noticed yet?"

Hearing this, Jiang Nian pulled out his phone and glanced at it.

"Old Liu hasn't shown up."

"How do you know?" Liu Yang, the PE monitor, kicked the ball over and asked curiously. "Did you plant a spy in the classroom?"

Jiang Nian shook his head. "I asked Cai Xiaoqing."

The boys all exclaimed "Wocao!" in unison, stunned.

"Dude, you got connections all the way to the top?!"

"No way," Liu Yang scratched his head and leaned in. "Cai Xiaoqing, that rigid girl, actually gave you info?"

"Let me see—if it's true, I'll quit living."

Jiang Nian thought: Cai Xiang was rigid, but not a robot. No girl is truly averse to men.

Besides, Cai Xiaoqing had a decent look. A little charm, a few favors—getting small conveniences wasn't hard. To be blunt, why work your ass off for a job that pays nothing? Since he was close to her, he could naturally take the backdoor.

"It's true, Wocao!" Liu Yang gave up. "You're actually getting favors for your face? I'll try it tomorrow too."

Li Hua grinned and slid straight in, stealing the ball from Liu Yang's feet.

"Jester, eat my slide tackle! Mount Taishan Meteor Strike!"

"You're sneaking attacks?!"

"Fuck, I'm out."

They trained until 5:50, then went to eat together. They'd developed a bit of coordination—barely qualified as a football team.

The other team members were Luo Yong, Hu Nianzhong, and Lin Dong, who sat on the bench—but Lin Dong didn't show up.

He was just a filler, there in case someone twisted an ankle.

Other boys in the class, like the Yang Qiming and Huang Cailang brothers, had zero interest in football and flat-out refused to join.

Most others were the same—even those with decent stamina. The moment they heard the match was four days away, they went completely limp.

They didn't want to embarrass themselves or get crushed by other classes.

Excuses piled up endlessly, making it impossible to form even a decent team—only a half-assed one barely scraping by.

Back in the classroom.

Li Hua and the others were wildly excited, loudly discussing football preparations.

Jiang Nian, however, was uninterested. This team's lineup was even more absurd than a flip-flop army. Without cheating, they couldn't beat anyone.

Clearly, cheating was necessary.

Jiang Nian had no qualms about it. He'd cheated many times before to win a match.

The problem was—he didn't want to practice anymore.

So he took a deep breath, clasped his hands together, and prayed: tomorrow and the day after, let it rain—let nobody be able to train.

Zhang Ningzhi noticed and poked his arm.

"Are you praying for the team?"

Jiang Nian nodded, then immediately changed the subject.

"What homework do we have today?"

During the first break of evening self-study, Yao Bei Bei bought snacks and began handing them out. Jiang Nian pretended to work while waiting to be fed.

But she skipped him entirely.

Jiang Nian made the exact same gesture as Xi Yangyang thinking, then pointed at her.

"Hey, you fucking—"