Chapter 44: The Battlefield of Youth
The joint sports meet between Yangshan University and Hongshang University was scheduled for late September.
Ruan Yu had informed Teng Hao in advance that she would need a day off on the day of the sports meet. When Teng Hao asked which event she had signed up for, she replied, "The three-thousand-meter run," nearly causing his jaw to drop in shock.
Two days later, news of the "top scholar's" dual prowess in both academics and athletics had spread throughout the practice room. Xiao Qing and the others kept confirming it with her whenever they met, as if her slender frame attempting a three-thousand-meter run was some unimaginable feat.
Under such intense scrutiny, Ruan Yu suddenly felt the pressure.
She hadn’t volunteered for this—who knew if she could even finish the race?
Soon, the end of the month arrived.
Students and faculty from neighboring Hongshang University gathered at Yangshan, and the two schools, upholding the principle of "friendship first, competition second," began their athletic contests and exchanges.
The sports meet lasted two days, with the three-thousand-meter event scheduled for the morning of the second day. So, Ruan Yu spent the first day at the library and only joined her roommates on the field the next day.
Colorful flags fluttered across the track field, and the broadcast looped the song The Battlefield of Youth . The autumn wind carried all the "ideals and exuberance racing toward the future" and all the "passion and madness breaking free from constraints," echoing across the campus and stirring everyone’s enthusiasm. Students from Yangshan and Hongshang bustled between the track and the grassy field, chatting and laughing, full of youthful energy.
Ruan Yu tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and basked in the sunlight.
The breeze was gentle, the sun warm—a perfect autumn day.
"Come on, let’s head to the area under the podium. The grass there isn’t in direct sunlight," Jian Xiangxiang said, carrying a bag of snacks as if they were on a picnic.
"We should soak up some sun—it’s good for calcium," Xia Qiaofeng countered.
"No way, the UV rays will give me freckles."
Chen Manbai sided with Jian Xiangxiang and forcibly dragged Ruan Yu and Xia Qiaofeng toward the podium.
The grassy area behind the podium was already crowded with like-minded beauty-conscious female students, clustered in small groups that, from a distance, resembled little flowers blooming across the field.
Jian Xiangxiang picked a spot near the edge, spread out a cloth, scattered snacks on it, and beckoned the others to sit.
Well, now it really did feel like a picnic.
"Does Han Zuo have an event today?"
"The eight-hundred-meter."
"Don’t forget—we have to bring him water later."
"Pfft, as if we’d even get the chance?"
A group of girls behind them chatted without restraint.
Jian Xiangxiang sneaked a glance backward, then leaned in and whispered to the group, "Han Zuo is Hongshang University’s heartthrob. He’s seriously good-looking."
"Since when do you know everything?" Chen Manbai peeled an orange and stuffed the whole thing into Jian Xiangxiang’s mouth. "Just eat and stop gossiping all the time."
"It’s true! I ran into him yesterday. His looks are on par with Teng Yi’s." Jian Xiangxiang jerked her chin toward the girls behind them. "Otherwise, why would so many girls be obsessed with him?"
"Hey, isn’t that Teng Yi?" Xia Qiaofeng suddenly pointed at the podium. "Look, isn’t that him?"
Ruan Yu followed Xia Qiaofeng’s finger and glanced over.
Sure enough, it was Teng Yi.
Dressed in black athletic wear and a baseball cap, he stood with one foot propped on the steps, leaning casually against the podium railing, his gaze fixed somewhere in the center of the field.
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