In Lin Wanxing’s impression, Fu Xinshu was the typical impoverished student at school.
Poverty wasn’t a derogatory label for students; it represented harsh living conditions and the resilient character forged through difficult circumstances.
Although Lin Wanxing had only exchanged a few words with Fu Xinshu in passing, it didn’t diminish her favorable impression of him.
The moment Fu Xinshu’s name was guessed, the three of them seemed to tacitly accept this answer without question.
No one doubted it or proposed any alternative, nor could they think of any other suitable phrase to fill in the blanks.
Fu Xinshu was the only intersection that aligned with all the clues, so he had to be the answer to "⑩—mouth mouth mouth."”
But sometimes, an answer is more than just an answer.
Why Fu Xinshu?
“So, should we go ask Teacher Qian?” Qin Ao was the first to speak up.
“Ask what?” Chen Jianghe replied coldly. “Ask Teacher Qian why he’s playing a prank on us? What if he asks what prank we’re talking about?”
“That does sound a bit strange…” Qin Ao fell silent.
Both students turned their gazes to Lin Wanxing.
“What?” she asked.
“So, what do we do next?” Chen Jianghe inquired.
“The best way to verify an answer is, of course, to seek confirmation,” Lin Wanxing mused for a moment before saying, “Let’s go ask Fu Xinshu.”
—
The teenagers were swift to act, unwilling to wait until the next school day.
They watched her lock the equipment room door and led her to the Wanda Plaza near the school.
Located in a densely populated residential area, the Heping Road Wanda Plaza was bustling with activity around six in the evening—the peak business hours.
A steady stream of people flowed through the entrance, with long queues forming outside some popular restaurants.
Surrounding them, the lights of countless households and shops glittered brightly.
Couples, families, elderly people, and children filled the air with laughter and chatter, their faces radiating calm and happiness.
Lin Wanxing stood at the entrance for a moment and quickly guessed why they had brought her here.
She turned to the two students beside her and asked, “It’s so late. Does Fu Xinshu work here?”
“He comes here right after school every day, from six to nine.”
In the basement level of Wanda Plaza.
Compared to the upper floors, the basement housed smaller shops and a supermarket.
The layout was more compact, the prices more affordable, and as a result, the foot traffic was even heavier.
As Lin Wanxing walked through, she peered through the glass windows of the restaurants, searching for Fu Xinshu.
To her surprise, however, they eventually stopped in front of a hair salon.
The salon, named “Denis Hair Studio,” featured a modern, lightly luxurious decor. It was crowded with customers, every seat in front of the mirrors occupied. The air was filled with the fragrance of hair care products. The stylists were busy at work, and the staff wore light makeup with fashionable hairstyles.
A shampoo assistant greeted them at the door: “Hello, how many guests? Are you here for a wash, a trim, or a styling today?”
Lin Wanxing hesitated at the entrance and instinctively glanced inside. In a corner shampoo station, she spotted Fu Xinshu.
The student was helping a customer rise from the shampoo recliner. Tall and long-limbed, he wore a towel around his waist and had styled his hair simply with gel. Despite this, his youthful gaze stood out, making him seem out of place in the environment.
Just as Lin Wanxing noticed Fu Xinshu, he saw her too.
Their eyes met, and Lin Wanxing said softly, “I’m here to see someone.”
Fu Xinshu was working and didn’t approach her immediately.Lin Wanxing waited nearby for a while.
The student invited the customer who had just washed their hair to take a seat, served tea and water, draped a towel over the customer’s shoulders, and gave a simple massage. He was clearly familiar with the routine. Only when the barber arrived did Fu Xinshu have time to come over and greet them.
"Teacher, what brings you here?" the student asked.
Lin Wanxing exchanged glances with Chen Jianghe and Qin Ao.
Finally, she and Chen Jianghe simultaneously took a step back, leaving Qin Ao at the forefront.
"We have something to ask you," said Qin Ao, the instigator who had suggested coming to the mall to find Fu Xinshu.
The young man wiped his hands on his apron and nodded.
Lin Wanxing helped Fu Xinshu ask the store manager for leave. Though the manager was reluctant, he had no choice but to agree since she was a teacher.
Hongjing Wanda was by the river.
Lin Wanxing and the students stepped out of the brightly lit mall and sat down at a riverside food stall.
The summer night breeze was refreshing, with lights twinkling like stars on the opposite shore. The scent of the river mingled with the aroma of grilled food.
Cola was served, and two plates of fried peanuts were placed on the table, their salt crystals glistening.
For a moment, the only sounds were the fizz of the carbonated drinks and the rustling of peanut shells being cracked open.
"What exactly brings you here to find me?" Fu Xinshu asked lightly, his hand resting on the plastic cup as he joked with Qin Ao and Chen Jianghe. "Have you two come around and decided to participate in the weekend match?"
"Definitely not. I won’t play with that Wen dog again," Qin Ao said coldly, his expression serious.
Fu Xinshu merely smiled and turned to Chen Jianghe.
"I don’t play meaningless matches," Chen Jianghe said. "We can’t win."
"I know," Fu Xinshu replied. "But what if I still want to ask you to join the weekend match? Last time, because of me, none of us made it to the field. If there’s another chance, I don’t want to give up."
The river breeze blew gently as Lin Wanxing watched Fu Xinshu.
The student still looked frail, but his gaze was unusually resolute.
"We haven’t trained for almost a year. There’s no way we can win," Chen Jianghe said. "And they’re not even taking it seriously. Forcing a match together is pointless."
When Chen Jianghe mentioned "they," he glanced at Qin Ao.
Qin Ao raised an eyebrow. "If I take it seriously, do you think you can beat me?"
"Even if you don’t play, can you at least come to the match that day?" Fu Xinshu persisted.
Neither Chen Jianghe nor Qin Ao spoke or nodded in agreement.
The atmosphere grew chilly. Lin Wanxing rested her chin on her hand, looking from one student to the other.
She took a sip of cola. "Let’s get to the main issue."
Qin Ao was surprised. "Getting us to participate in the match is your job, isn’t it? Isn’t that the main issue?"
"Should we talk about it for another five minutes, then?"
Qin Ao: "..."
"Someone is playing a prank on us," Chen Jianghe said, looking at Fu Xinshu and steering the conversation back on track.
He briefly explained about receiving the free Ball Borrowing Card and Qin Ao getting the cigarettes.
Lin Wanxing took out the transcribed cigarette paper and a copy of the Ball Borrowing Card from her small backpack and spread them on the table.
By the end of the explanation, they all stopped and looked at Fu Xinshu.
"So, what should we fill in those three blanks?" the student asked, his gaze shifting from the crossword grid.
"Your name," Chen Jianghe said.
"What?" Fu Xinshu seemed to doubt his ears.
"We guess that this ⑩ should be filled with your name," Qin Ao said."Just because it ended with 'Xinshu,' you guessed it was me?"
"Yes. You're the intersection connecting us, football, Teacher Lin, and Teacher Qian. We couldn't think of any other answer."
"Why me?" Fu Xinshu still didn't understand.
"They don't know either, so they wanted to ask if you've received something similar—something strange, like a prank," Lin Wanxing said.
Fu Xinshu froze by the table, completely still, as if caught in a vortex of confusion. He furrowed his brow, seeming to ponder but finding no answers.
Just then, the barbecue arrived.
One hundred skewers of lamb, one hundred skewers of beef, along with the grilled vegetables and seafood the students had ordered, covered more than half the table.
The aroma of cumin filled the air, and the river breeze brushed against their faces.
"Think while you eat," Lin Wanxing said.
The boys, who hadn't eaten dinner, needed no urging. They automatically dug into the skewers.
For a moment, the riverbank fell silent, with only the sound of lapping water and the distant horn of a cruise ship.
Lin Wanxing ordered a bowl of seafood dough drop soup and sipped it slowly, observing Fu Xinshu's expression.
After the initial shock, Fu Xinshu had kept his head down, eating.
A few times, Qin Ao and Chen Jianghe looked up from their food, wanting to say something to Fu Xinshu, but since he was still engrossed in eating, they had no choice but to continue devouring the food.
With the combined efforts of the three boys, the entire table of barbecue was quickly polished off.
Qin Ao wiped his mouth, indicating he was full. Chen Jianghe shook his head, and their gazes eventually settled on Fu Xinshu's face.
Fu Xinshu had been quietly picking at the eggplant. Sensing his classmates' stares, he finally set down his chopsticks and looked up.
"I remember now," he said softly, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "I did receive something like that."
"What was it?" Qin Ao and Chen Jianghe raised their voices in unison.
"Do you really want to know? Come to the match this weekend. If we win, I'll tell you."
Lin Wanxing suddenly looked up, suppressing the urge to say something, and ultimately remained silent.
Qin Ao and Chen Jianghe were stunned, unable to understand why Fu Xinshu would make such a demand.
Their expressions shifted, torn between wanting to know what Fu Xinshu had received and resisting such a direct form of coercion.
But Fu Xinshu gave them no room to negotiate: "Sunday at 11 a.m., gather at the school gate."
With that, Fu Xinshu stood up and left the table.
He walked away resolutely. By the time they processed it, he had already hopped down the steps, crossed the busy intersection, and was heading toward the mall against the flow of the crowd.
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