At that time, Wang Fa didn’t answer the question.
Because he hadn’t heard it clearly.
Leaning back in his chair, Wang Fa asked, “What?”
By then, Lin Wanxing felt the moment had passed and couldn’t bring herself to repeat the question.
She could only shake her head with a smile.
Perhaps inspired by their phones, the students privately decided to record a video for Wang Fa. They planned to edit it later and send it to their coach as a keepsake.
Lin Wanxing was pulled aside by Fu Xinshu, who quietly informed her about the activity.
Since it was meant to be a secret, most people were outside barbecuing, and when it was someone’s turn, they would go into the room alone to record their video.
By the time it was Lin Wanxing’s turn, the sky had completely darkened.
She sat in the dimly lit room, the sounds of the students’ laughter and chatter drifting in from outside.
A desk lamp was lit on the table, with a phone propped in front of it, the front camera activated.
The phone screen was the brightest source of light in the room.
Staring at her reflection on the screen, Lin Wanxing felt an inexplicable sense of bewilderment.
She watched as the girl in the camera tilted her head slightly to the left, then tugged at the corner of her mouth and smiled.
There are moments like this sometimes.
You see yourself in the mirror but wonder, “Who is this?” or “Is this really me?”
Inside and outside the room felt like two separate worlds. The crackling of flames seeped in, and she could still smell the aroma of grilled meat wafting through the window cracks.
After sitting in the room for a long time, Lin Wanxing finally finished recording.
When she stepped outside again, the charcoal in the grill was burning bright red.
“What were you up to?” Wang Fa, unusually, had joined the students for a drink that day.
Sitting among them, he tilted his head back slightly, his tone and gaze softened by the effects of alcohol.
“If I said, ‘I’m not telling you,’ would that sound suspicious?” Lin Wanxing scanned the assortment of drinks on the table and finally picked a can of Yongchuan Pure Draft beer, the same as Wang Fa’s.
With a crisp “psst,” snowy white foam overflowed.
Wang Fa didn’t reply, only raised his can and lightly clinked it against hers.
The wind carried a pungent scent of chili or pepper.
Lin Wanxing took a large gulp of beer. The bubbles rushed to her head, but she couldn’t quite describe the taste in her mouth.
They didn’t speak again after that.
The grilled meat was served on stainless steel plates, brought out in batches and devoured skewer by skewer.
At first, there were issues with the meat being either burnt or undercooked.
But later, head chef Feng Suo got the hang of controlling the heat and seasoning meticulously, making it indistinguishable from what Lin Wanxing had eaten at restaurants.
The students laughed and roughhoused on the rooftop, drinking heartily and eating generously. Though it was a farewell dinner, the overall mood remained joyful.
Lin Wanxing could no longer recall exactly what was said that night. She only remembered the abundance of spicy flavors, the cool summer breeze, and how alcohol could make one forget their worries.
In any case, she didn’t say much, just kept watching them until they’d eaten and drunk their fill, until the gathering came to an end.
It was unclear who first signaled that the dinner was “over,” but the students pushed back their chairs and stood up, one after another.
For once, no one tried to shirk responsibilities. Instead, they all pitched in to clear the table and tidy up the trash.
Amid the busyness, their conversations grew sparser, until only the occasional clatter of dishes remained.
In the hazy light, Lin Wanxing watched the students’ bustling figures, waiting for the farewells to come.
She didn’t know what Wang Fa had said to the students, but the boys seemed remarkably straightforward about it. Without lingering or making a fuss, they finished cleaning up and announced they were leaving.The boys carried trash bags, with the iron door to the rooftop behind them, while Wang Fa stood by the sink on the other side.
Between them lay dining tables, grills, piles of bricks, and assorted clutter.
In the night, the boys waved from afar to their coach.
"Coach, we won’t see you tomorrow, right?"
"You should come visit us when you have time."
"Don’t forget about us."
The students spoke one after another.
They wore smiles on their faces, held trash in their hands, and their clothes were stained with mud from a day of training on the field.
Though their eyes were full of reluctance, no one said the words.
Wang Fa stood by the sink, rolling up his sleeves as he prepared to wash his hands.
He turned to look at the students, his expression as calm as it was every day when they parted.
"Goodbye," he said.
——
Lin Wanxing walked downstairs with the students.
She didn’t usually see the students off, but this time was an exception because Fu Xinshu had asked her in advance to come downstairs with them.
Unsure of what they were up to, Lin Wanxing took a bag of trash, but before she had descended two flights of stairs, the students surrounded her with questions.
"Why are you so timid?" Qi Liang, standing on the same step, spoke in a tone that implied she was embarrassing herself.
"What?" The stairwell was stuffy, and the alcohol was getting to her head, making Lin Wanxing feel dizzy.
"You’re acting like you just got dumped! As a modern woman, you should bravely pursue love!" Qin Ao, standing on the step below, even made an exaggerated fist pump to encourage her.
Lin Wanxing couldn’t understand the students’ train of thought at all. She had been reflecting on the parting between their coach and the players, so how did it turn into "getting dumped" in their eyes?
"Have any of you even been in a relationship to say I’m acting like I got dumped?" Lin Wanxing was speechless.
"Of course! Don’t tell me someone here has never been in a relationship?" Lin Lu said confidently.
"You?" Qi Liang sneered. "With Princess Yao Yao?"
"Xiao Lu Jiang, my CP!" Lin Lu corrected.
"I haven’t," Feng Suo admitted honestly.
"Then you’re just like the teacher," Zheng Feiyang said innocently.
Lin Wanxing felt like she was about to cough up blood.
But with all the students’ noise, the heavy, oppressive atmosphere dissipated quite a bit.
Lin Wanxing urged them to keep moving downstairs and not linger in the smelly stairwell.
They tossed the large bags of trash near the dumpster and walked out of the residential area.
The streetlights cast a tranquil glow, and the camphor tree leaves rustled and swayed in the autumn night.
The faint scent of camphor trees filled the air, helping to clear Lin Wanxing’s earlier tipsiness.
The boys resumed their argument about her behavior on the rooftop: "Listen to the teacher’s tough talk—she’s just too embarrassed to say it!"
"Yeah, she definitely didn’t say anything to the coach like ‘I’ll miss you’ or ‘Don’t go.’"
The students imitated her gentle tone, sending shivers down Lin Wanxing’s spine.
"What nonsense!" she quickly interrupted their imaginative little drama. "How could I ask the coach to stay? What about you guys? You didn’t even put up a fight and just let him go so obediently?"
The students had calmly accepted Wang Fa’s departure, organized the barbecue dinner, and bid farewell to their coach without any lingering attachment—all of which surprised Lin Wanxing greatly.
"Of course we want the coach to stay!" Qin Ao said, walking forward with his hands behind his head. "But are you stupid? You know we weren’t asleep that day."
Lin Wanxing was puzzled for a moment but quickly caught on.
"That day" referred to the day they had beaten Green View International.Wang Fa went to Yongchuan for an interview, and the students returned victorious. Exhausted, they sprawled asleep in her room.
That day, she and Wang Fa ate hotpot on the rooftop. She asked how his interview in Yongchuan went, and Wang Fa told her he was leaving.
"15 million euros! That's way too much money," Qin Ao exclaimed, leaping onto the low flower bed with a tone mixing excitement and regret.
Under the streetlights, the students' shadows stretched long across the ground.
The topic of "persuading him to stay" lent everyone's voices a wistful, helpless quality.
"We waited for several days, wondering if that mysterious letter-sender would send us something else to convince the coach not to leave," Fu Xinshu said.
"But none of us received anything," Yu Ming added.
"Though we did have 1,500 yuan!" Lin Lu laughed.
"Not anymore—we just spent it all," Chen Jianghe reminded everyone calmly.
The students remained composed, though most retained their joy and hope.
Lin Wanxing suddenly realized she couldn't be the only one reluctant to see Wang Fa leave.
But the students were facing an enormous sum of money.
So much money that even passionate, wildly ambitious teenagers knew they stood no chance and had to concede defeat.
So they had to bid farewell properly.
Walking slowly to the entrance of Xincun, the bus stop stood to the right. Students who could walk home turned left, waving goodbye to her.
Lin Wanxing waited with the remaining students for the bus.
"We'll find another coach someday," Zheng Feiyang said.
"If not, Coach can still teach us remotely," Feng Suo suggested.
"Don't worry," Fu Xinshu reassured her.
Lin Wanxing never imagined the day would end with the students comforting her.
One by one, the students boarded the bus until she had seen all the children off.
Lin Wanxing sat on the bus stop bench, the bright advertisement light panel glowing warmly behind her.
It was a rare moment of quiet solitude.
She lifted her head, gazing at the hazy night sky illuminated by city lights.
A tangle of emotions swirled within her. People can solve some problems, but not all of them.
Finally, she stretched and let out a long, deep sigh.
—
All the way back, Lin Wanxing wondered what she would say to Wang Fa when she went upstairs.
Discuss how they'd stay in touch?
Ask him to recommend a reliable new coach?
Surely she wouldn't actually confess her feelings?
Their relationship didn't seem like that kind of romance.
It felt like there was something more than ordinary love, yet also something missing.
After 9 p.m., some of Xincun's landscape lights turned off to save energy. The road grew darker than before, with shadows dancing under the trees and scattered lights glowing from building windows.
A stray cat darted through the bushes. Lin Wanxing looked up and saw the light on the second floor.
The bright classroom lights spilled into the old neighborhood's dark night.
It took her a moment to realize the extravagantly lit room was No. 17 Wutong Road's second floor.
It was the classroom where her grandparents once ran a tutoring center. Against the illuminated windows, the faded red characters appeared blurred but still recognizable: "Yuan Yuan."
Lin Wanxing felt she must still be a little drunk.
Had someone used the classroom today? Why were the lights on? Did the students forget to turn them off?
It couldn't be Wang Fa inside, could it? Did he turn them on?Lost in thought, Lin Wanxing pushed open the building's security door. The motion-sensor light between the first and second floors flickered on. She stepped onto the concrete stairs and made her way up.
Second floor, tutoring center entrance.
The green iron gate was slightly ajar, not fully closed.
Bright classroom lights spilled through the crack into the hallway, illuminating the reddish-brown door of the teaching storage room across the way.
Lin Wanxing slipped the keys into her pocket, ready to go in and turn off the lights.
With a creak, she pushed the iron door open.
The building suddenly fell extremely quiet. In that moment, Lin Wanxing could even hear the sound of slippers shuffling across floor tiles from upstairs.
Keys jingling in her pants pocket, Lin Wanxing walked to the classroom door and peered inside. No one was there.
Her hand found the wall switch. With a click, she turned off the lights.
But the next second, the lights suddenly blazed on, bright as daylight.
Lin Wanxing's hand remained on the switch as she stared in disbelief at the classroom blackboard.
Two new lines of characters had appeared on it.
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