Chapter 30: Injured. "Brother Wenyuan, it hurts."

As the bell rang, Shang Zui impatiently leaped from his seat, tennis racket slung over his shoulder, and prepared to leave with Gu Ci.

Qu Zhi, unaware of this, glared at him and reached out to stop him, "What are you doing?"

Shang Zui scoffed, "What's your business? I won't tell you!"

He eagerly pulled Gu Ci aside, "Little Gu Ci, let's go!"

Ignoring Qu Zhi's impotent rage, Shang Zui finally felt a surge of pride, thinking he'd finally created a chance to get closer to his goddess. Unexpectedly, he ran into Huo Wenyuan emerging from the elevator in the hallway.

Shang Zui was deeply concerned, fearing Huo Wenyuan would regret it and detain Gu Ci. But Gu Ci, too, was a simpleton. His eyes lit up at the sight of Huo Wenyuan, and he happily called out, "Brother Wenyuan."

Huo Wenyuan's lips curled slightly, then his smile faded, staring blankly at Shang Zui.

Shang Zui: It's a bit cold.

...Xin Nan is willing to eat a balanced diet for a month in exchange for Huo Wenyuan's mercy.

Fortunately, there was no danger. Huo Wenyuan didn't say anything, only asking Gu Ci to take precautions against the heat. Shang Zui let out a slow breath, wanting to pull Gu Ci away from under Huo Wenyuan's nose. But just a few steps away, the same cold voice echoed from behind him.

"Wait."

Shang Zui's legs trembled involuntarily, and he slowly turned around, a single, dreadful thought filling his mind: Is it going to be cold?

Gu Ci felt no sense of urgency and tilted his head in confusion: "What's wrong, Brother Wenyuan?"

Huo Wenyuan waved at him, beckoning him closer.

Gu Ci obediently walked towards him, but after only one step, Huo Wenyuan appeared before him. He bent his long legs, unconcerned with the glances around him, and half-crouched.

Gu Ci: "Huh?"

Why did he suddenly squat?

Shang Zui: "...Holy crap!"

...At this hour, this guy is still playing coquettishly!

As if no one was around, Huo Wenyuan untied Gu Ci's loose shoelaces, his fingers deftly and gently twisting them around to tie a beautiful shoelace.

Gu Ci took a step back in surprise, waving his hands incoherently, "No, no, no... No need, Brother Wenyuan. Hurry up, I can do it myself!"

Huo Wenyuan still didn't get up, saying in a low voice, "Be good, the other one."

"Don't fall."

Gu Ci probably knew what Huo Wenyuan was worried about. During the summer vacation of his freshman year, he and Huo Wenyuan were practicing tennis with their teacher. While running to catch the ball, Huo Wenyuan tripped over his shoelaces and fell, scraping off a large piece of skin from his knee. Huo Wenyuan was so shocked that he dropped his racket and helped him to treat the wound.

After that period of time, he stopped practicing tennis, but Huo Wenyuan would check on him every day, fearing that it would cause scarring.

Fortunately, the wound healed well, and Gu Ci's knee was still smooth and white, without a single scar, which made Huo Wenyuan seem a little overly anxious.

While Gu Ci was reminiscing, Huo Wenyuan had already tied the other shoelace.

Gu Ci was both embarrassed and startled, his lips parted in surprise, unsure of what to say.

This time, Huo Wenyuan said, satisfied, "Go ahead. Winning or losing doesn't matter, just be careful."

Gu Ci: "...Okay."

Shang Zui: "Is that all right, boss? This brother's future is our future, too."

Huo Wenyuan's eyes shifted, and he glared at him: "Get lost."

Shang Zui: "..."

On the way to the tennis court, Shang Zui couldn't help but sigh, "Little Gu Ci, thanks to you, I've always been able to refresh my understanding of Huo Gou."

Gu Ci asked curiously, "Has that happened?"

Shang Zui: "It's not a question of whether or not, it's a question of whether or not it's an exaggeration."

"You've been with him for two years. Have you ever seen him treat others like this?"

Gu Ci recalled, and it seemed to be true.

Before they knew it, they had arrived at the tennis court. The two of them registered at the reservation counter. A moment later, Shi Fei and Liu Zhihe arrived, greeting each other from a distance.

Shi Fei wasn't wearing her school uniform today, having changed into a pink athletic top and white skirt. Her hair was tied in a high ponytail. She was tall and slender, with radiant skin. Shang

Zui immediately called her a goddess. Gu Ci took the racket and asked Shang Zui, "How are we going to play?"

Shang Zui stared at Shi Fei's glazed eyes and absentmindedly said to Gu Ci, "Playing normally... isn't right!"

A thought struck him, and he turned back to correct Gu Ci, "You should give them some leeway. Don't just follow your teacher's instructions!"

Gu Ci and Huo Wenyuan's tennis teacher was a world champion.

Gu Ci nodded quickly, "I understand."

Shang Zui greeted the goddess with gusto, handing her the soda he had just bought.

Shi Fei smiled and declined, "No, we brought water too."

Shang Zui saw the two bottles of water in Liu Zhihe's hand, met his gaze, and grinned at her with gritted teeth. Liu Zhihe, in turn, looked defiant and helpless, squinting and pouting at him.

"Shall we begin?" Shi Fei, oblivious to their abstract conversation, glanced around and asked, "Isn't Wen Yuan here?"

Shang Zui, sensing danger, said, "You know, he never participates in these kinds of activities at school."

Shi Fei's eyes dimmed, and she whispered, "I thought Gu Ci was here, so he'd come."

Shang Zui overheard this.

Everyone present, each preoccupied with their own thoughts, began today's doubles tennis match.

The original plan was to pair Shang Zui and Shi Fei, giving them more opportunities to interact. But somehow, Shang Zui didn't object to Shi Fei's suggestion of pairing him with Liu Zhihe, leaving Gu Ci and Liu Zhihe to fret. Gu

Ci, noticing Shang Zui's dismay, suggested, "How about I team up with Zhihe?"

Liu Zhihe was about to nod, but Shang Zui shook his head, saying, "That's fine, let's get started."

Gu Ci gave up and stood on the tennis court with Shang Zui, searching for an opportunity.

This wasn't a chance to receive the ball, but a chance to create an opening for Shang Zui. Surprisingly, they had all underestimated Shi Fei's lethality in tennis.

Shang Zui only knew that Shi Fei liked to play tennis and was the captain of the school tennis team, but he didn't expect that he would be completely defeated when playing with her, and was forced to run diagonally across the court with the ball. Thanks to Gu Ci, he didn't get wiped out, otherwise he would have lost face.

...What chasing a goddess? Being chased by a tennis ball is even worse.

Halftime was over, Shang Zui was exhausted and didn't say a few words to Shi Fei. Finally, it was halftime time, and the four of them gathered together. Gu Ci was about to find an excuse to share a seat with Liu Zhi, but was stopped by Shi Fei.

"Gu Ci, can we talk alone?"

Gu Ci: "Oh..."

He looked at Shang Zui embarrassedly, and the latter urged him cheerfully: "Go, go."

Gu Ci took heavy steps and slowly followed Shi Fei to the side.

He sincerely didn't want Shang Zui's plan to fail, so he paused and asked, "Shi Fei, what do you want to tell me?"

Shi Fei also paused and said frankly, "Then I'll get straight to the point. What is your relationship with Wen Yuan?"

Afraid that Gu Ci didn't understand, she added meaningfully, "It's probably not the kind of relationship I'm thinking of, is it?"

Gu Ci: What kind?

... Friends? Or brothers?

Gu Ci didn't quite understand Shi Fei's intention and said cautiously but truthfully, "We are good friends."

Shi Fei's eyes visibly relaxed, but she repeated to confirm, "That's all?"

Gu Ci: "That's all."

Isn't being good friends enough?

Shi Fei smiled, "I thought..."

She didn't continue, and asked, "Can I find out if Wen Yuan has someone he likes now?"

Gu Ci had heard about Shi Fei's feelings for Huo Wenyuan, glanced at Shang Zui, who looked listless not far away, and said silently, "I don't know either."

"But I think all emotions have traces. What you see is the truth."

Shi Fei was stunned, obviously not expecting such words from Gu Ci.

She wasn't familiar with Gu Ci, but since they were in the same school, he was a hot topic, so it was inevitable she'd heard a few rumors about him. She had the impression that this fair, handsome boy had a good personality and was probably the obedient type.

This answer surprised her, but on second thought, he was in the top three in his grade, and being around Huo Wenyuan meant he wouldn't be stupid.

Walking back to the court, Gu Ci suddenly asked, "Shi Fei, did you agree to this tennis game because..."

Shi Fei turned to look at him, her lips curled slightly. "I heard you were coming, so I thought Wenyuan would come with you."

Gu Ci understood.

Shi Fei twisted her wrist, picked up her racket, and challenged him, "Gu Ci, would you like to play a round with me?"

Gu Ci's steps slowed to a beat. "What?"

Shi Fei pointed with her chin at the two men on the bench, their breathing ragged. "They're so tired after running half the court. I see you're playing pretty well. Why don't you let them rest a little while before we begin?"

Gu Ci stared at his shoelaces, then raised his head to look directly into Shi Fei's sparkling eyes.

He tightened his grip on his racket: "That's fine."

On the tennis court, their eyes met, and Shi Fei swung her racket, sending the ball into his own court. Gu Ci nimbly ran over to catch it and pushed it back.

Shi Fei's eyes lit up with admiration, and she continued swinging vigorously. Several rounds passed, but the match remained undecided.

Seeing the match becoming increasingly tense, Shi Fei narrowed her eyes, finding a breakthrough. After Gu Ci reached over to catch the ball, she swung her hand, feinted, and swung the ball toward his left hand.

But Gu Ci had anticipated her move and smashed it back.

This time, Shi Fei had no time to react. Caught off guard, she raised her backhand, causing the ball to bounce off the ground and fly at high speed towards the benches outside the court.

Both on and off the court were shocked. Shi Fei tried to save the ball, but saw another slender figure rush over faster than her.

In the nick of time, Gu Ci decisively and swiftly extended her racket, accurately and powerfully intercepting the ball and smashing it back into the court. Hearing the sound of the tennis ball hitting the red clay ground, Gu Ci's heart finally settled down. He half collapsed beside the bench, his chest still heaving violently.

Shang Zui and Liu Zhihe were dumbfounded: "Gu Ci..."

Shi Fei also came over and asked worriedly: "I'm sorry, Gu Ci, are you okay?"

A thin layer of sweat broke out on Gu Ci's forehead. He recovered and said: "Don't worry, I'm fine."

He was about to stand up, but suddenly he felt a piercing pain in his ankle, and he squatted back down uncontrollably.

"Oh my God!" Liu Zhihe noticed the abnormality of his ankle, "Gu Ci, did you sprain your ankle!"

Gu Ci's ankle was swollen and there was an abnormal protrusion somewhere, which was obviously dislocated.

Gu Ci looked down, and the sky fell.

...How did he sprain his ankle again!

If Huo Wenyuan knew, it would be over!

Shang Zui quickly grasped Gu Ci's arm. "Little Gu Ci, just bear with it! We'll get you to the infirmary right away!"

Gu Ci's face was pale, his brow furrowed. He gritted his teeth to hold back the pain, and with Shang Zui's support, he stood up and forced himself to take a step forward despite the pain.

No, it hurts so badly.

He took a slow, deep breath, tears welling up in his eyes.

Anxious and worried, Shang Zui steeled his resolve. "Forget it, you can't walk like this. I'll carry you!"

Gu Ci hurriedly refused. Shang Zui was about the same size as him, and the school hospital was still a long way away, so it wouldn't be easy.

He insisted, "It's okay, Shang Zui, just carry me."

Turning back to reassure the two girls, "It's okay, I'm fine. You guys go back first."

Liu Zhihe's eyes were red, and he insisted on following. Shi Fei, looking apologetic, said she wanted to see him for treatment.

Gu Ci had no choice but to let Shang Zui support him, taking each step and stopping to catch his breath before continuing.

After a long walk, they finally reached the entrance to the stadium.

Gu Ci sniffed quietly, feeling a little aggrieved.

I was just playing tennis, how could I have twisted my ankle?

...It hurts, so much.

Gu Ci sighed, looking down at his swollen ankle, thinking of taking one more step. But Shang Zui beside him paused.

Confused, he asked, "Shang Zui, why aren't you moving?"

Glancing straight ahead, he froze at the sight of the tall, straight figure approaching.

In the blink of an eye, Huo Wenyuan miraculously appeared before him, snatching him from Shang Zui's grasp.

"Did you forget what I told you?"

Gu Ci's head drooped. "I'm sorry," he uttered, before he could utter a word. He felt Huo Wenyuan lean over and wrap his arms around his legs. Then, his feet left the ground, and he soared into the air, lifted into Huo Wenyuan's princess embrace.

"!"

It was the first time Gu Ci had been lifted like this by Huo Wenyuan. He fluttered his hands helplessly in the air, trying to get out of his arms.

"Brother Wenyuan..." he begged in a low voice, "Put me down, please? I'm scared."

He didn't lie. Being far away from the ground and losing balance really made him feel insecure.

Huo Wenyuan had a cold face, ignored his pleading, and strode towards the school hospital.

Realizing that Gu Ci was shaking, he said coldly: "You're still scared."

"Hold me."

Gu Ci knew that Huo Wenyuan was on the verge of getting angry, and quickly reached out to hug his neck, and tried hard to blink his eyes to prevent tears from bursting out.

Huo Wenyuan sighed, gently patted his back to comfort him, and said with a rising tone: "Don't be afraid, I'm here, okay?"

Faced with Huo Wenyuan's tenderness, Gu Ci's grievances in his heart magnified, and he couldn't help but whimpering, burying his head in his arms.

"Brother Wenyuan, it hurts."

The word "should" in Huo Wenyuan's mouth was instantly blocked, and he couldn't blame him at all.

Sometimes he thought that Gu Ci knew how to control him. He

could only pat his back and comfort him softly:

"Ci Ci, bear with it for a while, dear."