Little Sweetheart

Xia Zhijun finished his sentence. Gu Siyi, who was encircled in his arms, blushed and said in a low voice, "Stop talking."

The boys, upon hearing this, immediately became energized. "Who do you think you are, holding onto our junior and even pretending to be her boyfriend?"

One of them approached, attempting to pull Gu Siyi away. Xia Zhijun instantly became furious. Without waiting for the boy's hand to touch Gu Siyi, he stepped in front of her and shoved the boy hard, his eyes cold and sharp, his aura imposing.

The boy's face changed; a fight was about to break out.

Lu Jiaye, Zhou Xiao, and the others quickly stepped forward, standing beside Xia Zhijun. Each of these tall boys looked intimidating.

The leader of the sports team looked at them, then turned his gaze to Gu Siyi, and said in a coaxing tone, "Junior, you just have to say that this person is not your boyfriend, and we will help you get justice today."

Gu Siyi stepped forward, hugged Xia Zhijun's arm, and said to him, "I don't know these people. Let's go, don't stoop to their level."

Xia Zhijun glanced at them and asked, "Who am I to you?"

"…"

"Hmm?" He raised his voice at the end, looking at her directly.

… Was he trying to take advantage of the situation?

Gu Siyi admitted defeat. Holding his arm, she whispered, "My boyfriend…"

Although it was an act, the moment she said it, her face turned red. Her appearance was that of a young girl experiencing first love.

Her cheeks flushed with red clouds, her eyes sparkling, charming and alluring.

Xia Zhijun's lips curled up in satisfaction. The coldness in his eyes melted like ice, replaced with a smile as he looked at her and raised his hand to rub her head. "Good girl."

Lu Jiaye: I'm just here for backup, ready to fight, why am I suddenly being force-fed dog food?

Zhou Xiao: I thought I was used to it, but the show of affection is getting more and more intense…

The boys from the sports team felt like they had been played. They originally just wanted to tease a junior, but they ended up witnessing a large-scale public display of affection.

Now there was no point in making a fuss. Their argument didn't hold water, and they might not even win a fight, especially on Longxing's territory.

The leader's expression changed several times before he said, "It was a misunderstanding. Since the junior has a boyfriend, we won't bother you anymore."

He then called his companions to leave. The boy who had been pushed was unconvinced and wanted to provoke them further, but the leader pulled him by the shoulder. "We're on someone else's turf, let's go." He forcibly took him away.

Zheng Peipei, Xiang Li, Zhang Xinyi, and the others stood at the door of the private room, watching the situation.

Xiang Li asked in a low voice, "Are Siyi and Xia Zhijun together?"

Zhang Xinyi: "Definitely, they just made it public…"

Zheng Peipei crossed her arms and snorted, "She didn't even tell me first, how disloyal!"

Gu Siyi kept her head down, pulling Xia Zhijun along. "Let's go, let's go."

They returned to the private room. Zheng Peipei was the first to shout, "Brother Yi, when did you become friends with Xia Zhijun?"

Gu Siyi: "…"

Zheng Peipei continued, "You guys didn't even tell us? Since you're together, you have to treat us all to a meal and make a formal announcement, right?"

Gu Siyi explained awkwardly, "No… It was a special situation just now, to get rid of those people. Please stop talking about it."

"Could it be that someone is having a one-sided love?" Lu Jiaye glanced at Xia Zhijun, amused.

Zheng Peipei was also amused. From Gu Siyi's reaction, she could tell that the two of them hadn't reached that stage yet.

As expected of Brother Yi, she could still hold on under the pursuit of the God of Studies. Zheng Peipei cheered for her silently: Go, Brother Yi, keep on pushing back against the arrogant God of Studies.

Xia Zhijun's expression remained unchanged, as if what they said had nothing to do with him.

As everyone was laughing and joking, he looked at Gu Siyi and said, "Eat properly, go back to the dorm and rest after eating, and prepare for the afternoon competition."

Gu Siyi replied softly, "Okay."

Everyone: …We lost, we lost.

.

When Gu Siyi and Zheng Peipei returned to their dorm, there was more than an hour left before the competition.

Gu Siyi went to bed and rested for half an hour. Half an hour later, the alarm clock rang, and she got out of bed to change into her sportswear, tying her long hair into a bun. While changing, she took off her bracelet and placed it on the table.

The weather was fine, the warm autumn sun shining on the earth.

The sports field was crowded and lively, with various activities taking place one after another.

Soon it was time for Gu Siyi's 400-meter preliminary race.

She was assigned to the first group. There were six students on the track, each warming up and moving their limbs.

There were spectators all around the track. The preliminaries were a competition between classes in Longxing, and cheerleading teams from each class came to cheer.

Lu Ming walked over with a group of boys. He instructed, "Later, shout your hearts out, got it?"

"Don't worry, Boss Lu, our cheers will shake the heavens and earth!"

The students from Class Six greeted them when they saw them. Someone leaned close to Lu Ming and spoke, but Lu Ming was absent-minded, his eyes wandering over the track, finally settling on Gu Siyi.

Gu Siyi was wearing a white tracksuit, her sleeves pulled up, revealing a section of fair and slender arms.

She was warming up on the spot, occasionally jogging and swinging her arms. Her long hair was tied up, with fine, downy hair on her forehead and temples. Two small dimples adorned her youthful and bright face.

Lu Ming didn't know why he was so smitten with her. But as long as he saw her smile, his whole being would light up, and he would be willing to die for her.

Compared to her, all those girls who flocked to him like bees to honey were inferior. They weren't as pure, as beautiful, as tall, as sweet, as elegant… In short, they couldn't compare to her.

Except for her, no other girl had ever attracted him so much.

"Ready." The referee called out.

Everyone got into their starting positions.

Xia Zhijun, Zheng Peipei, and the others stood on the sidelines, watching.

Zhou Xiao reminded Xia Zhijun, "Your high jump is about to start, aren't you going to prepare?"

Xia Zhijun said, "I'll go after she finishes running."

Zheng Peipei said from the side, "Don't rush him, how could he bear to miss Little Dimple's competition?"

"Bang!" The starting pistol fired, and the contestants shot out like arrows from a bow.

Zheng Peipei shouted, "Go, Brother Yi! Go, Brother Yi!"

"Gu Siyi, go! Go, Gu Siyi! Go, Gu Siyi!"

The shouts of the group of boys with their loudspeakers were particularly eye-catching.

Xia Zhijun swept his gaze over them, his brows furrowing slightly.

Almost all the cheers in the stadium were drowned out by the chants of "Go, Gu Siyi!" Only her name could be heard echoing endlessly.

Lu Ming was very satisfied with this effect.

Someone asked in confusion, "Which one is Gu Siyi?"

Someone immediately answered, "The one in white, the tallest, the prettiest one."

On the track, Gu Siyi's slender figure was far ahead. 53 seconds, she was the first to cross the finish line.

"Wow! Brother Yi is amazing!" Zheng Peipei screamed.

"Siyi is amazing! Siyi is amazing!!" Xiang Li and Zhang Xinyi cheered and jumped.

The three of them ran to the finish line to meet Gu Siyi.

Zhou Xiao reminded Xia Zhijun again, "You should go prepare."

Xia Zhijun withdrew his gaze from Gu Siyi, smiled, and said, "Let's go."

As the two walked towards the high jump area, Xia Zhijun said with lingering delight, "Gu Siyi is amazing, isn't she?"

Zhou Xiao: "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

Xia Zhijun glanced at him. "Be serious."

"There were so many students who won first place in the sports meet before, and even a national athlete confessed to you, but you didn't even bat an eye."

"That's different." Xia Zhijun put his hands in his pockets, his face full of righteousness, and said lightly, "They're not Gu Siyi."

Zhou Xiao: …So you're not admitting that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

The girls surrounded Gu Siyi, chattering excitedly as if they were the ones who had won.

Gu Siyi, on the other hand, was very calm, and said with a light smile, "This is just the preliminary. The real competition is tomorrow's final, when all the experts will gather. We can celebrate when we get a good ranking then."

"Brother Yi, I believe in you! I'm your biggest fan!" Zheng Peipei hugged Gu Siyi's arm and leaned on her shoulder.

As if remembering something, Gu Siyi said, "Isn't the God of Studies' high jump about to start?"

"I think so…"

"Let's go and watch!" Apart from her own events, she also remembered his.

As they were about to leave, Gu Siyi was stopped by the PE teacher. Gu Siyi said helplessly, "You guys go ahead and cheer for him, I'll be there as soon as I'm done here."

"Okay."

The PE teacher, seeing Gu Siyi's results, came to talk to her, hoping that she could participate in the sprint. This competition involved interscholastic competition, and everyone wanted to get a good result.

Unable to resist the PE teacher's persuasion, Gu Siyi agreed.

After quickly participating in a sprint, she stood on the sidelines, catching her breath. Her eyes were searching for a source of water when a bottle of mineral water appeared before her eyes.

Gu Siyi saw Lu Ming and didn't take it.

Lu Ming: "Not drinking?"

Gu Siyi shook her head.

Lu Ming smiled and said, "You're really an athletic genius. You're good at badminton, basketball, running, is there anything you're not good at?"

Gu Siyi didn't answer and turned to leave.

She walked quickly towards the high jump competition area, Lu Ming following behind her, constantly talking to her.

"Why aren't you talking?" "…Are you ignoring me?" "Gu Siyi, did I offend you somewhere?"

"Miss Gu, if there's anything I did wrong, please let me know, okay? Don't let me die a senseless death."

But no matter how he joked or pursued her relentlessly, Gu Siyi didn't respond, her expression cold.

Don't talk to Lu Ming anymore…

Xia Zhijun's words echoed in her ears. There was a string in her heart that was tense. Although he wasn't there, she inexplicably listened to his words.

Gu Siyi arrived at the high jump area. The first round had already finished.

When Gu Siyi arrived, Xia Zhijun was preparing for the second round. Zheng Peipei and the others were cheering from the sidelines.

She didn't have time to squeeze through the crowd to join them. She found that there were even more people watching the high jump competition than the track and field events.

The girls' screams grew louder and louder. "Xia Zhijun! Xia Zhijun! Xia Zhijun!" They chanted his name in unison. The most exaggerated thing was that they were actually wearing uniform cheerleading uniforms with "Summer" printed on the back. It seemed organized and planned, and it wasn't just a small group of people, but a large crowd of students.

Gu Siyi was dumbfounded. How many fangirls did he have?

Lu Ming stood beside Gu Siyi and smiled at the sight. "Xia Zhijun is indeed the school heartthrob. It must be tiring to be his friend with so many girls swarming around him."

Gu Siyi: "…" This person was really annoying, buzzing around like a fly.

Xia Zhijun stood at the starting line, the girls' screams reaching a fever pitch.

Not to be outdone, Gu Siyi cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Xia Zhijun, go!"

It was just cheering, who was afraid of whom!

Even though the place was crowded and filled with cheers, when her voice reached him over the sea of people, he instantly recognized it and looked towards the source.

Their eyes met. Looking at him, she shouted again, "You're the most handsome, the best, the most amazing! Go, go, go!"

Xia Zhijun lowered his head and smiled.

That smile, with a hint of joy, a hint of warmth, a hint of shyness, all those subtle expressions didn't escape the eyes of the cheerleaders.

"Xia Zhijun smiled!" "The aloof school heartthrob smiled!" "Oh my god, he's smiling!" …

"He never smiles during competitions!" "He actually smiled today!" "Can I just say that this is the first time I've seen him smile?!" "His smile is so warm, and a little shy, what's going on?"

"Ahhh, he must have heard our voices!"

"Xia Zhijun, go!" The girls cheered even more frantically for him.

Xia Zhijun collected himself and focused on the competition. At the referee's command, he accelerated and ran forward.

As he approached the bar, he jumped off one foot, soaring over it, his short hair flying, his slender body drawing a graceful arc in the air.

Gu Siyi held her breath and watched, all the noise around her fading away.

As if in slow motion, his body passed over the bar bit by bit. His beautiful jump, his flexibility, his extension, all showcased his charm.

When Xia Zhijun landed, the whole place erupted in deafening cheers.

Gu Siyi stared blankly, finally understanding why Xia Zhijun had so many fangirls at his competitions. This was too amazing to watch!

On the other side, Zheng Peipei looked at Xia Zhijun and said, "At this moment, I sincerely envy Little Dimple."

Lu Jiaye, who was standing beside her, asked, "Envy what?"

"Envy her for having Xia Zhijun." Zheng Peipei blurted out.

"Tsk." Lu Jiaye looked disdainful. "What's there to be envious of? Ah Jun has a bad temper and is a bit aloof. Don't be fooled by his good looks, my looks aren't bad either. He's tall, I'm not short either! He has a bad temper, I'm much easier to talk to! I'm such a charming, suave, and not at all aloof boy, just thinking about it makes me fall in love with myself."

"…???" Zheng Peipei looked at him as if he were an idiot.

Lu Jiaye put his hands on his hips, confidently raising his chin at a proud 45-degree angle.

"He can high jump, can you?" Zheng Peipei teased.

Lu Jiaye refused to be outdone. "Damn, it's just high jump, I'll jump for you right now!"

"Alright, stop making a fool of yourself and go prepare for your shot put competition. With your clumsy hands, you're only suitable for those silly competitions."

Lu Jiaye glared at her with angry eyes. "Zheng Peipei, are you trying to end our friendship?"

"Oh, we have a friendship?"

"Fine, you can handle the rankings yourself."

"…" Zheng Peipei's expression changed, and she smiled sweetly. "Don't be like that, how can you abandon me? You said our friendship would last forever."

"Call me Big Brother."

"Big Brother~" She readily complied.

Lu Jiaye patted her head. "Later, follow your Big Brother and cheer for him in the competition."

For the sake of the game… Zheng Peipei smiled brightly. "Okay!"

Xia Zhijun won first place in the first round and again in the second.

After he got off the field, his eyes immediately searched for Gu Siyi's figure. Because of the angle earlier, he didn't see Lu Ming beside Gu Siyi. This time, seeing Lu Ming standing next to her, his face immediately darkened.

Amidst the cheers, the boys from his class made way for Xia Zhijun, helping him break through the encirclement of his fangirls.

Gu Siyi remembered the teacher's warning and didn't dare to act too close to him in such a public setting, especially without Zheng Peipei and the others around, it would be too conspicuous.

Knowing that he was walking towards her, Gu Siyi turned and walked in another direction.

Lu Ming still followed Gu Siyi, seeing her dry lips, he once again handed her the mineral water. "You haven't had any water for so long, aren't you thirsty?"

"No, you're annoying!" Gu Siyi couldn't help but retort.

Lu Ming smiled good-naturedly. "It seems like you're really angry. It's okay, I don't blame you."

Gu Siyi: "…" She shouldn't have said anything.

Gu Siyi walked to the shade of a tree, Lu Ming standing beside her.

Not long after, Xia Zhijun came over. Without the crowd of classmates, it was just him, Zhou Xiao, and Su Han. Gu Siyi felt much more relaxed.

As Xia Zhijun approached, he tossed his half-drunk soda to Gu Siyi. Gu Siyi raised her hand and caught it.

"Drink if you're thirsty." Xia Zhijun said.

Gu Siyi hesitated for a moment, but she was indeed very thirsty. She had wanted to drink water ever since she finished running, but Lu Ming had been following her, and then she had been caught up in watching Xia Zhijun's intense competition, her throat was almost smoking.

The water was in her hand… She had drunk from his bottle once before, what was there to be pretentious about…

Once Gu Siyi thought it through, she twisted open the cap and drank the remaining half bottle of water.

Xia Zhijun's initially cold expression softened a little.

Xia Zhijun looked at Lu Ming, his eyes unfriendly.

Lu Ming smiled faintly. "I'm just concerned about my classmate, does the God of Studies have a problem with that?"

Su Han sneered. "Some people are like dog skin plasters, clearly unwelcome, yet they insist on clinging on."

Gu Siyi walked to Xia Zhijun's side and tugged at his clothes. "Let's go watch Lu Jiaye compete."

She didn't want Xia Zhijun to clash with Lu Ming again. It wouldn't be good for either of them if word got out. It was better to just ignore him.

Xia Zhijun knew that Lu Ming's family had business dealings with Gu Siyi's family. He gave Lu Ming a warning look and followed Gu Siyi's lead.

After walking away, Gu Siyi said, "I didn't talk to him."

Xia Zhijun: "Really?"

"Yes! He asked me if I wanted water, and I didn't drink any because I was ignoring him!" Gu Siyi conveniently omitted the part where she snapped at him. "I was so thirsty, but I was still cheering for you! Isn't that commendable?"

Xia Zhijun looked at her smug and proud expression and couldn't help but laugh.

He had just thought that this little girl was infuriating, but at this moment, he felt… she was really damn cute.

The afternoon passed by in a flurry of excitement as they watched each other compete.

As they were having dinner together, Zhou Xiao received an urgent notice from the PE teacher. There was a basketball match against No. 1 High School that evening. Two of the main players on the school team were unwell and couldn't play. The teacher asked if he and Xia Zhijun could fill in. Both of them had been invited to join the school team before, but they weren't interested.

When Zhou Xiao asked Xia Zhijun for his opinion, everyone started discussing it amongst themselves.

Su Han said, "Weren't the guys who were hitting on Little Dimple's sister from No. 1 High?"

Lu Jiaye suddenly realized, "Right, those guys from No. 1 High's sports team, there must be some basketball players among them."

Zhou Xiao said, "Then let's go and beat them fair and square."

Xia Zhijun smiled faintly. "Sure, let's go."

Zheng Peipei looked at Gu Siyi. "Don't go and show off this time, just stay on the sidelines and be a cheerleader with us."

Gu Siyi was a little embarrassed and said with a smile, "This is a men's basketball game, how can I play?"

At 7:30 p.m., the basketball game was held in the gymnasium.

The stands, which could accommodate thousands of spectators, were packed.

Zhou Xiao arranged for Gu Siyi and Zheng Peipei to sit in the Longxing team's seating area.

Gu Siyi looked back and saw the large and neatly arranged "Summer" cheerleading squad again.

Zheng Peipei leaned close to her ear and chuckled. "Feeling the pressure? Xia Zhijun is the male god of many girls."

Gu Siyi: "…"

"Although I want you to keep him on his toes, I'm also worried that you'll get hurt. Be careful, okay?" Zheng Peipei reminded her kindly.

Gu Siyi bit her lip lightly, and after a while, she whispered, "I'm not thinking about those things right now, studies come first."

"Oh, oh." Zheng Peipei nodded. "A slacker like me still has to tell myself to study hard and improve every day before I go to bed every night."

Gu Siyi chuckled. "Really? I can't tell."

"That's not right. Dating others might affect your studies, but dating the God of Studies, he'll directly take you to Tsinghua University and Peking University, okay?"

"…Keep your voice down." Gu Siyi grabbed Zheng Peipei's hand. "There are people all around us, stop talking about this."

Zheng Peipei didn't care. "What era are we living in? Do we still need to be secretive about this? A couple in my class in junior high school made out in public."

Gu Siyi was defeated and fell silent first.

Soon, the two teams walked onto the court.

Gu Siyi was surprised to find that not only were Xia Zhijun and Zhou Xiao in Longxing's starting lineup, but also Lu Ming and his classmates.

And on No. 1 High's starting lineup, there were three or four familiar faces, all of whom were from the group at noon.

Zheng Peipei: "Oh my, this is going to be interesting, all the enemies are gathered together."

Gu Siyi: …Could Lu Ming and Xia Zhijun actually cooperate and play together?

On the bench, Lu Jiaye said gloomily, "It's better for the two of us to play than to let that Lu Ming play."

Su Han: "There's no other way, this is an inter-school competition, our skills are indeed a level below Lu Ming's."

Lu Jiaye: "I don't believe Lu Ming will pass the ball to Ah Jun."

Su Han: "I don't believe Ah Jun will pass the ball to Lu Ming either."

Lu Jiaye: "Then how are they going to play?"

Su Han shrugged. "Who knows, let's watch and see."

Lu Jiaye: "I have to be ready to substitute for Lu Ming at any time."

On the court, the players from both sides faced each other. The boys from No. 1 High smiled when they saw Xia Zhijun.

Basketball was their forte, and they immediately became arrogant. They looked at Xia Zhijun and said, "You're basically offering yourself up, don't blame us for being merciless."

Zhou Xiao: "Stop talking big, let's see if you have the skills to back it up."

Lu Ming sensed the tense atmosphere between the boys from No. 1 High and Xia Zhijun. On the contrary, he was quite friendly with them off the court.

The whistle blew, and No. 1 High's center grabbed the ball first.

The intense basketball game officially began.

The boys ran and chased after the ball on the court, while the students cheered loudly from the sidelines.

Gu Siyi kept her eyes on the game. Xia Zhijun and Lu Ming didn't cooperate, nor did they clash. The situation was relatively stable.

Every time No. 1 High scored, Xia Zhijun would go all out to get the ball, break through the defense, and score, pulling the score back.

After waves of attacks and counterattacks, the first half ended with the score basically tied.

Compared to Xia Zhijun's aggressiveness in keeping the score close, Lu Ming was rather mediocre, willingly playing a supporting role.

During the halftime break, Zheng Peipei said to Gu Siyi, "Go and give them water."

Gu Siyi was about to get up when she hesitated again, seeing the crowd of people around.

And in that moment of hesitation, several girls had already rushed over to hand the boys water.

One of the girls smiled sweetly and handed the water to Xia Zhijun.

Xia Zhijun glanced in Gu Siyi's direction and took the water from the girl.

"…" Gu Siyi's face immediately fell.

Zheng Peipei gloated, "Are you going or not?"

Xia Zhijun walked to the rest area with the water, bypassed the people in front, and sat down beside Zheng Peipei, one seat away from Gu Siyi.

Xia Zhijun wiped his sweat and handed the bottle of water over. "Help me open it."

Zheng Peipei knew it wasn't her business and handed the water to Gu Siyi.

Gu Siyi snorted softly. "Why should I open it for you?"

Lu Jiaye, who was in front, turned around and said, "Ah Jun, you were playing so hard in the first half, can you still keep up in the second half?"

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