Chapter 89: An Unexplained Competitive Spirit
Lin Yuxi: [Image]
Lin Yuxi: She really knows how to ride someone else's popularity.
Yu Wanwan: ?
Pu Tong stared at the new messages in their group chat, completely confused.
They had only just gone home after school.
How were they already chatting again?
Just how much did these people love talking?
They might as well move into the group chat.
Even so, curiosity got the better of him, and he opened the image to see what Lin Yuxi had sent.
It was a screenshot from Weibo.
Tang Luocheng:
This cheering message was written so beautifully. As one of the announcers, I secretly kept the original!
Attached was a photo of the very encouragement letter they had submitted earlier that day for Lin Yuxi.
As the school's announcer, Tang Luocheng naturally had access to the original manuscript after it was read.
Those submissions would have been thrown away anyway, so taking one wasn't a problem.
But posting it online...
That looked suspiciously like she was trying to gain attention from it.
Yu Wanwan:
People won't think I wrote it, right? That won't do. I don't want to steal Pu Tong's credit.
After all, she hadn't written it.
Besides...
If people praised Pu Tong, she'd be happy too.
Lin Yuxi:
Not really. Netizens are surprisingly good at digging things up.
They compared the handwriting to one of Pu Tong's old essays and concluded that he wrote it.
Pu Tong:
Are people online really this free?
Yu Wanwan:
That's good then. Everyone's praising you anyway, so what's there to worry about? She just rode your popularity a little.
...
Had he become some kind of hot commodity now?
Could anyone simply come along and take advantage of his popularity?
After staying silent for a long while, Yi Zhi Xuenai finally sent a sticker before joining the conversation.
Yi Zhi Xuenai:
I just got completely absorbed in painting with poured pigments. Wow, you guys talked so much already.
Lin Yuxi:
?
Pu Tong:
You can "get absorbed" doing that?
Yu Wanwan:
Doing what?
Yi Zhi Xuenai:
Pour painting, obviously! What were you all thinking?
Pu Tong:
"Tong" speaks innocently. Tong speaks innocently. I didn't say anything.
Yi Zhi Xuenai:
By the way, I've already updated Episode 3.
When are you giving me the Doraemon theme song?
Pu Tong:
During the vacation.
I probably won't be busy then.
He suddenly realized...
He had postponed that promise for quite a while.
In fact...
He'd already stood Xuenai up twice.
Doing it again would be pretty rude.
While everyone continued chatting, Pu Tong opened Weibo and checked the comments under Tang Luocheng's post.
Since most of the commenters were her fans, the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious.
"Luo Luo is actually the school announcer? Our baby is amazing!"
"Wanwan wrote this so beautifully! Luo Luo is wonderful too. Pretty girls becoming better together!"
"Judging from the handwriting, Pu Tong probably wrote it. When is he going to write our baby a song too? (Looking forward to it!)"
Pu Tong rubbed his temples.
He couldn't bear reading any more.
The fan atmosphere was...
A little too intense.
Although Tang Luocheng's actions hadn't been particularly honorable, it wasn't worth making a big deal out of it.
She had only been sharing something from her daily life.
It just happened to benefit from the popularity.
If he confronted her over something like this, it would only make him seem petty.
Still...
He silently decided to keep his distance from her.
Someone willing to chase popularity like this...
Who knew what else she might do?
Yu Wanwan:
Tomorrow's our 4×100 relay.
You'd better write us an even better cheering message!
Yi Zhi Xuenai:
Exactly! Without hearing one, I won't even have the motivation to run!
...
What was this?
Where had this sudden competitive spirit come from?
Besides...
A 100-meter relay only lasted a few seconds.
The announcer probably wouldn't even finish reading the message before the race was over.
Not to mention the submissions had to be reviewed and read in order.
There was no way the timing could be that perfect.
Lin Yuxi:
When you're done writing it, take a picture.
I'll upload it to Weibo immediately.
As long as I steal the attention first, she won't be able to.
Pu Tong:
...
He had no intention of writing another one.
The only reason he'd written one for Lin Yuxi was because she had been competing alone and looked rather lonely.
Yu Wanwan and Xuenai would be competing together and had each other for support.
There was no real need for another encouragement letter.
The purpose of those messages was simply to cheer someone on.
If they were written for any other reason...
He didn't want to write them at all.
The final day of the sports festival soon arrived.
Today featured both the boys' and girls' 4×100-meter relay races.
To be honest...
Pu Tong didn't have very high expectations for the girls' team.
Yu Wanwan looked slim and delicate.
She clearly wasn't built for sprinting.
As for Xuenai...
That went without saying.
She wasn't exactly athletic.
If anything, all of her stat points had gone into her personality.
The girls' relay was scheduled first.
The running order had already been arranged.
In a relay race, every leg mattered.
But the first and final runners were the most crucial.
Naturally, those positions went to the other two girls in their class who had originally signed up for the 4×100.
After all...
Neither Yu Wanwan nor Xuenai looked particularly reliable.
When it came to choosing between the second and third legs...
Xuenai immediately chose the second.
Her reason?
"I'm... I'm afraid I won't make it around the curve..."
In the 4×100 relay, the first and third legs run on curves, while the second and fourth run on straightaways.
Running curves required much better balance and body control.
"I... I'm afraid I'll accidentally run crooked."
She possessed an impressively accurate understanding of her own athletic coordination.
If she ran too fast during the sports festival and failed to make the turn...
Her career as an idol might end on the spot.
The girls' race soon began.
Pu Tong and Lin Yuxi also walked over to watch from the edge of the track.
Originally...
He hadn't planned to.
But he simply couldn't withstand the girls' relentless persuasion.
Then again...
Cheering for his deskmate wasn't exactly something shameful.
"I'll go cheer for Xuenai."
"You go cheer for your Wanwan."
Without waiting for a response, Lin Yuxi ran toward the second exchange zone.
"..."
What do you mean 'my Wanwan'?
Since when did Wanwan belong to him?
Pu Tong sighed helplessly before walking toward the third exchange zone.
There, he found Yu Wanwan chatting happily with the other girls waiting for their turn.
...
She was unexpectedly popular.
Thinking about it...
It made perfect sense.
Someone like Lin Yuxi tended to wait quietly for others to approach her.
Even if people wanted to chat with her, her silence naturally created a sense of distance.
Yu Wanwan, on the other hand, always took the initiative.
She would happily strike up conversations with anyone.
That friendliness made her seem approachable.
Even people who weren't originally interested in her would unconsciously end up chatting with her.
...
Come to think of it...
That was exactly how she'd reeled him in.
Those energetic girls are dangerous...
"So..."
"You're really not writing me a cheering message?"
Yu Wanwan looked at Pu Tong across the track.
The surrounding students instantly fell silent.
No one wanted to miss this little interaction.
Watching a handsome boy and a beautiful girl chatting together...
Was simply pleasing to the eye.
And easy to ship.
"I'm already here in person."
"Isn't that more sincere than any cheering message?"
Pu Tong shamelessly ignored the strange smiles around them.
His conscience was perfectly clear.
"Fine."
Yu Wanwan pouted slightly before suddenly asking,
"Could you wait for me at the fourth exchange zone instead?"
"Why?"
"Shouldn't I cheer for you from the starting point?"
"When I finish running..."
"You can hand me a bottle of water."
Pu Tong thought about it.
She had a point.
If he waited between the third and fourth legs...
She would see him immediately after finishing her sprint.
"Alright."
"I'll head over there now."
Watching Pu Tong walk away...
The corners of Yu Wanwan's eyes curved gently into a smile.
If he's waiting for me at the finish...
Then I'll definitely run even faster.
Every step she took...
Would bring her one step closer to him.
(End of Chapter)
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