Chapter Twenty-One: Yang Cheng’s Thoughts
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Qin Anyi woke promptly at five o'clock the next morning. To his surprise, he felt no soreness or discomfort in his body, as though yesterday's training had never happened at all. Yet he could clearly sense his muscles had grown firmer—such things never lie. How odd, he thought. In the past, even a casual game of basketball would leave him aching for days. After yesterday's bouts of intense exercise, why was there no reaction at all? Unable to make sense of it, he simply stopped thinking about it.
As the Kirin had instructed, Qin Anyi slipped quietly out of the house without waking anyone and set out for his morning run. From five to six o'clock, he was required to run fifteen kilometers at a steady pace. The Kirin would gauge the distance; he was to run seven and a half kilometers away from home, then turn back. At any deviation in his speed, the Kirin would immediately remind him.
According to the Kirin, running at a constant speed was not only a way to build endurance and leg strength, but also an exercise in mastering control over one's own body. Especially when fatigue set in, maintaining perfect control became even more challenging. Averaging four minutes per kilometer was a pace that, in a standard one-thousand-meter test, would barely scrape a passing grade. Yet to run fifteen kilometers nonstop at that speed, without any prior training, was simply impossible for most people.
"For me, this is truly wonderful news," he confided. "Last night, I followed the training regimen you designed for me, and the results were astonishing. Your program fully taps into my current potential with almost no waste, and without causing exhaustion. It allows for continuous training."
Wang Yiran tilted her head with a bright smile, more dazzling than sunlight itself. Qin Anyi was momentarily dazed, rooted to the spot.
“Come on, let’s go inside. If we stand here any longer, people will mistake us for rare animals on display. You know my charm—if anyone sees me standing so close with a boy, who knows what gossip will spread?” As she spoke, Wang Yiran naturally took Qin Anyi’s hand and pulled him toward the school.
“Ah, okay…” Qin Anyi finally came to his senses. The gentle softness of her hand filled him with happiness from the depths of his heart. This was Wang Yiran’s hand, after all!
By now it was seven o’clock. The road from the school gate to the teaching buildings was already crowded with students arriving for the day. As they approached, everyone caught sight of the shocking scene: Wang Yiran and a boy entering school hand in hand. The students were stunned, frozen in place, their minds going blank.
Hand in hand? Was Wang Yiran in a relationship? Who was that boy? No one had ever seen him before…
“Although your training plan is written clearly, I still hope you can come to my house every evening to give me some guidance. Of course, besides your necessary fee, you can use any equipment in the training room as you wish.” Just before reaching the classroom door, Wang Yiran finally released Qin Anyi’s hand, speaking sincerely.
The two entered side by side, and the once noisy Senior Three, Class Two instantly fell silent. Everyone recalled how the two had arranged to meet the previous afternoon; now they were arriving together. Was it simply coincidence?
At that moment, all the students’ imaginations ran wild.
“Anyi, are you free tonight? I’d like… I’d like to treat you to dinner, to thank you,” Yang Cheng approached as soon as they entered, cheeks flushed. Normally, with her reserved nature, she would never have dared invite a boy in front of so many people, but Wang Yiran’s actions yesterday had clearly affected her. Her emotions were unsettled, and seeing the two enter together this morning, she felt compelled to act.
“Whoo!”
“Wow!”
The class erupted in jeers and exclamations, all eyes fixed on Qin Anyi. The boys were beside themselves with jealousy, unable to fathom how this invisible fellow, unnoticed for more than two years, had suddenly become so lucky. The girls, on the other hand, were even more intrigued.
Though Yang Cheng was just over 1.6 meters tall, her proportions were excellent, her delicate features as exquisite as a porcelain doll. She might not have enjoyed the same school-wide fame as campus beauty Wang Yiran, but she was certainly among the top three beauties in the class. No one would have expected that after Wang Yiran had invited Qin Anyi out yesterday, today Yang Cheng would do the same.
The girls felt it was time to reevaluate Qin Anyi. For the two most outstanding girls in the class to invite him on their own initiative, he could not possibly be as simple as he had always seemed.