Chapter 2: Impressive, But Don't Talk To Me Again

Liu Fengmian exhaled a shaky breath, hands shaking as he placed them up.

"Oh, finally getting brave are we?" The right boy sneered, his fist flashing forward.

Then, Liu Fengmian lifted his leg and threw a roundhouse at the boy on the right, raising his left elbow up to block the incoming punch from the left. Just as quickly, however, he felt something smash into the side of his head, and he staggered back, reeling.

`Stop—stop panicking,` he thought as the thumping grew louder and louder, filling his mind with a staccato noise. `Focus, focus.`

The boy on the left was rushing back for a second helping, as the one on the right followed at his heels. They looked as if they were in a kindergarten lineup, coming into class at the start of the class.

Liu Fengmian lifted his lead leg, striking the first one in the ribs, before jumping back lightly. He needed to keep his distance if he was going to even have a chance at winning against two opponents at once.

The other one swung wildly, becoming increasingly flustered as he narrowly avoided being pushed back along with the first boy, to which Liu Fengmian stepped back yet again. `I can't let them circle me. If I get put into a position where they can hit me from different angles, I'm truly done for.`

"Get back here, fucking coward!" The first boy yelled out, enraged.

A subconscious shiver ran down Liu Fengmian's back, but he bit down on the side of his cheek until he could taste copper. He couldn't back out now—he couldn't go back into his shell again, not now.

`That's right,` Liu Fengmian thought suddenly, raising his leg to block a kick.

This wasn't training, or sparring, or competition. This was a street fight.

And in a street fight, there were no rules.

Liu Fengmian turned around and ran, looking to the side and grasping one of the multiple bikes leaning next to the brick walls. Then, muscles tensing, he threw the bike in front of the two boys in pursuit, knocking one over.

He jumped over the fallen bike, raising his fist up and slamming it with fervor into the other boy's face.

A hand grasped at his leg, and he fell hard onto the concrete, head spinning as he felt lashes of hot fire race down his elbows and knees. Before he could reorient himself, he felt an arm loop around his neck and place him into a headlock.

`Oh no.`

Repeated strikes hit his face at first, until he turned his face inward so his face wouldn't be hit, since the skull was much less delicate than the face.

The adrenaline was spiking rapidly, that loud beating and thumping filling his ears and his head with an unnatural white noise, blocking all other sounds. He could barely feel the pain now, eyes closing in anticipation for each punch, against all direction from his training.

There were crimson pellets dripping onto the ground from his nose, snapping him out of his panicked state. Sounds of a conversation were muffled in the background, but he didn't focus on that—instead, he bashed his fist into the other's groin, before placing both arms around the boy's midsection and pulling him up and back.

He'd never done that before, though, so it was clumsy and wasn't the slam dunk onto the floor he was hoping for. Nevertheless, it did the trick—the boy let go of Liu Fengmian's neck, and rolled over in pain.

His face whipped back from a punch from the other boy, and he staggered back.

"Give up now, and we just might forgive you," the other boy said, breathing heavily. "You should've just sat back like you always did, you loser."

"No," Liu Fengmian replied. For a moment, his throat closed, but he swallowed down his old fear.

He placed both hands up again, this time without shaking, his jaw clenched tight.

"I'm tired of being a loser."

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It was strange.

No matter how much he racked his brains, Wang Canghai could not feel a thing as he punched and was punched, was beaten and stood back up again. With Liang Shen, he'd always felt an ice cold, paralyzing fear, and his legs would always shake—

—with Liang Shen. That's right.

These boys were not Liang Shen. They were inexperienced, wild, and easy to provoke.

"Not good enough," he said, slipping to the side of a strike.

A flash of fire in their eyes. "Shut up!"

Why would he tremble under the glares of demons, when he's already met the devil?

He slammed a fist into one boy's jaw, knocking him out cold, before grasping around the neck of the other student and jabbing a knee hard into his body.

`It worked,` Wang Canghai thought, breathless as he surveyed the area. He'd actually done it—for the first time, he'd won a fight. For the first time since he'd gone into the mouth of the alleyway, there was a sense of rising exhilaration and amazement within him.

`I did it.`

He glanced back at the pink-haired boy as he stayed out of distance with kicks, getting hammered with bullet-like strikes but standing his ground. There was a sense of ferocity Wang Canghai hadn't seen before in him, and he wondered why that was.

"Don't—" the pink-haired boy started, throwing a kick into their sides. " —ask me for money again!" He twisted and slammed a foot into them from behind, blood still streaming down his nose in rivelets.

For a moment, he stayed still, looking around. Then, he staggered forwards, stepping over the other boy's bodies, and then collapsed. Even when he was exhausted and bruised, that boy still held a modicum of respect for his bullies.

Wang Canghai walked over just besides his head.

"You okay?" He asked.

"...Everything hurts, but I think I'll be fine," a muffled voice replied back. Then, an emerald eye peered out from the side. "What's your name? Mine's Liu Fengmian."

"Wang Canghai."

Liu Fengmian was silent for a moment. "....Why did you say that?"

Wang Canghai raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Why did you say you wanted to team up with...me?" Liu Fengmian asked, skeptical. "I was clearly weak compared to those guys. I..would be useless in an actual fight."

"But you weren't."

"Well, yeah, somehow, but—"

"Listen. Help is help; there were four people. I'm not going to complain," Wang Cangahi replied, running a hand through his spiky hair. That action josled his injuries, and he winced. "Granted, it's best to run in tha' situation, but it worked out."

He looked at Liu Fengmian.

"You do taekwondo." It wasn't a question—it was a statement.

"Yeah," he replied, embarrassed.

Wang Canghai looked at him. "...You don't have to explain yourself." Liu Fengmian groaned as he propped himself up, slowly getting up.

Wang Canghai sighed, turning around. "I need to head home." He picked up the bike he'd placed towards the entrance of the alleyway, throwing himself over the seat.

"Um, it was nice to meet you," Liu Fengmian called from behind him.

Wang Canghai nodded in acknowledgement, before pushing down on the pedals, watching the shadows elongate with the setting sun.

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"Did you get into another fight?"

Wang Canghai paused as he took off his shoes, seeing his mother in the hallway, wispy hair drooping along the sides of her face.

"No. I fell," he lied.

His mother—Hong Qiaocui—sighed, turning away. "Make sure you study more instead of playing around. Your Gaokao will be in just two years, so you need to prepare for it now instead of later."

"...Got it," he replied, gripping his backpack strap.

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A red-haired boy laid on the ground of a park, a look of bottomless fury gracing his features as he glared at the figure before him. Surrounding him were the groaning bodies of his gang, but only one individual was left standing.

Crimson eyes curled into half-crescents as Liang Shen smirked, grabbing Yang Guang's yellow windbreaker by the front. "You still want to repeat what you said?"

Yang Guang spit in his face.

The smirk stayed on, though there was now a dangerous tint to his expression. Then, he pulled his fist back and a crack echoed through the air, along with a bloodcurdling scream of pain. Yang Guang thrashed around on the ground, both hands covering his face as a thin river of blood slithered through the gaps in his fingers.

Liang Shen wiped off the spit, flipping out a hand sanitizer bottle and squirting it into a napkin. He wiped off the area with a disgusted expression, taking out a scissor with the same hand as Yang Guang's yelling died down to groans.

"You value your hair, don't you? I can see there's no dandruff like that of your disgusting goons," Liang Shen commented, pointing the scissor at his face. Yang Guang's eyes widened in what could've been interpreted as fear, if Liang Shen didn't know better. "You're just like a feng gou. Why don't you act like one to fit? Crawl and fucking beg for mercy."

"You're fucking crazy," was all Yang Guang had to say, a thin line of crimson flowing from his nose, smeared in a vain attempt at stemming the pain. "Get away from me, you piece of shit!"

He swiped at Liang Shen's knees with his legs, though Liang Shen caught the movement quickly and jumped up. Then, without hesitation, he lifted his leg high and rammed into Yang Guang's stomach with unyielding pressure and dug his heel to amplify its effects.

Yang Guang could feel the gravel beneath his back digging hard into his skin, but it was like the bite of an ant against the blinding pain that felt as if he'd been bitten by a grizzly bear. He spat out saliva and something he didn't recognize, suddenly turning his head to the side to dry heave at the sudden sick feeling welling in his throat.

But above it all, he could distinctly hear that bastard's laughter as the scenery blurred together and the only thing he could think about was the convulsing waves of agony rushing up from his gut and the taste of acid in his mouth.

"You remind me of somebody I used to know," Liang Shen said, a sickening gleeful light in his eyes. There was nothing that could've prepared Yang Guang for the next kick that felt as if a grenade had blown out his intestines, striking as quickly as he'd lost.

There were black spots in his vision now, and he could barely hold onto his consciousness.

"I hated him so much. Those at the bottom of society should just stay there. What use is there in trying to climb, when you're going to fail anyway?"

There was a third slam of a hard object into his stomach, and this time he couldn't help but throw up, the greens and grays and browns of the surrounding environment blurring into one messy palette.

"Oh, you're losing consciousness. Hey, stay awake, we've still got a lot to try out—I haven't even used these scissors yet."

He couldn't hear anything more after that.

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`No wonder he looked familiar,` Wang Canghai thought the next morning as he looked at the boy sitting across from him.

"Oh, you're my deskmate!" Liu Fengmian yelped, surprised. Then, he looked over Wang Canghai's figure, noting the bandages on his face. "Did you get cut?"

"No, but going to school with visible bruises isn't wise," Wang Canghai replied, slipping his backpack onto the floor besides his desk. He crossed his arms before slumping forwards and closing his eyes. Hopefully Liu Fengmian would leave him alone now.

In the din of the early morning, he heard Song Wenbin's voice loud and clear. He had a voice that was easily distinguishable amongst the hubbub of conversation, reminiscent of a loud bell. On second thought, more like a loud air horn.

"Ahaha, Yang Guang, what the hell happened to you?" His laugh rang out. "Who crapped on you that badly?"

"Shut it, kid," Yang Guang growled back, a rustle indicating he'd moved closer. "Know what, let's fight after school! I need to blow off some steam."

"It would be unfair to fight you all beat up like that," was Song Wenbin's condescending reply. "How about a week from now?"

"I don't need to be at full strength to beat you. What, you scared?"

"Not at all! Try me!"

"Take one more step and your face is gone, bastard! Go on, I dare you."

Wang Canghai opened his eyes, looking around at the other classmates, who collectively seemed to sweat nervously under the flaring atmosphere. Still, nobody spoke up.

"Shut up you two, I'm trying to watch this video," Zhou Rong said, taking out one earbud as she glared at them. "Leave this for afterschool, not now."

Song Wenbin smirked, leaning forward to get in her face. "Pretty girls shouldn't talk boldly, otherwise, you might get hurt."

"You can't hurt me," she replied, lightning flashing in her eyes. Yang Guang banged on a random student's desk suddenly, scaring the poor boy, before sitting down at his own desk. He crossed his legs and threw his backpack atop it.

Then, he glowered at Song Wenbin, who continued attempting to provoke Zhou Rong, although she ignored him by placing the earbuds back in her ear.

"Remember that I'm the class lingxiu, bitch," Song Wenbin said, grabbing her phone.

Zhou Rong stood up quickly, craning her head to look him square in the eyes.

"Class is starting!" Chen laoshi yelled, stepping into the class as she slapped her workbooks onto her table. "Sit down!"

"Laoshi, Song Wenbin is bullying me," Zhou Rong said softly, a tinge of innocence in her tone. She looked nothing like the intimidating, short-tempered girl from before.

Song Wenbin laughed good naturedly, grin bright as he handed the phone back to her. "My bad laoshi, I just wanted to get to know my fellow class monitor candidates better!" He looked nothing like the loud, arrogant boy from earlier.

"Just sit down you two," Chen laoshi sighed, grasping the chalk from the blackboard. "Get to know each other some other time."

A fierce tension sparked between Zhou Rong and Song Wenbin as soon as she turned away.

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`What the hell is this,` Wang Canghai thought, finding an envelope on his desk after lunch. There was a heart sticker on the perfectly white paper, sealing it shut. The noise of students rolling into the classroom increased as he inspected the envelope.

Somewhere earlier, he'd seen the popular boy get letters that looked like it. Getting confessions on the second day of school, that was impressive.

Wang Canghai doubted it was a confession letter, flipping it over.

"Whoa, you have a confession letter?" Liu Fengmian asked, suddenly appearing next to Wang Canghai, who twitched in surprise for a second.

"I don't think so," Wang Canghai said, flicking it open.

Liu Fengmian gaped at him, suddenly stopping his hand. "Wait wait, shouldn't you read this somewhere more private?"

"I doubt it's a confession."

Liu Fengmian made a protesting noise, but he didn't move. Wang Canghai took out the folded paper, opening it to reveal neat handwriting and decorative stickers adorning the sides of it.

"You can leave now," Wang Canghai said, closing it quickly. Why was Liu Fengmian acting so familiar to him anyway? It wasn't as if Wang Canghai had made himself out to be somebody friendly yesterday.

"Yeah, I'll just go over here," Liu Fengmian answered jerkily, pointing towards his seat as he walked towards it.

Wang Canghai reopened the letter, reading it carefully.

`You've probably never met me, but we were classmates in junior secondary school. Could you meet me at the largest tree near the basketball courts after school today? There's something I've always wanted to tell you.

—X`

Who is X? Wang Canghai thought, thinking back to remember any classmate names that'd started with a X. Could it refer to the given name, or the surname? It doesn't matter, either way.

He felt bad for the girl that he didn't feel excited at all, but he didn't actually expect anything to be gained from this exchange. He would go to meet her, but in all honesty, he'd just wanted to be left to his own devices.

He paused. `...Isn't making friends and dating a part of the highschool experience?`

Wang Canghai placed his face in his hands, leaning forward to watch the cirrus clouds move slowly through the window and sighed internally.

...No, he really needed to focus on academics more.

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"Did you know Zhang Yiling of class nine was issued a challenge?" Liu Fengmian excitedly said, hands vigorously waving around. "The ling xiu of the worst class! I heard she was one of the best fighters in this school though!"

"So there's going to be two fights afterschool?" Wang Canghai asked curiously, wondering why the boy was following him in the first place as they walked in the hallways.

"I guess so. Too bad you're going to miss out for a confession."

Wang Canghai peered at him from his peripherals. "How did you know?"

"...It was pretty obvious."

Up ahead, the crowd of students gathered around near the back door, pushing one another in a hectic manner to finally leave. Once Liu Fengmian and Wang Canghai managed to slip past the crowd, they walked towards the basketball courts, which was to the left of the track.

"Why aren't you with your friends?" Wang Canghai asked in the silence, feeling the cold air brush past his hair. Liu Fengmian jerked in response, biting his lip nervously.

"I don't have any," he replied with a smile.

`Idiot,` Wang Canghai berated himself, feeling a faint mortification rising in his chest. He shouldn't have bothered to even start a conversation, what an embarrassment.

The air was awkward again as they walked into the grove of trees lining the path between the basketball and tennis courts, leaves swirling in the air and fluttering down onto smooth stone benches. It was nicer than Xinan, that was for certain.

There was a crowd of students milling around, the flurry of voices carried over by the excitement in the atmosphere. The path opened up to a giant tree amidst a spacious, open area—perfect for studying, although today, it wasn't used for that purpose.

"Even if you're injured, I'm not going easy on you!" Song Wenbin exclaimed, pointing at Yang Guang, who put up a fist.

"It'd be an insult if you did," he snarked back, glaring venomously back. Song Wenbin advanced on him slowly as the students in the background whispered amongst themselves, although she stayed in place. It felt as if the air was crackling with the amount of lightning-laced tension the two were emitting.

Then, it was broken in an instant.

"Good afternoon children, where's the one that challenged me?"

It was a tall girl with defining bangs and almond eyes.

"That's Zhang Yiling," Liu Fengmian whispered excitedly to Wang Canghai as they stayed near the back of the group, against the giant tree. "No wait, Wang Canghai, where's the person who sent you the letter?"

"I wonder myself," Wang Canghai replied, eyes stuck on Zhang Yiling's figure.

So this was class nine's ling xiu.

The worst class—the outcasts.

"I think he did," Zhou Rong—who'd been in the crowd—answered, pointing her thumb back at Wang Canghai. "He's been standing there for a while now."

`Huh.`

`Wait....challenge?`