With the race officially underway, the rest of the class’s athletes gathered on the track to cheer on their teammates, even running alongside them to show support.
“Go, Xiao Lan! You’re the best! Push forward!”
“Cheng Yi, pick up the pace, run faster!”
“Come on, come on! Victory’s right in front of you, Zhao Ke!”
The excitement around the track exploded, and the energy on the field became electric, with shouts and cheers filling the air and immersing everyone in the atmosphere.
Li Yang couldn’t hold back either, shouting with his hoarse voice, “Zhou Le! Zhou Le! Zhou Le!”
His voice was not only loud but also had a unique pitch, standing out from the other sounds. Zhou Le couldn’t help but hear it.
Lin Xiaoxiao screamed, “Zhou Le, go! You’re the best! You’re unmatched, irreplaceable—I love youuuu!!!”
Xia Linchuan cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “Zhou Le, I love you! You’re amazing!”
Chen Nan, though not wanting to be part of this over-the-top cheering, couldn’t help but join in, “Zhou Le, if you don’t win, I’m taking your head off and kicking it like a ball! Now run, d*mn it—hey, Sheng Qian, why are you covering my mouth?!”
Between strides, Zhou Le looked up and saw his entire Class Three group gathered around the track, their eyes fixed on him, looking at him expectantly as if he were a gift they were waiting to receive.
Even the class rep was watching him.
Never having been the center of so much attention, Zhou Le gritted his teeth and pushed himself harder. He didn’t know where the energy was coming from, but he charged forward like he was about to break through the entire universe.
In a sprint, it’s all about explosive power, and Zhou Le suddenly surged ahead, gaining a noticeable lead.
Xiao Lan realized he was falling behind.
“What? D*mn it!” The sprint was short, with no time to catch up if he didn’t speed up. Zhou Le was likely going to win at this rate.
Cr*p! His buddies would laugh at him if he lost.
No way—he couldn’t allow that to happen.
Xiao Lan started to speed up, thinking he could close the gap, but it was as if Zhou Le had eaten something that gave him the strength of a bull, keeping up even with Xiao Lan, who was a trained athlete.
They were nearing the final stretch, but Xiao Lan couldn’t find a way to overtake Zhou Le.
Unacceptable—he couldn’t lose like this—
Xiao Lan bumped into Zhou Le.
It wasn’t hard enough to make Zhou Le fall, but it did cause him to stumble slightly. Yet, somehow, he stopped running altogether, moving forward a few steps with the momentum before coming to a stop just a few steps from the finish line.
At the same time, Xiao Lan crossed the finish line, claiming first place.
“Yeah! Brother Xiao, you’re the best! Brother Xiao, you’re awesome!”
“Xiao Lan! Xiao Lan!!! Ahhhh Xiao Lan!!!”
“Class Seven, Class Seven, Class Seven!!!”
All of this happened in the span of just three seconds. Li Yang, who was already ready to celebrate, was stunned. “What the heck, what happened?”
Given the momentum just now, Zhou Le was about to win—why did he suddenly stop?
Chen Nan froze for a moment before rushing over to Zhou Le. “What the h*ll are you doing? Are you playing games?”
He shoved Zhou Le’s shoulder, and with his small, frail frame, Zhou Le nearly fell over from the push.
Sensing the tense atmosphere, Xia Linchuan also rushed up and pushed Chen Nan away from Zhou Le. “What are you doing? Why are you… getting physical?”
Though he sounded fierce, his tone was actually hesitant and fearful.
Lin Xiaoxiao stepped beside Zhou Le, defending him, “Zhou Le did his best. You… you can’t say that about him. If you wanted to win so badly, why didn’t you run yourself?”
Li Yang said, “It’s not like he’s running so poorly that we can’t say anything. We’ve trained for days.”
Lin Xiaoxiao countered, “Didn’t you see? It was because Xiao Lan bumped into him. He didn’t win because of that! Why don’t you say something to Xiao Lan?”
Chen Nan replied, “Xiao Lan barely touched him. At most, it was a brush. What, is he so delicate he can’t handle a bump?”
Getting more worked up, Chen Nan raised a hand again, “Were you doing it on purpose? Did Xiao Lan pay you off?”
He towered over Lin Xiaoxiao and Xia Linchuan, ready to go after Zhou Le.
But this time, someone grabbed his arm.
The moment Lu Jingran stepped out, everyone fell silent.
“Brother Lu,” Chen Nan pointed at Zhou Le, “this kid is definitely doing it on purpose. Who knows, maybe he got paid. All that training for nothing.”
Everyone had seen what happened, and Zhou Le stopping short right at the last step did look suspicious.
But… Lu Jingran looked over at Zhou Le, who stood there, head bowed in silence.
“Li Yang, go take everyone for the next event’s check-in,” Lu Jingran ordered.
“…Okay,” Li Yang waved his hand, “Alright, anyone running the 800 meters, come with me!”
The crowd shifted, voices murmuring.
“What’s going on? Did I cheer for nothing? My throat hurts.”
“Yeah, same here. Shouldn’t have trusted Zhou Le.”
“Come on, don’t say that. He probably didn’t mean to.”
“Really? He was a step away from winning, and he just didn’t want to? I bet Xiao Lan paid him off. It has to be.”
“Yeah, I think so too… He’d probably do anything for money.”
“Let’s go, let’s go. The class rep looked over here.”
“F*ck! Let’s move!”
Zhou Le kept his head down, staying silent, as if silently accepting everything.
Lin Xiaoxiao and Xia Linchuan stood beside him, watching him with worry.
At that moment, Lu Jingran walked over.
Lin Xiaoxiao quickly explained, “Class rep, Zhou Le definitely…”
“Are you hurt?”
“…”
Zhou Le looked up sharply, thinking he had misheard.
Lu Jingran raised an eyebrow at him, a look of genuine concern in his eyes.
That serious expression somehow made Zhou Le’s nose tingle with emotion.
“N-no…” Zhou Le looked down again.
With his head drooping, he looked so pitiful.
Lu Jingran raised a hand, placing it gently on Zhou Le’s head and giving it a soft rub.
Lin Xiaoxiao’s eyes widened in surprise.
Xia Linchuan also looked shocked.
Was the class rep… actually this gentle?
Zhou Le felt the touch on his head and looked up, surprised to see Lu Jingran’s calm but incredibly reassuring gaze.
“Xiao Lan threatened you, didn’t he?”
Though Lu Jingran spoke quietly, everyone around heard him clearly.
Chen Nan rushed over immediately, “What do you mean?”
Lu Jingran replied, “When Xiao Lan bumped into him, I saw his mouth move. What did he say to you?”
Zhou Le became the center of attention again.
He lowered his head, his hands twisting together nervously. So… the class rep saw it.
“He said… if I won, he’d find someone to beat me up so badly I couldn’t come to school.”
“And he also said… I shouldn’t expect to make another penny around here…”
Zhou Le lowered his head again.
He wasn’t afraid of fights or bullying. After all, he’d trained hard for this event, and he knew his classmates’ expectations were high. But he feared the cost.
His family didn’t have much money, and any injuries would mean buying medicine, which meant spending money. The image of his mother struggling in her wheelchair made him hesitate, making him unable to keep running.
Xiao Lan was infamous as the school’s bully. If he got involved, Zhou Le’s part-time gig as a delivery boy around campus would be finished, too.
So, Zhou Le chose to give up.
Therefore…
“I’m sorry, class rep. I let everyone down. I’m really sorry…”
There was a long, tense silence.
Lin Xiaoxiao and Xia Linchuan looked at Lu Jingran, not daring to breathe too loudly, afraid they’d disrupt the tension.
Just as they were about to say something in Zhou Le’s defense, Lu Jingran suddenly took off his hat and tossed it to Xia Linchuan.
Xia Linchuan: ???
Lu Jingran said calmly, “Chen Nan, Sheng Qian, let’s go.”
The three of them looked at each other in confusion until they heard Chen Nan call out to Li Yang in the distance, “Li Yang, add us three and yourself to the 2000-meter relay!”
“D*mn it! That idiot Xiao Lan dared to threaten one of our own? He must have a death wish!”
Li Yang, unable to understand their unspoken communication and standing far away, shouted back in confusion, “What? What are you saying? Speak up!”
The 800-meter race began, and Class 7’s Xiao Lan’s henchman won decisively.
Everyone was celebrating, and Xiao Lan gave the guy an approving pat on the arm.
So far, Class 7 had already won two events, and everyone eagerly awaited the upcoming competitions.
However, someone was looking forward to it even more.
When Lu Jingran and his group walked over, the Class 7 crowd fell silent instantly.
Xiao Lan’s smile froze on his face, turning rigid.
Just meeting Lu Jingran’s gaze made him feel uncomfortable from head to toe.
The natural tension between Alphas, the feeling of being overpowered, was incredibly stifling.
“Brother Lu, what’s this about?” Xiao Lan forced a smile. “Isn’t this a bit much?”
All he did was mess with Zhou Le, just a small, invisible guy. Was that enough for Lu Jingran to come over with his group?
He’d been brazenly doing things like this for ages, and he’d never seen Lu Jingran react this way before.
Coming over with such an intimidating crowd—someone might think he wanted a fight.
“Not overreacting, my *ss!” Chen Nan, quick-tempered as ever, was ready to go off on Xiao Lan. Some teachers had already noticed the commotion and were approaching.
Sheng Qian quickly held him back, though Chen Nan was still straining against him, making muffled, angry sounds—clearly nothing polite.
Xiao Lan, knowing it was the sports meet and any grudges couldn’t be settled right here, felt emboldened.
“Brother Lu, you see, this is definitely a misunderstanding. Don’t listen to that brat Zhou Le spouting nonsense. He’s all talk, nothing but trouble…”
Suddenly, Lu Jingran grabbed Xiao Lan by the collar of his tracksuit with one hand and yanked him forward, making him stumble, utterly humiliated.
Seeing this from afar, the teachers quickened their steps, and even Chen Nan fell silent. Xiao Lan’s gang of lackeys looked nervous and apprehensive, too scared to approach.
Xiao Lan, startled by Lu Jingran’s sudden action, instinctively closed his eyes. But Lu Jingran did nothing further, merely stared at him intently with his cold, dark eyes, so close.
Unflinching.
As an Alpha, Xiao Lan wasn’t short, but in front of Lu Jingran, he had to look up.
A calm, ocean-deep pressure loomed over him. Though he didn’t want to admit it, Xiao Lan was afraid, a bone-deep terror that almost suffocated him, leaving his mind blank.
