Looking back now, I realize that many of my actions back then were… inexplicably childish.
This includes taking on the final, most challenging problem and that time in Linhuai when I pointed my car at Jiang Fuyue in an attempt to intimidate her.
That… really doesn’t seem like something I would do!
So, did it all start that early?
Moonlight streamed through the glass window, casting a glow on the man’s chiseled profile and softening the contemplative glint in his eyes.
….
On the second day of the competition, the opening ceremony was held in the morning, with a speech from the host country’s organizers.
The entire speech was in Russian, and the words flew like bullets.
Fan Ye, looking like a wilted flower, mumbled listlessly, “Sister Yue, what is he even saying?”
“He’s introducing the customs and culture of Country E. Want me to translate?”
“No need, I’m feeling a bit sleepy…” She yawned, leaned back in her chair, and slowly closed her eyes.
Meanwhile, Huang Hui and Gao Zhaoming were engrossed in a mobile game together.
After one round ended, Jiang Fuyue lightly cleared her throat.
The two quickly flipped their phones face-down onto their laps, wearing identical sheepish grins.
Jiang Fuyue: “Count me in.”
Gao Zhaoming: “Huh?”
Huang Hui: “Sure, sure! I’ll send you an invite…”
And so, the three of them happily formed a team.
In the afternoon, they had a two-hour practice session.
Afterward, everyone returned to their rooms to rest.
In the evening, they agreed to meet up for dinner.
Although there was no teacher supervising them, they were all remarkably disciplined.
That night, Jiang Fuyue took out her laptop and logged into Topcoder.
It had been over half a month since her last login. The Topcoder leaderboard had shifted again, but the ID 【Xie】 still reigned supreme at the top, unshakable.
Her own ranking, previously fifth, had slipped to seventh, with two new challengers moving ahead of her.
Coincidentally, there was a competition happening today, and the two who had overtaken her were both online, their avatars showing they were in preparation mode.
Without hesitation, Jiang Fuyue opted to join the competition, and the system automatically placed her in the preparation zone.
Just then, a chat window popped up.
Andre: 【Oh, unbelievable, Yue, you’re finally online!】
Jiang Fuyue: 【And so are you.】
The last time they spoke, both had mentioned they’d be busy for a while and wouldn’t log in for the foreseeable future.
Andre: 【I just logged in too! I can’t believe I ran into you right away!】
Jiang Fuyue: 【What a coincidence. I just got on as well.】
Andre: 【Then it must be… Oh, what’s that Chinese phrase… I’ll look it up…】
Five seconds later, a string of Chinese characters appeared—
【心有灵犀一点通!】 (Hearts connected, understanding each other without words!)
Jiang Fuyue: 【…Heh.】
Andre: 【Ah! You smiled! Are you also feeling happy about our tacit understanding? I am too.】
Jiang Fuyue ignored him and began focusing on her preparations.
Five minutes later, the game started.
Jiang Fuyue found that Andre had also joined.
Three programming questions, participants can use Java, C++, C#, VB or Python according to their hobbies, and can be completed within 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Halfway through, Jiang Fuyue inadvertently glanced at the list and found that [Xie], the ID, was actually on! The status shows that the competition is in progress!
That is to say, this [Xie] also participated in this competition!
Soon, a dialogue box belonging to Andre popped up again, full of his wanton chickens… ah no, screams.
Andre: [Ah ah ah ah ah ah…… (omit the whole screen here) mom! I witnessed history!]
Andre: 【Yue! Look at the Tp leaderboard—Xie is online! And he’s joined a competition! Promise me, please go all out and mess with him, okay?】
Jiang Fuyue: 【Mess with him?】
Andre: 【In the Challenge Phase, high-ranking IDs are often paired to counter each other. You might end up facing him. If you do, seize the chance and knock him off his flawless zero-challenge-loss streak!】
Jiang Fuyue’s lips twitched. She didn’t reply.
Thirty minutes later, after completing three programming problems, she clicked “Submit,” automatically entering the Challenge Phase.
Five seconds later, Jiang Fuyue saw the unmistakable ID 【Xie】 appear next to an avatar. She froze for a moment.
Andre was right.
Steeling herself, her fingers flew across the keyboard as she set up the first operational obstacle for her opponent.
Clicking “Send,” she began counting the seconds.
Five…
Ten…
Twelve?!
Her opponent resolved the bug in just twelve seconds!
Jiang Fuyue didn’t let her guard down and immediately set up the second obstacle.
This time, it took him thirty seconds.
She pressed her lips together, her eyes flickering with a serious light.
The second challenge was significantly harder than the first, with seven traps embedded. It should have taken at least a minute to resolve, yet he did it in just thirty seconds!
Unwilling to admit defeat, she planned her final challenge carefully. After clicking “Send,” she smirked slightly.
This time, the opponent’s system froze for a full two minutes with no response.
….
Hotel Rooftop
Xie Dingyuan leaned back in his chair, fingers stroking his chin as he stared at his now-black computer screen, his cold eyes dark and brooding.
From the first two challenges, it was clear his opponent had skill.
No, not just skill—this opponent was exceptionally strong.
Someone who normally ignored IDs had taken a rare glance at the name: a single Chinese character, “Yue”.
Yue…
Unbidden, his mind conjured up a face—a girl’s face.
When the third challenge arrived, however, his computer screen suddenly went black.
Heh!
Xie Dingyuan’s eyes darkened.
This wasn’t just a challenge—it was a virus. Should he admire his opponent’s quick thinking for creating and deploying a virus in such a short time, or criticize their recklessness for targeting him of all people?
Straightening up, he placed his hands on the keyboard, his slender fingers moving steadily and purposefully.
Two minutes later, the black screen disappeared. His counterattack was complete—he’d planted a Trojan in his opponent’s system, triggering their webcam to turn on.
The triumphant smile on his lips froze halfway when the face on his screen turned out to be…
Jiang Fuyue?!
He was stunned.
Xie99: Every day, my wife manages to scare the life out of me. [Live with a smile] JPG
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