Slow Bird Flies First

After sending the guy and his dog off, Yu Fan went back to the internet café from before.

"Got any computers left?"

The internet café owner looked up from his computer. "Yeah. Back from dinner?"

Yu Fan hummed in acknowledgment.

The noodle place Chen Jingshen had picked was generous—the bowl was huge, and there was even a fried egg at the bottom. He'd walked around for a while after eating, but his stomach was still full.

"Staying the night?" the owner asked as he opened the check-in program.

"Yeah."

"Then wait a sec. Lots of spots today, I'll pick you a comfortable one."

They were neighbors on the same street, and since Yu Fan came here often, the owner had heard a thing or two about his family situation.

He couldn't help asking, "Why don't you just board at school?"

"Don't wanna do evening study hall."

"..."

Nancheng No.7 Middle School did have student dorms. But the school was in a good location with convenient transportation, and since boarders had to attend evening study sessions, the number of day students was double that of other schools.

Once the computer was set up, Yu Fan lay back on the sofa and opened the shooting game again.

After one round, he suddenly felt bored.

He went outside to get some air for a while, and the urge to shoot and kill seemed to fade.

So Yu Fan randomly clicked on a movie he'd heard of, let it play as background noise to help him sleep, and prepared to rough it for the night.

He'd just closed his eyes when someone woke him up.

An auntie pushing a cleaning cart came over, pointed at the stuff on his table, and asked, "Little brother, is this a trash bag?"

The internet café owner happened to be passing by, carrying a bowl of instant noodles he'd prepared for a customer. Hearing the commotion, he instinctively glanced over at Yu Fan.

Yu Fan had tossed his things down carelessly. The plastic bag clung pitifully to the books, and the top one was faintly visible. The owner saw the slogan on the cover: 'Zero foundation in math? Choose Slow Bird Flies First!'

Above the words 'Slow Bird' there was even a drawing of a chubby little bird that couldn't seem to flap its wings.

The owner saw Yu Fan staring at the bag with a sour face, full of disgust.

So he said firmly to the auntie, "It's not his. Probably left by some customer. Could you keep it at the counter for me? We'll see if anyone comes to pick it up later."

The auntie was older and had poor eyesight. She nodded at his words and reached out to grab the bag.

But the other person was faster.

"It's mine."

Yu Fan snatched the stuff away in a flash and tossed it behind him as a cushion. His eyes darted around the computer screen as he mumbled, "Thanks... not throwing it away."

-

This time, Wang Luan'an's dad had really given him an ultimatum. If he failed again, his allowance would be cut, his mobile phone confiscated, and his weekend outings restricted.

So the next day in class, he ran over to Chen Jingshen's desk with his workbook during both breaks.

Wang Luan'an found that the intel he'd gathered before was very reliable. The top student might not talk much usually, but when it came to explaining problems, he was clear, simple, and extremely detailed.

In fact, a little too detailed.

Also, his voice was a bit loud.

"Top student, I know my basics are weak, but I still remember the stuff from first year. No need to waste your time teaching me that again..."

Chen Jingshen said, "Learning it once more reinforces the memory."

"..."

After finishing another problem, Chen Jingshen tapped his pen against the desk with a crisp sound. "Got it?"

As the sound rang out, the fingers of his sleeping deskmate, draped over his shoulder, twitched and curled loosely into a fist.

Wang Luan'an's heart jumped along with that hand. In a whisper, he said, "Got it, got it, got it. But top student, maybe we could keep our voices down just a little? Look at all these classmates around us—it'd be bad if we disturbed them..."

"Mm." Chen Jingshen's volume didn't change. "Which problem next?"

"..."

Wang Luan'an flipped the page gently. "This one—"

"Are you done?" Yu Fan lifted his head from his arms and stared at Wang Luan'an, his voice like ice. "What, is there a sign in Zhuang Fangqin's office that says 'Wang Luan'an is banned from asking questions'?"

"I'm just eager to learn, okay. And Fangqin really isn't in the office—she went to an open class today..."

Wang Luan'an leaned in a little closer to Yu Fan's face as he spoke. "Damn, your face looks terrible. You stayed the whole night at the internet café? Hey, I've always wondered—how do you manage to hole up in that crappy place near your house for a whole night?"

Chen Jingshen looked down.

Yu Fan's skin was pale and cold, so any color on him stood out. Right now, he had dark circles under his eyes and his brows were drooping—he didn't look very energetic.

Feeling the gaze of the person next to him, Yu Fan instinctively wanted to bury his face back in his arms.

He knew what he looked like right now.

But then he thought—wait, so what if he looked ugly? Why did he care about his image in front of Chen Jingshen?

"It's cheap," Yu Fan said with a frown. "Not as bad as you say. They've got sofas..."

A cool touch on his forehead made Yu Fan's voice cut off abruptly.

Chen Jingshen pressed two fingers together and touched them to Yu Fan's forehead.

The messy hair on Yu Fan's forehead was pushed aside by the fingers, revealing his full eyes, and instantly he looked a little less fierce.

Both of them froze for a moment.

It wasn't until Chen Jingshen pulled his hand away that Yu Fan snapped back to reality. His chin still resting on his arm, he turned his head and said, "Are you—"

"Your face looks just like it did last time."

Yu Fan: "..."

Chen Jingshen said, "If you're not physically strong, don't stay up all night."

Yu Fan: "??"

You can't even hold onto your own dog, and you've got the nerve to say that to me?

Seeing Yu Fan's expression, Wang Luan'an was afraid that if Chen Jingshen said one more word, Yu Fan would drag him to the bathroom for a solo fight.

So he immediately closed his workbook. "Last time? What last time? How would I know—hey Yu Fan, don't sleep. Next class is PE. I asked Zuo Kuan to play ball, he's probably already grabbed the court. Let's go, let's go."

-

No matter how many times they rearranged the schedule, Class Seven and Class Eight always had two PE classes together every week. So the two classes often played ball together.

When he saw them, Zuo Kuan clicked his tongue. "What took you so long? I've been waiting for ages."

"The PE teacher dismissed us late." Wang Luan'an breathed a sigh of relief. "I was worried we wouldn't get the court."

"Some guy wanted to play badminton just now, I chased him off." Zuo Kuan counted their numbers. "You guys only have four people?"

One of them even had messy hair and was lazily walking toward a stone bench.

Wang Luan'an said, "Yu Fan's not playing, so we've got exactly three-on-three."

"Three my ass. There's five of us here, we're playing full court." Zuo Kuan said.

"We had five originally too, but Guan Feiyuan had to go to practice..."

"Just grab someone random, then." Zuo Kuan looked at Yu Fan. "You playing? I've already got everyone together."

Yu Fan yawned. "Whatever. If you can find someone, I'll play."

Two minutes later.

Yu Fan looked at Chen Jingshen, whom Wang Luan'an had dragged over, and turned away. "I'm not playing."

"Hey hey hey, you can't go back on your word." Wang Luan'an hooked an arm around his neck and said quietly, "No choice, there's no one else. Just make do. You're so good, think of it as giving Class Eight a handicap."

Chen Jingshen swept his gaze over the two backs that were close together, whispering.

Wang Luan'an had a big frame, which made the boy next to him look even slimmer.

After a moment, Yu Fan turned back with a blank expression, ignored Chen Jingshen standing there, and walked straight onto the court.

Wang Luan'an followed closely. As he passed Chen Jingshen, he reached out and patted his shoulder. "Top student, we've decided. You just fill a spot for us. If you get the ball, just pass it to whichever teammate is open nearby. You don't need to drive or shoot."

Chen Jingshen said, "Okay."

Zuo Kuan was matched up against Yu Fan. He laughed. "Your class really has no one, huh? You even dragged Chen Jingshen in. If he gets bumped or scraped, he's not gonna tattle to the teacher, is he?"

As he spoke, he glanced at Chen Jingshen and paused.

Chen Jingshen had taken off his school jacket—the one he wore no matter the temperature—leaving only a white shirt underneath.

He'd been in a bit of a hurry, so his sleeves were rolled up casually, giving him a rare, sharp look.

"You think you can still worry about him?" Yu Fan said. "Cut the crap. Let's start early and finish early. Once more people show up, you'll be the one embarrassed."

"Damn, don't talk trash." Zuo Kuan grinned. "Other classes might not be able to beat you, but we've got two athletes this time. The hell am I scared of you?"

Zuo Kuan really wasn't scared. They'd agreed beforehand: the athletes would guard Yu Fan directly, and the rest wouldn't be a threat.

The only one with a size advantage was Wang Luan'an, and he'd be panting after two laps.

The first part of the game went pretty well. They managed to guard the people they needed to guard.

Under pressure from two big athletes, Yu Fan faked another move, got past them, and went for a layup in three steps.

The basketball went through the hoop and hit the ground.

At the same time, Zhang Xianjing, who was acting as a referee on the sidelines, raised her arm dramatically to signal the end of the first quarter.

Yu Fan picked up the ball and tossed it to Zuo Kuan. "Want to add another person to guard me?"

Zuo Kuan said smugly, "Don't show off. Look at the score yourself."

Wang Luan'an followed his voice and glanced at the scoreboard, then couldn't help cursing, "Damn."

Their class's basketball games basically relied on Yu Fan and Guan Feiyuan for points. This time Guan Feiyuan wasn't there. Even though Yu Fan was still scoring, with two people guarding him, he was somewhat limited.

Now that the first quarter was over, they were actually trailing by two points.

During the break, Wang Luan'an took a drink of water and said, "Damn, we let them have this one... That bastard Zuo Kuan will probably brag about this win for a month."

The first quarter was when everyone had the most energy. The further they went, the more tired their main players would get, making it even harder to deal with those two athletes.

"You don't know who'll win until it's over," Yu Fan said. "Don't slack off. Play well."

Before heading back to the court, Yu Fan glanced sideways out of the corner of his eye.

After one quarter, everyone was sweating a little.

Except for Chen Jingshen, who had spent the whole quarter just passing the ball and hadn't even breathed hard.

Suddenly, Chen Jingshen lowered his gaze and met his eyes.

Yu Fan quickly looked away and, as if to cover it up, tossed out a line: "Keep passing to me."

It wasn't until he was back in position that Yu Fan realized his last sentence hadn't gotten a response.

The second quarter started, and Yu Fan was still being tightly guarded.

Wang Luan'an couldn't break through, so he had to pass the ball back. He looked behind him—everyone else was being guarded, except for one tall, lean figure standing there with nothing to do.

He instinctively sent the ball over.

Seeing this, Zuo Kuan went through the motions of defending, figuring the ball would probably go to Yu Fan again—Yu Fan himself thought so too.

After waiting a few seconds without the ball coming, Yu Fan frowned and looked over in confusion.

Chen Jingshen stood in place, dribbling with one hand, facing off against Zuo Kuan.

His hands were big, and every time the basketball bounced up, it fit perfectly into his palm.

The next second, the boy leaned forward, easily dribbled past Zuo Kuan, ran a few steps to the frontcourt, and made a decisive mid-range shot—

Bang!

The ball swished through the hoop, smooth as water.

Everyone else on the court: "?"

It was really just a simple offensive play.

But coming from Chen Jingshen, it was a little surprising.

"Top student..." Wang Luan'an said, stunned. "You actually know how to play basketball?"

Chen Jingshen picked up the ball, tossed it to Zuo Kuan, and said calmly, "A little."

Yu Fan looked away before Chen Jingshen could look at him.

No wonder every pass Chen Jingshen sent his way was catchable.

Why didn't he say so earlier? Acting all mysterious.

Zuo Kuan had been blown past too suddenly; he was just coming back to his senses.

He laughed. "Oh yeah? I never noticed before. Guess I'll have to pay more attention to guarding you."

Two minutes later, Chen Jingshen blew past him again with ease.

Zuo Kuan: "Haha, I'm really gonna get serious now."

In the third quarter, Chen Jingshen casually blocked Zuo Kuan's shots three times in a row.

Zuo Kuan: "Ha."

The final quarter.

Chen Jingshen dribbled with one hand, making Zuo Kuan run left and right like a monkey, then raised his hand, flicked his fingers, and sank a three-pointer right over Zuo Kuan's head.

Zuo Kuan: "Your mom."

'The hell is this 'a little'?'

'You serious???'

In the last two minutes of the game, Zuo Kuan watched his class fall behind by 12 points, powerless and furious.

Losing was actually normal—he'd lost even worse when the athletes in his class weren't around. But this time felt different—

Yu Fan was naturally wild, and when he played, he came in bursts of aggression. That made losing feel good, even.

But Chen Jingshen, on the other hand.

That guy even played basketball with that cold, indifferent look.

In simple terms, you give it your all, and the other guy casually, expressionlessly, knocks you flat.

Zuo Kuan suddenly felt like he kind of understood the mindset of that perennial second-place guy in their grade.

The last ball.

Even though there was no hope of winning, a few guys from Class Eight were still playing seriously.

Chen Jingshen dribbled in place silently, raised the back of his hand to wipe the sweat from his chin.

Class Eight had assigned an athlete to guard him, and Zuo Kuan was also watching closely—it was hard for him to break through now.

The next moment, his eyes met Yu Fan's.

They held eye contact for less than a second, then both looked away at the same time.

Yu Fan wiped the sweat from the corner of his eye and slowly took two steps forward.

Chen Jingshen moved forward with the ball, paused for a second outside the three-point line, then raised his hand.

Zuo Kuan thought he was going for a three-pointer and immediately timed his jump. But Chen Jingshen gave him a light glance, then suddenly dropped his hand—bang—the ball was passed to the left—

The ball obediently landed in Yu Fan's hands.

Yu Fan dribbled quickly a few steps forward, then leaped high. The hem of his school uniform T-shirt lifted, revealing his waist covered in a thin layer of sweat.

The boy flipped his fingers and slammed the ball into the hoop—

A perfect dunk.

-

'Fuck!'

Wang Luan'an slapped his thigh. 'How the hell is this a PE class game! Shouldn't this be at the Staples Center, with over twenty camera positions, live-streamed nationwide at eight PM—'

'That's enough,' Zuo Kuan said weakly. 'What's it got to do with you?'

A classroom in the Experimental Building that was always empty.

It was remote, with no surveillance—perfect for getting things done.

The ten guys who'd just finished playing sat in the last two rows of the classroom, drenched in sweat, puffing away.

Wang Luan'an: 'How's it got nothing to do with me? I'm honored!'

An athlete from Class Eight said, 'From now on, I don't want to do anything with your class. Last time we lost the relay, I got punished by the coach the whole weekend. If he finds out I lost this game too...'

Wang Luan'an: 'Then it's definitely not your fault—it's Zuo Kuan holding you back.'

Zuo Kuan: 'Fuck off.'

The guy laughed. 'But this game was really something.'

Zuo Kuan said sarcastically, 'I didn't expect Chen Jingshen to pass the ball at the end. Otherwise, I'd have definitely blocked it and not let Yu Fan pull off that show-off.'

To be honest, Yu Fan hadn't expected it either.

But the moment Chen Jingshen looked at him, he somehow understood.

Yu Fan rubbed his fingers together and couldn't help glancing to the side.

Chen Jingshen sat quietly in his seat. Sweat beaded on the tip of his nose, his forehead hair stuck together in clumps, his shirt dirty in a few spots—he was rarely this disheveled.

But his breathing had already steadied, his expression calm. Unlike the others around him who were panting like dogs.

Yu Fan hadn't originally planned to let Chen Jingshen come along.

But Wang Luan'an said they'd been playing for so long, much more intense than the three-thousand-meter run earlier, and he was afraid Chen Jingshen might pass out on the way.

Yu Fan knew the feeling well, so he didn't chase him away.

Wang Luan'an blew out a puff of smoke. 'Ah, I wonder if Jing-jie recorded the game. I'll ask her later.'

Zuo Kuan: 'Don't bother. Even if she did, she definitely only recorded two people.'

Wang Luan'an: '...'

He actually thought that made sense.

'Xueba,' Wang Luan'an said, 'how many years have you been playing basketball?'

Chen Jingshen said, 'I haven't played in a long time.'

'You're this good even after not playing for a long time? Your three-pointers hit almost every time!'

'Lucky.'

Zuo Kuan finished a cigarette but still felt unsatisfied.

So he pulled out his cigarette pack again. 'Yu Fan, you really don't want one?'

Yu Fan was propping his head on one hand on the desk, playing on his phone, and shook his head without looking up.

Zuo Kuan's eyes swept to another person.

An idea struck him, and he moved his hand over, sliding the pack in front of that person.

'Xueba, want to give it a try?'

Chen Jingshen lifted his eyelids to glance at him, but said nothing.

Zuo Kuan smiled gently. 'Learn it, and later when you're stressed from studying, you can relax—'

Bang!

The leg of his chair was suddenly kicked, and Zuo Kuan lurched backward awkwardly.

He flinched, instinctively turning around to meet Yu Fan's icy glare.

'Hey, Zuo Kuan, that's your problem,' Wang Luan'an also frowned. 'You can't even quit yourself, and you're convincing someone else to start?'

Zuo Kuan: 'I was just being polite... Everyone's smoking, I was afraid Xueba would think we didn't welcome him.'

'If you have too many cigarettes, shove them up your nose and smoke them yourself.'

Yu Fan stood up and gave Chen Jingshen's chair a moderate kick. 'Let's go.'

...

The first thing Wang Luan'an did when he got back to the classroom was ask Zhang Xianjing if she had recorded the game.

Zhang Xianjing lived up to expectations—she had.

'What about me? Where am I? Why is the whole video just Xueba and Yu Fan!' Wang Luan'an protested. 'We're so tight, and you didn't even capture a single shot of me?'

'Bullshit,' Zhang Xianjing pointed at a corner of the phone screen. 'Look down—isn't that the tip of your shoe?!'

'...'

The two of them were arguing noisily up front.

Having just played a game, Yu Fan was no longer sleepy.

He leaned back in his chair and continued his Snake Game career.

The early stages of Snake were simple, so he played absentmindedly, while his other hand toyed with a cigarette pack. He spun it a few times, making a few sounds.

'Yu Fan.' Chen Jingshen's hand hung over the desk, a pen between his fingers, and called him very softly.

Yu Fan didn't respond, just slowed down his game a little.

After a few seconds of silence from beside him, Yu Fan frowned. 'Say it.'

Chen Jingshen glanced down at the thing in his hand. 'I listened to you just now—I didn't take that cigarette.'

Yu Fan: '?'

Did I say anything to you for you to listen to me?

'So, to be fair, shouldn't you also listen to me and not smoke—'

Yu Fan ground his teeth. 'Shut up...'

Knock knock knock.

The window next to them was knocked hard.

Yu Fan immediately pressed his phone under his thigh, and with his other hand, he deftly flipped his fingers, hiding the cigarette pack in his palm, then looked up—

Hu Pang was furious, saying through the window, 'Open the window!'

Behind him were Zuo Kuan and the others. They looked annoyed, also just caught.

Yu Fan opened the window. 'What?'

'What do you think?' Hu Pang pointed behind him. 'You guys—were you smoking in the Experimental Building just now?'

Yu Fan: 'Didn't smoke.'

'Lying again, huh.' Hu Pang took out his phone. 'A classmate specifically sent an anonymous text to report you. Take a look—is this you?'

Hearing the word 'report,' Yu Fan's expression cooled slightly as he looked up to see.

[Unknown number: Director Hu, I want to report Yu Fan, Wang Luan'an, Zuo Kuan... and several other students for smoking in the classroom in the Experimental Building.]

[Unknown number: Yu Fan has been smoking at school for years, affecting classmates. His desk drawer is full of cigarette packs. I hope the director can investigate and punish him promptly.]

[Unknown number: [photo]]

There was only one person in the photo.

Through the crack in the back door of the classroom, half of Yu Fan's body was visible. He was propping his chin, sitting lazily, surrounded by smoke.

The photo was a bit blurry, probably taken from a distance. Yu Fan looked at it for a few seconds. 'So? Where's the cigarette?'

Hu Pang: 'Look at this white smoke yourself—'

'Director, I told you, I smoked it myself. No one else did,' Zuo Kuan said from behind him.

'Alright, you think I'll believe that?' Hu Pang rubbed his brow and pointed at his drawer. 'Empty out everything in your drawer, or be proactive and take out the cigarettes yourself.'

Yu Fan clicked his tongue in annoyance and reached into the drawer to pull things out.

His drawer was basically empty anyway, so he emptied it in no time.

When he pulled out the last textbook, his fingers touched something at the very back of the drawer. Yu Fan froze for a moment, then subtly pushed it further in.

'Your textbooks are newer than the ones in the academic affairs office...' Hu Pang scanned his desk. 'Where's your pen?'

Yu Fan said, 'No pen.'

'...'

Hu Pang's heart ached even more. He lowered his head to look into the drawer. 'Why is there still something inside? Take it out.'

'That's not cigarettes.'

'What if you've hidden them in there?' Hu Pang said. 'Take it out.'

'...'

Yu Fan didn't move.

'Want me to come in and see for myself?' Hu Pang made as if to enter.

Damn it.

Yu Fan took a deep breath, his face stiff as a board, and pulled out the books at the very back, slamming them onto the desk in a 'screw it' manner.

The dull thud startled Hu Pang.

'You've got an attitude now? Daring to slam the desk in front of the director—'

His voice cut off abruptly when he saw the book titles.

The others couldn't help but look at his desk too—

Slow Bird Flies First 2017 Edition.

Middle School Math Must-Do Problems.

An English Dictionary Even Elementary School Students Can Memorize.

Hu Pang: '?'

Others: '...?'

He regretted it.

Feeling the dead silence around him, Yu Fan was so embarrassed his ears burned. He thought, I might as well just get expelled and get the hell out of here—

'Ahem.' Hu Pang coughed in shock. 'Pretty, pretty good.'

He said, 'Turn out your pockets and let me see. Also, what's your other hand doing hanging down there?'

Yu Fan: '.'

Why did he have to play with that cigarette pack?

He was just thinking about where to hide the thing when the back of his hand was gently touched.

Before Yu Fan could react, the fingers that reached over had already pried open his hand, and a warm fingertip lightly swept across his palm, taking the cigarette pack.

Yu Fan: '...'