DBTHDCAR Chapter 46

Recently, Ning Xiaobei had been weighed down with worries. Even Fan Xia, whose nerves were thicker than steel pipes¹extremely insensitive or slow to notice things, had noticed. But his boss kept his mouth tighter than a clam. No matter how Fan Xia whined, pestered, or tried to trick him into talking, Ning Xiaobei wouldn’t say a single word.

That day, halfway through PE class, Ning Xiaobei stood with his arms folded, leaning quietly against the back door of the gym, watching everyone running and jumping on the field.

Their PE teacher’s surname was Shan, given name Yubing, with the nickname “Sweet Potato Cake.”

“Sweet Potato Cake” was a fashionable old man. In his younger years, he had been a professional javelin thrower on the Shanghai team and had competed in the National Games. All year round, he wore a blue tracksuit with the word [Shanghai] printed across the chest. His hairstyle was copied from the Japanese tough-guy movie star Ken Takakura in 《Manhunt》, a look that had been popular more than a decade ago, he carried it with effortless swagger.

Ning Xiaobei vaguely remembered that more than ten years after he graduated from college, he had once run into him at the district sports center. By then, the old man was already in his eighties, yet still full of energy, leading a group of elderly men cycling for exercise. The muscles on his body were enough to make young men jealous.

If only Ning Jianguo had even half of Teacher Shan’s health, he wouldn’t have suddenly fallen ill… Of course, that kid Ding Zheyang probably bore some responsibility in that matter too.

Ning Xiaobei narrowed his eyes slightly. He saw Ding Zheyang, after finishing his assigned laps, panting heavily as he walked toward the concrete washbasins. Quietly, Ning Xiaobei followed him.

Although “Sweet Potato Cake” excelled at javelin, his PE classes always came down to the same three tricks — running, running, and more running.

20 laps for the boys, 10 for the girls. After that, free activity. As long as you didn’t sit on the ground to rest, you could do whatever you wanted.

After finishing his run, Fan Xia, as usual, called his buddies over to play soccer. “Sweet Potato Cake” acted as their referee, watching Fan Xia with eyes full of admiration and affection.

When Fan Xia had first entered the preparatory class, Teacher Shan had thought he was a sports-track student from Class 4. After all, his physical abilities were outstanding. His long-distance running, high jump, and long jump results were no worse than those of specially trained student athletes. Later, when he found out that Fan Xia had been directly admitted and was also ranked quite well in Class 1 academically, “Sweet Potato Cake” felt conflicted.

On one hand, he wanted to train Fan Xia into a professional athlete. If he got any older, his bone age might make it too late. On the other hand, Fan Xia’s academic performance was so good that giving up school would be a pity. After agonizing over it, he could only let him choose his own path.

Behind the gym, Chang Leyun and a few girls were skipping rope while others played shuttlecock kicking and tossing beanbags. Ning Xiaobei slipped past them from behind, keeping a moderate distance as he followed Ding Zheyang.

“They’re still in class, where is this guy going? Doesn’t look like he’s heading to the snack shop for water…”

Watching him walk farther and farther away, Ning Xiaobei couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

By accident, the hem of his shirt caught on a wisteria trellis nearby. A few girls hiding under it, chatting about celebrities and TV dramas, were startled and all turned around at once.

“Shh.”

He and Zhuang Li both raised their index fingers to their lips, signaling for silence.

“Is ‘Sweet Potato Cake’ coming to catch people? Are we going to have to run again?”

Zhuang Li hurriedly stuffed something into her loose school uniform and asked nervously.

“It’s fine, I was just passing by. You guys keep chatting.”

It was only a quick glance, but with his sharp eyes, Ning Xiaobei still caught sight of the booklet cover. It showed the side profile of Leonardo DiCaprio.

Well, well, Zhuang Li…you once wrote in one of those elementary school essays that you’d only ever like Alan Tam your whole life, and now you’ve already switched your crush to a foreign actor.

He let out a soft chuckle and continued after Ding Zheyang.

“That scared me to death.”

After Ning Xiaobei walked away, Zhuang Li stuck out her tongue and took out the photo album she had just bought. Then she noticed the other girls around her were all gazing dreamily at Ning Xiaobei’s retreating figure.

“Xiaobei is really so handsome… He studies well, and he’s gentle too. A few days ago, he saw my bike tire was flat and even helped me pump it up.”

“Yeah, the boys in our class are all so annoying. Only Ning Xiaobei never pulls girls’ braids or runs around yelling. He’s always neat and clean, just like a noble young master straight out of a manhua.”

“You don’t like him, do you?”

“Don’t talk nonsense! I just admire him, like how I admire DiCaprio.”

“But I think Fan Xia is more handsome. He looks really cool when he plays soccer.”

“But he’s so dark.”

“What do you know? That’s called ‘healthy beauty.’ Foreigners even go sunbathing on the beach just to get tanned on purpose.”

“Then what about Lin Ziying?”

“The way he treats the whole class to soda is pretty handsome too, haha…”

The girls burst into giggles.

After turning two corners, Ning Xiaobei finally arrived at the middle school bike shed.

“What a hassle…”

Putting down the tools in his hand, Ding Zheyang, half-squatting, wiped the sweat off his forehead and casually rubbed his grease-stained hands on his pants. Suddenly, he heard a faint rustling behind him. Turning around, a pair of bright white sneakers came into view.

“What are you doing?”

Seeing Ning Xiaobei appear in the bike shed out of nowhere, Ding Zheyang sucked in a sharp breath and turned to run.

But before he could even stand up, Ning Xiaobei grabbed him by the collar and pinned him against a nearby iron pillar.

“Whose bike is that? Why are you running?”

Ning Xiaobei took another look at the bike. Wasn’t this Geng Enhua’s bike, the one that fell on the bridge that day? A large patch of paint was missing from the back seat, probably from that fall.

It was said that Geng Enhua wasn’t doing well in Class 3 now. He still acted like he used to be a Class 1 student and treated the others there rudely, looking down on them all the time. So naturally, no one in Class 3 liked him either.

According to Fan Xia, whose network of friends covered the entire grade, Geng Enhua had taken a fall on his way home a few days ago and lost one of his front teeth. People had since given him the nickname “One-Tooth.”

He had always been chubby with a face full of acne, but losing a front tooth made him even harder to look at. Yesterday, he took a day off to go to the dental clinic and wait in line for a porcelain veneers.

When the news got back to Class 1, the girls all clapped and cheered, saying that heaven had eyes and had punished the villain.

Only Ning Xiaobei, who had witnessed everything that day, knew that something about it was off.

“I… let go of me.”

Behind his thick lenses, Ding Zheyang’s light brown eyes were filled with panic. His thin arm was tightly gripped by Ning Xiaobei, and no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn’t break free.

“Come with me.”

Even though it wasn’t after school and no one should be near the bike shed, Ning Xiaobei still dragged him to the back door of the basketball gym.

“Why did you tamper with Geng Enhua’s bike?”

A sharp glint flashed in Ning Xiaobei’s eyes. “That day on the bridge, he was riding just fine, and then suddenly he fell… was that your doing?”

“W-what fall? I don’t know what you’re talking about! I’m going back…let go of me!”

Ding Zheyang kept struggling.

“Why were you following Geng Enhua? How long have you been following him? And what did you just do to his bike?”

Ning Xiaobei fired off questions like a machine gun, pushing Ding Zheyang into a corner.

“Ahhh!”

He suddenly screamed, like a red-eyed rabbit, lashing out in desperation, flailing his arms wildly. It caught Ning Xiaobei off guard.

“What are you doing? You four-eyes, are you asking for it?! You dare lay a hand on my boss!”

Fan Xia had been playing soccer and was looking all over for Ning Xiaobei. Hearing the commotion behind the basketball gym, he rushed over and saw the scene in front of him.

“I’ll beat you up!”

He thought Ding Zheyang had gotten bold enough to bully Ning Xiaobei, so he vaulted over the railing and raised his leg to kick him.

“Fan Xia, don’t be impulsive!”

“Boss, move aside! I’ve had it with this four-eyes for a long time, today I’m settling all the scores!”

Seeing things were about to go south, Ning Xiaobei hurriedly grabbed him from behind, locking both arms tightly around his chest.

“Are you stupid? Run!”

Seeing that Ding Zheyang was still standing there in a daze, Ning Xiaobei shouted at him.

Ding Zheyang snapped out of it and turned to run toward the field, leaving Fan Xia fuming with rage.

“Boss, what are you doing? Weren’t you already fighting with him? Why didn’t you let me teach him a lesson while I was at it?”

“I was afraid you’d fall and end up dead on your way home. I was saving you.”

Ning Xiaobei let go of Fan Xia, who looked completely confused, and walked back to the bike shed, stopping where Ding Zheyang had been squatting.

On the ground lay a pair of pliers, something Ding Zheyang had left behind.

“What kind of grudge does this kid have against him…”

Ning Xiaobei clicked his tongue.

Most likely, Ding Zheyang had secretly used the pliers to cut the spokes of Geng Enhua’s bicycle. Riding on flat ground would be fine, but once he went uphill, the spokes wouldn’t hold, and that’s when Geng Enhua fell.

“Fan Xia, are you free this Friday?”

He picked up the pliers and slipped them into the pocket of his track pants.

“I’m free. I only go back to my dad’s place on Saturday.”

Fan Xia looked at him, puzzled.

“Chang Leyun has dance practice at the Children’s Palace on Friday night… so how about this, we go hang out at a classmate’s house that day?”

“Whose place? Lin Ziying’s?”

At the mention of going out to play, Fan Xia immediately perked up.

Last semester, the two of them had been warmly invited by Lin Ziying’s father to visit his small villa in the city.

Before that, Fan Xia had always thought that inside the city there were only old Western-style houses, and that newly built villas were all out in the suburbs. It turned out he knew nothing about how the rich lived. A big-shot businessman from Wenzhou had bought a three-story house not far from No. 1 High School just to solve his son’s household registration issue and make it convenient for him to get to school.

At that time, most Shanghai families were still crowded into old alleyway houses. Families like Ning Xiaobei’s and Fan Xia’s, who lived in newer workers’ housing with their own kitchen and bathroom, were already considered to have pretty decent living conditions.

But Lin Ziying’s home… as Fan Xia put it, one of the Young Master Lin’s bathrooms could fit his entire room.

It was also at Lin Ziying’s house, when they saw the black grand piano in the living room, that they realized that besides his money power, he also had quite a bit of artistic talent.

Fan Xia had asked him why he never mentioned it at school.

From preparatory class to second year, the school’s various events—anniversaries, arts festivals, teacher gatherings—all strongly encouraged talented students to perform on stage and bring honor to the class.

Not to mention someone like Chang Leyun, who could both dance and play violin. She was now officially the class Arts and Culture Representative.

Even Fan Xia himself had gone on stage during last year’s school anniversary to imitate Jackie Chan, performing a pretty convincing set of Drunken Fist.

“Ah, I’m already perfect as it is. If I show off too much, people will get jealous.”

After playing 《Für Elise²One of Ludwig van Beethoven’s most popular compositions》 for his two friends, Lin Ziying said this with a maturity far beyond his age, “My dad says, ‘Pride invites loss, humility brings gain.’ Whether in life or in business, you can’t always push to be the best in everything. That’s how you last in the long run.”

Hearing this, Ning Xiaobei was completely convinced. Sure enough, there was a reason rich people could build such big businesses.

When they entered Young Master Lin’s room, Fan Xia’s eyes were instantly drawn to an entire wall filled with Japanese manga and plastic figurines.

Back then, terms like “otaku,” “2D culture,” and “anime merchandise” didn’t even exist yet. Kids in Shanghai could only come into contact with Japanese otaku culture through television and pirated manga. Compared to others their age, Lin Ziying was clearly already a step ahead.

On the wall, inside rows of small glass display cases, were complete sets of figurines: the Twelve Gold Saints and the Five Bronze Saints from 《Saint Seiya.》There were also officially licensed Gundam models from 【Bandai】, and even figures of Sakuragi Hanamichi and Rukawa Kaede from 《Slam Dunk,》 which had only started airing that summer. They came in all kinds of sizes and models, Fan Xia was dazzled.

Wasn’t this way more interesting than the model planes and cannons Uncle Ning put together?

Ning Xiaobei, meanwhile, was drawn to the complete manga set of 《Legend of the Galactic Heroes》 on the bookshelf. He pulled one volume down and flipped through it; it was indeed the traditional Chinese edition. Who knew how Lin Ziying had managed to get his hands on it. If this set and those figurines were kept for twenty years, who knew how much they’d be worth.

“Do you guys play games? I’ve got an authentic 【Nintendo】console here, plus a handheld.”

Young Master Lin pulled open a drawer, proudly showing off his collection.

The drawer was completely filled with yellow, genuine game cartridges.

“Young Master Lin, please let me call you Dad!”

Faced with all the temptations in the room, Fan Xia immediately decided to bow and curry favor before the powerful, transferring the honor that once belonged to Fan Jian to Lin Ziying instead.

While one of them read and the other played games, it wasn’t long before the Lin family’s housekeeper brought in delicate fruit and snacks. When dinner time came, Lin Ziying’s parents insisted they stay, and the Wenzhou-style seafood feast had both Fan Xia and Ning Xiaobei nodding nonstop in approval.

Knowing the two boys were excellent students with good character, Lin Ziying’s parents were happy for their son to be friends with them, and would invite them over from time to time afterward.

So when Ning Xiaobei mentioned going to a classmate’s house, Fan Xia immediately assumed they’d be going to the Lin residence again to freeload a meal.

“Not Lin’s place. We’re going to the Ding family.”

“The Ding family? Which Ding family?”

Fan Xia looked completely baffled.

“Ding Zheyang. We’ve been classmates since elementary school, going over to his house to hang out isn’t too much, right?”

As he spoke, Ning Xiaobei patted the pocket of his track pants where the pliers were hidden.

“Besides, he already told his mom that we’re his good friends.”

“Huh?!”

Fan Xia’s face scrunched up like he’d just eaten ten sour lemons.

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  extremely insensitive or slow to notice things
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  One of Ludwig van Beethoven’s most popular compositions