A Midnight Climb and a Clandestine Confession

Having left the treasure-hunting hall, Si Xi’s mood had completely brightened. Only then did he notice that the shopping mall looked somewhat familiar.

“Oh, Brother, is this the mall next to Yu Ying Middle School?”

Jing Chen simply hummed in affirmation.

“That’s my old high school! I haven’t been back since I graduated. I wonder how much it’s changed.”

“Do you want to go take a look? Though it’s Saturday, so it should be empty.”

Si Xi chuckled mischievously. “It’s not impossible to get in, Brother. Did you ever climb walls when you were in school?”

Jing Chen replied, “…No.”

“How can one have a perfect school life without climbing walls? Come on, come on, I’ll take you to make up for that deficiency.”

Si Xi, brimming with excitement, pulled Jing Chen towards the elevator.

“We can drive to the North Gate. I know a superb spot for climbing over the wall.”

Jing Chen remained silent, a question unspoken: ‘Could he refuse?’

Yet, seeing Si Xi’s eager, almost itching-to-go expression, Jing Chen ultimately chose to indulge him.

****

Adjacent to Yu Ying Middle School’s North Gate lay a construction site, which became sparsely populated at night. It was an ideal location for clandestine activities under the cloak of darkness and a brisk wind.

“Brother, over here.”

Si Xi, illuminating the path with his phone’s flashlight, stood beneath a section of the wall and beckoned to Jing Chen.

This particular wall was made of brick and stone, and the electric fence intended to deter students from entering and exiting had long since broken. Thus, scaling the wall was all it took to gain entry.

“Brother, you hold the light for me first. I’ll show you a little cat climbing a wall.”

With these words, Si Xi handed his phone to Jing Chen, then, with an air of mock seriousness, rubbed his hands together and performed a couple of warm-up jumps.

Suddenly, he burst into a sprint, launching himself upwards as he reached the wall. His hands gripped the top edge, and using the strength in his arms, his feet rapidly pushed against the wall, propelling him higher. As his center of gravity shifted upwards, he exerted force with his hands once more, hoisting himself onto the wall in a single fluid motion.

Si Xi sat on the wall, his feet dangling in the air, grinning triumphantly at Jing Chen. “Not bad, right, my technique?”

Jing Chen’s lips curved into a slight smile. “Clearly the mark of a master class-skipper.”

Si Xi was amused by his deadpan remark and extended a hand towards him. “Come on, I’ll pull you up.”

Jing Chen approached the wall, reaching out to Si Xi, but instead of taking his hand, he placed two phones into Si Xi’s palm.

Si Xi was about to set the phones on the wall and reach for him again when Jing Chen, with both hands gripping the wall’s edge, sprang upwards using his arm strength, his upper body effortlessly clearing the top.

His feet then pushed off the wall, and with that momentum, he leaped again, bringing his entire body over.

‘Holy hell.’

Si Xi watched, utterly dumbfounded.

‘This is… like something out of a martial arts movie.’

“Brother, you, you’ve trained, haven’t you?” Si Xi finally managed to regain his voice after a long moment.

Jing Chen replied nonchalantly, “I learned a bit of three-legged cat boxing from someone.”

Given his status, without some self-defense skills, he would be defenseless if kidnapped or ambushed.

Si Xi thought, ‘QAQ. I want a bit of that three-legged cat boxing too.’

****

Immediately beyond this section of the wall lay the school’s sports field, virtually identical to how Si Xi remembered it from his high school days.

The rubber track, emanating its distinctive scent, the football field that was practically just for show, the perpetually occupied basketball courts, and the badminton courts beloved by the girls—all remained exactly as they were.

“They still haven’t expanded this basketball court? Back then, we’d resort to all sorts of tricks and schemes just to snag a court,” Si Xi remarked, gazing at the basketball hoop with a nostalgic air.

High school was probably the most carefree and joyful period of his student life.

“You play basketball?” Jing Chen inquired.

“Hmph, don’t underestimate me. If I hadn’t had to dedicate most of my time to studying, I would have been the captain of our year’s basketball team.”

As he spoke, Si Xi walked to the basketball hoop, dribbled an imaginary ball twice, then crouched, leaped, and mimed a perfect jump shot.

Jing Chen watched his vibrant figure, a smile playing on his lips.

At that moment, Si Xi’s eyes suddenly sparkled as he looked at Jing Chen. “Brother, they didn’t replace this basketball hoop!”

Jing Chen asked, “So?”

“I hid something underneath it in high school. I wonder if it’s still there.”

Si Xi spoke with excitement, bending down and reaching his hand into a gap at the bottom of the basketball hoop. The gap was just wide enough for a palm to fit, and his fingers probed upwards.

“Found it!”

Si Xi exclaimed joyfully, pushing with his hand a couple of times. The small iron box he had hidden above the hoop’s base clattered to the ground, and he deftly pulled it out.

Jing Chen was somewhat surprised that the item Si Xi had hidden in high school was still there. He crouched down, shining his phone’s flashlight for Si Xi, and saw a palm-sized, flat iron box, now covered in rust.

“Brother,” Si Xi said, picking up the box and holding it out to Jing Chen, “I’m giving you the most important thing I left behind in high school!”

Jing Chen hesitated for a moment before reaching out to take it.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course! Hurry up and open it!” Si Xi took the illuminating phone from Jing Chen’s hand to hold it steady for him.

Under Si Xi’s expectant gaze, Jing Chen used his fingers to pry open the lid of the iron box. The box was quite rusty, and it took Jing Chen several attempts to open it.

Unlike its rust-covered exterior, the inside was like new, its plated metal still a pristine silver.

Inside the box lay a small sword made of cardboard, with a slip of paper tucked beneath it.

Jing Chen picked up the paper and read: “My chosen son, seeing this sword is like seeing your father. May you inherit my will, slay demons with this sword, and act on your father’s behalf.”

Jing Chen simply blinked.

Si Xi was already laughing so hard he was pounding the ground. “My son, do you like the great sword your father bestowed upon you?”

Jing Chen realized it was one of Si Xi’s pranks. He likely just tucked this box away, waiting for some student to discover it and read the message. He hadn’t expected it to remain undiscovered for two years, only to be found by Si Xi himself.

“Chuunibyou,” Jing Chen said, shaking his head. Yet, he carefully placed the paper sword back inside and closed the lid of the box.

He confiscated it.

Just then, a powerful flashlight beam suddenly cut through the darkness, striking them. Simultaneously, a furious shout echoed from not far away.

“Who are you two? How did you get in? What are you doing lurking around here in the middle of the night!”

Si Xi and Jing Chen were both startled by the sudden turn of events. Si Xi, in particular, who had been laughing so hard he was hitting the ground, was so shocked that he simply tumbled onto the dirt.

“Run!”

Jing Chen sprang to his feet, then reached down to pull Si Xi up, and they bolted in the direction they had come from.

The person with the flashlight was likely a school security guard. Seeing them take off, he immediately gave chase, shouting from behind, “Stop! You two little brats, stop right there!”

‘Only a fool would stop!’ Si Xi thought, running and grumbling to himself. He desperately wanted to turn around and tell the guard to save his breath, as he’d have a better chance of catching them if he conserved his energy.

The two quickly reached the wall. Jing Chen, as usual, performed flawlessly, scaling it with a single push and leap.

Si Xi, however, slipped as he tried to push off the slick wall, failing to get over. At this point, the guard was less than five meters away. Si Xi was about to try again when he heard Jing Chen’s calm voice say, “Give me your hand.”

Si Xi immediately extended his hand. Jing Chen’s grip was strong, making him feel incredibly secure. Using Jing Chen’s strength, Si Xi scrambled up in just a couple of moves.

He had barely made it over when the guard arrived, panting heavily. “Stop, *huff*, *huff*, don’t run!”

At such close proximity, Si Xi realized he knew this guard—a lackey of the Dean of Students. He had been caught by him numerous times for scaling walls in high school.

“We’re running! Na-na-na-na-boo-boo!”

Si Xi made a face at him, then jumped down the wall with Jing Chen.

The guard was likely unable to climb over the wall, but just in case, the two ran at top speed until they reached their parked car, where they finally stopped.

Si Xi leaned against the car, gasping for breath. After a moment, he looked at Jing Chen, who happened to be looking at him as well.

Their eyes met, and both couldn’t help but smile.

This night had been far too thrilling.

After laughing for a while, it was unclear who initiated it, but without realizing it, they found themselves locked in an embrace and a deep kiss.

Under the tranquil moonlight, they held each other, their breaths mingling, their previously settled heartbeats gradually becoming erratic and hurried.

They hadn’t been intimate for a week, and both, having recently discovered the pleasures of the flesh, were eager for more. What began as a simple kiss quickly intensified, spiraling out of control.

In a haze of passion, Si Xi was pushed onto the seat of the sports car. As Jing Chen’s tall frame tried to squeeze in, he suddenly froze.

The confined space of the sports car simply couldn’t accommodate both of them.

“Ahem.”

Si Xi coughed awkwardly, pretending nothing had happened, and tidied his disheveled clothes.

Jing Chen watched him with deep, shadowed eyes, then leaned in for a prolonged kiss before finally getting out and closing the car door.

On the way back, Jing Chen drove exceptionally fast. A thirty-minute journey, even with slight traffic, was compressed into twenty-five minutes.

But today, the car’s speed was completely unaffected. Under Jing Chen’s wild driving, Si Xi felt dizzy and disoriented, as if floating on clouds one moment and plummeting into an abyss the next.

****

Huo Siyi noticed that after he retracted the message about beating up Huo Siyuan, Si Xi stopped replying to him.

He was utterly dejected, so he simply stormed over to Huo Siyuan’s residence, suspecting that Huo Siyuan had been badmouthing him to Si Xi.

Huo Siyuan was just about to seize the beautiful spring weather to go out and have some fun when Huo Siyi cornered him. After hearing his cousin’s intentions, Huo Siyuan was at a loss for words.

Should he perhaps subtly hint to his lovestruck young cousin that Si Xi wasn’t replying because he’d said or done something wrong, or because someone had complained about him, but rather because Si Xi might currently be rolling around in bed with his dad and therefore unable to reply?

But he didn’t dare expose his uncle and Si Xi’s relationship; who knew what kind of ‘play’ those two were engaged in.

‘Ah, being human is hard. Being the filling in a sandwich is even harder.’

After much deliberation, Huo Siyuan came up with a terrible idea. “If you really like him, just be brave and go for it. Confess to him, tell him you like him.”

If Si Xi accepted his confession despite being with his uncle, then his uncle would naturally deal with him.

If Si Xi rejected him, Huo Siyi could give up and stop agonizing over it.

Either way, Huo Siyuan could remain perfectly invisible.

‘Please, just don’t involve me again. I don’t want to die without even knowing how my uncle killed me.’

Hearing the words “like him,” Huo Siyi’s face flushed slightly. “But…”

“No ‘buts’!” Huo Siyuan cut him off, continuing to pump him up. “Hesitation leads to defeat! Indecision leads to giving it away for free!”

“You’re the son of the richest man! You have looks, you have education. You don’t need to be humble when pursuing anyone.”

“Go for it, young man! Believe in yourself!”

Under Huo Siyuan’s relentless encouragement, Huo Siyi’s expression slowly hardened, and he clenched his fist. “Alright, I’ll confess on Monday when I go to school!”