Chapter Five

After returning home, Hugo began to preview his lessons as usual. Of course, there were times when he couldn't resist slacking off and would open his computer to play games, using gaming as a way to relieve the immense pressure of studying. Now that his mother was at work and he had no idea when she would return, Hugo was alone. Whenever she went to work, Yang Shuting would send Hugo a message to let him know everything was fine.

Hugo opened QQ on his phone and found that someone had added him as a friend. The profile picture looked familiar, so he checked the class group to see if anyone had that avatar. After a careful comparison, he confirmed it was Wu Siying.

As soon as Hugo accepted Wu Siying's friend request, she sent him a message.

"What are you up to? [smile]"

"You tell me, what would I be doing right now? Studying, of course! Unless I’m digging up your ancestors at your house. [cool]"

Seeing that Wu Siying didn't reply, he went to play his game. Soon after, Wu Siying sent another message.

"Um, are you free this Saturday..."

Hugo replied, "Don’t be so hesitant, those ellipses really make people think weird things."

"Maybe you’re the one thinking weird things. I thought you were so honest, but turns out you’re that type."

"Hey! You’re the one who added me, and now you’re picking a fight. [angry]"

Hugo took a sip of water and replied, "So, what exactly do you need on Saturday?"

Seeing she hadn’t replied yet, Hugo wondered if she was just wasting his time, so he stopped responding. In reality, Hugo was overthinking; Wu Siying was just typing slowly.

"Help me review my lessons. I never manage to keep up, so if you have time, let me know."

Hugo replied, "Alright, I’ll let you know when I’m free. You pick the place."

"[OK]"

After the chat ended, Hugo glanced at the photo frame beside his desk. Inside was a picture of him with members of the national taekwondo team, taken when he had just joined. After retiring, he rarely kept in touch, except with Xiao Jian; he didn’t know how to contact the others.

"It’s been so long... are you all well?"

The room was unusually quiet. Hugo stared at the photo, motionless, lost in memories of those days with his teammates. Yet, those were also his most painful memories—especially the time he retired, which left him devastated. He didn’t want to part from everyone; he just wished he could see them once more.

The next morning, Hugo walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. His entire face was covered by long hair that he’d been growing for six years, made silky by his mother Yang Shuting’s care.

After all, those were memories Hugo didn’t want to cut away. Even if threatened, he would never trim his hair, valuing it more than his own life.

After washing his hair, he began his morning routine and cooked for himself. Hugo was used to all this; with his mother gone, he handled everything alone.

"A new day begins," Hugo said to his reflection.

He entered the classroom as usual, only to be surprised to see Lin Zimo arrive early. In Hugo's impression, Lin Zimo always came late to class, so seeing her this early was unexpected.

"Morning, Zimo. Didn’t expect you to be here so soon."

"You too. Turns out you’re always the first to arrive."

"Um..." Lin Zimo hesitated, starting to speak but trailing off halfway. Hugo, a man with a perfectionist streak, wanted everything to be the best, the most complete, and he needed to hear the rest of her words.

"Come on, spit it out! You’re going to drive me crazy."

"Are you free this Saturday? Let’s take care of the kids together." Lin Zimo blurted out.

"Saturday again," Hugo muttered, slapping his forehead.

"What, is it a problem?"

It wasn’t that it was a problem, but Wu Siying had already asked Hugo to help her review lessons on Saturday. If he accepted Wu Siying’s request, he’d feel guilty toward Lin Zimo. Conversely, if he agreed with Lin Zimo, he’d be letting Wu Siying down. This left Hugo in a dilemma.

Hugo decided to take a leap and made a choice that felt suffocating. "How about this Saturday, we take care of the kids and review lessons with Wu Siying together?"

"Huh?" Lin Zimo questioned.

Hugo decided to be honest. "To tell you the truth, Wu Siying asked me first to help her with her lessons on Saturday. Since you also want to meet on Saturday, why not do both together?" Hugo didn’t even know what he was saying—he wanted to slap himself for what had just come out of his mouth.

"If that’s what you want..."

Hugo closed his eyes, refusing to think about the consequences.

"Then let’s do it together."

"What?" Hugo wanted to make sure he hadn’t misheard, imagining what it would be like when Lin Zimo and Wu Siying met.

Lin Zimo said, "I’m not particularly familiar with her, so it’s a good chance to get to know her. It’s not a bad thing."

Hugo breathed a sigh of relief. "So that’s how you see it. Now I can relax."

"And what about you? What do you think?"

"Uh..." Hugo was momentarily lost for words.

"Speak up! What’s going on in that head of yours? A mess of nonsense. Don’t think you can leave this classroom until you make it clear."

Hugo was amused, but it was exactly as he expected. He knew Lin Zimo’s personality and behavior—she’d interrogate you to the end, no matter what, forcing you to give a reason; otherwise, you’d get a taste of an out-of-body experience.

A true tough guy, Hugo thought Lin Zimo was born to be a man, with nothing in common with women. If Lin Zimo heard this, Hugo could die a dozen times over; Lin Zimo hated being called a man, and those who’d joked about it before seemed to have disappeared, supposedly scared off by her, never daring to come to school again.

This little incident came to a temporary end.

During class, the teacher talked about the origins of taekwondo, which piqued Lin Zimo’s interest—she practiced the sport and needed to fill in her knowledge. Hugo, on the other hand, wasn’t interested at all in the teacher’s lesson; reading novels was the real deal for him.

"The teacher is giving a great lesson. Why aren’t you listening?"

Hugo replied, "I just really don’t care about this. If you want to listen, go ahead, just don’t bother me while I read."

"Alright then." Lin Zimo continued paying attention, while Hugo kept reading his book, as if nothing had happened.

This lesson gave Lin Zimo some timely knowledge about taekwondo—not only information, but also aesthetic beauty.

After class, Xiao Jian approached Hugo, saying he had something to discuss. Hugo immediately found a secluded spot with him to talk.

Hugo put his hands in his pockets. "What’s so secretive?"

Xiao Jian replied, "Brother Yu, what I have to tell you is a bit special. You should prepare yourself."

"I can take it," Hugo said, growing anxious, feeling that whatever was coming would have a huge impact, something he couldn’t withstand.

Xiao Jian sighed, "Brother Yu, Brother Zhang is fading fast. Tonight, he wants to see you one last time."

Hugo fell silent, then replied, "I’ll go. Tell him to wait for me."

"No problem, I’ll let him know after school." Xiao Jian left, leaving Hugo alone. Hugo seemed lost, his body trembling. The day had finally come, but he still couldn’t accept it.

"Wait for me, Zhang Yan. I’ll be back soon."