Chapter 542: Chapter 199 Li Yuan in Terror: Could Today Be a Battleground?_4

"Senior, will this be a surprise for you, or a scare?" Zhong Tingyue murmured to herself, a faint smile touching her lips. Since she had decided to come to terms with it, she might as well go see him openly. Even if it just means sneaking a peek from afar, that’s good enough. After all, this is his first college basketball game!

...

「On the basketball court」

Li Yuan, wearing a number "23" jersey, was practicing relentlessly, using both hands to break through a tight press. Although his height often forced him to play center on street courts, he actually preferred playing point forward—a position where he could attack, shoot, pass, and defend. Nearby, Liu Jia watched Li Yuan skillfully execute a series of crossovers and behind-the-back dribbles with a fluid, beautiful rhythm. He couldn’t help but mutter, "Yuan, your ball-handling has gotten really smooth. You haven’t been secretly practicing behind our backs, have you?"

Li Yuan glanced at Liu Jia, a tall, skinny guy who seemed goofy on the surface but was actually quite shrewd. His basketball skills weren’t great; because of his height, he was limited to basic grunt work like rebounding and scoring on putbacks. Li Yuan chuckled. "Heh, Liu Jia, if you practiced handling your balls with both hands every night, your skills would improve too."

Liu Jia’s eyes widened as if he’d had a revelation. "Yuan, so you have been practicing in secret!" he said with a grin. "Your ball-handling was definitely not this good when we first started playing together." He leaned in. "Hehe, Yuan, teach me. How do you practice your ball-handling?"

Li Yuan nearly choked with laughter. This guy, for all his talk, had never been in a relationship and lacked any real-world experience, so he didn’t immediately catch the innuendo. He replied meaningfully, "First, you have to get a girlfriend!"

Liu Jia looked baffled. "What does that have to do with getting a girlfriend?" Just as Li Yuan laughed, about to tease him again, a familiar, shrill female voice suddenly pierced the air.

"Li Yuan, I love you!"

"Li Yuan, I love you!"

"Li Yuan, I love you!"

The shouts were so loud that everyone on the court couldn’t help but look over. Li Yuan looked over as well, and his jaw nearly dropped.

At some point, the stunningly buxom Big Breast Girl had appeared at the edge of the open-air court. She wore a JK miniskirt that showed off her slender waist, and her hair was tied in a high ponytail. Waving a pair of pom-poms she’d gotten from somewhere, she jumped excitedly and shouted encouragement for Li Yuan. It was like a scene straight out of the anime *Slam Dunk*. Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought a professional CBA cheerleading squad had shown up.

Before Li Yuan could say anything, Liu Jia was already staring, wide-eyed. His usually dark complexion turned a little shy upon seeing the sexily dressed girl, but his eyes seemed glued to her, refusing to move. He’d had a crush on Wang Jierong since the start of the school year, which even led to an embarrassing incident. Though he never managed to win her over, he still talked to her from time to time. In other words, the Big Breast Girl was just stringing him along. The problem was, this "fish" of his was too shrewd. He was reluctant to make any financial investment and only wanted to contribute physically. In common slang, he was just a freeloader.

Listening to Wang Jierong shout "Li Yuan, I love you!" over and over, Liu Jia couldn’t help but pat Li Yuan’s shoulder and ask sourly, "Yuan, what’s going on with you and Rongrong? Don’t tell me she actually succeeded in getting you."

"What nonsense are you talking?" Li Yuan shot Liu Jia a glare and turned away, speechless. When he’d glanced at Wang Jierong just now, she had thrown him a flirtatious wink and started cheering even more enthusiastically. The sight made his scalp tingle and filled him with secondhand embarrassment.

With the game about to start, a crowd had encircled the court. While it hadn’t yet reached the triple-digit number of girls Wu Hao and Liu Jia had mentioned, there were already thirty or forty of them, most of whom seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Liu Jia stared at Li Yuan with envy. Watching his crush openly declare her love for his roommate, even though it wasn’t the first time, still made him feel a little sour. "Yuan, Rongrong is really going all out for you. I’m so envious."

Li Yuan gave a wry smile, momentarily at a loss for a comeback. To be honest, Wang Jierong’s sudden appearance in a JK skirt, cheering for him like a sexy cheerleader, did touch him a little. His opinion of her had actually improved somewhat.

Ren Jun, Wu Hao, and the others standing nearby felt the same way. Comparisons are odious! In their eyes, Li Yuan was a true winner in life: girls on his arms, a successful career, luxury cars and mansions, a strong physique... Damn, his stats were maxed out with positive buffs.

Suddenly, Ren Jun asked, "Yuan, how come none of your girlfriends are here?"

Wu Hao grinned, his eyes narrowed, and chimed in with a taunt that made Li Yuan want to punch him. "Hehe, I bet it’s because he’s afraid they’ll run into each other and start a fight. That day in class, when Li Yuan’s girlfriend from the Finance Academy came looking for him and ran into Xia Zhijin... just thinking about that atmosphere gives me the chills."

Hearing Wu Hao air his dirty laundry, Li Yuan flicked him on the head. "Mouse, can’t you just shut the hell up!"

"Yuan, you hit too hard! Watch out, or I’ll sue you for damages!" Wu Hao winced, rubbing his head.

"You got off easy!" Li Yuan glared, a sense of foreboding suddenly creeping over him.

He had told Xia Zhijin that afternoon to come to the court and cheer for him. That wasn’t an issue. They were in the same class, so everyone knew about their relationship, and he had never intended to hide anything from her. However, he hadn’t told Bai Weixi or Zhong Tingyue that he was playing basketball today. It couldn’t be that much of a coincidence that they would all decide to take a stroll by the sports grounds, could it? Probably not. They don’t even know I have a game today. Truthfully, he was terrified of encountering that kind of battleground scenario. He always felt a little guilty, as if he were letting every girl down.

As Li Yuan was lost in thought, Wu Hao’s exclamation cut through. "Hey, Yuan, not bad! Even the class president came just to see you."

"The class president? Xiang Tan Yanqiu? Where is she?" Ren Jun asked quickly, his eyes scanning the crowd.

As the girl considered second only to Xia Zhijin in looks within their Computer Science class, Xiang Tan Yanqiu was the object of a secret crush for most of the boys. Although she wasn’t as stunning as Xia Zhijin, she had a delicate, girl-next-door type of beauty. As the class president, she interacted with the boys frequently, and her graceful, poised demeanor easily won the affection of these guys, many of whom had been nerds in high school.

Wu Hao offered a "helpful" reminder. "Ren Jun, she’s behind you." He used the opportunity to shyly gaze at Xiang Tan Yanqiu’s smiling profile.

Li Yuan looked up to see Xiang Tan Yanqiu, a girl with a cool and confident personality, flash him a radiant smile as a greeting. He simply smiled and gave a slight nod in return. Then, his gaze shifted past her, just as a wave of gasps rippled through the crowd.

Four girls were walking side by side toward the court. In the middle was a tall, slender girl, walking with her head lowered in slight shyness. Her hair was parted simply down the middle, with bangs framing her clear forehead. She wore a long-sleeved white shirt and an ankle-length skirt. The moment her exquisitely beautiful face came into view, the entire sports ground fell silent, and you could clearly hear the sharp, hurried breaths of the people nearby.

Xia Zhijin had arrived.