Being "Crushed" - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

After that comment was posted, a flood of Xue Shi’s fans—who had initially just been watching the drama—quickly rushed in to blow up the comment section beneath his post:

“Go to sleep, child, please? Just sleep… You’ve got a match tomorrow, what are you doing online at this hour?”

“Ahhh you eternal third place—why are you getting involved in this mess? If you don’t wanna go home, then get back to training!”

“Bro, don’t scare me. If Lu Sifang’s already like this… and you still come in third tomorrow, I’ll seriously lose face for life!!”

“Will a certain D-list skateboarder stop surfing the web and go to bed?”

Staring at one sarcastic comment after another, Xue Shi scratched his head. Is this something fans should say to their idol? Seriously? What is this world coming to?

All he did was try to get a glimpse of what Lu Sifang’s first rumored girlfriend looked like… What’s so wrong with that?

Ding-dong— another message came through.

“Xue Shi, if you can’t sleep, go die. That’s better than falling asleep mid-run tomorrow and making a fool of yourself.” — Xue Fei

Though Xue Fei wasn’t physically present, her words alone had enough intimidation power to send Xue Shi scrambling to shut off his phone and pass out instantly.

Meanwhile, in the study of a private villa in Zhonggang—

A man sat silently, lips pressed tight, face expressionless as he stared at the image on his phone. His jaw clenched even tighter.

As if he could no longer maintain his usual calm façade, he slowly and deliberately poured a freshly steeped cup of tea straight into a nearby potted plant—without spilling a drop.

The veins on the back of his hand bulged from the force of his grip, casting a shadowy, almost sinister look under the dim light.

He sat like that for an unknown amount of time before finally setting down the teacup. Then, he removed the semi-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of his nose. With that motion, all the emotions he’d carefully hidden behind those lenses were now laid bare in the open air.

He opened a drawer. Inside, a quiet pack of cigarettes lay undisturbed. He reached for it, but paused as his fingers brushed against the smooth plastic packaging. A trace of conflict flickered in his eyes.

She doesn’t like the smell of smoke...

After a silent internal struggle, he closed the drawer again, picked up his phone, and made a call.

Then he shut his eyes and waited for it to connect.

The call was brief—less than a minute.

And yet, almost miraculously, shortly after it ended, the red-hot gossip surrounding Lu Sifang—once dominating online discussion—vanished completely within minutes.

Even the trending search term “Lu Sifang rumored girlfriend identity speculation” disappeared without a trace.

If it weren’t for a few night-owl netizens still surfing the web for gossip into the wee hours, many would’ve thought everything that happened the night before was nothing more than a strange, fleeting dream…

Because the scandal had only circulated briefly in niche circles, it didn’t fully break into the mainstream. The situation never escalated into a full-blown media storm.

And so, Song Yuhan herself never saw the news.

She had long made a conscious effort to avoid anything related to Lu Sifang. None of her close acquaintances followed the sports world either—so she evaded the drama completely and had no trouble sleeping that night.

This visit to Zhonggang marked her first time overseeing a production crew on-site as a temporary producer.

She was only filling in because the original producer of this sports series, Sister Zhong (Zhong Shengnan), had gone on maternity leave, and Song Yuhan was tapped to take over last-minute.

Although Song Yuhan’s résumé was impressive, she was still young and relatively new to the field. Taking on such an important responsibility was nerve-wracking, especially since she had just landed in Zhonggang and so much had already happened.

She found herself swamped, barely able to keep up.

So even deep into the night, she was still hunched over her desk, tidying up the day’s work.

Once she was nearly done, she checked her memo for the shooting location—St. York Street, the site of tomorrow’s international skateboarding finals, which would be the most crucial segment of this assignment.
Everything had to go perfectly.
Any mistake, and her dream of becoming a gold-standard producer would go up in smoke…

She kept preparing until every detail for the next day was set before finally allowing herself to rest.

Coincidentally, around the same time, Lu Sifang also drifted off to sleep.

Somewhere in their drowsy dreams, both of them returned to Yunsheng High School — to the days when they were inseparable.

Six years ago.
It was winter. The sun was out.

Yunsheng High’s junior class had a rare extracurricular study program. The event was diverse, allowing each student to pick three elective activities—open to all tracks, both arts and sciences.

At that time, Song Yuhan was already a campus legend: the cold, distant academic queen.

She had never crossed paths with the school’s equally famous Lu Sifang, known for his rebellious streak.

Yet somehow, the two picked the exact same three electives.

Astronomy, camping, and… ice skating??

Zhou Su frowned deeply, her face full of confusion.
“Song Song, what are these choices? None of them fit your study-nerd profile! And worst of all—not a single one matches mine! I’m heartbroken…”

With that, she flopped her head dramatically onto Song Yuhan’s shoulder. Her short, slightly frizzy hair slipped through the gap in Yuhan’s school uniform collar. Normally, that would’ve been uncomfortable, but Yuhan didn’t move an inch—she didn’t want Zhou Su to feel bad.

Hearing her friend’s complaint, her first reaction was genuine reflection.
She probably should’ve waited for her…

But it was too late. The elective list had already been submitted. Blinking in mild distress, she murmured, “Sorry, Su Su. I couldn’t find you at the time, and the teacher was rushing us, so I just turned it in first…”

As for her choices? She quietly added:
“I just thought these classes would let me get out of the classroom. They seemed… kind of fun.”

Zhou Su sat up straight, sighed in defeat, and shook her head.
“It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean it…”

She understood Song Yuhan well. Despite the cool, aloof exterior, she was actually a shy and anxious introvert—used to doing everything alone. If not for a past incident where Yuhan had unexpectedly stepped in to help her, they might never have become friends.

“This means I can’t stay by your side the whole time…” Zhou Su sounded a bit worried.

She wasn’t worried about herself. It was Yuhan—her gentle, easily misunderstood friend—who had picked off-campus activities.
What if she ended up alone, surrounded by strangers, and had no one to rely on?

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry so much,” Yuhan smiled faintly. The curve of her lips softened her usual iciness, revealing a rare, youthful warmth.

Zhou Su let out a dramatic snort and pouted. “You better be!”

The two shared a laugh, putting the matter to rest.

The next day. It snowed lightly.

Song Yuhan arrived on time at the designated location—the astronomy museum.

Because this was an extracurricular event, there was no dress code, and the area in front of the museum swarmed with colorfully dressed juniors.

Song Yuhan wore a pale yellow plush jacket, the collar of her blue-and-white school uniform peeking through underneath. She topped it off with a chunky white knit hat embroidered with a little bear. Her look was soft, adorable, unmistakably youthful.

Still, her reserved manner and delicate features gave off a subtle chill, a kind of quiet elegance. The moment she appeared, she drew all eyes.

She was, after all, the legendary “ice-cold study goddess” of Yunsheng High—the top contender for admission to Zhongjing University based purely on test scores. Most students had only heard of her by reputation, and now they were seeing her in the flesh for the first time.

Whispers rippled through the crowd:

“So that’s Song the Study Queen. She’s even prettier than her profile photo on the student leaderboard!”

“But she seems… way too cold. Being a genius doesn’t mean she has to act like a queen.”

“Tch, she looks impossible to talk to. Us mortals better stay out of her way.”

Meanwhile, under a tree nearby stood a gaggle of boys—hands in pockets, cigarettes in mouths, all staring at Song Yuhan with barely concealed desire.

“Damn, she’s gorgeous.”

“Yeah, but she looks untouchable… Not easy to crack.”

“Psh, so what? There’s no girl I can’t win over. Just watch me get her number!” boasted a skinny, slouchy guy with a wild look