Let's Do Some Questions - Chapter 41

Just as Chu Fengqiu was about to knock, the door opened.

Song Man walked out, looking a bit tired, her steps even a little slow.

“You came to use the restroom too?” Song Man pointed towards the bathroom, a question on her face.

“I came to see why you hadn’t come out yet.” Seeing Song Man like this, looking like she was weak from diarrhea and her legs were numb from squatting, Chu Fengqiu stepped forward to support her.

Song Man was indeed a bit tired, her head even hurt a little. She didn’t refuse Chu Fengqiu’s closeness. Instead, she leaned against Chu Fengqiu’s body, which was cool from her recent shower, and let out an almost inaudible sigh.

Chu Fengqiu tilted her head, sniffing Song Man’s hair, and frowned slightly, finding it strange. There was no smell.

But based on molecular movement, if Song Man had really stayed in there for forty to fifty minutes and just come out, it would be impossible for there to be no smell.

So what was Song Man doing in there?

Chu Fengqiu’s curiosity was piqued again. She remembered her first meeting with Song Man. Although she had said there was no need to investigate the matter further, she still wanted to know if the person she liked was the friend she suspected from the Question Bank app.

When she considered Song Man a good friend, Chu Fengqiu wouldn’t pry into secrets she wanted to hide, because that was respecting a friend and maintaining a proper distance.

But when their relationship changed and Song Man became the person she liked, she wanted to explore more, to understand more.

This was the unavoidable greed inherent in love and desire. Chu Fengqiu smiled and led Song Man back to the room.

Song Man flopped onto the bed, grabbed a palm fan, fanned herself, and took a sip of cold tea. Only then did she feel better. She picked up her phone to check messages.

【Zhuazhua】: Brother Man is still Brother Man, truly amazing.

【Zhuazhua】: That dark horse didn’t expect to lose either, she wanted to compete with you again, but you went offline.

【Zhuazhua】: As expected, people shouldn’t be too arrogant.

【A Man】: She has the skill to be arrogant.

Song Man’s expression was serious. This time, she had used her full strength and narrowly won by a margin of 0.2%. She reviewed the match and saw that the other person’s skill was actually stronger than hers, but perhaps she was used to doing more complex problems, so on some relatively simple questions, her thoughts momentarily overtook her, making her a bit slower.

This person’s level was definitely higher than hers. Although Song Man was quite arrogant, she was never conceited. In the academic field, no one is an undefeated king; the sea of learning is boundless, no one stands at the peak.

Chuanlin might have access to a broader field than her. Song Man was limited here, just like in mathematics, a high school math whiz might not be able to beat a top university math major. That was the limitation.

Song Man’s match this time was like this example: the competition was on high school level problems. Song Man was more accustomed to the patterns and thinking methods of these problems, so she narrowly defeated Chuanlin.

Competing again, she might not win.

Because of Chuanlin’s threat, Song Man now wanted to lock herself in her room and study, but the situation didn’t allow it.

Song Man felt it was time to find some time for advanced training.

【Zhuazhua】: I also feel she’s very skilled. She’s asking if you’re coming back.

【A Man】: I’m out having fun, no time for now.

【Zhuazhua】: Okay, I’ll reply to her. But it’s strange, Lingnan just appeared, and she didn’t challenge Lingnan to a PK.

【Zhuazhua】: Although Lingnan is sick, her skill isn’t bad, right?

【A Man】: Who knows.

【Zhuazhua】: Someone suggested it to her, but she didn’t reply.

【Zhuazhua】: Oh right, Brother Man, are you going back on the Question Bank later?

【A Man】: No, need to borrow my account?

【Zhuazhua】: Want to borrow some materials.

【A Man】: Log in yourself then.

【Zhuazhua】: Okay, thanks boss.

The Question Bank had a database containing materials for many subjects, including online classes, stories of famous people, and some things you couldn’t find on the web.

This app was indeed the best and most dedicated one Song Man had ever used. The team behind the Question Bank were all top students; they designed their own questions, the quality was definitely there, and the server was also quite good, it had never crashed.

Moreover, borrowing materials from the Question Bank had a rather strict rule: general materials could be bought with app currency, but some were only accessible after reaching a certain level.

Some joked that being unable to borrow was the Question Bank’s mockery, implying that even if you, a noob, looked at the materials, you wouldn’t understand them, so you might as well go to bed.

Even if their own account couldn’t access it, people who wanted to borrow still had a way: borrow an account.

Song Man and Zhuazhua had a good relationship; she thought Zhuazhua was a good person and knew some of Zhuazhua’s real information, so when Zhuazhua asked to borrow her account, she gave it directly.

Song Man moved her fingers and opened a game.

She was afraid she wouldn’t be able to control herself and would immediately go study, so she planned to play a game to relax.

“Chu Fengqiu, want to play a game?”

“Not for now.”

“Okay, I’ll play first. If you want to play later, just call me.”

“Alright.”

Chu Fengqiu nodded and opened the Question Bank app.

As soon as she entered, she received a PK invitation from an unfamiliar ID. Chu Fengqiu clicked reject and immediately opened her friends list.

A Man was currently showing as online. Chu Fengqiu clicked on the message box and sent ‘Good evening’.

There was no response. Chu Fengqiu looked at Song Man, who had already entered the matchmaking page and was selecting a hero.

That ID just now sent her another PK challenge. Chu Fengqiu clicked reject. She was watching Song Man, waiting for that answer.

Before A Man replied, that ID from earlier sent her a message.

【Chuanlin】: Not PKing?

【Ah Q】: Sorry, no time for now.

【Chuanlin】: The match will be over quickly.

Chu Fengqiu raised an eyebrow. Was this person that confident?

As she was about to send another rejection, Liu Bai sent her a message.

【Liu Bai】: Ah Q, did Chuanlin send you a PK invitation?

【Ah Q】: Yes, what’s up?

【Liu Bai】: This person is amazing, she came yesterday and swept through several top players, but she just lost to A Man. But A Man also narrowly won, just by two or three seconds, it was a shame you weren’t here, it was really exciting.

Chu Fengqiu’s heart skipped a beat. She glanced at Song Man. If Song Man was really A Man and went to the restroom to compete, then it made sense that there was no smell.

【Ah Q】: When did their match start?

【Liu Bai】: About an hour ago, or maybe fifty-something minutes ago.

The timing matched. Chu Fengqiu thought about it; it might be just as she suspected.

But then, A Man replied with ‘Good evening’.

Chu Fengqiu suddenly turned back to look at Song Man. Song Man was controlling her hero in a fierce battle and didn’t look like she had time to reply to messages.

Could she have guessed wrong?

Chu Fengqiu unconsciously frowned slightly and sent another message.

【Ah Q】: Did you compete with the new expert?

【A Man】: Yes, narrowly won. She’s very skilled.

Chu Fengqiu watched Song Man type this message. She was sure Song Man hadn’t swiped to another screen to reply to her message.

Chu Fengqiu’s heart sank. Maybe she really did guess wrong.

Her basis for this guess was the crumpled paper ball thrown in front of her in the park that day.

The method of solving the problem seemed familiar, coupled with the similar pronunciation of ‘Man’ and ‘Man’, and some coincidences in timing, made her think it was very likely.

But Chu Fengqiu knew the probability was small. So now there were two possibilities: one was that Song Man was still hiding that secret, for some unspeakable reason she had to conceal, and the second was that Song Man was actually genuinely not good at it.

Chu Fengqiu felt it was the first possibility, because she was sure the paper ball was thrown by Song Man. At that time, only Song Man and Deng Wei were in front of her, and she had compared the numbers Song Man wrote when doing math; they were very similar to those on the test paper.

Chu Fengqiu didn’t think it was a coincidence to solve a problem; it was impossible to only know how to do that one problem and not understand the others.

Why would Song Man hide her talent?

Chu Fengqiu looked at Song Man, who was still passionately playing the game, and picked up the fan to fan her.

She didn’t know why, but it definitely wasn’t for fun.

Song Man’s personality was actually quite fond of showing off and seemed quite competitive.

The reason that could make someone like her hide her abilities must not be a good thing.

But no matter why, it didn’t matter. She would stay by her side.

Song Man was fanned by the sudden breeze, which dispelled the heat on her body. She took a sip of water.

“Why do I always get such confusing teammates? I really don’t understand. This support keeps following the marksman and not me. The two of them are committing suicide together in the bottom lane. It would be so much better if they followed me to gank. You’re the best.”

Song Man was resigned. Every time she matched, her teammates were always confusing in various ways, making it impossible to understand.

“It’s okay, I’ll play with you later.”

“Okay.”

Song Man was happy and didn’t care much about the outcome of this game anymore.

Chu Fengqiu exited the Question Bank app. Actually, there was another way: she could reveal to Song Man that she was Ah Q, then Song Man would know her identity.

But knowing that Song Man wasn’t A Man, letting her know she was Ah Q didn’t have much meaning. She had never hidden her abilities, and her game ID and the Question Bank ID were so similar that if Song Man were A Man, she should have become suspicious long ago.

Chu Fengqiu hid those thoughts and focused on watching Song Man. On the surface, she seemed to be watching the game screen, but in reality, she was watching the person playing the game. Chu Fengqiu knew this in her heart.

Given the previous lesson with Lingnan, Chu Fengqiu planned to take a gradual approach, testing the waters slowly.

She rested her chin on Song Man’s neck. This action was excessively intimate; if she leaned forward just a little more, she could kiss Song Man’s earlobe.

Song Man tilted her head strangely, her face almost hitting Chu Fengqiu’s lips.

“It’s almost over, you start a game and wait for me.” Song Man didn’t think much of it, just that it was a bit hot sticking together in the middle of summer.

“Okay.”

Chu Fengqiu’s warm breath sprayed on the side of Song Man’s face. Song Man touched her ear, then continued to immerse herself in the game.

Song Man and Chu Fengqiu went on a winning streak, gaining four stars, before getting ready for bed. Before falling asleep, Song Man saw the message Zhuazhua had sent her earlier.

【Zhuazhua】: Just now, Q-Shen sent you a message saying good evening, I replied for you.

【Zhuazhua】: [Image]

【Zhuazhua】: I took a screenshot, is it okay that I replied like this?

【Zhuazhua】: I’ll continue looking at the materials, okay?

【A Man】: Sure, no problem. Are you done using it?

【Zhuazhua】: Yes, I’m done, I’ve logged out of the account.

Song Man went to the Question Bank, logged her account back in, and turned off her phone, ready to sleep.

Chu Fengqiu didn’t open her eyes and look at Song Man’s sleeping face until Song Man was fast asleep.

It was so strange, Chu Fengqiu pursed her lips. Why hadn’t she noticed before how beautiful Song Man’s eyebrows, nose, and mouth were? Every feature was perfect.

Chu Fengqiu didn’t remember how long she watched or when she fell asleep. When she woke up from a dream, it was still dark outside.

Chu Fengqiu was woken up by Song Man hitting her. She looked at Song Man’s hand on her arm and the leg draped over her, feeling the heat source beside her.

Song Man’s sleeping posture wasn’t great, but not bad either. She wouldn’t kick people, but her leg would unconsciously drape over her, pressing her down.

Chu Fengqiu held Song Man’s hand, adjusted her position, and fell back asleep.

Song Man almost scared herself when she opened her eyes the next day, because Chu Fengqiu’s face was right in front of her. She didn’t know when she had rolled into Chu Fengqiu’s arms, with her hands and legs still on her.

Song Man felt quite embarrassed and wanted to quietly withdraw her limbs before Chu Fengqiu woke up.

She carefully lifted her leg. Just as she was about to pull back her hand, Chu Fengqiu opened her eyes.

Their eyes met instantly, and Song Man just wanted to kill her restless sleeping self.

“Morning.” Chu Fengqiu curved her lips, a relaxed, gentle smile on her face.

What did it feel like to be hit by a beauty attack first thing in the morning?

Song Man’s heart skipped a beat, and she immediately sat up.

She had thought Chu Fengqiu was very good-looking before, but seeing her this close today, she realized she was truly beautiful.

“Hahahaha, morning! What time is it? Did I wake up this early today? You’re not even up yet.” After all, in Song Man’s mind, Chu Fengqiu was a girl who woke up very early every day.

“It’s already nine o’clock. I woke up a bit late today.” Chu Fengqiu raised her hand to look at her watch and stated the time.

She didn’t hide the smile on her face and sat up from the bed, supporting herself with her hands.

It seemed Song Man wasn’t completely unmoved either.

Of course, Chu Fengqiu hadn’t just woken up. She had been awake for a while, just staying in that position, watching Song Man and waiting for her to wake up.

“Is our ticket for one in the afternoon?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s get up. I want to eat those meatballs again!”

“Okay.”

After washing up, Chu Fengqiu took Song Man to the same shop as yesterday. When Song Man walked out, patting her full stomach, she was still a little reluctant to leave.

“I can make this too. If you want to eat it, I can make it for you when we get home,” Chu Fengqiu said, seeing Song Man’s lingering look.

“Really?”

“Of course.”

“Wow, Chu Fengqiu, you’re too good! Love you!” Song Man was so happy she hugged Chu Fengqiu and even wanted to give her a peck.

What an angel friend, she was moved to tears.

Chu Fengqiu’s heart couldn’t help but speed up. She rubbed Song Man’s hair.

“I love you too.”

Song Man almost wanted to raise a glass and sing “Auld Lang Syne”.

Knowing she could eat this delicious food again after returning home, Song Man remained in a good mood.

Knowing that Chu Fengqiu was going back, Chu Fengqiu’s Grandfather and Grandmother prepared a full bag of things for her to take back, including the two lanterns.

“Guaiguai, when are you coming next time?”

“Next month. I’ll call you in advance. Remember to eat the food I bought, and take it easy usually. Grandpa, no more going out on the boat.”

“Got it, I’ll eat it. I’ll keep an eye on him,” Chu Fengqiu’s Grandmother quickly agreed, her face full of smiles despite the wrinkles.

“Manman, come with our Qiu Mei’er again next time you have time. Grandma will make you delicious food.”

“Okay, Grandma.” Song Man immediately nodded, waving goodbye to the elderly couple.

Before they left, they went to Granny Ling’s place and got two bamboo tubes of wine. Although she got drunk last time, Song Man thought it was really good.

“There’s still some stored. Bring some back next time you come, or I can leave it with your Grandpa and Grandma.” Granny Ling closed the jar and handed the bamboo tubes to Chu Fengqiu. As she handed them over, her hand trembled slightly.

Her face was etched with sorrow, her eyes cloudy, and her body thin.

“Granny Ling, brew another jar this year, okay? Didn’t you say you’d make wedding wine for me when I have a partner?” Chu Fengqiu spoke, worry hidden in her eyes.

“I’ve already set aside a jar for you, it’s under that tree. When that day comes, just dig it up.”

“Granny Ling…”

Granny Ling shook her head at Chu Fengqiu, turned around, and waved her hand at Chu Fengqiu.

Chu Fengqiu had no choice but to step back and say goodbye to Granny Ling.

“Granny Ling’s health has always been poor,” Chu Fengqiu said suddenly as they walked down the road.

“Yeah, I can see that. She doesn’t look like she’s in good condition,” Song Man nodded.

“When I was little, Granny Ling lived there. Grandma told me she settled here after marrying her husband. She was originally a fisherwoman, following her father, and married the grandpa next door, settling in Sulan Town.” Chu Fengqiu told this story to help Song Man understand her better, or rather, her surroundings, so they would have more common topics and shared understanding, and people can only get along for a long time if they have things in common.

“And then?” Song Man became curious as expected.

“Later, Granny Ling’s father died in the water.”

“Granny Ling had a son and a daughter. Her husband died of a venereal disease not long after her youngest son was born.”

“Holy crap,” Song Man couldn’t help but exclaim. That was too tragic.

“Fortunately, Granny Ling didn’t get sick, but Grandma said people in town pointed fingers and said Granny Ling was also tainted. Granny Ling supported the family by fishing, but when I saw her, she was the only one in her house.”

“I asked Grandma where her son and daughter went. Grandma said her son drowned by the river when he was three, and when Granny Ling returned from fishing, she only saw her daughter crying.”

“Granny Ling couldn’t let go, and her health gradually deteriorated.”

“What about her daughter?” Song Man asked.

“Grandma said her daughter ran off with someone when she was fifteen and never came back. No one knows where she went.”

“Holy crap, that’s too much,” Song Man couldn’t help but exclaim again.

“Granny Ling has always been very good to me. She brews wine, it’s a skill from her hometown. She once told me she would brew a jar of wine for me and give it to me when I get married, but I feel like she might not last much longer.”

“So you asked her to brew another batch, hoping she’d hold on for a while?”

“Yes. I once said I’d take her to the hospital for a check-up, but she refused, saying life and death are fated. She’s lived alone for so many years, she’s afraid to die, but can’t live either, so it’s better to just follow fate’s will, it’s fine if she’s gone.”

“Ah.” Song Man thought about it. Four or five-year-old Chu Fengqiu was living on a boat with her grandparents, while four or five-year-old her might have been watching fashion shows in Paris, seeing flowers in Tokyo, or the sea in Hawaii. It seemed like they would never meet in the same world.

But seventeen-year-old Song Man still met seventeen-year-old Chu Fengqiu. Thinking about it this way, Song Man was quite happy.

Chu Fengqiu saw Song Man suddenly become happy from her low mood and asked her what she was thinking about.

Song Man told her truthfully.

“Not just at seventeen, but at twenty-seven too, Chu Fengqiu has to be my good friend!”

“It will be better than good friends,” Chu Fengqiu added.

“Right! It will be better than good friends!”

Chu Fengqiu looked at Song Man, who didn’t understand her meaning but agreed along, and curved her eyebrows.

After several hours of driving, Song Man and Chu Fengqiu returned home.

As soon as she got home, Song Man threw the dirty clothes and worn pajamas from her suitcase into the laundry basket. Chu Fengqiu, separated by a wall, carefully placed a white shirt beside her pillow. If Song Man saw it, she would definitely know that shirt was the one she had worn at Chu Fengqiu’s place.

“Comfortable.” Song Man took a sip of iced orange juice, then flopped onto her bed, letting out a long sigh.

After staying home for a long time, you always want to go out and play. After playing around outside and coming back, you realize home is the most comfortable.

Song Man opened the Question Bank app, planning to go in and look at some theorems and examples. As soon as she entered, she saw a pop-up window from the Question Bank.

“Question Bank’s first offline event… What is this, a large-scale meetup and exam party?” Song Man had a face full of question marks. This was too absurd.