Chapter 75.2

The sprint took place in the morning, followed by men’s and women’s long jump, shot put, and high jump events.

“We clearly have both Xu Pearl and Haya, yet you’re letting my poor Doggie participate in the sports competition!” Jiang Xiaoqiong stood in place, waiting for the team captain to hand her a number tag. “You clearly don’t want to win!”

“Second place in the competition, first place in friendship,” Song Fenghua said.

Xu Heran fanned herself and took a sip of water from Xin Nuo’s cup, finishing it off.

“Go for it! Strive not to come in last!” Lin Weining cheered for Jiang Xiaoqiong.

“I really appreciate the high expectations you have for me! Even coming in last is something!” Jiang Xiaoqiong pouted. “Being last is also a kind of achievement!”

“I’m off!”

Song Fenghua did long jump, Jiang Xiaoqiong did high jump, and Jian Yueyin went to throw the shot put. They carried a sense of “participation matters” responsibility and a mission to “fight for second place,” aiming to achieve the recognition they deserved even in the bottom ranks.

“They’re really doing great!”

Xu Heran applauded.

The two sandpits were close to each other, both in the southwest corner. However, the seating area assigned to Xu Heran and her friends was in the northeast corner, directly facing the pole vault event that Jiang Xiaoqiong was about to compete in.

On the stands, besides Laurel accompanying Song Fenghua and Jian Yueyin, the four of them leaned forward, their chins resting on their hands, keenly observing the young girls. Through various actions and expressions, they depicted the love-hate relationship with the pole vault.

“Do they really have someone who can clear that bar?” Haya said, “Are those kids hopping in place seriously?”

“I’m up!” Amid the crowd, Jiang Xiaoqiong in her pink attire yelled loudly, clenched her fist, dashed forward, took off, her face a mix of fear and determination. She soared over the bar, rolled 980 degrees on the mat, and finally used her face to brake.

“Huh?” Jiang Xiaoqiong looked surprised, inspecting herself to confirm she hadn’t lost any arms or legs. Then she turned her head to see the pole, which was gently swaying but firmly hung.

“Huh?”

The four people on the stands collectively sighed, their expressions filled with disappointment.

“Except for the landing, the beginning lacked enthusiasm in performance. I’m disappointed with Jiang as a player this time,” Xu Heran took the opportunity to split the Doggie team’s camaraderie while Doggie wasn’t around.

“Jing’er is a performing artist. She and Nuo’er aren’t from the same branch, but they’re both excellent performers,” Haya chose her words carefully.

“I’m not last!” Jiang Xiaoqiong waved happily at the stands.

The four girls raised their arms, waving with forced smiles on their faces.

“Smile, just smile.”

Jiang Xiaoqiong, who wasn’t last, narrowly made it into the finals and secured third place. This was a pleasant surprise. Song Fenghua came in second for the long jump, and Jian Yueyin easily secured the last place. Everyone achieved good results and celebrated with drinks afterward.

After lunch, in the afternoon, SGS only had relay and archery events left to participate in. Swimming, dance, and fencing competitions were scheduled for tomorrow.

“Why not have Haya do horse racing?” Xu Heran suggested.

Haya immediately responded, “I appreciate that you didn’t ask me to perform equestrian.”

“Equestrian won’t work, it’ll ruin the shoes.” Jiang Xiaoqiong quickly imitated the movements of the man she had seen in videos doing equestrian.

Xin Nuo chuckled lightly. “I remember someone asked me why Little Pearl’s accent changes so often.”

Xu Heran tilted her head, stared at Xin Nuo for a moment, and her eyelids slowly drooped.

“That depends on the videos Jiang Xiaoqiong and Haya have been sharing with Little Pearl lately,” Xin Nuo looked at the two main culprits.

“Gotcha.” Jian Yueyin said with a smile.

“Don’t ‘gotcha,’ I prefer sesame paste. When winter comes this year, I’ll treat you to our local hotpot in my hometown. Xu Heran, wake up, I’m taking you for a food walk.” Haya pulled Xu Heran away from Xin Nuo’s side.

“It’s going to be busy this winter, isn’t it?” Jian Yueyin said.

Haya shrugged, “We’ll see when the time comes… Xu Heran, you ran a hundred in the morning and ate so much for lunch?”

Xu Heran was extremely tired, and her tone reflected her weariness, “How can you exercise on an empty stomach?”

“Watch over her, okay?” Xin Nuo said with a smile, “Don’t let our Little Pearl get lost.”

Haya raised an eyebrow at Xin Nuo.

Our?

Xin Nuo chuckled lightly and waved her hand, “Go have fun.”

The two tall girls walked to the archery range. Haya weighed the bow in her hand, her expression unreadable. She turned to Xu Heran and said, “Shall we compete?”

“Sure.” Xu Heran smiled, “Second place but fighting for first?”

Xu Heran had grown taller recently, shedding some of her childish features and revealing more mature allure. Standing among a group of beautiful women, she and Haya became the standout pair, making other blossoms seem like mere companions. If the other girls were daisies in an artist’s paper garden, these two were the colorful, layered peonies – the focal point of the whole painting.

As they competed with serious expressions, not only male celebrities but also many girls couldn’t help but steal glances, lingering on the two of them.

Archery, fencing, and golf were sports Xu Heran often engaged in with her two elders at home, while Haya was even more versatile, indulging in rock climbing, bungee jumping, skydiving, and surfing before becoming an idol.

The two meticulously nurtured flowers bloomed in the arena.

In the end, Haya’s greater experience earned her the victory.

“Thanks.” Haya smiled and fist-bumped Xu Heran.

“You truly deserve it.”

Amid the applause from the surroundings, the two left with smiles.

“Just the four hundred-meter relay left!” Jiang Qiong slumped in her chair, shaking her head, “Thank goodness, just this one time, I’m never doing this again!”

Xu Heran paused while tying her shoelaces, thinking for a moment.

“Be careful not to jinx yourself.”

“Huh?”

“Jing’er, did Director Liu invite you to be a regular on 《As You Wish》?” Jian Yueyin said with a smile, “That’s great. Jing’er can be a variety show host and singer, you might become a regular guest on various variety shows.”

Jiang Qiong took a breath, “Stop teasing me.”

As Xu Heran stood on the track, she couldn’t help but exhale.

“Stop teasing me.”

“Oh, it’s Zhuzhu!” Taotao happily said to Xu Heran, “I didn’t expect that we’d be running the final leg together. I’ve been watching your races today. You’re really amazing!”

“You scared Lemon there!”

Taotao cupped her face, “Scared the lemon juice out of her, hahaha.”

Xu Heran: “Haha…”

Hmm.

“You’re so impressive. Can you let me have a turn running later?” Taotao blinked her big eyes and pleaded with Xu Heran, “Since you’re so good, you’ll definitely get first place. Just let me have a turn, running with you would be quite challenging!”

“Show the spirit of your Little Pearl!” Taotao patted her chest, making a “clap clap” sound.

Xu Heran looked to the left and then to the right, politely smiling, “If you think that aligns with the spirit of sports…”

“Huh?” Taotao widened her eyes, looking at Xu Heran with a puzzled expression.

“I can persuade the teams running together to let your team run separately first, and then we can compete separately.” Xu Heran put her hands on her waist, touched her chin, “This way, you can run however you want, comfortable, right?”

Taotao: “… You’re mean!”

“Just kidding with you.” Taotao laughed, “Since you said that, I’ll definitely give it my all when I run, I won’t let you underestimate me!”

She clenched her left fist at her side, raised her right hand, and pointed her index finger at Xu Heran’s face.

The camera moved slowly over.

“Well, do your best. But I definitely won’t underestimate you,” Xu Heran’s tone was even more polite. She turned around to look at the track. The black-haired girl waved at her, and Xu Heran lifted her arms, making a heart gesture toward Xin Nuo, her voice faint.

“Not only won’t I underestimate you, I won’t even look at you. Don’t worry.”

Taotao: “…”

“Hey.”

Next, Xu Heran did indeed not look at Taotao. She didn’t even turn her head to the side. Taotao awkwardly twitched the corner of her mouth. The other celebrity athletes nearby pretended not to hear their conversation. They looked up at the ceiling, stared down at the rubber track, and struggled to hold back their laughter.

Hmm, this competition is interesting, really interesting, hahaha!

“Snap.”

The starting gun went off, and SGS’s first runner, Laurel, charged forward expressionlessly, passing the baton to the second runner, Haya. All the teams were working hard, but SGS pulled ahead from the start. Haya’s athletic talent was incredibly strong, and she easily left the second-place runner behind by half a lap.

The third runner, Xin Nuo, took the baton and dashed forward.

Xin Nuo took off her jacket, her arms were slender and pale. She frowned slightly as she ran, her gaze fixed brightly on Xu Heran.

Xu Heran’s eyes shone even brighter.

She watched Xin Nuo running toward her. The cheers around her gradually faded into the distance, and the pretty flags on the stands danced, but everything seemed blurry. She only saw the strands of hair falling around Xin Nuo’s temples and heard the sound of her breathing as she got closer.

“Go for it,” Xin Nuo quickly said, watching Xu Heran race towards the finish line.

The girl in short sleeves raised her hand, pushing the stray hair around her ear back. Her gaze casually met Taotao’s as she turned her head. Their eyes met briefly, both sides expressionless as they looked away.

In the women’s relay, SGS unsurprisingly secured first place.

Xu Heran stood at the finish line with her hands on her waist, smiling as she watched her teammates walk towards her direction. The day’s competition was coming to an end. The footsteps of the three on the track slowed down, perhaps waiting for their teammates from behind.

“Zhuzhu~”

A voice that made Xu Heran’s hair stand on end rang out.

“You ignored me when I said you’d ignore me. How annoying,” Taotao said playfully. “We’re both girls, you know. What’s wrong with looking at me?”

Xu Heran tilted her head slightly, her palm touching her neck, her voice calm. “Being honest is important.”

She thought to herself.

Being a pearl is too.

“Hmph, I’ll find a way to make you notice me!” Taotao said. “But, can you tell me what type of person you like? Oh, I don’t mean anything else. I just want to get to know you better. I’ve said before that I really like you and want to be good friends with you!”

“What kind of person do I like?” Xu Heran looked ahead as Xin Nuo approached with her two teammates, walking expressionlessly.

Little Pearl gulped.

“Hahaha… it’s pretty obvious!”

“Everyone knows, well, I like people with a big chest!” Xu Heran said proudly.

The smile on Taotao’s face froze, her gaze fixed on Xu Heran who continued, “Of course, it’s better if they have long legs, a slender waist, fair skin, a small face, big eyes, and for hair, I also prefer it to be black!”

Taotao, who had dyed her hair pink specifically for this occasion: “…”

Why did Xu Heran seem to think that she had a small chest, short legs, wide waist, dark skin, small eyes, and a big head… Her hair was naturally black even without dyeing!

Taotao, who was 1.6 meters tall, looked up, flames in her eyes. She gritted her teeth and laughed, “I see… hahaha, hahaha.”

“The competition is over. My teammates are calling me. See you tomorrow. Goodbye.”

The girl with flames burning behind her returned to her team faster than she did in the relay race. The moment she sat down, she pulled out her phone, switched to a smaller font, and angrily started texting.

Summer Wants to Eat Peaches: “Ahhhhhhh, so annoying!”

Summer Wants to Eat Peaches: “Friends, I have reliable information. SGS girl group’s Xu Heran looks down on girls, criticizes their figures, and makes random comments about their bodies. She says they have thick bodies, short legs, dark faces, and bad skin. How can there be such a female idol!”

Summer Wants to Eat Peaches: “Having someone like her as a female idol is an insult to girls!”

Her alternate account has two to three hundred followers. Someone immediately retweeted and asked, “Is that true?”

Taotao’s anger soared. She typed furiously, “That’s right, it’s true! Everyone knows I work in the entertainment industry, and I can’t reveal specifics about my job. But I personally heard Xu Heran say she likes girls with long legs and big chests. Such a disgusting lesbian!”

“…?”

Because of the keywords, this post quickly appeared on SGS fans’ feeds. Some read her words twice and asked in confusion, “The Celebrity Sports Meet is filming in the capital this year. Friend, I see from your location that you’re at Beijing University’s sports stadium. So, are you a staff member for the Celebrity Sports Meet? Are your words true? Spreading rumors is illegal, you know? Universal’s legal department, you’re aware of it too. Be fast and accurate.”

While she was flooding the discussion with her posts, watching her retweets slowly increase, Taotao’s heart skipped a beat. Cold sweat “swooshed” down.

“September, a season of harvest, a season of joy. Thanks to someone named Summer Wants to Eat Peaches for giving me the biggest joke of the year—Xu Heran looks down on girls, Xu Heran is a girl herself, so does she look down on herself?”

“To go to such lengths just to discredit Little Pearl. Anyone who knows a bit about their group knows, let’s not talk about anything else about SGS, they have a lot of female fans, especially Xu Heran’s ‘mom fans.’ One person surpasses the numbers of other groups combined. You say she dislikes girls, then how did these mom fans come about?”

“Don’t bother asking, it’s company marketing.”

“Hahaha!”

“Saying Xu Heran is a lesbian on one hand and that she looks down on girls on the other, oh this… Friend, how old are you this year? Have you taken any medicine?”

“Shells, even though this friend is spewing lies left and right, I choose to believe one thing among them. Xu Heran likes big-chested, long-legged, and slender-waisted girls. It’s known that Xin Nuo has these features, so—Xu Heran likes Xin Nuo! ‘Pounding Xin’ is real!”

“She’s definitely a lesbian! She likes girls! Drive you crazy, drive you crazy! No one likes you!”

“Spreading rumors, reporting, no thanks, don’t bother.”

“Am I the only one who thinks… Friend, looking at your location, could you be someone’s alternate account for this year’s sports meet? Let me check what you’ve posted before!”

Taotao, who originally resisted deleting her post due to anger, turned pale upon seeing this Weibo post. Swiftly, she deleted the post. A minute later, the words “This user has been deleted” appeared in front of everyone.

“Just this?”

“Didn’t even give the legal team a chance. I thought we’d see them flexing their muscles again.”

“No more drama to watch, let’s disperse.”

“Wow, this is way too quick, hahaha!”

“Interesting.”

At the sports stadium, Taotao covered her pounding heart with her hand and let out a slow breath.

“What’s wrong?” a teammate beside her asked.

Taotao quickly shook her head, “Nothing, I just finished the relay, feeling a bit tired.”

“By the way, how was your conversation with Xu Heran?” someone asked, “I felt her attitude wasn’t great, Lemon seemed a bit unhappy after talking to her.”

“Your expression… looks awkward.”

“Where? Don’t say nonsense, we had a pretty good chat!” Taotao touched her face, “I just didn’t eat much for lunch, you know, to maintain my figure. Tomorrow, I’m participating in a dance competition.”

The girl who had just asked her fell silent because Taotao was designated by the company for some purpose. Upon learning that SGS’s Xin Nuo was competing in the dance competition tomorrow, the company sent Taotao.

“Forget it, you go for it.”

Taotao smiled faintly, but her fingers were tightly gripping her clothes.

“Yeah, I will.”

Seeing Xin Nuo approaching, Xu Heran immediately exclaimed, “I’m super obedient!”

Xin Nuo lifted an eyebrow, “Did I say something?”

Seeing Xin Nuo’s mild expression, Xu Heran breathed a sigh of relief and quickly said, “Quick, praise me for running well!”

“What, you ran all by yourself?” Laurel said without mercy.

“Hmph,” Xin Nuo chuckled softly.

“I’ll treat you tonight!” Xu Heran said.

Laurel: “You ran really well.”

Haya: “Hahaha!”

The four of them walked side by side towards the direction of the stands. As they walked, Xu Heran and Xin Nuo fell behind.

“Nuo Nuo, I think the name Zhu Zhu doesn’t sound good. I request a new name!” Xu Heran whispered to Xin Nuo.

Xin Nuo tilted her head, looking at Xu Heran.

The gymnasium’s lights were bright, the girls’ eyes even brighter, earnestly looking at her.

“It’s okay, Zhu Zhu,” Xin Nuo whispered. She held Xu Heran’s hand and repeated, “It’s okay.”

“Zhu Zhu, sounds really good.”

Xu Heran’s gaze softened as she looked at the girl walking shoulder to shoulder with her.

When can I have a special name just for us?

My dear Nuo Nuo.

The author has something to say:

Darlings~ I’m going out to buy some food, then I’ll come back to continue writing. Don’t wait for me, because I don’t know when I’ll finish writing~ At the latest, it’ll be tomorrow during the day~ Love you all, mwah mwah mwah~

---

Translator: Glariosa
Editor: Sinensis
Proofreader: Ruu

Please support us on Ko-Fi.

---