That night, Mo Xiangwen paced back and forth on the balcony with a heavy sigh.
What an utter humiliation. What an utter humiliation!
It was utterly outrageous. He was so furious he could die.
As the saying goes, you train an army for a thousand days, but use it only once.
He’d been feeding it well and pampering it every day, yet when the moment came, it couldn’t even beat a little girl?
What was wrong with it?
Come on, say something! Golden Finger, speak up!
Have you no shame? Have you no shame at all? Even if you don’t care about your face, I do!
Just thinking of Yan Nuoya’s teasing smile made his face heat up in embarrassment. He wanted to crawl into a hole.
And he’d even been ready to throw caution to the wind and try to sweet-talk her?
In the end, he hadn’t lasted a single round.
He just couldn’t hold it together.
“Hey, Lao Mo,” Qin Yongfeng finally said, unable to watch any longer. “Did you get into a fight with Classmate Yan or something?”
“Yeah, you’ve been pacing for over an hour,” Xi Shaojie added with a sigh. “You’ve been standing for two days straight now. Are your feet made of iron?”
Of course not—his feet hurt too.
But every time he thought about that disastrous defeat that morning, he couldn’t sit still.
“You know, I almost forgot,” Mo Xiangwen said. “There’s a black plastic bag under my seat with some shoelaces and sanitary pads. Help yourselves to whichever works best.”
“Pad them in those busted shoes of yours. It’ll be a bit more comfortable at least.”
Before he could finish speaking, the three of them had crowded around his seat, eagerly ripping open the plastic bag.
“I never knew you came prepared, Lao Mo,” Qin Yongfeng remarked in admiration.
Xi Shaojie grumbled, “You should’ve pulled these out sooner. I tried layering tissues, but it still hurt like hell.”
Zhong Taihong grabbed an insole and tried stuffing it into his shoe. But once it was in, his foot felt cramped. With no other choice, he switched to a sanitary pad instead.
He slipped his foot back in to test it. Perfect fit.
“Hey, Lao Mo, you really do think ahead.”
“Alright, alright, enough chatter. I’m not in the mood,” Mo Xiangwen sighed. “Just take whichever ones work for you.”
“What’s there to be upset about? It’s just a girl. Apologize and call it even,” Zhong Taihong said nonchalantly.
“Apologize for what? I didn’t do anything wrong…” Mo Xiangwen trailed off, suddenly realizing how off that sounded.
“Hey, as the saying goes, a day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of kindness,” Zhong Taihong said, shaking his head. “Whatever it is, you can talk it out. Hurry up and make up already. Stop moping around and annoying us.”
“Damn it, hold on—you’re really leading me down the wrong path here,” Mo Xiangwen said, his face darkening. “What nonsense about husband and wife? Let me emphasize this again: Yan Nuoya and I are just pure, innocent classmates and friends.”
“Heh, now you’re dropping her full name,” Xi Shaojie scoffed disdainfully. “Pure, innocent friends, my ass.”
“Are you nuts? Do you lovebirds see romance everywhere?” Mo Xiangwen snapped, then ignored them.
Sigh. Looks like prying information out of them wasn’t going to work.
Yan Nuoya was just too cautious—more cautious than even he was.
That morning, the moment she spotted him, she’d shut down the conversation entirely. She hadn’t even teased him more… Or maybe that was the tease in itself.
Since chit-chat wasn’t an option, time to comb through for clues.
He activated Overload Mode, and memories of every interaction with Yan Nuoya flashed rapidly through his mind.
Their first meeting had been at the scenic area. Her reaction seemed perfectly normal.
Sure, he’d been stunned by her beauty, but she’d treated him like any random passerby.
The second time was while waiting for the high-speed train and on the train itself. She was scribbling in a notebook, looking totally ordinary.
If he could get his hands on that notebook, it might help.
But that was impossible. Even if it was right in front of him, he couldn’t just peek at someone else’s notes.
On the train, though… Mo Xiangwen frowned. He still wasn’t sure if she’d been watching him back then.
The third time, when he’d gone downstairs at the hotel to grab takeout, there she was on the first-floor sofa, lounging around shamelessly like she was waiting for someone.
From her later reactions and their chats, that someone might’ve been him.
Yeah, something was definitely off about that moment.
If she’d really been waiting for him, why?
They’d only met twice by then. Why would she wait for him?
If that encounter was suspicious, did it mean she’d already recognized him during the first two?
Was that feeling of being watched on the train not his imagination? Had Yan Nuoya really been eyeing him?
And why had he jumped to the conclusion that she was mad at him?
Her face had been blank… Right, she usually smiled around him, so a blank expression already said plenty.
Her tone, the vibe—it was all different from their normal chats.
Plus, comparing how she treated strangers versus him on their second and third meetings…
He could pretty much confirm it: Yan Nuoya had known him from way back.
A relative? A neighbor’s kid? Mo Xiangwen decided to call his parents right away.
“Hey, Dad, think hard—do we have any relatives named Yan?”
【No need to ask your mom. I can tell you for sure we don’t.】
“Come on, just ask! Please, Dad, it’s important.”
【Sigh, fine.】
Soon, voices drifted from the other end—Mo Chenfeng talking with Zhou Xiuqin. After a short while, the phone came back on.
【Asked her. Definitely no relatives named Yan.】
“No? What about neighbor kids?”
【Nope.】
“That can’t be right. What about my childhood sweetheart?” Mo Xiangwen pressed. “According to the plot, shouldn’t there be some cute girl from next door always begging to play with me?”
【What childhood sweetheart? All the kids nearby were boys.】
【Besides, with your personality as a kid, you wouldn’t play with girls anyway.】
Oof, not bad, Dad—you really get me.
True enough, he’d always hung out with other boys back then: playing ball, swimming, catching shrimp, fishing. That fishing hobby had even stuck with him into his salaryman days.
No memories of frolicking with some adorable little girl.
【What’s this? Figured it out? Ready to find a girlfriend?】
“Haha, sure, sure. Next time for real.”
Mo Xiangwen hung up, about to push Overload Mode harder, when a wave of intense hunger hit him like a truck, nearly making him pass out.
Damn it, starving.
He’d almost forgotten—this junk Golden Finger was a total glutton. It ate like crazy and did nothing useful.
All it offered was boosted focus and efficiency. Worthless otherwise.
Months in, and it hadn’t given him so much as photographic memory, precise muscle control, or even basic mimicry.
Grrrowl—
His stomach growled fiercely, forcing him to quit his wild thoughts.
…Fine. Cursing an efficiency booster felt like cursing his own incompetence.
Whatever. He’d order some late-night snacks first.
Mo Xiangwen sighed, placed his order, then returned to his seat. He sat down, closed his eyes, and rested to conserve energy.
The moment his eyes shut, Yan Nuoya’s sly, smiling face filled his mind.
