Chapter 221 - 130: Sunset, Basketball, Akagi Haruko

Chapter 221: Chapter 130: Sunset, Basketball, Akagi Haruko

Seeing that Su Ran wasn’t going for the piece of braised pork, Shen Qingning finally extended her chopsticks, hoping to stealthily claim it.

As her chopsticks closed around the braised pork, a single glance from Su Ran made her instantly release it and pick up a piece of potato instead.

"Shen Qingning, I didn’t realize you liked fatty meat so much. I thought girls only liked lean meat?"

"I-I’m eating the potato."

She brought the potato back to her bowl and ate with her head down.

Shen Qingning was indeed a girl who loved meat, especially half-fat, half-lean pork belly. She didn’t much care for lean meat because it got stuck in her teeth.

"Here, you have it." Su Ran placed the only piece of braised pork into her bowl. "Consider it payback for the braised pork you gave me in the cafeteria last time."

"Thank you for returning the favor, Class Monitor."

She popped it into her mouth, chewed, and followed it with a bite of white rice. It was pure bliss.

After finishing her meal, Shen Qingning lay comfortably on the hospital bed, feeling utterly content. She was just an ordinary girl, through and through, so her dreams were simple too. Having braised pork to eat was enough. She never thought about eating exotic delicacies, because her circumstances didn’t allow for it. She was a very practical girl.

"Class Monitor, how much was the food? It’s my treat."

"48."

"Three dishes and a soup for only 48?"

"Yep. New place, 30% off for their grand opening."

"I’ll transfer you the money."

"Okay."

Of course, Su Ran was lying. The takeout was from a high-end private kitchen in Jiangning. The three dishes and soup had cost 862 yuan in total.

After the meal, they rested for a while. A nurse came in, removed the IV needle, gave some instructions, and then she was cleared for discharge.

Su Ran handed her the jacket from the chair. He gave it a squeeze and felt that the down filling inside had clumped together, which meant it wasn’t very warm and had been worn for a long time. He didn’t say anything, just handed it to her to put on. He watched as she got off the bed and slipped on her pair of yellowed 361° sneakers.

Sigh...

Su Ran sighed inwardly. ’This girl is really struggling.’

"Let’s go."

He helped her up, they picked up her prescription, and returned to the Aston Martin. With a VROOM, the car pulled away from the hospital under everyone’s gaze, merging into the stream of traffic and disappearing into the distance.

The warm afternoon sun shone through the Aston Martin’s window onto the passenger seat. Full from her meal, Shen Qingning basked in the sunlight. "Class Monitor, wake me up when we get to school. I’m going to rest my eyes for a bit."

"Okay."

Before she knew it, Shen Qingning had fallen soundly asleep in the passenger seat.

She probably didn’t know that she, Shen Qingning, was the very first girl to ever sit in the passenger seat of this Aston Martin.

...

The setting sun dyed the sparkling Jiangning Lake red.

At Shanglin Fu, in the Chuyuan villa across the stone bridge, a sapphire blue Aston Martin was parked by the entrance. In the courtyard, Su Ran and Qi Shan were playing basketball.

"Hahaha, an airball! Su Ran, you’ve gone limp!"

’Gone limp?’

The word jolted Shen Qingning awake. She slowly opened her eyes and found herself lying in a large bed. The room was decorated in a luxurious, modern Chinese style. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the setting sun shone through the swaying trees onto her face. She could see Jiangning Lake.

’This is Chuyuan.’

She had been here before. The class had come for the New Year’s party not long ago, and she had even stayed the night.

’But... didn’t he say he’d wake me when we got to school?’

Shen Qingning threw back the covers and checked her clothes. They were untouched, and she immediately felt relieved. She slipped on a pair of slippers and followed the sounds out of the bedroom. She passed through a hallway filled with art, walked through the living room and dining room, and arrived at the doorway. The air was a bit chilly since she’d just woken up, so she hugged her arms and looked out into the front yard. There was a new basketball hoop, and her Class Monitor and President Qi were working up a sweat.

THUMP... THUMP... THUMP... The basketball rolled to a stop in front of Shen Qingning.

Su Ran turned his head and looked at her. "Classmate Shen, throw the ball over."

"Okay... yah!" She lifted the basketball, let out a delicate cry, and threw it with all her might. It landed just three meters away and rolled on the ground to Su Ran’s feet.

Qi Shan: "Pfft. What a weak throw."

Su Ran: "...Didn’t you eat all that braised pork? Are you hungry and out of energy again?"

Shen Qingning: "I just woke up. My strength hasn’t come back yet."

Su Ran picked up the ball and shot a fadeaway three-pointer. The ball rolled off his fingertips, tracing an arc through the air before sinking through the net. Nothing but net.

Shen Qingning shook her head. For a moment, she thought she was looking at Rukawa Kaede. The resemblance was uncanny.

’Hmm,’ she thought, glancing at President Qi. ’Uh... he kinda looks like Akagi Gangi.’

Qi Shan picked up the ball and passed it to Su Ran. "Hey," Su Ran called out, passing it to Shen Qingning who was standing on the sidelines. "Huh?" Shen Qingning snapped back to reality and saw the ball flying toward her. She raised her hands and caught it. "Class Monitor..."

"Make one basket, and I’ll reward you with a meal of my secret-recipe braised pork."

"Deal!"

Shen Qingning nodded. She relaxed her hand and, SMACK, the Spalding basketball hit the ground. Her long legs took the first step as she dribbled the ball, breezing past Su Ran with a slightly smug look. Then the second step, the third. Her 361° sneakers left the ground as her body jumped. In the afterglow of the setting sun, she rose slowly into the air. She pushed the ball from her hand, and the Spalding left her palm. It spun as it rose, tracing a beautiful arc against the red sun. Then, as the girl came down, the ball went through the hoop with a SWISH. Nothing but net.

"Yay~"

In the fading light of dusk, Shen Qingning turned around and, for the first time, beamed at Su Ran...