Chapter 39: Yuan Hanfei’s Debate Competition

Ji Xu was frightened awake by the time displayed on his phone screen.

Fuzzily reaching out to touch his phone beside his pillow, he pressed the side button.

The digits 9:44 exploded into his not-yet-fully-conscious brain like four small bombs.

His entire body bounced up from the bed.

The blanket slid down from his shoulders while his hair stuck up in a messy squall.

He pulled his short-sleeved shirt over his head while climbing down the ladder.

His pant leg caught briefly while putting them on, nearly making him lose his balance halfway down the ladder, and he only stabilized his posture by frantically grabbing the handrail.

Rushing into the bathroom, he squeezed out toothpaste, brushed twice, and immediately began rinsing his mouth.

The faucet was turned on high, with water splashing onto the mirror and flowing down.

He simply tied his hair into a low ponytail, changed his shoes, grabbed his phone and campus card, and exited the dorm room at near-running speed.

Taking two or three steps at a time, he rushed down the stairs.

The bright sunlight outside Building Seven hit his face, and he squinted his eyes as he continued running toward the auditorium.

There were far fewer people on campus during the weekend than usual.

Only occasionally did one or two people on bicycles pass along the main road.

When Ji Xu ran to the entrance of the auditorium, he bent down and rested his hands on his knees to catch his breath for two gasps.

Looking up at the large electronic screen at the entrance, it displayed the time—9:55.

Just as he straightened up, he saw Yuan Hanfei standing under the colonnade beside the auditorium entrance.

He wore dark formal suit trousers and a light-colored shirt with the cuffs rolled up to the middle of his forearms, giving his entire posture a bit more solemnity and sharpness than usual.

Seeing Ji Xu running over, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly.

“Sorry, I woke up late.” Ji Xu stopped in front of him, his breathing not yet fully settled, his chest heaving, and a thin layer of sweat trickling down his brow.

“It’s fine,” Yuan Hanfei turned to push open the auditorium door, stepping aside to let him go in first. “Let’s head inside, the first round is about to start.”

A lot of people were already sitting inside the auditorium.

The seating area was divided into several sections, where students wearing different college uniforms took their seats in their respective areas.

On stage stood two long tables and several chairs, with name cards and mineral water placed on the table surfaces.

Yuan Hanfei took Ji Xu by the wrist to cross the side corridor, bringing him to a row of seats near the front-left section of the stage.

Pressing Ji Xu down into the aisle seat, he leaned down closer and said: “Just sit right here, I have to go to the prep room to get ready.”

His fingers pressed gently on Ji Xu’s shoulder before withdrawing, and he turned to leave the audience area through the side door.

Ji Xu looked around at his surroundings.

The auditorium gradually filled up with people.

The formal atmosphere of the debate competition was somewhat more solemn than he had imagined, with timers and warning bells placed on stage and several stern-faced teachers sitting at the judges’ table below.

The debaters for the first round were already seated on stage.

The affirmative and negative sides looked at each other across the tables, and a tense sense of anticipation drifted subtly in the air.

After the host announced the opening, the debate competition officially began.

This was the first time Ji Xu had ever watched a debate match properly.

His entire previous understanding of debate was limited to occasional clips glimpsed on TV and a crude class contest organized by his class during high school.

Sitting in the auditorium at this moment, listening to the debaters on stage state arguments, cross-examine, refute, and toss out data and case studies at a rapid and clear speed, he realized that this was far more interesting than he had imagined.

The logic of both sides unraveled layer by layer during the clash.

The offense and defense of every viewpoint were like playing moves on a chessboard, with a tight and brilliant rhythm between every back-and-forth.

Ji Xu leaned against the back of his chair and listened attentively, occasionally clapping lightly along with the people in the front row when the affirmative side delivered a brilliant cross-examination.

During the interval after the first round ended, Ji Xu patted his stomach.

Getting up too hurriedly this morning, he hadn’t had time to eat anything, and now his stomach felt completely empty, with a slight pang of hunger rising from his abdomen.

He glanced down at his phone; it was past eleven o’clock, and there was still one more match before it was Yuan Hanfei’s turn.

He somewhat regretted not bringing a piece of bread along when leaving, but now that the second debate on stage had begun, he could only temporarily suppress the feeling of hunger and put his attention back on the stage.

When the debaters for the second match walked onto the stage from the side door, Ji Xu recognized Yuan Hanfei at a single glance.

He sat in the position of the second debater for the affirmative side.

The top button of his shirt was buttoned all the way up, and his cuffs were pulled down and neatly buttoned, making him look like a completely different person compared to his casual, rolled-sleeve state while waiting at the door earlier.

When he sat down, his gaze swept toward the audience area, pausing for less than a second on Ji Xu’s seat before withdrawing his eyes and looking down to open the folder in front of him.

After the debate began, Ji Xu’s attention was completely captured.

When Yuan Hanfei spoke, his voice was calmer and clearer than usual, his speed slightly faster than normal, yet his rhythm was controlled exceptionally well, articulating every single word distinctly.

When stating his arguments, his logic was tight and composed.

When cross-examining opponents, his angle of entry was sharp without being overly aggressive.

Sitting below the stage listening, Ji Xu suddenly felt as though this person wasn’t the same Yuan Hanfei he saw in their dorm room every day.

The Yuan Hanfei in the dorm would curl up in his chair to browse his phone and say “five more minutes of sleep” lazily.

The Yuan Hanfei on stage was cool and sharp, with every word like a precisely thrown blade, yet clean and decisive without dragging its feet when drawn back.

Looking at his side profile illuminated under the stage lights and the slight knit of his brow when speaking, Ji Xu unconsciously forgot all about his empty stomach.

By the time all three debate matches concluded, it was already one o’clock in the afternoon.

People in the auditorium stood up one after another to walk out, while the debaters on stage began packing up the materials and water bottles on their tables.

Ji Xu remained seated without moving, watching Yuan Hanfei walk out from the side door and cross through the dispersing crowd toward him.

Yuan Hanfei’s gait was somewhat more relaxed than on stage.

The top button of his collar had already been unbuttoned by him, and his cuffs were rolled back up, returning to that casual and natural state familiar to Ji Xu.

“I didn’t realize debate competitions were so interesting,” Ji Xu stood up from his chair and walked alongside Yuan Hanfei toward the exit.

The two walked side by side through the auditorium porch and down the outdoor steps, the sunlight falling back onto their shoulders.

“Yuan Hanfei, you’re really amazing.”

“During the part where you cross-examined the third debater on the opposite side, you made them stutter so much that I almost clapped for you down there.”

Yuan Hanfei tilted his head to look at him.

Ji Xu’s eyes were bright and clear, cleanly reflecting the scenes under the auditorium lights from earlier, containing only the reflection of Yuan Hanfei in his pupils as he looked at him now.

Yuan Hanfei felt that kind of gaze was very comfortable, like being wrapped in something warm and soft, making a quiet corner of his heart swell slightly.

“Thanks for coming to watch my match.” He withdrew his gaze, letting it fall on the road ahead. “Let’s go, I’ll treat you to lunch.”

Ji Xu’s stomach growled right on cue at that exact moment, the sound not loud, yet heard by both of them.

His expression instantly switched from the focused appreciation of the debate earlier to the urgent need of hunger.

Reaching out to tug on Yuan Hanfei’s sleeve, he quickened his pace toward the cafeteria with him: “Then let’s hurry, I want to eat the spicy hot pot on the first floor of Cafeteria Three.”

The seven-day break arrived faster than Ji Xu had imagined.

Classes ended on Thursday afternoon, and the entire seven-day holiday from Friday to the following Thursday filled the whole dorm building with a lazy, joyful atmosphere.

Ji Xu had already started packing his luggage on Wednesday night, taking out the clothes he wanted to bring home from the wardrobe, folding them, and stuffing them into his backpack.

He packed his charger, headphones, and notebook one by one, even specifically checking if he had brought his phone charging cable.

When he zipped up his bag and stood it at the corner of the desk, he couldn’t help but spin in a circle, holding his water cup in his hand, his entire face from the corners of his eyes to his lips filled with unstoppable smiles.

Yuan Hanfei sat at his desk watching him.

Ji Xu’s movements while packing were too fast and cheerful.

That inner joy radiating outward even leaked out a few strands of his pheromones—a light, warm, and soft honey scent drifted from the gland on the back of his neck, floating faintly in the air of the dorm room.

When Yuan Hanfei smelled that sweet scent, the thought that popped up in his mind was—a happy little honeybee.

Buzzing around in circles, flapping its wings, having collected the sweetest flower of the year.

“Are you really that happy?” Yuan Hanfei leaned back against his chair with his hands folded over his stomach, watching Ji Xu finish that spin in front of him and stop.

Ji Xu stopped in front of Yuan Hanfei holding his water cup, making a fist with his right hand to act as a microphone to bring to Yuan Hanfei’s lips.

Clearing his throat, he used a deliberately lowered, interview-like solemn tone to ask: “My dear roommate, do you dislike taking time off?”

Yuan Hanfei looked at his pretense-filled yet smile-hiding expression, the corners of his mouth curving slightly.

He naturally liked taking time off.

A seven-day long holiday meant he could go home to stay, sleep in late, and not have to get up early to rush to class; all of these were things he liked.

Yet at the same time, another feeling surfaced in his heart—he wouldn’t be able to see Ji Xu during the holiday.

Yuan Hanfei realized that he was actually feeling regret over this matter.

This thought felt both natural and somewhat unnatural, and before he could look into it deeply, he suppressed it back down.

“Where do you plan to go during the holiday?” Yuan Hanfei didn’t answer that question directly, but instead changed the direction to ask Ji Xu.

Ji Xu lowered the fake interview microphone, thought about it carefully, and then shook his head: “I don’t know, haven’t decided yet.”

He indeed didn’t have specific plans.

Rong Du had mentioned earlier taking him somewhere to look around during the break, but the specific location, time, and arrangements were not disclosed at all, only saying “you’ll know when the time comes.”

Ji Xu thought it was probably somewhere like a nearby scenic spot or the seaside.

The memory of going to the seaside last time remained, and the sea breeze that night and the stretch of road where Rong Du carried him back were still clear in his mind.

However, he didn’t tell Yuan Hanfei about Rong Du, only replying vaguely like that.

Yuan Hanfei watched him put his water cup back onto the desk and adjust the position of his backpack to lean beside the desk leg, that cheerful demeanor not yet fully put away.

He opened his mouth, wanting to ask further, but felt it was useless to ask since Ji Xu clearly didn’t have any fixed answer himself.

In the end, he only said: “Then take care of your safety, bring an umbrella when going out, it rains out of nowhere in Haicheng during this season.”

“Got it,” Ji Xu waved his hand. “You too, be careful on your way home.”

After saying that, he suddenly remembered something and turned back: “By the way, Yuan Hanfei, what do you plan to do during the holiday?”

“I don’t know.” Yuan Hanfei stood up, walked to his desk, picked up his phone to check the time, and set it down again. “Are you leaving tomorrow morning or tonight?”

“Tomorrow morning, no rush.” Ji Xu checked his backpack one last time to confirm nothing was missed.

Then he hung the bag on the back of his chair, clapping his hands as if calling it a success with a sigh of relief.

The honey scent in the dorm room had mostly dissipated by now, with only a trace of faint sweetness floating at the bottom layer of the air.

Yuan Hanfei sat back down in his chair, reopened that book, and let his gaze fall on the pages, though he wasn’t reading those words for the time being.

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