CHAPTER 193: CHAPTER 166: DEVOTING MY YOUTH TO YOU

"You’re right, they’re all little black people. Has Lao Da been silently protecting us this whole time with this method? Is there a safety warning sign for low-flying helicopters?"

Lin Li looked at the sign with those black figures and said emotionally.

Covered in dust, Bai Bufan widened his eyes at Lin Li, wondering how this guy could seamlessly transition back to a conversation he started after tormenting him. Was him hitting me just going to be brushed off so easily?

It seemed like it really was.

Patience. The day I succeed in quitting my habits will be the day Lin Li faces his end.

Will I win? I will win.

Hating by association, Bai Bufan brushed off the dust and sneered, "People like you see a black person and only think of Kobe’s joke ’Little Ghost Riot.’ Lao Da has 5 championships, 2 FMVPs, 1 MVP, and 30,000 points. Who are you, anyway?"

"I’m alive." Lin Li replied calmly.

"..."

The sudden yet serious reply made Bai Bufan laugh out loud.

"Haha, what a coincidence, so am I." Glancing aside, Bai Bufan pointed to a spot not far away, "But there’s really a 24 over there."

Over by Nanxin Lake Park, there’s a lit basketball court where the sound of sneakers rubbing against the ground, basketballs bouncing, and guys shouting could be heard faintly.

What Bai Bufan was pointing at was someone playing basketball in an iced tea jersey among them.

"Damn it, anyone daring to play on an outdoor public court has to have great skills. I wouldn’t dare to embarrass myself in public like that."

Watching from a distance, Bai Bufan did his signature air fadeaway jump shot, saying enviously.

Though Lin Li and Bai Bufan were among the tallest in class 1-4, Bai Bufan’s basketball skills were average, and Lin Li’s were terrible.

Lin Li would only play with his classmates during PE class, usually when playing half-court 3-on-3, where he’d be dragged to the inside due to his height to grab rebounds.

Because his athletic ability was lacking, he couldn’t grab rebounds that well, and now his level was unknown.

As for the phrase, "You’re so tall, why don’t you play basketball?" Lin Li was tired of hearing it.

Strolling is strolling no matter where, and after hearing what Lin Li and Bai Bufan said, plus knowing the fountain starts at the exact hour, they weren’t in a hurry, so the girls leading them slightly changed direction toward the court.

They watched through the wire fence, put up to prevent balls from rolling onto the road, looking at the people inside sweating it out.

Number 24 moved quite cleanly, a bit out of character.

"Damn, what a winner in life... I wonder whose girlfriend she is, being so pretty," Bai Bufan said enviously, looking at a woman sitting on the bench next to the court, assumed to be a player’s girlfriend.

"Get over your fear of girls first, then think about that," Lin Li said with a laugh.

"How’s Feifei doing? After the monthly exams, she’ll probably be out soon, right?" Bai Bufan asked with a deep tone.

"Who’s Feifei?" Qu Wanqiu asked curiously, as Bai Bufan hadn’t lowered his voice much.

"Someone we’ll never see again."

"... I’m sorry."

Bai Bufan let out a long sigh, relieved she didn’t continue to ask.

"Being good at basketball really adds a lot of points," Ding Sihan placed her hand on the wire fence, looking at the court with a yearning expression, "I think every girl has fantasized about a scene where a tall and handsome guy accidentally hits her with a ball and then compensates her with an entire bright youth."

"A shot put?" Lin Li inquired.

Ding Sihan: "?"

The love story instantly became a murder mystery.

"... A basketball!" Ding Sihan corrected.

"But a basketball wouldn’t land you in jail, right? To spend your whole youth in jail as punishment seems way too harsh. It feels wronged just thinking about it," Lin Li said, feeling even more puzzled, "Ding Sihan, won’t you provide a letter of forgiveness? You’re being a bit unreasonable."

Ding Sihan looked at Lin Li, her face turning red.

From anger.

She took a deep breath, pointing her finger vigorously at Lin Li, speaking in frustration, "Lin Li! You atmosphere breaker! You really don’t get romance at all! Compensating with one’s youth is metaphorical, not literal! Your immediate task is to read more love stories to cultivate your emotional intelligence and sense of romance!

Otherwise, you’re destined to die alone!"

Chen Yu Ying’s gaze followed the distant basketball, watching it swish through the net with a pleasant sound, and listening to the conversations from both sides, she covered her mouth and chuckled softly.

Lin Li was probably doing it on purpose. After all, Lin Li wouldn’t be Lin Li if he weren’t cheeky. Si Han actually understood; no matter how annoyed she looked now, she wasn’t actually bothered by it. In private, she’d said many good things about Lin Li to her numerous times, finding him quite interesting.

Thinking about it, keeping a Lin Li around would indeed be amusing, wouldn’t it?

"Love stories? I read them often. I even have a particularly memorable one right now. Do you want me to share it with you?" Lin Li thought for a moment, then held up an index finger like a lightbulb moment.

The three girls all turned their heads to look at Lin Li. Although they knew Lin Li probably wouldn’t tell a good love story, they were still curious and urged him, "Let’s hear it."

"Once there was a depressed Bai Bufan who really liked a tree. He confessed to the tree, but the tree didn’t give a definite answer and just kept stringing him along." Lin Li’s love story was short, summarized in one sentence.

What a tragic love story.

Bai, Chen, Ding, Qu: "..."

Chen Yu Ying pursed her lips, then turned her head and buried her face in Ding Sihan’s shoulder, her body shaking slightly.

Wah wah wah, all the good karma I’ve accumulated over the past fifteen years will be deducted now that I’ve gotten to know Lin Li.

Lin Li is so annoying.

"After hearing that, I have a love story too." Bai Bufan raised an index finger like a lightbulb moment and said, drawing lessons from Lin Li, "Once there was an adventurous Lin Li who encountered a snake during his explorations. The snake liked Lin Li but was rejected. Yet the snake refused to give up, so it kept clinging to him."

Hearing this, Lin Li turned his head, giving Bai Bufan a knowing look, and the two of them exchanged a mutual high-five.

I am not alone in my path.

"There’s another love story. Do you want to hear it?" Lin Li asked, smiling gleefully, once the three had recovered.

"No, no, we’re not listening! What you said is not a love story at all!" Ding Sihan firmly covered her ears and shook her head.

Lin Li, a bit unwilling, wanted to continue talking, unable to bear the silence, thus he added, "This time it’s about a fairy tale, and the ending is that the princess and the prince live happily ever after together, and it’s genuinely and purely happy. I swear."

Ding Sihan squinted her eyes, looking somewhat skeptical at Lin Li. It was hard for her to imagine such a fairy tale from Lin Li’s mouth, although she knew curiosity could be detrimental, she couldn’t help but nod:

"I’ll trust you once more. Go ahead."

"One day, an old man and an old woman were boating on the lake, the old woman accidentally fell into the lake.

At this moment, a goddess rose from the lake and asked the old man, ’Was it a princess or an old woman who fell in just now?’ The old man honestly replied it was the old woman, so the goddess was delighted ’You are truly an honest person, so I’ll give you a princess.’

After the princess appeared, she immediately kicked the old man off the boat.

At this moment, a goddess rose from the lake and asked the princess, ’Was it a prince or an old man who fell in just now?’ The princess also honestly replied it was the old man, so the goddess was delighted ’You are truly an honest person, so I’ll give you a prince.’

From then on, the princess and the prince lived happily ever after, until forever."

Lin Li narrated the story with a smile that carried a fairy tale-like charm, conveying this happily ever after story.

Bai, Chen, Ding, Qu: "..."

The ending seems pretty happy, but it somehow feels off.

"What happened to the old man and the old woman?" Qu Wanqiu asked.

"Blub blub blub." Lin Li immediately made the sound effects.

Qu Wanqiu: "..."

Damn it, blub blub blub, the scene of sinking to the bottom has been fully imagined.

Also turned into silt to breed more fish.

"Ah ah ah!" Ding Sihan started to smack her lips, "I let you want to hear Lin Li’s story! I let you want to hear Lin Li’s story! My mind is all polluted! You truly deserve it!"

"Teacher Ding, don’t do that! Teacher Ding, don’t do that!" Lin Li tried his best to stop the words with encouragement.

Like this, one wouldn’t be beaten to death.

After watching for a while, the five left the public court; before they left, someone approached, asking Lin Li and Bai Bufan if they wanted to join in the game, probably because they were short of players.

There are still many good people on the court.

If the invitation was not focused on Chen Yu Ying, Lin Li might have gone up to make a fool of himself.

This time he narrowly avoided an elbow.

The court was near the park, so they arrived at the park area in no time.

The park is bustling, completely unmatched by Lin Li’s neighborhood park. Many people here set up stalls selling food, decorations, toys, and even phone cases and screen protectors. On the central stone plaza, there’s even large toy cars for children to drive.

Many kids on the plaza are launching flashing shuttlecocks or bamboo dragonflies into the sky.

That vibrant, everything-competitive scene remains vividly in front of us.

Because the main purpose was to see the musical fountain, the group crossed the plaza, heading towards Nanxin Lake.

"There’s a contact lens stall over there. Why not take a look?" On the way to the target, inevitably encountering thorns, halfway through the plaza, Ding Sihan suggested.

Then they changed direction.

Lin Li and Bai Bufan also followed, but their eyes constantly focused on the large toy cars on the plaza, exchanged glances, nodded simultaneously: "Want to drive."

Especially since driving also meant bumping into other little friends; if only the car seats were bigger, the two would have eagerly gone to bully the kids.

What a pity.

Bai Bufan looked at other stalls, and Lin Li’s attention returned to the contact lens stall. After a few glances, he felt confused.

Are these contact lens colors actually created by humans?

Shark Tears, Basque Ice Blue, Sky Grey, Electric Purple, Bionic Green.

Those who can see these names and imagine the corresponding contact lens colors must be geniuses.

"Which color do you all think looks best?" Qu Wanqiu picked and chose, curiously asking everyone’s opinions.

"Sky Grey." "Peacock Brown." "Royal Purple." "Snail Rice Noodles."

The gaze of the three girls and the stall owner all sharply turned to Lin Li, the atmosphere disruptor.

He had just said ’Snail Rice Noodles.’

Lin Li raised his hands and stepped back two paces, showing surrender.

"Lin Li, Lin Li, come look, there’s a story!" Bai Bufan suddenly excitedly waved to Lin Li from not far away, signaling for him to come over.

Lin Li walked over and asked, "What’s up?"

"Look at this!" Bai Bufan lowered his voice and pointed to a stall.

It seemed to focus on textiles, taking orders for clothing alterations, fabric sales, repairs, and what Bai Bufan pointed out was an addition to the stall, a conspicuous note, saying ’Please clean the crotch area before bringing it in for sewing, thanks for your cooperation.’

Lin Li stared for two seconds, then lowered his voice and began to laugh wildly.

Behind every rule hides a story untold,

When Aunty bites the thread, the sky probably collapsed.