Blinded by Lust chapter 53

Once the vehicle completely left the main road, he could no longer see the situation of the competition. Wu Bie could only turn on his phone to listen to the live broadcast, but he couldn’t remember what number Huo Zhanyan was. Based on the previous situation, Huo Zhanyan should be in the first group. With just the phone live broadcast, Wu Bie could only roughly estimate Huo Zhanyan’s position.

Even though he wasn’t familiar with the route, a car with four wheels was definitely faster than a human-powered bicycle. Following the directions provided by the navigation, it didn’t take long for Wu Bie to arrive in the suburbs. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the map on the central control panel and was surprised to find that the final point was actually on a mountain.

It was one thing for a motor vehicle to drive there, but after riding a bicycle for several hours, the competitors would have to ride uphill for such a long distance at the end. They would probably be exhausted.

Wu Bie couldn’t help but feel a bit worried and muttered, “Is Huo Zhanyan out of his mind? He clearly injured his leg and still comes to participate in such an intense sport.”

After driving on the mountain road for about twenty minutes, when he reached the top, there were already staff and spectators waiting at the final point. This mountain was originally a scenic area, and many people came to hike and tour on weekends. With the addition of the bicycle race, there were even more private cars on the mountain. Wu Bie spent about ten minutes circling the parking lot before finally finding a parking space.

After getting out of the car, he took a turn around the area. To be honest, although the journey was a bit far, the scenery on the mountain was indeed beautiful, and the air was exceptionally fresh. No wonder there were so many tourists.

According to the estimated time, Huo Zhanyan would still need at least half a day to arrive. Wu Bie came in a hurry and hadn’t even had a sip of water on the way. He believed he should not neglect himself, so even if he had to wait, he needed to find a place to sit down and eat while waiting.

Being in a tourist area, a bowl of noodles cost forty. Wu Bie chose a seat by the window and began to eat heartily. Hearing noises from outside, he would occasionally look up to check, confirming that no competitors were coming up before continuing to eat his noodles.

After finishing a bowl of noodles, he suddenly felt sleepy. The restaurant was crowded, so he could only go back to the car to take a nap. Just before falling asleep, he yawned and sent a message to Huo Zhanyan.

“Call me when you arrive.”

He hadn’t slept well the night before, and now it was noisy outside, making it feel like the sky was falling. Wu Bie leaned back in the driver’s seat and fell fast asleep, with the outside noise ironically helping him sleep.

…..

“Have the competitors not arrived yet?”

Chen Xian and Shen Jixue’s group hiked up the mountain. They arrived at the neighboring city the night before, and their luggage was sent to the hotel ahead of time. After resting in the city for a night, they had breakfast this morning and set off towards the top of the mountain.

Someone responded, “It looks like they haven’t arrived yet. I saw in the introduction that it takes about eight to nine hours, so it’s just right for us to rest a bit, take a shower, and after dinner, we can watch the show.”

“Hey, why doesn’t Wu Bie want to come? This is such a great opportunity. It’s rare for us to gather like this since we’re not in the same unit anymore.”

“Exactly! My wife said she’d introduce him to someone. This girl is someone we carefully selected; she’s beautiful and comes from a good family. Wu Bie will definitely like her when he sees her.”

These older brothers were much older than Chen Xian, only using their phones to watch videos and reply to messages. Shen Jixue had to take care of the hotel booking details, and he had been checking the hotel room numbers without saying anything.

“Hey? Xiao Shen, which room number do we have?”

Just as Shen Jixue was about to answer, he caught a glimpse of a familiar private car in the distance. However, he couldn’t be sure just from the roof of the car, and now cars all looked quite similar. Even if it was the same model, there was nothing particularly special about it.

“Xiao Shen?” Seeing Shen Jixue lost in thought, someone urged him again.

Shen Jixue came back to his senses and thought, it can’t be that coincidental, can it? Forget it.

“I just sent everyone’s room numbers to the group chat. Let’s go check in now.”

“Only young people can handle this. We, being middle-aged, can no longer adapt to new things. We can’t even figure out how to book a hotel.”

Everyone was eager to return to their rooms. Shen Jixue couldn’t just assume the car was Wu Bie’s based on a feeling, so he had to follow the group into the hotel.

..

Wu Bie was once again awakened by the noise outside. He was in a deep sleep and had no idea what time it was. Squinting, he looked around for his phone, which showed that it was 3:00 PM.

“Hmm…”

He was still groggy and couldn’t calculate what time the eight-hour race would end. Just then, an earth-shattering cheer pulled him back to reality.

A cyclist in a red cycling suit rushed past the finish line first, and the person holding the banner immediately surrounded him. The broadcast was continuously announcing the numbers of the finishing competitors.

“Damn!” Wu Bie hurriedly put on his shoes, opened the car door, and rushed out in a flurry, “How did they finish so quickly?”

The first place had already left the other competitors far behind. By the time the celebrations were over, the second-place competitor gradually appeared in everyone’s view, followed by the third and fourth.

Wu Bie stretched his neck to look, carefully examining each competitor who passed in front of him. After they took off their goggles, he only saw unfamiliar faces and did not see any sign of Huo Zhanyan.

“This kid wouldn’t really be injured, would he?” Wu Bie quickly found a staff member to ask, and they said that although a few competitors had dropped out for various reasons, there hadn’t been any reports of serious injuries so far.

This somewhat reassured Wu Bie. He stared at the direction from which the bicycles were coming, unable to help but mutter, “Huo Zhanyan can’t really be this bad, can he? Not even making it into the second group? What’s the point of participating? It’s so embarrassing.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a bicycle passed right beside him. The competitor clearly turned to look at him, and Wu Bie instinctively locked eyes with him—it was Huo Zhanyan.

Wu Bie, who had just been cursing, found himself uncontrollably running toward the finish line. However, he was not as quick as the others, and with the staff and Huo Zhanyan’s classmates surrounding him, he couldn’t squeeze through and felt a bit lost, instinctively stopping in his tracks.

From the moment Huo Zhanyan saw Wu Bie, his gaze never left his figure. He quickly took off his goggles and signed off on his results. Despite the enthusiastic cheers from his classmates, he simply said, “Thank you,” before pushing through the crowd and hastening to Wu Bie’s side.

“Wu Ge!”

Huo Zhanyan walked with a sense of urgency, his whole body drenched in sweat, looking both exhausted and disheveled, but his eyes sparkled brightly, so much so that Wu Bie could even see his own reflection in them.

He could smell the sweat on Huo Zhanyan, along with the unique vitality of youth. Wu Bie forgot what he was going to say. Huo Zhanyan tugged him along to greet a few classmates before retreating from the crowd.

After pedaling for eight or nine hours, even a superhero’s legs would tremble; Huo Zhanyan was no iron man and was completely worn out. Yet, he couldn’t sit down immediately, so Wu Bie just accompanied him as they strolled slowly around the perimeter.

“How was it? Am I impressive?”

Pretty impressive. To say nothing of other aspects, at least in terms of endurance, young people had a significant advantage.

But Wu Bie wouldn’t admit it and mocked him, “Impressive my ass! If I participated, I’d definitely come back with first place.”

Huo Zhanyan didn’t think Wu Bie was boasting. Given his personality, he’d compete fiercely for first place even in friendly swimming matches held on the ship. If Wu Bie really joined, he might actually outdo him.

Huo Zhanyan liked this spirited energy about Wu Bie; it was a vitality others couldn’t mimic.

“My legs just healed,” Huo Zhanyan pouted. “Besides, the top tier participants are all experienced athletes; they’ve participated in many events and are way more professional than I am.”

It was better not to mention the leg issue at all, but the moment it was brought up, Wu Bie got angry.

“You’re aware your legs just got better? I thought this was some monumental decision that would determine your future! Are you planning to ride until you cripple yourself?”

It wasn’t that serious. In places where Wu Bie couldn’t see, Huo Zhanyan had been working out every day, in addition to studying. He could handle this level of physical exertion. He didn’t explain to Wu Bie; instead, he suddenly stopped walking and looked at him with wet eyes.

Wu Bie felt goosebumps all over from being stared at. “What are you looking at?”

“Are you worried about me?” Huo Zhanyan leaned in slightly, his beautiful face coming closer to Wu Bie’s.

Wu Bie took a step back. “Am I crazy to worry about you…”

“I thought you weren’t coming.” Huo Zhanyan looked at Wu Bie with a pitiful expression, his long eyelashes fluttering with every blink.

Wu Bie felt an itch in his heart but had to maintain his facade. “I didn’t want to come in the first place…”

“But you still came. Ge, you’re worried about me, right?”

“Bullshit!” Wu Bie turned his face away, a forced smile on his lips as he tried hard to stay calm. “I just wanted to return your elevator card; it’s you who never replied to me.”

Huo Zhanyan wouldn’t let up, chasing Wu Bie with his gaze until he shoved his face right in front of Wu Bie’s line of sight. “Were you anxious because I didn’t reply? So you rushed over? Did you miss me?”

“I missed you my as…”

“I missed you.” Huo Zhanyan completely cut Wu Bie off before he could curse, “The reason I didn’t reply was that I was worried you might have something going on and wouldn’t come, but I also worried you might actually find me annoying, so I didn’t push you to come. I originally thought, if you didn’t come, I’d find you after the competition was over. I’d be very happy if you could come find me.”

Wu Bie was left dumbfounded by this series of verbal blows. He couldn’t find his voice for a long time. His gaze wandered, not daring to meet Huo Zhanyan’s. Huo Zhanyan insisted on holding his gaze, refusing to let him look away.

“Hmm? Wu Ge? Um…”

Wu Bie didn’t know what he saw, but he reached out and pressed down on Huo Zhanyan’s head. The two of them rolled onto the ground, taking cover behind a nearby private car.

“What’s wrong?” Huo Zhanyan asked, confused.

Wu Bie couldn’t help but curse, “Shit! How come Shen Jixue and Chen Xian are here? Did they mean climbing this mountain when they talked about hiking?”

Upon hearing Shen Jixue and Chen Xian’s names, Huo Zhanyan struggled to sit up and take a look, but Wu Bie’s grip was terrifyingly strong, pinning his head firmly against his chest.

“Don’t move! What if they spot us?”

“But even if they do see me, it’s fine! I study here; it’s perfectly normal for me to come for the competition.”

“No way!” Wu Bie shouted in a hushed voice. Shen Jixue was perceptive, and Huo Zhanyan wasn’t too bright. If he accidentally said something stupid and exposed their situation, Wu Bie would lose face. “You better behave yourself.”

Wu Bie kept an eye on Shen Jixue and Chen Xian’s movements, completely oblivious to Huo Zhanyan quietly wrapping his arms around his waist and resting his head on his chest.

Staying still was fine; it was a good chance to rest while being held by Wu Bie.