Xia Kelan glanced at her phone; indeed, it was six o'clock. Why was Ye Nan here so early?
"You... you're up this early?"
Ye Nan nodded gently. "I heard you racers need to arrive two hours in advance."
"We don't enter until ten…"
"I know, but I thought I'd come early to have a meal with you."
"That's... really too early." Xia Kelan sighed helplessly. Just as she was about to get into his car, another blue sports car pulled up in front of her like a sudden downpour extinguishing a blazing fire.
Xie Cheng stepped out, his usually gentle peach blossom eyes now sharp and piercing. He looked at Ye Nan, then caught Xia Kelan's pleading gaze and understood immediately. Ye Nan hadn't expected Xie Cheng to show up, and the cold hostility in Xie Cheng's eyes was unmistakable, as if he were staring at an enemy. Ye Nan took a step forward, flashing an impeccable smile.
"Da—" Xia Kelan's words twisted abruptly at the last moment, "Ge—" (brother)
Xie Cheng hummed affirmatively and then turned to Ye Nan.
"What are you doing here?"
Ye Nan replied, "I came to take her to the race site."
"No need to trouble you, I'll take her myself." Xie Cheng said, beckoning Xia Kelan over. "Come on, get in."
Ye Nan's heart was full of resentment as he stepped forward two paces, still trying to argue.
"Kelan, I found a great restaurant last time. I thought you'd love it."
"Besides, didn't we agree yesterday to leave together tomorrow?"
"I barely slept last night and was waiting here before dawn."
Just as Xia Kelan was about to speak, Xie Cheng interjected,
"Sorry, my sister's on a diet lately."
Xia Kelan forced a smile, "Ye Nan, maybe we should part ways now and talk when we get there."
"My brother's a bit hot-tempered and doesn't like me getting too close to other men. Hope you understand!"
With that, Xia Kelan slipped into Xie Cheng's car. The door slammed shut behind her, and she exhaled deeply.
"Playing with fire, huh?" Xie Cheng teased as he watched Ye Nan's lonely figure.
Xia Kelan muttered softly, "Who knew he'd be so persistent... Luckily, you came just in time."
Xie Cheng snorted lightly, started the engine, and sped away, leaving Ye Nan stubbornly trailing behind.
The early morning traffic was light; Xie Cheng quickened his pace to shake Ye Nan off. They found a newly opened breakfast stall and sat leisurely inside.
Xia Kelan yawned uncontrollably, exhaustion etched on her face.
"Thinking about today's race makes me nervous; I barely slept."
"If only I'd known Ye Nan was waiting outside, I'd have slept till ten and made him wait for nothing."
Xie Cheng munched on a soup dumpling and casually asked,
"Want to book a room later?"
Xia Kelan's drowsiness vanished instantly, eyes sharp with suspicion.
"You old pervert, don't get any funny ideas!"
Xie Cheng glanced her over and smirked, "You're overthinking it. With your figure, even stripped naked I wouldn't spare a second glance."
"What do you mean? Is my figure not good enough?" Xia Kelan straightened up proudly. Though petite, her proportions were well balanced.
Xie Cheng didn't answer but asked instead, "So, are we booking a room or not?"
Gritting her teeth, Xia Kelan agreed, "Fine."
They checked into a nearby chain hotel, registered their IDs, and entered the room one after the other.
"I'll call you around nine, sleep well."
"Okay!"
Xie Cheng settled into a chair, muted his computer, and watched the silent live stream. After an indeterminate amount of time, Xia Kelan's phone suddenly rang.
Xie Cheng swiftly snatched it, ended the call, and powered it off.
Meanwhile, Ye Nan arrived early at the race site, where only a few staff were bustling about.
...
Su Wanwan was woken by Fu Ziyang pounding on the door. She slipped out of her thin nightgown, hair tousled, and opened the door. Fu Ziyang immediately shielded his eyes but parted his fingers wide enough to peek through.
"Don't... look! Don't look!"
Su Wanwan was dressed modestly and sleepily adorable, her slightly curled hair making her look even more endearing.
"Hurry up and get ready, we're leaving soon!"
She glanced at the clock on the wall, yawned, and said,
"Okay, have you eaten yet?"
"Not yet! I'm crashing your meal too!"
After a quick wash, Su Wanwan changed into light clothing: a plain white T-shirt and loose black wide-leg pants, her hair tied in a ponytail with a white small crossbody bag slung casually.
"Where's my brother?"
"Don't know, I vaguely remember him saying he'd be back soon."
Her phone vibrated twice on the table. She picked it up.
\[Senior, I've arrived on site, hoping to win today's race.]
Su Wanwan replied: \[You'll definitely succeed!]
She mumbled softly, "What a coincidence, it's the same day."
She didn't think much of it—she had learned this person lived abroad from their occasional chats.
"Wanwan, what are you muttering about?"
"Nothing."
She put down her spoon, wiped her mouth casually.
"I'm almost done eating."
Fu Ziyang took advantage of the last moments to shovel in a couple more bites, then stood up.
"Let's go."
Su Wanwan nodded and told the servant to pack a breakfast for them to take along.
Fu Ziyang's eyes glistened with emotion,
"I've eaten plenty, you don't need to bring me more."
Surprised, Su Wanwan glanced at him,
"You're overthinking; this is for Fu Liangmu."
"Oh..."
They got into the car and contacted Fu Liangmu, who told them to wait at a nearby intersection.
The car stopped, and Su Wanwan absentmindedly scrolled through posts on her phone, logging into Weibo after a long hiatus. She noticed many persistent private messages and comments.
\[Have you thought about streaming live?]
\[Ahhh +10086! I really want to see it!]
\[Wanwan hasn't posted on Weibo for days, miss her so much...]
\[What have I just followed? No interaction for ages, no updates? Haha woman, you've certainly caught my attention!]
Su Wanwan was amused by their banter. After pondering, she finally posted:
"There's a race in Xicheng today, anyone interested?"
Two minutes passed with no comments. Puzzled, she scratched her head and murmured,
"Have I become irrelevant?"
Two minutes later, an avalanche of messages flooded in:
\[!! Heaven! Am I seeing things? Was Su Wanwan's account hacked?]
\[Ahhh! I'm in Xicheng! Already at the race site! Didn't expect to share a hobby with the goddess! Totally worth it!]
This message quickly gained likes, and many sent private messages:
"Bro, have you considered streaming?"