Zheng Yang had once worried about whether she should have a proper talk with Lin Weiwei.
She wanted to dissolve that inexplicable hostility, but she didn’t know how to start—afraid that as soon as she opened her mouth, the other party would think even worse of her.
After the water-spilling incident, the two seemed even more antagonistic.
Lin Weiwei’s gaze grew colder when she saw her, and she would occasionally take a detour on purpose.
But strangely, Zheng Yang wasn’t worried anymore.
What people fear most isn’t “bad,” but “uncertainty.”
You don’t know when the other person will strike, or what move they’ll make—that’s what really makes you anxious.
Now, Lin Weiwei’s hostility had “stabilized”—
Consistently cold stares, consistent detours, consistent gossip behind her back.
Stable hostility was still a kind of stability.
Zheng Yang’s mindset gradually stabilized within this “stability.”
She stopped thinking about how to resolve things or prove herself.
She wasn’t a Renminbi; she didn’t need everyone to like her.
Besides, with a 38-year-old soul, there was no need to bicker with a 15-year-old girl.
Once she had no distractions, she truly felt herself blending into campus life.
She listened attentively in class—although she had already learned most of the content, picking it up again felt good.
Between classes, she held Wu Chun’s hand to get water, go to the restroom, or visit the convenience store.
At noon break, she napped on the desk, occasionally exchanging notes with Siyuan and chatting about random things.
She felt like she had truly returned to her student days.
That feeling was strange, and also wonderful.
No need to calculate KPIs, no need to deal with drinking parties, no need to read the boss’s face to gauge his intentions.
Every day, the biggest worries were just “what’s for lunch in the cafeteria” and “will I doze off in the next class.”
For a former corporate bootlicker, this kind of life was really good.
And today, she was especially looking forward to it.
Because the afternoon had PE class.
And rumor had it, they were learning basketball.
Zheng Yang used to be obsessed with playing basketball.
Back in high school, although she wasn’t a main player on the team, though she wasn’t tall, she was fast and had tough defense.
Every time she played, she was the craziest one on the court.
Later, after she started working, the only times she touched a ball were to cultivate Siyuan’s interest by playing with him a few times.
After that, she never touched it again.
The boss didn’t play basketball;
Colleagues only invited her to drinking parties.
Her basketball shoes gathered dust in the shoe cabinet, and eventually, Bai Jie threw them away as trash.
Now, despite the inconveniences of being a girl—her chest bouncing, the skirt being short, and her stamina much worse—since she had the chance to play, she had no reason to reject that long-buried passion.
When the bell rang for the last class before lunch, Zheng Yang got excited.
“Yangyang, what’s up with you? You’re like a hyped-up chicken,” Wu Chun said, walking with her to the cafeteria, eyeing her sideways.
“PE class this afternoon! Basketball!” Zheng Yang’s eyes lit up.
“What’s so exciting about basketball…”
Wu Chun rolled her eyes, then suddenly remembered something.
“Oh, by the way, did you bring pants?”
“Pants? What pants?”
Wu Chun reached out and pinched her cheek, shaking it left and right.
“You big idiot! Wearing a short skirt for PE class—do you want everyone to see you?”
Zheng Yang froze for a second, then looked down at her school uniform skirt.
She had forgotten.
She had long gotten used to wearing this short skirt every day—not because she liked it, but out of habit.
That was the male mindset:
Once you get used to something, you stick with it stubbornly, never thinking about the fact that as a girl, you need to change into pants for PE class.
“I… I didn’t bring any,” Zheng Yang’s voice dropped.
“I knew it.”
Wu Chun sighed.
“Do you want me to lend you mine? I’ll just wear the short skirt; I don’t like playing ball anyway.”
“No, no, that’s okay!”
Zheng Yang waved her hand.
“I’ll just stay on the sidelines and watch you guys play.”
“Suit yourself.”
Wu Chun poked her waist.
“Don’t regret it later.”
Third period in the afternoon, PE class.
The sun was just right on the playground.
The wind at the end of September carried a hint of coolness.
The PE teacher was a man in his early thirties, surname Wang.
He had dark skin, solid muscles, a voice like thunder, and a whistle hanging from his neck.
The whistle blew.
“Fall in!”
The entire class of thirty-six quickly formed four rows.
Zheng Yang stood in the first row of the girls’ line, the only one wearing a short skirt.
Her two bare, long legs gleamed white in the sunlight.
She instinctively pressed her legs together, feeling gazes lingering on her.
Teacher Wang’s eyes swept over the line and stopped at Zheng Yang’s thighs.
“Zheng Yangyang, you’re wearing that to PE class?”
“Teacher, I… forgot to bring pants.”
Zheng Yang’s voice wasn’t loud, but the whole class heard it.
A few boys stifled their laughter.
Zhang Zihan even deliberately coughed.
“Ahem, Brother Yang really is unique.”
Teacher Wang frowned.
“You’re the class monitor. Setting this example isn’t good. Go to the locker room. Use the temporary spares and change into a pair.”
“Got it!” Zheng Yang, face red, jogged off to the locker room.
Behind her came the low laughter of Lin Weiwei and a few girls.
Zheng Yang didn’t look back, but thought to herself:
‘Laugh all you want. Laughing won’t make me lose any meat.’
At the locker room, she asked the attendant, and sure enough, there were spare pants.
She didn’t bother checking the size, just grabbed a pair and changed into them quickly.
As she changed, she thought:
‘This prestigious school really thinks of everything.’
Except…
These pants were a bit tight.
She looked down.
The lines of her thighs and buttocks were clearly outlined.
‘Whatever. Who cares?’
Zheng Yang couldn’t be bothered to find another size—playing ball was more important.
When she returned to the court, Teacher Wang had already started teaching the layup.
“Watch closely! First step, stride and catch the ball; second step, second step and jump; third step, shoot!”
Teacher Wang’s movements were textbook.
The ball lightly brushed the backboard and dropped into the hoop.
“Now, everyone practice it once.”
Zheng Yang was in the middle of the girls.
The classmates in front of her were clumsy;
Some traveled, some missed the shot, and some sent the ball flying over the backboard.
Teacher Wang corrected them one by one, patient but strict.
When it was Zheng Yang’s turn, she took a deep breath.
The layup was something she could do with her eyes closed.
Catch the ball, stride, jump, release.
The ball arced through the air, hit the backboard, and landed firmly in the hoop.
The whole process was smooth and seamless, without any unnecessary movement.
Teacher Wang paused, then whistled.
“Not bad, Zheng Yangyang. Have you practiced before?”
“Not really practiced, just played a lot,” Zheng Yang said modestly.
“At this level, among the girls I’ve taught, you’d rank in the top three.”
Teacher Wang nodded.
“Keep it up.”
Zheng Yang smiled, but inside she was a bit annoyed.
‘Top three? With my male skills, I’m not even first among girls?’
Teacher Wang taught a few more basic moves.
He saw that some boys had good foundations, so he let them grab a ball and go to the open court on the east side for free practice, while the rest continued with basics.
Zhang Zihan and Li Tong and a few boys immediately grabbed a ball and ran to the east half-court.
Watching them made Zheng Yang’s eyes burn with envy.
“Teacher, I want to go too.”
She raised her hand.
Teacher Wang looked at her, then glanced at her chest outline.
He stepped closer and lowered his voice.
“You can go. But remember: from now on, always wear a tight sports bra, and don’t forget to wear pants again.”
Zheng Yang’s face instantly turned bright red.
“Got… got it. Thank you, Teacher.”
When the boys saw Zheng Yang running over, they immediately started cheering and whistling.
“Whoa! Brother Yang is here, Brother Yang is here!”
Seeing the ball was like a dog seeing a bone for Zheng Yang.
Without any ladylike demeanor, she snatched the ball straight from Zhang Zihan and dribbled a few times to enjoy the feeling.
This was her first time touching a basketball since becoming a girl.
Her muscle memory was still there, but the ball felt bigger than she remembered—no, it was her hands that had gotten smaller.
But that didn’t affect Zheng Yang’s skill.
In fact, even if she could only perform at half her former level, it was enough to make Zhang Zihan and the boys exclaim in admiration:
‘What an amazing girl!’
A girl who understood basketball was a natural treasure among the boys.
Whether teammate or opponent, everyone unconsciously let Zheng Yang shine.
And Zheng Yang herself loved doing technical moves—spin shots, crossovers, dribbling past opponents, change-of-pace layups.
In no time, she was playing fiercely, like a fish in water, drawing constant cheers from the boys.
Zheng Yang enjoyed it.
After every basket, she smiled modestly and waved her hand.
She knew the boys were going easy on her, but she was still showing off her style.
‘Being a girl does come with some perks,’ she thought.
‘Not bad at all.’
If only she could ignore the uncomfortable bouncing of her chest, it would be perfect.
After scoring another basket, Zheng Yang happened to glance sideways at the students still practicing basic moves properly.
She kept sneaking peeks, wondering if anyone over there was admiring her brilliance.
But this time, she spotted an exceptionally standard and graceful layup—it was Zheng Siyuan.
‘Siyuan? He can play basketball? How come I didn’t know? Was that a fluke?’
She sat cross-legged at the edge of the court, waiting to see Siyuan’s next move.
Behind her, Zhang Zihan called her, but she waved him off.
“You guys keep playing. I’m a little tired.”
Over there, Zheng Siyuan also saw Zheng Yang.
No, he had been paying attention to her all along.
He smiled at her.
Then, with a clean, sharp jump shot, the ball swished through the net.
Zheng Yang smiled back in surprise.
‘Not a fluke. This little brat really can play. And from the looks of it, he’s no worse than Zhang Zihan and the others—maybe even better than me…’
But why was he still practicing basics over there? He should be playing free practice with Zhang Zihan and them.
Zheng Yang ran over to Teacher Wang and whispered a few words.
Teacher Wang nodded and called out to Zheng Siyuan, “Hey, you over there. Go play with your class monitor. Don’t pretend to be a beginner on my court!”
Teacher Wang had already noticed Siyuan could play.
He had told him to join the free practice, but Siyuan stubbornly refused.
This time, with Zheng Yang dragging him along, he reluctantly came.
Zheng Yang was a bit excited.
She hooked her arm around Siyuan’s.
“You’re so good at this! Why didn’t you join us?”
As soon as she said it, she realized the gender difference and quickly let go.
Siyuan’s face turned red from being held.
“I… I’m not familiar with Zhang Zihan and them.”
“That’s all? You’ll get familiar once you play together. A lot of male friendships start on the court.”
Zheng Yang said casually.
Siyuan smiled.
“You really know guys well.”
Zheng Yang rubbed her nose and brushed it off.
“Guys are simple, that’s all.”
When they reached the east court, Zheng Yang clapped her hands and called out, “Brothers, I found another good prospect!”
Zhang Zihan and the others naturally played along for “Brother Yang.”
They welcomed him with smiles.
“Nice, Siyuan! Come play with us!”
After joining, Zheng Siyuan was shy for less than a minute before he started shining with his skilled techniques.
Zhang Zihan and Zheng Yang had originally planned to feed him the ball more, but it didn’t seem necessary.
Zheng Yang cheered for her son from the bottom of her heart.
And because she valued him so much, Siyuan played even harder, as if he wanted to show off all his most difficult moves.
Zhang Zihan patted Siyuan on the shoulder.
“Dude, you’ve been hiding your skills pretty deep!”
Li Tong agreed.
“Yeah, yeah! Why didn’t you come play from the start? Why practice basics over there?”
Siyuan had to scratch his head and laugh sheepishly.
“I haven’t played in a long time. I was afraid I wouldn’t be good…”
Zheng Yang was both pleasantly surprised and gratified.
At the same time, she couldn’t help snorting to herself:
‘You little brat. No wonder you only scored 400 points. You’ve been using your brains to study basketball instead.’
After that snort, a wave of disappointment washed over her.
‘My son shares the same hobby as me—how come I, as his father, had no idea at all?’