Volume 1 / Chapter 79: The Opening Ceremony of the School Sports Day

Even though Mò Xuěyáo had put her school uniform jacket back on, the overly short cheerleading skirt still left her feeling awkward.

Especially once she returned to the classroom—under the watchful stares of the boys—she felt more out of place than ever.

Wáng Jiālè, however, had come prepared. That morning, she’d thrown on a thick woolen coat, so long it covered her knees. It made Xuěyáo suspect she had swiped it from her dad’s wardrobe…

“I love school sports day!” someone suddenly shouted from the back of the classroom, where the boys were huddled like they were having some shady cult gathering.

Others quickly chimed in.

“Heh heh, once the event officially kicks off, we’ll have our fill,” Liú Xiǎowěi wiped the corners of his mouth as if his drool was about to spill.

“Gāo Yuán , where’s the camera you were supposed to bring?” Zhōu Yǒng elbowed him, sounding both anxious and excited.

“It’s in my bag. Heh… I brought a digital camera. Once I take the pics, we can view them right away!”

“No wonder you’re the rich kid.” Zhōu Yǒng gave him a thumbs up. “Leave the photography to me! I’m in the photography club, after all. I know my way around a digital cam.”

“You better not break it,” Gāo Yuán pinched his shoulder. “This thing isn’t cheap. My dad bought it in Japan—it’s a Sony.”

“So… all the settings are in Japanese?” Liú Xiǎowěi eyed him sideways. “Can you even read it?”

“I know the basics. I didn’t join the club just for show,” Zhōu Yǒng said proudly.

“You’ve barely been to a handful of meetings and you’re already showing off?”

“Still went four or five times, okay?” Zhōu Yǒng replied enthusiastically. “I’ve been longing to get my hands on Mr. Qiū’s digital camera forever! Finally get a taste today!”

“Take more pics of the cute girls,” Lǚ Bólún patted him on the shoulder with a deep, serious tone. “When you develop them, remember to bring me a copy.”

“Don’t worry. I got this!” Zhōu Yǒng thumped his chest, then let his gaze drift to Mò Xuěyáo.

The delicate-looking girl seemed a little uneasy, nervously fiddling with her fingers. But the moment she noticed someone watching, she immediately switched to a bold, nonchalant look—like she didn’t care at all.

Zhōu Yǒng grinned secretly, feeling like he’d just caught a glimpse of the real Xuěyáo.

---

The opening ceremony was scheduled for the same time as their usual Monday morning assembly.

Only today, everyone had to carry their own chairs to the field.

“Class Two, over here—!” Yè Wén waved her arms vigorously from the grass near the track. “We’re sitting here!”

The students took their seats. Looking around, the entire student body was arranged in a ring around the field—it was rowdy, crowded, and full of excitement.

Mò Xuěyáo genuinely liked this kind of lively atmosphere. She couldn’t help but feel more cheerful.

Out of over twenty girls in Class Two, only fifteen ended up wearing cheerleading uniforms. The rest either couldn’t fit into them because of weight or height, or simply didn’t look good in them.

Take the girl standing beside Xuěyáo, for example—Xuěyáo literally had to look up at her…

“Akiyama Aya, just how tall are you?” Wáng Jiālè bounced around beside her enviously, but even when she jumped, she still couldn’t match her height.

“180 centimeters,” Akiyama replied, rubbing her head a little awkwardly. “I really envy you girls with petite figures.”

“We’re the ones envying your tall frame—it’s perfect for a model!” Jiālè exclaimed.

“Totally,” Mò Xuěyáo nodded in agreement.

Good thing she was a girl now. If she were still a boy, being only 158 cm tall… that would practically be a disability, wouldn’t it?

Even in this day and age, a guy really ought to be at least 165 cm tall.

“You’re all just envious of what you don’t have,” Mo Xiǎoxiào shook her head, amused. “Tall girls wish they were small and delicate. Short girls wish they were tall and elegant.”

“Well, that’s human nature!” Wáng Jiālè put her hands on her hips. “Anyway, are we just gonna cheer from here later, or do we go up on the podium?”

Yǔkōng High’s podium was quite large, with two tiers. Each level could comfortably fit over forty people without it feeling crowded.

“Of course we go up,” Yè Wén sauntered over, munching on a lollipop. “After the opening ceremony, it’s your turn. Every class sends a few up there, but ours gets the most—what can I say, our class just has the prettiest girls~”

The girls, though clearly pleased by the compliment, all wore humble smiles.

“Yà Wén, seriously? Still eating lollipops at your age?” Chén Chéng, tall and dashingly handsome, teased her with a grin.

“What, I’m not allowed to eat them now?”

“What’s so great about lollipops anyway? I’d rather…” Liú Xiǎowěi began with a lecherous chuckle.

Chén Chéng gave him a light smack on the forehead. “Cut it out, you creep.”

“Hey, I didn’t even finish my sentence and you’re calling me pervy. Maybe you’re the one with the dirty mind!” Liú Xiǎowěi huffed, then tried to smack Chén Chéng’s head in return—but couldn’t reach. So he opted for a hearty slap on his butt. “Wow, that’s some bounce!”

“For real?” Gāo Yuán leaned over to try as well.

Suddenly, everyone wanted a turn.

Lǐ Hóngrǎn even gave it several firm smacks in a row.

“You guys wanna die or what?” Chén Chéng laughed while grabbing the slightly taller Lǐ Hóngrǎn. The two of them wrestled like they were in a match.

The rest of the boys whooped and jeered, some even jumping in. It quickly became a chaotic mess.

This kind of playful scuffle was every boy’s favorite pastime.

And it often built strong bonds.

Back in the day, even Mò Xuěyáo used to join in. Physical roughhousing brought everyone closer, faster.

But now… all she could do was remember.

“I really miss those days…” Xuěyáo sighed quietly.

Even after being a girl for over a month, she was still used to thinking and feeling like a boy.

But one’s gender and the influence of hormones had a powerful impact on personality.

It might not be obvious now—but give it a few years. When she looked back, Mò Xuěyáo might realize that there was barely anything left of the boy she used to be.

“Each class, please line up in order!” came the booming voice of P.E. teacher Yè Rán from the podium.

The noisy crowd began to quiet, and the speakers began to play the March of the Athletes.

The opening ceremony wasn’t all that different from their usual Monday morning assembly.

Everyone just lined up and listened to speeches from the podium.

“Good morning, students and teachers,” the principal began from the second tier of the podium with a formulaic greeting. “I’m delighted to welcome you to the 37th annual school sports day. This event is meant to emphasize the importance of physical fitness and the spirit of perseverance and self-improvement.”

Mò Xuěyáo couldn’t help letting out a big yawn.

From elementary to high school, it seemed every principal said the exact same things during these events.

Just recycled buzzwords over and over again…

“Of course, that was all just fluff,” the principal’s next line perked everyone up.

“The sports day is, plain and simple, a time to challenge yourself and compete for top honors. But remember: friendship first, competition second. Don’t hurt others—or yourselves—just for the sake of winning.”

“The real reason we hold this event is because other schools do it too. We can’t be the odd ones out. It’s basically just a standard school tradition now.”

Some students chuckled.

It wasn’t all that funny, but it was certainly more refreshing than the usual stiff speech.

“The sports meet is also a chance to socialize outside the classroom. You get to know students from other grades and classes. Who knows—you might even meet the one.”

“Wooooah—!”

“Oooooh!!”

The students erupted in cheers, as if the principal had just given official permission to start dating.

Although his wording was tactful, the hint was there.

After all, "the one" could also mean a lifelong friend.

“No wonder he studied abroad—so open-minded!” Huā Yínyín, who was standing in front of Mò Xuěyáo, practically swooned. “And he’s so handsome too… Men with stubble are the dreamiest!”

Xuěyáo half-lidded her eyes. From this distance, how the heck could Huā Yínyín even see the principal’s face?

“Well, that’s enough talk. Don’t stress too much about the final scores—just have fun.”

With that, the principal wrapped up his brief address. He didn’t invite any other teachers or student reps up—he simply declared the sports day officially open.

It was surprisingly swift and efficient.

Next came the broadcast calisthenics competition, which required participation from every student in each class.

Not exactly friendly to first-year students.

Especially not for someone like Mò Xuěyáo, who had only done calisthenics a handful of times.

“The second set of broadcast exercises will now begin.”

As the broadcast played, even those who didn’t know the moves had no choice but to muddle through.

There were instructors on the podium, but from this distance, their subtle movements weren’t very clear.

Following the classmates around her meant always being half a beat behind.

Xuěyáo had originally planned to copy Huā Yínyín’s movements—but while her gestures were indeed big and energetic, most of them were completely wrong. Mimicking her would’ve meant a total disaster.

To Mò Xuěyáo, the calisthenics felt like they dragged on forever.

When it finally ended, she let out a long sigh of relief.

Thankfully, everyone else had done pretty poorly too—otherwise, she would’ve died of embarrassment…