Chapter 78: Deception

After the events of the day, Zhou Xuan walked to dinner with his companions, drawing curious gazes from other students along the way.

"Haha, Zhou Xuan! You should have seen the shocked expressions on people's faces every time your name was announced as the first-place winner. They were in absolute disbelief, completely stunned," remarked a classmate who had participated in the long jump, his voice filled with excitement.

"It’s true. You really stole the show today, Zhou Xuan. All afternoon, whenever you were competing, the spectators would flock to your event. It left the other athletes feeling quite speechless—hardly anyone was watching them, and for some, it even caused them to lose their focus and underperform," added a shot putter.

Liu Yixue, however, was skeptical. She laughed and said, "Haha, surely it wasn't that exaggerated? There were plenty of people watching my high jump event!"

Zhou Xuan hadn't expected to cause such a stir. He suspected that, in the beginning, most people had probably come to watch him fail. After all, few had believed he could actually secure four gold medals, yet the results had consistently defied expectations.

Zhou Xuan was like a dark horse that had appeared out of nowhere, leaving the other sprinters and long-distance runners in his shadow. Furthermore, the wager with the teacher from the Third Middle School had only added to the drama of the games.

Seeing Liu Yixue’s doubt, Zhou Xuan smiled and explained, "Yixue, with a school beauty like you around, people naturally flocked to your event. A guy like me couldn't possibly be as attractive as you. If you don't believe me, just ask the guys in the other events how many people were left watching them—I’d bet it was mostly just the other competitors."

Hearing this, Liu Yixue realized he was right; it seemed the girls' events had consistently drawn larger crowds. She chided herself for being so slow-witted, but hearing Zhou Xuan call her a "school beauty" made her heart flutter. Looking at his bright, sunny face and his staggering results, her heart began to beat faster.

While Zhou Xuan and his group enjoyed their meal, Wang Wei and Zheng Qiang had no appetite at all.

"Teacher Wang, I never expected Zhou Xuan to be this strong. What do we do now? During the preliminaries, I basically gave it my all. Even if I manage to improve, I’ll likely only reach the level of Zhou Xuan's current performance, and that’s assuming I perform perfectly. Based on his performance in the preliminaries, it’s clear he hasn't even used his full strength. Tomorrow’s final is going to be very dangerous," Zheng Qiang said, his voice filled with anxiety.

After the competition, Wang Wei had taken Zheng Qiang to a restaurant outside. They had no desire to eat at the cafeteria and face the pointing fingers of the students. Although they had ordered food, neither had touched a bite.

As a middle schooler, Zheng Qiang had never imagined things would escalate to this point. Even if he lost, he wouldn't suffer much—at most, a few snide remarks. But Wang Wei was in a different position. Given his personality, there was no way he would stand at the closing ceremony and shout that he was a pig. If he tried to renege on the deal, and the recording of the bet were to leak, it would be catastrophic for his reputation.

Watching Zheng Qiang stare at him, Wang Wei felt a surge of frustration and regret for ever entering into the bet. "How careless of me. I actually let that brat trick me."

Wang Wei thought to himself that he absolutely could not let Zhou Xuan win four gold medals; otherwise, he would have no face left.

"Heh, shouting that I'm a pig at the closing ceremony would be social suicide. But if I don't go through with it, Li Yunxi will certainly release the recording, and my lifelong reputation will be ruined. Unless I leave Rongzhou, I'll be a laughingstock forever."

Wang Wei racked his brain, searching for a way to prevent Zhou Xuan from winning the fourth gold. If something were to happen to Zhou Xuan, then Zheng Qiang winning a gold medal would be easy, and victory would be within reach.

"We absolutely cannot let Zhou Xuan win four gold medals. If he does, neither you nor I will be able to show our faces in the Third Middle School, or even in all of Rongzhou. You know what the consequences are, don't you?" Wang Wei said after a long silence.

Zheng Qiang knew he was right, but he saw no way out. "But how can we stop him?"

"Who said we can't? What if Zhou Xuan had an accident during the competition, or simply couldn't make it to the finals? Wouldn't that solve everything?" Wang Wei sneered.

"Ah! Teacher Wang, even if you have a grudge against Li Yunxi, there's no need to hurt anyone, is there?" Zheng Qiang was shocked.

"Damn it, do you think I'm that kind of person? I’m talking about sneaking some laxatives into the mineral water in Zhou Xuan's hotel room so he'll be stuck in the bathroom all night, ensuring he won't be able to outrun you tomorrow. Or, we could bribe one of his competitors to 'accidentally' bump into him at the start of the race. That would ensure he can't win," Wang Wei said with a sinister chuckle.

Watching Wang Wei’s cunning, malicious expression, Zheng Qiang felt a sudden chill. He had heard about the bad blood between Wang Wei and Li Yunxi, and he deeply regretted getting dragged into it. But it was too late to back out now.

"Which method do you want to use, Teacher Wang?" Zheng Qiang asked cautiously.

"The first one, of course. It’s subtle, and no one will suspect us. They'll just think Zhou Xuan ate something bad. It’s foolproof. The second method is too conspicuous; if he gets lucky and doesn't get hit, all our effort will be wasted."

"But how do we get the laxatives into the water bottle in his room? We don't have a key card, so we can't get in," Zheng Qiang pointed out.

"You idiot. Zhou Xuan and the others are definitely at the cafeteria right now. I'll go get the laxatives and find out which room he's staying in. You take the medicine to the hotel and play it by ear. Go to the front desk and ask for two bottles of water. After you take them, walk a few steps away, then act surprised and shout that you forgot your key in the room. The staff will ask for your room number and unlock the door for you. Then you're in," Wang Wei explained in detail.

Zheng Qiang was stunned. He hadn't realized Wang Wei was so familiar with the hotel's procedures; he was shockingly cunning.

"Do we really have to do this?" Zheng Qiang hesitated. "What if they come back while I'm there?"

"Zhou Xuan and his friends won't finish their meal that quickly; they might even go for a walk afterward. We left half an hour early, and the hotel is right behind the restaurant. You can be in and out in less than ten minutes. What are you afraid of?" Wang Wei urged him. "Unless you want Zhou Xuan to win four gold medals and watch me admit I'm a pig in front of all the school leaders?"

Wang Wei's final words extinguished any lingering hesitation in Zheng Qiang. He looked steadily at Wang Wei and said, "I'll do it."

"Good lad! Heh heh..."