Chương 16: DRUM

Drum: a hollow cylindrical shell of any size that has a head stretched over one or both ends and is beaten with the hands or a stick.

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The other students immediately ran to Zhou Yongliang who looked in pain. One of the students ran to the infirmary to get the school nurse, and the rest checked on Zhou Yongliang's condition.

But, Ren Weisheng was not one of the students that surrounding Zhou Yongliang. Instead of approaching his beloved didi, he approached Yang Liu and snapped at him.

"You did it on purpose, didn't you?" He pushed Yang Liu's shoulders harshly. His face was red, and so were his eyes. He was really upset seeing Zhou Yongliang's condition.

Yang Liu didn't budge. The tall student was still standing in his position without the intention of approaching Zhou Yongliang and apologizing. He also didn't have the intention to answer the short student's question.

"Hey, Yang Liu! You threw the ball very hard and aimed at Zhou Yongliang's face! What do you want, huh?" Now, it was Chen Guangli's turn to approach Yang Liu. He was about to throw a fist, but Fang Xing came in time to hold his hand.

"You need to calm down. Yang Liu must have accidentally thrown the ball at Zhou Yongliang's face. Zhou Yongliang is all right, anyway. His nose is indeed injured, but he doesn't break a bone."

"Zhou Yongliang is all right, you say? His nose is red and swollen like that because of your friend! Why are you defending him, anyway? It's obvious that your friend deliberately targeted Zhou Yongliang's face!"

Seeing Fang Xing and Chen Guangli had a tense argument, the teacher finally intervened, "That's enough, Chen Guangli. Fang Xing was right, Zhou Yongliang is all right now. He has received treatment, so you don't need to worry." He then turned to stare at Yang Liu. "Yang Liu, whether on purpose or not, you have hurt your classmate. You have to apologize to him."

Instead of following his teacher's orders, Yang Liu only glanced at Zhou Yongliang lightly, then silently walked out of the sports hall. Fang Xing threw an apologetic look to the teacher, and then immediately followed Yang Liu.

"Hey! Where are you going, Yang Liu? Come back here in instant!" Ren Weisheng shouted and prepared to chase after Yang Liu, but his hand was immediately blocked by the P.E teacher.

"Instead of making a fuss with Yang Liu, you better take care of Zhou Yongliang. He needs you right now," the teacher patiently spoke to Ren Weisheng.

Ren Weisheng finally tried to compose himself and turned around to approach Zhou Yongliang who was still sitting on the floor. Earlier, he had received treatment from the school nurse, and he looked better now. The nurse asked him to rest in the infirmary, but he refused.

"Liangliang, are you okay? Does it hurt so much?" Ren Weisheng asked in a concerned tone.

Huang Bo and Chen Guangli were now also crouching beside Ren Weisheng. The three students looked at Zhou Yongliang wistfully.

"Is that you, Ren Weisheng gege? I'm fine now. It doesn't feel so hurt anymore, so you don't need to worry," Zhou Yongliang softly replied while his eyes trying to focus on Ren Weisheng's face that seemed blur to him.

Huang Bo seemed to notice the oddity, so he asked, "Why did you ask if that's Ren Weisheng, Yongliang? You can't see clearly without your glasses, huh?"

"It's Huang Bo, right?" Zhou Yongliang now turned to the blonde student. "You are right, I can't see clearly without my glasses. Did you guys see where my glasses are?"

Chen Guangli looked at Zhou Yongliang's glasses which had been shattered in his hands. He sadly handed the object over to Zhou Yongliang.

Zhou Yongliang received the object with disappointment. "It's broken into pieces, huh?" he asked bitterly.

"Damn! That Yang Liu must have done this to Zhou Yongliang on purpose. He wasn't that cruel when he got rid of me, Chen Guangli, and also some of the other students on our team, but why was he like that to Zhou Yongliang?" Ren Weisheng angrily asked the question while clenching his fists.

That question went unanswered for a while. They also didn't understand why Yang Liu could do that to Zhou Yongliang. What was Zhou Yongliang's fault? Zhou Yongliang was a new student, and they seemed to not know each other before. They didn't even talk to each other at school.

Yang Liu was a cold and aloof student, but he wasn't cruel, he had never bully anyone at school. Then, why did the black-haired student suddenly targeted Zhou Yongliang? It seemed like Yang Liu hated the new student so much. The war drums gradually sounded louder even though for no apparent reason.

"Ren Weisheng, you need to stop your sentiment toward Yang Liu. He isn't a bad person. Perhaps it Is true that he hit Yongliang's face accidentally," Huang Bo suddenly broke the silence, making his three friends turned to him.

"What?" Ren Weisheng looked at the tall guy in disbelief. "Why did you say Yang Liu is not a bad person? You always defend him, but you never give a damn reason!"

Zhou Yongliang could only glance at Bo and Ren Weisheng, who was in an argument now. He didn't understand what they were talking about.

"Aren't you the same, Ren Weisheng?" Huang Bo asked the short guy. "You always attack him, but you never give me a reason!"

Huang Bo seemed upset for a little, and he looked so different than his usual character. Usually, he looked so innocent and bulliable, but now he looked so fierce against Ren Weisheng.

"Guys, it's not the time to argue. Can you please stop?" Chen Guangli finally came in between them.

Ren Weisheng sighed, but he still refused to look at Huang Bo. Meanwhile, Huang Bo suddenly lowered his head and whispered, "Yang Liu is indeed not a bad person. I know him, and he is not a bad person."

Now, Ren Weisheng turned again to Huang Bo. He was about to open his mouth to ask the latter, but Chen Guangli stopped him, "Let's wait until Huang Bo's ready to tell us about Yang Liu. Huang Bo was right, anyway. You are the same as him for keep slandering Yang Liu without an apparent reason." Chen Guangli's clear eyes kept staring at Ren Weisheng's when he was speaking.

Hearing Chen Guangli's words that made sense, Ren Weisheng finally nodded and turned to Huang Bo. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get angry at you, Huang Bo," he sincerely apologized to the blonde guy.

Huang Bo grinned innocently and replied, "It's okay, Weisheng! We both have secrets, but I'm sure that someday we will reveal the secrets to end the misunderstanding between us."

Ren Weisheng and Huang Bo looked at each other while smiling sweetly. They rarely fought seriously with each other, so the scene that had just happened was quite surprising.

"Guys," Zhou Yongliang finally spoke up again after a few minutes he acted like a spectator. "Let's go back to the class. My nose is no longer hurt," he continued.

Ren Weisheng turned to the brown-haired student and said, "But, your glasses are broken, Liangliang. You can't see clearly without them."

Huang Bo noticed Ren Weisheng's sadness. He tapped the latter's shoulder and said, "You don't need to worry, Weisheng. I will take Zhou Yongliang to the optician to order new glasses after school. My brother will come to pick me up today. You are okay with that, right, Zhou Yongliang?"

Zhou Yongliang's pretty eyes widened at Huang Bo's kind offer. "No, Huang Bo," he immediately rejected the offer. "I will just go to the optician by myself. I don't want to bother you and your brother."

"You are not bothering us, Yongliang," Huang Bo stubbornly spoke again. "We are friends, so we have to help each other. I'm sure my brother will not feel bothered as well. You have met him and he is very nice, right?"

Of course, Zhou Yongliang still remembered his first meet with Huang Bo's brother. The man looked nice, indeed, but he didn't want to bother the two brothers.

But, his three friends kept pestering him to accept the offer, so in the end, he agreed to accept that offer. He didn't want to make his friends worry, after all.