Watching Yan Qi sit down on the chair so effortlessly, Hu Mengqing, who had been ready to step in and help, froze in place for a moment.
It took her a few seconds to process what she had seen before she reacted, a look of sheer disbelief on her face as she asked Yan Qi, “Xiao Qi, how did you do that?”
“Do what? What do you mean?” Yan Qi, who was busy adjusting her position on the now-higher seat, turned to look at Hu Mengqing, momentarily confused by her surprised tone.
Realizing she hadn’t been clear, Hu Mengqing quickly elaborated, “I mean how you just hopped lightly from the floor and landed perfectly steady on the chair.”
Hearing this and recalling her own actions, Yan Qi understood what Hu Mengqing was referring to. That was a slip-up, she thought to herself.
But she quickly collected herself. After a brief moment of thought, she said to Hu Mengqing, “Oh, you mean that? But what’s so strange about it?”
” What’s so strange about it?” Hu Mengqing continued, looking at Yan Qi. “You just jumped from the floor like it was nothing and landed perfectly seated on the chair.”
Ready with an excuse, Yan Qi replied, “Anyone could do this if they practiced it a dozen times every day, just like I did. It’s really no big deal.”
“Really? But I have a feeling this isn’t something just anyone can pick up,” Hu Mengqing said, still skeptical, the words escaping her lips almost involuntarily.
“Class President, maybe you just think you can’t learn it. If you don’t believe me, ask the other classmates and see what they think,” Yan Qi suggested. Knowing the Class President wasn’t easily fooled, she tried to make her explanation more credible by involving the others.
Considering Yan Qi’s point had merit, Hu Mengqing turned her gaze to the other students in the room. “Alright, you all heard our conversation just now. Is what she said correct? Can anyone really learn to do something that looks so tricky easily, as long as they practice enough?”
Hearing the Class President’s question, the students murmured among themselves for a short while before in turn offering their opinions.
“I think Classmate Xiao Qi is right. It’s a small thing. If someone is willing to practice, they could definitely do it too.”
“Yeah, and since Xiao Qi is so light, it must be even easier for her.”
“I agree.”
“Me too.”
Hearing the students’s replies and finding that most of them agreed with Yan Qi’s ‘practice makes perfect’ explanation, Hu Mengqing let go of her suspicions. She turned back to Yan Qi and said, “Alright then, since everyone seems to think so, Xiao Qi, I’ll believe you.”
“Thank you, Class President.” Yan Qi gave Hu Mengqing a sweet smile.
“There’s no need to thank me for that,” Hu Mengqing replied.
Hearing this, Yan Qi thought of something else and asked, “By the way, Class President, is everyone from our class here now?”
Hearing this, Hu Mengqing paused for a moment, then turned to look around the room at the others.
After a short while, she turned back to Yan Qi and answered, “We’re still missing one person.”
Hearing that one classmate was absent, Yan Qi, curious about who it might be, asked, “Class President, who are we missing?”
Hearing this, Hu Mengqing, who had long ago memorized the names and faces of everyone in the class, replied, “Liu Sheng’s best friend, Zhao Jing.”
“Zhao Jing? Why isn’t he here yet? It’s almost noon. Could he have run into some trouble on the way?” Upon hearing Zhao Jing’s name, an image of him popped into Yan Qi’s mind. Not understanding the reason for his delay, she looked up at Hu Mengqing and asked.
Having not contacted Zhao Jing at all and unaware if anything was wrong on his end, Hu Mengqing could only answer honestly, “Sorry, I don’t know if something happened. But don’t worry, Xiao Qi, I’ll give him a call in a moment. We should find out then.”
Hearing this, and understanding that the Class President didn’t know everything, Yan Qi said, “Okay, then please make that call, Class President. Let’s find out why Zhao Jing still isn’t here. We shouldn’t have several tables of people waiting just for him, only to end up missing out on a hot meal.”
“Okay, I understand.” After replying to Yan Qi, Hu Mengqing quickly pulled out her phone.
Just as she was about to dial Zhao Jing’s number, the latecomer himself finally pushed open the door to the private room and appeared in everyone’s view.
“Zhao Jing, why are you only arriving now?” Spotting Zhao Jing, Hu Mengqing quickly walked over to him, her tone gentle yet firm as she asked.
Noticing Hu Mengqing approach and hearing her question, Zhao Jing—who had recently gained superhuman abilities through an unforeseen incident and become a super—replied in a rather casual tone, “Ran into a little something on the way, so I got held up.”
Hearing Zhao Jing’s reply, Hu Mengqing felt something was slightly off, but she couldn’t quite pinpoint what. After a moment’s thought, she said to him, “Alright, since you put it that way, I won’t press further. Hurry and find a seat. The party is about to start.”
“Okay, Class President.” With that, Zhao Jing ended the conversation with Hu Mengqing and promptly began scanning the room for his best friend.
“Over here, over here, A-Jing!”
Hearing his best friend’s voice and noticing him waving, Zhao Jing quickly walked over and sat down in the seat saved for him next to his friend.
Seeing that Zhao Jing had found his seat and knowing the whole class was now present, Hu Mengqing addressed everyone, “Alright, classmates, everyone is here now. I’ll go outside and tell them to bring in the hot pot. Wait here and get ready to eat your fill!”