Electronic Nezha

Chapter 167 Heroic Competition
Every day in life, we face many helpless situations. My helplessness has always been very specific: as a child, I didn't want to go to school; as an adult, I didn't want to go to work. Through unremitting efforts, I've at least managed to avoid having to work. Although I still have to do work every day, at least I'm my own boss. Every time I smile and negotiate with clients, I earn real benefits.

I am satisfied with my current life. I feel that most of my body is still within my comfort zone. One of the main reasons I feel comfortable is that I don't have to get up early. In this slow-paced third- or fourth-tier city, people my age who sleep until 8:30 every day are extremely rare. If I can't go for a run at 6:00 every day in the future, won't I lose my lap?
Ordinary people strive to enter their comfort zone, while ruthless people strive to break free from it.

I'm not a ruthless person.

"I don't have any clothes! Maybe we can do it later." This is the most common way for ordinary people to deal with problems: make excuses and procrastinate.

"I've prepared something for you." Ma Chaoran handed me a loose-fitting tracksuit. "Hurry up and change into it. Don't be late on the first day."

I shrank back inside, clutching my clothes and looking miserable. Ma Chaoran pushed open the door and said, "I'll wait for you here."

At that moment, I was only wearing a tank top and a pair of boxer shorts, and I didn't feel any inconvenience at all. I changed into my sportswear and put on my socks, and suddenly realized that I only had a pair of leather shoes.

"Where are your shoes? Do you even have any?" I asked, grasping at straws. I couldn't possibly run in leather shoes; that would be neither professional nor safe. If necessary, I could even use AI to fabricate a bunch of unfounded dangers to educate Ma Chaoran. In the entire Sixth Division, there wasn't a single man with feet the same size as mine!
Ma Chaoran asked in bewilderment, "Don't you bring running shoes when you move to a new place?"

I shrugged: "I don't have any at home either." I lied; I actually have a pair, which I bought before the divorce, but I'll have to look for them.

Just then, Liu Zhenhua placed a pair of sneakers at my door and said, "Dad, you can wear mine." Although he is a little taller than me, our shoes are perfectly interchangeable.

I tried to signal to him with my eyes: "And what about you?"

It was dark, the lights were dim, and Liu Zhenhua said in the corridor, "I brought all sneakers, and there's another pair."

I said fiercely, "Well, thank you!"

Liu Zhenhua belatedly said to Ma Chaoran, "Old Ma, take it easy on my dad, I don't want to take the blame."

Ma Chaoran said impatiently, "Hurry up, it's like I'm going to kill you just because you're running."

Even though the Sixth Division is half a military base, the only person up at this hour is Shark, who has to take Liu Zhenhua to school. Yuanyuan has already prepared breakfast—sugar cakes, soy milk, and eggs fried in the shape of hearts.

The shark sat there, devouring all the food without even looking at it, eating with an air of utter wastefulness. He glanced at my and Ma Chaoran's attire and casually remarked, "Old Ma, don't lose sight of your savior."

Even after Xiao Wu drove off, I was still in the passenger seat, completely bewildered. I knew the answers to the classic three questions: I knew who I was, where I was, and what I was going to do. But I just couldn't understand why anyone would go for a run before dawn...

Qiao Yan is the kind of person who can live in a villa but chooses not to, not because he's low-key, but because he chose convenience over spaciousness.

Qiao Yan's family lives in the best neighborhood in the city center, which means they have access to the best resources. The house is in a good school district, and they can go to a large shopping mall through an underground passage. If they get a sudden illness, they can go to the best hospital. This is how the rich live in the city.

So we met at the park entrance opposite Qiao Yan's house. What makes a good neighborhood? It has to have a park nearby!

When we arrived, Qiao Yan's car was parked there. Seeing us, the Qiao father and daughter got out of the car together. Qiao Yuchen was wearing a brand-name sportswear outfit, and her long running shoes looked expensive. Qiao Yan was a little surprised when she saw me: "You're here too?"

I nodded to him: "Go back to sleep, don't worry about leaving our daughter with us?"

As she spoke, Qiao Yan threw her down jacket back into the car, revealing a neat morning running outfit.

I chuckled and said, "Why are you doing this?"

Qiao Yan also looked like he hadn't woken up yet, and struggled to say, "It's the first day, I have to stay with Yu Chen and let her get used to it." He looked at my outfit and laughed, "I didn't expect you to come."

I sighed and said, "I was forced to come here to lose fatty liver."

Qiao Yuchen frowned and said, "Let's start quickly, it's so cold." It was 6:30 in January in the north, the weather was freezing, and everyone's breath was heavy with cold air. It was definitely not the time to chat.

Ma Chaoran said, "Let's warm up first." As she spoke, she stretched her back and legs on the spot. Qiao Yan and I followed along, jumping around a bit, feeling a little embarrassed.

After a while, Ma Chaoran led Qiao Yuchen to jog slowly on the outer track of the park, while Qiao Yan and I followed behind.

Ma Chaoran was clearly the kind of person with great athletic talent; every part of her body was very coordinated. She led the race, like a sports car that hadn't fully started, looking very relaxed. Qiao Yuchen ran alongside her silently, managing to keep up.

Qiao Yan and I followed behind, looking a bit like two perverted stalkers. To ease the awkwardness, I said, "Looks like Xiao Qiao can run pretty well." Qiao Yuchen looked delicate, but her movements were quite standard. After all, she was at an age where her athletic ability was about to explode, and she performed much better than I had expected.

"Good genes!" Qiao Yan said with a serious gesture, "Back in my day, I was on the football team."

"Then you're pretty awesome." I believe him. Qiao Yan is tall and well-proportioned, and you can tell from her student days that she was the kind of person who was famous.

Qiao Yan glanced at my belly and said, "You should exercise more, otherwise you won't be able to handle it."

"What can't you handle?"

Qiao Yan gave me a mischievous look, leaving me to figure it out myself.

Suddenly, Ma Chaoran turned around and ran backwards, saying to me and Qiao Yan, "Warm-up is over. Let's set a goal of 3 kilometers for today. Let's begin."

When she turned around, I thought the run was over, but it turned out that the warm-up was over. Wasn't the warm-up over a long time ago?

"Old Liu, keep up with me," Ma Chaoran specifically instructed me. She noticeably sped up with Qiao Yuchen. I ran a few steps, but suddenly realized Qiao Yan was gone. I looked back and saw her still running, but moving forward at a snail's pace like she was taking a stroll.

"Hey!" I called out to him.

Qiao Yan waved her hand generously: "You go with me, I don't need to practice."

"What do you mean you don't need to practice? Are you all show and no substance?"

"Hey, what kind of talk is that?"

I said, "Let's have a race and see who finishes 3 kilometers first. The loser buys breakfast."

"Coming!" Qiao Yan quickened his pace and caught up in a few strides. I waited until he was running alongside me, then suddenly accelerated again. In an instant, we left Ma Chaoran and the others far behind, like two idiots in a race.

Running truly gives you a feeling of breaking free from constraints. I can't even remember the last time I experienced this kind of passion. The cold wind brushed past my ears, and the streetlights cast dazzling filaments of light as I sped along...

The side effect is: after 30 meters, I feel like that's the end of my run for the day!

Qiao Yan still had the basics, which was evident when she ran 5 meters more than me, then turned around and asked me breathlessly, "Was it really necessary?"

Just then, Ma Chaoran's calm voice rang out behind us: "Old Liu, not bad, keep running at this speed."

I patted Qiao Yan on the back as I passed him.

Qiao Yuchen shouted from behind, "Go, Dad! Don't lose to him!"

Perhaps because she hadn't heard her daughter's voice so vividly in a long time, Qiao Yan chased after her with determined steps. We were like two whirlwinds, one fast and the other lightning-fast, and we actually caught up! In the past, people generally attributed such inexplicable situations to comparison.

It's now called Xiong Jing!
(End of this chapter)