The Slacker Academic Always Gets Caught (SLACKER)
This "invite him over to express our thanks" sounded more like "invite him over to be executed."
Chi Ning didn't dare ask. Quiet as a mouse, he helped his elder brother move the barbecue grill to the backyard. Wearing a gray apron, he sat on a small stool selecting easily combustible charcoal.
Daylight gradually faded into the tree shadows, the dull gray-blue sky making the villa's fence resemble a fortress bristling with spikes.
Only the small cluster of flames in the clearing provided warmth, the orange glow reflecting on Chi Ning's cheeks, illuminating the small area before him.
Xu Jiahao stood outside the fence and tsked while adjusting his collar. "Makes me look like a witch coming to peddle poisoned apples."
Qin Heng glanced down at himself, his expression turning odd.
Xu Jiahao patted his shoulder. "Dad might be too busy to look after you today."
Sorry, cheap son.
After this, he led the way to knock on the Chi family's backyard gate.
"Ding dong."
Hearing the doorbell, Chi Ning looked up and immediately locked eyes with Qin Heng beyond the fence.
At that moment, scenes from Qin Heng's sandpit jump flashed through his mind like a movie reel—firm and confident.
Chi Ning withdrew his gaze abruptly, suddenly feeling that outdoor barbecue might not be suitable for this weather—the charcoal basin was too hot...
It felt warm.
Chi Ning turned to help the live-in grandma push the cart full of marinated skewers. The weight of the cart loaded with raw meat exceeded expectations.
After pushing for a while, the stainless steel cart had barely moved a few centimeters.
Chi Ning: ...
Impossible!
Gripping the handles, he tried using his body weight to move the dark green metal cart.
Watching this, Qin Heng's eyebrows twitched.
Chi Ning leaned forward, the lines of his back visible through his shirt and the white shirt tucked into his waistband accentuating his slender waist.
More deadly was the bow tied at the small of his back, making his hips appear perky—like someone dressed up prettily waiting for their lover's return...
"Whew." Straightening up, Chi Ning exhaled at the nearly immobile cart, developing deep doubts about his fitness progress.
The resistance of the swivel wheels on grass must be too high.
Equations about the ratio of an object's motion resistance to cross-sectional area and resistance intensity popped into his head.
So annoying, this heavy thing. Tomorrow he'd set a physics problem for Li Qiuhe and the others.
"One evening, Xiao Ming and twelve guests were camping on grass. Given the barbecue cart's load capacity is 35kg..." Chi Ning paused, muttering to himself, "No, needs to be harder. Maybe add particle velocity or something."
Wind speed and air resistance need to be factored in too. The more conditions we add, the better—greater computational complexity is ideal.
Chi Ning was just about to torment a group of eager academic overachievers when two more hands gripped the cart.
He paused, turning his head to the side. "Qin Heng?"
"Mm."
With two people and four hands, pushing the cart became much easier. The cart loaded with marinated meat soon arrived beside the charcoal grill.
Chi Ning scratched his neck. "Thanks."
Qin Heng gave a nonchalant "Mm," before adding, "No trouble."
Silence settled between them again.
Chi Ning started feeling a bit warm once more.
While Xu Jiahao and Chi Baichuan exchanged pleasantries, the others gradually arrived.
Unlike a formal banquet, today's gathering was among close friends, and everyone dressed casually. One man, referred to as Boss Lu, even showed up in board shorts and flip-flops while carrying a bucket of fish.
"Brother Chuan, just caught these in Yangcheng City's river," Boss Lu said while holding up four fingers with evident pride. "A four-pound carp and blackfish!"
Then he flashed an eight. "Eight in total. Get the kitchen to clean and grill them—fresh catch."
His wife rolled her eyes, clearly exasperated.
Laughter and the scent of charcoal filled the air, creating a lively atmosphere.
"Old Sun, heard your son did well in the mock exams," Chi Baichuan said, pulling a beer from the crate at his feet and handing it over. "So, has he picked a university yet?"
Old accepted the beer, waving his other hand dismissively. "Did well? Far from what we managed back in the day. His mom says he's been distracted lately—I’m starting to wonder if he’s got a girlfriend."
Chi Baichuan raised an eyebrow. "Oh? How so? Senior year’s too intense for romance."
Old sighed. "Exactly my point."
Chi Ning sat beside his brother, ears perked as their father probed Lao Sun for details.
He flipped the chicken wings in his hands, brushing them lightly with oil.
Old Sun glanced at Chi Ning and Chi Yang before clicking his tongue enviously. "Your boys have always been handsome. So, any love letters at school?"
Chi Yang smirked. "Uncle Sun, you wouldn’t believe it—Dad even hired actors to teach us workplace romance is untrustworthy."
Shedding his usual careless facade, Chi Yang navigated such gatherings with effortless charm.
Chi Ning felt his brother's arm drape over his shoulder.
Chi Yang spoke again, "My brother..." then choked on his words.
His brother had taken a liking to two people at once, even spending money to make them happy.
And one of them was right beside him!
Chi Yang gritted his teeth. "Haha, my brother got early admission, so he’s completely free now. I have no idea what his love life is like."
Old Sun turned to Chi Ning. "Hey, my kid is about the same age as your brother. Chi Ning, tell your uncle, what do kids your age usually like?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the air around Chi Ning grew still.
Chi Yang’s ears perked up, and Chi Baichuan subtly shifted his gaze toward him.
Qin Heng stared blankly at the sausages grilling on the charcoal stove in front of him.
Chi Ning, still focused on the chicken wings, didn’t even lift his head. "Someone who isn’t too much trouble, I guess."
Old Sun chuckled. "That’s as good as not saying anything." He clinked his beer bottle with Chi Baichuan’s. "Your younger son—still hasn’t figured things out yet."
Chi Baichuan thought to himself, What nonsense.
It wasn’t that he hadn’t figured it out—he had just awakened to it and didn’t yet understand what love really was. Still naive.
A crush—it was always hazy like this, floating and uncertain.
Chi Baichuan glanced sideways at Qin Heng and saw him expertly sprinkling chili powder over a skewer of sausages with decorative cuts, then drizzling a bit of oil before handing them out to the uncles beside him.
Xu Jiahao, basking in the attention, fanned himself with a small palm-leaf fan. "See? I always knew I had a good eye for picking sons. What? Have my own? Nah, someone like me shouldn’t ruin a girl’s life. Getting this one was already a lucky catch—raise him well, and he’s no different from a biological child."
Most men in Yangcheng City were traditional, with many still keeping concubines just to have more children. Xu Jiahao stood out like a sore thumb here.
But his status was unshakable, so even if anyone wanted to criticize, they only dared to do so in their hearts.
Qin Heng handed the last sausage to Chi Ning, decisively rescuing the chicken wings that had been flipped back and forth but still weren’t cooked. "I’ll handle this. You sit and eat."
Chi Ning took a bite of the sausage—crispy, fragrant, so delicious it felt like his tongue might melt.
Strange. The seasoning was the same, so why did this sausage taste so much better?
The uncles chatting nearby noticed it too.
"Damn, this sausage is good."
"Qin Heng grilled it."
"Why can’t I get this flavor?"
"You? You’re lucky if you can even eat properly."
"Let Qin Heng grill the fish too, eh?" Boss Lu said with a grin.
Chi Ning, chewing the last bite of his sausage, looked up at him. "No way, Uncle Lu. He’s already too busy to eat. He’s a guest—how can a guest host other guests? How about I grill it for you instead?"
Qin Heng’s hand, flipping the meat, paused.
Dripping oil from the chicken wings sizzled into the charcoal, sending up a small flare—like it had scorched his heart.
Boss Lu quickly backtracked. "Ah, no, no! I’ll do it myself... myself!"
Are you kidding me? Chi Baichuan’s two sons were the apples of his eye, one on each side. If he made one of them work, Brother Chuan would kick him straight out of the yard.
Come to think of it, he’d been careless. Even if Qin Heng was just an adopted son, he shouldn’t have ordered him around like that.
"Boss Lu," Madam Lu said with passive-aggressive sweetness. "Too used to bossing people around at home, are we?"
Nothing terrified Boss Lu more than his wife calling him "Boss Lu". Those two words meant either kneeling on a washboard or sleeping on the floor.
He immediately raised his glass. "Aiya, I’ll punish myself with three drinks!"
Three small cups of beer were downed in quick succession, and the atmosphere grew lively again.
Qin Heng lowered his gaze to watch Chi Ning, who was eating while hissing from the spiciness. The grilled sausage earlier seemed to have been sprinkled with too much chili powder—Chi Ning's eyes were even slightly moist from the heat.
Hissing through the burn, he still kept his eyes fixed straight on the chicken wings over the charcoal fire, his expression screaming: Why aren’t they ready yet?
Adorable. Chi Ning hissing from the spice was adorable, and Chi Ning craving food was just as adorable.
But when he stood up for others… that was the most adorable.
After several rounds of drinks, Chi Baichuan gradually steered the conversation toward the main topic.
"Everyone knows our project progress has been slow lately. You’ve all worked hard," Chi Baichuan said with his face slightly flushed.
He stood up with his drink, and the others didn’t dare remain seated.
"President Chi, you’re too kind. It’s our duty."
"The research progress can’t be helped."
"Old Sun, say something?"
"The new drug has made a breakthrough, but clinical trials will still take some time," Old Sun replied, slightly tipsy and a bit carried away. "This project was something Brother Chuan and I dreamed of back in university. After all these years, we’ve finally made some progress."
Chi Baichuan raised his glass. "A toast to all of you. Thank you for your trust in Chongning over the years."
The group erupted into chatter, reminiscing about the old days with teary-eyed nostalgia.
From university bathhouses to studying abroad, the group of grown men grew red-eyed and red-faced with emotion.
Chi Ning was stunned. He didn’t understand how his father had steered the atmosphere into this sentimental state in just a few words.
As the conversation continued, Shen Zongze’s name came up.
"That bastard never does anything legal, compliant, or decent!" Boss Lu cursed.
"Exactly," Chi Baichuan said while giving Boss Lu an approving glance. "Lately, I’ve been uneasy. I’m afraid Shen Zongze might get desperate—after all, our recent moves have been a major victory, flipping the tables on him."
Chi Ning’s eyes darted from his father to Sun Bowen.
Then he heard his father say, "How about we set him up?"
The most complex business battles often employ the simplest tactics.
Chi Ning watched as his father issued a series of instructions:
"Bribe the security guards at Shen Corporation’s building to unplug Jiuzhi Group’s internet cables at set intervals."
"Hang a mirror on the office building opposite Jiuzhi Group’s CEO’s office."
"Send someone to replace the koi fish at Shen Zongze’s doorstep."
And—
"Old Sun," Chi Baichuan slung an arm over his friend’s shoulder, "let’s pause this project for now. Secure the data and leave it with me. Swap it out with the previously scrapped plan. I have a bad feeling—they’ll definitely target you."
Chi Ning thought for a moment and immediately understood his father’s intention.
If the data was stolen despite the warning, then Sun Bowen was definitely the mole. But if the swapped fake data was stolen instead, then Sun Bowen was innocent—and the Shen Family would take a fall because of the false information.
After all, Sun Boxing’s father had been Chi Baichuan’s friend for decades.
Chi Yang sighed. "He lectures me, but Dad can’t bring himself to be ruthless either. He’s giving him a test—one last chance, whether he’s guilty or not."
Chi Ning hummed in agreement. "Let’s hope Uncle Sun doesn’t let him down."
Otherwise, it’d be really heartbreaking.
After patting Old Sun’s shoulder, Chi Baichuan turned to Xu Jiahao next. "Old Xu… your son…"
He paused, then said with passive-aggressive behavior, "His cooking is quite impressive."
"I should thank him for taking care of my Ningzai during his birthday banquet." Chi Baichuan put on a slightly exaggerated smile. "Has your son gotten his guaranteed admission yet? If so, he must be having an easy time now. Our families should arrange to meet more often and exchange ideas."
Xu Jiahao glanced at Qin Heng.
All the face he'd gained earlier had now vanished.
He thought to himself, how presumptuous of you.
Qin Heng handed the perfectly cooked tin foil noodles to Chi Ning and stood up solemnly. "I'm still preparing for the college entrance exams. It's Chi Ning who's been helping me review. He's taken care of me more."
Chi Baichuan's expression shifted slightly.
How impeccably diplomatic. How could his son compete with someone like this?
Father Chi lowered his head and noticed Chi Ning sitting there dumbfounded with a mouthful of noodles.
"..."
Damn it, he came here to break them apart!
Who would have thought Qin Heng's cooking skills were this good!
Look, he's even stunned his son into silence!
Father Chi gritted his teeth but maintained a pleasant smile, still clinging to a sliver of hope. "What's wrong, Ningzai? Doesn't it taste good?"
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