This is blatant forced bundling!

But the dark-skinned lad fancies Qi Gu, naturally he’ll have to accept Qin Heng as part of the package.

Qin Heng continued, "Let me tell you, the friendship between Qi Gu and me is deep, incomparable to most. If I weren’t thinking of the Mid-Autumn festival contest and wanting to bring glory to our neighborhood, I wouldn’t have brought him along. You should know that Xu Tang and I are distant relatives, and he gets along extremely well with my second brother-in-law. I’ve learned to play soccer from him."

The dark-skinned lad grinned, "Lucky to have you, otherwise our team would be at the bottom of the ranks again this year. With Qi Gu, we’ll surely make it to the top three this year."

Qin Heng proudly lifted his chin but was interrupted by a roar and then a burst of cheers from ahead.

It turned out Gu Baoshu had leapt again, executing a dazzling kick to intercept the ball sent by the opponents.

Then the ball seemed to grow onto her foot, as it slipped and slid, and within a flash, she scored another goal.

The crowd watched with blood boiling, unable to stop themselves from cheering loudly.

Today, Gu Baoshu was dressed as a boy. Her indigo Songjiang Cloth shirt was casually tucked into her black belt, under which her black silk pants were half shown, the hems tucked into white silk socks, tied with a pink and blue ribbon. She paired it with short deerskin boots—bold and attractive.

The gemstone blue sweatband on her forehead fluttered in the wind, adding an air of gallantry.

The dark-skinned lad was dumbstruck, clicking his tongue, "My heavens, when Qi Gu appears on the field, he’s sure to enchant countless young ladies in the Capital City." 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Qin Heng scoffed.

"Such style."

How could Gu Baoshu dress as a lad and be even more handsome than him?

Qin Heng said, "Getting enchanted is all for nothing."

"What do you mean by that?"

The dark-skinned lad was puzzled.

"Even if they’re enchanted, no one can marry him," Qin Heng said. "His family has already arranged his marriage, just waiting for him to reach age to tie the knot. The young ladies are merely drooling for naught."

Unless Gu Baoshu turns the tables.

Thinking of this, Qin Heng couldn’t help but laugh aloud.

The dark-skinned lad lamented, "Such a handsome and charismatic young man, it’s such a waste to marry young."

Qin Heng chuckled, "What can be done? His family has strict rules, they wouldn’t allow him to take concubines."

The dark-skinned lad sighed again.

Qin Heng wanted to continue jabbering when suddenly he heard a sharp call, followed by the sound of something tearing through the air as a ball whizzed past his ear, loosening his hair bun which then fell apart.

Scared stiff, Qin Heng didn’t dare to move, standing like a statue.

It took him a while before he hollered, "Who was it?"

Not far away, Gu Baoshu stood with her hands on her hips, one foot tapping the ground, leisurely looking at him, "It was me, what of it?"

Qin Heng was furious, "You definitely did it on purpose."

Gu Baoshu snorted, "What else? Listening to you jabbering on like that."

Qin Heng’s anger turned to joy, he chuckled, "Brother Qi, you’re truly sharp-eyed and keen-eared, you heard it all, saving me from wasting my breath. We agreed earlier, you’ve got to join Brother Hong’s soccer club, and participate in the big Mid-Autumn contest."

Gu Baoshu snorted coldly, raised her eyebrows, crossed her arms, "Since when could you make decisions for me?"

The dark-skinned lad immediately looked at Qin Heng nervously, licking his lips.

Qin Heng started to argue, "What else? You forgot how you threatened me yesterday? If you don’t help, none of us can go on with the plan."

The admiration was evident in the dark-skinned lad’s eyes.

That Qi Gu’s posturing was quite intimidating, only someone as brazen as Qin Heng could befriend him.

It seems worth learning from this in the future, for someone as honest as him couldn’t navigate this world easily.

Gu Baoshu considered this and gave in to Qin Heng’s threat, "Fine, just this once. If you blabber again, we’re done teaming up."

Qin Heng mumbled, "Team up or not, who the heck would be afraid of that."

Gu Baoshu added, "And I might just beat you half to death."

Qin Heng said, "Just this once, don’t make it a habit. With our friendship, our bond, there’s no need for such heartless words, right?"

Gu Baoshu glared at Qin Heng.

Qin Heng got his way, he grinned, turned to the dark-skinned lad, and winked, "Brother Hong, come quickly to meet Brother Qi. Brother Qi is most gallant, once he promises something, there’ll be no issue. Our team will definitely be champions at the Mid-Autumn Festival."

The dark-skinned lad immediately stepped forward and bowed respectfully to Qi Gu, "Brother Qi, we’ll rely on you, please look after us."

Gu Baoshu bowed gracefully in return, "No need for ceremony, Brother Hong, it’s just a small matter, not worth mentioning."

The dark-skinned lad, Little Brother Hong felt reassured.

This Qi Gu might not seem approachable, but he was courteous and not the bullying sort; the team would surely have a boost, securing a top three position wouldn’t be a problem.

Qin Heng glanced around curiously, "Why isn’t anyone playing soccer anymore?"

Gu Baoshu scoffed, "You both were engrossed in chatting, ignoring the game status; someone on the opposing team twisted their ankle earlier, and they’ve arranged to play again tomorrow."

Qin Heng sneered, "Are they losing it and going to ask Xu Tang to come? Resorting to this kind of trickery."

Little Brother Hong couldn’t wait for Qi Gu and Xu Tang to face off, quickly said, "Exactly, seems today Qi Brother’s skill intimidated them, so they only can ask Xu Tang to come. We’ve had players with good skills before, but they’ve been handled by Xu Tang’s crew."

Gu Baoshu crossed her arms, "Ha, tomorrow I’d like to see Xu Tang’s skills. Maybe he has a crew, but I have my own too? Not to boast, but even alone, I wouldn’t fear Xu Tang and his crew on the field."

Upon hearing this, Little Brother Hong’s skin shone, his eyes sparkling brightly, he laughed, "That’s great, but what’s in the open can be dodged, what’s hidden is hard to guard against. Who knows what tricks Xu Tang’s crew could pull? Qi Brother is playing for fun, while Xu Tang and his crew see it as their livelihood. It’s better to bring some people tomorrow."

"Sure, thanks for the reminder," Gu Baoshu wasn’t concerned but still accepted Little Brother Hong’s goodwill with a smile.

Qin Heng frowned with worry.

"Tomorrow, I’ll try to persuade Xu Tang not to clash with you."

Gu Baoshu was not polite to him and flicked her sleeves, "You’re full of chatter, sometimes fighting makes acquaintances, you know? I’m looking forward to a good brawl with Xu Tang tomorrow."

Qin Heng wanted to say more, but the family’s old servant approached with a pained expression, "Young Master Heng, if you don’t return soon, I fear I’ll be reprimanded, the lady of the house is waiting for you and has already sent word several times."

Qin Heng said, "What’s so urgent? They can’t do without me?"

The old servant hesitated, glancing around.

Gu Baoshu sneered, "Why don’t you hurry home, your mother’s worried you’ll play outside without coming back, almost wanting to tie you to her waist! You’ve hardly grown up, yet think you’re indispensable, like they can’t hold a feast without you."