My Mr.Mermaid

Tang: In July of that year, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) executed an impromptu update on the list of banned drugs and medications. My team doctor did not see the updated list in time. In August, he prescribed a nutritional supplement for me. This supplement contained a type of peptide hormone which just so happened to be one of the new drugs on the list of banned medications. At that time, he was unaware and I was also unaware. And so I took the supplements, and my urine test came back positive.

Yun: So it was a case of accidental consumption?

Tang: Yes.

Yun: Why the three year ban then? Compared to the typical penalty, it"s rather long. Especially if it was just an accident.

Tang: The timing was just so coincidental. In the first half of that year, there had been several international doping scandals, and there was even one case within the country. The General Administration of Sport decided to take strict action against this. I was the first to test positive after the crack down, so the punishment was much harsher to set an example. An immediate three-year ban.

Yun: But you were clearly innocent. Didn"t you appeal the ban?

Tang: I was originally planning to appeal, but incidences of accidental drug consumption are not easy to verify. On top of that, what I had consumed was a nutritional supplement, not a prescribed medication or treatment, so it was quite difficult to appeal. With the crackdown, things just came to a head, so my coach advised me to be patient and wait a while before trying to appeal.

Back then, I had an argument with the team doctor. I was young and foolish then, and said some harsh words in my anger. The team doctor was very angry and left. I was unable to find him ever since. When I wanted to appeal later, the person who wrote the prescription was gone. There wasn"t enough evidence, so I had no way to appeal.

Yun: That"s very unfortunate.

Tang: Yes, it was indeed rather unlucky. WADA usually updates its banned drugs list on a fixed schedule, I do not often take nutritional supplements, and the General Administration of Sport doesn"t always take such a harsh stance ... everything just converged together at that time.

Yun: Do you feel much regret for missing out those three years? There had been World Championships and Olympic Games held within those three years.

Tang: When the incidence just happened, I was very bad, but I came to terms with it after that. Honestly, it might not have been a bad thing. Back then, my time for the b.u.t.terfly stroke had already been stuck without improvement for quite a while. I didn"t know if there was still any room for improvement. Switching to freestyle actually gave me a sense of rightness, like a fish returning to water.

Yun: A blessing in disguise.

Tang: Yes, that"s it.

********

Yun Duo sat in her swivel chair, staring blankly into s.p.a.ce with her face in her hands. Lin Zin was seated beside her, his elbows resting on the edge of the desk as he flipped idly through the day"s newspaper. The weather was a little warmer now, so he had already changed into a single-layer plaid shirt. Right now, the sleeves of his shirt had been neatly rolled up, revealing fair forearms.

When he flipped to the page with Tang Yi-Bai"s exclusive interview, he stopped and nudged Yun Duo gently, "What a large panel. Boss, you"re going to be big now."

"Shoo." Yun Duo gave him a knock on the head with her pen.

Lin Zi read through the interview intently, and after a while, he suddenly said, "There"s a spelling error."

Yun Duo did not believe him. "Even the proof-reader said there were no mistakes. Who are you, a person who even uses idioms incorrectly, to say I have made a mistake? Which word is misspelled?"

Lin Zi could only shake his head and sigh.

Yun Duo suddenly asked him. "Say, how much did you score in the language composition section of your college entrance exam? Tell me."

"I don"t know, I can"t check the score for just the essay section when I look up the score."

Yun Duo did not plan to let him weasel his way out of answering. "Still, you should be able to estimate the score of the previous sections. Then you can just use the total to minus off that part to find out! Come on, tell me."

Lin Zi was resigned. "52."

"Shut up! I don"t believe it!" Yun Duo pursed her lips. "About the same score as me, this language queen? Who"re you trying to fool?!"

"What I"m saying is, I scored 52 points total for my language paper."

Yun Duo was stunned for a moment before bursting out into laughter. "Hahahahaha, out of a total of 150, you only scored 52? That"s pathetic! No wonder your use of idioms is always so unique and strange. Hahahahaha —" Yun Duo laughed and laughed, and then she abruptly stopped and looked at him strangely, "But how did you manage to get into Tsinghua with just 52 marks in language?"

"I scored full marks for all the other subjects."

"..." Yun Duo was rendered speechless for a long moment. In the end, she twisted her head aside and huffed coldly, "Crazy freak!"

Lin Zi slapped the newspaper onto the table and gave her a contemptuous glance. "Fail student."

Actually being regarded as a poor student by someone who only scored 52 marks on their language paper, did the world still make any sense? But G.o.dd.a.m.n this son of a gun really had a higher overall total than her ...

********

In the afternoon, Yun Duo went out for lunch with Lin Zi and Cheng Mei. During the meal, Cheng Mei said to them in a low voice, "Yun Duo, I heard from Lil" Zheng in our editorial department today that she heard Qian Xu-Dong and Director Liu talking about you."

Yun Duo"s ears perked up instantly. "What did they say?"

Cheng Mei hesitated. "Don"t get mad if I tell you."

"I won"t, I won"t." Yun Duo waved her hands.

"He said ... that the relationship between you and Tang Yi-Bai is unclean, which is why you managed to get an exclusive interview with him."

Bam!

Yun Duo"s face was thunderous as she slammed a hand hard onto the table. The loud noise drew the attention of the surrounding diners. Lin Zi rushed to protect the bowl of soup in front of him.

Yun Duo hissed angrily, "What"s unclean? Our relationship is very clear and transparent! His mind is dirty, so anything would become unclean in his eyes!"

Cheng Mei was so frightened by her outburst that her shoulders were trembling. "Calm down, calm down ..."

"Argh, I"m so mad, I"m sooo mad!" Yun Duo"s chest was heaving, "We"re friends! Tang Yi-Bai is loyal, willing to reserve an exclusive interview for a friend. Is there anything wrong with that? Has this harmed anyone? Why should we suffer such filthy allegations for this?"

"Yes, yes, yes, no one"s been harmed, no one. They should not have said all that nonsense." Cheng Mei hurried to console her.

Lin Zi, who had been keeping his head down drinking his soup, suddenly looked up and glanced at Yun Duo, "If the relationship between you two is so clear and transparent, then why are you so angry?"

"I ——" Yun Duo was at a loss for words for a moment, stammering a bit before reb.u.t.ting, "I"m angry because I"m being misunderstood!"

"In my opinion, that"s completely unnecessary," Lin Zi shook his head, calmly fiddling with the ceramic bowl in his hands. "If you really could snag Tang Yi-Bai, then that just means that you have charm and great moves. There will definitely be countless people who will admire and envy you, and say bad things about you behind your back. This is the treatment only winners of life will receive. Right now, you"re already a winner in the eyes of others, so why are you still angry?"

"I ——" Well, d.a.m.n me. That logic was quite incredible ...

Lin Zi then added, "Imagine if your relationship with Tang Yi-Bai really wasn"t so pure and clean. When Qian Xu-Dong finds out for real that you managed to obtain an exclusive interview with Tang Yi-Bai because of it, how would he react? Would he look down on you for it? No, not only would he not look down on you, he would envy you and regret his own misfortune. He would be especially depressed and frustrated, stewing over how his immense talent could not compare to a maiden"s face, and curse the ways of the world! ... In short, he would be filled with negative energy. All those who complain about you behind your back are not going to live happily. Shouldn"t you rejoice over this?"

Yun Duo felt suffused with admiration right then. "I really do feel better because of your words ..."

Lin Zi nodded. "There"s no need for thanks between us. Just give me half of your charcoal-roasted pork cartilage and we"re even."

They returned to the office after lunch. Yun Duo did not take a nap; she sat at her workstation and watched a television drama. Lin Zi sat beside her, looking at her with his chin on one hand.

Lin Zi"s facial features were exquisite — taken together with his pale skin and thin figure, he fit the aesthetic of "flower boy" to a T. Even though his background was shrouded in mystery and he was extremely useless, it was no secret how open-handed he was with his money. Therefore, he had quite a number of female fans within the agency. There were always people asking him out for all sorts of reasons — of course, they were all sadly rejected in the end.

As such, if he stared like he was doing now at any girl in the office, that girl would most likely blush.

Yun Duo, however, was an exception. She hung out with Lin Zi every day and had gotten used to seeing all his bad habits, so it was difficult for her to have any interest in him. Right then, she did not even spare Lin Zi a glance, keeping her eyes on her computer screen. "I don"t need comforting anymore. You can go sit back at your place."

Lin Zi did not leave. His eyes subconsciously slid to half-mast, making him look very listless. His hand still supporting his jaw, he suddenly commented, "Naive."

"Yes, it"s naive to watch "House of Cards". Someone with such depth as yourself should go watch A spin-off from the Chinese animation Boonie Bears.Logger Vick."

"I"m saying that you"re naive — believing whatever someone tells you."

Yun Duo felt as if he was hinting at something else with his words. She turned her gaze away from the screen to look at Lin Zi. "What are you trying to say?"

Lin Zi"s fingers tapped lightly on the table. An arm as fair as ivory was revealed by a rolled-up sleeve, and on his wrist was a complex Patek Philippe multi-function watch in rose gold, set with diamonds. In short, the watch was as cool as a watch could be. If Director Liu were to wear this watch, it would just be like a coal tyc.o.o.n entering the city, but on Lin Zi"s wrist, the effect was one of utmost luxury. The man"s face was just too exquisite and tasteful — it was the type of good that made other men want to beat it up when they saw it.

He said, "I don"t think Qian Xu-Dong would say something like that to Director Liu."

Yun Duo was unconvinced. "Why?"

He pointed at his own temple, and his gaze was still filled with the annoying contempt for an academic deadweight. "Of course by a.n.a.lysis. Qian Xu-Dong has been in the industry for 9 years. Even though he"s sometimes too prideful due to his talent, he has always been judged well. At least, he has never done anything immoral or indecent. Director Liu has been serving in this news agency for almost 30 years. He is already fixed in his own behaviours and characteristics. Although he takes offence quite easily, he"s still pretty fair. He"s lax towards himself and strict with others, holding his subordinates to high standards. He"s also a bit of a clean freak. Regarding your relationship with Tang Yi-Bai, Qian Xu-Dong most definitely would have come up with all sorts of interesting theories, but if he understands Director Liu well enough, he would not so casually badmouth you in front of Director Liu. Slandering others behind their back is a great taboo in the workplace. Director Liu is not Qian Xu-Dong"s father, so he wouldn"t let such a problem slide. Qian Xu-Dong also knows this — he"s not stupid — at most, he"ll go home and grumble to his wife. Would he really disgrace himself in front of a superior?"

Yun Duo felt enlightened. She found that this Lin Zi was really a genius — even though he was terrible at simple things like writing articles and taking photos, his mind was particularly sharp, able to cut through to the very nature of an issue with just one glance. As expected of a monster who scored full marks in all the comprehension subjects!

Still, Yun Duo found herself wondering, "But Cheng Mei said ..."

Lin Zi sneered contemptuously, "That"s why I called you naive. Believing whatever anyone says."

Yun Duo was speechless. "You mean that Cheng Mei was lying? But ..."

"It doesn"t have to be her who lied. It could also be someone else, like that Lil" Zheng or some other person. Rumours, right? A mistake anywhere along the chain and the truth would become twisted. Besides, the spread of this rumour was most likely intentional."

"Intentional? Why?"

"Why else?" Lin Zi looked at her like she was an idiot. "Think. If Qian Xu-Dong hears about this ... we skipped past his thought process right to the final results ... who will he dump the blame on?"

Yun Duo looked like she had seen the sun behind the clouds. She pointed at herself. "Me?"

"Bingo! Congratulations, here"s a piece of candy as a reward," he said, revealing two taffies from who knows where, and then placing one of them before her.

Yun Duo was in no mood to eat candy. Frantically, she asked, "But why?"

"I don"t know. In any case, you"re about to offend Qian Xu-Dong now. Oh, and the person who started the rumour could take things even further," Lin Zi unwrapped his own taffy and popped it into his mouth. He closed his eyes in enjoyment, and then said as he chewed, "If they tell others that you"re the one who started the rumour, what do you think will happen? This version of events will evolve into: You went around telling others that Qian Xu-Dong purposefully badmouthed you in front of Director Liu to slander you ... hehehe, Boss, you"re done for."

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