books44 Chapter 98
Chapter 98
Chapter 98Today was the day when students were leaving for their New Year's break, departing one by one.
Earlier, Chu Tingwu and others had gone sailing, but Teacher Fu caught them in the act when they were disembarking—
They had indeed kept it well hidden, but the drone gave them away.
Teacher Fu directly
Three-Five-Five, meanwhile, had an expression that seemed to say "hurry up," though due to her coloring and fur volume, others couldn't tell. But they could see her darting ahead.
The long-haired ginger cat leisurely followed, and the two humans and three cats made their way to the small garage where the mother cat was hiding.
This was a ground-floor garage that had been abandoned after the complex redesigned and rebuilt an open-air parking area in another location. Being close to the activity area, it was now used to store miscellaneous items and old exercise equipment, and children would sometimes come to play there.
The mother cat had claimed this space and would extend her claws at anyone who approached.
502 explained: "Our complex actually provides free cat houses, but maybe because the scent of other cats was too strong, she particularly refused to live in those."
Just like how kittens loved cardboard boxes, the mother cat preferred this higher location and was quite satisfied with it.
The adoption gift for the mother cat was carried in by the long-haired ginger cat, but after completing this task, 502 didn't leave. Instead, he walked around to the... climbing wall in front of the complex's activity area.
He had actually come down to practice climbing. He didn't want to run in winter, and exercising outdoors was more refreshing than indoors, so the climbing wall was a perfect spot.
...But why was there a climbing wall in the residential complex?
And... Zhou Qiang looked around: The elderly people were understandable, and the middle school and elementary school students were normal, but why were there cats trying to climb up too?
Zhou Qiang stood to the side with the cat on the leash, and people would occasionally come over to say hello—
Although not everyone knew her, they all seemed to recognize Little Bai, the Maine Coon beside her, and Three-Five-Five who had come down to rest, and would then say: "You're Chu Tingwu's friend, right?"
Even the old ladies sitting in chairs, knitting and watching short videos, nudged each other and made room for her: "Come sit here, Little Chu's friend. You'll catch a draft where you're standing."
Zhou Qiang: "Thank you =v="
Her gaze returned to the climbing wall.
It was obvious that many of the people climbing were beginners—after all, this was just a residential community, not a professional training facility. For them, since the equipment was there, they just wanted to try it out. "Rock climbing" wasn't much different from doing pull-ups on the old equipment nearby.
Compared to adults and young people, children, despite their shorter limbs, seemed more agile. When they fell, they didn't get upset; instead, they laughed and played together, and the next time they could climb even higher.
Although she had Chu Tingwu beside her, who had made news headlines for rock climbing (both criticism and praise), Zhou Qiang still wasn't very interested in climbing.
Watching Chu Tingwu climb was like watching world-class athletes compete on TV—she was so skilled that it didn't inspire any desire to imitate, only thoughts of "how is that even possible?"
She knew she couldn't do it anyway, so watching was enough.
But the climbing wall before her wasn't too challenging. Elderly people, children, and even less athletic young people were all trying it out. Rock climbing didn't seem like such an "extreme sport" that was far beyond everyone's reach. The wall was right there, and there was no shame in giving it a try.
Chu Tingwu: "Remember to warm up properly."
Zhou Qiang: "...You walk completely silently!"
Chu Tingwu: "Meow~"
White Whiskers: "Meow!"
Chu Tingwu had appeared without warning, cheerfully greeting everyone, not forgetting the cat, and finally handed Zhou Qiang a cup of hot milk tea.
"The first time I tried parkour, I simply thought, 'I can jump across that gap,' and then I did," she said. "Parkour isn't really an extreme sport, and most of the time, my rock climbing experiences have been even safer than parkour. I think categorizing sports is meant to help people better approach these activities and prepare properly, not to create barriers that keep curious people out."
A climbing wall is just a wall.
An overhanging cliff by the sea is just a more dangerous wall.
The former is how most people experience this sport, safely enjoying its pleasures, while the latter is how people like her find their "fun."
Perhaps someday, those climbing this wall might want to experience the latter, and at least they'll remember that it was in this community where that door first opened for them.
Chu Tingwu asked Zhou Qiang: "Want to give it a try?"
Zhou Qiang: "Sure, why not."
...She definitely shouldn't have tried it.
Zhou Qiang thought this as she climbed into her car the next day, supporting her aching arms.
She had done thorough warm-ups under Chu Tingwu's guidance, but hadn't used professional equipment. The bouldering wall wasn't very high, and the difficulty wasn't great either.
Chu Tingwu chose the easiest route for her and then climbed up herself.
Whenever Zhou Qiang was about to stop, Chu Tingwu would encourage her from the side, teaching her how to conserve and apply strength, pointing out useful details for climbing... Soon, Zhou Qiang found her own enjoyment in it—the pleasure of "solving puzzles."
It seems all sports eventually become a kind of "science," requiring mental engagement—
Sailing is like this, parkour is like this, even simple running eventually enters the realm of research, and rock climbing tells everyone from the start: whether you can complete a climb depends greatly on your choice of routes and movements.
When encountering such mentally engaging sports, Zhou Qiang's eyes noticeably brightened after climbing for a while.
Some sports become more interesting the more you understand them.
So when Chu Tingwu invited her to try another, more challenging route, she didn't refuse.
Then Zhou Qiang realized:
"Even if you have the mental model and know how each step should go, if you don't have the strength, you just don't have it."
Without proper training, even knowing how to solve the puzzle doesn't mean you can write out the answer.
Zhou Qiang: "...You do it!"
But not using her own solution—she wanted Chu Tingwu to try her proposed method!
Fortunately, even if she couldn't write the answer herself, she had someone beside her who could demonstrate perfectly.
Chu Tingwu: Is it my turn to perform "Iron Chef"?
They stayed at the climbing wall until nightfall, with the cat making two rounds of patrol—but the next morning when Zhou Qiang woke up, despite not climbing for long and spending most of her time on the ground, her whole body ached.
Chu Tingwu, well-trained and full of energy, could even help her carry her suitcase.
Zhou Qiang: "..."
Never mind, it surely won't be like this in Fallen Phoenix City! Chu Tingwu couldn't possibly drag her mountain climbing there, right?
-
Fallen Phoenix City indeed only had one small mountain.
But after returning to Fallen Phoenix... it seemed more people knew Chu Tingwu?
"Meow!"
And there were more cats too!
The promotional advertisements had already been
taken down, but the promotional banners on the streets remained the same. Almost everywhere Chu Tingwu went, she would encounter cats from Fallen Phoenix City, with big cats specially bringing little cats to visit.
And behind the cats came people—
"Long time no see, Tingwu... Going parkour?"
Chu Tingwu turned to look at Zhou Qiang.
Zhou Qiang quickly stepped back.
Chu Tingwu: "I was going to say I'll take you to Teacher Zhang's house first..."
Not planning to take you parkour with me!