Chapter Eighteen: A Temporary Farewell

"Ding~~~ Congratulations, host, mission accomplished. New mission received: Complete the 2017 GTCC season. Mission reward: For every race completed, host will receive 1 skill point and 1 talent skill point. Host level upgraded to Level 6."

He'd leveled up! Yet, this was the most disheartening advancement Mo Shu had ever experienced.

He had mentally prepared himself for Wang Qing’s confession, but never expected it to come so swiftly, so unexpectedly.

From the very beginning, Mo Shu had always regarded Wang Qing as his own little sister. Whether it was her brother Wang Yu or their parents, all of them had shown him great appreciation. Mo Shu’s parents, too, were fond of Wang Qing. Years ago, both families had openly expressed their hope that, in the near future, Wang Qing and Mo Shu might unite in matrimony.

Wang Yu had even sought Mo Shu out several times for heartfelt conversations—partly for Wang Qing’s feelings, and partly to convey that the family valued Mo Shu’s character deeply. Mr. Wang himself welcomed Mo Shu to join the Wang Group, offering him a role in product photography and visual design.

But Mo Shu had courteously declined. He was a man who cherished his pride, though at times he despised his own stubbornness in this regard.

As the saying goes, "Those who live for appearances suffer for them." Pride is indeed a double-edged sword, and Mo Shu understood this well. But, after all, "No gold is flawless, no man is perfect."

Stripping away all benefits and conditions, what mattered most was Mo Shu’s own heart.

Because, for Wang Qing, he felt only sibling affection.

His thoughts swirled endlessly, and as Mo Shu sat lost in reverie, Wang Qing had already found her answer.

"Brother Mo Shu, there’s no rush to respond to whether you’ll be my boyfriend. Sorry to have disturbed your race." With that, Wang Qing spun around abruptly and hurried away.

Whether she was fleeing a rejection or simply afraid he’d see the tears welling in her eyes, Mo Shu could not tell.

He opened his mouth, hesitating over whether to explain himself.

After a long pause, he forced out a difficult, "I'm sorry..."

The corridor stretched on and on. At its end, a figure seemed to stand waiting for Wang Qing. The unusual stature and the ever-present dark suit told Mo Shu exactly who it was, and relief flooded him.

"Old Guo, I leave her to you..." Mo Shu murmured, a faint bittersweet smile on his lips.

Returning to the hotel, Mo Shu scarcely slept half the night. The modest joy of topping the practice session had long since evaporated.

Wang Yu messaged him to say that the media had contacted the team, hoping to do a special interview with him as one of the "Top Five Rookie Drivers of the Year." He urged Mo Shu to reply soon.

Mo Shu answered simply, "Okay," then set his phone to silent and tossed it aside.

His heart ached for Wang Qing’s disappointment, yet fate had played its hand. Even worse, though he worried about Wang Qing, the face that kept appearing in his mind was Wang Yining.

"Enough, enough..." Mo Shu groaned, switching off the bedside lamp and willing himself to sink into sleep.

When he awoke, it was already quarter past ten. He hurriedly washed up and rushed to the hotel lobby.

He thought for certain he’d missed the team bus, but found Wang Yu and Wang Yining sitting on the sofa, faces clouded with worry, deep in discussion.

A sense of foreboding gripped Mo Shu, and he hurried over to ask what was wrong. Wang Yu didn't answer, only cast him a resentful glance, then shook his head and sighed repeatedly, turning away.

Wang Yining sighed as well, and handed him a card.

On the pure white card, only two or three lines of elegant handwriting appeared, the first nearly blurred by moisture.

"Brother Mo Shu, I’m planning to return to England. When we meet again, I will have become even better. Perhaps then you’ll like me and want to be my boyfriend! Good luck in the race! Until we meet again!"

"Tap..."

A clear drop of tears landed in the center of the card.

Mo Shu could no longer tell if the writing was blurred by another tear, or if his own vision was too clouded.

"Silly girl... Who ever said you weren't good enough..." Mo Shu whispered softly.

Wang Yu had once said his sister came back to China for Mo Shu; yet less than a month after their reunion, the childhood friends were parted once more.

Mo Shu lifted his head sharply, crystalline tears scattering in the air.

"Come, let's go to the racetrack. I will become even better myself!"

......

Shortly after noon, the roads surrounding Fugang International Circuit became gridlocked. Tens of thousands of citizens drove to watch the race, and many vehicles stalled on the main thoroughfares, forming a vast line of cars.

Compared to Nanshan Circuit, Fugang’s grandstands were larger and could accommodate more spectators.

Because it was Saturday, the number of viewers for the qualifying session had clearly increased. Ticket scalpers were already hawking tickets outside the circuit entrance, and vendors had set up stalls along the road, all eager to cash in on the GTCC fever.

Inside the Stellar Racing Team pit, Mo Shu and Wang Yining were discussing race tactics.

Since qualifying rarely involved direct duels between drivers from different teams, their advantage as teammates was not particularly pronounced.

As long as they performed as well as they had in practice, pole position would almost certainly be Mo Shu’s. If Wang Yining managed to stay within the top five in lap times, the two would find it easier to coordinate in the main race.

"Masters, only five minutes left until qualifying begins. For this kind of race where you can freely choose your start time, I suggest you observe first. We still need to ensure we have enough tires for the main event," Wang Yu’s voice sounded in the team communications.

"Old Wang, today I want to be the first to start," Mo Shu replied.

"What’s wrong, Mo Shu? Have you forgotten the qualifying strategy?" Wang Yu tried to dissuade him.

GTCC qualifying didn’t use a three-stage format. Instead, drivers simply needed to set their fastest lap within the allotted time.

Generally, those with absolute skill preferred to start late, both to reduce vehicle wear and to bask in the aura of the champion. More importantly, drivers with average results wanted to run as many laps as possible in a limited time, increasing their chances to improve their lap times.

As a result, these drivers left plenty of sticky tire rubber on the track, which improved the cars’ grip. Grip was the main reason top drivers waited to start—they wanted to take advantage of the enhanced traction, saving effort, car, and tires.

Under these circumstances, good results were easier to achieve, and many fastest lap records were set this way.

Those who started out first suffered a slight disadvantage, but Mo Shu ignored all these conventions and insisted on heading out early—he wanted more practice laps.

"Let him be, stubborn mule—he won't turn back unless he hits a wall!" Wang Yu couldn’t argue, snatching off his headset and slamming it onto the table.

As the car left the pit, Mo Shu was surprised to see Black Mirror from Kunsheng Racing also preparing to start immediately.

The two cars rolled out of the pits one after another, Black Mirror leading the out lap. But as they approached the timed lap, Black Mirror suddenly slowed down, dropping behind Mo Shu’s car.

"What’s this guy up to? Trying to learn my driving style?" Mo Shu wondered to himself.