Chapter Ten: Mingchuan's Advice—A Slap Works Best

The sound of running water echoed loudly, flooding the entire restroom. Colt sat alone on the toilet, lost in thought. He seemed to be reflecting on his recent actions, his head tilted back, muttering to himself. Just then, Mingchuan pushed open the door: "How are you, Colt? Have you calmed down?"

"Though I’m not convinced, I admit defeat. You really are a worthy opponent, a strong one," Colt replied, seeing Mingchuan. He stood up and saluted him.

"I’m not your opponent, man. We’re teammates," Mingchuan said, patting Colt’s shoulder with a smile. "But you are a very strong teammate. I only won because I used two weapons."

"Is that so? It’s alright, I’ve come to my senses. I thought I was the strongest, but it seems I was arrogant. You don’t need to explain. Why didn’t I think of using two weapons myself? Next time, I’ll go all out. The titles of captain and vice-captain don’t matter anymore," Colt lamented his own shortcomings.

"Are you really okay? You’re soaked through," Mingchuan questioned him, skeptical of his sudden change, especially given how little time had passed and how Colt seemed to have reformatted his entire personality.

"I’m fine, really. By the way, how’s the meeting going? Is it over?" Colt asked, sounding listless.

"Not yet. We’re discussing the team name right now, so we need you to join in," Mingchuan said, gently helping Colt up.

"Alright, you guys take your time. I’ll sit here awhile longer," Colt replied, slumping back down hard.

"You say you’re fine, but I think your pride got the better of you before, and now you’re getting self-conscious because I outperformed you," Mingchuan retorted, this time pulling him up with force. "Colt, don’t let yourself sink into this gloom. Our team can’t do without any member, especially you as captain. Get yourself together."

As Mingchuan’s tone shifted, he delivered a sharp slap to Colt’s face.

The sound resonated outside the meeting room, and everyone inside heard it.

"What happened? What’s going on?" Wenxin asked urgently upon hearing the noise.

"Something’s wrong. Colt’s in there—I need to check!" George immediately stood up and rushed toward the restroom door. Just as he opened the men’s room, Mingchuan was already supporting Colt, leading him out.

Before the door opened, Mingchuan’s slap had already snapped Colt out of his stupor. "Good, that was well done. You’re right, I need to pull myself together. You’ve got guts! Once we settle the team name, I’m taking you on one-on-one," Colt declared loudly, his tone matching his earlier bravado.

"That’s more like it!" Mingchuan replied, smiling as one would to a friend. He placed his hand on Colt’s shoulder, walking with him toward the door—just as George opened it. "George, don’t worry, go sit down," Colt said, for the first time using a calm tone with George.

Hearing this, George relaxed, helping Colt back to his seat. Then, George and Mingchuan returned to their own seats. Mingchuan resumed the discussion: "Now, where were we..."

—Side note—

TK managed to sneak in an update this time. Thankfully, there wasn’t much homework, or readers would have had to wait until summer vacation for Chapter Ten.

(Did I just break my promise to only update during summer?)