Chapter 251

In the first echelon of runners there was one benefit - few people around.

It was like a few people strolling through a spacious square.

When she reached the 10 kilometer point, Xiao Qi still felt carefree and her breathing was very steady. She felt that she was doing quite well, which gave her more confidence in the race, though she didn't dare get arrogant since no one knew the outcome until the very last second.

kilometers was less than the amount Xiao Qi walked every day, so she was still running leisurely. Aside from the black runners, there were also some domestic athletes in the first echelon.

Xiao Qi blended in without standing out too much, though she was noticeable mainly because of her bright red t-shirt, which made her look petite and slender compared to the athletes.

Xiao Qi ate quite a lot but didn't have bulging muscles, nor did she do any muscle-building training.

The private lessons she took taught her movements aimed at accentuating a woman's graceful figure. Xiao Qi did them daily as stretching exercises, which, combined with her persistent running, gave her a toned look. However, developing a woman's graceful figure also depended on one's physique and innate endowment. Xiao Qi had good proportions but was just average in terms of bust and hips, so she didn't develop prominent curves. Still, her figure was quite graceful, making her look slightly delicate and slender among the athletes.

There was a major water station at the 10 kilometer point.

Some official vehicles also followed alongside the first echelon: they stuck closest to the front runners, who were likely leading the race.

The masses behind had slowly strung out in an endless line, and it was impossible for vehicles to follow all of them. They were mainly there to handle any accidents or runners passing out from heat exhaustion.

At the 10 kilometer point, the Xiao family's RV was also parked there.

Xiao's Mama had initially suggested waiting at the 5 kilometer water station, worried that the young girl couldn't run very far and her precious granddaughter would throw a tantrum if she didn't see her. However, Xiao Shengzhou said that Xiao Qi was this year's 200m freestyle champion in Jingnan Province, and with her baseline training of running at least 30,000 steps per day, it was impossible for her to stop at such a short distance. He suggested waiting at the 15 kilometer water station, but Xiao's Mama and Grandma felt that was too far and what if the girl couldn't run that far, plus being good at swimming didn't necessarily mean being good at running.

In the end they compromised on waiting at this major 10 kilometer water station.

While waiting, they also realized that being a random swimming champion was quite impressive...this young girl was truly exceptional.

Xiao's Mama looked at her righteousness-exuding son in athletic wear. Xiao's Grandma looked at her gaudily-dressed and roguishly charming son. Each had their own thoughts.

Meanwhile, Xiao Bao'er earnestly sucked on a lollipop while watching the empty running track.

When the first echelon of runners arrived, Xiao Bao'er excitedly took the lollipop smeared with her saliva out of her mouth and waved it in one hand while waving a little red flag in her other hand.

"Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi!"

Xiao's Mama and Grandma assumed it was just their precious granddaughter randomly shouting when she saw people, and didn't expect there to actually be a young girl among them.

She was thin, running very seriously between a group, with flushed red cheeks.

It seemed she heard Xiao Bao'er's shouts and even turned to smile and wave at her.

This made Xiao Bao'er especially excited.

"Mama, it's Xiao Qi! Xiao Qi saw me! When I grow up, I want to run too, and run with Xiao Qi." Xiao Bao'er made a vow.

Seeing her chubby daughter, Xiao's Mama nodded with difficulty.

With a smile, Xiao Shengzhou thought this schoolmate was truly impressive, always full of surprises whenever they met. Though she was running in the first echelon it seemed she was still quite relaxed.

Meanwhile, Xiao Yu was dumbstruck, gazing at the girl in a red t-shirt and black tights among the crowd, feeling like she had a holy radiance about her, shiny and gorgeous.

Did athletic girls all look so beautiful? He didn't feel anything when looking at girls doing equipment training at the gym.

Xiao's Grandma felt that the young people had such good legs, while her old limbs had trouble even climbing stairs.

At the same time, Jiajia the little assistant photographer and errand boy Lu Chao had also mixed onto one of the vehicles, sitting in a following car. Jiajia excitedly snapped photos while the pockmarked, slightly awkward Lu Chao passed out cigarettes to ingratiate himself with the others in the car.

Xiao Qi kept running.

By the 15 kilometer point, quite a few people had fallen back from the first echelon, now reduced to less than 20 people.

Xiao Qi still maintained steady breathing, not too hurried, taking water twice along the way.

Those still keeping pace with her in the first echelon were basically all familiar faces that could call each other by name.

Even the domestic athletes recognized the black runners: their faces were too familiar from encountering each other at every race. It couldn't be called bad luck, just unfortunate.

They seemed like they could run laps around the globe without even wearing shoes.

Naturally gifted.

However, the girl's face that had persisted in the echelon but they were only just noticing now, very young, clearly not a professional athlete based on her outfit.

Because professional athletes wore very standardized, customized athletic wear.

The black runners also wore similar casual shorts and vests, exposing lots of dark flesh.

As a result, Xiao Qi, who already stood out among the first echelon runners, became even more conspicuous. Her complexion differed from the black runners, and her outfit differed from the other domestic athletes. Also, she looked exceptionally young.

There was a TV station doing a live broadcast dedicated to the marathon.

The camera couldn't help but linger on Xiao Qi's face and body multiple times. The class president, who had rallied people to come watch the marathon but ultimately didn't make it to the site as it was too sprawled out, was at a drink shop not too far away with Yue Lai. The two ate cold desserts while watching the live broadcast on TV. It counted as a date in support their classmate's competition. As Cai Yu ate tapioca pearls from his milk tea, he nearly choked when he saw a familiar face appear on screen several times: it looked like their classmate Su Xiaoxiao...

He patted Yue Lai's shoulder to get her attention to the TV.

Yue Lai lady-likely sipped her milk tea. Although she also liked tapioca pearls, she felt it wasn't proper to noisily chew them in front of a boy, so she had only ordered plain milk tea which she daintily sipped. When patted, she nearly choked, and also saw Su Xiaoxiao on TV... Out of habit she wanted to yell "Fuck!" but stopped herself at the last moment and said, "Wow, so awesome!"