HGTM CH56
Chapter 56: If You Have the Skill, Hold Your Head High; If Not, Stop Yapping
“Exactly. So, my goal isn’t to become Sheng Xingming, but to become a super incredible dual guard. I want to let Sheng Xingming dive into the opponent’s paint again and again without worry, and let others see that he isn’t just a commander equipped with a turret—he can be a dagger, a missile.”
“Why? You must have been very young when Sheng Xingming passed away, right?” Yang Huaiyu asked.
“He taught me how to play.” Xia Chiyi raised his chin, that person’s face surfacing in his mind.
“Just because of that? Li Xiaoran is teaching Liu Suochen how to play right now, but I’ve never heard Liu Suochen say his goal is to be Li Xiaoran.”
“When I was little, I attended a children’s basketball camp in Seattle. My build, reaction time, and speed were all inferior to the other kids in the camp. During scrimmage games, they wouldn’t pass the ball to me. Being with those kids, I felt like a dwarf who had stumbled into the land of giants.”
Yang Huaiyu fell silent.
“At that time, I didn’t know what ‘talent’ was, but I faintly sensed a behemoth called ‘genetics.’ They jumped higher, their dribbling rhythm was better… there were some things I couldn’t bridge just by crying and working hard. That day, I didn’t eat dinner. I locked myself in a bathroom stall. I interrogated myself over and over again—Xia Chiyi, do you really want to walk this path? Do you really want to compete against an insurmountable gap?“
Yang Huaiyu’s fist slowly clenched. He had rarely encountered setbacks in basketball; everything had gone smoothly for him since childhood. “Winning” was a matter of course for him.
He learned everything quickly, so much so that when he met Liu Suochen, he felt a true chasm for the first time.
But Xia Chiyi… he had known this since he was a child.
“I was so sad, Yang Huaiyu. The world of basketball probably wouldn’t choose me,” Xia Chiyi described the shattering of a child’s dream with a laughing tone.
“Then, someone pounded on the door super hard. It scared me so much I hiccuped several times inside the stall.”
“Hahaha, were you hogging the pit for too long?” Yang Huaiyu asked.
“That person was Sheng Xingming. He said, ‘If the smelly brat doesn’t come out, I’m flushing this Häagen-Dazs down the toilet next door.'”
“Haha, did you come out?”
“Yeah, I came out. I couldn’t end up with no basketball and no ice cream, right?”
“And then? He comforted you while you ate the ice cream?” Yang Huaiyu said.
“What are you thinking? There was no ice cream. He was tricking a kid,” Xia Chiyi said.
“Sheng Xingming tricked a kid? I really wouldn’t have guessed. Sheng Xingming was famous for meaning what he said.”
“Then I might be the only kid in the world he ever tricked. He took me to the court, talked to me about running routes, about steals, about jab steps and fake moves. It was like he wanted to stuff everything he knew into my brain all at once. Then he asked me—can you touch the ball tomorrow?“
“One night isn’t nearly enough.”
“Exactly, one night isn’t enough. So I lowered my head and didn’t answer him.”
Xia Chiyi stood up, facing Yang Huaiyu, and draped his towel over his shoulders. “Sheng Xingming propped me up and let me ride on his shoulders. He said—Xia Chiyi, never lower your head. Because if you lower your head, even if I lift you above my head, you won’t see the basket.“
For some reason, being looked at by Xia Chiyi like this, Yang Huaiyu suddenly felt as if he had also become that person lifted above someone’s head.
Yang Huaiyu smiled little by little. “So, who are the people lifting me up?”
“There are many. Me, Zhou Zhexiao. Also Ke Yan, Meng Ting, He Zhan, and Coach Ren… they will all lift you up very, very high!”
Yang Huaiyu lowered his eyes and smiled. “I know. I really know now.”
No matter who it was, being friends with someone like Xia Chiyi would surely make one’s heart become both soft and strong.
That night, they took the bus back to school.
Yang Huaiyu still sat by the window, but Xia Chiyi was leaning on Zhou Zhexiao’s shoulder, sleeping soundly and snoring lightly.
When the bus passed a small supermarket, Yang Huaiyu suddenly said, “Zhou Zhexiao, did you know—Sheng Xingming owes Xia Chiyi an ice cream.”
Zhou Zhexiao frowned. “When?”
“In the children’s basketball camp, when he tricked Xia Chiyi out of the bathroom stall.”
After passing a bus stop, just as Yang Huaiyu was getting used to Zhou Zhexiao’s silence, he suddenly spoke.
“Sheng Xingming didn’t trick him.”
“Huh?”
“It was because this guy cried for too long and wouldn’t come out. The ice cream melted.”
Yang Huaiyu laughed. “You say it like you were there.”
After getting off the bus, Zhou Zhexiao actually bought a Häagen-Dazs for Xia Chiyi.
This left Xia Chiyi completely confused, while Yang Huaiyu walked beside them, hands in his pockets, head down, laughing at something unknown.
This day had been a battery-draining day for Yang Huaiyu.
But before going to sleep, he sent the video of his hour-and-a-half one-on-one session with Zhou Zhexiao to his coach. Fighting back sleepiness, he sent a WeChat message:
[Their opinion is that to deal with Liu Suochen’s offense, we need to pay attention to help defense. It’s suggested to force Liu Suochen to use up his full stamina bar in the first quarter, don’t save it for the last quarter to let him speed up. We need to improve our physical strength and endurance, otherwise, if our judgment and reaction time drop in the last quarter, it will make Liu Suochen look like a god of war descending.]
After hitting send, Yang Huaiyu’s battery hit zero, and he passed out cold.
On the other end, Coach Ren thought Yang Huaiyu was having too much fun at Ningchang University and forgetting home. He didn’t expect him to send such a long video.
For a moment, Coach Ren thought it was a travel vlog, given that the kid deserved a smack sometimes.
But when he read the message, his brow furrowed.
As a coach, he naturally saw that Qincheng University’s loss in that game wasn’t just about the clash between the two aces, but also lay in “help defense.”
After the game, Coach Ren had analyzed the importance of “help defense” play by play, but it felt like hindsight and couldn’t pull Yang Huaiyu out of his defeat.
Yet, a trip to Ningchang University made Yang Huaiyu acknowledge he needed his teammates’ “help defense”?
Unless the players at Ningchang University proved the importance of “help defense” to him.
And the issue of stamina and endurance. Coach Ren had talked to Yang Huaiyu about this properly, but the guy pursued “fun” in everything. Stamina and endurance training were boring and dull; the fact that he could play the full court was entirely due to his good physical condition.
But now he was actively mentioning strengthening stamina training in WeChat…
“Who on earth put a hex on him?!”
When the video finished loading and Coach Ren watched it, he fell silent.
The tea he had lifted to his lips was put back down.
Who exactly is this Zhou Zhexiao? He mimicked Liu Suochen’s aggressive offense and rhythmic tug-of-war to perfection.
More importantly, he rarely saw Yang Huaiyu play so thoroughly enjoyed, one could even say happy.
Yang Huaiyu had always been too concerned with the outcome of his duel with Liu Suochen. Because he cared about the result, every lost ball was a layer of negative emotion debuff.
But in this PK with Zhou Zhexiao, the standard of play for both was extremely high.
And Coach Ren could feel that Yang Huaiyu had become more refined in his techniques, such as his foot placement during defense, the timing of his steal attempts, and his resilience against defense.
Coach Ren’s biggest worry was that Yang Huaiyu had been running in place all year.
But he had only been at Ningchang University for one day, and it seemed all the problems… were solved.
At the end of the video was a showdown under the basket between Yang Huaiyu and Zhou Zhexiao. This contest had lasted for tens of minutes and seemed no different from his previous one-on-ones with Liu Suochen—a collision of power, speed, and skill. But then, a figure rushed into the frame.
That shout of “Go—!” jolted Coach Ren’s spirit. He saw Xia Chiyi suddenly leap up. His interception forced Zhou Zhexiao to change direction in mid-air, which bought Yang Huaiyu the chance to block.
It was so sudden, and so inspiring. Coach Ren could almost imagine that at that moment, Yang Huaiyu had accumulated too much fatigue and numbness, like walking in a dark tunnel thinking he could only keep walking like this. But Xia Chiyi poked a small hole, and that ray of light provoked Yang Huaiyu’s ferocity and unwillingness to yield. When he jumped again, he finally blocked that layup from Zhou Zhexiao that seemed sure to go in!
Even if the long night is endless, Yang Huaiyu finally grasped his torch again.
Coach Ren let out a long breath, realizing belatedly that his eyes were hot.
He glanced at the time; it was already 12:30 AM. Calling at this time seemed impolite.
But he couldn’t suppress the excitement in his heart and dialed Ling Huanzhen’s number anyway.
Seven or eight seconds passed with no answer. Coach Ren thought he had been impulsive.
Little did he know, Ling Huanzhen was playing video games, frantically trash-talking his pig teammates after losing.
Seeing a call come in, a grumpy “Hello—” stunned Ren Xin.
“Sorry, I didn’t pay attention to the time. If…” Ren Xin quickly apologized.
Hearing Ren Xin’s voice, Ling Huanzhen instantly became humble and sensible: “Coach Ren, speak? Is it about Yang Huaiyu? Don’t worry, we will take good care of him…”
“I know you’re taking good care of him. Thank you very much. It’s just… I also found out today that our team’s Meng Ting, He Zhan, Ke Yan… and Li Shunchuan all bought tickets to go to your place for… an exchange…”
Actually, Li Shunchuan still hadn’t walked out of the shadow of his breakup and had been moping recently, but Ren Xin decided to package him up and send him to Ningchang too.
“You guys… that’s the complete starting lineup… all running over here? I recall you’re about to have a practice match with Qing University soon, right?” Ling Huanzhen felt this didn’t sound like an “exchange,” but more like coming to kick down the dojo to find confidence.
Ren Xin tapped his fingers on the edge of his phone. “No choice. They think Zhou Zhexiao and Xia Chiyi have become so formidable, they want to see the level of your whole team.”
“You’re treating us as a whetstone.” Ling Huanzhen laughed.
For the first time, Ren Xin spoke with a serious tone: “Yes. In exchange, after our practice match with Qing University ends, we will give you the game footage to study. The condition is that it is not to be shared externally.”
Ling Huanzhen paused. Giving the practice match recording as an exchange was a massive amount of trust.
“Alright, understood. We’ve been studying Qing University for a while too. We’ll be a good whetstone.” Ling Huanzhen smiled.
Ling Huanzhen understood that, as of this moment, he had truly gained the approval of this senior, Ren Xin.
That night, Xia Chiyi and Zhou Zhexiao were still squeezed onto one bed. But after adding the layup resistance training, Xia Chiyi was more tired than ever.
He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. Instead, it was Zhou Zhexiao, climbing up a step later, who didn’t know how to lie down for a moment.
“Xia Chiyi.” Zhou Zhexiao pinched Xia Chiyi’s nose, thinking the guy would wake up. Unexpectedly, not only did he not wake up, but he also squeezed toward Zhou Zhexiao’s direction, leaving Zhou Zhexiao even less room to lie down.
In the dorm room, Yang Huaiyu was already asleep. Opposite them, Ye Chaoying had just taken off a face mask and was still awake. He propped his chin up, watching this good show, curious about what Zhou Zhexiao would do.
He even started betting with Little Fatty (Pang Shuai) on WeChat.
Pang Shuai: [I bet a week of taking out the trash that Zhou Zhexiao will pinch Xia Chiyi awake.]
Ye Chaoying: [Young man, you are truly too young. I bet two weeks of trash. He’ll drag Xia Chiyi to the edge of the bed and sleep on the inside himself, won’t he?]
Pang Shuai felt that made a lot of sense in that moment; he might lose.
But Zhou Zhexiao just pulled out Xia Chiyi’s chair, stepped on it, reached both hands under the quilt, lifted Xia Chiyi—quilt and all—and gently tossed him to the inside.
Then he turned off the dorm lights and lay down on his side on the outside.
Ye Chaoying: Holy crap, there’s actually such a godly maneuver.
Pang Shuai: Us mortals truly couldn’t think of that.
Ye Chaoying: How about we pretend this bet never happened?
Pang Shuai: Agreed.
Zhou Zhexiao pulled up the quilt to cover both of them. His hand had just pressed down on the quilt in front of Xia Chiyi when the other grabbed it.
His breathing grew inexplicably long. Zhou Zhexiao waited quietly; he didn’t know what Xia Chiyi wanted to do.
It wasn’t until the other gripped his hand, placed it under his chin, gently pressed against it, and then stopped moving that Zhou Zhexiao’s breathing gradually smoothed out.
As if granted permission, Zhou Zhexiao tightened his embrace, securely circling Xia Chiyi in his arms.
The next morning, while Yang Huaiyu followed Zhou Zhexiao and the others for a morning run and photo ops, far away in a dorm at Qincheng University, Li Shunchuan was startled awake from a morning dream. His teammates Meng Ting and He Zhan shook him awake, telling him to pack his luggage immediately. late last night, they had booked him a ticket on the same high-speed train to Ningchang.
“You guys are going to Ningchang… why bring me?” Li Shunchuan’s eyes drooped, his face naturally looking helpless and aggrieved.
“Cut the crap, hurry up!”
“Or you can copy Yang Huaiyu and fly over!”
Li Shunchuan hugged his quilt tightly. “I’m not going to Ningchang! I’ve already been punished with fifty laps. If I miss training again, it’ll turn into five hundred laps!”
“We’re going to Ningchang University to train! Coach Ren has already arranged it with Coach Ling over there!”
Li Shunchuan was still confused. He checked his phone and saw the WeChat message Coach Ren sent at 1:30 AM last night: [Go with them to Ningchang. Feel it out properly. You might not be the number one shooter in the Southeast Division anymore.]
“So not only am I heartbroken… am I not even the number one shooter anymore?”
Li Shunchuan’s face looked even more depressed.
He was forced by a bunch of teammates to pack his luggage. Just as he was about to leave the dorm, he suddenly ran back.
“Li Shunchuan, what are you doing!”
“My body pillow!”
That was the pillow his ex-girlfriend gave him!
“You broke up already, what do you need that damn pillow for!”
Also at 9 AM, the Student Union at Ningchang University got busy, and news spread in the class group chats.
[Heard from the Student Union that the Qincheng University basketball team is coming too!]
[OMG, first Shenghai University, now Qincheng University. We’re really hot right now!]
[But I heard only five people came. Don’t know if their first-string players are among them.]
When Zhang Xiulin saw the WeChat messages in the class group, that uncomfortable feeling surged up again. He could even imagine his ex-girlfriend actively squeezing into the Student Union, wanting to fawn over Xia Chiyi on the day of the practice match.
Zhang Xiulin knew he shouldn’t act so ungracefully, but the irritation inside him couldn’t be suppressed.
[Only five people? Qincheng University’s basketball team has at least ten people, right? They want to win with fewer numbers? Looking down on our basketball team, aren’t they?]
Zhang Xiulin’s message went out and immediately got a response from his bros.
[Even if I don’t watch basketball, I know they swap people often during a game. They probably aren’t here to train, but to give us pointers!]
[Every day it’s ‘the basketball team is this good, that good,’ but aren’t we still banned from watching the practice match? Who knows if they’re donkeys or horses? Stop hyping them up daily; this is called ‘killing with praise’!]
Zhang Xiulin smiled, feeling his bros were really supportive, and quickly continued: [Their head coach didn’t come either. It’s obvious this isn’t formal training. Probably just here for tourism, right? Yet we’re still licking their boots, preparing accommodation, having the Student Union receive them. It’s really hilarious!]
The class group suddenly went silent.
The fact that Qincheng University only sent five people was confusing. Thinking about it carefully, it really did feel like they were looking down on Ningchang University.
And Qincheng University’s basketball team was third in the nation last year. Any starter pulled out was a famous name in university basketball.
When Pang Shuai saw the WeChat messages, he was furious. Yang Huaiyu had slept in their dorm for two nights.
Who said Qincheng University wasn’t sincere? If they weren’t sincere, would they send their Ace to Ningchang University for “advanced studies”?
Pang Shuai sent a WeChat to Xia Chiyi. At that moment, Xia Chiyi was changing in the gym locker room. Seeing it, he casually said, “Little Fatty is getting angry at Zhang Xiulin’s little clique again. Gotta pack him a Peking duck to calm him down when we get back.”
Hearing Xia Chiyi say this, Yang Huaiyu asked curiously, “What’s going on? What Zhang Xiulin, what clique?”
Xia Chiyi smiled and showed the chat history in the class group to Yang Huaiyu. “Nothing big, just elementary schoolers trying to get attention.”
Yang Huaiyu looked and frowned. “This isn’t a small matter. This guy called Zhang Xiulin, and his lackeys, are trying to sow discord in the friendship between our two basketball teams, right? Can I use your WeChat to speak to him?”
“Huh? You want to talk? Say what?”
“Clarify our attitude toward the Ningchang University basketball team, of course.”
Xia Chiyi suddenly remembered Zhou Zhexiao’s shout-out last time and covered the phone. “No trash talking allowed.”
“Trash talk is for opponents. Do those sour chickens deserve to be my opponents?” Yang Huaiyu smiled and took Xia Chiyi’s phone.
He spoke into the microphone: “Hello everyone, I am Qincheng University’s Yang Huaiyu. Our main purpose in coming to Ningchang University this time is to train with them. Your school’s basketball team’s training methods not only improve skills quickly but are also highly difficult, so we only sent our main lineup to train. I don’t really understand Ningchang University’s school spirit and traditions, I just want to say that at Qincheng University, whether it’s the basketball team, volleyball team, or ping pong team—if you have the skill, hold your head high and be a person; if you don’t have the skill, don’t run your mouth. You are welcome to come watch during the practice match.”
After finishing, Yang Huaiyu sent the voice message.
This time, the clapback was too direct. Even a ghost would know who “if you have the skill, hold your head high; if you don’t have the skill, don’t run your mouth” was referring to.
Ever since the soccer team lost, these three brothers had been sensitive and gloomy, making the classmates feel like they had a severe cold, unable to breathe.
Hearing Yang Huaiyu’s words, everyone suddenly felt a sense of clearing wind and heat; breathing became smooth again.
Xia Chiyi yanked the phone back, looking at Yang Huaiyu. “You agreed to let them come watch? Didn’t your coach treat practice matches as secrets?”
“Doesn’t matter. If we win, the glory is ours. If we lose, well, our head coach isn’t present, and your coach is Ling Huanzhen.”
After speaking, Yang Huaiyu wrapped his arm around Xia Chiyi’s shoulder and dragged him to a corner. “Come, take a photo to prove it. Prove my existence.”
Xia Chiyi was forced to grin foolishly, and then a supremely silly photo was sent to the group. The smile looked like he was being held hostage.
Putting the phone back in the locker, as for what the class group was saying, Xia Chiyi didn’t want to pay attention anymore.
But in reality, the group was boiling over.
[Did my ears hear right? This person said he’s Yang Huaiyu! Qincheng University’s Yang Huaiyu!]
Pang Shuai was excited, feeling Yang Huaiyu had avenged him: [Come come come, let me educate certain members of the soccer team—Yang Huaiyu is the Ace of the national third-place Qincheng University, known as the ‘King of Double Clutch’ in the Southeast Division!]
Ye Chaoying also joined the group chat: [What do they know about ‘double clutch’? Should explain, a double clutch layup is equivalent to a bicycle kick in soccer. People without skill can’t do it. It requires immense core strength and hang time.]
[He said they came to train with us! Certain members of the soccer team, did you hear that? Would the ace player of the national third-place soccer team come to train with you?]
[Qincheng University sent their ‘main lineup’! The main lineup came to train; our Ningchang has really risen!]
…
Zhang Xiulin’s finger hovered over the phone screen, almost crushing it.
Fine. Didn’t you say the basketball team is capable?
Then let’s see, since we’re all at the provincial level, just how much better the basketball team is than the soccer team!
Ke Yan and the others were prepared to take a taxi to Ningchang University, but as soon as they exited the gate, they saw people from the Ningchang University Student Union holding signs with their names waiting.
“Suddenly felt the warmth of spring.” Meng Ting covered his chest.
What surprised them even more was that the girl picking them up, Liang Qin, could call out their names and positions.
He Zhan touched his chest. “Favorability rating just went up again.”
Not just Liang Qin, Pang Shuai also came as the designated photographer, taking many photos of them on the bus.
After hearing that Yang Huaiyu was staying in Pang Shuai’s dorm, Ke Yan couldn’t help but ask, “Yang Huaiyu said he’s been doing morning training these past two days, getting up at 5:30 and finishing at 7:30. That’s a lie, right?”
Pang Shuai immediately defended Yang Huaiyu: “No! He goes for morning training with Zhou Zhexiao and Xia Chiyi. It’s impossible to slack off.”
“Besides morning training, did he do anything else? When we traveled before, he would post a dozen Moments a day. This time, he’s so quiet I’m not used to it,” Ke Yan asked again.
Pang Shuai thought for a moment. “Probably because he’s too tired. I don’t know the specific training content, but I know he, along with my roommates Zhou Zhexiao, Xia Chiyi, and Ye Chaoying, have been researching Qing University’s Li Suochen. Yang Huaiyu has been coming back very tired these past two days.”
Ke Yan, Meng Ting, and He Zhan looked at each other.
“My god, is this still Yang Huaiyu? There’s actually a day when he tires himself out?”
“Isn’t he the guy who secretly runs two fewer laps even during warm-ups?”
“Morning training? Unless the earth explodes at 5:30, he absolutely wouldn’t get up at 5:30!”
Then they reached a conclusion: Ningchang University must have extraordinary charm.
When they followed Pang Shuai to the dorm room where the Student Union had already changed the sheets and duvet covers, they let out a “Wow—” of amazement.
“There are five of us, but this is a four-person room.” Ke Yan looked around.
Pang Shuai answered, “Yang Huaiyu said he’s still staying in our dorm. It’s convenient for Xia Chiyi to wake him up every morning.”
This sentence refreshed their cognition once again.
“When I call him, he never gets up. When Xia Chiyi calls him, he gets up?” Ke Yan put his hands on his hips, puffing up like a pufferfish again.
He Zhan laughed heartily. “That’s Yang Huaiyu’s ‘first love’ after all.”
Meng Ting continued to twist the knife: “Xia Chiyi is the unattainable white moonlight. Ah Yan, you are already the mosquito blood squashed on the bedboard!”
“Xia Chiyi?” Li Shunchuan asked curiously while slowly unpacking his things.
He had heard this name many times along the way.
Ke Yan walked over and patted Li Shunchuan’s shoulder. “He is Ningchang University’s sharpshooter. You didn’t come to that practice match, but he is really amazing. Sudden stop plus jump shot, completed between 1 to 1.2 seconds. This was calculated when reviewing the game tape. He’s on par with you.”
Meng Ting sat back in a chair looking at Li Shunchuan, showing a rare serious expression: “He can also break through the double-team of me and He Zhan.”
“Missed a point. He also dares to confront me. Plus, he partners with Zhou Zhexiao and treated Yang Huaiyu to hotpot.”
Li Shunchuan looked at them blankly, his eyebrows and eyes drooping even more severely. “Then if we meet on the court… won’t I be completely destroyed?”
“So, Dismal Da Li, put aside the sorrow of your breakup and hurry up to understand this opponent of yours!”
After putting away their things, the four of them went to visit Ningchang University’s basketball arena. They happened to see Ling Huanzhen personally training the dribbling and positioning of the team’s forwards. Ling Huanzhen didn’t hold back, directly calling Meng Ting and He Zhan to demonstrate and act as sparring partners.
Before long, the big guys got familiar with each other.
Ke Yan asked Assistant Coach Cheng Qing: “Why haven’t we seen the others? Like Xia Chiyi?”
Cheng Qing smiled. “Our Coach Ling started as a power forward, so he teaches the team’s forwards personally. But technical guidance for guards has to be ‘outsourced’.”
“But, our Yang Huaiyu doesn’t really count as a guard, right? Why is he following Xia Chiyi too?” Ke Yan continued to fish for information.
“Because Xia Chiyi and Zhou Zhexiao share a trainer, Yang Huaiyu follows the two of them more often.”
“Oh.”
Ke Yan was very curious about what training Yang Huaiyu had undergone.
He chatted with Pang Shuai in Xia Chiyi’s dorm until almost 10 PM before waiting for Yang Huaiyu, who came back swaying behind Zhou Zhexiao.
Yang Huaiyu was like a wandering spirit. He passed in front of Ke Yan, pulled out Xia Chiyi’s chair, and tilted his head back as if his soul was about to ascend right there.
Ke Yan’s mouth hung half open, dying to know what Yang Huaiyu had been through.
Xia Chiyi casually grabbed a sports jacket and covered him with it, saying to Ke Yan, “Don’t worry, it’s like this at the start. Yang Huaiyu won’t die.”
After speaking, Xia Chiyi began tidying up the trash bags in the room.
Before entering the bathroom, Zhou Zhexiao dropped a sentence: “Don’t sleep on my bed if you haven’t washed clean.”
Then, Yang Huaiyu turned his face sideways, looked at Ke Yan, and recounted what he had done.
Ke Yan was dumbfounded. “This amount of equipment exercise, that’s two days’ worth for you, right?”
“But it’s only two-thirds of Xia Chiyi’s.”
“And this 21-point shooting drill… sixty sets? You’ll die, right?” Ke Yan was astonished by Xia Chiyi and Zhou Zhexiao’s training volume.
“Zhou Zhexiao can finish within 60 seconds. Xia Chiyi broke into the 62-second mark today.”
Ke Yan’s throat moved. “Are those two monsters?”
“That doesn’t count as being a monster…” Yang Huaiyu grabbed Ke Yan’s arm, eyes misting up, unsure if it was emotion or sweat. “After that, I practiced one-on-one with Zhou Zhexiao for an hour… then accompanied Xia Chiyi to practice double-teaming for an hour…”
Ke Yan took about ten seconds to digest this training content before decisively shaking off Yang Huaiyu’s hand.
“I will report this truthfully to Coach Ren. I think he would be very happy to leave you at Ningchang University semi-permanently.”
Actually, Ke Yan always felt that since losing to Qing University last year, the most depressed among them was Yang Huaiyu.
He could smile effortlessly, could continue one-on-ones with others, but he seemed to have lost the ability to give his all.
Because giving his all and still losing to Liu Suochen was probably a result Yang Huaiyu didn’t want to face.
“Ah Yan, I took a tumble last year, fell pretty hard. Although I climbed up the mountain, my heart seems to have stayed in that pit,” Yang Huaiyu said muffledly.
“Oh,” Ke Yan responded.
“Now, I’m going,” Yang Huaiyu pulled the jacket up to cover his face.
Ke Yan kicked him lightly with his toe. “First, you didn’t take the tumble alone; we, the Qincheng University basketball team, took it together.”
“Mm.”
“Also, your heart fell in that pit, but our hearts are with you. Everyone is waiting at the bottom of the pit with you.”
Yang Huaiyu was silent.
“Since you decided to go, good. We will follow you and run with big strides.”
Ke Yan frowned and yanked the jacket down. “Don’t wipe your tears on Xia Chiyi’s jacket.”
“Tears are of course saved for Qing University, for Liu Suochen! The desk lamp is just too bright…” Yang Huaiyu said weakly.
Seeing that Yang Huaiyu was alive and well, Ke Yan could go back to sleep with peace of mind.
Meeting Xia Chiyi in the hallway coming back from throwing out the trash, Ke Yan said very seriously: “Thank you. But we won’t show mercy in the practice match.”
Xia Chiyi didn’t understand why Ke Yan said thank you.
Did he not know that Yang Huaiyu was conscripted by him and Zhou Zhexiao?
On Friday night, the class monitor released a message in the class group.
[Saturday morning at 9:30 AM, our school’s basketball arena, Ningchang University VS Qincheng University practice match. Students interested in watching, please sign up with me and enter ten minutes early. During the match, no noise, no video recording with phones or other devices. Maintain absolute respect for both teams.]
Once the message was released, basically the whole class signed up.
Including the soccer team’s Zhang Xiulin and his teammates.
This time, it was said Qincheng University sent their main lineup. He wanted to see if Xia Chiyi was really as awesome as the rumors outside said.
Because there was a practice match the next day, Xia Chiyi and Zhou Zhexiao’s training was much lighter, which gave the accompanying trainee Yang Huaiyu a feeling of “finally coming back to life.”
Before sleeping, Xia Chiyi shook the bed rail and asked Yang Huaiyu: “You said to open it to spectators. Do you know how many people signed up?”
“How many?” Yang Huaiyu asked indifferently.
“Over two hundred! Enjoy the away game atmosphere. No regrets allowed!”
Yang Huaiyu waved his hand. “No regrets. If we don’t open it up, how will your schoolmates correctly recognize the strength of the Ningchang University basketball team?”
So, Yang Huaiyu cared even more than Xia Chiyi about those few people yapping blindly in the class group.
The next morning, when Xia Chiyi and the others walked into the basketball arena, they suddenly realized it was full of people. There were classmates from the same department, even the professors who taught them Economics and Basic Accounting, and their homeroom teacher.
“What’s going on… why is Professor Li here to watch a practice match too? Who invited him?” Ye Chaoying poked Xia Chiyi’s back.
“Not me. Anyway, you and Zhou Zhexiao are the ones who sleep the most in his class,” Xia Chiyi replied.
Meng Ting carried his bag, put his hand on Xia Chiyi’s shoulder, and smiled. “Brother Chiyi, this home court pressure seems to be on you guys! Even Professor Ren Ke is here. If you lose the game, maybe you’ll fail the subject too!”
Ke Yan walked by briskly, bobbing his head. “Yeah, anyway, none of these classmates or professors know us. It doesn’t matter if we lose.”
Xia Chiyi rolled his eyes at these two, thinking, One extra year of competition experience really makes a difference.
These old court slickers really know how to apply pressure on the opponent!
Both sides changed clothes, finished warm-ups, and came to the court.
Today, Ling Huanzhen wasn’t even the referee; he sat directly in the audience seats with several course professors.
He even humbly shook hands with the professors. “Final exams are coming up. if the team members haven’t studied well or learned well, I hope you professors will give them more pointers and tutoring!”
“Of course! Of course!”
“Don’t worry, don’t worry!”
Ke Yan nudged Yang Huaiyu. “Who’s the ref? Their gentle assistant referee is sitting in the scorekeeper’s spot…”
Yang Huaiyu rolled his shoulders. “I don’t know either. Shenghai University came for a practice match last week; heard the ref was Jiao Yingfeng.”
“Really? Then this time…”
Three people walked out from the tunnel. The one in the lead was indeed Jiao Yingfeng. His gaze swept over coldly, landing on Xia Chiyi. His mouth seemed to form the words: Was the pizza good?
Xia Chiyi’s back straightened instantly. How did Master know I ate pizza with Yang Huaiyu last night?
Xia Chiyi looked at Zhou Zhexiao. Zhou Zhexiao seemed to understand his question and said calmly, “Yang Huaiyu posted on Moments.”
Yang Huaiyu posted on Moments, which meant Coach Ren saw it. If Coach Ren saw it, then Ling Huanzhen saw it. If Ling Huanzhen saw it, that was equal to Jiao Yingfeng seeing it.
Xia Chiyi gritted his teeth in hatred, extending his palm toward Zhou Zhexiao. “In a bit, let’s block that prick Yang Huaiyu to death. Why show off on Moments for nothing!”
“Mm.” Zhou Zhexiao slapped Xia Chiyi’s palm.
For some reason, some people in the audience seemed very excited, making squealing noises.
Following behind Jiao Yingfeng were two other people—surprisingly Gao Jinshu and Ji Bo.
Ye Chaoying was stunned. “Why is Old Gao here?”
He Bin exchanged a look with Ji Bo. “Why else? To watch our performance and formulate a new training plan.”
This shocked the people from Qincheng University bad.
“This referee team… is simply the boy band of men’s basketball guards!” Meng Ting was stunned.
Even the constantly droopy-eyed Li Shunchuan was stunned: “All the CBA guards I admire are here…”
“Coach Ling said he would give us Qincheng University some pomp and circumstance… looks like it’s true…” Ke Yan was also dumbfounded.
Quite a few students took out their phones, seizing the time to take photos. Even several professors couldn’t resist taking out their phones.
Ling Huanzhen took the microphone handed over by the Student Union: “I’ll give everyone present five minutes now. Take photos if you want, go to the bathroom if you need to. Then, please abide by the discipline of watching a practice match. No photos, no recording, do not post game clips online.”
Ling Huanzhen paused, waiting for everyone’s excitement to calm down a bit, then continued: “Because the practice match involves tactical arrangements, and Qincheng University has special requirements for physical exertion, our side will cooperate with the opponent’s training needs by using a ‘wheel battle’ strategy (tag-team/endurance battle). Therefore, no matter which side wins, it does not represent winning or losing under real conditions.”
After Ling Huanzhen finished speaking, the Qincheng University team members raised their right hands and nodded, meaning “the wheel battle is indeed our requirement.”