Chapter 24: The Unbending Reed
Zou Yameng splashed water on her face, instantly feeling refreshed. Coach Dan said from the side, “Get your head in the game. The next match is against He Ping. If you win, you’ll be in the semifinals, which is equivalent to getting a ticket to the provincial team!”
“I understand!” She opened her phone, glanced at a photo of her and her brother, and took a deep breath, as if she had consumed some kind of spiritual nourishment. “I’m ready!” She asked herself how confident she was. Maybe only ten percent, but even if there was only a sliver of hope, she had to fight for it!
She was the only female singles player from the Chuanhai Women’s Sports School to advance. She was the last vestige of their table tennis team. Zou Yameng’s pressure came not only from herself but also from the school. The Chuanhai City Women’s Sports School claimed to be the “training camp for the national team,” but no one from their graduating class had received an invitation from the national team. The school was under pressure from the Sports Bureau, and this pressure was transferred to the coaches and students.
Both Coach Dan and her teammates desperately wanted to win a championship trophy!
Calm down, Zou Yameng! Calm down! Hold on, there’s only one chance to change your fate! Don’t fall here! Ahead lies your dream, Lu Li, and everything in the future.
She kept hypnotizing herself when she suddenly heard the broadcast calling her name. She froze, looking helplessly at Coach Dan. The next second, she abruptly cut off her weakness, her eyes becoming firm again. She strode towards the arena. At this point, there was no turning back!
The lights in the stadium were particularly dazzling today, so bright that she couldn’t open her eyes. The overwhelming cheers were like a tidal wave, her brain trembling in the cacophony, her soul seeming to leave her body, able to reach out and touch the sky that should have been out of reach.
Her legs wanted to tremble, but she didn’t dare. Her throat wanted to make a sound, but she couldn’t.
Yesterday’s match hadn’t been this nerve-wracking. In this blinding spectacle, the woman who was as insurmountable as Mount Tai took the stage.
She wasn’t tall but rather thin, her hair haphazardly cut. To describe her as unkempt would be a compliment. That signature poker face was even more imposing under the white light, sacred and solemn. He Ping gripped the racket in her right hand, her fingers tightly clasped around the wooden handle, her knuckles thick and unlike a woman’s.
Compared to He Ping, the graceful and beautiful Zou Yameng looked less like she was here to play and more like she was here for a fashion show. People always had a misunderstanding about geniuses, thinking that they must be unkempt freaks, weirdos, madmen, or nerds. But true geniuses could not only excel in their own fields but also be comfortable in other areas.
Most of Zou Yameng’s fans were fans of her looks, half male and half female. When they talked about her, they only talked about how beautiful she was, not how good her skills were – the complete opposite of He Ping. When people mentioned He Ping, everyone thought of her terrifying strength. Maybe in another two years, He Ping would be able to compete internationally and make a name for herself. But Zou Yameng? Don’t even think about it.
Zou Yameng forced herself to take a few deep breaths. When she opened her eyes again, she had transformed back into the fearless girl. However, He Ping could see that Zou Yameng was just putting on a brave face. Putting on a brave front was a biological instinct. The more you lacked something, the more you would deliberately show it. Both she and Zou Yameng were just followers of the laws of nature.
As the players got into position, the audience gradually quieted down, and the entire venue fell silent.
He Ping took the ping pong ball from the referee without saying a word. She simply nodded to Zou Yameng as a greeting, and the next second, the woman blew the horn of war. Her ball speed was even faster than usual. If He Ping during practice was like a sleepy lion, then the current He Ping was like an enraged dragon!
After only a few rounds, Zou Yameng couldn’t keep up with He Ping’s speed and quickly lost a point.
Zou Yameng was not discouraged. She wiped the surface of her racket with her palm, her momentum not diminishing in the slightest. She was in an incredibly good state now, perhaps due to the extreme focus brought about by the extreme pressure. Everything outside the arena disappeared. Her world was reduced to this small table and the silent He Ping, who was like a god.
The second ball was He Ping’s serve again. She calmly hit another ball, her posture like a scholar strolling through a courtyard. Zou Yameng’s muscles tensed, the muscles in her thighs under her shorts pulling taut. In this state, Zou Yameng actually managed to keep up with He Ping’s attack, and the two sides seemed to be on equal footing.
Unfortunately, Zou Yameng’s basic skills were ultimately not as solid as He Ping’s. Her backhand technique was monotonous and couldn’t cope with He Ping’s changing balls. After He Ping hit a tricky shot from a sharp angle, Zou Yameng finally couldn’t keep up with her rhythm and lost another point.
Morale was like a sandcastle; once it collapsed, it would crumble like an avalanche. In the next five balls, Zou Yameng lost points again, and the score reached 7:0. So far, Zou Yameng hadn’t scored a single point. He Ping on the other side was like an impeccable stone lion, not giving Zou Yameng any chance.
The situation did not reverse. The first game ended quickly. Eleven to zero, Zou Yameng was shut out in the first game.
Zou Yameng’s state of mind was no longer as perfect as when she first entered the court. She began to observe the unfamiliar faces in the audience, to care about the gazes of the coaches and teammates in the rest area, and to imagine a future where she had nothing. The audience was whispering. What were they talking about? She guessed they were commenting on how bad she was. The coach and her teammates were cheering for her, but the more they did so, the more anxious and nervous she became.
She didn’t like being the center of attention, didn’t like being comforted when she was down, didn’t like being pitied like a helpless little animal.
Seven games, four wins, there’s still a chance. Don’t be discouraged.
Zou Yameng served first in the second game. She tried to draw He Ping into her own rhythm, but, overly tense, she made a mistake on the first ball. She apologized to the referee with a nod, picked up the white ping pong ball again, and hesitated for a moment.
He Ping didn’t rush her, just stared at the void indifferently, as if no one was worth her attention.
“Player Zou Yameng, you can serve when you’re ready,” the referee reminded her.
“Okay.”
Coach Dan in the rest area looked at the motionless Zou Yameng and saw her past self: “Yameng is scared. He Ping is too strong. This is a hopeless match.” In every era, there were always one or two geniuses who surpassed everyone else. In front of these people, ordinary people didn’t have a shred of hope, giving the illusion that the other party wasn’t even human. This was fear.
Fear was a motivator, but endless fear was a crusher of fighting spirit. It wasn’t that Zou Yameng didn’t want to move, but that she was too scared to move. She was afraid that others would see her hand trembling, afraid that she would really lose this match. Were there any other chances? She would graduate next June. There were no other chances.
The gentle smile of the young man flashed through Zou Yameng’s mind. A surge of courage welled up in her heart. With this courage, Zou Yameng served again. This time, she had to go all out. She had nothing to lose, no room for error. She could only bet everything!
*
The second game ended quickly. Eleven to zero.
Zou Yameng was shut out again.
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