Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
When Ji Fang walked onto the court, he accidentally stepped on a water bottle left on the ground and nearly fell. Ji Fang quickly got back up, and I saw his face turn bright red. I thought he could handle it, but now it seemed he was just a rookie. No wonder he was only just selected for the Team in his third year.
After entering the court, Ji Fang nodded at Zhongqi Senior as a greeting. During training, this guy just focused on practicing hard, with a personality that was painfully introverted. The game continued, and Zhongqi Senior passed the ball to Ji Fang. Ji Fang dribbled a couple of times and then passed to Zhang Ruizhi. Uh... the pass was a bit off, and it was intercepted by the opponent. I felt completely hopeless about him. "Ji Fang hasn't played much in games; he might need some time to adapt to the court," Teacher Qiu commented while watching the game. Then Bing Ge received the ball but was double-teamed by the opponents and passed it out. Ji Fang caught the ball at the free-throw line and jumped to shoot! I felt a glimmer of hope again as the ball arced beautifully through the air, only to miss completely... Season Brother, you really need to step it up! The opponent seized the ball and scored, taking a four-point lead and putting us in a passive position again. "Teacher Qiu, please take him out," I urged. Ji Fang himself was dissatisfied with his performance, shaking his head vigorously and clenching his fist tightly. Zhongqi Senior came over to comfort him: "It's okay, don't be nervous; just relax and play like we're training together. We know this court better than they do." Ji Fang nodded.
We resumed play, and Zhongqi Senior dribbled to the front court before suddenly accelerating to draw in defenders, then passed to Ji Fang. Without hesitation, Ji Fang shot from beyond the three-point line—score! He clenched his fist tightly, and I was surprised too; I turned to look at Teacher Qiu, who smiled slightly as if not too surprised. But Ji Fang's performance wasn't over yet; an opponent Power Forward took a mid-range jump shot when suddenly a figure leaped high and swatted the ball away forcefully. The ball landed in front of Zhongqi Senior, who used his speed advantage to run back downcourt and easily score against an empty basket. This spectacular scene left me dumbfounded: a Shooting Guard standing at 1.83 meters blocked a Power Forward nearly 1.95 meters tall! Ji Fang, from this moment on, you have made me Xiang Jie see you in a new light.
Zhongqi Senior ran over to high-five Ji Fang in celebration as the game continued. After initially struggling, Ji Fang gradually became Zhongqi Senior's reliable assistant on the perimeter, first assisting Zhongqi Senior with a long-range shot that hit, then making a brilliant pass to Bing Ge for an easy layup. His overall performance showed that his fundamentals were indeed solid. After completing an "and-one" play, he led the team in an impressive comeback of 11 points. By the end of the Second Quarter, we were leading our opponents 58-49.
"You played well in the first half; Zhongqi and Ji Fang need to keep pushing in the third quarter without giving them any chance to close the gap," Teacher Qiu instructed. Hmph! Stealing my thunder and making me sit on the bench! Looking back, Shuai Dong and Pang Hao were watching me with smiles—ugh! These two guys are completely carefree. In the first half of the third quarter, our Team continued playing strongly; however, during the latter half, it became clear that Ji Fang was running out of steam. Teacher Qiu substituted me back into the game—ha! It turns out Ji Fang has his weaknesses compared to me; his stamina depletes faster than mine, only able to maintain peak performance for short bursts. Nevertheless, Ji Fang's skills still amazed us.
Determined for revenge, we played aggressively—especially when I toyed with my matchup; seeing him flustered was incredibly satisfying! By the end of the third quarter, we had pulled ahead by nearly twenty points. In the fourth quarter, Teacher Qiu substituted Zhongqi, Bing Ge, and Zhang Ruizhi out for me, Ouyang, Qiu Junze, Zhou Litong, and Li Junhai—our Team's rookies—with our tallest player being only 1.88 meters tall. Teacher Qiu sent out our "Mini Legion" to counteract their team; although we had speed advantages, we were severely outmatched in height when it came to rebounding as our opponents dominated that aspect of play. Watching our "Mini Legion" struggle against this odd combination made Teacher Qiu switch us back to our twin towers strategy; once they came on court, their impact was immediate. Even though our opponents fought hard to close the gap in the second half of the fourth quarter, our lead was too significant for them to overcome—ultimately resulting in a 90-101 loss for City No. 1 Middle School.
"Yulin High School! Yulin High School!" The entire crowd erupted with excitement as we breathed a sigh of relief walking out of the gymnasium. At the entrance waited Shuai Dong, Pang Hao, and Xia Ying for me. "Woo woo!" I howled like a wolf and high-fived each of them. "Great job today!" Xia Ying said with a grin. "Hey! What can I say? It's just my talent," I replied narcissistically with a smirk. "But that guy named Ji Fang is really impressive; that block he made is almost on par with Sun Yue!" Shuai Dong added enthusiastically. "You're infatuated now? If you're so enamored with him, why not offer yourself up?" I teased him—looks like Ji Fang has truly made a name for himself.
Returning home felt like my bones were about to fall apart; tomorrow we have another back-to-back game against Hejiang Middle School which will surely be even tougher—just Jiang Lingfeng alone is enough trouble for us! I heard that Hejiang Middle School recently crushed Twenty-Four Middle School 106-87 without losing any matches this season; I'm not sure if we'll make it through this challenge tomorrow. Lying in bed with my headphones on, I suddenly didn't feel like logging onto QQ; instead opened Douyin and listened to Seviehang's "All Night Long" while reading Yu Yu Hakusho manga—I really love this song because its upbeat rhythm helps me temporarily forget all my worries and stress; it's quite enjoyable. Listening to music made me unknowingly drift off into sleep where I dreamt of being chased by wolves—I ran desperately without daring to stop because if I slowed down even slightly those wolves would tear me apart! When I reached a cliff's edge I jumped off—and then... I woke up startled—what kind of hint is that?
Waking up in the morning felt exhausting all over; after washing up I wanted to check on A Fei. "Mom, I'm going to see A Fei," I said as I slung my backpack over my shoulder heading towards the door. "Buy yourself some breakfast; don't be late for school!" Mom shouted from behind me. "Got it!" Upon arriving at the hospital A Fei was already awake while Aunt Yu was teasing him as he wandered around his hospital bed. "Jie is here! You woke up pretty early; have you eaten breakfast yet?" Aunt Yu greeted warmly upon seeing me enter. "When did you become so diligent?" A Fei joked back at her.
"I've eaten; what about you guys?" "Not yet! Now that you're here it's perfect timing—can you help keep an eye on A Fei while I go buy breakfast?" "Sure thing Aunt Yu; go ahead." After Aunt Yu left I helped A Fei sit up on his bed. "A Fei! We won yesterday! It was an exhilarating victory that left our opponents thoroughly convinced." I quickly took this opportunity to brag a bit while also reassuring A Fei's spirits.
"Yeah; last night when Sha Xiaomei came she told me about it." That pesky Sha Xiaomei sure knows how to gossip fast! "By the way, I heard about Ji Fang's performance yesterday—it was pretty good—is that true? As far as I know he's even more introverted than me!" A Fei expressed surprise.
"I didn't expect it either; initially when he missed that three-pointer I thought he was just another 'fool,' but later in the game he managed to hold it together throughout!" However there might have been some luck involved too." Finally feeling somewhat unconvinced myself I added: "Regardless of anything else as long as he can help out our team that's what matters." A Fei chuckled lightly while still thinking about other things: "Oh right! Sha Xiaomei asked me yesterday if you would be discharged from here tomorrow—I am—and she looked quite gloomy." A Fei lowered his head: "When she came yesterday she told me we might not see each other for about twenty days."
An ancient saying goes: 'One day apart feels like three autumns.' So calculating you'll both be apart for sixty years or so—sigh..." I pretended to lament dramatically before adding: "Come on now that's exaggerating!" We laughed casually together until Aunt Yu returned saying: "Jie you need to get going or you'll be late for school!"
"Okay Aunt Yu goodbye!" As I stood up leaning close beside A Fei's ear softly whispered: "Just wait for my good news about victory." Then patted his shoulder while giving him a wink before humming as I left his hospital room.
"Great lover! Good morning!" Just as I arrived at school’s entrance Xia Ying’s voice rang out loudly at me: “Shh… keep your voice down! Don’t call me ‘great lover’ everywhere—it’s bad influence on me.” My heart raced looking around cautiously.
"Oh okay understood—it’s bad influence huh? Then call me sister."
"Are you kidding? You're younger than me by far—you little brat wanting to be my sister? Ugh!" I scoffed dismissively.
"Great lover! Just arrived huh? Good morning!" She shouted cheerfully at me again.
"Sister let’s head inside before we’re late." Trying hard not to lose control over my rising frustration.
"Haha good little brother very obedient—let’s go inside." Watching her proud figure made me feel an urge to grab a brick and smash her!
Once we reached class she suddenly turned serious faster than changing masks in Peking opera: “Xiang Jie during today’s match remember to give it your all regardless of winning or losing—we’ll support you.”
“Aw so touching should I shed some tears just for your sake?” I mocked her lightly.
“Hey! I'm being serious here why are you acting like this? I'm ignoring you!” Xia Ying turned her head away angrily.
“Are you mad now? Alright alright! I'll do my best.” Then putting away my smile turned serious saying: “Xia Ying thank you.” After finishing quickly dashed outside towards gymnasium where upon reaching downstairs bumped into Shuai Dong and Pang Hao who had just arrived.
“Why are you guys so early for practice? Working hard huh?” Shuai Dong grinned mischievously.
“Unlike you lazybones who come only when class is about start,” I replied continuing forward.
“Jie! Go for it!” Shuai Dong and Pang Hao shouted simultaneously causing me stop turning back smiling while giving them an encouraging gesture.
When I arrived at the gym, I found that everyone was already there except for me. I muttered to myself, "Sigh! I'm the last one again." Ji Fang was practicing his jump shots. I walked over to strike up a conversation with him: "Senior Ji Fang, you're quite impressive, hiding your skills!" Ji Fang stopped and smiled at me, saying, "It's just that my shooting feels good today; there's nothing to show off." He then continued practicing his shots. Hmph! He really is a dull person who doesn't know how to have fun.
After a while, Teacher Qiu arrived. "Students, this is our most challenging test yet. Forget about our previous defeat and let's play well this time!" Teacher Qiu shouted at us. "Yes!" we all responded in unison, our voices particularly loud. Soon after, Hejiang Middle School arrived. I noticed Zhongqi Senior staring intently at Jiang Lingfeng. Two equally outstanding Point Guards were meeting again. During our warm-up, Zhongqi Senior walked over. I saw Zhongqi Senior shake hands with Jiang Lingfeng and then they smiled and chatted. "Huh? Aren't they supposed to be rivals? There's not a hint of tension between them," Ouyang remarked upon seeing this scene. I was puzzled too; perhaps this is what people call 'heroes appreciating heroes,' the leaders of both teams.
The game was about to start, and Teacher Qiu began to announce the starting lineup. To my surprise, Zhongqi Senior returned to the starting lineup, but what shocked me even more was that Ji Fang, who had gained fame in the last match, was not included in the starting team.
Comment 0 Comment Count