63. Long Live

As soon as Xu Wenqiang's game ended, warm cheers broke out from the other table.

Su Xiaoshan's game had not yet ended when Xu Wenqiang hurried over.

Gao Zhe tutted his words twice, "Xu Wenqiang, she wasn't sad after losing the game, she was in the mood to watch other people's games."

"Is she the kind of person who will be depressed if she loses? She has tried her best and has no regrets in her heart, so naturally she won't be sad," said Xiao Cheng.

"Okay, you're the only one who understands her, okay?" Gao Zhe embraced Xiao Cheng. "Do you want to go to Su Xiaoshan's competition?"

"Since it concerns the honor of the class, of course we have to go." Xiao Cheng said, calling Lin Tong and Ning Yi to go find Xu Wenqiang together.

"Class honor?" Gao Zhe got goosebumps when he heard the word coming from Xiao Cheng's mouth.

Xu Wenqiang had originally expected to see Su Xiaoshan sweep his opponent, but she hadn't expected that opponent to be Chen Yang. No wonder she hadn't seen Chen Yang when she was playing with Chen Mengyao just now.

Su Xiaoshan and Chen Yang have reached the fifth game, the score is 7:5, and Chen Yang is leading.

"Who will win?" Xiao Cheng stood behind Xu Wenqiang and asked, looking at the situation on the field.

"It's hard to say," Xu Wenqiang said. "Su Xiaoshan and Xiao Cheng's tennis skills were developed by playing against each other. They're very familiar with each other and know each other's strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, their strengths are probably evenly matched, so either one of them is likely to win."

"What about you?" Xiao Cheng asked again.

"Me?" Xu Wenqiang was stunned.

"Did you learn table tennis by playing with them?" Xiao Cheng asked her.

"nice shot!"

Su Xiaoshan hit a good shot and the people watching cheered.

Xu Wenqiang looked at Su Xiaoshan and Chen Yang on either side of the table and said, "Of course I also played with them."

In countless mornings and evenings, she and they would play on the cement platform of the farmers' market, holding rackets worth a few dollars, and they would go from playing without any rules to playing with order, from always being beaten to being able to compete with them... At that time, they were carefree, with only the little white jumping ball in their eyes.

Xiao Cheng looked at Xu Wenqiang's nostalgic expression and knew that she was trapped in a memory that he could not interfere with.

Xiao Cheng lowered his head, hiding the gloom and embarrassment on his face that he didn't want to show to others. He knew better than anyone that Xu Wenqiang's past included Su Xiaoshan and Chen Yang, and that Xu Wenqiang's past had nothing to do with him. He also knew that the future was more important than the past.

But what’s the use of being clear? What’s the use of knowing?

I still feel upset!

"pretty!"

Chen Yang dunked the ball over Su Xiaoshan, and everyone applauded and cheered, rushing forward excitedly.

Xu Wenqiang was lost in thought and didn't notice the crowd surging behind her, so she stumbled.

"Be careful." Xiao Cheng held Xu Wenqiang's shoulders with both hands.

"Thank you." Xu Wenqiang thanked.

Xiao Cheng let go of Xu Wenqiang, but didn't retract his hand. He placed his hand behind Xu Wenqiang, protecting her in his arms. Xu Wenqiang had already come back to her senses from her memories, and she was completely focused on the situation on the court. She was completely unaware of what was happening behind her.

The people behind were constantly surging forward, but Xiao Cheng stood still, his arm always behind Xu Wenqiang, motionless.

It's hard to accept, so just let it be.

He had no choice but to admit it.

Finally, the game ended and Su Xiaoshan defeated Chen Yang.

Some people on the field were excited, while others were regretful...

But Su Xiaoshan, who won the game, was very calm, and Chen Yang, who lost the game, was also very indifferent. The two smiled at each other, and in each other's smiles, they saw some of their past.

As if they remembered something, they both looked at Xu Wenqiang.

Xu Wenqiang smiled brightly and then stretched out her hands towards them.

Su Xiaoshan glanced at Chen Yang and walked towards Xu Wenqiang first. Chen Yang hesitated for a moment and then walked over.

When Su Xiaoshan's hand landed on Xu Wenqiang's palm, the smile on Xu Wenqiang's face was brighter than the sun. Su Xiaoshan looked away as if his eyes were stung.

Xu Wenqiang looked at the hesitant Chen Yang again and said with a smile, "Come on, let's just pretend we were kids. Didn't we often do this after playing ball?"

Chen Yang looked at Xu Wenqiang. He hadn't seen her smile so beautifully at him in a long time. He felt that her face and the smile on her face were both strange and familiar.

"Forget it if you don't want to come." Xu Wenqiang muttered and was about to withdraw her hand.

“Bang!”

But Chen Yang slapped her palm at that moment. After the loud slap, Xu Wenqiang cried out in pain, "Chen Yang, can't you be gentler?"

Chen Yang turned around and laughed quietly after he walked away.

Besides table tennis, Xu Wenqiang also signed up for the 400m, but her group didn't qualify in the morning, so she quietly spent the afternoon as a spectator. It's true, while being a spectator isn't exhausting, shouting "Come on!" at the top of her lungs is quite straining on her voice. So, during the most exciting basketball games, no matter how impressive the goal, she could only offer a token shout.

This was the first time Xu Wenqiang had actually watched Xiao Cheng and Gao Zhe play basketball since they met. To be fair, whether it was their teamwork or their individual skills, Xu Wenqiang felt they were all truly "pleasing to the eye."

It’s no wonder that girls are easily attracted to boys who play basketball and football.

The sweat on the boys' faces sparkled like diamonds, their sweat-soaked hair dancing across their faces. Occasionally, they would glance at the cheering girls on the court, causing everyone to speculate who they were looking at...

In Xiao Yi's words, "This is youth!"

However, when the competition is fierce, it is inevitable that the basketball will fly towards the audience.

"careful!"

Seeing the basketball flying straight towards Lin Tong, Xu Wenqiang reflexively stretched out his arm to block the ball.

Xu Wenqiang's momentum when catching the ball was so shocking that Lin Tong's eyes widened.

“So handsome!”

"Can this girl play basketball?"

"Isn't she Akagi Haruko and Xu Wenqiang from Class 4, Grade 1?"

…

Gao Zhe said to Xiao Cheng, "Even if Xu Wenqiang were just a spectator, she would steal our limelight!"

Xiao Cheng glanced at Xu Wenqiang, who was sitting among the girls and had an indistinguishably feminine temperament, and said, "If she really goes on stage, there really won't be anything left for us."

Because it was the finals and the opponent was very strong, Xiao Cheng and Gao Zhe had a very difficult game. Especially at the end, the players were exhausted and each step was shaky, but everyone gritted their teeth and persevered.

The spectators on the sidelines were shouting "Come on!" at the top of their lungs, desperately trying to shout with all their might. Xu Wenqiang didn't care about her itchy and sore throat and just joined in the shouting.

For a moment, it was hard to tell whether the people on the court were fighting harder or the people on the sidelines were fighting harder.

In the end, Class 4 of Grade 1 won the game.

When the referee's final whistle stopped, some people hugged each other, laughing until they cried, while others hugged each other and cried until they cried. I don't know who started shouting, "Long live youth," followed by "Long live basketball," "Long live progress," and "Long live exams"... The chants echoed throughout the Qingshi No. 1 Middle School campus.

Xiao Cheng walked past the boiling crowd, approached Xu Wenqiang, and threw the basketball in his hand to her, "We won."

Xu Wenqiang took the basketball, smiled, and threw it to Xiao Cheng again, saying in a hoarse voice, "We won."

There is no need to say much, I just want to stand with you in this grand youth.