Hazelnuts (Part 1)

The cruelest thing for an athlete is to have been a genius, but not now, and never will be again.

...

Zhou Zeyu sighed deeply, raised his head, and looked at the dark night sky with a touch of melancholy.

She didn't have a very good memory, but she remembered one thing very clearly: her fall from a prodigy to her current state was all because of the bone in her right knee.

It broke, and so she broke too.

Because of that small joint in her knee, she has been sidelined for a whole year.

Three hundred and sixty-five days is enough to change a lot of things. She is no longer a member of the first team, has lost the World Championship spot that should have been hers, and can only come to Belgrade as a sparring partner. She really can't catch up with the others anymore.

In a country where gold is everywhere, she once thought she was the most dazzling one, but no one is irreplaceable. From a rising star to a regrettable failure, it seems that no one will remember her anymore.

She tilted her head slightly, squinted her eyes, and felt the cool night breeze blowing on her face. It wasn't gentle at all; it stung her face.

"What a lousy wind! It's such a spoilsport!" Zhou Zeyu thought indignantly.

She sighed, took a deep breath of the fragrance of the unknown flowers in the garden, and felt a little calmer. Although she was in a foreign land, it was still good to be able to relieve her mood.

Sensitive as she is, she would naturally choose the scenic hotel garden as a place to relax. Unfortunately, she is clearly not the only one who thinks this way.

After dodging countless insects in the flower bushes, Zhou Zeyu shook her head vigorously. When she opened her eyes, she was startled to find the light above her flickering. She thought she was hallucinating from shaking her head, so she squinted to adjust her eyes for a while. Then, she suddenly saw the man sitting opposite her.

When did he show up?!

Zhou Zeyu gasped reflexively, her eyes widening slightly as she stared at him in disbelief, unable to control her expression.

Because the streetlights were still flickering, the man's features were indistinct in the intermittent dim light. All that could be seen was that he had a rather menacing buzz cut, was dressed entirely in black, and had a book lying on his lap. It was unclear whether he had noticed her.

That's very strange.

Judging from his attire, he should be some kind of good-for-nothing youth who specializes in robbery and kidnapping on dark and stormy nights. But the problem is the big book on his lap. Do delinquents nowadays have educational requirements?

Zhou Zeyi didn't know what was going on, but she knew that strange things usually had very simple answers, such as this person was not a good person.

Zhou Zeyu took another deep breath.

In a foreign land, surrounded by unfamiliar people and a strange man, Zhou Zeyi completely forgot about her injuries; all she could think about was running away.

Somewhat bewildered, she moved her stiff neck and quietly shifted a few inches to the side of the bench, hoping to slip back to the hotel unnoticed while the blazing streetlights were illuminating her. She wasn't sure if the man had even noticed her, but she knew she couldn't stay with this big man any longer.

However, to her horror, just as she finally managed to move to the edge of the bench and was about to slip away, the streetlight, which had been half-dead, suddenly came to life, illuminating the leg she was about to step out with.

And then there was the sudden look in their eyes.

Zhou Zeyu stood there, staring into his eyes, and subconsciously swallowed.

Why are you staring at her?

The other person seemed to completely ignore her confused and embarrassed look, staring at her intently with a blank expression, showing no sign of embarrassment whatsoever.

Zhou Zeyi assessed his chances of winning in a direct confrontation, shook his head guiltily, forced a fake smile, and spoke first, "Hi."

He ignored her and kept staring at her.

Zhou Zeyu thought the other person might be stunned, but as for why they were stunned, after ruling out the possibility that they were shocked by her beauty, Zhou Zeyu felt the answer was already obvious.

He was plotting how to attack her.

The moment she understood, Zhou Zeyu's legs almost gave way. She managed to stay upright and didn't collapse to the ground. She took a deep breath and then rushed out!

Then he was immediately pulled away.

She turned around abruptly, feeling as if her heart was about to stop beating. The man seemed to be able to teleport, closing the five-meter distance in less than half a second. He grabbed her tightly, his face still showing that strange confusion.

Zhou Zeyu spoke almost desperately, her face pale with fright. She tried to break free from his grasp again, and the man seemed to suddenly come to his senses, belatedly releasing her hand, but still staring at her without moving.

It seems to be trying to discern something.

Why are you here?

Zhou Zeyu was stunned, seemingly not expecting that the first words that came out of his mouth would be this, instead of something like "hand over the money" or "I'll kill you if you dare to call the police." It was quite unexpected.

But she quickly regained her composure, her face showing wariness, and replied very readily, "None of your business."

The man frowned slightly, then suddenly narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing her from head to toe as if examining her. Although Zhou Zeyu didn't know what he was going to do, she was certain that his gaze was definitely not friendly.

Combined with his deliberate squinting, many cases of racial discrimination suddenly flooded his mind. Zhou Zeyu nodded in realization, his fear instantly replaced by anger. He reached out and slapped him hard on the shoulder.

You're too rude!

Her face flushed red, and she wanted to say a few more words, but she regretfully found that her mind was already clouded by anger. She racked her brains but couldn't think of a word more offensive than "rude," so she had no choice but to give up, gave him a few disdainful glances, and prepared to leave again.

The man hissed softly and leaned forward slightly as if he wanted to say something, but Zhou Zeyu flung his hand away and walked away angrily.

In the brief moment between her angry departure, she seemed to faintly hear a clear "Zhou Zeyu" behind her. Her steps faltered for a moment, as if she were subtly judging whether she should turn back and cast a puzzled glance.

But she didn't. What if he's a pervert? And judging from the current situation, the possibility of him being a pervert is extremely high.

She strode toward the hotel entrance with a blazing fire in her eyes, ignoring even the pain in her right knee. Only after she slammed the door shut and collapsed onto the bed did she realize that it was almost dawn.

It was almost dawn.

After that incident in the early hours of the morning, she was so frightened and angry that she even forgot about today's most important warm-up match. That's what she should be most worried about.

Not that racist bastard.

Zhou Zeyu collapsed onto the bed, staring at the bare ceiling, suddenly unsure of what to do next.

She was naturally unwilling to come to Belgrade to participate in the competition as a sparring partner for the team, so the team arranged a warm-up match for her before the official competition began.

But everyone knows that whether or not she warms up is secondary. The most important thing is for Coach Huang to judge whether she is still qualified to stay in the team. Simply put, if she wins, she stays; if she loses, she is demoted to the second team.

What a cruel truth.

Light filtered softly through the gaps in the curtains, dappling the sheets. Zhou Zeyu glanced at his watch; as the hour hand struck seven, there was a very light knock on the door. Coach Xu's voice rang out precisely on time, "Time to leave. Did you sleep well?"

Zhou Zeyu responded and pushed open the door to go out.

Coach Xu stared at his dark circles for a moment, sighed with some worry, and patted his shoulder reassuringly, "Don't be nervous. Coach Huang is just checking your current condition. Don't overthink it, just focus on the game."

Zhou Zeyi gave a perfunctory reply and casually asked, "Who is my opponent?"

However, she no longer needed to hear the answer, because she had already seen the person. Feng Yifan was on the other side of the pool table, turning his wrist and nodding to her.

Zhou Zeyu had last seen her a long time ago. They had both entered the provincial team at that time, but Zhou Zeyu defeated her in the selection competition and entered the national team. After that, the two went their separate ways. Zhou Zeyu was always busy, while she willingly served as a sparring partner for the first team for three years.

She never expected that the two of them would meet again here, in a foreign land, once again vying for a spot on the first team.

Zhou Zeyu herself had no confidence that she could beat her in her current poor condition after such a long injury break. In other words, she even took it for granted that she would never have the chance to return to the first team.

But almost everyone thought she could, because before her injuries she was virtually invincible.

But after all, only she knows herself best. In the year that no one knows about, her condition has undergone earth-shattering changes.

Forget about geniuses; there are no geniuses here anymore.

The most important and critical problem is her knee joint, which, despite all its indicators appearing normal, continues to torment her.

Filled with unease and fear, Zhou Zeyu stood in front of the ping-pong table once again after a year. She bent over halfway to prepare to serve. Her knees were all fine, and she breathed a sigh of relief, only to find that her hands were trembling slightly.

The ball was served by her and then returned by Feng Yifan. As she tried to use her most familiar topspin, a sudden and overwhelming fear quickly enveloped her. She remembered that the last time she missed a topspin, it seemed to be in a similar situation. Her right hand trembled slightly, and the ball fell onto the table with a thud.

She stared in disbelief at the ball bouncing slightly off the table. Then, Coach Xu's voice came through intermittently. He shouted at her to concentrate on the game, but all she heard were broken, incoherent sentences. She looked at Feng Yifan in horror, only to feel a dizzying sensation as the world spun around her.

After stabilizing herself by holding onto the pool table, she swallowed hard and waved to the team doctor on the sidelines. She saw the resolute fighting spirit in Feng Yifan's eyes, a look she had once had but hadn't seen in many years. She was stung.

She barely managed to receive the second ball from Feng Yifan, followed by a series of rallies. Each time she received the ball, she seemed to be struggling, as if she was barely holding on and would be completely overwhelmed in the next second.

It was obvious that Feng Yifan had also realized this. After winning seven consecutive points, the determination in her eyes slowly turned into hope and confidence. Zhou Zeyu was standing right opposite her, only 2.74 meters away from the pool table. She watched her opponent feel confident because of her struggle.

Coach Xu's words echoed in her ears again and again: "Be steady, be calm, and fight with all your might to win back every single ball." Whenever she was stuck in a stalemate, these words would play on repeat like a broken record, encouraging her to adjust her mindset little by little. But even as she kept repeating them to herself, her hands were still trembling.

She raised her racket again and again, but always unconsciously put it down, trying to find the familiar feeling, only to find a blank.

In one moment after another, she seemed to clearly sense her talent slipping away drop by drop. In the long, dark nights, she thought she could accept her mediocrity, but she couldn't.

What's more painful than mediocrity is having once shone brightly and then fading into mediocrity.

A familiar pain shot through her right knee, but Zhou Zeyu habitually ignored it and unleashed a powerful lunge. The immense force propelled her forward, and she struggled to maintain her balance, managing to catch the opponent's fierce counterattack.

The match has reached match point, and she is gritting her teeth and refusing to relax even a little. The pain in her knees is getting worse with each half-squat and sprint, but she can't show any weakness. She really wants to win.

Both women had the desire to win, but one's fall from grace was meteoric, while the other's perseverance after years of dormancy was unwavering. The difference in their motivations was stark. Compared to the highly motivated Feng Yifan, her chances of winning were perhaps less than one percent.

The whole world was plunged into a deathly silence. It was undoubtedly a stalemate. Neither of them could break through the other's defenses for a while, and the battle line was dragged out for an exceptionally long time. Zhou Zeyu's mind was blank, as if he was just swinging his arms purely by muscle memory.

One time, one time, and another.

However, for some reason, that scene flashed through her mind again: a magnificent and brightly lit hall filled with the noise of people, her kneeling on the ground, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably, accompanied by the excruciating pain of her right knee exploding, as the competition was declared over.

With a thud, she seemed to snap out of her reverie, but then again, she didn't, because her knee was still throbbing with pain, and the people around her were still talking loudly, but she couldn't hear anything.

Time seemed to slow down dramatically in an instant. She looked down and saw the ball bounce off her right knee. Her body felt as if it had been crushed by this insignificant impact, and she slowly fell backward.

Feng Yifan opened her mouth, trying to rush over to pull her back in terror. Coach Xu also frantically shouted her name from the stands, but to no avail. Zhou Zeyu felt as if all her strength had been suddenly drained from her body. She stopped thinking about the doomed match and collapsed peacefully.

In the last second before losing consciousness, she suddenly saw a petite girl step onto the high podium, enjoying the ribbons and flowers that suddenly burst open above her head, and laughing as she took a bite of the gold medal.