Year-end (Part 2)

Happy New Year? Happy my ass.

In fact, Zhou Zeyu was in a good mood until she was forced to deal with the visiting guests. However, as if afraid that she would feel better, her smile hadn't lasted for more than a few days before bad things happened.

She had been away from home for a long time, and could only have a superficial understanding of her relatives, whether close or distant, or perhaps not even a basic understanding at all, like a blind man touching an elephant.

The topics of conversation among relatives throughout the universe are always the same: How are you doing lately? How's your work? How's your family? How are your kids? But Zhou Zeyu is in a bad situation because she has none of the three things mentioned above.

After awkwardly finishing three cups of herbal tea, Aunt Chen, seemingly noticing her discomfort, kindly suggested that she go back to her room to rest. However, sometimes it's not as simple as just leaving whenever you want.

Zhou Zeyu suddenly stood up, only to be forcefully pushed back down. He stretched out his leg to try and slip away, but his path was blocked again. After struggling around for a while, he decided to resign himself to his fate and silently waited for his judgment.

Why haven't I seen you playing in any matches lately?

Zhou Zeyu chuckled dryly twice, "I'm still injured."

"Did you lose a match before, and now they won't let you play anymore?"

Zhou Zeyu didn't speak, but his brow twitched, and he felt his whole head buzzing.

Seeing her fall silent, the balding old men whose names she didn't know became even more agitated, slapping their thighs in great distress and pointing at her, saying with heartache.

"You've been harmed by those foreign forces, all to make things difficult for our country's athletes!"

Zhou Zeyu subconsciously let out a soft "ah," but the faint sound was quickly drowned out by the group's indignant discussion. So he decided not to argue with them anymore and continued drinking his tea in silence.

However, someone else chimed in, "Look, I told you long ago that your playing style was wrong. That old man on the phone said the same thing the other day. I told you to change your playing style. But you didn't listen, and now you've brought this upon yourself."

Zhou Zeyi had absolutely no desire to respond, let alone refute. She had long understood the principle that silence is golden, and anyway, saying a few words wouldn't do any harm. Everyone pretends to know what they don't.

"Yes, so I guess you're having some mental issues right now. You should rest this injury and be able to go back to the competition. If you just stay home all day doing nothing, won't people gossip about you?"

"Gossip about your mother? You're the only ones in the whole universe who gossip about her," Zhou Zeyu yawned.

However, that group of people didn't intend to let her off the hook. "What were you doing going abroad before? You didn't need to go at all. Are foreign countries really better than us? You're so young, shouldn't you have a foreign-worshipping mentality?"

Yes, yes, yes, that's right.

"Young people need to have drive too. Staying at home all day won't do. Have you found a job yet? Normally, athletes' jobs are assigned by the state, so why aren't you getting one? If all else fails, why don't you go buy the boss two packs of cigarettes and try talking to him?"

"Yes, you're so young, you should be more quick-witted and not keep quiet. We're all doing this for your own good, aren't we? It's impolite to stay silent like this."

However, sometimes silence is not a permanent solution. Zhou Zeyu remained silent, with a nonchalant and carefree expression, and crossed his legs, which only fueled the lecturing desire of the group of middle-aged men. They all took a sip of water to moisten their throats and prepared to launch their attack.

Zhou Zeyu was not intimidated at all. She had seen all sorts of terrible people, so she didn't care about these few uncles and aunts.

Just as both sides were rubbing their hands together, preparing to launch the second round of attacks, an incredibly loud knocking sound came from the doorway, so loud that everyone present froze on the spot.

Zhou Zeyu glanced around, patted his bottom, got up, and went to open the door.

She didn't think too much about it and had no idea who was standing outside the door. So when the door was opened and the person outside showed a slightly angry face, she was stunned.

However, the man only glanced at her before quickly walking around her and entering, standing imposingly in front of everyone with a mocking smile.

"What are you saying? Your voice is so loud, I could hear you from outside. You bunch of people are all talk, are you bullying this little girl because she can't speak for herself? How dare you lecture another child? You're asking for trouble, aren't you?"

She gave Aunt Chen and Mr. Zhou, who were sitting in the living room, a cold look on her face, and said irritably, "And you two? You didn't even react when she was being talked to like that?"

"Good my ass!" she yelled. "The child finally comes home for the New Year, and you all have to make her miserable?"

She remained expressionless, then turned around and looked down at the relatives present. "Before the divorce, I had to put up with your attitudes and call you uncles and aunts. I endured so much from you for over a decade, and now you want to lecture my child?"

Zhou Zeyu froze on the spot, just like everyone else present, staring in disbelief at the somewhat sudden situation.

"And you, you good-for-nothing," before leaving gracefully, she turned to Zhou's father, who looked completely bewildered, and pointed at his forehead, mercilessly criticizing him, "If you were even a little tougher, no one would dare to discipline Xiaoyu like this!"

Zhou Zeyu finally came to his senses and asked in a barely audible voice, "Mom...?"

Seemingly hearing her voice, her mother finally realized that there was another Zhou Zeyu behind her. "Oh, right, pack your things and come home with me for the New Year."

Now it was Zhou Zeyu's turn to be at a loss. She hadn't expected her mother to suddenly appear here, nor did she know that her mother would do such a thing so suddenly, like a thunderbolt descending to earth. She also didn't expect her mother to ask her to go home with her.

Regardless, Zhou Zeyu did as instructed, said goodbye to Aunt Chen and her father, sincerely thanked them for their care over the past few days, then simply packed her meager belongings and left in front of a room full of relatives, closing the door behind her.

Even before sitting in the passenger seat, Zhou Zeyu's mind was still completely blank.

Her mother didn't react much, only handing her a pair of sunglasses when she got in the car. Zhou Zeyu didn't wear them; compared to her mother's carefree and nonchalant attitude with sunglasses on, she looked more like a headless fly.

How are you doing in Belgrade?

Zhou Zeyu wanted to say that it was alright, but he was interrupted as soon as he opened his mouth.

"I heard from Coach Xu that you're dating someone over there, is that right?"

Zhou Zeyu jolted awake, intending to spring up and retort, but the seatbelt snapped him back, leaving him awkwardly stuck in place: "What do you mean, dating? What did he tell you?!"

Her mother turned to look at her, shaking her head and teasingly said, "Why are you in such a hurry? I'm not against it. Your mother is very open-minded, okay? If you want to date, then date. You're not a three-year-old."

But she really didn't talk to her... Zhou Zeyu thought with great frustration.

Since he didn't know how much of the gossipy Coach Xu had revealed, Zhou Zeyu couldn't judge how much his mother actually knew. He awkwardly scratched his head and smiled, not daring to say another word, and just stared blankly out the window the whole time.

What are the arrangements?

Zhou Zeyu shrugged. "If I had made other plans, I wouldn't be here right now."

“That means there was no arrangement,” her mother made a quick judgment. “Although those people said some unpleasant things, they were right about one thing. You’re too honest, sometimes you need to be more resourceful. I don’t have any connections in Beijing, so why don’t you, Coach Xu, help me smooth things over?”

“Director Xu?” Zhou Zeyu shook his head. “If he really had that ability, then we wouldn’t be in this situation now.”

In short, there's no connection behind it.

Coach Xu has been in the team for so many years and has a good reputation, but the problem is that he doesn't get along with Coach Huang. So, let alone finding a backer, he's lucky he hasn't been ruined. At his worst, he even needed Zhou Zeyu to support him from behind. How could he possibly have any connections or anything like that?

"And what about you? You've been in the team for so many years, have you found someone to back you up? Doesn't your captain think highly of you? Why don't you ask her for help?"

Zhou Zeyu closed his eyes in frustration and refused without hesitation: "I don't want to."

While waiting at the traffic light, her mother turned to look at her again and lightly patted her thigh: "So stubborn, what's wrong with giving in? Will it kill you?"

“Yes,” Zhou Zeyu said listlessly, “I wouldn’t even die.”

"You and she had a falling out?"

How to summarize this? She really didn't know where to begin, so she simply didn't say a word, gave a few vague excuses, and continued to stare blankly out the window.

Her mother knew her character perfectly well and didn't press further: "Now that you're back, are you going back to Beijing?"

But this is a question that cannot be answered.

Zhou Zeyu didn't know how to answer. In fact, every step she took now was based on her own whims. She would come back when she wanted to and leave when she wanted to. She didn't even know what her future plans were, so how could she tell others?

"I haven't decided yet," she said cautiously after thinking for a while, "I might... still go back."

Her mother, who had been steering the car, glanced at her after hearing her hesitant tone and asked, "Have you thought it through?"

"Of course I didn't think it through before I said that," Zhou Zeyu thought to himself.

“You know some things better than I do, and you should know that going back to Beijing won’t solve anything,” she seemed to sigh, a rare look of confusion flashing across her usually resolute face. “Xiaoyu, Beijing… isn’t really suitable for you.”

Zhou Zeyu knew that this was the most tactful way her mother could express her opinion; she did not actually agree with her decision.

As a businessman with no fixed abode, she naturally knew the difficulties of being adrift and helpless. It seemed that since Zhou Zeyu was a child, her mother had always wanted her to have a stable life, so she did not support her to continue her studies and was full of worries about her going far away.

In her mother's eyes, even national athletes are not as good as the physical education teacher at the high school next door. Athletes are too tired and suffer too much, with too much pressure and uncertainty. They have nothing to do with comfort and stability, so they are not the first choice.

Even now, when Zhou Zeyu says she wants to go back to Beijing, her mother immediately objects; it's almost like a conditioned reflex.

She didn't finish her sentence, firstly because it was unnecessary, and secondly because she couldn't bring herself to say it.

How could he bring it up himself, admitting that Beijing was indeed not a suitable place for him, that it was never an ideal place for young people to pursue their dreams? On the contrary, it was the place where Zhou Zeyu's youthful dreams were buried.

What good would going back do? A comeback would be a pipe dream, and even saving face would be difficult. Was she supposed to keep wandering around in this place of heartbreak forever?

That would be better... better to come back.

Zhou Zeyu turned his head to look out the car window in frustration, not realizing that it had started raining at some point.

The weather has been terrible lately, with continuous rain, as if it's slowly washing away the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year. There are very few cars on the road, and the fine rain has turned the car windows into a hazy mess. The car's heater has exacerbated this fog, and Zhou Zeyu finally looked away because she couldn't see anything at all.

She has never liked rainy days. Even the wind feels damp and sticky, and the cold seeps into her body, making it feel like she is soaking in ice water and can hardly breathe. Her right knee throbs with pain, eventually going numb.

No one wants to become a cripple for no reason, and she was no exception. So her aversion to rainy days naturally turned into resentment after she was injured.

The car drove for a long time, and the blurry scenery along the roadside was slowly changing. Zhou Zeyu stared at the subtle changes in the color blocks, tilted his head slightly, and closed his eyes drowsily the moment drowsiness came over him.

She could hear her mother still rambling on about her experiences across the country, gossip about relatives and friends, and other odds and ends. Zhou Zeyu responded to her in a disjointed manner, and she suddenly felt very at ease.

The car stereo played soothing music, and the warm heater kept out all the cold and dampness. Most importantly, she was sitting in the passenger seat, with her family within easy reach. No one told her how long the drive would take or how far they would travel, but she wasn't worried at all.

She seemed to feel happy again, a feeling she hadn't experienced in a long time.

This kind of happiness is too ordinary, so bland that it seems to be easily overlooked, like a faint fragrance in the air. Zhou Zeyu remembers smelling this scent when she was a child. Back then, she was also like this, dozing off in the warm, dry car, being driven home from the Youth Palace by her mother.

That was many, many years ago. The cars from back then are no longer the cars we have now, and it seems that the people from back then are no longer the people we have now, but it also seems that nothing has changed after all these years.

Zhou Zeyu seemed to hear herself sigh slightly, but it was definitely not sadness or disappointment. She just suddenly felt a tightness in her chest, something she had never noticed before.

Her mother's words just now echoed in her mind again.

"Xiaoyu, you should figure out what you want and what you want to do in the future. You can't always follow the crowd. If you've identified a career goal, you should stick to it."

That's true. No one knows a daughter better than her mother. Even though they've been separated for so long, her mother can still pinpoint her current problem: indecisiveness, tossing and turning, and difficulty making a decision.

She considered becoming a coach, but clearly didn't meet the requirements of those teams. Later, she vaguely considered becoming a teacher, but lacked a teaching certificate. She thought becoming a self-media creator or a distributor might be good, but she didn't have the courage to actually make a decision.

Why is this happening? And when did she develop this fickle and unpredictable habit?

Zhou Zeyu knew why.

She feels lost about her career path because deep down she still resists this choice. Whether it's a coach, a teacher, or any other random thing, she doesn't like any of them, and she doesn't want any of them.

She knew the answer to all of this, of course; it was obvious, because she had never given up hope.

She was still daydreaming, wondering if she could... try one last time.

Zhou Zeyu was lost in thought and didn't notice when the car had quietly stopped. Her mother gave her a gentle, almost unusually tender look, but didn't say anything to disturb her.

In a fleeting, almost imperceptible moment, a faint voice seemed to echo in the air. Zhou Zeyu turned his head and looked at the other person with questioning eyes.

“I said, if you really insist, then we’ll try one more time.”

Try one last time.