Chapter 35 Chapter 35
Wang Yang was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses.
His expression relaxed a little, he coughed lightly, and sat down opposite Wang Ruiguo.
"This matter... must be a misunderstanding on your part. I just found out that Chu Xi is actually preparing for the Olympics. If I knew Chu Xi was busy with such a big thing, how could I have stopped her? It must be a misunderstanding."
Seeing how easygoing he was, Wang Ruiguo's expression softened. He leaned over and pushed the document from the coffee table toward Wang Yang. "This is Chu Xi's current team membership in our unit, all stamped with the official seal. In a month, there will be the national team trials, which also serve as a qualifying tournament for the Shooting World Cup. As you know, the World Cup is an international competition, and this could very well be Chu Xi's first step toward becoming a world champion."
"So, I hope you can understand and cooperate."
Wang Yang's sweat broke out on his back.
How did Chu Xi suddenly become an athlete who wanted to win glory for the country?
Want to participate in the World Cup? Fight for the world championship?
"Mr. Wang?" Seeing that Wang Yang had not responded for a long time, Wang Ruiguo reminded him with a smile.
Wang Yang finally came to his senses. He sat up straight and cleared his throat. "I understand! I completely understand. What do you need me to do about your cooperation?"
Wang Ruiguo brought the topic back to the topic. "I'm sure you, like me, don't want to delay Chu Xi's training, so I hope you can provide Chu Xi with a quiet training environment during these two months. If you need anything, just contact me. Just don't disturb Chu Xi's training again."
The smile on Wang Yang's face froze a little.
After the variety show "Centripte Shooting" ended, all the major variety show announcements came to the company in a swarm, all asking about Chu Xi's schedule.
These are all red banknotes, he is almost going crazy, but Chu Xi doesn't answer the phone or reply to the message, so it can only be delayed until now.
This time, another civil servant came with some official documents in his hands.
If this document is slapped on his head, would he dare to disagree?
Wang Yang laughed dryly: "Understood, understood. I will definitely cooperate."
Seeing that things were going so smoothly, Wang Ruiguo stood up with a smile and shook hands with Wang Yang again. "Thank you for your understanding. Let's add each other on WeChat and get in touch if anything happens."
"Okay, okay." Wang Yang quickly took out his mobile phone and scanned Wang Ruiguo's WeChat.
After adding him as a friend, Wang Yang walked Wang Ruiguo downstairs with a smile on his face. The smile on Wang Yang's face disappeared only when Wang Ruiguo got in the car and left.
The assistant who had come along asked hesitantly, "Boss Wang, are we just going to let Chu Xi go?"
"What else? Can you help me fight him?"
Wang Yang rolled his eyes at his assistant in anger. "You're not even thinking. What do you mean by just letting Chu Xi go? We're working with a state-owned enterprise, providing the country with a talented young talent who will bring glory to the country. Do you understand?"
The assistant immediately understood, "Yes, yes, Mr. Wang is right. If Chu Xi really wins glory for the country in the future, then our company will have trained a world champion. This is great!"
"Yes, just say this when you go out next time." Wang Yang nodded with satisfaction.
…
In a private villa, a group of well-known artists in the circle were having a drinking party around the swimming pool.
Xu Qianqian carried the fruit plate and walked up the stairs to the study on the second floor. She knocked on the door and said, "Sister Xia, would you like some fruit?"
"Come in." A cold voice came from the study.
Xu Qianqian carefully opened the door and placed the fruit plate on the coffee table in the study.
On the balcony, circles of smoke surrounded the woman on the lounge chair. She was wearing a dark silk nightgown, her snow-white skin was as delicate as a baby's, and a lady's cigarette was dangling from her slightly raised red lips.
"Participating in that variety show must have brought you a lot of attention." Xia Yan slowly stood up, put out the cigarette in her hand, raised her hand to gather her nightgown, and glanced at Xu Qianqian.
Xu Qianqian gave a wry smile. "It's okay, but it's definitely not as good as the resources Sister Xia introduced me to. If it weren't for you intervening, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to star in the drama "Hot Blood Glory."
"Okay, stop flattering me." Xia Yan walked slowly to the coffee table, bent down, picked up a grape from the fruit bowl, and put it into her mouth. "Chu Xi is going to quit the circle completely and become an athlete now?"
Xu Qianqian coughed lightly and quickly replied, "Yes. Judging from her expression, it seems that she is serious and really doesn't plan to stay in the circle anymore. And I think..."
Xia Yan raised her eyes and glanced at her, "What do you think?"
Xu Qianqian hesitated for a long time before continuing, "I don't think Chu Xi... is the type of person who would sell her body to get ahead. If she really had that in mind, how could she become an athlete when she's so popular?"
Xia Yan chuckled: "You can know a person's face but not his heart."
Silence returned to the study.
After eating some fruit, Xia Yan raised her hand and waved to Xu Qianqian, "Go ahead, I need to rest."
Xu Qianqian nodded quickly and left the study quietly.
…
After the "Centripal Shooting" program ended, the Kyoto Provincial Shooting Team resumed their daily training life.
Chu Xi's attention was also refocused on preparing for the national team trials.
But for some reason, when Chu Xi was about to disappear and quit the circle, all kinds of remarks slandering Chu Xi broke out on the Internet.
Chu Xi isn't a professional athlete at all; it's all a persona created by the company. Don't you think about it? How can an artist change career path, become an athlete, and still win a championship?
[Now that you mention it, Chu Xi's victory in the National Shooting Championship couldn't be due to some shady dealings, right?]
Chu Xi's backers are incredibly powerful. Not only did they arrange for her to win the championship, they even arranged everything for her with the shooting team. Well, wait and see, it won't be long before Chu Xi is back in the entertainment industry to make some money.
[Is this true? I used to like Chu Xi, but it turns out it was all just a character setting.]
[No, who hired these internet trolls to smear Sister Xi? They even dare to smear a unit like the provincial team. Are you crazy? ?]
Overnight, negative information about Chu Xi's victory in the competition emerged in an overwhelming manner.
People who know and like Chu Xi can naturally feel that someone is deliberately spreading rumors and slandering her.
But there are more passers-by on the Internet. Under the instigation of the black material army, they began to question the authenticity of Chu Xi's victory.
After the sun sets, in the quiet night.
In a three-story European-style villa built in the countryside, the lights are still as bright as day.
"Fang Ruinian! Take a quick look at what's going on with the people scolding Xiaoxi online!" Fang Xiangyun's voice, mixed with a bit of irritability, came from the second floor.
Fang Ruinian, who lived on the third floor, was immediately awakened by the loud voice.
"No, Dad, can you let me adjust to the jet lag?" Fang Ruinian threw off the quilt and got out of bed in despair, rubbing his temples with a headache.
Just a few days into his winter vacation, he was urgently called back home by his parents, who told him that Chu Xi's national team trials would be held soon, and that he had to make time to go and watch them.
Fang Xiangyun didn't listen to his crying at all. He rushed up to the third floor with his phone in hand. "Why are you sleeping? Look at your sister. She's been scolded like that."
Fang Rui sighed, stood up and took the phone from him.
He was originally quite sleepy, but after glancing at the screen, he immediately woke up and frowned, "Did Xiaoxi offend someone? The people criticizing her online are clearly one-sided, without any logic, and are only interested in smearing her. It's a bit like someone else's hired troll army."
"Yeah, I said that our Xiaoxi must have won the championship based on his own strength, and the people on the internet are just talking nonsense!" Fang Xiangyun finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"It's okay, Dad. You can go downstairs and sleep first. I'll call Xiaoxi later to ask. Don't worry."
Fang Xiangyun waved his hands irritably. "You two can go and talk. I don't understand the thoughts of you young people anyway."
As he spoke, Fang Xiangyun put away his phone and walked downstairs with his hands behind his back.
Fang Ruinian closed the door, immediately took out his cell phone and called Chu Xi.
After a while, the call was connected and Chu Xi's voice came: "What's wrong? You called me suddenly?"
There was a hint of confusion on Chu Xi's face. Shouldn't Fang Ruinian be attending classes during the day at this time?
"I went back home for the winter break. Well, my dad asked me to call you and ask how you've been doing lately." Fang Ruinian asked tactfully.
Chu Xi was stunned for two seconds, "Are you going to ask me about the negative information online?"
After the negative news about Bai Tian spread online, many of Wu Yuliang and Qi Xiayan's friends sent her WeChat messages to ask about her situation, mainly to comfort her and ask her not to let it affect her mood.
I guess my cousin called to comfort her.
Fang Ruinian coughed and said, "Ah, yes."
"It's okay, I don't care at all. I usually wake up at 7:30 in the morning, have breakfast, rest for a while, and then start training. I take an hour lunch break in the middle, continue in the afternoon, and finish around 9pm. I go back to the dormitory and lie down to sleep without even checking the news online."
Chu Xi has been living this kind of life since he joined the shooting team.
She spends a lot of time on training and doesn't have the energy to care about those vague things on the Internet.
What's more, even if she knew, she couldn't stop training and hold the keyboard every day to argue with those people on the Internet.
As long as she keeps doing what she likes, her life will be fulfilling and happy.
Fang Ruinian was stunned for a moment.
He originally thought that his cousin might be affected by the online insults, but unexpectedly, she was not affected at all.
But my cousin’s training is too hard. She spends more than twelve hours a day on training.
"Xiao Xi, do you really like shooting so much?"
Chu Xi hesitated for a while. She liked the feeling of hitting the target one by one and winning the game at the shooting range.
So this should be considered as liking shooting.
"Yeah." Chu Xi nodded in agreement.
Fang Ruinian was silent for a while, "Okay, I understand. Let's get some rest."
Chu Xi hung up the phone, got up and went to the bathroom to wash up and dry her hair. It was already late, so she lay down, covered herself with the quilt and fell asleep.
Because he was busy with training, Chu Xi didn't pay any attention to the negative news on the Internet. Many netizens expected Chu Xi to come out in person to clarify the matter, but in the end, no clarification was received.
As time went on, the matter gradually subsided, and soon a new hot topic emerged, diverting netizens' attention.
Another month of training has passed, and the selection competition for the national shooting training team has officially begun.
"Come on, everyone, be quiet." Coach Wang Xingwen raised his hand and signaled everyone to shut up. Compared with Wang Ruiguo's friendliness and kindness, he usually treats his players more seriously.
"Coach Wang Ruiguo has already gone to the national shooting training team to serve as a referee. They asked us to go a day in advance to learn about the rules, so I will be the one leading the team this time when we go to the national team for the selection."
"Also, for those who just passed the tryout assessment, just treat this time as a chance to see the world and don't feel too much pressure. You are still young, and there is still time for the next Olympics. Don't force yourself to have psychological problems." Wang Xingwen's gaze turned to the row where Chu Xi, Yang Ruoxue and others were.
But then, Wang Xingwen's expression changed, and he looked at Chu Xi with a smile, "Of course, Chu Xi is an exception."
Chu Xi is a promising talent that several coaches in their team value very much, so even though she has just joined the provincial team not long ago, everyone still hopes that she can do her best to make a push in this national team selection.
Yang Ruoxue and Jiang Zhiming cast envious glances at Chu Xi.
Jiang Wannan, Shi Lei and other veteran team members were filled with endless emotion.
All of them have been training in the team for at least a year. Chu Xi had just joined the team, and the coach had high hopes for him to make the national team.
This person is really incomparable to others.
Wang Xingwen continued, "Also, the main purpose of this national shooting training team selection is to prepare talents for the next ISSF World Cup, so this selection competition is also a direct qualifying tournament for the World Cup in four months."
"Everyone should know the importance of the World Cup. It's an international competition that also qualifies you for an Olympic berth. I won't say much else. As your coach, I certainly hope you can sprint through this qualifier without any regrets. Good luck everyone!"
The atmosphere in the conference room immediately became tense.
Jiang Wannan, Song Jingbo and the others looked at each other. Although they appeared calm on the outside, they were already tense in their hearts.
The national team selection does not mean that athletes can be selected as long as their performance reaches a certain standard.
There are a total of fifty places for the national first and second teams.
The number of places is fixed, which means that when a new team member comes in, an old team member will leave at the same time.
Therefore, if you want to break into the national team, you must not only compete with outstanding athletes from other provincial teams, but also defeat the players of the national team to be eligible to replace them.
This way of playing is very cruel.
But all of this is to protect the red national flag in every international competition.
After the meeting, Chu Xi and others prepared to go back to the dormitory for lunch break.
"Sister Xi, do you think the players on the national team are all very good?" Yang Ruoxue asked curiously.
Chu Xi didn't stop and answered as he walked: "Fortunately, everyone trained step by step to get to the top."
"It seems so." Yang Ruoxue began to look forward to it again. "Are you nervous now?"
Nervous? Chu Xi didn't really feel that way. She was more excited now.
This is her only chance to make it to the Olympics.
When all the choices are left with only one way, people will burst out with an unprecedented fighting spirit.
…
The day has arrived to go to the national shooting training team.
The usually sunny weather suddenly became overcast, and a drizzle began to fall in the morning.
Chu Xi pulled the suitcase in one hand and held a black umbrella in the other, striding towards the bus.
"Put your luggage aside and I'll move it. You all should get on the bus quickly to avoid catching a cold!" Wang Xingwen stood beside the bus wearing a raincoat and waved to the athletes behind him.
When Chu Xi arrived at the bus, Wang Xingwen immediately took away the suitcase in her hand and said, "Hurry up and get on the bus."
The season has changed recently and the temperature is abnormal. The team coach is also worried that the players will catch a cold or fever at this time.
Chu Xi put away her umbrella and stepped onto the bus.
There were already quite a few people in the car, most of them members of the Kyoto Provincial Shooting Team who had been training for over a year. They gathered together to keep warm, smiling and chatting about interesting team gossip.
Chu Xi found a seat by the window and sat down.
Soon, the bus was full of people and the door slowly closed. Song Jingbo, the last person to get on the bus, folded his umbrella and sat down in the empty seat next to Chu Xi.
"This is really a bad start. I saw from the weather forecast that it might rain in the next few days. You must keep warm and don't catch a cold." Song Jingbo sighed and reminded Chu Xi.
Chu Xi nodded, glanced at him, and took out a hot pack from her bag. "Do you want to use it?"
Song Jingbo's eyes lit up, "You girls are so thoughtful. I forgot about this. Thank you."
He took the hot pack from Chu Xi, tore open the package, and put it against the inside of his coat.
Chu Xi has more experience. She has encountered heavy snow when she participated in competitions before, so when the weather gets cold, she habitually starts to stock up on hot packs.
"In this competition, the only player from other provincial teams who can match your strength in the women's air pistol event is probably Lu Meng. The only ones you have to be careful of are the players from the national team."
After the bus started slowly, Song Jingbo spoke again in a low voice.
Chu Xi opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him, "Why don't you pay attention to your own competition?"
Song Jingbo gave a bitter smile: "It's no use caring about me. If I can't compete, then I can't compete."
There are only a few players with outstanding levels in the provincial team. We meet them in regular competitions and know their respective strengths.
Song Jingbo realized very early on that it would be difficult for him to enter the national team with his level, and he accepted this fact early on.
This time, he will certainly give his all, but he will mostly be there to serve as cannon fodder.
Chu Xi sensed the momentary loneliness in him, pursed her lips, and said nothing more.
For an athlete, not having the opportunity to compete in the highest arena is a lifelong regret.
It was no use for her to comfort him.
Fortunately, Song Jingbo had already realized this and quickly adjusted his mood. He closed his eyes, leaned back in his chair and began to rest.
After a bumpy ride, the bus finally arrived at the national training team base at lunchtime.
After the car door opened, several staff members holding umbrellas greeted us outside and shouted into the car: "Everyone, get off the bus. It's raining heavily. Everyone, please be careful not to catch a cold. Then go directly to the dormitory to gather."
Chu Xi and others got off the car one after another, holding umbrellas and quickening their pace to follow the staff.
Along the way, Chu Xi looked at the familiar environment around her, as if she had returned to the national training team where she had trained for several years.
…
At this time, in the meeting room of the national training team.
While waiting for other sports teams to arrive, Song Anshan held a small meeting with the existing national team members.
"Let me tell you, everyone in this provincial team is very strong. If you don't cheer up, you might be kicked out of the team." Song Anshan said with a straight face.
"I understand. We will definitely compete hard and try to ensure that no one is left behind." Lu Wenxuan raised his hand with a smile. "Coach, then tell us who the outstanding players are on this provincial team."
Song Anshan glanced at him and snorted coldly: "Stop laughing and be serious!"
As he spoke, he pulled out Chu Xi's registration form from among the contestants and placed it on the conference table.
"Chu Xi, a talented dark horse athlete, broke through the competition at the National Shooting Championship, crushing veteran Lu Meng to take the championship spot. This is a player you all need to pay attention to."
"There's also Jiang Wannan, who was just one point away from being selected for the national team in the last selection. You all should know about her, so I won't go into details."
Lu Wenxuan and the others looked at each other in surprise, then stood up, picked up Chu Xi's registration form on the table, and began to pass it around to browse.
"Who is this Chu Xi? Why haven't I heard of this name before? Is he a new player this year? Which provincial team is he from?"
"From the Kyoto Provincial Shooting Team, in the same team as Jiang Wannan."
After reading Chu Xi's match experience, Lu Wenxuan looked at Song Anshan in confusion, "Coach Song, are you kidding me? Chu Xi only has one match experience?"
Song Anshan nodded, "Yes, although it's only one match, it can be seen that her strength is very impressive. The Kyoto Provincial Shooting Team has high expectations for her this time, so they also sent her to participate in the selection."
Lu Wenxuan still had some hesitation in his heart.
Although he had seen many talented players, he had never seen a player who could secure a spot in the national team after only participating in one competition.
After thinking about it, he still felt that Coach Song must have exaggerated the description of Chu Xi in order to motivate them.
He casually put down Chu Xi's registration form and quickly turned around to continue discussing other more capable provincial team players with his teammates.
At the same time, Fang Xiangyun and his family took a taxi from the airport and rushed to the hotel in the heavy rain.
"Mom, I really admire you. Did you even bring a down jacket with you?" Fang Ruinian leaned on the passenger seat with a headache and couldn't help muttering.
Zhu Lifang in the back seat immediately rolled her eyes at him. "What do you know? Haven't you seen it's been raining heavily these past few days? Bring your sister a down jacket, and you're still contradicting me."
"What I mean is, it's not time to wear a down jacket this season." Fang Ruinian was really worried.
Day by day, he seemed like he was adopted from outside. Whenever something happened, his parents would think of Chu Xi first.
"Okay, okay, both of you be quiet. We are here to watch your sister's national team trials. Be happy and stop arguing." Fang Xiangyun finally said something fair.
The atmosphere in the car became quiet again.
Fang Ruinian breathed a sigh of relief, took out his phone, and sent a WeChat message to Chu Xi: [Sister, Mom and Dad, we just got off the plane and will go to the hotel to put our luggage away. When is your competition?]
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