Chapter 125 The Winter of 2018...
The winter of 2018 seemed to linger longer than usual. The first snow in Beijing arrived late, not until the end of December, on a misty morning, silently blanketing the capital. The fine snowflakes, like willow catkins or dandelion seeds, gently covered the eaves, streets, and withered branches of the ancient capital.
Ren Xiyao stood by the window of the rehabilitation center, looking at the hazy white sky outside. More than half a year had passed since her second surgery, and the long and arduous rehabilitation training had finally taken her from being bedridden to walking with crutches, and now she could do some low-intensity ice acclimatization training. She had almost started from scratch, relearning to walk, practicing exertion again, until she could walk like a normal person.
Her body was like an old tree ravaged by a harsh winter; though its branches were covered in scars, it was still striving to absorb nutrients, attempting to regain its vitality in the next spring. And now, it was almost time.
"Xiyao, it's snowing outside. Halve the ice training today, focus more on land recovery." The captain's voice came from behind, carrying a hint of barely perceptible concern. The captain had been there during her recovery training. Occasionally, he would discuss with the rehabilitation doctor to help her plan exercises to facilitate her future ice training.
Ren Xiyao nodded without turning around. She knew what the captain was worried about. Every time the weather changed, especially on damp and cold rainy or snowy days like this, her old joint injuries would ache faintly, like an accurate weather forecaster. Unlike the captain who would shout and yell in the hospital room four years ago, she was now much more reserved.
"Sister, I heard... Mingfei Club went to Bashang for training. I want to go too." Ren Xiyao suddenly spoke, her voice calm but filled with unwavering determination.
The captain paused for a moment: "Bashang? Now? Although it's a newly built base, the conditions there are much harsher than here, and it's freezing cold..."
“I know.” Ren Xiyao turned around, her eyes calm and firm: “But I think my body needs more intense stimulation and a purer training environment. Mingfei is a newly formed team, and he needs the guidance of a veteran…” She hesitated for a moment before slowly speaking: “The snow in Beijing is too gentle. I want to experience the kind of cold that can freeze you to the bone in Bashang. Perhaps, I can regain my former form more quickly.”
She paused, then added, "And it's been almost a year..."
The captain looked at her thin yet still upright figure, at her eyes that appeared even deeper and more determined because of pain and hardship, and she understood the unspoken words she hadn't said. An athlete has been away from high-level competition for a whole year. A whole year without systematic training—that's terrible. And she's not young anymore. If she wants to participate in the Beijing Winter Olympics, she needs to return to the competition as quickly as possible; she needs enough competition to adapt to the changes in the arena.
The rulings at the PyeongCheng Winter Olympics sparked considerable controversy, and the appeals and protests from various countries drew the attention of the International Skating Union (ISU). As a result, the ISU significantly revised the rules for the new season. Many regulations were supplemented with detailed additions, particularly regarding corners, straight-in turns, and marker blocks… These details have been refined to more specific rulings. This means the competition will be more varied and rigorous. Such significant changes require participants to experience the standards and criteria of the rulings firsthand on the ice. Ren Xiyao knew all this, and the captain knew it too. Ultimately, she nodded: “Okay. I’ll arrange it.”
A week later, Ren Xiyao embarked on her journey to Bashang.
This is truly a "kingdom of ice and snow." The boundless snow-covered forest presents a vast and magnificent scene in the biting cold wind. The temperature hovers around minus 20 or 30 degrees Celsius year-round, and your breath can instantly freeze into frost.
The new training base is built on this icy plain. Although the conditions are harsh, it is an ideal location for athletes who need to undergo high-intensity, high-altitude training. Mingfei Club also frequently chooses this location as its winter training base.
Upon arriving here, Ren Xiyao quickly immersed herself in grueling training.
At 5:30 a.m., while the entire area was still shrouded in the dark blue night, she was already dressed and began warming up. Her body's capacity for exertion was still limited, but her biological clock and muscle memory should gradually return.
When it was time for ice training, the skates sliced across the ice, making a crisp, clear sound that echoed throughout the training hall. The coach's commands and whistles were constant. Although it was still slightly difficult for her body to return to the textbook precision of her past—every push-off and every arm swing—she was striving for perfection. Sweat quickly soaked through her training clothes, and in the extremely low temperature, it rapidly froze into a thin layer of ice.
The old injuries to my left shoulder and lumbar spine still flare up right on time after high-intensity training, but these are an essential part of the recovery process.
In addition to ice training, she resumed a large amount of land-based assisted training. Strength, endurance, flexibility... she demands almost exacting standards of herself in every aspect.
She spoke very little, spending most of her time immersed in her own world, except when communicating with the coach about training plans. Like a lone wolf, she silently licked her wounds and gathered strength in her own territory, waiting for the day she could return to the battlefield.
The snow in the Bashang area came earlier and more heavily than in the capital.
One day around Christmas, after training, Ren Xiyao was walking alone back to her dormitory. Suddenly, heavy snow began to fall, quickly turning the entire world into a pure white blanket. Snowflakes landed on her hair and eyelashes; the icy touch sent a shiver down her spine, but also brought a long-lost sense of clarity.
She reached out and caught a falling snowflake. The snowflake melted quickly in her warm palm, turning into a drop of cool water.
At that moment, a strange sense of emotion welled up inside her. Everything that had happened seemed like a dream, and before she knew it, a year and a half had passed.
Today, the snow remains, the scenery remains, but the people are now scattered to the four winds.
Ren Xiyao took a deep breath, shook the water droplets off her palms, then wrapped her down jacket tighter around herself and quickened her pace.
Almost as Ren Xiyao was experiencing the first real snowfall in Bashang, Quan Zhilong finally ushered in another winter in his military career.
Winters here are just as harsh. The snow here isn't as romantic as in Seoul, nor as magnificent as in Bashang; instead, it carries a desolation and starkness unique to the border region.
The New Year's bells are about to ring, but the festive atmosphere in the barracks is not strong. For the soldiers, it is just another day among countless days of standing guard, patrolling, and training.
It wasn't until a few days before the New Year that the first decent snowfall of the winter finally fell here.
That night, Kwon Ji-yong had just finished his night patrol and dragged his tired body back to his dormitory. Outside the window, snowflakes were falling softly, reflecting a hazy glow under the dim streetlights.
He stood by the window, quietly watching the snow scene outside, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
For over a year since enlisting, he had been almost completely isolated from the outside world. No cell phone, no internet; the only connections he had were the occasional letters from home and friends. News about her was scarce. In this isolated world, all that remained for him was a racing mind. But how was she? How was her injury healing? Was she still training? Was she… alright?
These problems, like countless fine needles, pricked his heart from time to time.
He could only rely on those fragmented memories to piece together her image and feel her presence.
Those once vivid and lively scenes are now gradually becoming blurry in his memory, as if viewed through frosted glass. The endlessly stretching days in the army are starting to frighten him; one day, he won't even be able to remember what she looks like.
The snow fell heavier and heavier, quickly accumulating a thin layer on the windowsill. He reached out and gently drew a small sun on the cold glass. Although he often said she was his moon, now he hoped she could be like the sun, forever warm and forever bright.
The training in Saihanba was monotonous and arduous, day after day. But Ren Xiyao could clearly feel her body recovering little by little, with her strength, speed, and endurance steadily improving.
She has a habit of meticulously recording the day's training content, her physical condition, her thoughts and feelings, and areas for improvement in her training notes. This habit has lasted for a long time, and she has used up many notebooks.
The training notebook in her hand is almost finished. She has been using it since the end of 2016, witnessing the ups and downs of her life.
Besides professional training records and technical analysis, his notes also occasionally contain a sentence or two related to him.
These scattered words are like the secrets I've kept hidden all these years—stubborn to admit them, even though I'm not truly honest about them.
As Ren Xiyao carefully wrote down the day's training summary on the last page of her notebook and closed the somewhat worn notebook, soaked with sweat and tears, an indescribable sense of melancholy suddenly welled up in her heart.
She opened the notebook to the first page, looking at the slightly childish handwriting and the boundless imagination she had for Pingcheng back then. Now it felt like a lifetime ago.
It turns out that so much time has passed without us even realizing it.
This training notebook, filled with her boundless dreams and countless moments with Kwon Ji-yong, is like their lost love, which has finally come to an end.
It holds so many memories and so many emotions. Now, it is about to be sealed away and treasured.
Ren Xiyao closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
All those once surging loves and those once inseparable longings seem to settle down with the closing of this notebook, turning into a faint yet unforgettable mark in the depths of the heart.
She placed the notebook at the bottom of her suitcase and then took out a brand-new training notebook. A brand-new 2019 was about to begin, a new season, a new cycle. New challenges were also on the horizon. And the Beijing Winter Olympics were just around the corner.
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