Chapter 57 The June wind, from Cangshan and Erhai...
The June wind blew from the direction of Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake, sweeping across the training base at an altitude of 2,000 meters, carrying the unique crispness and thinness of the plateau. When Ren Xiyao and her teammates stepped out of the airport and onto this red soil, they were not greeted by the humid heat they had imagined, but by a sky so blue it was almost transparent, and air that required a little effort to inhale.
"My goodness... the sky is so blue!" Lin Shan dragged her suitcase with one hand and exaggeratedly clutched her chest with the other: "It's just that... it's a little hard to breathe."
The airport shuttle bus took them back to their dormitory. This time, Ren Xiyao and her team were arranged to train here by the winter training center. As for the national team and other centers and clubs, they will also have their own arrangements.
When Ren Xiyao opened the dormitory window, a gentle breeze carrying the scent of flowers wafted in. In May on the plateau, the sunlight seemed filtered, warm but not scorching. In the distance, the surface of Dianchi Lake shimmered with dappled golden light, and several red-billed gulls skimmed across the lake, their wings tracing smooth arcs.
"Much more comfortable than Harbin, right?" Lin Shan threw her suitcase on the ground and collapsed onto the bed. "With this weather, I don't think I'll feel too bad after training."
Ren Xiyao reached out and caught an unknown petal that drifted in from outside the window, twirling it between her fingertips: "It's a very comfortable climate."
The purpose of high-altitude training is to improve athletes' aerobic metabolic capacity. It can replenish natural EPO (erythropoietin) and increase hemoglobin levels. High-altitude training is not only applicable to many sports such as short track speed skating, but also to swimming and sprinting, which all involve a certain period of high-altitude training.
This is because, compared to training at sea level, high-altitude training can effectively improve athletes' strength, speed, speed-strength qualities, and aerobic endurance. This includes: maximum oxygen uptake, speed at anaerobic threshold, anaerobic capacity relative to maximum load, functional efficiency relative to normal load, and general immune function, among other things.
Moreover, high-altitude training allows athletes to utilize the higher physical fitness levels gained during high-altitude training to increase the intensity of their training load after returning to the plains; during competitions, it can improve athletes' performance.
Furthermore, short track speed skating utilizes specialized high-altitude ice rinks, such as those in Salt Lake City. One of the most important reasons Salt Lake City has been able to set numerous world records is precisely because it is a high-altitude ice rink. Athletes there almost always achieve excellent results. Therefore, high-altitude training is indispensable for short track speed skating.
At six o'clock in the morning, the sky was just beginning to lighten.
The challenge begins with the very first breath of training and never stops.
Ren Xiyao stood on the track at an altitude of nearly 2000 meters and took a deep breath. The air at high altitude was thinner than at sea level, but exceptionally fresh. The coach blew the whistle, and the team members began their acclimatization jog.
"Pay attention to your breathing rhythm!" The coach's voice was particularly clear in the empty training field: "Control your breathing."
The first few days were a double ordeal, both physically and mentally. Headaches, chest tightness, nausea, insomnia… almost everyone experienced altitude sickness symptoms to varying degrees. Ice training became exceptionally difficult; routines that were usually easy to complete left us breathless and our hearts pounding after just a few laps. Physical training was even more grueling; simple interval training made us feel like our lungs were about to explode and our vision would blur.
Her reaction wasn't the most severe, but it was far from easy either. Every push off the ice, every acceleration on the curve, required more willpower than usual. Although her training volume was low at the beginning, she was still exhausted.
It took them more than a week to gradually adjust.
Following the jogging commands, Ren Xiyao adjusted her pace when she suddenly noticed a squirrel perched on a eucalyptus tree by the track, holding a pine cone and tilting its head to look at her. Her steps unconsciously slowed, and she almost bumped into her teammates behind her.
"What are you looking at?" Lin Shan followed her gaze and exclaimed, "Wow, this squirrel is much bigger than the ones in Harbin!"
The coach walked over with a dark face: "Ren Xiyao! You dare to get distracted during high-altitude training? Add two more sets of shuttle runs!"
Ren Xiyao: "......"
The squirrel darted up to the treetop, its tail wagging proudly.
And the beauty of Yunnan, too, quietly seeped into their lives during breaks in training.
Not far from the base, on the hillside, unnamed wildflowers bloom in profusion—red, yellow, and purple—like a spilled palette of colors. During a morning jog, one can watch the sunrise rise above the horizon of Dianchi Lake, golden rays bathing its surface, while waterbirds skim the water's edge, leaving delicate ripples. After the technical analysis session in the evening, stepping out of the training hall, one can look up and see a sky full of stars, the Milky Way clearly visible, seemingly within reach.
On the rare half-day off on the weekend, the coach would organize a trip for everyone to a nearby ancient town or wetland park to relax. They would dress in casual clothes and stroll along the cobblestone streets like ordinary tourists, looking at the local tie-dye and silverware, or sit by the lake, enjoying the breeze and a bowl of local rice noodles.
Once, when they visited a wetland park, they came to an open body of water and saw locals rowing small boats and fishing for something. Lin Shan ran over curiously to ask, and it turned out they were fishing for water chestnuts.
The dark-skinned uncle was very hospitable, scooping up several freshly picked water chestnuts and handing them to Lin Shan. Their purplish-red shells, shaped like cow horns, were still glistening with water droplets. Lin Shan eagerly broke one open, revealing the white flesh inside, and popped it into her mouth, chewing it with a crunchy delight. Ren Xiyao followed suit, eating one as well. The taste was sweet and crisp, with a unique lake flavor. A simple, yet incredibly fresh taste.
On their day off, Ren Xiyao and Lin Shan strolled to the farmers' market near the base. Sugarcane taller than a person, fresh flower cakes everywhere, and roasted milk fan, a Yunnan specialty—everything seemed new and exciting.
"What's this?" Lin Shan asked, pointing to the purplish-red fruit on the stall.
"Waxberries." Ren Xiyao picked one up and tasted it, her eyes narrowing from the sourness: "So sour..."
The stall owner, an older woman, smiled and handed over a small handful: "Young lady, are you from the north? It'll taste good with a little salt."
Ren Xiyao did as instructed with some skepticism, and the taste was indeed just right, perfectly balanced between sweet and sour. Just as she was about to take another one, she suddenly heard the sound of a camera shutter clicking behind her. Turning around, she saw a young man wearing a baseball cap hurriedly putting away his camera.
"Delete it." She walked over with a cold face.
"I'm so sorry!" the man stammered. "I'm not a weirdo. I'm a reporter accompanying the team this time. I just got off the plane. I've been following all this high-altitude training. I just thought the way you ate the bayberries was..."
"Very what?"
"It's such a cute contrast..." the reporter's voice trailed off, "You never smile during training or matches..."
Ren Xiyao was stunned for a moment, while Lin Shan had already collapsed laughing on the bayberry stall.
In the end, the reporter deleted the photos, but insisted on giving them two pounds of bayberries as an apology.
Days passed in this state of extreme exhaustion and intense focus. My body gradually adapted to the high-altitude environment; the headaches and nausea lessened, and my breathing became easier. My speed and endurance on the ice were slowly recovering, and although physical training sessions were still tough, I was no longer on the verge of collapse every time.
The rainy season in Yunnan came unexpectedly.
Ren Xiyao was practicing her cornering technique at the ice rink when she suddenly heard a crackling sound coming from the roof. Looking through the glass dome, she saw that the sky, which had been clear just moments before, was now covered with dark clouds, and large raindrops were pounding on the glass like countless pearls rolling down.
She didn't stop, she kept skating. The sound of the rain grew louder, gradually turning into white noise, which only made her more focused. Her skates carved perfect arcs across the ice, and the ice shards she kicked up glittered under the lights.
"I knew you'd be here."
Lin Shan's voice came from the sidelines. She was holding an indigo-blue oil-paper umbrella, a Yunnan specialty that she had somehow acquired, with butterfly patterns in the Bai ethnic style painted on its surface.
"The cafeteria has steamed chicken in a clay pot today, but it'll be gone if you go too late."
Ren Xiyao skated to the sidelines and took the towel Lin Shan handed her: "You go first."
"More extra training?" Lin Shan pointed out the window: "There's a red alert for heavy rain."
Ren Xiyao looked out the window. The eucalyptus trees swayed gracefully in the rain, and the distant mountains were shrouded in a hazy mist, like a traditional Chinese ink painting.
"I'll practice for another half hour." She turned and skated towards the center of the ice rink: "The ice here... is very comfortable. And listening to the rain is also very relaxing."
It was truly comfortable. The ice on this rink had just the right firmness, giving a unique and smooth feel when gliding, like flying at low altitude. Even the seemingly monotonous days of finding joy amidst hardship, the endless training, brought a touch of vitality and color to the experience.
Back in the dorm that evening, the sky outside the window had completely cleared, and the moon was big and round, like a silver plate hanging on a dark blue velvet surface. The night sky on the plateau was exceptionally clear, and the stars were unusually bright, densely covering the sky, as if one could reach out and pluck them. Ren Xiyao leaned on the windowsill and looked for a long time, until her neck started to ache. It was at this moment that Quan Zhilong's video call came in.
Kwon Ji-yong stared at the window behind Ren Xiyao: "What kind of tree is that outside your dorm window?"
“Eucalyptus trees.” Ren Xiyao turned her phone to look out the window. “Much taller than those in Seoul.”
"Is that reporter still harassing you?"
Ren Xiyao raised an eyebrow: "Who?"
"It's the one where they filmed you eating bayberries." Kwon Ji-yong casually tidied his hair. "I saw his Weibo post."
"Just doing it on a whim." Kwon Ji-yong retorted stubbornly, "That doesn't make sense. Only you can search my name. My information is public and transparent."
"Oh, so you're openly flirting with fans? Openly sharing CP videos? Openly revealing your rumored romance?" Ren Xiyao couldn't hide her smile. Actually, she hadn't minded, but it was still quite amusing to tease him occasionally.
"Ren Xiyao!"
"Just kidding." Ren Xiyao laughed and shook her head.
"Ren Xiyao, I love you." Kwon Ji-yong said these words very seriously, without a smile on his face. The focus in his eyes was clearly visible even through the screen.
Ren Xiyao was stunned, and after a long while, she slowly hummed in agreement. Quan Zhilong then smiled, his smile exceptionally bright.
After a long while, Kwon Ji-yong casually circled back to the topic: "So, is he coming again?"
"...They came to interview the whole team yesterday and brought me a box of fresh flower cakes."
Kwon Ji-yong immediately sat up straight: "What kind of filling?"
"Rose."
"...It tastes awful."
This time, Ren Xiyao couldn't stop laughing: "Kwon Ji-yong."
"Um?"
"You're sourer than a bayberry."
The person on the other side of the screen instantly turned red.
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