Chapter 92 At the end of the second day of training...
She stared at the photo for a few seconds and replied, "Get some rest."
"I can't sleep."
"Go ahead and get angry if you want."
Ren Xiyao sighed and made a video call.
Kwon Ji-yong's face appeared on the screen, his makeup still on, his eyeliner smudged a little, making his eyes look even redder.
"I'm not angry," she said first.
“I know,” he said, his voice a little hoarse, “but I’d rather you be angry.”
Ren Xiyao propped her phone up on the pillow and lay on her side to look at him: "Why?"
“Because…” Kwon Ji-yong scratched his head: “The more you understand me, the more absurd the world surrounding me seems.”
The night outside the window was deep in the capital. Ren Xiyao said softly, "Kwon Ji-yong, do you remember the first time we had a fight?"
He was stunned: "We haven't argued... have we?"
Ren Xiyao gave a short laugh: "Okay, then I'll just say I'm angry on my own. In 2015, I had a fever of 39 degrees Celsius at the end of the tour."
"You said I deserved it back then." He couldn't help but laugh.
"Hmm." A smile appeared in Ren Xiyao's eyes: "But I won't do that now."
Kwon Ji-yong's smile froze on his face.
“Because none of this is your fault,” she continued, “Criticizing you is useless. You can’t change anything. Public opinion can be devastating. Your position may seem glamorous, but it’s not as free as you imagine, especially when facing extremely high commercial value. You have no say in the matter. The market has changed drastically in 2016, and no one can easily say they don’t care about the lost market share. The listed company has a lot of shareholders who need the profits and attention, and only you can provide that. You just don’t want me to worry, just like I tend to downplay my injuries. From this perspective, neither of us has a problem…”
Her voice softened, and Kwon Ji-yong saw her blink quickly, as if suppressing some emotion.
"Ren Xiyao." His voice tightened. "This was truly an accident..."
“I believe you,” she interrupted him, “I’m just a little tired… It really doesn’t feel good to be behind you.”
Silence fell on both ends of the screen. Kwon Ji-yong looked at her tired eyes in the video and suddenly realized that over the past two months, what had been between them was not just rumors and gossip, but also all the unease, anxiety, and loss of control that arose from their reluctance to talk about the future. Because they couldn't meet and were separated by a screen, many issues that weren't originally problems became weights pressing down on the scales.
These rumors have been going on for years, with the media changing his "girlfriend" every few months. They used to not care about any of this, whether they were magnanimous or not. In the entertainment industry, 95% of couples and on-screen couples are fake. You can't really take it all seriously. Instead, it's the best cover for their relationship. He was even secretly glad that no news directly pointed to them. But now... if you look closely, they haven't seen each other for almost four months, and they don't even know when they'll see each other again.
She doesn't even have a peaceful birthday now. He watched all her national qualifying matches; her form was astonishing. The coaching staff said she had a chance to break the world record this season and was very likely to retain her all-around title. And now, his scandal has become the biggest "gift" for her birthday and the start of the season.
During the days that the rumors were brewing, on one hand, YG Entertainment offered lukewarm clarifications, and on the other hand, with the increasingly heavy preparations for the upcoming new season, only her improving performance on the ice could give Ren Xiyao a little peace of mind. Only then did she feel that things weren't completely out of control.
It wasn't until the night before her birthday that Kwon Ji-yong lay on his hotel bed, staring at the ceiling, hesitating whether or not he should call her.
Ren Xiyao sent a voice message through her phone: "Are you asleep?"
He immediately dialed back, and the two spoke at the same time the call connected:
"You tomorrow..."
Kwon Ji-yong stopped: "You go first."
Do you have a concert tomorrow?
"Yes, the afternoon session." He paused. "What were you trying to say?"
Ren Xiyao's voice was so soft it sounded like a sigh: "...It's nothing, I just suddenly wanted to hear you sing."
Kwon Ji-yong felt a sharp pain in his chest. He knew she was changing the subject, just as he knew what she needed right now wasn't an apology, but a hug that would allow her to temporarily forget all her troubles.
"Ren Xiyao".
"Um?"
"Let me sing you a birthday song."
There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone before she softly said "okay".
Kwon Ji-yong cleared his throat and sang in Korean, Chinese, and Japanese, and finally hummed a self-composed melody off-key.
"It sounds awful," Ren Xiyao commented, but her voice had softened.
"Then I'll sing an even better song for your birthday tomorrow."
"......Um."
After hanging up the phone, Kwon Ji-yong opened his memo app and began making a list:
1. The key to my old house in Harbin (I always carry it with me).
2. This season's schedule [November 11-13 and December 16-18]
3. Asian Winter Games Qualifying Tournament (December)
4. Birthday present (should arrive tomorrow)
He typed and deleted the last message, finally leaving only five words:
Don't let her down!
On her birthday, Ren Xiyao received a call from a courier as she finished her afternoon training and was heading to the cafeteria.
The deliveryman brought a flat package with "Park Sung-hyun" written on it. She opened it and found a hand-bound photo album inside.
Turning the page reveals snippets of events from the past three years:
- Backstage at the 2014 Asian Games, she wore a mask while watching the closing ceremony from the stands;
- In 2015, at the Yajiageng Pass in western Sichuan, she looked out from under the prayer flags.
- The shadows of two people lying side by side on a beach in Jeju Island in 2016...
The last page contained a ring, a plain band, with the letters RG engraved on the inside.
Ren Xiyao picked up the ring and found a note underneath:
"From 2013 to forever, the rhythm of my heartbeat will always be your name."
She stroked the ring, staring blankly at the photo album for a long time. Until her phone vibrated, a message from Kwon Ji-yong popped up: "Did you receive it?"
Ren Xiyao slipped the ring onto her ring finger, took a picture, and sent it to T: "Mm".
Is this appropriate?
"just."
"Ren Xiyao".
"Um?"
"Happy birthday."
She looked at her hand with the ring in the photo and thought that perhaps all of this was temporary, and that she just needed to get through it.
With all pre-competition preparations temporarily concluded at the end of October, the 2016-2017 short track speed skating team was officially established following a send-off ceremony and pep rally. Ren Xiyao and her teammates embarked on their journey to the arena for their first World Cup match in Canada.
In November, Calgary has shed the last vestiges of summer warmth, and the sky is a high and clear blue. The speed skating rink is currently filled with top short track speed skaters from around the world. The first stop of the new ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup season will kick off here.
As for Ren Xiyao herself, all she can do is exclude these complex opinions from her training life. She packs away these complicated emotions, along with her unease, and seals them away for now. Now, she needs to devote all her energy to the competition in front of her. Calgary is known for its fast speed and high efficiency, but this also means that the competition will be more intense, and the physical and technical demands will be greater. The South Korean team remains the biggest rival, while teams from the Netherlands, Canada, and Italy are also strong and should not be underestimated.
She needs absolute focus to combat the inner turmoil; she needs the cold ice and the rapid gliding to cool down those burning emotions. Perhaps, only on the ice, in that world that demands complete concentration and allows no room for distraction, can she temporarily forget her troubles.
From the start of acclimatization training, Ren Xiyao has been the center of attention. Short track speed skating is a cyclical sport, and everyone knows that Ren Xiyao has been in excellent form this off-season, or rather, this summer training. She has even broken world records during training, especially in long-distance events like the 1500m and 1000m. She is even more dominant than last season.
There was also training on right-angle changes of direction, and she even consulted Coach Kim in South Korea, who had previously coached Viktor. Everyone had heard about this, so international athletes and coaches alike were eager to know Ren Xiyao's current skill level. The change of direction is highlighted separately because of its high success rate; opponents currently have few ways to counter it, making it a truly difficult technique. If used properly in a competition, the success rate is almost 80% or higher. Therefore, there is a great deal of attention focused on this technique.
Ren Xiyao remained unaffected by these stares. All the absolute control she possessed so far was on the ice, on the surface of the ice. Only by focusing wholeheartedly on the ice could she feel the upward force. She used extreme physical exhaustion to combat mental turmoil, and the resolute act of slicing through the ice with her skates to cut through those tangled thoughts.
Not only that, she also analyzed her opponents thoroughly. She spent countless sleepless nights watching and analyzing every single race video. She meticulously analyzed every corner, every lane change, and every subtle movement, anticipating its potential follow-up actions. The South Korean team's collective advantage, the individual prowess of the Netherlands and Canada, and the rise of European teams like Italy and Hungary all meant that every race would be a tough battle.
She saw things clearly and understood them well, so from the preliminaries onward, she didn't plan to hold back too much. Adapting to the pace of international competition earlier would give her more control over the game and increase her chances of winning.
This season, Ren Xiyao wore the number 1 helmet, symbolizing her world number one ranking. She continues to focus on long-distance events, with the 1000m and 1500m being her main events. In addition, she has now returned to relays, often playing the second leg. This is because she is much lighter. Previously, the second leg was held by Xu Xin, who also had strong sprinting ability, but her lighter weight is an advantage. This lighter weight allows the first leg to gain more acceleration when pushing the runner, making it easier to overtake during the baton exchange.
Lighter weight makes them easier to push, which is an advantage in relays. Both Ren Xiyao and Xu Xin have strong sprinting abilities, but Ren Xiyao is lighter. Therefore, the coaching staff ultimately decided to have Ren Xiyao run the second leg and Xu Xin run the third. However, this is not the final lineup. The main goal is to try different lineups and choose the most suitable one to prepare for next year's qualifying rounds and the upcoming Winter Olympics.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
