Chapter 49 Will Team Apple Win This Time?
That evening, because Ning Jia's arm was "honorably injured," dinner had to be simple. Ning Jia ate scallion oil noodles, while the little people ate fruit and yogurt.
The little ones didn't complain much. They had already eaten too much good food that day, including a big meal and afternoon tea, so a lighter dinner wouldn't hurt.
An older, smaller figure, rubbing his belly, began to reflect:
"I think meals should be simple. It's okay to splurge occasionally. If you eat and drink excessively every day, your body definitely can't take it."
As soon as these words were spoken, a petty person immediately jumped out to refute them:
"How can that be? I want to eat delicious food!"
"Exactly! What's the fun in not being able to eat good food?"
The group of people suffering the most from severe and painful constipation warned:
"All you ever do is eat. You'll regret it when you can't poop after eating too much."
The younger, more metabolically efficient little people were quite dismissive:
"What's there to be afraid of? Didn't the clan chief say that more exercise will prevent constipation?"
Some people were also whispering to themselves:
"But it's really hot outside. I almost fainted from the heat this afternoon in the yard."
"Yes, yes, and the ground was so hot, I almost burned my feet..."
...
Ning Jia, who was eavesdropping on the little people's chatter, couldn't help but interject, "Actually, you don't need to go out; you can exercise at home too."
One of the little figures said with disdain, "But the house is too small. I get tired of running around after a while."
Ning Jia: ...
Her inner monologue: You didn't say that when you first came here!
"Actually, the fun of exercise doesn't lie in the size of the space, but in how you plan it."
As she spoke, she gestured with her hand to the open space in the middle of the living room, "Some sports only require a space this big, which is enough for all of you to play together."
"For example, playing football."
Playing football? What is this? Is it a game for giants? The little people scattered around gathered around curiously.
"Football is a team sport and a highly competitive sport, it's a lot of fun!"
Ning Jia briefly explained the rules of the game, and the children listened blankly, their little faces showing a mixture of understanding and confusion.
To let the little people experience the charm of football more directly, Ning Jia found a World Cup video online and projected it onto the TV in the living room, allowing them to watch the tense pace of the football match and experience the exciting atmosphere and enthusiastic cheers of the fans.
"Looks like it'll be fun?"
Shi Ying watched very intently, still pondering the rules Ning Jia had just mentioned.
He Meng also thought this football was quite interesting:
"Haha, isn't this just a ball-grabbing contest? It's just a race to see who's the fastest!"
As the fastest walker in her tribe, she said she felt no pressure.
Some little figures looked at the almost frenzied fans with confusion, covered their little ears, and asked the soul-searching question:
"So many people, and they're just watching a few people fight over the ball? What's so interesting about that? And why are they shouting and yelling the whole time?"
Ning Jia laughed heartily. Actually, she wasn't a football fan; she was just making things up on the spot.
"Because the Giants are boring, they like to watch games where their own players are playing against each other. As for those shouting, they are just cheering for their favorite team."
"There's no need to get so worked up."
The little people shook their heads, indicating that they didn't quite understand.
While they were watching the video, Ning Jia had already made a "soccer ball" the size of a candy ball out of tissues and tape. Seeing the little figures frowning and pointing at the crazy behavior of the viewers in the video, she couldn't help but laugh:
"Come on, let's have a football match tonight."
Tonight we don't need to make sachets or deliver goods, so everyone is quite free.
Since moving here, Ningjia hasn't installed broadband, so there's no Wi-Fi at home. Before, she used the company's Wi-Fi, but now that she's unemployed and spends more time at home, she bought a data SIM card online and put it in her old phone to create a hotspot.
Even so, the data allowance was still not enough. After all, on days when she wasn't working, she didn't have much to do and would often start scrolling through her phone.
To reduce screen time, Ning Jia felt it was necessary to enrich the cultural and entertainment life of the little people.
At this time, although the little people thought the simple "soccer ball" was ugly, they still divided themselves into teams under Ning Jia's guidance and quickly formed two soccer teams of 11 people each. Except for a few little people, almost everyone took to the field.
Seeing everyone's nonchalant expressions, Ning Jia chuckled, placed the soccer ball in the center of the marked area, and then announced—
"The match begins!"
In the first game, everyone was still unfamiliar with the rules and played very politely. He Meng, who was the fastest runner, successfully grabbed the ball and kicked it into the upside-down fruit basket that served as the goal.
"Haha, this is way too easy!"
He Meng proudly gave the others a "V" sign, a gesture she had recently learned from Ning Jia.
Ning Jia sighed, pointing to the fruit basket opposite her, and said:
"Uh, He Meng, you've got it wrong, this is your own team's goal..."
What? He Meng was stunned. When she turned around and saw that it was true, her smile vanished and she squatted down and became withdrawn.
Hahaha, everyone else was laughing their heads off when they saw this.
"Let's try again! This time I'm sure I won't make a mistake." He Meng shamelessly returned. "This time I'll definitely win!"
"It's not you, it's your Apple team. This is a team activity," Ning Jia reminded her.
He Meng turned to look at his teammates. There was Shi Ying, Gan Cao, Dao Ya, Xue Cao... almost all the younger generation of warriors were on his side. Then he looked at the Peach Team led by Cang Lan on the other side. Apart from Bai Su, they were all older members of the clan and were not to be feared at all. He patted his chest with full confidence:
"Our Apple team will definitely win this time!"
Seeing her so arrogant, Bai Su couldn't help but say, "He Meng, do you dare to make a bet with me? Let's bet on which team will win?"
This time, not only He Meng, but also Xue Cao and the others agreed. They finally had a chance to beat Bai Su, so who could resist participating?
They looked at each other, all with very confident expressions. Xuecao even emphasized:
"The bet is the same as before: the loser has to do something for the winner."
"no problem."
This time, Bai Su faced off against five opponents in a 1v5 situation, but she maintained a calm, peach-like face, seemingly not nervous at all.
Ning Jia, acting as the referee, also found it interesting, secretly wondering if Bai Su had some hidden trick up her sleeve, and announced:
"The match has officially begun!"
Ten minutes later—
"He Meng, don't run so fast! You're too fast, we can't keep up!"
"That's right! You could have passed the ball to me just now, but you kept hogging it!"
Trailing in the score, the Apple team players lost their temper and began to criticize their star player, He Meng.
"It's because you guys are too slow to keep up with me, what does that have to do with me?!"
He Meng got angry after being scolded by her friends and shouted back with her head held high.
Seeing that the Apple team was on the verge of internal strife, Canglan from the Peach team stroked her chin and looked at Bai Su, who was calmly watching the show:
"You really are something, teasing He Meng again."
Bai Su, who was clearly still a child herself, smiled slyly:
"Football is a team sport that requires cooperation between players. If this can teach He Meng teamwork, isn't that exactly what you, Chief, want?"
Hearing Bai Su use words like "teamwork," Cang Lan knew it was another new term she'd learned from Ning Jia, and couldn't help but smile slightly.
“You’re right. If our people want to survive in the long term, force alone is not enough. Wisdom and knowledge are also very important.”
"I have already discussed it with Ning Jia, and we will soon lead our people to learn about the giant culture..." Cang Lan inadvertently revealed this news during the conversation.
Learning new knowledge?
Bai Su has always been interested in all sorts of knowledge about the world of giants, but... it's hard to say about others.
She glanced thoughtfully at He Meng, who was arguing with Shi Ying again, and showed a look of sympathy.
...
At 8 p.m., the game ended with a narrow victory for the Peach team.
Although the Apple team members finally united after their argument in the second half, it was too late, and Bai Su won again.
Even the little ones who didn't play were very involved, cheering for their favorite team with all their might until their voices were hoarse, and they still weren't done.
"It's getting late, it's time to rest."
Canglan, being more composed, offered a word of advice. But she also wore a triumphant smile.
"Hmph, our Apple team definitely won't lose next time!"
"What are you thinking? Our Peach Team is the best!"
The team members shook hands to show that friendship comes first, while exchanging harsh words with each other.
The competition ended reluctantly, and everyone was exhausted and covered in sweat. After taking a shower in line, they all crawled into bamboo baskets and went to sleep.
Devastated by her defeat, He Meng snuggled against her mother, Zhe Lan, and whined. The soft light of the night lamp shone into the pale white lampshade as Zhe Lan gently comforted her daughter until He Meng whimpered and fell asleep. After tucking her in with a handkerchief and blanket, Zhe Lan closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep herself.
Ning Jia watched this scene from afar, paused for a moment, seemed to remember something, and then, after a while, turned off the night light in the living room and tiptoed back to her bedroom.
She sat at the table, calculated her recent income from selling sachets, wrote down the details, and then transferred her share of the earnings to Yu'ebao (Alipay's money market fund).
Bank interest rates are too low now, so she doesn't plan to put all her money in fixed deposits. When she has extra money, she wants to buy some gold bond funds, index funds, and the like.
Looking at the nearly 20,000 yuan in Yu'ebao, she felt much more at ease. No matter what, having money in hand makes one feel at ease, a principle that Ms. Ning was taught since childhood.
Just then, my phone rang. It was a voice message from Liu Yue.
Ning Jia accepted the call with a puzzled look. This guy had been having a great time in Yunnan and had no desire to leave. What could he possibly want from her now?
"So, Miss Liu, you've finally decided to contact me?"
Liu Yue, on the other end of the phone, didn't have time for small talk and said urgently:
"Ning Jia, come back quickly! Your home is about to be destroyed!"
What?
Ning Jia looked completely bewildered. "What's going on? Weren't you in Yunnan?"
"I was at home when my mom called me back at the last minute because it was my grandparents' birthday party. Turns out it was a blind date! I'm so angry!!"
Liu Yue rambled on for a while, finally getting back to the point:
"...This blind date is with a real estate agent. That's how I found out your mom is going to sell the house! I heard there are already people looking at it!"
What?! Ms. Ning is going to sell the house?!
Ning Jia's expression changed instantly.
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Author's Note: Enjoy reading, everyone!
Suddenly I'm curious, who's everyone's favorite little person? [shy]
Please add this to your favorites! [heart emoji] [heart emoji]
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