64 Puppy Love in the Team
◎This girl looks a lot like you◎
Based on the information provided by the national badminton team coach, Ren Xinhua quickly began to find out the real situation.
What does it mean to be a boy before and become a girl later?
The current information technology is not perfect enough, and many messages are very closed-loop.
Ren Xinhua could only ask some reporters he knew to see if they had heard of any American players who played well.
The CCTV5 reporters had always had a good relationship with Ren Xinhua, and although they didn't have any information on this matter, seeing Ren Xinhua's anxiety, they knew the matter might be serious and said they would ask around for Ren Xinhua.
The head coach suddenly had something on her mind, and the coaches under her also noticed something was wrong.
What's going on?
Aren’t these kids doing pretty well at pole jumping?
What is Lao Ren worried about?
Are you worried about the mixed team table tennis tournament?
The venue for the mixed team table tennis tournament has been confirmed to be Minsk, the capital of Belarus.
There are 32 participating countries.
But what is strange is that the United States is not involved.
Ren Xinhua felt that this was the United States planning a big move.
The only way to obtain the so-called "secret players" of the United States is gone.
However, Ren Xinhua did not expect that while he was still at a loss, his players got the news so quickly.
First, Chang Hongxia and Xu Dong discussed what the head coach was worried about recently while having dinner.
Later, the players spread the rumor that the International Table Tennis Federation had made some changes, which gave the head coach a headache.
When the news finally reached Zhu Qi's ears, it became that in addition to changing the number of mixed team players, the International Table Tennis Federation also made a very scary change to the Chinese team.
The three girls were sitting in the cafeteria, discussing something while eating face to face.
Ah Shui asked: "What did the ITTF change again? Is it the material of the ball or the size of the rubber?"
Maomao shook his head: "I don't know, the coaches didn't tell me."
"I heard that in the 1960s, the International Table Tennis Federation required table tennis players to use a single brand of glue for sponges. And that glue was only available in the UK, and the tariffs on us were incredibly high. Could it be something similar?" Ah Shui took a sip of soup and a bite of tofu. After a while, he couldn't figure it out, so he turned back to Zhu Qi. "Baobao, do you know why?"
A Shui felt that her Bao Bao knew everything.
But this question really touched upon Zhu Qi's blind spot in knowledge.
As this life gets longer, the memories of the previous life become more and more distant.
In addition, many things have changed from before, and Zhu Qi is a little confused, but that doesn't mean he has no idea.
She thought for a moment and suggested, "Since the coaches are worried about the ITTF's new rules, why don't we just go and see what changes have been made?"
Ah Shui slapped his head and said, "That's right!"
Just do it.
After dinner, the three girls went to the coaching room.
The coaches were all taking a lunch break, and only Master Fo was in the room.
As the team captain, Maomao went to ask Mr. Fo for the latest version of the competition rules, saying that she needed to review them to prevent violations. The three girls squatted at the door of the coaching room and read through them page by page.
"No..." Ah Shui held his chin with his hand, his head resting on Mao Mao's shoulder. "It's the same as before..."
The cat also flipped through the book, reading each entry one by one, and found that there was nothing different from before.
There are no other differences except that the mixed team competition is reduced from four men's and women's teams to three.
"Wait!" Zhu Qi on the far right suddenly said.
The cat flipping through the book stopped immediately.
On page 85 of the standard physical examination report for participation, there was a rule at the bottom that was added last year, which caught the attention of the three girls.
Because this rule is too niche and too subversive to the cognition of people born in the 1990s, it has never received the attention of the coaching staff.
But Zhu Qi came from the future twenty years later and had witnessed all kinds of developments and changes, so he immediately understood the significance of this regulation.
"…Transgender women can participate in women's events by providing proof that their total serum testosterone level has been below 10 nanomoles/liter for at least 12 months prior to the competition…" Maomao read the information softly, confused. "What does that mean? What is a transgender woman? Homosexuality?"
"It's a man's body but he thinks he is a woman and has undergone sex reassignment surgery," said Zhu Qi.
"So is he a man or a woman?" A Shui asked.
"..." Zhu Qi didn't know how to respond. "Normally, before a sex change, they're considered men, and after... they're considered women. But no matter what, transgender people can't be allowed to compete in women's competitions."
"Why?" Ah Shui blinked. "If I turned into a woman, would I be like those... ladyboys in Thailand? From their looks to their image, their breasts, everything is feminine? Are they any different from us?"
"The testosterone level of males after puberty is 7.7-29.4 nanomoles per liter, while the testosterone level of females is generally 0.12-1.79 nanomoles per liter. But this requirement says less than 10 nanomoles/liter. Regardless of whether he has balls or not, his testosterone level is already more than ten times that of females." Zhu Qi frowned, probably understanding the coaching staff's worries.
Are trans people already here?
Maomao suddenly stopped talking and fell into a state of thought.
Seeing that Ah Shui still didn't understand, Zhu Qi explained in detail, "Testosterone is closely related to muscle mass, strength, and red blood cell production. There's absolutely no overlap in testosterone levels between women and men. If a transgender woman were to compete in the women's division, it would be completely unfair, regardless of whether she or he was clean."
"Ah?!" Ah Shui opened his mouth wide, as if he had realized something.
"Early stimulants involved testosterone injections, which increased muscle mass in a short period of time. The effect is like someone getting an arm enlarged, so one arm is the length of a table and comes to fight you," Zhu Qi said, trying to put it more bluntly. "There's also a theory that muscle memory maintains its inherent strength after sex change. Even though he looks like a woman, his muscle strength remains that of a man."
Ah Shui finally understood and opened his mouth wide.
"I remember now!" Maomao suddenly sat up straight. "I met that man when I was doing surgery in Los Angeles!"
/
When the three girls came to see Ren Xinhua, Ren Xinhua sat in front of his desk in a daze for a long time without being able to speak.
Maomao said, "At the time, I saw a group of people dressed as American professional athletes appear in the hospital, carrying ping-pong bags. A group of men surrounded a little boy with long hair. Although the boy's voice was very sticky and coquettish, his face shape and Adam's apple showed that he was a man. I thought the boy's voice might have been born that way. But then when I went to the bathroom, I saw him go into the women's room. I reminded him, but he glared at me. I thought all Americans were so arrogant, and I thought he might have misunderstood my pronunciation... But then I saw that the places he went to were places where women came and went..."
The little boy with long hair and Mao Mao are in the same hospital, and they even have the same attending physician for their bone problems.
At that time, in order to facilitate the cat's recovery, the national team contacted the hospital that treated the athletes, and there was a special ping-pong table on the rooftop of the hospital.
Maomao has seen that person before.
No matter how you look at it, he is a boy, but he goes in and out of the girls' locker room and bathroom.
Maomao was not very familiar with English and only communicated with the doctor and the translator of the Chongqing-Yuanshan provincial team. She didn't take it too seriously and had never communicated with the boy.
But now that I think about it, it's very likely that Maomao had already seen that trans person in advance.
Of course.
This is all just speculation.
The player that the national badminton team coach was talking about might not be the player that Maomao was talking about.
But everything should be prevented in advance.
"You're quite well-informed," Ren Xinhua joked, nodding as the three girls looked at each other. "Don't worry, our coaching staff will take this matter very seriously. If any unreasonable circumstances arise, we'll definitely raise objections."
Ren Xinhua said the last sentence with some uncertainty.
Although Chairman Ren wanted to reassure the children.
However, Zhu Qi and Maomao are both people who have experienced many ups and downs, and they know that since the International Table Tennis Federation has quietly added this regulation, it will not withdraw it easily.
After all, when the International Table Tennis Federation forced the small ball to be changed to a large ball, the Chinese team did raise objections.
The South Korean team, which also used more straight blades at the time, also protested, but in the end nothing came of it.
Ren Xinhua said this because he wanted to stabilize the players first and let them not worry too much.
But Silly Ah Shui really believed it and ran out happily: "I told you, how could a man participate in a women's competition? The coach would definitely not let such a thing happen. Besides, didn't you two just finish the battle of the sexes? You are not afraid of running into male players!"
“…” Zhu Qi, Maomao.
The two of them looked at Ah Shui jumping around and smiled helplessly.
A simple silly child.
"What do you think?" Maomao asked in a low voice.
Zhu Qi thought for a moment and said, "To be honest, although we've had some advantages in the battle of the sexes against the male players, they haven't yet fully prepared. Women lose a lot of pectoral muscles due to breastfeeding, which puts them at a natural disadvantage against trans people. If you want to defeat a trans person who's fully prepared and in high-intensity training..."
Zhu Qi didn't finish his words.
How could Maomao, a sports student, not understand?
There is hope of winning, but you have to work ten times harder than the other party.
However, they don't know each other's true situation yet, so they can only do their own work and daily training well.
The temperature in Beijing started to warm up again from cold.
The price of the house Zhu Qi owned had risen to 5,000 yuan per square meter, and even the one near the Fourth Ring Road cost 4,500 yuan per square meter, not to mention that Zhu Qi was only interested in the house within the North Third Ring Road at the time.
Very outrageous.
It increased 3.5 times in one year.
She sold a house without even renovating it; she simply listed her phone number for sale overnight, and it was bombarded with calls. A couple who had moved to Beijing from elsewhere wanted to settle in the city and offered 250,000 yuan for a house. Zhu Qi applied and went to meet them, only to discover they were elementary school teachers, who had brought their two daughters. She didn't ask for more and sold it at the market price of 5,000 yuan per square meter.
The net profit was nearly 200,000 yuan, and there are still three sets left in my hands that continue to appreciate in value.
A Shui and Maomao were even more delighted. They didn't expect the money to come so quickly. They also planned to sell their houses one by one and buy a new one in their local area before the prices of houses skyrocketed.
We also played a table tennis league in the middle.
It just so happens that the housing prices in Jinling have not increased significantly yet, and the price in the northern district is only over 2,000 yuan per square meter.
Zhu Qi added some money of his own to buy two houses of 60 square meters, and then wrote an agency agreement, asking his uncle and aunt to help with the subsequent house deeds.
Money.
In ten years, one hundred thousand yuan will be worthless.
But houses are different, their prices will also increase.
During the table tennis league, He Qianlu brought the talented girl he mentioned on the phone last time.
She is only 13 years old this year and her name is Xiao Lingling.
She is not tall, has a round face and big eyes, and looks like a little apple.
She was a little reserved when she saw Zhu Qi. She followed the team, completely different from her nickname. She was so quiet that it was easy for people to ignore her presence.
"This kid is just like you, and her playing style is very similar." He Qianlu introduced the little girl to Zhu Qi separately. "Her family wasn't well off. Her parents divorced and left her alone, so she lived with her grandparents. She got into table tennis because there was a special class near her home. She went there to help pick up balls, and the owner gave her a dollar an hour for pocket money. She eventually learned the game by watching and practicing with the students there. When she was good enough, she was picked up by the city team teacher..."
Hearing this, Zhu Qi looked at the girl for a while longer.
So this kid didn't even have a proper teacher to teach him? He was completely self-taught?
Xiao Lingdang is only 13 years old. She is only on the women's team representing the Jianghuai Provincial Team in this Table Tennis League.
She stood by and watched for a while while Xiao Lingling was competing, and found that the girl's speed, strength, and first three board techniques were still a little lacking.
But he is the same as Zhu Qi who was brought out by He Qianlu back then.
Xiao Lingling's pace, serve and backhand are excellent, and she is already ahead of all players aged 15 and under.
He Qianlu was very satisfied and asked her: "What do you think of this child? Is there any development opportunity?"
"Could there be anything bad you brought out?"
"Cut it off, are you bragging about yourself?" He Qianlu curled his lips.
"Not bad. Her physical talent seems promising." Zhu Qi gave a very objective assessment from her senior sister's perspective, and finally warned, "Don't let her copy your style completely. Explore her own areas of expertise and learn more about current advanced techniques."
Otherwise, she would be eliminated from the women's singles list of the Tokyo World Games just like she was that year.
"I know." He Qianlu waved at Xiao Lingling. The girl changed into her uniform after the game and ran over. She stood in front of Zhu Qi, a little shy. "You played well today. Come on, bring me your racket."
Xiao Lingling blushed. She took out her racket, tore off the rubber and handed it to He Qianlu.
He Qianlu stuffed it into Zhu Qi's hand and said, "Give her an autograph. She really admires you. She watches every game you play."
Zhu Qi found a pen and scribbled twice on the front of the racket, signing his signature with a "Zhu" circled inside a "Q".
Xiao Lingling's face turned even redder. She looked at Zhu Qi with sparkling eyes and said in a crisp voice, "Thank you, Senior Sister."
The word "senior sister" melted Zhu Qi's heart.
The boys in the Bayi team also call her senior sister, but for some reason no girls call her that and it makes people feel warm.
Looking at the child, Zhu Qi vaguely remembered himself when he was twelve or thirteen years old.
But at that time she was too lazy to pretend to be a child. No matter who she talked to, she had the temperament of a little adult and didn't look as cute as a real child.
Every time they went out to compete, Zhu Qi always walked in front, with the demeanor of a leader inspecting. He Qianlu would follow behind, carrying a lot of things.
But now the situation is reversed, He Qianlu is walking in front, and a bunch of children are chasing after him.
Zhu Qi asked her, "What's your full name?"
Xiao Lingling held the racket and said, "My name is Lin Yan."
oh.
Quite appropriate.
"Have you won any ranking?"
"The U12 team just finished the competition last year and won first place." Xiao Lingling grinned, a little proud.
"Do you want to join the national team?"
Little Bell nodded without hesitation: "Yes!"
"Just one U12 is not enough. I made the national team back then..." Zhu Qi thought about it and felt that her journey to the World Cup was a bit too tortuous and legendary. It was a path that ordinary people couldn't replicate. It might be a bit difficult for this little girl, and now there's no need to block He Qianlu's students. She smiled and said, "...It took a lot of effort. Only with results can you have a say. Otherwise, if you make the national team, the coach will be picky about you. You have to get at least a U15. If you have good results, even the coach will listen to you. I want to see you on the national team in two years."
Xiao Lingling's face turned even redder and she nodded heavily: "Yes!"
/
The table tennis league ended, and the Bayi team represented by Zhu Qi won five golds, four silvers and one bronze, of which Zhu Qi won two golds and two silvers.
The emergence of the Bayi team broke the monopoly of the Chaojing team, the Heilongjiang team and the Chongqing team, and became the favorite to win the gold medal.
Because Zhu Qi has been transferred to the Bayi team, this time he is against the Jianghuai Provincial Team.
The old man led the team personally and required the members of the Bayi team to wear military uniforms when they went on the podium.
When the uniform military green uniforms appeared on the highest podium, they attracted most of the cameras.
Many provincial team coaches were secretly sad when they saw their players being taken away by the Bayi team.
This ping-pong match is over.
The cat's condition has recovered to about 90%, and it can basically feel the same as before the operation.
Coach Cun was a little downhearted when he saw Maomao win just one gold medal in women's doubles. He went over and offered some comfort, "You took a ten-month hiatus to recover from an illness, and you've only been back for five months. During that time, Zhu Qi and Fang Miao have been making progress and moving forward. It's normal to feel pressured. It's okay. We'll slowly catch up."
Although it's already late to catch up with my teammates, I can only put in more effort...
Maomao nodded and smiled at Coach Cun, "It's okay, I can handle it."
Coach Cun patted her head. In the beginning, he actually didn't want Maomao to be the captain of the women's team.
Because being a captain means taking care of too many things. In addition to handling tasks such as distributing team uniforms, collecting rubbers, and distributing miscellaneous items, you also have to help the coaches share some of the work.
The women's team is all female, and the coaches, with the exception of Xu Dong and Chang Hongxia, are all men. Many tasks are inconvenient to perform in the women's dormitories, so the captains of the women's teams share the responsibility, such as morning jog roll call and evening dormitory inspections. Traveling to compete also requires responsibility for the safety of the team members, which inevitably diverts some of their attention.
Since Maomao has already taken on the role of captain, he can only continue in that position.
Coach Cun also wants to bring out a Grand Slam.
Maomao only has one more National Table Tennis Championship to go. If she can win the next "Miriam" Cup...
It's too difficult.
After the Ping Tiao League ended, the whole team returned to the national team to rest for half a month and then began preparing for the national table tennis mixed team competition in early May.
Zhu Qi had fully adapted to the routine of flying around, but there were still many new members of the team, and every time they went out with them, they would always bring some random things. She would hear Mao Mao shouting from room to room—"Take small items, not big ones; bring more change, not big bills; don't take anything you can buy locally; overloaded checked luggage will be at your own expense!"
"Maomao is becoming more and more like a captain, taking care of everything," Ah Shui commented. "She even has to take care of the public restroom when it runs out of toilet paper. How does she have so much energy?"
"..." Zhu Qi. "This is too much."
"But even cats can't see clearly sometimes." Ah Shui pulled Zhu Qi's neck and whispered. "Do you think someone in our team is in love?"
"Who is it?" Zhu Qi didn't even raise his head and prepared to change his rubber.
"Guess." A Shui asked mysteriously.
"I don't have time to care about who's dating," Zhu Qi warned. "Don't spread rumors about whether they're dating or not. The coaches are responsible for this. If someone isn't dating, it would be bad if there's a misunderstanding."
Ah Shui put his hands on his hips and pouted: "It's true! I saw them kissing!"
"..." Zhu Qi put down his racket. "Who is it?"
"I didn't see it clearly. I saw them last night when I went out to get water, but they ran away as soon as I walked over." Ah Shui held his chin and looked out the window. "I didn't tell anyone else, just you. I also know that if the coach knew about those two guys, they would definitely be fired. I just told you casually."
But the coaching staff soon found out about this.
Ren Xinhua has gained experience in catching premature lovers, and the people caught were also surprising: Tang Tang and Fat Tiger from Guidance Group Ding.
The reason for catching him was very simple. He saw Tang Tang's hairband in Fat Tiger's golf bag, and then Ren Xinhua remembered it silently and began to observe carefully until he confirmed it.
Tang Tang, a member of Coach Ding's team, joined the national team at the same time as Maomao and had a brief golden age. However, he couldn't hold his own against the then-prominent Jin Lili, and later fell short of rising star Zhu Qi, and now even Ah Shui has fallen behind.
I heard that the two of them had only been together for two months, but Ren Xinhua secretly observed them for a month.
Ever since the incident between Xu Dong and He Qianlu, Ren Xinhua has hated premature love. After catching the two walking hand in hand on the playground, he directly issued an internal notice within the team.
Both of them returned to the provincial team and left the team within three days, returning their team uniforms and various cards.
Zhu Qi was also a little surprised when he heard this: "It's not that bad, is it? Not even given time to repent? Just sent back to the provincial team?"
"Yeah, shouldn't it be the same as Coach Xu did back then, with both coaches convincing the other side to separate first?" A Shui also felt that it was a bit too tough, as prisoners in labor camps were given an appeal period.
Maomao was also helpless when she posted the notice. As she applied glue to the blackboard, she said, "There's nothing we can do. Chairman Ren said that this kind of thing will not be tolerated within the team and everyone will be treated equally. If anyone is found to be in a relationship, no matter who it is, they will be immediately sent back to the provincial team. Only by controlling their emotions can they develop a stronger heart. Well...that's what Chairman Ren said."
Coaches, like teachers in schools, feel like they are facing a formidable enemy when it comes to the issue of premature love.
Zhu Qi doesn't communicate much with Tang Tang. They are not in the same group, and their levels are different, so they don't have much in common.
But on the day Tang Tang quit the team, Zhu Qi was woken up by A Shui while taking a nap in the dormitory.
A Shui said that Tang Tang cried so hard when she left, and Qin Xiaoba and the others also went to see Fat Tiger off.
Zhu Qi turned over and prepared to go back to sleep. Ah Shui got into her bed and asked curiously, "Aren't you going to take a look?"
"What are you looking at?"
"At least we're seeing them off. We're all old teammates. I don't know if we'll ever see each other again after this departure..." Ah Shui sighed. "The coaches are so cruel. They really don't show any mercy. The team still needs sparring partners. It would be nice if you could stay and help with the practice."
"You don't understand. These two are being used as examples." Zhu Qi stretched out in bed. "They're not the absolute starters, so the coaching staff doesn't see the need to develop them. And with the National Table Tennis Mixed Team Tournament being such a crucial time, any problems within the team must be dealt with seriously."
Ah Shui sat on the edge of the bed, not knowing whether he understood or not. After a long while, he uttered a long "Sigh".
"So, don't always think about whether to have a relationship or not. It has nothing to do with us at the moment." Zhu Qi said earnestly.
"If he is an absolute main player... the coaching staff shouldn't be so heartless, right? For example, you... or Maomao..." A Shui muttered softly.
But the idea was rejected by the coaching staff the next day.
Ren Xinhua held a private meeting about the issue of romance within the team as Tang Tang and Fat Tiger left one after another.
"I think everyone knows about their relationship. Romance within the team is strictly prohibited. Taxpayers work hard to pay taxes, and we don't pay you salaries so that you can have romances within the national team! The team is full of young boys and girls, and I know that youthful innocence is a normal thing."
"Especially the kids on the second team, many of them are still minors. You're different from everyone else. You're athletes, and your purpose here is to win glory for our country, so you must exercise self-control. Of course, no one's forbidding you from dating. If you want to date, you can do whatever you want outside of Tiantan East Road. But with me, that's not allowed! I hope everyone has this awareness and consciousness."
"Also, many people might think I'm being so harsh on them because they aren't the absolute main players. Let me tell you right now, whether they're the absolute main players, sparring partners, or even kids from the national second team. Even Zhu Qi, Zu Tianjiao, Lu Yaohan, and Song Linzhou will be immediately sent back to the provincial team if discovered! So you all need to think clearly about why you're here!"
"Yes—" the team members answered in unison.
"Also, I have a request for the coaching staff." Ren Xinhua turned and looked at the coaches behind him. "If you find any players on your team in a relationship, or if you cover up and don't report it, you will be fired immediately!"
"Yes—" the coaches answered in unison.
Chairman Ren always keeps his word and acts accordingly.
very good.
Chairman Ren is determined to eradicate the love problem completely this time.
Some people in the team who had vaguely shown signs of doing so also began to restrain themselves secretly and dared not have any evil thoughts.
1996, the beginning of summer.
The mixed team table tennis competition is finally about to begin.
【Author’s words】
I didn't make up this transgender rule; it was introduced in 2015, so I was a decade ahead of schedule. Back then, no one took it seriously, and then... there were two transgender athletes competing in the Paris Olympics: one in boxing and one in weightlifting.
This surgery has been around since 1995, and that famous dancer had it done there. The technique is very mature. Tyrande specializes in this, and they're so skilled that even small hospitals can do it.
I actually started working on the various settings for this book before the Paris Olympics. At the time, I was hoping that Bao Bao would eventually compete in the men's team and win the championship. I had a lot of ideas for Bao Bao to compete in the men's team, like an international battle of the sexes, starting with mixed doubles, then gradually writing Bao Bao into the men's team, and then a gender-neutral world ranking.
But after the Paris Olympics, I realized I was too narrow-minded. No one is as shameless as those "politically correct" people who let trans people snatch the gold medal. We, Baobao, always challenge the strong, always fight, and always strive, not bully the weak.
By the way, I have no prejudice against trans people. I have a friend who's the same way. These people, trapped in a shell that doesn't belong to their own psychological cognition, are also pitiful and painful. But don't try to steal the track from normal people. Please go to your own track. And don't use the name of "Rainbow" to ask for sympathy, understanding, and tolerance from others. No one owes you anything. In this day and age, people can only be so tolerant of this kind of thing. How else can we be more tolerant? We like what we like, no one cares. We're busy living our own beautiful lives [eye roll] Finally, let's remember Paris Saint-Germain champion Yang Liu!
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