Chapter 81
Summer in Shanghai begins with a sticky wind.
The wind blew from the river, carrying water vapor, brushing across the stone walls of the beautiful buildings, penetrating into the crowded crowd, and finally lingering on the slightly wet hair on the pedestrians' foreheads.
Jingming Jingxia took the map and carefully identified the road ahead. She still preferred to live the same way as before.
At this moment, a taxi stopped, the window rolled down halfway, and the driver poked his head out slightly and called out to her, "Are you going? Are you going downtown?"
Seeing Jingming's puzzled and hesitant expression, the driver said with a kind, worried look on her face, "This line is terrifying! You'll have to wait at least half an hour! I'll drive straight to the elevated highway and save you time."
What was he saying? It was so different from the Chinese she had learned.
"I'm from Japan and I want to go here!"
Jingming pointed to the map and showed it to the driver.
The driver thought about it and made an OK gesture. Jingming didn't hesitate and sat down directly.
She didn't even realize she was being taken a detour.
The driver whistled after collecting the money. This was not really a scam, as it was just collecting the money that had been taken out before.
Looking at the bustling racetrack, Jingming breathed a sigh of relief, luckily he made it in time.
When she opened the newspaper brought by the housekeeper as usual and saw the news about her old friend, no one knew how shocked Jingxia Jingming was.
No one expected that Nihong liked Lin Mian so much.
Not only did Lin Mian defeat the chess players from Japan on their own turf, but she also ended the game with the Japanese players in her own country at an incredibly fast speed. Logically, the Japanese should hate her.
But her strong demeanor that the Japanese admire and the relaxed and confident look when she wins the game of chess all attract this somewhat eccentric nation.
In addition, she has given several solo recitals in Japan, and the piano community has given her an alarmingly high evaluation, saying that as long as Lin Mian is around, no other pianist in East Asia will be able to stand out in the future.
And she was so young, so calling her a "genius" was too light. Where else could a fourteen-year-old Go player reach the ninth dan level? It wouldn't happen in the past or the next hundred years.
She perfectly fits the obsession of Japanese people. To some people, she is an artist who should be admired by everyone.
So when there was no news about Lin Mian later, many people in Neon still cared about her.
Later, she gradually gained reputation in the physics community, and people with keen eyes noticed that Lin Mian had returned.
The returning Lin Mian better fits their definition of a strong person. Even if a strong person changes careers, he can still achieve extraordinary results.
When the He Group announced that Lin Mian would be one of the participating drivers in this official special event of F1 in China, Japanese newspapers competed to report on it and even sent reporters to the scene.
Jingxia Jingming once thought that she was different to her god, until nine years ago, when her god left without leaving any message, disappearing from her world without a sound.
Love turns to hate, but love also turns to thoughts.
Even though Lin Mian no longer plays the piano that she was once so fascinated by, and no longer plays chess, Jingxia Jingming still pays attention to Lin Mian.
This time, she resented the other person, but also loved him, so she secretly bought a plane ticket and came to a strange country alone.
No matter what, she was still thinking about her. She couldn't ignore her, nor could she not look at her.
"Excuse me, excuse me"
Chen Ke couldn't believe that the lockers here were full. She had no choice but to hand the skateboard in her hand to the security guard for safekeeping.
This is the gift she brought today. Although she has graduated for a long time, she still likes skateboarding. After seeing the news that her junior was going to compete, she immediately chose a skateboard as a gift.
If she loses, it’s a consolation gift; if she wins, it’s a congratulation gift. She is simply a genius. Chen Ke was a little happy.
Li Wen patted Chen Ke's shoulder gently and said, "I just saw it. It's indeed the president."
"What president?" Chen Ke scratched her head embarrassedly. Even after being away from school for so long, she was still so carefree and direct. She lowered her hand and bumped fists with Li Wen. "Long time no see, Li Wen."
It's been a long time since we last met. Li Wen raised his head slightly and looked at the time displayed on the big screen.
"What are you doing right now?"
Chen Ke did not choose to continue studying, but he heard that this junior who joined the company a year ago and left seemed to have gone abroad to continue his studies.
"I settled in Australia. The climate there is good and the scenery is pleasant."
"Really? That's great."
Yes, it’s fine now, and he likes the sunshine very much now.
"That guy over there looks familiar."
Zhong Yuqi subconsciously pulled Wu Bingxia's arm and asked her to look over there.
"What? You have really good eyesight. You can spot familiar faces among so many people."
Wu Bingxia was about to complain, but when she saw Shi Luyi, she was shocked.
"It's amazing that you can recognize it."
It's been so long, and you can still recognize me. It's been several years since I last saw you.
"I didn't expect him to come today. Do you want to say hello?"
Before Zhong Yuqi could hesitate, Shi Luyi also noticed them. He came over and greeted them with a smile.
"It's so hot and you're still wearing long sleeves. Are you really afraid of the sun?"
Jin Zixuan has grown up to be much calmer than before, but she still doesn't get along with Shi Luyi. Maybe her genes are full of disgust for this person.
"It's none of your business what others want to wear, miss."
Sure enough, the smell was still the same as before. Jin Zixuan didn't like this person at all. She had smelled the dark and damp smell on this person since a long time ago.
Although he had a bad relationship with Jin Zixuan, Shi Luyi was still very gentle when talking to Zhong Yuqi and Wu Bingxia.
He has changed a lot, and those obsessions seem to have faded away with time, leaving behind a more mature Shi Luyi.
But the scars on his body cannot be erased, and there is no need to erase them, just like he does not regret liking Lin Mian now.
Or rather, he still likes her now.
How could he not like someone like that when she appeared in his life?
I like Lin Mian, and it’s not a loss at all. No one is happier than him to have met such a person when he was young.
"Look, look, it's Xiao Mian! Wow, she dyed her hair red. No wonder she said we shouldn't meet before. It turns out she wanted to give us a surprise."
Zhong Yuqi pointed at the big screen and spoke excitedly to the people around her, her eyes becoming brighter and brighter.
To be honest, she was a little impressed by Lin Mian's handsomeness.
Lin Mian leaned against the matte black racing car, with his helmet casually tucked into his waist, like a sword ready to strike.
The red curly hair was casually pulled back, looking as bright as a ball of fire in the sunlight.
Her brown eyes, which had become lighter in the sunlight, noticed the camera's capture, and the corners of her mouth, which had been slightly cold, softened, just like the snow lotus on the iceberg was no longer cold and bloomed. Her helpless and tolerant smile made people think of the warm feeling when the sun shines on their body.
The red, black and white racing suit outlines her slender and taut figure, invisibly emphasizing her blushing broad shoulders, narrow waist and powerful long legs.
Lin Mian waved at the camera, and there was a loud gasp in the audience.
"Xiao Mian is so handsome today!"
Wu Bingxia felt a slight heat in her heart. Her little crown had always been so dazzling.
He twitched the corners of his mouth slightly, trying to pretend to agree, but it was difficult to do so.
Shi Luyi could hear the heartbeat that was getting more and more intense.
Can he really give up?
Such a person, such a person...
"Why are you always distracted, Brother?"
Qu Lin touched Chen Baixuan's arm, bringing him back to his senses.
"Nothing, I'm just still thinking about my graduation thesis."
"You're still thinking about this. But it's true. The defense is coming up soon, right? There are still two months left, right?"
Qu Lin was also calculating the time. Once Chen Baixuan graduated, she would be the senior sister in the group. She would have more things to do, which was really a headache. However, she said, "Senior sister is really amazing. She does everything very quickly. She actually graduated this year. She used to be the junior sister of the senior brother. Hahaha."
After saying that, Qu Lin shut up. Since Chen Baixuan was thinking about his graduation thesis even here, he must be very nervous about graduation. And she was still bringing up all sorts of things. Could she really be a good senior sister? Otherwise, she should just pray for her senior brother to have his graduation extended.
"Yeah, who would have thought."
Even as he said this, Chen Baixuan had already known that she could do it, and she had always been able to create miracles.
Although he said he gave up, Chen Baixuan still submitted his materials to the institute. As long as he graduates this year, he will become a colleague of Lin Mian.
If you can't be her lover, it's also good to be a colleague or friend who will accompany her for a long time.
This distance is just right.
"He's almost 30, but he's not mature at all and is so irritable."
Xu Ming slapped Wang Zeyi's shoulder hard. The man, who was almost fifty years old, did not hold back at all. Wang Zeyi took a step forward after being slapped.
"Uncle isn't any better. Even Yangyang doesn't want to stay with you."
When talking about his daughter who he had finally had, Xu Ming smiled awkwardly, but he did not let Wang Zeyi go.
"Then you should get married soon. Don't be like me and wait until I'm older to have children."
Looking at Wang Zeyi, who became a ninth-dan chess player last year, Xu Ming felt a little overwhelmed. He had done very well in his career and it was time to consider his family. Wang Zeyi's parents were very worried and kept calling him and urging Wang Zeyi.
But if he doesn't want to, who can force him?
"Let's not talk about this for now. We are here to see Lin Mian today."
These words effectively diverted Xu Ming's attention. He stood up and looked down with a look of regret on his face.
"Perhaps if she were still playing Go today, she would be the first person people would think of when talking about Chinese Go."
"A lot of people are talking about her now."
Until now, no one has been able to break her record, not only in China but also in the world.
For everyone who decides to enter the professional Go field, there is always a huge mountain called "Lin Mian" hanging over their heads. Not only can they not cross it, but even getting close to it requires a lot of effort.
As Lin Mian's Go teacher, Xu Ming is proud. Who else would be luckier than him to have taught two nine-dan players?
Wang Zeyi's face appeared on the screen. He was stunned for a moment, then greeted with a smile.
He is now quite famous and is often recognized. He has become accustomed to smiling in front of the camera.
Lin Mian also saw it, and waved towards Wang Zeyi with a smile. The photographer was also very good at capturing the scene, and the two appeared on the screen at the same time.
"Aunt Lin, that's Wang Zeyi, right?"
He Xintong narrowed his eyes. He had an impression of him. Last year, after being promoted to the ninth dan, that man came to Beicheng to find Lin Mian and said that he wanted to play chess with him. However, Lin Mian was very busy at that time, so most of the time it was He Xintong who came out to entertain him.
Men understand men best. He Xintong saw through Wang Zeyi's thoughts at a glance.
He acted magnanimous and had such a good relationship that he was not afraid of others interfering, but he did not force Wang Zeyi to retreat.
She was just He Xintong's girlfriend, not his wife, so why should he withdraw? Even if she was his wife, she could still be divorced. Why should he withdraw?
He Xintong remembered it very clearly. He was tentative when he mentioned it to Lin Mei beside him. He wanted to know whether Lin Mian had brought this person to Lin Mei.
"Who? I don't know him. Is he your friend, Xiao He?"
Lin Mei actually had an impression. She had gone to Xu Ming's house to pick up Lin Mian. After she saw Lin Mian leave, the boy stood by the window and stared at her until she got into the car.
But there is no need to tell He Xintong about this.
He Xintong was satisfied with the answer he wanted, but——
"Why didn't Sister Tu Yin come?"
He Xintong and Lin Mei were sitting in this box. Logically, Tu Yin should have been there as well. He Xintong had heard Lin Mei mention that Tu Yin had returned, and wanted to give Tu Mian a surprise.
"She's doing an interview downstairs. We'll also interview Xiao Mian after the game."
Thirty-five-year-old Tu Yin is already the editor-in-chief of a mainstream news magazine in America. This is simply a fantasy for a Chinese woman.
But she did it. Her writing skills, management ability and industry experience are unquestionable, and her extraordinary personal talent is enough to break all overt and covert discrimination.
Just like now, she could also bend over, raise the microphone to interview the little girl who came to the competition and ask her why she came here.
Tu Yin was exposed to the sun without any physical sun protection, and the friendly smile on her face made the little girl less nervous.
The little girl's big eyes were full of longing.
"I came here because of Lin Mian!"
"Oh?" Tu Yin raised her eyebrows slightly, "Are you her fan?"
"Of course! I'm still learning the music she wrote before! I love her playing and I've listened to those records many times."
Tu Yin became interested and chatted with the girl for a long time.
After she finished interviewing the little girl, the competition inside was about to start. Tu Yin did not choose to go to the box, but went in with her colleagues.
"Are you feeling any better?"
The wet towel slammed against my face, finally dispelling the heat.
"Thank you, James."
James didn't put down the towel and kept it as a pillow for her.
Just at this moment, cheers broke out at the scene, and Lin Mian on the screen was waving his hand to everyone.
Seeing the joy on Tu Yin's face, James had an idea.
"This must be your sister."
"Yeah, she's cool!"
"You two really don't act like sisters."
These words made Tu Yin frown slightly, but she quickly relaxed again.
"When you meet her, you'll know we are very similar."
"Really?" James held up the camera without refutation. His lens was aimed at the court, but the figure reflected in his eyes was Tu Yin.
A woman of thirty-five can still be incredibly beautiful.
The confident look on the face due to career success and the stability and sense of security brought by sufficient experience are all dazzling beauty.
"After the competition is over, you should take a good vacation. It's been a long time since you've been back home."
James returned his gaze to the court. "Yeah, it's been a long time."
At this time, the spotlight was focused on the track. Among the many eyes, Ricky from the BA team was the first to drive out of the maintenance area. Then, teams such as ML and TY came on the scene one after another, using the empty track for initial testing.
The prize money set by the organizer this time is very high. All the racers are very concerned about this competition. It is also a good opportunity to increase their commercial value. No one does not want to be the champion this time.
Lin Mian was stuck in the middle, his focused gaze fixed on the distance through his mask.
With breath-holding, five red lights lit up one after another and then quickly went out.
The roar of the engine instantly broke the last bit of calm, and 20 racing cars rushed out like arrows.
Lin Mian's start was perfect, she jumped from ninth place to seventh place.
Lin Mian was blocked by TY Team's Xiaolin Jiaze when exiting Turn 1, forcing her to ease off the accelerator, and the tire temperature did not reach the ideal state. Lin Mian was not in a hurry, as she still had time to adjust.
When the car reached its best condition, Lin Mian no longer hesitated, cast aside all distractions, and cut into the center of the chicane in an almost out-of-control posture. The right front wheel rolled over the road, the car body vibrated violently, and at the same time, he passed Xiao Lin Jiaze cleanly and neatly!
The audience burst into incredible cheers. The visual impact often makes people's heart beat faster. They forget where they are at the moment and their hearts follow the field.
However, the real challenge has just begun.
Ryan from MC team and Hans from ML team firmly locked the front position and continuously refreshed the fastest lap time.
Lin Mian kept close to the midfield group, but her car was clearly at a disadvantage on the straights, and she was nearly overtaken by more powerful cars several times.
Under the helmet, those brown eyes were like suffocating knives, with the flame of unwillingness burning in her eyes. What she wanted was not "it won't be shameful as long as I'm not the last one", but "I must be the first one"!
This is her territory, and she will never give up the victory!
Then, people saw the matte black racing car with determination, without giving anyone time to react, at the end of a straight line where cars should have been barely able to stay side by side, it flashed past like a flash of lightning, sticking to the inside. The audience only had time to let out a gasp.
How could it be so fast!
The Chinese audience was very proud when they saw the car's ranking rise to fifth on the big screen. They had not expected to see a Chinese perform so well in such a competition.
Let’s keep it up like this and let those foreigners see that China also has good racing drivers!
"Lin Mian, well done! Keep up the form for the next two laps, and everything will go smoothly."
Listening to the engineer's excited voice coming from the radio equipment, Lin Mian raised his eyebrows slightly.
Is that good enough? No, it's not good enough, not by a long shot.
While the car in front was carefully looking for the best route to turn, the matte black racing car squeezed past from the outside line. The tires made a screeching sound and the body of the car shook violently, as if it was about to rush out of the track and head straight for the audience seats in the next second!
At that moment, fear surged, tightly gripping the hearts of every audience member. Some couldn't bear it and covered their eyes with their hands, but couldn't help peeking through their fingers.
The racer in the car in front was obviously frightened. He saw through the rearview mirror the figure approaching rapidly like the god of death. No, he must avoid her, otherwise he will definitely die!
He subconsciously adjusted the steering wheel, and at that moment, the figure was already close, and with a feint, the ranking on the screen changed again.
“What a mess!”
Lin Mei wanted to cover her eyes to stop herself from looking. She knew that Lin Mian was crazy when driving, but she didn't expect that the grown-up Lin Mian was even more crazy than before. That crazy energy seemed to have grown even stronger.
He Xintong tightly grasped the handrail. At this moment, he had no time to comfort Lin Mei. His heart was beating so fast that it seemed like it would jump out at the next moment.
It’s not like he had never seen Lin Mian training before, but it wasn’t this crazy!
What he didn't know was that this was just the appetizer.
"Ryan from the MC team just broke the track record with a lap time of 1 minute 32.220 seconds! Lin Mian, hold on tight. You're fourth now, which is fantastic."
Her performance has exceeded their expectations. They just hope that she can keep steady. After all, her opponent is the world champion Ryan. It is not shameful to lose. Moreover, he has also broken the track record, which is impossible to surpass.
Before the spectators in the field could recover from Lin Mian's overtaking, they heard the news that Ryan had broken the limit and set a new record. The field suddenly became boiling, and some people who just came to watch the excitement were also overwhelmed by the charm of the sport of racing.
"Oh"
Lin Mian chuckled, the real competition had just begun.
In the excitement caused by Ryan, the existence that frightened many racers was accelerating, and the final hunt was about to begin.
"Is she still speeding up?!"
Jin Zixuan held on to the railing tightly, her heart was beating fast and she couldn't calm down. How could she be so crazy?
Just as Jin Zixuan was getting excited about this rare scene, she was frightened by Lin Mian's speed. This was beyond her understanding and made her feel terrified.
"Xiao Mian is probably trying to beat Li An's lap time, and the distance between them isn't that far. Xiao Mian won't let go of such an opportunity."
Zhong Yuqi frowned slightly. She knew Lin Mian so well that she felt a little uneasy. However, this was Lin Mian, and it was her character to do this.
Wu Bingxia formed a trumpet shape with her hands at her mouth and shouted loudly: "Lin Mian, come on, gogogo!"
The other people no longer cared about their inner worries and stood up to cheer for Lin Mian. Since they couldn't stop her, they would cheer for her. If this was what she wanted, she would definitely get it. That's how they believed in her.
On the track, the third place car originally wanted to make a push to overtake, but he saw in the rearview mirror that the car behind him not only showed no signs of slowing down, but in just a moment's pause, they were almost head to tail!
How can we even talk about overtaking? It’s good enough if we’re not overtaken!
Of course, he did try to struggle, but at the last moment of entering the corner, Lin Mian swung accurately to seize the inside line and completed the overtaking forcefully.
This racer! Is this the ultimate goal of China's event? Let her step on everyone's heads and tell everyone that there is such a racer in China.
He silently began to pray in his heart that Ryan could suppress her, even though he and Ryan did not get along, but he did not want a woman to step on his head and receive all the praise.
“Third place!”
The commentator couldn't keep calm either. Even though there was a camera facing him, he was extremely excited. For so many years, there has always been a lack of Chinese people in top-level racing. Even though this was just an exhibition match, the intensity of the competition was no less than any F1 race.
Since the podium has been reserved, it is better to be bolder.
With the expectations of most people on the field, Lin Mian did not pause at all. When passing the spiral curve, she followed closely behind the car in front, using the windshield of the car in front to reduce pressure and accelerate.
As she turned, she pretended to overtake from the outside, causing the car ahead to instinctively block her and forget the optimal route she had planned. In a split second, Lin Mian curled her lips, pulled back the steering wheel, and stepped on the accelerator. She no longer had any intention of overtaking from the outside, but quickly passed from the inside, taking second place.
“Shit!”
The overtaken racer can only watch the car in front of him speed up until it is out of his sight.
"Contestant Lin Mian's speed definitely exceeded 300 kilometers! Perhaps we're about to see a new record!"
The excited voice of the commentator was transmitted through the wireless lavalier microphone to every family watching the sports channel at that time. In every pair of eyes, some ignorant and some serious, there was a figure that was so fast that people dared not look away for fear of missing it in the next second.
In fact, as the commentator expected, Lin Mian set a new lap time of 1 minute 30 seconds 051, a number that is even more difficult to surpass!
Ryan also knew the news. Although he was still firmly in first place, he felt the pressure. After all, the distance between them was not enough for him to rest easy. He began to push forward with all his strength, and his lap time increased again, but he still failed to break Lin Mian's lap time.
On the other side, in full view of everyone, Lin Mian delayed braking when turning, and the car body was thrown into the curve in an almost out-of-control posture. Everyone held their breath, and fear and expectation reached a peak.
Then, all the expected horrific scenes did not appear. It was like completing a perfect dance on the edge of a knife. She so wantonly performed the charm of racing in front of the audience again.
At this point, there are three laps left.
The distance between them was getting closer and closer. Lin Mian kept looking for opportunities in the bends. She still had a chance, and she would win!
Entering the last lap, Lin Mian made an almost crazy move. She chose a more risky line. This decision caused the car to swing violently when exiting the corner and almost lost control, but she saved it with amazing control.
It was this lightning-fast action that allowed Lin Mian to exit the corner faster than Ryan!
She became the first one!
Ryan was unwilling to give up and followed Lin Mian closely, but Lin Mian was even more desperate than him and never took his foot off the accelerator.
After a brief silence, the big screen froze on the moment of crossing the finish line—
It’s Lin Mian who crossed the finish line!
"The champion is Lin Mian!"
The commentator's voice cracked with excitement.
The entire racetrack was in a frenzy, and the red flags in the stands formed a sea.
Lin Mian took off her helmet, the wind gently blew her red curly hair, and in her brown eyes, countless people shrank into black dots, and she could hardly tell who was in front of her.
The staff member next to her handed her a huge red flag, and Lin Mian draped it over her shoulders. She felt a little dizzy when she stood up, but soon her excitement supported her to stand up straight and wave to the people in the stands.
Countless cameras were focused on Lin Mian, golden paper flowers were flying all over the sky, and at the moment when champagne was sprayed, Lin Mian performed another miracle.
When presenting the award, Li An first hugged Lin Mian beside him.
"Maybe I should have a new idol today, right?"
There was a hint of seriousness and tentativeness in his joke.
“I don’t have any desire to be someone else’s idol.”
She doesn't want others to follow in her footsteps, because tomorrow's Lin Mian will do better than today's Lin Mian.
But Ryan misunderstood, and his beautiful gray-green eyes dimmed.
"Aren't you going up at a time like this?"
The He family's butler stood behind He Xintong and asked. He was looking at the million-dollar diamond ring that He Xintong had ordered from Winston, which was in his bag.
Isn't this the perfect moment? In such a grand setting, kneeling down on one knee to propose to her, she will surely be moved to the point of saying yes immediately.
The housekeeper really didn't understand what He Xintong was waiting for.
"This is her moment, and no one else can get involved."
At this moment, Lin Mian is the protagonist, accepting everyone's praise and admiration, and the focus should not be on her winning the championship and then being proposed to.
He Xintong planned to use this diamond ring to propose to her tonight when they were alone. A night with just the two of them was more appropriate than any other time.
He hoped that she could be happier, instead of letting her happiness be overshadowed.
He Xintong looked at Lin Mian who was surrounded by the crowd. He felt as if he had the whole spring. He was so happy that even his steps towards her were so light.
But Tu Yin was faster and hugged Lin Mian first. Unfortunately, the other party was Lin Mian's sister, so He Xintong could only helplessly accept it.
"Don't run so fast!"
The voice was so familiar that He Xintong subconsciously looked over. When he saw the familiar face next to Tu Yin, his body shook slightly, and the voice beside him receded like a tide.
His lips moved a few times, but no sound came out. His dark eyes were filled with shock and helplessness.
A familiar warmth wrapped around He Xintong's cold fingers without warning.
His scattered eyes focused with difficulty. Lin Mian was a little confused: "Did something happen?"
The almost stagnant blood began to flow again, and He Xintong held Lin Mian's hand.
"It's okay, congratulations, Xiao Mian."
Lin Mian hugged He Xintong tightly.
"Thank you, He Xintong."
At that moment, the suspicion that He Yu was still alive no longer mattered.
He is happy now, extremely happy.
Lin Mian let go of He Xintong, holding the trophy and continuing to hug the people around him.
She just felt that at this moment, everything was the best.
She always enjoys the present moment.
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