The Ambiguity of the Badminton Court
This was Xia Tong's first time seeing so many people from Fu Jia's family, including her grandfather, whose voice, though elderly, was as loud as a bell. He seemed to dote on Fu Jia, and was overjoyed to see Xia Tong, giving both of them two New Year's money gifts, even though Fu Jia had already received one. Fu Shaohua showed even more affection for Xia Tong, repeatedly lecturing Fu Jia during the meal to pay more attention to her and stop his carefree, bandit-like behavior. Since the two heads of the family had spoken, the rest of the family naturally had no objections, and everyone got along exceptionally well.
Xia Tong's mother had suddenly become busier these past few days, no longer staying cooped up at home like before. Xia Tong paid attention and noticed that her mother was going out with friends she hadn't contacted in a long time, and she was talking much more. Seeing this, Xia Tong felt much relieved, because being constantly immersed in that feeling of abandonment could lead to depression.
Fu Jia was also seeking out Xia Tong more and more frequently. If Xia Tong had ten hours a day with him, she would spend the rest of her waking hours chatting with him. Being with Fu Jia was also physically demanding, whether in bed or right now.
In a high-end club, Xia Tong, dressed in a pink and white tracksuit, her hair neatly tied in a ponytail, stood on the court holding a badminton racket, looking spirited and full of energy. But her opening words were a major letdown: "What?! I can't return a single shuttlecock from you! I'm not playing anymore!"
On the other side of the net, Fu Jia, also dressed in a white tracksuit, said with a hint of helplessness, "Don't rush, take your time, I'll teach you."
Xia Tong ignored her and walked straight to the rest area next door. She opened a bottle of water, took a sip, and then replied, "When my roommates and I play at school, we can go back and forth dozens of times. But with you and me, this isn't playing ball at all. It's more like we're just picking up balls."
Fu Jia has always been skilled in various sports and never holds back, giving his all without hesitation. He likes to smash the ball at tricky angles. This naturally leaves Xia Tong, whose skills are mediocre, feeling incredibly frustrated and forced to retreat step by step.
Fu Jia tried to coax Xia Tong for a long time, but she still refused to go back to the court to retrieve the ball. At this moment, a pair of girls came over. Both of them were wearing short sleeves and skirts. Although the air conditioning was on indoors, they would still get goosebumps if they didn't exercise.
"Brother Fu, you're here too!" One of the girls ran over, seemingly very familiar with Fu Jia. Xia Tong glanced at her discreetly; she had long, slender, straight, honey-colored legs, a hot figure, and a sweet and cute face. When talking to Fu Jia, she tilted her head back and her eyes lit up, showing great dependence, like a simple little sister admiring her older brother.
"Xinzi? Coming to play ball with friends?" Fu Jia exchanged a few casual pleasantries, his full attention still on Xia Tong. He hadn't even had time to appease this girl yet, so he didn't have time to pay attention to outsiders.
"Brother, is this your girlfriend? She's so pretty!" Yan Xin clearly didn't want to leave and kept pulling at him. Her female companion seemed quite interested in Fu Jia, constantly sizing him up.
“Yes, little girl,” Fu Jia agreed and then turned to Xia Tong, “Di Yue’s younger sister. She used to play with us a lot when she was little.”
"Brother, it's been so long since we played ball together. Shall we play a game?" Faced with Yan Xin's enthusiastic invitation, Fu Jia was slightly confused: When did I ever play ball with this girl?
Xia Tong felt a little embarrassed to keep Fu Jia here with her, so she pushed him away, saying, "Go ahead, I'm a little tired and don't want to play."
Fu Jia's playing style remained strong and powerful, while the slender Yan Xin was surprisingly formidable, occasionally managing to receive Fu Jia's sharp spikes. The two were locked in a fierce battle on the court, making for a truly exciting match. This led the spectators to believe that the two should be a couple, while Xia Tong, sitting on the sidelines, watched with slight displeasure, feeling utterly bored.
The female companion who had come with Yan Xin earlier sat down next to Xia Tong and laughed, "Why don't we go and have a match? It's no fun just watching."
Xia Tong declined, saying, "My skills are terrible, so I'd rather not."
"I'm an amateur too, come on, come on, we came here to get some exercise." The girl insisted on pulling her off the court.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the court, some people who appeared to be resting were actually keeping an eye on them.
"Is that Fu Jia? The one who bullied you last time?" A well-proportioned and handsome man asked the boy next to him, looking at Fu Jia who was sweating profusely on the field.
"Yes, that's him, Uncle!" The boy next to him was a bit thinner, but that didn't stop his resentful tone.
"Don't you feel ashamed for agreeing so quickly?" The handsome man glanced at him sideways, his tone slightly mocking.
The boy next to him was speechless, and could only purse his lips in silence.
"Where's that girl? The one who came with Fu Jia. Looks like this guy's got his eye on her." The man then looked at Xia Tong on the other side of the court. This girl could only receive the ball with her backhand; her right side was her blind spot. Every time she couldn't hit a forehand return, she would swing her racket in frustration. Her serve was very simple; she couldn't serve high clears, but she was very good at receiving. When she jumped to receive the ball, her right foot would be slightly raised, and when the ball didn't clear the net, she would bite her lip and smile awkwardly at her opponent.
"Yes, yes, I heard that Fu Jia got a severe beating from her dad because of this girl. But they still stick together now, and he takes her everywhere he goes."
The man picked up his racket and, before heading to the court, said to the boy who was still sitting there, "Don't come to me if you get bullied again, and don't call me 'Jing'."
He walked straight to the court, patted Yan Xin's female companion, and gestured for her to leave the court. The girl visibly breathed a sigh of relief; finally, someone was taking her place. She introduced him to Xia Tong: "This is Uncle Jing Siye. He's a very good player. I'll rest for a bit; you guys play first."
Xia Tong was somewhat confused. Who was this? However, the man was quite handsome, with striking features and a refined, elegant demeanor. His smile exuded a mature masculine charm. He spoke with tact and wit, his manner appropriate and humorous. Xia Tong was surrounded by people her age—energetic and sunny—but they lacked that certain something special.
While playing, Xia Tong felt her skill level was improving rapidly. She could return the ball with ease every time, and she no longer missed because of her forehand. Xia Tong could also smoothly play dozens of sets with him. The more she played, the happier she became. The feeling of no longer being dominated by others made her love the sport even more. They played to their hearts' content. During the break, Xia Tong was exhausted, but she was still very excited and discussed the game with Jing Siye.
Jing Siye listened with a smile to her excited feelings and emotions, nodding slightly in agreement at key points. Finally, however, he pointed out Xia Tong's most fatal flaw: "Can't you receive the ball with your forehand?"
Xia Tong felt a little embarrassed upon hearing this, and smiled shyly: "You figured it out?"
"Yeah, that's why I've been avoiding serving into your blind spot. But it's not a big deal, and it would be better if you learned how."
Xia Tong felt even more favorably toward him upon hearing this. She was always wary of strangers, but after spending time with this person, her demeanor and manners made her want to get close to him: "But I've never been good at badminton since I started learning, so I can't return any ball on the right side."
Do you need me to teach you?
"OK!"
So when Fu Jia noticed Xia Tong, who had been sitting nearby, standing very close to a strange man, he promptly ended his game. When he went over, he found that although the man hadn't done anything particularly inappropriate, his words and attitude were ambiguous, and his gentle, considerate manner was really unsettling. Xia Tong, oblivious, chatted and laughed with him, even earnestly correcting her movements—what an idiot!
"Uncle Jing, what brings you here to play ball?" Fu Jia walked over and casually handed Xia Tong a bottle of water, separating her from Jing Siye while she filled it. This man wasn't from Fu Jia's generation, but she had heard of his "glorious history." In high school, he fell for a beautiful teacher and relentlessly pursued her until he won her over. After the affair was exposed, his family and the school, to minimize the impact, directly fired the teacher, who ultimately returned to her small hometown, utterly disgraced. He himself was sent abroad for "retreat," and returned before the new year without a care in the world, and no one ever mentioned that past again.
“Life is about movement,” he chuckled nonchalantly, then turned back to continue chatting with Xia Tong. “You’re much better now than before, right? Of course you couldn’t catch it if you held the wrong racket.”
Xia Tong hugged the bottle of water and nodded vigorously, as if announcing good news to Fu Jia: "Let me tell you, I can catch the ball now, all thanks to this Uncle Jing. I can catch most of the balls now, no matter what kind." There was still sweat on her forehead, and her little face was flushed. She looked very happy.
"Really? Then I'll have to test it." Fu Jia grabbed Xia Tong and headed straight for another court, not giving Jing Siye a chance to speak.
Xia Tong genuinely wanted to show off her skills, but Fu Jia was even more ruthless this time, preventing her from catching a single ball. Just as Xia Tong frowned, wanting to try again, Fu Jia mocked, "Weren't you being coached by a famous teacher? How come your game is even worse than before?"
Xia Tong was about to retort, but Fu Jia didn't want to argue with her: "Alright, alright, you're probably too tired. Let's stop playing here for today! Let's take a shower, change our clothes, and go eat. I'll teach you next time."
When the two of them changed their clothes and sat in the car, Xia Tong remained silent, fiddling with her freshly dried hair. Seeing this, Fu Jia assumed she was still angry with him, but he still disliked the way Xia Tong seemed so happy with Jing Siye. He softened his tone and advised her, "Don't get too close to someone like Jing Siye. He's not a good person."
"Why are you thinking so much? He's just my basketball buddy. I didn't say anything to you when you played with that pretty girl." Xia Tong was still unhappy because Fu Jia looked down on her: Just because I can't play well with you doesn't mean I can't play with a partner I have good chemistry with?
"That's because you don't care about me the way I care about you." Fu Jia gave her a cool look, without saying the words she wanted to say.
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Sister Feng glared at them, pointing her slender fingers at the young ladies in each room: "If you don't leave me a message, you'll regret it!"
Everyone: "You read the script wrong too!"
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