Chapter 18: Breaking the Ice: Comprehensive Development of Morality, Intelligence, Physical Fitness, Aesthetics, and Labor
"…Are you kidding me?"
Zhu Yingning calmly comforted him: "Don't worry, you can't learn basketball quickly, but rubber band is easy to learn quickly. I will find time to teach you after school."
"Is this the main point?!" Xu Sirui pointed at the huge word "Girls" on the rubber band competition registration form. "Don't you think this is the main point?"
"Oh, don't mind me. Boys and girls are just a reference classification." She remained calm and composed. "If you don't participate in the basketball game, someone in our class has to take your place, right? So I will participate in the basketball game in your place. But each person can only sign up for one game. Once I leave, there will be a shortage of people in the rubber band game. Since you can't play basketball, I have to trouble you to switch with me and jump the rubber band for me."
"?"
Xu Sirui was speechless.
He could certainly argue with her, saying he wouldn't play basketball or anything like that, and that whatever she wanted to do was her business, and he had no obligation to take her place. But he doubted the point of such an argument. An argument must be logically consistent; otherwise, it would be like talking to a deaf person, or playing the lute to a cow.
They are, without a doubt, chickens and ducks, cows and pianos.
Xu Sirui thought about it and decided to shut his mouth.
However, one can close his mouth but not his ears. Just because he didn't intend to waste his breath on Zhu Yingning didn't mean she didn't intend to argue with him either.
Zhu Yingning once again demonstrated her brainwashing skills.
Lying on the kang at night, listening to the buzzing noises around him, Xu Sirui hated his gender for the first time. If he were a woman, he could have no scruples and could have pulled hair and pinched arms with the mosquito next to him, engaging in a fierce fight, deciding the outcome with force and verbal violence, without having to worry about the other person's gender and endure such torture lying in bed.
Zhu Yingning's chanting was very effective. That night, Xu Sirui had a dream. He dreamed that he had transformed into the Monkey King, with a golden, ever-tightening hoop around his head. Zhu Yingning, wearing a cassock, sat cross-legged on the side, looking down compassionately: "Wukong, Master is in a difficult situation too."
The consequence of having a nightmare all night was that when I woke up the next day, the dark circles under my eyes that had not gone away from last time became even worse.
He walked out in a daze and saw the culprit squatting on the ground brushing his teeth, looking refreshed.
Why? On what basis?
Seeing her so energetic, Xu Sirui felt that his mind was about to be twisted.
He walked over, squatted beside her, and said sinisterly, "I promise you."
"Hmm?" She looked at him with her mouth full of foam, thought for a moment, spit out the foam, rinsed her mouth twice, and smiled happily, "Have you figured it out?"
Xu Sirui gave her a forced smile and said, "Just don't regret it."
"How could that be? Of course I won't regret it." Zhu Yingning said, "Then I'll teach you how to jump rubber rope after school today."
"..." Xu Sirui almost fell over, "I promised to play basketball!"
**
After the registration forms were submitted, Chen Bin reviewed the participants in class and asked if anyone had any objections. Everyone was surprised that Xu Sirui was also participating, but no one said anything.
The competition was scheduled for next week. After school, Zhu Yingning suggested he practice with the other two participating boys to refine their positions and tactics, but he said no. His willingness to participate was a major improvement in Zhu Yingning's eyes. She didn't dare push him too hard, fearing it would backfire, so she just let him go.
So it wasn't until the day of the competition that Xu Sirui knew who his teammates and opponents were.
There was nothing much to say about his teammates: one was a strong man, the other a weak one. The former most likely signed up voluntarily, while the latter seemed to be forced to join because he couldn't get the required number of people. As for his opponent, it was far beyond Xu Sirui's expectations. He saw the flag-raiser who raised the flag with him on Monday in the opponent's class. His name was Zhou Yueshan.
It was the last class of the afternoon. The temperature had been rising for the past few days, soaring from a high of 10 to 30 degrees Celsius. After a day of high temperatures, the sour smell of Zhou Yueshan's sweat made him dizzy even from ten meters away.
All the students in the school—primary and middle schools—were gathered around the playground, excitedly watching the middle school basketball game. Although it was called middle school, there were actually only two classes in the first year and one class in the second year, a total of three classes participating, and the game could be completed in one class period.
There aren't many students in the school, only a few hundred, but at this moment they are all gathered in the playground, shoulder to shoulder, bustling about. At first glance, it looks quite normal.
Xu Sirui snapped his fingers and started doing warm-up exercises on the spot.
He wasn't athletic, and his stamina was average. He learned basketball purely because Xu Zhengkang and Zhou Tianlan had always prioritized the well-rounded development of his moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor skills. They had sent him to various sports training programs since he was a child. Although these activities quickly fell into disuse due to his addiction to gaming, his current mediocre skills were still passable enough for a school competition. Three-on-three basketball, a game derived from street basketball, had relatively flexible rules, which gave him the space to flourish.
Before the game started, the muscular Lin Kaisheng came over and asked him, "Are you playing center?"
"It's all fine." Xu Sirui acted very easy-going.
"Okay, then you'll be the center, I'll be the forward, and he'll be the guard." The sturdy man pointed at Wei He, the weak man who was feeling cramped behind him.
Wei He quickly waved his hand to give them a heads-up: "I'm just a decoration. I still have to rely on you two to score."
Lin Kaisheng comforted him: "Just remember what I taught you. After getting the ball, pass it to me as soon as possible. Don't dribble, don't shoot, and don't do those empty fake moves."
"..."Xu Sirui immediately began to worry about the level of this temporarily formed team.
After the ball is determined by a coin toss, the game officially begins.
**
On the other side, Zhu Yingning was participating in a rubber rope skipping competition.
Jumping rope was carried out in the open space behind the teaching building. Compared with the highly competitive and entertaining basketball game, the jumping rope side was quite deserted. Apart from the contestants themselves, there were only the contestants' friends and the teachers who served as referees, who were sparsely watching nearby.
Across the school building, screams and boos emanated from the playground. Zhu Yingning felt uneasy, fearing the boos were directed at Xu Sirui. Unfortunately, she couldn't escape the rubber band competition immediately. By the time she finished, won first place as she had hoped, and hurried to the front of the playground, the basketball game had already reached its peak. According to onlookers, Xu Sirui's team was competing for the championship with Zhou Yueshan's team.
Zhu Yingning squeezed into the crowd and stood on tiptoe to glance at the scoreboard. 15:16, they had 15, Zhou Yueshan had 16. Fortunately, the difference was small.
He pricked up his ears and listened to the cheers of the students around him. He found that the cheers were all for Xu Sirui without exception. His heart finally settled down.
However, before her heart could sink to its original place, she discovered something incredible -
The boos were also directed at Xu Sirui.
...What happened? How did he do it?
Only then did she look towards the court, and her sight accurately captured Xu Sirui's figure on the court.
When the weather got hot, everyone changed into short-sleeved shirts, which exposed more skin. His fair skin became more eye-catching among his dark-skinned peers, like a handful of white winter snow, sparkling in the sun.
When Zhu Yingning looked over, the ball fell into his hands.
He retreated to the two-point line, leaned back slightly, and lifted his wrist lightly.
The basketball flew out in a graceful parabola between his slender fingers like a children's toy, drawing a curved arc in the air.
Boom.
Perfectly framed.
15:16 suddenly turned into 17:16, with screams and boos everywhere.
Zhu Yingning looked carefully and found that most of the people booing were students in Zhou Yueshan's class.
It's normal to support your team during a match, but it usually doesn't go to the extent of booing the opponent. She watched the game on the court with a frown on her face for a while, and then she realized the problem.
It’s very simple, the key to the problem is Xu Sirui’s playing style.
His style of play is too hateful.
He does what he wants, is self-centered, and completely disregards the lives of others - exactly the same as his own personality.
He was only interested in shooting, and he despised one-pointers, preferring only to stand on the sidelines and shoot two-pointers. Occasionally, he'd play defense at the rim, but most of the time, he adopted a passive, evasive attitude toward the enemy's attacks and interceptions, striving to avoid any physical contact, whether active or passive. Especially with Zhou Yueshan, Xu Sirui practically had "I'm a mysophobe, I hate your stench" written all over his face. Every time Zhou Yueshan rushed to defend him, he'd immediately give the ball to him, not only refusing to break through, but actually running backwards, leisurely watching the ball being intercepted by the opponent.
Anyone with a reasonable amount of wit could sense this palpable dislike. Zhou Yueshan was clearly irritated, his face darker than coal. Meanwhile, Lin Kaisheng was equally irritated by Xu Sirui. There was nothing he could do about it; any normal person would be irritated by a teammate who refused to challenge him and watched his team lose points without a second thought.
The atmosphere on the court was tense and subtle, and could be roughly divided into three groups. One group consisted of players like Zhou Yueshan and Lin Kaisheng who knew how to play basketball. Everyone had a sense of impending depression hanging over their heads. Another group consisted of players like Wei He who couldn't play basketball. They were confused and didn't understand the situation, and just hoped that the basketball wouldn't be passed to them. The last group consisted of Xu Sirui himself. He was the most relaxed person on the court, as if he was not playing basketball, but shopping in a mall. While everyone was competing fiercely and sweating profusely, he was the only one walking around with his hands in his pockets.
Not to mention Lin Kaisheng and Zhou Yueshan, even Zhu Yingning, who was watching from the sidelines, wanted to rush up and beat him.
But to say that he made no contribution would be unfair. Not only did he make a contribution, but his contribution was significant.
Whenever Xu Sirui shoots, he always hits the target.
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