Where did you go last night?
Jian Changnian moved her lips, about to speak, when Xie Shian glanced at the photo and said without changing his expression.
"We went to a concert. We were talking at the time, it's just the angle."
Wan Jing knew that Jian Changnian listened to her the most, and this matter was most likely her idea. He was still fuming from the media calls he received early this morning, and he was banging on the photos on the table.
"What am I supposed to say to you all! It's all over the media now, causing quite a stir!"
"I'll handle it myself."
"How are you going to solve this?! The most important thing right now is the competition, the Olympics, you know that?!"
Faced with his anger and accusations, Xie Shi'an simply lowered his eyes and said, "I'm sorry, Coach Wan."
Wan Jing paced back and forth, then suddenly stopped, his gaze shifting to them, hesitant and uncertain.
"You guys went to the concert last night, what else did you do?"
"I didn't do anything. I got back too late and couldn't get a taxi, so I found a hotel nearby to stay at."
"You didn't do anything beyond the scope of normal friendship?"
"No."
Xie Shi'an raised his head and looked into his eyes.
Wan Jing then turned his gaze to Jian Changnian.
Jian Changnian's face also darkened, and she shook her head.
Wan Jing breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hand over your phone. Don't go on Weibo for a while. Let the public relations department handle it."
These words were directed at Xie Shi'an. As a celebrity contestant, her every word and action is subject to public scrutiny, and in this matter, she faces much greater public pressure than Jian Changnian.
Xie Shi'an placed his phone on the table.
Wan Jing glanced at them again.
"And hand over your access cards as well."
This means they should not go anywhere except for training and competitions.
The two of them placed their access cards on the table.
Wan Jing waved to signal that they could leave, but before leaving, he looked at Xie Shi'an's back and said something.
"Old Yan is watching you from heaven. You know in your hearts what you should and shouldn't do, so don't let him down."
Xie Shi'an stiffened slightly and pursed his lips.
After leaving the room, Jian Changnian looked at her walking beside her, hesitated for a long time, and then spoke with difficulty.
"I'm so sorry... I've caused you all this... I really didn't know Zhou Mu called you too... I..."
Xie Shi'an stopped in his tracks, looked up at her, and saw a hint of fatigue in her eyes.
She had never seen her with such an expression before. Whether on the field or in life, she was always confident and full of vigor.
"What happened last night was an accident, I didn't take it to heart."
With just one sentence, she sealed the fate of the kiss that almost happened last night.
Jian Changnian's heart felt as if it had been crumpled into a ball, and a sour feeling spread from her chest to her eyes.
Xie Shi'an looked away.
"Train hard, the competition is the most important thing."
After that, their relationship not only failed to improve, but instead became even more distant.
When Zhou Mu found out, he felt very guilty and called her to apologize.
"I'm sorry, Chang Nian. I was hoping to find an opportunity to bring this up openly, but I didn't expect..."
Jian Changnian gave a wry smile.
“She has no intention of doing that. No matter what opportunity she looks for or how many times she says it, the result will be the same.”
"Then you..." Zhou Mu asked cautiously.
Jian Changnian smiled, trying to appear relaxed.
"I don't want to think about it too much, let's focus on the game."
The Sudirman Cup has already begun, and the Olympics will follow immediately. There is really no time for them to wallow in self-pity.
Perhaps she caught a chill that night, because Xie Shi'an had a slight cold after returning home. Her nose was stuffy and she had a cough. She persevered and didn't dare to take any medicine. In addition, the intense schedule and high-intensity competition in recent days, coupled with the pressure from public opinion, made her feel very depressed. Even an iron woman couldn't stand it.
On the day of the finals, after finishing the first doubles match, she reached out to hold onto a chair for support, but suddenly felt dizzy and the whole world spun around her.
"Please rest in peace!"
Jian Changnian quickly helped her up; her palms were surprisingly hot, and her face was flushed an unnaturally.
Jian Changnian turned around and called the team doctor.
The team doctor took her temperature.
"38.7°C, high fever, let's try physical cooling methods first."
Xie Shi'an held an ice pack to his forehead and coughed softly a few times: "I'm fine, I can still fight."
Seeing her like this, Wan Jing was also anxious, but fortunately, the team competition had already played two matches, and the men's singles and women's doubles had both been won. If they could win one more match in the mixed doubles and men's doubles, they wouldn't need to play any more matches and would directly secure the championship.
"Why are you playing? Rest. There are still two games left. If you win one of them, you might not have to play. Chang Nian, stay here with her. Go to the hospital as soon as it's over."
Wan Jing still needs to keep an eye on the game on the field.
Jian Changnian nodded, her eyes filled with heartache. She squatted down beside her, took out her own cup, and poured water for her to drink.
"Here you go, it's warm."
Xie Shi'an shook his head, indicating that he did not want to drink.
Jian Changnian persisted, holding the cup lid to her lips: "The team doctor said to drink more water to bring down the fever faster."
Because of the team competition, Gao Jian was also on the field, watching this side from a distance, separated by several walls of people.
His teammate patted him on the shoulder.
"What are you thinking about? You're so engrossed in your warm-up. It'll be our turn next."
Gao Jian snapped out of his daze and picked up his racket.
"good."
In the third mixed doubles match, the Chinese team lost 1-2 to the South Korean team, and Lü Xiaoting walked back dejectedly.
"I'm sorry Coach Wan, I'm sorry Sister An, if I had won, I could have won the championship directly."
Wan Jing patted her on the shoulder.
"It's okay, we'll watch Gao Jian's game next."
Xie Shi'an nodded slightly to her to indicate that she was alright.
The stadium's loudspeakers blared.
Gao Jian and his partner were about to go on stage when Lü Xiaoting patted him on the shoulder and said, "Senior, are you sure you're okay? If we win this match, we'll be the champions!"
"Don't worry, your senior brother is worth two men."
Gao Jian smiled, took his racket and went onto the court. The smile on his face disappeared the moment he turned around, and his eyes turned sinister.
Ha, winning the championship won't be that easy.
Wan Jing, who was watching the game from the sidelines with the men's team coach, also praised him highly.
"Gao Jian is a really good kid. He's the hope of your men's singles team. Give him some more time, and his future is limitless."
"Hey, this kid is just so-so. He's nowhere near as good as Xie Shi'an. Although he doesn't have much talent, he's good at being down-to-earth and hardworking. While others practice for two hours, he practices for four. There's a saying that goes, 'Diligence can make up for lack of talent, and a slow bird can fly first.'"
Although the men's team coach said he didn't have much talent, it was clear that he still had high hopes for him.
"Gao Jian hasn't been home for more than two years in order to prepare for the Sudirman Cup and the Olympics. He should have no problem playing against the South Korean team, so you can relax."
The first two games ended in a 1-1 tie, leading to a decisive game. Gao Jian performed well, scoring consecutive points to take the lead and reach game point. However, the Korean team also began to exert their strength in the second half, gradually catching up and reaching match point at 20-19.
In the crucial final point, the Chinese team made a major mistake. Gao Jian, who was defending in the frontcourt, accidentally fell down. He grabbed his racket and turned around, shouting, "Gao Jian, quick, catch the ball! Don't let it hit the ground!"
The ball landed in the midfield, not far from him. If he sprinted at full speed, he could tackle it.
In a flash, Gao Jian made a small step back before stretching out his arm and lunging forward.
The ball landed about a centimeter from his racket.
The entire audience erupted in uproar.
The scoreboard lights up.
The Chinese team members looked dejected.
The South Korean team erupted in cheers, even preparing their national flags to celebrate their victory.
The two men returned with their rackets. Gao Jian's eyes were red, and he lowered his head deeply, blaming himself.
"I'm sorry, coaches, I was a little nervous and my hands were sweaty. I made a mistake."
On the field, the focus was on calming people down. What else could the coaches say after the result was already like this? The most urgent task was to prepare for the next game. However, Wan Jing looked around and exchanged bewildered glances.
There's only one women's singles match left. South Korea has sent Kim Nam-ji, and China was originally scheduled to send Xie Shi'an, but she's currently suffering from a high fever and is not in good condition.
Jian Changnian gripped her racket tightly, about to stand up.
Xie Shi'an grabbed her arm.
"You can't beat her."
"That won't do... You can't compete like this!" Jian Changnian was worried about her health, and her eyes reddened with anxiety.
Wan Jing also said.
"Let Chang Nian go and give it a try. Whether it works or not, we've done our best. Your health is the most important thing."
His teammates stood around him and echoed his sentiments, and Gao Jian also spoke up.