"Don't worry, I promised you, we'll win a championship together. It's our dream, and even if I die, I'll make it happen."
"Don't talk nonsense."
Xie Shi'an hugged her arm tightly. Only in front of Qiao Yuchu would she occasionally show her childlike side.
"How can one time be enough? We want to win many, many more championships."
"Okay, lots and lots of championships."
Qiao Yuchu drawled out her words.
Upon arriving at the restaurant, Xie Shi'an made an excuse to go to the restroom as soon as he got out of the car and disappeared from everyone's sight.
Qiao Yuchu kept looking back as she walked.
"Aren't we going to wait for her?"
Zhou Mu pushed the person forward.
"Hey, let's go inside first, we've been starving for ages."
"Why do I feel like you guys are all acting all mysterious today..."
With a slight smile on her lips, Qiao Yuchu pushed open the door to the private room amidst the crowd, and the lights came on.
Flowers and balloons were placed on the table, and colorful ribbons hung on the background wall with the words "Happy Birthday" written on them.
"Oh—" Qiao Yuchu was surprised, her eyes slightly moist. She had been busy with training recently and only realized belatedly that today was also her 26th birthday.
Jian Changnian and Zhou Mu took out the spray nozzles they had prepared beforehand, and colorful strips and sequins fell from the sky.
Everyone's eyes were sparkling.
"Happy birthday."
Happy birthday, Yu Chu!
"I've been too busy with training lately, but everyone still remembers me. I was thinking of giving you a surprise after the match."
Yan Xinyuan stepped aside, making way for the doorway.
Music started playing, and to the tune of "Happy Birthday," Xie Shi'an slowly pushed the cake cart in.
The candlelight flickered, and the boy's face was full of gentle smiles.
"Happy birthday. I think being number one in the East is the best birthday gift for you."
Looking at the trophy embedded in the cake, Qiao Yuchu covered her mouth, and tears silently streamed down her face.
She bowed deeply to everyone.
"Thank you, thank you Shi'an, thank you Chang Nian, thank you Zhou Mu and Cheng Zhi'er, thank you Coach Yan, thank you all, thank you everyone."
"Sister Yu Chu, make a wish quickly," Jian Changnian suggested.
Qiao Yuchu gently closed her eyes.
After a while, ... he slowly blew out the candle.
Cheng Zhen asked curiously, "What did you wish for?"
Zhou Mu stuck out her tongue and made a face at him.
"Wishes won't come true if you say them out loud."
Once all the dishes were served, the bubbling broth reflected the joyful expressions on everyone's faces. Qiao Yuchu picked up her wine glass, even though it contained a soft drink.
"Coach Yan deserves a lot of credit for winning today's game. These days, he gets up at the same time as us, and he's still awake when we're asleep. Taking advantage of my birthday, I propose that we all toast him."
Everyone stood up, and their glasses clinked together.
"Coach Yan, you've worked hard!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Jian Changnian seemed to remember something and pulled a thermos from her bag.
"By the way, we all chipped in to buy this. Coach Yan broke his old one because he was angry with us."
She scratched her head, smiled shyly, and handed the thermos to Yan Xinyuan.
"This... how can I accept your things..." Yan Xinyuan was still declining.
Everyone was talking at once.
"Coach Yan, please accept this."
"This is a small token of our appreciation. We will never fight or blame our teammates again."
Yan Xinyuan looked at the young faces in front of him and felt incredibly fortunate to have met them.
The old man raised his glass again, his eyes slightly moist.
"If we're talking about hard work, everyone else has worked much harder than me. I've only done what I was supposed to do. This toast is to all of you who have been working hard and never given up. And I also wish you all a bright future and a promising future!"
Xie Shi'an also stood up, holding his wine glass.
Everyone's glasses clinked together.
The boy smiled, speaking with confidence and certainty.
"Win the finals."
"Win the finals!!!"
With a click, Zhou Mu took out his Polaroid camera and captured this most beautiful moment.
At a young person's birthday party, the last activity is always smearing cake. Everyone was mindful of Qiao Yuchu's hand injury and didn't go too far, only smearing a few symbolic smears. As for Xie Shi'an, he wasn't so lucky.
Unable to bear the combined attack from Jian Changnian, Zhou Mu, and Cheng Zhen, the boy picked up the cake base and charged forward menacingly.
Several people kept hiding behind Qiao Yuchu, playing a game of tag in the private room like eagles catching chicks, making a ruckus for a long time until late at night.
Zhou Mu is going back to school, while the bus will drive directly back to the training base. After a short rest tomorrow, they will head to Beijing for closed training to prepare for the finals.
At the entrance of the restaurant.
Zhou Mu handed her the photographic paper.
"Chang Nian, we agreed that I would be there to cheer you on at every one of your matches, but final exams are coming up soon, and I'm in Beijing..."
Before she could finish speaking, Jian Changnian stepped forward and hugged her.
"It's okay, I'll work hard with you. When I come back from Beijing, you should at least be in the top ten of the grade, if not first in the grade."
Zhou Mu stopped crying and smiled, then hugged her back.
"Of course, although I can't be there in person, I'll be cheering you on from in front of the TV."
Cheng Zhen on the other side was also saying goodbye to them.
"I won't be going to the competition in Beijing. I'll be heading to Hainan the day after tomorrow for training to prepare for the National Swimming Championships next spring."
Xie Shi'an extended his fist.
"We'll have finished our matches by then, and I'll come to watch your match with my championship medal."
Cheng Zhen smiled slightly and exchanged fist bumps with her.
"come on."
Qiao Yuchu patted him on the shoulder and got into the car.
"come on."
Chapter 46 National Competition (10)
As Zhou Mu was about to hail a taxi to go back to school, a bicycle stopped in front of her, with Cheng Zhen supporting herself on one leg.
"Come on, I'll take you home."
Zhou Mu asked curiously, "You didn't go back to the training base with them?"
"I'm going to Hainan for training the day after tomorrow, and I'll be leaving directly from the airport."
Cheng Zhen patted the back seat of the car, gesturing for her to get in.
"It's very late, the dorms will close soon if we don't leave."
"Oh, okay."
Zhou Mu clutched his clothes and carefully jumped into the car.
The two sped along against the night wind, with the rushing river flowing below the bridge and a constant stream of cars above.
In Zhou Mu's memory, although Cheng Zhen was good at studying and swimming, he seemed to have never been very ambitious. So when he suddenly heard that he was going to a training camp, he was a little surprised.
"Um, why did you suddenly decide to go..."
Cheng Zhen smiled and rode the bike very steadily.
"To be honest, my dad made me learn to swim. I didn't really like it much, but today I saw how hard Yu Chu and Shi An were working on the field, and so many people were cheering and applauding for them."
"I suddenly had the illusion that it would be great if I were standing there. Sometimes I also want to be an athlete instead of a spectator. It was at that moment that I realized I don't really like swimming that much, but I don't hate it that much either. I want to give it a try and see how far I can go. The decision to go to the training camp was just made recently."
Hearing him say this, Zhou Mu also laughed.
"That's great, you all have things you want to do."
Cheng Zhen turned around and glanced at her.
Don't you have one?
Zhou Mu shook his head.
"I like playing badminton, but I don't think I have the talent. Just because you like something doesn't mean you can do everything."
Cheng Zhen noticed the Polaroid camera hanging around her neck and casually complimented her.
"How could that be? Your badminton skills are excellent even among amateur players. How can you compare yourself to that perverted Shi An? Besides, the photos you took of everyone today are all very beautiful, and they all like them. There are still two years until the college entrance examination, so you can take your time to think about what you want to do."
Zhou Mu felt a warmth in her heart and picked up the camera hanging around her neck.
"And what about you? Do you like the pictures I took of you?"
Cheng Zhen was taken aback, then smiled.