She glanced down, her lips pursed even tighter.
Yan Xinyuan was furious, his hands were trembling, and he had to use a match several times to light the tobacco. He took a deep drag, and in the room filled with smoke, he frowned and remained silent.
The atmosphere instantly plummeted to freezing point.
The assistant coach was a former coach of the Binhai Provincial Team, and had watched Xie Shi'an grow step by step. He spoke earnestly.
"Don't blame Coach Yan for punishing you. He didn't sleep well all night after receiving the call from the police. He was worried about how badly you were injured and how to handle this matter..."
Yan Xinyuan tapped his cigarette ash into the ashtray, his tone tinged with reproach, "Old Liang, why did you tell her this..."
Xie Shi'an finally looked up at him. For some reason, after just one night apart, Yan Xinyuan had more gray hairs at his temples, and his eye sockets were deeply sunken, making him look much older.
Her throat bobbed slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately she didn't.
Yan Xinyuan sighed and said, "I know that although you don't say it, you feel that I am new and have taken away your teacher's position, so you are unwilling to admit your mistake to me. But have you thought that if you act impulsively and get angry with someone, you may ruin your career? Do you think you are worthy of Coach Fang's years of careful training?"
Xie Shi'an clenched his fists tightly.
Yan Xinyuan took a few more deep drags on his pipe, the smoke from which drifted into the air.
Do you know how Qin Yang was expelled from the national team?
Upon hearing the name Qin Yang, Xie Shi'an looked up in slight surprise: "I don't know, he..."
"He's in the national team's second team. Although I didn't coach him directly, I've heard about him. Qin Yang comes from a well-off family, but he never liked studying. He spent his days wandering the streets and alleys, fighting and getting into brawls, and wasting his time. His parents had no choice but to send him to a sports school. It was in the sports school that he fell in love with badminton."
"The coach thought he had great potential, so he focused on developing him. Qin Yang also worked hard and did not disappoint the coach's expectations. He entered the national youth team at the age of seventeen. However, the national youth team is full of talented people, and they are all children who have been labeled as geniuses since they were teenagers."
"He has a very good foundation. If he could calm down and train properly, he would have no problem going from the national youth team to the first team's starting lineup. However, he is competitive and arrogant, and has repeatedly hit people during training matches. The coaching staff forgave him time and time again because of his talent. After enduring this for several years, Qin Yang finally made it to the second team. Before the start of an international competition, a first team player fell ill, and he won this hard-won substitute opportunity through competition. However, the day before the competition, Qin Yang ran into his opponent while out for dinner. Provoked by the opponent, he played against him and lost 2-0."
"Speaking of which, you've had contact with Qin Yang. Do you think Qin Yang might retaliate against this player? He does think so, but he just hasn't found a suitable opportunity."
Yan Xinyuan gently tapped the cigarette ash into the ashtray and then added some tobacco.
"He was so eager to win that he secretly bought and took performance-enhancing drugs, something that is strictly prohibited for athletes."
"Qin Yang won that match, but he lost his life. Shi An, I don't want you to become the next Qin Yang."
It felt like a heavy hammer blow to my heart.
Xie Shi'an shuddered, his tightly pursed lips relaxed, and the young man lowered his head slightly: "Coach Yan, I... I admit I was provoked by him. He insulted professional players, saying that our Binhai Provincial Team is all trash, and he said he was from the national team, so I thought..."
"You want to defeat him, don't you?" Yan Xinyuan knew her thoughts perfectly well.
"But do you really think you beat him?"
Xie Shi'an bit her lower lip hard. Yan Xinyuan's words pulled her out of the joy of victory and made her see some realities.
"How long did you train with Qiao Yuchu? How long did Qin Yang train with his so-called brothers? It's not an exaggeration to say that Qin Yang fought you two to a standstill even when he was fighting one against two, right?"
"Although you and Jian Changnian were a temporary team in the second round and hadn't trained together, your opponents' mentality had already collapsed, and they were defeated without a fight. If Qin Yang's friends were as well-trained as you and could keep their mentality stable, do you think you would still have a chance of winning?"
"In other words, even if you were to face Qin Yang one-on-one, Shi An, are you really confident of victory?"
Yan Xinyuan truly deserves to be called one of the top coaches in China; his tactical analysis is so insightful.
For a long time after he asked that question, he was met with Xie Shi'an's silence.
The young man, who stood tall like a poplar tree, finally showed a slight softening in his expression. Xie Shi'an bit his lip tightly and remained silent.
Yan Xinyuan lit a cigarette, and amidst the swirling smoke, he spoke earnestly.
“I know you’ve been called a genius since you were little, but there are always people better than you, and there’s always something beyond your understanding. Shi’an, a little confidence is good, but you can’t keep being so arrogant. Your friends are only willing to challenge opponents with you because they trust you. What if Qiao Yuchu was seriously injured? What if Jian Changnian hadn’t arrived in time? What if Cheng Zhen hadn’t come to find you, and the police hadn’t come?”
The girl's heart sank heavily, and she finally clenched her teeth uncontrollably, trembling.
"As a professional player, a good mentality, the ability to withstand pressure, a mature and steady personality, and excellent skills are all indispensable. For doubles players, while taking all of the above into account, they must also put the word 'partner' before winning or losing. Shi'an, you still have a long way to go."
The boy lowered his proud head deeply, his voice trembling slightly.
"I'm sorry, Coach Yan, I...I know I was wrong."
Yan Xinyuan stood up and patted her on the shoulder: "You have to remember, winning this time was by luck, and not being killed was also by luck."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Shi'an winced in pain and hissed softly.
Yan Xinyuan withdrew his hand: "You injured your right hand? What did the doctor say?"
"The doctor said it's just a sprain and I'll be fine after a few days of rest."
You don't need to participate in training for the next week.
Xie Shi'an was getting anxious about not letting her participate in the training.
"Coach Yan, I..."
Yan Xinyuan was still angry, his beard bristling and eyes wide.
"This is your punishment, so stop trying to bargain!"
Xie Shi'an pursed her lips, barely accepting the outcome. Not being allowed to participate in the training was even more painful than having to write a self-criticism ten or eight times.
Yan Xinyuan waved his hand: "Get lost!"
Xie Shi'an remembered the document that was supposed to fire her and stood there motionless for a long time.
"That……"
Yan Xinyuan knew what she wanted to say: "First, clean the training room for this week!"
Xie Shi'an secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, then I'm leaving. Goodbye, Coach Yan and Coach Liang."
Just as she was about to leave, someone called her back.
Yan Xinyuan stuffed tobacco into his pipe, muttering as he did so: "Next time, if something like this happens again, you should call me yourself and have someone else ask for leave for you. You're not that old, but you have so many bad habits!"
Xie Shi'an recalled what Coach Liang had just said: Yan Xinyuan hadn't slept well all night, probably out of anger but also out of concern for their safety.
The boy finally managed a slight smile.
"I understand, but there probably won't be a next time."
Yan Xinyuan was furious when he saw her, but he couldn't bear to fire her, so he had no choice but to give up and tell her to leave quickly.
"Get out, get out, and when you leave, call those two at the door in too."
After waiting for a long time, Xie Shi'an finally came out, but Jian Changnian felt that she didn't seem sad at all after being scolded; there was even a hint of a smile in her eyes.
"How's it going? You weren't fired, were you?"
Xie Shi'an shook his head: "Not for now."
Qiao Yuchu was relieved: "That's good, that's good."
"Coach Yan wants you to go in too."
Jian Changnian lifted the curtain and went in first, followed by Qiao Yuchu, who noticed out of the corner of her eye that she wasn't heading towards the dormitory building.
Where are you going?
"Clean the training room."
Yan Xinyuan called the two people in and gave them a severe scolding, then made them write an 800-word self-criticism before letting them leave.
After everyone left, Coach Liang said, "Why did you only stop Xie Shi'an's training match? Why did you just leave the other two aside and let them go so easily?"
Yan Xinyuan picked up the electric kettle and poured water into the thermos to make tea.
"This is called capturing the leader first. Punishing Xie Shi'an alone is more painful for them than punishing all three of them at once."
Coach Liang laughed: "Not bad, Lao Yan, you're even playing with Sun Tzu's Art of War now."
Yan Xinyuan waved his hand and smiled, blowing on the tea foam in his cup.
"Sigh, who told these brats to be so troublesome? They need to be taught a lesson. After the training camp, the national competition will be over. It'll be good to temper Xie Shi'an's temper."
Coach Liang added, "However, I really didn't expect them to beat Qin Yang."
Yan Xinyuan put down his teacup, his gaze becoming somewhat distant.
"Yes, it's not surprising that Qiao Yuchu and Xie Shian were evenly matched with Qin Yang. What surprised me was that Jian Changnian and Xie Shian together also performed quite well."
Unlike some traditional industries, sports competitions are not necessarily more lucrative the longer you work in them. An athlete's golden age is actually very short, and it's not an exaggeration to say that it's like a flash in the pan. Many people are eliminated by physiological and other factors while waiting for their time to blossom.
Qiao Yuchu is already twenty-five years old, while Jian Changnian is only fifteen, in the prime of her life.
Coach Liang: "You mean..."
Yan Xinyuan picked up his teacup and took a sip: "Let's arrange some more training matches for them next week and see how they develop over time."
***
"So what if she's ranked number one, she still has to come and mop the floor."
"Keep your voice down, don't let anyone hear you."
After the evening training session ended, the crowd filed out.
Xie Shi'an came in through the back door carrying a bucket, with a towel draped over her arm. She could only use her left hand, so she walked unsteadily.
After Jian Changnian finished training, she didn't go to eat at all. Seeing that she looked a little tired, she ran straight over and took the bucket of water from her hand.
"I'll do it."
"you……"
Before Xie Shi'an could finish speaking, Jian Changnian had already wrung out the handkerchief and squatted down to wipe the floor.
Qiao Yuchu also came in through the front door with cleaning tools: "Let's all work together, it'll be faster that way."
Such a large training room, if Xie Shi'an were to clean it all by himself, he would be working until the wee hours of the morning.
"No need, I..." Xie Shi'an was about to pick up the mop when Qiao Yuchu pushed him away.
"Oh dear, if your hand is injured, don't cause us any trouble. Over there, go and tidy up those badminton shuttlecocks that fell on the ground."
This was a job that was deliberately arranged for her to do that was easy.
Jian Changnian chimed in, "Yes, if you want us all to go back to sleep early, then don't just stand there, hurry up and pick up the ball."
Yan Xinyuan stood by the window for a long time before turning away. The three of them were so focused on their work that no one noticed him. When he left, he still had a satisfied smile on his face.
Instead of returning to the teachers' dormitory to rest, he walked to the girls' dormitory and handed the dormitory manager the medicine he had bought from the pharmacy for promoting blood circulation, removing blood stasis, and treating bruises and sprains.
"Deliver this to 309 for me. Oh, and by the way, don't say I delivered it."
The dormitory supervisor smiled kindly: "I know, I know, give it to Xie Shi'an, Coach Yan, you're still up so late?"