"Congratulations, but we're out of time."
I finally couldn't help but ask, "Can you tell me what you're going to do?"
Xu Delong did not directly refuse me. He said, "It's a very complicated matter, and it has nothing to do with outsiders."
I secretly used mind-reading on him, but only got a completely irrelevant message. It seems that this belief is hidden in his heart and has become part of him and his warriors, and he doesn't talk about it all the time.
Just then, Ni Siyu appeared at the stadium entrance. Seeing me, she asked where Xiang Yu was. Xiang Yu was walking towards the hotel with the heroes; Zhang Bing had class today, so he wasn't with him. Ni Siyu excitedly limped over, grabbed Xiang Yu's arm, and cried, "Big brother!" Xiang Yu smiled slightly at her.
"Big brother, I have my final competition tomorrow, are you coming to watch?"
Xiang Yu said, "Good. Isn't this what you've always wanted?"
Ni Siyu smiled sweetly, told Xiang Yu the time and place, and made a face at me as she passed by, saying, "It's in the stadium, very close. Xiao Qiang, come cheer me on too."
This competition was something Ni Siyu had been looking forward to for a long time, and it was a crucial moment for her to realize her dream. I don't even know when the little girl set this goal, nor do I understand what the benefit of winning a provincial championship would be. Perhaps Ni Siyu just wanted to prove that she was no worse than others.
I noticed that whenever she was out of Xiang Yu's sight, she would slow down to conceal her disability. It was no secret that she liked Xiang Yu; after all, it's a young girl's infatuation. But strangely, while other girls try to present their best selves to the person they like, Ni Siyu was the opposite. She only didn't hide her disability in front of Xiang Yu. In psychology, this is called… you wouldn't understand.
I never expected that a provincial swimming competition would cause such a stir. When we arrived at the competition venue, the stands were already packed with swimming enthusiasts, and many cameras were set up among the crowd. Small groups of contestants and coaches were gathered together making their final preparations.
Zhang Shun, the Ruan brothers, Xiang Yu, and I surprisingly had nowhere to sit. Luckily, both Ni Siyu and I knew plenty of people in this area, so we crowded to the front, leaning against the railing separating the audience from the pool. We saw Ni Siyu's father gathering the students together for on-site guidance and pre-battle pep talks. Ni Siyu had her back to us, still wearing that black swimsuit, her little bottom sticking out. Zhang Shun, oblivious to everyone else, called out, "Disciple."
The group turned around and saw that it was Ni Siyu's three unscrupulous mentors. He said to her helplessly, "Go ahead."
Ni Siyu giggled as she walked towards us. The little girl first chatted and laughed with her three masters, then looked up at Xiang Yu and greeted him earnestly, "Big brother, you've come."
Xiang Yu nodded: "How are the preparations going? Are you confident?"
Ni Siyu turned around and pointed to a girl in a gray swimsuit, saying with a worried look, "It was fine at first, but I didn't expect Liu Feifei to come too. Do you know who she is? She's from the national team, but she was sent back to the provincial team because of disciplinary violations. My dad said it doesn't matter if we lose to her, second place this year is considered first in the province."
Xiang Yu frowned after hearing this, and suddenly said, "Xiao Yu, come here, I want to say a few words to you."
“Okay,” Ni Siyu happily agreed and went to the side with Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu bent down and whispered only three sentences in her ear before Ni Siyu's eyes suddenly reddened. Xiang Yu straightened up and returned to our side. Ni Siyu walked away silently with her red eyes, without even turning her head. Her three masters and I were all completely baffled.
Then, Ni Siyu didn't say a single word to anyone from beginning to end. Liu Feifei was right next to her when the race started, but she didn't even glance at her. After the whistle blew, Ni Siyu gave no one else a chance, ultimately winning the 50-meter women's freestyle title with a half-body lead over Liu Feifei. A race she had been looking forward to and anxiously anticipating for so long ended so seemingly hastily.
For the nth time, I patted Xiang Yu on the shoulder and asked, "What exactly did you say to her?"
When Xiang Yu saw that Ni Siyu had won, he smiled faintly and then answered me: "I asked her if her thoughts were worthy of the efforts she had made. I also told her that if she lost, she should not come to see me again."
I exclaimed in surprise, "You really said that to her?"
Xiang Yu nodded.
I stamped my foot and said, "Besides going all in, do you have any other ideas? She relies on you so much, have you thought about what will happen if she really loses?"
Xiang Yu coldly replied, "It's just like fighting a war. How can you possibly win if you make excuses for your failure before the battle even starts?"
"Well... the problem is that the opponent is really strong," Ruan Xiaowu said cautiously, though he still admired Xiang Yu.
"We're all human, there can only be one winner, so why can't that winner be me?"
I shouted, "This is militaristic opportunism! What if everyone thinks like this?"
"Hehe..." Xiang Yu chuckled, waved to us, and slowly walked out.
Chapter Sixteen New Goals
At the awards ceremony, Ni Siyu stood on the high podium, bathed in the glow of countless flashing lights, which made her mermaid-like skin and eyes sparkle. The results were announced: Ni Siyu had broken the provincial record with a time of 24.47 seconds. I overheard some enthusiasts nearby saying that the previous world records for the women's 50-meter freestyle were 24.13 seconds and 24.09 seconds, and it seems someone recently broke them.
Half a second isn't enough time for me to do anything; even lighting a cigarette or scratching my hair wouldn't be enough. So, in my opinion, if Ni Siyu were to move a few more times, she might break the world record. Ruan Xiaowu also asked me, "How long exactly is a second?"
I patted him on the shoulder.
Ruan Xiaowu said, bewildered, "What are you doing? I'm asking you a question."
"That's one second."
Ruan Xiaowu suddenly realized, and then he tentatively patted his chest twice, and after thinking for a moment, he patted it again.
I asked him, "What are you doing now?"
Ruan Xiaowu said, "I think with a little training, Xiaoyu can be 3 seconds faster. With a little effort, she can break 20 seconds directly, leaving something for others to remember, so they don't have to keep breaking records."
I broke out in a cold sweat and said, "20 seconds would probably break even the men's record. Are you sure you can do it?"
Ruan Xiao'er said arrogantly, "That depends on who teaches. Besides, it has nothing to do with men and women. You're a man, can you beat Third Sister?"
Thinking of Hu Sanniang and her shiny bald head, I shuddered and quickly echoed, "That's right, that's right."
Standing on the podium, Ni Siyu kept looking in our direction; I knew she was looking for Xiang Yu. Sure enough, as soon as the award ceremony ended, she ignored the many reporters' requests to take photos and came straight over, eagerly asking, "Where's big brother?"
"They're gone," her second master told her.
"Why? Is he angry? I was thinking of giving this to him," Ni Siyu said, holding the gold cup she had just received.
I told her, "Don't hang out with him anymore. All he does is spout nonsense and make sarcastic remarks."
Ni Siyu glared at me: "You're not allowed to talk about your older brother like that. I think you are the one who should be talking about him." I thought about it and realized she was right.
Zhang Shun tapped her forehead and said, "Big brother, big brother, all you ever think about is big brother, you little ungrateful thing."
Ni Siyu blushed, grabbed Zhang Shun's arm, and said coquettishly, "How could I forget my three lovely masters? The first prize is 5,000 yuan. I'll treat you to drinks." She wrinkled her nose at me, "No, I won't."