"I have a feeling that you and Chang Nian will definitely be the twin stars of the world badminton scene in the future."
"I...I just have a bit of regret. Your teacher's wife was aiming to become the first female badminton player in China to achieve a Grand Slam, but who knew that later..."
"I've struggled my whole life, but I still couldn't win a Grand Slam for her..."
"Coach Yan, don't worry, I will definitely fulfill your and your wife's wishes."
The past events are still vivid in my mind.
Xie Shi'an's eyes reddened slightly. She picked up the pipe and carefully wiped away non-existent dust with a tissue. Over the years, she had kept it spotless.
Next to her desk was a framed photo of the entire Binhai Provincial Team, with her and Jian Changnian standing in the center.
"Shi'an, does the Grand Slam include the Asian Games?"
"With you in doubles, I'm not afraid."
"I especially enjoy playing with you and standing on the highest podium together."
Xie Shi'an put the pipe back, sat down to dry his hair, and took out his phone to send a message to Wan Jing.
"Coach Wan, I want to participate in the entire event. Now that I've already registered, there's no reason for me to give up halfway."
***
The Incheon Asian Games were held on South Korea's home soil.
This is destined to be an extremely tough and arduous competition.
After three days of fierce competition, the Chinese team defeated the host South Korean team and won the team championship.
Over the next six days, the singles and doubles competitions started simultaneously. Jian Changnian was drawn against Kim Namji in the first round, and his Asian Games singles debut ended in failure, which immediately drew a lot of criticism.
Even though she knew in her heart that there was a gap in strength between her and Kim Nam-ji, and that her opponent's performance today was also outstanding, and that it was indeed a pity that she couldn't win despite giving it her all, she still couldn't utter a single word in the face of the media's questions. Just when she was at a loss, someone next to her pushed her out of the circle of media reporters.
Xie Shi'an naturally took the microphone from her and stood in the center of the spotlight.
She raised her head and spoke each word with firm conviction.
"If you have any questions, come at me."
The media outlets quickly shifted their focus.
"As her doubles partner, what are your thoughts on Chien Chang-nien's solo debut ending in a 1-2 defeat?"
"I didn't pay much attention to it; victory and defeat are common occurrences in war."
"Judging from past data, Jian Changnian has lost every match against Jin Nanzhi. Has this become a source of anxiety for her, leading to her poor performance on the field?"
"Perhaps you could interview Kim Nam-ji and ask her if losing to me every time has become a source of anxiety for her. Chang Nian is still very young, give her some more time."
Jian Changnian stood below the stage, watching her speak eloquently, and when she heard these words, her eyes suddenly reddened.
Lü Xiaoting came over and patted her on the shoulder.
"Hurry up and leave, Sister An has already dealt with them for you."
“But…” Jian Changnian bit her lip, still somewhat hesitant.
Lü Xiaoting simply dragged the person away.
"Don't worry, Sister An has much more experience dealing with these gossip media than you do."
Xie Shi'an saw her leave through the athletes' passage out of the corner of his eye, and he felt relieved, then turned to leave.
"Ms. Xie, one last question. What would you like to say about tomorrow's doubles match?"
Xie Shi'an casually dialed the microphone in front of him, his tone calm yet resolute.
"We will win, and not just tomorrow."
***
On her way back, as she passed the stadium, Jian Changnian stopped, the moonlight casting a long shadow over her.
"You guys go back and rest first, I'll practice some more."
Her teammates tried to comfort her, but Lü Xiaoting dragged her away.
"We'll be going now. You should go back and rest early after you finish practicing, as you have a match tomorrow."
Jian Changnian nodded and pushed open the heavy door of the stadium.
She stayed inside alone for an unknown amount of time, the sound of the ball hitting the shuttlecock never stopping, until she collapsed on the ground, exhausted. The fluorescent light was a bit glaring, so she raised her hand to shield her eyes. The questions from the reporters and the curses from the audience flooded her mind again, and Jian Changnian suddenly bit her lower lip.
A shadow was cast on the floor.
"I knew you'd be here."
Jian Changnian sat up and took the bottled water from her hand.
Why are you here?
"I was about to go back to the dorm when I saw the lights on in the gym, so I came over to take a look."
She tried to unscrew the cap of the mineral water bottle, but couldn't open it. With another effort, the tears that had been threatening to fall from her eyes finally came down.
"I'm sorry, I embarrassed myself today... in the very first game..."
She sat on the ground, sniffed, and looked at her with teary eyes: "Shi'an, do you think I'm not suited to play ball? I'm too stupid, I can't beat you, and I can't beat Kim Nam-ji."
Xie Shian thought to herself: In just three short years, she went from the Binhai Provincial Team to the starting lineup of the National Team, and from the National Competition to the World Stage. That's already quite remarkable.
But all she said was, "So, are you going to retire?"
Before Jian Changnian could even cry out, she choked, her voice trembling with anger.
"You...you know I won't retire...couldn't you...at least comfort me a little?!"
Xie Shi'an has always been like this; she has a whole repertoire of sharp retorts, and it's harder for her to comfort others than to kill her.
Jian Changnian was just saying it in anger and didn't have much hope. Who knew that Xie Shi'an would pause for a moment, then hesitate and put his hand on her head, giving it a light rub.
"Go back and get some rest. I just made a bold promise to the media that we're going to win tomorrow's game."
Her short sentence seemed to inject new energy into her whole body. Jian Changnian finally stopped crying and smiled, nodded heavily, and got up from the ground.
"good."
***
Chien Chang-nien has ended her singles journey at the Asian Games, but Hsieh Shih-an still has to continue. She is competing in two events at the same time, sometimes playing two matches in one morning, which keeps her extremely busy.
At the same time, the Chinese team's singles players were all eliminated, leaving only Xie Shi'an as the sole remaining player.
"Let's congratulate Anton on defeating Lü Xiaoting and advancing to the women's singles quarterfinals."
The situation in doubles is also not optimistic. Kim Nam-ji and Choi Hye-hee defeated the German pair in yesterday's match and qualified for the final. Their opponents this afternoon are the defending Asian Games doubles champions, the Japanese pair Ayaka Nohara and Chise Mito.
The pressure was considerable, so Xie Shi'an put on knee pads before going on stage.
Jian Changnian watched her movements, hesitant to speak.
“Shi An…”
Xie Shi'an picked up his racket and stood up.
"Let's go, the competition is about to begin."
After three rounds of fierce competition, they ultimately defeated the Japanese pair 2-1 with perfect teamwork, securing their place in the finals.
When Xie Shi'an landed her last game-winning shot, a sharp pain shot through her knee. She braced herself on her leg, panting heavily, looked up at the scoreboard, and let out a long sigh.
Jian Changnian also threw down his racket, excitedly rushed over, hugged her tightly, and shook her shoulders.
"Shi'an, we've made it to the finals!"
Evening, in the infirmary.
The team doctor was giving Xie Shi'an acupuncture on his knee.
When the slender needle pierced her skin, Xie Shi'an frowned slightly. The team doctor had been taking care of her for a long time and knew about her fear of pain, so he was a little gentler, but he said in a slightly annoyed tone.
"If you know it hurts, you should listen to Coach Wan."
"If we listen to Coach Wan, we might miss out on a gold medal."
“You’re not some newcomer who just debuted. You’ve got plenty of gold medals to your name.”
Xie Shi'an slightly curved the corners of his lips.
"I haven't won many gold medals in doubles, and Coach Yan also said that we should take every match seriously."
She left without even giving any media interviews after the match. Jian Changnian followed her all the way here, and upon hearing this, she could no longer hold back. She pushed open the door and entered, her eyes red with tears.
"Please rest in peace!"
The moment she burst in, the person who had been sitting upright in the chair stood up slightly, a hint of panic in her eyes that she herself was unaware of.
"You...how did you get here?"
"Hey, don't move."
"She still has needles in her eye."
Both hands simultaneously held the person down.
Jian Changnian's eyes were brimming with worry, almost overflowing.
"Does it hurt?"
Xie Shi'an shook his head.
The team doctor pushed the needle in three-tenths of the way in, turned it around once, and she immediately hissed softly and bit her lower lip.
Jian Changnian's eyes practically screamed that he wanted to devour the team doctor alive.
"No, sister, be gentle!"
The team doctor rolled his eyes, pulled out the needle with a huff, and put it in the tray.
"You're worried about the pain? If you're worried about the pain, then take it easy in tomorrow's match. I don't understand your so-called competitive spirit. As a doctor, I can only advise you to do your best."
The last half-sentence was said to Xie Shi'an. Jian Changnian helped her out the door, and she was somewhat sullen the whole way.
Xie Shi'an had kept her injury a secret for so long, and when he was suddenly caught red-handed, he didn't know how to explain it to her, so he simply kept quiet.
As they approached the dormitory building, Jian Changnian lost her composure and launched the first attack.