"Okay." Yan Xinyuan thought for a moment, but didn't say anything more.
After all, 1,500 yuan is not a lot for an ordinary family. He just didn't expect that Jian Changnian's family would be so poor.
He had already left, but with a mischievous smile, he turned back and said something.
"Oh right, I haven't told you yet, but your opponent in Jiangbei last time, that Xie Shi'an, is one of the main players of the Binhai Provincial Team."
Xie Shi'an.
I heard that name again out of nowhere.
Jian Changnian was startled and gave a bitter smile.
No wonder he's so good, he's a key player.
Do they still have a chance to fight again?
How long would Grandma have to do farm work, how many pairs of shoe soles would she have to sew, and how many chickens and ducks would she have to sell to save up 1,500 yuan?
Just thinking about it made Jian Changnian's eyes a little sore. She rubbed her eyes and decided to go to class first.
Before evening self-study, Jian Changnian took some time to go to a public phone booth on campus and call Zhou Mu.
Upon hearing her voice, Zhou Mu stammered, "Um... I'm sorry... I told him your school and class..."
Jian Changnian wasn't actually angry, but he just wanted to tease her, so he deliberately remained silent for a few seconds.
really.
They got anxious over there, raising their voices eight octaves.
"Don't be angry! When he came to the school to see me, he was with a teacher, and I also saw his coaching license. I wouldn't have given it to a stranger! I just felt..."
At this point, Zhou Mu's voice lowered again.
"You don't like your school, and you always get bullied there, so you might as well go do something you really enjoy."
Jian Changnian felt a warmth in her heart and couldn't help but laugh.
Zhou Mu immediately started yelling and screaming.
"Oh my god!! You...you tricked me again!"
"Okay, I'm not angry."
"It's good that you're not angry. Are you going to the training camp?" Zhou Mu asked, turning over as he answered the phone while lying on his bed in the dormitory.
"I haven't decided yet. The training camp will last for three months, and I can't take such a long leave. Besides, Coach Yan said that there are more than 100 people participating in this training camp, but only four can be kept in the end."
"If it's a three-month closed-door period, then the only option is to take a break from school. I think the probability is not much different from that of taking the college entrance exam," Zhou Mu hissed softly and sighed.
“Hmm…” Jian Changnian responded softly, without saying anything more.
"But I think this is also an opportunity. Think about it, you love playing badminton so much, but no one plays with you. You just play with the trees and the air at the village entrance. And you even beat that Xie Shi'an from the provincial team by one point. That's enough to show that you have the talent. Otherwise, Coach Yan wouldn't have made a special trip to find you."
That being said, practical reasons cannot be ignored, and parental consent is required for taking a leave of absence from school.
Jian Changnian rubbed his temples and sighed inwardly.
"I'll go home this week and discuss it with my grandma."
***
As soon as Jian Changnian returned to the dormitory after evening self-study, Yuanyuan launched into a barrage of sarcastic remarks.
"Hey, isn't this our badminton superstar back?"
It seems that news of Yan Xinyuan coming to see her has spread throughout the entire campus.
Jian Changnian was preoccupied with her own thoughts and ignored her, taking the basin to wash up.
When she returned from the public restroom, she could hear the sounds coming from inside through the door.
"Her? If someone like her can play professionally, then I would be a world champion by now."
"Exactly, exactly. With her poor and shabby appearance, she should take a piss and look at herself in the mirror to see if she's even cut out for it."
"Is Coach Yan for real? If he is, I'm afraid he should go see an ophthalmologist."
Ever since she got into a fight with them, these people have been taking every opportunity to deliberately mess with her. They've lost her finished homework in the dorm, or her clothes that were drying on the balcony have mysteriously ended up downstairs. Or, like now, they're being sarcastic to her face and mocking her behind her back.
Every time she mustered the courage to resist, the other party became even more ruthless, convinced that she was helpless and alone in the school and that no one would believe her even if she reported it to the teachers.
Jian Changnian didn't consider herself a fragile person, but on this night, she had too many things on her mind. All the grievances welled up in her heart at once. She took a few deep breaths before suppressing the soreness in her eyes and pushed open the door to go inside.
Upon seeing her return, the group of people who had been chatting together dispersed and went back to their own beds.
"Go to sleep, go to sleep, you have class tomorrow morning."
Jian Changnian said nothing, put down the basin, lay down on the bed, covered her face with the quilt, and closed her eyes.
***
On the bus home for the weekend, Jian Changnian didn't say much the whole way. Zhou Mu nudged her arm.
"What's wrong? You don't seem happy?"
"No, we've arrived. Let's go." Jian Changnian forced a smile, picked up her bag, and got off the train first.
Zhou Mu's house is located on the roadside not far from the village entrance, while her house is about a kilometer further along the dirt road to the foot of the mountain.
Jian Changnian pushed open the door: "Grandma, I'm back."
The yard was quiet, except for the neighbor's little mongrel barking a few times in response.
The gate to the enclosure for the chickens and ducks was open; the ducks must have been let out to roam.
Jian Changnian breathed a sigh of relief, put the bag in the inner room, went back to the yard to fetch water and wash her hands, and planned to cook first.
Before she could even enter the kitchen, a neighbor, seeing the gate ajar, herded the ducks in.
"Chang Nian, you're back? Hurry up and go to the clinic to see your grandma, she fell while gathering firewood on the mountain yesterday..."
Before the neighbor could finish speaking, the basin of water was overturned on the ground, and Jian Changnian took off running.
***
"Grandma, Grandma, are you alright?" Jian Changnian ran two miles in one breath, bursting into the clinic in a sweat. Without even catching her breath, she saw her grandmother lying on the innermost bed receiving an IV drip and rushed over to her.
Seeing that it was her who had returned, the old man's eyes lit up with joy, and he struggled to get up.
"Xiao Nian... Niannian is back. Haven't eaten yet? Grandma will make you some when we get back..."
"Grandma!" Jian Changnian pressed her face against her grandmother's chest, hugged her tightly, and her eyes reddened. "Don't move, the IV drip isn't finished yet. I'm not hungry. What happened to you? Did you fall badly?"
"It's nothing, it's just that the mountain road was slippery, and I accidentally twisted my ankle while collecting firewood."
Grandma patted her head affectionately.
"Good child, I'm sorry to have worried you."
Jian Changnian sniffed, still holding her grandmother tightly, her gaze falling on her grandmother's bandaged feet.
"Grandma, let's go to the hospital to get it checked out."
Just as the IV drip finished, the village doctor came over to check on him. Jian Changnian straightened up and grabbed the doctor's arm with both hands.
"Doctor, doctor, is my grandma really alright?"
The village doctor looked at the elderly man lying on the hospital bed, hesitant to speak.
Grandma gently shook her head behind Jian Changnian.
The village doctor helped the woman up: "It's nothing serious, she just sprained her ankle. She'll get some IV fluids here for a few days to reduce the inflammation, and I'll prescribe some oral and topical medications for her to take as prescribed."
"Okay, okay, thank you for your help, doctor." Jian Changnian kept bowing to the doctor, finally feeling a little relieved.
"Come with me to get your medicine."
The village clinic has limited facilities; a curtain separates the areas for seeing a doctor, getting medicine, and receiving injections and IV drips.
The doctor was using an abacus to write on a prescription slip.
"I prescribed her some medicine to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis. It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone, especially for older people. They should avoid heavy physical labor or they will develop chronic illnesses."
"The total is seventy-eight yuan and fifty cents."
Jian Changnian searched through all her pockets but only found twenty yuan, which was the living expenses she hadn't used up last week.
She carefully placed the twenty yuan on the table and stammered, "Doctor, I... I don't have enough money on me right now. Please wait for me to go back and get some."
As soon as she finished speaking, a thin, bony hand reached out shakily, picked up her two ten-yuan notes, put down a stack of small bills, the largest denomination being five yuan, and some coins.
"Doctor, here's your money."
Jian Changnian quickly helped her up: "Grandma, why did you get up?"
"We've lost all our money, let's go home."
"But your feet..."
"It's okay, I can walk. You'll have to pay for a bed if I stay here for one night..."
Grandma kept muttering to herself as she struggled to walk forward, limping along.
"And the chickens and ducks at home need to be fed every day, the weeds in the fields need to be removed, and the firewood we collected hasn't been put away yet."
Jian Changnian's eyes welled up with tears, and she knelt down in front of her grandmother.
"Grandma, I'll carry you on my back."
"Oh dear, you can't carry that."
"Don't worry, I promise I won't make you fall." Jian Changnian smiled and patted the muscles on his arm.
Seeing that her grandmother was still hesitant, Jian Changnian didn't say a word, but directly grabbed her legs and carried her on his back.
Although Jian Changnian was not old, he had been doing farm work since he was a child and was quite strong. Moreover, his grandmother was not heavy. The burden of life had weighed on him for many years and he had become skin and bones.
She carried her grandmother on her back, walking steadily step by step.
Watching their retreating figures, and then looking at the pile of colorful bills on the table, the doctor hesitated for a long time before chasing after them and calling them back.
"If you feel unwell, be sure to come to the clinic immediately."
Jian Changnian turned around, a grateful smile on her face.
"Okay, thank you, doctor."