"You have a fever! I'm going to find Coach Yan..."
As she turned to look for Yan Xinyuan, Jian Changnian suddenly stood up and grabbed her wrist.
The boy licked his lips, which were dry and cracked from the high fever, his eyes filled with anxiety.
"Shi'an! Every point is crucial for us right now, so I have to win this game."
Xie Shi'an refused to give in and tried to shake her off.
"That won't work either..."
Jian Changnian held her wrist tightly, refusing to give an inch.
"Sister Yu Chu hasn't come back yet, and we don't know how well she's recovered. Will she pass the doping test? What if, what if..."
She paused for a moment, her eyes filled with an unprecedented determination.
"You can only play two games at most by yourself. This point is crucial for me. I can really keep going. I probably just caught a cold last night. I'll be fine after sweating it out."
"Shi'an, stop fooling around. Don't let the enemy see through you."
As she finished speaking, Jian Changnian's tone softened, and a rare hint of pleading crept into it.
Xie Shi'an was stuck in place, unable to move.
Even though they were very careful and tried their best not to reveal any flaws, Jian Changnian's condition still aroused Jin Nanzhi's vigilance.
She glanced over there a few times, gathered everyone together, and whispered, "Jian Changnian seems to be feeling a bit unwell. It's the last round, so don't rush. Take your time and wear her down. Win this point first. I'll still be there for the rest of the matches. We must win this championship."
The group put their hands together, their eyes shining with unwavering hope.
"Beijing Team—"
"Go! Go! Go!"
The Binhai provincial team also had their usual send-off ceremony before going on the field.
Everyone turned to look at Jian Changnian.
Jian Changnian placed her hand on it.
Xie Shi'an stood to the side without moving, his gaze deep.
Jian Changnian glanced at her a few more times, then said softly, "Shi'an..."
Xie Shi'an then pursed his lips and reluctantly placed his hand on top.
"Recite it often—"
"come on!"
"Coastal Provincial Team—"
"Invincible!"
Amidst the deafening cheers of the audience, the third game officially began.
"The first two games were played very quickly. In the third game, both sides slowed down their pace, engaging in rallies and exchanging shots for more than a minute each."
"Jian Changnian launched an attack, a smash, and the speed was very fast."
"But she seems to have made a mistake on this ball. Let's take a look when we get the replay."
After the slow-motion video came out, Jian Changnian's shot flew out of bounds due to excessive force.
"5:11, let's congratulate the Beijing team on taking the first set point."
She desperately wanted to win, and her energy was dwindling every second, so she had to finish the match quickly.
Jian Changnian licked his lips, panting heavily, his grip on the racket tightening, and the back of his clothes was completely soaked.
She shook her head, trying to shake off the dizziness in her head, and as the referee's whistle blew, the second half of the game officially began.
Trailing by a full six points, even tying the score is extremely difficult, let alone winning the game.
The Beijing team had the victory firmly in their grasp, and after winning, they were already raising their hands to celebrate with their teammates.
Jian Changnian glanced at the scoreboard, her vision blurry. She had to bite her tongue until she tasted blood, letting the pain stimulate her nerves, before she could see the numbers clearly.
11:19
She could be said to have already stepped one foot off the cliff.
The audience behind her was cheering her on.
"Jian Changnian—"
"come on!!!"
"Binhai Team—"
"come on!!!"
Zhou Mu, who was watching the live stream on her phone, was also deeply worried for her and whispered, "Chang Nian, keep going!"
Cheng Zhen, who is currently training in Hainan, is facing his final assessment today. The results of this assessment will directly determine whether he can make the swimming team's roster to compete in the National Swimming League in the spring.
Before the assessment, he warmed up by doing frog jumps by the pool while watching competition videos on his phone.
A teammate walked past him.
"Hey, what are you looking at so intently?"
"My friend made it to the national badminton finals, isn't that amazing?"
"They're impressive, but with this score, it feels like we're going to lose."
Cheng Zhen stretched out her leg and tripped him.
"Get lost, can't you say something auspicious?"
11:20
At this point in the match, no one believed in Jian Changnian anymore. The cheers from the stands had subsided considerably, and some spectators began to leave.
Even her teammates were preparing for the next match. Yan Xinyuan took off his glasses, sighed, and turned his back. The commentator exclaimed the moment he turned around.
"What is that?! Jian Changnian completed a 360-degree spin smash in mid-air! Isn't that Xie Shi'an's signature move?!"
The boy, who was sitting in the rest area preparing for the match, suddenly stood up.
Driven to the brink, she gritted her teeth, her eyes reddened, and with her racket in hand, began her counterattack, striking again and again.
Jian Changnian's head was spinning more and more; he was just relying on his last breath to keep killing and scoring.
"She hit so hard."
"The opponent is starting to struggle and Jian Changnian is scoring in quick succession."
12:20
15:20
19:20
20:20
"My God! Jian Changnian actually tied the score in one go!"
Thunderous applause erupted from the stands.
Even the Beijing team players were stunned.
Meanwhile, the Binhai team erupted in chaos, shouting her name at the top of their lungs from the sidelines.
Zhou Mu was also nervously cheering her on.
"Chang Nian, it's the last two points, keep it up!"
"This must be the most dramatic game so far. They caught up from such a big deficit in one go."
"With only two goals left, who will emerge victorious in this match?"
The moment the narrator finished speaking, Jian Changnian moved.
"Here it comes," Jian Changnian said, pushing the net with a flat push. The opponent then pulled back with a lob, widening the distance between them.
"Jian Changnian didn't want to give her any chance to fight back, so he went straight for a smash."
"21:21, Jian Changnian scores with a smash!"
"It's the last ball. You can see that neither side wants to give up. It's been more than a rallies."
The resounding thuds of the ball echoed throughout the venue, captivating the hearts of every viewer, both on-site and watching on screen.
"Bang--"
Jian Changnian struck with all her might, and a white meteor streaked across the sky.
Everyone held their breath in tension.
After a silence of about one or two seconds.
The scoreboard lit up, like a time bomb dropped into a calm lake.
22:20
The audience erupted in cheers and thunderous applause.
Yan Xinyuan also shouted and raised his hands high to applaud her.
"Well done, Xiao Jian!"
Jian Changnian looked back, slowly smiled, and then felt completely exhausted, collapsing onto the ground.
A white figure rushed to her side.
"Dou... Jian Changnian, how are you?!" Xie Shi'an blurted out, wanting to call her by her nickname, but for some reason, he suddenly changed his mind.
Yan Xinyuan and the team doctor also gathered around, and when they touched her arm, they found that she was burning hot.
"He has a fever! Quick, help him downstairs!"
The group helped her to the rest area, and when they took her temperature, it was a shocking 38.9 degrees Celsius. Yan Xinyuan was exasperated.
"What...what happened to you?! You were sick and didn't even tell me, and you still played the game while you were sick, you're really something!"
Xie Shi'an opened her mouth, about to speak, but Jian Changnian, fearing that she would be implicated for withholding information, preemptively said, "It's okay, Coach Yan, I was just too tired last night and slept in the training room all night. Please don't scold me since we won the game."