"It doesn't hurt as much as before, but it's still burning."
The team doctor covered her left eye.
"Can you see things clearly?"
Jian Changnian's vision was still blurry and indistinct.
She shook her head.
"It's like it's covered by a veil."
The team doctor let go and glanced at Xie Shi'an.
"Retinal congestion, you should go to the hospital immediately."
Without saying a word, Xie Shi'an tried to pull the person up, but Jian Changnian grabbed her wrist.
"Wait, wait a minute, what's the result from the referee's side? There are still a few balls left, I don't want to give up."
Xie Shi'an persisted and tried to pull the man up.
"Please rest in peace!"
Jian Changnian's tone became even more forceful.
"You had such a serious knee injury and you still managed to keep going, and now you're trying to persuade me to withdraw from the competition? Is that fair?!"
"Jian Changnian, how can these be the same?!"
Xie Shi'an emphasized her name heavily, indicating that she was truly angry. At that moment, Jian Changnian realized that Xie Shi'an cared about her no less than she did, and was even willing to abandon her principles for her. In this respect, they were of one mind.
She smiled.
"It's the same for me. You don't want me to persuade you, and I don't want you to persuade me to withdraw from the competition. We've come this far, and I can keep going."
The referee team reviewed the replay and determined that Choi Hye-hee did not intend to hit anyone. After a vote, she was given a red card, but the previous play was not counted. The score was now 19-18, and the game restarted.
Logically, this point should have been awarded to them. Wan Jing was furious when she heard the result and wanted to rush up and argue with the people again.
"What kind of rules are these? Who plays like this? Just because it's the South Korean team's home court, are you favoring them?!"
"This is the result of a vote, not just the decision of the chief referee. If you are dissatisfied with the arbitration result, please appeal to the Asian Games Organizing Committee and the Badminton World Federation, but please do not make personal attacks or insult our referees."
Seeing the heated exchange between the two sides, the audience members also stood up and started shouting at each other. Fearing a physical altercation, the staff rushed over to separate them.
"Old Wan, calm down. Let's check how serious Chang Nian's injuries are first."
Cameras were set up at the scene, and countless media lenses were pointed at him. Wan Jing shoved people aside, and before leaving the crowd, he looked back at Park Min-heon with a look that seemed to want to tear him apart and drink his blood.
Park Min-heon simply shrugged.
"What does this have to do with me? It was just an accident, right, Hye-hee?"
"Chang Nian, how are you?" Hearing his footsteps, a broad and strong hand was placed on his shoulder.
Jian Changnian looked up, still applying an ice pack to her eyes.
"I'm fine, Coach Wan. What did the referee say?"
Wan Jing's face showed a hint of embarrassment and frustration.
"Choi Hye-hee was given a yellow card, but..."
Xie Shi'an understood immediately and stood up abruptly.
Her teammates surrounded her and pulled her back. Lü Xiaoting advised, "Sister An, Sister An, even Coach Wan couldn't handle this, so don't go. You still have to play badminton and make a name for yourself in the world of badminton. Offending these referees won't do you any good."
really.
Jian Changnian lowered her head, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
Xie Shi'an's cold gaze swept over them: the chatting and laughing Park Min-heon and Choi Hye-hee, the calm and composed referee, and the South Korean audience jumping around, giving them the middle finger and booing them.
Jian Changnian sat there, her eyes red and swollen, as if she had been crying.
A sudden, inexplicable sadness welled up in her heart.
Xie Shi'an simply threw away his racket.
"If we can't get fair treatment, we might as well not play the game."
She wanted to use this method to protest.
The Chinese audience behind her, seeing her movements, began to whisper among themselves.
"What does this mean? Are you not going to fight anymore?"
"Jian Changnian's eyes are injured, how can she fight if she can't see?"
"Yeah, stop fighting. It's pointless to win this championship. Who knows if their trophy is clean or not?"
"Damn it, is it really that cheap, you little brat?!"
"Whether they play this competition or not is a difficult question for them. To play would mean compromising with unfair treatment, but not to play would be a great pity, considering it's the Asian Games, which only comes around every four years."
...
Watching the footage transmitted from the scene, the two commentators exchanged a glance: "It seems that Jian Changnian's injury is quite serious. He probably won't be able to play in this match."
The words had barely left his mouth.
Jian Changnian grabbed Xie Shi'an's wrist.
Her eyes were swollen like walnuts, but she was still forcing a smile.
"Shi'an, no, this match, we'll play it."
She spoke very slowly, emphasizing each word.
“But…” Xie Shi’an gritted his teeth.
Jian Changnian took her hand and shook it, speaking softly but with a firm tone.
"If we don't play, it will only benefit the Korean team. I love this arena, and I want to play, not to compromise with them, but to prove that even if we are treated unfairly, we still have the strength to win the championship."
Xie Shi'an's Adam's apple bobbed, his lips tightened, but he still managed to grab her wrist and lift her up from the chair.
After Jian Changnian regained her footing, she raised her hand to signal to the referee.
"Let's continue the game."
The commentators in the studio were also a bit shocked.
"Wait a minute, given the situation, do you still want to fight, Jian Changnian?"
Commentator B said with a hint of amusement in his voice.
"I think I might understand them a little. They're professional players; they have to get back what they've lost in the competition."
When she stepped back onto the field, the audience erupted in applause, and almost half of the stadium was in a frenzy.
The audience shouted at the top of their lungs:
"Jian Changnian, no matter who wins or loses, you're the best!"
"You guys have done a really great job getting this far!"
"Go security team! I don't want to hear the South Korean national anthem here!"
"The subway is still running, and Mom isn't in a hurry to go home, you know what I mean?!"
...
Those who had traveled from afar unfurled banners behind them, cheering them on—a sea of red.
Amid cheers, the two lightly bumped fists.
Xie Shi'an: "Can you see it?"
"It's okay, there will be wind when the ball flies over."
Despite impaired vision in her right eye, Jian Changnian continues to fight tenaciously on the field.
Because her vision was blurred, she could only react based on instinct, the sound of the wind, and Xie Shi'an's fragmented words.
Xie Shi'an was just an ordinary person, not a god, and he was also injured, which meant that his combat power had been cut in half.
Kim Nam-ji scored in quick succession.
The score is now 20-19.
South Korea is currently in the lead.
Even so, they did not give up. Jian Changnian made one desperate save after another, and Xie Shian launched one attack after another, and they were locked in a long battle for the last point.
No one knows what they feel when they are playing a match they are destined to lose.
The audience members present silently had tears in their eyes.
When the scoreboard lit up, the studio fell into a long silence.
In the footage transmitted back by the director, the referee raised Kim Nam-ji and Choi Hye-hee's hands high, the outcome was already decided.
Lines of text scrolled across the screen, all of them filled with sad and regretful sentences.
"The Olympics are held every four years, the Asian Games are held every four years, how many more years will Xie Shi'an have to wait before she can achieve her Grand Slam?"
"Doesn't anyone care about Jian Changnian? If her eyesight is damaged, her professional career may be over."
"She's only eighteen years old this year."
"If we don't get good results, will the security team disband?"
...
After a moment of silence, the commentator spoke again, his tone suddenly becoming impassioned.
"I can't comment on today's match. If I had to say something, I would say that they didn't lose. They are still the most dazzling twin stars on the field!"
"Dear viewers, let's give a big round of applause for our uncrowned queen! Tonight, Incheon belongs to them!"
As the commentator finished speaking, Xie Shi'an grabbed Jian Changnian's hand, raised it high, and gestured to the audience.
Jian Changnian was taken aback, tears quickly welling up in her eyes. She looked at her, and the two of them gazed at each other with smiles on their lips.
They were still honorable in this match, even though they lost.
For the first time in the history of world badminton, the runners-up were cheered for even more than the champions. Amidst a deafening roar of cheers, they wore matching team uniforms, shoulder to shoulder, and bowed to the audience, making a perfect farewell.