章 9: 009 No Longer Stubborn
編集者: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"Next week, we all have a chance to play. At times like this, we can't lose to the girls," the 1.73-meter center said, with his arms around the shoulders of two teammates. "I'll battle it out with the Tank inside, and you guys go ahead and play. Just try to avoid Lin Yujing and target that ordinary girl."
"Brother Shuo, can you handle the Tank by yourself?" the small guard asked, looking worriedly at Qiao Bixia, who was staring fiercely.
"Even if I can't, I have to!" Brother Shuo grinned resolutely. "So many people are watching. If I have to sacrifice, then so be it. The key is to win."
Another medium-built boy adjusted his glasses. "Let's maintain some decorum. If things get critical, we'll start using our bodies."
"Just watch. I won't say anything for sure—" Brother Shuo wiped his nose, eyes full of determination. "The rebounds are mine."
"Impressive aura. As expected of our class seven's Akagi Gangxian."
"We've got this."
The game started, and Little Glasses passed the ball to the small guard to initiate the offense.
At the same time, Brother Shuo was already wrestling with the Tank in the three-second area.
The two leaned against each other with all their might, determined to dominate their opponent from the start.
Right from the beginning, the intensity was palpable; one couldn't tell the genders apart.
Seeing Brother Shuo's pained expression, the small guard gritted his teeth and returned the ball to Little Glasses.
Lin Yujing immediately moved up to guard.
Little Glasses smirked and made a fake move to the right, then twisted his body to dribble to the left for a breakthrough.
Smack.
The ball was swiped away.
Intercepted on his first dribble?
He stood there dazed, unable to understand when Lin Yujing had made the move.
The intercepted ball rolled right to the feet of the ordinary girl.
The ordinary girl picked up the ball and, without thinking, threw it to Lin Yujing.
Lin Yujing caught the ball and aimed at the hoop, adjusted slightly, and jumped lightly, shooting with both hands.
Clang.
The ball hit the rim and bounced high.
Suddenly, a tiger's roar shook the forest.
"Mine!!!" Qiao Bixia sprang forward, jumping in front of Brother Shuo.
Brother Shuo also forced a jump.
But it was clear that Qiao Bixia's hand was half an arm's length higher than Brother Shuo's.
She grabbed the ball with her right hand and moved it forcefully to her left hand.
Boom!!
Both hands grabbed the ball.
Thud!!
She landed heavily.
"Again!" She shouted and passed the ball back to Lin Yujing. "Shoot again!"
Lin Yujing took a deep breath, adjusted her posture once more, and raised her hand to shoot.
But she saw Little Glasses flying towards her.
No way, not going to give you another chance.
Lin Yujing pulled back again.
A fake?
Lin Yujing feinted, dribbled two steps away, and jumped again.
Just as Little Glasses landed, she released the ball again.
Her movements were fluid, and the arc was beautiful.
Swish.
The ball went in.
The crowd erupted in amazement.
If it had been a boy doing these fakes and mid-range shots, no one would have cared.
But Lin Yujing's seamless execution, paired with her graceful posture, was stunning enough to elicit an instinctive cheer.
Some girls who had come over upon hearing the commotion even screamed.
"How can she be so good at basketball..."
"I thought girls would look clumsy playing basketball... I was wrong..."
"Hmph, now you know. Although no boys dare to pursue her, look, plenty of girls do..."
On the court, the stubborn trio from class seven was a bit stunned.
"Just keep playing like this." Qiao Bixia clapped her fists. "As long as I'm here, shoot freely."
"Yeah." Lin Yujing bounced lightly in place, seemingly still warming up.
The boys' team served the ball again.
This time, the small guard singled out the ordinary girl. Relying solely on his speed, he easily broke through and took a mid-range shot.
"Whoa!!!" Though Qiao Bixia was far away and couldn't cover, she still roared and lunged forward with all her might.
The Fierce Tiger Style, the sound wave defense.
The small guard was so startled that his hand softened, the ball slipped out weakly, and it was about to miss the hoop completely.
Much to the relief, Qiao Bixia had missed her position, and Brother Shuo easily found a position, waiting for a rebound.
Just as he was about to reach the ball, a skinny arm appeared out of nowhere and flicked the ball away.
Brother Shuo panicked and rushed to retrieve it.
But by then, the Tank was back in place.
"Nah!!!" Qiao Bixia spread her arms like an eagle and spiked the ball away like a volleyball player.
The ordinary girl grabbed the ball again and, without hesitation, passed it back to Lin Yujing.
This time, Lin Yujing chose to dribble for a breakthrough, but Little Glasses had become smarter, sticking close and using his body to contest her.
Eventually, Lin Yujing forced a layup attempt, which looked awkward.
"Rebound!" Little Glasses jumped up, blocking Lin Yujing's shooting path.
He felt confident he could defend this one.
Brother Shuo had also positioned early to grab the rebound.
But Lin Yujing, hanging in the air, suddenly lowered her arm and passed the ball gently to the unguarded Qiao Bixia.
Qiao Bixia, reacting instinctively, jumped and made a bank shot in the three-second area.
"Nice!" Qiao Bixia punched the air. "This team is too weak, let's give Meng Xilang some shots."
"Alright." Lin Yujing lightly wiped her sweat and bounced back to her position, gesturing to the ordinary girl.
"Uh... can I do it..." the ordinary girl asked nervously.
The boys' team served again.
Brother Shuo was getting anxious. After getting the ball inside, he backed down and leaned against the Tank—
Powering through the Tank!
He didn't care about his pride as a boy, driven his lower back against Qiao Bixia, and started shoving the ball toward the basket.
But circling around the three-second area, he barely budged an inch.
Just as he hesitated between forcing a shot or passing the ball—
Smack.
Lin Yujing's nimble arm appeared out of nowhere again, stripping the ball away.
And the ordinary girl, seemingly drawn by some unseen force, scooped up the ball once more.
Seeing the furious small guard rushing towards her, she fearfully passed the ball to Lin Yujing.
This time, Lin Yujing didn't rush to attack. Instead, she weaved left and right with the ball, in and out.
Change of direction, spin move, all in one fluid motion, as if showing off her skills.
She quickly drew the attention of two perimeter players, with Little Glasses and the small guard instinctively closing in.
The unguarded ordinary girl moved to a mid-range spot she was comfortable with, feeling uncertain about whether to signal for the ball.
But Lin Yujing had already passed the ball to her.
The speed was just right, not too fast, not too slow.
The ordinary girl caught the ball, aimed at the basket, and shot with both hands.
Swish.
Though her form wasn't exactly elegant, she made it.
"Nice!" Qiao Bixia pushed Brother Shuo aside and handed the in-bound ball heavily to the small guard. "Hurry up, sis can't wait to crush you guys."
"..."
A few minutes later, the girls' team won 5:1.
The stubborn trio from class seven dropped their heads, grabbed their bags, and walked away in silence.
"Brother Shuo... basketball isn't fun at all."
"Yeah... forget it. Whoever wants to be the main player can go for it."
"Let's go study."
"Alright."
Once a proud team, they had been completely dismantled.
Yet no one paid them any mind.
The spectators remained engrossed in Lin Yujing's play style.
Agile and graceful, even better than the top school boys' team guards.
Most importantly, despite her strength, she wasn't selfish, always trying to create opportunities for her teammates.
And she played with great defensive effort.
Throughout the game, she never made any physical contact with the boys. All her steals and moves were clean and precise.
Whether in school or out, no one had seen such a refreshing play style.
Off the court, Jiang Qinghua, Coach Jiang, watched the entire game with an increasingly grave expression.
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