Stringy Wind in the Ear - Chap 32
A few hours later, the ranking competition ended, and Song Yang ranked 47th, fortunately making it to the next round of eliminations. There were four men’s individual contestants on the school team, and one, Ahong, was eliminated. No one knew why he could shoot three 5-rings, which was a disaster.
Wu Jianian and Yu Shenwei ranked third and fourth respectively. The first was a graduate student from a sports school, but their scores were not much different.
The knockout round is a one-on-one PK mode. In order to make the game more entertaining, strong players are generally not allowed to face off at the beginning.
So the No. 1 competes with the No. 16, the No. 17 competes with the No. 36, the No. 37 competes with the No. 48, the No. 2 competes with the No. 15, and so on.
The knockout round is much simpler. Two athletes take turns shooting six arrows. The one with the highest total number wins. The shooting range is 50 meters.
The venue is spacious, with spectator seats on all sides, but archery is not very interesting to watch from a distance. Almost everyone sits on the ground, forming a circle, like a cake with a big bite taken out of it.
The one who played against Song Yang was Zhang Chen from Beicheng Sports School. He was ranked high and was chatting with the coach in a relaxed manner. During the conversation, he glanced at Song Yang and smiled slightly. On the surface, it seemed polite and friendly, but in fact it was a provocation that was determined to win.
Song Yang rubbed the arrow in his hand without saying a word.
Li Xun is an experienced person, so naturally he knows everything. He still remembers that when he first participated in the competition, he was ranked 16th and his opponent was the first place. The total number of rings in their ranking competition differed by 30 rings. That gap was like a Five Finger Mountain pressing down on him and making him breathless. He felt that the result was obvious, and he would only lose face if he went up. During the preparation period, his condition was very bad.
However, his coach said something at that time that made him suddenly enlightened, and now he repeated these words to Song Yang exactly as they were.
“Don’t worry about him. Compare yourself with others. If you can perform at your best, you have already defeated yourself.”
Song Yang nodded and smiled.
According to the rules of the competition, the person ranked lower will shoot the first arrow.
This arrow is crucial. If the result is good, you can win back some confidence, but if it is not satisfactory, you will most likely be crushed by your opponent all the way.
After the referee blew the whistle, the whole stadium fell silent, leaving only the whispers of conversation in the corner.
Li Xun folded his arms, stood quietly behind Song Yang on his right, and held his breath with him.
The indicator light came on, Song Yang raised his arm to pull the string, squinted his eyes, and clenched his cheeks.
It was this small detail that brought Li Xun back to last summer, when he was at the archery gym where he worked and the persistent young man tried every means to make his presence felt in front of him just to have a lesson.
At that time, he was also standing in this position, at this angle, staring at Song Yang and aiming at the target.
It’s amazing! Even though more than a year has passed, the picture is still as clear as yesterday.
The signal piece landed, and the arrow shot out of the bow like a flash of lightning that cut through the night sky, attracting everyone’s attention.
With a “bang”, the arrow fell into the yellow area.
An obvious ten rings.
“Beautiful!” Li Xun roared, and the applause was loud.
The viewing area also became noisy, with people cheering and shouting, as well as secretly placing bets.
Song Yang lowered his arms and held on the balance bar with one hand. Compared with the ranking competition, he was not so nervous in the knockout round because he knew that Li Xun was right behind him and could not go anywhere. He could see him as soon as he turned around.
They smiled at each other.
All of this is so incredible. If someone had told him ten years ago that he would become Li Xun’s apprentice in the future and that they would stand side by side on the field, he would never have believed it.
And now, his idol, his childhood idol, is standing behind him, cheering him on.
Next, Zhang Chen raised the bow and pulled the string. Song Yang’s ten-ring inevitably caused him a little pressure, but he still completed the action smoothly, and the first arrow was a 9-ring.
“Come on, come on, relax.” His coach encouraged from behind.
Zhang Chen looked at Song Yang and smiled calmly.
From this smile, Li Xun could judge that his condition was still very good, which meant that these 9 rings were an upper-middle result in his usual training. In addition, Zhang Chen did not believe that he would lose to Song Yang.
Song Yang’s second arrow was an eight-ring, which was also a good result.
The reason why it is said to be good is that in his usual training, about 30% of the results are below eight rings.
Just now in the ranking competition, most of the 50-meter results were below eight rings, but this was also related to the condition of his muscles at the time. Song Yang did not have enough strength in the latter part of the all-around competition.
Zhang Chen’s coach is a little old, and his temperament is calm, even a little indifferent. No matter how Zhang Chen performs, he always has a calm smile on his face.
The same goes for Zhang Chen.
In the next two arrows, his performance was very brilliant and he surpassed Song Yang by one ring.
When Song Yang released the arrow, a discordant voice came from the audience: “Another eight-ring…”
“This kid is no good. He obviously stretched the bow too much.”
Li Xun turned back expressionlessly, glanced at them, and remained silent. Some of those people knew him, while others didn’t, but they all stopped smiling as if they had met the dean.
There was total silence in that corner.
The fifth arrows of the two men tied, both scored eight rings, but Zhang Chen was still one ring ahead in total.
Song Yang’s pressure doubled.
If I lose this arrow, I won’t have the chance to stand here tomorrow, and naturally I will lose the reward.
The venue was brightly lit and everyone’s eyes were focused on him. Although it was winter, Song Yang’s forehead was sparkling.
He closed his eyes and adjusted his breathing. The sounds around him became quieter and farther away. He could actually clearly hear the sound of his own heartbeat.
It was as if there was an animal living in his heart, and every beat was so violent.
Ten rings, ten rings, ten rings…
He repeated it in his mind over and over again.
The sight is focused on the arrow, and everything around it becomes blurry.
Li Xun half narrowed his eyes, seemingly as steady as a rock, but in fact, he was worried for him. No wonder when he went abroad to play games, his head coach always put a quick-acting heart pill in his mouth before the game.
The position where he was standing was different from the audience seats. If the person in front of him succeeded and made progress, it meant that he was well trained, but if the person in front of him failed, he would have to reflect deeply.
What exactly went wrong?
Is there something wrong with the training direction?
The coach’s honor depends on the athletes, and the athletes’ future depends on the coach’s vision. Their destinies are closely linked and intertwined, just like the string that is taut at this moment.
If you look closely, you will find that it is made of two two-color thin wires wrapped around each other.
“Bang!” The flexible bowstring sent the arrow out and hit the yellow circle.
The staff member yelled, “Ten rings!”
Song Yang clenched his fists and jumped on the spot.
Li Xun immediately breathed a sigh of relief and clapped his hands: “Good job.”
In this case, the opponent can only win the game if he also hits a ten ring. According to Zhang Chen’s previous results, the probability is not high because he has never hit a ten ring.
Song Yang smiled, took two steps back, and stood shoulder to shoulder with him.
At this time, Zhang Chen’s coach seemed to have a sense of urgency. He subconsciously touched his trouser pocket. Li Xun guessed that he probably had a strong addiction to smoking.
Everyone’s eyes were on the last arrow.
Zhang Chen’s final aiming time was obviously several seconds slower than before, and the blue arrow flew out with a “whoosh”.
It was a little far from the center of the target and seemed to have hit the red zone. The screen on the opposite side was quite large, but not high definition enough to see clearly whether it had crossed the line.
If it hits the line, it will definitely count as 9 rings. If the two are tied, shoot another arrow. If it doesn’t hit the line, Song Yang wins.
Winning or losing depends on the referee’s decision.
The senior brothers clenched their fists, like lottery players waiting for the prize draw, and shamelessly muttered: “Eighty-eighty…”
“Eight rings.” The staff member reported a score.
The team leader led the applause and congratulations, and the teammates stood up excitedly and blew the hooligan whistle: “Wow, awesome!”
Li Xun tilted his head and was about to remind them to stop creating hatred here, when the jumping kid next to him suddenly bumped into his arms.
Song Yang was big in stature, and Li Xun was almost knocked over by him when he was caught off guard. He subconsciously hugged his waist.
“Master, I won! I won! Hahahaha!” Song Yang laughed and jumped, patted Li Xun on the back, and said with great joy, “I can come again tomorrow!”
Li Xun’s arms were frozen in the air, looking somewhat at a loss.
He has a cold personality and has liked to be alone since he was a child. Even if he won a team game, he would at most high-five his teammates to celebrate. He has never been hugged like this. At this moment, he was like a male model standing in front of a clothing store, at the mercy of others.
The little guy’s hair tickled his ears.
Li Xun raised his eyes and saw the contestants sitting on the ground opposite him. He felt like there were hundreds of pairs of surprised eyes staring at them.
This feeling couldn’t be more weird.
His scalp was tingling, and he was about to push the kid away when he heard a fox who didn’t get any grapes say, “What’s the big deal? It’s just an elimination match. If you don’t know, you might think I won the championship.”
Song Yang’s smile froze instantly.
Li Xun’s arms, which had been suspended in mid-air and had nowhere to rest, gently dropped down. He stroked Song Yang’s back and whispered in his ear, “Yes, you are the best.”
The worry between Song Yang’s brows disappeared, he smiled, and reluctantly let go of his arm, thinking that it would be better if it was summer. In winter, the clothes are too thick and he can’t even feel Li Xun’s heartbeat and body temperature.
The elimination rounds for 1st to 16th place were arranged at the end. Given the level of Wu Jianian and Yu Shenwei, they advanced without any surprise.
When the game ended, it was already completely dark and everyone was discussing where to go for a midnight snack after returning home.
The driver dozed off in the car, and only after the team leader knocked on the door several times did he slowly sit up.
Everyone likes to choose a double seat, with one seat for people and the other for things, but Song Yang didn’t choose that. He saw that the seat next to Li Xun was empty, so he walked over quickly.
Li Xun originally planned to take a nap, but when he saw him sit down, he took off the headphones he had just put on.
“Can you hold my camera for me?” Song Yang asked.
Li Xun nodded: “Yes, it’s in my bag.”
Song Yang held the suitcase between his long legs and took out a bag of braised duck tongues from his coat pocket: “Want to eat?”
Li Xun shook his head: “I don’t like eating duck.”
Song Yang changed to another bag of konjac jelly.
“Only children eat jelly.”
“Adults can eat jelly, too.” Song Yang unscrewed the lid, “Try it, the peach flavor is super delicious.”
Li Xun’s brows were filled with rejection.
When Sun Pang in the front seat heard the word “delicious”, he turned around sharply, leaned on the back of the chair, and stretched his eyes like slits into crescents: “What good stuff? Why don’t you ask me if I like it? All you do is bribe the coach all day long!”
“Duck tongues.” Song Yang handed the bag over, “Leave two for me.”
“I know.”
“You know it every time, and you never leave any for me.”
The aroma of the braised food soon drifted to the front seat, and several arms stretched out like beggars. After several twists and turns, the small package of duck tongues was finally gone as expected.
The car started slowly and drove through the inky night. The street lights on both sides were on. If it were not for the crescent moon in the sky, it would be hard to tell whether it was early morning or late night.
The rocking carriage was very hypnotic, and everyone fell asleep one after another. The sound of chatting in the car became quieter and quieter, until it was completely silent in the end.
Li Xun felt a little sleepy and was about to adjust his sitting position to take a nap when he discovered that the little guy next to him had also fallen asleep with his head tilted.
The colorful neon lights shone into the carriage, and Song Yang’s cheeks flickered.
He looked closer and found that there was a very faint mole on Song Yang’s temple.
Why are this little guy’s eyelashes so long…
Song Yang was tired after a day of work, and like a kindergarten kid, he fell asleep halfway through sucking the jelly with it still in his hand. Li Xun smiled, slowly moved the suitcase away from his legs, put it on the back seat, and then took the jelly out of his hand bit by bit.
Song Yang groaned and raised his hand to scratch his cheek.
Li Xun’s body froze when it was halfway twisted, and he stared at him for a long time in a wooden posture.
Fortunately, he didn’t wake up.
Song Yang looked silly while sleeping. Li Xun remembered something, leaned over slightly, and sniffed Song Yang’s lips.
A sweet peach flavor.
