Love is as simple as badminton.

Chapter 21: Unwavering, Unstoppable

As I left the stadium, the sun had just passed over the distant mountain peaks, radiating a brilliant and dazzling light.

Shi Yuqi kept looking back as the stadium behind her grew smaller and smaller. She jogged to catch up with Lin Xiang and took the basketball bag from his hand.

"Junior."

Lin Xiang turned his head when he heard the sound.

The senior's voice lacked its usual liveliness; he could hear the guilt and self-blame in it.

"I'm sorry, junior..."

Shi Yuqi always spoke to him with her head held high, but now she lowered her head, hiding her expression and avoiding his gaze.

"You've guided me for so long and helped me so much, yet I couldn't get you onto the school team..."

Lin Xiang stopped in his tracks.

The absent-minded girl bumped into his broad back, quickly pulled back, and trembled like a deer.

Then she cautiously raised her head, her peach blossom eyes shimmering, and her lips pursed into a shallow inverted "U" shape.

"Senior, you did nothing wrong. Please don't blame yourself."

Lin Xiang's voice remained calm as always.

Unlike the calm that concealed a hidden thunderbolt when facing Deng Ziyang, the calm at this moment was gentle, like the ocean that embraces the sun.

"I am very grateful to my senior for doing so much for me, and I am very happy."

The girl nodded, then lowered her head involuntarily.

Suddenly, I felt a little sore in my nose.

"that!"

She raised her head again.

"Don't blame Brother Ye and President Deng. They're both very good people, just not very good at speaking. And a lot has indeed happened in the past two years, they just..."

"They did nothing wrong. I won't blame them."

Lin Xiang shook his head slightly.

"If I were in their shoes, I might have made the same decision."

"and you……"

"I am very grateful to my senior for being willing to fight for my internal referral opportunity, but I never placed my hopes on internal referrals."

Lin Xiang continued walking towards the track and field.

"I will compete in the Freshman Cup, the School Championship, and many more and higher-level competitions to prove myself through these matches."

Shi Yuqi's voice trailed off: "But you're a liberal arts student after all, what if they still don't agree..."

"That's alright."

Lin Xiang stopped before the bend and put down his golf bag.

"If I ultimately fail to make the school team and participate in the high school badminton league, then I'll just have to accept that reality."

Shi Yuqi opened her eyes wide, somewhat puzzled.

This was a goal he had stated himself, but he didn't seem to care about it as much at the moment.

No, it wasn't that she didn't care... what she sensed was an unexpected firmness.

Under the girl's gaze, Lin Xiang turned his head, his eyes meeting the rising sun.

"Making it into the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology's (HKUST) badminton team is one of my goals in badminton, but I didn't start playing badminton just to make it into the HKUST team."

Even if I don't make it into the school team, my choice of badminton will not waver, and my pursuit of badminton will not stop.

My willingness to mentor the senior student stems from my admiration for her dedication and passion, not from a desire to be selected for the school team.

Shi Yuqi shuddered and turned her back.

The corners of her mouth gradually turned up, but her eyes became red, and her nose felt even more sore.

Why does this junior just say whatever comes to mind?

He has absolutely no conversation skills; do I have to make her cry?

Lin Xiang scratched his head, looking somewhat confused.

Zhao Hao had previously advised him that when a girl is unhappy, she should speak in a gentler tone and say more comforting words.

He felt he had done a decent job, but why was his senior so silent? Had he misstepped something?

"Senior?"

Having exhausted all other options, Lin Xiang could only try calling out to her.

"I'm here!"

The girl turned around, her eyes still slightly red, but her face clearly showed shallow dimples.

"Since my junior is so energetic, I, as his senior, can't let him down!"

She tilted her head and picked up her phone.

"The break is over, right? Next up is full-court footwork drills. Hurry up, Coach Shi will time you!"

"it is good."

Lin Xiang smiled and nodded.

And so a strange scene unfolded on the Xiangda playground:

A boy dressed in a badminton jersey and sneakers practiced badminton footwork smoothly by the track; a girl used two badminton bags as sidelines and held up her racket as a net to give him reference.

Compared to practicing in the gym, Lin Xiang's speed is a bit slower now.

Although synthetic surfaces offer some cushioning and anti-slip properties, they are not professional rubber flooring.

But apart from that, Lin Xiang's movements and distances were all very precise.

On the one hand, it was naturally due to Shi Yuqi's help, and on the other hand, Lin Xiang had already etched the entire court's dimensions into his muscle memory through years of practice.

So what if there are no sidelines? My footwork is the ruler!

"Ugh."

Jin Xin silently recorded all of this.

It must be said that it is indeed excellent material, just like a novel.

But the thought that this is someone else's life, and I'm just a nobody writer, makes me feel heartbroken.

It's pretty good, but there's something wrong with it.

Why doesn't he have such a great senior female student...?

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"Ding ding dong~"

The bell rang at five o'clock in the afternoon, marking the end of the last class on Friday.

"Everyone, go back and divide into groups. After you're done, send the group list to the teaching assistant. Next week, I'll let you know what you'll be presenting this semester. I've already put the PDFs of the reading list in the course group, so you can read them in advance."

The professor who taught sociology theory was named He Hai. Although he was over sixty years old, he was still very energetic and healthy. Lin Xiang often saw him playing basketball with other teachers in the early morning.

"Why do we have to give a presentation for every single course?"

Xu Yue let out a howl of despair.

"Every teacher says I don't have us read enough, but we're not just taking one course! I'm fed up!"

"You're right, but this is Xiangda Sociology, a top-tier program with an A-level ranking in the discipline evaluation, a legendary mating king among social sciences, capable of hybridizing with any other discipline to form XX Sociology."

Hao Wenmin clenched her fist, inhaled sharply, and forced a smile. "Using the fewest class hours in the entire school, we're giving you the most severe blow, and when it comes to job hunting... Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!"

"..."

Lin Xiang quietly packed his schoolbag, intending to hurry up and practice his physical fitness again.

"They say the team has divided the work, which means that no one should do it all by themselves."

Zhao Hao glanced at Lin Xiang.

"Old He's class also involves groups of three to four people. We can continue to divide the work by dormitory, just like the previous classes. It'll be easier to assign tasks that way. What do you all think?"

"I agree with Lao Zhao!"

"I agree with Teacher Xu's opinion."

"I'm fine with that too." Lin Xiang had already picked up his backpack. "As for dividing the work..."

"It's okay, you go and train first."

Zhao Hao patted him on the shoulder, "Since we're doing it by dormitory, we don't need to create a separate group chat. I'll write down the division of labor and send it directly to the dormitory group chat."

"Okay, thank you!"

Lin Xiang nodded and jogged away from the classroom.

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