Chapter 28

As soon as the words fell, Qin Qingzhuo raised his hand and passed the ball to Zhong Yang diagonally ahead.

In the instant the ball was released, Jiang Ji, who had just looked relaxed, seemed to have targeted Qin Qingzhuo’s movement early on. While Zhong Yang raised his hand to catch the ball, Jiang Ji leaned forward, extended his arm, and slightly brushed past the basketball, instantly changing its direction.

Stepping forward, Jiang Ji quickly took control of the basketball, skillfully bypassed Wang Zhen, who was trying to intercept him, dribbled his way to the basket, jumped up, and made a dunk. The basketball went smoothly into the hoop — score!

This time it was Wang Zhen’s turn to scold Zhong Yang, “Can’t you catch the f*cking ball? Letting people dunk on our faces!”

Zhong Yang retorted unabashedly, “Can’t I make a mistake?”

Because Jiang Ji scored just now, it was now his team’s turn to inbound the ball. Jiang Ji passed the ball to one of his teammates, whispered a few words, then positioned himself a little farther away, ready to receive the ball.

“Brother Qingzhuo, watch Jiang Ji!” Zhong Yang shouted to Qin Qingzhuo.

Qin Qingzhuo nodded.

The player with the ball raised his hand, aiming it at Jiang Ji, who seemed ready to receive it.

But the player made a feint and passed the ball to another teammate instead. While Zhong Yang and Wang Zhen were both focused on Jiang Ji, Qin Qingzhuo actually anticipated that Jiang Ji would use this tactic — after all, being marked by three people simultaneously, even if Jiang Ji received the ball, it would be difficult for him to break through. So Qin Qingzhuo deliberately stood close to the other teammate.

The moment the other player received the ball, Qin Qingzhuo quickly moved up to defend. Unable to get past Qin Qingzhuo, the player threw the ball far away. Qin Qingzhuo’s defense worked, and the three-point shot hit the backboard and bounced out.

By this time, Jiang Ji had already broken through Zhong Yang and Wang Zhen’s defense, rushed to the basket, jumped decisively, and made another dunk, sending the rebounded basketball into the hoop once again.

After witnessing Jiang Ji score several consecutive baskets, Qin Qingzhuo understood how the significant gap in the score had come about — Jiang Ji’s skill far surpassed the others’, and now he was playing effortlessly.

As he walked past the hoop, Jiang Ji glanced at Qin Qingzhuo. “Ready to call me ‘brother’ yet?”

Qin Qingzhuo: “…”

Originally, he just wanted to join in and get some physical activity, trying to avoid sweating as much as possible. But as he watched the score fall further and further behind, coupled with Jiang Ji’s recent provocation, Qin Qingzhuo’s long-suppressed competitiveness was slightly stirred.

He couldn’t possibly… really call a kid ten years younger than himself “brother.”

Since stepping onto the court, Qin Qingzhuo had never been so serious.

Two meters away, Zhong Yang finally managed to get hold of the basketball and was about to dribble towards the hoop when Jiang Ji blocked his path. Seeing the ball in Zhong Yang’s hands about to be intercepted by Jiang Ji, Qin Qingzhuo cut between the two from the side, setting a screen for Zhong Yang.

At 1.83 meters tall, Qin Qingzhuo successfully blocked Zhong Yang, who was slightly shorter behind him, for just a moment. Zhong Yang had already shaken off Jiang Ji’s interference and quickly dribbled towards the basket. By the time Jiang Ji tried to intercept after getting past Qin Qingzhuo’s screen, Zhong Yang had already jumped up high, pressed the basketball into the hoop with both hands, and then grabbed onto the rim, swinging his legs off the ground twice, shouting, “I finally scored!”

As he landed, he opened his arms and pounced towards Qin Qingzhuo. “Brother Qingzhuo, I knew you weren’t a pig teammate!”

Wang Zhen, standing on the side, felt targeted and rolled his eyes.

Qin Qingzhuo took a step back, stumbling slightly from Zhong Yang’s pounce, but he laughed and reached out to steady him. Finally, their team scored the first goal, and it felt quite exhilarating.

After hugging Qin Qingzhuo, Zhong Yang ignored Wang Zhen’s disdain and also rushed over to hug him.

Qin Qingzhuo noticed Jiang Ji looking at him, so he looked back at him.

Jiang Ji picked up the basketball from the ground and threw it to him. There was no hint of annoyance on his face for missing the shot. Instead, he looked at Qin Qingzhuo and smiled teasingly, “Interesting.”

Qin Qingzhuo also smiled. “Does this mean I’ve earned the approval of the school’s basketball team captain?”

“Kind of.”

“Alright, let’s add another condition. If I win, you have to tell me why you were removed as captain.”

Jiang Ji: “You know too much. It seems you’re not convinced yet.”

Zhong Yang jumped over, sweeping away the previous sluggishness. “Continue, continue!”

Perhaps because he had been suppressed by Jiang Ji for too long, the recent successful shot boosted their morale. Qin Qingzhuo could clearly feel that Zhong Yang and Wang Zhen were both taking it seriously now.

Learning from the lesson of the previous round, Jiang Ji’s teammates specifically assigned one person to mark Qin Qingzhuo. A few steps away, Zhong Yang faced the dilemma of being intercepted by Jiang Ji again. At the critical moment, he raised his hand and passed the ball to Qin Qingzhuo.

Qin Qingzhuo retreated with the ball, trying to shake off the person in front of him. On the left, Jiang Ji also approached him, showing more offensive capability than his other teammate.

The distance to the basket was estimated to be at least six or seven meters. Shooting at this moment might have a chance of scoring a three-pointer. However, with Qin Qingzhuo not having touched a basketball for many years, a hasty shot could likely be intercepted by Jiang Ji for a follow-up. So, while defending against Jiang Ji and his teammate, Qin Qingzhuo observed the situation around him.

He saw Zhong Yang run around Wang Zhen, preparing to receive the ball. The person responsible for marking Wang Zhen, seeing that Qin Qingzhuo was about to pass the ball, immediately stepped forward to block Zhong Yang. However, Qin Qingzhuo just made a feint, and as he passed the ball, it went to Wang Zhen.

Wang Zhen caught the ball and quickly ran, a few meters away from the basket. He jumped, shot the ball, and it smoothly fell into the hoop.

“Amazing, Brother Zhen!” Zhong Yang shouted, running over and raising his palm towards Qin Qingzhuo.

Qin Qingzhuo smiled and gave him a high five. Two consecutive goals made him realize that his judgment of the situation was correct. After noticing that the strength between the two teams was not particularly disparate, he realized that although Jiang Ji was a dominant player, the other two opponents were not very strong. They could only play a minor role in defense, and there was little hope for them in terms of breakthroughs and shooting.

On their team, although no one was as outstanding as Jiang Ji, Zhong Yang was good at breakthroughs, and Wang Zhen excelled in shooting. The distribution of abilities was quite balanced. With proper coordination, scoring was not entirely impossible.

Sure enough, the recent two goals confirmed Qin Qingzhuo’s thoughts.

As the score gradually narrowed, Qin Qingzhuo noticed that Jiang Ji put away his previous nonchalant attitude and became more serious.

Once Jiang Ji became serious, his previously concealed strength began to show, becoming highly offensive.

Jiang Ji’s playing style was like his motorcycle riding, fierce and skillful, a tactic of charging straight ahead.

As long as the ball was in his hands, he could break through with the ball all the way, smoothly putting it into the basket through various tricky techniques. It seemed that he excelled in both long-range shooting and close-range attacks, with no apparent weaknesses.

His two fill-in teammates couldn’t provide much assistance to Jiang Ji. It was as if Jiang Ji was playing a 1V3 basketball game. However, even in this situation, Jiang Ji still maintained a leading advantage.

However… whether it was an illusion or not, Qin Qingzhuo always felt that Jiang Ji was deliberately letting him off, consciously or unconsciously.

Perhaps saying “letting off” isn’t quite accurate; it’s more like “avoiding.”

In fact, when playing basketball, once you get serious, it’s quite easy to have collisions and bumps, which is why Qin Qingzhuo initially didn’t want to get involved. However, Qin Qingzhuo gradually discovered that every time he approached Jiang Ji to set a screen, Jiang Ji would deliberately or inadvertently avoid him, as if… afraid of hurting him.

It was because of this that the agreed-upon rule for the game was that the first team to score ten goals would win. Due to Jiang Ji’s intentional or unintentional avoidance, Qin Qingzhuo’s team had gradually caught up with Jiang Ji’s team, resulting in a tie.

With the score at 9:9, the next goal would be crucial.

Jiang Ji glanced at the scorebook, then glanced at Qin Qingzhuo.

Although all nine goals were scored by Zhong Yang and Wang Zhen, with Qin Qingzhuo only responsible for passing the ball, Jiang Ji knew very well that Qin Qingzhuo was the key player among the three. Qin Qingzhuo was agile, not particularly aggressive in his movements, but very skillful in setting screens and had a good sense of timing in passing. It was evident that he had a quick mind. Without him controlling the midfield, Zhong Yang and Wang Zhen would probably struggle to score a goal, just like before.

However, a lack of offensive ability was also a significant weakness on the court. Jiang Ji walked over to look at his two teammates and assigned tasks: “You mark Qin Qingzhuo, and you keep an eye on Wang Zhen. If we win this game, I’ll pay for our next trip to the bar.”

After saying that, he walked away, leaving his two teammates standing there, looking at each other in confusion.

As he passed by Qin Qingzhuo, Qin Qingzhuo smiled and asked him, “How about it? Can you win? Feeling some pressure now?”

Jiang Ji glanced at him. “I shouldn’t have let you call me brother earlier.”

Qin Qingzhuo raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“I should have had you call me dad.”

With a slight raise of his eyebrow again, Qin Qingzhuo said, “So arrogant?”

“Used to it. Is that a problem?”

“No, it’s fine.” Qin Qingzhuo smiled and shook his head.

He really felt it was fine. In the past, whether on the show or off the show, Jiang Ji always had an indifferent attitude, as if he didn’t care about winning or losing. Now, seeing a hint of a desire to win in his eyes, Qin Qingzhuo felt that this kind of Jiang Ji was quite… how should he put it, quite lively. Finally, he wasn’t the same lifeless figure as before, but had a bit of youthful spirit.

Zhong Yang didn’t expect Jiang Ji to come and defend him this round. Dribbling the ball in his hand, he was forced to step back step by step. With no chance of a breakthrough, he raised his hand and passed the ball to Qin Qingzhuo.

Qin Qingzhuo dribbled the ball, observing the surrounding situation. Originally, he wanted to find an angle to pass the ball to Wang Zhen, but Jiang Ji’s current position was very tricky. Once he passed the ball, Jiang Ji might intercept it.

As for passing the ball back to Zhong Yang again, it wasn’t a wise choice. Zhong Yang was far from the basket, and for someone like him who wasn’t good at long-range shooting, it would be quite difficult to dribble the ball to the area under the basket.

Among the three, it was actually myself who was closest to the basket, so I had the greatest advantage in attacking.

Looks like they’ve figured out that I can’t shoot… Qin Qingzhuo thought to himself.

After a brief hesitation, Qin Qingzhuo decisively bypassed the defender in front of him and dribbled straight towards the basket.

Qin Qingzhuo had never taken a shot throughout the game, and no one had expected him to make such a choice, not even Jiang Ji, who, after a slight moment of surprise, also charged towards the basket.

Jiang Ji’s explosive power was astonishing, and his speed was extremely fast. In the moment Qin Qingzhuo jumped, he saw Jiang Ji also jumping right behind him.

All it would take was a slight push from the tall and long-armed youth, and the basketball would deviate from the basket and fall to the ground. In that moment that seemed to stretch endlessly, Qin Qingzhuo knew he had lost.

But what he didn’t expect was that the hand raised towards the ball didn’t actually push it.

The basketball slipped from Qin Qingzhuo’s fingertips, swirled around the rim, and then gently and smoothly fell into the basket.

As his feet touched the ground, Qin Qingzhuo looked at Jiang Ji. The hand the youth had raised moments ago was now tucked into his pocket, as if his attempt to block had been an illusion.

“Nice shot,” Jiang Ji said to him, “So you can shoot after all?”

Before Qin Qingzhuo could respond, Zhong Yang’s voice sounded from behind him: “Brother Qingzhuo, you’re awesome!!”

Qin Qingzhuo turned around, just as Zhong Yang’s body seemed about to throw itself at him, Jiang Ji suddenly reached out and pulled him towards himself. Zhong Yang, caught off guard, missed his target and had to extend his arms forward to prevent himself from falling.

“F*ck,” Zhong Yang glared at Jiang Ji, “Jiang Ji, what kind of heart do you have, if you lose, you lose, why seek revenge?!”

Ignoring him, Jiang Ji walked to the side of the basketball hoop, bent down to pick up a bottle of mineral water from the ground, and handed it to Qin Qingzhuo. “Want some?”

Qin Qingzhuo looked at the bottle of water—it wasn’t a sealed one, but one that had already been partially consumed. After playing for so long and expending a lot of energy, he was indeed feeling thirsty, but seeing this half-drunk bottle made him hesitate.

“There’s no fresh one left, if you don’t want it…”

“Forget it,” Jiang Ji didn’t finish these two words when Qin Qingzhuo reached out and took the bottle of water.

It seemed impolite to refuse when the other person kindly offered water. As Qin Qingzhuo drank, he glanced at the nearby young men who were all scrambling to drink from the same bottle of water.

Jiang Ji lowered his eyes, calmly watching Qin Qingzhuo’s upturned neck, and beneath the thin skin, the rolling of his Adam’s apple.

Qin Qingzhuo was really thirsty. He drank nearly half of the bottle of water in one go, leaving about a third of it remaining. He gently shook the bottle in his hand until Jiang Ji reached out to him, prompting him to realize, and then he handed the water back to Jiang Ji.

On the other side, Zhong Yang didn’t have enough water. He turned around and saw that Jiang Ji still had some water left. He shouted to Jiang Ji, “Jiang Ji, save me some water!”

But Jiang Ji acted as if he hadn’t heard. Before Zhong Yang could come over, Jiang Ji tilted his head back and drank the remaining water in the bottle, emptying it completely.

“Damn it,” Zhong Yang gritted his teeth as he looked at the empty water bottle in Jiang Ji’s hand, “You… you just wait until I expose this matter!”

“What matter?” Jiang Ji glanced at him.

“You and… you and…” Zhong Yang repeated twice, hesitating with Qin Qingzhuo nearby, and ultimately didn’t say anything. “Forget it, I’ll buy it myself.” With that, he ran off.

Jiang Ji ignored him, crushed the empty mineral water bottle, and threw it into the trash can. Then, he walked towards the exit of the basketball court, tossing a remark at Qin Qingzhuo, “Let’s go, what are you waiting for? Still waiting for me to call you ‘brother’?”

Qin Qingzhuo took the windbreaker hanging on the basketball hoop and followed him out. “Why did you let me have the last shot?”

“Because you seemed really eager to win,” Jiang Ji said, “and also, I didn’t want to see a big star like you embarrass himself in public and end up crying.”

“I can’t lose like that?” Qin Qingzhuo chuckled, turning his head to look at him. “But if I had lost, I really wouldn’t have known how to call you ‘brother’ anymore. Thanks, Captain Jiang.”

“Yeah, remember to return the favor,” Jiang Ji replied, walking ahead with his hands in his pockets.

In truth, he couldn’t quite explain why he had let Qin Qingzhuo have the last shot. He had never gone easy on anyone before when playing basketball. Images of Qin Qingzhuo jumping up to shoot flashed through his mind—the tousled hair, the fluttering clothes, and the thin layer of sweat on his forehead. In that moment, Qin Qingzhuo looked so light and… happy, as if he were shining.