Chapter 435 – I Can’t Lose
Friday afternoon 3pm, on the synthetic basketball courts.
I kind of regret participating in the basketball tournament.
It has nothing to do with the fact the school decided to use international standards instead of NBA standards and chose to use two 20 minute halves instead of four quarters.
It also has nothing to do with the fact that Niu ShiLi and the others were only passing the ball among themselves without even giving me a chance to get any points.
Nor does it have anything to do with the fact that my uniform was the number 2.
The reason why I regret participating in the tournament was because the boys basketball tournament and the girls volleyball tournament are held simultaneously! I was looking forward to seeing the class leader wearing shorts, but that dream burst like a soap bubble. Since I can’t watch the girls volleyball game, that means my other wish of having the class leader cheer for me is also gone.
The school said in order to not interfere with regular classes, they would try to schedule the tournaments during PE class… there’s no need to try to be so efficient, our youth is being wasted away…
As expected, there weren’t many boys who came to watch the basketball tournament, they all went to watch the class leader’s long legs.
Damn it, I hope you guys all get needles in your eyes. But so what if you can see the class leader’s legs? I’ve felt it before and Shu Zhe even has video evidence!
But I can’t bring that out just to show off because I would die. Just like the crazy guy said last night, I will really die.
There were also very few girls watching the basketball game. Xiong YaoYue couldn’t come since she was the leader of the volleyball team and Gong CaiCai went to watch the class leader. Most of the spectators today for our match was for class 2-6. They even formed a six girl cheerleading squad with proper cheerleading uniforms and pom-poms in each hand. They would all shriek every time their class scored a point.
Right before the game started, Eunuch Cao pleaded to me with an angry expression:
“Master, you have to beat class 6. They’re basically insulting the game of basketball.”
“Huh, why can’t they insult basketball, when did that become a big deal for you. So what did they do to you this time?”
Eunuch Cao wiped away his tears, “I don’t care about the basketball players, but the cheerleaders of class 6 has zero professionalism. They actually…. wore safety pants under their skirts. What’s the point of cheerleaders if there’s no chance of getting exposed? Master, you have to get revenge for me on the court.”
Does your life have no meaning if you can’t see girls’ underwear? It looks like you’re following exactly behind your father’s footsteps.
Among the first pick players of class 2-3, Xu LiJun was the more talkative one. After he saw class 6’s cheerleading team, he sighed and said:
“It would be nice if our class had one too. It’s fine even if it was Gong CaiCai alone, and she wouldn’t even need pom-poms. She can achieve effects the other team can’t obtain by simply jumping up and down in place.”
“That’s right, that’s right.” Eunuch Cao agreed with his words.
And of course, there was no way Xiao Qin wouldn’t be here if I was playing.
Standing to her sides were Loud Mouth and Little Smart.
I don’t know if it’s because ‘Sister Qin of Rose Group’ has a natural ability to attract others or if she used snacks and BL novels as bribes. But lately, Loud Mouth and Little Smart, who has always been the class leader’s followers, have slowly began following Xiao Qin more and more.
Is this a strategy to isolate her enemy? But you wouldn’t think of her as a scheming strategist when you see her smiling foolishly between Loud Mouth and Little Smart.
“Ye Lin classmate… good luck.”
Due to her androphobia, that was the loudest voice she could use to cheer me on.
“Xiao Qin, did you miss a meal?” Loud Mouth sighed, “Watch, this is how we cheer. We can’t lose to those vixen from class 6.”
“Class 3, do your best, knock down those useless ones from class 6.”
Xu LiJun mumbled from behind me: “If we’re comparing voices, Xiong YaoYue might be able to compete against Loud Mouth. But Loud Mouth is matchless in terms of weight.”
Xu LiJun still talked to me before the game started, but he stopped after Niu ShiLi began his battle with me.
The players from class 6 were neither bad nor good. Their overall performance was mediocre and their technical skills were average. The five of them were even similar in height.
Unlike our team where only Niu ShiLi and I were a bit taller, but the rest were all shorter by quite a few cm. You Chen, who was the shortest at 160cm, was comparable to Xiao Qin in height.
But You Chen had great ball handling skills and speed, so I looked forward to his performance.
The game officially began when Niu ShiLi won the ball in the tip off.
The referee was the PE teacher, Li DaYong. Like usual, the whistle that never left his body was hung around his neck. He stood at the sidelines and followed the ball like a hawk. The scorekeeper was someone from the student council. He sat half dead behind the table as the score 0:0 was shown in front of him.
Pi ZeGuang, who was a substitute, was the one who scored the first two points.
Pi ZeGuang got a rare chance due to Chen You’s quick breakthrough and was able to get off a shot without any interference.
“Good job!” Loud Mouth yelled, “Keep it up! We have to do better this year, don’t lose again!”
Loud Mouth still can’t forget the fact we lost miserably against Shen ShaoYi’s class in our first match last year.
Next, in the defense phase, the rearguard You Chen was able to intercept the ball. He passed to Niu ShiLi, who was positioned further up. Niu ShiLi was able to score with a layup, then he sent me a challenging look after he dropped.
After that Xu LiJun and Niu ShiLi was able to cooperate again and Xu LiJun was able to successfully score.
That means the score was now 6:0 and the score between me and Niu ShiLi was also 6:0.
Five minutes have already passed since the game started and I haven’t even touched the damn ball.
One reason was because Niu ShiLi and the others wouldn’t pass the ball to me. The other reason was because the captain of the basketball team, Guo SongTao claimed I was the third best in the school at basketball. That scared class 6 so much they even sent two people to guard me, which lessened the pressure on Niu ShiLi.
After a while, class 6 realized something was wrong as no one passed to their main force, Ye Lin. They called for a timeout to change their plans and they appeared again with a new outlook.
Now there was only one person left guarding me, so there was more pressure on my teammates. It looks like they weren’t dumb and were able to figure out we didn’t have any unity.
“I already heard about the bet between Ye Lin and Niu ShiLi, that the loser has to drink Fu Yan Jie, but I didn’t think it was real.”
The substitute members of class 6 whispered.
I thought Niu ShiLi would slip up with the increased pressure, but he was much more steady than I expected. Although he couldn’t score any more points, he never lost the ball either. On the other hand, Pi ZeGuang slipped up multiple times and the score turned to 6:4.
After class 6 scored another three pointer, we were one point behind. The class 6 cheerleading team began to cheer and chant as they saw the 6:7 scoreboard. They waved their pom-poms as they cheered all their balls will go in.
“All their balls won’t go in.” Loud Mouth followed along and added to their cheer.
Xiao Qin couldn’t cheer loudly due to her androphobia, so she looked at me as if to say: “You have to win.”
Of course I have to win, there are many reasons why I must win.
In order to save time, the school chose to do a knockout tournament. That means you won’t get a second chance if you lose once, but I promised the class leader I would take home the championship award for our grade.
I can’t go to the class leader’s home for free food without the award! And all my efforts using the Fu Yan Jie bet to encourage the team would have gone to waste.
The most important thing was that Fu Yan Jie is definitely not for human consumption! If I take the championship, but I don’t score the most points, I would still have to drink it.
As I watched Xiao Qin’s encouraging look, I made a decision: I definitely can’t lose. If I drink Fu Yan Jie, I would feel strange if I end up kissing Xiao Qin again.
It’s likely Xiao Qin would become my sister in the near future, so I won’t ever kiss her again. But I always have to be prepared just in case, and I really don’t want to drink Fu Yan Jie.
With all kinds of reasons not to lose, a roar erupted from my throat. I brought out my power and intercepted the ball Pi ZeGuang passed to Niu ShiLi, then while everyone was still confused, I leaped up and scored.
“Ye Lin classmate is amazing.” Xiao Qin summoned her courage and shouted out loud.
Niu ShiLi looked at me with a complex expression through his basketball goggles.
In fact, he himself knew that the ball was passed at a bad angle without enough strength, so there was a good chance it would have been intercepted. I had no faults to blame since I made the move first and scored.
But don’t expect him to compliment me.
After I intercepted my own team’s passes a couple of times, class 6 became frantic. When they sent more people to guard me, I would repeatedly pass the ball to Pi ZeGuang. He was able to get in the groove after he scored three consecutive balls. He was no longer as nervous and stopped making a lot of mistakes, so he was no longer our weak point.
Class 6 attacked vigorously to not disappoint their cheerleading team. They attacked wave after wave with increasing intensity. When the first half was almost over, Xu LiJun was in a tight spot as he was cornered by two opposing team members. He saw a friendly team member standing in an advantageous position, so he passed the ball without another thought.
Of course, the one standing in the advantageous position was me.