Chapter Two: Inclusion Proposal—A Thousand Serves!

“Listening Advice System?”

“What on earth is that?”

Suddenly, a deep blue panel popped up before Jiang Hong’s eyes, instantly locking him in place.

[Ding! When others offer tennis-related advice to the host, and the host listens and completes it, rewards will be granted.]

“Open it!”

Jiang Hong’s eyes lit up immediately. He had suspected that rebirth without cheats was as good as no cheats at all.

Could an ordinary handsome guy like him really be satisfied with a dull life where girls chase after him after rebirth?

Nowadays, which handsome guy in online novels isn’t pursued by girls?

Jiang Hong was somewhat self-aware.

Without cheats, he could at best live without worries about food and clothing, but where was the thrill of an upset victory?

“Attributes?”

He noticed a line of small text at the bottom of the panel and tentatively commanded, “Open.”

In the next moment, a long string of data unfolded.

[Host: Jiang Hong]

[Age: 17]

[Dominant Hand: Right]

[Status: Excited (Speed +5%, Power +5%, Errors +5%)]

[Serve: 28]

[Baseline: 25]

[Forehand: 30]

[Backhand: 21]

[Net Play: 15]

[Tactics: 60]

[Stamina: 45]

[Speed: 51]

[Mentality: 75]

“Tennis novels don’t lie…” Jiang Hong’s mouth twitched as he looked at the data.

So his tennis attributes were “balanced development”—all of them failing to reach passing grades!

Only tactics and mentality looked acceptable, and the high mentality was probably forged by the harshness of society; after all, working part-time jobs is a real test of the mind.

As for tactics, it was likely theoretical knowledge accumulated from watching too many matches in his previous life.

Just a master of words.

After all, on tennis forums, it was always Federer’s backhand that was weak, Djokovic’s baseline play was lacking, and Nadal was slow on the court.

If you’re so good, why not play a match against us netizens?

But Jiang Hong knew theory was worthless without practice.

Executing tactics relied on skill and physical ability.

Putting a drop shot over the net was impossible; changing the ball’s direction only sent it flying out.

With these attributes, playing would be like children playing pretend.

But with a system, things were different!

Complete the advice, improve skills, earn rewards?

Wouldn’t that mean he could rise rapidly, punching Federer, kicking Nadal, and grinding Djokovic into the dirt?

Being a tennis player suddenly sounded quite appealing.

He already liked tennis and often fantasized in his previous life about turning pro and traveling the world—what a thrill that would be!

Besides, switching to another sport at this age was nearly impossible.

Most importantly, tennis had great commercial value, allowed players to select their own tournaments without having to bow to associations or organizations, offering maximum freedom.

Jiang Hong glanced back at the system panel.

[Suggestion 1: Practice 1,000 serves (Difficulty: D), Reward: 2 beginner serve skill points, 100 yuan cash, Training Recovery Potion (for daily training, reusable). Accept?]

Jiang Hong scrutinized the rewards, looking for any penalties, but saw none.

He breathed a sigh of relief—no task penalties.

Otherwise, it would be no different from being controlled by a boss rather than a system, making rebirth meaningless.

From what he saw, completing tasks earned rewards, skipping them had no punishment, and he could choose freely—this was a total win!

“Accept!”

[Suggestion successfully accepted, current suggestion slots: 1/5.]

Jiang Hong paused—only five slots?

Had he just wasted one?

He’d better choose carefully.

[System panel holds up to 5 suggestions, host can replace anytime.]

Alright, that was reassuring.

The rewards were quite generous; skill points were obviously for serve improvement, though it only said “beginner,” so he wondered if there were advanced skill points.

The cash was timely—early professional tennis was notoriously expensive with all the traveling.

For someone like Jiang Hong from a small county family, this was a godsend.

He’d likely have to find ways to earn money before competing.

Although the cash wasn’t much, it solved his initial starting funds.

As for the Training Recovery Potion…

Selling that could cause a frenzy among athletes.

After all, countless top talents have had their careers ruined by injuries.

That was especially common in tennis.

“Old Jiang, when did you become so sarcastic? That idiot’s face just turned green!” Li Hua chuckled as he watched Wang Li’s retreating back.

Seeing Jiang Hong unresponsive, Li Hua noticed him daydreaming and gave his shoulder a pat.

“Old Jiang! Old Jiang!”

“Huh?” Jiang Hong snapped back to reality.

Li Hua frowned, “What’s up with you today? Spacing out all the time.”

“I’m thinking about when I’ll win a Grand Slam,” Jiang Hong replied seriously.

“Alright then, I’ll keep your shoes and socks for auction later,” Li Hua teased, clearly thinking he was talking nonsense.

With Jiang Hong’s current level, he was about equal to Li Hua, couldn’t even beat Wang Li, so a Grand Slam? He must be delirious from the heatstroke.

Hearing Li Hua’s plan to steal his socks, Jiang Hong silently stepped back.

Thankfully, this was Chang’an, not Rongcheng!

“Let’s go eat before the cafeteria food gets snatched up!” Li Hua’s stomach was already protesting after the morning match.

After all, he was known for his legendary appetite.

“You go ahead, I’ll practice serving for a bit,” Jiang Hong waved him off, eager to test the system rewards.

Like a kid with a new toy, who could resist opening it?

“Practice? Why bother?” Li Hua looked at him like he’d seen an alien. “Your top priority is eating! Besides, it’s so hot and the senior girls have all gone back to the dorm. What are you pretending to do here?”

Li Hua wore an expression that said, “I’ve seen right through you.”

But Jiang Hong was determined—he had to practice.

“Hiss—” Li Hua suddenly gasped, eyes wide. “I get it! You want to secretly compete, attract the senior girls’ attention when you play later, right? That’s so sneaky!”

Jiang Hong’s mouth twitched. Knowing denial would only drag on forever, he simply nodded, “Exactly.”

Li Hua gave a knowing smile. “Alright, you practice. I’ll join you after I eat!” Satisfied, he walked away.

Once Li Hua was out of sight, Jiang Hong immediately began practicing serves—toss, swing, strike!

“Bang!”

He quickly checked the system progress: [Task: Serve (0/1000).]

Huh? He’d just served once—why didn’t it count? Was the system lagging?

Jiang Hong remembered the ball had gone out. Maybe only successful serves counted?

Curious, he tossed the ball again, pushed off, swung, hit!

This time, the ball landed firmly in the service box and bounced out.

[Task: Serve (1/1000).]

Okay, only successful serves counted.

With his serve attribute at 28, he guessed he’d have to serve two thousand times to complete this…

Though he hadn’t started proper training yet, Jiang Hong already felt his arms growing sore.

But he gritted his teeth—now that he had a system, if he couldn’t overcome this small hardship, he might as well give up and lie down at home.

If he quit at the first challenge, even a golden finger wouldn’t help.

He picked up another ball and continued: toss, swing, coil, strike, shoulder turn, follow-through…

At first, he had to watch carefully to see if the ball landed in the correct zone; later, he got used to it and immediately prepared for the next serve.

His arms went from awkward to accustomed, muscles gradually relaxing, the feel of serving returning bit by bit.

On the tennis court, the steady “bang bang bang” of the ball echoed continuously.

Passersby couldn’t help but steal a few glances.