Chapter 28: Fearing the Hardships of the Past, Yet Coveting the Luxury of the Present

"Haven't posted a video in a few days, I bet my followers must have missed me, right?"

Jiang Hong uploaded the match footage, edited by Su Cheng, to his own account.

[Thanks to the tireless supervision of my followers and a little bit of effort on my part, I've secured my first championship!]

The followers who saw the video title were taken aback for a moment. What on earth? So, Little Jiang didn't quit the internet; he was just away competing. Not long after the video went live, the comment section erupted.

"I knew Little Jiang wouldn't just give up that easily."
"And those haters were just shouting in here a moment ago!"

The followers then excitedly clicked the play button. Once they finished watching, the comment section exploded.

"Wait, what's going on, Little Jiang?"
"I thought this was just a friendly match, but you're telling me the level was this high?"
"Both of Little Jiang's opponents are experts!"
"Little Jiang... no, Brother Jiang, I feel like there's already a thick barrier between us."

The followers wanted Jiang Hong to do well, but not *too* well. They had all agreed to be the "hard-working type." Suddenly, you're dropping the act and saying you're a genius? How is anyone supposed to relate to that? You're telling us that the same Jiang Hong who was stumbling over his serves just a while ago has suddenly had an epiphany? Just pulled a trick out of his sleeve to show everyone?

Watching the followers' "mental breakdown" in the comments, Jiang Hong nodded with satisfaction.

...

"Hmm? Why are so many people looking for me?" After returning home from work, Wang Shijie opened his computer and found his notifications flooded.

[@TennisKid, Big Brother Ball, come and look at Little Jiang!]

Ever since Jiang Hong started uploading training videos, watching him train had become part of Wang Shijie's daily routine. He knew Jiang Hong hadn't posted for a couple of days, but he was convinced that Jiang Hong wouldn't give up so easily—unless he had suffered some sort of setback.

"Little Jiang uploaded a new video?"

Wang Shijie immediately opened Youku, found the account he followed, and confirmed that a new video was up. After reading the title and content, his eyes lit up. "Little Jiang played in a tournament?"

Wang Shijie opened the video with the intention of testing Jiang Hong's skill level. While he could see that Jiang Hong's level had reached a very good point from his daily practice, matches were a much more direct metric. Training could be monotonous, whereas matches provided the positive feedback needed to keep going.

...

Wang Shijie froze when he saw Jiang Hong's opponent. "Lin Yu?"

The tennis circle wasn't that big, and he followed non-professional official tournaments, so he recognized Lin Yu as a competitive player. Wang Shijie's brows furrowed instantly. "How did Little Jiang end up playing against Lin Yu?"

After all, a novice playing against a provincial team player seemed like a recipe for getting crushed. Yet, judging by Jiang Hong's title, it seemed he had actually won. With lingering doubts, Wang Shijie watched the match.

"Serving technique far exceeding the provincial team level, unparalleled forehand and backhand, agile speed, and abundant stamina... is this really the same Little Jiang I know?" If someone were to blur Jiang Hong's face and tell him he was a professional athlete, Wang Shijie would believe it. Lin Yu was essentially being schooled by Jiang Hong.

Then, Wang Shijie watched the second match. The opponent's drop shots were excellent, which happened to be Jiang Hong's weakness. Although Jiang Hong was a bit passive at the start, he adjusted his state quickly and used his own strengths to neutralize the opponent's drop shots.

Wang Shijie wrote a long post on the Tennis Bar forum: [Can a teenager who listens to advice successfully chase his dreams?]

"I've always felt that Little Jiang is talented, but I never expected his growth to be this rapid—he's already capable of defeating a provincial team player."

"I originally thought Little Jiang becoming a professional was just wishful thinking. After all, I've been playing tennis for over a decade and have participated in national and provincial competitions, but I know my talent isn't enough to reach a professional level."

"Perhaps, to put it darkly, I didn't want Little Jiang to succeed. 'If I haven't made it after working hard for so many years, why should he reach a height I couldn't attain so easily?' But after watching his training content, I realized how much he loves tennis and how willing he is to take action for his dreams."

"That's when my perspective changed. I want to see what level Little Jiang can reach after putting in the effort."

"After watching the match video, I realized that competitive sports are a world for geniuses. If one day Little Jiang makes it to a professional tournament, I won't be surprised."

After expressing his sentiments, Wang Shijie added a follow-up: "From the match footage, it's clear that Little Jiang still has many issues with his drop shot technique. Therefore, he should increase the proportion of his drop shot training. He should find someone to randomly feed balls at the net while he starts from the baseline to receive them. The quantity doesn't need to be huge—1,000 reps a day, followed by practicing 1,000 drop shots. Since his training intensity is already very high, he can selectively drop some other parts of his routine."

As a moderator of the Tennis Bar, Wang Shijie was quite popular. Not long after his post, many people left comments.

"Wait, Little Jiang's opponent was from the provincial team? I really couldn't tell!"
"Yeah, I thought the other guy was just bad because he only took two games, but now it seems Little Jiang is just too good!"

Jiang Hong looked at the messages on the forum and nodded with satisfaction. "This guy is a real good Samaritan!" Most of Jiang Hong's current training tasks were suggested by him.

"Interface!" Jiang Hong called out in his heart.

[Ding! Detected that the host received a suggestion: Complete 1,000 drop shot receives. Reward: Net Play Primary Technique +2, Speed Attribute +1 (Accept? Daily tasks are repeatable)]
[Ding! Detected that the host received a suggestion: Complete 1,000 drop shot deliveries. Reward: Net Play Primary Technique +3 (Accept? Daily tasks are repeatable)]

"Accept!" Jiang Hong didn't hesitate for a second. After all, these two training items would perfectly fill his last remaining weakness!

...

As for Wang Shijie's suggestion that Jiang Hong temporarily cut back on some training tasks, Jiang Hong had no intention of listening. After all, he possessed "Training Recovery Potions"—wake up from a sleep and he'd be as good as new. There was no need to worry about the injuries that plague others due to overtraining.

"If it's about drop shots, Su Cheng won't be able to help me with that." Jiang Hong's eyes lit up as he suddenly thought of the Tianxiang Club. He found the business card and made the call. Upon learning that the club had a ball machine, Jiang Hong finally set his heart at ease. If he had a machine, he wouldn't have to worry about his training sessions. After setting a time with the owner, Jiang Hong hung up.

"Ding!"

Suddenly, the computer made a sound. Jiang Hong didn't even need to look to know someone had messaged him. Opening QQ, he saw it was from Wang Cheng!

"I'm sorry?" Jiang Hong was stunned. Why would he suddenly say that? Just as he was about to ask, he saw another message from Wang Cheng.

"I originally wanted to recommend you to the coach for the provincial team, but since the coach hasn't been in a good mood lately, I didn't succeed. But don't worry, I'll continue to recommend you to the coach in a while!"

Jiang Hong finally understood why Wang Cheng had asked if he had signed with a team. He wasn't disappointed by the rejection because he didn't want to be a state-sponsored athlete in the first place. Although it could provide some funding, Qin Province wasn't wealthy, and for a niche sport like tennis, funding was even scarcer. When resources were allocated within the team, it wasn't just about skill. Jiang Hong didn't want to shackle himself for a bit of initial funding.

"No need for the trouble, Wang Cheng. It's fine if I don't get into the provincial team!"

Seeing this message, Wang Cheng's eyes widened. Was Jiang Hong so discouraged that he wanted to quit tennis? Wang Cheng hurriedly messaged back, "Jiang Hong, you are so talented, please don't give up!"

???

Jiang Hong wore a confused expression. *When did I say I was giving up?*

"I'm not planning on giving up tennis. If you really want to help me, you can look at my training methods and give me some pointers on how to improve them."

Seeing this, Wang Cheng was deeply moved. He hadn't even been able to help Jiang Hong, yet Jiang Hong was still willing to share his training plan. "Jiang Hong really is a good person!" Wang Cheng couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Asking for his advice must just be a polite gesture; Jiang Hong's skill level was so high that his training plan must be incredibly scientific.