Chapter Forty: Good Luck, Bad Luck

"Crack!" Yu Manman’s whip struck the ground once more.

“I’m the coach. Do I need you to tell me when someone should go on the court?” Her words, sharp as a lion’s roar, coupled with the lash of her whip, left Geng Haoshi too frightened to utter another word.

Yu Manman turned and walked away, leaving Geng Haoshi no choice but to trudge sullenly to the cafeteria with his teammates.

Zhu Di, noticing Geng Haoshi’s gloomy, distracted expression as he picked at his food, tried to comfort him. “Don’t take it too hard, Second. There’ll be plenty more games in the future.”

Lacking the heart to reply, Geng Haoshi merely kept his head down and continued eating. The rest of the team, meanwhile, chatted animatedly about their own heroic feats during today’s match, bursting into laughter from time to time. In a way, this was their way of practicing Yu Manman’s instruction to “remember the feeling of victory.”

Everyone enjoyed the meal—except for Geng Haoshi.

That evening, they resumed training as usual.

On the second day of the Autumn Joint Sports Meet, since there were no matches scheduled, Geng Haoshi and his teammates spent the entire day practicing.

The third day’s games would also begin at three in the afternoon, with the six winning teams from the previous two days drawing lots to determine the matchups and decide the top three. These six teams were: Tiancheng Institute of Technology, Huayu Academy of Design, Likun University of Posts and Telecommunications, Mingjia University of Media, Fengdu Institute of Engineering, and Feiling Aviation Academy.

At half past two, Captain Meng Lang went to draw lots while the rest of the team lingered nearby, chatting idly.

Xu Gaofeng said, “Yesterday, Mingjia University of Media won the loser’s bracket playoff. Last year, they were ranked one hundred and ninety-third in the national collegiate basketball league.”

Zhu Di chimed in, “Talk about bad luck—they ran into Feiling Aviation Academy, the strongest of the ten schools, in their very first match.”

Sun Peng added, “After yesterday’s grueling round, they’re bound to be cannon fodder today. If we could face them, that would be perfect.”

Zhu Di clasped his hands in mock prayer. “Oh, Lord, I offer up ten years of our captain Meng Lang’s life in exchange for drawing Mingjia University of Media.”

Geng Haoshi nodded solemnly. “I like that idea.”

Soon, Meng Lang returned with the results and handed them to Coach Yu Manman.

“This afternoon, our opponent is Mingjia University of Media,” Yu Manman announced.

The team erupted in cheers.

Sun Peng beamed with delight. “We actually drew them!”

Zhu Di, hands pressed together, intoned, “Lord, please accept those ten years of Meng Lang’s life. Just make sure there’s no mistake.” With that, he bowed solemnly toward the sky three times.

“Since you’re all so pleased,” Yu Manman said with a smile, waving her whip, “you must beat them by more than thirty points today. Or else…”

The team gulped. More than thirty points again? If they’d known, they would have saved their celebration.

At three o’clock, all three matches commenced simultaneously in the Feiling Aviation Gymnasium.

As expected, after five grueling games the day before, Mingjia University of Media’s players were utterly exhausted. By the end of the first quarter, Tiancheng Institute of Technology led by a commanding 21 to 6.

During the break, Yu Manman offered no tactical advice; the opposing players were already spent, barely able to continue.

With the coach silent, the team began to strategize among themselves.

Meng Lang said, “Next, we’ll launch a full offensive and crush them completely.”

Zhu Di laughed. “They’re done for. I bet we’ll be up by thirty points by the second quarter.”

Aside from their recent win, the players from Tiancheng Institute of Technology had known nothing but defeat in external competitions for the past three years. Now, faced with such a feeble opponent, they couldn’t help but sharpen their knives for the slaughter.

In the second quarter, Tiancheng’s team pressed forward aggressively. Mingjia’s exhausted players could barely keep up, and Tiancheng scored with every attack. On defense, they marked their opponents tightly, preventing passes, drives, or shots.

By the end of the second quarter, Mingjia University of Media had yet to score a single point, while Tiancheng soared ahead, 63 to 6.

“Beautiful!” Zhu Di lounged with one leg crossed over the other, looking thoroughly content.

All the players seemed satisfied—except for Geng Haoshi. It wasn’t that he resented their victory; that would hardly make sense.

Originally, Geng Haoshi had watched the game with little interest from the sidelines. But as the match went on, he found himself growing more attentive.

He was observing closely: although the players from Mingjia University of Media looked utterly drained, not one of them gave up. Despite their fatigue, their inability to seize the ball, their failure to score, and the ever-widening gap, their eyes remained fixed on the game.

“Keep your eyes on the ball”—wasn’t that what Coach Yu Manman had said was the key to winning?

Though victory was beyond their reach, the Mingjia players hadn’t abandoned hope. Even in certain defeat, hope endured in their hearts. This was what Geng Haoshi saw.

Moreover, there was another detail: the supporters cheering for Mingjia on the sidelines far outnumbered those on Tiancheng’s side.

In fact, apart from the substitutes, not a single spectator remained for Tiancheng. Years of disappointing performances had drained all hope from their fans; only a few close friends still bothered to watch their games.

Today, point guard Zhou Xiaoshan’s girlfriend, Lin Ling, was absent, as was Yang Mimi. Geng Haoshi, however, was glad Yang Mimi hadn’t come to watch.

He mused, “Those fans are truly cheering for them, even though anyone with eyes can see they’re bound to lose. Their unwavering support must be the result of the players’ persistent efforts and fighting spirit… I envy them.”

If not for luck, it would likely be us losing today.

But luck only takes you so far; eventually, you’ll face the strongest opponent. If you want to stay lucky, there’s only one way—train hard and forge flawless skills.

That was the realization Geng Haoshi gained from this match.

Hearing Geng Haoshi’s inner thoughts, 9527 and Geng Haoshi 2.0 couldn’t help but interject.

“Master, have you lost your mind? This isn’t like you at all!” 9527 exclaimed.