Chapter 86: The Pink Gift

Seeing Geng Haoshi’s face filled with suspicion, Li Shishi gave an awkward laugh. “Hehe, didn’t I say? Don’t worry about those details.”

At that moment, Miao Xiaohua gazed at the wall covered in “gifts,” and for a while, she didn’t know what to say.

Miao Xiaohua pondered, thinking: This girl is visiting our home for the first time; at the very least, I should return a gift.

Ah, that’s right! Suddenly recalling something, Miao Xiaohua got up and went into the inner room.

Not long after, she returned with a bright smile, walked to Li Shishi’s side, and placed a small red box in her hands. “Child, I don’t have much to give you. This was part of my wedding dowry, not worth much, but it’s been passed down through generations.”

“Auntie, I really can’t accept this.” Li Shishi tried to return the red box, but Miao Xiaohua pressed it gently, patting it with a smile. “It’s meant for my future daughter-in-law.”

“Daughter-in-law?” Li Shishi stared at the red box in her hands, then quickly clutched it to her chest, delighted. “Alright, it’s mine now!”

With that, Li Shishi tilted her face, stealing a glance at Geng Haoshi. Her lovely cheeks were tinged with blush.

Geng Haoshi stood dumbfounded, thinking: Oh my goodness, I haven’t said anything yet, and my mother has already given away her token of affection. I was planning to give it to MiMi, the goddess…

Just then, the two men in black suits entered again.

“Miss, everything’s settled.” With these words, the two men left.

Geng Haoshi swallowed hard, wondering: Black suits and “settled”—could Shishi be the daughter of some mafia boss?

“Senior, I have a gift for you.” Before Geng Haoshi could gather his thoughts, Li Shishi grabbed his hand and led him outside.

The door creaked open, and Geng Haoshi was stunned by the sight before him.

“What’s going on?” He pointed at the land in front of his house, which could no longer be called “land.” The yard, once covered in gravel and dirt, had been replaced with smooth wooden flooring.

At one end of the wooden floor stood a sleek basketball hoop. Nearby, no fewer than twenty basketballs were piled up.

“This is my gift to you.” Li Shishi smiled sweetly. “I wanted to build a full basketball court… but the space was a bit too small, so I could only build half of one.”

So Li Shishi’s gift for Geng Haoshi was the half basketball court before him!

Such extravagance! Geng Haoshi glanced at the pink helicopter on the roof, thinking: For someone who owns a private helicopter, gifting half a basketball court seems trivial… But how did they manage to build it in such a short time? And why is the basketball hoop pink?! Even the basketballs are pink!

Could they all be custom-made? Geng Haoshi was about to ask Li Shishi, but she continued, “Senior, to enhance the festive atmosphere, I had them repaint the exterior walls of the house.”

Geng Haoshi turned to look—oh my! He hadn’t noticed before, but the single-story house, once plain cement, had been entirely transformed into a pink box!

“Isn’t it dreamy? Isn’t it cute?” Li Shishi looked at Geng Haoshi with a hopeful expression, seeking approval.

Geng Haoshi was stunned again! In his heart, a flood of wild thoughts surged—if the kids from the village saw this, he’d be laughed at endlessly!

Miao Xiaohua also came outside. Li Shishi, holding her hand, pointed to the freshly painted pink walls, still hoping for praise. “Auntie, doesn’t it look better this way?”

“It’s beautiful, truly beautiful,” Miao Xiaohua replied with a smile.

…

Li Shishi continued happily chatting with Geng Haoshi’s mother, Miao Xiaohua, inside the house.

A man in black entered, respectfully addressing Li Shishi: “Miss, it’s almost five-thirty. Should we head back?”

Li Shishi glanced at the time and suddenly seemed deflated, pouting with sadness. “Auntie, I have to go home…”

“Child, why not stay for dinner?” Miao Xiaohua thought Li Shishi would stay, and had just taken the largest fish from the freezer to thaw.

“My father said I must be home before six.” As she spoke, Li Shishi’s eyes shimmered with tears.

Seeing her on the verge of crying, Miao Xiaohua felt a pang of sadness. She reached out, gently stroking Li Shishi’s head. “Why don’t you call your father and say you’ll have dinner here tonight?”

“My father doesn’t know I came this far,” Li Shishi rubbed her eyes. “If he finds out I traveled so far, he’ll be angry.”

“Auntie, Senior, I’ll be going now.” Li Shishi stood up, reluctant to leave, and followed the black-clad man out.

Not long after, the sound of rotors echoed from the rooftop… It seemed she had flown away. For some reason, Geng Haoshi felt a sense of loss.

Miao Xiaohua appeared deep in thought. Ever since Li Shishi left, she sat in a daze.

Seeing his mother lost in thought, Geng Haoshi curiously asked, “Mom, what are you thinking about?”

“Oh,” startled by his question, she returned to herself. “Nothing… I wasn’t thinking about anything.”

Her eyes flickered, as if she was hiding something.

…

Today was New Year’s Eve. Unlike previous years, Geng Haoshi didn’t sleep in and woke at six.

“After half a year with a beautiful coach, I don’t dare lie in anymore.” He stepped outside, breathing in the fresh morning air, stretching his limbs and arms.

After warming up, Geng Haoshi began running laps around the half basketball court.

After half an hour, he started counting the basketballs on the ground… “Twenty-two in total.” He had no idea how Li Shishi managed to bring all these.

He arranged the basketballs along the three-point line, then picked them up one by one, executing rapid jump shots inside the arc.

He practiced shooting for nearly an hour…

9527: “Master, it’s time to start your vertical leap training.”

The vertical leap task was the final challenge of the intermediate stage in the 9527 Super Slam Dunk System.

Since September 10, 2016, Geng Haoshi had completed the intermediate tasks one by one: developing eight-pack abs in a month, running 28 meters at 7 meters per second in a month, then at 8 meters per second in another month, fifty fast passes in one minute, eighty rapid defensive arm movements in one minute.

The last task of the intermediate stage was: within a month, achieve a vertical leap of eighty centimeters…