Five days later, Lin Yiyang achieved another 147 maximum break.
It was the third maximum break of his professional career, and his second within the same Open. This brief interval ignited the passion of the fans; even those who didn't follow snooker were suddenly seeing one trending topic after another regarding Lin Yiyang.
In his first year returning to the domestic circuit, he was shattering records with staggering results.
Meng Xiaodong and Jiang Yang also made a triumphant charge, leading the newcomers to achieve the best results for domestic players in this year's China Open, delivering one brilliant moment after another for the home crowd.
Ultimately, Meng Xiaodong and Jiang Yang stopped at the semi-finals, while Lin Yiyang advanced to the grand final.
Yin Guo had thought she would be able to make it to the final, but the 9-ball association made a last-minute decision to extend the intensive training period. This meant she completely missed Lin Yiyang’s first Open since returning to the motherland.
The day of the final was the day training ended.
Yin Guo had no time to go home. As soon as the mobilization meeting for the World Championships concluded, she had to fly out for the US Open.
She sat in the front row, directly facing the leaders of the Sports Bureau. One of them was her own mother, so she didn't dare make a single unnecessary movement, nor could she check the time.
Her heart remained suspended, hanging in high tension.
Once the leaders finished speaking, everyone stood up to applaud. Yin Guo rose immediately, clapping more vigorously than anyone else; no one in the room was more desperate for this meeting to end than she was.
"Alright, everyone is dismissed. Go and get some rest," the kindly Association President told them. "Many of you have to head to the airport this afternoon, so I won't say more."
The crowd dispersed on the spot.
Seeing that her mother was too busy to pay her any mind, Yin Guo pushed through the crowd and walked quickly toward the exit. Once out the door, she ran straight up a flight of stairs, pulling out her phone as she went.
She didn't even need to browse the web; her WeChat had already exploded.
Everyone was sending her messages, including Zheng Yi and her cousin Meng Xiaotian. She actually didn't dare click on a single one.
The windows on the second floor were wide open. The wind blew against her face, yet it couldn't dissipate the heat in her cheeks.
Suddenly, a new message popped up.
*Lin: Not going to congratulate me?*
Her heart contracted violently.
She covered her mouth as tears of joy rushed from her eyes. In less than a second, they flooded out, flowing through the gaps between her fingers. He had won. Lin Yiyang had won! He had taken the championship title of the China Open!
Afraid of being seen or heard by the leaders passing by on the first floor, Yin Guo hid against the wall, pressing her right shoulder into the masonry, trying to control her emotions. At the exact moment the leaders downstairs walked toward the main gates, laughing and chatting, Lin Yiyang sent another message.
*Lin: I miss you.*
Holding her phone, she cried like a fool. After winning the championship, after lifting the trophy, he was telling her he missed her.
This was more moving than any sentimental speech.
This big fool never knew how to be melodramatic; he always used the simplest, most sincere words and everyday actions to let you know how much he cared.
***
Inside the stadium, the audience had already dispersed.
The man who had claimed the championship trophy sat in the first row of the north stands. The trophy sat on the seat beside him, along with his discarded suit vest. He rested his arms along the tops of the chairs to his left and right, leaning back as he relaxed and gazed at the empty arena.
The green table sat right in the center of the floor.
"Why are you sitting here by yourself?" Jiang Yang asked from behind him.
"Tired." He was too lazy to say another word.
"Haven't called your girlfriend yet?" the man behind him asked again.
Lin Yiyang held his phone in his right hand, waiting for Yin Guo’s reply. "They have their mobilization meeting this afternoon for the World Championships."
Before he could finish, his WeChat notification chimed—repeatedly.
Countless [Heart] emojis flooded the screen.
*Fruit in the Forest: I didn't expect you to actually take this championship...*
*Fruit in the Forest: You're the best.*
*Fruit in the Forest: It really feels like a dream.*
*Fruit in the Forest: I've cried myself stupid, let me catch my breath...*
Another barrage of [Heart] emojis followed, sent without pause.
Lin Yiyang looked at the scrolling screen and smiled, imagining her crying while sending them.
Laughter erupted behind him—and from more than one person.
He glanced back to see that the entire Dongxincheng crew was there. From the oldest to the youngest, from his generation to the next, they were all present. They had been standing there quietly, not making a sound, but once Lin Yiyang discovered them, they all broke into grins, calling out "Sixth Uncle" and "Sixth Brother" one after another.
For a moment, the northern stands became lively.
Lin Yiyang looked at them with amusement, stood up, and pointed at the trophy. He said to Jiang Yang, "Help me take it back."
With that, he braced his hands on the railing and vaulted down from the stands. His feet hit the floor, and he walked away without looking back. When he had won his first national championship at thirteen, he had celebrated the same way. Jumping down from the stands, shedding his suit vest, and walking through the center of the winning arena in a cheap shirt and ill-fitting trousers.
Jiang Yang leaned his hands on the railing, watching his retreating figure.
The boy of the past had a quick stride, and the man of the present walked fast too; but while the former was full of dashing spirit, the latter was steady and powerful.
***
After the club coach finished the check-in procedures for everyone, the group dispersed once they cleared customs.
Everyone ran off to the duty-free shops to shop.
Yin Guo was resting in the corner of a row of seats near the boarding gate, tucked away in the innermost spot.
On WeChat, Zheng Yi sent a message.
*Zheng Yi: Your man is incredible. He's taking over my feed.*
Zheng Yi was still an outsider to the professional circle, yet her social circle was being flooded with the news.
Yin Guo sipped her drink, wondering where he was.
As if by telepathy, a man’s hand pressed down on her shoulder a moment later. "Tired of waiting?"
Hearing Lin Yiyang’s voice, her suspended heart finally settled.
She looked around, especially toward the duty-free shops, checking to see where her teammates were.
"Come here, walk around the back first." She pulled on his wrist.
Lin Yiyang let her lead him around from the back row to the front. He hadn't changed out of his formal attire from the arena that morning; he had come straight over in his black dress shoes, trousers, and white shirt, though his collar was unbuttoned and his sleeves were rolled up slightly to soften the overly formal look.
He sat down beside her, but before he could get settled, Yin Guo stuffed a black mask into his palm. "Put this on first."
Lin Yiyang looked at the object in his hand with bewilderment. "What for?"
"Just put it on," she urged in a low voice. "There are a lot of colleagues on this flight."
His fame was at its peak today; he was the star player who had just won the China Open, and the internet was currently being flooded with his name.
In a while, this boarding gate would be filled with colleagues flying to the US for the 9-ball Open. Not many had signed up last year, but there were many this year, including many newcomers who hadn't seen him in the lounge last year. Although some people from the Beicheng Club whispered privately that Lin Yiyang was the "little junior sister's man," appearing so brazenly as a family member accompanying the team was still too conspicuous.
Lin Yiyang turned the mask over in his hands for a long time, gave a helpless smile, and chose to put it on. It covered the lower half of his face—a pure case of burying one's head in the sand. With his face covered, he watched her with his eyes.
The two hadn't seen each other for an entire month; it was inevitable that they wanted to look at each other more. With only their eyes exposed, it felt even more like a secret exchange of affection.
"My mom told me today that Elder He called her several times to catch up, and all he talked about was you," she whispered.
"The teacher was quite happy when he heard from Jiang Yang about our relationship," he said. "He told me I must bring you to his home when I have time."
His voice was muffled by the mask, dropping a few degrees in pitch.
"To your teacher's house?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes," he didn't think it was a big deal. "He can't really go out anymore. He's old, and it's not convenient for him to move around."
"No, I didn't mean I wanted to go out," she explained her surprise. "I've been hearing people talk about your teacher since I started playing at ten years old. I never thought I'd actually get to meet him."
He remained noncommittal. "You're the girlfriend of his direct disciple; it's only right and proper that you go see him."
Even so, it still felt surreal.
She spoke truthfully, "Before I met you, I thought all of Elder He's disciples were middle-aged men. Even the youngest, Jiang Yang, is six years older than my brother. I never imagined there was a 'fish that got away' like you."
Lin Yiyang nodded, patting her head. "My seniority has always been high. But you can just call me 'Gē'; you don't need to call me 'Uncle'."
Yin Guo laughed in embarrassment, swatted his hand away, and muttered, "Big bad wolf."
They hadn't spoken for long before the main group returned.
Lin Yiyang instinctively shoved his hands into his trouser pockets and naturally stood up from the seat beside her like a stranger, walking to the floor-to-ceiling glass to look out at the tarmac.
Looking at that back and the profile of his face, along with that signature shirt and trousers, a layman might not recognize him, but anyone in the industry could identify him at a glance. Yin Guo’s senior sister teased her, "Family member accompanying the team?"
"Yeah," she couldn't really deny it. "He finished his tournament... and didn't have anything serious to do. It just so happened he wanted to go back to New York to see some old friends."
The senior sister gave her a thumbs-up. "Impressive."
To skip the championship celebration banquet and head straight to the airport with luggage to accompany his girlfriend to her tournament—that was truly impressive.
Another senior sister also admired such a conscientious family member. "When you two met, it was a 'strong woman, weak man' situation, right? Xiao Guo, how did you take a fancy to him? Did you see his potential at a single glance?"
Who knew? It was probably... because of his face?
While they were discussing the origins of Lin Yiyang and Yin Guo’s relationship, the group from Dongxincheng walked past. Following tradition, they greeted Lin Yiyang, with a chorus of "Sixth Brother" and "Sixth Uncle" rising one after another... Lin Yiyang responded a couple of times, feeling more and more that the black mask was entirely redundant, so he simply took it off.
He told Chen An'an that next time, there was no need for everyone to come over and greet him.
Chen An'an pondered this for half a minute and said seriously, "That’s impossible. Dongxincheng emphasizes respecting teachers and the Way; seniors come first."
Lin Yiyang knew how stubborn this kid was and didn't argue. He pointed toward the boarding gate. "You guys go on first, I'll wait a bit."
"Not going together?" There was a hint of suspicion in Chen An'an’s eyes.
"Your sister-in-law is thin-skinned and afraid of being stared at," he said. "I'll board last."
Once on the plane, Yin Guo was on the left side of the business class cabin with three senior sisters. Chen An'an and a girl from Dongxincheng were on the right. The girl had originally been seated next to Yin Guo but proactively swapped seats with Lin Yiyang.
Both Dongxincheng and Beicheng provided economy class tickets for the clubs; anyone who wanted to upgrade paid the difference themselves. However, because business class seats were limited, there was usually an unwritten rule: star players and seniors had priority for business class, while the juniors usually didn't want to come up and join the fuss, feeling more relaxed and casual huddling together in the back.
There was a partition between the two of them, but they could see each other just by leaning forward.
She had originally wanted to whisper a few words to Lin Yiyang before takeoff, but the flight attendant had clearly recognized him. While taking meal orders before takeoff, she was smiling and chatting with him like a fan.
Feeling self-conscious, Yin Guo pulled her head back and continued playing with her phone.
After they were actually in the air, she went to the restroom and overheard the flight attendant who had taken the orders chatting with a colleague. "Lin Yiyang is up front. He's really handsome in person, definitely not photoshopped."
The flight attendant responsible for the rear passengers asked curiously, "Is he easy to talk to? Can we get a photo?"
"An autograph should be no problem. A photo is unlikely; I just asked, and he shook his head and said 'Sorry.' He probably doesn't want to take photos."
Yin Guo listened silently.
When the two flight attendants left one after the other, she looked through the half-open curtain for the man they were talking about, only to find that he had noticed she’d been gone for a while and was looking for her. Seeing Yin Guo in the back, he got up from his seat and walked across the aisle.
"What are you looking at?" He pulled back the curtain and asked her.
"Listening to the flight attendants talk about you," she pretended to ask for an autograph, holding the back of her hand under his eyes. "I heard you don't like photos? How about an autograph?"
Lin Yiyang saw how much she was enjoying her act and smiled, leaning close to her face. "Keep acting up and I'll kiss you."
Suddenly, the light blue curtain was pulled back, and a silver meal cart appeared.
The flight attendant pushing the cart had a glint of gossip in her eyes, yet she maintained a professional smile as the two of them stepped aside to the left and right. Yin Guo turned and fled. By the time she got back to her seat, she realized she hadn't even entered the restroom... she had waited outside for nothing.
She didn't even know why she was feeling so guilty.
After dinner, the flight soon entered night mode.
Most passengers were asleep, and the flight attendants stopped moving about.
Lin Yiyang was wearing headphones and watching a movie. Yin Guo watched for a while, felt drowsy, and chose to sleep first. This trip had a tight schedule; the tournament started as soon as they arrived, and she needed to force herself to adjust to the jet lag, so she needed to sleep as much as possible.
In a half-awake state, she felt her blanket being tugged.
She reflexively lifted her eye mask. In the dim blue cabin light, Lin Yiyang was beside her seat, leaning over to tuck her in. Yin Guo watched him lean down, her gaze meeting his. "You're not sleeping?"
She removed one of her earplugs so she could hear him.
Lin Yiyang’s features weren't quite real in such dim light. He leaned in closer, whispering into her ear, "I thought you were asleep." A warm breath fell upon her earlobe.
At an altitude of ten thousand meters, the ground beneath them was empty, and the space around them was empty; there were only the hundreds of passengers in the cabin traveling with them to the same destination.
With partitions in front and behind, even if someone were awake, they would only see them talking, not kissing.
Lin Yiyang’s breath moved below her ear, along her neck, and finally found Yin Guo’s lips. Just like that first time in the New York apartment, the two were attracted to each other in the darkness, groping to be intimate, engaging in the most honest physical exchange.
After a moment he stopped, staring at her, their breaths mingling.
"Today's match was also for you," he said in a low voice. "Little Queen."
Two 147 maximum breaks and a China Open championship—besides thanking his mentor, he wanted to give them to her. It was a return for that silly girl on the New York tournament floor who, under the gaze of the entire arena and regardless of the live broadcast cameras, had run toward a penniless coach and proactively taken that nobody's hand. Regardless of what the future held, she only wanted to share her best things and her most glorious moments with him.
A year had passed in the blink of an eye, and that penniless coach remembered it always; he had never forgotten.
Never forgotten.
***
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