Training Room One was filled entirely with snooker tables.
It was also filled entirely with... familiar faces.
Six-red snooker is a modern variation of the game that reduces the traditional fifteen red balls to six, significantly increasing the pace of play. For the Asian Games, it had been designated as a women's event. Because there was a lack of specialized players for this format, Yin Guo had taken one of the spots, determined to fight for a medal.
Lin Lin, despite having retired, had made a decisive comeback to take the other spot, hoping to secure another medal for China. Having played snooker in her youth, she was more proficient in the discipline than most female players.
On the men's side, the snooker representatives were naturally Lin Yiyang and Meng Xiaodong. They would also form the team for the group event, with Jiang Yang as the tentative third member. Since Jiang Yang was only a month out of surgery, his participation depended on his recovery progress; thus, Li Qingyan was on standby as the alternate.
Consequently, from the very first day, this training room felt exceptionally "lively." Everyone knew each other, and the web of relationships was complicated.
When Yin Guo arrived, Lin Lin and Jiang Yang were chatting in the lounge area, while Meng Xiaodong sat alone by the door, resting.
"Yin Guo’s here. Let’s get started then," Jiang Yang said upon seeing her, turning to Li Qingyan. "I’ll spar with you today."
Jiang Yang couldn't use a cue yet, but he could coach Li Qingyan. This was part of his responsibility—to ensure Li Qingyan made a qualitative leap during these seventy days of intensive training.
Yin Guo picked up her cue, glanced at her cousin, and then looked over at Lin Lin, who was drinking water.
The atmosphere was... *Maybe I should play with my cousin instead?*
Suddenly, a hand pressed against her back, guiding her toward the table furthest inside. "You're with me."
She didn't need to look back to know it was Lin Yiyang.
"Are you really going to let my brother play against Lin Lin?" she whispered.
Lin Yiyang glanced at her. From an angle hidden to others, he flicked her forehead lightly. "Worry about yourself."
He pulled his cue from the rack—a custom-made, solid black piece. Bending over, he pulled the balls from the pockets and set up a game of six-red snooker for her. "Your performance in the qualifiers was decent. You've at least grasped the basics."
She had placed first in the national qualifiers... and he called it "the basics"?
Well, snooker was his primary discipline. Compared to him, she—someone who had switched over mid-way just for the competition—really was just a beginner.
"If you practice with me, won't you fall behind in your own training?" She picked up a cube of chalk and applied it to her cue tip, worrying about him while stealing glances at her cousin’s side of the room.
"Your brother, Jiang Yang, and I will have our own private sessions. It won't be a problem," he said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
He had noticed her peeking at Meng Xiaodong and Lin Lin. They had already broken the rack, and it seemed her cousin wasn't going easy on her at all.
Lin Yiyang waved the hand holding the cue ball in front of her face. "Young lady, look at me."
Feeling guilty, Yin Guo pointed at the table. "You break first."
"If I break, you won't have anything left to do this frame." He handed the cue ball to her.
That was true. If he broke, he might just clear the table.
Just as she set her bridge, she heard Lin Yiyang speak. "Snooker. It’s a game of obstacles. You have to learn how to set obstacles for others." He was treating her entirely like a novice. "Even if you aren't in top form, you must have the skill to make your opponent lose the game."
*As expected of a calculating older man...*
Lin Yiyang tilted his chin slightly, signaling for her to begin.
With a sharp *crack*, she sent the balls scattering across the table.
***
Four hours of practice matches concluded.
Everyone was taking a break. Meng Xiaodong placed a single black ball in a particularly difficult position and suddenly said to Lin Yiyang, "Come on, show them what you've got."
Lin Yiyang smiled.
He leaned down, clearly aiming for the bottom corner pocket. After a heavy strike, the black ball didn't go into the corner. Instead, it traveled halfway around the table, heading straight for the middle pocket near Lin Yiyang’s hand. It dropped in perfectly.
"Keep going," Meng Xiaodong said from the side. "Let me see how many tricks you have left."
Using the same black ball in the same position, Lin Yiyang didn't hesitate. He demonstrated over a dozen different routes to the pockets. Some curved halfway around the cushions, some went a full lap, and some even circled the table one and a half times. Of the six pockets, he could make the ball drop into whichever one he chose.
It was just one ball, yet he produced over a dozen different scoring lines. Such rock-solid fundamental skill left those who didn't know him well in a state of awe.
Yin Guo mentally rehearsed the shots. At most, she could manage six routes, and even then, success wasn't guaranteed. The requirement for precision was simply too high.
For the final strike, the black ball jumped off the table surface, landed with a curve, struck the cushion, and rebounded into the bottom pocket.
"That's about enough," he said, retracting his cue.
"That's it?" Jiang Yang clearly hadn't seen enough. "Set them up."
"Let us see just how lonely you've been these past ten-odd years," Lin Lin added with a laugh.
"I want to see too," Meng Xiaodong chimed in.
Lin Yiyang gave a helpless smile. "There's a fee for the performance."
"Cut the nonsense and get to it," Jiang Yang said, having no patience for his banter.
Lin Yiyang sighed and picked out nine balls, arranging them into an equilateral triangle on the table.
This was a common habit among professional players—entertaining themselves by setting up trick shots. Daily practice was tedious, so this served as a form of recreation: arranging the balls into a beautiful shape and then clearing them all in a single break. It was highly ornamental and performative.
With a *crack*, the equilateral triangle was shattered. Without any suspense, all nine balls were cleared in one go.
Yin Guo liked to play like this in private too, arranging balls into various shapes. Her limit was nine balls. So, when Lin Yiyang started arranging ten, she held her breath...
The people from Dongxin City had all seen Lin Yiyang's strength when he was younger; his record was clearing twelve balls at once, arranged in a quadrilateral.
When he reached thirteen, Jiang Yang and Lin Lin began watching even more intently.
By this point, Yin Guo was wondering: during those years he spent practicing alone, just how lonely had he been to come up with so many variations?
Thirteen balls formed an ellipse.
Fourteen balls formed two symmetrical arcs.
When he reached fifteen balls, everyone instinctively crowded around the table.
Lin Yiyang had arranged the fifteen balls into a regular wave pattern—a double-layered wave. He aimed at a specific spot. In the silence of the room, he struck. The wave was instantly broken. All the balls flew across the table in what seemed like "total chaos." One, two, three, four, five... finally, the fifteenth ball rolled at an incredibly slow speed toward the pocket and, with a soft *clack*, successfully dropped in.
Yin Guo felt her blood boiling with excitement and joined the others in applauding.
Lin Yiyang wasn't finished. He pulled out sixteen balls and arranged them into a four-pointed star.
"I've only tried this once," Lin Yiyang said, adjusting the position of the star to make the shape perfect. "I didn't succeed last time. Let's try it today."
He picked up a cube of chalk and rubbed the tip of his cue. He set the cue ball, leaned down to aim, and then suddenly snapped his arm back, striking with explosive force—
The room was silent.
Yin Guo held her breath. The sound of balls dropping into pockets filled her ears. The balls on the table grew fewer and fewer... they really all went in!
Clearing sixteen balls in one break—it was magnificent!
Everyone couldn't help but applaud him, and the room was filled with laughter.
Li Qingyan, Xiao Zi, and the two others from Beicheng watched with complicated expressions. They all simultaneously thought back to last year when they first met Lin Yiyang. No one had known this stranger's name or where he came from, and they had even thought about how to give him an intimidating "welcome." Looking at him today, they were truly humbled.
Not only did he play matches well, but even his "self-entertainment" was a display of absolute dominance.
It was just as their coach had said back then—the man had only been playing around with them for the sake of Meng Xiaodong's pride.
***
The welcome banquet began that evening, with the female and male players split between two tables.
Lin Yiyang was whispering to Jiang Yang. The moment he picked up his chopsticks, his gaze shifted over and met hers. Despite the two long tables seating dozens of people and the officials giving enthusiastic speeches, he was looking directly at her.
Afraid of being caught, Yin Guo guiltily looked away for a few seconds. When she looked back, she found Lin Yiyang was still watching her. Then, a coach tapped him on the shoulder and called him away.
Yin Guo withdrew her gaze, only to find that Lin Lin had been watching the scene with a smile for quite some time.
"You two are like kids in a secret school romance, all sneaky," Lin Lin whispered.
Yin Guo felt embarrassed and explained softly, "We agreed on this before coming. He's the captain; he can't be seen dating so openly."
Lin Lin smiled and placed some food in Yin Guo's bowl. "Do you know about the time your brother forfeited a tournament when he was thirteen?"
"Yes."
Meng Xiaodong's public profile stated he won his first championship at fourteen, but he had actually entered the arena at thirteen. However, his performance hadn't been ideal, and he had withdrawn midway, so the results didn't count.
"I bet there's one thing you don't know," Lin Lin said quietly. "They both signed up for that tournament at thirteen. Your brother lost to Lin Yiyang in the group stages, and that's why he forfeited. The next year, your brother put in every ounce of effort he had to take the championship and officially make a name for himself."
...
No wonder her cousin had such a "special interest" in him and could never forget him. The frustration of that first-year forfeit probably stayed with him for a lifetime. No wonder the coaches at the club always said Lin Yiyang and Meng Xiaodong were from the same era.
Lin Lin glanced at Jiang Yang and Meng Xiaodong across from them, feeling sentimental. "Jiang Yang also started playing national tournaments at thirteen. During the years their paths crossed, the first year ended with your brother withdrawing, and the last year ended with Lin Yiyang withdrawing. It's quite interesting."
Born in the same year, with Lin Yiyang being only a few months older than Meng Xiaodong, and both being the sixth-ranked disciples in their respective circles—they were both genius players.
It was no wonder that despite being fierce rivals, they shared a deep mutual respect.
By the time dinner ended, Lin Yiyang hadn't returned.
Yin Guo intentionally stayed until the very end, hoping to see him before bed. When everyone else had left, she walked out of the cafeteria in disappointment.
She stepped out the main doors. By the light of the moon, she saw a few girls who had left earlier ahead of her. Just as she was about to catch up, she heard his voice calling her from behind: "Yin Guo."
Not only did she stop, but the other girls also instinctively looked back.
"I'll walk you back to the dorm," he said, stepping up to her side.
The other girls immediately turned back around, trying their best to suppress their urge to gossip, though their giggles were unstoppable.
"You came back specifically for this?" She felt self-conscious from the girls' laughter.
He was her boyfriend, yet she didn't know why she felt so guilty...
Lin Yiyang didn't deny it, gesturing for her to walk toward the athletic field. Yin Guo followed his lead.
They ended up walking two laps around the track, soaking in the moonlight. Yin Guo was thinking that a stroll like this was quite nice when Lin Yiyang pulled her into the shadows of a secluded tree to hide.
Standing under the tree, Yin Guo looked up. "Bugs won't fall on us, will they?"
Lin Yiyang held his hand over her head. "You're afraid of bugs?"
Yin Guo hummed an affirmation. "I got bitten by a bug when I was little, right under a tree on a school field." She reached behind her back to touch a spot. "Haven't you seen it? There's a scar here."
He laughed and said in a low voice, "I really haven't noticed. I'll have to take a good look next time."
She ignored the "rogue's" suggestion, pretending she didn't understand, and toyed with the zipper of his training jacket.
"What's with this habit? Every time we meet, you pull on my zipper," he chuckled softly.
But since the "rogue" had already made a suggestion, he certainly wasn't going to do nothing, especially after finally finding a place away from prying eyes. Lin Yiyang braced both hands against the tree trunk and leaned down to kiss her.
Something suddenly scurried out of the grass.
Yin Guo's heart jumped as she saw a small black shadow run off, though she couldn't tell what it was. Her heart was still pounding hard when her vision was blocked again—Lin Yiyang was kissing her once more.
...
When they finally pulled apart, his lips remained close to hers, still grazing them softly. She thought back to the dinner conversation. "Lin Lin said my brother withdrew back then because of you? Hearing that, I finally admit it—you really are more amazing than my brother."
He nodded. "Your brother admitted that when he was thirteen."
"...You really aren't modest at all."
"In the arena, there is no such word as 'modesty,'" he said.
They didn't have much time for a proper date. Ten minutes later, he walked her back to the dormitory.
By the time Yin Guo finished her shower, it was eleven o'clock and the lights had been turned out. She fumbled in the dark, feeling like a thief as she dried her hair for two minutes. She took her makeup bag to her bed and began applying skincare products while chatting with Lin Lin.
Being in the same room as Lin Lin was the biggest surprise, as she could hear many stories about Lin Yiyang's childhood. However, there was a downside: Lin Yiyang's family background cast a shadow over those years, no matter how flamboyant they were. No matter what Lin Lin talked about, Yin Guo felt a pang of heartache.
Around eleven-thirty, Lin Lin fell asleep.
Yin Guo turned off her phone's notification sound, wanting to send him a WeChat message to say goodnight. Just as she picked up her phone, a message from Lin Yiyang arrived.
Lin: Done chatting?
Fruit in the Forest: ...How did you know we were chatting?
Lin: I can guess.
Fruit in the Forest: Can you guess what we were talking about?
Lin: Most likely she’s playing the pity card for me.
Fruit in the Forest: ...Your guess is so accurate.
Lin: :)
Lin: Open the window.
Yin Guo was startled by those three words, thinking he was right outside.
On second thought, that was impossible. The eleven o'clock curfew was a strict rule, and as the captain, he certainly wouldn't break it. Still, with a racing heart, she quietly slipped out of bed and pulled back the curtain.
She gently pushed the window open to the left.
Outside were green shrubs, their leaves swaying slightly in the early morning breeze. There was no one there, but on the windowsill sat an unopened bar of dark chocolate.
When had he put it there? While she was showering?
Yin Guo quietly brought the chocolate inside, closed the window, and locked it.
Fruit in the Forest: When did you put this here?
Lin: Before I left.
Lin: I stood outside the window for two minutes.
She guessed he had considered that this row of rooms was the girls' dormitory; afraid of being seen if he stayed too long, he hadn't called out to her. He had simply left the dark chocolate he had on him on the windowsill as a small surprise.
Fruit in the Forest: If you had wanted to pursue someone in the past, you probably could have gotten anyone.
This was a thought from the bottom of her heart.
Lin: ?
Lin: Ask Lin Lin more about what I was like in the past.
Lin: Except for you, I never would have pursued anyone.
***
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
Amidst a Snowstorm of Love | Chapter 57 | A Master's Display | Novela.app | Novela.app
