Chapter 195: Stadium Cheers and Hidden Bonds

The City TV Station’s cameramen had already secured the ideal filming angle.

The camera captured Xie Bingran’s profile perfectly, along with the two banners on the distant stands and the cheering crowd behind them.

Feng Siliang stood on the stands and had just received a confirmation text from the City TV Station reporter; both photos and video footage were spot-on.

He let out a long sigh of relief, turned to Teacher Chen Ming and the dozen or so Provincial Team members who had rushed in to help, and expressed his thanks.

…

Bai Miao stood beside Xie Bingran, gazing far off at the stands with her head tilted slightly.

From this distance, she couldn’t make out the faces clearly.

But through various clues, she pieced it together—the guy holding the banner on the stands was the same one who had cheered for Bing Ge during the Shanghai National Youth Championships.

Later, when she went to introduce herself to Bing Ge, he was sitting across from her, eating with Bing Ge, and she even asked him for his phone at the time.

Bai Miao glanced at Xie Bingran, who was still looking up at the stands…

She felt a twinge of envy; it was amazing to have fans from home cheering her on.

And that guy had traveled all the way from Shanghai to Yangcheng.

As one half of the ‘Shanghai Twin Stars,’ Bai Miao was popular back in Shanghai, but out here, she rarely had a crowd supporting her.

Of course, the main issue was her performance; in a major event like the National Games, facing top domestic and Asian competitors, she struggled to even crack the top three…

…

Bai Miao scanned the stands, feeling deflated, hoping to spot at least one or two people holding signs for her.

She saw the ‘Feng Youping’ fan group, the big banner for Chen Lan, and even signs for Zhang Haili and Li Yun…

But nothing for ‘Bai Miao’ or the ‘Shanghai Twin Stars’…

Bai Miao sighed in resignation.

As she started to look away, she caught sight of the stands in section 1, where a large group was holding several eye-catching banners right near the entrance.

‘Xie Bingran’s Tiancheng Fan Group’

‘Cold Ice Advances, Leaving No Grass Unharmed’

‘Heaven-Sent Ice, Born Unbeatable’

…

Bai Miao paused, thinking, has Bing Ge’s popularity reached this level already?

And…

Though Bing Ge was strong, she wasn’t the top favorite today; there were still those two or three unbeatable walls ahead…

‘Leaving No Grass Unharmed’ and ‘Born Unbeatable’—such bold claims.

Is it really okay to be this flashy?

Bai Miao turned to Xie Bingran and saw she was still focused on the stands in section 12, oblivious to the activity at the entrance.

So, Bai Miao reached out with a slender finger and poked Xie Bingran’s arm.

Xie Bingran turned to Bai Miao and followed the direction of her finger toward the stands in section 1.

After a long moment,

Bing Ge spotted her group of brothers.

They were drenched in sweat, hair plastered to their foreheads.

In this unfamiliar city, under the blazing sun, they had run four or five kilometers just to hold up those banners for her before the race…

They looked ragged and out of breath.

Unpolished, messy, and far from neat.

Sweat streamed down their faces, and they grinned like fools despite it all.

But they weren’t rowdy or disruptive.

They simply stood in a line, holding up those striking banners, their bodies heaving from the exertion.

…

The event director and cameramen noticed them too.

The LED big screen switched to live feeds of different stands.

The camera suddenly focused on this group of sweat-soaked young people holding banners and smiling.

Confused spectators in the stands murmured quietly:

“Who’s Xie Bingran?”

“Is she racing soon? Never heard of her…”

“And what’s Tiancheng?”

“They’re making such a big fuss—if she doesn’t do well, it’ll be embarrassing!”

“Is it the women’s 100m hurdles? But there’s Feng Youping and Chen Lan competing; how can a newcomer stand out?”

…

…

In section 12, Feng Siliang was on the phone:

“Teacher Chen, did the camera catch it?…”

“Yeah, get more shots quick!”

Wu Feifei and Huang Qianqian looked up at the big screen, clutching their cheering pompoms, their expressions touched.

Huang Qianqian recognized Li Rui, Zhao Feng, and the others—they were classmates from First High School.

In Bing Ge’s school stories, they always played supporting roles, often as ‘bad examples’ in disciplinary announcements and classes.

But seeing them now, all disheveled yet thrilled, Huang Qianqian felt a wave of emotion hit her, almost bringing tears.

Wu Feifei watched Bing Ge on the track and couldn’t help but recall the heroic legends she’d heard yesterday.

She rested her chin in her hands, staring at that figure with its perfect lines, lost in thought…

Fang Jun, who had been standing with his phone in hand, finally walked to his seat and sat next to Xu Chen.

Xu Chen gazed at Li Rui, Zhao Feng, Fang Tao, and the rest from afar and murmured,

“You guys worked hard…”

Xu Zhiquan patted himself down, craving a cigarette, but realized smoking wasn’t allowed here.

He wiped his face with a big hand, steadying his unexpectedly stirred middle-aged emotions.

…

…

Bai Miao turned to Xie Bingran and whispered,

“Are those your friends?”

Xie Bingran looked up and replied softly,

“Those are my brothers.”

Bai Miao pondered, not quite grasping the full meaning.

She glanced up at Bing Ge and noticed a glimmer in her usually cold eyes.

…

In section 1,

Two security guards approached and said gruffly,

“Which section are you from? Do you have seat tickets?

You can’t gather here!”

Teacher Tian Fangfang stepped forward:

“We’re from section 12; we all have assigned seats. We’ll head over now!”

Earlier, Li Rui and the others had finally reached the stadium because Teacher Tian Fangfang went out to hand them tickets and led them in…

Tian Fangfang smiled at Li Rui and the group:

“Let’s go! Back to our seats to watch Bing Ge’s race!”

As she started toward section 12 from the left,

Li Rui glanced around and pointed the other way:

“Let’s go that way.”

Tian Fangfang blinked: “Huh?”

That route would be much shorter to section 12.

Li Rui: “That way, we can circle the whole stadium!”

“…”

So, Li Rui and his brothers, banners held high, marched around the stadium in full view, heading toward section 12.

…

Xu Chen watched those large banners drift across the stands and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Feng Siliang quickly called the cameraman below to capture more footage.

Fang Jun stared at the moving banners, and a smile finally broke across his usually expressionless face.

…

…

“Ladies and gentlemen watching live and on TV, the women’s 100m hurdles final is about to begin…”

“Lane one: Huang Feifei from Gan Province Team!”

“Lane two: Chen Qi from Sichuan Province Team!”

…

“Lane four: Feng Youping from Hunan Province Team!”

As soon as Feng Youping’s name was announced, the stadium erupted in massive cheers.

“A domestic track legend! Gold medalist at the Asian Games, National Athletics Championships, National Athletics Grand Prix, East Asia Athletics Diamond League…

Let’s once again honor Feng Youping, who has dominated the women’s 100m hurdles for nearly a decade, with our applause!”

Amid the roaring applause, Feng Youping on lane four waved to the stands in thanks.

The other athletes also clapped for this legendary veteran.

Xie Bingran and Bai Miao turned to Feng Youping and joined in the applause.

Feng Youping was their ‘senior sister’ on the national team and had given them guidance during the recent training camp.

At over thirty, the senior sister was past her prime.

Everyone knew that after the next Asian Games at year’s end, Feng Youping would likely retire.

There were even rumors she’d step away after this National Games.

No matter how talented or dedicated an athlete is, their peak lasts just a few years—that’s the harsh reality of competitive sports.

Athletes like Feng Youping, who held strong for nearly a decade, are rare and worthy of respect.

…

“Lane five: Chen Lan from Beijing Team!”

“Bronze at the Asian Games, silver at the National Athletics Championships, gold at the National Athletics Grand Prix, gold at the World Junior Athletics Championships…

“At twenty-five, Chen Lan is at the height of her powers and a rising star in women’s 100m hurdles!”

Cheers rang out as Chen Lan waved in acknowledgment.

As the announcer said, Chen Lan was in her prime and the top favorite to win here at the National Games.

In fact, over the past year, Chen Lan’s times had consistently beaten Feng Youping’s and were edging toward the veteran’s peak four years ago…

As Chen Lan waved to the crowd, her senior sister Feng Youping reached out to shake her hand, and they shared a quick hug.

Cameras caught the moment, projecting this symbolic handover on the big screen.

Both peak domestic athletes were from the national athletics team.

In that instant, Feng Youping and Chen Lan seemed to complete a seamless transition of the torch.

The announcer chimed in perfectly:

“Folks at home and in the stadium, this might be one of the most pivotal moments in domestic women’s 100m hurdles history!

Let’s give another round of applause to Feng Youping and Chen Lan!”

“Lane six: Zhang Haili from Sichuan Province Team!”

“Bronze at the National Athletics Championships, silver at the National Athletics Grand Prix…

“Lane seven: Xie Bingran from Shandong Province Team!”

…”