Chapter 57: A New Contender Emerges
by xennovelA few minutes later, leaders from both sides arrived.
Over at Experimental High School was Director Zhang Yuanbin—Head of the Physical Education Research Group, national track-and-field judge, and national-level coach.
At First High School sat Zhao Guohao, head coach of the sports team.
Feeling the balance wasn’t enough, Chen Ming even brought over an assistant principal.
At the same time, he secretly made a private call to an elder at the City Sports Bureau…
Lu Qiang and Chen Ming each stood aside, reporting and communicating with their respective leaders.
Xu Chen and Xie Bingran stepped to the edge of the track to rest.
Xu Chen smiled and asked, “What do you want to eat afterward?”
Xie Bingran thought for a moment. “McDonald’s.”
“Sounds good.” Xu Chen replied.
In a low voice, Xie Bingran said, “I’ll treat you…”
Xu Chen laughed heartily:
“This time it’s on me. You can owe me—I’ll take you once you win the championship and get the prize money.”
…
After a while, Lu Qiang and Chen Ming walked over together.
Chen Ming spoke first:
“Xie Bingran, Xu Chen.
Both schools have no issues with your admission process.
But the leaders from both sides still want to confirm things in person…”
Chen Ming and Lu Qiang had both looked into Xu Chen’s background.
They’d basically confirmed he was very close to Xie Bingran—enough to influence her decisions.
So when they spoke with Xie Bingran, they invited Xu Chen along and treated him with utmost courtesy.
Xu Chen asked, “Confirm what?”
Chen Ming said, “Xie Bingran, would you mind running one more time?”
Xu Chen didn’t overstep. Instead, he glanced at Xie Bingran:
“Tired? If you are, we’ll skip it.”
As soon as he spoke, Chen Ming and Lu Qiang both panicked.
Xie Bingran: “I’m fine.”
Xu Chen smiled and nodded at her.
Only then did Xie Bingran speak up:
“Can my friends from outside the track come in?”
Chen Ming glanced toward the stands. “I’ll see what I can do.”
…
The hundred-meter track was now surrounded by spectators.
Besides the PE students and teachers watching, leaders from both schools had arrived with their accompanying teachers and judges.
At the same time, Bing Ge’s friends were openly invited in.
Zhao Feng, Fang Tao, and the others could barely contain their excitement but remained quiet along the side of the track.
They didn’t want to embarrass Bing Ge…
At the starting line,
Lu Qiang held the starting pistol and announced,
“Runners for Women’s 100m, heat two—take your marks!”
“Xie Bingran will compete in lane six!”
At his words, some reluctant PE students stepped onto the track.
They’d already seen Xie Bingran’s skill firsthand.
Being overpowered by an amateur outsider felt humiliating.
In their hearts they grumbled:
“Just let her run alone!”
“Why drag us along as her backdrop?!”
“Does the sports team have no pride?!”…
Lu Qiang scanned the track:
“One runner’s missing.”
A broad figure emerged—it was Tian Chaorui, her face flushed with anger.
She hesitated, yet she still hadn’t taken her spot in lane five beside Xie Bingran.
From the crowd came a taunt:
“Tian Chaorui, are you scared?!”
Laughter erupted.
Tian Chaorui’s dark face turned ashen.
She shuffled forward on her sturdy legs—seeming determined but actually faltering—until she stood beside Xie Bingran.
She glanced at Xie Bingran, only to find Bing Ge completely ignoring her…
Xie Bingran turned to Xu Chen and asked,
“You holding back this time?”
“…”
Her voice was soft, but everyone heard.
What did she mean? Was she really holding back before?
Held back and still ran 12.20 seconds?!
Held back and already beat Tian Chaorui’s personal best?!
The leaders heard too and exchanged amused looks.
Xu Chen smiled at Xie Bingran:
“Not holding back this time.”
“Oh…”
At the finish line, besides Teacher Chen Ming, two other PE teachers stood with stopwatches.
“Women’s 100m preliminaries, heat two!”
“Set~”
“Go~”
With the starting pistol’s crack, six figures shot forward.
…
…
At the finish line again.
A black streak of lightning flashed by.
The moment all three judges pressed their stopwatches, the crowd erupted.
Once more,
Xie Bingran powered across the line in absolute domination.
Zhao Feng, Fang Tao, and twenty or thirty friends leaped to their feet, cheering as they rushed toward “Bing Ge.”
In their young lives, they’d never felt such exhilaration.
On the track,
four PE students panted, staring at the surrounded Xie Bingran with defeated expressions.
This time, they’d really been blown away.
Tian Chaorui…
now lay sprawled on the ground.
In reality, her athletic build never crossed the finish line.
She’d “messed up” halfway and fallen flat.
The moment Tian Chaorui fell, Xie Bingran was already a full body length ahead…
Though they ran side by side in adjacent lanes, the gap was so wide Tian Chaorui’s flop didn’t affect Xie Bingran at all.
Now Tian Chaorui was half-crawling on the ground.
No one paid her any mind.
No one asked if she was hurt or why she’d fallen.
Just this morning, she was still the pride of First High School’s track team—the top female sprinter in Tiancheng City.
Even…
some people, when going to “congratulate” Xie Bingran, stepped right over her head.
Xu Chen caught sight of Tian Chaorui and thought: “No longer just ‘Muscle Girl’.”
“Now she’s ‘Defeated Muscle.’”
…
Almost everyone on the field looked at Xie Bingran.
Xie Bingran looked back at Xu Chen at the sidelines.
They met across the crowd and smiled at each other.
…
…
The City Games qualifiers continued.
Chen Dahai gulped half a bottle of sports drink while sitting by the track.
Even now he was stunned, hardly believing what he’d witnessed.
“11.90…”
It was Bing Ge’s second time posting that time.
Could such a result come so casually?!
She’d never trained before…
Xie Bingran not only easily reached national first-class athlete level.
She was just shy of national excellence.
Chen Dahai had practiced sports since middle school and only achieved national second-class athlete status…
Well then.
Comparisons can be infuriating.
More frustrated and despondent than Chen Dahai were Tian Chaorui and the other First High School female sprinters.
They’d trained hard for three or four years only to be effortlessly outclassed…
Even more excited were those professional judges and PE teachers.
They came from different schools and had coached many students—some even sent athletes to the provincial and national teams.
They knew just what level of talent Xie Bingran displayed.
“She’s never trained, yet her rhythm and coordination are nearly perfect.”
“Her explosive power, balance, and endurance after fifty meters are astonishing!”
“She’s a natural-born runner. Even if those sports team kids trained another ten years, they couldn’t catch her.”
“Tiancheng City might really produce a sports legend.”
…
Xu Chen watched Bing Ge, thrilled for her yet already planning in his mind.
Now that Xie Bingran’s progress was smooth, it was only a matter of her rising to fame.
At the same time, they needed to start exploring her commercial value.
Xu Chen already had some plans but needed to coordinate with his father’s business progress and finances.
Time to step up the intensity on his father Xu Zhiquan’s side!