Ping Pong Selection
Huh? Gu Mingxi, you sure are good at memorizing girls’ names.

Xiao Yujing said he was like a South African antelope. At a glance, it looks small and docile, but it can actually jump more than 3 meters.

During the military training, Pang Qian finally understood why Xiao Yujing described himself as an antelope.

She was clever, but it wasn’t something that she made widely known. She looked very fragile, but her physical strength was actually quite good. When they were standing in their soldier positions(?), several boys and girls had already started to call out that they needed a break. But she maintained her upright posture, motionless.

It seemed like Xiao Yujing didn’t know anyone. She rarely talked to others, and most of the time, she sat alone quietly in the corner. But this girl wasn’t as gentle and quiet as her appearance belied– Pang Qian had been secretly observing her, and this was the conclusion she came to.

The military training wasn’t just about positions, marching, marching with goose step (legs straight), moving drills, military chants and the like. There were a lot of exercises that Gu Mingxi had no way of partic.i.p.ating in.

For example, when they were practicing marching with goose step, the instructor would call out different rows to practice the swinging of their arms. One, two, one, two, one, two… During that time, Gu Mingxi could only stand up straight, watching from the side.

The students in Cla.s.s 2 were pretty friendly. At least from what Pang Qian saw, they were quick to accept Gu Mingxi, unlike the students who didn’t dare speak to him back when junior high started.

During the breaks from training, a few boys going to the restroom would come to ask Gu Mingxi if he needed to go. At first, Pang Qian thought that Teacher Dai had arranged for it. But later, she realized that wasn’t the case. After 7 or 8 boys asked him, she figured out that they were asking because they wanted to.

And there were even a few girls that would come to find Gu Mingxi to chat. There was one girl who was rather pretty. Her hair was very long too, tied up in a ponytail at the back of her head. She would sit next to Gu Mingxi, and with a gentle face, ask about this and that. Occasionally, she would cover her mouth and laugh.

Pang Qian walked up behind Gu Mingxi with a water bottle. He didn’t know that she’d come over, and was in the middle of answering that girl’s question. “…full points in math. I lost two points in physics, full points in chemistry, and I lost 4 points in English…”

Show off… Pang Qian sneered in her mind. That girl, her face full of adoration, said, “You’re so amazing. So why didn’t you try to test into Vast Voyage?”

Gu Mingxi said, “My Chinese scores weren’t good enough. I have to write the answers with my foot, and I can’t write as fast as everyone else. Writing essays takes a long time, so whenever there’s a composition portion on an exam, I don’t do that well…”

“Gu Mingxi!”

Gu Mingxi heard Pang Qian’s voice and turned around. Pang Qian waved the water bottle in front of him. “Thirsty?”

“…”

Because they were training, Gu Mingxi was wearing sports shoes. If he wanted to drink water by himself, he would have to take his shoes off. And then Pang Qian would have to help him tie his shoe laces again. But if he didn’t take his shoes off, then Pang Qian would have to feed him the water. He weighed out the two options, and then answered, “No, I’m not.”

Pang Qian’s eyes narrowed. How much water had Gu Mingxi drunk that day. It was very sunny, and everyone was basking in the sun in the schoolyard. Others had drunk about 4 or 5 bottles of water. But he’d only had one bottle in the morning, and another half a bottle in the afternoon.

Pang Qian said, “If you don’t want it, I’m pouring it out.”

Gu Mingxi looked at her, a bit puzzled. The girl beside him suddenly quipped, “Gu Mingxi, if you get thirsty later, I’ll go help you get water!”

Pang Qian’s eyes had narrowed down to a line.

Gu Mingxi finally caught Pang Qian’s “unhappy” look. He smiled, “Why would you pour it out? You had to go so far to get it. Alright, I’ll drink it.”

As he was speaking, the girl with the ponytail, cried out in surprise, “Wah, Gu Mingxi! Your canine teeth are so cute!”

Pang Qian had brought the bottle of water up to his lips. She t.i.tled the bottle, and fed him the water slowly. The girl to their side was quietly eyeing them. Pang Qian suddenly played a trick, and then the water from the bottle sprayed out. Gu Mingxi couldn’t evade the stream of water. His face, neck, and camouflage s.h.i.+rt all got wet. The water also made him choke a little.

He looked a mess, but Pang Qian just looked at him innocently and said, “Sorry, my hand shook.”

Gu Mingxi knew that she’d done it on purpose, and gave her an angry stare. Pang Qian made a silly face at him, and then happily ran off with her water bottle.

The girl with a ponytail frowned as she looked at Pang Qian’s receding figure. She said quietly, “How can she act like that.”

Seeing Gu Mingxi’s clothes were all wet, she pulled out a napkin and helped him wipe it off. Gu Mingxi got up to dodge her. He said, “There’s no need to wipe it. It’s a hot day, so it’ll dry quickly.”

The girl pulled her hand back, disappointed. She asked, “Was that girl your girlfriend?”

She asked very directly, and Gu Mingxi naturally denied it, “No.”

“Your relations.h.i.+p looks really good. You’re always together. And during the training, you guys talk all the time. You’re even deskmates in cla.s.s.”

“Ah, yeah.” Gu Mingxi felt his sweat dripping down his face, so he turned to wipe it off on his shoulder. He said, “She and I grew up together. We’re neighbors, and she’s just like a little sister to me.”

…

The military training finally came to an end. Pang Qian was dead tired. When she and Gu Mingxi left school, she turned a corner and walked into a small shop. She stood at the freezer, picking out an ice cream bar.

After careful consideration, she chose a chocolate cone. Pang Qian headed to the counter and pulled out a five dollar bill to pay. The boss pointed at Gu Mingxi to the side, and said, “That student already payed.”

After he said that, he stuffed the change into Gu Mingxi’s pants pocket.

Pang Qian licked her ice cream cone, and with a pout, “If I knew earlier, I’d have picked an expensive one.”

Gu Mingxi twisted his lips and laughed.

The two of them walked to the bus stop together. Pang Qian asked Gu Mingxi, “What was that girl’s name?”

“Xiao Yujing.”

“…” Pang Qian stared at him for a moment. “I mean the one after that, with the ponytail.”

“Ah, Jiang Zhiya.”

Pang Qian blinked at him. “Huh? Gu Mingxi, you sure are good at memorizing girls’ names.”

“I remember boys’ names just as well.”

“The more you try to hide something, the more obvious it becomes.”

“Hey! That’s not how you use that phrase!”

On the bus home, they were fortunate to find two seats at the back of the bus. Exhausted from the day of intensive training, and with the rhythmic swing of the bus, Pang Qian started feeling sleepy.

Her head was dangling in the air. Gu Mingxi looked at her, slowly leaning towards him. Pang Qian’s head hit his shoulder, her body relaxing, as she fell asleep against him.

Gu Mingxi let out a sigh and turned his head toward the window. A young girl was breathing evenly, leaning against his shoulder. Her eyelashes were long and thick. Her nose was turned upward. Gu Mingxi suddenly felt that 9 stops was too close.

How great would it be if there were 19 stops.
—-

E City’s First High had a cafeteria. They didn’t have lunch in the cla.s.sroom like in junior high. Instead, they had prepaid meal cards they used in the cafeteria.

Pang Qian took on the responsibility of getting Gu Mingxi’s lunch. The two of them stood in line together. When they got to the window, she put down two lunch boxes. “One two-portion rice, and one four-portion rice.”

“For the two-portion, I want braised pork chop, stir fried vegetables, uh… And a poached egg.”

“For the four-portion, salted chicken leg… Gu Mingxi, do you want tomato and eggs or string beans?”

Gu Mingxi, “Tomato and eggs.”

Pang Qian smiled at the chef serving the food, “Tomato and eggs. Uncle, please give us a little more!”

She carried the two lunches to look for a table, and then they ran into someone.

“Xie Yi!”

Xie Yi turned around. Seeing Pang Qian and Gu Mingxi, he waved. “Hi, Crab! Hey, you guys get a table. Let’s eat together!”

The three of them put their lunch boxes on a table. Pang Qian went back to get two bowls of free soup, placing one bowl down in front of Gu Mingxi. And after thinking a moment, she gave the other bowl to Xie Yi.

Xie Yi pushed it back to her, “Drink it yourself. I have a drink.”

Pang Qian didn’t press him. The three of them had lunch together, chatting as they ate. The tables in the cafeteria weren’t exactly convenient for Gu Mingxi to eat from. He lifted his right foot up to the table and used his foot to grab his chopsticks. He lowered his head to the meal box, and then put the food into his mouth.

Pang Qian already knew that Xie Yi was in Cla.s.s 8. First High is a full high school, and each year had eight or nine cla.s.ses, which meant there were a lot of students.

“Are any of our old cla.s.smates in your cla.s.s?” Pang Qian asked Xie Yi. He shook his head. “Not even one. I checked the cla.s.s rosters. There were only five of us from Cla.s.s 6 that got into First High. Ling Tao is in Cla.s.s 4, and w.a.n.g Chenfei is in Cla.s.s 9.”

“Ah, I’m not close to either of them,” Pang Qian felt a bit regretful. “Sun Mingfang didn’t get it in. She picked First High too, but her scores weren’t good enough. She transferred to a general high school. Hey, Gu Mingxi, didn’t Jian Zhe also pick First High?”

Gu Mingxi nodded, “Mm, he was 3 points short, so he didn’t get in.”

“Such a sham. His test scores were usually better than mine.”

Xie Yi said, “Did you know, your Cla.s.s 2 is a crouching tiger, hidden dragon (those with hidden talent). I heard the top five scorers on the entrance exam are all in Cla.s.s 2.”

Pang Qian thought for a moment. “Then is Cla.s.s 2 the accelerated cla.s.s?”

“I’m not sure about it, but it can’t just be a coincidence.” Xie Yi continued, “The top five in one cla.s.s. After the a.s.sessment exams, we’ll know.”

Pang Qian bad feeling. She recalled the time they were introducing themselves in English. Most of the students in the cla.s.s spoke very well. She didn’t even understand it sometimes. Oh G.o.d! She couldn’t have been added to Cla.s.s 2 because of Gu Mingxi again!

After they finished eating, Pang Qian and Xie Yi went to wash their meal boxes. Gu Mingxi waited outside the cafeteria for them.

The sink was full of people. When they were in line, Xie Yi said to Pang Qian, “I didn’t think it was good to ask you while Gu Mingxi was there. But, Crab, are you interested in joining the school’s ping pong team?”

“Ah?!” Pang Qian was surprised. “Me? I’m a total beginner!”

“You’re not a beginner anymore. I went in yesterday to play a few rounds. You know, ping pong is a specialty at First High. But in the end, only a few people are really good at it. If you join, you definitely won’t be at the bottom.”

Pang Qian was touched. “How do you join?”

“You have to register, and then there will be a selection compet.i.tion. More than a quarter of those who try out get in. It’s not that hard.”

Pang Qian blinked a few times, “Do you think I’ll be able to get in?”

“Just use your crab serve to show them!” Xie Yi said with a smile. “You will dominate and conquer!”

Pang Qian, “…”

Pang Qian was the kind to take action. The next day, she submitted a registration.

With regards to her actions, Gu Mingxi only said, “When the time comes, I’ll go watch your game.”

Gu Mingxi didn’t partic.i.p.ate in the military march at the end of the military training. If he stood in the middle of the square, he’d draw too much attention, which wouldn’t be fair to the cla.s.s who battled for their ranks. Teacher Dai said he could partic.i.p.ate, but Gu Mingxi still dropped out on his own.

He sat at the stands on the edge of the schoolyard, joining the audience, watching Pang Qian walking in the line. She wasn’t tall, and lined up from short to tall, she was second from the end.

She walked with power and energy, her little chest puffed out proudly. It really was a sight to see.

When it was time for Xie Yi’s cla.s.s to march out, Gu Mingxi saw him carrying the flag. He marched past the podium area, and then his marching turned into a goose step style. With a swish, Xie Yi waved the flag. Head up and chest out, he marched along under the s.h.i.+ning sun.

Gu Mingxi had to admit, he really was handsome.

The say after the military training ended, First High’s ping pong team held their team tryouts. It was simple. The 84 students who had signed up would be split into pairs, and they would play against each other. The 42 winning students would again be split into pairs to battle. This decided the 21 members they accepted. The remaining nine spots on the team would be decided by the coach.

Gu Mingxi went to watch Pang Qian compete. Zhou Nanzhong and w.a.n.g Song also went. Even Jiang Zhiya went, though she had followed Gu Mingxi there.

Pang Qian was very nervous. Xie Yi stood at the side of the gym, instructing her, “You’re bad at rallying, so you should try to score with your serve. The outcome should come in three hits, otherwise, there’s no point to keep at it. It will just be a waste of energy.” Xie Yi moved closer to Pang Qian, “Just count on your luck. Hit the ball at an angle. Your opponent looks nervous too, so seeing that, they’ll think you’re an expert at this.”

Pang Qian, “So you’re saying that I’m actually just a beginner?”

Xie Yi laughed out loud, “Not a bird, more like a crab. Let me tell you, you should hurry and learn from Deng Yaping (Olympic table tennis champion), her imposing aura. Crab, you’re my disciple. Don’t disgrace me.”

Regarding the bird-crab. The word for beginner or novice is cainiao, where niao means bird. He calls her a cai pangxie, with pangxie (her nickname) meaning crab. Oh, cringe-y jokes…

Pang Qian’s face reddened, “What if I lose?”

“Well, then you lose. In any case, I’ll be on the team, so if you wan’t to play, just come find me.” Xie Yi handed his paddle to her, “Use my paddle. You don’t know about paddles, but mine is definitely better than the ones the school has.”

After listening to Xie Yi’s instructions, she valiantly dashed off to a table for her match. She was first to serve. Just like Xie Yi did, she blew on her paddle first. Suddenly she shouted out a “Ya!” scaring the girl on the other side of the table.

Then she served the ball.

Just like Xie Yi taught her, she pulled the paddle back gently and hit the ball over with a curved swing. The ball hit the corner of the table, and the girl on the other side hadn’t moved at all.

“Ya! Ya!” Pang Qian cried out, bouncing on her heels. She carried quite a similar demeanor to a professional player.

Xie Yi nearly fainted from laughter. Gu Mingxi’s head grew sweaty as he watched, the corners of his lips also curved upward. Next to him, w.a.n.g Song said, “I really wouldn’t have expected. So Xiao Qian plays with such style.”

Gu Mingxi, “…”

In the first round, her opponent was scared into a loss. Pang Qian left the battle area joyfully, and gave Xie Yi a high five. Then she ran over to Gu Mingxi.

She swallowed down half a bottle of water, then said happily, “Gu Mingxi! I won!”

Jiang Zhiya curled her lips and said, “The whole gym heard your screaming.”

Pang Qian lifted up her chin, “This is called grandeur. You wouldn’t understand.”

But in the second round, Pang Qian’s grandeur was no use. Her opponent’s skill was obviously better than her own. She had both the style and skill to back it up. Pang Qian shouted out, intending to scare her, but still didn’t win within three hits. Soon, she lost the battle.

Dejected, she returned the paddle to Xie Yi. He said, “It’s okay, there are still the other nine spots. I’ll try to convince the coach to pick you.”

Gu Mingxi looked at Pang Qian with her red eyes. He called out, “Don’t be sad. [In war] there are victories, but also defeats. You didn’t really learn it before, so getting to the second round was already really good.”

Pang Qian gave him a depressed look. Gu Mingxi thought for a moment, then taking advantage while no one was looking, he whispered into her ear, “I’ll gift you a ping pong paddle in a few days. Then you can practice. Next year, when the old members leave, you can try again.”

Pang Qian, “A good ping pong paddle is expensive.”

“Oh…” Gu Mingxi said, “Then treat it like an early birthday present.”

“My birthday this year just pa.s.sed!” Pang Qian jumped up, “But it’s almost Christmas!”

“Okay, then a Christmas present.” Gu Mingxi smiled at her.

In the end, before Gu Mingxi could buy a ping pong paddle, Xie Yi already brought Pang Qian some good news. She was admitted to the ping pong team, one of the nine players that the coach selected.”

Pang Qian’s mood lifted greatly, thinking that high school was just too wonderful. But then, her mood dropped to the bottom. When lessons started, the school gave all the new students a diagnostic a.s.sessment. That’s when Pang Qian learned what the saying meant, “better to be a big fish in a small pond.” (lit. better to be a chicken head than a phoenix tail)

She finally believed that their grade’s top five students were in her cla.s.s.

Xiao Yujing’s exceptional performance in Chinese and English, and her good scores in math, physics, and chemistry ranked her first in the grade. Second was a boy named Wu Min. And Gu Mingxi only came in fourth.

In the second and third years of junior high, Pang Qian had consistently ranked in the top 20 of her cla.s.s. She’d even gotten into the top 10. So it had been a long, long time since she had tasted the flavor of ranking in the bottom.

And now, in Cla.s.s 2 of First High, among 52 students– Pang Qian was first from the bottom (i.e. last).

Her performance wouldn’t be considered poor. Her lowest score was still above 70, but that still put her in last place.

Her nightmares from the first year of junior high were coming back. With the parent-teacher conferences that took place after the a.s.sessment tests ahead of her, Pang Qian even thought up the idea of dying.