Chapter 20: The Peacock Spreads Its Feathers

The secretary sighed, “After all, we’re all outsiders here, unaware of Coach Ma’s subtle strategies in player selection.”

Well, that was a direct way to shift the blame onto Ma Wenhua.

The vice principal quickly pulled out his phone and quietly sent a WeChat message to Ma Wenhua.

Xia Chiyi approached Zhou Zhexiao and lightly bumped him on the shoulder. “Hey, you don’t seem very interested today. Remember when you dazzled everyone against Gao Qing and Lü Hang?”

Zhou Zhexiao replied coldly, “If I had really played, this game would have ended early as a blowout.”

“Arrogant,” Xia Chiyi raised an eyebrow and held up one finger.

Zhou Zhexiao lifted his hand, shaking the wristband that secured the ball in front of Xia Chiyi, silently reminding him: who was it that was so nervous before the game they were all thumbs and feet?

Recalling how Zhou Zhexiao had “intimidated” him before, Xia Chiyi sulked and backed away.

Finally, Chen Chuan and He Bin could no longer hold back and called the first timeout.

Xia Chiyi and the others sat together, some drinking water, others wiping sweat.

“What do you think they’re discussing during the timeout? What strategy might they come up with to counter us?” Du He asked anxiously.

Ye Chaoying stretched back casually and said, “No strategy will work; the skill gap is just too big.”

Shuai Bei glanced at him, “Although we appreciate your passes, you should be careful. They’ll definitely use this chance to consult Coach Ma Wenhua, who will then instruct them to focus on shutting you down.”

“Bring it on,” Ye Chaoying shrugged indifferently. “Unless there are two Xia Chiyis, no one can guard me.”

Xia Chiyi, who was sucking on an energy jelly, wasn’t pleased and kicked him lightly with his foot. “What do you mean two of me? I can guard you alone!”

“You’re guarded by me alone, thank you very much,” Ye Chaoying leaned in close, their eyes locking.

“Is this some kind of turtle glaring at a tortoise?” Shuai Bei frowned, wiping sweat and flicking his silver bangs out of his eyes.

Xia Chiyi felt a sudden itch to dye his hair white—so cool!

During this precious timeout, Ye Chaoying showed no intention of discussing tactics with Xia Chiyi; instead, they began settling old scores from high school about who guarded whom, making everyone’s heads spin.

The classmates in the stands, who had been enjoying the match, suddenly grew worried seeing Ye Chaoying and Xia Chiyi standing with hands on hips, locked in a heated verbal duel.

“Hey, the game’s only been a few minutes; no infighting!”

“We really want you to win—sort out your differences after the game!”

Meanwhile, Ma Wenhua at the sanatorium was growing restless.

When he received news that Ling Huanzhen had come to Ningchang University to visit and had even been invited by Principal Feng to officiate the game, he was stunned.

Ling Huanzhen’s presence meant the game’s attention would skyrocket. The more insiders knew, the more they would question Ma Wenhua’s standards and coaching ability.

Previously, Ma Wenhua had shrugged off the criticism on the Ningchang University forum, but things had changed. The vice principal was messaging him to find a solution. The first quarter wasn’t even over, and the score gap was already in double digits—it looked terrible.

Going over now was impossible. From the clips sent, the skill disparity was clear.

He knew well that Du He and Shuai Bei’s dominance under the basket was unmatched on their team, but if they couldn’t get the ball, the problem would be easily solved.

Who was feeding them the ball? Ye Chaoying.

So, the key now was to assign someone to guard that freshman named Ye Chaoying.

Ling Huanzhen blew his whistle, signaling the game to continue.

As Shuai Bei predicted, the opponents sent two players to mark Ye Chaoying. Although this slowed Ye Chaoying down, it didn’t contain him; he kept driving and passing, while Shuai Bei and Du He continued to dominate under the basket.

Their fiery playstyle stirred the boys in the stands to shout encouragement.

In contrast, Zhou Zhexiao and Xia Chiyi were clearly cruising.

Even Ling Huanzhen was tempted to blow the whistle and ask if they could get into the game faster.

The situation shifted. Unable to contain Ye Chaoying with two, the opponents sent three players to lock him down, like a golden bell shield, refusing to let him touch the ball.

The crowd grew restless.

“Three-on-one? That’s unfair! What kind of heroism is that?”

Chen Chuan sneered, “Basketball is a team sport. Even five against one is fair game.”

Ye Chaoying’s mood remained unaffected as he smiled, “Only three players guarding me? What will you do for the remaining three quarters?”

“Arrogance won’t help. If we shut you down, Shuai Bei and Du He are useless!”

“Is that so?”

Ye Chaoying laughed inwardly. We’re not just Shuai Bei and Du He here; watch out for Xia Chiyi’s bloodbath.

The next moment, Chen Chuan lost the ball—it was Xia Chiyi, unexpectedly stealing the ball!

Xia Chiyi moved swiftly toward the basket, facing He Bin.

He Bin’s defense was strong, but Xia Chiyi smiled, executed a nimble behind-the-back pass to Zhou Zhexiao.

No one defended Zhou Zhexiao as he jumped in place and scored.

The entire play looked effortless, almost lazy.

After the basket, Xia Chiyi ran over to high-five Zhou Zhexiao, but Zhou didn’t even raise his hand.

“Why slack off when you can score yourself?” Zhou coldly asked.

“How is this slacking off? It’s teamwork,” Xia Chiyi protested, hands on hips, glaring.

With Ling Huanzhen officiating, Xia Chiyi was glad Ye Chaoying’s skills had been noticed and hoped Zhou Zhexiao would impress Ling even more.

“It’s just He Bin. Shooting over him is like crossing a quiet morning street. Why not shoot yourself?” Zhou questioned again.

Xia Chiyi sensed Zhou’s slight irritation.

Indeed, with Ling Huanzhen watching, if Xia Chiyi played full out and showed his true level, learning from the opponent afterward would be invaluable. That’s why Ye Chaoying, Shuai Bei, and Du He were all striving to perform.

He, however, seemed less invested in seizing this opportunity.

The first quarter ended. Everyone sat to catch their breath, wiping sweat and drinking water.

Perhaps because they were not very familiar with each other, they even skipped chatting.

Ye Chaoying said, “They’ll definitely fully lock me down in the second quarter. Our shooters seem to be holding back. Against opponents at this level, we probably don’t need to worry about conserving energy, right?”

Shuai Bei replied coolly, “Our shooters only made one three-pointer in the first quarter. Hey, don’t tell me you don’t know how to shoot?”

Du He sensed a subtle tension in the air and lowered his head, pretending to wipe sweat.

Zhou Zhexiao’s expression was grim, as if instant noodles were missing the seasoning packet… or rather, milk tea without pearls.

“I just want to be recognized alongside you,” Xia Chiyi whispered in his ear, “Like at that community court when we crushed Gao Qing and Lü Hang. Seeing you so unmotivated makes it dull for me too.”

Maybe it was his imagination, but Xia Chiyi thought he heard Zhou sigh softly.

Suddenly, Zhou reached over, grabbed Xia Chiyi’s head, and pressed it firmly against his chest.

Xia Chiyi’s head spun slightly, then Zhou’s voice came from above: “If I score this many points in the second quarter, will you promise to match me for the rest of the game?”

A proud smile spread across Xia Chiyi’s lips. “Of course!”

Hearing this, Ye Chaoying whistled, “Finally, I get to see Zhou Zhexiao’s real strength?”

Shuai Bei snorted coldly, “Cut the show-off act or get struck by lightning.”

But with Zhou Zhexiao about to unleash his skills, Xia Chiyi was bursting with excitement, ready to run circles on the spot. Great—finally, some legendary moves!

The second quarter began, and the crowd inside the gym seemed larger.

They weren’t just here to see Ling Huanzhen; they were curious about the current level of the school team.

Ling Huanzhen glanced at Zhou Zhexiao, raising an eyebrow that said, “If this game bores me, step it up.”

Right from the start, Zhou alone took the ball, dashed to the opponent’s basket in the blink of an eye, faced no defense, lofted a shot, and scored.

It was so fast and sudden the crowd was stunned until the ball hit the floor, sparking waves of cheers.

Zhou looked at Xia Chiyi, finger to lips—a signal: first basket.

Xia Chiyi shrugged, mouthing back: not impressed.

Then Zhou scored three more times in a row—hook shots, floaters, left-hand layups. Whenever he had the ball, the crowd seemed electrified, as if at an NBA game.

Xu Mi’s eardrums nearly burst from the screaming of her friends.

Only Xia Chiyi knew Zhou was showcasing his offensive skills just for him.

Even Ling Huanzhen stroked his chin, thinking: like a peacock spreading its feathers. Ten years ago, this guy wasn’t so flashy—he’s definitely not the real Sheng Xingming!

Chen Chuan and the others finally caught on. The three players who had been guarding Ye Chaoying switched focus to Zhou.

But it was futile. Zhou’s dribbling was like a kaleidoscope—spin moves, shoulder fakes, back-to-the-basket attacks crushing shorter defenders. In an instant, he was at the basket. As he jumped, the entire crowd erupted, like an NBA arena.

Chen Chuan and He Bin leapt, holding back all their strength to block the shot.

They really, really could not let Zhou score again!

Zhou’s calm face stopped their hearts. He pulled the ball back slightly and, slipping between Chen and He’s arms, sank it.

Suddenly, the whole gym exploded with cheers loud enough to shake the ceiling.

“What was that? Folding your body midair then unfolding to shoot?” A girl shook Xu Mi excitedly. “I’m dying! How did I never realize basketball players could be this cool?”

“That’s a floater layup. It requires a strong core to fold like that in the air,” Xu Mi explained, not sure how much her friend understood.

Listening to the roaring crowd, Ling Huanzhen sighed, thinking: Keeping a cold face yet still firing up the atmosphere—that’s something only a certain big boss could do.