55. Marlon

Overall, married life was nothing out of the ordinary, transitioning smoothly from taking turns visiting each other's homes to living together under one roof, finally establishing a shared household.

However, due to their respective demanding schedules, neither spent an abundance of time at home. Sometimes, when Duan Nanzhou was caught up with late-night work, she would simply head back to her own apartment, which was closer to her workplace, while Ma Long spent the majority of his time at the training base.

Yet, this distance did not dampen their affection for one another. The couple maintained their daily routine of video calls and messaging, and this steady stream of communication kept them feeling sweet and connected every single day.

As the sports administration reforms gradually rolled forward, Duan Nanzhou was assigned by her mentor to oversee the newly restructured sports divisions. Table tennis, holding the prestigious status of the national sport, naturally occupied a significant portion of this portfolio.

Catching the knowing, smiling gaze of her mentor, Duan Nanzhou instantly understood the underlying intention. On one hand, the mentor felt that the newlyweds had been separated for too long and wished to engineer opportunities for them to spend more time together. On the other hand, this particular domain was unquestionably within Duan Nanzhou's comfort zone and happened to be a central focus of the current reforms.

Thus, the assignment she received served both purposes admirably. After expressing her gratitude to her mentor, Duan Nanzhou accepted the position.

When Ma Long heard the wonderful news that his beloved wife would be able to accompany him to the national table tennis team's training sessions for the foreseeable future—and even travel alongside them to international competitions—he was practically ecstatic.

Observing the calm and composed expression of Duan Nanzhou on the screen, Ma Long asked uncertainly,

"Wife, you're not pulling my leg, are you?"

"Mm-hm, I am."

Duan Nanzhou delivered the deadpan response with absolute seriousness. Ma Long, who trusted his wife implicitly, experienced an immediate collapse of his facial expression. His wife knew just how desperately he missed her, yet she still teased him! Unbelievable!

"I'm kidding, I'm not kidding! It's true, really true!" Seeing Ma Long's aggrieved pout of annoyance, Duan Nanzhou quickly switched to soothing him. She honestly couldn't fathom why Ma Long seemed to be regressing into an even bigger child the longer they were married!

"Love you, wife!" Ma Long's expression morphed in a split second as he eagerly braced himself to welcome his wife's arrival.

When Duan Nanzhou arrived at the General Administration of Sport alongside several other broadcasting and administrative staff members, she was greeted by Liu Guoliang, who had led the entire team out to welcome them—a standard yet respectful gesture of official cooperation.

Once the polite formalities concluded, Liu Guoliang shed his courteous exterior, replacing it with the genuine warmth of welcoming Duan Nanzhou back to her home turf, eager to catch up properly.

Before long, they witnessed the "hopeless" Ma Long swiftly stepping forward to cling to her side, refusing to leave Duan Nanzhou's orbit for even a second. At that moment, Coach Liu felt entirely justified in averting his gaze.

Duan Nanzhou could not help but smile at her husband's stealthy hand-holding and various affectionate gestures, reciprocating each one and causing Ma Long's eyes to crinkle with delight.

Following this, Duan Nanzhou's tenure of shadowing the national table tennis team officially commenced. Even though she occasionally had to visit other sports departments for work commitments, the vast majority of her time was spent right by Ma Long's side, finally granting the newlyweds their alternative "honeymoon trip" post-wedding.

Another notable development was this:

During her time accompanying the team, Duan Nanzhou made no further effort to conceal her exceptional table tennis skills. She frequently joined the players for practice sessions, most notably serving as Ma Long's hitting partner.

This gave the members of the national team a much more visceral appreciation for what true, absolute dominance looked like. Whenever Duan Nanzhou was in a particularly cheerful mood and decided to draft unwilling participants into sparring with her, they would invariably be beaten to the point of questioning the meaning of life.

During that period, the members of the team learned to detour around Duan Nanzhou whenever they spotted her. This was especially true for the younger players, whose youth and playful vulnerability made them prime targets for her impromptu training sessions. Prominent mentions included Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, Wang Chuqin, and Liang Jingkun.

As the "eccentric older sister" who hunted down sparring partners across the facility, Duan Nanzhou felt not a shred of guilt over her tyrannical behavior. Every day, she would cheerfully scan the room to select her daily victim (not that she cared).

Consequently, the formerly gentle, respected Senior Sister Duan—who used to treat the team to delicious snacks and meals—suddenly transformed into a menacing tormentor of youngsters, causing the junior players' complexions to drain of color the moment she appeared in their line of sight.

Ironically, this entire enterprise received enthusiastic endorsement and support from Liu Guoliang and the rest of the coaching staff. Under these grueling, trial-by-fire training sessions, the junior players' competitive capabilities advanced by leaps and bounds.

Yet the youngsters could only scream internally: Are our lives not lives too? Sure, the progress is fantastic, but the continuous torture is simply too terrifying, sob!

***

When Duan Nanzhou learned from her close friends Liu Shiwen and Ding Ning that she had evolved into the national team's newly minted "Big Demon King"—a figure terrifying enough to rival Liu Guoliang himself—she maintained a thoroughly innocent expression. She was simply helping cultivate the flowers of the motherland!

Her good friends, who had managed to escape this particular trial, found the news hysterical. After all, from their perspective, Duan Nanzhou was nothing short of a little angel and a wonderful best friend. Still, watching the juniors tremble in fear was undeniably hilarious.

This amused sentiment persisted until the day Duan Nanzhou ran out of junior targets and turned her benevolent attention toward her dear girlfriends. At that point, the laughter abruptly stopped.

Liu Shiwen, Ding Ning, and the others, having endured a rigorous training session of their own, realized they had spoken too soon. Perhaps they needed to start avoiding Duan Nanzhou as well!

In the end, the only person who stood steadfastly at his post was Duan Nanzhou's devoted husband—Mr. Ma Long. He remained entirely willing to accompany Duan Nanzhou for practice without a single complaint, firmly convinced that every single rally was a "shot born of love."

许昕 (Xu Xin), 方博 (Fang Bo), and 闫安 (Yan An): There's no saving this brother. He's a lost cause (sighs).

Liu Shiwen and Ding Ning: Nanzhou has truly trained him well (thumbs up).

Sun Yingsha, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, and others: Brother Long is undeniably brave. Aside from her merciless practice sessions, Sister Nanzhou is perfection incarnate in every other way! If only she could be a bit gentler when we play!

Fan Zhendong, Wang Chuqin, Liang Jingkun, and others: Brother Long is definitely compromising his conscience! Still, this married couple is utterly terrifying, sob!

The coaching staff, having witnessed Duan Nanzhou's playing and coaching style: Ma Long is unequivocally in true love, and utterly hopelessly devoted!

***

Ever since Ma Long's official marriage announcement, he had virtually never posted anything related to Duan Nanzhou on his social media platforms.

As years passed, rumors regarding a supposed "marital rift" began to circulate online. In truth, whispers of this nature had lingered ever since Ma Long's wedding, initially fueled by stubborn fans who manufactured gossip on a daily basis.

However, a few years down the line, these rumors suddenly rocketed to the top of the trending searches.

During an important international table tennis tournament in 2019, a photograph filtered from foreign media outlets into domestic platforms, instantly sparking intense public discussion.

#MaLongSuspectedNewRomanceWithBlondeForeignWoman#
#MaLongDivorce#
#MaLongForgetsNothingNotEvenRomanceDuringTournaments#

These hashtags instantly monopolized the top spots on the trending charts. Owing to their sensational nature, they lured countless internet users to click through, read, and debate, causing the situation to snowball rapidly.

Because the news broke in the middle of the night local time for the national team, it went unmonitored and unaddressed in its early stages. By the time everyone woke up the next morning, the absurdity had already blown out of proportion.

When Ma Long and Duan Nanzhou found themselves once again facing the coaching staff led by Liu Guoliang, an awkward silence filled the room. Were the two of them some sort of traffic magnet? Why did netizens always insist on dragging them into the spotlight?

"Go on, explain yourselves!" Liu Guoliang looked at the young couple across from him, momentarily speechless. Yet he couldn't bring himself to scold them harshly; after all, one was the captain leading the national men's team to glory, while the other was a major financial benefactor who had significantly enhanced the commercial value of the table tennis program. Neither was someone he could afford to offend!

Several members of the coaching staff glanced over at Duan Nanzhou's newly dyed blonde hair. It certainly looked stunning! But what on earth was wrong with the eyes of those foreign paparazzi and netizens? Did they genuinely mistake her for a foreign girl?

Once again, the coaching staff silently cursed and spat upon those trashy journalists and marketing accounts. Just as they were about to indulge in a few more insults directed at the reporters, they remembered that the "blonde foreign woman" sitting across from them used to be a journalist herself, prompting a sudden wave of guilty discretion that made them shut their mouths.

While the internet was still locked in fierce debate, Ma Long dropped a high-definition post featuring both rear and profile shots of the two of them from the paparazzi photos, accompanied by a fresh, intimate front-facing selfie.

In the photographs, Duan Nanzhou sported a head of blonde hair paired with a bold, fierce makeup look. At first glance, one might genuinely mistake her for being of mixed descent or foreign, but her striking beauty was undeniable.

Thus, a simple post containing a clarification paired with a public display of affection—containing nothing more than a single heart emoji—instantly silenced the bickering netizens.

[Blonde woman = Sister-in-law, Sister-in-law = Blonde woman.]

[Silence. Silence is Cambridge tonight.]

[I can feel it. Brother Long and Sister-in-law simply possess a constitution that attracts storms. Marketing accounts really love manufacturing drama around them.]

[Can I just say something? Sister-in-law is drop-dead gorgeous! That face and appearance, I am obsessed!]

[I'm so in love, genuinely so in love. Captain Long, could you step aside and let me live with Sister-in-law for a while, I'm begging you, sob!]

[What in the world is "new romance with a blonde woman"? Sister-in-law just changed her hairstyle and hair color, and somehow she rocketed to the trending searches.]

[Sister-in-law is truly a mythical being, continually slapping the rumor-mongers across the face. As an aside, I am head over heels for that face and figure!]

[Sister-in-law isn't just pretty in the face; her physique is phenomenal too—*whew*. I can't even imagine what kind of heavenly life Captain Long leads every day!]

[By that logic, Captain Long essentially possesses a wife with seventy-two transformations. What an absolute steal!]

[I am never believing gossip like this again. It's blindingly obvious that Captain Long could never live without Sister-in-law in this lifetime! Who in their right mind would ever let such an absolute beauty roam around unattached?!]

[Captain Long and Sister-in-law's relationship is so sweet. He's out there conquering the competition arena, and when he steps off, he has his beloved wife waiting to accompany him. Who's feeling envious? I'm not saying a word.]

[Twice! Twice now! First, I offered my left cheek for Sister-in-law to slap, and now I'm offering my right cheek to be hit again! Enough is enough! Though... I kind of want to get slapped one more time!]

[Hey upstairs, don't be too bizarre! But thinking about it, that dynamic is insanely cool, hehehe!]

[I bet Captain Long wishes he could tie Sister-in-law to his belt loop and carry her everywhere. In the background of one of those photos, I literally spotted some foreign guy holding his phone, looking ready to approach them for her contact info. Captain Long definitely noticed that, hahahaha. Look at how much tighter his arm wrapped around her shoulder.]

[Everyone's observation skills are off the charts! After reading that analysis, I went back and looked again, and it totally looks true, hahahaha! Sister-in-law is so wildly popular!]

[Captain Long's internal monologue: Back off, everyone, this is my wife!]

...

[Hahahaha, Captain Long is truly head-over-heels in love.]

[Though to be fair, Sister-in-law is living the high life too. Just look at Captain Long's arms, those thighs, and that waist!]

[Captain Long probably never expected that by posting a couple's selfie, half the commenters would be coveting him, and the other half would be coveting his wife, hahahaha.]

[No wonder Captain Long didn't flex their relationship before—it almost made everyone think they were on the rocks. Who would dare show off with this many hawks watching!]

[Captain Long: My friend, you totally get me!]