Chapter 43: Did It Hit?

“You’re crazy!” Yuan Qiang doubted his own ears. The disbelief and confusion on his face were like witnessing someone who found the Imperial Jade Seal and then chose to livestream smashing it to pieces—

Even if you sold the Jade Seal, though illegal, he could understand that.

But to outright refuse to become the track and field champion? That, he thought, was just plain insane!

“That’s it then. Goodbye! Principal, see you next time! Counselor, don’t forget what I asked you before… and to the coaches, farewell!” Chu Zhu sprinted off with lightning speed, like a gust of wind.

Yuan Qiang instinctively reached out to grab him but caught nothing. At that moment, his composure completely shattered.

Zhang Song watched the scene with a calm exterior but was desperately trying to suppress a smile. He couldn’t laugh—if he did, it would all be over!

Having had his own hopes utterly dashed before, seeing others face similar situations now only brought him a sense of satisfaction.

“Typical,” Li Quanyuan managed to keep a straight face. If it weren’t for Yuan Qiang and the others around, he might have laughed out loud.

The main thing was Chu Zhu’s move—it was just too strong… breaking records, ditching the coaches, and then running off like that? What kind of behavior was that?

Well, considering such talent… talented people really are extraordinary! But the problem was, Chu Zhu ran off, but he was still here…

Though Li Quanyuan felt speechless inside, for the sake of the school’s reputation, he had to smooth things over: “Well, Chu Zhu comes from a rather... unique family background, so becoming champion might not hold much significance for him.”

“Maybe that’s also why he’s too lazy to train… After all, the national sports bureau’s training is notoriously grueling! Some people…” Li Quanyuan trailed off and gave a bitter smile, “Perhaps they’re just heaven’s favored children.”

A family background so powerful that the champion title doesn’t matter, and physical gifts so extraordinary that breaking world records without training is entirely possible…

Such a person can only be described as a child of heaven.

“But this…” Yuan Qiang could barely understand it, but understanding or not, how was he supposed to accept it?

“Principal! Principal Li!” Yuan Qiang gripped Li Quanyuan’s hand tightly, his voice sincere to the utmost degree, “Is there really no way? For example, could you persuade him… or tell me about his family? I could visit and personally talk to his parents. Becoming the track champion isn’t just about money!”

“It’s a matter of national pride. For the individual, for the family, even the entire clan—it’s about bringing glory.”

“I’ll try my best to make efforts in that direction.” Li Quanyuan smiled on the surface but inwardly scoffed; Yuan Qiang was desperate and grasping at straws. After all, from what he’d seen, Chu Zhu didn’t seem like the type to be easily persuaded.

“Uh, Xiao Qian!” Li Quanyuan turned to the counselor and carefully chose his words, “Please share Chu Zhu’s contact information with the two coaches, okay?”

“Alright, alright!” The counselor snapped back to attention and nodded quickly. But his hand trembled slightly as he prepared to share the contact details… No way, you actually might become the track champion?

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

Chu Zhu was texting Lin Xia on his phone, his brow slightly furrowed. After a moment’s thought, he pressed “accept friend request.” Seeing the long, detailed messages from both coaches arriving almost simultaneously, he pondered briefly before making a decision…

He sent a message to his friend: “Kaifeng cuisine at the school gate, my treat!”

“Got it, godfather!” Lin Xia quickly replied with a picture of himself kneeling.

Nightfall at a Weinan internet café.

Both had their machines on.

“So what you’re saying is, you’re completely indifferent to becoming the track champion! Yet the two coaches, or rather the big shots from the sports bureau, are begging you endlessly?”

“That’s right.” Chu Zhu nodded casually, playing the game while furiously attacking his useless teammates.

“Just as I imagined!” Lin Xia nodded in agreement, then ground his teeth and slapped his thigh, “You really deserve to die! Showing off like that… and not even bringing me along!”

“Bringing you along? Not impossible!” Chu Zhu glanced at him, “I’ve got a training method now!”

“?”

“Yeah… dare you drink nuclear wastewater?”

“???”

“I’m serious. Last time I wasn’t lying—drinking that stuff is a necessary step in training!” Chu Zhu’s fingers danced wildly over the keyboard. His extraordinary physical fitness and lightning-fast reflexes had propelled his gaming skills to new heights.

At this moment, he could almost be called a one-versus-nine legend!

Yet even under such pressure, he maintained dominance over all enemies, still finding time to send his useless teammates off to the ‘Zaou Orphanage.’

What a spirit of youthful vigor! Chu Zhu realized he had truly entered the realm of the Land Keyboard Immortals!

“?!” Lin Xia was sweating profusely, struggling to choose between transcending the ordinary and preserving his precious life, “By the way, was this training method invented by those islanders?”

Lin Xia found it hard to imagine what kind of absurd situation, what kind of bizarre environment, could have produced such a training method!

“Who knows?” Chu Zhu replied.

“Stop playing! The lottery’s about to start.” Lin Xia glanced at the time and urged.

“Oh, oh, oh!” Chu Zhu nodded half-heartedly and kept attacking with fervor.

Lin Xia: “……”

Alright then! Just moments ago, he was admiring Chu Zhu’s swagger in front of all those big shots, and now it was his turn to endure Chu Zhu’s unabashed “showboating”…

Lin Xia had already realized that what he was going through was exactly the same as those big shots. Whether it was champions or prize money—they simply didn’t matter to Chu Zhu.

The only consolation was that Chu Zhu wasn’t close with those big shots and didn’t bother to flatter them. After chatting, he just took off! But Lin Xia’s contacts were close, so there was no worry Chu Zhu would vanish without a trace.

“Forget it! I’ll watch it myself.” Lin Xia began to wait with mounting anxiety.

The stock information Chu Zhu gave him was for the next day. Lin Xia had borrowed 100,000 yuan through various channels.

A university student drowning in debt naturally felt the pressure—

So if the lottery actually hit, the first payout wouldn’t require such a risky leveraged bet! And that money was even more than what the leverage could bring!

Then—

At exactly ten o’clock.

Watching the numbers of the double-color ball drop one by one, Lin Xia’s expression shifted from anticipation to shock, then anxiety, despair, a flicker of hope… and finally, utter confusion…

“To be honest!” Chu Zhu finished a round and lazily sprawled in his gaming chair, sipping a bottle of 1982 cola, glancing sideways at Lin Xia, who was frozen like a statue, “Your expressions are more entertaining than the lottery numbers. So…”

“Did you win?”