Chapter Eighteen: Trust and Understanding

From ten in the morning until noon, the two-hour 4x100 meter baton relay practice for the sprint team concluded in a heavy silence. The four athletes were all drenched in sweat, just as they were after any training session, but this time their hearts felt numb and restless.

When the coach announced the midday break, everyone surged toward the dining hall.

Pengcheng Sports Academy had two cafeterias—one for the regular faculty and students, and another set up specifically for the provincial team athletes. These were commonly referred to as the main and the small dining halls.

The small dining hall served special meals, not only offering a dazzling variety of dishes but also at lower prices, enough to make the academy’s regular students green with envy.

Dining cards for the two halls weren’t interchangeable; only athletes and coaches participating in training here could obtain the special card for the small dining hall. Occasionally, a provincial team member might sneak a familiar student from the academy in for a feast, but if the athlete used up all their meal allowance, they’d be left hungry themselves.

After swiping his card, Lu Suo ordered a serving of prawns, a steak, half a Wenchang chicken, several eggs, and heaped his plate with vegetables, fruit, algae, and more.

Sprinting demands explosive power over a short period, so athletes need a huge intake of sugars, vitamins, and minerals, as well as a steady supply of high-quality protein. Every sprinter, therefore, was a prodigious eater.

Carrying his tray, Lu Suo glanced around the dining hall.

It was lunchtime, and athletes clustered in small groups, each training squad forming its own circle. The sprinters were gathered together as well, but Lu Suo didn’t join them. Instead, he found an empty seat and sat down alone.

He had only taken a few bites when someone sat beside him.

Lu Suo looked up to see Tian Shiwei.

Tian Shiwei glanced at Lu Suo as well but said nothing, busy peeling a hard-boiled egg, though his fidgety movements showed he was bursting with things to say.

Lu Suo wagered he wouldn’t last ten seconds.

Sure enough, before he’d even finished peeling an egg, Tian Shiwei couldn’t hold back.

“Lu, this won’t do,” Tian Shiwei said.

Lu Suo nodded as he chewed his beef, signaling that he was listening.

“We have to go along with the coach’s plan and train properly, or he’ll just keep making us drill the baton exchange—maybe until we drop dead,” Tian Shiwei said.

“I am training properly,” Lu Suo replied, starting to peel an egg himself.

“I know it’s the others not cooperating with you. I’ve already talked to them; this afternoon, we’ll try our best. But you have to tell the coach you don’t want to run the 4x100 this time. There are only about forty days left before the provincial games—there’s no time to build the necessary teamwork.

This was supposed to be our strongest event, a guaranteed gold. If you joining causes us to lose, that’s a loss for the whole team. So, Lu, put the team first, swallow your pride for now. When it’s the National Games, you’ll definitely run the 4x100.”

Tian Shiwei was almost thumping his chest in assurance.

But what right did he have to promise that?

Lu Suo knew Tian Shiwei was… Well, call him naïve, loyal, or maybe just childish. He was easily swayed, eager to play the big brother, and would step forward as soon as anyone talked him into it.

But this also meant the sprinters had come to a collective decision.

Lu Suo looked at Tian Shiwei, considering how to reply. He wasn’t keen on the 4x100 either; he still had to train for the high jump and get that “skill” from Juno—there simply wasn’t enough time.

“If I don’t participate, what about the coach…” Lu Suo began.

Tian Shiwei, seeing Lu Suo yield, quickly patted his chest again. “I’ll handle the coach. All you need to do is submit your request. The coach is as stubborn as a mule—you have to go along with him first, then make your own small request… I’ve done this before. Trust me, you have to satisfy him first, then ask for something in return…”

Lu Suo’s gaze drifted from Tian Shiwei’s chattering face upward, past his head, then back down, shooting him a look and gesturing for him to stop talking.

“…So trust me, I can handle the coach,” Tian Shiwei went on, only to notice Lu Suo’s signals. “What’s wrong, Lu? Did you see something dirty?”

Lu Suo sighed and pointed behind Tian Shiwei.

Tian Shiwei turned to look, and in an instant, his whole body seemed to freeze, as if he’d been turned to ash like a character in a comic.

Smack!

Coach Lu Jinrong slapped Tian Shiwei on the head.

“Out! You’re not the boss of the sprint team yet!”

Clutching his tray, Tian Shiwei ran off faster than a rabbit.

Lu Jinrong took the seat Tian Shiwei had just vacated, directly across from Lu Suo.

“Coach,” Lu Suo greeted him respectfully.

Lu Jinrong certainly deserved respect. As one of the country’s first generation of sprinters, he had poured his heart into training the next generation since becoming a coach. In the half month since Lu Suo had joined the team, he’d never seen Lu Jinrong go home once. The coach was always the first to arrive at the track every morning.

“You don’t want to train for the 4x100 relay?” Lu Jinrong got straight to the point.

“Yes, I think it’s a waste of time,” Lu Suo nodded. “I want to focus all my energy on the 100 meters.”

“The 100 meters might only be a single lane, but it’s still a team event—you have rivals and teammates. Practicing the 4x100 is a good way to build teamwork,” Lu Jinrong replied.

Lu Suo said nothing, but the pride in his expression made it clear: he didn’t need teammates.

Looking at the young man before him, Lu Jinrong seemed to see a lone leopard. Perhaps it was his orphaned upbringing that made it so difficult for him to trust others.

In Lu Suo, Lu Jinrong recognized a fiercely independent will and a driving force that didn’t need to belong to any group.

Lu Suo was like a solitary blade; isolation wouldn’t destroy him, it would only make him sharper—though also more fragile.

Lu Jinrong wasn’t adept at persuading kids like this. Or rather, he simply wasn’t used to it; his methods were military, direct and uncompromising.

“You have to train. If you can’t handle the 4x100, then forget the 100 meters as well,” Lu Jinrong said.

“Coach, isn’t that a bit much…” Lu Suo frowned, suddenly finding his beef and prawns tasteless.

“Not at all. Your 100-meter time isn’t the best on the team right now, but if you join the 4x100, it’ll give us a bigger advantage and make it easier to win at the provincial games,” Lu Jinrong explained.

“So if I run the fastest 100 meters, I won’t have to do the 4x100?” Lu Suo instantly spotted the loophole in Lu Jinrong’s logic.

Why is this kid so stubborn…? Lu Jinrong shook his head, “What do you think?”

“If I run the fastest, of course I’ll still have to do the relay—the odds of winning gold would be even higher…” Lu Suo sighed, realizing he’d been naïve.

“Let me ask you this, from the perspective of building teamwork in the 4x100: do you even know your teammates’ names?” Lu Jinrong pressed.

Ah… Lu Suo was momentarily at a loss.