Rekindling the dream of becoming a star

Chapter 40 The Rising Sun
As Chen Fang predicted, the fourth quarter will be difficult.

In terms of overall strength, Nan'an's starting lineup is no worse than any team in the N6 League. The reason why they are at the bottom is, as Sun Lexian wrote in his team analysis, that their bench strength is one level lower.

Dongsheng was able to compete with them because of Chen Fang, but this score advantage achieved through individual scoring is fragile and will be troubled and interfered by various factors.

Moreover, what makes Chen Fang most worried is that the entire Dongsheng team has never experienced arm wrestling with strong teams and does not know how to hold on to their opponents. Therefore, he needs to constantly cheer and encourage them with words and actions.

It's tiring, but it's the path a weak team must take if they want to win.

Only through such a game can everyone discover their shortcomings and boost their confidence.

Three minutes into the fourth quarter, Dongsheng's main players were resting, as were Nan'an, but the score was close again.

55: 54.

The fragile one-point advantage was disturbing. The students in the stands who didn't understand basketball were all anxious. They hoped that their alma mater would win, and they were looking forward to the moment when No. 21 would take the court again.

For those who know a little about basketball, emotions are even more volatile.

"It's hard to beat him!" Xu Yi, who was high up in the stands, kept shaking his feet. Zhang Dong, who was standing next to him, also sighed, "Nan'an is really strong. We are at a disadvantage just by height."

“Now we can only hope that No. 21 can continue to perform well and stay ahead.” This is all Xu Yi hopes.

On the Dongsheng bench, Yue Gang asked Chen Fang: "When do we go on?"

He couldn't afford to be so anxious. If it weren't for his good luck, he would have been able to shoot past the basket in the previous two rounds. Now Dongsheng would have fallen behind.

But Chen Fang still insisted on waiting. The cheeks of the five starting players were abnormally red, and their cardiopulmonary function had not yet cooled down.

Liu Feng suffered again because of his slow steps. He was fooled by Nan'an's substitute center and was called for a foul.

When the first penalty was scored, Chen Fang stood up.

"Substitute."

Look up at the watch.

In the last six minutes, anything is possible.

As soon as Chen Fang stood up, the whole audience was shocked. Everyone was looking forward to Chen Fang's appearance, not only because of victory, but more because Chen Fang could provide high-value emotions.

Even on the Nan'an bench, everyone knew that No. 21 would play, but everyone was worried before the game started.

When they saw Chen Fang stand up, the starting lineup also stood in a row. Before Qian Yong opened his mouth, Xue Yi stood up. The last one to stand up was Yue Zang. He hadn't spoken since he left the court in the third quarter. No one could guess what he was thinking.

But what can be confirmed is that it must be related to No. 21.

"Go ahead, follow the established tactics and cut off the connection between No. 21 and the others. As long as he doesn't score, we win." Qian Yong patted the disciples one by one, and finally came to Yue Zang. He touched his beloved disciple's head and said, "Defeating him is the best way to advance. I always have confidence in you."

Yue Zang pursed his lips and stepped onto the court.

Holding Xue Chong, Yang Shan, and Yue Gang, Chen Fang said, "I'm sure the other coach will definitely mess with me. You three must attack on your own. Captain, it's up to you."

Staring at Xue Chong: "Go in and cause damage!"

Finally, he pulled Yang Shan and said, "Shoot three points. If you make one, you can free me."

"I will definitely invest it!" Yang Shan swore with a red face.

"I'm serious!" Chen Fang smiled and pushed it away: "Go and take your seat."

One of two free throws was made and the score was tied again.

Yue Gang grabbed the rebound and subconsciously wanted to pass it to Chen Fang, but when he saw that Chen Fang had been grabbed by someone, he immediately reacted and gave the ball to Yang Shan.

Now it depends on ourselves.

Yue Gang ran forward and suddenly shouted, "Sunrise!"

Xue Chong and the others were stunned, but immediately shouted: "Dongsheng!"

Chen Fang was surprised. This had always been the slogan of the Dongsheng school team, but it was changed just because of his request.

He immediately understood what the captain meant. Dongsheng needed to be saved by himself.

Yang Shan called for a pick-and-roll with the ball. Yue Gang moved up and then down, caught the pass, then made a feint to attract a double-team and passed the ball to Xue Chong who was rushing in.

Xue Chong took a step sideways and made a jump shot, but missed.

But He Lang's delay prevented Nan'an from launching a fast break, so he retreated to his own half, faced Nan'an in the inside, and resolutely double-teamed him, resulting in a scramble for the ball.

According to the ball possession arrow in the rules of the face-off, the side that loses the initial face-off will be the first to obtain the ball, and then the rotation will be similar.

Dongsheng gets the ball and serves the ball from the sideline.

Chen Fang had been under guard and double-teaming, but at the moment of serving, Nan'an was a little slack, and Chen Fang suddenly accelerated and received the pass through the cover of his teammates.

Zhang Hansheng was horrified and chased after him madly.

But Chen Fang had already passed half court, and without waiting for him, he rushed into the three-point line. Liu Ziheng, who was defending in the backcourt, did not dare to move forward for fear of being passed by him, and instead retreated to the three-second zone to make a final backhand.

At the same time, Yue Zang was chasing from behind at high speed, and Xue Yi was also approaching from the side.

According to estimates, in one and a half seconds, Chen Fang would be surrounded by Nan'an.

Pass the ball or attack on my own, the thought flashed through my mind.

Chen Fang stopped abruptly, pretended to pass the ball, and shook off his enemy Liu Ziheng. After successfully praying to Buddha, Chen Fang jumped into the penalty area.

Diagonally to Nan'an's last line of defense, center forward Yao Qiwei rushed up without hesitation. At this moment, Xue Yi had already arrived behind him.

Is it attack or pass?

This thought flashed through the minds of Yang Shan, Xue Chong, and everyone else in Nan'an.

Chen Fang gave the answer with practical actions.

Holding the ball, Chen Fang jumped up, raised the basketball high and sent it towards the basket.

Yao Qiwei instinctively raised his hand to block the shot, but the next second, a thought flashed through his mind.

Do you want to?
impossible!
Qian Yong almost rushed into the court. He stared with wide eyes when he saw No. 21 flying high into the air. The extremely uncoordinated and abrupt height of the jump almost made his eyes burst.

His body completely pressed down on Yao Qiwei's upper body, and Chen Fang looked up at the basket above his head.

Maybe, it can really be buckled in.

Then buckle it over!
As soon as this thought came to my mind, my blood began to boil. No, it should be said that it exploded.

With both hands holding the basketball, he reached towards the orange-red basket. The next moment, he felt a mysterious consciousness roaring.

Buckle up!

This was the only thought left in the world. "Wow!" Chen Fang roared like a wild beast and rushed forward with all his might.

My hand touched the cold basket, the orange basketball fell in front of my eyes, and the white net was floating.

Everything is telling Chen Fang.

He really dunked on Nan'an's center.

"Ahhhh!" No one in the stands could control themselves. Students in the first row even jumped off the stands.

What kind of magical moment was this? A 1.7-meter-tall guy actually dunked the ball through a center who was as tall as a mountain.

Xu Yi held his head in his hands and stared at his gay friend. He had only one thought in mind, which was to tell from other people's eyes whether the scene he had just seen was real.

Zhang Dong hugged his thighs and screamed, "Fuck, brother, come and see the gods!"

"Bang!" The old principal clapped his hands and cheered, shaking his head continuously. No one knew what he said.

Because the decibel level in the stadium was exploding, everywhere you looked, you could see heads jumping around. The specially designed stands at the Dongsheng Stadium were extremely visually shocking.

Chen Fang fell down and was hugged by Xue Chong, with tears in his eyes.

"My life is so fucking worth it!" Xue Chong burst into tears.

The others surrounded Chen Fang, shouting words they didn't even know what to say, venting their inner excitement.

In the stands where Class 12 of Grade was, the students were going crazy. The girls were hugging each other and screaming, not caring about their image at all.

Even students who don’t know how to play basketball know what it means to hold the ball and dunk on someone.

This is a dunk, which is a rare scene to see even on TV.

Chen Fang was dizzy, but he understood one thing. He seemed to have shocked the whole audience with an incredible dunk that he had never thought of.

As the victim, Nan'an didn't know how to face it. He wanted to serve, but the baseline was full of Dongsheng's players. He looked for the referee and found that the three referees were whispering to each other. Even a blind person could see the surprise on their faces.

All hell breaks loose.

Qian Yong silently pulled his teammates back to the bench and stood there with his hands on his hips, as if at this moment, standing straight and stubbornly was the only support he could give to his teammates.

"We at Dongsheng are going to produce a big star!" Many people had this thought, even the teachers.

Zhang Deming stood at the front of the class, looking at Chen Fang who was surrounded by his teammates. Although he couldn't see, it did not hinder his inner excitement.

"Really... it's great!" Zhang Deming couldn't describe the relief and joy in his heart at that moment.

The commotion lasted for a few minutes, and order was finally restored at the referee's whistle after he sobered up. However, the referee could not control the restless stands.

"Chen Fang, Chen Fang." The shouts, one louder than the other, shook the earth.

To be honest, Chen Fang felt a little dizzy. Every face was blurry, and even taking a few deep breaths did not help.

I knew what was going on in my heart. People were so excited that they reached a critical point. Their brains were filled with blood and their retinas were dry.

Having seen many storms, this shouldn't have happened.

But it is undeniable that this pure atmosphere of the campus was the first time that Chen Fang felt it, and it was so intoxicating. Nan'an was attacking, they were silent, their eyes were fierce, and when he saw Yue Zang's bloodshot eyes, Chen Fang shuddered.

I need to calm down.

Yue Zang dribbled the ball and went straight to Chen Fang. There was no technical content involved, he just relied on pure strength to attack.

This should have been Xue Chong's job, but this guy probably didn't think clearly and made this mistake.

We can’t let Yue Zang get back at his wits’ end, we can’t!

Chen Fang's rich on-the-spot experience allowed him to guess Yue Zang's thoughts. He kept retreating and trying to interfere by leaning sideways to grab the ball, but Yue Zang's arm span and shoulder width were so overwhelming that Chen Fang was pushed across the free throw line in just a few strokes.

Yue Gang rushed forward, but it was too late. Yue Zang turned around and made a jump shot.

His movements did not change after playing for three quarters, and they were still very straight and regular.

Watching him shoot, I always have the illusion that he will score no matter what.

The ball hit the back frame and bounced out.

The next second, a man named He Lang jumped up even faster and grabbed the backboard.

It was Yue Zang again. He shot and grabbed the ball at the same time. His strong physique and fast jumping speed gave He Lang no time to react. He jumped up again and hit the ball into the basket.

57: 56.

"Cheer up! Just one point away!" Yue Zang yelled at his teammates.

Xue Yi was stunned. It was the first time he saw Yue Zang roaring on the court.

Yue Zang no longer hides his desire for victory. He only wants to score points and help the team.

But no one seemed to have recovered from the blow.

Xue Yi kept telling himself that he hadn't lost yet, he was just one point away, and that he should cheer up, but why did he feel so powerless inside?
Xue Yi was confused. He wanted to muster up some strength, but his hands and feet seemed not to be his own.

This is not only his current situation, but also the current situation of the entire Nan'an. Everyone is mechanically turning back, getting into position, defending, and passing the ball.

Yue Zang's roar did not help Nan'an improve. From the beginning to the end, Dongsheng kept close to the score. Every time they tied the score, No. 21 would take a shot and go ahead again. The coach kept changing tactics to contain them, but to no avail.

Chen Fang had the ball and Nan'an was facing a formidable enemy. Yue Zang stepped forward and tried to double-team Zhang Hansheng, but Chen Fang dribbled backwards deftly, got rid of the possible double-team, and passed the ball to Xue Chong on the wing with a shake of his hand.

Xue Chong dribbled the ball into the basket, faced with two people blocking him, and passed the ball back to Yang Shan on the outside.

Yang Shan, who had been waiting for a long time, did not hesitate and took a three-pointer with the belief that it would go in.

The ball went into the net, and the cheers from the stands rose to a peak.

60: 56.

The momentum started, and everyone's face was filled with light.

Nan'an's advancement was fast but disorganized. The morale-boosted Dongsheng team defended extremely aggressively, and several passes of the ball failed to break the formation.

Seeing that the offensive time was about to be violated, Yue Zang ran out from the other side and asked for the ball, making a hard clearance.

But his intention was too obvious, and Xue Chong seized the opportunity and blocked it with a slap.

"Beautiful!" Everyone on Dongsheng's bench, including the second team in the back row, jumped up and yelled.

The dropped ball was caught by Yang Shan first. He ran forward and in just one step, he accurately found Xue Chong who was running fast. The latter rushed straight to the basket. Facing Liu Ziheng who was almost ten centimeters taller than him and retreated to defend, he took a jump step and actively sought physical confrontation.

He squeezed out space in the air and shot the basketball into the goal.

"Roar!" Xue Chong took a domineering step and vented his inner excitement towards the stands behind the basketball hoop.

One defending and one attacking, Xue Chong went completely crazy.

To be exact, Dongsheng went crazy.

Countless classmates rushed forward, waving to Xue Chong and shouting his name loudly.

Tears welled up in his eyes, and Xue Chong felt that even if he were to die now, he would be willing to do so.

I love basketball so much!

At this moment, all the suffering and pain are rewarded.

Compared with Xue Chong's feelings, the other teammates felt the same. They felt the burning fire and the determination to win the game from Xue Chong.

The overwhelming cheers from the stands almost overturned the small boat of Nan'an in the rising ocean.

Qian Yong closed his eyes in pain, afraid of the momentum, especially the final stage.

Dongsheng has completely gotten rid of his inner demons. In their hearts, they know that with No. 21 backing them up, they can give full play to their abilities.

Gonna lose!
Every Nan'an's heart was shrouded in this thought.

I looked up at the time, only two minutes left.

"Call for a timeout!" Qian Yong had to use other means to cool down the situation.

However, contrary to expectations, this pause gave more than 5,000 students the opportunity to sing the Dongsheng school song.

“We ride the wind and waves and set sail for a distant place. Our ambitions are to reach far and wide.”

"Stand tall and overcome all difficulties. Our steps are firm and resounding."

“The mountains are high and the waters are long, the dream is ahead, and our life is destined to be brilliant.”

"The rising sun shines brightly, and our legend spreads across the world."

The songs got higher and higher, wave after wave, and everyone sang tirelessly. Everyone stood up, waved their hands, and moved forward along with the singing.

The towering stands really look like a mountain, emitting endless pressure.

This pause did not cool down the atmosphere, but instead elevated the entire Dongsheng from frenzy to sacredness.

The old principal could no longer hold back his tears, and he excitedly said to the people around him: "We must continue to hold such activities in the future, and we must do them seriously to see how energetic our students and children are."

Qian Yong felt an endless sense of powerlessness from deep within his heart. He wanted to win, and no one wanted to lose. But now, no matter how hard he tried, he could not find any possibility of winning.

When the referee's whistle sounded, the Nan'an players came on the field again. Looking at their backs and steps, Qian Yongxin sank into the abyss.

So, when Chen Fang shot a three-pointer right in front of him and shot through the net again, there was not even a change of expression on his face.

Yue Zang was still persisting. He didn't consider anyone else. He took the ball and rushed to the frontcourt. Facing Xue Chong's defense, he broke through and made a quick stop and jump shot before Yue Gang could make up for the defense.

The basketball hit the back frame, bounced up, and was rebounded by He Lang.

He looked for his teammates who were running down the road, and in his field of vision, four red and white figures were sprinting forward like arrows.

"Ball!" he yelled and threw it with all his might.

"Beep!" The sharp final whistle sounded.

The people who were about to get off the court were surprised to find that the competition time had come.

65: 56.

Dongsheng wins!
"Captain, we really won!" Yang Shan hugged Yue Gang and burst into tears.

"Why are you crying? Look at how little you have achieved. We are going to win more games!" Yue Gang choked up. He got what he wanted. For the first time in three years, he won the game at home in front of his classmates and brought them happiness. In an instant, all the grievances of the past three years came flooding back to him.

Xue Chong picked up Chen Fang and laughed wildly.

More people rushed up and surrounded them.

Bai Long, Lou Qing and Ge Yuan jumped off the stands. They didn't know what they were laughing at, they just knew that they were very happy.

"Ge Yuan, we have to win here in the future!"

"Well, we can definitely do it!"

"Yes, the three of us, one day, we will be the protagonists here! Haha!"

The boiling cheers were everywhere, and the whole campus was in jubilation.

"We win, we win!"

All the students were stomping their feet and jumping. A strange resonance was echoing in the campus, in the stands, and in everyone's heart.

Indescribable joy was running rampant in my heart. This was not an important game. In fact, it was not even worthy of being considered a worthy match in the Nanyang High School League.

But for those who experienced this game and witnessed it with their own eyes, it will be etched in their life memories. Even after more than ten years, they can still talk about it endlessly at class reunions.

This game has been imprinted in our youth.

At this moment, youth is embodied by basketball.

To sum it up with the referee's post-match handshake.

"This is the most exciting and impressive game I have ever refereed in my life. I would like to thank both teams."

Thank you Nan'an, thank you Dongsheng, and thank you to all the friends who attended.

Winning is not the end, but the starting point of a joyful rush to the next happiness.

　After writing forty chapters, I have finally reached a point where I have also developed my own style of basketball writing. If you like this style, please support and comment on it!
　　Next, the Nanyang chapter enters a new stage, where more characters and challenges will appear, including love stories and career lines, which will begin to take shape.

　　Two chapters a day, with a minimum of 7,000 words. I just hope that I can carve out a niche in sports literature and let more basketball and book lovers discover it.

　　Finally, I would like to thank my friends again for their support. No matter what form it takes, it is the best compliment to my creation.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)