Yonghe Road

Chapter 8 Dunk
A basketball game was going on on the playground of Baile Village Primary School. The players were not wearing formal uniforms. They were all wearing vests, short-sleeved shirts, and shorts. Some were even shirtless, so it was impossible to tell which side was which.

Among them were young men in their early twenties and middle-aged and elderly men in their forties and fifties. They all gathered under the basketball hoop, fighting for the ball and sweating profusely.

Although the skills on the court are not as good as those in professional games, the tense atmosphere in the audience is no less than that in the NBA audience seats where tickets cost tens of thousands of dollars.

The playground was full of people, including villagers from Baile Village, friends and relatives of the players who drove from the city, and members of the city's basketball club who had no chance to play at the moment. They mingled with men, women, young and old, acting as spectators, cheering and clapping, adding to the emotional value of the players on the court.

Old Xie also stood in the crowd with great interest, stretching his neck.

It was summer vacation, and he was bored to death staying at school all by himself. Luckily, the game brought some people to the school. And what elderly person doesn't enjoy a good time? Even the elderly from the nursing home came to join in the fun.

Amidst the crowd's shouts, the players on the court chased a ball, running back and forth between two basketball hoops, sweating, yelling, cursing. Finally, someone slapped the ball into the air, and with everyone's gaze following, it landed, touched the rim, bounced back, landed again, thrashed and trembled 360 degrees inside the basket, and finally bounced out...

Everyone sighed, felt lost, cursed the heavens and the earth, and was filled with regret.

Zhong Ziqi let out a contemptuous hiss.

This level of football skills is too bad.

Back when he was playing basketball at the sports academy...

Zhong Ziqi couldn't help but recall the past. He didn't know what happened in the crowd. Anyway, someone pushed him, not just one person, but many people. Like the sudden accident in the elevator, he was knocked out of the crowd by the powerful impact from behind and fell towards the court in front.

He took two or three steps forward with his long legs, and he was already on the court.

He is over 1.8 meters tall, which makes him seem short among professional players whose average height is over 2 meters. But at this moment on the court, he stands out from the crowd.

He raised his hands out of inertia and used his extraordinary strength to steady his feet and body to prevent himself from falling. The ball that was falling in the air was just caught by his hands raised above his head.

A familiar muscle memory prompted him to catch the ball steadily. Then, he squatted down, controlled the ball, dribbled it, dodged left and right, went around the crowd, and ran towards one of the basketball racks.

The speed was so fast and smooth that neither the players nor the spectators could react.

By the time people reacted, he had already reached the shooting area outside the three-point line.

With a roar, he suddenly accelerated from a few steps outside the three-point line, leaped up like a cheetah, glided in the air, grasped the basketball with both hands, and slammed the ball into the basket with astonishing height and strength, shocking the entire stadium.

At this moment, time seemed to freeze, everyone held their breath, waiting for the moment when the basketball entered the net.

With a "swish", the basketball passed through the basket accurately and fell into the net.

The whole stadium was boiling in an instant, people cheered, applauded, and whistled, all cheering for his wonderful goal.

Among the players, one look was particularly admiring and amazing.

The gaze came from a man in his fifties. His hair was completely white, like a layer of crystal snow piled on his head, which was rare at this age. However, there were no wrinkles on his face. His square face showed both majesty and kindness. He was not wearing a vest and shorts like other players on the court. Instead, he was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and dark trousers. He was dressed neatly, as if he had just finished a meeting, came down from the podium, and was pulled to this court.

He tilted his head as if to ask others about the identity of the young man who had just scored the goal, but his eyes were closely following Zhong Ziqi's figure.

Zhong Ziqi had already caught the basketball that had smoothly entered the basket under the basketball hoop and threw it towards the players. It was smooth and handsome. Then, with a smug expression on his face, he pulled out his vibrating cell phone from the back pocket of his jeans and strode out of the court to answer the call.

Old Xie came over with a limp and offered him a cigarette, but he waved his hand to stop him.

Old Xie was unhappy. Zhong Ziwang was closer to him. Zhong Ziqi had studied a few more years, so he probably disliked that the old man's cigarettes were not high-end?
Zhong Ziqi didn't mean that. He just didn't have the habit of smoking. Besides, he was on the phone right now: "Hello, Mother..."

"Zi Qi, why did you answer the phone just now? Come to the hospital quickly, something happened to your sister-in-law." Huifang said in a crying voice on the other end of the phone.

Lin Yingying almost lost her third pregnancy. Huifang was frightened and regretted not stopping Lin Yingying from working.

Lin Yingying was a hardworking child. Knowing that her family had gone into debt in order to marry her and Ziwang had to go out to work, she thought about doing some manual work at home to earn more money to supplement the family income and reduce Ziwang's burden. However, she was a pregnant woman after all and needed to rest. Although it was just manual work, she couldn't resist getting up early and working late to earn more money. After processing a bag of toy materials, she got up to go to the bathroom and fainted.

Huifang was really scared to death.

The doctor had said before that if Lin Yingying couldn't keep this pregnancy, she might never be able to get pregnant again.

Lin Yingying is now married to Zhong Ziwang and is the eldest son and daughter-in-law of the Zhong family. If she is unable to bear children, what will happen to the Zhong family's incense?
When Zhong Ziqi arrived at the city hospital, Huifang pulled Zhong Ziqi aside and said with lingering fear: "Ziqi, thank this girl on behalf of your mother. If it weren't for her, your eldest brother's child would have been almost lost..."

Following the direction of Huifang's finger, Zhong Ziqi saw Xie Anmin.

They didn't expect to meet again so soon.

Although he hadn't seen Xie Anmin clearly due to the heavy rain yesterday, Zhong Ziqi still recognized her immediately and saw her face and features clearly. A warm-hearted beauty. Xie Anmin left such an impression on Zhong Ziqi.

After Zhong Ziqi arranged lunch for Huifang and Lin Yingying, he took Xie Anmin out of the hospital and went to the street to find a restaurant.

Since he has helped the Zhong family so much, we should at least treat him to lunch to express our gratitude.

Seeing that Xie Anmin had good taste in clothes and exuded a fashionable temperament, Zhong Ziqi was very different from the women in the village. He thought that she must be a tourist from a big city who came to Baile Village for sightseeing, so he planned to find a Western restaurant and treat her to a Western meal. This way, he would not lose her status and would also show his sincerity in thanking her.

Xie Anmin said, "You should treat me to a bowl of Fuding pork slices."

This coastal city boasts over 300 varieties of delicious snacks, earning it the title of China's first landmark food city. It also boasts a provincial-level food and snack street, attracting tourists from around the country daily to enjoy a culinary feast. Fuding pork slices are its most iconic delicacy, a hallmark of this coastal city.

"At the Asian Games that year, the girl who won the hurdles had just stepped off the podium when a reporter came over to interview her and asked her what she wanted to eat the most. She didn't mention the delicacies from her hometown, but without hesitation, she mentioned Fuding pork slices. It was so shocking that she got a wave of traffic from Fuding pork slices."

When Xie Anmin mentioned this gossip, Zhong Ziqi shook his head with an innocent look, indicating that he didn't know about it. Xie Anmin muttered speechlessly, "Strong limbs, simple mind."

"What did you say?" Zhong Ziqi asked.

Xie Anmin, feeling guilty, covered it up with a smile. He raised his voice and said, "I say, it's not easy for us outsiders to eat a bowl of authentic Fuding pork slices. There are shops and stalls selling Fuding pork slices all over the country, but I'm sure they're not authentic."

"Actually, I don't know which restaurant sells authentic Fuding pork slices." Zhong Ziqi scratched his head and said embarrassedly.

Xie Anmin was speechless, but Zhong Ziqi took out his cell phone, waved it, and said, "I'll ask Boya for advice right away."

"Who is Boya?"

"My brother." "Oh, Ziqi died of illness and played a wonderful song, and Boya smashed his zither and lost his soulmate. So your name is Ziqi?" Xie Anmin asked.

"Zhong Ziqi."

"Even their surnames are the same, so his name is Yu Boya?"

"That's not the case. His last name is Wang."

Zhong Ziqi quickly called Wang Zian and soon got a satisfactory answer.

He told Xie Anmin what he had learned from Wang Zian: in Chengguan, a meat slice shop next to a gold shop on the back street didn't use cilantro or any other condiments. The bowl only contained meat slices, and customers could add a few meat swallows according to their taste. They used plenty of ingredients and little "bubble powder", which was considered to be the authentic taste.

The butcher shop in the alley opposite the People's Theater can provide coriander, and the taste is loved by many "coriander lovers";
The pork slices at the log cabin at the intersection of the North Market have a different texture every day, sometimes soft and sometimes chewy, but the soup is super delicious, and it's rich without adding anything, with the rich aroma of the big bones.
In addition, Xiyang Village Meat Slices, known as one of the top ten famous snacks in the province, also has a branch in the city...

"There are many authentic butcher shops in the city, and I don't know which one to go to because I haven't eaten at any of them. You are a distinguished guest, so you decide which one you want to go to." Zhong Ziqi said understandingly.

"The cabin at the crossroads." Xie Anmin made his choice.

"Why did you choose this one? Does it taste better?" Zhong Ziqi asked.

Xie Anmin looked at Zhong Ziqi with a mixture of laughter and tears. He was right when he said that he was "strong in limbs but simple in mind". He, a local, had never eaten it and didn't know about it. How could she, an outsider, know and have eaten it?
Xie Anmin didn't argue with Zhong Ziqi about this, and just said, "I simply like the name, 'Crossroads Cabin.' In this concrete city, there's a cabin at a crossroads. Isn't that very poetic? Sitting in this cabin at the crossroads, savoring worldly delicacies, enjoying the crossroads of my life..."

Zhong Ziqi shook his head and said, "I don't understand." He stopped a rickshaw in front of the city hospital and took Xie Anmin to the so-called artistic cabin at the crossroads.

It is true that summer insects cannot talk about ice. Xie Anmin was sitting on the tricycle. He turned his head and glanced at Zhong Ziqi and couldn't help but sigh, although he has no soul, he is really handsome, isn't he?
Xie Anmin sat on a tricycle and looked at the cityscape of this coastal town. There were both modern high-rise buildings and quaint buildings with blue bricks and black tiles on the streets. It was simple and elegant, yet full of vitality. It was a good place to live and raise a family. However, it probably could not accommodate someone like her who was ambitious and chasing fame and fortune.

She is just a migratory bird that stays here for a short time and will eventually fly to her own world.

And the handsome guy next to her is just a passer-by in her life.

As Xie Anmin's thoughts drifted, the tricycle arrived at the cabin. Zhong Ziqi got off first and began haggling with the driver about the fare, but Xie Anmin simply scanned the QR code the driver had hung on the front of the tricycle and paid 88 yuan.

Hearing the female voice quoting the price on the driver's phone, Zhong Ziqi was stunned. "It doesn't take that much."

"88, for good luck."

"Are you crazy? You shouldn't waste money like this."

"He's a working man, so what's wrong with a little tip?"

While the two were arguing, the driver was afraid that Xie Anmin would regret it and wanted him to return the money. He said "thank you" and pedaled the tricycle hard with his feet and drove away.

"You are a rich man, so why don't you treat us to the meat?" Zhong Ziqi said unhappily.

"Are you poor? If you are, that's no problem." Xie Anmin was very straightforward.

"Even if I'm poor, I can still afford two bowls of sliced meat."

"Then you pay the bill." Xie Anmin chuckled.

Zhong Ziqi was so annoyed by Xie Anmin's laughter that he lost all appetite for the bowl of pork slices. Xie Anmin enjoyed the bowl of pork slices very much and even left the boss's contact information, saying that he would visit him someday to see how he made Fuding pork slices.

The boss explained that the shop was open during the day, and that the meat-making process usually took place after closing time at night or in the early morning, so he was worried the timing was a bit unfortunate. Xie Anmin scanned the QR code on the boss's shop and paid 1,000 yuan, buying him half a day's time. The boss was stunned; he had never encountered such a generous customer before.

Xie Anmin asked the boss if he didn't have enough money, and took out his mobile phone to scan the money. The boss waved his hand conscientiously and said that it was enough. Then he took Xie Anmin and Zhong Ziqi to his small workshop and gave them a live demonstration of how to make sliced meat.

Xie Anmin watched with great interest and tried his hand at it. He took a mallet and beat the pork into a paste. The meat splashed everywhere, not only on his face, but also on Zhong Ziqi who was standing next to him. Zhong Ziqi was so scared that he jumped left and right to dodge. The boss laughed at what he saw and said that if it wasn't for the demonstration to Xie Anmin, pork would be put into a food processor and beaten into a paste.

The more embarrassed Zhong Ziqi was, the happier the boss laughed, and Xie Anmin also laughed happily. This made Zhong Ziqi a little annoyed. If it weren't for the fact that she saved the baby in Lin Yingying's belly, Zhong Ziqi really wanted to turn against Xie Anmin.

After coming out of the butcher's workshop, Zhong Ziqi couldn't help but ask Xie Anmin what she did. How could such a beautiful and fashionable woman be interested in such a rough job as beating pork?
Yes, she hadn't introduced herself to him yet.

"Xie Anmin, writer, what about you?"

"Zhong Ziqi, a physical education teacher."

It turned out to be a sports student. Xie Anmin looked at Zhong Ziqi and laughed dumbly. No wonder...

Xie Anmin almost said the words "simple-minded, strong limbs", but Zhong Ziqi suddenly left Xie Anmin, stretched out his long legs, crossed the traffic, and walked across the street.

Xie Anmin followed Zhong Ziqi's footsteps all the way to the other side of the street.

There was a girl standing across the street. Even though Xie Anmin had seen countless beauties in his life, he still had to exclaim in his heart: What a beautiful girl.

The girl was wearing a snow-white long dress and standing on the street. I don't know if she was waiting for someone or a car. She looked ethereal, as if auspicious clouds were surrounding her.

Could it be that Zhong Ziqi knew her? Zhong Ziqi had already walked up to her, said something, and then pulled out his phone. The girl also pulled out her phone, and they seemed to be adding each other on WeChat.

When Zhong Ziqi came back, Xie Anmin asked him, "Is he your friend?"

Zhong Ziqi shook his head: "No."

"Then you just..."

Seeing Xie Anmin's puzzled expression, Zhong Ziqi was very frank and honestly confessed: "I thought she was pretty, so I went over to add her on WeChat to see if I could add her. I didn't expect that she would be added so quickly."

Zhong Ziqi raised the phone in his hand happily.

Xie Anmin looked up at his beaming face, and felt a pang of sourness in his heart.

The handsome athlete is like a walking hormone, and it is indeed easy to add him on WeChat.

(End of this chapter)