Who would still play tennis after being reborn?

Chapter 9 The Matter of Becoming a Master

When Gu Cheng got home, he saw that the lights on the 6th floor were on, and guessed that Yuan Hongxia and her husband had probably returned.

Upon opening the door, sure enough, I saw my mother, Yuan Hongxia, wearing an apron and busy in the kitchen. It seemed that Comrade Gu Zhenhai had returned late and hadn't eaten much at the factory, so he was hungry now.

Gu Zhenhai sat on the sofa, wearing glasses, flipping through several channels with the remote on his phone, but couldn't find a program he wanted to watch. Finally, he stopped at the sports channel.

There aren't many matches at this time, so the discussion mainly focuses on the highlights of the top five European football leagues.

When his father, Gu Zhenhai, was young, he had a deep passion for football. Even though he didn't play much later, he would still follow the top five European leagues from time to time, which was also a topic of conversation at work.

When men are together, all they talk about is sports.

Although he had seen this scene more than once, after several years, feeling this familiar warmth, Gu Cheng couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

Even if you develop very well in the world of Prince of Tennis, and even if you can reach the World Championship soon, the longer you stay in a world where you have no relatives or friends, the stronger the sense of loneliness will become.

The house, less than 90 square meters, carries not only memories of the past, but also the warmth accumulated over the years. Every corner here bears his footprints, and the scratches on the floor record the laughter and joy of childhood games.

These seemingly ordinary moments are woven together to form the most authentic picture of life.

In the future, no matter where we go, this place will always be the softest part of our hearts, reminding us where we come from and where our roots are, accompanying us throughout our lives and becoming an inextinguishable lighthouse on our journey forward.

Many people will have several homes in their lifetime, but the word "hometown" will always occupy an extremely important place in their hearts.

This feeling is wonderful, especially when you see your parents whom you haven't seen for many years.

"Dad, Mom, I'm back."

Gu Zhenhai, who was reading the news, turned his head and glanced at him: "Why are you so late?"

"I went for a run."

"Don't go out herding sheep as soon as you have a holiday. Use your free time to read more books. If you really can't concentrate on your studies, there's nothing that can be done. But you're only in your first year of high school. Whether you can concentrate or not, you'll only know after you try." Compared to his mother, his father, Gu Zhenhai, was much more old-fashioned.

In the past, Gu Cheng would probably have said something back, but now he was smiling more happily than anyone else.

When I was little, I always complained about my parents nagging, especially about studying. After saying just a few words, they would pout, slam the door shut, and sulk in their room, sometimes even grumbling. All they ever did was talk about "studying, studying, studying."

When you grow up and become someone's parent, you realize how difficult it is to be a couple.

Yuan Hongxia poked her head out from the kitchen: "Old Gu, don't make the kids study as soon as they're on vacation. It's important to balance work and rest. Besides, our son is just going to exercise. Studying is important, but health is just as important."

"Don't listen to your dad. Study when you should study, and play when you should play."

“There’s more than one path in life than just studying. If one path doesn’t work, you can try another. Isn’t Acheng good at basketball? If he really can’t get into studying, he can become a sports student. If he plays well, he might even get into Zhejiang University, let alone Ningbo University.”

Mother Yuan Hongxia is a native of Ningbo, and she has very different philosophies on children's education compared to her biological father, Gu Zhenhai, who comes from an underdeveloped city in the interior.

To put it simply, it's about being enlightened.

Sometimes Gu Cheng couldn't understand how these two people could have gotten together, even started a family and had children.

But Gu Cheng soon understood.

Gu Zhenhai had no intention of arguing. He got up and went into the kitchen, carrying a steaming bowl of noodles. Just as he was about to start eating, he heard his wife sigh: "I feel so much more relaxed after work, even my mood has improved a lot."

"Hey! Old Gu, why do you think that is?"

Gu Zhen remained silent.

"I'm asking you something."

Seeing that Gu Zhenhai ignored her, Yuan Hongxia didn't say anything more, but instead instructed, "By the way, I'm going to take a shower first. In a little while, come and put the clothes in the washing machine, and also clean the kitchen. It would be best if you could also make some hot water for me to soak my feet. My feet are so sore from walking all day."

Gu Zhenhai suddenly looked up: "Didn't you just ask why?"

Yuan Hongxia looked puzzled: "Why?"

Gu Zhenhai slurped up a mouthful of noodles and looked at her: "Because you know that the day's work as a beast of burden is over, and it's time to start being the boss."

Gu Cheng almost spat out the sip of water he had just taken. He looked at his father, Gu Zhenhai, with a serious expression. He never expected that the usually serious Gu Zhenhai could be so humorous.

Just as her mother was taking the clothes into the bathroom, the TV suddenly made a surprise appearance, mentioning the China Open tennis tournament.

The China Open recently concluded successfully from September 27th to October 5th, featuring a star-studded lineup of 11 Grand Slam singles champions who delivered a thrilling series of epic matches for tennis fans this autumn.

【德约科维奇在2014年中网男单决赛中，凭借出色的状态和稳定的发挥，仅耗时66分钟便以6-0、6-2击败捷克名将伯蒂奇，五度封王。这是德约科维奇赛季第5个冠军，也是他职业生涯的第46个冠军。】

……

Gu Cheng, who was about to go back to his bedroom, stopped and looked at the 49-inch wall-mounted TV in surprise.

"Has the China Open already ended?"

"Djokovic and Nadal, this lineup is indeed luxurious, it's a pity that Federer didn't come, it's a bit of a shame."

"Shouldn't Federer be free of injuries at this time?"

Gu Cheng hadn't looked into the 2014 China Open before, so he wasn't sure about the specifics. However, one thing he was certain of was that, if it wasn't due to injury, participation in this year's China Open wasn't mandatory. The China Open is an ATP 500 tournament, a relatively low-level event, while Federer, currently the world number one, naturally prefers to participate in higher-level Grand Slam and Masters tournaments.

Allocating physical strength and time wisely is something every professional player must consider.

"Turn off the TV. There aren't any of our own players in the men's group. What's the point of watching?" Gu Zhenhai, who was eating noodles, suddenly looked up.

Gu Cheng was taken aback, only then remembering that besides being a football fan, Old Gu also followed tennis.

However, the situation is similar for both sports. The women's teams are doing well, especially in tennis, where they have won many honors. But the men's teams don't have any notable achievements.

Football has been criticized from the beginning to the end of the year.

No wonder Old Gu was a little angry when he heard the news.

I hate that iron cannot become steel!

"Look, it's just that Na Jie has retired. Otherwise, she might still have a chance to win the championship. Besides, didn't Peng Jie win the doubles championship?" Gu Cheng didn't rush to turn off the TV. Instead, he sat down on the sofa with great interest.

Looking at Djokovic standing on the podium, Gu Cheng felt a bit complicated. When he was a child and watched the anime "The Prince of Tennis", he would dream of one day standing on the professional court and competing against tennis stars like Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic.

Nowadays, that expectation has diminished considerably.

Growing up is one aspect, but more importantly, the world of Prince of Tennis had a huge impact on him.

Gu Zhenhai just stared at him without saying a word.

Gu Cheng felt a little uneasy under his father's gaze, and blurted out, almost without thinking, "Dad, what do you think about me playing tennis?"

Gu Zhenhai said in a very calm tone: "It's too late!"

He then added, "And with that money, it would be much easier to be a rich man."

"unless……"

"Unless what?"

"Unless you can become number one in the world."

"understood."

Shrugging, Gu Cheng turned and went into the bedroom.

As soon as I turned on my computer and logged into QQ, Li Yang's chat window popped up, showing a screenshot of a four-game winning streak.

Just as he was about to close the chat window, Li Yang sent another message: "How about it, bro? Pretty awesome, right? Four-game winning streak, two MVPs."

Gu Cheng hadn't intended to pay any attention, but seeing that this guy was getting a little cocky, he didn't indulge him: "Aren't these all open before 8 o'clock? What about after 8 o'clock?"

The chat window was completely silent.

Gu Cheng smiled and continued, "How many games did you lose? Were you alone in an internet cafe?"

Li Yang seemed to have lost his temper and called directly: "Go to hell, why bring up the most sensitive topic? Those few bastards are a real pain in the ass, they won't stand for it if I say a few words to them."

Gu Cheng made a couple of sarcastic remarks to him and then hung up the phone.

Not long after I got to the room, I heard my mom, Yuan Hongxia, calling out from outside the door: "Your dad's finished showering, you should take a shower too. It's not easy to not have evening self-study, go to bed early."

"Come right away."

Before Yuan Hongxia left, Gu Cheng came out with a change of clothes.

"Wow, did the sun rise in the west today, young master? He usually doesn't respond unless you call him five or six times."

"Mom, people change."

"Stop joking around, go take a shower."

"Got it!"

As Gu Cheng walked into the bathroom, Yuan Hongxia was about to go to the bedroom to rest when she suddenly turned around and looked at Gu Zhenhai sitting on the sofa: "Old Gu, what were you saying to our son just now?"

"Your son said he's going to play tennis."

"Him? Plays tennis?"

"Has he studied tennis? And even plays tennis?"

Yuan Hongxia grumbled at her son for a couple of minutes, then said, "You're not lying to me, are you?"

Gu Zhenhai was on the verge of tears: "Do I even have the guts?"

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(End of this chapter)