SSD 3 – Campus Basketball’s Team

The court had gone quiet.

He was standing just outside the court, around nine or ten meters from the basket. The three-point line was only a little over six, yet he had casually raised his hand and taken a shot. The range alone was shocking.

Not only was it accurate, but his form was clean and controlled. The ball arced beautifully as it flew.

It spun gently through the air and dropped into the hoop as if everything had been under control from the start.

It was nothing short of stunning.

Pan Yuan covered her mouth in surprise. She had suspected this younger student might have played basketball before, but now it was clear he had much more than a bit of experience. His fundamentals were sharp, and his skill level was anything but low.

That thought made her beam. With the game just around the corner, what kind of gods had come to join their team all of a sudden? First it was Xu Fanming, the wildcard hothead known for dominating street courts, and now this hidden ace, He Jiang. If the captain and coach found out she had brought in someone like him, they’d probably be over the moon.

Pan Yuan stepped in front of He Jiang and clapped her hands, her face glowing with joy. “That was a beautiful shot!”

She was just about to steer the conversation toward recruiting him into the school team when Xu Fanming, who had been frozen beside her, suddenly snapped out of it. He rubbed his eyes, furrowed his brows, and stared at He Jiang for a long moment. Then, he murmured a name. “Number 10… He—”

“He Jiang,” Pan Yuan cut in, glancing at them both with a puzzled look. “Wait, do you two know each other?”

The color drained from Xu Fanming’s face, then just as quickly turned into barely contained excitement.

But He Jiang showed no reaction. He gave Xu Fanming a quick glance, then shook his head. That shot had just been something he did on a whim. Now that all attention was on him, he felt completely uncomfortable.

He Jiang gave Pan Yuan a small wave and turned to leave. “Senior, I’ll head back for now. See you next time.”

Pan Yuan hadn’t even processed what was happening yet when He Jiang turned to leave. But before he could take a step, Xu Fanming suddenly burst out behind him.

“He Jiang! Wait!”

He Jiang stopped. Xu Fanming came striding toward him, eyes wide with excitement, and stood directly in front of him. He had just opened his mouth to speak when he suddenly realized how tall He Jiang really was. At one-eighty himself, he still had to look up slightly. He Jiang had definitely grown a few more centimeters in the past year.

Xu Fanming swallowed and tilted his face up a little, his eyes shining. “He Jiang. It’s really you, isn’t it? I knew it. I remember you. That finals match back in our second year, I was there.”

He Jiang’s expression stayed blank. There was no telling what he felt.

But Xu Fanming kept going. “You were incredible. You were Number 10, the center for First High. That was you, right?”

Pan Yuan stood frozen off to the side. She hadn’t expected the two of them to know each other, or that Xu Fanming had actually seen He Jiang play before. Xu Fanming was well-known as a wild-court tyrant. He’d never played in official matches, but his skill on the court was top-tier. And with his sharp tongue and high standards, he often dismissed teammates with average skill.

So hearing him say “you played well” meant it wasn’t just well. It was something rare.

That changed Pan Yuan’s view of He Jiang. She couldn’t help but look at him differently now.

But to her surprise, He Jiang showed almost no reaction to the compliment.

Seeing that his words got no response, Xu Fanming frowned in frustration. Still, he spoke sincerely. “He Jiang, I’m Xu Fanming. I’ve always wanted to play a match with you. Will you play one-on-one with me?”

One-on-one?

As soon as the words came out, everyone froze. It wasn’t unusual to see one-on-one or three-on-three games on campus, but Pan Yuan hadn’t expected Xu Fanming to bring it up now. Thinking it over, though, it wasn’t a bad idea. A friendly match could help them get to know each other’s playstyle, and it would be a perfect chance to see He Jiang’s real level. It might even help decide whether to officially pull him into the team.

But He Jiang only shook his head and refused politely. “Sorry.”

Xu Fanming’s face turned red. His offer had been honest, and he hadn’t expected to be turned down. Even Pan Yuan was caught off guard. The question slipped out of her before she could think. “Why? You play so well.”

He Jiang gave a small smile but didn’t explain. He glanced at her and said, “If there’s nothing else, Senior, I’ll head off now.”

It was clear he meant to leave. Pan Yuan didn’t feel right trying to stop him, so she simply nodded. “Alright,” she said, but her eyes shifted to Xu Fanming beside her.

The little raptor’s face was filled with mixed emotion. Surprise, frustration, and embarrassment took turns crossing his expression. His cheeks turned red, then pale. After a few seconds, he suddenly yanked off the jacket draped over his shoulders and tossed it onto the ground. Then he sat down and stared into space.

After a few seconds of hesitation, Pan Yuan still raised her voice toward He Jiang’s back as he walked away.

“He Jiang, there’s a friendly match between the three campus divisions next week. You have to come watch!”

Their campus basketball team wasn’t weak by any means. If he came to the game and changed his mind afterward, that would be ideal.

But He Jiang didn’t look back.

Pan Yuan let out a sigh. After all that fuss, she still felt like she had no idea what just happened. The teammate who had been scolded by Xu Fanming earlier crept up beside her and asked in a small voice, “Boss… who was that just now? How do you know him?”

“I met him at the book fair earlier,” Pan Yuan said with a shrug. “Out of all the people in the world, somehow he just happened to end up standing right in front of me.”

He Jiang returned to his rental flat alone. The moment he stepped inside, he kicked off his shoes and dropped his backpack by the entrance, then walked barefoot into the quiet apartment. He drew the curtains and turned on the TV.

He didn’t feel like eating much that night. Maybe just a canned meal would do. That thought had barely formed when his phone, tossed onto the sofa, began to ring.

He picked up his water glass and took a sip as he answered the call.

A low female voice came through the receiver. “Son.”

He Jiang set the glass down. On the other end, she continued, “When you called earlier, I was in a meeting. What was it? Did something happen?”

“No.” He Jiang went quiet for a few seconds, then asked, “Mom, are you still on that business trip?”

“I’ll be back in a few days. You’ve started school now, haven’t you? How’s everything?”

“It’s fine.”

That’s good. Study well in university.”

He Jiang hesitated before saying, “I called Dad.”

His mother’s reply came easily. “Mm. What did he say?”

“He… told me to go to a book fair. That was it. Nothing much else.”

At that, his mother paused. After a few seconds, she gave a faint smile. Still, her voice remained casual, almost indifferent. “It doesn’t matter. He’s doing fine overseas. You don’t need to think too much about it. Just focus on living your own life.”

He Jiang didn’t respond. He smiled too, though the curve of his lips held a trace of bitterness. After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke again.

“Alright. I got it. Goodnight, Mom.”

That night, He Jiang had a dream. In it, he was back in that summer of his second year. The cicadas were buzzing, his jersey was soaked through with sweat, and the basketball spun through the air. He soared toward the hoop, and the entire court erupted in cheers.

The joy in the dream was overwhelming. The emptiness after waking up was worse.

He Jiang shot up in bed, drenched in cold sweat. His hands trembled as he twisted open a bottle of cold water and took several gulps before his senses slowly came back to him.

He found himself remembering what that senior had shouted at him just before he left.

“He Jiang, there’s a friendly match between the three campus divisions next week. You have to come watch!”

He Jiang sank into thought.

A week passed in the blink of an eye. The game was scheduled for six in the evening at the university gymnasium. The stands were packed with excited students.

That morning, players from all three campuses arrived one after another on the university shuttle buses to join the game.

Xu Fanming had two classes before noon, but he barely paid attention to either. Halfway through one of them, his phone buzzed repeatedly, messages flooding in like an alarm.

With a sigh, he lazily opened them one by one, only to find they were all the same. Some idiot was spamming him, reminding him over and over to head to the parking lot and pick someone up after class.

After class, he grabbed his bag and made his way to the shuttle stop. As soon as the bus doors opened, a dark blur launched itself at him and crashed into his chest, knocking the wind out of him.

Now that they were face-to-face again, the irritation came rushing back. Xu Fanming started struggling hard. “Get off me, you fat bastard. You’re heavy as hell.”

“Grandson!” Zhu Xuyao ignored his resistance and pulled him into a tight hug. “Your grandpa missed you to death.”

Zhu Xuyao was one year ahead of Xu Fanming and technically his senior, but they were as close as brothers. He was a few centimeters taller, and his arms were thick enough to lock Xu Fanming down completely. He stopped resisting, too lazy to fight it anymore. A few seconds later, Zhu Xuyao let go, switching straight into an exaggerated look of disappointment.

“Why are you the only one here? Where’s Yuan Yuan?”

Xu Fanming sneered. So that was it. The dog finally showed his true colors.

“You idiot. What do you think is more important, class or chasing a girl? Got any self-awareness at all?”

Zhu Xuyao blinked innocently. “What’s with the attitude? Did you swallow a bomb today?”

“Get lost, moron.”

But everyone knew Xu Fanming was infamous for his sharp mouth. Zhu Xuyao didn’t even flinch at the insult. He pulled him aside again, this time with a sly look, and dropped his voice.

“Alright, alright. Big bro won’t argue with you. Just tell me one thing. While I was gone, did anyone try to hit on your sister-in-law?”

Xu Fanming rolled his eyes so hard they could’ve flipped into another dimension.

Ever since the basketball teams from their two campuses first met a month ago, Zhu Xuyao had fallen for Pan Yuan at first sight. The moment he laid eyes on the girl leading their team, he was smitten.

In his own words, he said,

“The steam from the hotpot was swirling in the air, and through the mist, I caught a glimpse of your sister-in-law’s sexy red lips and smiling eyes. Right then I thought, ah, my little princess has finally come to meet me.”

Since when did this guy get so poetic? Did falling in love suddenly turn men into sappy, artsy weirdos?

Xu Fanming shivered. He might as well have been a sixteen-year-old kid with a pencil case, for all he understood about the adult world of love.

And the truth was, this “little princess” might’ve just glanced vaguely in his direction while walking past the crowd, yet Zhu Xuyao had already drafted an entire high school angst romance in his head. The kind where the male lead ends up carrying his beloved into the bedroom to start a family. In other words, pure delusion.

“If you’re that hung up, why don’t you just ask her directly?” Xu Fanming grunted, then dropped the topic altogether. Instead, he gave Zhu Xuyao a once-over from head to toe. Basketball jersey, kneepads, finger tape, brand new shoes… he came fully geared up.

“I want to, obviously! But you know how Yuan Yuan is. She gets shy around me.” The moment Zhu Xuyao mentioned the girl he liked, a faint flush crept up his dark face. He chuckled like a fool, clearly smitten.

Xu Fanming couldn’t help giving him a thumbs-up.

Get a grip. That’s not shyness. That’s clearly can’t be bothered to deal with you.

Just then, a few more players from the neighboring campus’s basketball team stepped off the shuttle bus. Xu Fanming recognized a couple of them. It was nearly lunchtime anyway, so he nudged the idiot who was still texting their team manager like his life depended on it.

“Come on, let’s go eat. I’m starving waiting for you. If we don’t move, the captain’s gonna show up and catch us standing around.”

The “captain” referred to their third-year point guard, Fang Ruihan, one of the team’s core players with solid all-around ability.

After lunch, the shuttle carrying the captain finally arrived. Xu Fanming and Zhu Xuyao stood up straight, waiting respectfully to welcome their leader. As the door opened, they saw a familiar face inside. Closely cropped hair, thick eyebrows, sharp eyes. They were just about to greet him when they noticed someone unfamiliar walking behind Fang Ruihan.

The boy was a little short, with bangs covering half his eyes, and he looked a bit shy. He wore the team uniform, but overall, he was the kind of person who could easily disappear in a crowd.

“Captain!” Zhu Xuyao greeted cheerfully, then looked at the newcomer. “Hey, did we recruit someone new?”

Captain Fang Ruihan nodded. The boy behind him seemed a little nervous, so Fang took the initiative to introduce him. “This is Wen Qin, a second-year student. He plays shooting guard.”

Since the captain brought him in personally, he was obviously not just some random player. Zhu Xuyao and Xu Fanming exchanged a look, then naturally gave the newcomer a warm greeting.

Although the campus team had been performing just so-so in recent years, this year they had added a few players with solid potential. The coach remained hopeful. After all, their core objective, the annual provincial college basketball tournament, was now less than two months away.

Including substitutes, the entire campus basketball team had nearly thirty members. But when it came to the core players, the three of them happened to be the top representatives from each of the three campuses. That was why their relationship was the closest among everyone. So every time the captain and Zhu Xuyao came over to the main campus for a game, even if Xu Fanming complained about it, he would still show up right on time at the station to greet them.

This friendly match between the three campus teams, each led by one of their top players, wasn’t just about bonding, but also part of their preparation for the upcoming provincial tournament. The school took it seriously, assigning student council members to thoroughly clean the gym, organize the basketballs, and clear the spectator stands.

By four in the evening, the game was about to begin on schedule.