SSD 58. Qinghuo vs. Kongxin: The Smiling Tiger Captain

As soon as Zhuo Changyi received the ball, he sprinted toward Qinghuo’s basket.

Fang Ruihan reacted quickly and rushed over to block him before he could reach the paint. Zhuo Changyi hesitated, taking a step back while flicking a glance in Xing Yunyang’s direction.

Xing Yunyang responded with a sharp, affirming look. But just as he was preparing to break free, He Jiang stepped in on perfect timing, positioning himself squarely in front of him. He used his back to hold Xing Yunyang in place, pressing into his shoulder to slow his advance.

There it was again.

Zhuo Changyi’s brows tightened. This guy was really a handful.

He Jiang had come over just in time. Had he guessed they were planning to run a coordinated play?

But what did it matter? Even if he saw through it, so what? The difference in ability was real, and no amount of resistance would change the outcome.

And just as Zhuo Changyi expected, Xing Yunyang found the gap in the defense. In the very next instant, he took a powerful step from the right side and blew straight past He Jiang. He Jiang froze for a second, while Xing Yunyang had already surged forward to screen for Zhuo Changyi.

It worked. Zhuo Changyi had successfully drawn his teammate in to support him.

Fang Ruihan stalled for a brief second, unable to react fast enough. Before he could come up with a backup plan, Xing Yunyang had already locked him down, using his shoulder to hold him in place and neutralize his defense entirely.

This was bad. Fang Ruihan gritted his teeth and looked to He Jiang, who was already rushing over to help.

What next? Just how many tricks did Kongxin still have hidden up their sleeve?

Then, in a sudden move, Zhuo Changyi took a wide stride and drove the ball outward. The direction he ran in would put him directly in He Jiang’s path as he closed in for the block. What was he planning?

But there was no time to think it over. The next move would determine the outcome. In that split second, Fang Ruihan and He Jiang made the same decision. They switched their marks, and trusted their instincts.

He Jiang switched targets and turned his focus to Zhuo Changyi, every part of his body locking into a defensive stance. Fang Ruihan also adjusted without delay, shifting from defense to offense as he used his footwork to trap Xing Yunyang and tried to cover He Jiang so he could intercept the pass.

In the same split-second, Fang Ruihan heard something, a soft, almost indifferent sigh above his head.

What?

He looked up and caught the sound of Xing Yunyang’s voice drifting in beside his ear. It was cool and detached.

“…What a shame. Is this really all Qinghuo’s got?”

All of a sudden, Fang Ruihan felt a sharp burst of force tear away from his side. He looked up in shock and saw Xing Yunyang breaking free, spun around and used his back to pin Fang Ruihan behind him, completely cutting off his leverage.

It was effortless, as if their defense had never been a threat to begin with.

That same feeling again, that bitter sting of being underestimated.

Fang Ruihan’s expression tightened.

He Jiang finally snapped to attention and lunged forward, trying to cut off the pass to Zhuo Changyi. But he was already a step too late. Xing Yunyang had broken into the paint on a fast off-ball run, and just as he reached the edge of the key, Zhuo Changyi timed it perfectly, launching the pass right into his hands.

Three steps, and Xing Yunyang was already rising into the air, preparing to push the ball gently into the net.

But as he stretched out his hand, his brow suddenly furrowed. A shadow fell across his vision, and his eyes darkened.

Fang Ruihan had leapt up in front of him, launching himself into a last-second attempt to block the shot.

Xing Yunyang pressed his lips together and tried to shift mid-air, pulling the ball back and aiming to change direction. But Fang Ruihan refused to give up, following through with everything he had, his arms swinging with full force. His fingers clipped the edge of the ball, sending it off its intended path. Xing Yunyang lost control for just a moment, and the ball ricocheted off the backboard.

It turned into a perfect rebound.

Now was the moment!

The instant his feet touched the ground, Fang Ruihan whipped his head around to scan the court. It was too late for him to jump for the rebound again. Who had the best position now? Was it Xu Fanming or Wen Qin near the baseline? He Jiang outside the paint? Or—

Fang Ruihan shouted.

“Zhu Xuyao!”

“Right here, Captain!”

A loud voice rang out in return. A wide, eager hand shot up beside the basket. The one who reached for the ball had his brows raised, wearing an expression of effortless confidence.

“I’ve been waiting.”

Zhu Xuyao had already taken up position under the hoop, securing the best spot for the rebound before anyone else.

Fang Ruihan felt a rush of relief.

Thank god. Thank god they had Zhu Xuyao.

The ball bounced off the rim, arcing upward. It was just barely out of reach. Its trajectory dipped into a slow descent, and Zhu Xuyao pushed up on his toes, stretching for it with everything he had. If he could catch it, he could buy them precious time.

But just as his fingertips neared the ball, another large hand cut across the air and blotted out the light above him. A heavy shadow filled his vision.

Before he could adjust his stance, a surge of raw strength crashed into his back.

Zhu Xuyao stumbled, nearly losing his balance. He looked up, and locked eyes with someone whose gaze was calm.

Blond hair. Tall frame.

It was Kongxin’s captain.

Tan Ren.

Zhu Xuyao was stunned. When had Tan Ren gotten there? Could it be that he had been waiting behind him this whole time, just waiting for the exact moment he went for the rebound, ready to strike?

Unwilling to give in, Zhu Xuyao pushed himself forward again and reached for the ball, but Tan Ren moved through easily. His five fingers closed at once, catching the falling ball squarely in his palm. Zhu Xuyao, having lost his balance, landed hard on the court with both feet slipping out from under him.

The battle for the rebound ended in a clear and humiliating loss for Zhu Xuyao.

Tan Ren now had the ball. He curled his lips into a smile, then turned and sprinted toward Qinghuo’s half. Xing Yunyang and Zhuo Changyi immediately adjusted their positions, moving up to shield him. The momentum of the game had swung brutally back in Kongxin’s favor.

Far behind, Xu Fanming was left frozen in place.

They had barely paid any attention to Tan Ren from the start. That realization now struck him as deeply unsettling. Had they been too careless? Or had Tan Ren deliberately stayed quiet, masking his movements until the moment he struck?

Xu Fanming’s eyes widened.

In his memory, Tan Ren had worn a restaurant staff uniform, working a quiet job at a Chinese diner. He was tall, but his smile had always been gentle. He had long hair with a vaguely artistic flair and spoke in a soft, polite tone. There was nothing about him that made people associate him with sports.

And yet now, not only had it turned out that Tan Ren was a basketball player, but that wasn’t even the full picture. What shocked Xu Fanming even more was how completely that image had been overturned.

The man who once seemed refined and quiet had turned into something else on the court, a black panther lurking in the dark, silent and invisible, waiting for the right moment to strike. And when he moved, he exploded forward, clamping down on his prey and ripping the game apart in an instant.

A chill ran through Xu Fanming’s entire body. His skin broke out in goosebumps. His expression turned cold.

At that moment, Tan Ren had just finished dribbling the ball past midcourt when the referee blew the whistle.

“BEEP BEEP—End of the first quarter!”

Tan Ren’s movements came to a sudden halt. He let out a soft sigh and patted the basketball a few times. His tall figure even blocked some of the overhead lights on the court.

“What a shame.”

That shot just now could have gone in cleanly. Unfortunately, they had missed the window for the layup by just a few seconds. If they had scored, they could have pushed the lead another two points further.

His voice remained as gentle as ever, but Xu Fanming’s expression was growing darker by the second.

At that moment, Tan Ren’s gaze happened to meet his. He stared at Xu Fanming for a few seconds, as if trying to place him. Then he suddenly inhaled and spoke with mild surprise.

“You’re… the guy who came to the restaurant, right?”

Xu Fanming turned his face away, looking visibly uncomfortable.

“It’s you, isn’t it?” Tan Ren walked toward him. Thinking Xu Fanming hadn’t recognized him, he even gestured with his hands to jog his memory. “Fruit salad? Crawfish?”

Now standing directly in front of him, Tan Ren waited.

Xu Fanming opened his mouth, then closed it again. In the end, he nodded awkwardly. “Yeah.”

“Sorry, I’m a little nearsighted,” Tan Ren said with a light smile. “Didn’t get a chance to see faces clearly during the game. But now I remember. I had no idea you were Qinghuo’s small forward. What a coincidence.”

Xu Fanming scratched his head, unsure how to respond. Something about the conversation felt strangely off. Somehow, even talking to Tan Ren didn’t feel as casual as it had before.

It seemed Tan Ren picked up on that change too. His smile shifted slightly, taking on a tone that was harder to read.

“I work a lot of part-time jobs. Maybe we’ll run into each other again off the court.” Tan Ren’s voice softened as he looked straight at Xu Fanming. “But now that we’re both here, standing on this court, we’re opponents.”

His tone remained warm, but something in his eyes turned deep and unreadable.

“When you’re facing an opponent,” Tan Ren said, “it’s best not to let your guard down.”

The score stood frozen at 35 to 22.

A thirteen-point gap by the end of the first quarter. That was not a good sign.

Fang Ruihan paced anxiously on the sidelines. He hadn’t even touched his water bottle, and his expression had gone grim.

Pan Yuan put down her camera and jogged over to Wen Qin. The moment the referee blew the whistle, Wen Qin’s worried eyes had immediately turned to her. Pan Yuan knew what he was worried about. She had already found the missing wristband beneath the folding chair, so she handed it to him and gave his shoulder a quick pat.

Wen Qin’s expression ease up a little.

Pan Yuan let out a quiet sigh. Standing among the players, she looked around at the teammates sitting on the benches, dripping with sweat as they drank their water. Even she couldn’t help but feel a little anxious.

Everyone had started to struggle in this quarter. As the game wore on, their stamina drained faster, and their steps grew heavier. Even He Jiang, who was usually calm and composed, now sat in silence, sipping water with a serious expression on his face, clearly deep in thought.

The mood across the team felt heavy.

This couldn’t go on.

Fang Ruihan thought back to their match against Yangsheng, when the entire team had fallen into a spiral of negativity. He couldn’t let that happen again.

They needed to reset. And they needed to do it fast.

“Everyone, gather up.” Fang Ruihan’s face remained serious as he called out, his voice firm. “I have something to say.”