Chapter 76
Yun Duo did not dare to make a move . She kept her head low, not looking at him and not saying a word . Her hand was still under his clothes, and under her palm was a warm and wet sticky mess . When he let go, she pulled her hand out .
After that, she sat up and reached for tissues on her bedside table with a red face .
Tang Yi-Bai's arms were longer — with a quick reach, he managed to get some before she could . He pulled out a few sheets, captured her slender wrist, and began carefully wiping .
His motions were slow, intangibly dragging out the process . Yun Duo was so shy she did not know what to do . She cast a look at him to prompt him to move faster, but found that he was already looking at her . His eyebrows were like gently sloping willow branches and his gaze was gentle, like lotus flowers blooming under the moonlight .
When he was done wiping off her hands, Tang Yi-Bai cupped her face and kissed her cheeks . He then said softly, "Wait for me . I'm going to change . "
Yun Duo did not know whether she was being too sensitive, but she felt like his every move, his every word was a tease . . .
She went to the washroom, and on the way, she saw Auntie Lu seated on the sofa looking at her phone . When Auntie Lu saw Yun Duo, she merely smiled and said, "You're back?"
"Yes . " Yun Duo was afraid Auntie Lu would ask her about other things, so she did not dare to linger, quickly dodging into the washroom .
After Tang Yi-Bai changed his clothes, he came out refreshed . When he saw his mother, he said affectedly, "Mum, back so early?"
Madam Lu remained calm and composed; she had no plans to expose her son .
And then Tang Yi-Bai and Yun Duo went out for a date . He would return to the team tonight, and after he returned, there would be pre-match training for the Champions Tournament . Time was in short supply, so he must seize the chance he had now to spend more time with her .
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This was yet another reason why the team did not recommend the athletes be in a relationship . An athlete's schedule was just too tight . There was very little time they could spare to spend with a girlfriend, which would negatively impact the relationship . Then there were cases where the girlfriend could not bear the loneliness and cheated, which would negatively impact the athlete's emotions .
There were only so few places a couple could go to on a date . Tang Yi-Bai and Yun Duo went to a cinema . The two of them looked at posters to choose a movie to watch, settling for a romantic comedy in the end . The poster claimed that the romantic comedy would have a laughing point every 68 seconds .
Tang Yi-Bai bought Yun Duo some popcorn and fruit juice, while Yun Duo bought him a bottle of Nongfu Spring water .
Fine, he was forever being treated to Nongfu Spring .
The movie began . Tang Yi-Bai found that they were the only two people in the entire cinema . It was incredible that they would be able to enjoy a fully-reserved cinema for just the price of two tickets . However, after watching a few minutes of the movie, he finally understood the inevitability behind this coincidental situation . It was already a grand achievement for this utterly rotten film that there were still people watching it . The screenwriter was so desperate to make the audience laugh that the jokes were almost about to break through the screen to smack the audience in the face . And yet, his laughing points were too low-level, leaving the audience bored . Not only did the audience not want to watch, they did not even feel like listening .
Tang Yi-Bai was so bored that he began harassing Yun Duo . He touched her head and kissed her once or twice . When she ignored him, he moved on to snatch her popcorn away so she could not eat it . His arms were long — holding the popcorn high above their heads, she could forget getting it back .
Yun Duo was speechless . "What are you doing?"
"Kiss me and I'll give it back . "
"Shameless . This is a public place . Do you have any sense of public decency?"
"There's no one else here . "
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Alright, there really was no one else around . Yun Duo gave him a quick kiss on his cheek and then reached out, "Give it to me . "
Tang Yi-Bai did not move . "Not at all serious . Again . "
Yun Duo had to kiss him quite a few more times before he finally judged it 'serious enough' . He lowered his arms, but he kept the popcorn bucket and did not give it back to her .
Tang Yi-Bai picked up a popcorn and brought it to her lips . "Here . "
Yun Duo opened her mouth and took the popcorn with a curl of her tongue .
And so he fed her the popcorn, one by one . Tang Yi-Bai was especially fond of this 'feeding the girlfriend' activity . As he watched her chew with puffed up cheeks, like a happy little squirrel, he found that his heart was filled with a blissful sense of satisfaction . He would recommend that every man try this beneficial activity — but of course, that was provided you have a girlfriend . . .
After feeding her for a while, he suddenly smirked cheekily, and without anything in his hands, he brought his fingers to her lips .
Yun Duo was not looking . She opened her mouth to hook onto his fingers and flicked her tongue at it, trying to drag the 'popcorn' into her mouth .
But it would not budge . . .
She took and closer look and saw that it was his fingertip . She angrily slapped it away and then turned to glare at him .
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But Tang Yi-Bai only stared back at her with deep, dark eyes .
Yun Duo's face became slightly warm, and she turned away from him . She went to drink some juice instead .
After a while, Tang Yi-Bai tapped her on the shoulder . Yun Duo tilted her head to look at him, only to see him approaching her with a kernel of popcorn held between his lips . His eyes were dancing with mirth . Taking advantage of her stunned state, he bent his head to put his lips to hers, and with a slight push, the popcorn was in her mouth .
Yun Duo could only worship him . Just a simple bucket of popcorn and he managed to play so many tricks with it . This was a breadth of creativity reserved for lunatics . . .
When the movie ended, Yun Duo exclaimed, "The movie was so bad!"
Tang Yi-Bai said, "I don't think it was that bad . "
"Huh?" Yun Duo could not believe her ears .
Tang Yi-Bai explained, "A bad movie has its good points too . Because it was so boring, we were able to focus on dating . "
. . . the logic was so profound that it was irrefutable .
Tang Yi-Bai soon returned to the national team and began his intensive training . The upcoming Champions Tournament was the true annual test . This year, the Champions Tournament would be the preliminary selections for the World Championship . Tang Yi-Bai, Qi Rui-Feng, and the other noteworthy swimmers had all received placings within the national team's roster . As long as their times in the Champions Tournament meets the World Championship's standards, they would be eligible to participate . At the same time, other major swimming countries, such as Japan and Australia, were also conducting their own selection races for the World Championship . The competition in those countries were even more brutal — one race could determine the fate of a swimmer .
For the athletes, the Champions Tournament was not just an assessment of their swimming time, but also a check on their readiness to compete . Thus, even though he was not facing much pressure in terms of swimming time, Tang Yi-Bai was unwilling to slack off . He remained serious and trainded as hard as usual .
Wu Yong was rather satisfied with Tang Yi-Bai's behaviour . Before this, seeing him so playful and cloying with that little lady Yun Duo, Wu Yong had been worried that he might become distracted by the relationship; but now, well, at least there did not seem to be any issues so far .
The coaches would usually gossip about the athletes under them while chatting in their free time . Everyone agreed that the most talented athlete in the men's swimming team was indisputably Qi Rui-Feng, but as for the athlete with the most grace and leadership presence, it was definitely Tang Yi-Bai . Tang Yi-Bai was a classic example of a competitive clutch swimmer . The more important the event, the better his performance . His only blunder in competition thus far was his mistake at last year's Asian Games — the false start in the 50-metre freestyle finals . However, he had readjusted his condition especially well and especially quickly following that mistake to go all out the very next day . After that, his performance just continued to improve like he was about to upset the heavens .
Wu Yong could not help but recall how Tang Yi-Bai had insisted on switching over to freestyle after his competition ban a few years ago . He had thought then that the child must be behaving recklessly due to the shock and so he had basically been against the decision . However, Tang Yi-Bai's determination gave Wu Yong no other choice and so Wu Yong had let him be .
At that time, Wu Yong had really considered giving up on him . This idea was not an unreasonable one . If Tang Yi-Bai had been under a more rational coach, he might just have been abandoned then . For an athlete, a 3-year ban on top of a broken leg could very well mean that the athlete would no longer be able to return to their peak condition . And here he was trying something so reckless . . . the resources of the national team were limited, and the coaches only had so much attention to spare . If such an athlete was put out to pasture, no one would say anything of it .
But Wu Yong did not have the heart to do so . Tang Yi-Bai was such a great child . Smart and savvy, keen and perceptive, and he also had a good heart . He was just a little unlucky and had been dragged into trouble by some idiot friends . He had been sweating from the pain during his physiotherapy, but he did not utter a single sound of complaint . He clenched his teeth and persevered . Even when the therapist called an end to his session, he would not stop . He said that he wanted to recover earlier so he could go back to swimming as soon as possible . Wu Yong felt like crying when he heard that . He truly felt like finding that Lin Sang who had mysteriously disappeared and beating her up .
Later on, Wu Yong had a deep discussion with Tang Yi-Bai, and after seeing how resolute Tang Yi-Bai was, Wu Yong no longer tried to change his mind . Freestyle it was then . At worst, let him learn on his own that it was futile before choosing to give up . The most important thing at present was for him to remain hopeful and continue to take care of his injuries .
As Tang Yi-Bai was trying to transition at a mature stage of his development, almost no one in the team believed he would be able to go far . The person who believed in him the most and gave him the most support was Qi Rui-Feng . Qi Rui-Feng's faith in Tang Yi-Bai was completely without reason .
Later, under the disbelieving eyes of the masses, Tang Yi-Bai overcame all the difficulties bit by bit, his results improving by the day .
He had never despaired at his lowest point, and he was never prideful when things went well . He was as steady as a tree .
Wu Yong was very glad that he had not been ruthless back then .