Both teams lined up on their respective halves of the court.
The referee stood in the center, holding the basketball, emphasizing the rules to the players.
Though the match hadn’t officially started, no one wanted to lose in spirit—cheering had already erupted from Jing University’s student supporters.
“Jing University, go!”
“Jing University, victory!”
“Sky-high prospects, crush Hua University!”
“…”
A sense of collective pride surged through the crowd, and Lin Ting couldn’t help but join in with the chants.
“Lu Hesheng, go!” she silently added in her heart.
As the cheering gradually subsided, Qin Liangyan suddenly stood up, hands cupped around her mouth, shouting at the top of her lungs toward the court:
“Zhou Yi, gooo!!!”
“Baby, I love you! Push! Push! Push! Smash Hua University!”
Inspired by her example of shouting for love, the whole stadium soon filled with a cacophony of names, declarations, and cheers.
Amid them, Lu Hesheng’s name rang especially loud.
Looks like quite a few fans of his were sitting among the audience.
Lin Ting: “….” She decided to keep her own cheering to herself.
On the court, Zhou Yi, warming up, waved enthusiastically at Qin Liangyan upon hearing her shout.
At the same time, Lu Hesheng casually lifted his gaze, eyes lazily scanning toward the stands.
Lin Ting, sipping her milk tea, suddenly met those deep, peach-blossom eyes.
…He had noticed her sneaky glances.
On the court:
Lu Hesheng patted the still-smiling Zhou Yi on the shoulder.
“Was that your girlfriend shouting just now?”
Recalling Qin Liangyan’s deafening “I love you” just moments ago, Zhou Yi felt slightly embarrassed, but happiness shone across his face. “Yeah, my girlfriend, Qin Liangyan.”
Lu Hesheng’s expression remained calm as he watched the girl silently drinking her milk tea, head bowed.
“Nice,” he commented softly.
Zhou Yi, a bit slow on the uptake, didn’t catch the nuance and replied politely, “Lu, you’ve got quite a fan base too, huh?”
Indeed, several girls had called out his name, and some had even brought him water and snacks before the game.
The two had been training together for a few days.
Zhou Yi knew Lu Hesheng was invited by Jing University Student Council President Chen Jiaxu to help with the game—not a member of the official team.
Seeing the referee signal, Lu Hesheng returned to his position and left a simple remark: “That’s different.”
Zhou Yi scratched his head, looking at his slightly aloof back.
Different? How?
He wracked his brain but couldn’t figure out what he had said to offend the guy.
Lu Hesheng stood in the guard position.
Lin Ting’s gaze followed the tall, poised figure wearing jersey number 13.
She knew Lu Hesheng excelled at many extreme sports, with basketball being one of the more standard ones he enjoyed.
He had been on the Jing University High School basketball team in high school.
She hadn’t expected to see him again in person, in uniform, playing a match.
Suddenly, Lu Hesheng turned toward the audience.
Sitting in the front row, Lin Ting met his gaze effortlessly.
Under the bright gym lights, she could see every expression on his face.
His eyes slowly lowered, a faint smile playing across his lips, pausing for a moment on Lin Ting’s hands.
Her hands trembled—why now!?
Lin Ting scolded herself internally.
As Lu Hesheng finally refocused on the game and his opponents, Lin Ting suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
She set down her milk tea and quickly swapped her cheering stick from “Jing University, go!” to “Lu Hesheng, go!”
“Beep—!”
The referee’s whistle signaled the start of the match.
Perhaps because he was on the court, Lin Ting’s only thought was that she wanted him to win.
Her heartbeat unconsciously matched the rhythm of the game.
Eyes following the ball as it flew back and forth, she was tense to the extreme.
After a quick glance at the players’ positions, Lin Ting’s gaze stayed glued to Lu Hesheng.
The usual casual demeanor he wore every day vanished the moment the game began.
Every move was precise, explosive, full of force.
He moved across the court like a fish in water.
A teammate passed the ball to him with a flick of the wrist.
Hua University’s players rushed to block him.
Lu Hesheng skillfully dodged, leaped, and the basketball arced perfectly into the net.
“Three-pointer! Beautiful!!” the commentator shouted into the microphone, full of excitement.
“Ahhhhhh!!!”
“Wow! Number 13 is so handsome!!!”
“Jing University, go! Victory!”
Lin Ting couldn’t help waving her cheering stick, joining in the roars of the crowd.
During halftime:
Lin Ting glanced at the electronic scoreboard: Jing University vs. Hua University, 38:32.
She breathed a slight sigh of relief—still leading.
Zhou Yi and his teammates high-fived, feeling confident after the first half.
Fresh from their victory, Zhou Yi headed toward Qin Liangyan for praise and affection, walking with a bit more swagger.
Before he reached her, he realized Lu Hesheng had been following closely behind.
Recalling the cryptic words Lu Hesheng had said before the match, Zhou Yi’s heart sank with a dreadful thought.
Could it be… he was trying to steal his girlfriend?!
Before he could think further, Zhou Yi’s instincts kicked in. He wanted to prevent it immediately.
He stepped forward, blocking Lu Hesheng, and said overly politely:
“Lu, you’ve worked hard!”
“You should go rest over there; I’ll get the water for you!”
Lu Hesheng raised an eyebrow at Zhou Yi’s arm still blocking his path.
He paused mid-step, grabbed the hem of his jersey, and wiped the sweat from his forehead and neck.
In that moment, his sculpted abs were revealed under the lights, the sweat tracing along his v-line into his waistband.
Lin Ting just stared, frozen, unwilling to look away.
Lu Hesheng’s gaze passed Zhou Yi and landed precisely on the dazed Lin Ting nearby:
“Junior.”
“You’ve been staring at me for so long… not planning to give me a bottle of water?”