In mid-April, Harbin still had a significant temperature difference between morning and evening, but the warm spring had already arrived. On the 13th, due to overcast and rainy weather, the air carried a slight chill that seemed capable of piercing through thinner layers of clothing.
However, this did not dampen the fiery atmosphere at the ice training base in the slightest.
The National Figure Skating Championships were being held here, serving as the final domestic event of the figure skating season. By the afternoon of the 13th, it was already the second day of competition. Following the short program showdown, the audience’s enthusiasm seemed even higher than the previous day.
It was currently the men’s free skating event. As another skater settled into position at the center of the rink, the stands gradually quieted down.
“I remember him. His name is Xi Ming, right?” a young woman asked her boyfriend, looking at the young skater standing with lowered head on the ice, a hint of recollection in her tone. Her boyfriend, however, didn’t seem inclined to answer. As the music began to play, he simply made a gesture for silence.
The young woman was not unfamiliar with this side of her boyfriend. While she only understood figure skating on a superficial level, the reason they were here was entirely because of him, a dedicated figure skating fan. Compared to her, who was just watching for the excitement, he took it much more seriously.
Well, even if she didn’t quite understand it all, figure skating was still beautiful to watch, she thought, looking at the skater gliding across the ice to the music, Xi Ming.
To someone like her who knew little about the sport, Xi Ming was essentially an unfamiliar name. The only reason she remembered him was because, in yesterday’s men’s short program, Xi Ming had placed third.
Although her boyfriend kept muttering that Jiang Jun had been in poor form, falling on two out of three jumps, which allowed Xi Ming to snatch third place, Xi Ming was indeed third. That meant he was a skater second only to the formidable Qi Yu and Yu Jinghui.
Even without paying close attention to figure skating, she knew those two were currently the most popular athletes in domestic figure skating. A skater just a step behind them was, in her eyes, already very impressive.
“Whoosh!” A flash of white leaped high into the air within her field of vision, and the young woman’s gaze instinctively became much more focused.
“Nice!” The crisp sound of a clean landing and her boyfriend’s exclamation of praise interrupted her thoughts. Her eyes shone brightly as she looked at Xi Ming, who had just executed a sharp and flawless jump. Taking in his relaxed posture and delicate facial features, she couldn’t help cupping her cheeks with her hands.
Compared to her boyfriend, who praised the skater for his technical execution, the young woman’s thoughts were much simpler.
As expected, this skater named Xi Ming is so good-looking, she thought, just as she had yesterday.
The thoughts of the spectators off the ice naturally had nothing to do with Xi Ming, who was currently performing his free skate. And far from looking relaxed and effortless like a graceful swan in the eyes of others, Xi Ming did not feel at ease at all.
After all, throughout this past season and even the previous one, Xi Ming’s sole defining label had been inconsistency.
Fortunately, his form had rebounded recently, and his performance in yesterday’s short program had been decent.
After successfully completing a triple flip (3F), the very first jump of his free program, Xi Ming’s heart settled slightly. Following a brief glide, he launched into a forward takeoff and landed a fairly clean double Axel (2A), prompting cheers of encouragement from the stands.
This was immediately followed by a combination jump: a triple Lutz-Euler-triple Salchow (3Lz+1Eu+3S). Although the final landing had a slight flaw, it did not detract from Xi Ming’s overall performance.
When he entered a combination spin, the young skater clad in a white costume made people think of Odette, the princess turned into a swan, dancing in lonely solitude through the night.
Xi Ming’s free program was Swan Lake.
As a very common musical selection in figure skating competitions, it could be seen almost every season, featuring no shortage of classic performances.
Naturally, the technical level Xi Ming displayed right now could not yet match those top skaters on the international stage. But at this moment, whether they understood figure skating or not, anyone could see that Xi Ming’s performance on the ice was undoubtedly outstanding.
The slender young man appeared somewhat thin, perhaps because he was still growing. However, his delicate and tall figure made his performance look light and elegant. When he glided across half the rink with his arms crossed over his chest, his slightly lowered brow paired with the white costume made him look truly like an elegant white swan skimming over the water.
In contrast to his smooth opening performance, as he entered a complex sequence of step sequences, the emotional tone suddenly escalated. His expression lit up with joy, as if he were stepping into love and wonderful daydreams about the future.
However, the sorcerer Rothbart was a shadow hovering over the white swan’s head, and the storm was coming.
Landing the double Axel-triple toe loop (2A+3T) combination, the jump was just as clean as the beginning, with a rapid transition right after takeoff, yet a heavy and oppressive feeling suddenly rushed over the audience. The series of jumps Xi Ming executed next felt like a white swan struggling against destiny, beautiful, yet laden with an inescapable sense of oppression.
Accompanied by a gracefully executed camel spin, Xi Ming brought his free skate to a close. When he rose from his final bowed, lowered posture, the audience was clearly still immersed in the lingering resonance of Swan Lake.
As he bowed to all four sides, the cheers finally reached him. Raising his head to face the audience directly, Xi Ming broke into a wide smile.
Right now, he looked much more youthful, because after all, he was only fifteen years old.
Delighted by the long-lost competition atmosphere, his solid performance, and the audience’s warm response, Xi Ming was immediately enveloped in a tight, emotional hug by his coach the moment he stepped off the ice.
“That was amazing, Xiao Xi.”
The forty-year-old uncle’s emotional state could hardly be described as graceful, but considering he was his own coach, Xi Ming didn’t mind.
However, looking at his coach, who still looked somewhat nervous during the scoring wait, Xi Ming smiled and reassured him, “I think I performed well. The rest is up to the judges.”
“Don’t tell me you were actually expecting me to win the championship,” Xi Ming joked.
Zhao Zhengchang was momentarily choked up by Xi Ming’s remark. He cast a helpless glance at his unambitious disciple, though his inexplicable tension dissipated a little.
After all, what Xi Ming said made complete sense.
The two skaters yet to perform, Qi Yu and Yu Jinghui, both possessed quad jumps. Even Jiang Jun, who ranked fourth after the short program, had successfully landed a 4T and a 3A in his free skate just moments ago. Since their own boy didn’t have a 3A or a quad jump, he had long been ruled out of the gold medal race.
Just as Zhao Zhengchang calmed down, influenced by Xi Ming’s untroubled attitude, Xi Ming’s scores were finally announced.
A technical score (TES) of 64.19 plus a program component score (PCS) of 60.10 gave Xi Ming a total free skate score of 124.29, placing him temporarily in second place.
First place belonged to Jiang Jun because, having attempted no quads in the short program and falling on two jumps, Jiang Jun had initially ranked fourth after the short program.
Just as Zhao Zhengchang had said earlier, barring any major mistakes or falls from the final two skaters, Xi Ming had officially fallen out of medal contention right then and there.
Though, to be fair, no one had really expected Xi Ming to fight for a medal anyway.
“You skated really well this time. Aside from a minor mistake on the first combination jump, you landed all the other jumps solidly, and your PCS scores were quite good. Indeed, your execution was praiseworthy.”
In fact, Zhao Zhengchang was very satisfied with both Xi Ming’s performance and his score today, which could arguably be considered Xi Ming’s best result in the past two years. Yet, seeing Zhao Zhengchang grinning ear-to-ear and showering him with genuine praise, Xi Ming’s mood became rather complicated.
How should he put it? It was a subtle entanglement between feeling that you are satisfied with just this level and acknowledging that, given his current abilities, it actually wasn’t bad at all.
“Anyway, things will only get better from here, Xiao Xi,” Zhao Zhengchang rambled on for a bit before finally patting Xi Ming’s shoulder in conclusion. “So, don’t mind those negative comments. You’re going to have a fresh start.”
“That’s right,” Xi Ming nodded and said, “This is my new beginning.”
In the end, Xi Ming finished in fourth place. Qi Yu, the undisputed top man in domestic figure skating, claimed the championship without any suspense.
Jiang Jun took second place, while Yu Jinghui, the junior top skater in the country and of the same age as Xi Ming, finished third. Yu Jinghui’s program layout was similar to Jiang Jun’s, but his lower consistency resulted in lower GOE (Grade of Execution) and PCS scores compared to Jiang Jun, ultimately placing him third.
The ultimate glory of the competition belonged to them. Xi Ming was merely an obscure bystander who could quietly exit the stage now.
That’s how it should have gone, if Xi Ming hadn’t been immediately surrounded by the aforementioned top three skaters right after the championships ended.
“Xi Ming, your performance today was so good!” Yu Jinghui, the junior top skater who stood half a head shorter than Xi Ming, said happily. “Has your technique completely come back now?”
During the short program, Xi Ming had landed a flawless 3F+3T combination, which had made Yu Jinghui’s eyes light up when he saw it.
After all, Xi Ming hadn’t successfully landed that combination in competition for over a season.
“Not yet,” Xi Ming replied, adding in response to Yu Jinghui’s sparkling eyes, “During the free skate just now, I got extremely tired toward the end, and my jump axis was all over the place.”
“Even so, except for that first combination with a tiny flaw, all your subsequent jumps were great. You couldn’t tell at all,” Yu Jinghui said cheerfully. “Your consistency is even better than it was before your growth spurt.”
What Yu Jinghui said was true. During his early adolescent years, when Xi Ming was tiny, although his technical difficulty was quite good, he would completely fall apart the moment he stepped into a competition. The 3A he had just recently mastered vanished because of his rapid growth spurt before he even had a chance to land it successfully in a competition.
Yet, while Yu Jinghui was speaking the truth, Xi Ming didn’t quite know how to respond.
After all, before he became the current Xi Ming, he never would have imagined anyone describing him as someone who falls apart under pressure.
Furthermore, Yu Jinghui, who was cheerfully chatting away right in front of him, had absolutely no intention of mocking him. He was genuinely happy for his friend.
Qi Yu, the older skater standing nearby, sensed Xi Ming’s helplessness. He chuckled, patted both of their shoulders, and changed the subject. “Alright, you two did great today. Stop standing here complimenting each other.”
“I brought a game along. Do you guys want to play together tonight?”
With that, Qi Yu watched as the eyes of the two fifteen-year-olds lit up simultaneously as they chorused, “Yes!”
Qi Yu smiled warmly, hooking an arm around each of them without a trace of impatience at having to babysit younger kids. He then looked over at Jiang Jun, who was standing quietly to the side without saying much. “Are you coming with us?”
Even though he knew Qi Yu was just pulling him in to help manage the kids, Jiang Jun accepted his fate and agreed, “Count me in.”
Once Qi Yu had quickly settled their evening plans, his coach also made arrangements with Zhao Zhengchang and the others, saying, “Let the kids go play by themselves. Let’s go grab dinner.”
Since Qi Yu, Jiang Jun, and Yu Jinghui were all national team members, along with Beijing team’s Xi Ming, their group would be heading back to Beijing together the next day. It was completely normal for them to hang out now.
“Junior brother, I must say, you’ve really shot up in height,” Qi Yu remarked, wrapping an arm around Xi Ming as they walked a few steps, unable to hold back a sigh of amazement.
Compared to Xi Ming, who had participated in very few domestic competitions over the past two seasons, Qi Yu was a very busy man, flying everywhere to compete. After the championships concluded during the off-season, he had even accepted an invitation from Russian skater Mozalov to participate in an ice show together.
Therefore, even though he knew Xi Ming had been going through a rapid growth spurt over the past year or so, growing so fast and tall that it disrupted his technique, seeing Xi Ming standing almost as tall as him all of a sudden still left Qi Yu full of surprise.
“It’s alright,” Xi Ming replied with a modest, restrained tone.
In reality, if there was one thing that satisfied Xi Ming ever since his rebirth, it was his current height.