Power outage?
Yan Shu’s first thought was that the entire building had lost power. He walked to the window and found that the automatic curtains were unresponsive, let alone attempting to open the window to let light in.
The entire room had been completely locked down by intelligent electronic locks, forming a natural escape-proof chamber.
He pressed his ear against the door to listen for sounds outside, only to find it completely quiet.
If the whole building had lost power, others would surely be shouting in protest. Yet there was not even the sound of footsteps outside; it was obvious that only his specific room had been cut off from electricity.
A single room losing power like this was a deliberately man-made act.
Yan Shu’s immediate reaction was to call Coach Jane and ask him to unlock the jammed door.
Pulling out his phone, Yan Shu discovered that the cellular signal on the island was practically nonexistent.
WeChat?
Flipping through his training phone, Yan Shu found that there was no WeChat installed, the room’s internet connection had been severed, and the phone itself had no dedicated data plan.
Under such circumstances, Yan Shu could not think of any other way to get out.
The coach had just said that the door lock was linked to the phone, and they could only exit after completing their required training hours. With no internet connection on his phone, he could not even log into the game.
Coupled with the room’s exceptional soundproofing, shouting out loud would not cause anyone to hear him either.
Trapped in this environment, Yan Shu spent a full hour brainstorming ways out, all to no avail.
Left with no choice, Yan Shu could only pound continuously on the door to attract the attention of anyone passing by in the hallway.
Finally, near dinnertime, the logistics staff member delivering meals opened the door and handed the boxed lunch inside, only then noticing that training room number 7 had its power maliciously cut off.
“Good thing I came to deliver food, otherwise you would have been locked in here indefinitely.” The logistics courier shook his head repeatedly, feeling quite sympathetic toward Yan Shu.
With the help of the logistics staff, and with the coach’s permission, Yan Shu was moved to a different room to restart his timed training session.
It was not until midnight that Yan Shu finally left the training room; everyone else had already returned to their rooms to rest long ago.
As Yan Shu walked down the homestay’s hallway, he noticed someone else was still awake.
Drawing closer, he saw it was Luo Yan and Xu Ya smoking on the outdoor open-air balcony. The two of them seemed unable to sleep due to unfamiliarity with their beds, prompting them to come out for a smoke.
Just as Yan Shu was about to walk past the balcony, he caught Luo Yan vaguely mentioning his name from inside.
Luo Yan seemed to be answering a question from Xu Ya, letting slip Yan Shu’s name outright: “Yan Shu, obviously.”
Yan Shu paused in his tracks.
“Yan Shu actually got locked in there for an entire afternoon?” Xu Ya took a drag from his cigarette. “You have to hand it to him, being isolated like this by us and living so miserably, how does he still have the perseverance to stay on the team?”
Luo Yan let out a cold, cynical laugh. Glancing sideways, he had long since noticed Yan Shu standing in the hallway behind them. This made him speak with even fewer restraints: “The captain does not want him at all; cutting his power was just a warning. Who knows if an idiot like him even understands what a power outage means.”
Yan Shu did not dare continue listening. A dull pain ached in his heart as he walked back to his room like a wandering ghost.
Luo Yan tilted his head to glance behind him, making sure Yan Shu had really left before speaking the unvarnished truth: “His power, I cut it. Right after finishing lunch, I happened to pass by the electrical room, so I figured I would give him a little warning.”
“Holy shit, you did that? Does the captain know?” Xu Ya was taken aback, never expecting Luo Yan to pull such a stunt.
Luo Yan casually tossed his finished cigarette out the window. “The captain does not know. Even if he did, it would not change anything. After all, not a single person in our team feels sorry for Yan Shu; he totally brings it on himself.”
Xu Ya shrugged. “Still, brother Sanhu, are you not going a bit too far this time…”
Luo Yan looked completely unbothered. “If you ask me, I just can’t stand the thought of him tagging along with us to the preseason games. These next few days, I am going to let him experience what it is like when troubles come in pairs. Just watch, I have prepared a grand gift in advance. Once the special training ends, I refuse to believe he will not quit the team.”
Xu Ya curled his lips.
Meanwhile, Yan Shu returned to his room with an exceptionally calm state of mind.
Unfortunately, a sleepless night still exposed Yan Shu’s fragile inner state.
On the second day of special training, Yan Shu, having not slept the entire night, still arrived early at the open clearing outside the homestay, lining up with the other team members in preparation for the morning training run.
Yan Shu had taken his medication that morning, but his mental state remained poor, much like the weather today, threatening to pour rain at any moment.
The main reason he could not sleep was hearing Luo Yan’s words last night, keeping Yan Shu awake all night long.
Clearly, Zhuoyue had said his perspective of him would change. Why did it ultimately still lead to malicious targeting?
From Luo Yan’s fragmentary remarks, Yan Shu directly pinned the mastermind behind yesterday’s power outage onto Zhuoyue.
“Alright, everyone is here. The two teams will form separate lines and run. The run is timed, so everyone go as fast as you can.” Coach Jane stood in front of everyone, waving his arm broadly. “Get ready, everyone, we start now, run!”
Yan Shu was snapped back to reality by Coach Jane’s clapping, lowering his head as he ran at the very tail end of the group.
The first and second teams split into two groups, running loops around this homestay resort along different routes.
Preoccupied with heavy thoughts at the back of the pack, Yan Shu simply focused on following the person ahead of him. After running for a while, he looked up ahead and noticed there was only one person left in front of him.
Luo Yan was not running particularly fast, leading the way just a short distance ahead of Yan Shu.
After running a bit further, Yan Shu realized he could not even see the shadows of the homestay anymore. Sensing that something was amiss, he looked up once more.
Luo Yan came to a sudden halt, turning around to cast a half-smiling glance at Yan Shu.
“Did we take a wrong…” Before Yan Shu could finish his sentence, Luo Yan shoved him violently toward a tree by the roadside.
Yan Shu gasped in surprise, and by the time he recovered his wits, he had already tumbled into an earthen pit. His ankle also flared with excruciating pain, likely punctured by sharp tree branches hidden inside the pit.
“Yan Shu, are you not going to quit the team yet? Our captain finds you an absolute eyesore; why do you not just withdraw from the SR team yourself? Do not wait until our captain humiliates you personally before you are willing to leave.” Luo Yan squatted by the edge of the pit, a mocking smirk hanging on his lips.
Yan Shu furrowed his brows tightly. Hearing Luo Yan’s words, the pain in his heart nearly eclipsed the physical pain.
He had originally thought Zhuoyue would change after what happened last time…
“Let me up.” Yan Shu’s voice was very soft, lacking any strength in terms of presence.
Luo Yan sneered, “Why are you not acting as frail as you are right now when cursing out my buddy Wu Yan? You just love putting on an act in front of the captain, do you not? Fine, I will pull you up if you say the words ‘I quit the team’ for me to record, and I will let you right out.”
Yan Shu bit down hard on his lower lip.
Quit the team…
Perhaps he really should exit this completely heartless squad…
“Xiao Shu, none of the other teams want you.” Xu Kanan’s voice echoed in his mind.
Yan Shu remembered when he prepared to return home a few months prior, Xu Kanan had mentioned that no other teams were willing to accept Yan Shu’s joining.
If he quit the SR team, how else could he ever realize his dream again?
Thinking of this, Yan Shu bit his lip firmly and squeezed out two difficult words: “I will not.”
Luo Yan froze for a moment. He truly had not expected Yan Shu’s willpower to be this stubborn. Tortured to this extent, he still refused to yield.
“Fine, it is about to rain anyway, let us see how long you can last down here.” Luo Yan squatted down, pointing right at Yan Shu’s face. “Even if someone rescues you, you are not allowed to tell anyone who pushed you down. Nobody would believe you anyway; after all, the captain wants you rolled out of the team as fast as possible too.”
Yan Shu glared fiercely at Luo Yan.
“Oh-ho, do not glare at me like that. As long as the captain hates you, your good days to come will only get better.” With that, Luo Yan flipped Yan Shu a middle finger, pulled out a compass, followed the directional guidance, and jogged back in a leisurely manner.
Before Luo Yan had run very far, the sky grew even more overcast.
The moment Yan Shu looked up, a stray raindrop smacked right against him.
Summer rain falls without warning, and the raindrops rapidly grew denser.
A rare torrential downpour washed over the entire island.
Beaten down by the rain so that he could barely keep his eyes open, Yan Shu struggled to crawl out of the pit, failing repeatedly despite multiple attempts. Perhaps his ankle was also sprained, rendering him completely devoid of strength.
The rain showed no signs of letting up, and his line of sight ahead grew blurred due to the diagonally weaving curtain of rain.
Most of the members from the first and second teams had just reached the finish line, sheltering from the rain under the eaves, while the rest had immediately dashed indoors to observe the downpour from a dry vantage point.
Coach Jane glanced at the weather forecast on his phone and raised a hand helplessly. “We probably cannot run anymore today. Zhuoyue, Er Dui, gather your team members; let us go run on the indoor treadmills for a bit instead.”
“Understood, I will go right away,” Er Dui replied.
Meanwhile, Zhuoyue turned around to take a headcount, only to find Luo Yan missing, along with Yan Shu.
“Captain, let us wait here for a bit. Our first-team members’ stamina is not bad; they will definitely catch up here in no time.” Lin Qi was in good shape today, barely falling behind at all.
Zhuoyue checked his wristwatch. “Alright, let us wait fifteen minutes.”
As time ticked by second by second.
Yan Shu was soaked to the bone, and blood continued to ooze from his ankle.
After thirteen minutes had passed on Zhuoyue’s watch, Luo Yan finally arrived at the finish line.
“Holy shit, why are you running so slow today?” Lin Qi remembered that Luo Yan’s pace usually was not this sluggish.
Luo Yan rubbed his head as he walked inside. “I was not feeling well today, so I slowed down.”
Lin Qi put his hands on his hips. “Your physical conditioning is failing you, old pal.”
Zhuoyue immediately spotted the mud caked onto Luo Yan’s pant leg. “Took a wrong turn?”
Luo Yan stiffened for a moment, glossing over it evasively. “No… I just accidentally brushed against it.”
Zhuoyue did not press further. “You guys go on inside first.”
“Captain, are you not going to eat breakfast?” Lin Qi asked.
“There are still people who have not arrived. I will wait a bit longer.” Zhuoyue shoved his hands into his pockets. “You guys go on in.”
Lin Qi paused in surprise, then turned around and walked away.
The rain fell even harder. Watching time tick by second by second, Zhuoyue felt a vague, ominous premonition brewing in his heart.
Under that same curtain of rain, Yan Shu was chilled to the core by the downpour.
He felt his body temperature slipping away piece by piece, growing deathly cold.
I do not know how much time passed, but just as Yan Shu was on the verge of fainting, a tall silhouette materialized before his eyes.
“Yan Shu! Hang in there!”
Hearing someone calling his name, Yan Shu tried to hold on, but his strength finally gave out, and he blacked out entirely.