Tonight, the club had an exhibition match, which was one of the training contents for boxing. Internal matches in the club were held almost every month, serving as a test for the coaches to assess the training progress of the boxers. However, tonight’s match was to select the participants for the competition next month.
Xu Jingyu looked at Ying Huan. “Didn’t Ying Chi tell you?”
Ying Huan shook her head, wondering if Ying Chi was afraid she wouldn’t win? Was that why he didn’t tell her?
She looked at Xu Jingyu. “What about you? Aren’t you competing?”
Xu Jingyu replied, “I’ve participated in this competition before. Recently, there have been some changes in the training direction, and Coach Wu doesn’t plan to let me participate in this competition.”
However, tonight, he would also have a real fight.
Starting from May this year, Wu Qi had been preparing for him to change weight classes, from 75 kilograms to 81 kilograms, training for three months without trying out the results.
Ying Huan recalled that Jiang Meng and Lin Siyu had basically watched all of Xu Jingyu’s match videos in the dormitory before. Xu Jingyu had previously participated in the APB individual professional matches. APB was a personal professional match promoted by the AIBA International Boxing Association and was also one of the Olympic qualification matches.
Ying Huan sat in the backseat of the car, holding Zhou Baihao’s nephew, Hengheng, and showed him her sketches.
She asked softly, “Do you like drawing?”
Hengheng shook his head. “No.”
“What do you like then?”
“I like boxing. My uncle and Jingwang can both box, but my uncle can’t beat Jingwang. He’s a rookie.”
“Uh…”
The little boy had seen Xu Jingyu’s matches and knew he had a title called “Jingwang,” so he kept calling him that.
Zhou Baihao’s face darkened. “Zhou Heng, stop talking nonsense or I’ll kick you out of the car.”
Xu Jingyu sat in the passenger seat and glanced at Ying Huan through the rearview mirror. He noticed her smiling with her lips closed, probably because of the braces. She always smiled with her lips closed, rarely showing her teeth. He noticed how gentle and patient she was with the children, especially with Ying Chi; that guy was already five years old but still got carried by her.
Xu Jingyu withdrew his gaze and snorted lightly. “Isn’t that the truth?”
Zhou Baihao coldly snorted, “What’s there to be proud of? If I were a professional boxer, could I beat you?”
“You never know.”
“Let’s have a match another day.”
“Sure.”
The two men inexplicably agreed to a fight.
Ying Huan glanced at them and deep down felt that Xu Jingyu wouldn’t lose. Her phone rang from her bag, and she checked it—it was Zhong Weiwei calling. She answered, and Zhong Weiwei asked, “Have you finished class? Lin Siyu and her parents were traveling and passed by here, so she’s not planning to go back and will stay at her aunt’s house for a while. She suggested we go out and play. Didn’t you see the group message?”
“I didn’t notice. Hold on a moment.” Ying Huan covered the phone and asked softly, “Mr. Zhou, can I let my classmates come to the club for a while?”
She wanted to watch tonight’s match, and it wouldn’t be easy to refuse Zhong Weiwei and Lin Siyu’s invitation. Plus, Zhong Weiwei had been wanting to see Ying Chi’s match.
Mr. Zhou smiled. “Sure, let them come.”
Ying Huan moved her hand away and informed Zhong Weiwei, who was excited and immediately told Lin Siyu. They rushed over.
After hanging up, Ying Huan looked at Mr. Zhou again and said softly, “Thank you, Mr. Zhou. If needed, I can help as a temporary medical assistant.”
Mr. Zhou was about to say it wasn’t necessary when Xu Jingyu interjected with a grin, “Sure, little doctor.”
Ying Huan: “…”
She was only in her sophomore year; it was like they were teasing her.
Seeing her silent, Mr. Zhou thought the girl might be embarrassed and chuckled, “I remember you handled your brother’s injuries skillfully before. You’re no different from our medical staff. You can handle the injuries from ordinary matches perfectly fine.”
Because she had specifically learned about it…
When Ying Huan and Xu Jingyu arrived at the club at 4:30 in the afternoon, Mr. Zhou was already inside with his nephew. At this time, the boxers were being weighed. Ying Huan subconsciously turned to Xu Jingyu and asked, “Xu Jingyu, have you gained weight recently?”
Earlier, when she walked behind him, she felt that he was indeed more robust and sturdy than the last few times they met.
Xu Jingyu paused his steps, looked down at her, raised an eyebrow, and said teasingly, “Not only do you remember me, but you also notice changes in my weight.”
Ignoring his teasing, Ying Huan pursued, “Is that so?”
Xu Jingyu nodded and said, “I’m now in the 81-kilogram category.”
Previously, when Jiang Meng and the others watched Xu Jingyu’s match videos in the dormitory, Ying Huan also watched along. Xu Jingyu’s height and weight were 182 cm and 74.6 kg respectively, so he gained six kilograms? Boxers generally paid great attention to weight maintenance because there was a weigh-in three hours before each match. They couldn’t change weight categories within a season, and if they qualified for the Olympics in the qualification matches, they had to maintain their weight even more.
Ying Huan was curious. “Isn’t the 75-kilogram category good enough?”
Xu Jingyu glanced at her and whispered, “Coach Wu said I looked too skinny in the 75-kilogram category, and my heavy punches weren’t powerful enough, so I tried gaining weight. Maybe the 81-kilogram category suits me better.”
Ying Huan tiptoed slightly and couldn’t help but gesture between herself and Xu Jingyu, asking, “Did you grow taller?”
“Didn’t you?” he chuckled in response.
“…”
When she had military training in her freshman year, she was 163 cm tall, and it seemed like she hadn’t grown since then.
Xu Jingyu looked at her fair little face, his fingers twitched, and he reached up to ruffle her hair. “Eat a little more,” he said before striding into the club’s entrance. As he turned the corner, he rubbed his head, feeling the prick from his own short hair. Suddenly, he realized—why was her hair so soft?
Ying Huan watched the man’s tall and straight figure, smoothing down her ruffled hair with her hand, and quickly caught up with his pace. As soon as they entered, they heard Ying Chi yelling, “Ah, why am I still 179cm tall? I haven’t grown since the physical examination before the college entrance examination! I want to reach 180!”
Ying Huan: “…”
Xu Jingyu glanced in that direction, his mouth twitched, and he went to change clothes.
Ying Huan remembered her promise to assist in the match and went over to help. When Xu Jingyu came out wearing his robe, she stood by the weighing scale and looked up at him.
Xu Jingyu took off his robe and stepped onto the scale.
Ying Huan’s gaze lingered on his body for a few seconds before she turned to check the boxer’s data—
Xu Jingyu, 185cm, 81.2kg.
She lifted her head and met his indifferent gaze, unable to help but smirk, feeling somewhat pleased with herself.
Her eyesight was really good.
Xu Jingyu picked up his red robe and looked at her. “What’s so funny?” he asked.
“Nothing,” Ying Huan replied.
…
At seven o’clock in the evening, the sky turned gray as night approached.
The club’s matches followed official competition rules, with ring girls besides referees and medical staff.
The match was scheduled for 7:30, and Ying Huan waited at the door for a while. Zhong Weiwei and Lin Siyu also arrived, both visibly excited, especially Lin Siyu, who was wearing a floral spaghetti strap dress and had delicate makeup, looking very beautiful.
Lin Siyu tossed her hair and smiled, saying, “I heard King Jing is here too.”
Ying Huan glanced at her and couldn’t help but ask, “So, are you wearing this outfit to seduce him?”
Lin Siyu glared at her and said somewhat regretfully, “No, I heard he’s not easy to seduce. Even the sexy ring girls couldn’t seduce him, so I gave up on the idea. But, when there’s a handsome guy around, you can’t be too indifferent, right?”
At her words, Ying Huan suddenly felt relieved.
Zhong Weiwei peeked inside and urged her, “Come on, can we go in now?”
Inside, they heard Wu Qi’s voice, “It’s almost 8 o’clock, get ready for the matches.”
Ying Huan said, “Let’s go.”
As a small group of spectators arrived at the gym and took their seats casually, Ying Huan led the two to the front row. She glanced at the ring and said, “You two sit here. I’m going to assist with the medical care.”
Zhong Weiwei couldn’t help but laugh, “So, you’ve become a medic now? Do you get paid?”
Ying Huan laughed too, “Nope.”
Suddenly, from behind, came a voice, “You want to get paid?”
Ying Huan’s body stiffened, and she turned around to see Zhou Baihao smiling at her. She replied politely, “My classmate was joking. I’m doing volunteer work, no need for payment.”
Zhou Baihao looked at her casually, “Really? You don’t want it?”
Ying Huan: “…”
Wanted to get paid.
Didn’t want to do volunteer work.
Ying Huan regretted saying no, but the words had already been spoken, so she had to gracefully say, “It’s okay, I won’t be here too often anyway.”
“If you regret it, just tell me,” he said with a smile.
“…”
Did he just offer me the job on the spot?
Ying Huan almost blurted out, but she bit her lip and held back.
Zhou Baihao smiled and sat down in the nearby empty seat, crossing his legs casually. Lin Siyu, sitting next to him, sat up straight with an eager look on her face, unable to contain her curiosity. Who is this guy?
The match was about to begin, and Ying Huan hurriedly said, “I’ll go over there first, I’ll come back later.”
Apart from Ying Huan, the impromptu medic, there was another bona fide female doctor, with short hair, sharp yet beautiful. The team members called her Dr. Han. Dr. Han glanced at Ying Huan and raised an eyebrow teasingly, “Oh, so we have a little doctor joining us now?”
Ying Chou shouted from behind, “Dr. Han, this is my sister, a medical student at University A.”
Dr. Han looked at Ying Huan’s fair and delicate skin with some envy and said, “No wonder you look so young. What year are you in?”
Ying Huan replied, “I’m going into my second year.”
Dr. Han smiled and said, “So young.”
Behind them, sitting in a row were the athletes. Chen Senran chuckled a few times and said, “So, we have a little doctor here. Will you be coming often in the future? Should we call you little doctor or little nurse?”
Ying Huan smiled gently and replied, “Then can I call you little brother?”
The crowd burst into laughter.
Taking another look, Ying Huan’s face was adorned with a faint smile, quiet and demure. The athletes felt embarrassed to entertain any crooked thoughts. Someone asked, “Isn’t Ying Huan studying nursing?”
Shi Lei said, “Better call her little doctor. Little junior sister isn’t studying nursing, I’m sure she’s studying surgery or neurology.”
Ying Chou glared at Chen Senran and said fiercely, “Don’t talk to my sister like that, you’re asking for trouble.”
Chen Senran shrugged, “What’s wrong with me? Can’t I speak?”
At the back of the row, Xu Jingyu stared expressionlessly at the back of Chen Senran’s head, then kicked his chair. Chen Senran fell forward, his chair tipping over. He stood up angrily and turned around, “What the hell, Xu Jingyu?”
Xu Jingyu said calmly, “I told you to shut up.”
Chen Senran stood up, his face flushed with anger, and Wu Qi, standing on the boxing platform, pointed at him and scolded, “Chen Senran, what are you doing again? Sit down properly!”
Chen Senran suddenly chuckled, kicked away his chair, and sat down heavily.
The matches followed the rules of the APB professional boxing, with six rounds per match, each round lasting three minutes, and a one-minute break between rounds. Tonight, due to time constraints, Wu Qi only tested the 56kg, 69kg, and 81kg weight classes.
The first to enter was the 56kg category, and Yang Jingcheng was the representative for this weight class. Ying Huan stood by, waiting for the halftime break to come on stage and stop his brow from bleeding.
Yang Jingcheng smiled and said, “Thanks, little doctor.”
Ying Huan: “…”
Well, call me whatever you want.
The second match was the 69kg category, with Ying Chi against Shi Lei.
Shi Lei was not as tall as Ying Chi, but he had a significant advantage in arm reach, which generally made it easier for boxers with longer arms to land hits. Shi Lei was actually 23 years old this year, and he had undergone systematic training for four to five more years than Ying Chi.
Ying Chi fought more passively, but fortunately, he had good mental toughness and knew he was currently not as good as Shi Lei, so he didn’t feel too pressured.
Shi Lei was also an aggressive boxer, unlike Xu Jingyu, who toyed with his opponents.
After the match, Ying Chi’s eyes were cut, bleeding quite a bit, and even the corners of his eyes were a little red. After Ying Huan helped him stop the bleeding, she frowned and said softly, “You have to work harder. Don’t always end up getting beaten up. I’ll feel sorry for you.”
Ying Chi replied with a hint of grievance, “Okay.”
Xu Jingyu threw down his robe, passed by the siblings, and jumped onto the boxing platform. He heard Ying Chi say, “Sis, can you blow on my eye? It hurts.”
Ying Huan replied, “Sure.”
He lowered his head and looked over.
He saw her puffing up her little face, gently and carefully blowing on Ying Chi’s eye.
He looked at her expressionlessly for a while until the assistant handed him his mouth guard, then he looked away.
He chuckled inwardly.
What a little rascal.
Xu Jingyu stood on the platform and moved his body a bit. His muscular physique elicited a “wow” from the female spectators in the audience. Ying Huan felt like she could even hear Lin Siyu’s voice.
Lin Siyu indeed sighed below the stage, “With that physique, do you have to pay to touch him?”
Zhong Weiyu muttered quietly, “I didn’t expect Ying Chi to be so muscular. I thought he was still a little kid… blame it on his too pretty face.”
The 81kg match began, and Xu Jingyu’s opponent was a veteran of the club who had trained in the United States for a year and had participated in many professional matches. The match was quite intense. Xu Jingyu’s speed and agility were particularly good when he fought in the 75kg category. After moving up to the 81kg category, he had undergone specific strength training, significantly increasing the power of his punches.
Ying Huan watched the boxing ring intently. Xu Jingyu’s face remained calm throughout the fight, giving off an aura of composure. His left hand punches were especially heavy.
A southpaw?
During the four halftime breaks, Dr. Han went up to stop Xu Jingyu’s bleeding twice.
There wasn’t any special intention behind it; they just happened to be standing closer to each other.
The match ended.
Blood trickled down from Xu Jingyu’s brow again. He spat out his mouthguard, leaned against the corner, and glanced back at Ying Huan, who was still standing below the stage. Pointing to his brow, he said, “Little doctor, come and treat me. I’m about to die.”
Ying Huan: “…”
With a cotton ball soaked in antiseptic and a piece of gauze in hand, she approached him, crouched down in front of him, and whispered, “Close your eyes.”
Xu Jingyu obediently shut his eyes. His long, dark eyelashes brushed against his eyelids. With blood already seeping beneath them, she wiped away the blood and noticed that his brow was severely swollen. With a twitch in her mind, she asked, “Does it hurt a lot?”
“Yeah, it hurts like hell,” he replied in a low voice, a slight smirk on his lips as he kept his eyes closed.
“…”
Ying Huan silently observed him, completely unable to discern any signs of pain from him.
________________________________________
The author has something to say:
Xu Jingyu: Little doctor, come and treat me. I’m about to die.
Ying Chi: Ahhhh, my! Sister! Only she can serve me!
Ying Xiaohuan: … [Let me grow 2 centimeters taller.]
