The national team’s budget is limited, so the players and coaches all fly economy class. Shen You’an has a window seat, and Tang Yuanyuan sits next to her.
A male team mber wanted to swap seats with Tang Yuanyuan, but was ruthlessly refused by her.
His intentions were not simply to enjoy the view; she wasn’t about to give these guys a chance to get close to An’an.
Shen You’an put on headphones and held a tablet, studying sothing intently.
Tang Yuanyuan inadvertently glanced over and it seed to be a video of a Go match.
Forget it, An’an is always either studying physics, math, or Go, all high-IQ gas, and even one glance tires her out.
She put on her sleep mask, tilted her head, and fell asleep.
The two-hour flight went by quickly, and feeling the hot wind on her feet back on Qingzhou soil, she truly felt that she had returned.
A group of national team mbers dressed in uniform tracksuits walked through the airport, still managing to catch the eye.
"Yanyan, Yanyan, you’re the best."
A few excited girls rushed over, waving light sticks and banners, heading straight for the tall girl in the middle of the group.
The girl paused, smiling and greeting them, basking in the attention like a celebrity, which made her teammates look on with so envy.
At the very back of the group, Shen You’an instinctively pulled down her hat brim, fished out a mask from her backpack, and put it on.
Tang Yuanyuan, witnessing this, sneered, "Wang Qingyan just loves putting on airs, acting like a star when she’s not one."
Before Shen You’an joined, Wang Qingyan was the recognized prodigy of the swim team, winning almost all the gold and silver dals. Paired with her fresh looks, tall stature, and poise, she captured many fans’ hearts. Now the sports world even adopts entertainnt industry fan support tactics. Whenever Wang Qingyan participates in a competition, fans appear to welco her at the airport and cheer during events.
Wang Qingyan was accustod to it, engaging with her fans warmly, yet maintaining just the right degree of separation.
Fans asked if training was tiring, whether she was eating well, advised her to stay calm in the next competition, and even offered her gifts and letters.
While enjoying the fans’ caring attention and adoration, Wang Qingyan glanced triumphantly at Shen You’an as she walked by.
Lately, she’d nearly spat blood from being overshadowed by Shen You’an within the team, with no outlet for her frustration. Fortunately, she could regain so ground with her fans.
Among so many team mbers, she was the only one to receive such star treatnt, all because of her excellent performance, good looks, and outstanding figure, making her the dazzling new star in the sports world, with popularity online comparable to a breakout young actress.
Yet, Shen You’an didn’t even notice her swaggering voice, walked right past her, ignoring them as if they didn’t exist.
This made Wang Qingyan feel a lump in her chest, unable to swallow or relieve it.
A fan, watching Shen You’an’s retreating back, asked suspiciously, "Who is she? How co I haven’t seen her before?"
She knew all the national team mbers, but this one seed unfamiliar.
But truly eye-catching, with a body even better than Wang Qingyan’s, long arms and legs, just her back exuded charm. With a baseball cap and mask, her face wasn’t visible, yet she appeared full of star quality, exuding a mysterious allure that captived onlookers.
Wang Qingyan, noticing her fan’s interest in Shen You’an, frowned unhappily.
"Oh, she was exceptionally recruited into the team by the coach and trained with us for the last week."
Exceptionally recruited into the team? Trained for a week?
That sounded unreliable. Could she be soone with connections?
The fan, unimpressed, said, "Nowadays, it seems anyone can join the national team. Doesn’t matter what her background is, in the arena, it’s all about skill. Without results, she can’t compare to you, Yanyan. At best, she’s just padding her resu, and will soon be eliminated."
Wang Qingyan’s smile stiffened, thinking of Shen You’an’s astonishing training results, feeling very uneasy inside.
Absent-mindedly, she muttered, "Maybe..."
The coach called her, not wanting to keep everyone waiting while she chatted with fans; everyone’s ti is valuable.
Wang Qingyan said farewell to her fans while holding their gifts, and left the airport with the team mbers to board a bus.
They were accommodated at a high-end hotel in Qingzhou, having booked an entire floor with two people per room, Shen You’an still paired with Tang Yuanyuan.
A dia conference was scheduled in the afternoon, and Shen You’an had asked the coach for a leave, who also intended to keep Shen You’an under wraps to surprise everyone later, so naturally he agreed.
While others attended the dia conference that afternoon, Shen You’an went to et her uncle.
Zhang Jian was very busy, currently thriving in his career and swamped every day, but upon learning that Shen You’an was back in Qingzhou, he made ti to see her.
They arranged to et in a restaurant, where Shen You’an had already ordered dishes, basically all of Zhang Jian’s favorites.
"An’an." Seeing Shen You’an, Zhang Jian enthusiastically approached.
Shen You’an stood up, embracing him, her voice choked, "Uncle."
Zhang Jian patted her head, content, "You’ve grown taller, but are still thin, are you not eating well?"
Once seated, Shen You’an smiled, "It’s just my body type, I don’t gain weight no matter what."
"Haha, if those won always clamoring to lose weight heard that, they’d be infuriated."
Though separated for months, they didn’t feel distant upon reunion. Zhang Jian inquired about her life and studies, and learning that everything was well, he was all smiles.
Shen You’an cast a scrutinizing glance at Zhang Jian’s face, smirking, "Uncle, you’ve t soone."
Zhang Jian almost choked, coughed, and quickly took a sip of water to calm down.
"How... how did you know?"
Seeing Shen You’an’s eyes, seemingly seeing through everything, made Zhang Jian feel guilty.
Although Shen You’an was his niece, in front of her, he felt like the junior.
Before Shen You’an even asked, he confessed everything himself.
After the divorce with Zhou Qin, he intended to live alone for the rest of his life, never considering finding soone again.
One day, after working late, he encountered an unconscious woman on the roadside past 11 PM, with no one around to help. He couldn’t ignore her, so he called 120. The ergency response people found multiple injuries on the woman and assud Zhang Jian was her husband, responsible for dostic violence, even calling the police, which led to a series of misunderstandings.
That’s how he t Qin Yurou.
Qin Yurou was a graceful and gentle woman, in her early thirties, indeed a victim of dostic violence. Her husband was an alcoholic and gambler, beating her when drunk. That day, unable to endure, she escaped, fainting roadside where Zhang Jian found her.
Zhang Jian was kind and caring, Qin Yurou, vulnerable and in need of protection; naturally, feelings developed between them.
However, Zhang Jian had strong moral beliefs. Despite Qin Yurou’s despicable husband, she wasn’t divorced, and he wouldn’t be with her.
They went through considerable back and forth, during which Qin Yurou’s husband discovered Zhang Jian, assaulted him unilaterally.
This fueled Zhang Jian’s resolve to not separate, feeling responsible for rescuing Qin Yurou from this nightmare.
Now, the three are at an impasse; her husband refuses divorce, she cannot stay in that ho, so she escapes to live with Zhang Jian. Her husband often shows up demanding money, leaving Zhang Jian no choice but to pay him off, but that’s not a sustainable solution.
To Zhang Jian, Qin Yurou’s husband is just another Zhou Qin. Having experienced it first-hand, he knows the pain and doesn’t want the woman he cares for struggling in such a quagmire.
He is currently consulting a lawyer to help Qin Yurou sue for divorce.
Zhang Jian didn’t elaborate to Shen You’an, given she’s his junior, he wanted to save face.
"Yurou is a wonderful person, gentle, good-tempered, cooks well, you’re sure to like her," he said, beaming when speaking of her.
Not wanting to dampen his spirits, Shen You’an nodded with a smile.
Busy with work, Zhang Jian left after dinner, arranging to have Shen You’an stay at his place that night.
As Zhang Jian departed, Shen You’an’s smiling face instantly turned icy.
Wu Jun approached, "Miss."
Shen You’an looked up, "Have a seat."
Seating himself cautiously across, Wu Jun asked, "What’s going on with my uncle and that woman?"
Previously, Wu Jun had ntioned to her that her uncle was seeing soone, and, concerned, he investigated the woman’s background, finding nothing suspicious.
Busy with competitions at the ti, Shen You’an couldn’t spare the attention, but seeing her uncle today, she feared he was deeply embroiled in the relationship.
Although never having t the woman, she had an instinctive feeling that things might not be so simple beneath the surface.
"Pig-butchering scam."
They t each other’s gaze and spoke simultaneously.
With a cold smile, Shen You’an replied, "Just unsure if this pig-butchering sche targets my uncle or ."
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