Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 432 Thank you for your hard work

It was already quite cold in Lincheng in November.

The sun was high overhead, bright and beautiful, but the heat it emitted seemed to have already been used up in summer, providing only a limited amount of warmth.

The temperature had already reached around five degrees Celsius. The athletes who finished the race wiped the sweat off their bodies as soon as possible and quickly put on their jackets to prevent catching a cold after the race.

If it weren't for the competition, no one would be willing to take off their thick coat in such temperatures and feel the biting cold wind against their skin.

But there seems to be one exception.

She could have left the field and put on her jacket much earlier, but she stubbornly insisted on staying in the same spot.

They knew this girl; some of them had competed against her in a long-distance race a few days earlier and were quite impressed by this beautiful and tenacious short-haired girl.

Even though several days have passed, the image of the girl sprinting on the track with her battered body still etched in many people's minds, and it has been a hot topic of discussion in the track and field club these past few days.

Frankly speaking, even as opponents, they find it hard not to respect such a strong person.

As for those who said after the match that she only cared about the game and not the child, that she didn't stop to check on the child even though the child had fallen, and that she had no humanity at all... that's something only a pig would say.

As members of the track and field club, they knew all too well the meaning of their relentless daily practice—wasn't it all for the sake of winning first place and receiving cheers in a competition someday?
While it's unclear whether this was also the girl's driving force, at least from the moment the race started, no one had the right to make her stop.

This is a classic line from a very popular sports anime from ten years ago. The reason why universities like Linda University, which clearly focus more on academic performance, have a large number of sports clubs and recruit many members every year is, to some extent, influenced by this anime.

To be honest, that girl was already quite kind-hearted, risking injury herself to avoid hurting the child. If it were someone more ruthless, they might not only have refused but also taken the opportunity to kick the child a couple of times.

Who told these naughty kids to never learn their lesson?

For someone who loves running, an injury can mean a lifelong disability and a completely bleak future. This is not something that can be dismissed with a casual "he's just a child."

Back to the topic.

Everyone admired the girl's feat of enduring pain and winning first place a few days ago. However, now that the competition is over, although they all know that their victory was somewhat unfair and that the other girl was just unlucky, accidents are common in competitions. The fact that the girl came in last place has been confirmed. They don't understand why the other girl insisted on staying at the starting line and not leaving, even though people around her were already cursing her.

The situation from a few days ago seems to be repeating itself today: people are getting injured, people are persevering, people are praising, and people are cursing.

The only difference is that the one who was in the lead back then has become the one who is ignored by everyone today.

Perhaps... she was just unwilling to accept it?

Everyone couldn't help but think.

A gust of cold wind blew by, ruffling the girl's hair and dispersing the white mist she exhaled.

No miracle occurred.

The moment Guzheng saw the last person run past her with the baton, she knew she was no longer in first place.

She lost.

The reason she was still standing there wasn't actually because she was unwilling... well, she was still somewhat unwilling. No one would be willing to accept this situation, especially since she had already used this match as a rallying cry to confess her feelings to Han Zhou.

But now that even the bugle call to charge has failed, how can she still have the face to confess her feelings to Han Zhou?
Guzheng seemed a little lost.

We just agreed to keep winning...

The reason she's still standing at the starting line is simply to show her support for her senior's determination to persevere, and to run the remaining 400 meters after receiving the baton.

It's not just for my senior, it's also for myself.

A loss is a loss, and Guzheng will not make any excuses for this defeat. However, even though she is in last place, the word "give up" will never appear in her dictionary.

She will run her own 400 meters.

……

Guzheng has her own principles, but obviously not everyone can understand her or understand why she stands at the starting line and doesn't go all the way.

The student council has said that the race can only end if the injured athlete gives up, so that he can be sent to the school hospital for treatment as soon as possible. However, this injured athlete named Liu Xueyi refuses to give up no matter what. She keeps saying that she can't let down her teammates and the college's expectations and insists on running the whole race. While her determination is touching, it is a bit irresponsible to her body.

Liu Xueyi's friends and classmates kept trying to persuade her to give up, and even her counselor, who happened to be nearby, rushed over after hearing the news. But she remained determined to pass the baton to her teammate no matter what.

So everyone had to come up with another idea and asked Liu Xueyi's teammates to persuade her to give up the competition and go to the hospital for treatment.

The other two teammates were very cooperative. They were friends with Liu Xueyi and had wanted to check on her for a while. They didn't care whether the match was over or not, and left the spot to persuade her to give up the match.

Since I'm already in last place, there's no need to keep running.

Only the short-haired girl named Guzheng pretended to be deaf and dumb, standing there without saying a word.

However, Liu Xueyi seemed to care about the opinion of the last teammate. Her eyes were filled with guilt and self-blame, as if she would have to finish the race if the other person didn't speak.

So some people came to plead with Guzheng again, including two teammates. But the latter remained silent for a long time, and only said indifferently, "There are less than 100 meters left, let the senior finish the run." The tone was so indifferent that it seemed that they did not care about the other person's injury at all.

"Guzheng! Do you have any conscience at all! We were already in last place, did you really have to make Xueyi finish the race? It's just a race, losing is losing. Don't tell me you think she's the one who made us lose, so you want to get revenge on her like this!"

One of the teammates couldn't hold back any longer and cursed out loud.

Such a provocative statement immediately thrust Gu Zheng into the spotlight, with some joining in the cursing, while many others found it amusing. "Seriously? Are you kidding me? This is the first time I've heard of someone taking their anger out on another person over something like this. If you really want someone to go to the hospital, why don't you just let them tough it out? Why make them take the blame?"

"I'm also puzzled. If we have to determine who's right and wrong, this girl is the victim, right? How can you have the nerve to shift the blame onto someone else?"

"Exactly, I watched this junior's competition a couple of days ago. Damn, she fell down but still came in first place. Afterwards, she went to the hospital without saying a word, and after just two days of rest, she's back to compete again. Why don't you guys have as much drama?"

"Heh, you're talking about that race where a little kid ran onto the track, right? You have the nerve to mention it? Back then, I thought that girl was heartless, knocking a child down and not even helping him up..."

"Are you kidding me? You're lying through your teeth, aren't you? You're so biased, is that brat your illegitimate child?" Lin Anyu, who dared to squeeze into the crowd and pretend to be a passerby, couldn't help but curse.

The speaker's expression darkened: "Watch your mouth!"

“I think this guy’s words are rough but reasonable,” another person agreed. “You do look quite a bit like that brat.”

Many people watched the guzheng competition that day, and most people know what was right and wrong. The few who didn't know have been criticized so harshly they're unrecognizable.

Even at Linyi University, which has a very high admission score, those who get in aren't refined gentlemen or dignified ladies, but rather a group of passionate young men and women who won't be led by the nose by a few words of incitement.

Therefore, everyone is curious: when did not advising others to give up become a sin?
Moreover, the one being blamed is someone who refuses to give up.

"The real issue now isn't whether to persevere or not, but rather the question of victory and death, and life itself. It's this girl's obsession with winning that puts pressure on the injured player, preventing her from going directly to the hospital for treatment..."

"You're already in last place, what's the point of being so obsessed with winning? Can't others just want to finish the race? Don't you even know what sportsmanship is?"

Chen Long, a complete passerby, suddenly appeared and said, "Why are you picking a fight over such a trivial matter? Hurry up and start cursing, or everyone else will be here soon."

"Can you please stop misinterpreting me? I clearly meant that life is more important than anything else. Why make something so simple so complicated?"

"You know it's a very simple thing. Why don't you just do nothing and wait for others to finish running? Why do you have to come out and act like a clown?"

"..."

It's unclear where things went wrong, but what started as an accountability discussion for the guzheng gradually turned into a large-scale debate. Eventually, the guzheng was even ignored. However, overall, there were far more people on the guzheng's side. Moreover, there was the troll king Chen Long engaging in a verbal battle with the crowd. The playground was bustling with activity, and those unaware of the situation might have thought that a new competition had begun.

Not far away, Liu Xueyi, who was "struggling forward," changed her expression slightly, realizing that something seemed to be wrong. She dared not delay any longer, so she gritted her teeth and quickened her pace, running shakily to Guzheng's side.

Directly in front of her, the short-haired girl in a thin tracksuit seemed completely oblivious to the surrounding noises—whether it was insults or support—none of it seemed to change her determination to finish the race.

Just as Chen Fei said, this girl is really obsessed with winning and losing, and she refuses to accept defeat even when she loses... Liu Xueyi thought to herself.

She took a deep breath, trying to sound guilty and uneasy, and said with a bitter expression, "I'm sorry, I..."

Before he could finish speaking, the girl in front suddenly snatched the baton with astonishing force, as if she wanted to vent her anger and resentment in this way.

So you're really angry...?

The thought had barely formed in her mind when, a second later, she saw the girl in front of her turn her head to look at her.

"Thanks for your hard work, senior."

Under the sunlight, the girl's hair looked as if it were coated with a layer of gold dust. Her face showed no anger or dissatisfaction, but instead, she smiled brightly with her eyes crinkled.

"Leave the rest to me."

Liu Xueyi was stunned.

She suddenly realized that the other person seemed to have misunderstood her, and she had also misunderstood the girl.

She opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing.

Even if I wanted to say something, it was too late.

In the blink of an eye, the girl had already run far, far away, and the golden light that had only been falling on her hair gradually spread all over her body.

With the help of her classmates and friends who rushed over, Liu Xueyi blankly put on her coat and was helped to walk towards the school hospital. But for some reason, she couldn't help but look back.

The figure in sight grew increasingly thin, and at the end of the track, only the sun hung high in the sky.

She subconsciously rubbed her eyes.

"Xueyi, what's wrong?" Her friend asked with concern.

"nothing."

She shook her head and looked away.

The sun is too bright today.

It's almost unbearable to look at...

Yet I was reluctant to look away.

……

(End of this chapter)