Figure Skating: Waltz on Ice

Du Liangchen watched his grandfather's departing figure, feeling sullen. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down and look at the free skate program.

Time waits for no one, and before we knew it, it was time for the free skate competition.

"Mei Jing, calligraphy student." Du Liangchen greeted the two when he arrived at the venue.

"Good morning, Sirui! You look great today!" Hao Shuxue said with his usual cheerful smile.

"Don't be nervous, Xiao Chen. We've arranged to meet you at the national team," Mei Jing said with a smile.

"Then you'd better watch out, I won't hold back," Du Liangchen joked with a smile.

"Of course, bring it on." Hao Shuxue smiled and put his hands on Du Liangchen and Mei Jing's shoulders respectively.

Du Liangchen and Mei Jing exchanged a smile and tacitly dodged Hao Shuxue's hand.

Hao Shuxue complained angrily, "Hey, what do you two mean by this?!"

While the three were fooling around, Mei Jing and Hao Shuxue's teammates came over.

"Hey~ Mei Jing, Hao Shuxue, the coach is calling for us to assemble. Are you two still fooling around here? Don't you want to live?" After saying that, he quickly ran away.

"We'll talk again later, Sirui."

"We're off now, good luck!" With that, the two quickly left.

Du Liangchen's mood improved considerably after the earlier playful fight, and he returned to his grandfather's side to continue his pre-match training.

As he watched as the staff called him away one by one, Du Liangchen knew it would be his turn soon, so he stopped training and substituted with Kausten to wait for his turn to play.

After a while, the staff came in again and called out, "...Du Liangchen, Liu Xing, Gu Zichen..." calling out the names of six people.

Grandpa, carrying a water bottle, a towel, and a tissue box, followed Du Liangchen into the arena.

Looking towards the audience, Du Liangchen saw Grandma Du waving to him, but still couldn't see Tian Zhixi.

Du Liangchen warned himself inwardly: 'What are you expecting? You know perfectly well she probably won't come; the competition is what you should be concerned about.'

Focus your attention on the ice and enter the rink one at a time as required.

Du Liangchen and the other athletes first skated a few laps around the perimeter of the ice rink to get used to the feel of their feet before practicing other skills.

When the time is up, leave the ice rink as required, and then wait for the competition to begin.

Du Liangchen, whose ranking was lower, competed first. He and his grandfather warmed up their bodies with light exercises around the field before going on stage.

Upon hearing the staff member shout, "Wang Lu, enter the venue. Du Liangchen, get ready."

Du Liangchen took a deep breath, took out the earplugs from his ears, and handed them to Grandpa Du.

Wang Lu made several mistakes in her free skate, so she's unlikely to win a medal.

After Wang Lu took his bow and left the ice rink, the staff asked Du Liangchen to get on the ice.

"take it easy."

"Hmm." Du Liangchen nodded with a serious expression.

He took off his coat and handed it to Grandpa Du.

Hearing someone waiting in the wings exclaim, "Wow, his kneecaps are so beautiful!"

Of course, this outfit was designed by Du Liangchen's aunt herself. She added a lot of rhinestones according to Du Liangchen's request, making it dazzling enough without being heavy. It's sparkly and looks especially beautiful.

Du Liangchen controlled his breathing rhythm and skated two laps on the ice.

Wang Lu's results came out quickly, and enthusiastic applause erupted around him. Du Liangchen didn't pay attention to him because it was almost his turn.

When Du Liangchen heard his name called over the loudspeaker, he crouched down to use the momentum to slide out quickly, and found his pivot point on his body.

Stand in the center of the venue within one minute, assume a fixed position, and wait for the music.