Chapter Forty-Five: Establishing the School Basketball Team

Shenzhou, 7:00 p.m.

Lin Lang sat in Li Zecheng's car, heading toward the company. These past few days had been spent in negotiations with the Sports Bureau and the Ministry of Education about the National High School Basketball League. The selection would start at the district level, progressing to the city and then the province, and finally narrowing down to the four regions—east, west, south, and north—where the four semifinal teams would be decided, leading to the semifinals and finals.

The tournament was massive, but that was only fitting for such a vast and populous nation. The main challenge now was to ensure the event had true influence—to make every high school take it seriously and form a professional basketball team according to their own circumstances.

Take Qingshui No. 1 High School, where Lin Nan attended. Due to limited resources, there wasn’t even an official school basketball team. The so-called team made up of Zhu Bo and his friends was purely self-organized, with uniforms bought at their own expense. Even matches with other high schools in QS County were arranged by the students themselves; none had a coach. It was all out of pure love for the game.

That was why everyone had been so astonished when Lin Nan managed a successful slam dunk. In contrast, the high schools in Lingnan City were worlds apart. With ample funds and sprawling campuses, most of the city’s schools had everything—basketball teams, soccer teams, manga clubs, cosplay societies, swimming pools, badminton courts, and more. Each club had its own facilities, and the basketball teams even had their own locker rooms and showers.

While dunking was no easy feat for a high school student in the country, every school in Lingnan City had at least a few basketball enthusiasts capable of it, whether because they started young or received more professional training.

Compared to Qingshui No. 1 High, the gap was enormous and innate, which was precisely why so many parents tried to send their children to good schools in big cities: their children could develop in all aspects from an early age.

Yet in Lin Lang’s eyes, education was still judged by a single standard—college entrance exam results. Even those so-called “well-rounded” schools were still in the experimental stage. Only a handful of students managed to gain early recognition in other fields.

Consider Han Han and Guo Jingming, both young standouts among writers. But in basketball, Lin Lang’s own specialty, there were none—no one had ever made a name for themselves at a young age. There simply wasn’t a grand enough, convincing enough stage for them to shine.

Even Kobe Bryant, as strong as he was, was only picked thirteenth in the NBA draft—and that was after entering as a high schooler, not a college player. But as so many fans often said, with a population of 1.3 billion, the nation had never lacked basketball or soccer talent; what it lacked was a way to discover it.

To Lin Lang, there was only one direct and effective approach: the court. A harsh and challenging arena, open to all and fair to all, where gold would glimmer and genius would stand out.

He was determined to make the National High School Basketball League a resounding success. Basketball was just the first step, but that first step was critical.

As Lin Lang sat in the car, lost in thought, Li Zecheng turned onto a quiet street. Suddenly, with a loud bang, a three-wheeled motorcycle shot out from a corner and crashed straight into their car, jolting both men violently. Fortunately, they were both buckled in, so no harm was done.

They looked ahead in shock. On the three-wheeler sat a man in his forties or fifties, clad in a battered overcoat, with sparse, messy hair streaked with white. Through the window, Lin Lang could see at once that this was a man struggling to make ends meet, worn down by life and the demands of family, his face now ashen with fright.

“What do I do? What do I do?” The man cursed himself a thousand times over in his heart, despairing at the familiar yet distant luxury badge on the car’s hood. In that instant, he remembered the money he’d scraped together by skimping and saving, working himself to the bone so his son could attend university. He was on his way to the bank to wire the tuition—his son was the only one in the class who hadn’t paid yet.

Now, it was all ruined. Months of hard work had vanished in a heartbeat. The man slumped on his seat, utterly defeated. He knew perfectly well that the accident was entirely his fault; he’d been going too fast. The few hundred yuan’s worth of insurance he’d bought would never cover the repairs for this “luxury car,” whose front end was now a mangled mess.

Inside the car, Lin Lang told Li Zecheng to stay put, then stepped outside himself. The middle-aged man stared blankly at the suited figure who emerged from the car—not coming directly toward him, but first looking around.

Perplexed, the man followed his gaze, suddenly realizing there were no security cameras nearby. Should he run, before the traffic police arrived?

As he wrestled with indecision, Lin Lang had already approached him. The man saw the stern face break into a gentle, amiable smile. He heard a calm, kind voice: “You can go. We’ll take care of the repairs ourselves.”

Still stunned, the man watched as Lin Lang returned to the car.

Li Zecheng chuckled. “I never would have thought that someone as strict as you at work could be so kind in everyday life.”

Lin Lang replied, “Isn’t our work all about building a better life for the people of the future?”

Li Zecheng fell silent. Perhaps, one day, their network would achieve just that.

Lin Lang spoke again, “Let’s go find President Wan for reimbursement. This counts as a workplace injury.”

Li Zecheng burst out laughing. Coming from Lin Lang’s calm demeanor, the words were all the more amusing. “Workplace injury,” indeed!

...

Qingshui No. 1 High, Class 1-8.

The usual quiet of evening study hall was replaced today by a buzz of whispered conversation. Two boys who loved basketball had watched Lin Nan’s spectacular game that afternoon and were now recounting his performance to their classmates. Their own skills still needed work, but Lin Nan’s prowess had won their admiration—especially that final dunk, which left them awestruck.

Soon enough, everyone in the class knew that the quiet boy sitting in the back row was a basketball prodigy, earning the nickname “God Nan” just weeks into the school year. The boys looked at him with envy, while many girls watched him curiously, sneaking glances his way.

At that moment, Si Dong had just finished a page of “The Little Prince,” a story of love and growth. Deeply absorbed, she turned the page, but her eyes began to tire, so she decided to take a break. Lifting her head, she drifted out of the book’s world and finally noticed the persistent whispers of “God Nan” in the classroom.

Puzzled, she murmured softly to herself, “God Nan?”

Seated beside her, Lin Nan heard the quiet call, snapped out of his daydream, and responded without thinking, “Do you need me?”

Si Dong turned her head to the left and met his clear, resolute gaze. Her cheeks flushed as she replied in a small voice, “It's nothing.”

She quickly turned away, mulling, “So, he’s called ‘God Nan’? Why does he have such a nickname?”

Lin Nan, seeing her shy demeanor, only gave a soft hum in response. He suddenly felt his new deskmate was different from the girls he’d known before, but he didn’t dwell on it—his mind was on basketball, and he’d never had much interaction with girls anyway.

Meanwhile, in the principal’s office, Principal Zheng Zemin had just received a document from higher authorities.

“The National High School Basketball League? The first game is this Sunday afternoon at the county gymnasium: Qingshui No. 1 High versus Qingshui No. 3 High.”

“Interesting.”

He read through the document carefully and saw that this league was being treated with unusual importance—broadcast live on television, something unprecedented in his career.

Unlike his peers, Principal Zheng had always valued all-around development for his students. Even the sportswear he wore daily testified to his love of exercise. But in this environment, the university admission rate was still the main metric of a school’s quality.

Now, as he held the document, Zheng Zemin couldn’t help but smile. Perhaps the boy who used to play basketball with them every summer would shine in this new tournament.

A thirteen-year-old who could dunk, with extraordinary jumping ability, who played selflessly and without arrogance—after all these years, Zheng Zemin had never seen anyone more gifted or more passionate about basketball than Lin Nan. He’d heard that Lin Nan had indeed enrolled at Qingshui No. 1 High.

With this in mind, Zheng Zemin looked forward to the match all the more. If Lin Nan were here, he’d recognize at once that his school’s principal was none other than “Iron Man” Old Zheng—the one with six-pack abs and a deadly jump shot!

...

Over the next week, Lin Nan and Zhu Bo’s group trained every morning and evening. Lin Nan was always the earliest to arrive—only once did someone else, Screw, beat him by five minutes. The next day, Lin Nan came fifteen minutes earlier still.

A boy who refused to be outdone!

Each afternoon after school, Zhu Bo and his friends recruited players for the league at the basketball court nearest to the teaching building. With only fifteen spots, the selection was strict. Lin Nan and Jiu Wu were, of course, invited straight onto the team, while even Wang Jinsong, who’d played well in the last match, had to try out again. The truth was, the seniors had gone easy on the freshmen before, avoiding rough play. In real competition, there would be no mercy, so the fifteen must be carefully chosen.

Many now regretted not playing basketball sooner, as Lin Nan’s reputation grew ever more legendary. Girls in many Grade One classes now knew of the boy famous for his basketball skills. The boldest would sneak peeks at Class 1-8’s door; the bravest, it was rumored, were already preparing love letters for “God Nan.”

Unfortunately for them, Lin Nan’s heart was filled with nothing but basketball.