Chapter 15: The Beginning of Returning to the Bench
The variety liaison for Ningzhou was a vibrant young woman, rather talkative, and from the moment Ningzhou got in the car, her mouth hadn’t stopped moving:
“Ningzhou, hello! Where did you get your hair done? It’s so stylish, really suits you!”
Ningzhou fastened his seatbelt, ruffled his hair. “Did it in the dorm.”
“Wow, your roommate must have the skills of a hairstylist!”
“No, it came from taking a nap in the dorm…”
“?” The liaison turned to look at him, clicking her tongue in admiration. “You even make messy hair look good. No wonder your looks alone sent a selfie trending online!”
Ningzhou gripped the car door handle, nervous. “Thank you… Please stop looking at me and watch the road!”
“Oh! Right!”
She withdrew her gaze, sighing as she drove. “I never thought Director Zhang, scrambling for guests at the last moment before the official announcement, would manage to invite someone like you—a legend who attracts followers just by registering a social media account!”
Her words reminded Ningzhou of his account, so he checked his phone, his pupils dilating in shock. “Over ten thousand followers!?”
“Yes, with the trending topic and the official account tagging you, your ability to draw traffic astounds me!” The liaison beamed. “Now I finally understand why Director Zhang insisted on inviting an active athlete…”
Among the regular guests announced, only Ningzhou was still competing; the others were all retired athletes. Their schedules were freer, and having once brought glory to the nation, they had won international awards and accumulated a fan base, making their appearance on variety shows naturally popular. Even Shao Qiu, a longstanding national team member, was familiar to viewers…
Ningzhou tried to find a reason Director Zhang had chosen him, but his mind was blank. “Why did Director Zhang invite someone from men’s volleyball?”
“She said she believes in the reform measures for men’s volleyball and thinks the national team will make great progress in the coming years. Plus, volleyball has had many international tournaments lately, so she wanted to sign an active player and ride this wave of popularity.”
“I see… Well, signing me might disappoint her.”
Even if he was lucky enough to make the national team, he’d just be a substitute, rarely playing in major tournaments…
“How could she be disappointed?” the liaison retorted. “The moment I saw you in person, I knew Director Zhang made the right choice!”
Ningzhou didn’t take it seriously but smiled gratefully. “Now I’m motivated. I’ll record seriously later.”
*
On the volleyball court at the training center, Xu Zichang and Yu Bai were taking turns receiving balls from the serving machine, their passes flying everywhere.
“Hopeless!” Ning Yang fretted on the sidelines, gesturing wildly. “Two blockheads! How many times have I told you, watch carefully, like you’re looking for the pre-cast move before the final boss attacks in a game!”
Xu Zichang and Yu Bai exchanged a glance, each seeing confusion on the other's face…
“Ring ring ring—”
Ning Yang rushed to the net post, rummaged through his bag for his phone, silenced the alarm, and sent the two “blockhead disciples” away:
“Practice on your own for a while, Zhouzhou’s show is about to start…”
He settled in the rest area, waiting for the livestream to load, but the serving machine stayed silent.
Turning, he found two heads leaning in from either side, eyes glued to his phone screen, gaze intense.
“…You two should go practice!”
“Welcome to the livestream! This is ‘Sports Forward’, newly launched, with a star-studded lineup…”
As the show began, Ning Yang couldn’t chase them away. He focused on the screen.
The production team’s early promotion had been strong, drawing many viewers into the livestream, chatting in the comments:
[First time watching this kind of innovative sports variety, can’t wait!]
[Heard the guests are all ‘stars’ from the sports world?]
[Yes, the basketball goddess, the figure skating goddess—I’m here for my two idols!]
[There are also Olympic champions from shooting and table tennis!]
[Am I the only one curious about the newbie who trended online?]
---
[Hand raised! That photo from the trending topic really struck me! @Ningzhou Unclaimed]
[Looked up the name—other than playing in the domestic men’s volleyball league, he hasn’t achieved anything… I’ll just treat him as eye candy.]
“Hello, viewers! ‘Sports Forward’ officially begins!”
After the promo clip ended, the program director’s voice came from a black screen.
“The production team has invited five sports talents to form a team and share the charm of sports! Let’s meet the team members, please watch the introductory video—”
The black screen transitioned into a video introducing each guest, showing highlights from their pre-retirement careers: veteran Fu Binhong, double Olympic gold medalist in air pistol; Yu Tong, star guard of the women’s basketball team; Zeng Yunsheng, table tennis grand slam champion; Tong Rong, figure skating prodigy who amazed the nation at the Winter Olympics…
The editing team’s skills were on full display—special effects text highlighted each athlete’s glory, and the background music got viewers’ blood pumping and emotions stirred.
However, when it was Ningzhou’s turn, the music stopped abruptly…
It was as if the editing budget had run out halfway—the smooth montage suddenly froze on Ningzhou’s selfie, and the text introduction was sparse:
Ningzhou, current volleyball player
International tournaments participated: ??
Honors and achievements: ??
Titles won: ??
[Huh? Is this guest, Ningzhou, not familiar with the production team? /stunned/]
[Can’t blame the editors—he only has that selfie as visual material online. You can’t cook without ingredients…]
[All those question marks left me in awe. It’s like opening a mystery box and finding a hidden hero whose story you have to uncover yourself.]
[Is he called Ningzhou? Is this selfie really unfiltered? That breakout photo is amazing!]
The director awkwardly explained, “Ningzhou joined the show at the last minute, so bear with us—soon you’ll see him on camera…”
He finished and switched his headset to work mode: “Director, cut quickly!”
How had they run into a live broadcast mishap within minutes of going on air!?
“Great effect!” Director Zhang didn’t think it was a mishap at all, decisively changing the plan. “Add an impromptu self-introduction segment for Ningzhou’s follow cam!”
“Huh?”
The follow cam operator barely had time to react before the camera indicator lit up…
While viewers were still complaining about the intro, the screen shifted, showing Ningzhou’s profile.
He was lost in thought, staring into space, his eyelashes thick, nose straight, the lines of his profile outstanding.
“Um, Ningzhou?”
The cameraman hesitated to disturb his serenity and called softly.
“Hmm?” Ningzhou turned, leaning in to listen. “Did you call me?”
His face was now too close to the lens, blurring the shot.
The cameraman quickly stepped back and refocused. “Don’t move, hold on, just a moment…”
Ningzhou obediently stayed put, his voice gentle. “No rush, take your time!”
“Eh?” Ningzhou’s gaze met the camera, his brows raised in surprise. “The light’s on—does that mean we’re almost filming?”
[I’m about to switch my allegiance based on his features. I once thought his breakout selfie was heavily edited, but he passes the zero-distance, high-def camera test! /nosebleed/]
[Who understands—his profile kills me, his glance kills me, staring straight kills me. Not only is he good-looking, he’s also gentle and well-behaved!]
[Yesterday: Is it a mistake to invite a ‘nobody’ with no achievements? Today: I will always trust the director’s vision. Thank you, you are my god!]
[I just entered the livestream and saw everyone hyping—where did they find so many fake fans… Oh my god! How can someone’s skin be this perfect? I admit, I doubted the ‘eye candy’ before…]
The cameraman finished adjusting and quickly signaled Ningzhou.
“It’s not about to start—it’s already live!”
Ningzhou jerked back, nervously straightening his collar, and awkwardly said, “Good morning—no, good afternoon…”
He glanced around and noticed the other guests still getting their makeup touched up, only his follow cam was filming.
---
“Is the show really live? Should I start exercising here? Or just rush forward?”
Cameraman: “…You seem to misunderstand the show’s concept.”
[Nightmare-level joke: ‘Sports Forward’ requires guests to exercise or rush forward. /dog face/]
[The intro video can add: Ningzhou has participated in the Great Joke Contest!]
[I’ve wanted to complain about this show’s name for ages, thanks to ‘eye candy’ officially roasting it—I feel so much better now…]
[Can’t tell if ‘eye candy’ is an extrovert or introvert.]
“The audience doesn’t know you well, could you introduce yourself?”
Ningzhou nodded, following the self-introduction formula he’d used in volleyball teams since childhood:
“My name is Ningzhou, I play setter.”
He used his rare solo shot on the show to say less than ten words…
It wasn’t that Ningzhou was stingy with words, he simply lived in the limited social sphere of the court, where introductions were just name plus position.
The cameraman stared at him for several seconds, stunned. “Is that it?”
Ningzhou hesitated, then added, “Zhou is the character for continent with three water dots.”
The cameraman’s eye twitched. “Everyone knows that. Anything else, like… What are your hobbies?”
Without hesitation, Ningzhou replied, “Volleyball.”
“What do you do in your free time?”
“Volleyball.”
“…Your best subject?”
Ningzhou pressed his lips together. “…Volleyball.”
[Great, after hearing his self-introduction, he’s even more mysterious. /black face/]
[He really loves volleyball. I don’t know much about the sport—is our volleyball team strong?]
[The women’s team is strong, men’s volleyball was strong twenty years ago, but now it’s declined, can’t achieve any results lately…]
After Ningzhou’s solo segment, the livestream switched to introducing the content of the first episode.
The guests left the lounge, waiting to go onstage.
Ningzhou quietly followed behind, when someone suddenly turned back:
“Are you Ningzhou?”
He instinctively responded, seeing a woman in a sports vest standing before him, her single ear adorned with multiple piercings, smiling with a dashing air:
“I’m Yu Tong. That brat Yu Bai actually called me for once and asked me to look after you.”
*
Two hours earlier.
“Hello, Yu Bai? So you remember you have a sister? How long has it been since you contacted me?”
“You posted in the group chat about joining a sports variety?”
“You never speak in the family chat, I thought you didn’t read the messages…”
“There’s a teammate from my volleyball team also recording that show. Please look after him.”
“Huh? That’s rare—you actually have a teammate you’re close with?”
“Yeah, he… helps tape my fingers every day.”
“Every day? You should learn to do it yourself. He can’t always help you.”
“Why not?”
“What if he retires?”
“Then I’ll retire too.”