Peninsula: Aiming for a Grand Slam

Monday afternoon.

Ace Tennis Stadium.

[Serve 3000 Training Package]

[Progress: 2800/3000]

[Remaining time: 7 hour]

[Current serve level: 1]

[Note: Upon completion of the training pack, serve attribute +1.]

Yesterday, I successfully broke through on my own and served +1.

Distance to serve +2.

Not far away.

He returned to the service line, tossed the ball, and swung his racket.

"Smack!"

[Progress: 2801/3000]

Come again.

"Smack!"

[Progress: 2802/3000]

Toss it again, swing it again.

The ball flies out right on the T-point, landing exactly as if measured with a ruler. After serving +1, the ball toss has no spin, the hitting point is stable, and the landing point can be either right on the T-point or on the outside corner.

Chen Jixian wants to tell Bae Joo-hyun right now: I'm not standing outside the wall, I'm also a part of the wall!

"Bang".

[Unqualified.]

He patted his head.

Indeed, one must not have distracting thoughts.

So I practiced diligently.

On the sidelines, Lao Zhao strolled over with his racket in hand, stood outside the net, and glanced at the scene.

"Old Zhao, want to play another game?" someone nearby suggested. "This time you receive the serve."

Old Zhao glared at the man:

"I'm not stupid."

He slammed the racket to the ground:

"I couldn't even catch it that day, how could I catch it now? I'm not a punching bag."

Several players on the sidelines burst out laughing.

Old Zhao ignored them and kept his eyes on the field. Chen Jixian served another ball, which flew out just off the sideline.

Even the veteran golfers couldn't help but discuss it.

"This kid's serving is getting faster again."

A middle-aged man wearing glasses next to him pushed up his glasses and said, "It's not just fast. Look at his toss; it doesn't spin at all. An amateur's toss will have a shaky wrist, but his goes straight up and down."

"Just like those professions on TV," another bald man clicked his tongue.

"Professional? You're giving him too much credit." The bespectacled man chuckled. "But his serve is definitely impressive. He can hit the T-point, he can hit the outside corner, and the ball speed is good enough. Among amateurs, I haven't seen many serve this consistently."

Old Zhao didn't respond.

He knows this kid's serve all too well.

When the ball comes towards you, you think you can catch it. But the angle at which it bounces after landing is different from the angle at which you usually catch a ball—

Hurry up,

Turn a little,

Lower it.

If you add each point up, you won't be able to receive it.

"How long has this kid been training?" the bald man asked.

"I've been practicing my backhand for about ten days, and my serve for just one week." The bespectacled man unscrewed his thermos, took a sip, and said, "That's what Old Cui said."

The balding man was stunned for a moment: "A week? It's grown this much in just one week?"

The bespectacled man put the lid back on the cup: "It's weird, isn't it? I think it's weird too. We've watched him improve day by day!"

On the court, Chen Jixian served another ball.

The ball flew out, hitting the T-point, bounced, and slammed into the backcourt net. The sound was crisp and short, like a whip cracking in the air.

Old Zhao stared at the spot where the ball landed, without saying a word.

A week.

He's been playing for over a decade, and his serve still depends on luck. This kid, on the other hand, has a serve that's as steady as a machine in just one week.

Old Zhao suddenly remembered that he had also thought about playing professionally when he was young.

Later, I got married, had a baby, got pregnant, and couldn't run anymore. I would come to the gym every week to play two games, work up a sweat, and then go home.

This is his tennis.

Chen Jixian is still serving.

[2997/3000]

Next ball.

[2998/3000]

Another goal.

[2999/3000]

The last ball!

[3000/3000]

Finished!

Chen Jixian put down his racket, sprawled on the ground, his legs in the air, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath.

The second training package.

Training over!

[Serve 3000 Training Package]

[Progress: 3000/3000]

[Training package complete.]

[Serving attribute +1.]

[Current serve level: 2.]

He stared at the "2," pondering it deeply.

Seven days, 3000 times.

From 0 to 2.

My neck feels like it's been twisted, my right shoulder feels dull and sore, and the callus on my hand has hardened again.

However, the serve is +2. Forehand +1, backhand +2, serve +2, return +1.

And then there's his strongest attribute—Rhythm +1. Even with a +2 serve, he still believes that the +1 rhythm is his trump card.

The Daegu tournament is enough.

I'm fairly confident about 847.

Chen Jixian sat down against the wall. He unscrewed the thermos and took a sip of the goji berry water.

sweet.

A subtle sweetness.

Boss Cui, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, walked over and glanced at the court: the tennis balls were not cleaned up, and the court was a complete mess.

Even more disheveled was Chen Jixian.

"Have you finished practicing your serves?"

"Um."

Boss Cui handed him his phone:

"The draw for the Daegu tournament is out. Check-in is on Saturday, and the qualifying rounds are on Sunday. If you advance, don't forget to check in on that day."

Chen Jixian took a look.

Saturday, check-in for the qualifiers.

Sunday, check-in for both the qualifying rounds and the main tournament.

This Saturday,

set off!

Then Boss Cui remembered something: "By the way, did you take leave?"

"Thank you."

"What reason did you give?"

Chen Jixian put the thermos on:

"Students with athletic talents participate in the competition. The school has a rule that participation in international competitions counts as recognized attendance."

"ITF Junior Tour points are recognized by American universities and can be used during the application process."

"Are you going to America?"

"I don't even know where the US embassy is, so what am I going to do in the US?"

Applying to a US undergraduate program?

It's just an excuse.

The real reason is that Chen Jixian needs to train through competitions, and he also needs the championship subsidy from the Daegu tournament.

Gone.

"Have you booked a hotel yet?"

"It's booked."

Boss Cui glanced at him.

He didn't say anything, but took an envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Chen Jixian. Chen Jixian took it, squeezed it, and found it was a thick stack of envelopes.

He opened it and took a look.

One hundred banknotes, each worth 50,000 won, were neatly arranged.

He had never seen so much cash in his life. The little balance in his bank account wasn't even a fraction of what was in this envelope.

"This money..."

"I'm lending it to you, but you have to pay it back."

Boss Cui had already turned and left. He lit a cigarette in his mouth, without looking back.

Chen Jixian stood there, the envelope clutched in his hand.

He wouldn't feign modesty, and he genuinely needed the money, so he had no choice but to accept the boss's offer.

He remembered it.

However, on the other hand, most of the money in his bank account was spent at Uncle Cui's tennis court...

My phone vibrated.

Coupang

"Dear customer Chen**, your package has been placed in the designated locker. Pickup code: 2035. Free pickup within 24 hours. Thank you for using Coupang!"

What arrived at home was that can of pressurized tennis balls.

Ready to go home.

Chen Jixian put the envelope in his pocket, picked up his bag, and walked towards the door. As he passed the field, several middle-aged men were chatting outside the netting.

The bespectacled man called out to him, "Hey Chen, could you teach us your serve?"

The bald man laughed out loud: "You old back, can you even learn that?"

The bespectacled man ignored him: "You're not going to learn the whole routine, just the ball toss. How come your ball toss is so steady?"

Chen Jixian thought for a moment and said, "Support it with your fingers, don't exert force. Push it upwards, don't throw it. And then, practice more."

The bespectacled man nodded but didn't reply.

The bald man chuckled: "Did you hear that? Send it upwards. What you're doing is smashing it into the sky."

Old Zhao chimed in from the side, "The key is to practice more. If you serve ten balls a day, you'll be set for life when you're eighty."

"Mind your own business!"

……

……

Chen Jixian picked up the package.

Come back home.

No one was home, and the living room was quiet. He sat down and opened the package.

It's not tennis.

It's not Wilson's green tin can.

"Where's my tennis ball?"

"What about my tennis ball that cost me tens of dollars?"

A flat, rectangular cardboard box, twice the size of his palm, light pink, and plastic-sealed.

The box was printed with a few leaves and a few lines of English text.

pH Balanced

For Sensitive Skin

He turned the box over, and there was a line of small print at the bottom: Feminine Wash.

Women's toiletries?

pH balance.

Suitable for sensitive skin.

It's probably for women to wash their faces. Korean women are particular about skincare, so it's normal for them to use special facial cleansers.

It's not tennis.

You took the wrong one.

"Recipient: Liu something something, address 1303... Isn't this the apartment upstairs from mine?"

What should we do now?

Do you offer door-to-door service?