Peninsula: Aiming for a Grand Slam

Chapter 92 Byun Baekhyun the Second

Tuesday morning.

Today is the first round of the main competition.

Chen Jixian was having a buffet breakfast at the restaurant. He placed his plate in a corner by the window, and just as he sat down, his phone vibrated twice on the table.

Ningning's message: "Hello Byun Baekhyun."

Xiao Chen stared at those words for a few seconds, his fork hovering above the scrambled eggs without falling.

Byun Baekhyun?

Which one is EX0?

What does this have to do with him?

The last time I heard this name was from Wang Hao, who participated in the SM audition and sang a song by Xiao Bian.

Chen Jixian thought for a moment, then stopped referring to himself as LuHan and replied with a question mark.

Ningning did not explain.

She posted another message: "Give that person who wrote the long essay a good lesson."

A video link appeared below, with Ko Dong-hyuk's face on the cover and a background of plastic chairs by the stadium with ice packs wrapped around his knees.

Chen Jixian clicked on the video.

Go Dong-hyuk's voice came through the phone speaker, carrying a hint of weariness, but also a long-suppressed excitement.

"A player who was promoted based on his looks, scandals, and sponsorships got a wildcard entry into the main tournament and stayed in a sea-view room in the main building."

"And those of us who have played for more than ten years live in the annex and wash our own jerseys by hand."

"J.Chen, I want to see if your FILA golf bag and your ocean-view house can help you score an extra point on the field."

See you in the main competition!

How come this Bro wasn't eliminated?

The comment section was a chaotic mess.

However, there were a few points that made Chen Jixian frown.

"As a MY, I hope J.Chen will let his abilities speak for themselves."

"Yes, stop relying on our Karina's name to get on Korean trends."

"Our Karina just likes watching tennis, and she's been caught up in rumors for no reason, and now she's getting criticized for him. Can this player Chen win a match on his own? Stop making our unnie take the blame for you."

What happened?

Why are Yoo Ji-min's fans and Aespa's fans (MY) starting to attack him?

Ningning's first message, "Hello Byun Baekhyun," does it also imply something?

Chen Jixian searched for it.

[Golden Winter Backstabbing, Yoo Jimin's Secret Exposed]

"Karina knew it was a COVID-19 bubble, but she just couldn't bring herself to say it. Why?"

"Using a killer look only after a teammate lets something slip—who are they keeping secret for?"

"It was at the manager's request, because of the previous scandal."

"Three out of four people dare to say it, but only one person doesn't dare to mention that word. Why do you think that is?"

"To avoid suspicion, her boyfriend lives in a bubble, she doesn't dare mention that word."

"Aren't you being too sensitive?"

"Karina is afraid you'll spread rumors, that's why she doesn't dare to say anything!"

"Rumors? When Jin Dongtian mentioned bubbles, Karina's eyes were enough for me to create eight GIFs."

"The amount of information contained in that one second when Ningning froze was greater than what she had said in the previous ten minutes."

"Ningning must know something, right?"

"Maybe it was this woman who made the connection, after all, she's from the same mainland as him."

Chen Jixian understood.

Yoo Ji-min was probably warned by her manager and dared not mention tennis-related topics, pretending not to understand the COVID-19 bubble, but was "betrayed" by Kim Dong-won.

It's better to just say it openly; that way, you won't be in a situation where things seem suspicious.

He wanted to continue browsing the comments section.

A man's hand pressed down on Xiao Chen's phone.

Schneider's voice was calm: "You should be focusing all your energy on the game right now."

Chen Jixian was silent for a while, then locked his phone.

Let's wait until the game is over.

If you get eliminated in the first round, being mocked by Liu Si is a minor issue; the real disaster is not being able to earn money or buy speed packs!

Xiao Chen stuffed the last bite of scrambled eggs into his mouth, chewed it, and then took a big gulp of black coffee.

Then he picked up his phone and sent a message to Ningning.

Roger.

""

Chen Jixian got up to put away his tray. As he passed the next table, an old man who was eating bread looked up at him.

Xiao Chen ignored him and walked straight to the dish return area.

Let's go back to Monday.

Stefano sat in the physiotherapy room for the entire afternoon.

He came to get treatment for his knee.

The therapist had him lie down, and just as his palm touched his knee, the door was pushed open.

An Asian man stood in the doorway, his player ID around his neck dangling.

The physiotherapist looked up and said to him, "Players in the main competition have priority. Come down and let him go first."

Stefano glanced at the Asian man.

Very young, eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing a FILA basketball bag, new basketball shoes, and a white sling around his neck with "ITF" printed on it.

World Tour.

He doesn't look like a player.

She's more like a celebrity.

Stefano didn't say anything. He propped himself up from the massage bed and sat back down on the plastic chair.

Later, the Asian man left.

Stefano lay back down.

Just as the therapist's hand touched his shoulder, the door was pushed open again.

It was another young man, around eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing the same white band around his neck—a player in the main competition.

"Mr. Daldry, how's your knee today?"

The physiotherapist greeted Daldry and then glanced at Stefano.

The meaning is clear—players in the main competition have priority.

He already knew what was going to happen next.

Stefano climbed out of the massage bed again; the ice pack on the plastic chair had already begun to melt.

Water droplets trickled down the plastic chair, leaving a small puddle on the floor.

That evening.

The phone lit up, and the application form appeared.

Stefano's first-round opponent is J. Chen.

Wildcard.

The main competition.

The first kid to cut in line this afternoon!

In his mind, he recalled J.Chen's labels—

Youth champion.

This is my first time playing in a professional match.

Zero points.

Stefano understood: "A kid who hasn't been honed by professional matches yet, playing his first professional game, will inevitably be nervous, have shaky hands, make service errors, and have wildly erratic returns in the first few games."

"Give him a taste of his own medicine, press him from the start! Let him experience the intensity of a professional match the very first time he touches the ball, and his mental defenses will crumble!"

On Tuesday morning, he warmed up, served, and practiced forehand and backhand at the outer practice area.

Every movement was filled with anger. His knee was still throbbing, but the painkillers were working.

We'll see if we can hold out for one more round!

After finishing his warm-up, he stood at the entrance and glanced at the Asian man standing there on the other side.

A white player ID hangs around his neck, and his FILA bag reveals three sections of the racket handle; two rackets are brand new, while the sweatband on one of them is worn out.

Handshake before the match.

He took the Asian man's hand and whispered something.

"No cutting in line today!"

I don't need to stand up to give you my seat on this field!

Winning this match will earn at least one ATP point.

Even if you lose in the second round, you'll still get a $258 prize.

Of course, even this $250 is subject to tax.

Stefano took out a tennis ball, bounced it twice on the ground, bent his knees, and tossed the ball.

Game start!

He successfully held serve in the first game.

The score was 40-30, with no tie and no further entanglement.

Leading 1-0.

Stefano frowned: "You played very well this round, but something's not right?"

He gulped down a mouthful of water, but his heart rate wouldn't come down.

His left knee started burning again, hotter than after playing three games. He breathed through his mouth, his throat dry as if he had just swallowed a mouthful of sand.

This game lasted less than ten minutes and was his best service game recently!

He hit the outside corner line, executed a precise forehand change of direction, and even saved an impossible short ball in the middle of the court!

Every shot was a life-or-death struggle.

He did win, but only when he stopped did he realize that he had paid too high a price.

Stefano asked himself, "Is this really a hold of serve? Is breaking serve really this tiring?"

To maintain your serve, you should play steadily and at your own pace, rather than running from one end of the baseline to the other for every point.

In the last round, he ran every single point. He won the game, but his opponent barely broke a sweat.

One point left—

He gritted his teeth and unleashed a high-quality forehand straight shot, with a tricky landing point and perfect rhythm!

But the Asian boy still managed to touch the ball.

Against a typical opponent, this shot would most likely be the winning point. But this person, even while off-balance, managed to make the racket touch the ball.

Stefano stared at the Asian boy opposite him: "He's not fast. His sprint speed and the explosiveness of his first step are only above average in the M15."

"It may seem slow, but it's never too late. It's not about outrunning the ball, it's about outwalking it."

Stefano never imagined that he would personally experience this "walk-to-win" pressure in the first round of Monastir M15, against a newcomer with zero points.