FREEZING ATMOSPHERE

After finishing breakfast at the hotel, all athletes went straight to the sports hall that had been designated as a place to train today.

The tournament would be held tomorrow, and they could train to adapt to the atmosphere in the country today.

Lin Zhu did not see Ye Quan when they had breakfast earlier, and he had only seen a taller man when they were on the bus that was taking them to the sports hall.

Ye Quan was sitting with Zhao Jia and looked so happy as if nothing happened last night, and it made Lin Zhu wail pitifully. He was the only one bothered by their fight last night.

Was it a fight, anyway? Perhaps he was the only one who saw the event as a fight. Maybe Ye Quan didn't even think about it.

After arriving at the sports hall, the first thing Lin Zhu did was look around the large hall. This wasn't the first time he had walked into the hall, but the feeling was still the same as the first time he had walked into the hall.

Two years ago, Lin Zhu made his debut in the senior team at the Korea Open, and they were also training in this hall at that time. It was also funny when he realized that he would be debuting on the men's doubles team at the Korea Open as well. And he would train in this hall as well.

A simple coincidence brought a smile to Lin Zhu's face. It was the first smile that graced his handsome face today. Ever since he opened his eyes at the emergency exit, his mood was very gloomy.

He put his racket bag on the bench and got ready to warm up as the coach had instructed the athletes earlier. He was about to start his routine, but then he noticed another strange thing that stopped his movements.

Even though they weren't friends and more like enemies, Ye Quan usually put his racket bag beside him on the same bench. Today was unusual because the older man chose to put his bag beside Zhao Jia's.

Lin Zhu should have felt grateful that the older man had decided to keep the distance between them, but instead of feeling satisfied, he felt another feeling of discomfort in his heart.

He secretly peeked at Ye Quan, who was chatting happily with the female athlete.

Lin Zhu felt a pinch in his heart, and he was sure that the painful feeling was caused by his anger again. He was the one feeling the discomfort while Ye Quan was completely fine now, and that made him even angrier.

Lin Zhu couldn't stand the feeling anymore, and he decided to take his eyes off the man. It would be better for him to focus on the tournament and forget about Ye Quan.

They warmed up for a dozen minutes until finally, Coach Cheng assembled the men's doubles team in an area.

"Tomorrow's tournament will be an important start for us," the coach began his speech. "Ah-Zhui and Ah-Zhen are retiring after the tournament, and we are currently looking for a replacement," he continued as he glanced at the two couples standing side by side.

Lin Zhu, who had been standing beside Ye Quan since a few minutes ago, glanced beside him to find another young pair on the men's doubles team.

They were Huang Mo and Yuan Tianyu. They were the same age as him, but they had joined the men's doubles team a year ago. The pair was touted as a rising star in the Chinese men's doubles team, but they still couldn't do much because they were still newbies too. They were not even in the top 20 in the men's doubles sector.

Maybe that was the reason why the team management decided to form a new team. And perhaps Coach Cheng wasn't lying when he said that Lin Zhu and Ye Quan would become China's main men's doubles players after the senior pair stepped down. After all, both Huang Mo and Yuan Tianyu did not do well in the past year.

"I have high hopes for our two new young teams. I will not side with either team, and I sincerely wish both teams the best."

Coach Cheng seemed to be very considerate because he didn't say out loud that he didn't have much hope for Huang Mo and Yuan Tianyu's team. After all, they were young and new, and they still had the chance to shine in the future.

"In tomorrow's tournament, I will still put my hope in Ah-Shui and Ah-Zhen pair to win the title, but the two young teams must also do their best for our country. You two are our future players. In the future, our country will depend on you to win some titles."

The determination on Lin Zhu's face became clearer after hearing the coach's speech. He still had a long way to go, so he better try to do his best from now on. He didn't want to disappoint those who had supported him and believed in him.

"Let's fight together for tomorrow's match!" The coach spoke again in high spirits. "Today, we will have a friendly match. I want our two young teams to play against each other today!"

Lin Zhu swallowed nervously. He and Ye Quan were defeated by the senior team a month ago, and now they had to face the young team. What if they were defeated again later? It would definitely damage his reputation.

Coach Cheng then dismissed them to start the friendly match between the two pairs, and Lin Zhu and Ye Quan were getting ready for the match. However, the atmosphere around them was still frozen like they were in a fridge.

There was no communication between them, and they didn't even make eye contact. The two of them treated each other as if they were invisible.

The coach seemed to fail to notice the oddity, though. Lin Zhu and Ye Quan usually didn't chat with each other, so the sight was quite normal in his eyes.

Didn't want to waste precious time, Coach Cheng officially started the friendly match.