45 JUST BREAK UP

The immediate ultimatum that came out of Lu Mei's lips shocked everyone in the meeting room.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Lu. But I think your decision is too hasty. I think you should―"

"It wasn't a hasty decision, Mr. Cheng," Lu Mei immediately cut off Coach Cheng while glaring at the coach. "The future of our country is in their hands, so we need commitment. If they can't do it, we better find other athletes to replace them in the team."

The word "replace" made Lin Zhu's heart skip a beat. He had just been kicked out of the men's singles team, and now his position in the men's doubles was also in jeopardy. He didn't want to feel that pain anymore, and he knew that he had to do something to save his career.

"I want to commit, Mrs. Lu!" The young athlete suddenly spoke up, quickly attracting the attention of the people in the room. "What must I do to earn your trust, Mrs. Lu? I'm willing to do anything as long as I can stay on this team."

The room fell silent after Lin Zhu finished his speech. He looked so shameless and had lost his dignity now, but should he care about sheer dignity at a time like this? He would lose his position in the team, and maybe he would have to say goodbye to his dream if the team management decided to kick him out.

He didn't want that, and he would do anything to save his position.

"I ask for your commitment as a team, but you still dare to use 'I' instead of 'we'?"

It seemed that Lin Zhu only realized his mistake after hearing Lu Mei's cold question.

That was right. He only spoke for himself, not for his team with Ye Quan. His selfishness took over his mind again, and without realizing it, he had made another mistake in front of the fierce woman.

"I'm also willing to do anything, Mrs. Lu," Ye Quan suddenly chimed in. "Lin Zhu and I are willing to do anything. We know that we have made some mistakes in the past month, and our debut could not live up to your expectations. However, please give us one last chance. We promise that we will make our country proud."

Ye Quan was very firm when he voiced his promise. He looked like a politician who made promises in front of citizens before the elections.

Lin Zhu could only peek at the older man, and he secretly praised the man's courage. He couldn't even properly speak to the woman, but Ye Quan had just saved him with his precise speech. Ye Quan was indeed capable of anything.

"You two have said that you are willing to do anything for your position in the team, but can you elaborate on this 'anything' you are talking about?" Lu Mei once again challenged the young athletes.

The two young men glanced at each other as if seeking help, but both looked clueless as they turned to the woman again.

"We..." Ye Quan spoke although somewhat hesitantly. "We can be friends, Mrs. Lu."

The woman raised her arched brows upon hearing Ye Quan's words. "How will you two become friends? Practicing together for a month couldn't even change the feelings in your hearts, so what are you going to do to become friends?"

The questions were very challenging, and they were even more difficult than the exam questions.

"We... we can spend more time together, Mrs. Lu," once again, Ye Quan was the one who answered the woman's question.

Lin Zhu felt useless next to him. He acted so big outside the meeting room, but he was a useless statue inside the room now.

"How are you guys going to spend more time together? You have a girlfriend, so obviously you'd choose to spend your time with her, right? You even dared to sleep in her room when we were in Korea. You thought I didn't know about that, Ye Quan?"

Lin Zhu was dumbfounded by Lu Mei's unexpected questions. He took another peek at Ye Quan, and he found the older man frozen as well.

"You are very brave, Ye Quan," the woman spoke again. "You even went public with her and dared to flaunt your sweet moments with her on your social media. Don't you know that it will affect your career? Don't you know that the media blames your behavior for your poor performance at the Korea Open?"

Lin Zhu was shocked again. He never cared about gossip unrelated to him, so he had no idea that the media were blaming Ye Quan for their poor performance last week.

Lin Zhu had predicted this outcome, but he didn't think that it would come so soon.

"Your behavior not only affects your reputation, but it also affects our team. You have changed, Ye Quan. As far as I remember, you weren't like this when you were on the men's singles team."

Lin Zhu didn't dare to say anything when Lu Mei continued reprimanding Ye Quan. He didn't expect that this evaluation meeting would be a judgment time for the man.

"I apologize for my behavior, Mrs. Lu," Ye Quan suddenly apologized in a sincere tone.

However, Lu Mei did not look satisfied with the apology. "You can't get back to your best performance maybe because of this problem too," she commented coldly.

Lin Zhu refrained from refuting Lu Mei's accusations. He knew that Ye Quan was just acting all the time. Ye Quan could return to his peak form if he wanted to, but he deliberately pretended to be a worse athlete so the team management would transfer him to the doubles team.

If team management found out about that, then things would get more complicated. That was why Lin Zhu chose to remain silent.

"I think I know what you have to do to prove your commitment, Ye Quan," Lu Mei spoke again as she looked dangerously at Ye Quan. "Just break up with Zhao Jia, and I'll take it as your first attempt to prove your commitment."