Chapter 32: Taking Leave for the Competition

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Before he knew it, a week had passed!

During that time, Jiang Hong had spent every day at the tennis club.

Fortunately, he had the Training Recovery Potion. Otherwise, he felt he would already have ended up in the hospital.

After finishing his training that day, Jiang Hong did not leave immediately.

Instead, he went to find the owner of the tennis club.

“Brother Chen, I’ve really troubled you these past few days!” Jiang Hong said with a smile.

Chen Pengcheng immediately waved his hand. “What are you talking about? Since a master like you has been training at our club, we’ve had several more people come in to sign up. After all, your presence proves that our club is professional!”

He was not merely flattering Jiang Hong. The competition some time ago had made him fairly well-known in Chang’an’s tennis circles.

“Here’s the thing, Brother Chen. Starting tomorrow, I won’t be coming here to train anymore,” Jiang Hong said, getting to the point.

“Huh?” Chen Pengcheng froze, looking somewhat startled. “Why? Brother Jiang, is there something wrong with our club?”

“No, the facilities here are absolutely fine. The main reason is that I have other matters to attend to over the next few days, so I won’t be able to continue training.”

Jiang Hong dispelled Chen Pengcheng’s concerns.

“I see. I thought I hadn’t treated you well enough.” Chen Pengcheng let out a relieved laugh. “But whenever you have time, come back and train with us!”

“Don’t worry, Brother Chen. I’m a lifetime member of this club. I’ll definitely come back to trouble you again!”

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Chen Pengcheng invited him to dinner, but Jiang Hong ultimately declined.

It was not until they had left the club that Su Cheng finally could not hold back any longer.

“Jiang Hong, is it because your exams are coming up that you’ve decided to stop training?”

Jiang Hong had been disappearing all day long during this period, which had already caught the attention of his instructors.

They had issued him several warnings in the class group chat.

Su Cheng had also been contacted by the teachers twice, but because her grades were good, they had ultimately let the matter go.

“It’s not because of that.” Jiang Hong shook his head.

A trace of confusion appeared in Su Cheng’s eyes. If it was not because of his studies, what else could make Jiang Hong put his training on hold?

Suddenly, a possibility came to her mind.

“Jiang Hong, you’re not injured, are you?” she asked worriedly.

Given how intense Jiang Hong’s training had been, an injury was entirely possible.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine!” Jiang Hong immediately flexed his muscles. To keep Su Cheng from overthinking, he told her the truth. “It’s mainly because I’m going to participate in a competition in a couple of days, so I won’t have time to train.”

Only then did Su Cheng finally relax.

“Where is the competition this time? I’ll go cheer you on!” she said excitedly.

Under Jiang Hong’s influence, she had begun watching matches online in her spare time.

“Uh… this one is quite far away. It’s in Shanghai.”

“Shanghai?” Su Cheng’s eyes widened instantly.

She had not expected Jiang Hong to travel somewhere so far away for a competition.

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“I see.” A trace of disappointment crossed Su Cheng’s face, but she soon forced a smile. “Although I can’t watch you compete, you still have to do your best. Don’t get knocked out in the first round!”

“Don’t worry. If I win the prize money this time, I’ll give you a raise.” Jiang Hong patted Su Cheng on the shoulder and solemnly painted her a rosy picture.

Su Cheng, however, did not really care about getting a raise.

Her salary was already quite high. Even if it increased further, she would feel embarrassed accepting it.

What she was curious about was the prize money for the competition.

“There’s prize money? How much?”

“That depends on how well I perform.”

Hearing this, Su Cheng did not press him further.

After they took a car back to school, neither of them said much. A silence settled between them.

Only when they were about to part did Su Cheng raise her head.

“I’ll be waiting for good news.”

…

Knock, knock!

Jiang Hong arrived at the counselor’s office and knocked on the door.

“Come in!”

The counselor’s voice came from inside.

Jiang Hong pushed open the door and entered. “Good afternoon, Ms. Wu!”

When Wu Fei saw Jiang Hong, the corner of her mouth twitched involuntarily.

During this period, his instructors had repeatedly complained to her about his skipping classes.

She had been a university student herself, so she knew that skipping classes was nothing unusual. But skipping every class, as Jiang Hong did, was simply absurd.

“You’ve come at just the right time. I was about to look for you.”

According to the other teachers, Jiang Hong had initially been a model student who attended class diligently. Even when he could not understand the material, he had never skipped lessons.

Yet during this period, he had suddenly vanished without a trace.

Wu Fei had also asked the class representatives, and learned that Jiang Hong had been playing tennis throughout this time.

“Teacher, I’m here to ask for leave.”

Jiang Hong got straight to the point and explained why he had come.

Wu Fei’s expression changed. Could it be that Jiang Hong had been skipping class because he really had something important to do?

Her tone softened slightly.

“What do you need leave for?”

“Because I’m going to Shanghai to participate in a tennis competition!”

The moment Wu Fei heard this, her expression fell apart.

Couldn’t he at least have made up some excuse, like saying he was feeling unwell?

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Fine, fine. He was not even pretending anymore!

“No!” Wu Fei shook her head and rejected him immediately.

Then she earnestly tried to reason with him. “Jiang Hong, you’re a university student now. Your most important task is to study so that you can find a good job in the future. I know you like tennis, but you can still play after you graduate. Don’t choose comfort at the age when you should be striving!”

Jiang Hong felt that what she said made perfect sense.

“You’re right, Teacher!”

“That’s more like it!” Wu Fei said, greatly relieved. It seemed Jiang Hong was not beyond saving after all.

“So, faced with the comfortable environment of the classroom, I chose to train under the blazing sun and improve my tennis skills instead,” Jiang Hong said with a perfectly serious expression.

Wu Fei was drinking water and nearly choked on it.

“Cough, cough, cough!” After coughing several times, she set down her cup and sighed. “Jiang Hong, you love tennis, but can you actually make a living from it?”

Jiang Hong thought about it. It was true that players found it difficult to support themselves through lower-level competitions.

Many players even lost money by participating in tournaments.

“That’s why I’m working hard now. You know what our major is like, Teacher. For someone like me, who comes from a small county, it’s difficult to find any good opportunities. After graduation, I’ll probably end up working in sales.”

Wu Fei opened her mouth, wanting to argue, but could not find a reason.

The truth was that graduates of their major did not currently have many good career prospects.

Jiang Hong continued, “Teacher Wu, I’ve been training in tennis lately so that I can participate in this professional competition. As long as I can earn a qualifying spot, I’ll be able to apply for an athlete’s certificate. Whether I become a coach or a physical education teacher, that would give me a path forward.”

“If I don’t achieve good results, I’ll settle down and focus on my studies from then on.”

Wu Fei fell silent for a moment.

To be honest, she felt Jiang Hong had a point.

He had also made it clear that if tennis did not work out, he would return to his studies and apply himself properly.

After hesitating for a while, she raised her head and said, “Jiang Hong, I can only approve three days of leave. That is the limit of my authority. I can split the dates for you, but if you want seven days, you’ll need the dean’s signature.”

“Thank you, Teacher.” Jiang Hong agreed without hesitation.

Arguing with the dean would take a great deal of effort, and it might not even work.

He understood what Wu Fei meant as well.

She was offering to write the leave dates in separate portions, effectively extending his time away. To be honest, Wu Fei was taking a certain risk by doing so.

An older teacher would probably be unwilling to shoulder that responsibility, and it would have been much harder for Jiang Hong to obtain leave.

But if she refused to approve it, Jiang Hong would simply leave school and go play in the competition anyway.

Wu Fei prepared the leave form for him. As he was leaving, she called out:

“Good luck in the competition!”

“Thank you, Teacher!”

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