Chapter Seventy Winter Vacation Training Camp

  The pen tip stopped for a moment on the blank paper, and at this time, the pen tip seemed to have a sense of repulsion with the paper, always staying in parallel space, without fulfilling the responsibility that a pen should write on the paper. However, it's not the pen's fault for being irresponsible, as the pen is just a tool that conveys thoughts onto the paper, and the person holding the pen controls what words are written on the paper, because thoughts are produced by humans.

  The pen that hovered in mid-air on the paper was held by a broad palm and slender fingers, and the owner of this hand was Lin Xiaoyu.

  It's the time for final exams, and Lin Xiaoyu is struggling with this politics test paper that makes his head spin. Politics is the subject that Lin Xiaoyu dislikes the most, a course that requires memorizing those grandiose ideas and principles every day, which really gets on the nerves of free-spirited Lin Xiaoyu, so he can't bear to look at the black characters in the politics textbooks. As for this test paper, Lin Xiaoyu is completely clueless about the questions.

  The pen that had been suspended in mid-air finally moved, but it didn't make any contact with the test paper on the desk, nor did it leave any new marks. The pen was spinning rapidly in mid-air, rotating quickly between Lin Xiaoyu's slender and agile fingers. Spinning pens was a way for Lin Xiaoyu to kill time when she got bored in class, and within less than half a year of high school, she had already mastered several ways of doing it, which also explained why she often didn't pay attention in class. Unfortunately, no matter how well you spun the pen, Lin Xiaoyu still couldn't answer the questions on the test paper.

  There are many painful things in life, and facing the unsolvable problems that one cannot answer is a painful thing. What makes it even more painful is that this problem is something you're completely uninterested in, or even despise as a lowly and distasteful question. Lin Xiaoyu felt this way at the moment. After her pen had spun around her palm for who-knows-how-many circles, Lin Xiaoyu decided to hand in her paper ahead of time. Even though it was the final exam, and even though there was still a large blank space on the test paper in her hand, Lin Xiaoyu stood up and handed the paper over to the proctor teacher sitting at the lectern. Lin Xiaoyu couldn't take this stifling environment anymore; she felt an intense disgust towards these questions that had been printed out year after year to torment generation after generation of students. With her small bag slung over her shoulder, under the gaze of the proctor teacher looking at her with disdain, and amidst the astonished stares of familiar or unfamiliar classmates in the exam hall, Lin Xiaoyu slowly walked out of the exam room...

  Lin Xiaoyu walked out of the eerily quiet examination room and suddenly found that the gentle breeze blowing outside the classroom was much more comfortable than the stifling hum of the fan in the examination room.

  Lin Xiaoyu's high school had its first winter vacation. In the first week of the winter break, Bian Guohui gathered the basketball team in the school gym for a week of intensive training, requiring team members to train at school every day according to class time, preparing for the middle school league after New Year's Day.

  Although coming to school at the same time as classes, Lin Xiaoyu felt that coming to school to play basketball was much better than being locked in a classroom after arriving at school. Even if she sweated so much every day that her clothes were drenched countless times in this slightly cold early winter season, Lin Xiaoyu still liked the feeling of sweating profusely on the court.

  Bian Guohui has now slowly grasped the playing characteristics of each player in the basketball team, so Bian Guohui's purpose for this week's training is to determine the exact position of these players in the team.

  After all, this is just an ordinary middle school team. Bian Guohui can't ask his students to be as professional as a pro team, and these kids are used to playing casual basketball rather than serious competitive games. These skills take time to develop. Bian Guohui only asks his players to remember some simple tactics and teamwork. As a former soccer player, he emphasizes the importance of positioning on the court. In basketball, positioning is crucial, as having an advantageous position can often decide which team has the upper hand.

  Lin Xiaoyu was arranged by Bian Guohui to play the position of small forward and scoring guard. Lin Xiaoyu did not expect that she would be arranged by Bian Guohui to play as a small forward and scoring guard, Lin Xiaoyu has always liked playing as a controlling guard, although she also likes the feeling of scoring, but Lin Xiaoyu prefers using her passing ability to break through the opponent's defense, that kind of strategic feeling makes Lin Xiaoyu feel more wonderful.

  Ban Guohui has his reasons for arranging Lin Xiaoyu in a scoring position.

  Lin Xiaoyu's height is relatively good for a small forward in an ordinary middle school basketball team. Bian Guohui has great confidence in Lin Xiaoyu's scoring ability. Although Lin Xiaoyu's high-arcing mid-to-long-range shots and seemingly casual high-arcing passes often make Bian Guohui feel a bit anxious, after watching Lin Xiaoyu play for so long, Bian Guohui discovered that Lin Xiaoyu's unusual shots have an astonishingly high accuracy rate. Moreover, considering Lin Xiaoyu's height on the court, shooting such arcing balls makes those trying to guard him feel like they're in a state of despair.

  Bin Guohui also knew that Lin Xiaoyu was a fan of playing control defender, and from Lin Xiaoyu's astonishing court vision, Bin Guohui thought Lin Xiaoyu was the most promising control defender he had ever seen. Although this stylish player often came up with some unbelievable high-difficulty moves that made Bin Guohui complain, Bin Guohui had to admit that Lin Xiaoyu's playing style was truly amazing and enjoyable to watch. As a team coach, Bin Guohui should have strictly forbidden Lin Xiaoyu from making those fancy moves on the court, but as a coach who focused on cultivating good basketball players, Bin Guohui felt relieved to have a player like Lin Xiaoyu who didn't restrict himself to traditional playing styles.

  Bin Guohui sat on the chair beside the court, watching the team members who were divided into two groups and playing a practice match. The five players wearing red training vests were Bin Guohui's confirmed main force for the team. In terms of strength, these five players in red vests had already made it difficult for the five substitute players in green vests to parry. However, Bin Guohui was still not satisfied with the situation on the court.

  Bian Guohui has already forgotten how many times he reminded Lin Xiaoyu, who was wearing a red vest, to remember that she was a small forward. However, after just a few rounds of attack, Lin Xiaoyu began to transform back into the role of a controlling defender. On the other hand, Xiao Haifeng, whom Bian Guohui had appointed as the controlling defender, turned out to be a guy who liked to score points himself. The positions of these two kids kept changing involuntarily, leaving Bian Guohui at his wit's end with them.

  The current green substitute team's mid-range shot didn't go in, and Lin Xiaoyu jumped high to grab the rebound. Bian Guohui saw that when Lin Xiaoyu jumped up to grab the rebound, his raised hands were even higher than his opponent's single hand, this explosive power made Bian Guohui feel that it was a pity for Lin Xiaoyu to play as a control guard, with Lin Xiaoyu's physical quality he could be a scoring expert who makes opponents' defense headache.

  Lin Xiaoyu grabbed the rebound and immediately took off, sprinting down the court. Bian Guohui watched in amazement as Lin Xiaoyu's speed with the ball was almost on par with Xiao Haifeng, who was running alongside him without the ball. Bian Guohui couldn't believe how fast Lin Xiaoyu could push the ball forward while maintaining control. Lin Xiaoyu's dribbling was like an invisible thread connecting the ball to his palm, keeping it in perfect balance with his body as he ran down the court. The ball seemed to be the engine of a speeding car, not hindering his speed but rather making him run even faster.

  In the blink of an eye, Lin Xiaoyu had already dribbled the ball to the three-point line. At this time, there was only one defender in green training uniform under the basket, while Lin Xiaoyu's side had already brought three players, including Lin Xiaoyu himself, to the three-point line. The tall player in green training uniform stood in front of the hoop, watching the three opponents rushing towards him, and for a moment, he didn't know what to do, so he just stood there, not allowing Lin Xiaoyu to directly dunk from the front, which was also what he thought he could do.

  At this time, Lin Xiaoyu's front foot had already stepped over the free throw line, and the basketball was also held in Lin Xiaoyu's single hand. The defender wearing a green training uniform could only prepare to jump up and cover Lin Xiaoyu, because Lin Xiaoyu had already started his two-and-a-half step layup motion. However, when this defender prepared to jump up, he saw Lin Xiaoyu's head slightly turn to the left, looking towards the left side. This defender involuntarily shifted his center of gravity towards the side where Lin Xiaoyu was looking, because he saw that the fast-moving black kid Xiao Hailiang had already run to that side, and Lin Xiaoyu might just pass the ball to him.

  But just as the defender shifted his weight to one side, Lin Xiaoyu, who had already taken two steps with the ball, didn't pass it out and was about to make a high-arcing layup, a move he often used. The defender could only grit his teeth and jump up, trying to obstruct Lin's path to the hoop. However, just as the defender jumped up, the ball that had seemed destined for a layup flew past his face and landed in the hands of Xiao Haifeng, who was already running towards the side with the blue base. With no one blocking him, Xiao Haifeng easily scored with a low-handed layup.

  The defender, who was teased twice by Lin Xiaoyu's eye movements and small actions in a row, could only helplessly watch as his opponent easily scored, while secretly making up his mind that next time he encountered such a fast break, he wouldn't even bother to defend, not knowing how many times he had been deceived by Lin Xiaoyu, who could fake movements with her entire body.

  Bian Guohui saw Lin Xiaoyu end a 3-on-1 attack in such a way, and he really wanted to say something to Lin Xiaoyu, but didn't know what to say. If he said that Lin Xiaoyu made the 3-on-1 attack a bit too complicated, it wouldn't be right either. Although he had fooled the defensive player into being dizzy, two subtle fake movements wouldn't take much time. Bian Guohui couldn't help but admire Lin Xiaoyu's ability to make fake moves look real when playing basketball. Even his gaze could possibly tease you.

  Since Lin Xiaoyu likes to play as a defensive midfielder, let him play. Bian Guohui thought to himself. Let the little forward be played by that stinky kid, hoping that stinky kid's injury will heal soon. If this guy can cooperate with Lin Xiaoyu, what kind of scene would it be? Bian Guohui couldn't help but feel full of expectation, and another boy's face appeared in his mind...