Chapter 51: The Tide of Fate (5)
Lin Yiyang pressed the back of his hand against his eyes, suppressing this impulsive thought.
It had been a year and a little over a month since they officially became a couple, yet they had only spent 28 days together so far. Because they met so rarely, he always tried to show her his best self. The Lin Yiyang who could also be irritable, frustrated, lacking confidence, or prone to bad moods and melancholy—she had hardly ever seen that side of him.
Moreover, she had just graduated and was only twenty-two. If he were Yin Guo's parents, he wouldn’t be happy about his daughter stepping into married life so soon either.
Lin Yiyang remained silent, and Yin Guo ended up drifting off to sleep first. After all, she had just returned from a long flight and was exhausted.
In her dream, the knocking at the door grew louder and louder. Yin Guo groggily opened her eyes, and Lin Yiyang, startled awake by the noise, sat up abruptly. He took half a minute to collect himself before answering the door.
Outside, Wu Wei coughed lightly. "Meng Xiaodong called Jiang Yang, and Jiang Yang reached out to me to wake you up... He said not to stay too late. You just got back today, and your family is still waiting."
Lin Yiyang checked his watch. "Got it."
He had thought they’d wake up in the afternoon, but they had slept straight through until nightfall.
Having delivered the message, Wu Wei tactfully made himself scarce.
Lin Yiyang closed the door, grabbed a bottle of water from a case in the corner, and unscrewed the cap to wet his throat.
How had they slept so late?
Yin Guo hadn’t expected that she and Lin Yiyang would sleep this long just by leaning against each other. Rubbing her shoulder, she walked to the window for some fresh air. From this angle, she could see the large iron gate and the two-story building beside it.
After gazing at the view for a while, she remarked, "This place of yours is much bigger than Old North City."
"Back then, there was only the second floor," Lin Yiyang said, turning on the light. "The year I quit, Jiang Yang took over. Everything you see now is thanks to him." Yin Guo already knew this—her cousin had mentioned it before.
Jiang Yang had taken the reins when he was very young, barely in his twenties, and had led East New City for over a decade.
There wasn’t much money to be made—it was all driven by passion and genuine love for the game.
"He should’ve gotten surgery on his arm a long time ago, but he kept putting it off—all for the sake of the club," Lin Yiyang said with a sigh. "His best ten years were spent divided, given to East New City. Otherwise, his personal achievements would’ve been even greater."
He sincerely hoped Jiang Yang could have a few years of freedom, just playing matches, to make up for the hardships of the past decade.
"Why did you suddenly take over East New City this time?" This had been Yin Guo’s lingering question since their return.
"At first, I didn’t want to," Lin Yiyang admitted. "First, I felt guilty toward our teacher. Second, Jiang Yang and I have different philosophies. He wanted to use star players to elevate the sport, while I wanted to cultivate a cultural atmosphere—like Snooker in the UK or Nine-ball in the US. So when I came back, I originally planned to go solo. But after talking with our teacher twice, I realized he supported me."
Their teacher’s exact words had been just five characters: "If you think of it, do it."
He Lao and Lin Yiyang were the most alike in temperament, so his words carried the most weight—and naturally, they changed Lin Yiyang’s mind.
Because Meng Xiaodong was pressing them, Lin Yiyang didn’t let her stay much longer.
The two of them headed downstairs together.
At this hour, the first floor of East New City was open to the public, with enthusiasts from the community coming to play. Some of East New City’s players, who came from less affluent backgrounds, worked as sparring partners to earn extra income.
North City had similar players, charging by the hour.Yin Guo walked into the lobby and spotted a familiar figure—it was actually Liu Xiran, the runner-up of the U.S. Open. She was supposed to return today, yet instead of going home to rest, she was here working as a practice partner to earn money.
“Isn’t she independent?” Yin Guo remembered this player fought alone.
“She used to be with East New City but retired later. She came back to play because her family needed money for medical expenses,” Lin Yiyang explained to her. “Jiang Yang lets her train here for free and also registered her as a practice partner. But she’s not considered part of East New City, so her prize money doesn’t have to be shared with them.”
This was also the last person Jiang Yang took in before stepping down from his major responsibilities.
Hearing this, Yin Guo admired Jiang Yang even more. Leading East New City for over a decade, from youth to middle age, was no ordinary feat.
In Jiang Yang, she saw the true essence of “brotherhood and righteousness,” a defining trait of East New City.
On the way home, Lin Yiyang kept his Bluetooth earpiece on, making calls while driving.
As soon as one call ended, the next began.
Yin Guo listened quietly, not wanting to disturb him, and kept her eyes on the road ahead to ensure he didn’t take a wrong turn.
Clearly, she had misunderstood Lin Yiyang on this point—there was no way he would take a wrong turn to her home. As soon as the car entered the neighborhood, Yin Guo said, “Drive to the underground garage. Fewer people there, and we can talk a bit more.”
Lin Yiyang turned the steering wheel, circled out of the neighborhood, and entered the underground garage through a side entrance.
It had been drizzling for the past two days, and the semi-open garage was heavy with moisture.
This was the first time Lin Yiyang had driven down here. Following Yin Guo’s directions, he found her family’s parking spot.
“Remember this spot,” she said, pointing to a stairwell behind them. “Take the elevator from that door, and it leads straight to our building’s hallway.”
Lin Yiyang glanced back and nodded.
His mind had been preoccupied all evening, and only now, after dropping Yin Guo off at her doorstep, did it dawn on him that aside from sleeping on her lap all afternoon at East New City, they hadn’t exchanged more than a few words. Their rare conversations had all revolved around East New City.
He looked at her hand clutching her backpack, then interlaced his fingers with hers, his voice hoarse as he said, “Haven’t had time for you.”
Those four words nearly brought tears to Yin Guo’s eyes, her heart aching unbearably.
Her other hand pressed over his. “I’m the one who wants to be with you… but I’m no good at comforting people. I never meant for you to have to make time for me.”
He smiled.
Just having you here is enough.
After leaving Yin Guo’s place, Lin Yiyang first stopped by his own billiard club to pack half a box of clothes.
Sun Yao, feeling sentimental, made Lin Yiyang a plate of spaghetti and fried some chicken wings. He watched intently as Lin Yiyang finished eating, then cleared the plates and followed him out of the billiard club, standing by the roadside. “You’re really leaving?”
Lin Yiyang patted him on the head. “I won’t abandon you. Just let me get through this busy period first.”
Sun Yao still felt uneasy, mainly because he couldn’t bear to see Lin Yiyang go.
He had followed Lin Yiyang back to the country precisely to work alongside him. Though he now had more authority, he felt insecure without Lin Yiyang’s steadying presence.
“The first two months after taking over will be hectic,” Lin Yiyang gave him a firm pat on the back. “Don’t drop the ball here. If you exhaust me, it won’t do you any good.”
“Got it.”Sun Yao watched with a grievance as Lin Yiyang's car disappeared into the night-lit streets.
By the time Lin Yiyang returned to the billiard club, it was already half past eight.
He attended three consecutive meetings in the second-floor office—first with all the coaches, then the leaders of various athlete groups, and finally with the heads of logistics, finance, cafeteria, and dormitory management at East New City.
Ten o'clock.
Lin Yiyang finally stepped out of his office and headed to the public shower room in the adjacent two-story building for a hot bath.
Eleven o'clock.
Under the night sky, as the head of East New City, he finally caught his breath.
Emerging from the small two-story building, dressed in black athletic pants and a white T-shirt, he looked fresh and clean, with only a black wristwatch on his right wrist. He walked along the path toward the main building.
East New City had changed, yet it remained the same.
When he left, only the plaque "East New City Billiard Club" hung outside the second-floor door of the main building. The top floor was a storage room, the first floor housed a shower room, and the second floor of this building was abandoned land.
The fence hadn't changed. Under the moonlight, he examined it closely—it had definitely been repainted, but the small brick walls every ten meters still bore the carvings left by his old friends during their playful days.
They were still there today, surely preserved by someone's deliberate instruction. He guessed it was either their teacher or Jiang Yang.
Entering the main building, the junior group kids had long gone home by this hour.
Near the first-floor lounge area, gathered around the coffee table, were all his brothers except Jiang Yang. After disbanding earlier that morning, they had each taken some rest and now had all returned—
Chen Anan, still jet-lagged, sat drowsily at the far end of the couch, his head tilted back against the wall as he dozed off. Lin Lin was reviewing the afternoon's Nine-ball training records—as the person in charge of Nine-ball, this was part of her routine work. Fan Wencong and Wu Wei, however, were playing at the nearest table to the lounge, practicing casually.
Lin Yiyang chose a single-seat sofa and sat down. The group gathered around the coffee table, waiting for him to discuss serious matters.
"Since I've just taken over, I don't want to make drastic changes. Just a few plans we can discuss together," he said earnestly, under the guise of "discussion," before directly announcing his plans. "Starting this year, the Snooker group will have thirty spots annually for closed training sessions in the UK."
Snooker originated in Britain, where the cultural atmosphere and training methods are the best. Top players often go there for self-funded training or even relocate permanently, as the most prestigious Snooker tournaments are held there. Though it's the most advanced training, the costs are high.
Lin Yiyang's first initiative was clear to everyone: it involved spending money.
"Also, I want to host new tournaments," Lin Yiyang continued. "Starting in this city."
Yes, more expenses.
Hosting tournaments is no small matter. Sponsors often withdraw funding, causing events to vanish abruptly. From Lin Yiyang's tone, it was clear he intended to make this a long-term commitment, not just a one-off.
To expand the sport's influence, attracting public attention through tournaments was indeed the way to go.Seeing that everyone understood, he moved on to the third point: "The last one is relatively simple—it's about systematically building up our star players and coaches," Lin Yiyang said, resting his elbows on his knees while fiddling with a small piece of green chalk powder in his hand. "Take Coach Xin, for example. He’s definitely worth promoting. He didn’t have much education, only finishing elementary school. He’s done farm work, harvested wheat, worked as a miner, and even ran a small shop. He didn’t start learning billiards until he was 22. But do you know who his students are?"
Lin Yiyang pointed at Lin Lin. "He trained Lin Lin, who was once ranked second in the world and won three major Opens in a single year. And your junior sister—hasn’t she been world number one before?"
Lin Lin nodded. "My coach really has a knack for teaching."
Though the coach’s personal best was only a national championship, that didn’t stop him from producing outstanding students.
Lin Yiyang continued, "To get the public to pay attention to a sport, to make them see us, we need to share these legendary stories. That’s how we’ll keep attracting new talent, getting more young people involved. It’ll be a long road, but we’ll take it step by step. Maybe in twenty or thirty years, billiards will reach the same status as table tennis or diving."
He paused briefly before adding, "East New City is willing to take an extra step for this industry—without any ulterior motives."
With that, Lin Yiyang bent down, picked up a pomelo from the fruit platter on the coffee table, and started peeling it without another word—his way of signaling he was done speaking.
Of course, everyone got the message. The third point was still about spending money.
No one would promote you for free—it all comes down to money. In the past, these coaches and players were only famous within the circle, with little public attention. Occasionally, one or two might break through, but that was rare.
"East New City’s three-year money-burning plan," Fan Wencong summarized.
"So where’s the money coming from?" Chen Anan, ever the straightforward one, asked.
Lin Yiyang smiled innocently, pulled out his phone, and the next second, everyone’s phone buzzed.
"I took some time the past couple of days to put together competition schedules for each of you. They’re all different, so read carefully and plan accordingly," he said casually. Of course, his own schedule was even more packed.
The list was filled with tournaments, domestic and international, 60% of which they usually wouldn’t attend.
Top players typically only join major competitions to earn ranking points. The ones Lin Yiyang listed were new events from various countries, where organizers offered hefty prize money to attract big names—though they didn’t count toward world rankings, which was why they usually skipped them.
Lin Yiyang’s stance was clear: those with ability should work harder—it was time to start making money.
Understanding the message, everyone set their phones aside and began picking at the remaining fruit on the platter—except Chen Anan, who was still scrutinizing his schedule. "But I’ve retired."
The group turned to him in unison: What are you thinking? While the rest of us hustle for money, you’re planning to lounge in the sun?
Chen Anan coughed, grabbed a bunch of grapes, and silently plucked them off one by one to eat.
Lin Yiyang felt the discussion had gone well—efficient and productive. He finished the last of his pomelo in a few bites. Then, two unexpected WeChat messages popped up on his phone.
Yin Guo: My grandma says…
Yin Guo: She’s inviting you over for dinner this weekend.
Yin Guo lay sprawled on her small couch, munching on pomelo.Seeing that he hadn't replied for a long time, she guessed he had misunderstood, thinking she was hinting for him to meet her family. She nibbled on the pomelo in small bites, unable to hold back, and messaged him again.
Fruit in the Woods: I was just chatting with Grandma. She said a few nice things about you.
Fruit in the Woods: Probably... just being polite.
Fruit in the Woods: She heard from my brother that you've been taking care of him in New York this past year and wanted to thank you.
Fruit in the Woods: Don't overthink it.
Fruit in the Woods: If you don't want to come, I can just tell her tomorrow that we've already said hello.
She was about to explain further when he suddenly responded.
Lin: Okay.
Lin: I'll come over this weekend.
Lin: Friday night? Saturday?
Lin: Sunday works too. Any time is fine.
OpenNovel