The 2011 World Figure Skating Championships were originally scheduled to take place in Tokyo, Japan. However, due to the impact of the March 11 earthquake, the competition’s timing was changed to late April, and the venue was relocated to the Megasport Arena in Moscow.

Zhang Jue hadn’t even had time to enjoy the prize money from winning the Junior World Championships and the bonuses from the Sports Bureau before he immediately donated it all. The child remained optimistic, coordinating with Hayato Teraoka to arrange donation channels. He reassured himself, saying: “No problem, I still have 10,000 bitcoins. Donating this small amount won’t make me feel distressed.”

However, there were still moments of distress. Zhang Jue, starting from last year, had stopped accepting pocket money from his parents. When he donated money, he forgot to leave some for himself, leading to him relying on Xu Dela to recharge his public transportation card.

Receiving the transportation card handed over by his younger brother, Zhang Jue’s face was filled with emotion.

“Brother, don’t worry. As soon as I get my salary next month, I’ll repay you immediately.”

Unconsciously, little Dela, who had grown to be as tall as his brother, nodded. He cut a red dragon fruit in half, took two spoons, inserted one into each half, and then sat side by side with Zhang Jue on the couch, watching the anti-war film “Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence,” starring David Bowie and Ryuichi Sakamoto.

Xu Dela asked Zhang Jue: “Brother, is David Bowie really a rock singer? Do all singers have to be so good-looking?”

Zhang Jue replied: “In the music industry, talent is crucial. Being good-looking is a bonus but not the most important thing.”

Especially in rock, there are many unconventional singers. As long as they sing well, even if they bare their chest hair and wear only underwear on stage, fans will still be enthusiastic.

On the other hand, exceptionally good-looking singers, before their talent is recognized by the public, are often criticized for “singing with their looks.” Zhang Jue, in the past, had to show off on stage multiple times to prove himself. Although fans were excited, he was still dissatisfied, feeling that these overly flashy performances were not as satisfying as some of his other lyrical songs.

At this point, Xu Dela was already unwilling to attend violin lessons, preferring to focus on playing the drums. Zhang Jue was a rock singer in his past life, and now Xu Dela was immersed in rock music, making him wonder if musical preferences are passed down through genes.

Red dragon fruit is a good fruit, highly effective in treating constipation. Moreover, the color it turns when eaten is the same as the color it retains when excreted.

When Zhang Junbao came to pick them up, Zhang Jue was still in the restroom. His uncle shouted from outside.

“Zhang Jue, are you okay? Can you come out in less than 10 minutes? If not, I’ll change the flight!”

Zhang Jue pinched his nose and shouted: “I’m fine, I’m fine. Just wait a moment, I’ll be ready soon.”

The uncle and nephew barely made it in time for the flight to Tokyo.

A natural disaster struck, causing significant losses in eastern Japan. Many refugees in the disaster-stricken areas faced difficulties, prompting Hayato Teraoka and many seniors to decide to organize a charity ice show. All the ticket proceeds from the performance would be donated to the disaster-stricken areas.

Since many world-famous athletes in the adult category were preparing for the World Championships in April, they initially did not plan to invite active athletes from Japan. When sending out invitations, the focus was mainly on those who had already retired.

As the former top male single skater in China, Shen Liu also received an invitation. They cautiously asked him: “Is Tama-chan and his coach and junior brother available? If they are, the child can come with the coach and junior brother, and we will cover the airfare and accommodation.”

They not only had their eyes on Shen Liu but also targeted his descipline, ZhangJue, and his apprentice, Cha Hanbuhua.

After discussing with Shen Liu, they decided that the final heavyweight competition for the Junior Division in a season would be the Junior World Championships. Now that the Junior World Championships were over, Zhang Jue felt a kind of laziness that he couldn’t shake off. Instead of letting him continue to slump, spending his days yawning while looking at review materials, it was better to take him out to wake him up.

As for Cha Hanbuhua, with the caring guidance of the coaches and the tips on the A-jump from his senior brother, he had successfully landed a 2A and was attempting to break through the three-week jump challenge. This time, he was brought to the international stage to gain experience in performing abroad.

For young skaters, this kind of experience is invaluable. Not everyone has the mischievous spirit of Zhang Junbao and Zhang Jue, able to perform steadily at an international competition for the first time. With more practice, they would become more stable in future competitions.

The most important thing, of course, was the all-expenses-covered trip.

When Shen Liu went to inform Cha Hanbuhua, the boy’s mother was hanging a fresh lamb leg on a hook, using a knife to cut the meat. His older brother wiped his glasses, put down the account book, and stood up.

“Going abroad, huh? That’s nice. I’ll help him pack a few homework assignments to take with him.”

By the way, Cha Hanbuhua’s older brother was a sophomore in high school named Bain, a name rich in meaning. Translated plainly, it could be considered an indication of wealth.

Due to his clever mind, Bain could handle about eighty percent of the household chores. With a wave of his hand, he settled the matter of Cha Hanbuhua’s trip to Japan. When Zhang Jue learned of this, Cha Hanbuhua’s luggage and passport were already packed.

This guy was quite efficient.

As it was his first time going abroad, Little Cha Hanbuhua was a bit nervous. Zhang Jue shared a few pieces of gum with him, and only then did he open up, relying on Zhang Jue with a heart full of anxiety.

“Senior brother, I’ve never performed in front of so many people. Is it really okay? My difficulty level isn’t high, and I’m not very eye-catching. Will the audience like me?”

Zhang Jue looked at Cha Hanbuhua and praised him: “For an 11-year-old kid, Hanbuhua, you’re already outstanding. Plus, you’re handsome. Standing on the ice, you’ll definitely be super eye-catching. Have confidence in yourself.”

Little Hanbuhua had dark skin, and the ice surface was white. Standing on it, he would indeed be eye-catching. Zhang Jue’s praise wasn’t insincere at all. Once he said this, Cha Hanbuhua truly believed it. The child then revealed a happy smile.

The two coaches sat in the front row, having a tête-à-tête.

Shen Liu asked Zhang Junbao: “I remember you were going to choreograph ‘Mongolian Prairie Homes’ for Cha Hanbuhua. Do you still have time to prepare your own program?”

Zhang Junbao confidently nodded: “I’ll use the ‘Memory’ program I skated before. Don’t worry, I can still fit into the costume.”

Although it felt a bit tight, it was a V-neck anyway, so stretching it a bit more wouldn’t be a problem.

Shen Liu, without showing any signs, glanced at his senior brother’s chest and fell into silence. However, Zhang Junbao eagerly asked him: “Hey, never mind about me. What about you? What are you planning to skate?”

Shen Liu shook his head and smiled: “I didn’t have time to prepare a new program, so I’ll just continue using the performance I skated in Vancouver.”

A hint of regret appeared in his eyes: “If it weren’t for this sudden incident, the commercial shows tend to prefer active athletes. They have higher popularity, and among retired skaters, there are many former world champions. Speaking of which, we’re still remembered by figure skating fans mainly because of little Jue influence.”

If it weren’t for Zhang Jue making a strong presence on the world stage, the two of them, as accompanying coaches in the coaching box, would rarely appear. Originally, with their achievements and popularity during their active years, it was challenging for people to recall them at this time.

That’s how it is in figure skating, even with high artistic elements, it remains a competitive sport. People tend to focus on the strong competitors, witnessing intense clashes for championships. Beneath their thrones, there are many silent and unnoticed second and third-tier athletes.

Even the coaches of champion athletes attract more attention than these second and third-tier skaters.

However, they had all retired due to injuries, and they were not young anymore. Even if they chased mischievous kids on the ice every day and couldn’t guarantee how well they could skate during performances, their participation in this charity show was more about filling the numbers. Zhang Jue was the star, but as long as they thought about getting back on the ice, the two coaches were happy.

But when it came to Zhang Jue’s performance…

Shen Liu’s expression was subtle: “Is he still insisting on changing the program?”

Zhang Junbao remained expressionless: “He said others are suffering, and skating a cheerful piece like ‘Little Crocodile’ wouldn’t be appropriate; it would feel like crashing the party. So, he asked Madam Miya to hastily choreograph a new program. They haven’t had much time to rehearse, so we’ll see how it goes.”

Actually, the most significant issue wasn’t the new program. Adapting to a performance program isn’t that difficult since the difficulty level of exhibition skating is relatively moderate. The more considerable challenge was Zhang Jue’s new costume.

It turned out that when Zhang Qingyan learned that her son lacked suitable clothing, she altered her own clothes from her younger days.

Zhang Junbao was surprised to find out that his sister knew how to sew, but when he thought about Zhang Jue nonchalantly packing the white costume, which originally belonged to women, into his luggage, joyfully suggesting pairing it with black pants for the new program, the uncle felt complicated.

He sighed: “I know little jue doesn’t have much money, and there won’t be any reimbursement for a commercial show just to make a new costume. But I have money, and his family is willing to support him. However, this kid insists on wearing his mother’s old clothes, making it seem like our family is poor.”

Shen Liu looked puzzled: “Is that your main concern?”

Shouldn’t the main point be that Zhang Jue’s costume was originally designed for women?

Although the two retired senior men’s singles skaters were somewhat anxious, when the rehearsal for the commercial show began, the organizers praised both Shen Liu and Zhang Junbao.

Shen Liu didn’t need to be mentioned, he had retired just one season ago and had a burst of popularity during the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Even after retiring, he immediately took over Zhang Jue, a little fairy who could attract a large number of fans with just his good looks. Unexpectedly, Zhang Junbao also received much praise.

For the sake of convenience during the event, he wore a tight UA sportswear while on the ice, revealing the muscle texture of his chest, abdominal muscles, shoulders, and back. Several openly gay retired skaters couldn’t take their eyes off him, and when passing by Zhang Junbao, their skating speed would decrease by eighty percent.

Zhang Jue also knew that his uncle had quite the physique, but everyone usually trained on the ice wearing warm jackets, and high-difficulty moves were impossible. So, this was the first time he witnessed firsthand what his coach uncle, who used to be an athlete, looked like on the ice.

Similar to Zhang Jue, Zhang Junbao was also a powerful skater with high speed on the ice, and even after so many years of retirement, his skating speed hadn’t slowed down.

With a swooshing sound, the retired uncle of eight years executed a 2A, landing quite steadily. Especially with a high degree of height, he left Zhang Jue, who was known for his spin speed, far behind.

Hayato Teraoka looked at this senior’s jump with amazement: “Senior condition is excellent.”

Zhang Jue supported his chin with both hands, squatting: “Yeah, but unfortunately, his hip bone was severely injured back then. It almost required metal joint replacement. If he didn’t want to spend the second half of his life in a wheelchair, he couldn’t jump the triple jump and even had to reduce the number of 2A jumps. For him, even running would put too much pressure on his joints, so his usual aerobic exercise is swimming.”

If it weren’t for injuries, with his uncle’s determination to continue eating fitness meals and frequently lifting weights, Zhang Jue had no doubt he would persist in skating until the age of forty.

Because Zhang Junbao loved figure skating so much.

A warm smile appeared in the child’s eyes.

Uncle, being able to return to the ice as a performer, you must be very happy now.

He looked at the figure of Cha Hanbuhua practicing the 2A and sighed silently

Little Cow, you must skate well. When Senior Brother can’t skate anymore, it will be your responsibility to continue on this path with our coaches.

 

 

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