In early January 2015, Zhang Jue successfully won the National Figure Skating Championships, claiming his fifth consecutive championship since he was 13 years old.

When Zhang Jue’s score was announced, the arena fell silent for a full three seconds. His competitors looked up at the seemingly god-like young man, while the fans were left with their mouths wide open, initially forgetting to cheer. Even the judges were shocked, wondering if they had made a mistake.

As they fairly and impartially scored Zhang Jue, they were stunned to find that his score was about 7 points higher than the new world record he had set at the Grand Prix Final.

Was he even human?

Then the cheers erupted, almost overturning the venue. Zhang Jue gave his uncle a fist bump, and his uncle praised him, saying: “You’re in good form.”

Originally, Zhang Junbao had been worried that after the Grand Prix Final, Zhang Jue’s performance would drop slightly from its peak, and he would need time to adjust through training before peaking again before the World Championships.

After all, athletes are human too, and everyone experiences fluctuations in form. His uncle had mentally prepared for this, but surprisingly, after a few days of rest, Zhang Jue’s technical form hadn’t improved much. He only performed a 4T and 4S in the national competition, but his artistic expression, though not as intense as during the Final, had developed a youthful agility that was typical of his younger years.

Most people believed that a person’s natural brilliance fades with time, but Zhang Jue’s performances this season, as Mia described, showed that he had added more performance skills and emotional depth, though the ethereal quality of his artistry had weakened slightly.

Well, Tree of Life was fine, as Zhang Jue’s love for his parents was evident. The main issue lay with Moulin Rouge.

However, Zhang Jue now seemed like someone blessed by a divine force, even bringing the ethereal quality back to Moulin Rouge.

Shi Mosheng and Fan Zhaoying commented: “Don’t you think Zhang Jue is like the rare ‘god card’ that the China men’s singles team finally drew after decades of luck?”

If it weren’t for all the country energy being concentrated in one person, how could he be so strong?

Fan Zhaoying responded: “Superstitions are not good.”

Besides, they hadn’t really invested much in figure skating; the money had mostly gone into ball sports and track and field.

In any case, Zhang Jue, along with Liu Yeming and Jin Zixuan, had earned spots to compete in the Four Continents and World Championships.

Around the beginning of February, Zhang Jue traveled to Seoul for the Four Continents Championships, as the Dragon Band’s song Sing to my baby went viral.

“On his car, speeding to 200, endless kisses in his dreams…”

At the airport, everyone’s ringtone was this song.

The song’s design was clever; the first half was filled with engine sounds and someone humming to the background music, with the human voice only becoming prominent when the lyrics “Turn the volume up” played. This quirky song, with its retro arrangement, became an instant hit with both young and nostalgic audiences, rapidly gaining popularity.

Zhang Junbao nudged Zhang Jue, saying: “You wrote a love song for the first time, huh?”

Zhang Jue rubbed his eyes, replying: “Yes, the inspiration came to me, and I finished both the arrangement and lyrics in about two hours. I rarely write so smoothly.”

The song’s design was a little unconventional, but since the result was so well received, it was boldly published online. It became the second viral hit from the Dragon Band after Stars Tonight.

Music producer La Dong also gained popularity because of it.

His uncle said: “Erde been learning composition lately, hasn’t he? Looks like he’s planning to focus on music now.”

Zhang Jue covered his face, saying: “Yeah, someone has to learn original composition. He’s the only one in the band showing talent in this, so it’s his turn.”

His uncle pushed him, saying: “I know you’re uncomfortable after the flight, so you should wait until we get to the hotel to rest.”

As Zhang Junbao had expected, Zhang Jue’s form fluctuated. Since his youth, the coaching team had intentionally timed his peak performances for the Grand Final and the World Championships. In between these two events, Zhang Jue’s form wasn’t at its peak.

Figure skating is one of the sports most dependent on form, and even top athletes can fall on the slippery ice if their condition is off.

Don’t misunderstand—Zhang Jue didn’t make any major mistakes at the Four Continents. He had one jump with an under-rotation, but otherwise, his jumps were stable. The one who struggled was two-time Four Continents champion Hayato Teraoka.

Teraoka performed a 4F with a stable landing, but after completing three quadruple jumps, a 3A, and a combination in the first half of his free skate, he ran out of energy in the second half, falling repeatedly, showing what could be described as a “god-like first half, trash-like second half.”

Despite both Zhang Jue and Teraoka attempting four quads, Zhang Jue managed to win the gold medal by a 10-point margin.

By then, Zhang Jue had collected the National Championships gold, Grand Prix Final gold, Four Continents gold, and World Championships gold, leaving only the Olympic gold to achieve a Grand Slam in men’s singles history.

A Grand Slam contender in the making.

Unfortunately, there were still two and a half years until the next Winter Olympics. On the return flight, Zhang Jue seriously told his coaches that he wanted to develop a new quadruple jump.

Coach Lu frowned: “Your 4lo+3T isn’t even consistent yet, with a success rate of less than 50%.”

Zhang Jue was confident, saying: “Practicing new jumps won’t affect my current jumps. Besides, if it’s a toe-pick jump, it might even be easier than the 4lo to learn.”

Since the 4lo is not the highest-scoring jump in the quad family, its difficulty increases significantly once you enter the four-rotation category. Zhang Jue found that it was actually harder for him to practice than a toe-pick jump, so focusing on learning new jumps seemed like a more efficient choice.

“If I can combine quad jumps into combinations, I’ve already mastered 4T+3T, 4S+3T, and 4T+1lo+3S. Isn’t that enough?”

Shen Liu looked worried: “But the World Championships are at the end of March. If you start training new quads now, and you get injured, it could directly impact your performance at the World Championships.”

Zhang Jue showed a nonchalant expression.

“If learning a new quad is going to cause a serious injury, then even if it doesn’t affect this season, it’ll still affect next season. But I’ll definitely learn new jumps, so it’s better to start early. The sooner I master it, the more time I’ll have to stabilize it before the Pyeongchang Olympics.”

Shen Liu and Zhang Junbao exchanged a glance.

They realized that Zhang Jue’s decision to learn new jumps wasn’t just to surpass his competitors, but also to ensure his victory in Pyeongchang.

Even though it was still the 2014-2015 season, Zhang Jue was already thinking years ahead and preparing.

Indeed, despite his youthful appearance, when it came to thoughtful consideration and long-term vision, Zhang Jue was unmatched by even the seasoned veterans and top coaches.

This time, Zhang Jue didn’t rest for long. He only took two days to adjust to the time difference and get back to training.

He didn’t take a break, so the coaches had to stay with him. During this time, Zhang Junbao had to call Yang Zhiyuan to assist Zhang Jue with pole drills.

Practicing new jumps with a pole is a common practice, but it was unfortunate that neither Zhang Jue’s uncle, who was only a little taller than Shen Liu, nor Coach Lu, who was 73 years old, could handle Zhang Jue’s weight. Only Yang Zhiyuan, who had experience in pairs skating, was capable.

Yang Zhiyuan came to help, and Zhang Junbao took care of Min Shan and Cha Hanbuhua.

Min Shan had also entered a growth phase, but unlike the rapidly developing eldest brother, Min Shan was small and slender, barely growing at all. She was expected to reach only about 1.55 meters at full height, so she hadn’t lost her jumping ability and could still perform a 3F+3lo. The coaching team was now considering having her try a 3A.

Cha Hanbuhua was practicing the 3A+3T combination and starting to build strength for quad jumps.

The sound of falls could be heard nearby. Although Zhang Jue had fallen in past training, the frequency of falls had only increased during new jump practice.

When Sun Qian arrived, he witnessed this scene.

He admired: “He’s already achieved so much, yet he still dares to endure this hardship. This young man is impressive.”

Zhang Jue got up from the ice, wiping the sweat from his eyes. Yang Zhiyuan asked: “Are you sure you don’t want to continue with the pole?”

“No, I’m done with the pole.”

Zhang Jue stretched his arm.

“For me, the pole is just to find the right feeling. After that, I just need to practice the full rotations and landings.”

Coach Lu paused, writing something in his notebook.

“Form fluctuations are greatly affected by emotions. When aggressive, jump quality is higher, but stability is lower.”

Sun Qian said to him: “Coach Lu, this year’s World Championships are in Shanghai, our home turf. The commercial performance named after Zhang Jue has been confirmed; it’s called Possibilities on Ice, or POI for short.”

“The company sponsoring the event is based in Shanghai, and their CEO will attend the event to watch. They hope to see Zhang Jue’s box-office appeal.”

The box-office appeal of athletes is determined by how well tickets sell for the competition.

Coach Lu asked: “Have the tickets sold out?”

Sun Qian grinned: “They sold out the first day of pre-sale.”

This year’s World Championship tickets ranged from 300 to 3000 yuan, and scalpers were reportedly selling prime seats for more than 8000 yuan. Despite the high prices, all tickets had been sold out on the first day of pre-sale.

Sun Qian thought, The ISU must be the happiest about this, because it had previously relied on sponsorships to stay afloat, but from this year, they are nearing a balanced budget. Zhang Jue’s presence has drawn attention from China’s huge market to figure skating.

Out of respect for money, they even allowed the Shanghai organizers to invite Lu Jin to score, which was unprecedented.

 

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