The Russian pianist Lochter’s version of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 was considered the most powerful version of the piece throughout history. It was said that music from the “warrior nation” was best interpreted by one of their own, and if the performer was also from this warrior nation, it was like adding three layers of buffs.

Zhang Jue stared at Ilya on the ice in shock: “He can match so well with classical music?”

Although it was always said that people from the Mao family had incredibly strong artistic genes, this was simply astonishing.

Ilya, who had been highly anticipated since his days in the junior group, repeatedly failed to meet expectations after moving up, due to immature expressive skills, struggling to find his performance style, and technical mistakes. Not only was he overshadowed by Zhang Jue, who was two years younger, but he also couldn’t defeat Hayato Teraoka, who didn’t have the same nationality advantage.

Despite the early hype that he would be a strong contender for Olympic gold, with many skating fans even playfully calling him the “Russian Crown Prince,” the reality was that the day of his coronation seemed far away. He remained under the shadow of an “uncrowned king,” while the Japanese “prince” eyed his position hungrily

It seemed quite tragic when you thought about it. Some people even said that of the “Three Musketeers,” the Russian prince was the most disappointing. The Russian Skating Federation judges practically fed him points, but he always fell just short. In contrast, the “little crocodile,” who had no such support from the judges, stood out as an inspiring underdog who had built half an empire with his own efforts.

The one speaking was Huang Ying, and Zhang Jue, who was listening, thought to himself that Ilya’s journey really was inspiring. Wasn’t his own current success built entirely by himself as well?

“You pair skaters at least have veterans like Jin Meng and Yao Lan as your predecessors, with Sun Qian as the head coach of the national team and your coach being a former world champion. But for me, a men’s singles skater from China, who had to channel decades of spiritual energy just to draw a legendary card, it’s really all on me, isn’t it?”

Huang Ying stared at him with a jealous look: “But you have such an amazing coaching team.”

Coach Lu, who specialized in basics like skating and spinning, and was good at fixing technical flaws, Coach Shen for jumps, and Coach Zhang for strength and performance—these three formed the Iron Triangle of men’s singles skating in the country. The training plans they created for Zhang Jue, along with their shared insights, were used as models for other coaches.

Especially Coach Zhang, whose precision in making training plans was the best Huang Ying had ever seen. This entire group revolved around Zhang Jue as the core. Who else received this kind of treatment?

“Oh, and you also have a nutritionist with a PhD who’s willing to follow you to the national team,” Huang Ying added.

Zhang Jue coughed, propping his chin on his hands. “Now that you mention it, Director Sun did say that when the off-season comes, they’re going to invite a physical training expert from Springfield College to come and teach our team.”

Apparently, it cost a lot of money, so hopefully it would be worth it.

The main issue was that Zhang Junbao had been talking about going abroad for further studies, but since the Japanese Skating Federation would be coming over to exchange ideas with them this year, he couldn’t go. Coach Shen had already studied in Japan, and Coach Lu, at seventy-three years old, could hardly travel. So, they had to invite someone over instead.

After finishing his final stretch, Zhang Jue got up and landed a 3A jump on dry land. With his current strength, both his takeoff and landing were packed with the explosive power of a little cannonball. Guan Lin whistled at the sight of his leg muscles.

“Wow, that’s some serious height!”

Huang Ying rested her chin in her hands and remarked: “He’s got the strength, and having ample power allows him to make his jumps look even lighter and easier.”

Watching Zhang Jue complete his quadruple jump with ease, many would mistakenly think that quads were simple. But in reality, without years of fundamental training, even after a full day of practice, most people could only manage triple jumps.

There were only 12 male skaters worldwide who could consistently land quads, and they were all podium contenders in the Grand Prix events. Aside from the “Three Musketeers,” whether others could even make it to the final depended on their current form and nationality advantages.

When the second-to-last group finished, Ilya was in first place overall. Before the final group took the ice, the arena staff would resurface the ice. Since Zhang Jue was the last skater to perform in the final group, he had plenty of time to change into his costume.

Earlier, for his Moulin Rouge performance, he had used temporary hair dye and even curled his hair. While the color had now returned to normal, his curls hadn’t straightened yet, giving him a more exotic appearance when paired with his costume.

Zhang Jue smoothed down his curly bangs and said: “Well, the most handsome man in the arena is about to take the stage.”

It’s often said that when men realize they’re handsome and start showing off, they run the risk of becoming overbearing. But since everyone had seen Zhang Jue puff out his belly so many times when he was younger, when he flashed this little proud expression, it was as if a cute cartoon image of a crocodile puffing out its belly appeared behind him, with the background music of “Sappy Sappy” playing in the background.

It was kind of magical.

Shen Liu couldn’t help but sigh. “You know, kid, you’re more like Narcissus than the Prince of the Ocean.”

Zhang Jue replied: “But I’m not narcissistic.”

He was just stating facts.

Shen Liu was speechless. “…Okay, okay, you’re just overly confident.”

The short program rankings were as follows:

Zhang Jue: 115.3

Hayato Teraoka: 107.65

Sergey: 104.55

David: 102.8

Kelsen: 100.8

Jin Zixuan: 99.6

Out of the six skaters, five scored over 100, and there was even a new world record. This year’s World Championships truly lived up to its reputation as a battleground.

Oh, and yes, people weren’t mistaken—Brother Jin had a breakout performance in the short program!

He landed a 4S, a 4T+3T, and a 3A, barely scraping into the final group for the free skate. As a result, he became the third China men’s singles skater to make it into the final group of the free skate at the World Championships, following Shen Liu and Zhang Jue.

When people saw this result, they were stunned. Was this really Brother Jin? Was he actually on his game today?!

After years of performing like an “ice broadcast calisthenics” skater, Jin Zixuan, reflecting on his struggles, took Zhang Junbao’s advice and enrolled in a Latin dance class at a dance studio. The instructor was reportedly an old university friend of the head coach, a campus heartthrob from the dance department at some arts academy who had won a gold medal in Blackpool. Other than the high tuition fees, there was no downside.

Jin worked hard. He could only afford four hours of classes a week, but he spent over eight hours each week practicing in the studio. Now, his posture during skating had visibly improved, and his performance scores were rising accordingly.

The prerequisite for better-looking movements was hard work. Having gone through this struggle, Jin Zixuan now looked at Zhang Jue’s graceful skating with admiration, often exclaiming: “How much hardship did he go through to achieve this level?”

Jin was the first to perform in the free skate, to the Latin classic Sway. Some of his longtime fans whispered among themselves.

“If he went all out in the short program, he might collapse in the free skate.”

“Yeah, he always crashes in either the short program or the free skate.”

“It’s a shame, though. He’s improved so much this year. His jumps are much more stable. Ever since Coach Zhang joined the national team, both the senior and junior men’s singles divisions have been making progress. He was stuck in the provincial team for so long—it was such a waste.”

“Absolutely.”

As the music for Sway began, the first half was mostly set to a normal tempo, allowing Jin to complete most of his jumps. When the music sped up in the second half, he shifted to footwork and spins, finishing the program with a 3A.

He performed three quadruple jumps in his program: two 4Ts and one 4S that landed slightly off. Although the landing wasn’t perfect, the young man held on and didn’t fall!

Jin Zixuan, 20 years old, the second brother of China men’s singles, famous for his “windmill” moves, successfully cleaned up his short program and didn’t falter in his free skate either! When everyone thought he wouldn’t make it this year, he proved them wrong twice at the most important World Championships!

When the young man came off the ice, he was crying while putting on his jacket, then wiped his face, posed with a heart for the camera, and flashed a big grin, showing off all twelve of his teeth.

Zhang Jue watched his reaction and couldn’t help but say: “This is too exaggerated.”

Shen Liu and Zhang Junbao shook their heads in unison. “Not exaggerated.”

Despite having solid skills, Jin Zixuan had been held back for years due to unstable performances and expression, but this time, he finally broke through. Of course, it was worth celebrating. However, Zhang Jue, who had been shining since his youth years, couldn’t fully understand Jin Zixuan’s excitement.

Zhang Junbao thought to himself: “What a pity. Little Jin doesn’t have a high-level quadruple jump. With the three swordmen all working on higher-level quads, even though Little Jin has improved his expression, he’ll still struggle to compete with them. But it’s still a good thing that China now has another contender for medals at Four Continents.”

Sun Qian thought more about the future. If Zhang Jue were to have more injuries, they could limit his appearances in less important events and save him for key competitions. In necessary times, like in the Olympic team event, Jin Zixuan and Cha Hanbuhua could step in to relieve him, allowing Zhang Jue to focus on singles.

Having more options for lineup changes offered a good benefit. Even if the ace’s performance might shorten with age or wear and tear from training, Sun Qian could still adjust and plan accordingly.

If there was any regret about Jin Zixuan’s performance, it was his costume and his outfit, which were almost identical to the fall clothes. According to Huang Ying, Jin Zixuan would look ten times better if he lowered the collar, changed it to a more figure-flattering style, added some shiny rhinestones and beads, and maybe used some hair gel or concealer for any blemishes.

Yes, too bad Jin Zixuan didn’t wear earrings, or else Huang Ying would have suggested that too.

Guan Lin commented: “Not everyone is like Zhang Jue with crow-like aesthetics, wanting to make themselves all sparkly.”

Zhang Jue, who was being criticized, sneezed.

Kelsen, who performed after Jin Zixuan, also only did two low-level quadruple jumps, but his skating was very strong. If he swapped to ice dance shoes, he could compete with top-level ice dancers. As of now, he was one of the few male skaters whose footwork would always score a level 4 in every competition.

However, after Ilya exploded with a 305.9 total score, neither Jin Zixuan nor Kelsen managed to surpass him. Among them, Kelsen’s score was still behind Alexis. After David’s performance, Kelsen’s free skate score was slightly lower than Alexis’s, but his advantage in the short program allowed him to surpass Alexis in total score.

After Sergey performed, the top score once again belonged to Sergey.

This veteran, who was the oldest in the final group, was nearing the end of his career. He had often struggled in key competitions due to various reasons, but in this one, with two low-level quads—4T and 4S, which he had only recently perfected—he managed to score higher than Ilya, even with four quadruple jumps.

Sergey’s free skate was to the Latin song “Oyeme,” a love-themed Rumba. In terms of GOE and performance points, this veteran successfully outshone his juniors.

Vasily, standing by the side, smiled gently. “As an athlete, you should have had this kind of desperate attitude long ago, but it’s never too late. Well done, Sergey.”

When Sergey finished his program, Vasily personally draped his coat over him. Sergey, feeling honored, instinctively said: “Uh, after the World Championships, I’m planning to buy some of Julie Wang’s spices to take home and clean my house. Do you want some?”

Julie Wang was the champion of Russia’s variety show “Spirit War,” and her spices were rumored to have a purifying effect. As soon as Sergey mentioned this, Vasily’s expression immediately darkened.

Did he look like someone who needed to be purified?

Ilya, sitting to the side, thought to himself: “This is probably the reason why Vasily never shows a good face to Sergey. Sometimes, Sergey really doesn’t know how to speak.”

When Teraoka Hayato took the ice, the atmosphere became tense because he was widely considered a strong contender for the gold medal. He was the first athlete in the world to land a 4F and had excellent skating and spins, a unique and classical performance style, and a stable mindset.

Coach Lu said in a low voice: “Both he and Zhang Jue can make it to the podium, but the one in better form will take the gold.”

Not to hype it up or belittle anyone, but their strengths were quite close. Zhang Jue had developed the most types of quadruple jumps, and his performance score was very high, but his limit was four quadruple jumps in the free skate. Anything more, and he’d lose his stability, or it would be difficult for him to balance performance and jumps.

Besides, Zhang Jue had hurt his abdominal muscles during practice, so his form probably wasn’t as perfect as his opponent’s.

It wasn’t just Coach Lu’s opinion. Sports commentators worldwide thought the competition between these two was very close, with the chances at about 60/40, depending on how each performed.

But on his opening jump, Teraoka Hayato’s 4F had a serious mistake.

He fell.

 

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