Chapter 85: A Good Man

By October 15th, when Rousseau had finally settled into his new home, his ‘Strength’ attribute had already risen to 41. ‘Strength’ and ‘Agility’ had once again reached a state of equilibrium. Not only did this allow ‘Acceleration’ to deliver even better speeds, it also soothed his compulsive tendencies. Rousseau had found it unbearable when his ‘Strength’ and ‘Agility’ stats had been locked at extremes—one at 40, the other at 41. Now, the numbers were balanced and it brought him a measure of comfort.

Moreover, his muscle strain had completely healed. Rousseau planned to return to his normal training routine on the 16th. But before that, there was the matter of moving house to take care of.

In Pengcheng, there was a tradition that moving into a new home required making offerings to the gods and hosting a meal for friends. Rousseau took stock of the people he knew and first sent invitations to Tian Shiwei, Juno, and Zheng Ni, since they were training at the sports school and it was convenient for them to visit. Later, he planned to host another meal for the elderly landlord.

As for the furnishings in the home, neither Rousseau nor Lu Xiaoyu had touched them. The landlord, having decided to burn his bridges and plunge into business, had left behind all the household appliances. Since Rousseau was left with empty pockets after buying the house, he decided not to change anything for now and would only replace things when he had more money.

So when Tian Shiwei and Zheng Ni arrived at Rousseau’s ‘new’ home, they couldn’t help but remark that it wasn’t very ‘new’ at all.

As for why Juno didn’t come—

“She took leave to go home. Her father needed her for something. The meeting was arranged over a month ago, and Xiao Nuo’s been using her participation in the Dongqing Games as an excuse to avoid it. Now she can’t dodge it any longer,” Zheng Ni explained.

Rousseau nodded, feeling a little disappointed. Since returning from the Dongqing Games, he hadn’t had a proper chance to catch up with Juno. Still, his expression didn’t reveal much.

Zheng Ni watched Rousseau’s stoic face and added, “I heard it’s for a matchmaking meeting.”

Oh. Rousseau nodded again, still without any expression.

Zheng Ni thought to herself, is this man made of wood?

“You two go ahead and sit. I’ll make dinner,” Rousseau said. “Lu Xiaoyu will keep you company.”

“No need to be so formal with us! Xiaoyu, it’s been more than a month since I last saw you. Come, let Shiwei see if you’ve grown taller!” Tian Shiwei greeted Lu Xiaoyu with obvious delight.

“Thank you, Brother Shiwei, for helping us with our household registration,” Lu Xiaoyu replied sweetly. She was finally no longer an unregistered resident, and enrolling in school no longer required paying exorbitant transfer fees—a significant expense saved.

“No need to thank me, it was nothing. Your brother is the impressive one—if he hadn’t gotten into the sports school, he wouldn’t have met me. In just three months, he became the best in the country at 200 meters. With talent like that, he’d excel at anything. My help was a mere trifle,” Tian Shiwei said, full of admiration.

Indeed, even the matter of household registration was something Rousseau could have solved himself, simply by asking Lu Jinrong to put in a word at the city office. With Rousseau’s current athletic achievements, he was already a city treasure; such a request would be no problem at all.

“In our high jump and sprint squads, Rousseau was the last to join, but the first to achieve results. And then you think about Xu Taiming, who retired after the Provincial Games—when you have achievements, you truly stand out,” Zheng Ni said with a sigh. Looking at the apartment, she thought to herself that even if she trained until retirement, her own subsidies would never buy her such a place. In sports, the strong always prevail—behind every Rousseau, there were countless retired athletes like Xu Taiming.

“Rousseau’s achievements didn’t come easy. You don’t know how badly he was targeted by the head coach in the national team. I thought he’d never break through, but he ended up winning the championship. Zheng Ni, you don’t know—after winning, Rousseau confronted the head coach right in front of the press. It was so bold!” Tian Shiwei recounted in a hushed voice.

He spoke quietly because both Lu Jinrong and Rousseau had told him not to spread word about what had happened at the Dongqing Games press conference in Aocheng.

As for why Tian Shiwei knew so much despite not being present, that was simply his basic skill set—he was, after all, the team’s information broker.

“My brother was targeted by the head coach?” Lu Xiaoyu whispered.

“Yes—he was denied training, not allowed to compete, and forced to promise medals. Rousseau was pushed to the verge of collapse. But after he recovered, it was like he became a different person—his results improved dramatically…” Tian Shiwei vividly described everything that had transpired within the national sprint team.

The story was already legendary, but in Tian Shiwei’s telling, it became almost magical. Zheng Ni couldn’t help but exclaim again and again, “Really? Is that possible? It actually happened?”

Lu Xiaoyu, meanwhile, fell silent. Listening to the accounts of Li Yan’s ‘trial by fire’ coaching methods, her large eyes grew angrier and angrier. By the end, when she heard that the newspapers hadn’t reported Rousseau’s accusations against the national team coach Li Yan, she found it utterly incomprehensible.

“Why didn’t the newspapers print what my brother said? How can a coach like that still be on the national team?” Lu Xiaoyu demanded, frowning.

Watching her furrowed brow, Tian Shiwei simply found her adorable.

“The reporters at those press conferences are all from official media, under strict supervision. There are rules for what can and can’t be reported. What Rousseau said—no, that was practically a wall poster. There’s no way it would ever make it to print,” Tian Shiwei explained with a shake of his head.

“Is there really nowhere to appeal?” Zheng Ni was also angry. “Does this mean Rousseau can never return to the national team?”

“That’s hard to say. Maybe someday Rousseau will let it go… though that’s unlikely—he’s as stubborn as they come. Otherwise, it depends on when he becomes the undisputed top sprinter in the country, not just in the 200 meters, but the 100 as well. Only then, if he refuses the national team’s call-up, will it become news and carry real weight!” Tian Shiwei analyzed.

“It sounds nearly impossible,” Zheng Ni said. Having spent years within the system, she knew just how powerful coaches, the national team, and the central administration truly were. Compared to these institutions, an athlete was just a grain of sand.

“Dinner’s ready!”

At that moment, Rousseau emerged from the kitchen carrying dishes. In a little over an hour, he had prepared six dishes and two soups. After paying their respects to the gods, they began to eat. Zheng Ni’s eyes widened at the first bite, exclaiming over and over how delicious it was. Tian Shiwei tried it too and was equally effusive in his praise.

“You’re the perfect man!” Zheng Ni complimented Rousseau. He could earn money, he was handsome, and he could cook—he would be a perfect match for any woman… except perhaps for a pampered heiress like Juno.

…

That evening, after dinner at Rousseau’s new home, he walked Tian Shiwei and Zheng Ni back to the sports school. The staff apartments were only separated from the school by a wall, so as they approached the entrance, they happened to see a Bentley parked outside. Juno was stepping out of the back seat, while a young man in a suit got out from the driver’s side.

“This is fine. Thank you for dinner,” Juno waved to the young man, who radiated an elite air. “You can go now.”

At that moment, Rousseau, Tian Shiwei, and Zheng Ni witnessed the scene. Tian Shiwei couldn’t help but remember the sight, just a few days earlier, of Rousseau riding his electric scooter with a woman in a black dress.

What was going on here?