novelraw Chapter 64 The Rain God Keeps His Appointment
Chapter 64 The Rain God Keeps His Appointment
Song Ze threw his phone on the table.
three seconds.
A message popped up from Jam Hsiao: "Want to beat me? You'll have to ask the rain outside if it agrees first."
Song Ze stared at the message, his lips twitching slightly.
He considers "being able to go anywhere and get down anywhere" as his core competitiveness.
Song Ze typed: "This is simple. Watch my immortal technique, 'Rain-Breaking Technique'."
Jam Hsiao replied with a voice message immediately.
I clicked on it, and a lazy laugh came from the other end: "You're quite an interesting person."
It paused for a moment.
What are you planning to sing for the first episode?
Song Ze looked at the message.
He knew that Jam Hsiao sang "Lion" in the first episode, an original song by the Rainstorm Band, a hard rock song that was a hit, but he only got fourth place in that episode.
He can't say.
Song Ze typed: "You go first."
"Why should I speak first?"
"Because you asked first."
The two pushed each other across the screen for three rounds, neither of them missing a single word.
Xiao Jingteng was genuinely on guard, while Song Ze was pretending to be oblivious.
Hsiao Ching-teng then changed the subject and sent a voice message.
"Let's not talk about the song, you're too tense before the game. Can I play basketball with you?"
Song Ze was stunned for a moment.
He spent three days in the recording studio, repeatedly pushing the low register and working on breath control until his neck and waist were stiff.
He needs to release his physical energy.
Without hesitation, Song Ze abandoned the location of the VIP basketball court in the XH district and went there.
"Let's go, Shanghai is waiting for you."
Jam Hsiao replied with a fist emoji.
Song Ze locked the screen and leaned back in his chair.
This "Rain God" is a storm on stage, but a cat off stage.
The fact that he took the initiative to ask for a game shows that he couldn't hold back any longer.
The first eight contestants of "Singer" are all competing fiercely in their own corners.
The following day at noon, Xingyao Entertainment.
Song Ze stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the sky outside.
Just ten minutes ago it was a sunny day.
Now the raindrops are hitting the glass, pouring down like they're free.
Zhang Juan looked up from her workstation: "Didn't the weather forecast say it would be sunny turning cloudy?"
Song Ze didn't say anything, but took out his phone and glanced at the flight status that Xiao Jingteng had posted two hours ago.
"Boarding complete, destination: Shanghai Hongqiao Airport."
The rain started before the person even landed.
Zhang Juan was still cursing the weather forecast when Song Ze picked up his backpack and walked out.
Where are you going?
"Play ball."
"You're playing ball in this heavy rain?"
"Indoors."
2 PM, XH section, members-only stadium.
Jam Hsiao appeared at the door right on time.
The baseball cap was pulled low, a mask covered half of his face, and the black sports jacket was zipped up to the top.
Song Ze leaned against the front desk and gestured with his chin towards him.
"The Rain God has arrived."
Jam Hsiao took off his mask and smiled helplessly: "You believe in this too?"
"I don't believe it." Song Ze pointed to the torrential rain pouring down outside the window, "but the evidence is conclusive."
Hsiao Ching-teng didn't reply and walked straight to the locker room.
The two changed into their sports uniforms and came out.
Halftime, 1v1, first to 11 points.
Hsiao Ching-teng dribbled the ball twice and broke through without warning.
soon.
Song Ze moved sideways to block the position and then pushed up with his shoulder.
Hsiao Ching-teng stopped abruptly, then leaned back and shot, the ball bouncing off the front edge of the rim.
Song Ze grabbed the rebound and dribbled to the three-point line to reorganize the offense.
Hsiao Ching-teng pressed closer, arms outstretched, his steps quick and light.
After three rounds, Jam Hsiao's expression changed.
He originally thought Song Ze was the kind of artistic young man who wrote songs and played instruments, and at most, he would shoot three-pointers to show off.
But this person's core strength was too solid. When he was blocking, his waist and abdomen did not move at all. His defensive center of gravity was extremely low, and every step he took was in his path of breakthrough.
"You've trained before?" Xiao Jingteng asked, panting.
Song Ze dribbled the ball without looking up: "High school team."
No wonder.
Xiao Jingteng grinned, and something else appeared in his eyes.
It's not just politeness; it's a serious statement.
The intensity of the confrontation increased sharply.
The two players sprinted back and forth in the halfway line, the sound of their sneakers rubbing against the floor sharp and piercing.
Sweat was everywhere.
No one spoke; only the dull thud of the basketball hitting the ground could be heard.
Song Ze leads 9 to 8.
Just as Song Ze was about to throw the game-winning shot, a group of people rushed into the other half of the court.
Four or five young people, carrying tripods, fill lights and recording equipment.
The leader, with his dyed silver-gray hair and an outrageously loud voice, gestured towards the camera: "Family! We're having the whole court to play ball today!"
The sound of a basketball hitting the floor interrupted him.
The man with the silver-gray hair turned around with a frown and shouted at Song Ze, "Dude, can you keep it down? We're recording a video, and the audio is blasting."
Song Ze stopped dribbling and turned to look at him.
Hsiao Ching-teng also stopped, pulling his hat brim even lower.
The man with silver-gray hair walked over with two companions, acting like he was on his home turf.
"Bro, we booked this in advance. It's a collaboration with a blogger with millions of followers, a platform partnership. Could you please reschedule?"
He was halfway through his sentence when he finally saw Song Ze's face clearly.
Then I saw Jam Hsiao's face clearly.
The air was silent for a full three seconds.
Holy crap.
The silver-gray-haired man raised his voice eight octaves.
"Jam Hsiao?!"
His companions behind him all realized what was happening, their eyes widened, and their previous imposing aura vanished instantly.
"Song Ze! Song Ze, the author of 'Cooling Down'!"
"Holy crap—"
The man with silver-gray hair rubbed his hands together and approached, his smile practically melting on his face: "Teachers! I'm so sorry, I didn't recognize you earlier! Could you please sign my autograph? Or take a photo with me?"
Xiao Jingteng frowned.
He didn't like this kind of scene.
The game was interrupted, and I also had to deal with social situations.
He reached for the towel hanging on the sidelines, preparing to leave.
Song Ze's hand was placed in front of his chest.
Xiao Jingteng turned his head to look at him.
Song Ze didn't look at him; his gaze was fixed on the group of people opposite him.
The silver-gray-haired boy was still chattering away, saying things like, "Let's have a friendly match," "This will definitely be a hit," and "The two teachers can play whatever they want, we'll coordinate."
Song Ze bent down to pick up the basketball from the ground and slapped it with one hand.
The sound wasn't loud, and everyone fell silent.
"Play half the game," Song Ze said. "It's 2 against 3, whoever loses leaves."
The silver-gray-haired man blinked: "Huh?"
"Don't understand? It's two against three of you. If we lose, we leave; if we win, you leave."
Xiao Jingteng looked at Song Ze's profile and his lips twitched slightly.
The man with the silver-gray hair exchanged a glance with his companion, his eyes darting around.
Losing provides topics of conversation, winning provides even more.
You can't lose money no matter what.
"become!"
As soon as the ball was spun, Song Ze didn't hold back.
He received the ball and drove straight through, squeezing past two defenders to score with a layup.
Clean and neat.
Hsiao Ching-teng was ignited.
His dribbling rhythm suddenly quickened, his footwork became aggressive, and his entire aura shifted from "lazy cat" to "storm frontline".
Song Ze, with his back to the goal, sensed Xiao Jingteng cutting in from the wing.
Without turning around, he delivered a bounce pass at a tricky angle.
The ball went through the defender's legs and bounced precisely into Hsiao Ching-teng's hands.
Hsiao Ching-teng received the ball, took a step and made a layup, which went in cleanly.
The two gave each other a high five, but said nothing.
The three internet celebrities on the other side weren't there to hang around either.
They are young, physically fit, and eager to win.
If you beat the celebrity, once this material is released, the traffic will skyrocket.
The two sides traded blows, and the score remained very close.
The final ball, Song Ze had possession.
He shrugged, and two people rushed at him simultaneously.
Song Ze stopped abruptly, and the ball flew out from his waist.
Hsiao Ching-teng received the ball, faced the last defender, and without any fancy moves, took a hard step and made a layup.
The ball spun twice and then landed in.
With his silver-gray hair and hands on his hips, he was panting heavily, his face beaming with excitement: "You two teachers are awesome!"
He turned to the camera, gave a thumbs-up, and then told his team to pack up the equipment.
Before leaving, he quietly paid the fee for booking the entire stadium.
The person is gone and everything is clean.
Song Ze and Xiao Jingteng collapsed on the floor, their chests heaving violently.
The ceiling lights were blindingly bright, making my eyes ache.
It was quiet for a long time.
Xiao Jingteng spoke first, staring at the ceiling, his voice muffled: "Song Ze, I have something to tell you."
"Um."
"I'm scared."
Song Ze turned his head to look at him.
Hsiao Ching-teng's face was covered in sweat, and his Adam's apple bobbed.
"You've seen it all in the past few years. The market is shrinking, and the audience is leaving. I brought the Storm Band onto 'Singer' not to prove how awesome I, Jam Hsiao, am."
He paused for a moment.
"I want people to know that rock and roll is not dead."
It paused again.
"But what if I get eliminated in the first round? What will those people write? 'A rock singer eliminated in the first round proves that rock is outdated'—I don't even want to think about it."
The only sound in the stadium was the hum of the air conditioners.
Song Ze unscrewed a bottle of mineral water, took a sip, and wiped his mouth.
He couldn't just say, "Don't worry, you'll definitely advance."
That's so fake.
Why think so much?
Xiao Jingteng turned to look at him.
Song Ze's tone was very calm: "The market is like the rain outside, you can't control it, and you don't need to control it. What you can control is what you sing and how you sing it for those four minutes on stage."
He stood up and dusted off his pants.
"Come on, I'll take you out to eat."
Xiao Jingteng lay on the floor, staring at Song Ze's outstretched hand.
He paused for a few seconds, stunned.
Then he laughed.
He grasped Song Ze's hand and was pulled up.
"Are you treating?"
"Yes, I'll treat you to all the food in Shanghai."
Hsiao Ching-teng patted him on the shoulder and didn't say anything more.
The two walked side by side toward the locker room.
Outside the stadium, it was still raining.
Song Ze pushed open the door and glanced at the gray sky.
My phone vibrated.
Tian Xiwei's message: "Brother, the partner training notice came down. I'll be reporting next Monday. There's something I want to ask you."