Chapter 79: Playing Ball

Basketball courts had always been in high demand; in their county town, there weren’t many places to play. The courts in schools, for instance, typically didn’t allow outsiders; even as alumni, they were considered strangers once they’d graduated. Most of the courts they found were inside residential complexes. But the courts in those neighborhoods were always crowded. After all, basketball wasn’t just for young people like them.

This particular court was also in a residential community, but curiously, there was no one playing. The court looked almost new, the ground covered with a layer of matting. The matting had a hollow grid pattern, dotted with small raised bumps. It was supposed to be anti-slip, though Jiang Zheng and the others felt that it was actually even slicker than concrete once it rained. And if you fell on it, you’d end up with a neat grid-shaped imprint across your skin. Besides being slip-resistant, the matting also had a sound-dampening effect. The bounce of the basketball was quieter than on bare concrete, but not by much.

Finding such a court was no easy feat. And to have it all to themselves, with no one else around, was even rarer.

“Incredible, incredible! You even managed to find this court,” Jiang Zheng remarked.

“It’s just luck,” Yuan Yuhua replied modestly.

“There are eight of us, so let’s play four-on-four,” Yuan Yuhua suggested. He had actually wanted to invite ten people, making it five per side, but two couldn’t make it, so there were only eight. Still, eight was enough.

Team selection was simple: everyone stood together and showed either the front or back of their hand. Those who matched were put on the same team. Since there was no planning beforehand, the numbers didn’t always split evenly, but after a few rounds, it always worked out. It never took long.

Jiang Zheng and Yuan Yuhua ended up on different teams. Physically, Jiang Zheng’s team was at a slight disadvantage. Since this was just a friendly match among themselves, they kept things simple—no need to make it complicated. The point was just to have fun.

“I’ll guard him,” Yuan Yuhua announced, stepping in front of Jiang Zheng.

“You sure you want to guard me, Hua?” Jiang Zheng asked.

“Why not? Don’t worry, I’ll take it easy on you,” Yuan Yuhua grinned.

Jiang Zheng smiled enigmatically, saying nothing more.

Soon, the ball was passed to Jiang Zheng. He dribbled forward, Yuan Yuhua matching him step for step. When the skill gap isn’t huge, basketball becomes a contest of physical prowess. Jiang Zheng gave a sudden bump with his back, knocking Yuan Yuhua aside and breaking through his defense with ease. Then, charging ahead, he finished with an unstoppable layup, scoring cleanly. No one could stop him.

“Damn, when did you get so strong?” Yuan Yuhua exclaimed in surprise.

“I work out every day. Of course I’m getting stronger,” Jiang Zheng replied with a grin.

“No way, really?” Yuan Yuhua asked, half-skeptical.

“Absolutely. Try me if you don’t believe it,” Jiang Zheng said.

Yuan Yuhua pondered this. He’d always considered his own physical strength to be superior, and now that Jiang Zheng had surpassed him, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Jiang Zheng’s impressive performance drew more attention from the opposing team. Yet, even when double- and triple-teamed, he managed to break through thanks to his physical strength. Of course, they couldn’t have all five players marking him; if they did, the others would be left wide open.

Although Jiang Zheng shone on the court, the match wasn’t entirely one-sided. His team maintained a lead, but their teammates lagged behind in skill, which allowed the opposing side to keep the score close.

Time passed, and the game neared its end. Just then, a woman strode onto the court, her presence brimming with aggression. Her face was broad and stern, her expression harsh—clearly not someone to be trifled with. She marched into the middle of the court, arms spread wide to block their way, and shouted, “Stop! Stop right now!”

Jiang Zheng and the others halted, puzzled, unsure what she wanted. They’d been playing just fine—why was she suddenly interrupting?

“Auntie, what’s the matter?” Yuan Yuhua asked, stepping forward since he had organized the game.

“You’re all to stop playing! My daughter needs to study, and your game is disturbing her!” the woman declared.

Jiang Zheng and his friends felt a pang of embarrassment.

“Sorry, Auntie. We’ll leave in ten minutes,” Yuan Yuhua said politely.

“No! You have to leave now!” she shrieked.

Everyone looked at each other, reluctant to stop with only ten minutes left. Jiang Zheng thought for a moment and quietly suggested, “Maybe we should just go. It’s not right to disrupt someone’s studies.”

The others nodded in reluctant agreement. While they weren’t happy about it, putting themselves in her shoes, they realized it wouldn’t be good to interfere with someone’s education.

Yuan Yuhua was about to speak when, suddenly, the woman erupted in fury.

“I said stop! Stop playing!” she screamed, and began tearing up the court matting with her hands. The mats weren’t fixed down, so ripping them up wasn’t difficult.

Jiang Zheng and the others stared in shock. She was destroying the floor just because of an argument?

“What are we supposed to do?” someone asked nervously.

Jiang Zheng’s lips twitched. That mat wasn’t cheap.

“Auntie, we’ll leave, so there’s no need to rip up the mats,” Jiang Zheng called out.

“Mind your own business! I’ll tear it up so you can’t play!” the woman shouted back.

Jiang Zheng took a deep breath and turned to Yuan Yuhua. “We should call the police. She’s damaging public property—let the authorities handle it.”

“Call the police? Isn’t that a bit much? We can just leave,” Yuan Yuhua replied.

“That mat isn’t cheap. If we just leave, we won’t be able to explain ourselves later. So, we should report it,” Jiang Zheng insisted. He had already tried to reason with her, but she was only getting more destructive. He saw no reason to indulge her any further—she needed to learn a lesson.

“How expensive can these mats be?” Yuan Yuhua asked.

“It depends on the brand, but even the cheap ones are dozens per square meter, and the expensive ones are over a hundred. A standard court is fifteen meters wide and twenty-eight meters long. Do the math,” Jiang Zheng answered.

Yuan Yuhua pulled out his phone and did a quick calculation. The result startled him.

“This court’s matting costs thirty or forty thousand?” he whispered in shock.

Jiang Zheng shrugged. “Depends on the brand, but it’s definitely tens of thousands.”

“Then we’d better call the police,” Yuan Yuhua agreed.