Chapter Two: Victory Has Been Paid For

Xu pushed a bowl toward her, ending the conversation. “Don’t open it again. We train tomorrow.” Jianxia made no promise. Two days before the Red Foxes match, the landlord issued a final warning: pay the rent or clear out by Monday. At the same time, an edited video titled AMATEUR WOMEN’S TEAM SELLS PITY began trending locally. It showed Su Wanxing asking livestream viewers to sponsor the club. Training collapsed. “I was trying to sell shirts,” Wanxing said, turning off her phone. “I never said we were folding.” “We are folding,” Xiaoman replied, then immediately regretted it. On the bench, voice messages from Chen Sui’s mother piled up: When are you returning to school? Is there a future in this? Stop wasting tuition.