He used to run outside all the time and never paid attention to sun protection. His face looked older than his peers. Now that he is mixed with energetic athletes, he looks even older.
He was drinking water by the playground at that time.
Lin Jiaqiao walked closer and saw clearly that the short old man next to him was not a coach, but the vice president of "Youxian Reading Newspaper".
What is more embarrassing than being caught slacking off by your boss? Probably, using work as an excuse to slack off and being caught by your boss again.
Before Lin Jiaqiao could figure out how to fool him, Cui Boxing laughed, "You even brought a novelist with you."
The vice president’s face was the same as it was two years later, a mean liberal arts guy looking like he had never gotten younger.
This is what Lin Jiaqiao looked like when he was interning at Youxian Reading Newspaper. Now that Lin Jiaqiao has died twice and been reborn, he still looks like this.
Hua Zong once speculated that perhaps the vice president looked like this when he was born.
When the vice president saw Lin Jiaqiao, he was not angry. Instead, he looked like he had seen a savior:
"You are here to persuade your master as well. You came just in time. This old guy is crazy and really wants to be an athlete."
"I've been living a foolish life and brought trouble upon myself."
Cui Baixing was not angry either. He smiled and said, "Don't call me master. I have never taught Brother Bird a single move. Brother Bird is self-taught."
Although it was his second rebirth, Lin Jiaqiao didn't know what he should do to save the dead.
She thought that breaking the original trajectory would be the simplest and most effective method.
As long as Cui Boxing doesn't drive and doesn't take that road on April 20th, Lin Jiaqiao is willing to pay for him to go abroad for a trip.
Lin Jiaqiao suggested, "Why don't you and Jingjing take a few days off. You see, your body can't take it if you practice every day."
Cui Boxing disagreed, "You don't understand because you have never been involved in sports. It's easy to give up sports, but it's hard to pick it up again."
"Look at these guys. I can't beat them physically to begin with. If I take a break, I'm doomed. I won't be able to win the gold medal."
Seeing that Lin Jiaqiao didn't mention the matter of persuading Cui Boxing to go back, the vice president glared at her fiercely and took action again: "No, Old Cui, what's wrong with you? Think about it yourself. Can you win a gold medal in the Olympics?"
Cui Boxing did not argue with him and only spoke with facts:
"I went undercover in a pyramid scheme den, and everyone said it couldn't work."
"I went to report poaching, but everyone said it couldn't be done."
"Before we succeeded in what we did, everyone said we couldn't do it. So tell me, can I succeed?"
The vice president was choked to death and just when he wanted to quarrel with him, Cui Zijing came.
Cui Zijing is not a beauty in the traditional sense. She has a slightly protruding jawbone and thick eyebrows, and looks heroic and never-give-up.
The most beautiful feature of her face is her eyes, which are standard almond-shaped. According to the vice president, these eyes are exactly the same as her mother's.
Cui Baixing's wife was once the most famous reporter for Youxiandubao, but unfortunately she died young. He Youwei became famous by imitating her.
Lin Jiaqiao had met Cui Zijing before. At that time, her eyes were not sick yet and she looked energetic, like a deer in the woods in the early morning, smart and full of vitality.
They were still in high school at that time, and Cui Zijing had some of the innocence of a child, as well as the arrogance of a young person. She said more than once that she must be the first Asian to win the women's 400-meter championship at the Olympics.
Lin Jiaqiao spent most of his high school time as a lazy guy, who just wanted to eat and wait for death all day long. He especially admired people who had ideals and goals.
She still remembers how proud Cui Zijing looked when she said this.
In fact, Cui Zijing looks very energetic now, but her eyes have lost focus and vitality.
Lin Jiaqiao felt guilty when he saw the vice president's droopy eyelids, so he wanted to talk to Cui Zijing, but Cui Zijing said first: "Zhizhi is here."
She turned around again, accurately found the vice president's position, and greeted him.
The vice president was a very nice person, but he had a bad temper. Cui Boxing was well aware of his friend's problem and was worried that he would say something that would upset Cui Zijing, so he asked Cui Zijing to take Lin Jiaqiao to visit the school.
Cui Zijing was very familiar with the school. Every time she passed a turn or encountered an obstacle, she would take Lin Jiaqiao around it without waiting for Lin Jiaqiao to remind her.
Lin Jiaqiao was secretly amazed and curious about how Cui Zijing did it, but he didn't dare to ask for fear of offending her.
Cui Zijing seemed to sense her emotions and asked with some pride: "Am I really awesome?"
Lin Jiaqiao praised loudly: "You are awesome, do you have any special abilities? How did you do it?"
Cui Zijing said mysteriously, "I'm not that fast normally. I just pretended to be very agile to show off to you."
As if worried about being looked down upon by Lin Jiaqiao, Cui Zijing added: "Although not as fast as this, I am also walking pretty well."
Lin Jiaqiao sincerely praised her a few words and said, "Would it offend you if I asked you how you did it?"
Cui Zijing generously shared her experience, "It depends on the sense of smell, hearing, and muscle memory."
"Since I lost my sight, my other organs seem to be much more sensitive."
"This is the legendary compensation, right?" Cui Zijing placed her hand accurately on Lin Jiaqiao's shoulder. "Don't worry about offending me all the time."
"Having this kind of feeling towards me is the greatest offense."
Lin Jiaqiao replied: "I understand."
"I am also a person who speaks without restraint. It is also awkward for me to consider your feelings before talking to you."
Cui Zijing laughed heartily. She asked, "Are you here to persuade my dad to go back?"
Lin Jiaqiao was a little surprised, "Why do you think so?"
Cui Zijing said: "The deputy editor-in-chief has come many times before, and every time he said that the newspaper could not survive and would close down, and asked my dad to go back and take charge of the situation."
She looked at Lin Jiaqiao: "You really can't hold on any longer?"
Her eyes were unfocused, but Lin Jiaqiao felt like she was being stared at.
The vice president was not exaggerating.
At that time, their newspaper had gone bankrupt, and it was the president who paid for the reorganization of the studio and was able to keep the name of "Youxian Dubao".
Unlike the vice president, Lin Jiaqiao did not think Cui Boxing acted on impulse.
He is a mature adult who takes responsibility for his own life.
She didn't know how to answer, but she heard Cui Zijing say, "I overheard their conversation."
"Although the vice president said a lot, there is one thing I think is very true. My dad can't always be an athlete at his age."
"I know that he really likes his job as a journalist and is reluctant to part with Leisure Reading."
Cui Zijing paused for a few seconds and discussed with Lin Jiaqiao: "Zizi, can you discuss with the vice president and others to keep my father's job position?"
"Next year, after we finish the Olympics, I will persuade him to go back to work."
Lin Jiaqiao was a little surprised, "Master, will you agree?"
Cui Zijing was speechless. "My dad is almost fifty, well, over half a century old. He doesn't like sports to begin with, so what can you expect him to achieve with exercise?"
"It's cruel to say this, but in our competitive sports, being bad is the original sin."
Lin Jiaqiao didn't believe it: "But, Master said that your coach is very optimistic about him."
Cui Zijing whispered, "In fact, the coach has been looking for a pacemaker for me. In order to protect his self-esteem, we have been meeting secretly."
She gossiped a little, "In fact, when my dad first came, everyone in the team was betting on how long he could last."
Although her tone was filled with disdain, her face was full of pride: "I told them that my dad always keeps his word and will definitely stand on the track with me at the Olympics, but they didn't believe it."
"You don't know, my dad couldn't run as fast as me at first, but now he runs as fast as me."
Before Lin Jiaqiao left, he saw Cui Boxing again on the playground.
The vice president had already left, and he was the only one sitting on the lawn in a daze.
Lin Jiaqiao had seen his back many times.
Sometimes he was at her desk, revising manuscripts for her, and sometimes he was standing by the window, smoking.
In fact, he doesn't look like Lin Dapeng at all, but for some reason, every time Lin Jiaqiao sees his back, he can't help but think of his father.
She walked over and sat next to him, wanting to talk to him about the car accident, but Cui Boxing misunderstood her intention.
He thought Lin Jiaqiao also came to persuade him to return to "Youxian Reading the Newspaper".
Cui Baixing asked: "What am I like in your mind?"
Lin Jiaqiao recalled the report about him she had seen on TV when she was in high school, and she replied, "He is a hero."
Cui Baixing was stunned for a moment, then he laughed: "Why do you have such an idea? Is it because of what I did?"
Lin Jiaqiao nodded, and then he said, "I just did my job, I can't just take the salary for nothing."
"In fact, I have always been very worried. I am afraid that those who I exposed would retaliate against me. Especially after Cui Zijing fell ill, I became even more afraid."
Lin Jiaqiao asked: "So that's why you left You Xian Du Bao?"
Cui Boxing was silent for a moment and replied: "I think that mass media will die sooner or later."
"Just look at the newspaper Youxian Dubao, and you'll see that sales are getting lower and lower, and subscriptions are not even a fraction of what they used to be."
"The emergence of the Internet was the first impact on traditional media, and the popularity of smartphones was the second. Now everyone is a microphone, and the public no longer needs the media."
"I felt that Youxiandubao would close down sooner or later, and I didn't want to see that day, so I ran away first."
“That’s why I don’t want to go back.”
Cui Baixing looked at Lin Jiaqiao and asked, "Do you still think I'm a hero now?"
Lin Jiaqiao said: "I didn't expect that you still have such a heavy idol burden."
"My dad said that being a good person all your life is not easy, and you want to be a hero all your life."
"In one's lifetime, it is enough to have one thing you can brag about to your descendants. You have so many things to brag about, so you should be content."
"Stop making it hard on yourself."