20. Wang Chuqin

National Table Tennis Team Training Hall.

The Olympics had just concluded, yet everyone still had many new journeys ahead, so their daily training remained intense.

Here, Wang Chuqin was once again practicing rallying with his girlfriend, mostly sending the ball into Duan Nanzhou’s hands. Both seemed quite happy with this arrangement.

Nearby, Ma Long was also training. He glanced over casually and thought the young couple’s training session was adorably sweet.

“Hey, Sister Nan!” Sasha’s loud voice suddenly drew everyone’s attention. From afar, it looked like Wang Nan had arrived.

“Hey, Ma Long!” Upon hearing the voice, Ma Long jogged over to greet her. After all, Wang Nan was once a key player of the national team, and everyone held great respect for her.

As Ma Long exchanged greetings with Wang Nan, he was introduced to the host Lu Yu and the cameraman filming behind them, realizing they were shooting a program.

Seeing Ma Long approach, the couple training nearby paused, waiting until he finished greeting Sister Nan before stepping forward.

“Sister Nan!” Duan Nanzhou and Wang Nan were quite familiar; they had even dined at her home before. Their two children admired and liked her a lot.

“Ah, Nanzhou, big head! Let me introduce you to the host Lu Yu.”

“Hello, hello!” Both sides shook hands warmly, completing the introductions.

“Sister Nan, what brings you here to watch us today?” Wang Chuqin, also acquainted with Wang Nan through playing with her kids, asked.

“I missed you all and thought I’d drop by to watch your training,” Wang Nan said as she introduced the two to the host and cameraman.

“Look at this handsome guy and beautiful girl, both talented and good-looking. Were you training together just now?” Wang Nan teased, knowing about the couple’s relationship but careful not to be too direct.

“Yes, Sister Nan, we’re going to be partners soon in mixed doubles, so we have to practice together!” Duan Nanzhou replied with a smile. She knew the older team members enjoyed teasing them and watching them fumble, but Duan usually didn’t give them the chance.

Wang Chuqin was about to speak, but Duan Nanzhou stopped him with a hand from behind.

Wang Chuqin silently withdrew his words.

At times like this, Duan Nanzhou dared not let him speak—he was prone to spilling secrets. Especially after the Tokyo Olympics, where he faced harsh criticism due to his P-card status, exposing their relationship now wouldn’t affect Duan Nanzhou much, but it would be a devastating blow to Wang Chuqin.

Later, clips from this episode of “A Date with Lu Yu” were dug up by fans. Everyone noticed Duan Nanzhou subtly tugging at Wang Chuqin from behind, wondering if she was trying to stop him from saying something he shouldn’t, or if this secret gesture hinted at their special bond.

Wang Nan’s visit was sudden but brief—a small interlude during national team training.

Afterwards, Duan Nanzhou and Wang Chuqin resumed practice. After all, what they said wasn’t a lie; the upcoming Houston competition would see them paired for mixed doubles.

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Houston World Table Tennis Championships.

Exiting the airport, Duan Nanzhou carried just a single backpack. Where was her suitcase? Obviously, it was with someone else.

Since a certain day, she hadn’t taken her suitcase herself. Her boyfriend had enthusiastically taken charge of both their suitcases—matching couple styles, one black, one white. The black one was Duan Nanzhou’s; the white one belonged to Wang Chuqin.

The rest of the national team was used to this and didn’t even glance twice.

Only fans and netizens found it odd. Photos taken secretly at the airport sparked questions: Did Duan Nanzhou really go without luggage? Was Wang Chuqin carrying too much? Some even guessed that one suitcase actually belonged to Duan Nanzhou.

However, none of this mattered to the Houston squad at the moment. Their arrival was tight on time, leaving no rest before diving into intense competition.

Duan Nanzhou’s schedule was heavy: competing in women’s singles, women’s doubles with Sun Yingsha, and mixed doubles with Wang Chuqin. She had matches almost every day.

Their first event was mixed doubles.

Wang Chuqin put extraordinary effort into coordinating with Duan Nanzhou. After the Tokyo Olympics, there were negative online comments; as a 5G youth, Wang Chuqin was well aware.

Many mocked whether he had the skill to qualify for the Olympics with a P-card; others doubted his partnership with Duan Nanzhou, questioning if he deserved to play with her. Various angles of criticism abounded.

But Wang Chuqin cared most about his own ability and the seamless pairing with Duan Nanzhou. Now, he worked harder for every match.

Daily training as teammates and their relationship as a couple had forged perfect harmony between Duan Nanzhou and Wang Chuqin. For their opponents, it was a lethal combination.

So, without much difficulty, they advanced to the finals, facing Japan’s Tomokazu Harimoto and Hina Hayata.

Watching Duan Nanzhou and Wang Chuqin’s flawless coordination and their meaningful glances, the Japanese duo was utterly outmatched. Hayata, in particular, looked at her partner with disappointment, then at the opposing pair’s closeness, shaking her head in dismay.

Duan Nanzhou and Wang Chuqin decisively claimed the mixed doubles championship and walked to the podium together.

During the award ceremony, both the presenter and the audience urged the gold, silver, and bronze mixed doubles teams to embrace, symbolizing their harmonious partnership.

When it was Harimoto and Hayata’s turn, Hayata’s subtle disdain and reluctance were evident, though she gave a perfunctory hug. The young couple couldn’t help but chuckle, even exchanging amused glances at Harimoto.

Harimoto thought bitterly: “I’m the one who always gets hurt—the partner dislikes me, and the opponents can’t be beaten!”

The couple, initially watching with interest, soon became the focus of cheers, much to Wang Chuqin’s delight. Opportunities to publicly display affection like this were rare.

Unlike the awkward hugs before, Duan Nanzhou took the initiative and warmly opened her arms to embrace her boyfriend.

Seeing his girlfriend’s enthusiastic hug, Wang Chuqin’s smile radiated, and he naturally returned the embrace. They held each other for several seconds before releasing, as the crowd’s cheers nearly shook the arena.

The silver and bronze medalists, as front-row spectators, exchanged knowing looks, likely curious if the couple was truly dating since their on-court closeness had sparked rumors without confirmation.

The director and cameramen, aware of the audience’s interest, kept the camera fixed on the couple, seemingly trying to uncover their true relationship through the lens.

Wang Chuqin thought this was the highlight of the day, but then Duan Nanzhou picked up the gold medal to place it around his neck, prompting him to do the same with hers.

...

Their ceremony ended with a grand group photo.

However, the intimate moments between the couple during the ceremony quickly spread, especially as they were both striking and highly skilled—if they were a couple, they would be the epitome of table tennis pairs.

Afterward, Wang Chuqin insisted on taking a selfie with Duan Nanzhou, planning to post it as a summary after the Houston championships.

Duan Nanzhou, who barely used social media platforms besides WeChat Moments, couldn’t understand but respected this. However, she had zero confidence in her boyfriend’s photography skills.

So, taking photos was fine, but she insisted on handling the camera.

As for Duan Nanzhou’s photography skills, they were once average but had greatly improved. In the eyes of a certain system, idols who couldn’t take photos or selfies were utterly unqualified, so she was forced to master this skill.

With Duan Nanzhou finding the perfect angle, they took several intimate selfies, one showing her in front with Wang Chuqin peeking from behind.

Wang Chuqin was very pleased with the selfies and wondered why the same angle and pose looked so different when he took photos.

Duan Nanzhou recalled the many unflattering photos she had on his phone and didn’t want to say more—especially since Wang Chuqin thought they were all beautiful and kept praising her. “My girlfriend is so pretty!”

She just wanted to complain: her face looked blurred, her height of 1.68m appeared as 1.5m, and her long legs were reduced to average proportions. Where was the beauty? (Screaming)

Thus, she concluded that her boyfriend’s taste was mostly just blind. Upon discovering the photos, she revoked his photography privileges. From then on, she would be the one taking pictures.

After the World Championships concluded, Wang Chuqin was the first to post a selfie with Duan Nanzhou, captioned “Thanks to Houston for the mixed doubles,” followed by a summary post with a collage of group photos.

Most fans simply thought the mixed doubles gold was his only gold medal at this event, hence the separate post. A few found the caption odd but didn’t delve deeper.

Later, when the couple’s fans examined the posts, this became a key piece of evidence. People said the focus wasn’t on thanking mixed doubles but on the intimate selfie with Duan Nanzhou.

Some fans speculated whether this was a subtle official announcement.

Opinions varied widely, but there was no doubt the two were close—only unclear if this was before or after they started dating.

Wang Chuqin wanted to say: “I’ve dropped so many hints, yet you still say we’re not dating? Bad review! All of you fans get a bad review!”

The top player, who daily went unnoticed while dating, frequently went online acting wildly. He even wanted to warn netizens not to randomly pair Duan Nanzhou with other handsome male athletes! Where does that leave him?

Especially since in polls for the most compatible handsome male athlete with Duan Nanzhou, he was embarrassingly last. Who could tolerate that!

The top player often got annoyed, while Duan Nanzhou never understood the strange thoughts in her boyfriend’s head, just thinking that boys in love simply can’t be reasoned with normally.