Chapter 375: Guiding Yui Kaoru

"Huangqian Yangyi, what do you think?" Miyuki turned his head to ask Huangqian Yangyi, who was sitting beside him, buried in his meal.

Huangqian Yangyi looked up: "I think, should we go a bit easy on them in the future? Don't play so ruthlessly, keep the score in check, and try to play as many innings as possible. That way, our team members will have more opportunities to get on the field. Think about it, between 5 innings and 9 innings—ending the game early every time is basically like playing half as many games."

Hearing Huangqian Yangyi's words, everyone present was stunned.

"Captain, that's not good, is it? Wouldn't that be considered throwing the game?"

"Bullshit! Who said that? Step forward."

Huangqian Yangyi put down his chopsticks, patted the table, and said: "This is to give everyone more chances to play and accumulate more match experience. If you're worried about stamina, you can completely increase the frequency of substitutions. Otherwise, it's always the same few starters going out to end the game quickly, but what about the others? What about the underclassmen? Are they not going to grow?"

After finishing, Huangqian Yangyi took a sip of water, "You tell me if that's right. We can't just graduate and leave behind a group of underclassmen with pitifully little match experience, right? If that happens, what's the point of Seido? Are we going to have an unprecedented collapse after a 5-year Koshien winning streak?"

Uh...

Everyone was a bit bewildered. Weren't they just talking about Inashiro Industrial and Teito High School? How did it suddenly get so serious?

However, it made a lot of sense.

Especially for the First String substitutes; if they really did this, their opportunities to play would increase by a lot.

"Hmm, what you say makes sense, but this matter still needs to be discussed with the Director. If he doesn't agree, we can't just do it on our own," Miyuki said.

For the future development of Seido, Huangqian Yangyi's sudden proposal was indeed a good thing: establish the tone of victory in the first half of the game, and use the second half to train the team members.

"Yeah, I'll talk to the Director when I have the chance," Huangqian Yangyi said. The tournament had already entered the Semi-finals; at this stage, there was no such thing as ending a game early. To bring this up, he would have to wait until the Spring Tournament was over.

The sudden proposal ended just as quickly, and Miyuki continued to ask: "Who do you favor for the next game?"

Huangqian Yangyi looked thoughtful, his fingers tapping on the tabletop.

"Teito, I suppose. After more than a year of growth, Mukai Taiyo is now capable of holding up the sky for Teito on his own. Not to mention their condition is much better than Inashiro Industrial's, and they have a batter like Inui Kengo on the team. Conversely, on Inashiro's side, while their strength on paper is formidable, like us, the fatigue from consecutive battles hasn't faded yet, and this is reflected particularly clearly in their Pitchers."

"The outcome between Inashiro and Teito actually depends on the condition of Narumiya Mei. If they want to win, Inashiro's batting lineup must launch a fierce attack right from the start to secure enough runs to widen the gap, easing the pressure on Narumiya Mei and letting him pitch more easily."

"However, Teito certainly won't let them have their way."

Miyuki nodded after listening: "That's what I think too. A 60-40 split, Teito High School 6, Inashiro Industrial 4."

"No matter who wins, in the end, the one who takes the championship will definitely be us. If it's Inashiro, then we'll just send them another runner-up trophy. If it's Teito, hehe, we'll make them reminisce about their first-round exit last year," Kuramochi said with a wicked grin, looking happy regardless of who the final opponent might be.

After dinner, not long after Huangqian Yangyi returned to the dormitory and sat down, he heard voices at the door.

"No need. You can't catch my pitches steadily at all right now. Practicing with you is very frustrating. As expected, it has to be Miyuki-senpai."

The familiar voice reached his ears, and Huangqian Yangyi sighed and slapped his forehead.

Not again!

How long had it been since the incident where Okumura Koshu stood up to a senior? Now, there was another case of a cold-faced senior 'bullying' an underclassman.

Watching Yui Kaoru return to the dormitory with a bitter expression, Huangqian Yangyi glanced at him.

"What are you thinking about?"

Yui Kaoru was startled. Feeling discouraged and low in spirits, he hadn't even noticed that Huangqian Yangyi had returned.

"Senpai, am I really that bad? I can't even catch the ball," Yui Kaoru asked.

"Hey, hey, what kind of nonsense are you spouting? If you're considered bad, then how is anyone else supposed to live?"

Huangqian Yangyi's face was full of speechlessness: "Don't listen to that idiot Furuya. He was even worse back then. Not only did he only throw Fastballs, but his stamina was trash, he had zero control, his personality was also bad, and he didn't communicate with his teammates at all. As a Pitcher, he was completely unqualified."

Uh...

Yui Kaoru was full of surprise. Is that for real? Furuya-senpai had such a dark history?

"Let me tell you, Furuya's mouth is just like that. Don't take what he says to heart. Just do your own thing well, that's enough. Otherwise, why do you think the Director let you join the First String? It's because he saw your talent."

"Yes, I understand, Senpai. I will work hard," Yui Kaoru nodded and said.

These days, because Huangqian Yangyi was forbidden from pitching, the perk of catching practice he had gained from sharing a room with Huangqian Yangyi was gone. That was why he had gone to find Furuya, but after trying just once, Furuya had decisively chosen not to have him catch anymore. The blow was quite significant.

"Yeah, that's the attitude. Although you aren't as physically strong as the others, you're still growing. Drink more milk, eat more meat, eat more rice, and build up your body properly. I have high hopes for you," Huangqian Yangyi encouraged him tirelessly. Since he was a junior in the same dormitory, it was only right to take care of him a bit.

"By the way, if you want to practice catching, you can go find Tojo. He'll definitely be very happy," Huangqian Yangyi said.

Yui Kaoru nodded. He knew about Tojo; this guy used to be a Pitcher too. Even though he was an outfielder now, he still practiced pitching in private, and had even mastered the Changeup.

"Well, anyway, every newcomer goes through a period like this when they first enter high school. The self that was so dazzling in middle school seems so weak in front of the seniors in high school. This isn't just a gap in experience and training, but also caused by physical development."

"Senpai, did you have a time like that too?" Yui Kaoru asked.

Huangqian Yangyi froze, not knowing how to answer this question.

"Well, I'm different, you know. They all call me a monster, so don't compare yourself to me," Huangqian Yangyi said helplessly.

Yui Kaoru nodded and whispered, "As expected, it's just that I'm too weak."

"Alright, alright. Anyway, just listen to Furuya's words and let them go. Go find Tojo."

"Okay."

Having received Huangqian Yangyi's guidance and encouragement, Yui Kaoru went to Tojo's dormitory full of anticipation. When Tojo heard that his underclassman actually wanted to catch his pitches, he was overjoyed. The two hit it off immediately, as if they were old friends meeting for the first time.