Chapter 38: The Past is the Past, the Present is the Present

"Onii-chan?" With such a sweet voice, could it be that that kid Huangqian has a secret girlfriend?

It couldn't really be his younger sister, could it? What kind of good brother would use his sister's voice as a ringtone? Wouldn't that make him a perverted sister-con?

As soon as Chris saw the expressions of the guys around him, he knew what they were thinking, and he smiled as he said, "Stop guessing, it's Yangyi's younger sister."

"Tch, boring."

"Uninteresting."

"Perverted sister-con!"

The Seido crowd, feeling bored with no gossip to chew on, immediately turned and left; sisters and such were family matters, and they didn't feel it was right to pry too much.

Inside the restroom, just as Huangqian Yangyi's call connected, his younger sister Kumiko's voice, carrying a hint of coquetry and reproach, came through.

"Nii-chan, why did you only just answer the phone?"

"Kumiko, I was in the locker room." Hearing his sister's voice, Huangqian Yangyi felt the fatigue accumulated from the match just now instantly vanish.

"Nii-chan, I just watched your match," Kumiko said excitedly, "4 innings, no runs allowed, that was so amazing."

Hearing this, Huangqian Yangyi was a bit surprised, "You understand these things now?"

Hearing her brother's words, Huangqian Kumiko feigned displeasure and said, "I've studied a lot of baseball knowledge, unlike you, brother, who can't even read sheet music and doesn't care about me at all."

Regarding his sister's complaints, Huangqian Yangyi didn't feel the slightest bit embarrassed; in their family, his older sister Mamiko and younger sister Kumiko both had musical talent, only he would get dizzy the moment he looked at sheet music, as if it were a heavenly book.

"You know what I'm like, so tell me, is there something you need by calling me?" Huangqian Yangyi didn't believe Kumiko contacted him just to show off that she could understand the game.

"Can't it be that I miss you?" Huangqian Kumiko acted coquettishly.

"It can, but you definitely have something else on your mind. Hurry up and say it, is it that you're short on pocket money?" Huangqian Yangyi asked dotingly.

"That's not it at all."

Kumiko hummed twice, then said, "Nii-chan, didn't you order two baseball bats before school started? Well, school has started and they still haven't shipped."

"Oh, I had completely forgotten about that," Huangqian Yangyi finally remembered, "So, were the bats delivered to the house?"

"Mm-hmm, yes they were. Nii-chan, are you coming back to get them, or should I mail them to you?" Huangqian Kumiko asked.

Huangqian Yangyi thought for a moment, "Mail them, I don't have time lately."

"I see, then I'll help you mail them after school today." Huangqian Kumiko leaned against the hallway wall, pouting, her heels tapping rhythmically against the floor.

"Thanks, Kumiko."

"Mm-hmm~ Nii-chan."

"What is it?"

"Good luck in the finals tomorrow."

"Mm, don't go sneaking a look at the game during class again, okay?" Huangqian Yangyi laughed.

"Hmph, I'm not talking to you anymore, I'm going to practice." Huangqian Kumiko hung up the phone after saying that.

With a helpless smile, Huangqian Yangyi tucked his phone into his pocket and walked out of the locker room.

At this time, the match between Inashiro and Teito had already begun. Taking a look at the scoreboard, Huangqian Yangyi was immediately shocked; the first inning had just ended, and the score was already 4:0, with Inashiro in the lead.

That's ridiculous!

Did Teito eat laxatives the night before?

"You're here?" Seeing Huangqian Yangyi come over, Miyuki patted the spot next to him, "Sit here."

"Mm."

After sitting down, Huangqian Yangyi asked, "What's the situation with Teito?"

Hearing this, Miyuki said helplessly, "Teito's ace didn't start, and they got blown out."

"Oh? This is the semi-finals, could they be planning to save their strength? That backfired," Huangqian Yangyi said.

"No," Miyuki shook his head, pointing toward the Teito bullpen, "It should be that their ace has a problem. Look, the one warming up in the bullpen isn't the ace either."

"Then Teito is done for. Facing Inashiro, they can't win without their ace." Huangqian Yangyi looked at the Teito ace sitting motionless on the bench; it really looked like he had no intention of playing.

"You said it. Just watch Inashiro well; unless something unexpected happens, they will be our opponents tomorrow," Miyuki said.

The game progressed quickly; after only 5 innings, the score reached 9:3. It was at this moment that there was some movement on the Inashiro bench.

"The little blondie is going in!" Huangqian Yangyi was very surprised.

According to the original trajectory, Narumiya Mei shouldn't have played for the first time until this year's summer qualifiers, so why today?

Could it be that because of his own appearance, Inashiro's Coach Kunitomo was provoked?

The thought had just flashed through his mind when Huangqian Yangyi dismissed it. Coach Kunitomo didn't seem like the type of person to change his mind because of something like this; there must be other reasons. Huangqian Yangyi suspected that, nine times out of ten, Narumiya Mei was the one who felt provoked and strongly demanded to play.

Once this willful little blondie got serious, it was very possible for him to get stuck in a rut. If Coach Kunitomo was worried that this would affect Narumiya Mei's training and condition, it wasn't impossible for him to let him go out and get some experience while the team had a large lead.

"Nothing to be surprised about. Inashiro has a huge advantage, so sending in the First Year, Mei, is just natural." Miyuki's thoughts were basically the same as Huangqian Yangyi's, but his gaze remained focused on Narumiya Mei, who was happily running toward the Pitcher's Mound.

"Besides, Coach Kunitomo probably also wants to see if Mei's current strength can play a role in a match between such powerhouses."

Hearing this, Huangqian Yangyi suddenly realized, "You mean, in tomorrow's game, Coach Kunitomo might let the little blondie play?"

Miyuki nodded, "It's very possible. Although the current Inashiro ace is also very strong, facing Seido's batting lineup, it's impossible for him to pitch a complete game without giving up a single run. Of course, the same goes for our ace, Nanjo."

"Chris-senpai, what do you think?" Huangqian Yangyi turned back to ask for Chris's opinion.

Chris, who had been sitting behind the two of them silently listening to the conversation, smiled gently.

"What Miyuki said is pretty much what I think. Tomorrow's game will undoubtedly be very intense. Whether it's Inashiro or us, Seido, we both need someone who can step in and continue to suppress the opponent's batting lineup if the ace's stamina runs out or their condition declines."

"If Yangyi hadn't been exposed earlier, Inashiro probably wouldn't have let Narumiya Mei play so quickly; having the aces compete would have been enough. But Yangyi's appearance broke that balance. Coach Kunitomo sending Narumiya Mei out now is actually being forced; it's a last resort."

Huangqian Yangyi and Miyuki nodded thoughtfully.

On the field, Narumiya Mei, playing for the first time, looked very excited, just like a puppy out for its first walk.

This genius pitcher, who had become famous back in middle school, attracted intense curiosity from the audience in his first high school appearance. As the old saying goes, the past is the past, and the present is the present.