Chapter 137: Balancing Work and Rest

"Manager, Manager!" Lin Yu called out several times to the manager, who was currently in a daze.

As a manager, he shouldn't have lost his composure like this, but he was completely stunned. Yet, sometimes there really was no helping it; he never imagined that Jiang Zheng could actually defeat a top-tier professional player.

Jiang Zheng's previous victory over a starting player from a first-line team had already surprised him, but now he had actually beaten a top-tier pro from that same team. In terms of the game as a whole, Jiang Zheng beating Li Jingbo did not mean he had defeated the entire first-line team. There was a significant difference between individual performance and team play; the most obvious being that teams emphasized coordination, where individual skill did not account for everything. The true strength of a first-line team could only be seen in team matches; a single individual match could not reveal the terrifying potential of such a team.

However, in terms of individual skill, Jiang Zheng was undoubtedly superior to Li Jingbo, standing at the pinnacle of professional ability. Who could have guessed that a random player would possess such a level of skill? If you have this kind of talent, why not go pro? Why bother with a tournament!

These were the thoughts currently swirling in the manager's mind.

"Lin Yu!" the manager suddenly shouted.

"Here!" Lin Yu instinctively yelled back.

"Pour every promotional resource we have into him! Get everything that should be put up, put it up!" the manager demanded fiercely. He realized that Jiang Zheng could very well become their biggest cash cow. In that case, they could not afford any hesitation; they had to support him with everything they had.

"But Manager, I already passed on your previous order to cut back on resources. The publicity department has probably already started reducing his promotional coverage," Lin Yu said, looking troubled. Changing orders overnight was a major taboo; it offended people and pointlessly increased their workload. More importantly, he was the one running these errands, and on the surface, he was the one everyone would dislike.

"Go and tell them! If anything happens, I take full responsibility!" the manager roared.

"Yes," Lin Yu replied.

"Oh, right, one more thing. From now on, satisfy every one of Jiang Zheng's requests as much as possible. Doesn't he need opponents? Arrange opponents for him—ruthlessly! I want his popularity to skyrocket!"

"Manager, I don't think we need to arrange opponents for him anymore. Many professional players will come seeking him out themselves," Lin Yu whispered.

"Are you stupid? Even if we don't need to find them, can't we just put on a show? We must maintain the right attitude! Besides that, fulfill any other requests he has as much as you can!" the manager commanded.

"Understood." Lin Yu agreed again. He felt somewhat helpless. It was easy for the manager to just give orders with a few words, but it was the people below who had to do the legwork. There was no way around it; when the boss speaks, the subordinates run their legs off.

***

Jiang Zheng was unaware of the platform's decisions; he was currently fast asleep.

The next day, Jiang Zheng walked out of the hotel. He strolled along the street, caught the aroma of breakfast, and enjoyed a delicious bowl of noodles. Afterward, he went to the library to study with Jiang Xianyue. They both tacitly focused only on their books, exchanging no words.

The morning passed this way, and at noon, they went to eat as usual. Today, they didn't go out but chose to eat in the school cafeteria. They each got their favorite food and sat together.

"You don't seem to be in a very good mood today?" Jiang Zheng asked.

"No, it's probably just because I didn't sleep well last night," Jiang Xianyue said with a smile, though it looked a bit forced.

Jiang Zheng wasn't blind; he could tell that "not sleeping well" was likely just an excuse. But since she didn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't force her.

"By the way, are you free this afternoon?" Jiang Zheng suddenly asked.

Jiang Xianyue was slightly startled. "Why do you ask?"

"If you're free, let's go out and have some fun this afternoon," Jiang Zheng said.

"But aren't you supposed to be studying this afternoon?" she asked.

"Learning requires a balance of work and rest. Constant studying lowers efficiency. So, how about it? Are you free?" he pressed.

"I suppose... okay," Jiang Xianyue said.

"It's settled then. We'll go relax this afternoon. Where do you want to go?"

Jiang Xianyue looked down, lost in thought. Usually, in the afternoons, she would record videos of herself playing the piano to edit and post online. She really didn't know where to go for fun.

Seeing her remain silent, Jiang Zheng suggested, "How about we go to the amusement park?"

"That works," she nodded.

"Then let's go after we finish eating," Jiang Zheng said.

After they finished, they walked out of the cafeteria.

"Wait, let me call a taxi," Jiang Zheng said.

"No need for a taxi, we can drive there," Jiang Xianyue replied.

"Drive? Yours?" Jiang Zheng asked.

"Yes. Do you know how to drive?"

"Don't be silly, of course I know how to drive," Jiang Zheng said.

"Then you drive," she said, handing him the keys.

Jiang Zheng took the keys and walked with her to the school parking lot. Jiang Xianyue's car was a BMW Mini, a very feminine vehicle, usually driven by young women. Jiang Zheng familiarized himself with it for a moment, having never driven one before, and then slowly drove off.

Jiang Zheng didn't have many deep impressions of amusement parks. The number of times he had been could be counted on one hand, and he hadn't experienced many rides. The only thing he played often was bumper cars; he rarely experienced other attractions. Back then, his family wasn't wealthy. His parents were both working, but they had to pay off the mortgage, his tuition, and various monthly expenses. There really wasn't much money left over. That was why every time he went to an amusement park, he only played a few things. When he was a child, he always wanted to go, pestering his parents during every holiday. As he grew older and more sensible, he stopped asking to go, knowing how hard his parents worked.

Today, Jiang Zheng bought an all-access pass, meaning he could play almost everything except for a few special attractions.

"What do you want to play first?" Jiang Zheng asked.

"How about the roller coaster?" Jiang Xianyue suggested.

"Sure."

They went to the roller coaster queue. The park was crowded, and there were long lines everywhere. After about half an hour, it was finally their turn. They sat in the car, fastened their safety restraints, and sat side by side, listening to the staff explain the features of the ride. Modern roller coasters all had different themes and styles. The one they were on was a "Time Travel" theme—it sounded quite fantastical, though he wondered what the actual experience would be like.