Chereads / The Way of the Swordsman / Chapter 2 - Past

Chapter 2 - Past

Wei Guoguang was born and raised in Binhai. He had never left Binhai since kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, and university. After graduating from university, he joined a local state-owned enterprise in Binhai. The unit's performance was not as good as the others, but it was better than the others. It was just a mediocre life. This was not a good thing for a young man living in a big city. His parents were ordinary people and there was no house or car for him. He had to rely on himself for everything.

One's time alone could be tolerated, but when people reached a certain age, they had to find a partner, get married, and have children. Although Wei Guoguang didn't have much money, he still had an enviable big city hukou, which was still a bit attractive in the eyes of some people. He dated ordinary people one after another, with lower and lower conditions. He was not in a hurry, but his parents were. Finally, he found a wife from another place, got married, and lived with his parents. It was a stage of success.

He thought that his life would be just like this, but he didn't expect that the prosperous life and various temptations in the city could not knock him down, but knocked down his wife. In fact, there is nothing particularly dramatic. It is purely a difference in life philosophy. In the words of his wife, "Dawei is a good man, but he is too indifferent. Not only is his emotion indifferent, but other things are probably the same, such as money, ideals, life, etc. He also has an indifferent attitude. He seems to have nothing to care about..." This attitude may be suitable for a seeker who has seen through the world, but it is definitely not suitable for a country woman who is bravely moving forward in the fast lane of the city and is full of desire. So, after three years of marriage, they finally broke up indifferently. Fortunately, they had no children. Wei Guoguang still had an indifferent attitude, as if the person who left him was just a passerby.

His mentality made even his old parents feel discouraged. For the elderly, they don't expect their children to achieve any great careers, but it's not too much to set up a family and have a child. However, Wei Guoguang still did his own thing and was indifferent as always. It was not until he was in his 30s that he made the first major change in his life. He left the dying state-owned enterprise and joined the Datang Fencing Club. No one knows that he actually doesn't care about anything. In his heart, he has his own special love, which is the sword.

Wei Guoguang first came into contact with the sword when he first entered the university campus. At that time, various clubs were in the ascendant in the university. He was signed up. In order to create an image of a class that actively participates in campus activities, the class monitor stuffed him, who was tall and had long arms and legs, into the fencing club. He didn't care at first, but since he picked up the sword, everything became unusual. As if it was an extension of his arms and a sustenance of his soul, Wei Guoguang found that he, who was ordinary, finally found his talent. He seemed to have a talent that was very important for fencing athletes - a sense of distance.

To excel in each sport, you need your own unique talent. If you play basketball, you have to be tall. If you practice gymnastics, you have to have good flexibility and balance. If you do weightlifting, you have to have excellent muscle explosiveness. The shorter the height, the better. You can't expect Yao Ming to practice weightlifting, that would be a complete disaster. What kind of talent does fencing require? Speed, strength, height, arm length, reaction, these are all reasonable, but if you want to be a top fencer, distance sense is essential. What is distance sense? Simply put, if you are given a sword, you must accurately judge whether you can hit the target in front of you if you draw the sword in a bow step. Add a little more difficulty, if the target in front is moving, can you accurately judge and ensure that the sword does not miss? Finally, if you and the target in front of you are both moving quickly, can you judge the best time to draw the sword so that the sword will not be in vain? We often see in fencing competitions that one side attacks bravely and passionately, but fails to score, while the other side seems to be a casual counterattack in a passive retreat, but it is the final word. Top-level distance sense can allow you to get top-level predictions, so that you can have top-level sword timing, which is crucial in fencing.

Wei Guoguang is 1.85 meters tall, which is a bit short in fencing, but it's acceptable. His arms are very long, the so-called ape arms, and his reaction and speed are good, coupled with an extremely good sense of distance, which makes him like a fish in water in fencing. In just two months, no one in the Binhai University Fencing Club could match him, including a sports school coach invited by the club. Five months later, as long as he wanted, his opponent couldn't even win a victory against him.

Wei Guoguang spent almost all his spare time on fencing. He never thought that he would be so devoted to a sport, as if it was tailor-made for him by God. As a city kid, he has been exposed to countless sports, football, basketball, tennis, table tennis, etc. since he was a child. He has good physical fitness and can quickly get started with everything, but that's all. He is not interested in these sports. He never thought about becoming an athlete until he came into contact with fencing. He used all his savings of more than 20,000 yuan to buy a German brand Allstar epee, and he has lived and died with it ever since.

In his sophomore year of university, Wei Guoguang represented Binhai in the National College Students Games and won the epee championship without suspense. In most cases, he was able to shut out his opponents. Even the runner-up only won two swords in his hands. This completely crushing victory attracted the attention of a coach in Binhai. Naturally, he was specially recruited to join the Binhai Fencing Team and studied part-time. Here, the young man began to truly scientific and professional training, and his strength and results improved by leaps and bounds.

In his fourth year of university, Wei Guoguang shined at the National Games and won the national fencing epee championship. Although many top players in China did not participate in the National Games due to the Olympic strategy at that time, as a rising star, he still won the favor of a national coach and was tempted to recruit him into the national team reserve. This was his honor and his misfortune...

For national-level athletes, strict physical examinations are a must. No one in the university clubs cares about these things, they are just playing around. When he arrived at the Binhai City Fencing Team, he also had a physical examination but it was not comprehensive. However, at the national level, Wei Guoguang did not survive this hurdle. He never thought that his seemingly healthy body actually concealed a huge defect - congenital heart disease.

This result was like a bolt from the blue for him, and he was completely upset. He had never heard of such a hereditary congenital disease in his family, so he went to almost all the hospitals in Binhai, including the most famous hospitals in Kyoto. The reality is cruel. Congenital heart disease was diagnosed, and because the symptoms were mild, it did not affect his life as an ordinary person, but he was not qualified to become an athlete. Not to mention the national team, even the Binhai team had to give up on him. After all, no one wanted to bear the consequences of an accident on the field.

Wei Guoguang was praised to the peak of his life in his senior year, and in the same year, he fell into the darkest trough of his life. That year he was only 21 years old, in his prime, full of vitality, and this change made him, who was already indifferent, even more indifferent. In his heart, his life was over. The only sport in the world that could make him passionate and excited could no longer help him complete himself. From then on, he no longer had hope or dreams in his heart. "Brother Wei, Brother Wei..." A slightly anxious shout woke him up from his memories. He turned around and saw that it was his colleague, Wu Yanan, the coach of the fencing hall A. "What's the matter?"

"Brother Wei, a group of people came to the A hall. They just got their membership cards today. They are quite arrogant. It seems that one of them was a professional before. He is a little jumpy..." Wu Yanan had just been in Datang for a short time and was a little at a loss because he didn't have enough experience.

Wei Guoguang immediately understood that this was the legendary "chasing the venue and smashing the signboard", but it was just more civilized. This is a common thing in clubs with a certain competitive sports nature, and it is not new. Of course, the modern society's "chasing the venue" is no longer a fight to the death like the old society. If you win, there may not be any visible benefits. If you lose, they won't do anything to you. It's just a fight for face and a topic of bragging after drinking. In this world, large clubs are never afraid of those so-called "flying boys". What is really scary is the industry and commerce, taxation, and fire protection.

"Let's go and take a look..." Wei Guoguang stood up and walked towards Hall A without hesitation. This was his responsibility. Although it was not written in the contract, as the highest-paid coach, he had to stand up and fulfill his duty.