"I'm famous in China?"
Zhang Han was genuinely surprised.
"Of course. What kind of person is our Brother Han? Isn't it only natural for you to become famous?"
Hearing the flattery from the other end of the phone, Zhang Han was stunned.
By now, he had been in Japan for three or four years. The childhood friends from elementary school who still kept in touch with him were naturally those with whom he had been especially close.
Even so, they rarely talked on the phone, mostly communicating through WeChat.
International calls were extremely expensive, whereas WeChat, despite a slight delay, completely avoided call charges. For the other party to call him directly now was truly unexpected.
"Go check it online yourself. It's causing quite a stir."
After hanging up, Zhang Han opened a webpage on his phone and immediately found related content.
There were praises and words of encouragement, as well as some less friendly opinions. Of course, those were still a minority. Most people were supportive, especially those who had seen his photos.
"These shallow guys."
Zhang Han muttered softly.
Even as he said that, a smile lingered on his face.
He was not bothered by mocking remarks. He had experienced too many similar things in the past.
Because of his appearance and personality, people had always talked about him behind his back. Some admired him, some wanted to get close to him, and others sneered and ridiculed him.
Over time, Zhang Han had grown accustomed to it. He completely ignored sarcastic remarks. Only when someone truly provoked him would he respond. Before that, he would not waste energy on such people.
He cared even less about negative comments on the internet.
Instead, he felt genuinely happy about those who supported and encouraged him.
At this moment, Zhang Han had not yet fully realized what these supporters truly meant. He only knew that his heart felt warm.
Now, he had one more reason to continue playing baseball.
It was no longer just for himself, nor only because of Ono, the coaches, and the Seido teammates who trusted and nurtured him.
It was also so that the people back in China who sincerely supported him would not be disappointed.
He had to work even harder.
Seido's opponent for the round of sixteen was soon announced.
At this stage, there were essentially no weak teams left.
This was already the third round. The dark horses and grassroots schools that had emerged earlier had mostly been eliminated. What remained were either national-level powerhouses or dark horses with the strength of powerhouses.
None of them were easy opponents.
Seido High School Baseball Team was about to face Shinko High School, a long-established powerhouse from Kyoto.
"Although we were lucky to skip the first round, our luck really isn't that great. We keep running into strong teams."
Manager Ota couldn't help but complain quietly.
He wondered why fate could not favor Seido just a little more, allowing them to advance smoothly after all the effort it had taken to reach Koshien.
"This is Koshien."
Coach Kataoka understood Ota's frustration and calmly responded.
There was no avoiding it. The teams that reached Koshien were the strongest from all over the country. Among them, there might have been a few weaker ones, but after the first and second rounds, those teams had already been eliminated.
Those who remained were, without exception, extremely strong.
"Prepare carefully for every game and win."
When speaking to the players, Coach Kataoka's presence was especially imposing.
Playing at Koshien meant facing powerful opponents without any room to relax. Yet Kataoka loved this atmosphere. Facing strong teams made the outcome unpredictable. As the Director, the pressure on him was immense.
But this kind of pressure was not something everyone could experience.
Only by reaching Koshien and continuing to advance did one earn the right to worry about such things.
Otherwise, no one would even know who you were.
Before the game, Seido High School Baseball Team conducted detailed analysis and discussions specifically targeting Shinko High School.
Their opponent was extremely solid.
They did not have particularly flashy star players, but their overall strength was exceptionally high.
In Coach Kataoka's words, the reason Shinko lacked standout stars was because every single player on the team was very strong.
Shinko High School recruited four or five special-admission students every year. To put it plainly, they assembled half a star team annually.
This level of recruitment was second only to Osaka Kiryuu, which was famous for being a full star team. Osaka Kiryuu recruited enough special-admission students each year to form an entire star lineup.
Compared to that, Shinko still fell slightly short.
Even so, Shinko High School was already extremely formidable.
Seido High School also had a considerable number of recruitment slots each year and accepted many special-admission students, but those who truly reached star-player standards were very few.
There were simply too many powerhouses in Tokyo, and only so many star players each year.
Too many wolves and too little meat. There just was not enough to go around. In this regard, Seido's situation was far worse than that of powerhouses in other regions.
Many areas only had two or three powerhouses, or even just one. They did not even need to actively recruit. As long as they opened their doors, talented players would naturally come.
The game was scheduled for tomorrow morning.
After the meeting that afternoon, Coach Kataoka dismissed the players to rest.
Zhang Han stood up and prepared to leave when a burly figure suddenly blocked his path.
"Haha, Kid Zhang Han. How about we compete tomorrow to see who scores more runs?"
Azuma Kiyokuni particularly enjoyed asking Zhang Han this question, and Zhang Han's responses never failed to satisfy him.
"Don't tease your junior."
One of the third-year seniors finally couldn't stand it.
Zhang Han looked at that senior with eyes full of gratitude.
"I'd like to compete with you guys too, but first you have to score some runs. So far, besides Kid Zhang Han, I haven't really seen anyone among you who can compete with me."
Azuma Kiyokuni's words instantly ignited the anger of the seniors, who wished they could rush over and fight the fat guy on the spot.
Even so, they knew he was speaking the truth.
In yesterday's game, Seido scored a total of ten runs.
Zhang Han scored five, and Azuma Kiyokuni scored three.
Of course, Azuma had hit two home runs, so in terms of impact, he might not have lost to Zhang Han.
"Alright. Then let's see who scores more."
Under normal circumstances, Zhang Han would never argue with Azuma Kiyokuni over something like this.
But this time, he spoke without hesitation.
The others looked at him in surprise.
Zhang Han, however, quietly made a decision in his heart.
At this Koshien, he was going to make some noise.
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