Chapter 225: The Good Man
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Yunan Xiao looked at the man beside him with a hint of anger, almost as if she was saying, This man can help him; why can't I?
The man looked helplessness. He did not expect anyone to come and help an old man without any precautious self-protection.
This guy is Baogang Liu's colleague and a coach for the national team. Yunan Xiao recognized Dai Li.
"Sir, are you okay?" Dai Li asked, carefully checking on the old man.
To be precise, this old man was not very old. By his appearance, he should have been less than sixty years old. But his gray hair made him look older. He appeared to be in pain, clenching his teeth, with both his hands holding his legs.
Hearing Dai Li asked him whether he was OK, the old man said, "I have a cramp in my leg!"
Dai Li instantly understood why the old man had fallen.
When running a marathon, cramps were very common, as the runners would lose too much physical energy and have an inadequate amount of electrolytes. The old man had lost his balance when his leg began cramping and fell to the ground.
"Straighten your feet; toes up. Let me help you. Don't bend your legs." As a professional coach, it was natural for Dai Li to handle cramps. He knew how to relieve them.
A minute later, the tense expression of the old man eased a lot. The symptom of the cramp had seemingly vanished.
"Sir, how are you feeling now?" Dai Li asked.
"No cramping anymore, just a little painful here in the calf," the old man said.
"Your muscles are too tight." Dai Li touched the old man's calf, then said, "Let me rub it for you!"
Dai Li's Relaxation Massage was also effective on ordinary people. Only a moment later, the old man felt very relieved, and the pain originally caused by the cramp was also gradually eliminated.
"Young man, your massage technique is really good. Are you a massage therapist?" the old man asked, looking at Dai Li.
"I'm a sports coach," Dai Li answered.
"No wonder you are good at dealing with this sort of thing." The old man continued, "Nowadays, when ordinary people see an old guy like me falling down, they will hesitate for a while, even if they want to help. There are not many people like you now."
Dai Li smiled, but did not answer. When he saw the old man fall, he did not think too much; he simply wanted to help him.
"What's wrong, boss?" an anxious voice said from far away.
Following the voice, three men ran closer. The one in the lead was a slightly overweight 30-year-old, while two 20–year-old men followed him.
The 30-year-old man approached them, breathing heavily. He glanced at Dai Li and immediately said, "Did you bump into our director so that he would fall to the ground?"
Dai Li felt both annoyed and amused. But thinking it over, he realized that it was not strange. With his bike on the side, it was quite normal that they thought he had knocked down the old man.
"Lin, what nonsense! He is a good man!" The old man stared at the fat man and said, "I fell because I had a cramp in my leg. This young man kindly came to help me!"
The fat man was immediately embarrassed. With a smile, he said to Dai Li, "Sorry that I accused you."
"Director Xiao, you see that? It is really dangerous to be kind to others! Fortunately, the old man was a reasonable man. If it were rogue b*stard, the young man could get extorted." The man next to Yunan Xiao then said, "That old man is no ordinary man."
"Why?" Yunan Xiao asked.
"I heard those men addressing the old man as director. In this capital of ours, it is most difficult to figure out what position a director is, exactly. A director is by no means always a small position. This title might mean a lot." The man continued, "As officials of the lowest rank, there might be several directors in the administration of just one community. Yet at the same time, the boss of the Nation Development and Reform Committee is also called a 'director.' Some 'directors' in the committee have the power to easily make a big company suffer a lot."
"I see. The young coach of the national team is a warm-hearted person," Yunan Xiao nodded. She then said, "Well, everything is OK here now. Let's go."
Dai Li did not know that he was unexpectedly labeled a "good man" by Yunan Xiao.
How come Dai Li is still not here. Even though he rides a shared bike, he should not be so much slower than me! Looking at his watch, Baogang Liu continued thinking to himself.
Baogang Liu looked up again and finally saw Dai Li. With Dai Li were also more than 10 runners.
Dai Li is so late that he arrived at almost the same time as the candidates! I don't know why he was delayed. Well, this kid is not a professional marathon coach. It is normal that he hasn't prepared fully. Baogang Liu took out a bottle of water from his pack while thinking to himself.
Dai Li rode to the supply area quickly and quickly removed his backpack. He took out the drinks and got ready to give them to his team.
Upon Dai Li's arrival, the police team also arrived at the supply point. Dai Li quickly gave out the drinks, then immediately rode to the next supply zone.
People who could arrive at the 17.5-kilometer supply zone earlier than others were by no means mediocre. Until then, no complete team had arrived at the supply zone. Baogang Liu silently prayed that the Dingtian Group's team would arrive as soon as possible.
Here they are! Baogang Liu sighed in relief. The next second, however, he saw that the Dingtian Group's team was being closely followed by a team wearing blue tracksuits.
It was the police team.
Since the beginning of the race the two teams had been running together, and neither of them had been able to surpass each other by a significant distance.
It's almost the last 3.5 kilometers. It's time for a showdown. Now you should speed up a little. Baogang Liu picked up a pen and quickly wrote a few words on the sticker. He then stuck it on the bottle.
At the same time, Dai Li was also hurriedly writing.
In the last 3.5 kilometers, it will be time to speed up. With the help of the endurance halo, the physical condition of my team should be better than those of Coach Liu's. Dai Li wrote his tactical order to speed up on the paper. He then stuck it on the drink bottle and went to the side of the track.
Coach Baogang Liu also appeared at the same position, ready to pass the message along to his team.
The two teams received their coach's instructions and began increasing their speeds at the same time.
They are also speeding up! The same idea popped into the mind of both Dai Li and Baogang Liu at the same time. They involuntarily looked into each other's eyes.
Dai Li's stay on the national team was not in vain after all. Although he is not a marathon coach, he has learned a few marathon skills. He knows it is time to speed up now, Baogang Liu thought.
Dai Li, however, felt a huge boost in his morale.
Baogang Liu also chose to speed up now. He made the same choice as I did. It means my judgment is correct! Maybe we can win today! Baogang Liu is a professional marathon coach; it must feel very good to beat him!