Chapter Summaries

Fan Xiaodong dominated the January Opens, winning two titles and reaching another final as Chinese players overwhelmed their rivals. After the Grand Finals roster was set, the Table Tennis Super League playoffs began with Qin Huachang and Sun Tianlong commentating.

• Fan Xiaodong won the Peacock Country Open, defeating Ochomirov in the semifinals and Bayer in the final.
• Fan Xiaodong reached the England Open final after narrowly beating Morad and defeating Bayer again, but K. Michel won the title.
• At the Sakura Country Open, Morad’s loss to Pike left Pike injured, and Lu Feiyang benefited from the upset; Fan Xiaodong reached the final against Mizutori Hato, who withdrew with a back injury.
• The International Table Tennis Federation announced the Grand Finals invitations; Lin Li and Bai Feng withdrew, and Bayer, Pike, and Qiu Shang took the open spots.
• The Table Tennis Super League playoffs began, with Qin Huachang and Sun Tianlong serving as commentators.

Spade Q defeated Imperial Capital Panlong and advanced to the Table Tennis Super League finals against Jiangcheng University Team, while Wu Li’s sweeping win revealed how much his strength had improved. As the two clubs prepared for the final, Jiangcheng University Team’s Luo Jiu and Hook argued over the lineup because neither wanted to face Wang Chao.

• Jiangcheng University Team swept Shanghai Fire Phoenix Club and advanced through the winners’ bracket.
• Spade Q defeated Imperial Capital Panlong 3–1 after Wu Li swept a former national team veteran, demonstrating his rise to upper-middle First Team strength.
• Jiangcheng University Team and Spade Q became the first two teams to meet in the league finals, prompting widespread celebrations in Jiangcheng City.
• On February 7, both teams debated their lineups, focusing on whether Wu Li should play the fourth or fifth match.
• Luo Jiu and Hook argued over who would play second singles because both wanted to avoid facing Wang Chao.

Luo Jiu led Jiangcheng University Club to the Super League title, but Hook won MVP and became the first foreign-association player to claim the award. As the World Tour finals began in Brazil and the National Games approached, attention shifted to Wang Chao and the choice he would make.

• Luo Jiu beat Geng Shuai in the first singles match, and Wang Chao then defeated Hook before narrowly winning the doubles match with Wu Li.
• Duan Changying beat Geng Shuai in the fourth match, forcing the deciding contest, where Luo Jiu defeated Wu Li 3–0 to secure Jiangcheng University Club the championship.
• Hook won the Super League MVP award, while Luo Jiu later learned that officials had favored awarding it to a foreign player to boost the sport’s global appeal.
• Hook’s MVP victory fueled Brazilian enthusiasm for table tennis, and Brazil hosted the ITTF World Tour finals for the first time.
• The National Games opened in China, and the scheduled events drew attention to what Wang Chao would choose to do.

Wang Chao announced that he would compete in both the year-end finals and the National Games, then dominated the finals on his way to the semifinal. The chapter leaves him set to face Fan Xiaodong after beating him 4-0, while Lin Zijun and Hook were set to contest the other semifinal.

• Fan Xiaodong and Lu Feiyang chose the year-end finals, while Luo Jiu joined the Su Province delegation for the National Games and trained alongside Qi Hao.
• Wang Chao announced that he would enter the year-end finals as well as the National Games, explaining that the competitions did not conflict and that he had declined National Games Men's Doubles because he could not win it.
• Jiang Tiansheng accepted Wang Chao's explanation that Luo Jiu and Qi Hao were likely to beat Wang Chao and Wu Li in Men's Doubles, and he apologized for being narrow-minded.
• Wang Chao began his first year-end finals on February 10, and Fan Xiaodong drew Bayer in the first round, prompting Bayer to curse in German.
• Wang Chao, Lu Feiyang, and Fan Xiaodong won their first-round matches, but Pike eliminated Lu Feiyang in the second round as Wang Chao and Fan Xiaodong advanced to the semifinals.
• Wang Chao beat Fan Xiaodong 4-0 in the semifinal, while Lin Zijun and Hook were set to meet in the other semifinal.

Wang Chao crushed Hook 4:0 in the year-end finals, confirming the enormous gap between them, while Hook accepted that other players could only aim for second place. After the tournament, Bayer announced his retirement, having decided he could no longer endure the long struggle against Chinese table tennis.

• Hook defeated Lin Zijun 4:1 in the other semifinal, earning his first win over him since Lin Zijun mastered Super Speed.
• Wang Chao beat Hook 4:0 in the final, and Hook told Brazilian reporter Tavares that there was no hope and everyone should aim for second place.
• Tavares misunderstood Hook’s performance, then apologized after watching Qin Huachang’s livestream commentary.
• Bayer announced his retirement and invited Wang Chao, Sun Tianlong, and the Chinese table tennis team to his retirement ceremony.
• Bayer chose to retire after seeing Wang Chao defeat Fan Xiaodong, while Ochomirov sent him the message, “You've worked hard.”

Wang Chao dominated the National Games singles and mixed doubles events, then saw his Hubei team finish third in the men's team competition. After returning home for Spring Festival, he was caught off guard when Wang Mei and Wang Zhongzhu revealed they knew he had a girlfriend and urged him to bring her home.

• Wang Chao arrived in Chuncheng after competing abroad and beat Ma Angxing 4–0 in his first National Games men's singles match.
• Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan won the mixed doubles final 4–0 against Wang Yu and Gao Mingyuan, then continued partnering together as Tang Yuanyuan followed him through the tournament.
• Wang Chao beat Luo Jiu in the men's singles semifinal and Bai Feng in the final, earning another Grand Slam record and the nickname Record Reaper.
• Wang Chao's Hubei team lost to the capital's team in the semifinals, while the capital's team narrowly beat Jiangsu to win the men's team event.
• After the National Games ended, Wang Chao returned to Jiangcheng with Luo Jiu and went home with Fan Xiaofan, who brought gifts and praised him to Wang Mei and Wang Zhongzhu.
• Wang Mei and Wang Zhongzhu told Wang Chao they knew he had a girlfriend and asked why he had not brought her home.

Wang Mei and Wang Zhongzhu confronted Wang Chao about his relationship with Tang Yuanyuan, using photos to argue that they were more than teammates. After reflecting on what he wanted from love, Wang Chao invited Tang Yuanyuan to visit his home, then joined his family in a New Year’s snowball fight.

• Wang Mei and Wang Zhongzhu repeatedly pressed Wang Chao to admit he had feelings for Tang Yuanyuan and consider marriage.
• Wang Mei showed Wang Chao more than a hundred photos of him and Tang Yuanyuan together, leaving him to wonder whether their closeness crossed ordinary teammates’ boundaries.
• Wang Zhongzhu advised Wang Chao on romance, and Wang Chao teased him after realizing he had secretly given Wang Mei cauliflower as a gift.
• Wang Chao reflected that he wanted a simple, natural relationship that would fit his life and realized Tang Yuanyuan might suit him.
• Wang Chao called Tang Yuanyuan and invited her to visit after New Year, and she eagerly accepted.
• Wang Chao went outside into the snowfall, where Wang Mei threw a snowball at him, and he retaliated by hitting Wang Zhongzhu with one.

After spending a week showing Tang Yuanyuan around Jiangcheng City, Wang Chao returned with her to the capital for national team duties, including the annual promotion and relegation assessment. As Wang Chao and Xiao Fei inspected the young players, they found no standout prospects, though other coaches began pursuing a promising competitor.

• Wang Chao picked up Tang Yuanyuan at Jiangcheng Station, and she quickly bonded with Han Feng, Liu Yue, and Hou Xiaojian during a week of outings.
• Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan traveled to the capital to report to the national team, where Cai Guodong had assigned Wang Chao to help with the assessment and the competition-planning conference.
• Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan joined Xiao Fei for dinner, and Xiao Fei asked Wang Chao to help evaluate players at the next day's assessment.
• Wang Chao and Xiao Fei watched matches throughout the assessment while Tang Yuanyuan followed them around the venue.
• Wang Chao and Xiao Fei found no especially outstanding prospects, while Coach Cheng Aimin and Chen Taolue both pursued the same promising young player.

Wang Chao watched the national team’s selection conclude without choosing a disciple for Xiao Fei, then heard Jiang Shan feared Coach Cheng Aimin would replace him with Liu Shuo. Wang Chao began training Jiang Shan before dawn to improve his physical potential and help him hold his place.

• Wang Shou arrived at the venue, where Wang Chao and Xiao Fei greeted him and reflected on his coaching career and connections.
• Li Changzheng steered Liu Shuo toward Coach Cheng Aimin, reasoning that Liu would have a better chance to become a leading disciple there than under Chen Taolue.
• The selection ended with the leading prospects assigned to other coaches, while Wang Chao and Xiao Fei chose no one; Cai Guodong asked Wang Chao to watch for talent, and Wang Chao said he had seen little worth choosing.
• Jiang Shan sought out Wang Chao, explaining that Coach Cheng Aimin had taken Liu Shuo and that he feared being abandoned; Wang Chao told him to train at five every morning.
• Jiang Shan joined Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan for strenuous animal-mimicking exercises, and Wang Chao planned to use the technique to boost Jiang Shan’s strength, speed, and explosiveness.

Cai Guodong’s annual meeting assigned players to the year’s major table tennis events amid speculation about factional rivalries. Wang Chao was chosen for the New Zealand Open and Luo Jiu for the Dubai Platinum leg, leaving the coaches convinced that the three factions were cooperating.

• Cai Guodong outlined the light international schedule and reminded Wang Chao that he needed to win the individual World Cup to secure his Grand Slam claim.
• Cai Guodong asked He Jingping to choose a player for the New Zealand Open, and Wang Chao volunteered while Sun Tianlong supported him.
• Wang Lu also backed Wang Chao, and Cai Guodong confirmed that Wang Chao would play the New Zealand Open.
• Zhu Zeshi raised concerns about the competitive Dubai Platinum leg, and Sun Tianlong argued that Luo Jiu was needed to counter Hook.
• Cai Guodong assigned Luo Jiu to the Dubai Platinum leg, and the coaches concluded that the Qin, Zhu, and Wang factions were genuinely yielding to one another.

The coaches assigned players to the opening Open tournaments and planned Wang Chao’s pursuit of Asian records, while discussing how to manage the dominant Tang Dynasty Combination. The chapter ended with Wang Wendong asking Wang Yu’s and Shen Sha’s coaches to speak with He Jingping about persuading Wang Chao to change partners.

• Chen Taolue, Cheng Aimin, Qiu Yinong, and Xiao Fei registered their players for the Dubai and New Zealand legs, and Cai Guodong agreed to assess Wang Qin and Kuai Wan in an exhibition match.
• Sun Tianlong, Wang Lu, and Cai Guodong assigned Lin Li and Fan Xiaodong to New Zealand and Bai Feng to Dubai to avoid unwanted internal matchups.
• The coaches assigned Wang Chao to hold the line at the Asian Cup and Asian Championships so he could pursue records, and Cai Guodong planned to reduce the Tang Dynasty Combination’s international schedule.
• Tang Yuanyuan struggled to return to Women's Singles because her specialized mixed-doubles style was built around Wang Chao, while Wang Wendong worried that tournament rules could force her to occupy a singles spot.
• Wang Wendong asked Wang Yu’s and Shen Sha’s coaches to speak with He Jingping about persuading Wang Chao to change partners.

Wang Chao rejected pressure to replace Tang Yuanyuan as his mixed doubles partner, exposing how Zhu Zeshi’s and Wang Wendong’s maneuvering risked damaging coaching alliances. Wang Wendong then arranged to sideline the Tang Dynasty Combination temporarily, while Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan continued training; two days later, Wu Li arrived.

• Qiu Yinong told Wang Chao that Wang Wendong wanted him to replace Tang Yuanyuan and asked him to choose Wang Yu.
• Wang Chao pointed out that Qiu Yinong would alienate coaches whichever partner he recommended, and said he had no intention of changing partners.
• Qiu Yinong reported Wang Chao’s firm refusal to the women’s team, while Wang Wendong assumed Wang Chao was simply avoiding offense.
• Wang Wendong planned to limit the Tang Dynasty Combination’s appearances and let the Flying Sand Combination and Underworld Combination compete internationally first.
• Wang Chao and Tang Yuanyuan continued training as the mixed doubles issue was put on hold, and Wu Li arrived two days later.

Wu Li joined the China Table Tennis base after his father died, then proved his endurance and rapid in-match improvement in a day-long gauntlet against the national team. After discussing Wu Li’s coaching and competition plans, Wang Chao asked to partner with him in Men’s Doubles.

• Wang Chao picked Wu Li up and learned that Wu Li’s father had died after Wu Li paid for his surgery and arranged his funeral.
• Wang Chao and Cai Guodong discussed Wu Li’s supervising coach, and Wang Chao proposed that Brother Long guide him.
• Cai Guodong arranged for Wu Li to challenge the national team’s players in rank order across twenty-seven matches.
• Wu Li played for twelve hours, won seventeen matches and lost ten, and earned the other players’ respect through his endurance and improving performance.
• Wang Chao asked Cai Guodong to register Wu Li for eligible competitions and said he and Wu Li wanted to pair up for Men’s Doubles.

Wang Chao chose Wu Li as his men's doubles partner, while Luo Jiu was paired with Lin Li, and the Chinese team tested its new combinations at the New Zealand Open. Wang Chao and Fan Xiaodong won the men's singles and women's singles titles went to Wang Yu, but foreign teams took the mixed doubles crown after both Chinese pairings were eliminated.

• Wang Chao persuaded Cai Guodong to let him partner with Wu Li and suggested pairing Luo Jiu with Lin Li.
• Wang Chao won the men's singles title over Fan Xiaodong, while Wang Yu defeated Shen Sha in the women's singles final and Tang Yuanyuan lost in the first round.
• Wang Chao and Wu Li edged the Michel brothers 3:2 after a tense comeback, and Lin Li and Fan Xiaodong also won their semifinal to create an all-Chinese men's doubles final.
• Lin Li and Fan Xiaodong defeated Wang Chao and Wu Li 3:2 to claim the men's doubles title.
• Lu Feiyang and Shen Sha lost to Ichikawa Mima and Niuwa Xiaoxi in the mixed doubles quarterfinals, and Gao Mingyuan and Wang Yu lost to Che Songxin and Xian Youwen in the semifinals.
• Che Songxin and Xian Youwen won the mixed doubles title for Daehan Minguk.

After China Table Tennis’s mixed-doubles pairs failed at international events, Cai Guodong realized Wang Chao was essential and stopped trying to separate him from Tang Yuanyuan. Wang Chao continued his Super League season with Black Spade Q, whose strong record was overshadowed by the impending expiration of most players’ contracts.

• Che Songxin and Xian Youwen won mixed-doubles gold, while China’s pairs failed to reach the podium and prompted emergency coaching meetings.
• Wang Chao refused to change partners, and He Jingping argued that Tang Yuanyuan had done nothing wrong and that Wang Chao had to be persuaded directly.
• At the Dubai stop, Luo Jiu won men’s singles and men’s doubles, Shen Sha beat Wang Yu in women’s singles, and the Bay Island pair won mixed doubles after defeating China’s contenders.
• After the Dubai results exposed China’s mixed-doubles weakness, Zhu Zeshi and He Jingping convinced Cai Guodong that Wang Chao was the only suitable male player and that his position was deliberate.
• Cai Guodong abandoned efforts to replace Tang Yuanyuan, while Wang Chao’s Black Spade Q reached second place in the Super League standings.
• Black Spade Q faced a sensitive contract issue as most of its players’ deals neared expiration after the spring season.

Chinese table tennis players competed at the Kimchi Country and German Opens while Spade Q won the spring league championship. The chapter ended with Fan Xiaodong defeating Lin Zijun for the German Open title after Lin Zijun abandoned his stronger defensive style to trade attacks.

• Wang Chao won Men's Singles and Men's Doubles at the Kimchi Country Open, while the Tang Dynasty Combination took the Mixed Doubles title as Tang Yuanyuan showed a more aggressive game.
• Spade Q won the Table Tennis Super League Spring Season championship, and Liaoning Province Zhonggang Club secured a playoff place after Qi Hao and Xue Hui improved.
• Chinese table tennis sent a mostly young squad to the German Open, where thirteen-year-old Wang Qin reached the semifinals before Lin Zijun swept him.
• Fan Xiaodong and Lin Zijun reached the German Open final, where Lin Zijun played impatiently and traded attacks instead of relying on his stronger defense.
• Fan Xiaodong beat Lin Zijun 4–2 to win the title, and Lin Zijun realized afterward that he had made a mistake.

The influx of international players reshaped the Table Tennis Super League, and Spade Q signed Hou Xijia before agreeing to recruit Qiu Shang. At the Chinese Table Tennis base, Qiu Shang tried to recover from his defeat to Wang Qin but was repeatedly beaten by the cafeteria cooks, then headed to the training hall.

• International players flooded the transfer market, prompting major roster changes across the Super League and leaving Spade Q searching for recruits.
• Fan Xiaofan signed Hou Xijia, who joined Spade Q to keep Wang Chao and Wu Li together as a doubles pair.
• He Jingping told Fan Xiaofan that Qiu Shang was available, and Fan agreed to recruit him because his father, Qiu Zexing, came from Northern Hubei Province.
• After Qiu Shang struggled to recover from losing to Wang Qin, Qiu Zexing brought him to the Chinese Table Tennis base, where Cai Guodong arranged for him to stay and train.
• Qiu Shang challenged several cooks to matches and lost each time, then decided to visit the training hall.

Qiu Shang went to the Chinese Table Tennis base believing he was an exceptional player, but a string of defeats made him reconsider his talent and experience. After Wang Chao beat him five games in a row without conceding a point, Qiu Shang was left dreading the prospect of joining Wang Chao’s team.

• Qiu Shang lost to a security guard, an older player with a broom, and two of three practice partners, then recognized that experience, technique, and composure mattered as much as talent.
• Qiu Shang asked to face a top player, and Wang Chao arrived at the base to play him.
• Wang Chao beat Qiu Shang 11:1 in the first game and 11:0 in each of the next four games.
• Qiu Shang broke down after failing to score a point, and Wang Chao reminded him that they would soon train together as teammates.
• Qiu Shang remembered that he had agreed to join the Black Spade Q Club and secretly wondered whether he could ask his father to switch teams before signing the contract.

The transfer window reshaped the Table Tennis Super League as wealthy clubs assembled star-studded lineups, but Wang Chao stayed with Spade Q despite record-breaking offers. At the Swedish Open, he won Men's Singles and Men's Doubles, while the new Wang Qin and Shen Sha pairing reached the Mixed Doubles final and stunned the table tennis world.

• Magic City Fire Phoenix signed Qi Hao and Weng Chunting, while Imperial Capital Panlong recruited Lin Li and Arul; Imperial Capital New City retained Wang Shou, Liang Kunpeng, and Lin Zijun despite their financial troubles and lucrative offers elsewhere.
• Imperial Capital Panlong, Magic City Fire Phoenix, and Jiangcheng University Team tried to recruit Wang Chao, but he rejected them and remained with Spade Q.
• Wang Chao won Men's Singles at the Swedish Open by defeating Fan Xiaodong in the semifinals, then teamed with Wu Li to win Men's Doubles.
• Cai Guodong sent Wang Qin and Shen Sha as the experimental Killing Head Combination in Mixed Doubles, leaving the Tang Dynasty Combination out of the event.
• Wang Qin and Shen Sha beat Zhang Benkuang and Hayata Hannah, then Kim Bong and Kim Jong, before defeating Gao Mingyuan and Wang Yu 3:2 to reach the final.

Wang Qin and Shen Sha rose as a formidable mixed doubles team, but Lin Zijun and Che Songxin’s newly formed international partnership crushed them and exposed the gap. Fearing Chinese table tennis would lose its mixed doubles dominance, Cai Guodong summoned Wang Chao back to the capital, and Wang Chao called Tang Yuanyuan back to prepare.

• Wang Qin and Shen Sha won the China Open mixed doubles final against the Taiwan Island Combination, while Wang Chao assured Tang Yuanyuan their partnership would remain secure.
• At the Australian Open, Wang Chao won the Asian Cup and Australian Open singles titles, while the Killing Head Combination won the mixed doubles final narrowly against the Taiwan Island Combination.
• He Jingping warned Cai Guodong that the Taiwan Island Combination could surpass Wang Qin and Shen Sha once Lin Zijun adapted to their tactics, but Cai remained unwilling to give up testing alternatives.
• The Bay Island and Daehan Minguk associations formed a mixed doubles partnership between Lin Zijun and Che Songxin, who dominated the Sakura Country Open and defeated Wang Qin and Shen Sha 3:0 in the final.
• Cai Guodong, alarmed by the loss, called Wang Chao and ordered him to return to the capital for November’s competition; Wang Chao thanked Lin Zijun and told Tang Yuanyuan to come back and prepare.