I Want to Fight That Kid Again

Among all sports, racing undoubtedly placed the clearest demands on—and offered the clearest display of—individual ability.

Whether it was cycling, running, swimming, or anything else, an athlete's true level was easy to see with the naked eye.

Although road cycling was technically a team sport, it was ultimately unlike football or basketball.

If an elite midfielder or point guard fed a teammate a brilliant one-on-one chance or an open look at the basket, only for that teammate to kick the ball wide or miss the dunk, that did not mean the midfielder or point guard was lousy.

But road cycling was different.

If a team leader's domestiques had already given everything to deliver him into a position to contend for the title, yet he still could not beat the leaders of other teams and ended up losing, then it was purely a matter of insufficient individual ability. There was nothing to argue about.

Zhou Ming was a seasoned road cycling enthusiast and watched plenty of professional races. He understood that perfectly well.

The hired riders he had brought along had already done everything they could. He himself simply could not beat Huang Chong on the climb, and he knew that clearly.

Still, when he heard Du Wei's mockery, while he could not argue over losing to Huang Chong—otherwise, he would only seem petty and full of excuses—what level was Du Wei himself at?

Not only had he been dropped early, he had crossed the line more than twenty minutes behind Zhou Ming.

And he still dared to mock others? His skin was so thick that Zhou Ming did not even know what to say.

"Old Du, that mouth of yours is really annoying sometimes. But since I lost, I'll admit it. Have your brother give Little Rice Grain his WeChat. I'll transfer the prize money directly to him!"

After saying that, Zhou Ming waved a hand and stopped paying Du Wei any attention. He mounted his CANYON road bike, turned around, and started riding back the way he had come, preparing to return to the hotel.

Seeing their patron leave, the four hired riders exchanged glances. After some thought, they followed him and continued taking turns pacing Zhou Ming.

Although they had not been scolded, Zhou Ming had not said he would stop bringing them along in the future, either.

If their patron had no intention of dismissing them, yet they took it upon themselves to leave early, that would truly be a loss outweighing the gain.

"Brother Zhou, this time, the four of us didn't perform well. The responsibility lies with us—"

On the way back, one of the hired riders spoke cautiously.

They had already prepared themselves to be scolded. After all, Zhou Ming's temper was usually far from good.

Yet, to everyone's surprise, Zhou Ming remained exceptionally calm and merely asked in return, "None of you performed well?

"Can I take that to mean you underestimated your opponent during the race?

"Or did you deliberately hold back?"

The moment he said that, the four of them were left speechless.

There was no right way to answer that question.

The moment they had chosen to step forward and take the blame, they had already twisted the nature of the matter.

But when they did not answer, Zhou Ming did not press the issue. He merely gave a self-mocking smile and said, "Since it wasn't your fault, don't imitate people by taking responsibility.

"I know all of you did your best. Huang Chong's climbing ability is simply far stronger than mine.

"Old Du may not say pleasant things, but he has always liked telling the truth.

"I did set him up by choosing a climbing stage this time, and I beat him thoroughly. But as a participant, I also have to face the facts: I lost to his brother.

"I really didn't expect that kid to be so good at climbing. No wonder he talked such a big game about wanting to become a professional rider.

"Tell me, at his current level, if he improves a little more, does he really have a chance of joining a provincial team or a professional cycling team and becoming a real professional rider?"

After hearing Zhou Ming's words, the four hired riders realized that their patron was not angry with them.

What a turn of events. They all breathed a sigh of relief.

If nothing else, at least their jobs were safe!

After thinking it over, one of them did not intend to deliberately belittle Huang Chong just to flatter Zhou Ming. Instead, based on how the ride had gone, he analyzed it honestly.

"Brother Zhou, if you want my opinion, I think it'll be difficult.

"Although Huang Chong's climbing is very strong—exceptionally strong even among amateurs—his descending and flat-road abilities are fairly average.

"The few of us were all dropped by him on the climb, but as long as we held on through the climb, we could still catch him afterward.

"Professional riders need more well-rounded cycling ability. Especially in domestic professional races, which are still mainly flat, there are very few high-mountain stages like those in the UCI WorldTour, with four or five thousand meters of climbing in a single stage stretching one or two hundred kilometers.

"If he can't even keep up with the average speed of the peloton on the flats, then no matter how strong his climbing is, where will he get the chance to use it?

"You could only say he's a specialized type of talent."

"Exactly. Huang Chong may be strong on climbs, but his weaknesses are obvious too. His sprinting is poor, and he seems to have been constantly losing weight, which is actually very unscientific.

"When he attacked out of the saddle earlier, I deliberately watched his physical condition. His legs and core were stable, but his upper-body strength was seriously lacking.

"He barely has any chest or back muscles, which leaves him without explosive power.

"If he doesn't start specialized upper-body strength training soon and keeps cutting weight instead, I think he'll only be at the same level as us—just riding around with amateur teams for fun."

Hearing his men answer like that, Zhou Ming could not help narrowing his eyes. A fierce glint suddenly appeared in them.

He had only casually asked whether Huang Chong could become a professional rider, but now that he had received so much analysis about the latter, a new idea immediately came to him.

"Since all of you think that kid's flat-road cruising and sprinting are poor, then if I challenge him to a hundred-kilometer ride on a flat stage and fight him again, can I blow him apart?"

The question sent the four of them into another long silence.

Honestly, this was not easy to answer.

If Zhou Ming lost again, they would be beyond redemption.

It was impossible to make an absolutely accurate judgment of Huang Chong's true level.

Unless Huang Chong admitted it himself and did not lie.

But what road cyclist would reveal his real numbers?

Wouldn't that be the same as letting his opponents devise tactics to deal with him?

For example, how had the alien Pogačar lost in the Tour de France that had just ended?

They had watched the race too, so they naturally knew it was because the Jumbo–Visma Team had more comprehensive team tactics and had worn Pogačar down through different layers of attrition until he was finished.

"You don't need to worry about anything. I'm not that quick to get angry. Just say whatever you think."

Seeing that his men remained silent, Zhou Ming thought for a moment and added that himself.

Only after receiving that "get-out-of-jail-free card" did one of the hired riders reply, "In my opinion, it should be possible.

"Brother Zhou, flat roads are your specialty to begin with. On top of that, that kid is riding an entry-level Giant TCR. Just in terms of aerodynamics, your bike crushes his.

"So winning shouldn't be much of a problem!"

"Good. Then this coming week, help me train my flat-road cruising ability specifically. Next weekend, I'm going to fight that kid again and take back the victory I lost today!"

Zhou Ming suddenly regained his confidence and made the decision viciously.

At that moment, Huang Chong, who had just returned to the finish area, had no idea that Zhou Ming still wanted to fight him again on a flat stage.

Otherwise, he definitely would have laughed out loud.

He truly could not pull away from the other side on descents. After all, descending did not require leg power; anyone could casually reach an average speed of fifty or sixty kilometers per hour.

But cruising on the flats still required pedaling with one's legs.

And after getting his first win, his FTP had increased by another 15 points and had now reached 263W. His power-to-weight ratio had even reached 4.0+.

With such a high power-to-weight ratio, wouldn't he easily break an average speed of 40KM/H while cruising on the flats?

What made Zhou Ming and his group think that the aerodynamic advantage of a CANYON machine would be enough to beat him?

Of course, even if Huang Chong knew, he would not care.

Because he knew that Zhou Ming's FTP could not possibly exceed 200W.

Their levels were worlds apart.

After he added Little Rice Grain as a WeChat friend, she immediately sent him the champion's prize money provided by Zhou Ming: 28,888.

Not a cent short, and it was after tax.