Less than an hour after the match, the internet exploded.
But the reason for the explosion wasn't that Cheng Che beat Berrettini.
Although the match itself was exciting enough: losing the first set but then coming back to win, and dominating the deciding set 6-1.
But netizens' attention was drawn to something else.
A girl in the stands stood up and shouted something in Korean.
The video was filmed by an audience member and posted online.
Someone understood the meaning of the Korean phrase and posted the translation in the comments section.
She said, " Cheng Che, I love you."
This comment immediately sparked a lively discussion in the comment section.
[Holy crap??? A public confession???]
[Who is this girl? She's so bold!]
[Judging from the accent, she's South Korea? South Korea girls are so fierce!]
[ Cheng Che has gained another international fan.]
However, there were also many dissenting voices.
[She's probably a girl who's had plastic surgery; those South Korea faces look like they came from an assembly line.]
[She shouted so loudly, as if afraid others wouldn't know she knew Cheng Che ]
[Is he desperate for fame, just trying to ride the wave of popularity?]
These comments immediately drew rebuttals.
[Why are you being so sour? What's wrong with someone just saying it?]
How do you know she had plastic surgery? Have you seen her?
[Being unable to get confessed to yourself, you're just here being sarcastic about others]
The argument escalated until someone posted a new video.
The video was taken outside the venue. Pei Jingshu had just come out and taken off her mask.
The camera shook for a moment, then stopped.
There was a face on the screen.
Her skin was fair and translucent, her features were so delicate they looked like they had been painted, her eyes were large and bright, her nose had sharp lines, and her lips were slightly pursed, giving her an aura that was somewhere between cool and gentle.
There was a moment of silence below the video.
Then comments flooded in.
Holy crap??? Is this level of beauty even real???
I apologize for calling her a "plastic surgery girl" earlier; that face can't be achieved through surgery.
[No, why would she like Cheng Che? With her looks, wouldn't the line of men chasing her stretch to the Han River?]
[I'm so jealous, so incredibly jealous. What kind of life does Cheng Che have?]
[If this girl debuts, I'll be the first one to pursue her.]
Then some international students from Korea University emerged.
[This is Pei Jingshu! A vocal music major at Korea University! Our school's most beautiful girl! Several entertainment company scouts have approached her, but she hasn't gone!]
[I can vouch for her; I saw her in person at school, and she's even prettier than in the videos. Plus, she's usually super aloof and never talks to guys.]
[She actually went to watch a tennis match?! Doesn't she never watch sports?!]
Subsequently, more secretly taken photos were unearthed.
At Korea University's anniversary celebration, in the cafeteria, and at the library entrance.
Pei Jingshu looks flawless in every single picture.
The comments section was filled with lamentations.
[A beauty of this caliber actually confessed her feelings to you... Cheng Che, did you save her life?]
I declare that, from this day forward, I am jealous of Cheng Che.
[Stop talking, I'm already crying.]
[She shouted "I love you," guys! It was in authentic Korean; I listened to that tone of voice ten times.]
But what truly made this a breaking news story was another set of photos.
That night, photos of Cheng Che and Pei Jingshu on a bench on the Bund were leaked online.
The person taking the photo was just casually snapping a picture of the Bund at night; the picture showed a young couple sitting on a bench.
The man was wearing a mask and a hat, and the woman's face was turned to the side, at an angle that allowed her to see her outline clearly.
No one noticed this photo at the time.
But now, netizens are comparing this photo with Pei Jingshu's front-facing photo.
It's a woman, it's her.
The man, though wearing a mask, his build, his demeanor, the way he sat on the bench...
Someone recognized him.
[This guy is Cheng Che!!!]
Holy crap, I compared his jacket to the one he wore during the game earlier today, and they're exactly the same!
So they know each other??? It wasn't a chance encounter???
[ The Bund, a bench, at night, two people sitting alone... What do you think?]
The internet is completely in an uproar.
The hashtag # Cheng Che # surged to Pei Jingshu top of the trending searches within ten minutes.
Spring City, Clearwater Bay Residential Complex.
Jiang Xue was carrying a bowl out of the kitchen when her phone, which was on the coffee table, lit up briefly.
She hadn't paid any attention at first, but after taking a few steps, she stopped and glanced at it from the side.
She almost dropped the bowl in her hands.
" Old Cheng!"
Cheng Jianguo, who was dozing on the sofa, was startled by her shout and opened his eyes abruptly, "What's wrong? What's wrong?"
"Come here!" Jiang Xue rushed to the sofa and shoved her phone in his face. "Your son is trending!"
Cheng Jianguo squinted for two seconds, then sprang up from the sofa, losing one of his slippers in the process.
"What is this? Pei something-sook? Is she from South Korea?"
"The campus belle of Korea University!" Jiang Xue's voice was shrill and high-pitched, her hand holding the phone trembling. "Look at this photo, this face, these eyes, this nose, is this girl even real?"
Cheng Jianguo snatched the phone, flipped through it twice, then flipped through it again.
His hands stopped, his mouth opened and closed, and finally he managed to stammer out, "This girl is pretty. But what does that have to do with Cheche?"
"Look at the second photo yourself!" Jiang Xue swiped the screen over. " The Bund! A bench! Two people sitting there! What other relationship could it be!"
Cheng Jianguo stared at the photo for several seconds.
Then he put down his phone, leaned back on the sofa, and wiped his face.
How old is this girl?
How should I know?
"Look at what she's wearing, that coat, that demeanor, she seems quite sensible. I just wonder if she can speak Chinese." Jiang Xue suddenly put down her phone, her expression turning serious. " Old Cheng, what do you think will happen if Cheche really gets together with her, given the language barrier?"
Cheng Jianguo looked at her blankly. "Why are you thinking so far ahead?"
Jiang Xue ignored him, but the corners of her mouth were turned up, very high.
Capital City, Guo Xin's dormitory.
Guo Xin stared at his phone screen, his mouth agape.
He zoomed in on the photo of the Bund bench, then zoomed out again, then zoomed in again.
" Brother Che," he muttered to himself, "Are you really going to start a harem?"
He picked up his phone and sent a message to Cheng Che.
It's all exclamation marks.
Then he sent another message:
"Explain yourself, what's with this South Korea girl? She's even prettier than in the photos! Confess, are you having some kind of international romance?"
Dormitories at Beijing Normal University.
Su Qingyue sat on the bed, her phone screen lit up.
She stared at the photo of the Bund bench for a long time.
In the photo, Cheng Che is wearing a mask and sitting at one end of a bench.
Pei Jingshu sat at the other end, the distance between the two was neither too far nor too close, just the kind of distance that is "acquaintances but not intimate".
She put down her phone and looked down at the four-leaf clover pendant on her chest.
He touched the edge of the four-leaf clover with his fingertips, but said nothing.
My roommate peeked over from the side and asked, " Qingyue, what are you looking at?"
"It's nothing." She tucked the pendant back into her collar and turned her phone face down on the bed.
Yan Ruanning's studio.
Yan Ruanning sat on the sofa, holding a teacup, looking at the trending topics on her phone. Xiao Zhou sat beside her, carefully observing her expression.
After reading the trending topic, Yan Ruanning scrolled through a few more pages of comments, then put down her phone and took a sip of tea.
" Sister Ning," Xiao Zhou tentatively asked, "Aren't you angry?"
"Why are you angry?" Yan Ruanning's tone was calm. "He's not dating anyone. That girl just shouted something from the stands. In that photo on the Bund, the two of them were sitting so far apart; it's obviously a coincidence."
Xiao Zhou looked at her, and the corners of his mouth twitched.
Yan Ruanning put down her teacup, stood up, and walked towards the recording studio.
After taking a couple of steps, she turned back and glanced at Xiao Zhou.
"Check that girl's information."
Which one?
" Pei Jingshu," Yan Ruanning said, "Is from the vocal music department of Korea University. Check if she has any plans to come to Xia Country recently."
Xiao Zhou paused for a moment, then nodded.
Yan Ruanning turned and went into the recording studio, closing the door behind her.
She leaned against the door and let out a soft hum.
"I'll see who's better."
In the courtyard of the alley.
Su Miaoyin sat on the sofa, holding her phone in front of her, the trending topic on the screen.
She stared at Pei Jingshu's photo for a long time, then squinted her eyes.
"She's quite pretty," she muttered, her tone carrying an indescribable quality.
She put down her phone, pouted, and tapped her fingers on the sofa armrest. After a while, she suddenly stopped.
Then her eyes lit up.
She picked up her phone, found a number, and dialed it.
"Hey, Lin Lin." Her voice suddenly became very serious, "You said last time you wanted to learn tennis, do you still want to?"
Lin Lin on the other end of the phone was taken aback for a moment. "Huh? Why are you suddenly asking this?"
Su Miaoyin did not answer.
She looked at the photo of Pei Jingshu on her phone screen, and the corners of her mouth slowly curved into a smile.
"It's nothing," she said. "I just feel like I should probably start learning too."