When the semi-final ended, it was a little after 11 a. m. local time in Melbourne.
At this moment, in the Xia Country, it was 8:50 AM.
The morning rush hour had just ended, and the subway was less crowded. There were still long queues in the office building elevators, and many people, as soon as they sat down at their desks, habitually opened their phones to check messages from the previous night.
Then, the push notification arrived.
Weibo pop-up: Cheng Che advances to the Australian Open final, a historic breakthrough for Xia Country men's tennis!
Douyin pop-up: Cheng Che defeats world number four Medvedev 3-1 to reach his first Grand Slam final!
Xiaohongshu pop-up: Australian Open semi-final match report, Cheng Che makes history!
Many people were taken aback.
Australian Open? Cheng Che? Final?
Then they opened the notification.
On Weibo's trending topics list, the top three spots are now occupied by Cheng Che.
Australian Open Cheng Che #
Cheng Che defeats Medvedev #
#Historic Breakthrough in Xia Country Men's Tennis#
Clicking on it, the pinned post is a match report from the official tournament account, accompanied by a picture of Cheng Che hitting that forehand winner at match point.
He stood on the baseline, leaning slightly forward, his racket at its highest point, his eyes fixed on the open space opposite him.
The number of comments exceeded 10,000 within a minute.
Holy crap!!! It's the finals!!!
[ Xia Country men's tennis has never reached a Grand Slam final before!!! This is a breakthrough!!!]
Cheng Che, you're a god!!!
[I saw this as soon as I woke up this morning, and I immediately jumped out of bed.]
Medvedev is ranked fourth in the world, and he beat him 3-1.
[They lost the second set, but recovered in the next two. Their mentality is amazing.]
[He's only eighteen years old, and he's already reached the final in his first Grand Slam main draw.]
[I cried, I really cried. After waiting for so many years, I've finally found someone who can fight.]
From today onwards, tennis in Xia Country will no longer be limited to women's tennis.
Cheng Che, you've given us tennis players confidence.
Marketing accounts started frantically jumping on the bandwagon to gain attention.
Why did Cheng Che make it to the Grand Slam final? Three talents will tell you the answer.
From top scorer in the national college entrance Zhuangyuan to the Australian Open final, just how strong is this 18-year-old?
" Cheng Che's match highlights are works of art in every frame."
The aftershocks of the [ Ten-Million-Tier Popularity Card ] are still in effect, and coupled with the cross-circle spread of [ The Barrier Breaker ], Cheng Che's topic has spread from the sports circle to the entertainment circle, and from Weibo to Xiaohongshu and Douyin.
On Xiaohongshu, a blogger posted a note:
"I don't understand tennis, but after watching Cheng Che's match clips, I admit I've become a fan."
The accompanying photo was a side profile of Cheng Che on the court, and the comments section quickly garnered over a thousand views.
On Douyin, a video editor made up Cheng Che's top five plays in the semi-finals and added the chorus of " Chasing the Wind ". The video received more than 500,000 likes in one hour.
The comments section was full of things like, "How does this guy manage to be both handsome and a great tennis player?", "I want to learn tennis!", and "Where can I watch Cheng Che's matches live?"
In Cheng Che's fan community, fans have gone crazy.
Sisters!!! It's the finals!!! We've made it to the finals!!!
My favorite player made it to a Grand Slam final! I'm so incredibly proud!
[My mom asked me this morning why I was crying. I said Cheng Che made it to the finals. She said, "Isn't that a good thing? Why are you crying?" I said, "You don't understand, this is history."]
[From today onwards, if anyone says Cheng Che is just a handsome guy, I'll be the first to disagree.]
[He's a top scorer in the national college entrance Zhuangyuan, Peking University student, a tennis Champion, a music composer, and now a Grand Slam finalist. I'll be a fan of someone like him for life.]
[My parents used to forbid me from being a fan of celebrities, but after they found out that Cheng Che was the Zhuangyuan, they changed their minds and told me to learn from him.]
[I told my mom I liked Cheng Che, and she said he's a good kid, ambitious, and that I should observe how hard he works.]
The power of a high-quality idol is that when you follow them, others don't feel like you're wasting your time.
My classmate used to laugh at me for being a fangirl, but yesterday she secretly asked me where I could watch Cheng Che's matches.
This is our Che Baby, flawless from every angle.
At the same time, in four different locations, four girls simultaneously pulled out their phones.
Spring City.
Su Qingyue was sitting on the sofa at home, having just finished breakfast.
She was about to turn on her computer to do her homework when a notification popped up on her phone.
She clicked on it.
Cheng Che advances to the Australian Open final.
She stared at the words for three seconds, then stood up, went into the room, and opened her suitcase.
She opened the ticketing app and booked a flight to Melbourne.
We're leaving the day after tomorrow, just in time for the finals.
She pulled out her suitcase and started packing clothes inside.
Shandong.
Su Miaoyin lay on her large bed in her room, holding her phone up in front of her.
She had just seen the news that Cheng Che had made it to the finals when she jumped out of bed and bounced around on it twice.
"It's in! It's in! It's in!!!"
She kicked off the blanket, then sat on the edge of the bed and opened her phone to book tickets.
She has a flight to Melbourne the day after tomorrow. She missed it last time, and she can't miss it again this time.
She put down her phone and started rummaging through the closet.
"What should I wear...?"
The Capital City.
Yan Ruanning sat on the sofa in her studio, holding a cup of hot water in her hand.
Xiao Zhou pushed open the door and came in, holding up his phone. " Sister Ning Ruan, Cheng Che has made it to the finals."
Yan Ruanning took the phone, looked at the news on the screen, and a smile curved her lips.
I knew he would win.
She stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the city outside.
She was the first to know him, and the last to speak up. But this time, she didn't want to wait any longer.
" Xiao Zhou," she turned around, "Book me a flight to Melbourne. The day after tomorrow."
Xiao Zhou was taken aback for a moment. "The day after tomorrow? You have a recording scheduled for that time—"
"Please cancel it for me."
Xiao Zhou opened his mouth, but seeing Yan Ruanning's expression, he swallowed his words back.
Seoul, SM Entertainment Composition Department.
Pei Jingshu was wearing headphones and editing a melody on her computer.
Her phone was placed beside her, and the screen lit up briefly.
She glanced at it.
Cheng Che advances to the Australian Open final.
She sprang up from her chair, her earphone cord ripped off and hanging around her neck. Her colleague next to her turned to look at her.
"What's wrong?"
"It's okay!" Pei Jingshu grabbed her phone, rushed out of the composition department, and ran into the corridor.
She opened the ticketing app and started booking tickets.
Flights to Melbourne the day after tomorrow.
When she left last time, Cheng Che said, "See you in the finals."
She thought he was just trying to comfort her, but she never expected him to actually do it.
She stared at the words "Ticket booking successful" on the screen and took a deep breath.
"I'm here," she said to her phone screen, her tone as if she were speaking to Cheng Che.
Then she turned and walked back to the composition department, pushed open the door, and went to the supervisor.
"Supervisor, I'd like to ask for two days off."
The supervisor looked up. "Taking leave again?"
"The finals," Pei Jingshu said, "He made it to the finals. I want to go watch."
The supervisor looked at her, paused for a moment, and then sighed.
"Go," he said, "Don't waste too much time."
Pei Jingshu nodded, then turned and left.
She took out her phone, opened the chat app, and sent a message to Cheng Che.
See you the day after tomorrow.
After sending it, she added another sentence.
"This time, I won't just sit in the stands."