After Wu Shi completed his stunning lap, most people had a pretty good idea of who would take pole position in the pre-finals, and even who the eventual champion would be.
He returned to the pits and took off his helmet. His bangs were soaked with sweat.
'A familiar feeling.'
So, as he did every time he stepped out of an F1 car, he removed his helmet, shook his head, and flung off the sweat.
"Little Wu Shi! We meet again~" A reporter from Big Eye Sports Media walked over and crouched in front of him, holding out a microphone. "Is now a good time for an interview?"
Wu Shi wasn't a huge fan of this part, but he had recently learned about Sky Eye Group and its subsidiary, Big Eye News. It was a corporate behemoth whose commercial tentacles didn't just span the entire country, but also reached overseas.
Just as Uncle Chen had said, if he stayed on good terms with Big Eye News, his first sponsorship deal might just be in the bag.
So, he nodded. "Sure."
"Just now, when you crossed the finish line, I saw a lot of people by the fence cheering for you. Can you tell everyone what you accomplished on the track to make them so excited?"
"Uh, I guess I was pretty fast. I might have broken the record for a rainy day." Wu Shi honestly hadn't been paying attention to the people off the track.
"Oh~ The track is slippery in the rain. That must have had a big impact on your driving, right?"
"Of course. We not only have to use special rain tires, but we also have to control our speed and change our driving lines to get a good result in the rain," Wu Shi nodded.
"So are you better in sunny weather or rainy weather?" the reporter continued.
Wu Shi brushed back his sweat-dampened hair and said, "It's all the same to me. It's just driving a vehicle on a track. That's it."
After that, the reporter asked a few more questions. She only stopped when the other kids started returning to the pits one by one.
"HOLY CRAP! Boss! How was your lap time so fast?!" Ling Kang rushed over, practically buzzing with manic energy.
"I found a breakthrough," Wu Shi said, taking a sip of water.
"That's insane!"
Zeng Tianyi also nodded. Having composed himself, his feelings toward Wu Shi's achievement had transformed into pure awe. He no longer felt any sense of disappointment or defeat.
"Boss! You were so fast!" From the side, a sweet, child-like voice called out.
Wu Shi looked over. 'Isn't that Ye Zhaohui's little sister? What's she doing here?'
"Hello, everyone. Ningning just watched your race and was very impressed. She insisted on dragging me over to meet you," Ye Zhongming said.
"Thank you~"
Wu Shi had a pretty good impression of this gentle and refined-looking man.
"Dad! Ningning." Ye Zhaohui walked over just then, completely drenched.
"Go get dried off," said Ye Zhongming.
But Ye Zhaohui didn't move. He looked around and asked, "Did Mom leave again?"
"Yes," Ye Zhongming nodded.
"Brother! I want to drive too!" Ye Ningning shouted.
"Huh?" Ye Zhaohui was baffled.
"It was so cool! VROOM! WHOOSH~" The little girl made a car shape with her hand, pursing her lips to make sound effects.
"No way. It's too dangerous."
Ye Zhaohui shook his head. Only after getting in a kart, feeling the wind rush past, and watching the road blur by did you realize just how dangerous this sport was.
"..." Ye Ningning's hand froze and slowly dropped to her side.
"Zhaohui, your mother just said she wants to take you to the United States because karting is too dangerous for you," Ye Zhongming said.
Hearing this, Wu Shi grabbed his two friends and started to back away. 'This is family business. It's not good to keep listening!'
"Boss! I want you to teach me how to drive!"
However, Ye Ningning stuck to him like glue, hopping over to his side.
Wu Shi turned around and met her big, dewy eyes, which looked as if they might spill over at the slightest touch.
"Ningning! I'll teach you," Ye Zhaohui said, running over as well.
"No!"
"It's my fault..."
Ye Zhaohui didn't know how to comfort the little girl. How could he have known what his mother had just said? If he had, would he have said something to provoke Ningning like that?
"No! I want the Boss to teach me!" Ye Ningning shook her head, already siding with the trio.
"Wait, Ningning? Why are you calling him Boss already?" Ye Zhaohui's fists tightened.
"That's what they call him! And the Boss goes WHOOSH~ and he can do turns, and he's super, super fast. Way faster than you~" Ye Ningning pursed her little lips again, mimicking the sound of a kart engine.
"..." Ye Zhaohui's defenses crumbled. Lies are one thing, but the truth cuts like a knife.
Ling Kang's earlier words echoed in his ears: "Before I met the Boss, I thought I was the greatest thing in the world."
"Ningning, don't bother them. They need to rest. They have another race soon." Ye Zhongming noticed things were getting awkward and stepped in to mediate.
"Okay." Ye Ningning didn't make a fuss, but she lowered her head in disappointment.
'Mom only cares about my brother. She's always talking about taking him away, but she's so mean to me and doesn't pay me any mind. I'm so jealous of him. Dad cares about him, Mom cares about him, but nobody cares about what I want.'
She pouted, then suddenly looked up at Wu Shi, who was quite a bit taller than her, and said, "Boss! I really want to learn how to drive a kart! Can you teach me?!"
Wu Shi saw the anticipation in the girl's eyes, but he could sense that it wasn't a desire for the racetrack.
'It's just... she just wants to be acknowledged. Just like any other neglected child.'
"If I have time, sure," he nodded.
"Yay! I'll find you when you have time, then. Go, Boss! Go beat this meanie brother of mine!" Ye Ningning skipped back to her father's side.
Ye Zhongming watched her, saying nothing.
"Congrats, Boss! You've got another underling! No, wait, a little sister!" Once they were further away, Ling Kang's big mouth got going again.
"I suddenly get the feeling that their family is pretty complicated," Zeng Tianyi, who was naturally sensitive, had already picked up on it from their conversation.
"Yeah, well, every family has its own problems."
Wu Shi shook his head. 'I'm lucky Dad is so open-minded. Otherwise, I never would have been able to get on the track on my own.'
"There you go, acting like a little adult again. Uncle Wu is so great, what's got you sighing like that?" Ling Kang pouted.
"My dad is great," Wu Shi replied with a smile. "And he's all I have."
The pout on Ling Kang's face froze. Only then did he remember that Wu Shi's mother had never once appeared. Hearing him say that, did it mean he was from a single-parent family?
SMACK!
He slapped himself across the face.
"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?!" Zeng Tianyi grabbed his arm.
"Boss! I'm sorry! I… I'm such an idiot! Waaah!!!" Ling Kang used his other hand to smack himself in the mouth.
"It's fine. It's all in the past. Things are good the way they are now." Wu Shi grabbed his hand to stop him.
Amidst their fooling around, the break time passed quickly.
Due to the track's schedule, the pre-finals were also being held today. So, once the timed practice sessions for all groups had ended, it was time for Wu Shi and the others to get back on the track.
During the break, some parents suggested moving the pre-finals to the next day.
However, the event organizers had checked the weather forecast, which predicted thunderstorms and even worse conditions for tomorrow. Citing that and the difficulty of arbitrarily changing the schedule, they decided to proceed with the races.
This prompted quite a few parents to withdraw their children from the competition.
When Wu Shi sat down in his kart and looked back, he saw only seven other karts remaining.
If it weren't for the prize money for first, second, and third place, there would probably be even fewer people here.