In the first round, Class Three only scored three points, while Class Five scored more than twenty. Class Five was quite aggressive, not even considering Hao Jian’s Class Three as a threat. Gao Yanfei and his team looked down on Hao Jian’s team entirely, but now, after the second round, they seemed more cautious, as if facing a serious challenge.

Class Two was not in the same state as before. Compared to earlier, it was obvious they didn’t dare underestimate Hao Jian’s team anymore. But Gao Yanfei was an exception. He believed that Hao Jian winning so many points was just an accident. In this round, as long as they tightened their defense against Hao Jian a bit, he wouldn’t be able to score.

Both sides took the court with their own thoughts. In the last round, Hao Jian scored the final point, so it was right for Class Three to serve this time. The coach smoothly passed the ball to Hu Lai, who then passed it to Fatty. Fatty took the ball out of the three-point line to serve and then passed it to Zheng Jun.

As planned, after Zheng Jun received the ball, he dribbled toward Class Five, while the tall one stayed back to defend their territory in case Class Five quickly intercepted the ball. He couldn’t cross the halfway line.

Class Five evidently valued them more than in the previous round, tightly marking them right from the start. As Zheng Jun advanced, he clearly encountered resistance.

"Clap clap!" Hu Lai suddenly clapped his hands. This was their signal: once someone found a gap or breakthrough, they would clap to indicate, and the one being double-teamed would pass the ball to them.

Zheng Jun immediately passed the ball to Hu Lai, who without a second thought, dribbled and prepared to charge in. At that moment, nobody was in front of him. It was the perfect chance for a layup to safely score two points.

But suddenly, just as Hu Lai crossed the two-point line, ready for a layup, Class Five’s Number Three reacted swiftly and charged toward Hu Lai. Hu Lai smiled confidently. He was already under the basket, so it was impossible for him to be stopped. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

However, at the exact moment the ball was released, everyone was shocked as Number Three crashed into Hu Lai. Charging was a foul, but it seemed as if Number Three lost his balance from running too fast, collapsing onto Hu Lai, and before the ball could be fully released, Hu Lai was knocked to the ground by Number Three.

Thus, the ball slipped from Hu Lai’s hands onto the floor and did not land in the basket as expected. Moreover, Number Three ended up lying on top of Hu Lai.

What the hell! The entire court erupted instantly! What was going on! Class Three was about to score, and at that moment, clearly, they couldn’t stop Class Three from scoring. But right then, Number Three from Class Five directly charged at Hu Lai, falling onto him.

It seemed like Number Three suddenly lost his footing and was about to fall. True, playing ball often results in falls, especially in heated moments, but there was no one beside Number Three, and no one blocking him. How could a grown man just fall without cause?

Everyone could see through this trick; Number Three intended to fake a fall to hinder Hu Lai, preventing him from scoring and stopping Class Three from earning points. What a sneaky move! Viewers displayed both disbelief and disgust. Was Class Five so afraid of Class Three, afraid of Hao Jian?

Was Class Five already scared by Class Three, resorting to such sinister tactics to prevent them from scoring? Everyone looked astonished.

Anyone with common sense could see through Number Three’s trick because his intent was too obvious. Although Number Three acted like he was falling, no one just falls without reason unless they want to stop Hu Lai from scoring.

"Shameless! Rascal!"

No one knew where the sudden shout came from, and it was quickly followed by discussions around the court about Class Five’s Number Three’s actions. The talk was all about how Class Five could resort to such actions out of fear of Class Three; if they were so afraid, why compete at all instead of acting disgracefully?

These words naturally reached Gao Yanfei’s ears. His face turned dark as he shouted loudly, "All of you shut up! Which eye did you see him deliberately fall to block Class Three from scoring? If you keep spouting nonsense, face the consequences. Though I might not remember each one of your faces, I’ll remember them one by one, and if you dare to talk nonsense again, don’t blame me for having a word with you later!"

Gao Yanfei’s words carried a threat, echoing across the entire basketball court. Initially, people were discussing the incident heatedly, criticizing Class Five, but after Gao Yanfei’s outburst, the basketball court fell silent, and no one dared to openly discredit Class Five.

After all, since Gao Yanfei had already spoken, if someone continued to speak, especially if Gao Yanfei remembered them, their consequences could be grim. Thus, those who dared didn’t speak, those who didn’t have the courage didn’t say anything, and the basketball court quieted down.

"He fouled!"

At that moment, in the previously silent basketball court, a voice was heard in protest. The speaker was the furious Zhang Danlin. Others might not dare, but she wasn’t afraid: "Referee, Number Three fouled! He deliberately knocked over Hu Lai to prevent him from scoring!"

All eyes turned to Zhang Danlin. Gao Yanfei obviously didn’t expect anyone to dare challenge him after what he said, considering it suicidal. But seeing that it was Zhang Danlin who spoke, he hesitated.

He then glanced in a certain direction on the basketball court, specifically toward where Gu Peng was sitting, and swallowed the words he was about to say. In the first year of high school, although he had some authority, compared to the person sitting there, it meant nothing.

The audience was silent. Most people’s eyes focused on Zhang Danlin, while some on the referee, all waiting for the referee to speak. The referee paused, remained silent for a moment, then suddenly said something that shocked everyone.

"It was an accidental fall, not a foul, continue the game!" said the referee.

When the referee announced this, the entire audience was stunned.

"What the hell! That wasn’t a foul? It was obviously intentional; so many people saw it was a foul, how come it’s not a foul!"

"This referee is fucked up, unfair. If I ever have to take his PE class, I’m skipping every session!"

Hearing the referee’s answer enraged the crowd. The foul was an undeniable fact to them, yet the referee’s words absolved Number Three, which felt incredibly unfair.

Zhang Danlin was furious upon hearing this and wanted to say something but was stopped by Liang Xiaohan.

"Don’t say anything, trust Hao Jian. He won’t let Class Five get away with this, so hold your anger for now," Liang Xiaohan said.

Although Zhang Danlin was furious and found it hard to remain calm in such an unfair situation, she had no choice but to simmer down after Liang Xiaohan’s words.

Gao Yanfei smiled when he heard the verdict. Yes, this was the outcome he wanted. His gaze shifted to Number Three on the ground, who had already stood up. Their eyes met, exuding a sense of conspiracy.

Initially, Gao Yanfei hadn’t thought of this tactic, but after the second round, he became anxious. If they continued, and Hao Jian, even slam-dunked at ease, how to cope with defeat in front of so many people!

Therefore, during the halftime break, he came up with this plan. As Hu Lai attempted a layup, he signaled Number Three, who immediately acted accordingly.

Everything was set up, so the referee’s previous statement was evidently prepared. Gao Yanfei smiled as the game continued.

Hu Lai was helped up by Fatty, his face filled with rage.

"Son of a bitch!" Hu Lai cursed.

No one could help swearing in such situations, especially someone like Hu Lai who wasn’t exactly the gentleman type, so he naturally burst out with foul language.

At this moment, Hao Jian walked up to Hu Lai, asking with concern, "Are you okay?"

Hu Lai shook his head, "I’m fine! Just didn’t expect Class Five to be this sneaky. If their skills aren’t up to par, that’s one thing, but thinking of such dirty tricks to stop someone from scoring really shows a lack of sportsmanship."

Hao Jian listened, a smile appearing on his face. He had guessed that someone like Gao Yanfei, who seemed upright, would use such cheap tricks but didn’t expect it so soon.

He had expected this to happen as the third round neared its end, with their team leading by dozens of points, causing Gao Yanfei to lose control out of fear of losing badly.

But to his surprise, Gao Yanfei couldn’t even wait for the third round to start before using this tactic.