A Useless Coach?

Coach Shirogane waved his hand, then turned to the reporter who had just asked the question:
"Did you see me give any advice on the court?"

Hearing this, a large question mark appeared over the heads of the reporters. They looked at each other in confusion and finally realized... that was indeed the case. They truly hadn't seen Coach Shirogane offer a single suggestion to the players.

At that moment, they were even thinking: *Coach Shirogane... did he even do anything on the court just now?*

"..."

"Um... Coach Shirogane, I have a new question."

"Go ahead."

"I want to ask, what exactly is your role as the coach... do you actually do anything?"

Li Zhongshu, standing nearby, was stunned. *Damn, they hit the nail right on the head!*

Immediately, Coach Shirogane also realized the problem. He coughed awkwardly twice and said:
"It's like this. I did that to train the players' ability to solve problems on their own."

"I believe that cultivating the players' capabilities is more important than simply winning a single match."

"Ah, but..."

Seeing that the reporters seemed to want to say something else, Coach Shirogane stopped acting mysterious. He interrupted them directly and changed the subject:
"Ahem, right, we should go back to the previous question. What did you ask just now?"

The reporters didn't think too much of it and replied:
"We asked if the arrangement for the final deciding shot was something you planned beforehand."

However, after asking this, the reporter realized he probably already knew the answer.

But Coach Shirogane answered directly:
"That arrangement was made by the players themselves."

"This is exactly what I was talking about—the players' capability!"

"Most of the commands in this match were temporary adjustments made by Li Zhongshu on the court."

"This is also what we at Teiko Junior High hope for: to cultivate each player's ability so that their potential can be fully realized."

After saying this, Coach Shirogane casually pushed Li Zhongshu in front of the cameras, then slowly continued to the media:
"If you have any questions, you can ask him."

This action immediately shifted the journalists' attention and interest from the "useless coach" to "this player is amazing."

Seeing a dozen microphones suddenly pointed at him, Li Zhongshu felt like he had been set up.

"Um... what would you like to ask?"

The reporters spoke up all at once, but the most frequent question was about the final deciding play.

Li Zhongshu explained:
"At that time, I had no intention of tying the game with a two-pointer from the start, because the opponents were also very strong."

"Whether in terms of stamina or experience, they were very seasoned."

"If it went into overtime, we might not have been a match for them."

"Therefore, I intended to pass to Midorima Shintaro from the beginning. My drive was only to create a completely open shooting opportunity for him."

Hearing these words, the reporters present all showed looks of surprise. He had thought about letting his teammate take such a three-pointer from the very start?

"Do you trust your teammate that much?! Weren't you afraid he wouldn't seize the chance...?"

"If that happened, you would have lost the match!"

Li Zhongshu smiled and said:
"Trusting your teammates is the most fundamental thing."

"In our team, I trust every single person unconditionally."

"They are all the most outstanding and talented players."

In Li Zhongshu's words, trust and praise for his teammates were evident everywhere. This made the reporters present feel a great deal of respect. Because some players might have superior skills, but as soon as the topic of credit came up, their attitude would immediately change, as if all the glory belonged to them alone.

The reporters asked a few more questions, all related to the match content. Even Murasakibara Atsushi, who usually didn't like to talk, was unusually happy to answer a few questions, even sharing his secret to having such a large physique.

The secret was—eat lots of snacks and sleep a lot! Of course, the type of snacks was unlimited.

Because the reporters were truly too enthusiastic and there were too many questions, the players naturally didn't have time to answer everyone.

When time was almost up, Coach Shirogane said to everyone:
"Alright everyone, the interview ends here. We need to pack up and get some rest."

"Thank you for your understanding. Please make way for the players."

"Thank you!"

...

The reporters were naturally very disappointed. They had so many things they wanted to ask. This match really couldn't be described as anything less than "spectacular." They believed any news from it would receive a great response!

But seeing the Teiko team leaving the court under the coach's lead, they realized the interview was over. If they were caught trying to force an interview outside, they might lose their credentials for future matches... The risk wasn't worth the reward!

Still, many reporters refused to give up. Thus, a reporter from a small, nameless newspaper quietly followed, finding Akashi Seijuro, who was walking at the back of the team.

Initially, this reporter pulled a one-thousand-yen bill from his pocket, but after thinking for a moment, he gritted his teeth and painfully swapped it for a ten-thousand-yen bill, then slowly tucked it into Akashi Seijuro's hand.

"Hey kid... could you do me a favor? Just tell your captain something for me."

"Tell him to answer a few questions for me, just secretly."

"If it works out, this 10,000 yen is yours!"

Akashi looked at the 10,000-yen bill, then stepped back two paces and said:
"Ah, this... I'm sorry, we can't..."

But the reporter thought he was just being shy. After all, 10,000 yen was a lot of money for a kid his age. But for the news, it was nothing! As long as he got an exclusive interview and made a name for himself this time, wouldn't a promotion and a raise be far behind?

So, he gritted his teeth and said:
"It's okay, kid. I know you think this is a lot of money, just take it. As long as you can help me with this!"

Looking at Akashi's troubled expression, he thought the boy was wavering. There was hope!

However, he didn't expect that at that moment, outside the stadium, a long-wheelbase Rolls-Royce slowly drove up... and came to a stop in front of the team.

Two drivers in suits and leather shoes stepped out and said respectfully to everyone:
"Coach Shirogane and everyone, greetings. Master Akashi heard about the match results and has specially arranged today's rest schedule for the team."

"Please board the vehicle. Everything you need has been prepared inside."

Then, the man turned to Akashi:
"Young Master Akashi, please enter the car."

Akashi nodded, then slowly tucked the 10,000-yen bill back into the hand of the stunned reporter, smiling apologetically:
"I'm very sorry, I can't force the others in the team to do this. My apologies."

Then he turned and said to Li Zhongshu:
"Li Zhongshu, get in. This is my driver; the car is very spacious."

"And everyone else, please don't be formal. This car is just a bit more comfortable than a bus. There are snacks and drinks inside, please feel free to relax."

At this moment, Li Zhongshu looked at the car in front of him and couldn't help but sigh:
"Having money... really allows you to do whatever you want!"

As he got into the car, Li Zhongshu casually asked:
"By the way, where are we going?"

Akashi Seijuro replied calmly:
"Mm, we're going for massages."