Chapter 1 The Start

The first week of school passed quickly, but for some, it was too slow. They had grown accustomed to the rhythm of holiday life, and returning to school was a difficult adjustment.

Whether it felt fast or slow, the passage of time itself remained constant, unchanged. Eventually, that first week did come to an end.

However, Zhou Yi didn't even finish the first week of classes. He was absent on Friday. His desk was empty, and even the textbooks he usually left piled on top were gone, having been thoroughly cleaned up.

During class, Zheng Lulu would occasionally get distracted and glance at Zhou Yi's vacant desk.

The other students in the class didn't seem to feel anything different. Zhou Yi was gone, and the class would function the same without him. Only on the first day of Zhou Yi's absence did the boys gather to chat about him, envying him for having the chance to go to Europe and compete with the youth teams of those wealthy clubs, expanding his horizons.

In the eyes of the boys who loved soccer, Zhou Yi's experience was akin to ascending to heaven, driving them crazy with envy. Amidst their envy, they also waited for Zhou Yi to return to school in two months, bringing them signed autographs from the stars.

Zheng Lulu walked past them and heard their discussions. She had a premonition that perhaps in two months, that desk would still be empty...

※※※

While Zhou Yi's classmates were still envying him, Zhou Yi and his parents were already at the train station.

His father and mother had both taken time off from work to see their son off.

"Dad can't take you to Beijing this time. Be careful on the train by yourself. Don't talk to strangers. Don't tell people everything they ask you. Be vigilant when you're alone..." Zhou Jianliang nagged Zhou Yi like a fussy woman.

"Don't argue with your teammates in the team. Try to let others have their way in everything... Don't make enemies everywhere..."

His mother, who had been silent all along, couldn't help but interrupt, cutting off Zhou Jianliang's nagging. She said to Zhou Yi, "Don't listen to your father's nonsense. If someone provokes you and you're in the right, don't be polite!"

"What do you know! He's alone out there. What if he gets into trouble? Can you help him, or can I?" Zhou Jianliang glared at his wife.

"We can't let our son suffer!" Li Cuiyun retorted.

Zhou Yi quickly interjected, "Hey, it's not as serious as you're making it out to be! Just relax!"

The two of them stopped arguing.

His father, Zhou Jianliang, started nagging Zhou Yi again, reminding him to pay attention to this and that, not to eat or drink recklessly, to maintain a regular lifestyle, to go to bed early and wake up early, and to pay attention to hygiene...

Zhou Yi suddenly thought it would be better if he just let them argue...

Zhou Jianliang talked for what felt like forever, finally finishing all the things he wanted to say.

At that moment, the screen in the train station waiting hall displayed the latest round of train ticket inspections. The train Zhou Yi was taking began boarding, and the people waiting in the waiting hall stood up and surged toward the ticket gate.

It meant that the time for farewell had arrived.

Li Cuiyun looked at Zhou Yi. "Take care of yourself when you're out there alone. Your health is more important than anything. Don't get hurt."

As a mother, she didn't nag much, was very straightforward, didn't say much, but what she did say was heartfelt.

What she cared about most was Zhou Yi's health, probably the most basic and simple wish any mother could have for her child.

Zhou Yi looked at his mother, and a thought churned in his mind.

He hadn't mentioned his plans to his mother all week, and now he was about to leave. Once he left, he didn't know what the future held.

He felt that this matter couldn't be delayed any longer. If he couldn't resolve it, he probably wouldn't be able to move forward quickly, because he would always have worries and hesitations in his heart.

So he mustered his courage and said, "Mom, there's something I want... to tell you."

Li Cuiyun looked at Zhou Yi, not saying anything, as if waiting for him to continue.

"...This time in Europe, if I have the chance... I plan to work hard toward a career in professional soccer."

Zhou Jianliang saw that his son had finally stated his intentions directly and became a little nervous, secretly clenching his fists.

"I hope... you can agree with me, Mom..."

"Is a career in professional soccer something you can just decide to pursue?" Li Cuiyun didn't directly say she agreed or disagreed, but instead asked Zhou Yi.

"I'll do my best..." Zhou Yi replied.

Li Cuiyun shook her head. "Zhou Yi, I'm your mother, and I know you best. You can't stick to anything for more than three days. You say you'll do your best? But I've never seen you give it your all."

Based on what she said, it seemed she didn't agree.

"No, it's different, Mom. I'm definitely going to give it my all this time! We'll be competing against the youth teams of those wealthy clubs in Europe. If I can perform well, I can attract the attention of European teams, and I think I'll have the chance to join a European soccer team..."

"Talking is cheap. Moving your lips is the easiest and most cost-effective thing in the world." Li Cuiyun didn't believe her son's pretty words.

"Honey..." Zhou Jianliang sensed that the atmosphere between mother and son had suddenly become tense, so he wanted to ease the tension.

Unexpectedly, Li Cuiyun turned and glared at him fiercely, and he was so frightened that he didn't dare to speak.

Next, Li Cuiyun refocused her gaze on her son, seeming not to believe in him.

Zhou Yi seemed to be provoked by his mother's attitude, and he said loudly, "I said it's different, it's different! I'm going to prove it to you this time! With my actions!"

After saying that, he picked up his suitcase, didn't say goodbye, and walked away without looking back, blending into the crowd entering the station and heading toward the ticket gate. Soon, he disappeared from sight.

"Sigh, such a tender farewell scene, and it ended like this?" Zhou Jianliang sighed.

"What do you know?" Li Cuiyun turned to scold her husband. "If I didn't do that, do you think our son would really be willing to give it his all? Don't you know his personality? He'll work hard for a few days at the beginning, and then he'll find excuses to be lazy. If he really wants to succeed on the path he's chosen, he has to take it seriously and give it his all."

"Ah? So you agree with him..." Zhou Jianliang was a little surprised by the change in his wife's attitude.

"Let's just try his best first, he's not guaranteed to succeed. Is that road so easy to walk on just by talking about it?"

"That's true..." Zhou Jianliang nodded. Although his son had passed the national auditions and was the only amateur player to enter that team, the level of European professional soccer was still far behind that of Chinese professional soccer, which he, as a soccer fan, understood very well.

So this path was really not one that his son could just walk on just because he wanted to.

The two of them stood side by side, leaning forward slightly, peering toward the ticket gate, trying to find their son's figure in the crowd.

It wasn't until the ticket gate closed that they turned and left.

"Hey, I'm curious to ask... what if our son doesn't succeed?" Zhou Jianliang suddenly asked as he and his wife walked against the flow of people heading toward the ticket gate. "Will you blame him for wasting two months?"

"It's nothing." His wife's reply was very calm. "At most, I'll adjust my expectations for him from Tsinghua and Peking University to Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Zhejiang University."

Zhou Jianliang almost bumped into the person next to him.

"You really have faith in our son..."

"He's my son, after all."

※※※

Zhou Yi was still a little angry after getting on the train, but as the train rattled to life, slowly leaving the platform and heading toward Beijing, a complex emotion enveloped him.

Farewell to his family and familiar city, reluctance; and anticipation and curiosity about heading to the unknown distance.

Where would this train eventually take him?

To the shore of success filled with flowers, or...?

Zhou Yi thought of his mother's somewhat skeptical eyes, and he clenched his fists.

Hmph, just watch, I'm definitely going to succeed! I absolutely, absolutely will succeed!

If I don't make something of myself... I won't come back!

It's a pity that I can only say those words in my heart...

※※※

In Beijing, Zhou Yi reunited with Sun Pan and Yang Muge. The three of them were very happy after reuniting. Zhou Yi even patted Sun Pan's arm hard and praised, "Not bad! Your arms and legs are still there!"

Sun Pan rolled his eyes. "What are you talking about! I'm also surprised that your mother didn't confine you to your house!"

"Just kidding! If I decide to do something, I'm definitely going to do it!"

In addition to Sun Pan and Yang Muge, Zhou Yi also saw Guo Nu. He went up to greet him: "Hi, Lao Guo!"

Guo Nu glanced at him and ignored him.

Sun Pan couldn't stand it anymore, so he took a step forward and stood next to Zhou Yi. "Hey, he's saying hello to you!"

Guo Nu didn't expect Sun Pan to join in the fun. He didn't want to pay attention to Zhou Yi in the first place, but now he had no choice but to respond reluctantly: "Hello..."

His voice was as thin as a thread, but at least he responded to Zhou Yi.

At least this was the first time he had said "hello" to Zhou Yi since they met.

When Zhou Yi saw that Guo Nu had responded to him, he immediately took the opportunity to put his arm around Guo Nu's shoulder, while turning his head to Sun Pan and saying, "Hey, Sun Pan, don't be like that, we're all teammates."

Sun Pan didn't say anything, glaring at Guo Nu.

Although Guo Nu was a little unhappy that Zhou Yi put his arm around his shoulder, he didn't dare to act recklessly because Sun Pan was glaring at him from the side.

He had no choice but to let Zhou Yi put his hand on his shoulder with a look of grievance.

When Yang Muge saw this scene from the side, a picture suddenly appeared in his mind—Zhou Yi was interacting with a lion in a zoo, while the lion's keeper was standing next to him with a gun, watching the lion vigilantly. As long as the lion made any move, even if it raised a paw, the gun would go off...

※※※

After everyone gathered in Beijing, they were about to set off for Europe.

At the airport, the players were wearing uniform clothes, dragging their respective suitcases, waiting to go through the check-in procedures.

Many reporters also came. These people basically only surrounded three people for interviews, one was the director of the program Xu Tao, one was the head coach Hao Dong, and the other was He Ying.

This scene was simply the best annotation for "He Ying is the top star of this team."

Sun Pan couldn't stand it. He snorted.

Zhou Yi stared at the reporters and exclaimed, "What a scene... We never saw reporters when we were training..."

"The program is being heavily promoted, so more media outlets are paying attention to us," said Yang Muge, who was also faintly excited. Because of the reporters' presence, they attracted the attention of many people in the airport terminal, giving them a sense of being "in the spotlight."

Guo Nu stood next to them, saying nothing.

The four of them did not stand with the other teammates, but stood a little further out, vaguely forming a small group.

Zhou Yi, Sun Pan, and Yang Muge had been hanging out together during training camp, so no one was surprised.

What surprised them was that Guo Nu, this "mad dog," would actually be with them!

Before, at the training base, Zhou Yi asked Guo Nu to have dinner together, but Guo Nu didn't give him a good look. How was it that after a week, everyone reunited, and "Mad Dog Guo" was standing with Zhou Yi?

What was going on?

A group of people really couldn't figure it out.

※※※

"He Ying, what are your thoughts and expectations for this design to challenge the European elite youth training camps?"

The reporter surrounding He Ying asked him such a question.

He Ying replied with a calm face, "I think this design is very good, we can personally experience the high level of European soccer."

"So, have you thought about the issue of victory or defeat?"

"We will do our best to win," He Ying replied simply.

At the same time, the reporters surrounding Hao Dong were also asking similar questions.

"The gap between Chinese soccer and European soccer is obvious, especially in the training of young players. May I ask, after all, you are going out this time to do a television program. If you lose, and lose badly, have you considered the impact on ratings?"

Compared with the reporters interviewing He Ying, the reporters interviewing Hao Dong were much more impolite and spoke more directly.

"Victory and defeat are both part of soccer. Before the game is over, no one knows what the result will be. This is not only the suspense of soccer, but also one of the suspense of this program," said Hao Dong. "Moreover, I don't think our children are necessarily worse than the European children, and they will definitely lose. I have the confidence to win."

Hao Dong and the program team led sixteen young soccer players through security and disappeared on the other side of the security checkpoint. The reporters discussed Hao Dong's answer just now.

"As expected of ***... He dares to say such things. He has the confidence to win? I don't have any confidence at all..."

"The program production team claims that they are the best batch of players in the country in this age group of seventeen years old. Isn't that bullsh*t? Then they should directly pull the national team under the age of seventeen to go, instead of piecing together such a motley crew. Those people are randomly found by various clubs. What's the strongest in the same age group? Only He Ying can be worthy of this title, as for the others... maybe they can't even play in the youth teams of their respective clubs! There's also a student player... what a joke!"

"This is a television reality show program. It's all publicity gimmicks. As for that student player, it's just to give the broad student audience a little sense of substitution. Who expects him to really come up with anything decent? Maybe he won't even be able to play in the game!"

"Yes, this brother is right. To put it bluntly, it's a television variety show, and there's no essential difference from those Super Girls and Happy Boys. Don't always look at them with your professional sunshine of reporting on soccer. This is a show! The scripts are all written in advance." One of the reporters stood up and said. "Maybe even the outcome of the game has been negotiated in advance. As long as the sponsors' money is in place, even if those elite youth teams lose to the Chinese team, it's not impossible."

"Damn, what's the point of that? Isn't that fixing the game!"

"Fixing the game? I said, this is a show! It's a television program. Do you care about authenticity when you watch a TV series? As long as the audience likes to watch it, what do you care?"

Someone looked at the reporter who was speaking and found him a little unfamiliar, so he asked, "This is..."

"Ah, I'm an entertainment reporter, specializing in reporting on variety entertainment," the other party introduced.

Among the group of soccer reporters, there were still a few older ones who shook their heads: "Everything is a talent show, everything is an audition, and even such a serious thing as soccer has begun to be messed around with... This is really an era of entertainment to the death!"

"Then don't put up signs like 'Saving Chinese Soccer', this is not the hope of Chinese soccer, it is clearly the shame of Chinese soccer! Unprofessional, entertainment, spoof..."

"Didn't I say? Gimmicks, just gimmicks. You, you lose if you take it seriously!"

Amid the reporters' doubts, the plane carrying this group of "rabble" had already taxied onto the runway, preparing to take off and fly to the first stop on the westward journey, Barcelona, Spain.

It seems that they are not yet qualified to carry the hope of Chinese soccer, but they have already taken on the burden of criticism and doubt, and have even been pre-labeled with the "shame" tag.