Chapter 12 (1/2)
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
On Sunday, every magazine and newspaper worked overtime so that they could get more comprehensive, detailed and newsworthy stories over their competitors. Indeed, the battle for news began as soon as the last fixtures of the day ended. But with the entire industry collectively overlooking Shu Guang before, it was fated that they would not get a chew out of the biggest piece of news.
Chen Huafeng himself was also fairly exhausted after working through the night. It would not have been as tiring for him otherwise. However, he did spend almost two hours trying to convince the chief so that he would allocate a 10-page editorial for Shu Guang.
It was after a long while that High School Soccer eventually decided to publish Chen Huafeng’s considerable amount of data on the Shu Guang players as a single-issue special. Since this would be circulated while the other papers diligently echoed each other in their reports of the Shu Guang-Zhong Xin match, High School Soccer ‘s very own distinctive report would definitely stand out.
With the booming popularity of the high school soccer scene in recent years, numerous corresponding magazines and papers popped up like mushrooms after the rain—and High School Soccer really felt the severe pressure for survival. So, getting news that captured much attention became the very objective of the job.
Huafeng submitted his article and photographs of the Shu Guang team to his editor. Since all that remained was for his colleague to put on the finishing touches, he could head home for some nice slumber. Even if he did work through the night, he felt bliss whenever he recalled the expression on Sun Liang Liang’s face as he treated everyone to midnight snacks. “Underestimating my observational skills? Hmph! That’s what you get!”
…
The stands were silent. All eyes were on one man—Zhong Xin’s No. 10, Shui Huajun. He was going to make a free-kick—the last kick on regular time. It was a matter of life and death.
In one breath, Shui Huajun ran up and struck the ball!
It curled intensely over the wall towards the upper left corner!
“I will win this!”
“Are you kid―” A hand reached out; it was An Ke, who had came diving in.
Oh! He couldn’t get it! It was so close! The ball went in! The ball went in! The relentless Zhong Xin team had equalized the score! An Ke dropped to the ground. Looking at the celebrating Zhong Xin players and his languishing teammates, he felt as if the sky was collapsing on him!
“Argh!” An Ke yelped. He opened his eyes but found that he was on the floor of his room, his blanket over him―it was just a dream.
“Having such dreams even after winning the game! What misfortune!” The keeper grunted as he crawled up, the dream ridding him off any drowsiness. He looked at his watch; it was almost noon, but his house was quiet―his parents must have gone out for mahjong again. Seriously? And, it was still so early in the day!
Nonetheless, he could not let a beautiful Sunday go to waste by doing nothing. With a little grooming, he left the house and wandered aimlessly across the streets before a familiar figure came into view.
“Ren Yu De!” He called out excitedly when he finally met someone familiar.
The other turned to him. It was indeed Ren Yu De; he was in full casual mode, walking through the streets alone.
“Why are you here?”
“I’m bored! Couldn’t sleep,” Ren Yu De replied, looking around and surveying their surroundings.
“Me too. Alright, with the two of us partnering up, we may find two equally bored, hot babes around!”
“That’s optimistic.”
Still, Ren Yu De trotted alongside his teammate, with the goalie chattering non-stop all the way. He was preaching about the “An Playbook.”
“I’m telling you, whenever you walk the streets you have to hit the commercial and boutique districts. Avoid marketplaces or little alleys. It’ll just be a waste of time. But be picky and don’t just enter any shop even if there are plenty of tails. Avoid trade centers and supermarkets; those places are too large and you’ll hurt your feet without seeing more than a handful of babes. Go to boutiques, souvenir shops and specialty outlets. Why? There are usually a lot of beauties working there. Even those who enter are usually hot. Of course, we’re not there to buy clothes; you have to pretend like you’re looking at something while peeking for any pretty faces. Don’t delay and make your escape to the next shop if there aren’t any! If you find a girl you fancy, stick close by, listen to what she’s saying and find an opportunity to chat with her. But don’t rush it or you’ll look like a stalker. That’s disgusting and all your hard work will go to waste. You must also be well-groomed beforehand. That’s what the saying, “clothes maketh man” means. When you dress up nice, the girls will look at you more and everything will be easier! Yup, your getup today is not bad, but it’ll be even better with shades. With that and the right pose, you’re a lady-killer!”
Just as he said that, An Ke glimpsed a girl up front―even from the back, she looked drop-dead gorgeous. But with the hot girl population in their immediate surroundings being too few, he did not want to risk it and told his partner for the day, “Target acquired! Direct front, 10 m!”
Ren Yu De, who felf uplifted by An Ke’s flattery earlier replied, “I’ll go!” With that, he took out a pair of sunglasses from his chest pocket and slowly made his approach.
The smell of perfume wafted from the girl as he made his approach, almost overwhelming him. He did his best to calm down and asked softly, “Lady, would you like to have some tea with…”
He promptly stopped, stunned by the face he saw as the girl turned towards him. “Ack, Su Fei?”
“Who are you?” Su Fei was not sure who the boy with shades was, so Ren Yu De quickly removed his glasses.
“Ren Yu De!” she exclaimed.
Shortly after, two guys came over to them. “What’s up?” Zhang Jun asked.
“Bumped into him.” Su Fei pointed at Ren Yu De.
“Oh, what a coincidence!” Yang Pan said with two ice cream cones in his hands.
“Another one’s here,” Zhang Jun added. He was holding an ice cream cone in one hand and holding out the other at Yang Pan.
“What?”
“Give me some dough! For one more ice cream. Can’t you see that we have another person joining us?”
“Why my money? Don’t you have any?”
“All of them are huge banknotes. It’s not easy to get change!”
“No need to fight, the two of you.” Su Fei smiled. “Ren Yu De said he’s treating us to some tea!”
“Really?” The pair glanced at her.
“He did say it, I heard it. There’s no mistake!”
“Fantastic! Ren Yu De is so generous!” Both Zhang Jun and Yang Pan held on to their teammate intimately.
Looking at Su Fei’s luscious smile, Ren Yu De finally understood the meaning of the saying, “vile is the heart of a woman.”
An Ke, who had been eavesdropping from a corner, stood up. “Ah! What a coincidence! What? Ren Yu De is treating us to drinks! Wonderful! He is a rich heir! Come, come, I know where the best tea is!”
Ren Yu De stared daggers at him but could not resist as he was being wrestled by the group into a huge tearoom with expensive decorations. Thus, the lamb fell into the wolves’ trap.
…
The five of them took seats near the window, enjoying the street view while chatting over tea; with its fragrance drifting in the air, a warm and relaxing smell flooded them. It was a nice place for idle conversation.
“So, you guys can’t sleep too!” An Ke asked the trio who were sitting on the opposite side.
“Who said so? I was dragged from my bed by this one!” Zhang Jun said between yawns as he pointed at Su Fei.
“What!?” An Ke and Ren Yu De stood from their chairs simultaneously. “Su Fei dragged you from your bed? Why would she pull you out of bed? Why is she in your bedroom? What’s the relationship between you two? You brat, were you even wearing pants when you were sleeping? What did you do to Su Fei?”
The pair’s synchronized questioning was like a Gatling gun, which punched numerous holes through Zhang Jun. Meanwhile, Su Fei merely hid a smile.
Nonetheless, it was Yang Pan who answered, “Please be seated you two, and hear me out.”
“So, here’s how it goes; I don’t think it’s so important that it needs to be kept private. As you all know, I live near Zhang Jun since we were toddlers! But Su Fei’s place is even closer to Zhang Jun’s! How close, you ask? There’s only a wall between them! Don’t eyeball me like that, eyeball them. In a nutshell, they are… neighbors! Don’t go imagining wild things! Su Fei just moved here a month ago, right next to Zhang Jun’s home.” Yang Pan clapped his hands together. “Face-to-face!”
An Ke and Ren Yu De yelled exaggeratedly,”Face-with-face?!”
“You two suck at English! That’s face-and-face!”
“Isn’t that the same!”