198 Start All Over Again Part 1 (1/2)
Chapter 198: Start All Over Again Part 1
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Dunn's life had changed twice in a short span of one and a half years, and this type of change could not be compared to his parents' divorce when he was still a child. After one and a half years, Dunn had stopped thinking about absurd questions such as ”Who am I,””Where did I come from,” or ”Where am I going,” a long time ago. Moreover, he felt that going to China in such an absurd manner had not been detrimental to him in any way.
He did indeed love football, and it had used to be his everything in the past. But compared to a warm and loving family, football was something that he could bear to give up on.
Dunn even felt that it was better that way, that he should have been a normal person born in a Chinese village instead. His life prior to this must have been a mistake on God's part, which had caused him to be born in England by mistake. He didn't like England, or anything about it. What had his days in England left him with? Nothing but nightmares.
So he decided to leave behind everything related to England and embark on his new life in China. I am Dunn, the Chinese Dunn, not some Englishman Tony Twain. His past, his present, and his future are all none of my business!
That was how he had felt until his fateful encounter with Tang En on the streets of Chengdu City.
Could this be fate?
Now, he was once again seated inside the Nottingham Forest Chairman's office, quietly watching as Tang En and Evan quarrelled over him. He was not concerned about the contents or the results of their quarrelling, but was instead looking at the furnishings around the room.
He remembered this place very clearly. When Paul Hart, his teacher, was about to leave Nottingham Forest, he had recommended Dunn to the club's chairman, Mr. Nigel Doughty. As the board of directors was not opposed to this recommendation, Dunn, the young manager nurtured by the club itself, naturally became the substitute manager for Nottingham Forest.
The only problem was that his career as a manager only managed to last for a short first-half of a match before it was forcefully ended.
During his daily conversations with Tang En, Dunn also learned about how well Nottingham Forest and Tang En had done after they had swapped bodies.
Now that this room was refurbished with lots of new facilities that he had not seen in the past, the century-old football club's feeling of solemnity had been largely reduced. It now had a much more modern vibe.
The chairman when Dunn had been here, Mr. Nigel Doughty, had also retired due to health considerations. As a result, Dunn felt pretty unfamiliar with the current Nottingham Forest. For instance, this new chairman appeared to be very casual in front of Tang En, completely unlike Doughty's usual seriousness.
Evan Doughty was currently seated at one corner of the desk. Faced with Tang En's endless talking, the only thing he did was shake his head continuously.
”Tony, I know that you always do things in unconventional ways, but you've gone too far this time/ You are making this person, who doesn't have any coaching experience, who has no prior experience with professional football, who is preparing to sit for the England coaching license exams, the assistant manager of Nottingham Forest? Now that Nottingham Forest is an English Premier League team, I can't let you do this.”
”You think I'm fooling around? Evan. Do you think that I'm the type of person to play when it comes to serious matters like this? Look, I acknowledge that Dunn doesn't have anything right now, but we can give him a chance to prove himself. That won't require too much time-”
”Tony!” Evan slightly raised his voice. ”Putting the main team's results at stake just for a newbie to prove himself is not something that we, a newly-promoted team, can afford to do!”
It was a rare sight to see Evan looking this serious. Tang En was momentarily dumbfounded before he recovered from his shock and curled his lips. ”You said that I have full say over the team's matters.”
Evan sighed. ”Tony. I don't know how you got to know this Chinese man” Evan shot a glance at Dunn, and discovered that he was not paying attention to the conversation between him and Tang En, and did not have the nerves and apprehension that normal people should have in this situation. ”Alright, perhaps he's related to that beautiful Chinese teacher of yours. If you intend to arrange a job position for him in the club, that's not an issue. You can put him on the turf maintenance team, the equipment maintenance team, or let him be a waiter at the canteen... or any job of the sort, really. But he simply cannot become the assistant manager of the main team. That is a very important position.”
”If you know that that position is so important, why did you agree to let Walker leave?” Tang En retorted.
”Um…” Evan was at a loss for words. He knew that he was at fault. He scratched his head and jumped off the table before turning around and walking to the large French window behind his seat. Evan looked at the busy training grounds and saw the workers hastily making preparations for the training that was about to commence. ”Tony, letting Walker go was my problem. At that time, there were many things about this team that I did not understand. I thought that as long as the team had an outstanding manager, any and all problems would be resolved. After my father caught wind of this, he told me about the importance of an outstanding assistant manager on a team. It's precisely because this that I can't let him become the assistant manager.”
Tang En looked at Evan without uttering a single word. He simply stared. Evan saw the look in Tang En's eyes before adding, ”Perhaps he can become the assistant manager in the future. But not now. It doesn't matter if he is competent enough. Find someone else for now, Tony.”