1005 The King without a Crown (1/2)
The media were full of news about Twain's triumphant comeback, and no one could stop talking of it. There were people who liked him and people who disliked him, but nobody could ignore him.
Every flattering word that was invented since humans had started using written language was directed at Twain. Reporters loved complimenting him these days. Now that Twain was popular, saying good things about him could attract more readers and viewers.
There was another matter that added to his glory. In December, the British royal family issued an announcement stating the names of those who would receive an honor from the Queen on January 1. Tony Twain's name was, astonishingly, on the list.
Britain issued royal honors twice a year, once on the first day of the year in January and the other time on the Queen's birthday. The Order of the British Empire was awarded in recognition of those who had made outstanding contributions to the United Kingdom in various fields, such as culture, sports, and economy. Many people in the football world had received the honor, so it was not an extraordinary thing.
However, the controversy surrounding Twain when it came to the question of whether he should receive the honor has existed for a long time. In fact, after Twain led Nottingham Forest to win the Treble, it had been recommended that he should be given the honor for his outstanding contribution. Seeing how the Scottish manager, Ferguson, was awarded the Order of the British Empire by the Queen after leading Manchester United to win the Treble, how could Twain, the most successful of all England's home-grown managers, not be honored the same way?
However, many people opposed the proposal at the time. The arguments against it were absurd – the opponents stated that the Treble win was not enough for Twain to receive the Order of the British Empire. In fact, it was simply an excuse. Ferguson was also awarded the Order of the British Empire after he led the team to win the Treble. In that case, why was Twain's achievement not enough? In fact, the real reason was not that Twain's achievements were not enough to receive the honor, but his dubious character and foul mouth. Many people thought that if the Order of the British Empire were awarded to such a figure, it would be national disgrace...
This might sound unbelievable, but it received a lot of support from many people at the time, including the sports minister and the Prime Minister himself. This went to show how terrible Tony Twain's reputation was in the country.
Fortunately, Twain himself was not interested in the honor. He never sang the anthem when he led the national team during the games. The honor meant little to him. Therefore, even though the debate over whether he was eligible for the title of ”Sir” continued, he himself had turned a deaf ear. Being awarded the Order of the British Empire and receiving the title of ”Sir” would not make him more money and could not lead him to make a full recovery from his heart disease overnight. He did not care for the empty title, whether he had it or not. He was fine either way.
Later, when he led the England national team to win the first UEFA European Championship in the country's history, the media mentioned the matter of the award again. Supporters thought the history-making championship title should qualify Twain to receive the honor. This time, the opponents did not say that his achievements were insufficient. They simply said that Twain's words and conduct did not conform to the code of a British Knight. Didn't Tony Twain despise authority? In that case, there was no reason to award him the Order of the British Empire...
The opposition was still strong, and Twain himself did not fight it, so the matter died down again.
However, Twain's supporters were not happy. They even set up a group calling for Twain to receive the honor. The group was known as ”Twain for Knighthood”, occasionally appeared in public, and petitioned for Twain to receive the honor.
It was not until the 2018 World Cup that things finally took a turn for the better.
”If a man had led a club to win almost all the championships that a football club can win, as well as leading the national team to win the highest honor of all, and still he is not awarded the Order of the British Empire by the Queen, it must be a scandal in the British Empire!” This was not a statement issued by a certain media outlet, but something that was said by a member of the British Parliament.
The remark called on the third appeal for Twain to receive the honor.
Three UEFA Champions League titles, three Premier League trophies, one EFL Cup, one FA Cup, two Football Association Community Shield cups, two UEFA Super Cups, one FIFA Club World Cup, one UEFA European Championship title, one FIFA Confederations Cup, one FIFA World Cup… Twain had gained them all.
The Nottingham Evening Post even ran a special issue featuring the photographs of all the honors Twain had received, and then it questioned the opponents, ”If these honors and contributions cannot make Tony Twain a knight, how many people do you think are eligible to be honored throughout the United Kingdom?”
The Times also published an editorial pointing out that in today's British society, peerages were becoming devalued and the intrinsic value was getting lower, leaving only the use of honors as incentives. With the numerous confers of titles, even the most basic purpose of it was becoming cheap. Someone who donated a large sum of money to the government could receive the Order of the British Empire. For such a person to receive knighthood or Order of the British Empire, it could only reduce the prestige of the British royal family and ultimately render it worthless. In such a context, it was a great irony that some people who had truly made outstanding contributions to the government and country were not awarded the title due to such reasons.
Although the editorial did not mention Twain's name throughout, any fool could see that they were on Twain's side. This year, Twain must be included when it came to outstanding contributions. After he led his team to win the World Cup in Australia, he not only greatly boosted the confidence of the British people, but also enhanced the reputation of the United Kingdom. This even stimulated the British economy. With such accomplishments, it was really inexplicable to people that there was still controversy around the prospect of him being given the honor.
People even wrote letters to the Queen, imploring her to honor Twain.
It was through the efforts of these people that Twain's name appeared on the list of honorees, and it was said the Queen herself had personally decided this.
Nevertheless, Twain did not intend to accept...
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Long after the first recommendation for the honor was rejected, Twain knew that many people at the top level of the country did not like him. However, he had not like the country either. As a traditional Chinese man who ”lived” in a British host, he was not interested in such a thing as the award. He had not thought to fight for his rights.
The second time that the recommendation was rejected reinforced Twain's disdain for the royal family as well as his contempt for the so-called peerage. A hundred years ago, perhaps such a peerage still held some attraction. Now that any Tom, Dick, and Harry could be honored, he had no need to shamelessly push for it. Twain was never a man who liked to get in on the action.
As for the third time... His supporters finally put him on the list of honorees, but he was disinterested in the farce.
”Do I have to call you Uncle Sir in the future?” Shania looked at the list in the newspaper and teased her husband.
Twain shrugged it off and gave her an unexpected answer, ”You won't have that opportunity, my dear.”
”Huh?” Shania did not understand what he meant.
”I intend to refuse the honor.”
”What...” Shania's mouth was agape. She was shocked.
”It's not that surprising, is it?” Twain was amused by Shania's reaction. ”More than three hundred people in history had refused the Queen's award of honor. I will be just one of them.”
”I just don't understand why,” Shania pouted.
”If I had been awarded the Order of the British Empire on the first occasion, perhaps I would have been happy to accept it in front of the Queen as an honor like a championship trophy. Now my mindset is different. The medal is currently not an honor to me, but a charity. I don't want it,” Twain pointed to the list in Shania's hand and sneered.
Shania smiled as she looked at Twain. She was not British and naturally did not look at it from the perspective of a British national honor. Anyway, it was just a title. Since her husband said he did not want it, then the matter was settled.
”Anyway, it's a medal for you, so you can do as you please.” Shania tossed the newspaper aside and put her hands around Twain's neck. She looked at him with affection in her eyes and then moved her body closer as she gently caressed Twain's chest.