Chapter Forty: The First Training

At Yun Jia Tianyu Football School, the approach to balancing academic studies and football training is even-handed—half a day is devoted to training, and the other half to learning. Unlike the rigid schedule Dragon Bison once experienced at the Xi'an Hope Football School, where mornings were for classes and afternoons for training, Yun Jia Tianyu divides each day into four segments: two hours of training, two hours of study, a midday break, then another two hours of study followed by two hours of training. This timetable shifts daily, with the ten classes split into two groups that take turns on the training field. This arrangement ensures their training times do not overlap, for even at Yun Jia Tianyu, it would be extravagant to expect ten full-sized training pitches.

On the first day of the new term, Dragon Bison's fourth-grade class started with two academic lessons, followed by two training sessions. After lunch, they had two more training sessions and ended the day with two more academic lessons.

After a somewhat distracted session of language and math, Dragon Bison, filled with excitement, joined his classmates as they headed toward the training ground.

Stepping onto the soft turf underfoot, his enthusiasm swelled. Yun Jia Tianyu—nationally recognized as the premier youth academy—surely, training here would be worlds apart from that previous school, which had been all show and no substance.

Upon reaching the training ground, the students found a handsome young man waiting for them. That very morning, he had led the fourth graders on their run, but none yet knew his name.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Ding Yu, your coach," the young man announced without preamble. "Due to certain special circumstances, starting today, I will be your coach until you graduate from Yun Jia Tianyu Football School."

The moment Ding Yu revealed his name, a collective gasp rippled through the group, though no one spoke—a rule at Yun Jia Tianyu forbade noise in line.

Dragon Bison didn't understand why his classmates reacted that way, but as a newcomer, he wisely kept silent.

Ding Yu's gaze swept over them, noting their nervous silence, before he smiled slightly. "I've already become quite familiar with your individual strengths and abilities. Aside from those who joined this year, you should all know one another well. Before we begin training, I'd like the new students to step forward, introduce themselves by name, position, and main attributes. Let's welcome them!"

The returning students immediately broke into enthusiastic applause, while the newcomers stepped forward. Wu Bufan, though tall, was as shy as Dragon Bison. It took Hu Gantang and Li Jie to push them out from the line. Dai Guangming and two others, however, strode out confidently.

There were eight new fourth graders in total, half of whom lived in Dorm 505. Ding Yu nodded, then casually pointed to Dai Guangming.

Stepping forward, Dai Guangming declared in a clear voice, "My name is Dai Guangming, I'm from Hubei, I play as an attacking midfielder. I hope we can all help each other out!"

Ding Yu nodded approvingly. Dai Guangming certainly lived up to his reputation: articulate and poised. If he could display the same composure on the field, the four-star rating given to him by the scout in Wuhan was well deserved.

With Dai Guangming setting the example, the rest introduced themselves one by one. Besides the three who shared a dorm with Dragon Bison, only one of the other new students was a local; the other three hailed from Hunan, Guangxi, and Guizhou—provinces not known for their football tradition. As for himself, coming all the way from Xinjiang, that spoke volumes. Even Hubei, where Dai Guangming was from, had a top-tier team but was not exactly a football powerhouse. Clearly, Yun Jia Tianyu's approach to selecting players was quite different from other clubs.

As Dragon Bison was lost in thought, he suddenly noticed a hush had fallen over the group. Realizing something was amiss, he looked up to find that everyone had finished introducing themselves, and now the entire class was staring at him—he had been caught daydreaming in front of everyone.

A smattering of laughter rose from the crowd, quickly silenced by Ding Yu's stern gaze. Flushed with embarrassment, Dragon Bison stammered, "H-hi, everyone, my name is, uh, my name is..." He faltered, completely forgetting his own name, and turned to ask Dai Guangming, "What was my name again?"

The crowd erupted in laughter. Dai Guangming covered his face, while Wu Bufan and another boy turned away, pretending not to know him.

Even Ding Yu couldn't help smiling at the sight—the tallest boy in the class was so nervous he forgot his own name. It was genuinely amusing.

When the laughter finally died down, Dragon Bison managed to collect himself. "My name is Dragon Bison, I’m from Xinjiang, and I play center-back."

Ding Yu nodded. "In this new semester, Dai Guangming, Zhou Wei, Wu Bufan, Zhao Wei, Xiao Yun, Liu Jun, and Dragon Bison will be your new classmates. For all of you, this is a fresh start. I will do my best to help you continue on the path toward professional football. The senior students should help the newcomers—you are teammates, but also competitors. Everyone will have a chance; whether you can reach the halls of professional football depends on your own effort. Over the course of this term, some of you may even find yourselves in new positions. At this stage, your technical abilities are not set in stone; perhaps you have yet to discover the role that suits you best. Through the upcoming training, we’ll work together to uncover your potential and help you shine where you are at your strongest."

As the basic training began, Dragon Bison immediately felt the pressure.

Compared to Xi'an Hope Football School, the drills here seemed no different at first. In truth, football is not an especially complicated sport—the basic actions of passing, dribbling, shooting, and tackling are the same for ordinary players and world-class stars. The difference lies in how often and how well one uses the right skill at the right time.

Back at Xi'an Hope, Dragon Bison had always trained diligently, but he’d never felt any real pressure—his hardworking attitude set him apart from the others. Here, though, everyone was just as dedicated. More importantly, they had all been receiving formal training for much longer than he had.