Chapter 27: Your Greatness Needs No Proof

"Tang, are you really not coming to the match with me?"

Fully geared up and dressed, Jon Berger stood at the door, making one last attempt to persuade Tang Lin to attend the game.

But Tang Lin shook his head, refusing him yet again: "No, Mr. Berger. I don't like places that are too noisy... and I really don't like football."

"But today is the King's debut at Tyne! This is a day that will go down in history!"

Tang Lin smiled and shook his head firmly.

"Alright then..." Mr. Berger shrugged, adjusted the beanie embroidered with the Tyne team crest over his thinning, graying hair, and turned to open the door.

Only after watching Mr. Berger close the door did Tang Lin return to his room upstairs. From the window, he watched Mr. Berger walk slowly down the road toward the Miner's Pub. He and his old companions would gather there before heading to Tyne’s home stadium to watch the match.

Tang Lin truly had no interest in football, but living with such a fanatical fan, how could one remain completely insulated from the sport? He didn't dislike football, but he didn't hate it either; thus, Mr. Berger didn't really annoy him too much.

Watching Mr. Berger safely move out of sight, Tang Lin sat back down at his desk, opened his book, and prepared to study.

However, his train of thought was soon interrupted by the commotion outside. Peering out, he saw another group of people, scarves tied around their necks, passing beneath his window in clusters, talking loudly as they walked.

For a while, people kept passing by in dribs and drabs. It wasn't until over half an hour later that the street finally fell quiet. Based on past experience, Tang Lin knew that all the Tyne fans on this street had left for the stadium. Now, he could study without being disturbed.

Yet, looking at the dense text in his book, he couldn't quite find his focus as he usually did. It wasn't just now; even earlier, he felt different. Usually, after Mr. Berger left, he would put on his headphones and play music, blocking out the world and slipping quickly into a state of deep concentration.

But today, he couldn't help but think of what Mr. Berger had said before leaving:

"This is a day that will go down in history!"

Go down in history?

It’s just an ordinary Premier League match...

Mr. Berger seems to have such special confidence in Wang Lie—more confidence than I, his own compatriot, have.

In any case, isn't Wang Lie thirty-eight years old? Although I don't know much about football, I do understand the laws of physics... Shouldn't an athlete at that age be "enjoying his twilight years"?

A veteran like that playing his first match for a relegation-threatened team... what is there to go down in history about? Could Wang Lie really bring some hope to this team?

Driven by a strange impulse, Tang Lin picked up his phone, opened Weibo, and typed "Wang Lie" into the search bar.

The search results popped up immediately. At the top was Wang Lie's verified account. Below that was a "Hot" post from "Yunxun Sports," which read:

"#WangLieNotStarting# Tyne has announced their starting lineup; Wang Lie is not included."

***

Tang Xingmei had just put her daughter, Wang Zilin, to bed in her room. When she returned, she saw her son, Wang Ziqi, sitting on the sofa with a pout, looking thoroughly displeased.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Dad didn't make the starting lineup..." Wang Ziqi grumbled.

Tang Xingmei smiled. "It wasn't very likely, was it? If he didn't start, he didn't start. Maybe he'll come on as a substitute?"

"Who knows..." Wang Ziqi couldn't hide his disappointment, looking like a sulking child—well, he *was* a child.

Seeing this, Tang Xingmei stopped trying to persuade him. "How about you go to sleep like your sister?"

Wang Ziqi immediately sat up straight on the sofa and puffed out his chest. "No! I want to watch!"

"If you want to watch, then stop complaining!"

Wang Ziqi pressed his lips together tightly.

Nearby, his grandmother, Zhou Hong, sitting in her wheelchair, smiled and comforted her grandson: "Don't worry, Qiqi. This head coach likes your father very much; he should let him play."

"What kind of liking is it if he doesn't even give him a start..." Wang Ziqi muttered under his breath.

"Mom, don't pay attention to him," Tang Xingmei said. "Are you cold? Shall I get you a blanket for your legs?"

Zhou Hong shook her head, smiling. "No, I'm not cold. I'm actually warm..."

"Should I turn the heat down then?"

"No, no. It's the excitement. The excitement has me burning up. Don't fuss, just sit down and wait for the match."

Tang Xingmei agreed and sat down next to her son.

On the television, the live broadcast showed the Tyne home ground, Leez Park Stadium, packed to the rafters and roaring with noise.

CCTV commentator Luo Jin said: "...The match hasn't started yet, but Leez Park is virtually full. Such a scene was rarely seen during the first half of the season at Tyne’s home games. Many people are likely here just for Wang Lie. However, we already know that Wang Lie is not starting this match. We hope he gets a chance to come off the bench. After all, for us Chinese fans, it has truly been a 'long time no see' for Wang Lie on the Premier League stage!"

***

In the home dressing room at Leez Park, head coach Sam McNeil was delivering his final instructions to the players:

"...Herringham is ranked higher than us, but that doesn't mean they are better than us! This is our home ground. You need to show them, our guests, who the real masters are here!"

During the third round of the league, Tyne challenged Herringham FC away. At the time, Herringham FC, as a newly promoted side, hadn't won a single game in their first two rounds, settling for two draws. They looked like a pushover, didn't they?

But they had held last season's runners-up, Scousers, to a 2-2 draw in the first round, proving this promoted side wasn't simple.

And the match against Tyne proved it.

Tyne, the "mercenary" army armed with oil money, was dismantled 1-4 away by the promoted side.

It was that very victory that helped Herringham FC find their rhythm. Now, with eight wins, four draws, and nine losses, they sat on twenty-eight points in ninth place. Their goal of avoiding relegation was essentially achieved, and they even had a chance to fight for European qualification.

In a sense, Tyne could be considered Herringham FC's "benefactor."

After finishing, McNeil called Wang Lie's name: "Wang, as Tyne's captain, even though you aren't starting, you should say a few words to everyone before the match."

This was a new rule he had established since taking charge of Tyne.

Wang Lie was a bit surprised—McNeil hadn't told him about this segment, so he was completely unprepared.

But he stood up anyway. Instead of speaking from his seat, he walked to the center of the dressing room.

McNeil, who had been standing there, had to step back, yielding the "center stage" to him.

Everyone looked up at Wang Lie, even Sonny Dean.

Under the gaze of all, Wang Lie began his first pre-match speech as Tyne captain, and the first sentence was explosive:

"I know what the outside world calls you—'mercenaries.' Ha!"

He even laughed.

"What a coincidence, I had a nickname called 'mercenary' too. That was when I transferred from Barcelona Athletic to Solford United; the Barcelona media gave me that title. So, in a way, maybe it was destined ten years ago that I would join Tyne and stand with you.

"I don't think being a mercenary is important. Who doesn't play for money? We are professional players. What is a 'professional player'? Isn't it just treating football as your profession? Playing, earning, making a living—is that shameful? It's not shameful.

"Of course, it shouldn't just be for the money. After all, the owners who pay us aren't fools. If you clearly try to cheat them out of money—you might get away with it once, but if you want to keep doing it, then you're underestimating them. Even if Tyne's owner is wealthy and doesn't care about the money, if you perform poorly here, Tyne won't keep you. And after leaving Tyne, can you get that much money at another club?"

As Wang Lie spoke, his eyes swept over his teammates in the dressing room. Their reactions varied: some looked thoughtful, some bowed their heads to hide their faces, and others remained expressionless.

When he finished, his gaze lingered on Dean for a moment.

"Back to the upcoming match. Everyone knows what I mean by 'a bigger stage.' We might each have different understandings and views on what that 'bigger stage' is... but it doesn't matter. No matter what your view is, it must start with winning the current match. Some people don't believe we can do it. That's fine. Don't think about things that far away; just win today's match first. You see, it becomes very simple: whether you want to avoid relegation or reach a bigger stage, win first. Win, and we'll talk about the rest later."

He paused there, not continuing, but looking at everyone in the room.

Just as everyone thought his speech was over and even head coach McNeil prepared to step in, he suddenly asked: "I assume none of you *don't* want to win, right? Hmm?"

He turned to look at everyone after asking.

No one spoke.

Wang Lie nodded. "Very well. Since we all want to win... then for this match..."

He took a deep breath and said:

"I leave it to you all!"

***

Watching the players leave the dressing room one by one to prepare for the match, assistant coach Varo covered his mouth and leaned in toward McNeil, whispering: "Wang’s last sentence surprised me."

"I was a bit surprised too," McNeil said.

"It seems I'm not the only one who felt that way," Varo said. "I thought Wang would put on an act at the end, like he used to, saying something like, 'I will lead you to win the match'... but he actually said he 'leaves it to everyone'... I almost thought this wasn't the Wang I knew."

McNeil nodded. "I have the same thought. I didn't expect Wang, who has always maintained a tough stance, to 'ask for help' from his teammates... well, 'ask for help' is an exaggeration, but it did have that tone. I observed that after Wang said that, quite a few people in the room had a reaction. Clearly, they were surprised too..."

"Is it because you didn't put him in the starting lineup that he said that? Perhaps he hopes the team doesn't collapse before he gets a chance to play..." Varo asked.

McNeil shook his head. "I don't know. But I think when a Golden Ball winner asks them, especially someone as famously proud and arrogant as Wang, there probably aren't many who would remain indifferent."

Based on his observation of the team, Varo agreed with McNeil's point: "Don't be angry, Sam. When he walked to the center of the room to give that speech, I even thought he was the head coach of this team... Ha!"

McNeil didn't get angry; he laughed instead. "That's why I say he's a born leader."

***

"The players from both sides have finally come out of the dressing room!"

Following this shout from Luo Jin, countless Chinese fans who had started to doze off in front of their TVs suddenly woke up.

Wang Ziqi was nudged awake by his mother: "Your dad is out."

Wang Ziqi sat up from the sofa with a start and looked at the TV.

On the screen, his father was indeed walking into the player tunnel alongside the other Tyne players, heading toward the camera. As he walked, he was talking to his teammate, Vitini.

Seeing this, Luo Jin introduced: "Wang Lie is communicating with Vitini. As we all know, Vitini is a little fan of Wang Lie. As a Brazilian player, he likes Wang Lie very much, which is... quite interesting, ha!"

That was all he could say; he couldn't start a fandom topic on national television.

As a Brazilian player, Vitini not liking Ronil but being crazy about Wang Lie was indeed quite unconventional in Brazilian football...

No one knew why he admired Wang Lie so much, but he just did.

***

When Vitini and Wang Lie reached the tunnel exit, they stopped. Vitini was a starter and had to wait there to walk out.

Wang Lie, however, had to head to the bench to wait for the match to begin.

Wearing his Tyne down jacket, Wang Lie said to Vitini one last time: "Remember, Vitini. Control your anger on the pitch; it's important for you. Your talent is clearly strong, so why doesn't your performance on the pitch match it? Before, anger controlled you. From now on, you must try to control your anger, turning it into a flame that burns your opponent, not one that burns yourself."

"I will try my best to do that, Wang..."

Seeing that Vitini didn't seem confident, Wang Lie said: "How about this. If you feel like your emotions are going to spiral out of control during the match, look at me. Whether I'm on the field or on the bench, look at me. Treat me as your switch for controlling your emotions. See me, remember what I told you, and try to control your rage."

Vitini hadn't expected Wang Lie to say that. He was stunned for a moment, then asked in an uncertain tone: "Is... is that really okay?"

"Try it, just try it." Wang Lie patted his shoulder and turned to walk out of the tunnel.

At the exit, TV broadcast cameramen and countless photographers had been waiting for a long time.

In the frame, Wang Lie ignored the countless lenses in front of him and climbed the stairs.

The sound of shutters and the flash of lights were clearly audible and visible on the TV broadcast.

And then there were the cheers at Leez Park, growing louder and louder.

Luo Jin, in a small studio thousands of miles away in China, felt inexplicably fired up by this scene. He wanted to loosen the collar of his shirt.

"Wang Lie! At nearly thirty-eight, he remains the focus of the camera. Everywhere he goes, he is a superstar in the spotlight! He is the superstar and the pride of Chinese football!"

It wasn't just the Chinese commentator Luo Jin who was excited; the English commentator Connor Cowley's voice also rose:

"This is... Wang! After leaving Solford United, he is about to start his 'last dance' of his career at Tyne! Yes, whether they like Wang or not, everyone has to admit that this might be the last chance of his career—not choosing to return to China to play means that in Wang's heart, he is not willing to leave England just like this. So, alright! Let us wait and see! Let's see if Wang can prove himself again at Tyne!"

Surrounded by photographers, Wang Lie walked to the home bench. He didn't sit down immediately but waved to the Tyne fans in the stands who were cheering for him.

This feeling was a bit strange.

After all, this was the first time he had waved to fans other than Solford United's fans in the Premier League. Previously, he had always glared at them or made "shut up" gestures...

And what he received in return were mostly boos, middle fingers, insults... and even racial slurs involving eyes being pulled.

Being cheered by people other than Solford United fans?

The old Wang Lie never even imagined it.

After joining Solford United, he had thought that would be his only home team in the Premier League.

In the end, it still ended on bad terms with his old club...

People online say, "Character is destiny"?

Bullshit!

What character is destiny?

Wouldn't any normal person be angry when facing such operations from Solford United and Barcelona Athletic?

It's just that he had the ability to challenge big clubs, while others didn't. So even if they were unhappy, they had to hold it in and compromise.

Is character destiny?

No!

Ability is destiny!

After finishing his wave to the Tyne fans, Wang Lie turned and sat down on the large, comfortable leather seat on the bench.

But as soon as he sat down, he nearly jumped back up...

Because on a cold night at the end of January, his butt actually felt warmth!

That warmth was like... as if he’d wet his pants.

Wang Lie couldn't help but look down in surprise at the cushion he was sitting on—the seats in the home team area of Leez Park Stadium actually had a heating function!

He looked closer and noticed that not only the cushion but the leather surface of the seat back had tiny holes...

Hisssss. Not only seat heating, but seat ventilation too!

It wasn't his first time playing at Leez Park, but on the away team's bench, he had never felt that the chairs were any different from anywhere else—at most, they were just a bit softer or harder.

He hadn't expected their home bench to have such hidden features!

Even though Wang Lie knew Tyne was a wealthy club, he was still shocked by the sheer extravagance of it.

You have to know that even top global giants like Solford United didn't have such exaggeratedly luxurious hardware facilities!

Neither did Barcelona Athletic!

The big clubs he had been at would never install seat ventilation and heating for the home bench!

He suddenly felt a deep sense of sympathy for the Middle Eastern owner behind Tyne. After spending so much money, let alone winning a championship, they were still fighting to avoid relegation...

And they had pinned their hopes on an old guy who was about to turn thirty-eight. It seemed like a desperate move.

However...

Congratulations, boss, you actually made the right bet this time!

Wang Lie leaned his body against the comfortable backrest and realized that not only was the cushion heated, but the backrest was too...

Damn... rich!

Facing so many cameras and lenses, he couldn't help but reveal a smile.

Seeing this, Luo Jin sighed with emotion:

"Wang Lie smiled! That's right, he smiled! How long has it been since we saw his smile? For the past six months, it seems only endless scandals and criticisms have surrounded him. He was busy fighting those who criticized him, confronting those who hated him, and even... being an enemy of the whole world!

"Actually, as his supporters, of course, we love to see him score and win, but maybe we’d rather see his heartfelt smile. We hope he won't be so tired, won't be so stressed, and won't be so... angry.

"Whether you admit it or not, his career has irrevocably reached its final stage. If you look at it as a football match, this is now Wang Lie's 'stoppage time.'

"At this point, the match result isn't really important anymore—Wang Lie has already achieved every honor possible in his career. His accomplishments make countless Chinese, Asian, and even European and American players look up in awe. I don't want to list the championships and honors he has won here, because I might not finish before the players come out...

"What a great journey this has been! Now, on this final stretch toward the finish line, I, as an ordinary fan who has witnessed it all, no longer get excited about those past glories; I just want to see the smile on Wang Lie's face more.

"Compared to Solford United, Tyne is an inconspicuous little team, and their strength is nothing to brag about. But here, he has regained respect and trust, which is why we can see a smile on his face again. I don't know if this means he has reconciled with the world, but I truly hope he can enjoy football here. Because...

"Your greatness no longer needs to be proven!"

***

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The remaining two chapters will be at 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM!