[Football] Bad Boy Batty

Batty sat on the bed for five minutes before calming himself down.

"What happened?" De Bruyne asked.

"To be honest, Kevin, I don't know." Batty stroked his hair. "Loach just told me that Qiaolin is getting married to a man we don't know, and she's going to Hong Kong."

"The Qiaolin who often sends you videos and chats?"

"Correct."

"--It sounds a bit weird." De Bruyne was not sure what to say. "I don't know what kind of person she is, but for something as big as marriage, most people would tell their friends in advance."

"It's not just a little weird, it's very, very, very weird." Batty said and dialed Qiaolin's number.

Because of her work, Qiaolin's schedule was irregular. Before calling, Batty would always send some messages to confirm that she was not sleeping. But today was different. Whether she was resting or doing something else, she had to give an explanation first.

Ten seconds later, the call was connected.

"Hey, Barty, what's up?" Qiao Lin heard the sound of keyboard and mouse, probably working. "Is there a new man, or new gossip?"

"Loach said you are going to get married and go to Hong Kong. Is that true?" Batty asked coldly.

"..."

There was silence on the other side of the phone.

It appears to be true.

"...He told you anyway." Qiao Lin complained quietly, "I knew this guy was unreliable."

"Thank God, he knew to tell me what you think. Do you know how I felt when I got the news before I even opened my eyes today? I don't understand why you kept this from us? It wasn't until this morning that you told Niuqiu that you were getting married in three days, and we hadn't prepared anything. It takes 3 hours to get from Manchester to China, including traffic and other possible emergencies. Don't you want us to attend your wedding? Oh, thank you, Kevin."

Batistuta spoke a lot at a very fast speed. De Bruyne couldn't understand him, but he could feel the anger in his speech. He silently brought a glass of water.

"Kevin?" Qiao Lin tried to change the subject. "Is De Bruyne with you? The America's Cup just ended. I thought you should be sticking with Neymar at this time."

"Don't try to get away with it, Ms. Li Qiaolin. We are talking about you now." Batty raised his voice, "I don't care whether you really don't want us to attend your wedding, that's not important. What's important is - who is that guy?"

"Relax, Barty, I can explain."

"You better be able to!"

"--Where should I start? Uh, I met him three months ago. He was..."

"3 months!" Batty exploded. "You've known this guy for 3 months but he never told me a word. Did he not let you say it? I now strongly suspect that you were deceived!"

"No, no, no, Batty, calm down. The reason I didn't tell you was because I thought we were just playing around at first, but later I found out he was serious, so we officially confirmed the relationship." Qiao Lin explained quickly.

"If you're serious, why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I know you won't accept it."

"What do you mean?"

"He is that kind of person - very special, I can't explain it clearly, but I know he is the one I am looking for. His family didn't have much money to support his education, so he worked very hard and said that he would support me in the future and I would support him now. I have already thought about it, and I will go to his place to develop in the future. I have already bought a house in Hong Kong, and I will quit my job next year and move there."

"You bought the house!" Batty was so shocked that his voice broke. "Oh my God, don't tell me you wrote his name on the property deed!"

"It does have his name on it, but that doesn't mean—"

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Batty jumped up from the bed and cursed. He looked at the frightened De Bruyne next to him, "Kevin! This idiot not only wants to marry someone he has known for only three months, but he also spends money on that guy, buys him a house, and moves in to live with him! Qiaolin! Knock on your head and ask when the love-brain in it grew!"

The Belgian midfielder didn't want to be involved, so he raised his hand and stepped back, leaning against the cabinet.

But things were really bad. Batistuta's friends sounded like they were deceived in the name of love. De Bruyne thought that he had never seen Batistuta so angry, except when the opponent committed a foul during the game.

"Look, Barty, I knew you would react like this, so I didn't tell you." Qiao Lin was a little unhappy. "Don't treat me as a victim, honey. I'm clear-headed. The person I want to marry is not a liar. You don't even know him. Don't make comments about people you don't know. I thought it was common sense."

"I don't need to know him to know he's not a good guy!" Batty was almost mad, "How come I didn't know you were such a gullible person? What's so good about this guy? He tied you up tightly. Is he alive?"

"...It's OK." Qiao Lin said, "He has a good face."

"Oh my God! Qiaolin! You spent money on him, bought him a house, and slept with him. He got money, a house, and sex, but you got a blank check of 'I will support you in the future'!" Batty almost tore the quilt, "Are you stupid?"

Qiao Lin was silent for a while, then sighed heavily: "Bati, don't be like this, you are my best friend, but there are some things you will never understand, because no matter what decision you make, there is always someone behind you to help you, first the bloodhound, then your godfather, you have many opportunities to try and fail, but I can't, my father can't help me, I have no one to rely on."

"So that man gave you a little support and you rushed towards him like a bug flying to a street lamp?" Batty questioned, and he cursed again, "You don't consider me a friend at all. How many times have I asked you if you want to come to the UK and I will support you! You can do nothing, am I worse than a guy who can only make promises and you have only known him for three months?"

Qiao Lin was silent for a long time. "...I have something else to do, so I won't talk anymore." She said, "Next time you call me, I hope we can talk about something else, such as your recent gossip. Bye."

Without waiting for Batty to say anything else, Qiaolin hung up the phone.

"Qiaolin, Qiao--Kevin, did you see that? She hung up on me!" Batty made an unbelievable expression, and then called again, but no one answered. "Oh my God, this is fucking ridiculous, should I thank her for not blocking me?"

De Bruyne shrugged, indicating that he would not participate. "What do you want to eat?" the Belgian midfielder asked. "It's almost 8 o'clock. I'll go make some breakfast. Fried eggs?"

"No, thank you. I'm not hungry." Batty sat down again with a belly full of anger. "I can't believe Qiao Lin would be - I have to go over there, otherwise I can't persuade her with loach at all."

After saying that, he got up and changed his clothes.

De Bruyne thought something was wrong and quickly went over to hold Batistuta's shoulder. "You can't go, Batistuta. Remember, you have to go to the club every day for checkups and resume training until the end of July." He said, "If you don't go, your medical report won't look good, and Pep may not let you train with the team because of this."

Damn it, forget this.

"Damn the injuries!"

Batty threw himself on the bed in frustration, rolling from side to side with the quilt in his arms, meaningless mumbles escaping from his throat from time to time.

"Maybe you can find someone to help. What about her family?" De Bruyne suggested. "And don't try to persuade her. She won't listen at this time. You have to let her find the problem herself."

"Her father is in Brazil, and her mother doesn't know. We haven't seen her mother since we met." Barty took a deep breath. "How can I let her figure out the problem on her own? She's completely trapped. Unless she sees with her own eyes how disgusting that guy is, otherwise-"

As he was talking, he suddenly thought of something, his eyes lit up, and he turned over and sat up.

"Have you thought of a solution?"

"Yes." Batty first sent a message to Niu Qiu, asking him to find a place to stay when he arrived. After he had made all the arrangements and let Qiao Lin see everything clearly, he would bring her directly to the UK. "My godfather has a very good friend who used to be a very prestigious figure in Hong Kong. He retired a few years ago, but he still lives there. He should be able to help."

"who is it?"

"Remember my godfather's 'Virtual Realm' series? The dystopian cyber revenge movies, we watched them together. He was the leading actor in the first two movies." Batty continued typing on his phone with his head down.

"I remember." De Bruyne crossed his arms. "He was the first Chinese actor in Oscar history. I remember his crying scene when he lost his companion. What was his name? It's a bit hard to pronounce. Zhang——"

"Zhang Guorong." Batistuta looked up and smiled at De Bruyne, then dialed a number and raised the phone to his ear, "That's his Chinese name. My godfather usually calls him--"

The call was connected and De Bruyne heard laughter on the other end.

Then his attention was drawn to Batty, and he swore he had never heard the little powder barrel speak in such a good tone.

"Good afternoon, Uncle Leslie, I'm Buddy. Sorry to bother you, but my friend is in trouble in Hong Kong and I want to ask you for a favor."

Many people can't help but synchronize their expressions when talking on the phone, and Batistuta is no exception. De Bruyne was shocked to see Batistuta smiling like a shy little boy while talking on the phone.

'Wow-oh!' he lip-synced.

Batty glared at him.

"Of course, just tell me what you want me to do for you." Leslie agreed happily. "I've been so idle lately that I've been playing mahjong all the time, but I always lose. You came at the right time. Tell me first, what's the matter?"

"It's like this. My friend Li Qiaolin has been obsessed with a man. She not only spends money on him but also buys him a house. She wants to quit her job and go to Hong Kong to marry him. No matter how much we persuade her, she won't listen." Batty briefly explained the situation. "Now my other friend Niu Qiu is on his way there. I want you to help me see if the man is sincere to her."

"I understand." Leslie laughed softly, "This is a simple matter. Leave it to me. In just a few days, I can tell you whether the man is sincere or not."

"That's great!"

"It's a small matter." He paused, "Also - Batty, which flight did your friend Loach take? I'll ask someone to pick him up. When he arrives at my place, I'll do my best to entertain him."

"I don't know yet. It happened very suddenly. I'll send you the information later." Batty said gratefully, "Thank you, Uncle Leslie. Thank you on behalf of my stupid friend, too."

"It's my duty to take care of the younger generation." Leslie said, "I heard that you are doing very well in the Premier League, Batty. When I have time, I will bring my husband to see you. Remember to save two tickets for me."

"Yes, I will reserve the best box for you."

The two chatted for a while and the call ended after a few minutes.

Batistuta turned his phone screen black and returned to his usual flamboyant and arrogant self, looking up at De Bruyne who had not yet recovered.

"Look, perfect solution."

(End of this chapter)