He unleashed a world-class goal with a single kick; you're saying this is Su Chao?

"I'll go cook!"

Wang Sufeng rolled up her sleeves and went into the kitchen.

Soon, the kitchen was filled with clanging and clattering sounds, as well as the conversation between Lao Xu and Wang Sufeng.

"Did you pass the trial?"

"Passed."

"That's good... The child will be living there from now on?"

"Closed training, with food and accommodation provided."

"So... how many times a month can you come back?"

"It depends. I might have weekends off, but it's a three-hour round trip, so I might not be able to come back every week."

There was a moment of silence.

Then Wang Sufeng's voice rang out, nasal in tone: "Alright, that's enough, let's chop the vegetables."

Chen Xun sat on the sofa in the living room, listening to the sounds coming from the kitchen, looking at Xu Yourong's test paper on the coffee table and the pink shoebox in his hand.

Starting tomorrow, these will no longer be his daily routine.

When the food was served, Xu Yourong also came out of the room.

She still acted indifferent, but Chen Xun noticed that her bangs were wet, indicating that she had just washed her face.

"Oh, you've finally decided to give it up?"

Wang Sufeng brought the last dish out of the kitchen, glanced at her daughter, and asked, "Didn't you say you were going to review?"

I'm hungry.

Xu Yourong spoke succinctly, then pulled out a chair and sat down.

The four people sat around the dining table.

Braised pork ribs, steamed sea bass, braised prawns, garlic lettuce, and a big bowl of tomato and egg soup.

It's all food that Chen Xun loves to eat.

Eat more!

Wang Sufeng kept putting food into Chen Xun's bowl. She peeled the shrimp and put them in his bowl, picked out the biggest piece of ribs, and put the best piece of meat from the belly of the fish into his bowl as well.

Xu Yourong, unusually, did not shout about favoritism as usual, and then took the food out of Chen Xun's bowl again.

"Master's wife, that's enough, the bowl can't hold it all."

Chen Xun held the bowl and hid behind him.

"We're going to closed training tomorrow. Will the food there be as good as what we cook at home?"

"Eat more today, and save it up!"

Wang Sufeng spoke with righteous indignation.

Save it up.

This word made Chen Xun laugh, but also made him want to cry.

Old Xu didn't say much today, just quietly ate his rice.

Halfway through the meal, he put down his chopsticks and poured himself a small glass of baijiu (Chinese liquor).

"Chen Xun".

He picked up his wine glass, looked at Chen Xun, opened his mouth as if to say something long and rambling, but in the end he only said three words:

"Play well!"

Then he tilted his head back and downed the drink.

"Old Xu, drink slowly!"

Wang Sufeng patted him, but her own eyes also reddened.

Xu Yourong kept her head down and ate without saying a word.

Halfway through the meal, she suddenly stood up, went into the kitchen, and took out a bottle of Coke.

He poured a glass for Chen Xun and then poured one for himself.

"I hope you play better and better starting tomorrow."

She picked up her glass and clinked it against Chen Xun's.

Then he gulped it down, put down the cup, and continued eating with his head down.

It's as if nothing ever happened.

This meal took a long time to finish.

After dinner, Wang Sufeng washed the dishes in the kitchen, Lao Xu sat on the balcony smoking, and Xu Yourong went back to her room to continue studying.

Chen Xun lay on the sofa bed, staring at the ceiling.

Moonlight streamed through the gaps in the curtains, casting a white line on the ceiling.

He turned over and saw the pair of fluorescent pink sneakers on the coffee table.

He had already opened the box.

The shoes were placed on the box, shimmering faintly in the moonlight.

It's really pink.

It was so pink that he could see it even in the dark.

He imagined himself walking into the Aozhi Base tomorrow wearing these shoes.

Then he laughed.

Fine, I'll be a fan then.

5:40 a.m.

Chen Xun woke up before the alarm clock went off.

The blue checkered blanket had somehow ended up on the floor.

I glanced out the window.

As dawn broke, the lights at Old Yang's breakfast stall downstairs were already on, and fumes were billowing out from the gaps in the roller shutter door.

He put on his clothes, folded the blanket, and pushed the sofa bed back into place.

The pair of fluorescent pink sneakers on the coffee table exuded a flamboyant aura at all times.

Chen Xun glanced at it, then resignedly stuffed it into his backpack.

A sound came from the kitchen.

He walked over and saw Wang Sufeng standing in front of the stove, with noodles cooking in the pot and two poached eggs in the bowl next to her.

"Master's wife, why are you up so early?"

"It's your first day on the job, do you think I'd let you leave on an empty stomach?"

Without turning her head, Wang Sufeng scooped the cooked noodles into a bowl, topped it with a poached egg, sprinkled it with chopped green onions, and placed it in front of him: "Eat before you leave. Your master originally said he would see you off, but I said don't bother. It's easier for the child to go on his own. Seeing him off will only make him feel worse."

Chen Xun took the bowl and lowered his head to eat the noodles.

The noodles were very hot, and the yolk of the poached egg was still runny. When you took a bite, the golden egg liquid flowed into the soup.

Just like countless mornings before.

He ate very slowly.

After finishing the last bite, Wang Sufeng took the bowl and handed her a plastic bag: "There are boiled eggs inside. Eat them on the way. Send a WeChat message to your teacher's wife when you arrive."

Chen Xun took the plastic bag and nodded vigorously.

As Chen Xun was changing his shoes at the door, he noticed that Xu Yourong's door was ajar.

He walked over with a smile: "I'm leaving!"

The bus at 6:10 was not crowded.

He sat in the last row by the window, his backpack on his lap, containing his pink sneakers and a few changes of clothes.

Outside the car window, the street scenes of the county town receded little by little.

Old Yang's breakfast stall, the gate of the county's No. 1 Middle School...

The plastic track he had run on for six years was partially visible in the distance before being blocked by buildings.

An hour later.

The bus stopped at the entrance of the Changzhou Aozhi Football Club training base.

The iron gate was already open, and the old gatekeeper was sitting at the entrance with a teacup in his hand. Seeing him approach with a bag on his back, he glanced at him and said:

"New here?"

"Yes, U17."

"Go in, the training ground is at the back, don't go to the wrong place."

The gatekeeper waved his hand.

The training base looks bigger than when I came for the trial yesterday.

Upon entering, there is a three-story office building with faded blue paint on the exterior walls and the club's logo on the roof.

An abstract football.

Behind the office building are two standard football fields and a five-a-side pitch. The grass is much smoother than it was yesterday, so it should be the main field for matches.

Further on was a row of bungalows, where the canteen, gym, and changing rooms were located.

Li Jun was already waiting at the entrance of the office building.

He was wearing a dark blue coach's uniform with the club's logo printed on the chest, and carrying a folder. He nodded as Chen Xun approached.

"You're here quite early, come with me."

He turned and walked into the office building, saying as he went:

"This morning was mainly for testing, including physical fitness, basic skills, and positional abilities. There will be an 8-on-8 scrimmage this afternoon, and the coaching staff will observe the whole process."

"I spoke with head coach Zhou about your situation yesterday, and he's very interested in you."

Chen Xun followed him into the office building and through a corridor covered with photos of the team.

The photos, ranging from black and white to color, from blurry to high definition, document the club's more than 20-year history.

In the earliest photos, the players are wearing outdated jerseys, standing on a dirt field, with a handwritten banner behind them:

Commemorating the founding of the Changzhou Aozhi Football Team

Later photos gradually gained color, the field changed from dirt to grass, and sponsor logos began to appear on the jerseys.

The most recent photos were taken last year; the U17 team won third place in the provincial youth league.

In the photo, a group of teenagers are holding trophies and smiling broadly.