“Here, breakfast.” David Young handed the plastic bag he was carrying to Brian Clark.

Brian Clark opened the plastic bag and started eating right away.

“How did yesterday’s match go?” David Young asked, sounding casual.

“Made ten thousand, I got five thousand.” Brian Clark mumbled through his food.

“Tsk tsk. No wonder you don’t want to play anymore, it’s so easy to make money this way.” The old man snorted.

“Old man, even if I wanted to play, what connections do I have?” Brian Clark spread his hands. “Professional football, you know, it’s not something you can just play if you want to.”

“Cut the crap!” David Young widened his eyes. “As long as you want to play, I’ll help you find a way!”

“You said it.”

“So what if I said it? You’re being so wishy-washy…”

“Then I’ll play!”

“Huh?” David Young was caught off guard.

“I said I want to play professional football, old man, I want to play. Didn’t you say you’d help me find a way?”

“Good kid, just wait here for me.” But David Young wasn’t angry at all. “You’ve thought it through? It’s not just a whim?”

“Yeah, I’ve thought it through. I still want to give professional football a try.”

David Young looked at his once most promising student, and a smile slowly bloomed on his face. “Alright, I’ll help you find a way. Just wait for good news!”

……

Brian Clark originally thought the old man would help him find a way domestically, since if he wanted to play professional football, there were also the China League One and Super League at home. But he didn’t expect that a week later, the old man would bring him some explosive good news.

“Ah Zheng, come help me see what this email says?” David Young called Brian Clark into his office and showed him an open email on the computer.

It was an email written in Italian, and only Brian Clark could understand it.

“Sassuolo Football Club, Italy…”

Brian Clark had just read the beginning when he turned to the old man in surprise.

“I have a friend who does tile business over there, and he has dealings with Sassuolo. Through his connections, he helped you get in touch with the Sassuolo club. Now they’ve sent an email, but I can’t understand it, so I asked you to help me translate.” David Young pointed at the computer screen. “Come on, keep translating.”

Brian Clark turned his attention back to the email. The email was short and straightforward: Sassuolo was willing to offer him a one-week trial, and if he performed well during the trial, he’d have a chance to sign a contract.

“But we have to cover the airfare and accommodation ourselves…” Brian Clark frowned at this point. He knew his own finances best—he had no savings, and every time he earned money from a match, he spent it quickly. Compared to his outstanding football talent, he really had no skill in managing money.

The ten thousand from the last match was halved after giving a share to Director Zhao, leaving only five thousand. During this time, the old man had set up a special training plan for him, making him train hard to recover his physical condition. He was also forbidden from playing in any more matches, so he suddenly had no income and had to rely on that five thousand to get by. Other than that, how could he possibly have extra money to go to Italy?

“You don’t need to worry about the money.” David Young waved his hand happily. “That means as long as you do well in the trial, you can sign a professional contract with them.”

But Brian Clark was still concerned about the money: “How can I not worry? Airfare and accommodation for a week isn’t a small amount…”

The old man was impatient: “I told you not to worry about it, so don’t! Anyway, there’ll definitely be money for you to go to Italy when the time comes.”

“Maybe I should just play a few more matches…”

Brian Clark hadn’t finished speaking when David Young cut him off with a shout: “Don’t you dare! What if you get injured? Stop worrying about the money. Just focus on training for now! Give me your passport, I’ll have my friend help you with the visa.”

Seeing the old man was really angry, Brian Clark shrank his neck and didn’t dare say another word.

With a clear reply from Italy, David Young was in an exceptionally good mood. He shut down the computer, put his hands behind his back, and strolled out of the office.

As he left, Brian Clark could still hear him humming a tune! That was a rare sight for the old man…

……

Half a month later, Brian Clark’s visa for Italy was ready, and the countdown to his departure had begun.

He called his parents to tell them he wouldn’t be going back to university, but would instead go to Italy to pursue his dream of professional football.

As a result, his mother scolded him: “Don’t you care about your leg?!”

“My leg’s fine, Mom. I’ve rested for a year, what could be wrong?”

“You say it’s fine and that’s it? Didn’t the experts all say you shouldn’t play football anymore? Do you really want to spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair?!”