"The Hua Clan is manageable; they have strength, but it’s still within our control. The bigger pressure cos from the Yuefeng Club!
I studied the stats from your last match. You perford way better than the second team. Even against the first team’s main lineup, it’s about fifty-fifty. If Yue Feng himself played, even a fifty-fifty chance might be optimistic!"
"There’s nothing we can do about it; Yue Feng is a freak! I heard quite a few of our company’s raw materials and blueprints were sourced from so fishing gear alliance Yue Feng is involved with? Who knows where he got all those advanced things!"
"Yes, that’s true. The Chairman even hired professionals to investigate, but we didn’t get any concrete results. The leads went cold abroad!
The guy has extensive connections overseas. Rumor has it he’s friends with a shipping tycoon in the United States and has funded labs in several countries. What we see is just the tip of the iceberg!"
"How old is he? This is just too..."
"Stop worrying about it. Let’s just focus on doing our jobs. Keep an eye on Xiao Gang; I feel like his emotions are a bit unstable. He shouldn’t get too hung up on things!"
"Okay!"
...
In the club activity room, Xiao Gang kept his head down, eyes bloodshot, and his facial expression seed off.
Xiao Kai tugged at his sunscreen clothing: "Xiao Gang, calm down. It’s just a temporary cancellation from the starting lineup. There’s still a chance. Once Leng’s anger subsides, I’ll go with you to ask Hu for so lenience!"
Xiao Gang: "No need! The captain is right; business matters should be resolved in a business manner! When they co tomorrow, we’ll make sure they lose so badly! I refuse to believe it; on our ho ground, how could a few outsiders turn the tables on us!"
"That’s right! When we win, we’ll trash-talk them to ss with their ntality! Count in tomorrow!"
...
Just after nine the next morning, two cars drove one after another to the Tianyuan Youth Training Club’s premises.
The Tianyuan second team’s club location is rather remote, a small estate on the outskirts of the city that’s been simply converted. It’s about a half-hour drive from the city center, with practices taking place most of the ti, leaving just one rest day a week. The starting players plus substitutes number about a dozen.
Being in the suburbs, the land value here is relatively low, so their practice pole pond is significantly larger than the small practice pole pond behind Yuefeng’s building.
There are two standard ponds asuring 40 ters long and 18 ters wide, able to accommodate at least forty people training simultaneously.
The two cars stopped at the gate of the training base, and three people got out at the sa ti.
"Whoa, a big brand is indeed a big brand. The club’s training grounds are quite sizable!" Zhao Zheng said casually while glancing around the yard.
Han Luofeng nodded: "Tianyuan Company was established a few years earlier than the old man’s place, so they have a solid foundation! Plus, Deng’s teacher has nurous disciples and friends. It wouldn’t be surprising if he got a place through a connection. In the suburbs, this spot wouldn’t be worth much!"
Zhao Zheng nodded and said to Xiaomin: "Xiaomin, go say hello to the old guard at the gate, and don’t forget to offer him a cigarette!"
"Sure thing!" Wang Xiaomin patted his pants pocket, took out an opened pack of Su cigarettes, and headed straight to the gatekeeper.
This is Wang Xiaomin’s usual task wherever they go. Zhao Zheng and Han Luofeng aim to develop his skills in interacting and dealing with strangers. Compared to when he first started, he’s now quite adept.
Quickly, Wang Xiaomin finished communicating, and with a creak, the retractable gate opened, then folded up to let them in!
The arrival of a Tank 300 and a Lexus 570 soon caught the attention of the club’s training mbers.
Just as Zhao Zheng parked the cars, Hu Changsheng leisurely strolled over to greet them.
"Yo! You guys are early! Welco to the Tianyuan Youth Training Team Club! You should have called; I would have t you at the gate!"
Han Luofeng smiled and shook hands with Hu Changsheng in a friendly manner: "Hu, my brother, you’re looking more handso than ever! You must have been training a lot; you’ve got an even tan! This is Zhao Zheng from Yuefeng Club, and this is my young brother Wang Xiaomin!"
Hu Changsheng: "Haha, I rember our last match well! Your skills were quite impressive! Let’s not just stand around—co upstairs. You’ve traveled a long way; let’s have so tea and I’ll show you around our base!"
"I’d be honored!" Han Luofeng promptly agreed.
That’s how social interactions work: you might secretly want to bite the other person, but when face to face, you could even be more polite than with friends.
Han Luofeng carried himself very appropriately, showing no rush to initiate a competition. Instead, he followed the host’s lead, taking a simple tour of the club with Hu Changsheng.
The place is spacious enough, but there wasn’t much worth showing. The newly ford second team has made little achievent, and the buildings are just ordinary single-story houses.
After a round, what impressed Han Luofeng and his companions most were the various organic fruits and vegetables planted in front of the yard. The straight cucumbers, with their blossoms and thorns, looked quite appetizing.
Hu Changsheng led the three into the club’s reception room, quickly settling everyone into their seats.
"You’ve been out and about for quite so ti? I’ve heard from a few friends about your club-hopping exploits!" Hu Changsheng remarked while rinsing the tea set, casually prying for information.
Han Luofeng nodded: "I wouldn’t call it club-hopping; we’re just going around, exchanging skills, and learning from each other! As you know, the fish conditions vary greatly at every club’s training grounds. I don’t want to make you laugh, but we’ve lost more than we’ve won, losing quite a few side bets just from catching the fish!"
Hu Changsheng nodded, his gaze settling on Wang Xiaomin, who hadn’t spoken: "Xiaomin seems a bit shy, don’t be nervous. You seed pretty relaxed during the last match; why act like you’re at war over a cup of tea?"
Zhao Zheng chuckled: "Xiaomin is young and hasn’t seen much of the world! He’s also not very talkative. These past tis, he’s been doing all the door-knocking; he’s co a long way from when he first started! Xiaomin, Hu is talking to you!"
Wang Xiaomin scratched his head sheepishly: "Haha, just a little nervous! What kind of tea is this? It slls so good!"
"It’s Yunnan red tea, not much of quality, just sothing to make do. If you like it, I’ll pack so for you to take ho! Besides fishing, it’s one of my few hobbies!" Hu Changsheng boasted a bit when ntioning the tea, feigning politeness.
But he miscalculated this ti. Wang Xiaomin isn’t easy to deal with. He might look a bit simple-minded but is actually quite astute.
"That sounds great! Thanks in advance, Hu!" Wang Xiaomin rubbed his hands, surprisingly not rejecting the offer!
"Haha, Xiaomin, you’re so thick-skinned!" Han Luofeng couldn’t help but laugh.
Zhao Zheng chid in: "My buddy is great in every way, just a bit overly honest. Hu, don’t listen to his nonsense; he usually drinks plain water. Give him so fancy stuff, and he’d be clueless!"
"Haha, when I say I’ll give, I truly an it. It’s just so tea, no big deal!" Hu Changsheng said, though with a bit of heartache.
"Oh, by the way, when we parked earlier, I thought I saw a Toyota Tundra. If I’m not mistaken, the license plate looked like it belongs to your captain, Leng Xiaojun. Is Captain Leng here too?"
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