Volume One: Our Own League Chapter 22: Xu He Is Truly Incredible

Beep! With the sharp sound of the referee’s whistle, the junior high football league officially kicked off.

The team from Class Six, clad in blue Italian jerseys, started with the ball and launched an aggressive attack from the outset, showing no signs of tentative play. In contrast, the Class Sixteen team appeared calm and composed, opting for a solid, defense-first approach right from the beginning.

The players from Class Ten sat together, watching the match unfold.

Xu He, of course, was among them.

Suddenly, a familiar voice drifted to his ear, “Mu Yang, what do you think of this match?”

Mu Yang, seemingly unenthusiastic, was squinting and pretending to nap. He hadn’t expected Zhu Ge’s sudden question, which startled him.

Mu Yang glared at Zhu Ge coldly and replied, “Not interested.”

Xu He was taken aback by Mu Yang’s aloofness, and Zhu Ge, the direct recipient, was even more so.

Xu He fixed his gaze on Zhu Ge.

Zhu Ge was momentarily stunned, then forced a bitter smile and said, “I meant, which of these two teams do you think will win?”

Mu Yang spoke sparingly, “No idea.”

Zhu Ge sighed in resignation—this was just Mu Yang’s style.

Zhu Ge continued, “As a team aspiring to win the championship, we need to understand every potential opponent. I think you should really watch this match and observe the strengths of these two teams.”

Xu He nodded in agreement, finding Zhu Ge’s reasoning sound.

But Mu Yang remained terse: “Oh.”

He glanced at the field, then quickly resumed his uninterested posture, even closing his eyes again, feigning sleep.

Seeing this, Zhu Ge could only smile wryly. It seemed gathering intelligence would fall to him alone. Shaking his head, he turned his attention to the game, watching intently.

Suddenly, a clear voice sounded in Xu He’s ear, “Xu He, who do you think will win this match?”

Xu He turned slightly and saw Li Liying approaching, sitting down beside him.

He nodded in greeting, then looked back at the field.

After a long pause, he said, “Honestly, I’ve only played against Class Six, so I know their strength. As for Class Sixteen… I know nothing about them, so I can’t say who’ll win this match.”

Indeed, Class Six had warmed up against their own Class Ten, so Xu He was familiar with their abilities. The team had some skill, but their playstyle was overly simplistic and relied too heavily on the individual talent of Yang Hao.

Class Six had some strength, but they weren’t particularly formidable.

As for Class Sixteen, Xu He was completely in the dark—not even knowing any of their players.

So, Xu He truly couldn’t judge.

He turned to Li Jie beside him and asked, “Li, who do you think will win?”

Li Jie was absorbed in the match, caught off guard by Xu He’s sudden question.

Li Jie glanced at Li Liying next to Xu He, then shot Xu He a look.

He pursed his lips and said, “The game’s been going for over ten minutes, and so far, Class Six has a clear advantage with their fierce attacks. Class Sixteen looks… quite mediocre.”

Yes, mediocre indeed—no distinct features, no standout players, and even one or two who seemed barely able to play.

Li Jie knew Yang Hao’s strength, so he favored Class Six.

Xu He picked up on Li Jie’s meaning and asked, “So you’re betting on Class Six?”

Li Jie nodded, “Yes, I believe Class Six will win.”

Truth be told, if it were a matter of academic performance, Li Jie would pick Class Sixteen without hesitation. They were the top-scoring class, with an average score fifty points higher than the second-place class.

But in football, Li Jie would always choose Class Six.

Class Sixteen’s students devoted their time to studies, leaving little for football; their technical skills likely weren’t great.

That was Li Jie’s reasoning.

Xu He and Li Liying nodded slightly, agreeing with him.

But the match soon unfolded in unexpected ways.

On the surface, Class Six truly seemed far superior to Class Sixteen—especially with Yang Hao, a superstar, making Class Sixteen’s players look even more ordinary and their team helpless.

Yang Hao’s performance was as fierce as anticipated, single-handedly breaking through, wreaking havoc with Class Sixteen’s defense.

His sharp breakthroughs frequently threatened Class Sixteen’s goal, delivering powerful shots that kept their goal under constant siege.

Class Sixteen’s goal seemed on the verge of collapse.

Yet, despite this, Class Sixteen tenaciously held their ground throughout the first half, preventing Yang Hao from scoring. At halftime, the score remained zero to zero.

Xu He was astonished, “Class Sixteen is unbelievably resilient and united.”

Indeed, Xu He was impressed by their tenacity.

Perhaps some of their players truly lacked skill; perhaps their overall ability was mediocre. But they never gave up, defending with all their might, united in purpose to keep their goal safe.

Xu He was genuinely moved.

Class Sixteen’s cohesion was formidable.

He turned to Li Jie and asked, “Do you still stand by your prediction?”

Li Jie, too, was surprised by Class Sixteen’s unity and resilience, but he still believed in Class Six—and in Yang Hao.

Yes, Yang Hao was outstanding in this match.

He hadn’t scored yet, but no one could stop him. If not for Class Sixteen’s frenzied blocking, Yang Hao would have already scored a hat-trick.

Li Jie said, “Yang Hao will score sooner or later. I still think Class Six will win.”

That was Yang Hao’s strength.

Xu He glanced at Li Jie, then looked toward the sidelines at the short boy wearing the white national team jersey, number 47.

For some reason, Xu He’s gaze always settled on this little figure.

The boy was watching the game while skillfully playing with the ball at his feet—never relaxing his training, not even for a moment.

After a while, Xu He said, “I think Class Sixteen might just pull off an upset.”

Li Jie shook his head, unconcerned.

Li Liying, on the other hand, turned to scrutinize Xu He, as if checking whether he was dreaming.

After all, Class Sixteen hadn’t managed a single decent attack in the first half—how could such a team win?

At this moment, surely no one would bet on Class Sixteen.

What was Xu He thinking?

Li Liying gave Xu He another curious look.

Not far away, Zhu Ge also shook his head at Xu He’s words, and after pondering for a moment, he frowned.

The second half had barely begun when Yang Hao’s incisive breakthroughs again threatened Class Sixteen’s goal. Within five minutes, he twice tore through their defense, firing shots that struck the goalpost and bounced out.

The crowd gasped, applauding Yang Hao’s prowess.

Yang Hao was truly incredible.

Everyone acknowledged his talent, but his playing style was so singular that it doomed Class Six’s prospects for the tournament.

Still, almost everyone believed Class Six had this match in the bag.

No one saw anything remarkable in Class Sixteen, except Xu He, who alone believed they might pull off a surprise.

The match continued with Class Six dominating the tempo and Yang Hao relentlessly attacking, constantly threatening Class Sixteen’s goal.

But soon, trouble emerged: Yang Hao’s stamina began to falter.

Class Sixteen’s defense was like a meat grinder, exhausting Yang Hao’s energy with every encounter. Gradually, he found it harder to break through.

In the seventy-ninth minute, Class Sixteen’s captain, number 5, intercepted Yang Hao’s ball with a solo tackle and quickly played it down the wing. The wing-back, number 3, surged forward through the open flank, then sent a cross into the center. The midfielder, number 19, followed up and calmly slotted the ball through Class Six’s goalkeeper Wang Yi’s legs and into the net.

One-nil: Class Sixteen scored a last-minute winner against Class Six.

The stadium fell silent.

No one had expected such an ending.

Class Sixteen’s players erupted in celebration, their laughter filling the venue.

Li Jie, Zhu Ge, Li Liying, and the others stared at Xu He in astonishment.

Xu He managed a wry smile, as if to say he hadn’t expected such an outcome either.

But to Li Jie and Li Liying, Xu He’s foresight and judgment were simply remarkable.

At that moment, Mu Yang, who had been feigning sleep, suddenly woke and said, “It’s late. I’m heading home.”

He stood, picked up his backpack, and left.

Seeing this, Zhu Ge could only smile bitterly—this was just Mu Yang’s way.

Li Jie asked Xu He, “Why did you back Class Sixteen?”

Hearing this, Zhu Ge and Li Liying both turned their attention to Xu He, curious about his reasoning.

Xu He said, “From the start, Class Six fell into Class Sixteen’s trap. Their defense was designed to exhaust Yang Hao. Clearly, they’d studied Class Six, and luck was on their side today—Yang Hao hit the post twice.”

Everyone thought back and realized Xu He was right.

Li Liying and Zhu Ge felt a jolt—had Xu He noticed all this from the beginning?

Was he really that sharp?