Volume One: Our Own League Chapter 042: I Will Surely Repeat It Countless Times

Wednesday afternoon, clear weather.

The wind was gentle, the sun was shining, and it was a beautiful day. Yet on the field, the mood of the players on Class Ten’s football team was anything but bright. Their spirits were exceptionally low.

It was obvious they were all worried about their league. Although the school leadership had not yet issued an explicit order to dissolve the first-year football league, they had all heard bad news from Li Liying.

Their league was doomed.

This had a profound impact on them; many struggled to lift their spirits during training, their bodies felt weak and lethargic. With the league gone, what was the point of training at all?

Their attitude infuriated Mu Yang. If you step onto the training ground, you should cast aside all those miscellaneous thoughts and focus on training seriously. Whatever issues you have, save them until after practice.

Mu Yang, unable to contain his anger, shouted, “Train seriously!”

The sudden outburst startled everyone.

Normally, Mu Yang appeared cool, even a bit aloof, but he was usually approachable. No one had ever seen him so furious.

Everyone was a bit stunned.

Mu Yang stared coldly at his teammates and said, “If you don’t want to train, you can leave. If you stay, you must train seriously.”

With that, Mu Yang ignored everyone and began his own practice.

The crowd was shocked.

They had never seen Mu Yang like this before, and none could recall the last time he had spoken so many words at once. But all knew Mu Yang was truly angry now, deeply dissatisfied with their laziness during training. No one dared slack off anymore; everyone began to train seriously.

Of course, some harbored resentment toward Mu Yang. With the league nearly gone, what was the point of training so hard? Was it really necessary?

But none dared confront Mu Yang—his icy expression was simply too intimidating.

Xu He, for his part, believed Mu Yang was right. If you come to the training ground, you should train well. If you don’t intend to train, don’t come. Coming here and not training affects others, diminishes the quality of the team’s practice; if you don’t get yelled at, who should?

Zhu Ge, seeing a crack forming within the team, quickly stepped forward as a mediator. “Everyone, train seriously! The school leadership hasn’t officially banned the league yet, so it’s not over. We must prepare for the upcoming match. If the school really bans it one day, then we can relax. Come on, get moving, and be ready for the weekend’s game.”

Hearing their captain speak so, the players settled down and focused on training, though their moods were still poor. They remained doubtful about whether Friday’s league match would actually take place.

Mu Yang was unimpressed by their half-hearted efforts. With a loud thud, he slammed the football hard into the ground, plunging the field into silence.

Disappointed, Mu Yang said, “If you don’t want to train, don’t bother. Disband!”

He strode to the goalpost, picked up his backpack, and left.

Zhu Ge could only smile wryly.

Mu Yang was, after all, Mu Yang.

“Damn it! Why is he acting so arrogant? Who does he think he is? Is he that impressive? If the captain didn’t support him, I wouldn’t listen to him. A football team that never touches the ball, just runs all day—are we a football team or a track squad? Does he even know what football is? Pretending to be something he’s not…!”

In the crowd, a tall, lanky guy raged as Mu Yang walked away, his voice full of reproach.

“Enough! Cut it out! Are you going to train or not?” Zhu Ge was furious, turning to glare sharply at the guy.

He immediately wilted, falling silent.

Clearly, he still respected Zhu Ge.

Xu He’s spirits sank even lower. The league hadn’t even been banned yet, and the team was already falling apart, descending into internal strife. How could they possibly play the match?

He never expected the team to be so fragile.

Xu He was deeply worried about the football team’s future.

This pessimism wasn’t limited to Xu He—it weighed heavily on every player in Class Ten’s football team.

Their spirits were truly low.

Zhu Ge, unwilling to see things deteriorate further, said, “The league hasn’t been officially banned yet. Let’s not be too pessimistic. Let’s keep training as we always have and prepare for Friday’s match. No slacking off—everyone must train seriously.”

Someone asked, “Captain, didn’t the school leadership say we couldn’t hold the league?”

Zhu Ge replied sternly, “As long as there’s no formal public ban, I’ll keep playing.”

Xu He, surprised, said, “Captain, so that means we’ll still play Friday’s league match?”

Zhu Ge nodded, “Of course. Now, go train well.”

With Zhu Ge’s assurance, the players threw themselves into training. Yet they all sensed the atmosphere of the team had changed dramatically.

Even Zhu Ge felt it; he glanced toward the spot where Mu Yang had disappeared and sighed.

Mu Yang couldn’t be blamed for this.

Mu Yang cared deeply about the league and the matches, so seeing his teammates so indifferent and careless, he was understandably upset.

Zhu Ge understood Mu Yang, but hoped he could adjust his attitude and not let it affect the team’s unity.

Zhu Ge said, “Alright, everyone, train as you wish.”

The guy who had argued with Mu Yang was delighted at these words; he grabbed a football and excitedly called to his friend, “Come on, let’s play!”

Clearly, he’d been dying to actually play football. No wonder he had so much resentment toward Mu Yang’s ball-less training.

Hearing “free training,” Xu He called over Li Jie and immediately headed to Zhang Zhen, saying, “Old Zhang, help me practice shooting!”

Yes, Xu He’s main goal today was to have Zhang Zhen teach him shooting skills.

After listening to Zhang Zhen a few days ago, Xu He had realized a lot and wanted to try it out. He’d tried yesterday, but with little success, so today he approached Zhang Zhen again.

Zhang Zhen smiled wryly, “Didn’t I already tell you the secret?”

Xu He replied, “Just saying isn’t enough, you have to teach me hands-on!”

Zhang Zhen protested, “You’re really making it hard for me!”

Xu He retorted, “Do you still want those math review materials?”

Zhang Zhen immediately said, “Alright! Come with me, I’ll teach you how to shoot. Try twice first, let me see where your problem lies.”

Xu He wanted to laugh at Zhang Zhen’s quick surrender, but knew this wasn’t the time. He held back.

Xu He nodded, “Okay.”

He walked up to the football, took his stance, drew a deep breath, silently recalled the shooting technique, then dashed forward and struck the ball hard with his right foot.

Xu He stared intently at the goal, roaring inwardly, “Let me score!”

With a loud thud, the ball flew just wide of the goal.

Xu He’s eyes widened—he had aimed for the center, so how had it gone off course?

He looked at Zhang Zhen, puzzled, as if seeking an explanation.

Zhang Zhen shook his head repeatedly, approached Xu He, knelt down, and took Xu He’s ankle in his right hand. “When you shoot, press your ankle down a bit. Keep your instep straight and tense, don’t let it deform.”

Xu He listened intently, determined not to miss a word.

As he manipulated Xu He’s right foot, Zhang Zhen explained, “See? Keep your instep taut, strike the ball with this part. Aim for the center of the ball, not the right. Got it?”

Feeling the contact point on his instep, Xu He understood where to hit the ball.

Zhang Zhen’s explanation was detailed, and Xu He took it all in, gradually learning and improving his shooting skills.

Zhang Zhen asked, “Do you get it now?”

Xu He nodded, indicating he understood.

Zhang Zhen said, “Good, keep training.”

Xu He nodded and turned back to practice shooting. This time, he kept Zhang Zhen’s advice firmly in mind, recalling the feeling of Zhang Zhen touching his instep. He took a deep breath, sprinted forward, and struck the ball hard. With a thud, the ball flew out, just missing the target.

Xu He turned, confused, toward Zhang Zhen.

Zhang Zhen said, “Keep your instep taut at all times. Don’t let your foot change shape when striking the ball—control the tension, understand?”

Xu He reflected; indeed, his foot shape had changed just after contact, causing the ball to miss.

Xu He nodded slightly, “Got it!”

Zhang Zhen, “Again!”

Xu He struck the ball hard once more, and it shot out rapidly.

Zhang Zhen, “Pay attention to the power point—use your waist to drive your thigh, sweep through, that’s right, sweep through, got it?”

With another loud thud, the ball was struck fiercely, flying out with a whistle.

Zhang Zhen, “Keep your instep taut!”

Another powerful shot, the ball whistling away.

Zhang Zhen, “Instep, instep, keep it taut! Rotten wood can’t be carved!”

Xu He wasn’t bothered by the criticism; instead, he became more focused, diligently practicing his shots, each time identifying his weaknesses with Zhang Zhen’s help.

Zhang Zhen, “Remember the technique for generating force—waist drives the thigh…”

Zhang Zhen, “Hey, that was good! Remember that feeling, try it again!”

Zhang Zhen, “Hmm, not bad, but still needs improvement. Keep going!”

Half an hour later—

Zhang Zhen, “Nice, this was well done. You’re starting to grasp some of the tricks. But it’s not enough yet; you have to keep practicing. There’s no shortcut—just keep repeating it, and your shooting will improve. Understood? Keep it up, Xu He.”

Xu He was so focused and absorbed that he lost track of time. The other teammates had long since left, dusk was falling, but he was still reluctant to stop.

He had truly gained a lot today.

He felt deeply grateful to Zhang Zhen, whose selfless teaching had brought him such progress. Of course, Xu He knew it wasn’t enough; only relentless, persistent training would bring him success.

Xu He declared resolutely to Zhang Zhen, “Don’t worry, Old Zhang, I’ll repeat it again and again!”