Volume One: Our Own League Chapter 58: The Core of the Jinguancheng No. 17 High School Football Team

Jingguan City No. 17 Middle School, Principal’s Office.

Principal Wang Jingkai sat upright at his desk, eyes fixed intently on the man standing before him.

The man appeared to be around thirty years old, with a square face, a neat crew cut, and skin tanned by the sun. The muscles hidden beneath his athletic T-shirt looked solid and strong—he was clearly an accomplished athlete.

“Mr. Chai, do you think it’s feasible for our school to form a soccer team?” Principal Wang asked.

The man was Chai Kun, the PE teacher for the first-year students.

Mr. Chai did not answer right away. He pondered for a moment before responding, “I believe there shouldn’t be any problem forming a soccer team in our school. I’ve noticed that the first-year students are very passionate about soccer—many of them play during PE class.”

Principal Wang listened carefully, nodding as he absorbed the information.

Mr. Chai glanced at the principal and continued, “Moreover, the first-year students have organized their own soccer league. I’ve observed their matches, and their organization is quite impressive. The league is in full swing at the moment. There’s some real talent among them as well. I think our school team should be built around this year’s students.”

Principal Wang raised his eyebrows, mulling it over. “If they’re the foundation, aren’t they a bit too young? Our goal is the national tournament, after all. Our rivals will surely field teams of mostly second and third-year students. If we pit younger students against older, more developed ones, will we stand a chance?”

The difference between first and second-year students might only be a year, but at this stage, boys were undergoing critical physical development. Some entered first year barely taller than 1.4 or 1.5 meters, but by second year, they often shot up by over ten centimeters. This was common.

So, the disadvantage of youth was indeed significant.

Mr. Chai frowned slightly; it was a real issue. Still, he said, “Principal, from what I’ve observed, students in the second and third year here have little enthusiasm for soccer. Few play during PE, and outside of class, almost no one touches a ball. From this, it’s clear they lack both skill and passion. If we build the team around them…”

He didn’t finish, but Principal Wang understood perfectly.

Principal Wang sighed. It seemed that his earlier idea of forming a team for the national tournament had been a bit hasty.

After a long silence, he asked, “So, if we base the team on the first-year students, how strong do you think they are? Do they have a chance against teams from other schools in the city?”

It was clear that Principal Wang was still determined about the national tournament.

Mr. Chai looked troubled. “Well, Principal, as you know, I’m not a soccer specialist—my background is in basketball. I really can’t assess the students’ true abilities in soccer, nor do I know how competitive they’d be citywide. I’m sorry…”

Principal Wang was disappointed, but he didn’t blame Mr. Chai. He knew Mr. Chai was telling the truth: he was trained in basketball and might not fully understand soccer. In fact, Wang appreciated his honesty. This man wasn’t pretending to know what he didn’t, just to curry favor. If he really handed the soccer team over to Mr. Chai, the school’s prospects would be grim.

Principal Wang looked at Mr. Chai with approval. “No need to apologize; it’s not your fault.”

Seeing that the principal bore him no ill will, Mr. Chai breathed a sigh of relief.

Principal Wang suddenly asked, “If I remember correctly, you graduated from the prestigious Capital Sports University, didn’t you?”

Mr. Chai replied modestly, “You flatter me, Principal. I was just an ordinary undergraduate there, nothing special.”

Principal Wang smiled. “Still, that’s impressive.”

Mr. Chai responded with humble gratitude.

After praising Mr. Chai, Principal Wang got down to business. “Your university must have a soccer program, right?”

Mr. Chai understood where this was going. After some thought, he said, “Yes, we do have a soccer program, and there have been some outstanding graduates.”

Principal Wang’s eyes lit up. “Do you have any friends in that field?”

Mr. Chai replied, “I know a few classmates who specialized in soccer, but I’m not sure what they’re doing now.”

Principal Wang said quickly, “Could you help us get in touch with them? Our school is in great need of talent.”

Mr. Chai said, “I can ask around, but I can’t promise anything.”

His prudence did not irritate Principal Wang—instead, it made him think even more highly of Mr. Chai. This was clearly someone who got things done.

Principal Wang said, very satisfied, “Good, please reach out to them. You can tell them our school offers excellent conditions; they won’t be shortchanged.”

Mr. Chai nodded. “Understood.”

Principal Wang smiled. “Thank you for going through the trouble, Mr. Chai.”

Mr. Chai replied at once, “Not at all. It’s an honor to do my part for the school.”

After a few more polite exchanges, Principal Wang escorted Mr. Chai out.

Shortly after Mr. Chai left, Principal Wang summoned his assistant. “Post a recruitment notice on the school website and Weibo—let’s hire several PE teachers with a soccer background, and a soccer coach as well.”

Principal Wang wasn’t putting all his eggs in one basket.

After giving the instructions, the assistant went off to carry them out.

Principal Wang remained at his desk, poring over the documents in his hands. The National High School Soccer Championship was a matter of great importance to him. If he could achieve success in this area, it would bode well for his career—perhaps even open up new opportunities for advancement.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so tireless in promoting campus soccer.

Of course, he wasn’t motivated solely by ambition; he genuinely wanted to do something meaningful for the school and the students.

As he looked at the files, he murmured, “The national tournament… I hope we can make it.”

While Principal Wang was occupied with worries about the school team and the national tournament, the members of Class Ten’s soccer team had their own troubles: exam results.

Last Thursday and Friday, they had taken their monthly exams, and now the scores were starting to come in.

Endless exams—a teacher’s favorite weapon.

Grades—students’ lifeblood.

Now that the results were out, everyone was nervous. For the next week or two, their peace would depend on these scores.

Xu He’s class received their math scores first.

Xu He wasn’t too worried about math—he felt he’d done well this time.

Sure enough, when Ye Ziqing handed back the tests, Xu He felt completely at ease.

He’d scored 111 in math, ranking among the top five in the class. Ye Ziqing praised him warmly.

Xu He’s progress in math was remarkable.

When he brought his math score home, Tang Qian was overjoyed, so excited she gave him two kisses on the cheek, which made him a bit embarrassed. His younger sister, Xu Fei, teased him mercilessly, calling “Shame, shame!”

Xu He, too, was pleased and delighted by the result. This meant he wouldn’t have to attend extra classes and could devote himself more fully to training, working hard to improve his shooting technique.

The next day, the Chinese scores were released.

Xu He’s result was decent, though not as outstanding as in math—he scored 102. Still, it was respectable. When he brought the score home, his mother Tang Qian wasn’t as excited as the previous day but still encouraged him.

She even cooked a lavish meal that evening to reward him.

His best subject was English—he achieved a perfect score of 120, earning him public praise from the English teacher, Xiao Hong.

Xu He’s performance in this round of exams was truly excellent. He was satisfied, and so was his mother. Still, she reminded him not to become complacent, to keep working hard so he could attend a good high school and, in the future, a good university.

Tang Qian cared deeply for her son—she was already thinking ahead to college.

Of course, Xu He felt his mother’s love and resolved to study even harder so as not to let her down.

These days, Xu He lived in comfort and happiness. He often stayed late for extra practice, but his parents never scolded him, giving him more time to hone his soccer skills.

He understood why, and resolved to keep up his studies so he could devote himself to soccer without worry.

Soon, Friday arrived.

Today would see the final round of group matches in the first-year soccer league at Jingguan City No. 17 Middle School. After these two games, the group stage would be over, and the four teams advancing to the semifinals would be decided. Next week, they would all fight for the league championship.

Xu He was full of excitement, hoping to play in today’s match.

Yesterday, Coach Mu Yang had been in a poor mood during practice and had not announced the starting lineup for today’s game. Xu He was still hopeful he would make the list.

He longed to play and help his team strive for victory.

Today’s first match, however, was between Class Three of Group B and Class Five-Eight. Only after that would it be Class Ten’s turn.

Today, their opponent as Class Ten of Group B was Class Nine.

To be honest, Class Nine’s team wasn’t all that tough, but Zhu Ge reminded everyone not to be complacent—never to let down their guard, lest they fall into a trap. He wanted Class Ten to achieve an undefeated record and advance to the semifinals.

Now, the Group B match was about to begin.