52: Chapter 52 Chen Da Zui? Nobody cares! Ranieri: I'm not playing anymore, you're starting in the Premier League this weekend!

The first half ended, with the scoreboard frozen at a glaring 5-0.

Amidst the deafening "Yu Bai" chants from the home crowd, Yu Bai walked back to the locker room with his teammates.

...

CCTV Sports channel studio, halftime commentary.

Commentator Zhang Lu chuckled as he spoke to the camera, holding court as if imparting knowledge:

"Hehe, for those fans who might not follow youth team matches closely, I have to be honest with you. Yu Bai's performance today isn't just a flash in the pan or something that can be explained away by weak opponents."

He paused, his tone serious: "I can responsibly tell you that this is exactly why he was able to break Tottenham's historical record and play in the Premier League at 17."

"That's how he played in the Tottenham youth team. Dribbling, scoring, assisting—he excelled at everything. His stats were incredibly impressive, which is why Mauricio Pochettino promoted him. Today, he just took what he did in the youth team and brought it to the professional stage, and did it even better."

Commentator Duan Xuan nodded in agreement and added: "Exactly. Yu Bai's fundamentals—his ball control, Passing, Shooting, and especially that Free kick—are visibly solid, the result of years of hard training."

"The goals he scored came in various ways, from delicate shots to power strikes. This is definitely not luck; he has real substance."

The two commentators lavished praise on Yu Bai, which, for some people watching the match on TV, was tantamount to a public execution.

...

At Chen Hejing's home.

This "know-it-all" pundit was slumped in his computer chair, his face ashen, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

On the TV screen in front of him was the CCTV broadcast, and on his phone was the Weibo interface.

"Luckily... luckily I deleted it fast..."

He muttered to himself, constantly refreshing the page of the Weibo post he had accidentally published and then "slipped" and deleted in a second.

When he deleted it, he had checked: no likes, no comments, no retweets. Surely... no one saw it, right?

He clung to wishful thinking, like a prisoner awaiting judgment.

During halftime, feeling restless, he couldn't help but click on his Weibo notification list, wanting to see if there were any "surprises."

If nothing unexpected happened, then something unexpected must have happened.

As soon as Chen Hejing clicked it—

99+ unread messages, comments, and mentions!

"Boom!"

Chen Hejing's brain buzzed, and his fingers trembled as he clicked open.

The top retweet was none other than his post saying "Young Master, get out of the football circle"! It was posted by a sports blogger with millions of followers, with the caption: "Is Chen Hejing panicked? The famous 'objective' commentator, Teacher Chen, had already written his little essay and started bashing before Yu Bai even scored? I give this 'professional prediction' a perfect score! Screenshot timestamp as proof [Image]"

The screenshot was exactly that Weibo post he had deleted in a second: "Stop embarrassing us Chinese people."

Chen Hejing: Holy shit, how does he have it?!

The comments below made his vision go black:

"Big-Mouthed Chen, your Weibo post makes no sense; were you editing it in advance? You son of a bitch! You don't watch the game, you just focus on writing little essays?"

"@WanshituoLive, is this the kind of 'professional' commentator your platform uses? Stirring up drama to smear your own country's players?"

"Did Yu Bai dig up your ancestral grave? Or did he screw your woman? Why do you hate him so much? Does a halftime Hat-trick hurt your face?"

"Chen Hejing, you're supposed to be a public figure, how can you be so dirty-minded? Can't stand seeing a Chinese player do well?"

"Reported, you're welcome. People like this don't deserve to make a living in sports."

"No... no... listen to my explanation!" Chen Hejing roared desperately at his phone screen, but no one heard him.

He scrambled to comment an "explanation," but the words he typed were deleted again and again; no matter what, they seemed pale and powerless.

He knew that his "dare to speak the truth" and "professional and sharp" persona, which he had painstakingly cultivated for years, had completely collapsed along with this screenshot and Yu Bai's perfect halftime Hat-trick. What awaited him was likely punishment from the platform, loss of fans, and ridicule from within the industry.

The sky had fallen.

Damn it all! Which bastard was fast enough to take that screenshot?!

Chen Hejing slumped in his chair, his face ashen, feeling ten thousand times more desperate than when his first love was stolen by a rich kid years ago.

...

King Power Stadium, home locker room.

The atmosphere was relaxed and joyful; leading 5-0, everyone had a smile on their face.

Yu Bai sat in his seat, wiping sweat with a towel, feeling unprecedentedly comfortable.

Manager Claudio Ranieri walked in, a barely concealed, almost "benevolent" smile on his face, his gaze falling first on Yu Bai.

That look was so intense, as if he were looking at a priceless treasure that had been lost and found, or as if he were admiring a piece of unpolished jade he had carved himself, which was now blooming with brilliance.

"Yu."

Claudio Ranieri walked up to him, his voice gentle but with an unquestionable, decisive tone, "You played very well in the first half, incomparable. Now, your task is done. Rest, you don't need to play in the second half."

Yu Bai's heart skipped a beat, and almost instinctively, he stood up "abruptly." The relaxation on his face was instantly replaced by eagerness, and the desire to fight in his eyes burned fiercely: "Boss! I can still play! I'm not tired at all!"

Although his Stamina was only 66, with Kante almost covering all defensive tasks, his energy consumption in the first half wasn't particularly high; he could definitely play another twenty or thirty minutes. More importantly, he was playing like a house on fire, and his touch was red-hot!

Claudio Ranieri's smile remained unchanged. He reached out and pressed on Yu Bai's shoulder, signaling him to sit down, his tone carrying a kind of paternal care and a more far-reaching plan: "Child, listen to me. Save your strength for the Premier League match away against Bournemouth this weekend. That will be a real hard battle, a bitter struggle."

Yu Bai was pressed back into his seat, but a storm was raging in his heart, and he could no longer remain calm.

Save strength?

This term is usually used for absolute starters and core players like Vardy, Mahrez, and Danny Drinkwater. They rotate out for cup matches to maintain their best form for the more important Premier League stage.

And him, Yu Bai—a 17-year-old, a loanee who just made his debut for his new club today—also needs to "save strength"?

Could it be... that in Claudio Ranieri's mind, in Leicester City's tactical map, I have already been classified as an important member, perhaps even a starter, for the Premier League match this weekend?

This realization made him feel an unreal shock and a faint, huge excitement, even more than completing a Hat-trick or hearing the system prompt.

Am I really... that important?

That's the Premier League!

Yu Bai looked up at Claudio Ranieri.

The old manager winked at him, his eyes seeming to say: "Why do you think I insisted on having you?"

In the locker room, other players didn't seem to have any objections to this; some even cast envious and encouraging looks at Yu Bai.

Everything went without saying.

PS: An extra chapter is here. Begging for five-star book reviews! Three chapters with over 6000 words every day are absolutely guaranteed. I hope all my benefactors will support me. Data is so important for a new book right now, thank you very much!