134: Derby Carnival and the "Heart of the Empire" (Part 1)

The morning sun of Hartlepool cast its light through thin clouds onto the land.

Shops on both sides of the street opened early, with blue and white Hartlepool United scarves hanging in their windows.

The lingering afterglow of last night's celebration still permeated the air, with a few empty beer bottles scattered outside the pub.

The newspaper stand for The Sun was surrounded by a crowd.

Old Tommy, the vendor, held up newspapers, loudly hawking his wares.

"Businessman VS Warrior! Keane Defeated by Mysterious Eastern Power!"

Each time he shouted, the onlookers erupted in cheers.

Some paid for newspapers, some took photos to post on social media, and even more discussed the decisive goal from last night.

"That kick from Vardy, it was a work of art!"

A middle-aged man wearing a worker's hat waved his hands, imitating Vardy's shooting motion.

"And those saves from Schmeichel, my heart almost stopped!"

The lady next to him clutched her chest, her eyes still reflecting last night's excitement.

The entire town was immersed in the joy of victory. Temporary celebratory banners were displayed outside shops, and street artists played guitars, singing fan songs.

Even the usually serious bank manager wore a club badge pinned to his suit jacket.

The area around Victoria Park Stadium was even more bustling.

Fans gathered outside the stadium; some brought their children to take photos, while others kicked balls on the lawn, mimicking last night's goal.

The souvenir shop owner was swamped, as sales of Hartlepool United jerseys soared.

"This is our era!"

A group of young fans held up a banner with "Hartlepool United" written on it, their voices hoarse but still shouting.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of the club's office building.

Lin Feng sat quietly behind his desk, a new text message displayed on his phone screen. It was from Keira Knightley; he glanced at it and then put his phone down.

The only sounds in the office were the tapping of the keyboard and the occasional cheers from the street.

He was browsing reports from various media outlets about last night's match.

BBC Sport, The Guardian, The Times—almost every major media outlet gave it front-page coverage. Stock monitoring software showed that the club's brand value had increased by 15% in the past 12 hours.

Richard Arnold knocked and entered the office.

"Mr. Lin, the media department has tallied it, and our social media followers increased by 300,000 last night."

Arnold's tone carried an undisguised excitement.

"The commercial sponsorship department has also received inquiries from over a dozen companies, all wanting to discuss cooperation."

Lin Feng nodded, his gaze still fixed on the computer screen.

"Tell them to wait. Now is not the time to talk about money."

He closed the browser, stood up, and walked to the window. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, he could see the direction of the Phoenix Training Center in the distance. There, the top of a new building was undergoing its final construction.

"How is the progress of the Research Center?"

"The topping-out ceremony just happened this morning. According to the plan, interior decoration can begin next week."

Arnold opened the folder in his hand.

"For equipment procurement, the motion capture system has already arrived, and the data analysis servers are currently being debugged."

Lin Feng turned around, a flicker of anticipation in his eyes.

"Notify Sophie. At 3 PM, I'll take her to see our 'Heart of the Empire.'"

The afternoon sun at the Phoenix Training Center was exceptionally gentle.

Sophie Green arrived promptly at the entrance of the Research Center. She wore a dark blue business suit, carrying recording equipment and a notebook.

Last night's match had kept her excited all night, but now, facing this mysterious building, she felt more curiosity.

Lin Feng was already waiting at the entrance.

He had changed into casual clothes, a white shirt with dark trousers, looking more relaxed than usual.

"Welcome to the future, Sophie." There was an irrepressible smile in his voice.

He swiped his card to open the door and led Sophie inside the building.

The lobby's design was simple and modern, with several large display screens embedded in the white walls.

Although not yet fully decorated, the entire space already hinted at its future appearance.

"This will be our data center."

Lin Feng pointed to a room on the left.

"All player physiological data, training data, and match data will be analyzed here in real-time."

Sophie followed him, constantly taking notes in her notebook.

She tried to understand the technological world Lin Feng was describing, but many concepts were too advanced for her.

"You mean, you can predict when a player will get injured?"

She stopped, her eyes full of doubt.

Lin Feng looked at her, not rushing to explain, his gaze carrying an air of knowing everything.

"Not just injuries. We can predict a player's fatigue threshold, analyze the details of their technical movements, and even simulate the success probability of different tactics in a match."

They entered a larger room.

This would be the tactical analysis room. The walls had reserved spaces for over a dozen display screens, and the floor was covered with special material for projecting 3D models of the football pitch.

Sophie was stunned by everything she saw.

She had never imagined that football, a traditional sport, could be combined with such advanced technology.

"Sophie, look."

Lin Feng pointed to the empty area in the center of the room.

"In the future, here, we can predict a player's fatigue threshold a week in advance, thereby preventing injuries.

We can simulate any opponent's tactics and find ways to break them."

His voice was full of confidence and aspiration.

"We can even optimize players' force application techniques by analyzing their running posture."

Sophie felt her worldview being overturned.

She had always thought she understood Lin Feng, this mysterious club owner. But now she realized that what she had seen was just the tip of the iceberg.

This was not a football training center.

It was more like a secret military base, or a futuristic laboratory from a sci-fi movie.

"How did you think of all this?"

"You... these..." Sophie felt her throat dry up, her mind a blank.

Lin Feng did not directly answer her question.

He walked to the window, looking out at the distant football pitch. There, players were conducting their daily training; they still didn't know what was about to happen here.

"Football is a sport full of contingencies."

Lin Feng's voice became profound.

"But if we can collect enough data, analyze enough variables, we can make contingencies predictable."

Sophie finally understood.

This was Lin Feng's philosophy. He wasn't playing football; he was playing a bigger game. A game about data, technology, and the future.

"Is this why you've been able to continuously defeat those strong teams?"

Her notebook was already densely filled with notes.

Lin Feng nodded.

"This is just the beginning, Sophie. What you see now is just the first step."

They continued to visit other rooms.

The equipment storage room was filled with various high-tech instruments, most of which Sophie couldn't name.

The laboratory had specialized equipment for analyzing players' physiological functions, as well as sandboxes and models for tactical research.

Every room left Sophie even more astonished.

She began to understand why those Premier League teams had been defeated by Hartlepool United.

This was not luck, nor was it coincidence. This was technological dominance, a dimensionality reduction strike.

After the tour, they exited the building.

The Sun was setting, casting a golden hue over the entire training center.

Sophie was still processing everything she had just seen; her notebook contained over a dozen pages of notes.