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Joy Tomlin sat down across from the manager. There are two kinds of plants on her desk. A pot of fresh verdant laurel trees, and a bouquet of delicate red roses. The former is not a big deal, the latter ...... Joey tried to pretend that he hadn't paid attention to the bouquet of roses. But what he thought to himself was that it must have been sent by Pet.

Joey scratched his head twice, thinking back to the dressing room after yesterday's game. Everybody's excited, everybody's curious. It's not just the players, it's the coaches and doctors, and even the data analysts. It's just that Patrick-Amber's love for Christine Lue shouldn't have been something that everybody knows all the time? That celebratory gesture was just a more literal expression of the person concerned.

Joey realizes that there's a difference between something tacit and completely surfaced. It's like everybody knows they're a defensive weakness, but no one says it.

“jt.” The boss looked at him and called him by his nickname.

Joey smiled politely at the lady behind his desk. He loved the nickname. In addition to sounding cool, there are two famous people in this world whose nicknames are also this. One is England's legendary centre-back John Terry, and the other is the famous American male singer Justin Timberlake. Joey doesn't hate those two.

"I'm glad to see that you've been improving. She said.

Joey looked her in the eye. He knows that the manager likes to look into the eye when he speaks, and she will look for your thoughts in your eyes. If you act too nervous, you will be looked down upon. Joey thought. "Thank you to the owner. He heard himself say that. But he looked away, and he didn't even realize it. He had to admit that those black eyes were stressful.

She let out a little laugh, very gently. But Joey thought it was an illusion. She was not a gentle woman at all most of the time. Hell, why isn't that kid Phil afraid of her? Maybe he's scared, but not like himself. Joey didn't know where to put his gaze for a moment, and finally stopped at the bouquet of roses. If he just wants to pass the time talking to the manager, he can count how many there are, but he's not here to pass the time. She was less like a rose, more like a cactus, he thought. Maybe Pat should send a cactus. No, Joey, don't think about that. This could be a conversation that will affect your career. He told himself.

"It was delivered by Pyter, I won't tell you, but you look a little curious. Her voice sounded again, a little hoarse, still gentle.

Damn it. Joey looked at the manager, she was much more serious than she had just been. "No, I'm not in dispute with that. As he spoke, he remembered what Pat had said yesterday in the dressing room: Whoever disagrees with that has to stop him from scoring. Fucking teammates are going crazy to stop Patrick Amber from scoring. Joey continued to look at the other side, carefully considering the words, "Thank you for telling me this, I'm listening to you carefully, boss, your opinion is important to me." ”

Her gaze lingered on his face for a few more seconds before continuing. "When you're defending, you have a lot of concentration and you don't need to say a lot about it. I've always thought that the ability to play in the Premier League is not bad, but sometimes the difference on the pitch is huge. People obviously react very differently to stress. The reason for the difference is not only the psychological problem, but also the solidity of the basic technique. You're fine with that. Do you know what I mean?

Joey thought carefully about the manager's words, and after a while, he tried to ask, "You believe me, do you mean that?"

She affirmed his question. 'There are very few perfect players. At the beginning of the season, he was very poor in physicality and was laughed at by almost every one of you, and you can see what he looks like now, Phil's shots are often in the stands, and I talked to him about that, you should notice that he is working on this now, Hans is almost a perfect goalkeeper, but if you really compare to a six-foot goalkeeper, he is still a little slower, of course, this comparison doesn't make much sense, and Ian and Glen, who have both been intimidated on the pitch, and that was against Everton...... Promise me don't tell them I said it. She made a serious joke one last time.

Joey laughed. "Of course not, boss. "He's not a six-year-old, he already understands what she means.

'It's true that you can't afford too many mistakes in the centre-back position, but you can't be shy away either. I guess this should be a source of stress for you. She stared into his eyes and said, "Glenn will be back for a while, and you'll be partnered with David Luiz in the near future, and you can learn something from him, and your strengths can make up for his shortcomings right now." When you're on the field, try not to overthink it. If you want to grow, you will. If you really want to. ”

Joey kept nodding. He always knew that diligence and experience always brought something. Thinking too much is indeed your own problem. He quickly understood one more thing, even if he didn't be like Pat, Ian, and Zixiang, he could grow into a better JT.

The conversation was almost over, but Joey didn't get up. He knows that his relationship with the manager is not close or special compared to many of his team-mates. He plucked up his courage and said to her, "Boss, can I say something?"

She leaned back in her office chair and stretched out a hand, "Of course." Please speak. ”

"Ian, Phil, and Hans weren't even surprised by what happened yesterday. "Especially Phil, a guy with such a mean mouth, didn't make any comments on this matter yesterday. "Jacob, Henk, Gonzalo, Thorin, John all seemed shocked, but I don't think they would criticize anything. ”

There was interest in her eyes.

Joey felt encouraged. "Marcelo, Brill, David, Sadio are indifferent to this, of course I guess they will be teased in private, but I don't think they will stir up any conflict. Joey frowned at this, "Leon wasn't there yesterday, and considering that he is very good with Pat, and he was signed by you at the age of eighteen, I don't think the Uruguayans will cause trouble." And finally, this ......," Joey said, his eyes becoming cautious, and he said with extreme caution, "Yesterday you came back from the post-game press conference, he was the only one who wasn't in the dressing room, he was in the shower. Joey pondered if he could be more straightforward, the head coach was still sitting in a leisurely position, he hesitated for a moment, and decided to say what was in his heart, "Although everyone knows Hans's feelings for you, what I felt yesterday was that Ben was the one who broke his heart. Boss, I don't mean anything else, I want the team to continue to be in good shape and hopefully there won't be any problems in the dressing room because of this, so I want to tell you everything I've observed. ”

She sat up straight and smiled appreciatively. "Look, you're very observant and bring that vision to the pitch. ”

Joey scratched his head.

"I want to know what you think. She said suddenly.

Joey decided to answer the question seriously. "To be honest, if I were a player from another team I would probably think it's a joke and ridiculous," he said sincerely. But I know you, and I know Pat, and I know what kind of person you are, and I know what kind of person Peter is, and I can't think of any reason to dislike it. "Of course, people are more tolerant of people they know or are close to and believe in. And Joey not only has these feelings for these two people, but also respect and admiration.

"Thank you. She stood up and held out her hand at him.

Joey also quickly stood up and held the hand. "But, boss, it looks like you haven't agreed to a date with Patter yet. I think he'll have to work harder. After Joey finished speaking, he was taken aback first. He didn't expect him to dare to be so ridiculous.

"Don't cross the line. She put on a straight face, but immediately smiled again, "I think Pat enjoyed the process." I mean...... We all enjoy chasing the love of our hearts. ”

"Boss, I know you're talking about champions. Joey gradually sensed the boundaries of some things and what he needed to work on next. He said goodbye to his boss and walked outside.

A little melancholy crept back into JT's youthful face. There may be no problems in the dressing room for the time being, but I don't know what the club owners will think about it. Moreover, there are also the media and the fans......

All of this is yet to be fermented.

****

After Lu Ling sent JT away, he smiled silently, this boy who is always full of thoughts has some very restrained intelligence. After that, she looked at the table below. Two meetings will follow. A coaching staff meeting and a meeting with the club's hierarchy. She wasn't sure about the latter, and it was possible that Nate was the only one in attendance, as it was Nate himself who called her. She looked at the bouquet of roses on the table again. That's what she received earlier today. The accompanying card reads:

[Baby, I hope you are in a good mood today and miss you. You know there's one more sentence, but I want to tell you personally. xx】

The card was now in her drawer. She took it out and looked at it again, in fact, she missed him a little too.

The schedule is so tight and there are still wounded...... The guy's sudden action should have made her agitated, but she wasn't. She also knew that he was not persecuting and urging her. By the way, she'll accept all the unexpected, and she knows she's going to face it. Maybe you will make mistakes...... It's just not going to be the same bug anymore.

Before the meeting, she called him. To Lu Ling's surprise, he went directly to the voicemail. She then left a message.

[Hey, I received your flowers, I love it...... I miss you too. Call me when you're free. 】

****

The whole thing is still hot in the media and social media, and there is more news coming out today. In addition to the news and commentary on the last pages of the major media outlets, many celebrities, not only in the football circle, have begun to express their opinions on this. Forever two voices, for and against.

The Sun's David King continued to write, in which he said:

"We don't have to explore whether Lu and Amber have gotten back together, and we don't have to pretend that they haven't been together, that celebration isn't the first time, and the tattoos of the two are enough to prove it. My concern is that there may seem to be no ethical issues here, but what about the more far-reaching implications, including the employment of women in professional men's football and the relationship between coaches and young players. ”

It's just that David King may have been disappointed that his article didn't cause a lot of buzz, and it was another thing that caused a buzz.

In the evening, 52-year-old Mark Hewitt, a well-known journalist who had worked for The Telegraph and the Post, and was poached by The Telegraph at the beginning of last year, made a remark at Sky Sports.

Lu Ling watched the show while eating food from the restaurant in the office.

The host of the show is Chloe Taylor, and in addition to that Mark Hewitt, there is also Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, and Sky Sports resident guest Paul Merson (a bit of a big-mouthed celebrity).

Mark Hewitt, this person Lu Ling is quite familiar, she did an interview with him, and the conversation was all about football-related topics, and nothing else. But the journalist wasn't like many of the reporters she'd met. He does not belong to either the category of "liking" her nor the category of "disliking" her. He's just very professional.

She was interested to hear what he had to say.

"To be honest, I received the show invitation last night, and the time is very tight, and I know that if I don't say yes, the producer will find someone else right away. You need a journalist's voice, and I think I'm probably the best fit. So I only thought about it for half a minute and agreed. Because I do know a little bit of the insider/story. ”

"I was very surprised when Patrick Amber's agent contacted me before Christmas last year and said he wanted to make an appointment. It's no secret that Patrick Amber's interview wasn't easy to date, and it was during the season. Naturally, I hurriedly agreed. Of course, I also have a hunch that I might be 'used'. When a journalist chooses the profession, he or she doesn't want to be used by the authorities anyway, even though sometimes we can't help ourselves. But before I met Patrick, I made up my mind that no matter how much the superstar promised me, I would tell the truth in my future articles. In reality, my concerns were pointless. Because when Patrick showed up in a very orthodox suit that day, the first thing he said was, 'I don't need your understanding, I know people tend to be tolerant when they understand something, and I don't need to be tolerant, I need to state the facts.'" ”

"If I hadn't been invited to the show, I'd have written about what I know. As everyone can imagine, this is a romantic story. I say it's romantic, not because it started with a piece of puppy love, but because I saw the most beautiful things in this story, love and dreams. ”

"You should know Patrick's family background, his father is Handyman, his mother is a housewife, and he has an older sister. He met fifteen-year-old Christine when he was seven years old. Christine is Patrick's girl-next-door, and maybe she's not the same as the traditional girl-next-door. But this is where the story begins. ”

"I'm not going to tell this story here, I'm not a lover, I'm not going to try to sensationalize, and I don't think Patrick wants me to do the same. I just need to ask the two questions Patrick asked me at the time. Because I can't answer him, maybe you can. ”

"The first question, apart from Patrick Amber, did Kristen Lue have had an inappropriate relationship with any player? The second question, sixteen years ago, Patrick's dream was to be a player, and Christine's dream was to be a football coach, if everyone really thinks that these two people should not have a romantic relationship anyway, then does it mean that sixteen years ago, one of them should have given up his dream. Because probability-wise, it's entirely possible for them to go to a team. ”

"I didn't say which side to support, come on, it's not a UK election. All I want to see is a player who could become the greatest player in England's history and a talented manager who continues to make legends. I love stories where love and dreams come true. People always say I'm cynical and I'm just realistic most of the time, but that doesn't mean I don't like good things. ”

Henry shrugged his shoulders and said, "yes, it's not conventional, but who are they hurting? I think the most vocal ones are probably Lawrence and the QPR fans." Anyway, even if people say that Patrick and Christine have benefited each other to get to where they are today, I don't believe it. Everyone knows what kind of honours Patrick won at Barcelona and what kind of myth Christine created last season. ”

"I still don't think it makes sense. Although we can't compare their relationship to that of a professor and a student, they are always a coach-player relationship. That means there are bound to be players who feel it's ......not fair," Paul Merson said.

"Is it because a father is the manager of the team and his son has to move or quit the national team? Chloe asked mockingly. In this show, she can bring her own subjective color. She was just a little surprised at how she reacted at the moment.

"No, no, emotional relationships are more complicated than blood ties......" Paul Mason knew that Chloe was playing a trick on himself, and immediately changed the subject.

"Okay, I think you're right. So, first of all, let's say a mother coaches a club,......" Chloe said right away. Even before the show began, Chloe didn't feel like she was on Christine and Patrick's side. A few years ago, she also told Pat that if Christine was with him, it would be a professional stain. But things have developed to this day, from the intimacy between the two little by little to the celebration of showing love to the world yesterday, she finds herself on their side now.

'So what do you think about the impact this could have on Academy coaches and junior players?'

Chloe was in a brief state of aphasia, but the director immediately said in her headphones, "Patrick just posted an Instagram message. ”

She followed the director and read the instagram out, and the screenshot immediately appeared on the live broadcast screen:

[If you are also in love with your head coach, for his/her good and to protect yourself, please ask him/her out after the age of eighteen.] 】

The accompanying picture is his celebratory move, two right angles,.

Chloe smiled and said, "I think Patrick has already given the answer. ”

Lu Ling stared at the red-haired girl, and for a moment it was difficult for her to tell whether Chloe was logically on her side, or just because of her female status. As we all know, in that year's U.S. election, there were indeed American voters who voted for Hillary Clinton because they just wanted to see the first female president of the United States in history.

****

New Queen's Park, a boardroom.

"My father was a handyman. Patrick put his hands in his pockets, looked at the empty pitch outside, and repeated what he had just said on TV. Outside, the seats in the stadium are blue and white. It's not sunny, it's the end of January, what good weather can you count on?

Behind Patrick is the tall American boss. Patrick looked back, and there was actually a hint of dissatisfaction in the American's green eyes. Nate may not mind if he reconciles with Tina, but he will mind what negative impact his relationship with Tina will have on the team. At the end of the day, this is a businessman. Profit is what he values most.

The TV has been turned off by Nathan Neal. He put his legs on the round table. Waiting for what Patrick Amber had to say next.

"Fortunately, handyman makes a lot of money in this country. Patrick smiled back as he saw Nathan Niel take a sip of champagne.

"If you were trying to tell me that without Christine there wouldn't be who you are today, I wouldn't believe it, you're not Phil Beasley, you're Patrick Amber, and with or without Christine, you'd be Patrick Amber. ”

Patrick shook his head and smiled. Nathan Neal remembered Patrick's smile on countless commercials. In those ads, Patrick's smile was very commercial, but this smile was not so, with a little helplessness, more arrogance.

"I would say that without Kristen Lu, I would have been Patrick Amber, but I can't imagine the world without her. After Patrick finished speaking, he felt that this was all nonsense, at least for the club owner. And even though they can be considered friends. "Nate. He called out his name.

Nathan Neal snorted nonchalantly.

The next moment, Patrick's palms slammed into the table.

"I'm prepared for the worst, and I want to know if people want to see me retire or if she never gets involved in professional men's football again. ”

Nathan Neal silently put his foot down. But he frowned. "I spent 200 million to buy you back, and the annual salary I offered her was the first in the Premier League. ”

Patrick raised an eyebrow. "Be on my side. I won't let your money go to waste. You don't need to make money from this club, you want championships, it's like playing FIFA, you know in your heart that Tina and I can do it, that's why you're going to get me and her back. ”

Nathan Neal looked at the young face in front of him. Yes, Patrick is still very young, very young. Patrick is a pleasure to play with. "I'm a businessman. The Americans finally sighed. "You and Kristen are just relying on you to be irreplaceable in some way. ”

"Nate—" Patrick straightened up, his chin raised, a little condescending, "just a game." I've gambled it all. If this season is over, the pressure of public opinion is still huge...... I can tell you that I'm ready to apply for a degree at Imperial, and as you probably know, Imperial's varsity training ground is also in Harrington. He smiled, remembering January of that year, remembering that he had a transfer with her, and remembering that the commotion that came from outside at that time might have come from the school team. "The worst outcome is just for me to play for the varsity team. ”

Nathan Neal jerked to his feet. "Do you know what you're talking about? You can really get rid of all this?"

"Football is not about life and death, football is higher than life and death. People just want to live and have dreams. And I have other than football dreams. Do all players in their thirties who retire from football and not work in football-related professions die? I just hope there are no regrets this season, so I'm here to talk to you. Patrick said with a faint smile.

Nathan Neal was silent for a long time. He burst out laughing. "You said gambling. ”

Patrick raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think I don't understand? My father was a handyman, he always voted for the Labour Party, and in the end he was disappointed in the Labour Party. In fact, even if the Labour Party is in power, it may not satisfy my father. They are willing to say anything when they seek votes, but what they do in the end depends on reality. Hey, I'm probably going to be a player like Pele and Maradona, and I don't think the English want me to retire......"

"I didn't think you were a Machiavellian. Nathan Neal laughed.

Patrick remembered Nicholas. "I'm not interested. He said. Then, he held out his hand to his boss, "We are seeking the common good." It's just that I want not only all the glory, but also her. ”

"Don't let me down. Nathan Neal said. He paused, his green eyes moving, "Anyway, if things get too bad, one of you might have to leave." Ditch everything, and an office romance is useless after all. ”

"Of course. Patrick said this, his expression strange. "Actually...... She hasn't reconciled with me yet. ”

"Hahahaha. No wonder she didn't hug you, only fought with you with her fist. You've been talking a lot of nonsense. ”

Patrick remembered the fist in the snowstorm. He wouldn't tell Nate that it meant no and forever. "I want to ask my beloved girl out tonight, if she has time today. ”

“** you pat！** you！！！”

"Can you cancel today's meeting with her?"

Nathan Neal took a big sip of champagne, "You're ordering your boss, aren't you?"

"And I hope you talk to her later, don't tell her what we talked about today, she won't want me to retire so early. ”

"You're not ready to retire at all well, you're just blackmailing/blackmailing me...... To put it mildly, gaming. ”

"Didn't you tell me she cried so long on your plane after you drank too much!!"

"I drank too much, just said it, and told her that it was you! She called me and scolded me! You should be glad I didn't have anything to do with her!!

"You really glad you didn't have anything to do with her, or you'd have been beaten!!"

“…… I promise you. ”

"Thank you. ”

****

Lu Ling did not mention her private life at the coaching staff meeting, and if anyone wanted to ask, she would wait in the office. When she returned to the office from the meeting, she received two messages.

One is Nate's: [I'm a little busy today, I'll talk about it another day.] 】

One is Pat's: "Are you free tonight? Let's go on a date, a real date. xx】

She looked at her phone, thinking. There was a knock on the door. She was already familiar with the rhythm. She looked up, and sure enough, Benjamin Hamilton was standing in the door of her office. 166 Reading Network