It was dark outside the window this winter evening, but in the distance, the headlights were on. The Imperial College team also trains on a pitch at the Harrington Training Base. The club's Under-18 games are sometimes scheduled in the evening. Patrick wasn't sure which team was using the field.

Half an hour had passed since he finished speaking, and she hadn't said a word.

Simon and Rice had both arrived in Harrington, and Steve was right outside the door. Here's what happened during this time.

Patrick was still standing by the door, unmoved. He couldn't feel any muscle in his legs, and his eyes were fixed on the side of her face. Sometimes, his gaze wanders away. Like outside the window. For example, the tactical board. There is her beautiful handwriting on the tactics board. There's even his name on it.

patrickamber

The phone rang.

Lu Ling picked up the receiver and talked to the person on the other end of the phone in a very soft voice. A minute later, she put down the phone. She turned her head to look at him, and continued in a very soft voice, "It's going to be a long, hard night. ”

Patrick's resolve wavered a little at this moment. However, he clearly knew that he could not stay. Although he would love to. And if she kisses him now, maybe as he once promised, he really won't go anywhere. But that just keeps that vortex from turning into a black hole for the time being.

Finally, Lu Ling stood up from her seat. She tried her best to say in a calm voice, "It's not between the two of us anymore. Steve, Simon, Rice, and Nate and Tony...... We all need to have a video conference...... I have to say, Pat, I'm very disappointed that the team is probably going through the toughest period and you chose ......to leave at a time like this."

Anger erupted instantly.

"I thought at least you could understand me! Of course I know what I look like when I'm gone...... But you know what you mean to me, and if everything was still under my control, I would never have made this decision. There is no other way. I don't have a choice, Tina. He walked up to her and yelled at her, even spitting at her in the face.

She looked at him, suppressing her emotions, she had to say something. But, when she spoke, she heard herself a little broken.

"Oh, God. She repeated, "Oh, God. Oh, my God. ”

When he saw her like this, he struggled inwardly and wanted to go over and hug her.

"How dare you!" she reached out to stop him, and roared in a low voice.

"Tina, you have to understand me, you have to understand. Patrick muttered. His voice sounded painful.

"Oh, God. She put her head in her hands and repeated the phrase.

Patrick cautiously moved closer, and this time, she didn't react much, and he slowly and gently took her into his arms.

"Tina, I don't want to leave, but it's all a mess......" he patted her on the back, not knowing what else to say.

Lu Ling took a deep breath on his shoulder, she raised her head slightly, her eyes blinked several times in a row, and then, she took a deep breath again and came out of his arms.

"I wish I could change your mind, but I know I can't. As I said earlier, we all need to have a meeting. It's not just about us anymore, you're making a decision that affects two clubs, and even two league titles. Her voice trembled a little, but gradually calmed down.

She walked to the door and opened it.

Outside the door, in addition to Steve, Simon is also there, as well as Rice.

****

The headline of the article by Sid Lowe, a well-known journalist for the Guardian, was:

oversurprisingdeal

Amber could leave in the winter rather than next summer, and Barcelona are confident of the stunning deal

The Guardian is a long-established British newspaper, and its wording is very plain and not sensational, but its content is jaw-dropping. The whole article revolves around one theme: Barcelona want to bring in QPR Patrick Amber at all costs in the upcoming January winter transfer window, and Amber has already begun to lean towards joining Barca.

In the following paragraphs, Sid Lowe elaborates on the logic behind the transfer, and the possible form.

"Barcelona are currently third in La Liga, five and three points behind Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, respectively, and Luis Suarez has just suffered a serious cruciate ligament injury in his knee and is expected to be out for at least four to five months, which puts a huge burden on Messi and Neymar. We understand that Barca's hierarchy and coach Enrique have agreed that Barca's prospects for the second half of the season are not good, and that this could bring a huge and unpredictable crisis in the future. ”

Patrick Amber is currently a common target for a number of European giants, but Manchester United, Manchester City and Real Madrid are reportedly all poised to make offers in the summer. And Barcelona's current situation makes the Catalans unexpectedly ready to take the lead. ”

"The decision was made so quickly that we can be sure that Barca's action will have great strategic implications, having beaten Real Madrid in the competition for Neymar and they do not have the financial resources to compete for Pogba. However, Barcelona's previous shirt sponsorship contract, which was the largest in history, will help them complete the transfer. Amber was unable to be registered in Barca's Champions League squad due to the participation in the Europa League group stage on behalf of QPR, but this did not affect Barca's long-term considerations. ”

'Problems within the QPR, particularly with manager Kristen Luke and Patrick Amber, have made the transfer possible, but the deal is expected to be no less than £150million. In this way, Amber will become the most expensive player in history. However, even at this price, the top management of QPR may still be skeptical. ”

"But according to our sources, Barcelona may take another form to lower the bar and make it easier for QPR to let Amber go: by first signing Amber on loan for half a season at a high price and adding a buy-out clause. This would also prevent the risk of Amber not being able to adapt to La Liga, but it would also increase the uncertainty on the part of Barça, who could change their mind and return to QPR in the summer. ”

****

January 1, 2018. The winter transfer window has officially opened.

London had been hoarding emotions for half a month, brewing and brewing, and finally the first snow of the winter fell on the morning of the first day of the new year.

The red-haired man curled up and slipped in from the outside. He pulled down his hood, shook the snowflakes all over his body, and muttered quickly: "Snow is so big, I should have listened to Kate's drive, but I just want to run, ......" He cursed, raised his head to look at the beautiful man who opened the door for him, and continued to mumble: "It's all reporters outside." ”

The expression on the face of the beautiful man was very flat, he nodded, walked to the living room, walked to the coffee table, he picked up a can of energy drink, and without looking back, he threw it directly over his shoulder and behind him.

It was a bit sudden, and Ian wasn't prepared, but he was quick enough to take the green jar with both hands.

Ian asked as he pulled away the energy drink, "Where's Zixiang?" Then there is the sound of splashing. Within seconds, the bathroom door opened, and Yu Zixiang walked out.

The Asian man's face was unusually serious, and he looked at Ian and raised his chin at him, "Hey, you're slow." It's still snowing outside?"

Ian nodded.

Patrick sat down on the couch, put his legs on the coffee table, and turned on the TV.

Sky Sports News Channel. At this time, the TV screen is outside his house.

Sky Sports is rolling out today's hot news, and the talk is about a possible transfer for Patrick Amber. As soon as the transfer window opened, Sky Sports sent out a few reporters, in addition to Patrick's home, they also arranged people outside the Harrington training base and connected with reporters based in Barcelona. In short, the authoritative broadcaster is desperately trying to get first-hand information that this will be the "most expensive transfer in the history of football" if it is reached.

Patrick lowered his voice and pouted, "So, I'm a damn prisoner now? It's weird, seeing my house on TV." ”

Yu Zixiang and Ian both tugged at the corners of their mouths and let out a few embarrassed laughs.

"Oh, you two. Patrick's eyes were fixed on the TV, and he continued, "Let you bring some food, forgot." ”

"We were able to order takeaways. Ian pulled out his phone, "Pat, takeout order?"

"It's morning. Patrick glanced at Ian, his tone a little helpless, "There are no stores delivering food in the morning. I might as well call my chef. ”

"Oh, fuck it. Yu Zixiang got up from the sofa impatiently and walked to the kitchen.

"Have you eaten anything he made?" Ian asked Patrick.

Patrick shrugged his shoulders and switched to the Comedy Channel. The occasional laughter from the audience on the TV, who didn't know whether it was true or not, made him feel irritated. He looked at his watch, and it was only eight o'clock. He pulled out his phone again, a lot of unread messages and missed calls, but not the one he wanted.

Ten minutes later, the three men sat down at the table. Everyone has a plate in front of them, and there is a sandwich on the plate.

Patrick stared at the plate for two seconds and stood up.

"It's the only thing you have, oh, don't act like a, close your eyes and put it in your mouth. Yu Zixiang took a big bite of the sandwich in his hand as he spoke, and continued while chewing, "It's not that bad." With that, he glanced at Ian again.

Ian was picking up the unpalatable breakfast on his plate. He took a big bite and made a short assessment: "It's not that bad, indeed." ”

"I'm just going to make a cup of tea. Patrick said, "Do you want it? or something?"

"Orange juice. ”

"Coffee. ”

Patrick nodded, "Please." ”

Zixiang stood up and slapped Patrick, "Next time, if you're not going to help someone else get it, don't ask!"

Patrick looked down and smiled.

The three men worked in the kitchen for another minute or two before they were all seated back at the table.

Patrick added a little low-fat mayonnaise to his sandwich before taking his first bite, and Zixiang asked him how he was. He took a sip of tea, looked at Zixiang, and asked very seriously: "You, and Tina, do you really have Chinese ancestry?"

Yu Zixiang frowned and didn't say anything. After a few seconds, he laughed and nudged Patrick, "**, you need to know that this is also a form of racism. ”

Patrick and Ian laughed, but it was still short and awkward.

Oh, Tina. Patrick's mind flashed with her sad face. Then, he quietly finished his sandwich. Zoe crept to his feet, and he looked down and whispered to her. She had no energy, her head drooped, and she looked drowsy.

Ian and Zixiang had already finished eating, and they were both silent, and Patrick knew that they were waiting.

Patrick stood up, careful not to touch Zoe, but Zoe moved anyway, and she seemed a little depressed and walked away. He didn't care about her anymore.

He said as he folded Ian and Zixiang's plates onto his own, "The deal is being discussed." I want to tell you personally. ”

They remained silent.

After a long while, Yu Zixiang turned to Ian and said, "I told you that I was right, they shouldn't be together at all. You see, now that we've broken up, he's leaving......"

Patrick was calm, and he shook his head, "There's no end to me with Tina. Things are complicated. It was a very difficult decision for me, but I believe it was a decision that was good for everyone. ”

Ian sighed, "Pat, I always knew you were going to leave someday. But I thought you would at least wait until we, you, me, Zixiang, and Christine, we won the league together, and then you left. ”

"He doesn't care. Yu Zixiang got up and kicked the chair hard and walked out, "He doesn't fucking care, he can win a lot of championships if he goes to a big club, he can win the Ballon d'Or and World Footballer next year, why should he care about us?"

"Zixiang!" Patrick shouted.

Yu Zixiang stood by the door and hesitated, but still opened the door.

The sound of the door closing. Zoe called twice.

"Let him go, he just can't take it. Ian drained his cup of coffee, "Actually, so am I." ”

No one understood him. Although it was expected. Patrick twitched at the corners of his lips mockingly.

"But I understand you, Pat, that you wouldn't have made this choice if it weren't for no other possibility. The Scotsman's voice rang out again.

Patrick looked over, Ian's blue eyes looking at him sincerely.

Then the Scotsman muttered "oh**it" and hugged him.

He patted him on the back of the head and asked, "One day, you'll be back, will you?"

"I'm not sure. Patrick patted Ian on the back as well.

"No, you'll be back, I know. Man, I'm not going anywhere. When you come back, I'll really be the captain of this team. 166 Reading Network