Chapter 47 Zhang Jun's "Resurrection"

This match against Ajax was considered by many Dutch and domestic media outlets to be the worst performance by the two Chinese teenagers, with Zhang Jun's performance being the worst of all. Some Dutch media even used the headline "Zhang's terrible performance buried the team," and everyone's矛头 (máotóu - spearhead) was aimed at Zhang Jun for being too selfish in the game and unwilling to cooperate with his teammates. Some domestic media once again demonstrated the fine tradition of rich Chinese imagination, analyzing that this was likely a manifestation of internal conflicts within the dark horse Volendam, and Zhang Jun would be alienated by his teammates because of his performance in this game.

Li Yan once again acted as Zhang Jun's "guardian"--this was a nickname given to him by some domestic同行 (tóngxíng - colleagues), because he always spoke good words for Zhang Jun unswervingly--. In a commentary article, he pointed out, "It is precisely because of Zhang Jun's performance against Chivu that people see the unlimited future of a star… This shows that he has a strong desire to win and fighting spirit, and it is also a manifestation of his increased confidence… Look at Chivu taking the initiative to exchange jerseys with Zhang Jun after the game, we can see that Zhang Jun's behavior has won the respect of his opponent… I can boldly predict now that the next time the two face off, if Zhang Jun can defeat Chivu, then the Netherlands will not be able to keep him!"

On December 22, the last round of the league before Christmas, Volendam easily defeated Excelsior Rotterdam 3:0 at home, presenting their fans with a Christmas gift, and the team also got rid of the shadow of losing 0:2 to Ajax in the previous round. Zhang Jun once again scored two goals, and the media immediately began to change their tune and sing praises, cheering "Zhang Jun is resurrected!" "Zhang Jun is launching an impact on the Golden Boot with steady steps!" "Zhang Jun, the King of the Penalty Area!" … Looking at one ecstatic adjective after another, it is really hard to believe that half a week ago, they were all unanimously criticizing Zhang Jun, who was "launching an impact on the Golden Boot."

For Zhang Jun and Yang Pan, they didn't need to pay attention to these inconsistent evaluations. Now, they just wanted to enjoy Christmas and relax their tense nerves. Another good news was that An Ke was coming to the Netherlands to find them.

They received a call from An Ke after the game against Ajax. An Ke first righteously and sternly "scolded" them for forgetting their friends after becoming stars. The two places were so close, but they didn't say they would come to see him, and even if they couldn't spare the time, they could have made a phone call. The two argued that they didn't know that Dortmund was next to the Netherlands. Then An Ke took the opportunity to say that he would come to see them for Christmas, and the round-trip travel expenses, accommodation expenses, and outing expenses--everything would be covered by the two star suckers who earned wages, and he would also take away a few of their autographed jerseys when he left. He told his classmates that he and those two stars were high school classmates, but others looked at him with the eyes of a mental patient, which made him very hurt, and he had to bring something back to open their eyes.

When An Ke appeared on the platform of the station, Zhang Jun and the others recognized him at a glance, because his height was too eye-catching. Zhang Jun opened his arms and gave An Ke a bear hug.

"An Ke, you've grown taller again, haven't you?" Yang Pan patted An Ke's shoulder.

"One meter nine, haha!" An Ke held his head high and stuck out his chest.

Yang Pan punched him in the stomach, "Suck in your stomach! Bend over! Lower your head! Don't be so conspicuous!"

An Ke had sharp eyes and caught sight of the beauty in sunglasses on the side: "Oh? Who is this…"

"She is our…" Zhang Jun introduced, he was just preoccupied with the joy of reunion.

"Beauty!" Before Zhang Jun could finish speaking, An Ke immediately revealed his true colors, rushed up and shamelessly asked, "May I have your name, Miss? Would you like to have tea with me? I know where the best double rooms are in Amsterdam, we can also… Ouch!"

Zhang Jun hit An Ke on the head: "Damn it! Old habits die hard! You haven't touched meat in ten years, have you?! She is my and Yang Pan's agent--Sister Hua, thirty years old!"

When An Ke heard that there was a ten-year age difference, and there was already a generation gap, he pouted and shrugged: "Let's go eat, I haven't even eaten lunch!"

"You still…"

"Haha! Someone is being a sucker, so I naturally have to fully cooperate, otherwise I would be too sorry for the readers!" An Ke laughed.

The four of them casually found a restaurant to eat. Tomorrow was Christmas, and the sky in the Netherlands was also very cooperative in creating the atmosphere with snow falling. It is said that more than 1,600 years ago, in Bari, Netherlands, there was an old man named Nicholas who loved to do good deeds all his life and loved to help poor people. In 1822, when Dutch missionaries came to the Americas, they brought the story of this great philanthropist. So the story of Santa Claus gradually spread around the world. Today, in the hometown of Santa Claus, Santa Clauses dressed in holiday costumes can be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys, as well as glittering Christmas trees. Families rushed home with big bags and small bags of gifts.

"Tomorrow is the Western New Year, a day for families to reunite and celebrate the festival, just like our Chinese Spring Festival…" Yang Pan muttered to himself, looking at the joyous people outside the window.

"You miss home?" An Ke asked him.

"A little." To An Ke's surprise, Yang Pan didn't argue with him this time: "I definitely won't be able to go back for the Spring Festival this year, and I won't be able to go back for New Year's Day either. After the New Year, the team will go to Spain for training again, the weather is better there."

"What about you?" An Ke turned his head and asked Zhang Jun.

"I miss it a lot." Zhang Jun said, "I miss home, I miss school, I miss Lao Liang, I miss Ren Yu Di, I miss Li Yongle, and, I miss Su Fei."

"An Ke, don't you miss it?" Zhang Jun saw that An Ke only asked two questions, and only cared about eating, he really hadn't eaten lunch…

"I miss it, but I can go back for the Spring Festival, haha! School is on vacation until the end of February." An Ke said, wiping his mouth.

"Ah! I'm so envious of you!" Zhang Jun wrapped his arms around An Ke's neck.

"Cough cough! Let go, let go, I'm eating… Yang Pan, if you scratch me again, I'll deal with you when we get back tonight! Ah! You're still scratching… Haha! Okay… I give up! I give up!"

Yang Pan put his hand back and smelled it in front of his nose: "Damn it! You even have body odor!"

"Pfft!" Hua Fang, who had been silently drinking coffee, sprayed all the coffee she had just taken into her mouth onto the table, attracting the attention of the surrounding guests.

Hua Fang smiled apologetically at those people, and quickly took a napkin to wipe the coffee off the table. "Hey, hey, pay attention. If you are so high-profile, if you are discovered by fans, none of you will be able to escape." Hua Fang warned Zhang Jun and Yang Pan.

Only then did Zhang Jun realize that he was already a well-known star. He was just preoccupied with messing around with An Ke, and at that moment, it seemed like he had really returned to high school.

After being reminded by Hua Fang, the three of them became much more honest and lowered their heads to eat. After a long while, Zhang Jun whispered to An Ke, "When are you going back?"

"After New Year's Day."

"Yang Pan and I wrote a lot of greeting cards, and we originally planned to mail them back. Since you are going back, that's perfect. We'll treat you, and you have to do something for us, be a mailman. Help us bring those greeting cards back."

"Okay, who are they for?"

"My and Yang Pan's parents, Lao Liang, your family, Ren Yu Di's family, Li Yongle, and Su Fei's family."

"Su Fei!" An Ke got excited as soon as he heard this name. "Hehe, great opportunity! Go back and spend the holidays with Su Fei!" He was already lost in his fantasy.

But Yang Pan ruthlessly shattered the beautiful dream in his heart: "Tch! Don't even think about it." Yang Pan waved his hand, "Zhang Jun has officially proposed to Su Fei, and Su Fei has agreed…"

"What? Pro… Proposed?" An Ke put down his knife and fork and looked at Yang Pan in surprise.

Yang Pan pointed at Zhang Jun, and Zhang Jun nodded to An Ke.

"Ah----------"

This time, Hua Fang put the money for the meal and the tip on the table, and the three of them carried An Ke and fled from the restaurant.

"This is where you live?" An Ke stood in the yard, looking up at the red roof.

"Yeah, the apartment provided by the club, we pay a little rent every month." Zhang Jun took out the key and opened the door.

After entering the door and turning on the lights, Yang Pan turned on the air conditioner and hung his coat on the coat hook. "Make yourself at home, just treat it as your own."

"But, this is completely different from where I live, how can I treat it as my own?" An Ke stood in the living room, looking around the room, and couldn't close his mouth with envy.

"Really? We only have two bedrooms and one living room, you guys aren't that bad, are you?" Zhang Jun also hung up his coat.

"Just kidding, the area of our place isn't that big either. Thank you, Sister Hua." An Ke took the hot water that Hua Fang handed over, "It's really not easy to be outside!"

"I heard that you are working in a tavern now?" The three of them sat on the sofa.

"Yeah, I want to exercise myself. I can meet a lot of people there, and I've also made some friends. The boss is nice to me."

"It's mainly because he sees you as a big fool with strength." Yang Pan said.

"Damn it! Yang Pan, even if we are close, I will sue you for defamation if you say the wrong thing!"

Looking at the two bickering, Zhang Jun seemed to have returned to high school, but this time there were only three people, and the other two were not here.

"Okay, okay, stop arguing." Zhang Jun saw that the two had already taken off their shoes and were preparing to use their feet, so he quickly persuaded them. "Tomorrow is Christmas, let's go to Uncle Wang's house together, and then take An Ke around for a few days. What do you think, An Ke?"

"Anyway, you guys are paying, it doesn't matter where we go." An Ke was really straightforward.

"…"

"See, see, what did I say? He won't appreciate it." Yang Pan didn't let go of any opportunity to attack An Ke.

While the two were making a fuss, Zhang Jun and Hua Fang cleaned up the room and cleared out a sleeping place for An Ke, this 1.9-meter giant. Then he walked out holding a soccer ball.

An Ke was still messing around with Yang Pan, Zhang Jun smiled, and gently rubbed the ball with his right foot. "An Ke!"

When An Ke heard Zhang Jun calling him, he turned his head but saw a soccer ball flying towards him. In shock, he instinctively stretched out his hands to catch it, but the soccer ball hit his fingertips and bounced out. Yang Pan, who was lying on the sofa, hooked his foot back and hooked the soccer ball past An Ke, and the soccer ball hit the wall and fell down. "Yeah! Successful follow-up shot!" Yang Pan shouted.

Zhang Jun looked at An Ke: "How long has it been since you touched a soccer ball?"

"Two years." An Ke looked back at the soccer ball that was still bouncing on the floor.

"Do you still plan to play soccer?" Zhang Jun asked again.

"I don't know." An Ke shook his head. He got up and grabbed the ball behind the sofa with one hand, and then swung it around a few times like that, and the soccer ball didn't come off. "My parents sent me to Germany not to learn how to play soccer, but to make it easier to find a job in the future… I may have to go back to China. I can't make a living from soccer, unlike you, you have almost decided to take the path of professional soccer since high school."

"Throw the ball to me." Zhang Jun motioned An Ke to throw a high ball. An Ke did as he said and threw it out, Zhang Jun jumped high and headed it back, this time An Ke caught it steadily and didn't drop it.

"This soccer ball is for you, even if you don't make a living from soccer, touch it often. So that when we play soccer together in the future, you won't have to pick up the ball from the goal every time."

"Yeah, yeah, do you want my autograph?" Yang Pan put his face up.

An Ke directly pressed the soccer ball on his face.

On Christmas Day, Zhang Jun and the other three came to Uncle Wang's house in the city to spend a lively Christmas. Roasted turkey and traditional Chinese food were served in turn, and the few people who ate it called it a blast. Zhang Jun and the others also brought Christmas gifts to Uncle Wang's family--three sets of jerseys signed with their names and a signed soccer ball, and also took a group photo with Uncle Wang's family.

Uncle Wang's son was very interested in Zhang Jun and the others. He was studying at a university in Amsterdam and went to the stadium to watch the match between Ajax and Volendam. He took a lot of photos with the two players alone, and took a newly bought notebook for the two to sign. These were all things he would show off when he went back to school.

Before waiting to eat Christmas dinner at Uncle Wang's house, Zhang Jun called Su Fei. Today was Christmas, and even though the domestic school was not on vacation, he had to make a call to say hello. Now the two were engaged, of course, their relationship had not been recognized by both parents, and Zhang Jun planned to go to the door solemnly to make this matter clear when he returned to China.

Su Fei was waiting for her roommates to dress up. They had agreed to go out to sing karaoke with the boys from Dorm 701. Today was Christmas, and school was still in session as usual, so it was natural to make good use of this time in the evening. In the past few days, Su Fei had received a lot of Christmas gifts from people she knew or didn't know. Of course, there were also greeting cards from the people in Dorm 701, and small gifts from Li Yongle from Beijing. She only kept these two things, and she put all the others in a big trash bag and threw them into the trash can when people weren't paying attention. Now that she had established a relationship with Zhang Jun, she should also pay attention, and it was best not to have too much contact with unfamiliar people of the opposite sex.

"Okay! It takes you so long to change your clothes, there won't be any room left if we're late!" Su Fei looked at her watch, it was already 6:30, her roommates had been tidying up since they came back from class at 4:30 in the afternoon, washing their hair, changing their hairstyles, changing their clothes, wearing accessories, putting on makeup… She herself just changed her coat and put on a white long scarf and it was ok.

"Hehe, Su Fei, we can't compare with you. You already have someone you love, so naturally you don't need to put in effort on this, our happiness all depends on these preparations!" A sister teased Su Fei, they all knew that Su Fei was Zhang Jun's girlfriend, but they didn't know that the girlfriend had been upgraded to fiancée.

Su Fei smiled, she thought of Zhang Jun. Today was Christmas, she knew that the West must be very lively, and hoped that he was also having fun, he had been tired for several months, and could finally relax.

The phone rang. "It must be those impatient boys calling to urge us, Su Fei, you answer it, and tell them that we'll be ready soon, and let them wait a little longer." The roommate said to Su Fei while applying lipstick to her lips.

"Oh." Su Fei put down her book and answered the phone, "Hello, may I ask… Zhang Jun!"

"Clatter!" The roommate's small mirror fell on the table. "You scared me, Su Fei, you don't have to be so excited, do you?"

Su Fei stuck out her tongue at her roommate apologetically.

Zhang Jun smiled as he pushed away two light bulbs, and said into the phone, "Today is Christmas, haha! I'm calling back to say hello, Christmas…"

"Merry Christmas, Zhang Jun!" Su Fei smiled: "Hee hee, I said it first!"

Zhang Jun scratched his head, "Merry Christmas, Su Fei! Are you okay at school?"

"I'm fine, the people in our dormitory are preparing to go out to sing with the people in your dormitory! Today is a holiday, so we have to have fun!"

"Is it Le Le and the others? Say hello to them for me. It's also very lively here, An Ke came over from Germany, the three of us and Sister Hua are spending Christmas at Uncle Wang's house."

"I can hear it, it's very lively over there, haha! I heard An Ke's voice, his voice is still so loud!"

"Su Fei, they're calling us downstairs." The roommate touched Su Fei and reminded her softly.

"Ah? Oh, Zhang Jun, they're here, I have to go. I was just saying that they were dawdling…"

"Wait a minute." Zhang Jun turned his head around: "Yang Pan, An Ke, do you want to say a few words to Su Fei?"

The two were playing the ps2 game that Uncle Wang's son brought back, one person for each team, fighting fiercely, and were unwilling to move at all. They looked at the TV screen and shouted loudly: "Su Fei, Merry Christmas!"

Zhang Jun said, "They said to wish you a Merry Christmas."

"I heard it, haha, I should go, I wish you a good time!"

"You too, have fun!"

Su Fei quietly glanced around, and when she saw that no one was paying attention, she blushed and kissed the microphone. "Goodbye, Zhang Jun." Then she hung up the phone.

Zhang Jun turned off his phone and touched his cheek, he heard that sound and knew what it meant. He jumped over excitedly: "You all get out of the way! No one can beat me at playing Pro Evolution Soccer!"

"Ah! Zhang Jun! You made me lose a goal!" An Ke shouted.

"Idiot, if your strength isn't good, don't make excuses." Yang Pan waved his fist, "Yeah! Ronaldo scored twice!"

…

The three of them finally found a sense of home in a foreign land, and they didn't spend this New Year alone. They played so late that day that Hua Fang drove them back to the apartment. In the following two days, Hua Fang also drove them to various places to travel. Although they were the hosts, many places were the first time Zhang Jun and Yang Pan had been to, fortunately, Hua Fang, who seemed to be very familiar with these attractions, was the "tour guide," and they had a great time. The pressure of professional players and the pressure of studying abroad and working were all thrown to the back of their minds during this period, and the theme was to have fun to the fullest.

The time of reunion is always too short, and the time to say goodbye came in the blink of an eye. An Ke had to return to Dortmund, pack up and set off for home. But he didn't ask Zhang Jun and the others for autographed jerseys.

"Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Volendam…" An Ke shook the four rolls of film in his hand, "I'll develop them and bring them back for everyone to see."

On the platform of the station, the three of them embraced and said goodbye.

"Take care, Dortmund is not far from Volendam, come and play when you have time!"

"Haha! When your second half of the season starts, I will also start school, everyone is very busy, just call each other often. I have written down your numbers."

Hua Fang reminded the three of them that the train was about to depart, and An Ke reluctantly hugged the two of them again before preparing to get on the train.

As he turned around and stepped onto the train door, Zhang Jun stopped him: "Are you really not playing soccer anymore, An Ke?"

An Ke smiled at him: "When you are old and I am old in the future, let's play soccer together again!" He waved his hand very smartly and turned to get on the train.

The train slowly drove out of the station, Zhang Jun looked at the gradually receding train and suddenly felt the cruelty of reality. The partners who used to play soccer together have now parted ways and are in two different worlds. Two have embarked on the path of professional soccer, and the other is preparing to embark on another path.

He sighed with some regret, but didn't hear Yang Pan humming beside him: "That cool fool!"