Seven-time champion

Chapter 37: City Championship and University Special Recruitment Lu Wenbin’s goal in the 89th minute was the final goal of the final match; the defending champions, Maotai Sub-School, were defeated by Lu Wenbin’s last-minute winner. Three minutes later, the referee blew the whistle to end the match. In the battle between the entire Maotai Sub-School team and Lu Wenbin alone for the most goals, Lu Wenbin had the last laugh. With a second-half hat trick and an assist in the first half, he single-handedly led the underdog Meijiang Middle School to a victory over the defending champions, Moutai Affiliated School. Of course, the narrow one-goal margin also proved that Lu Wenbin’s decision to use his skill points before the match had been the right one. Had he waited until halftime to use them, his vision would have remained at 6/11, and he might not have spotted Han Dapeng’s run for that final assist in the first half, let alone set him up to equalize. Furthermore, with a two-goal lead, if the opponent had switched to a defensive counterattacking strategy, Lu Wenbin might not have been able to score a hat trick in the second half—amidst the relentless pressure from the powerful Moutai Affiliated High School players—and lead Meijiang High School to victory. Fortunately, Lu Wenbin had allocated his skill points early and managed to equalize the score in the first half. Meijiang Middle School ultimately represented Meitan County to win the city-wide high school league championship and secured a spot to travel to Guiyang during the summer vacation to compete in the provincial finals. This marked the first time a county-level high school soccer team had won the city championship; staff from the Zunyi Municipal Education Bureau and Culture and Sports Bureau in the stands also applauded Meijiang Middle School’s victory. For the players of the Moutai Affiliated School, who had aimed to defend their title, this result was naturally a crushing blow. When the referee’s whistle blew, nearly all the players from the Moutai Affiliated School collapsed to the ground, dejected and heartbroken. Although their overall strength surpassed that of Meijiang High School, they lacked a standout striker like Lu Wenbin—a player whose individual skill rivaled that of a professional—and ultimately fell short by a single goal. On the other side of the field, Meijiang High School’s defensive midfielder Bi Rui, who had just received the ball, heard the final whistle. He bent down, scooped up the ball, and sent it soaring into the air with a powerful kick. Then, Bi Rui, along with Yu Yuanhang and other teammates, rushed toward Lu Wenbin and tossed him into the air in celebration. Team manager Cai Yusen, coach Zhang Minghai, the team doctor, support staff, and substitute players—everyone—rushed onto the field to celebrate wildly. In the stands, Lu Chongxin and Sun Jiahui, Lu Wenbin’s parents, felt for the first time the pride their son’s soccer career had brought them, surrounded by the cheers of the crowd. The nail-biting one-goal victory and Lu Wenbin’s game-winning goal, which didn’t come until the 89th minute, left everyone feeling quite emotional. In this match, Lu Wenbin scored three goals again, completing a hat trick and earning 18 experience points. He also earned 3 experience points for an assist and 15 experience points for the team’s victory, bringing his total experience points for the match to 36. Furthermore, Lu Wenbin led Meijiang Middle School to the championship, completing System Quest 5 and receiving a quest reward of 50 experience points and 2 skill points. Consequently, Lu Wenbin’s level 4 status (140/200 XP) advanced to level 5 (26/500 XP), meaning he now needs 500 XP to level up from 5 to 6. After leveling up, Lu Wenbin received a bonus of 5 skill points. Combined with the 2 skill points earned from completing the quest, he now has a total of 7 skill points remaining. As his level increases and the required experience points rise, Lu Wenbin’s leveling up will become increasingly difficult, and the rate at which he earns skill points will also slow down. Therefore, Lu Wenbin must think carefully and use these 7 remaining skill points wisely. After celebrating on the field for a while, everyone returned to the locker room to wash up, then changed into clean clothes to receive their awards. Like county-level competitions, municipal tournaments awarded certificates rather than trophies like those in professional leagues. However, no matter what it is, being the champion is what counts. Nie Yingkun accepted the championship certificate on behalf of Meijiang Middle School, while Cai Yusen, as team manager, received the 5,000 yuan championship bonus. After receiving the awards, Cai Yusen announced on the spot that the entire 5,000 yuan prize money would be distributed among the school team members. At the same time, he set aside additional funds to treat everyone to a feast as a celebration. Cai Yusen’s decision was met with cheers from everyone. Dividing 5,000 yuan among 25 players meant that while each person wouldn’t receive much, this was their first time earning “prize money” through playing soccer and competing in a match, making it highly symbolic. The 1,000-yuan prize from the previous county-level competition hadn’t been distributed to individuals; it had all gone toward the school team’s collective funds. Therefore, even Lu Wenbin—who aspired to play professional soccer, become a superstar, and make a fortune—couldn’t have been more eager to support Principal Cai’s decision. Not only that, but Cai Yusen also asked Lu Wenbin to bring his parents over so they could all have a meal together. After all, the only parents present were Lu Chongxin and Sun Jiahui; adding two more pairs of chopsticks was no big deal. Besides, everyone could clearly see that Mei Jiang Middle School’s rise as a dark horse—ultimately defeating the Moutai Affiliated School to win the championship—was largely thanks to Lu Wenbin. So no one had any objections to his parents joining the victory banquet. In the past, Lu Wenbin struggled academically, and Lu Chongxin and Sun Jiahui were often scolded by teachers. Now, for the first time, they were treated with respect by the principal as parents, which made them quite happy. Deep down, Sun Jiahui wasn’t as opposed to Lu Wenbin playing soccer anymore. Perhaps their son wasn’t good at studying, but soccer really was another path forward. And then, the appearance of a teacher from the admissions office at Zunyi Normal University brought even greater joy to Lu Chongxin and Sun Jiahui. As Cai Yusen led everyone away from the stadium to find a place for a victory celebration, a middle-aged man in his 40s stopped Cai Yusen and his group outside the stadium. Then, he produced his ID card and identified himself: Ding Shaojun, an admissions officer from Zunyi Normal University. Ding Shaojun’s reason for coming was Lu Wenbin. Ding Shaojun’s purpose in attending the city high school league was to scout for promising young soccer talents to recruit into the Normal University, where they could join the school team and help the university compete in the college soccer league. In this year’s city high school league, Lu Wenbin scored 13 goals and provided 4 assists across 4 matches; anyone with eyes could not help but be impressed by his performance. Ding Shaojun was, of course, no exception. Therefore, as soon as the final ended, Ding Shaojun called his superior, the director of the admissions office at the Normal University, to report on the matter. Lu Wenbin’s performance in the final—scoring a hat trick and providing an assist single-handedly, virtually leading Meijiang High School to defeat the defending champion, Maotai Affiliated School—naturally caught the director’s attention. Even through a verbal account alone, without video footage, the director could easily discern that Lu Wenbin’s talent for soccer was truly extraordinary. Securing a special admission spot in the physical education department for a local resident was a foregone conclusion. Consequently, the director instructed Ding Shaojun over the phone to approach Lu Wenbin and persuade him to join the Normal University, thereby exempting him from taking the college entrance exam.