Respecting Your Choice

Many high schools do not have football classes. Usually, during physical education, the teacher just takes the footballs out of the equipment room and lets the kids who like playing football play freely.

Zhenhua High School was the same. The fact that Xu Jie taught them a football class also surprised the students greatly. In their memory, high school seemed never to have had a PE class specialized in football.

During the teaching process, Xu Jie discovered that Chu Xiaoran's basic knowledge was still very solid. Dribbling, feinting, passing players, and shooting at the goal. The movements were extremely fluid, without any clumsiness. It was impossible to play football like that without being innately talented.

What he lacked was meticulous refining and actual combat.

After class, Chu Xiaoran helped collect the balls and brought them back to the equipment room with Xu Jie. On the way, Xu Jie smiled and said:

"Your football playing is indeed not bad, at least better than your basketball!"

Chu Xiaoran looked embarrassed; was Teacher Xu praising or criticizing him!

"Your previous coach wasn't wrong; with your talent, if well-refined, playing in the first division is not a problem."

"Even in my eyes, you are fully capable of going to the five major leagues to play football!"

Xu Jie said with a light smile as he walked.

Chu Xiaoran was full of surprise after hearing this. He didn't know why Teacher Xu thought so highly of his football ability.

As for the state of domestic football, he had witnessed it since birth. Telling him to go play in the first division—to be honest, he wasn't very interested.

But Teacher Xu said he could compete in the five major leagues?

Even if he didn't play football, he still liked watching it. Mainly because his father and grandfather were both avid football fans. Unfortunately, one was a fan of The Blues and the other was a fan of the Red Devils. From national championships to cup matches, the two never stopped arguing.

Chu Xiaoran had been influenced since childhood, watching the major leagues, the Euros, the Champions League, the Copa America, the World Cup... He didn't play football, partly because of this. His father and grandfather only watched and didn't play, so he also only watched and didn't play.

Moreover, having grown accustomed to watching top foreign leagues and then looking back at the stagnant pool of his own country—this sharp contrast was truly heartbreaking.

Saving Long Guo's football single-handedly? Chu Xiaoran had never had such a thought.

"Teacher Xu, just me going to play in the five major leagues? That's too exaggerated, isn't it?" Chu Xiaoran shook his head with a smile.

Xu Jie tilted his head to look at him and said: "Chu Xiaoran, what do you think of my long jump level?"

Chu Xiaoran froze; he didn't know why Teacher Xu suddenly asked him this.

Teacher Xu's current long jump level was certainly not good. But back then, he had been the top athlete in the long jump domestically!

Entering the national team at 17. The National Games, the Asian Games, the Olympic Games—he had participated in all of them. He always felt that Teacher Xu coming to Zhenhua School to be a PE teacher was simply a waste of talent! With his achievements and level, even if the National Sports Bureau was dark, finding a job at a provincial Sports Bureau wouldn't be difficult.

Chu Xiaoran didn't know why the teacher had returned to be a PE teacher. Sometimes he thought that maybe Teacher Xu was like the hermits in wuxia novels, disliking the grudges of the jianghu, so he chose to retire into seclusion.

"Teacher Xu, does your long jump level even need to be mentioned?" Chu Xiaoran blurted out, "You are my idol! Your best result was 8.35 meters; in this life, I'm afraid I have no hope of even reaching the 8-meter mark!"

Xu Jie shook his head with a smile.

"You also know that almost every school has students with sports talent."
"The results you can achieve on the path of the long jump—to be honest, I can see the limit."
"Have you noticed that the ratio of your calves and thighs is not quite the same as other long jumpers?"

Chu Xiaoran scratched his head, "A coach told me that before."

"In my eyes, you are more suited to developing in the direction of football." Xu Jie turned his head and said seriously.

Seeing Teacher Xu suddenly become serious, Chu Xiaoran was stunned. This was not the first time Teacher Xu had told him he was suited for football. Teacher Xu even said he could go to the five major leagues to play? Could it be that this wasn't a joke from the teacher?

For a moment, Chu Xiaoran began to doubt his choice of sport. Could it be that he really wasn't suited for the long jump, but was suited for football?

Xu Jie looked at Chu Xiaoran's stunned appearance and continued while the iron was hot: "If you trust me, I can personally teach you football. Furthermore, I will use my connections to help you find European scouts to come and check your football talent."

This...

Chu Xiaoran's heart was deeply moved. Teacher Xu actually said that for his sake, he wanted to find European scouts to check his football talent? His parents and grandparents had never cared for him like this!

The bridge of his nose felt a bit stinging, but he immediately suppressed it. Crying in front of Teacher Xu—wouldn't that be incredibly embarrassing?

"You don't need to answer me right away; after you go back, think about it carefully."
Xu Jie added: "If you choose football, then as I just said, I will personally teach you and find a way to send you to Europe to play."
"If you really don't like football and want to continue practicing the long jump, I will also respect your choice and teach you the long jump well."

He patted Chu Xiaoran's shoulder, "I'll give you a week. Think it over carefully."

...

Evening self-study.

"Tonight for self-study, you all stay in the classroom to review and do your homework well. No causing trouble!"
Xu Jie stood on the podium and said, then waved to Shi Yunfeng.

Tonight was the second test for the Mathematics Olympiad team. There was one more round of testing, and the list of three official members would be finalized!

Originally, for this kind of test, it wouldn't matter if Xu Jie went or not, as he believed in Shi Yunfeng's strength. But Zhou Yutong had told him this afternoon that for tonight's test, the head of the Mathematics department Ge Jun, Principal Zhou Wenguang, the 11th and 12th-grade directors, along with the class teachers of the other members, would all be present!

In this situation, how could he not go to back up Shi Yunfeng?!

"Good luck!"
"Shi Yunfeng, good luck!"
"Our Class 9 also has someone going for the Mathematics Olympiad! So cool!"

There were some gossiping students in the class who had learned about this from other sources. Thus, the whole of Class 9 knew!

The students, one by one, raised their hands in a cheering gesture, rooting for Shi Yunfeng.
Mathematics Olympiad—this was something they wouldn't even dare to dream of. This kind of academic competition originally had nothing to do with their class!

But now with Shi Yunfeng, the situation was completely different! They also shared in the glory!

Shi Yunfeng went to the classroom door, also turned back to smile and made a cheering gesture to his classmates before following Xu Jie toward the Mathematics department meeting room.