Chapter 33: A Mobile Phone Advertisement?

Back at the training base, the assistant coaches breathed a sigh of relief after reviewing the medical reports.

"Everything looks good."
"Everything is normal."

Hecking did not look at the reports, instead asking the player directly with concern, "Li, do you feel any discomfort anywhere?"

Li Luo shook his head. "No."

The tearing sensation in his inner thigh had long since vanished, and he felt perfectly fine. The opponents in the past two Bundesliga matches were relatively weak, and the intensity of the games was low enough that he did not feel overly fatigued.

"Are you sure?"
"I am."
"That’s good. Make sure to tell us immediately if anything comes up."

With that, Hecking led the coaching staff to the main conference room to study their opponent for the second round of the Europa League group stage: Inter Milan.

Bendtner approached, looking sullen. "The opponents were so weak, yet I still wasted so many opportunities."

Bullying the weak is also a test of one's skill level. In the top five European leagues, many clubs hope to possess a striker who can consistently put away lesser teams, as it guarantees a good haul of points and goal difference throughout the season, drastically reducing the chances of an upset. Even if a player goes invisible against strong teams, they are still highly valuable if they can dominate against weaker sides.

...

The dim streetlights stretched their shadows. The night wind was cold. Lower Saxony was about to welcome a desolate October.

"Autumn is coming," Tom murmured, looking at the scenery outside the car window. "We've been in Wolfsburg for quite a while now."

Li Luo couldn't help but reflect on how quickly time had passed: loaned to Wolfsburg, played a few matches, drawn a few star modules, written several pages of his diary, watched countless videos, scored a few goals, provided a few assists, and met three girls. Most importantly, he had learned different ways to solve problems by facing teams with diverse styles and accumulated a wealth of match experience. He had to keep learning and reflecting.

The opponents in the past two Bundesliga games had been too weak, lacking any distinctive tactical style, so he didn't even need to write a personal summary. He picked up his tablet and opened a knock-off mobile game.

"Top up 6 yuan and get a genius star player."

Without official licensing, the characters were all big-headed cartoons, though players could generally guess the real-life prototypes.

"De Bruyne, 85 overall rating."
"Bendtner, 70 overall rating, type: Target Man."
"Malanda, 71 overall rating, type: Box-to-Box Midfielder."
"The ratings are actually quite accurate; the other Wolfsburg players are also between 70 and 80."

The game was crude, but the scoring mechanics were surprisingly realistic: teammates overlapping on the wing, followed by a cross; the ball would fly, Bendtner would head it down or lay it off, and the other midfielders or De Bruyne would rush in for a strike.

Just as he arrived at his doorstep, Li Luo couldn't help but delete the game. Because he discovered that the "genius star player" gifted for the 6-yuan top-up was himself.

...

The next morning, it was a rest day for Wolfsburg.

After finishing his morning training, Li Luo headed to a film set near the Weser River. The commercial van drove along country roads, and the mountains in the distance were gradually donning their autumn attire. The accompanying staff were in high spirits, as if they were on an outing.

They arrived at the shooting location a while later. Zhang Wei, the representative of a domestic mobile phone brand, greeted him enthusiastically.

"Li Luo! Your performance at Wolfsburg has been so dazzling that even my son is your fan!"
"How old is your son?"
"He's about to start kindergarten. Please, sign this for him."

As he spoke, Zhang Wei pulled out a small jersey. Li Luo took the pen, laid it out politely, and signed his name.

Zhang Wei was overjoyed. "Working with you requires no market research at all! Only a fool would waste time analyzing your data and influence."

That was obvious. A Chinese genius shining in the Bundesliga and the Europa League. He would return to Manchester United next year to play in the Premier League, and he didn't carry any diva attitude. The endorsement fee was a bit high, but once you missed out on such an ambassador, where else could you find another?

"Before this, an analysis firm gave me and several other competitors a mountain of reports, and the recommended candidate was Lewandowski, but that guy had such an arrogant attitude."

"It was clear from the start that he wouldn't be easy to work with."

...

Suddenly, Li Luo saw a familiar figure. The Dutch girl was dressed in casual clothes today, blowing bubbles with her chewing gum, looking fresh and refined. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing a confident and playful smile.

"Li!"
"Lauren."

The two exchanged smiles. Lauren hesitated for a moment before asking in a low voice, "Why don't you ever reply when I send you messages?"

A young girl's thoughts are simple. There was no complex agenda behind it. The Chinese teenager's elegant style on the pitch and his peerless, master-class performances were naturally attractive to girls, and since even the paparazzi couldn't dig up any scandals, he possessed a perfect and healthy commercial image.

Li Luo was stunned. "What did you say? I didn't quite hear you."
"It's nothing."

Lauren shook her head and wanted to say something more, but was interrupted.

*Clap, clap, clap.*

The bearded director clapped his hands and raised a megaphone to remind everyone to get into position.

...

The content of the shoot was simple. There was no complicated plot, and there was no intimate physical contact. Li Luo just juggled the ball with Lauren, engaging in a simple interaction. Before long, the director declared that the filming was over.

...

During the break, Lauren walked over slowly. "Li, do you remember what we were talking about last time?"

Li Luo tried hard to recall, asking with confusion, "The last time we met was... maintaining trees?"
"I have never maintained trees with you."
"Just kidding, of course I remember..."

Ten seconds later, he finally recalled the topic from their last meeting: the Dutch girl had been to China.

"Of course I remember. You were going to share the photos you took in China and the interesting things you encountered."

Li Luo breathed a sigh of relief. Lauren beamed and leaned in. "Yes! Let me show you."

...

Finally, the Dutch girl said goodbye, fully satisfied. As they parted, she gave the Chinese teenager a panda hat.

Li Luo didn't think much of it. He just felt that once he got home, he should write it down in his diary, noting the time and the event. Otherwise, he would definitely misremember it the next time he met another girl.

...

The Europa League match day was approaching, and major media outlets were ramping up the hype. Unfortunately, the attention of Chinese fans was drawn elsewhere.

"Commercial for Li Luo's domestic mobile phone endorsement released."

In the footage, set to upbeat background music, Li Luo and Lauren stood facing each other on a lawn, creating distance between them. He flicked the ball up with his right foot, and they began passing back and forth. With every pass, their clothing and the surrounding environment changed, transitioning from ancient China to the medieval Arab world, then to the Americas...

The number of comments, likes, and shares skyrocketed.

— "Great details. I understood one of the stories: Covilhã being imprisoned by Prester John during the Age of Discovery."
— "This commercial has proper values; it doesn't just promote Columbus."
— "Most of the content is standard, connecting historical stories of Eastern and Western civilizations."