After taking several curtain calls in a row, Dejan Lu finally left with Monica.
He arrived on a motorcycle and left on a motorcycle.
With a flick of his sleeve, he left behind nothing but a cloud of exhaust.
Clean and decisive.
Yet the Sampdoria fans had no complaints whatsoever.
It was unbelievably cool!
This was the best unveiling ceremony they had ever seen. Even when Diego Maradona arrived in Napoli, it had not been this cool.
No matter how good the new signing turned out to be, at least before the league began, they could hold their heads high as the proudest fans of the summer.
"Let's go."
Back in the stands, Roberto Mancini sighed.
He had still ended up as a background prop after going on the pitch. That shot had gone straight into the goalkeeper's arms, and it continued to bother him.
"Are you jealous of Dejan?"
Vialli teased.
"Is there anyone who wouldn't envy that guy?" Roberto Mancini said with a shrug.
Who had not dreamed of being the center of attention as a child?
Roberto Mancini had always thought he was fairly lucky. He had become famous young and quickly turned into an important Sampdoria player.
But compared to him, Dejan Lu had stolen far more of the spotlight.
"There's no point comparing people."
Vialli consoled him. "Want to come over to my place?"
"Let's go~"
Roberto Mancini nodded.
Federica rolled her eyes so hard they nearly reached the ceiling.
She had gone with them before, worried that Roberto Mancini would go fooling around. The two had once been famous disco enthusiasts.
But when she got to Vialli's house, she discovered that he loved the bizarre costumes from movies. He would drag her and Roberto Mancini into playing villains before defeating them as the "hero," sometimes even filming it with a camcorder.
She had never gone again after that.
As a lady, she had no desire to play some alien like a lunatic, only to be defeated by a time patrol with a sword.
The two protagonists left the stadium.
Some fans heard the motorcycle engine and could not help sticking their heads out of their windows to greet them.
The two instantly became the most famous couple in Genoa, perhaps even the entire Apennines.
Maybe Monica would eventually earn some title like Sampdoria's godmother.
In terms of beauty, she completely crushed the so-called godmothers of Turin and Napoli.
While Italian television stations were still discussing how to edit the footage, British reporters were already using every trick they had to send out their tapes.
In those days, it was a huge hassle for foreign correspondents to send news back home.
Fortunately, Italy was not far from Britain. A flight from Genoa to London took just over an hour.
Even British reporters rarely worked this hard.
But today's story was truly major news!
Whoever broke it first would seize the initiative. If you did not do it, it would still be in tomorrow morning's papers.
Newspapers had it much easier than television stations in that regard. One fax was enough to settle everything.
That evening, as the two prepared to eat, the television station began reporting on the afternoon's unveiling ceremony.
"While the summer transfer window is still ongoing, we can already identify the most talked-about transfer of the summer. The young Chinese player Dejan Lu from Reggina gave us a unique unveiling ceremony... Riding in on a motorcycle, that handsome drifting turn—it was as if 007 had stepped into reality. If he proves strong enough, perhaps Sampdoria will replace Doria on their crest with a motorcycle in the future..."
Monica brought crispy pork belly and several side dishes to the table.
She had been born in Castello, located in the Umbria region in central Italy, the only region in Italy without a coastline.
Umbria had magnificent natural scenery, and its local art, wine, and cured meats were all famous.
Crispy pork belly was one of the region's signature dishes.
"What is the news saying?"
Monica asked after sitting down.
"They're saying Fiat should hire me as their spokesperson."
Dejan Lu said with a smile.
"Would you be interested?"
Monica asked, tilting her head.
"Fiat might not be interested in me."
Dejan Lu said.
Moggi was extremely arrogant in those days.
Juventus was practically Italy's little overlord.
When Zeman exposed Juventus's doping problem, people called for him to be banned for five years. That was far beyond ordinary arrogance.
Even if they hired a player as a spokesperson, they would choose one from their own team.
It was a matter of their pride, after all.
"I've been wondering whether I should study finance. Law doesn't seem all that useful for you."
Monica said, lowering her head and poking at the food on her plate with a spoon.
Ever since getting together with Dejan Lu, her life had been incredibly exciting.
But she worried that one day she would be abandoned.
Italian footballers were famous for being promiscuous, and Dejan Lu was so good at drawing attention.
Even without seeing it, she could imagine how many little sluts wanted to sit on the back seat of that motorcycle.
"Study whatever you want. As long as it makes you happy."
Dejan Lu said, "Life only lasts a little over thirty thousand days. As long as you can maintain your quality of life, don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"Are we already that rich?"
Monica asked in confusion.
Dejan Lu smiled and shook his head.
You really had no idea how valuable China's number one football star was.
After playing for a few years, he could return home and sell sportswear. Wouldn't he beat some colonel senseless?
And if that failed, he could always go back and sell fried chicken.
With a zero-cost McDonald's, why would he be worried about sales?
If transportation had not been so inconvenient, he really wanted to show those Americans what dumping was.
"When you have time, go shopping with Federica more often. Don't stay home reading all the time."
Dejan Lu said.
The assets in Reggio Calabria had mostly been liquidated.
Old Bianchi had put in quite a bit of effort.
"Got it. Don't worry."
Monica nodded.
The next morning, Roberto Mancini woke unusually early and called Dejan Lu to head out with him.
"Today we're going to Pietro Verchowod's house. He's half Soviet, and the fans call him the Tsar. As for what we call him, that depends on what we like. But be careful when you tease him. That guy likes getting physical."
Roberto Mancini reminded him from the sidecar.
The two had only taken one motorcycle.
"Why would I tease a Soviet?"
Dejan Lu snorted and began humming Katyusha.
The relationship between the two countries was complicated, but plenty of people back home could sing the original version of "Katyusha." Older people had even taken Russian classes.
Only now, China and the United States, as well as China and Japan, were instead in their honeymoon periods.
When they arrived at Verchowod's house, Dejan Lu saw quite a few teammates.
Verchowod nodded to greet him, then continued working on what was in his hands.
"What are you making?"
Roberto Mancini leaned in and asked.
Vialli pointed at the cardboard on the table. "It's a free gift from a children's magazine his son bought. It's pretty complicated to put together. I never expected kids' toys these days to be so hard to make."
"You guys are really stupid!"
Roberto Mancini mocked.
Verchowod turned around, grabbed his clothes, and dragged Roberto Mancini over. "You do it, then. If you don't finish it today, I'm not letting you go home."
He stood up himself, poured Dejan Lu a cup of coffee, and said, "Yesterday, I was camping with my kid during the unveiling ceremony, but you looked very cool."
"Thanks. Mainly because I woke up late."
Dejan Lu said.
At that moment, Verchowod's mother brought over some pastries and said, "Peter has you all to thank for looking after him. He isn't very good with words, so come visit often."
"Mom, this kid only just transferred here."
Verchowod complained. "And I'm not a child anymore!"
"In front of your mother, you'll always be my little Peter!" The old woman lightly tapped his bald head with a plate as she laughed and scolded him.
"My mother is getting old, so she talks a little too much."
Verchowod explained. It was too warm and tender, completely at odds with his image.
As a defender alongside Baresi and Bergomi, he was extremely fierce on the pitch.
Yet the two Soviets in this household had both fallen before the tenderness of an Italian mother.
"I think it's nice."
Dejan Lu said.
"Dejan, look. This magazine is collecting children's comics. Maybe I should change careers and become an artist."
Chiesa came over holding the magazine.
Sampdoria was doing well at the moment. Although Chiesa had already made appearances for the first team, his position was somewhat awkward.
The team had no opportunity to give young forwards playing time.
"Bastard, that's the instruction sheet! Why did you take it away?"
Roberto Mancini shouted.
"A cartoonist and a painter aren't the same thing."
Dejan Lu took the magazine and said with a smile, "The most important thing in children's comics is fun. Let children feel happy while learning something—that's what matters most."
Still waiting for the magazine, Roberto Mancini mocked, "You're so good at talking. Why don't you draw comics too? If I have children, I'll definitely buy one to support you."
Dejan Lu directly raised his middle finger.
Still, that suggestion was not impossible.
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