Flower of the Earth, Fresh and Tender (Please Subscribe)

"Champions!!!"

"Champions!!!"

"We are the champions!!!!!!!!!!!!"

On May 4, in the final round of Italy's Serie C, Reggina fulfilled its mission. Before its home supporters, it not only secured promotion but also won the Serie C title.

Even if it was only a lower-league championship, it was precious to Reggina.

The excited fans stormed onto the pitch.

The players were equally beside themselves with excitement. There was not much distance or separation between them and the fans. Everyone celebrated, and there were no disappointed people at Granillo Stadium today.

Reggina had successfully suppressed Cagliari, the biggest favorite for the title.

In this clash between new-generation coaches, Nevio Scala defeated the equally inexperienced Claudio Ranieri and laughed last.

The commentators were just as excited, shouting from the booth, "Reggina has shown us the power of unity. This team has displayed the true essence of football... Dejan, who lost his last relative, became the key man in the second half of this season. His level has already surpassed Serie C. Next season, he can fight in Serie B alongside Reggina. I believe this young man will become an important part of Reggina."

"Yes, and I've also heard that quite a few fashion brands have taken an interest in him. Everyone in Reggio Calabria knows who that handsome young man riding a motorcycle is. I'm not surprised in the slightest."

In reality, most of that had been made up by Dejan Lu and Bianchi.

No matter how influential a Serie C player was, those major brands would not think much of him.

Still, a chocolate company had approached Dejan Lu.

After barely escaping the fans' grabbing hands, Dejan Lu hurried back to the locker room.

The moment he entered, he found old Giuseppe Bagnato hiding inside.

"Hey, what are your plans for next season?"

Dejan Lu asked directly.

Bagnato was not even a regular starter in Serie C.

Once the team was promoted, there would definitely be no place for him.

Yet Giuseppe Bagnato did not answer Dejan Lu. Instead, he said mysteriously, "I might be about to strike it rich."

"Did you win the lottery?"

Dejan Lu teased.

"No, a director took a liking to me!"

Bagnato said.

Dejan Lu: ...

The guy was fairly good-looking, but he would not exactly stand out in the film industry. He had no experience, either. What director was this stubborn?

"You know how there were reports before saying Dino had hit a bottleneck or something? Then he really did come looking for me. He wants me to play myself based on my own experiences," Bagnato said.

Dejan Lu's expression turned strange.

He knew all too well.

That had been an essay he wrote to draw some of the heat away from himself. He had not expected Dino to take it seriously.

Still, Reggina had some buzz right now.

And Italian football was thriving. A film about a footballer should have a market, and it might even do well at the box office in other European countries.

"All right, then. I wish you success."

Thinking of something, Dejan Lu asked, "If you become an actor, does your wife have any objections?"

"What objections could she have?"

Bagnato said, "After hearing the news, she even dragged me into watching videotapes and practicing a few times. She told me not to be too nervous and to make sure the actresses had a good experience too."

Damn!

Europeans, especially those in Latin cultures, really were open-minded about that sort of thing.

For a guy who could not even play well in Serie C, switching careers to make films might actually be a good choice.

At the very least, his income would rise considerably.

Dejan Lu patted him on the shoulder. The next time they met, it might be through a videotape.

After returning home, Dejan Lu opened the system and, sure enough, saw that the mission had been completed.

Successfully activated the official version of the If We're Brothers, Let's Play Football System (When you go out to play football, numbers are everything. If you have the most people in football, you are the universally acknowledged King of Football.)

Obtained skills: King of Brothers, Learn from Each Other's Strengths, Star of Yuanmeng.

Skill: King of Brothers—As a football superstar praised by countless stars, your life off the pitch should be exciting enough to raise your historical standing as much as possible. As the absolute protagonist on the world stage, your chance of encountering various off-pitch events increases. (The more brothers you have, the better your luck in such events.)

Dejan Lu: ...

So from now on, wherever Lu went, people would die?

Reality could not possibly be as exaggerated as Detective Conan, right?

The last one did fit the system's name quite well. The more friends he had in football, the better his luck would be whenever something happened off the pitch? If he got stuck in traffic, perhaps having more brothers meant a passing helicopter would pick him up and take him to the match?

That was not a problem. Lu had survived this long by having plenty of brothers.

Learn from Each Other's Strengths: In every match, you may randomly draw an experience card for a player opposite to your good brother, allowing you to complement your good brother's on-pitch performance. (The more brothers you have, the greater the chance that the drawn player will be at his peak.)

Very good. It still fit the system's name.

But he could not quite understand what "opposite to your good brother" meant.

Opposite playing styles? If someone was slow, would he draw Owen?

Or opposite personalities? If someone liked being late, would he draw a player who practiced extra every day?

Whatever it was, it was at least a good thing.

Dejan Lu could feel it now. His talent had always been there, but he might still be a little short of what it took to play in a top league. He did not have time to slowly develop.

This skill could at least make up for that weakness.

Star of Yuanmeng—As the leader of your brothers, you would never drive a Range Rover yourself while making your brothers suffer. As football's timely rain, the Flower of the Earth's Hu Baoyi, you are their strongest support. After obtaining this skill, all your brothers will receive a certain degree of positive feedback. The person who is your best brother may even have their wishes come true to a certain extent.

Holy shit?!

This skill was pretty interesting.

It was only truly good when everyone was doing well.

If his friends around him kept having good luck, football might really end up bearing the Lu name.

He kept reading.

A New Journey: Having successfully won the first important championship of your life, you are extremely excited. But as the last reserve superstar of Samba Football, you cannot keep serving as someone else's wingman. For the glory of Brazilian football and the brilliance of your professional career, please transfer away from Catalonia and remain in one of the four major leagues. PSG is not the best choice; career decisions must be made carefully. (Successfully remaining in one of the four major leagues after transferring will activate a Mysterious Event.)

Dejan Lu: ...

Before, it had wanted him to become brothers with the two prodigies. Now it was simply treating him like Neymar?

This system really knew how to play.

He would be changing jobs in the summer anyway, so this mission should be easy to complete.

Dejan Lu had not yet decided where he wanted to play.

If possible, he definitely wanted to stay in Italy, but no teams had contacted Reggina yet.

Still, Serie C ended early, so he could wait a little longer.

If no club extended an olive branch by the end of the month, he would go to England and try his luck.

English clubs were banned from European competitions, but the English were very good at hype.

Playing there would also raise his commercial value quickly.

He would not think about that for now.

He still had to go to Milan tomorrow.

Ferrero had entered the domestic market back in the 1980s, focusing on hazelnut chocolate and a high-end image. It was perfectly normal for them to take an interest in Lu. They probably wanted to shoot an advertisement and test the waters.

Although it was a food commercial, Dejan Lu still took it seriously.

This was his first commercial endorsement, even if it was only a short-term domestic one.

Early the next morning, Dejan Lu boarded a flight to Milan.

He arrived at the hotel lobby a little early, just in time to chat with the advertising director.

Dejan Lu did not smoke, but during social occasions, he would still take a couple of puffs without inhaling. These days, even football teams were full of chain-smokers, let alone wider society.

Luca Bigazzi was quite famous, and Ferrero seemed to take him seriously.

Bigazzi smiled and said, "You're the first Chinese person I've ever met, and you're completely different from what I imagined."

"British television programs are far too arrogant," Dejan Lu said disdainfully. "In their eyes, nowhere in the world is any good. If you did not see one colony after another gaining independence, you might think the British Empire was still the strongest power on earth."

"Hahaha, exactly! They always look down their noses at everyone!" Bigazzi nodded vigorously. "Between British food and dog shit, I think dog shit might taste better, because I've never eaten either."

The two of them got along very well on that subject.

Bigazzi excitedly waved his right hand. "You know, when I was filming in Portsmouth, they kept talking to me about child protection laws. Britain is the country with the most child labor deaths. Those damned hypocrites."

Just then, a young woman headed straight toward them.

The sound of her high heels was light and lively, reflecting her very good mood.

Both men instinctively turned their heads.

Dejan Lu recognized her at once, even though she was not yet particularly famous in Italy.

If he had to describe her in one sentence, Dejan Lu would say that this girl glowed...

Fuck, this was the early-twenties Flower of the Earth!

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