Midnight Diner

Chapter 31 Midnight Diner (This chapter is actually my true length)

Real Madrid stopped at the Semifinals, and Sun Hao also ended his first season in La Liga.

In the playoffs, he put up averages of 9.8 points, 49% shooting from the field, and 39% from three-point range.

Although he couldn't help the team win the championship, the changes in his stats showed he was steadily improving.

Along with the stats, his attributes within the system also rose.

Height: 173cm; Weight: 73kg

Strength: 71; Speed: 72; Agility: 60; Jumping: 66; Stamina: 71; Basketball IQ: 82

Dribbling: 70; Passing: 55; Dunking: 0; Layup: 72; Mid-Range: 52; Three-Point: 79

Defense: 60; Blocking: 58; Stealing: 72; Rebounding: 58

Compared to the utter weakling he was four years ago, these attributes were a qualitative change.

And besides the attribute changes, he had also obtained a certain number of badges.

Basketball IQ (Silver), Long-Range Sharpshooter (Silver);

Infinite Range (Bronze), Pick and Roll Master (Bronze), Pick and Roll Evasion (Bronze), Iron Wall (Bronze), Fast Break Finisher (Bronze);

With the boosted ability values and these badges, it was enough for him to stand firm in La Liga.

For him, the new season meant taking it a step further from where he already was.

The only regret was that he had broken his promise to Gasol.

Or in other words, that agreement could only be postponed to the new season.

In the La Liga finals, the Alcant team kept pulling off upsets all the way, cutting down the Barcelona team to claim the ultimate league championship.

This result had Spanish fans buzzing with excitement for an entire summer.

Calderon also rose to fame along with it.

This 18-year-old youngster even attracted attention from the NBA.

But with La Liga's limited influence, that attention wasn't very high.

After finishing his first La Liga season, Sun Hao wasn't in a rush to train; instead, he planned to give himself a break.

Even machines need rest, let alone people.

And just like Gasol back then, losing always put a person in a bad mood, so he needed to do something he loved to adjust.

He pulled Fernandez aside to discuss it.

"Aren't you going to make a trip to the U.S.?"

Fernandez asked Sun Hao.

"No."

Sun Hao's answer was straightforward.

He knew what Fernandez was referring to.

Jocelyn hadn't replied to his emails or come to find him, and Fernandez wanted him to go after Jocelyn.

But he wasn't that kind of person.

Just like when he was abandoned by the CBA, he wouldn't go back to the CBA.

Treating Jocelyn as a beautiful encounter from the past—that was something more precious to him.

"Then let's go to Italy!"

Fernandez said excitedly.

Since Sun Hao had let go of Jocelyn, he had to bring up the plan he'd been longing for!

"Italy?"

The suggestion caught Sun Hao off guard; he thought Fernandez would say they should go play in another province of Spain.

After all, Spain still had plenty of tourist spots.

Fernandez nodded excitedly.

Spain was a land of European charm, but if you had to add the word "most" in front of that title, it had to be Italy.

"The best way to forget one relationship is to start another new one."

Fernandez launched into his relationship lesson again.

"Then let's go!"

Sun Hao didn't hesitate either.

It didn't matter where he went to have fun.

Italy's predecessor was Ancient Rome, and its colosseums were the most numerous and best-preserved in Europe.

Setting aside what Fernandez said, it was worth a visit.

Applying for a visa, booking plane tickets, booking a hotel.

The internet at this time was far less developed than in the future, and since it was international travel, they had to wait a long time.

Fortunately, La Liga's offseason was long, and they had no national team duties, so they could afford to wait.

During the waiting period, Fernandez was busy with his studies, while Sun Hao trained at the gym as usual.

But he hadn't been training for more than a few days when Prigioni and Gabajosa showed up.

They came right after the season ended, which showed how much last season's loss had hit them.

Failure isn't always a bad thing; it can stir up the deep-seated competitiveness within a person.

For them, this would be an offseason of hard training.

What Sun Hao never expected, though, was that after just two days of practice, he was dragged into playing pickup soccer.

The shift in pace was a bit fast.

Sun Hao didn't have much interest in soccer to begin with.

Since arriving in Spain, the kingdom of soccer, he'd only had two encounters with the sport.

One was watching El Clásico with Jocelyn, and the other was going with Fernandez to France to watch the World Cup Final.

But he couldn't resist Prigioni's enthusiasm, so he ended up going.

Besides, next season he was counting on Prigioni to pass him the ball, so he had to keep the relationship good.

Sun Hao didn't know how to play soccer, but soccer and basketball had something in common: when you lacked skill, you could play as a defender on the field.

In basketball, anyone could be a defender; in soccer, it was a relatively fixed position—the defender.

Back when Sun Hao scored 3 points in his La Liga debut, the domestic newspapers had ridden the soccer hype wave, using "defender" as a double entendre.

After one amateur game, Prigioni was panting from exhaustion, while Sun Hao hadn't even broken a sweat.

He'd been training consistently in the system, and with his thermos of goji berry tea, his stamina had long surpassed what was normal for his age.

"You're really the most enduring Asian I've ever met."

Sitting on the sidelines resting after the game, Prigioni couldn't help but give Sun Hao a thumbs up.

Sun Hao paused for a moment after hearing that. The words sounded a bit strange, but there didn't seem to be anything wrong with them.

"I didn't expect Yorg to play either, and as a forward, with his size."

This topic couldn't go deeper, so Sun Hao simply changed the subject.

"Basically everyone who plays basketball here also plays soccer. It's the same where I'm from. Even as basketball players, you have to admit that soccer is the world's number one sport right now."

Prigioni's words carried a mix of emotion and pride.

As a professional basketball player, saying something like that was a bit helpless.

But when it came to soccer, Argentina was a top-tier powerhouse, having already won the World Cup twice.

As a member of the Argentina team, Prigioni had an inherent sense of pride.

Sun Hao nodded. Soccer's popularity made it a great social tool.

Take this game, for example. The three of them played together, and their relationship improved significantly.

Professionally, it was about making a living, but in amateur play, winning or losing didn't matter, which was great for building bonds.

Beyond that, a huge goal had sprouted in his mind.

This goal was much bigger than the one he'd set before—winning a championship at his doorstep—and far more ambitious.

His transmigration was unique, which meant he had to accomplish something big.

Since he was playing professional basketball, there was no greater mission than making basketball the world's number one sport.

The road would be long, and it might not even be achievable in the end, but the thought had already taken root in his heart.

After the game, Prigioni dragged Sun Hao to a nearby Western restaurant.

"I love my hometown, but I love the food here."

On the way to the restaurant, Prigioni kept pitching it to Sun Hao.

Clearly, he had a soft spot for Spanish cuisine.

Gabajosa, on the other hand, remained indifferent.

The grass is always greener on the other side; people are creatures who crave novelty.

No matter how good something tastes, eating it too much gets tiresome.

If you threw Gabajosa into Argentina, his reaction would probably be the same as Prigioni's.

But Sun Hao was an exception—or rather, Chinese people were the exception.

When it came to food, no country could outdo China.

Take the most common example, fish. Just the cooking methods included braised, pickled, home-style, sour soup, boiled... and so on.

Drilling down further, even just the fish head had variations like chopped chili, hot pot, and tofu.

But for people from other countries, frying is the norm, steaming counts as a good mood, and the limit is barbecue.

So Sun Hao didn't take Prigioni's boasting too seriously.

Besides, he wasn't born arrogant—he'd already experienced it firsthand.

Spain's most famous dish is seafood paella.

Its method is similar to the principle of stir-frying: you take squid, clams, and shrimp, and stir-fry them with raw rice.

This paella is extremely renowned in Spain, but Sun Hao hadn't eaten it many times since coming here.

The fundamental reason was that it didn't suit his taste.

Stir-frying raw rice directly results in rice that's mostly half-cooked—how could it possibly taste good?

If you can imagine the scene of making egg fried rice with raw rice, you can imagine the flavor of this dish.

At the restaurant, Prigioni was very polite and ordered everything he thought was delicious.

Sun Hao felt a headache coming on as he ordered, and when the food arrived, he realized he'd need to find a chance to let Prigioni taste some Chinese cuisine.

Marinated anchovies, Iberian ham, garlic sauce steamed Basque cod, Galician octopus, and cuttlefish rice.

Pickled, steamed, fried, and cuttlefish rice made similarly to seafood paella, except squid ink is added during the stir-frying.

Prigioni's mouth watered nonstop as he ate, but Sun Hao's mouth was full of saltiness and grease.

After they finished eating and left the restaurant, Sun Hao extended an invitation to them.

"You want to treat us to a meal? Wait, you can cook?"

Prigioni clearly had no idea Sun Hao had this skill, and his eyes gleamed.

This guy wasn't particularly devoted to Spanish cuisine—he was just a flat-out foodie.

"At your place?"

Gabajosa suddenly leaned in too.

Sun Hao nodded.

He'd summed up a lesson from his past life: never mention that you can cook, because once you do, you'll become a free chef.

But since Prigioni and the others had invited him to play football and treated him to a meal, returning the favor was a must.

"I've had Chinese food once. It was delicious."

When Gabajosa said this, his eyes turned just like Prigioni's.

Sure enough, no matter how strong a human is, they have no resistance in the face of good food.

Sun Hao hadn't expected Gabajosa to have eaten Chinese food, but it also put some pressure on him.

Originally, he just wanted to let Prigioni try something new, but now it seemed he'd have to prepare carefully.

He'd spent a long time in the US in his past life, eating steak and burgers until he wanted to throw up, forcing him to learn to cook on his own, turning him into a one-man housewife.

Practice makes perfect, and his cooking skills were presentable.

That was the confidence behind his invitation to Prigioni and Gabajosa to eat at his place.

Setting a date, choosing a training rest day, Sun Hao grabbed his bag and headed to the supermarket to buy ingredients.

The ingredients in Spain were far less abundant than back home, but the charm of Chinese cuisine is that as long as you have ingredients, you can always cook something.

And while shopping at the supermarket, Sun Hao stumbled upon an unexpected surprise.

He felt this surprise would even shock Prigioni.

After buying the ingredients, it was time to cook.

Hot and sour shredded potatoes, potato beef, salt and pepper shrimp, enoki mushroom bacon rolls, chopped pepper fish head, and one mysterious dish with a lid on it.

These were the main courses. For soup, since the supermarket had no tofu or mushrooms, he ended up making the simplest tomato egg drop soup.

After finishing, he called Prigioni and Gabajosa.

Both were at the training hall, and Sun Hao's place wasn't far, so they arrived shortly after the call.

As they pushed open the door, a rich aroma hit them.

The fragrance wasn't coming from those dishes, but from where Sun Hao was standing.

He was grilling skewers.

In addition to the main meal, Sun Hao had also prepared barbecue.

King of BBQ pork belly sizzled on the grill, dripping with oil—just the look of it could make your mouth water.

Beef chunks, one-third fatty, skewered together, as the meat slowly cooked, the fragrance drifted out, and after sprinkling cumin powder, it was impossible not to swallow.

And the oil-brushed squid, its fresh aroma overwhelming and irresistible.

The supermarket mostly had meat—chicken wings, beef, lamb, seafood—Sun Hao prepared it all.

And knowing that Gabajosa had eaten Chinese food before, he really put in the effort, skewering all the bought ingredients himself.

Beyond the more common meats, Sun Hao even bought relatively expensive vegetables and mushrooms.

A tin foil box, a handful of enoki mushrooms, a pinch of garlic paste, a spoonful of oil—bubbling and tumbling away.

"Is this barbecue?"

Prigioni drifted in like the wind and landed right next to Sun Hao.

"I've never seen it done like this."

Gabajosa's eyes were also fixed on the barbecue.

People abroad eat barbecue—big chunks grilled directly, cooked enough to eat, that's it. They'd never seen anything this refined.

Especially the vegetables; they'd never seen them prepared this way.

Seeing Gabajosa's expression, Sun Hao felt his barbecue effort was worth it.

Even though he couldn't use charcoal indoors for safety reasons, what came out still had flavor.

Sun Hao sprinkled on some chili powder and handed the first batch of crispy pork belly to Prigioni and Gabajosa.

Pork belly, incredibly fragrant and crisp—one bite, and it went crack, crunchy and flaky.

"Damn! What the hell kind of meat is this?!"

Prigioni cursed as he ate.

He was usually mild-tempered, but now he was clearly losing his composure.

Not that you could blame him.

After all, his hometown Argentina wasn't without barbecue.

But their barbecue basically fell into two categories: meat and staples.

Meat was mostly beef, then meat sausages and some animal organs.

Staples were bread.

This barbecue was a real eye-opener for him.

"Eat more vegetables, careful, they're hot."

Sun Hao handed him some baby bok choy and then picked up the tin foil box.

Prigioni took it and ate again—he couldn't help himself.

"This is the first time I've known vegetables taste this good grilled."

If not for his age, he might have actually given Sun Hao a performance of crying from deliciousness.jpg.

As for Gabajosa, he didn't say a word, but he was already wolfing it down, sweeping up every skewer in sight.

Sun Hao couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Though they ate differently, it was clear his barbecue suited both their tastes.

"Let's eat the main meal first."

Sun Hao figured if they kept eating like this, they wouldn't need the actual meal. He set the barbecue aside, turned around, and lifted the lid.

"What are these?"

This time Gabajosa was calmer—he'd experienced Chinese food before—but Prigioni couldn't help asking again.

His understanding of food was being constantly refreshed by Sun Hao today.

"Potatoes? Braised with beef?"

"These are shredded potatoes? Aren't they supposed to be fried?"

"This is a fish head? You can eat fish head?"

Prigioni turned into a question machine, one after another.

It was hard to connect him with the mature starting point guard he usually was.

But that was the charm of food.

As for Gabajosa, he was already seated early, just waiting to eat.

"What's this?"

Prigioni finally fixed his gaze on the mysterious dish that hadn't been opened yet.

Sun Hao signaled for him to open it himself.

Prigioni smiled and opened it, but the moment he saw the dish inside, he froze.

Even Gabajosa was full of curiosity this time.

"What kind of meat is this?"

After staring for a while, Gabajosa spoke up first.

"Try it and see?"

Sun Hao didn't give the answer right away; instead, he signaled for them to taste it with their forks first.

Gabajosa hesitated with his fork, not moving—clearly he was reluctant to try something unknown.

"Chicken?"

Prigioni hadn't moved his fork either. He leaned in for a closer look before asking.

"No. Try it."

Sun Hao still wanted them to eat first before he revealed the answer.

But both reacted the same way, shaking their heads, unwilling to take a bite.

Seeing their response, Sun Hao knew he had to tell them.

"Frog."

He announced the answer.

That mysterious dish was Spicy Stir-fried Frog.

He'd stumbled upon it at the supermarket, and since Gabajosa had mentioned eating Chinese food before, he'd chosen this unique dish as the centerpiece.

When they heard it, both wore O'Neal-style question mark faces.

"Frog?"

Finally, Prigioni set down his fork, his face full of disbelief.

That thing was edible?!

"No, not a frog—it's a bullfrog. Different breed."

Sun Hao quickly clarified.

"Where did you catch it?"

Gabajosa also seemed hesitant.

"Bought it at the supermarket. We don't eat wild animals—this is farm-raised."

Wild was out of the question; he'd never eat wild game in his life, because that could easily spread dangerous diseases.

But even after Sun Hao's explanation, Gabajosa still didn't dare try.

Seeing neither of them move, Sun Hao could only shake his head helplessly. Looked like this big dish was his alone to enjoy.

Just then, Prigioni—that foodie—couldn't resist. He silently picked up his fork, speared a piece, and put it in his mouth.

As soon as the bullfrog hit his tongue, he clamped his mouth shut, as if terrified he might spit it out.

Gabajosa watched him with a slightly pained expression.

But the next second, Prigioni's expression suddenly changed.

It was a shift from fear to surprise.

Then he forked a second piece, ate it, and then a third.

Gabajosa stared at the scene, dumbfounded.

Sun Hao couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Looked like his Spicy Stir-fried Frog wasn't half bad.

"How is it?"

Gabajosa still had some doubts, even as he watched Prigioni shove piece after piece into his mouth, and couldn't help asking.

"This—frog, oh no, bullfrog—this is the best meat I've ever eaten."

Prigioni gave a very definite answer.

At that, Gabajosa finally set aside his fear, picked up his fork, and took a piece.

Then the two of them ate in silence.

And what made Sun Hao laugh and cry was that Prigioni, as he ate, actually pulled the plate closer to himself.

This guy—he was trying to "hog it all"!

That immediately sparked resistance from Gabajosa, whose fork reached over Prigioni's blocking hand and snagged a piece anyway.

Sun Hao laughed out loud.

Sure enough, foodies would do anything in front of good food.

He turned, grabbed the beer, and handed it to them.

The three of them sat down, eating and chatting.

Compared to playing soccer, this kind of activity was obviously much more relaxing and comfortable.

"Sun, can we eat at your place again tomorrow?"

As they talked, Prigioni couldn't help asking.

He was hooked.

Sun Hao smiled and nodded.

"Still eating bullfrog?"

Sun Hao burst out laughing.

"Sure, tomorrow at noon."

After laughing, he nodded in agreement.

Afraid they might not be used to it, Sun Hao had only cooked half of the bullfrog he'd cleaned, leaving the rest in the fridge.

"How about morning?"

But to his surprise, Prigioni couldn't even wait until noon.

This time, not just Sun Hao, but Gabajosa was also amused again.

When the beer was nearly finished, Sun Hao served them rice.

"When you have time someday, I'll teach you how to use chopsticks."

Seeing how awkward they were even eating with spoons, he couldn't help but say it.

Prigioni and Gabajosa nodded in unison.

They'd only just realized that the taste of rice was Completely Different from the seafood rice they usually ate.

And learning chopsticks meant they could try more Chinese food.

To them, that was like opening the door to a whole new world.

Full and satisfied, Sun Hao got up to clear the dishes, but Prigioni and Gabajosa stopped him and started cleaning up themselves.

Watching them busy themselves, Sun Hao Suddenly Felt he'd gotten pretty lucky in Spain.

What kind of person is worth befriending? You can tell from the little details.

Though they came from different countries, the three of them—from playing soccer together that afternoon to eating dinner that night—showed a natural chemistry.

That wasn't just for life; it would benefit them plenty on the court in the future.

Even looking back at last season's failure, it might not even count as a failure.

After all, last season was Prigioni's first as a starter, and Sun Hao only went from bench to starter halfway through the season.

And yet they still made it to the La Liga Final Four—that alone was proof of their strength.

With more time to build chemistry next season, plus the connection they'd shown today, they had every reason to go further—even win the championship.

With Prigioni and Gabajosa around, plus playing soccer and eating together from time to time, the waiting days became colorful and lively.

Time flew by, and before they knew it, over a month had passed.

Just then, Fernandez finally finished all the preparations for going to Italy!

Thanks to Ling Tian Feichen and book friend 160307234848024 for the tips, and thanks for the support, big shots~

Daily Cheesy Love Lines

I want to give you lots and lots of lipstick, so you can give me back a little every day.