To the Best Stage

Lotus Club, located in downtown Sao Paulo, was a high-end club full of Latin flair.

Of course, this was Chen Anno's first time here—and not just at Lotus Club.

But judging by how familiar Neymar was with the place, this kid definitely was not here for the first time.

The car pulled straight up to the entrance. Neymar tossed the keys directly to the staff at the door, then slung an arm around Chen Anno's shoulders and headed inside.

"Don't tell me this is your first time at a nightclub?" Feeling Chen Anno's body go a little stiff, Neymar leaned close to his ear and asked, "Don't be nervous. It's all people we know today. You basically know all of them."

"The reason I stopped in Sao Paulo for a night was to come see you. Otherwise, if I'd had more time, I would've called your idol Ronaldinho over too. That guy's a nightclub veteran, haha..."

As soon as they walked into the hall, music with a heavy-metal feel blasted straight at them. The sound was practically about to burst his eardrums, and even Neymar started swaying as he walked.

The lighting inside was a little dim. Chen Anno, who had never been to this kind of place before, felt like he could barely see the path under his feet.

"Follow me. Our private room is farther in!" Neymar had to lean close to his ear even to speak.

Just then, someone shouted something into the microphone. In any case, Chen Anno didn't hear it clearly, but the entire place immediately erupted in cheers.

Honestly, the music in here really was damn catchy. He had only been inside for a short while, but Chen Anno already felt like even walking was turning into dancing.

After walking for about a minute, passing through the crowd, and going up a flight of stairs to the second floor, the two finally reached the private room Neymar had mentioned.

The whole private room was around sixty or seventy square meters. It was not too big, but the decor was extremely luxurious, and the lighting inside was noticeably brighter than in the hall outside.

Also, the wall facing the hall was a huge floor-to-ceiling glass panel, giving them a clear view of the first-floor hall.

Of course, it was one-way glass. The inside could see out, but the outside could not see what was inside.

"Hey...! Anno, long time no see!" As soon as he entered, a figure came up to greet him and gave Chen Anno a huge hug.

His name was Araujo. He was Neymar's childhood friend and was now working on Neymar's agent team.

After that, the few people in the private room came forward one after another to say hello. There was Amancio, also a good friend of Neymar's from Santos.

There was also someone named Pita. This guy was the one among them specifically responsible for organizing fun. Before Chen Anno left Brazil, the first all-night poker game he played with them had been organized by Pita.

"Hi... Anno, hello. First time meeting you. My name is Wagner Ribery, Neymar's agent. You can call me Wagner." This was a rather capable-looking middle-aged man, wearing a white shirt with the tie at his collar already loosened.

"Hello, Mr. Wagner." Chen Anno reached out and shook his hand.

Just as Wagner still wanted to say something to Chen Anno, explosive music suddenly rang out in the private room. It turned out Neymar had already started his party.

Wagner shook his head helplessly. He leaned close to Chen Anno's ear. "Anno, I'll be staying in Sao Paulo for a day tomorrow. May I invite you for a cup of coffee tomorrow?"

A football agent wanted to have coffee with him. Chen Anno, of course, understood what the other party meant. At the moment, he did not have an agent either, and considering his relationship with Neymar, Chen Anno really could consider it.

So he nodded at Wagner, indicating that there was no problem.

At that moment, the door to the private room was pushed open, and seven or eight long-legged beauties came in, all graceful and charming.

White, brown, each with their own distinctive features, but all of them were dressed in the same kind of cool, fabric-saving clothing.

"Haha... Come on, Anno, have fun tonight." Neymar came over and pulled up the somewhat dumbfounded Chen Anno. "Hey...! Beautiful ladies, this is my brother. You'd better keep him good company for me."

After saying that, he wrapped one arm around one girl and the other around another, then started dancing along to the music.

Chen Anno clamped his legs tightly together and looked toward Neymar, who was dancing in that bewitching way. He had to admit, this guy really did dance pretty convincingly.

"Your name is Anno, right?" A blonde beauty came to Chen Anno's side and very naturally hugged his arm.

Chen Anno was like he had been electrocuted. He pulled his hand away at once, but then felt that doing so was impolite. "Ahem... Sorry, miss. I'm not very used to this place... Um, you know me?"

The blonde beauty smiled sweetly, reached out, and pressed Chen Anno down onto the sofa beside them. Then she sat down too, though this time she did not sit too close.

"Anno Chen, Sao Paulo's supernova. You were once called the Sao Paulo State Twin Stars together with Neymar. How could I not know you?"

After saying that, the blonde beauty picked up a bottle of Cachaca and poured Chen Anno a glass. "My name is Laura Oliveira. You can call me Laura."

"Uh... all right, Miss Laura." Chen Anno pushed the glass outward a little and picked up the mineral water beside him. "Thank you for your kindness, but I'll just drink this."

Laura was amused by Chen Anno's actions and covered her mouth as she laughed softly. "You're different from the football players I've met. For example, that one..."

The direction Laura was looking in was exactly where Neymar had already gone completely wild.

Chen Anno shook his head. "We're actually not that different. It's just that everyone has different hobbies."

"Oh?" Chen Anno's answer piqued Laura's curiosity. "Then what's your hobby?"

As for this kind of party, Chen Anno was a little uncomfortable at first, but he was young, after all, and young people were still very adaptable.

However, asking him to have as much wild fun as Neymar was definitely impossible. After all, everyone had a different personality.

Perhaps it was just like what he had said to that blonde beauty Laura: everyone had different hobbies.

When gathering with good friends, he could respect his friends' hobbies, but if he had to take the initiative to participate in this kind of party himself, he still would not.

Because Neymar had to report to the national team tomorrow, and because he could also tell that Chen Anno did not really like this kind of environment, the party ended at around ten o'clock that night.

When Neymar sent Chen Anno back to the base, he even asked him how things had gone with that blonde beauty. The latter answered: they were not on the same wavelength.

Hearing this, Neymar laughed loudly in the car and almost drove the car into a ditch.

The next day, Chen Anno met Wagner as agreed. Under Vizoli's witness, the two sides signed an agent contract.

From then on, Chen Anno and Neymar, the "Sao Paulo State" Twin Stars, both became Wagner's clients.

Three days later, Chen Anno went with the team to Porto Alegre in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, where they played a league match against Gremio at Estadio Olimpico.

Gremio was one of Brazil's traditional thirteen giants, founded in 1903.

Chen Anno's idol, Ronaldinho, had come through Gremio's youth academy, and the current Brazil national team head coach, Scolari, had once coached here as well.

In this match, Chen Anno finally earned his first starting opportunity, but he still did not play the full game. In the 65th minute of the second half, he was substituted off by Ramalho.

Even so, he still gave the team a goal and an assist, helping Sao Paulo beat Gremio 2–1 away from home and claim their fifth straight league win.

After this match, every club in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A would have a break of nearly twenty days, making way for the Confederations Cup that was about to be held on Brazilian soil.

Although it was a break, for Chen Anno, aside from there being no official matches, it was not much different from usual.

He still stayed at Sao Paulo's training base, training day after day, constantly improving his strength.

Because he knew that only by getting stronger could he catch up to Neymar's pace, go to Europe, reach the national team, and realize his dreams on the best stages.