Chapter 499: Great-Grandpa Won the MVP, Tang Ye Is a Carry Dog (Requesting Monthly Votes)

Outside the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street in Shanghai.

"Ah!!!"

"Beep beep beep!!!"

It was past 3 AM; the streets were filled with football fans running or jumping.

"Maintain order!"

"Do not linger on the roadway; the pedestrian light is red!"

The moment testing the lung capacity of Shanghai police to the limit had arrived.

"China is awesome!!!"

Red flags adorned with stars were raised along the streets.

"Do not linger on the roadway!"

Just as the traffic officer finished shouting, two young men in their twenties charged past carrying a national flag.

"Aaaaaah!!!!"

CCTV-1: At 11 PM Beijing Time on January 28, during the AFC Asian Cup semi-final between the Chinese Men's National Football Team and the Japanese Men's National Football Team... thanks to a 4-2 victory in the penalty shootout, the Chinese National Team ultimately defeated the Japanese National Team with an aggregate score of 7-5, successfully advancing to the Asian Cup final.

CCTV Chief Reporter: This marks the second time in history that the Chinese Men's Football Team has reached the Asian Cup final, the last instance dating back to 2004. Meanwhile, after the match concluded, Chinese player Tang Ye's goal tally reached 13, exceeding the single-tournament record in Asian Cup history by five goals.

#China, #ChinaJapan, #AsianCupSemiFinal, #NationalTeamAdvancesToAsianCupFinal—these hashtags were today's absolute hot topics.

From CCTV-5 to CCTV-13, and now to CCTV-1, these represent the three stages the Chinese Men's Football Team experienced during this Asian Cup.

When they smashed eight goals past the Philippines, they did not receive recognition from CCTV-1.

Now, having stepped over Japan's corpse to advance to the final, the National Team has finally made it onto CCTV-1.

【I declare that Tang Ye now possesses my permanent immunity from criticism.】

【Does the person above still plan to criticize Tang Ye?】

【CCTV-1, what prestige, damn it!】

【Fierce like a war god; earlier, some claimed De Bruyne and Tang Ye were on par—that's pure stupidity. De Bruyne scoring one free kick would already be pushing his limits.】

【A renowned general in the war against Japan!】

Fans interpreted Tang Ye's explosive performance today as an inheritance from their forefathers, equating aerial bombing of the ground with free-kick sniping of the Japanese goal as bloodline flowing across eighty years.

Of course, this was merely coincidence; Tang Ye simply had better touch on his free kicks today.

But the words "blood relation" and "bloodline" are etched into the Chinese psyche, so no matter how Tang Ye explained, it would be futile.

Tang Tang Xianmin had indeed helped him today!

Boo-hoo, Tang Tang Xianmin won the MVP, while Tang Ye is a carry dog~~

In his own hotel room, the carry dog Tang Ye sat on the balcony wearing only a short-sleeved shirt.

Not a breath of wind blew that night; the surface of the pool before him was terrifyingly calm.

Having sat on the steps for over an hour, Tang Ye's mind was now completely empty.

He truly could not sleep, yet he wanted to do something.

If only he had brought his computer; when unable to sleep, he could have played a couple rounds of CS: GO, or LoL would have worked too.

Finding it utterly boring, Tang Ye stood up, mimicked the divers on television, and jumped straight into the pool.

"Damn, so cold, so cold!"

"Hiss, haha, hiss, mmm..."

After the semi-final, Lippi immediately gave the players time off.

While the National Team's coaching staff remained in the conference room discussing tactics against Qatar, the players began to play.

"Damn, damn, this horse is so fast!"

On the hotel's third floor, Tang Ye rode a brown horse, accelerating to overtake Wu Lei in one go: "Haha!"

"Hey, how are you riding, Tang Ye!"

Whenever they played games, Tang Ye was always the best.

Now, even in the horse-riding segment, he was slightly faster than the others.

"Mr., Mr., we cannot ride too fast here!"

The hotel staff were now under immense pressure.

"Hey, it's ok, it's ok!"

Zheng Zhi pushed the staff member outward, then shut the door directly.

"Hey, Brother Zhi!"

Tang Ye shouted: "Help me search on Douyin how to make a horse jump; I feel like I should be able to make it jump."

"Wait a moment!"

While Zheng Zhi was still researching on his phone, Tang Ye rode his mount another lap.

"Here!"

Wei Wei Shihao shouted, then tossed a ball to Tang Ye.

"Mmm mmm mmm!"

He quickly kicked the ball up, then balanced it on his head, continuing to ride forward while heading the ball.

"Wow, awesome, Tang Ye!"

"The Truth"—Post-match relaxation? Chinese team players rode the "Formula Rossa" roller coaster at the Ferrari Theme Park in Abu Dhabi, one of the world's fastest roller coasters, reaching speeds of 240 km/h. Tom was photographed changing tires on a Ferrari sports car with assistance from staff.

"From the photos, we can see the Chinese team players enjoying the joy brought by defeating Japan. It is worth mentioning that Tom's hands-on ability is indeed quite outstanding; after successfully changing the tire, Tom expressed a desire to drive onto the track, but was politely refused by the staff, as that was merely a display model lacking an engine."

"All 23 players of the Chinese team made an appearance; experts suggest this hints at a possible collaboration between the Chinese National Team and Ferrari."

What possible collaboration? The local Abu Dhabi newspapers are already spouting nonsense.

The reason the players thought to come here for fun is mainly because Tang Ye scrolled past this thing on Douyin last night.

Big data is truly amazing; it actually knows that the phone's owner, ggbond, is very close to this theme park!

The players had a great time, and Tang Ye even encountered quite a few Chinese tourists within the theme park.

"Chinese Team Champions!"

"Tang Ye!"

"Who do you favor tonight, Qatar or the UAE?"

While asking for an autograph, a fan seized the opportunity to ask.

Who is the Chinese team's potential final opponent?

"I'm not certain either, but we all feel Qatar should win; we are already making preparations."

After writing his name on the jersey, Tang Ye held the shirt up and compared it with the fan standing before him: "Hmm, isn't this shirt a bit too small for you?"

"This is for my father; he is also your fan, but he couldn't make it here to watch the match."

"Wow!"

Tang Ye and the fan shared a hug.

……

Check Dongqiu Di Match Report: Qatar 4:0 pierces through the UAE, meeting the National Football Team in the Asian Cup Final. (13,812 comments)

【I was just bored and came to see the National Team's opponent, but Qatar is truly fierce.】

【Has that opposing striker been taking drugs? He has seven goals now in total.】

【Then what did your Tang Ye, with 13 goals, consume? Piggy Hero lollipops?】

【How can those be the same? What kind of person is my great ggbond, and what kind of person is he?】

Great ggbond?

At this moment, the great ggbond was sitting in the hotel conference room, panting.

"Damn, this Qatar is even more formidable than I imagined."

Tang Ye touched his hair: "If I had known, I wouldn't have gone out to play today."

If Tang Ye had known yesterday how strong Qatar was, then today's theme park itinerary would not have existed.

"Haha."

Zheng Zhi punched Tang Ye on the arm: "It's all the same; Qatar is just slightly better at attacking."

Judging from the live broadcast, Qatar's attacking capability is indeed quite exaggerated, and they also possess set-piece prowess.

When playing against Japan, the Chinese team players could use their bodies, employing physicality to disrupt the Japanese players' movements.

But when the opponent becomes Qatar, all of this becomes somewhat difficult.

The Qatar players' builds are not as slight and small as those of the Japanese players!

"This is not a problem; we have solutions."

The translator conveyed Lippi's words to the players.

"We will win the championship; that is certain."

"Tomorrow, gather in the conference room at 10 o'clock again, then head to the training ground. For today, do not think about these matters."

……

Match Preview: February 1st, 22:00, Asian Cup Final China vs. Qatar; the Chinese Team attempts to step onto the peak of Asia.

Because it was clear the win rate was not high, the Chinese Team remained relatively low-key when releasing the match poster, simply featuring all 23 players showing their faces, accompanied by the caption: Challenge.

In contrast, netizens were much bolder, directly photoshopping an image of Tang Ye climbing Mount Everest.

photo.

Mount Everest is Asia's highest peak.

……

"Right side!"

With a shout, Tang Ye delivered a long pass out.

【De Bruyne Curved Through Ball Lv5: Replication (Transcendent State)】

Proficiency: 972/3500

Wu Lei controlled the ball steadily, then fired a shot past Wang Wang Dalei's defense into the goal.

"Wow!"

Clap clap clap!

The training effect was fairly good, though Tang Ye offered a reminder: "Brother Lei, you must control the ball during the match just like in training!"

Wu Lei's impression among Chinese fans is that he is not skilled at controlling the ball; however, in reality, his ball control in training is quite good.

But he simply cannot achieve this in a match environment; for a professional athlete, this constitutes a fatal flaw.

"Haha!"

Wu Lei waved to Tang Ye: "I feel my current form is very good; I can control the ball during the match too."

Having eliminated Japan to miraculously advance to the final, the Chinese team players' competitive form can now be described as increasingly exaggerated.

But!

Qatar is even stronger than Japan; even a Chinese Team at full form would find it difficult to handle their final opponent.

"We can focus primarily on defense, still relying on Tang's free kicks."

Madaloni and Lippi were conversing.

"Set pieces cannot be the core,"

Lippi said.

Tang Ye's form for set pieces was quite good; this was indeed a breakthrough point.

But set pieces were simply too unpredictable; sometimes when your form was excellent, you could score three out of eight attempts, yet by the next day, once that form vanished, you might fail to score even one out of ten.

After detailed analysis, the Chinese team's coaching staff also devised their preliminary plan.

4-4-2; this would be the formation the Chinese team used in the final.

Tang Ye would remain as the defensive midfielder.

"So we're focusing primarily on defense, right?"

With the ball under his foot, twisting his ankle back and forth, Tang Ye asked.

"Mm, that's roughly the idea. As long as the opponent doesn't score, we keep playing defensively. I've divided the match into three phases; what you need to do in each of these three phases will be slightly different..."

While Lippi slowly explained the tactics to the players, Tang Ye began studying his system.

If the focus was on defense, then stamina was the key.

Tang Ye (40 years old)

【Ball Control: 88; Passing: 92】

【Shooting: 80; Heading: 60; Set Pieces: 80】

【Speed: 78; Stamina: 76; Physicality: 85】

【Defense: 75; Vision: 97】

Overall Rating: 86

Tang Ye's current Stamina attribute was 76; adding the 15% boost from max-level Red Bull, that made...

Uh, this was a very complex calculation.

Tang Ye stepped back, yielding his spot to Wu Lei, then hid behind Zhang Zhang Yuning.

With the help of the great computer, Tang Ye arrived at the answer.

87.4, rounded to 88, which was about the same as his Ball Control ability.

A Stamina attribute of 88 was considered the average level for Champions League players; playing through 90 minutes of regular time plus 30 minutes of extra time posed no major problem.

But the situation Tang Ye currently faced was somewhat different.

Shifting from an attacking midfielder role to a defensive midfielder position while also shouldering roughly 1.5 times the defensive duties meant Tang Ye could last at most 90 minutes.

The match against Japan had already proven this point.

Qatar was even fiercer than Japan; if they had to play another 120 minutes, the outcome might be far worse than just vomiting.

ggbond would collapse onto the grass.

The fierce Middle Eastern sun would bake him into a dried corpse!

Time entered February.

Today was February 1st; there were only three days left until the New Year's Eve night of February 4th.

Besides red couplets and remnants of red firecrackers, it had recently become popular within China to plant red flags at doorsteps.

Bang bang bang bang!

Drum beats pounded by fans rang out outside the Abu Dhabi stadium; the team bus had already entered the venue, with the large Chinese characters "Dragon Team" standing out prominently.

"Chinese Team!"

"Go China!"

The crucial battle was about to begin; at this moment, Tang Ye was still inside the bus, sleeping with his head resting on Zhang Zhang Yuning's shoulder.

A strange scene; thick gray smoke filled the sky.

What the hell?

Tang Ye stood up from the grass, only to be suddenly tackled by someone.

"Your mother!"

Just as Tang Ye was about to curse, a shell flew past the spot where he had been standing a second earlier, blasting the grass apart.

"... Brother, you're awesome."

"Brother my ass, you bastard!"

Tang Tang Xianmin punched Tang Ye on the arm, and only then did the latter realize that the person who had tackled him just now was his great-grandfather.

"Eh, Great-grandfather, weren't you going to find the plane?"

Tang Ye remembered what Tang Tang Xianmin had told him before.

"Couldn't get through; the devils have blocked all the roads over there!"

Tang Tang Xianmin dragged Tang Ye into the woods.

"Damn, so you're giving up on the plane?"

"Can't give up; I have to take a detour around the side."

Upon reaching a relatively safe spot, Tang Tang Xianmin placed both hands on Tang Ye's shoulders: "Didn't I tell you to run quickly? Why are you still here?"

"I, I..."

Tang Ye froze.

Why am I here?

I don't know either!

"Then Great-grandfather, I'll go with you to seize the plane back; I have a gun."

Tang Ye picked up the pistol in his right hand that Tang Tang Xianmin had handed him.

"Screw you! Run for Laozi's sake, hurry! You don't deserve to sacrifice yourself here!"

Tang Tang Xianmin dragged Tang Ye along.

"Don't! Grandpa, trust me! I'll carry you to victory!"

Tang Tang Xianmin said nothing, but continued dragging Tang Ye as they ran.

"It's this way! Follow this road straight down, and it leads to our territory!"

The moment the words left his mouth, the sound of footsteps came from behind.

Recalling his ability to locate enemies by sound from CS: GO, Tang Ye suddenly turned around.

Bang! Bang!

Two shots fired, and the enemy soldier wearing a hat across from him dropped at the sound.

Both bullets had struck the head.

"What?"

Tang Tang Xianmin stood rooted to the spot: "You damn—"

Bang!

Another shot rang out; Tang Ye completed a double kill.

"I told you, just stick with me; I'll carry us to victory."

Tang Ye dragged Tang Tang Xianmin forward, charging toward the front lines: "Grandpa, let's seize the fighter jet back together!"

"Tang Ye!"

"Tang Ye!"

Tang Ye snapped his eyes open to find more than a dozen teammates gathered around him.

"We've arrived at the stadium!"

Zhang Zhang Yuning shouted: "You can even sleep through this? Tang Ye, you're awesome!"

"But what's a fighter jet? Did you dream about an aerial dogfight?"

"Cough, cough."

Shaking his head, Tang Ye rose from his seat.

He glanced at the time on his phone.

There were still four hours until the final match began.

I wonder if Great-Grandpa managed to seize his fighter jet back...

Oh, no.

What just happened was a dream; the events that occurred in it do not actually exist.

(End of Chapter)