[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back":3,"chapter-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-869":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Football: At 16, Let Me Retire and Come Back?",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2300839,4499,"Chapter 869: The Legendary, Unattainable Quarterfinal: Pure Blood Vine Armor","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-869",869,"\u003Cp>“A $500 million tax-free annual salary...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although the man had already left, Mohamed-Jose’s words still echoed in Tang Ye’s mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The salary was indeed extremely tempting, and Jose was right—playing in the Saudi league would make things much easier for him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there was one problem: he was too young; at this age, it made no sense in normal thinking to go play in Saudi Arabia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Take a break...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sigh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don’t know what to do—just focus on playing the upcoming quarterfinal first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tomorrow is the first quarterfinal of the Qatar World Cup, and also China’s first-ever World Cup quarterfinal match in history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuaishou trending topics:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.1: Chinese men’s football team in the quarterfinals. (Hot)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.2: China vs Netherlands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.3: China’s first-ever World Cup quarterfinal in team history.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.4: Saudi club offers Tang Ye a £350 million annual salary. (Hot)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.5: China’s win probability against Netherlands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Actually, when China played Argentina in their first group stage match, their World Cup campaign had already gone viral globally; the round of 16 match against Spain pushed the popularity even higher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, with the quarterfinal, the momentum from all four previous matches has converged—you simply cannot imagine how insane the hype will be for this game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“China team—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“VICTORY!!!!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the stadium, fans from both sides were already ready, singing their chants.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to the unified Dutch supporters, China’s chants were chaotic—they pulled out everything from “Armor Hero” to “Piggy Xia ,” showcasing a wild burst of cultural diversity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But upon closer thought, this actually reflected the distinct psychological states of both sets of fans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For Dutch fans, they wanted to reach the semifinals—that was their goal, and achieving it required focused effort and unity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And what about China’s fans?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By reaching the quarterfinal, China had already doubled their original mission; every minute left was now for celebration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who cares how many goals Netherlands scores?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>China is awesome!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Ye is awesome!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Emperor Armor is awesome!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Douyin, creator: Ao Fei Entertainment; collaboration: Dragon Team Fan Association】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A short video from the official “Armor Hero” franchise, featuring Emperor Armor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am Emperor Armor. I wish Tang Ye and all Chinese men’s football players success in the quarterfinal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Remember, light always supports you from behind!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Go, China team!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder—the official costume’s quality was excellent, giving the feeling of watching a movie of “Emperor Hero.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to Emperor Armor, other congratulatory videos from China’s team looked weak in comparison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hello everyone, I’m LeBron James. For the Qatar World Cup, I only watch China...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>James turned to his teammate beside him: “Did the U.S. even qualify for the World Cup?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They got eliminated.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh oh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave a thumbs-up again: “After the U.S. got eliminated, I only watch China—go, Chinese men’s football!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>James bumped fists with the camera.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was also a congratulatory video from Tang Ye’s son, but since Tang Rui couldn’t speak clearly yet, it was all controlled by Zhou Ye behind the scenes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hello fans, I’m Tang Rui, also known as Little Piggy hhbond.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Ye gently lifted Tang Rui’s small hand and waved it toward the camera: “Please all give my dad ggbond a cheer, and cheer for China! Thank you everyone—hhbond bows to you all!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ffbond Tang Zhengxiong, ggbond Tang Ye, and the newborn hhbond Tang Rui—the three great members of the Noble Piggy Family appeared together, rarely seen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three of them will merge as one, and strive for the upcoming match!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dongqiudi pinned: China vs Netherlands starting lineup announced—Tang Ye vs De Jong, Pure Blood Vine Armor Derby, De Ligt on bench. Coach Escriba facing Van Gaal for the first time in his managerial career.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dongqiudi trending: Value advantage! Netherlands’ entire starting eleven’s combined market value is only €25 million higher than Tang Ye’s individual value.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“China Central Television, China Central Television. Good evening, dear viewers...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Both teams are ready in the tunnel. You can see the man at the very back of the Chinese team, clapping with his teammates—that’s our star captain, Tang Ye!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh... the atmosphere here today is absolutely electric.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the quarterfinal stage of the World Cup, there are almost never empty seats—let alone when both teams are favorites; even if the crowd didn’t overflow, it was already packed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The theme song played as players walked out holding children’s hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once the players took their positions on the pitch, the broadcast camera turned to the away fans’ section.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wow, Chinese fans have prepared a show today.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, look at this tifo...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the very bottom of the south stand, a tifo was slowly being unfurled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The entire tifo’s background was an unusual white, depicting a death figure in a black robe, wielding a scythe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The death figure’s robe was entirely black, and his eyes beneath the hood were invisible—but the number “10” carved on the scythe made it clear: this death figure was Tang Ye himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just the scythe—behind the death figure floated a banner of ten thousand souls, on which drifted four spirits: Argentina, Wales, Germany, and Spain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【6666, so cool?】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Why not do this in the round of 16? Now you’re making a tifo when you’re clearly losing】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Awesome awesome, De Jong and Gakpo are watching—here comes your reckoning!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Come on come on!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Win or lose, every match China plays from now on will be turned into my essay material! Charge!!!】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“BEEP!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, the match has begun! Let me introduce the starting lineups!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“First, the Netherlands national team, wearing orange jerseys, attacking from right to left on screen!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Netherlands (3-4-1-2)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Goalkeeper: Nopert\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Defenders: Timber, Van Dijk, Ak\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Midfielders: Denzel Dumfries, De Roon, Gakpo, Frenkie de Jong, Blind\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Forwards: Berghuis, Depay\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Head coach: Van Gaal\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Then, the away team, China’s men’s football team, wearing pure black jerseys! This is the first time in this World Cup that China has used their second away kit!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Comparing the starting lineups, fans quickly noticed a key point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>China’s starting eleven had a higher total market value than the Netherlands’.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Higher by a full €2 million!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just a week ago in the round of 16, China defeated Spain, whose starting eleven had a combined value over €400 million; now their opponent is the Netherlands, whose total value is only slightly over €300 million.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you only look at market value, you might think the Netherlands aren’t China’s match.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But you must know—this Netherlands team is different from Spain. In this World Cup’s group stage, the Netherlands remained undefeated, one of the few teams to achieve a perfect record.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No sooner had the commentator finished than Dumfries surged forward on the flank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wow!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look! Look!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Here, number 22!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Take him down! Take him down!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chinese fans were even more passionate than the players themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>",1115,"2026-06-20T06:50:12.695Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","3e9bb7f283622e4d00bc29e0c6b43216cd0ac99454dd58a505b42f497642bc93","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-870","football-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-chapter-868",918,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ffootball-at-16-let-me-retire-and-come-back-cover.jpg"]