That night,
The football fanbase across London was shaken once again!
One headline after another dominated the news:
"Four Wins in a Row! Crystal Palace's Genius Leads the Assist Chart!"
"A Rejuvenated Crystal Palace! Who Says You Can't Build Around a Single Star?"
"The 16-Year-Old King of Eagles Aims to Bring Crystal Palace a Championship!"
"Unprecedented Bold Claims! Confidence or Pure Arrogance?"
Without a doubt, the most excited people in London right now…
Were Crystal Palace fans!
This season, they finally had someone—
A "King of Eagles"—to lead them out of the mire.
Now, he was about to lead them not just to promotion…
But possibly even to a championship!
This deeply ignited the passion of every Palace fan.
English football fans are known as the most emotional in the world.
They'd give anything for the team they love.
That night, Crystal Palace fans flooded the streets in excitement.
Under the night sky, they clutched beers,
Talked joyously about the team's form,
And laughed to the point of tears—tears of happiness.
It had been at least ten years
Since they'd experienced something like this!
A winning streak!
Headlines everywhere!
In a football capital like London, the newspapers weren't talking about Arsenal, Chelsea, or Spurs—
They were talking about Crystal Palace!
Everywhere in the streets, fans painted the number 10,
And wrote three bold letters above it:
Kai!
On lamp posts.
On walls.
Kai's name was written across every corner of South London!
Here, he had become a symbol, a totem.
The young King of Eagles was about to lead Crystal Palace to glory!
All of South London was on fire!
Within just a few days,
Crystal Palace's No. 10 jersey was completely sold out!
Almost every single Palace fan now owned one—
Kai's No. 10 jersey.
The club's financial director was grinning from ear to ear.
He issued a stern directive to Holloway, the manager:
"As head coach, you must do everything to keep this super-talent happy. He absolutely cannot be poached in the upcoming winter transfer window. We're ready to offer him the most sincere contract in club history."
Holloway replied:
"Kai's €7 million release clause is nowhere near enough.
There are way too many top clubs who can afford that without blinking.
It must be increased!"
That evening,
Kai took a taxi to the airport—
To pick up Fan Sijing.
"Kai!"
Fan Sijing called out joyfully, running toward him.
She dropped her suitcase without a care, and gave him a big, spontaneous hug.
People nearby glanced over with envy.
Such a cute couple, they thought...
But what they didn't know—
Was that these two hadn't seen each other in years!
"I've watched every one of your recent games! You were amazing!"
"My dad keeps praising you too!"
Fan Sijing's eyes sparkled with admiration.
"From now on, I'll be at every one of your matches!"
Arm in arm with Kai,
They left the airport together.
They took a taxi back to the villa.
Kai realized something important—
He should probably go get an English driver's license!
As for buying a car?
That was a piece of cake.
After all, he was earning the highest wage in Crystal Palace,
With a weekly salary of £15,000.
Buying a car was no big deal.
"There are plenty of rooms. Pick whichever one you like,"
Kai said after settling her in.
Then he made his way to the rooftop of the villa,
Where he continued his daily fitness training—
Without fail.
Tonight's training regimen:
Hypoxia mask training!
Wearing the mask,
Kai began his grueling workout with Pintus.
This was one of Pintus's signature killer techniques.
Designed to train both anaerobic and aerobic thresholds,
And massively boost cardiovascular performance.
"Stamina is the foundation of a footballer," Pintus explained seriously.
"If you surpass the average stamina level of most players, you'll stand out."
"When you enter a top league in the future, you'll realize—
Physical monsters are rare and valuable."
"If a game goes down to the wire and the score is still level after 90 minutes,
And you're still bursting with energy—
Then you'll hold absolute control!"
Under the night sky, Pintus instructed with grim intensity.
Two days later, in the afternoon—
Matchday 15 of the Championship.
Selhurst Park basked in sunlight, with not a single empty seat!
Today was a marquee clash.
Crystal Palace at home vs. 2nd-place Burnley!
Burnley, this season's relegated team—
Unlike promoted clubs, they were just relegated from the Premier League last season.
Their overall strength? Easily that of a half-Premier League side.
This season, they had been dominant.
Their record was second only to QPR.
Their star striker, Jay Rodriguez, had already scored 12 goals this season—
Topping the scoring chart!
Almost averaging a goal per game!
With such attacking firepower, most pundits agreed:
This season's Championship Golden Boot?
Most likely his.
The media once again swarmed Selhurst Park.
From all directions, fans roared.
Before the match, Burnley's manager Bryan did something rare—
He stayed silent.
The lesson from Bielsa's failure
Had silenced even this notoriously talkative coach.
Instead of boasting,
He was determined to win with real action.
"Today, we have only one goal,"
He told his players in the locker room.
"Win at Selhurst Park and end Crystal Palace's streak!"