July 18, 2015: Utrecht II, an Eerste Divisie team, faced Forward Eagles in a pre-season friendly.
With just 20 days until the start of the new Eerste Divisie season, both teams had two objectives for this warm-up match:
To help their players regain match fitness.
To finalize their starting lineups for the upcoming season.
"Tang, do you think we'll get any playing time today?" Zaka asked from the bench, his face etched with concern. Having just been promoted from the U17 team, he was unfamiliar with Coach Meulent's substitution patterns.
"We should get some time in a friendly, right?" Tang Ye replied casually. "But honestly, it doesn't really matter. If we don't play, we don't play."
"Wait, Tang, you were on the second team last season. Did you get any game time during the league matches?"
"Sure did!" Tang Ye cracked his neck and stretched his limbs, holding up five fingers.
"Five appearances?" Zaka's eyes lit up. Tang Ye had only been 15 years old last season—a 15-year-old making five appearances in the Eerste Divisie? If that was the case, maybe he'd get plenty of opportunities too!
"Five minutes," Tang Ye corrected, leaning back in his bench chair with his hands behind his head, looking utterly relaxed. Zaka stared in disbelief.
Dude, you're already slacking off at 16? What hope do I have at 17?
Meanwhile, on a Happy Bean website in China:
"Good evening, brothers! Hmm, this stream isn't very clear. Hang on a moment while I find a better source."
Wang Chao, the streamer, fiddled with the backend. About half a second later, the stream suddenly froze before reloading with a noticeably clearer picture.
The match had already begun. Wang Chao calmly dragged a line of numbers to the upper right corner of the screen—the ID for his QQ Group.
"Brothers in the chat, feel free to join my fan group! We post daily winning picks and guaranteed refunds. And if you're looking for a better betting site, hit me up in a private message!"
After delivering his standard opening spiel, the game was already in the fourth minute.
"Personally, I'm recommending a score bet for this match: 0-2 or 0-3."
0-3? Does the streamer really think that highly of Forward Eagles? I don't think they're much stronger than Utrecht II. Even though it's their reserve team, Utrecht is still a powerhouse!
I'll play it safe and bet on Forward Eagles to win outright. Score predictions are too risky. When I first got into this, I had two buddies. Now they're gone.
Forward Eagles, go go go!
I heard Utrecht II has a Chinese player. I'm excited to see him play!
You mean Tang Ye? He won't get any playing time. I watched the entire Eerste Divisie season last year—he spent all 38 matches glued to the bench.
Pure hater! Tang Ye actually played for 5 minutes and even touched the ball once!
Although the Eerste Divisie isn't exactly a high-profile league, today's Happy Bean Live Room was buzzing with activity. The reason? Utrecht II had a Chinese player—one of the few currently playing abroad.
Many domestic fans had heard of Tang Ye.
Not because he was particularly talented, but because he was a notorious slacker.
Last summer, during an international U17 tournament, Tang Ye helped Taishan U17 secure a dramatic draw against Ajax U17 with an audacious long-range shot. That performance caught the eye of Utrecht scouts, who brought him to the Netherlands to join Utrecht II.
The Utrecht scouts thought they'd discovered a prodigy, only to realize he was a lazy bum.
Coach Meulent, who had managed reserve teams for 12 years, had never seen a player walk off the field mid-training session before!
Melent, standing in front of the substitutes' bench, noticed Zaka chatting with Tang Ye. He called out, "Isaac, you can start warming up!"
Melent had no idea why Zaka was talking to Tang Ye.
That damn Chinese kid! Don't you dare corrupt my prodigy!
Zaka, hearing his name called, stood up, pulled on his yellow training vest, and Tang Ye gave him a thumbs-up. "Good luck!"
"Thanks!"
As Zaka prepared to enter the game, he considered saying a few words to Coach Meulent on Tang Ye's behalf. They were on good terms, but he ultimately decided against it.
If Coach Meulent found out I was friends with Tang Ye, he'd tear me apart!
The match continued, with Forward Eagles' relentless pressure in Utrecht II's half leaving their players gasping for breath.
Utrecht II's inability to maintain possession in midfield had been a persistent problem since the previous season.
And the solution to this problem...
Melent glanced again at Tang Ye on the bench. The scout had brought Tang Ye to the second team specifically to address this issue.
In an era of heavily homogenized youth training, Tang Ye was Utrecht II's only ball-controlling midfielder.
Damn it!
The mere thought of Tang Ye filled Melent with frustration. He shook his head to clear his thoughts.
Focus on coaching!
At the match, the organizers, aware of the large Chinese viewership, deliberately focused the camera on Tang Ye, who was sitting on the bench, during dead-ball situations.
Tang Ye was squinting, his head bobbing like a chick pecking at grain. He was practically asleep!
Damn it!
The fans who had tuned into the Happy Bean Live Room specifically to watch Tang Ye erupted in curses.
"Tang Ye..."
Wang Chao, watching the dozing Tang Ye on screen, suddenly looked disappointed. "He still has talent, but he just doesn't work hard enough."
No sooner had Wang Chao spoken than Forward Eagles seized an opportunity on the flank. Their winger crossed the ball, and they broke the deadlock against Utrecht II. The players on the bench groaned in unison.
Hearing the commotion, Tang Ye opened his eyes. Though his team was trailing, he felt nothing.
Tang Ye knew the level of Utrecht II, and he knew there was no future in playing here.
If hard work was pointless, he might as well just relax.
When winning or losing no longer matters to you, invincibility is within reach.
Tang Ye had become that invincible man!
Just then, a line of small text appeared before his eyes:
Due to your lifelong habit of slacking off, you squandered your innate football talent. After seven years in Europe, you accumulated a mere five minutes of playing time in official matches. At 22, having already wasted your potential, you joined the Chinese Super League, where you shamelessly flaunted your status as a foreign-trained player.
It's now 2036. At 37, you retire in disgrace from China League One and become a football commentator, taking perverse pleasure in tarnishing the reputations of rising stars. Watching young prodigies shine in the Top Five Leagues on television, you suddenly regret your past and lament that time cannot be rewound.
You glance down at your aging body, filled with regret for not fully realizing your potential as a player. Resolved, you decide to come out of retirement.
Appear in a warm-up match. Reward: Random midfielder star skill.