Fox in the Penalty Area

Xia Xiaoyu, who was standing outside the house, knocked on the door, but didn't hear anything. He found it strange that before he came back, he specifically notified his parents on WeChat, and they also said that they would be at home then.

Why is there no answer when you knock on the door now?

Did it go out?

Xia Xiaoyu felt a little disappointed that his father and mother didn't mean anything, so he let him go!

He took off his backpack, rummaged around and found the key to open the door.

It's pitch black in the room, and there's really no one there.

He sighed softly, and turned to turn on the light.

As a result, as soon as the light was turned on, the sound of "bang bang bang bang" was suddenly heard, and at the same time

"Congratulations Xiaoyu!"

"congratulations!"

"Xiaoyu is really promising!"

All kinds of human voices came out.

Xia Xiaoyu stared blankly at the dense crowd in front of him, and at the parents standing in the middle of the crowd, they looked at him with smiles.

"How about it, are you surprised, Xiaoyu?" Cousin Xia Wu jumped out from the side, holding a hand-wrung salute in his hand. Obviously, the bang bang just now, and the colorful spray that sprinkled all over his head and the ground now The plastic paper sequins were sprayed out of the thing in his hand.

Xia Wu winked and said, "I seem to have heard you sigh just now?"

Xia Xiaoyu blushed, and quickly waved his hands: "No, brother, you must have heard wrong!"

Xia Wu laughed out loud and did not expose further.

At this time, Xia Xiaoyu's parents also came out and explained: "They want to give you a surprise, congratulations on your participation in the World Cup."

Xia Xiaoyu looked at the relatives and friends crowded in his living room, and laughed: "Thank you everyone, welcome everyone!"

"Xiaoyu must work hard when it's time for the World Cup!" Grandpa who was surrounded by the crowd stood up to cheer Xia Xiaoyu.

Xia Xiaoyu quickly explained: "Grandpa, just because I'm on the list, doesn't mean I can play in the World Cup."

Grandpa waved his fist as if he didn't hear his explanation at all, "Don't embarrass our Xia family!"

Xia Xiaoyu nodded helplessly: "Okay, Grandpa. It must not be embarrassing"

In the corridor of the teaching building of Qingyang No. 1 High School, there were crowds of people and voices.

Everyone is stepping on their heads and looking in one direction.

There, the innermost part of the crowd was separated into a relatively empty space.

Zhou Zijing and Lin Changzhi, the principal of Qingyang No. 1 High School, stood in front of the corridor wall, and behind them was a piece of red silk covering the middle wall.

Vice-principal Xie Huaqin was speaking emotionally to the invited media reporters: "As we all know, as a national key middle school, Qingyang No. 1 High School has produced countless outstanding graduates in history. Some of them became scientists, and some went into business. In politics, there are some people who have made remarkable achievements in the field of literary creation and performing arts. They are our outstanding alumni of Qingyang No. The honor wall of these outstanding alumni demeanor. And today, another outstanding alumni of ours will be added to this honor wall!"

Having said that, she gestured to Lin Changzhi, and the latter pulled off the piece of red silk with Zhou Zijing.

With the slip of the red silk, Zhou Zijing folded his arms around his chest, and a half-length photo of him wearing the jersey of the Chinese national team appeared on the wall.

There is a line of introduction below the photo:

Zhou Zijing, a graduate of our school in 2023. He once led the football team of Qingyang No. 1 High School to participate in national competitions three times and won the runner-up. He is currently a member of the Chinese National Men's Football Team and will participate in the 2026 US-Canada World Cup.

There were cheers, whistles and applause from the students in the corridor.

They have also seen those social celebrities return to school before and hang their own photos on the wall with their own hands.

But it was Zhou Zijing who touched them the most, after all, he was not much older than them, and the World Cup was the hottest topic nowadays. Their school produced an international footballer who could participate in the World Cup, and all the students of Qingyang No. 1 High School were immediately proud.

I will introduce my alma mater later.

Needless to say, "national key middle schools", after all, there are quite a few national key middle schools in China.

Just say, "Does Zhou Zijing know? To participate in the World Cup, we graduated from Qingyang No. 1 High School!"

After the cheers subsided, Zhou Zijing took the microphone and said, "Thank you alma mater for giving me this honor. It has always been my dream to be hung on the honor wall of my alma mater! Now this dream has come true, but I still feel ashamed of it." , because I only participated in the World Cup, but I did not help the Chinese team enter the World Cup. I hope that in the next four years, I can be the hero of the Chinese team entering the World Cup!"

"Good!!" The students applauded enthusiastically and cheered loudly.

Four years later, if the Chinese team can participate in the World Cup again, it must be a good thing worthy of loud applause.

Amid the applause and cheers, Zhou Zijing stood under his photo and completed this somewhat special group photo.

From now on, every student of Qingyang No. 1 High School will turn their heads to take a look when they pass by this photo, knowing that there is a national footballer participating in the World Cup in their school.

Although he is not as good as Hu Lai, he is indeed the pride of Qingyang No. 1 High School.

Zhou Zijing looked back at his photo and thought in his heart: sooner or later, the phrase "although it is not as good as Hu Lai" will be removed!

Yes, there will be a day!

Zhang Qinghuan stood in front of his father's tombstone, turned his head and said to his mother next to him, "Mom, you go down first, and I will have a few words with Dad."

"You say what you want, I'll be right next to you." Ren Changmei didn't leave.

Zhang Qinghuan clicked his tongue: "You are here, I can't tell"

"Oh, what are you doing? Is there anything you can't say in front of your mother? Have you found a girlfriend?"

"What, if I really want to find a girlfriend, I must be the first to inform your mother. You should treat this as a conversation between my father and me." Zhang Qinghuan pushed her mother away.

"Okay, don't push, don't push, I'll go by myself." Ren Changmei turned around and walked away, muttering.

Zhang Qinghuan watched her mother walk down the distant steps, thinking about going down, then turned her gaze away and looked at the photo of her father on the tombstone again.

The original color photo has been slightly faded.

"Dad" Zhang Qinghuan stopped after calling out, not knowing what to say next. After a while, he let out a long sigh.

"I miss you again"

After Ren Changmei walked down several rows of cemeteries, she turned her head and looked up.

Looking from her, she could only see her son's small back, and could not hear what he said at all.

So she didn't continue to go down, but stood here, looking at the place where her son and husband were, waiting patiently.

"The dream that we thought was difficult to realize before we entered the World Cup, I didn't expect it to come true now and not only to play in the World Cup, but also to go abroad to play football. The road you planned for me before, I finally walked again Some people said that parents should not let their children live the way they want, but I just want to live the way you want, Dad, I'm sorry, I didn't complete the goals you set for me until I was 26 years old. After some detours, I never dared to tell you that I was afraid you would scold me, but now, I can finally talk to you, Dad, about how I got here all these years, because I achieved the goal you gave me, and I am not so afraid of you scolding me For the sake of the World Cup, Dad, you won't scold me, will you?"

Zhang Qing smiled happily.

Ren Changmei was tired from standing, so she leaned over the steps and blew away the dust, then sat down. Occasionally look back and continue to wait.

Fei Qingming's cemetery was very quiet, except for gusts of mountain wind, blowing the treetops nearby and the hair around her ears.

She waited like this for an unknown amount of time, when her son's voice came from behind: "Let's go, Mom."

Only then did Ren Changmei lift her face from her hands, and turned to see her son smiling at her: "Finish talking with your dad?"

"Well, we're done talking."

"Okay." She got up and patted the ashes on her buttocks, "Let's go."

"What did you and your dad talk about?"

"can not say."

"Even I can't tell?"

"It's a secret between men, Mom."

"It's as if he secretly took you to eat ice cream"

"Ha! Let's take it that way, Ma."

"Hey, if you don't say it, don't say it. I'll ask him when the time comes!"

"Then mom, you have to wait."

The two of them walked down the stairs like this, walking farther and farther side by side.

Behind them, the wind blows through the pine forest, and the sound of the waves sends each other away.

When Li Ziqiang left the school and walked towards the parking lot, he saw workers hanging a banner above the gate of Dongchuan Middle School under the command of the vice principal.

He looked back:

"Warmly celebrate our school alumni Hu Lai, Luo Kai and Xia Xiaoyu participating in the World Cup!!"

Well, the old headmaster can show off all summer again

Li Ziqiang did not stop at the school gate to take pictures like other students and teachers did, but shook his head and left.

I drove home from school, parked the car, took the elevator up to the tenth floor, opened the door and put my bag on the sofa in the living room, then turned around and went out, and knocked on the door next door.

It was his daughter Li Qingqing who opened the door for him: "Dad, are you back? Come quickly!"

After she finished speaking, she turned around and ran back bouncing.

Li Ziqiang looked at her happy back and sighed helplessly.

Turning around again, I saw Hu Lixin greeting him: "Get off work, Lao Li?"

Li Ziqiang quickly responded: "Well, I'm off work. Sister Xie has cooked so many delicious food again? Don't forget to make a World Cup set meal for Hu Lai."

Xie Lan's voice came from the kitchen: "I haven't forgotten! I'm about to do it!"

Hu Lai, who was coming out of the "Room of Honor" with Li Qingqing, changed his expression when he heard this conversation.

Seeing his expression, a smile finally appeared on Li Ziqiang's face.

After the announcement of the list of twenty-three people, Shi Wuyin gave all Chinese team players a four-day vacation.

Let them go home and spend time with their families, put aside the stress and fatigue during the training camp, and enjoy life to the fullest.

Then come back again, regroup, start from the mountains and seas, cross the mountains and the sea, and carry the ardent hope and trust of the people of the whole country to go to a grand appointment.