The match between Capitalview First High and the National Team Reserves was abruptly terminated. In the end, the Reserves were declared 2–0 winners, but nobody really cared about the score anymore.
Principal Damon Deng and Director Ben Lu rushed Ethan Yi and the other injured players to the hospital. They glanced at Stella Huang, the city TV reporter, still worrying about how to keep her from writing a negative story. To their surprise, Stella simply agreed to drop the topic, leaving them genuinely relieved.
This time, the person who’d brought Ethan Yi and the others to the match was an assistant coach from the National Team. After Evan Lin left, the assistant coach immediately stormed over, threatening Principal Deng and Director Lu, and warned them he’d escalate the incident if they didn’t handle it right. He even called Coach Peter directly in front of them!
Damon Deng looked grim, while Ben Lu was deeply anxious. Coach Peter’s international reputation was far beyond anything Capitalview First High could hope to match.
"I’ll give you one last chance. Either you get that student to apologize to my players and pay for their emotional damages right now, or I’ll call Coach Peter this instant! If Coach Peter finds out his players were treated so unfairly and even assaulted during a friendly match, your school will be all over the news tomorrow!" The assistant coach was fuming, phone in his right hand, jabbing a finger at Deng and Lu with wild abandon.
"I’ve already spoken to several students and gotten the gist of what happened. Yes, our students made mistakes, but Ethan Yi from your team was the one who started provoking people. They’re all young and hot-blooded—if you want to talk responsibility, both sides share it." Damon Deng finally managed to steady himself and replied earnestly to the assistant coach.
"So you’re saying my players just get beaten up for nothing? Do you even realize they’re future National Team prospects who could bring glory to the country? What kind of students do you have here—no manners, just a bunch of violent thugs!"
The assistant coach roared at Deng and Lu. Neither of them had ever been publicly yelled at like this on campus, and for once, they were at a loss for words.
All the students in the stands watched silently, listening to the assistant coach’s rant as if he were slaughtering pigs, their faces stiff and uncomfortable.
"Fine, I’ll call Coach Peter right now and let him see what kind of trash Capitalview First High really is! If I’d known, I would’ve chosen Peiying High for our friendly instead—why did we even bother coming here?" The assistant coach was absolutely livid.
He picked up his phone and dialed quickly.
"Principal!" Ben Lu’s face changed dramatically. If this really blew up and Coach Peter held a press conference, Capitalview First High would be totally infamous—and as Director, Ben would definitely get blamed.
Damon Deng shook his head. At this point, things were way beyond his control.
The assistant coach quickly got through. One hand on his hip, chin raised, he started as soon as the call connected: "Coach Peter, our team ran into a special situation during the friendly with Capitalview First High."
The assistant coach paused, then glared coldly at Damon Deng and Ben Lu. "Capitalview’s team couldn’t beat us, so their students attacked our players!"
"Especially Ethan Yi—he’s the most seriously injured, already sent to the hospital!"
With every word the assistant coach spoke, Damon Deng and Ben Lu looked paler and paler. Even as Principal and Director, they were nothing compared to a world-famous coach like Peter.
"The name of the student who attacked? You want to report this directly to the education bureau leaders? That’s perfect!" The assistant coach raised his voice, making sure Deng and Lu heard every word.
He shot a smug look at Damon Deng. "Coach Peter wants the student’s name! You’d better not lie to me. If the bureau investigates and finds out you lied, you’ll take the fall!"
"His name is Evan Lin."
Damon Deng and Ben Lu saw things had gone this far and could only grit their teeth, hoping they’d get a chance to explain to Coach Peter themselves.
"That troublemaker is named Evan Lin!" the assistant coach blurted out to Coach Peter.
But as soon as he finished, Coach Peter on the other end suddenly went silent for a long time, then sounded a bit excited as he asked a few questions.
The assistant coach froze, glanced at Damon Deng, then handed over the phone. "Uh, Coach Peter wants to speak with you."
"Speak with me?" Damon Deng was overjoyed and quickly took the phone, ready to explain. But before he could say a word, he heard Coach Peter, sounding excited: "Your school’s Evan Lin—is he the Evan Lin from Brightsea City?"
"Evan Lin from Brightsea City? Yes, he did transfer here from there." Damon Deng confirmed, then tried to continue: "Coach Peter, I apologize for what happened today. Our school will cover all medical expenses for the players, and also—"
Before he could finish, Coach Peter exclaimed in delight: "It really is him! Haha, that genius—it’s just a shame he didn’t accept my invitation to join Crisbeal FC!"
"I’m busy training players right now and can’t come to Capitalview in person, but if you get a chance, please help persuade Evan Lin for me. Tell him that both the National Team and Crisbeal FC will always welcome him! Please give Evan my regards!" Coach Peter spoke quickly and happily, with not a hint of displeasure.
"Of course, I’ll pass that on! But about this incident—" Damon Deng was thrilled and tried to use the opportunity to resolve the issue.
But before he could say more, Coach Peter interrupted: "If it were anyone else, I’d definitely pursue responsibility. But with Evan Lin, I trust his character completely."
"So this matter is settled. Just hand the phone back to the assistant coach."
Coach Peter was dead serious. Damon Deng and Ben Lu felt like they were dreaming—they never imagined Coach Peter would get so excited just hearing Evan Lin’s name.
The assistant coach took the phone back, mumbled a few words, then slunk off with a face like pig liver—utterly humiliated.