Christmas was approaching, but there was still plenty to be done.
In Europe, Christmas is like the Spring Festival in China.
After the final round of matches before Christmas, Manchester City shifted their focus to light daily training, as the club had arranged several events—some of which were annual traditions, such as visiting local communities, children's hospitals in Manchester and surrounding areas, and schools with a large number of fans.
These were yearly routines for European clubs.
All first-team players would be divided into groups and sent to different destinations.
But this year was different from previous years.
Manchester City was now the reigning Premier League champion. Since winning the title, the club's standards in many areas had risen.
For instance, starting this year, a well-known British charity reached out to Manchester City, hoping to collaborate.
This was actually a very meaningful initiative, and it helped enhance the club's image and standing.
They organized a charity dinner in Manchester, inviting political and business figures from all walks of life. Manchester City, naturally, would be the main guests, and media outlets would be present to film and promote the event.
There would also be a charity auction, participation voluntary.
Gao Shen attended the dinner with the Manchester City team, all dressed formally. There, he reunited with his old favorite, David Beckham.
It had been a long time since they had last seen each other, and both were delighted to catch up.
Gao Shen congratulated Beckham on receiving the BBC Lifetime Achievement Award in London.
Although the award wasn't particularly authoritative, it carried significant influence, enough to reaffirm Beckham's stature in British football and boost his popularity across the UK once again.
Beckham also congratulated Gao Shen. Under his leadership, Manchester City had won multiple Premier League awards and the league title. Now, they were favorites again this season and contenders for the Champions League as well.
Just two days earlier, during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 draw, Manchester City had been paired with Ligue 1 side Lyon.
"You know, Lyon has always been a difficult opponent for Real Madrid," Beckham said sympathetically.
Over the years, Real Madrid had suffered repeatedly at Lyon's hands.
Gao Shen smiled. He felt it was a good draw.
His hard work in winning the group had finally paid off.
"Planning to return to Europe to play again?" Gao Shen asked.
Beckham nodded. "I've always kept in touch. You know I've still got a lot left in me."
Sometimes, Gao Shen wondered if Beckham ever regretted moving to Major League Soccer.
Perhaps occasionally, but not most of the time.
From a purely footballing perspective, it may have been a poor decision. But in terms of his life, it was a huge success. Who could say for sure what was right or wrong?
"By the way, are you interested in any of the items tonight?" Beckham asked, gesturing toward the charity auction stage.
The items up for auction were all donated by celebrities, with all proceeds going to charity.
They were mostly personal trinkets. Beckham had donated one of his own paintings.
God knows when Beckham, who was so good at football, learned to paint.
Previously, a charity organization had also approached Gao Shen, hoping he would contribute a Chinese calligraphy piece. But Gao Shen knew his calligraphy wasn't presentable.
If anyone had practiced calligraphy from childhood, it was Su Qing.
His fiancée's handwriting was genuinely excellent. In the past, many families in their community would ask her to write Spring Festival couplets.
She even bought a book of couplet samples and copied them each time, making her very popular in the neighborhood.
"I like that puzzle," Gao Shen said, pointing at one of the oil painting puzzles on display.
This puzzle was created by a couple of well-known avant-garde artists. It had been disassembled, and the scrambled version was shown in a frame. To reveal the original image, you had to piece the puzzle together.
Gao Shen remembered that Su Qing liked doing these kinds of things in her free time.
"Good luck, then!" Beckham laughed.
…
The atmosphere at the charity auction was cheerful and relaxed. Everyone participated with a playful attitude.
For example, Beckham's painting sold for 15,000 pounds.
But Gao Shen didn't believe it was a carefully crafted masterpiece. Beckham probably just doodled something. It didn't have the "abstract artistic value" the host claimed.
Was Beckham secretly a painting genius who had been overshadowed by football?
No one was eager to buy the puzzle. Most of the wealthy guests didn't have the patience to complete a one-meter-tall jigsaw. It would be a huge waste of time.
So Gao Shen easily bought it at the starting price of 2,000 pounds.
Afterwards, the artist couple came over to chat and thanked him for purchasing their work. They also exchanged contact details and expressed interest in staying in touch.
Gao Shen, now one of the most famous figures in the UK—if not Europe—wasn't known for his looks, but for his achievements. This made him even more widely respected.
Of course, Gao Shen also did his part by promoting the event. He sent out several tweets that night, fully supporting the charity.
Sure enough, the next day, Beckham's painting and the puzzle Gao Shen had bought became hot topics in the media. The artist couple also gained significant exposure and fame.
After the publicity, a collector even expressed interest in buying Gao Shen's puzzle at double the price.
Even Gao Shen didn't quite understand. Were all artworks hyped up like this?
Wasn't it just a little too profitable?
…
Manchester City's off-pitch activities didn't stop after the auction.
The annual Christmas dinner was held at Carrington.
Last season, the team had finished the second half with a perfect record. This year, they had drawn just one match so far, a very impressive achievement. So the club put extra effort into preparing this year's event, giving it a theme: "Christmas Funny Party."
What did that mean?
It meant everyone could dress however they liked. They could wear outfits they would never dare to try on a normal day, including cross-dressing. The club even hired professionals to help with costumes. Carrington was decorated with a quirky and festive vibe that matched the theme.
Not to mention, the club invested quite a bit of money into the event.
With professionals assisting and the players being mostly young men, everyone went all out to be as outrageous as possible.
So Super Mario, Cyclops, Captain Jack, Harry Potter... those were nothing. Some came dressed as Avatars, and others as horror movie villains...
Gao Shen didn't even realize when the players had secretly made a private bet. The result was that Yaya Toure had to show up in a maid outfit, which stunned everyone and created the biggest reaction of the night.
Even the women at the party screamed and cheered for Yaya Toure's look.
Gao Shen himself was assigned a role. He originally intended to dress like Xu Wenqiang from The Bund, but those rascals made him wear a sexy pink scarf and big yellow glasses, giving him a ridiculous appearance with huge, exaggerated eyes.
None of the other coaches or management escaped unscathed. They were all targets of playful sabotage.
The funniest of all was Brian Kidd, a man in his sixties, wearing a thin white pajama set. One could only imagine the scene.
Despite all the absurdity, the atmosphere was incredibly lively.
Mubarak showed up dressed as Santa Claus. On behalf of the club's board, he handed out red envelopes to each player and coach. He also passed along encouragement from Sheikh Mansour, expressing hope that the team would retain the Premier League title and make a breakthrough in the Champions League.
As per tradition, Gao Shen also gave every player and staff member a carefully chosen gift. All the items were Chinese in style, prepared by Su Qing in China and shipped over to the UK.
Gao Shen then went on stage to thank the players, coaching staff, and management. He also expressed his strong belief that with Manchester City's strength, they could achieve great things in the Champions League.
"After six group-stage matches, I believe everyone now has a preliminary understanding of the Champions League."
"Of course, I must remind everyone that the knockout rounds will be even more brutal, more intense, and more stressful than the group stage. But after playing through the group, I believe you all know what to expect."
"We are not just a dark horse or a first-time participant in the Champions League. On the contrary, we have the strength to shock the world!"
"Achieving this goal is not easy. It requires each one of us to work together and stay absolutely focused!"
"I believe that as long as we fight hard in every match, we'll have the chance to stand at the summit of the Champions League!"
The entire room was buzzing with excitement.
Even though everyone was dressed in costumes, the sincerity in Gao Shen's speech lit a fire in their eyes.
After all, which professional player doesn't dream of winning the Champions League?
Gao Shen came to Manchester City to win the Champions League. The players joined the club not just for the money, but also for that same dream. Mubarak and the club's top brass wanted it even more.
Having already claimed the Premier League title, Manchester City wanted not just domestic success, but European glory.
No one knew how far they could go, but that didn't stop Gao Shen from proclaiming the goal loud and clear.
As someone once said: if you don't even dare to set a goal, how will you ever achieve anything?
Judging by the players' reactions, Gao Shen knew they all shared the same goal.
At the very least, Manchester City still had strong cohesion.
Their goal was clear.
But Gao Shen still had another matter to focus on.
Lucas had been extremely busy for the past two months. During the two-day Christmas break, Gao Shen finally found time to sit down with him and discuss the latest updates.
(To be continued.)