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Chapter 82 A trivial matter

"Damn you stupid bastard Kang Dong-hoon!"

Su Ju complained to Chi Zhen on WeChat about what he had just seen, and ended with this curse.

"Hasn't he always been like this? We've been with him from the National Youth Team to the National Olympic Team, and then to the National Team...it's not the first day we've known him." Chi Zhen replied.

"Club matters, sending fucking national team photos to be sarcastic to Brother Wang... Korean reporters are so fucking despicable!" Su Ju has an innate prejudice against Koreans, so when it comes to things related to Korea, his tone is very intense and the words he uses are very vulgar.

"And the Koreans still have the nerve to mention the 31st Asian Cup. The stupid Koreans relied on their home advantage to bribe referees to fix matches. They think it's glorious, right?"

Su Ju was still cursing.

In the 2031 Japan-Korea Asian Cup, South Korea was one of the hosts, and the Chinese team met them in the quarter-finals and was then eliminated.

There was a very controversial penalty in that game.

And one of the parties involved is Kang Dong-hoon.

At the age of 19, Kang Dong-hoon was already a key player for the South Korean team. In the 71st minute of the game, he dribbled into the penalty area.

After he dribbled past him, China's right back Qin An turned around and chased him, stretching his hand forward to interfere with Jiang Dongxun.

As a result, when he just put his hand on Jiang Dongxun's shoulder, the latter fell to the ground with a scream.

Then a sharp and piercing whistle sounded.

The referee whistled a foul on Qin An for pushing an opponent and gave the South Korean team a crucial penalty kick!
At that time, Qin An raised his hands and looked at the referee who came to show him the yellow card with a confused look on his face. It took him a few seconds to realize that the referee was calling him for a pushing foul, not for Jiang Dongxun's diving foul...

If Chu Yu had not stopped him in time and dragged him away, Qin An might have received a second yellow card for confronting the referee and been sent off.

It was with this penalty kick that the South Korean team secured the victory and eventually eliminated the Chinese team with a score of 3:1, advancing to the semi-finals, and finally winning the championship, lifting the Asian Cup at home.

This penalty kick that decided the outcome of the game naturally caused a lot of controversy after the game.

The Korean media, Korean fans, and the Chinese media, Chinese fans started a war of words online.

Chinese fans and media analyzed the video of Qin An's so-called foul, and restored the ball frame by frame to determine whether Qin An committed a foul.

He even explained from a mechanical point of view that the force Qin An applied was far from enough to push Jiang Dongxun to the ground. So it was confirmed that Jiang Dongxun was faking a fall!

The Korean media and fans believe that as long as Qin An took the ball in the penalty area, it was a foul regardless of whether he applied any force. Since it was a foul, it didn't matter whether Jiang Dongxun fell or not, there was no problem with the penalty.

Besides, how can we prove that Qin An did not use any force just by watching the video? Don't say that the movement is small. Isn't there something called "inch force" in Chinese Kung Fu? What if Qin An used inch force on our Jiang Dongxun?

In the end, the Chinese scolded the Koreans for having no sports ethics, while the Koreans scolded the Chinese for not being able to accept defeat.

No one can convince anyone else, and no one expects to convince anyone else. It's just to vent emotions.

Four years later, in the 2035 Vietnam-Malaysia-Thailand Asian Cup, the Chinese team met the South Korean team again in the first round of the knockout stage.

The game was seen as a "battle of revenge" by Chinese media and fans.

As a result, due to the tactical conflict between Wang Lie and Chi Zhen, the Chinese team performed poorly and eventually lost to the South Korean team 1:2.

The defeat in this game caused a great shock in China, resulting in the former Chinese team head coach Freddie Hoekstra being dismissed.

It was this failure that opened the way for reform within the Chinese team, which led to Wang Lie being gradually squeezed out of the national team's main lineup, and Chi Zhen was promoted to the main lineup.

It can be said that whether it is the Korean reporter who posted on Instagram or Kang Dong-hoon who liked the post, their actions at this time are tantamount to rubbing salt into the wounds of Wang Lie and the Chinese players and fans.

"... Damn it, it's a pity that I'm in La Liga and don't have the chance to teach the motherless Koreans how to be polite. We're not in the same group with them in the quarterfinals..."

Su Ju also vented his frustration through constant text messages on WeChat.

Chi Zhen comforted him, "It's okay, Su Ju. Isn't it Wang Ge and Jiang Dongxun's game tomorrow? I believe Wang Ge will definitely not be indifferent to Jiang Dongxun's provocation. Besides, there is me. In the next round of the league, we Scouts will play against the Cavaliers at home."

"Very good, teach that stupid bastard a lesson for me! If you lose, I won't talk to you for a month!"

Chi Zhen laughed when he heard Su Ju's childish words.

"This punishment is a bit light..."

"Hey, then I'll change it to if you lose, I'll block you on WeChat!"

Chi Zhen smiled and typed: "Don't worry, I will definitely win. Don't forget, Jiang Dongxun is also my opponent."

After sending the message, Chi Zhen temporarily switched to Instagram and refreshed it, and saw a new message from his national team teammate Qin An.

He sent a photo.

The photo shows Brother Wang wearing the Chinese national team jersey. He pinches his right index finger and thumb together in front of the camera. He also narrows one eye and moves closer playfully.

It seems that you have to get very close to see the gap between the index finger and the thumb clearly...

The text Qin An added to this picture is:
"Korean kid, take control."

※※※

“…When Korean football reporter Lee Donghae posted that Instagram post on his personal social media and Kang Dongxun liked it himself, fans, media and players from China and South Korea started another online war of words…

"Chinese international Qin An hit back on his personal Instagram account. He posted a controversial scene from the 2034 Saudi Arabia World Cup Asian qualifiers when the Chinese team beat South Korea away:
"Wang Lie, who scored the goal, made a hand gesture to the broadcast camera, which is widely believed in South Korea to be used to mock the small size of Korean men's 'things'...

"Wang Lie caused a conflict between the two players on the field because of this action, and he was also shown a yellow card... After the game, people in South Korea strongly demanded that Wang Lie apologize, and even the South Korean government called for pressure... But Wang Lie has not apologized so far. Wang Lie was also listed as the most unwelcome foreigner by Korean fans online, and some Korean fans called on the country to include Wang Lie in the list of unwelcome foreigners and ban Wang Lie from entering the country...

"Qin An has now reposted this photo as a response to Korean journalist Lee Donghae and Hackney Knights' Korean international Kang Dongxun. His move naturally attracted the dissatisfaction of many Korean fans and media, who accused Qin An of being immoral and disrespectful... In the huge public opinion storm, Chinese international Su Ju liked Qin An's Instagram post...

"In the midst of the huge controversy, the instigator, Lee Donghae, issued a new statement, saying that he just wanted to give Korean fans a good memory and didn't understand why his ordinary Instagram post could break some people's defenses...

"Qin An also responded quickly, saying that he also wanted to relive the classic moment for Chinese fans, and he didn't understand why a common move in China could make some people lose their defense...

"So far, Wang Lie has not made any response. We will continue to pay attention to the development of the matter for you..."

※※※

"Ahhhhhh!" Dean lay on the ping-pong table, raising his hands and hitting the table repeatedly.

Opposite him was Wang Lie, who was surrounded by his teammates celebrating the victory.

"What a pity, this football king is just lucky..." Elliot Goetz patted Dean's back gently to comfort him.

When Wang Lie hit the ball just now, everyone, including Wang Lie himself, thought that the ball would definitely go out of bounds.

Unexpectedly, the ping-pong ball ended up brushing the edge of the table and flying out... Because it came into contact with the table, it couldn't be considered out of bounds, but was a valid score.

So after five tough battles with Dean, Wang Lie finally defeated Dean with a total score of 3:2 and won the championship of the third "China-UK Table Tennis Challenge".

Looking at the lively and jubilant atmosphere, Hugo Gunduzzi stroked his chin and said to himself: "If the challenge between the two of them becomes a routine, should we prepare a trophy and give it to the winner every time?"

After hearing this, Katic glanced at his central defender partner and said, "What? Do you still want to make their one-on-one match regular?"

"This will prevent the situation where Dean or Wang doesn't want to play anymore and there's nothing fun to watch." Gunduz spread his hands, "What do you think of my idea?"

"I think... I think Dean won't want to play until he defeats the king." Katic said to Sonny Dean who had an angry look on his face.

Dean was pointing at Wang Lie and loudly questioning, "Did you hire a coach to teach you?!"

Wang Lie snorted coldly: "Is it necessary to deal with you?"

Then he asked sarcastically, "Or do you want to play billiards with me? This is your British advantage, right?"

Dean shook his head firmly: "No! Let's play table tennis! I will beat you! I promise I will beat you!"

Katic said to Gunduzzi, "Look, Hugo."

Gunduz murmured, "Dean is different now... He is full of fighting spirit now."

“Because he has a purpose now.”

"Defeat the king?"

Katich smiled and looked at Wang Lie: "Who doesn't want to defeat Wang?"

Under his gaze, Wang Lie responded to Dean's challenge without hesitation: "Want to beat me? You still need to practice for another ten years! Oh, I forgot, you will not be on the team after this season..."

He spread his hands, looking very regretful.

"FUCK WANG!" Dean raised his middle finger to Wang Lie and cursed, "Just wait! I will definitely beat you before the end of this season!" Everyone laughed, and some people shouted loudly: "I'm rooting for you, Dean! Kill Wang!"

"Good job! Dean, don't be a coward!"

At this moment, no one was worried that there might be a traitor who would expose Dean's middle finger to Wang Lie to the media, saying that this was another "internal conflict" in the team...

Even if there is a "ghost", it will not affect the team in the slightest.

The atmosphere in the recreation hall was cheerful until Elliot Goetz took out his cell phone and took a look.

He originally wanted to see what comments he had posted on Tik Tok about the table tennis match between Wang Lie and Dean. Ever since the internal strife, Goetz realized that instead of closing the team off from the outside world and allowing rumors to arise, it would be better to show everyone the daily life of the team.

In this way, people will not speculate about the relationship between Wang Lie and Dean, and there will be no soil for rumors to arise.

So he would occasionally take a short video of everyone having fun and post it online to promote to the outside world that Tyne is no longer the much-criticized "mercenary" today.

But today, before he had time to read the comments on his Tik Tok, he saw other comments first and exclaimed, "Wang! Look at the Internet! Those...those..."

He got anxious and didn't know how to explain the situation clearly.

Wang Lie interrupted him with a wave of his hand: "I know, Elliot. No need to make a fuss."

Goetz was surprised, even more surprised than before: "You knew? When did you know?"

Wang Lie glanced at Dean and said, "Before the last game with Dean, I checked my phone and I knew it at that time..."

Dean was confused: "What are you talking about?"

Others were also confused: "What happened?"

"Well, it's actually not a big deal..." Wang Lie simply recounted the grievances and hatreds between him and the Korean players.

After he finished speaking, some people were angry, such as the number one "King fan" Vitini. He was furious, as if his idol being humiliated was equivalent to being humiliated himself.

"Is this bastard out of his mind? How dare he?!"

Some people, like Van Ginkel, found it hard to understand. The Dutch midfielder spread his hands and asked in confusion: "To be honest, I don't understand the train of thought of this Korean man at all... Does he think that nothing will happen if he angers Wang?"

Hugo Gunduzzi asked Wang Lie: "Wang, you won't respond to him? I'm ready. If you respond to him, I'll give you a thumbs up right away!"

Everyone turned to look at Wang Lie.

Wang Lie shook his head: "No, I won't respond now."

"Ah..." Gunduzzi's sigh was clearly filled with disappointment.

Some people also didn't understand: "Can you tolerate this, King?"

Wang Lie said, "Of course not. But what's better than responding to him on the court?"

Vitini jumped up, "That's right! Turn your anger into strength! Go to the game and teach that bastard a lesson! Make him regret angering us!"

His words were quickly responded to by other teammates, and everyone clamored to seek justice for Wang Lie.

Seeing his excited teammates, Elliot Goetz first breathed a sigh of relief, then laughed: "Well, it looks like we have one more reason to beat the league leader..."

In the lively atmosphere, Dean seemed to have just come to his senses. He pointed at himself and asked Wang Lie: "So after you knew this, you still continued to compete with me, and even beat me?"

Wang Lie spread his hands and said, "Because it's not a big deal."

Katich teased, "You just realized it, Sonny?"

Dean felt like a clown, and he exposed himself on his own initiative...

"Damn it..." he cursed weakly.

Seeing him like this, everyone burst into laughter.

So the entertainment hall was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

※※※

"What caused the Chinese national team players and fans to collectively break down? Jiang Dongxun has once again torn open the wounds of the Chinese people!"

In the South Korean national team’s KakaoTalk group, someone shared this link.

This is an article that tells the story of the war of words that took place in the football circles of China and South Korea tonight from a Korean perspective.

In addition to explaining the basic facts, it also adds a lot of Korean people's views on this matter.

The things are still the same, but the conclusions drawn from different perspectives are completely different.

In the eyes of Koreans, it was normal for Kang Dong-hoon to like Lee Dong-hae's post on Instagram. However, Chinese fans and players made unwarranted associations, which caused their fragile hearts to be shattered.

"Well done, Kang Dong-hoon!" Choi Hong-min, who shared the link, praised, "You just moved your fingers slightly and succeeded in making them collapse!"

His sharing also livened up the atmosphere in the national team group.

One after another, people came out to express their opinions on this matter - of course, they all supported their teammate Jiang Dongxun, and took the opportunity to blacken the Chinese players and fans.

"I read it too, and I don't understand why the Chinese are so angry. Isn't what reporter Lee Donghae said true? As a Korean player, why can't Kang Dongxun like such an article? Does he need the Chinese to agree to like it?"

"It's so funny. We were eliminated from the Asian Cup for two consecutive times, and they still have the nerve to brag about being the 'light of Asia'!"

"What do you mean by 'light of Asia'? I never thought he was the 'light of Asia'. He is just the 'light of China'. Asia is so big, how can he represent everyone? And why should I be proud of the success of a Chinese player? I am not Chinese!"

"Hong Min is right. It's disgusting that the Chinese media hypes up the 'light of Asia', as if China represents the whole of Asia!"

"That's right! If you want to represent Asia, besides having good football skills, character is also very important! For example, our senior Liu Junpei had outstanding football skills when he played football before, and his character was recognized as good. He is the real 'light of Asia'!"

Liu Junpei was the "Light of Asia" before Wang Lie. He played for the Premier League giants Kensington for eight seasons and served as captain, becoming the first Asian player to serve as captain of a Premier League giant team.

His peak period is between 2014 and 2023. Before Wang Lie grew up, he was indeed the most successful representative of Asian players. Moreover, Liu Junpei and Wang Lie are also very different in character. He is humble and gentle, and has a very good reputation in European football.

But now he has retired, and Korean fans can only watch videos to recall the most powerful "Asian Light" of Korean football.

There has always been an old grudge between Chinese and Korean football, but it has been intensifying in recent years. It basically stems from the controversial match in the 2031 Japan-Korea Asian Cup, and they dislike each other.

Korean players and fans didn't think there was anything wrong with their victory, so they complained that the Chinese couldn't afford to lose, especially Wang Lie, a top star, who had no manners at all, was vindictive and petty... What kind of "light of Asia" is this? It's simply "the shame of Asia"!
Chinese players and fans think that Koreans are really shameless...

The conflict between the two sides is not just about football, but also about geopolitical, economic and historical reasons, which are basically difficult to reconcile among the people.

Football is just one of the most concentrated manifestations.

"Come to think of it, has Wang Lie not responded yet?"

"What did he say? The facts are in front of us. He did lose to us in two consecutive Asian Cups. What else can he say? No matter how unhappy he is, he has to hold it in!"

"Ha! Dongxun has really hit a sore spot for him! He has no face to respond!"

"I can only be a coward and wait for the storm to pass..."

"Hahaha!"

Some of the Korean international players in the group laughed at Wang Lie.

Just then, the team captain Jin Zairong shared a video to the group.

It was the Tik Tok video shot by Elliot Goetz.

In the video, Wang Lie is playing table tennis with Sonny Dean while being watched by his teammates!
That evening, there was an uproar on the Internet in China and South Korea because of Kang Dongxun's likes. No one expected that Wang Lie, one of the parties involved, was actually playing table tennis with his teammates from his club... He still had the leisure time to do so!

The group discussion, which was previously very lively, suddenly cooled down.

I don’t know if it’s because of this video or because of the captain’s sudden appearance…

Jiang Dongxun, who was originally laughing at his phone, suddenly became serious.

He knew why the captain posted this video.

Isn't he just trying to tell himself that the other person doesn't care about him at all?

Jiang Dongxun clenched his fists.

(End of this chapter)