Mount noticed him staring at his phone and asked curiously, "Business?"
"Sort of," Ling said.
"Club stuff?"
"Youth football."
Sancho perked up. "Your academy?"
Ling nodded. "It should open in early August if everything goes smoothly."
Sterling, who had grown up understanding how much environment mattered to young players, gave him an approving look.
"That's good! Kids need somewhere proper to play."
"Yeah," Ling said. "Talent is useless if the road is broken."
He said it calmly, but those who knew anything about his background could hear the weight behind it.
There would be quite a few endorsement activities connected to the England team in the coming weeks, but Ling had also made it clear to Mendes that his domestic projects could not be abandoned.
Choosing England did not mean cutting ties with China; if anything, he had to be even more careful to prove through action what he could no longer prove through a national-team shirt.
Some people would never accept it.
That was fine.
He could not control everyone's feelings.
But he could control what he did.
Ding-ding-ding—
A loud ringtone broke through the relaxed atmosphere.
Ling walked to the window, drew back the curtains, and let the warm sunlight stream in before answering.
"Zlatan?"
"You want to make a comeback and come to Manchester United?"
"What? You don't want to be my backup, so you're going to AC Milan instead?"
"..."
After hanging up the phone, Ling sighed helplessly.
He had thought Ibrahimović might return to Manchester United, but after thinking about it, that was clearly unrealistic.
With Zlatan's proud personality, how could he possibly accept being Ling's substitute?
Imagining the possibility of facing him in the future, Ling found it quite interesting and even something to look forward to.
...
On June 11th, the day before England's next friendly, St George's Park opened part of its training session to the media for two hours.
Although only media personnel were allowed inside, many fans still gathered outside the base.
"Hello everyone, I'm standing outside St George's Park, where England have opened part of today's training session to the media."
A BBC reporter walked with a group of journalists toward the training ground.
"Jeremy Ling's first England appearance has obviously changed the atmosphere around the national team. The question now is whether this excitement can be turned into something sustainable, because England fans have experienced hope before, and they know better than most how painful hope can become."
The reporter reached the interview area by the pitch and handed a small microphone to Ling.
"Jeremy, what are your thoughts on yesterday's match?"
"It was a good start to my England career, but the Philippines' strength on paper is average, so it didn't fully test our tactics. We still need to improve, refine the system, and build better chemistry. The real tests will come against stronger teams."
"How did it feel to score your first England hat-trick?"
"It was different from playing at club level," Ling said after a moment of thought. "At a club, you fight for your teammates, your supporters, and the people who live with the team every week. With the national team, the feeling is broader. You see people in the stands wearing the same shirt and hoping this team can give them something to believe in. That brings pride, but also responsibility."
"What are your goals moving forward?"
Ling looked at the reporter and answered calmly.
"To help England compete for major trophies."
The reporter paused for a brief moment.
It was a simple answer, but everyone understood the weight behind it.
For years, England had spoken of golden generations, missed penalties, heartbreak, and beautiful failures.
Now, in front of them stood a player who had already carried Manchester United through the biggest nights in Europe and had chosen to step into that old, complicated dream.
"May you succeed," the reporter said.
Ling smiled and offered a firm handshake.
"We'll work for it."
The second reporter to interview him was from Sky Sports, and then came several foreign media outlets.
As expected, many of the questions were not purely about football.
"Jeremy, many Chinese fans are still hurt by your decision. Do you have anything to say to them?"
Ling's expression did not change much, but his answer slowed.
"I understand why they're hurt. I won't ask everyone to accept my decision immediately, and I won't pretend it doesn't matter. I was born in China. My parents are Chinese. Many Chinese fans supported me before the rest of the world knew who I was. Those things are real to me."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"But my football life was built in England. This is the choice I made for my career, and I hope people can judge me not only by the shirt I wear, but also by what I continue to do. I will keep supporting youth football in China. That won't change."
The reporters immediately grew excited.
That answer would become a headline.
Meanwhile, across forums and livestreams, discussions about the media open day were heating up.
[Seeing him in England training still feels painful.]
[At least he didn't say anything ugly. He still mentioned Chinese youth football.]
[Words are easy. Let's see what he actually does.]
[Chasing the Wind is opening in August. Wanda already announced sponsorship, and Bin City's local government is supporting the education-football dual pathway.]
[I heard Antwerp has already contacted Shenhua about Zhu Chenjie.]
[Does Ling really have that much influence?]
[Of course he does. Didn't you see what happened at Manchester United? Pogba and Rashford caused trouble and were directly listed for sale. The club chose Ling without hesitation.]
[Capitalists aren't fools.]
[And it's not just Manchester United's network. Teams from the Turkish Super League, Eredivisie, Bundesliga, and other leagues are also contacting young Chinese players now.]
[Other clubs saw Manchester United hit the jackpot with Ling and now want to buy their own lottery ticket. That's the bandwagon effect.]
[Going abroad is one thing, but youth development is the foundation. If Chasing the Wind really works, then at least there will be a proper path for kids.]
[He chose England, but he's still doing more for Chinese football than most people who shout slogans every day.]
[Go, Chinese football! Success doesn't have to belong to me, but I can still be part of it.]
Ling did not read all of those comments.
He had training to finish, a new team to integrate into, and a long road ahead.
Some people would keep cursing him no matter what he did, while others would slowly understand with time.
He could not force either group to change their minds.
All he could do was keep walking.
One step in England's white shirt.
One hand still reaching back toward the road he had come from.
...
Three days later, England's second international friendly was held at Wembley.
Facing Andorra, Southgate rotated several players but kept Jeremy Ling in the starting lineup, wanting to test his role in a slightly deeper position rather than leaving him fixed on the right wing.
In the 13th minute, Kyle Walker broke through on the overlap and crossed into the middle.
Ling flicked the ball away from the defender with his first touch, adjusted his body just outside the box, and followed up with a long-range strike that flew into the bottom corner.
In the 35th minute, Ling received the ball in midfield, dribbled past two players, and delivered a lofted through ball into the right channel. Raheem Sterling burst into the space and fired a sharp-angled shot into the net.
Shortly after that, Southgate began adjusting the lineup, switching from a back three into a more conventional four-defender setup while bringing on younger players for experience.
In the end, England defeated Andorra 3–0.
The result itself did not carry much weight, but for Southgate and his staff, the two friendlies had been valuable.
Ling had not only scored and assisted, but also shown that he could play multiple roles across the front line, drop into midfield to connect attacks, and still maintain his threat in transition.
For England fans, that was enough to keep the discussion burning for several more days.
For Chinese fans, the mood remained complicated.
Some people still refused to watch the highlights, while others watched quietly and then closed the video without commenting.
The sight of Ling creating goals in a white shirt hurt, but even the angriest fans could not deny that he had become the kind of player they had once dreamed Chinese football would produce.
...
After finishing the two England friendlies, Ling rushed straight to Rongcheng China.
"Marouane, looks like you've been doing well lately."
Ling looked at Fellaini across from him.
"Too bad we didn't gel well enough this year, but I'm confident we'll win the championship next season."
Fellaini said this with a hint of envy. "You guys are really living the dream. An unprecedented Seven-Title-Winning team. I should've stayed another year. But it's pretty good here too. You have no idea how much the Shandong Luneng fans love me."
"Of course. With my connections, fans all over the country love you."
Jeremy Ling joked.
"Get out of here! It's because I'm dedicated. Look at this scar."
Fellaini even parted his hair to show it.
"Alright, alright. I tried to convince Valencia to join you a while back, but he wanted to go back to a club in his hometown and spend more time with his family."
Ling waved his hand.
"I'll head back to Manchester when I have time, and we can properly catch up then," Fellaini said.
He remembered the 2017–18 season, when Ling was still raw in many areas, but his growth rate had already been beyond comprehension.
Looking back now, that passionate year was probably one of the most unforgettable memories of his football career.
"Alright, I have something to do tonight, so I won't be able to watch your match."
After hugging Fellaini, Ling left the café.
Today, he had been invited by the organizers of the Panda Cup to watch the final between China U18 and South Korea U18.
Soon after, guided by the staff, he arrived at Shuangliu Sports Center.
Perhaps influenced by the recent attention around Ling's youth football projects, China U18 started the match aggressively, but there was still a clear technical gap compared to South Korea U18.
There was no helping it.
Football was not something that could be mastered overnight.
He Zhenyu, who played for Wolverhampton Wanderers, also failed to perform at his expected level.
In the end, China U18 lost 0–2 to South Korea U18.
However, something disgusting happened after the match.
South Korean player Park Gyu-hyun stepped on the Panda Cup trophy and even made an arrogant gesture as if to urinate on it.
His intention was obvious.
It was not just post-victory misconduct, but pure mockery and contempt, mixed with the kind of ugly emotion that appears when a young player mistakes provocation for pride.
Park Gyu-hyun glanced sideways at Ling, who was preparing to leave the stands.
He was a devoted fan of Son Heung-min and aspired to follow in his footsteps, so he had no fondness for Ling whatsoever.
Today, after winning a championship in China, he clearly wanted to use the moment to provoke Ling and stand up for his idol.
In his mind, the Chinese team's level meant that no matter how arrogant he was, they would not be able to humiliate him with revenge in the future.
Ling stopped walking and lowered his gaze toward the pitch.
He wanted to see what these young Chinese players would do.
Of course, the best response to someone shoving their arrogance in your face was to beat them on the pitch.
That was the cleanest and most ruthless answer football could provide.
But if they could neither play well nor show the most basic fighting spirit after being humiliated, what kind of outstanding players could they become?
When someone insulted you to your face, you had to strike back somehow.