A Chairman Who Has No Regrets - Chapter 168



Only Noblemtl

Episode 168 – Leverkusen (3)

Gulp.

For some reason, both my sisters and Taesu walked towards Leverkusen’s home stadium very nervously.

“Why were you so nervous?”

She answers my question with a face like, “Aren’t you my little sister?”

“What about the tension? All soccer fields are the same.”

“But why are you gulping so much?”

“When did I? Gulp.”

“Ugh.”

“This kid.”

As she was about to pour out her words, her younger sister sneakily put her hand in at the sight of her mother’s sharp gaze.

“Let’s meet later.”

Taesu came over quietly.

“Aren’t you nervous?”

“What tension?”

“No… I think Cha Geun-beom is amazing… Aren’t we going to see a really famous person?”

A snicker came out.

Of course, before coming to Germany, neither my sisters nor Taesu knew anything about Cha Geun-beom. However, when we arrived in Cologne, everyone in the city was praising him and only then did we begin to think that Cha Geun-beom was an amazing player.

During the short time I spent here, at Leverkusen’s home stadium, I thought that the people in the city who gaslighted my family and Taesu about the greatness of Cha Geun-beom were actually more amazing.

“Well, not really.”

There is a little excitement, but I am not really nervous. In my past life, I have seen so many giants, and I had to defeat them one by one.

Player Cha Geun-beom.

It’s not that he’s not a giant, but I’ve seen bigger giants than him, so naturally I don’t get nervous.

“Hmm… so you’re the Cap.”

“Stop talking nonsense and watch carefully. It might be the stadium you have to play in in the future. It might even be your rival’s stadium.”

“What are you talking about? Will that work?”

There is something like that.

When the other person is so great that you don’t even dare to follow them, and you have a faint hope that you can do that in a corner of your heart, but you don’t want to show it, the other person is so great.

Maybe Taesu’s current state of mind is like that? He clearly set out to become a soccer player when he first entered Cologne.

“Okay, this is the locker room where the players rest…”

Thanks to the broadcasting station cameras, a club official came out and kindly explained the various aspects of Leverkusen’s stadium. In the future, a separate tourist course like this will be developed, but it doesn’t seem to be at that level at the moment.

In a word, it was special treatment.

We can see that the current Leverkusen club respects Cha Geun-beom.

“Okay! This is the hallway where the players are waiting to enter.”

A modern, slightly worn, but well-maintained hallway.

“Hey, this is where the players wait for the signal to enter.”

“How much will it shake?”

“Taesu, stand over there.”

Taesu sits down in a corner of the hallway with an embarrassed expression on his face at his mother’s words.

My older sister gave me a push.

“You too, go stand behind Taesu.”

As I nodded and stood behind Taesu, Coach Baek handed Taesu a soccer ball that he had gotten from somewhere.

“Look at the kick to the side, Taesu student.”

“Oh, yes.”

Taesu was looking straight ahead with a soccer ball tucked under his arm. The back of his neck was shaking slightly, so I could tell what he was imagining.

There’s no need to be nervous about the photos, since my sisters and mother took a lot of them.

“Are you nervous?”

“Oh, that’s strange.”

“Hehe, this is something I experience often, so I should get used to it.”

“Ugh, well.”

Director Baek said, asking for understanding from his mother who was about to open her mouth after taking all the pictures.

“Madam, and Hye-ri, and Hye-rin.”

“Yes, Director.”

“Would you like to go up to the stands over there?”

“yes?”

“Let me take a picture.”

“yes-”

My sisters and mother cooperated without a second thought when I told them that I was taking pictures on the broadcasting station camera.

Then Director Baek moves the cinematographer and the crew behind me and Taesu, and sends another camera to the entrance in front.

“Student Taesu, student Jeon Kang! Let’s try it once as if we were real players.”

“yes?”

Taesu looks flustered, as if he is very nervous.

The guy is more of a bird than I thought.

match!

I hit Taesu hard on the back.

“Just do it, Tasha.”

“Uh, uh uh.”

As I followed closely behind, Taesu’s steps naturally quickened.

Yeah, just like now.

Just look straight ahead and walk.

I will support you from behind.

“Wave your hands in both directions once! And smile!”

Taesu waves his hand as he passes through a brightly lit hallway, creaking like a robot at Director Baek’s direction.

“Gyaaaaak-”

“Wow- That’s cool! Oppa-”

“Please sign! Taesu!”

“Hong Tae-soo! Hong Tae-soo!”

“Jeon-gang! Jeon-gang!”

Support from a few female writers, mothers, and older sisters.

Even though it was just a few people cheering, Taesu’s face turned red for some reason. There was no need for them to call my name, but I didn’t feel like it was all that bad.

“Hey, puppy.”

“uh.”

“Soccer player… doesn’t that sound fun?”

I smiled and nodded for the time being. It seemed like the guy was still wavering and couldn’t hold on to the reed.

“Student Taesu! Kick the ball!”

Taesu had already reached the halfway line of the field. He must have gotten permission from the people in charge of the stadium in advance to step on the grass, but the officials were just smiling happily without saying anything.

Taesu stares blankly at the ball placed in the center of the halfway line, then, whoosh, whoosh. He looks at the front and back goal posts.

“It’s wide…”

Have you ever seen a proper soccer field, one made of grass at that? Taesu’s reaction may be natural.

“Hey, this is really annoying.”

Taesu touches the grass and exclaims in admiration.

If you go to any stadium in Europe, they use real grass, and you’ll be shocked to know that. Of course, real grass is also being planted in stadiums in our country preparing for the Asian Games and the Olympics.

“Look at the car.”

Taesu nods his head and lets out a sigh of relief. Then he kicks the ball with all his might towards the goal in front of him.

Of course, it couldn’t have gone flying away all at once. This was Taesu’s first time kicking a ball on such a wide field, and on grass at that.

“how is it?”

“It’s awkward.”

“Grass?”

“uh.”

I smiled and said while waiting for Cha Geun-beom, who had not yet arrived.

“I need to get used to the grass, so I can bring the ball and pass it.”

“Well, maybe so?”

He had to take the test on grass with his cleats on. It doesn’t seem to really hit him yet, but I think it’s important for him to have a feel for the ball on grass.

I don’t expect to be able to adapt in this short time, but it’s better than nothing.

“Do your soccer shoes fit well?”

“Oh, that’s exactly right.”

I nodded.

Ppex, the official sponsor of the Asian Games and the Olympics. Although it is a domestic brand, the soccer shoes made by the brand under the Imperial Group are quite good. Of course, they are different from the cheap market-brand sneakers that Taesu used to wear.

“It’ll be awkward because it’s for grass.”

“A little bit.”

“Look at the car.”

When sweat starts to slowly rise.

“Jeonggang student- Taesu student-”

Director Baek calls us.

When I looked back, Cha Geun-beom was standing next to his family, who were very nervous. Cha Geun-beom had a tanned face and flaky skin.

He was smiling with a kind face and shaking hands with his family and broadcasting station staff.

Taesu was running towards me with the ball that had run away, and I also approached him with a slightly faster pace.

“Hello, Cha Geun-beom.”

He smiled brightly and nodded at my greeting.

“I heard that students are coming from Korea. I would believe them even if they said they were young people.”

There was no falsehood in his expression. He just had a face that seemed happy to meet his fellow countrymen. I had heard that he was a man without pretense, but seeing him in person gave a different feeling.

Rather than feeling like a great player, his easygoing nature reminded me of a neighborhood uncle. No, more precisely, a neighborhood older brother.

“Oh, hello! This is Choi Tae-soo!”

Taesu is so flustered that he bends over. Cha Geun-beom and everyone else in the stadium brighten up as if they found that funny.

“Hahaha, you are such a brave student. Nice to meet you, I am Cha Geun-beom. Thank you for coming from far away to see me.”

“No! It is an honor!”

Are you in the military?

Well, I know that the arts and sports world has a strict military culture, so that might be right.

We headed to the waiting area where the players were sitting and waiting, and calmly watched Cha Geun-beom’s interview.

“The hardest thing was the language, not being able to communicate properly…”

It was a cliché, but I could feel the sincerity in his words.

“What was disappointing, even though I scored a goal and received cheers, was that no one in my home country knew about it. I wish the German league would be broadcast in Korea soon…”

Oddly enough, Koreans.

No matter how much support I receive, I like it when fellow Koreans support me more. I don’t really know what that feeling is.

I turned my head and looked at my mother and sisters who were listening to the interview of player Cha Geun-beom. The cheers of other people may not be valuable to me, but what if I received their cheers? Then, the faces of the people of Sanggye-dong and the guys flashed through my mind.

I imagine them cheering me on.

I felt like I knew a little bit.

“We will cheer you on!”

When the younger sister suddenly interrupted and shouted, Cha Geun-beom smiled brightly and said.

“Oh my, I’m surprised. If I could hear that voice even if I were cheering from Korea, I would be able to hear it. Thank you. Hye-ri, I’ll work harder.”

“Hahahaha.”

The interview, which lasted about an hour, ended smoothly, and then Herchan, waiting for an opportune moment, suddenly interrupted and asked Cha Geun-beom a question in English.

“Hey, Boom! I’m a real fan!”

“Oh, thank you.”

Cha Geun-beom answers in English, a strange mix of German and Korean pronunciation.

Perhaps because he had lived abroad for a long time, his English was not very good, but he seemed to have no problem communicating.

“Here, don’t you want to cheer for the prospective Leverkusen kid?”

Cha Geun-beom opened his eyes wide and looked at me and Tae-su.

“Were you students from the U-KENT?”

Bayer 04 Leverkusen Juve.

It was a reference to Leverkusen’s youth team. I shook my head, and Taesu shook his head too.

Herchan, who had read the situation, continued speaking.

“Not yet, but soon, I will take the entrance exam and confidently secure a spot in the Uken squad!”

“Ah, so you’re considering studying soccer abroad? It’s such a difficult thing to do these days, so that’s amazing.”

Cha Geun-beom smiled and asked Tae-su a question.

“There is no proper training system for youth soccer in Korea yet. How do you train the students?”

“Oh, not me, just this guy.”

Cha Geun-beom’s eyes turn to Tae-su.

“I, I haven’t really… uh, I’ve never received any training or anything.”

Cha Geun-beom’s expression hardened.

“Hmm… The path of soccer is not such an easy path. It’s not bad to have hope and nurture dreams, but that’s different from taking it lightly.”

It was a statement that made me nod in agreement.

And his words conveyed his pride and awe for football. He spoke as if he was trying to persuade, but he was now scolding us and Herchan. As if he dared to look down on Leverkusen.

“The kids here love soccer and dream of becoming soccer players. It’s definitely a better environment than Korea, but I don’t think that makes them any more special. After all, the kids in Uken are also running like crazy toward their dreams.”

Taesu couldn’t answer and just moved his lips. It seemed like he was overwhelmed by the soft charisma that the guy, Cha Geun-beom, was sending.

Cha Geun-beom took his eyes off Tae-soo and looked at Herchan, speaking in his characteristically stiff English.

“If you were hoping to use my power to influence Uken, you’d better change your mind.”

Herchan purses his lips, as if he had such feelings.

“Haha, you’re really a great player, even personally! Please believe me when I say I’m a fan, right?”

“Yes, I believe you.”

Cha Geun-beom stood up from his seat and glanced at Tae-soo. Did he think he had said something harsh, or did he feel sorry for the young child from his hometown? Cha Geun-beom hesitated for a moment, then turned around with a nod.

When Director Baek looked at Herchan with a trembling expression, he glanced away and looked into the distance. It was clear from what he heard that he had made a mistake.

“Player Cha Geun-beom.”

I turned around and called out to Cha Geun-beom, who was leaving.

“Did the student call you?”

“yes.”

“Why did you call?”

I handed over the heavy thing wrapped in a gold bundle as if it were nothing special.

“Thank you for the interview. I really enjoyed seeing the stadium, and I heard you’re going to give me game tickets in a few days.”

“Um… I’m not expecting anything in return.”

“This is nothing special either. I don’t expect anything in return.”

“Yes, then.”

“I will cheer you on.”

Cha Geun-beom smiled faintly and left.

My family and the broadcasting station people leaving the stadium, grumbling at Herchan.

Taesu still remained in his seat, his face quite serious as if he was thinking about something.

“Tae-su-eup.”

He stopped his younger sister from calling Taesu. It seemed like Taesu was in need of some thought at the moment.

“Dreams aren’t easy.”

“What are you talking about, this kid, with the hand that touched the soccer ball!”

“oh.”