Leo Lin helped Ocho settle into the club, then Ocho returned to his hotel.
Since Ocho did not have a place of his own, Leo Lin had wanted to invite him to stay at his house, but Ocho refused.
He chose to stay at a hotel near the club instead, because it would make training more convenient.
The offseason was about to end. After the World Cup, Leo Lin spent two days traveling around Spain with his parents, who had come to watch the match in person.
After that, Lin's father and mother began their happy travel life again.
Julia had become completely fascinated by China. She had never imagined that a country's scenery could be so beautiful, or that its culture could be so rich. She was deeply captivated by it.
Leo Lin, meanwhile, hurried to enjoy what remained of his short offseason. Because he had played in the World Cup, his rest time was actually shorter than that of the other players.
But with his good friend Ocho joining the first team, Leo Lin had more things to do for fun. As Firmino also returned to the club from South America and his close friends came back one after another, Leo Lin's life began to become more colorful.
Soon, August 22 arrived.
Leo Lin's birthday.
Today, he would officially step into a brand new stage of life.
This was also the big day Barnett had been preparing for Leo Lin for a very long time.
"Do you still remember what I said to you after last season's Champions League semifinal?"
"I said that if you wanted to win the Ballon d'Or, you only needed to win the Champions League, the Premier League, and the World Cup. That would be enough."
"See? You did it. Everything I said, you turned it all into reality."
"And back then, I promised you that once you won the World Cup, I would prepare an extremely important birthday party for you."
On the evening of August 21, Barnett and Delores came to Leo Lin's house. Maria came with them as well.
They were discussing the birthday party Barnett had prepared for Leo Lin the next day. Barnett had chosen to hold it at his own home, and he had invited many major figures.
"I know you don't want too many people there. Mostly, you don't want the crowd to be too mixed, so most of the people I invited are important figures with real status."
"That includes the heads of Europe's top ten media outlets, and the Premier League vice chairman. He's a good friend of mine."
"There will also be key people from Liverpool. Head coach Klopp, Mike, and the first team players will all attend."
"I'll hold a grand party. Oh, right. Manchester City head coach Guardiola will also be there."
Barnett had not invited Guardiola, but Maria had. Naturally, Guardiola would not refuse his daughter's invitation.
Leo Lin felt a little dazed when he heard Guardiola's name. He had no idea what that little bald man might do to him that day.
"Is there anything you want to adjust?"
"For example, what the guests should wear, or what gifts you want?"
Leo Lin smiled. He had no requests for any of that.
Barnett had already arranged the guests' clothing in advance. They could wear black or other dark colors, but they were not allowed to wear bright colors.
That was because Leo Lin would wear a bright suit that day. Barnett wanted to make sure Leo Lin was the most eye catching person in the crowd.
Before long, Barnett released the news of Leo Lin's birthday party, but he refused to allow any media to livestream or film the event.
Only Liverpool's official club media received permission to take a few photos at the scene to celebrate Leo Lin's birthday.
Leo Lin himself did not pay much attention to his birthday. To him, it was only another stage as he moved into a new journey in life.
On the night of August 21, just after midnight, the entire social network instantly became lively.
Countless media outlets posted birthday wishes for Leo Lin, and the topic quickly reached the trending lists.
Sky Sports' post received the most likes. Sky Sports had made a video that began with Leo Lin's Premier League debut and continued all the way to the end of the World Cup final. Every crucial goal and highlight from his key matches had been edited into the video.
At the end of the video, many Liverpool players, the head coach, and members of Liverpool's board all appeared on camera to send Leo Lin their congratulations.
Liverpool fan groups also sent representatives to deliver birthday wishes to Leo Lin.
Leo Lin had never expected that his birthday would receive so much attention.
This was not all Barnett's arrangement. Many media outlets chose to send Leo Lin birthday wishes mostly because Leo Lin's current popularity was simply too enormous.
In the world of soccer, Leo Lin received a huge amount of attention. Naturally, the media would not miss an opportunity like this. They could gain followers for themselves while also leaving a good impression on Leo Lin, perhaps opening the door for more cooperation with him in the future.
As for Liverpool's senior management, Leo Lin was already the most important figure at the club.
Whether from the perspective of market value, performance on the pitch, or honors won, Leo Lin would certainly become the face Liverpool pushed forward in the future.
Leo Lin quickly liked and replied with thanks under several posts. He also specially released a video thanking Liverpool fans for the birthday wishes they had sent him.
The next morning, Liverpool headquarters sent a photographer to take official photos for Leo Lin to celebrate his birthday.
Then at four o'clock in the afternoon, the birthday party at Barnett's home officially began, and many major figures arrived one after another.
After Barnett sent out the invitations, not a single person refused. Some people who had not received invitations even took the initiative to call Barnett and ask if they could attend the birthday party as well.
Because at this moment, in the eyes of every media outlet and content creator, Leo Lin was absolutely a top level star.
No one wanted to miss the chance to connect with Leo Lin.
But Barnett was also screening people for Leo Lin. He wanted to make sure the people Leo Lin met were all high status figures who could help Leo Lin's career in the future, whether on the pitch or off it.
Barnett was using this birthday party to build Leo Lin's network.
Leo Lin himself also knew how to handle people. On his nineteenth birthday, he chatted happily with many major figures and exchanged contact information. These were all people who would become more and more helpful to him.
The birthday party lasted for a long time. It was not until after nine in the evening that the party gradually began to end, and the many important guests said goodbye to Leo Lin and Barnett before leaving.
In the end, almost all the guests had gone. From four in the afternoon to ten at night, the six hour birthday party had brought Leo Lin plenty of gains, but it had also left him tired.
He sat on the large balcony of Barnett's house, swinging his legs, loosening the tie of his suit, and greedily breathing in the cool night breeze.
Barnett came over with a glass of red wine and sat down beside him. Leo Lin had received so many gifts that night his hands almost went numb, and every one of them was extremely expensive. When figures of that level gave gifts, they were never stingy.
But Barnett still had not given Leo Lin the gift he had prepared.
Only after all the guests had left did Barnett sit beside Leo Lin, holding a glass of red wine in his right hand and tasting it slowly. With his left arm around Leo Lin, the two of them enjoyed the night breeze together and looked out at the scenery.
After a long while, Barnett broke the silence.
"Lin, I know you don't really lack anything anymore, but I did prepare a birthday gift for you."
Barnett handed him a letter.
"Delores and I have a child. He's as handsome as you. I'm not joking."
"But I haven't been in contact with him for a long time."
"So, in case one day I..."
Barnett drained the red wine in his glass.
Leo Lin said nothing. After opening the envelope, he simply stared blankly at the few lines written inside.
"I, Barnett, hereby designate Leo Lin as the speaker at my funeral."
Leo Lin closed the envelope.
He did not ask Barnett why he had not been in touch with his child for so long. He only patted Barnett and put an arm around his shoulder.
Leo Lin smiled.
This was the best birthday gift he had ever received.
There was no other.
...
...
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