Two conditions for offside judgment:

One: Position condition – A player is in an offside position if they are nearer to the opponent’s goal line than both the ball and the second-last opponent. The following exceptions apply:

1) The player is in their half of the field

2) At least two opponents are nearer to their goal line than the player

Two: Time condition…

Twelve hours had passed since the end of that match.

Lin Wanxing lay on the hard bed in her dormitory, holding her phone, inexplicably browsing through football match rules, unable to fall asleep.

Outside the window came the insect sounds common in late summer and early autumn, and the wind was cool in the evening.

The light from her phone illuminated a small area of the upper bunkboard. Although she had been lying flat for a long time, she could still seemingly hear the sounds from the football field in her ears.

At the end of that match, they tied An’ning Experimental Middle School with a final score of 2:2.

There was no overtime in the preliminary stage, so the match ended with Chen Jianghe’s breakaway shot after a long sprint across half the field.

The shrill final whistle, the bewildered expressions on the faces of An’ning Experimental students—all of these were deeply imprinted in Lin Wanxing’s mind.

As for the Hongji Eighth School players, they reminded Lin Wanxing of a short video she had once seen. In the video, an owner brought a bowl of milk, and her students were like those puppies diving headfirst into the milk, splashing it around, wagging their tails happily.

Tying with An’ning Experimental was already a miracle, so on the way back, the students excitedly shouted at the top of their lungs in the minibus.

Meanwhile, her temporarily hired “coach” had left right after the match. Although Lin Wanxing had also suggested going for a meal together, he hadn’t been interested. However, they had at least added each other on WeChat, so there would be opportunities to stay in touch.

Lin Wanxing sat in the back of the minibus, with the sweet-smelling wind that had swept across the rice fields coming through the window. She listened to the hoarse yet excited voices of the boys and thought they probably still really enjoyed playing football.

Later, Lin Wanxing treated all the students to KFC.

She sat with everyone around the longest table in KFC, which was filled with various fried chicken and snacks, the golden-yellow food looking appetizing under the lights.

At first, the students all ate ravenously. They drank cola and excitedly discussed the details of the match as if they remembered every moment very clearly.

Cola, fried chicken, happy boys—this combination easily evoked a sense of happiness.

Lin Wanxing sat in the restaurant, thinking that if they could keep winning, it would be quite nice.

But gradually, perhaps because people tend to get drowsy after eating, or because fatigue surfaced after they calmed down, everyone stopped talking much.

Lin Wanxing finished the cola in her cup.

Suddenly, she heard a student ask whether they would continue to the next match after this tie.

The talking and chewing stopped, and finally, all that could be heard was the sound of carbon dioxide bubbles bursting in the cola cups.

Thinking of this, Lin Wanxing switched her phone browser page and checked the tournament rules on the league’s official website.

To answer the student’s final question, she could only say that theoretically and realistically, they did indeed have a chance for a playoff.

However, the specific schedule would depend on the organizing committee’s arrangements.

At the end of that day, Lin Wanxing paid the minibus driver extra to send each student to their doorstep.

At parting, the silence and bewilderment brought by fatigue had completely washed away the initial excitement the students had felt after tying the match.

The students got on the bus in small groups, but Fu Xinshu didn’t, because his workplace was just below the KFC where they had gathered.

So after seeing off the other students, Lin Wanxing and Fu sat on a bench in the square for a while.

Fu Xinshu was very quiet at first. Lin Wanxing could see that even though they had tied the match, Fu seemed as heavy-hearted as if they had lost.

Lin Wanxing poured the remaining cola from the family bucket into paper cups and split it between herself and Fu Xinshu.

The moment Fu received the paper cup, he said, “Teacher, I didn’t receive anything.”

Lin Wanxing gulped cola but didn’t speak.

Fu Xinshu appeared somewhat nervous. “I lied to Qin Ao, Chen Jianghe, and you. Later, I searched through my school desk, backpack, and everything, but I didn’t find anything.”

Lin Wanxing looked at her student. Fu Xinshu’s eyes had many red streaks, whether from fatigue or some other reason.

“It’s okay,” she said.

The young man was truly extremely upset, with grass stains still clinging to his arms, which were patched with blue and purple bruises from falling during the match.

Fu Xinshu began to speak, and Lin Wanxing listened quietly.

He said that he had previously thought someone wanted to help him by organizing them to play football together, so he had lied to Qin Ao and Chen Jianghe.

Because he had played football since he was young, his studies had always lagged. Now he was working as an apprentice at a barbershop so that he would have a skill even if he couldn’t get into university.

At that time, he had thought that if someone helped them, it would be their last match together, and if they lost, he would give up. But now that they had tied, he saw hope again and wanted to go further with everyone.

He also said that while it was already a miracle they had managed to tie, An’ning Experimental wouldn’t have been a match for them in the past. If they could have systematic football training, they would play better than they did now.

He also admitted that he wanted to train, and if they did well in the league, he might still have a chance to continue playing football. But football was a game of eleven people, and not all classmates should accompany him—many families still believed the college entrance exam was more important. Lin Wanxing just kept listening.

She listened to the young man’s worries, his aspirations, and his despair.

“Teacher, I don’t have many chances left in this life.”

That was what Fu Xinshu had said at the end.

Moonlight flowed through the window lattice into the room. Lin Wanxing lay on the bed, her phone screen dimming in her recollection, but she was completely unable to sleep.

She simply turned over and got up, sitting at her desk, opening her computer, and logging onto the school’s academic affairs website.

Hongji Eighth School tying with An’ning Experimental was extremely insignificant news.

Even within Hongji Eighth School’s sports department, it didn’t cause much of a stir.

Lin Wanxing had reported the match result to Teacher Qian via WeChat. At the Monday sports department meeting, Teacher Qian only mentioned this matter at the very end.

The sports department teachers expressed surprise at the score and affirmation for her work, but beyond that, there wasn’t much more discussion.

Lin Wanxing couldn’t help but mention the possibility of a playoff to all the teachers.

And, she paused, advocating for the students. “I think our school’s football team has potential. If we organize them for professional training, they might be able to make it to the Youth Super League proper and achieve better results, bringing glory to the school.”

After she spoke, the sports department teachers exchanged glances, as if they couldn’t understand how she could have such an idea.

“Teacher Lin’s work enthusiasm is commendable.”

“The results achieved so far are evident to all.”

“But these students are all in their third year of high school. In our PE classes, other subject teachers borrow time whenever they want. Where would the students find time to train?”

“Even if students could squeeze out time, would parents agree to us putting them through this?”

“It’s better to avoid unnecessary trouble.”

Lin Wanxing said, “But we still have a playoff, we should at least try.”

As she said this, there came a knock at the door of the sports office.

After Director Zhao’s “Come in,” Teacher Xu peeked in.

“Teacher Lin,” Teacher Xu began somewhat awkwardly.

“Looking for me?” Lin Wanxing pointed at herself.

“Yes, our homeroom teacher, Teacher Wang, wants you to come over right now. The mothers of Lin Lu and two other students from our class have come to the school and said they want to see you…”