Lin Wanxing stood up, walked to the classroom door, and turned off the lights.

She ran downstairs to the small shop, not caring what she specifically wanted, buying every snack that looked good.

Finally, carrying a large bag of items, she quickly ran back upstairs, pushing open the rooftop iron door while gasping for breath.

The night stars hung low.

The bowls had been washed, the barbecue grill put in the corner, and the previously messy rooftop had been tidied up.

All traces of life had been carefully erased, but the additional dining table, parasol, lounge chairs, scattered bricks, and an old tire hauled from who knows where all told the story of the lively scene that once existed here.

Wang Fa was just coming out of the room, dragging a black suitcase.

The air carried the scent of charcoal fire, the city night sky emitted a deep blue light, and the Minnie Mouse balloon she had given to Wang Fa was swaying in the wind above the railing.

“Want a drink?” Lin Wanxing asked Wang Fa, holding up the heavy plastic bag.

“The car has arrived,” Wang Fa said.

Lin Wanxing ignored him and walked over to the outdoor table. She took out the items she had just bought from the shop downstairs, one by one.

Potato chips, shrimp crackers, dried tofu, milk, beer…

The table was full of snacks, and Lin Wanxing opened a can of beer with a “tssss” sound, gulping down more than half of it in one breath.

She burped, and Wang Fa had already walked past her, dragging his suitcase.

“You’re too clever,” Lin Wanxing said directly, slightly tipsy. “When faced with money, people most easily lose the courage to speak. You chose the best excuse to make us shut up and not try to keep you here.”

His departing footsteps didn’t stop, the suitcase wheels rolling over the cement floor, seeming to heavily crush Lin Wanxing’s heart.

“You’re leaving, not to get away from us, but to get away from that basketball court, right?” she asked in a very gentle voice.

The rooftop iron door opened, the court behind them sank into the long night, and Lin Wanxing, holding her beer can, said, “Let’s talk.”

There was no response.

It was as if an invisible hand had infinitely stretched time, even slowing down the second hand sweeping across the clock face.

Suddenly, the iron door “bang” shut, and time began to flow again.

Footsteps and the sound of wheels resumed, and Lin Wanxing heard all the sounds that should have disappeared, echoing once more in the rooftop night.

She took a sip of beer and looked back.

The young man took off his baseball cap and sat down directly across from her.

His brow ridge was deep-set, and in the night, his gaze also became profound: “The news was announced so quickly?”

This Wang Fa was different from any Wang Fa she had seen before. The night cast a layer of shadow over him, like a rugged and cold cliff, standing since ancient times by the midnight sea.

Lin Wanxing arranged all the drinks she had bought in a row on the table, letting Wang Fa choose.

Red Coca-Cola, yellow beer, orange Mirinda…

Wang Fa didn’t move, not wanting to have a final drink with her.

Lin Wanxing: “Why did Coach Liu take over in the end?”

“Coach Liu is very familiar with Yongchuan Hengda, he’s suitable as head coach.”

“You know that’s not what I’m asking.” Lin Wanxing’s finger lightly tapped on the drinks, selected a can of Sprite, and pushed it forward. “I want to ask, what about you?”

“What do you want me to say?”

Wang Fa didn’t take the Sprite she recommended, but opened a can of Yongchuan Pure Draft himself. His voice was straightforward and cold, ringing out together with the “tssss” sound of the beer can opening.

Lin Wanxing: “Yongchuan Hengda did approach you, right? You said 15 million euros is an irrefusable price, but actually, you don’t care about the money at all. So Coach Liu had to step up himself, that’s how it is, right?”

The young man tilted his head back and took a sip of beer, revealing a clean jawline and a white, slender neck: “You’re right.”

“Right about what?”

“I do have money, so I don’t care about 15 million.” He put down the beer can and said this.

Lin Wanxing was stunned for a moment: “If you have money, why did you scrounge off me?”

“Having money means I’m more free to do as I please. If I find something uninteresting, I can just leave.” Wang Fa said.

His words were very cold.

The moisture in the air condensed on the cold can, dripping down Lin Wanxing’s fingers. She looked at the young man’s cold features in the night and said: “Wang Fa if I were you, I definitely wouldn’t sit down to explain.”

Wang Fa paused but didn’t speak.

“You’re inherently more conscientious than me. You feel it’s wrong to just leave us without a word, so you need to find excuses to make us feel better,” Lin Wanxing said. “You don’t need to do this. We both know the issue isn’t money, and you’re not the kind of person you claim to be.”

“Sounds a bit mushy, Teacher Lin, that’s too much,” Wang Fa took a sip of beer and said lightly.

“Wang Fa, no need to shut me up. I know you’re resolute, trying to eliminate any possibility of changing your mind, because the students and I are indeed making you waver. But what you want to leave isn’t us, it’s the court in front. I just want to know, why?”

Lin Wanxing asked with unprecedented calmness, word by word.

Wang Fa didn’t answer immediately.

The night wind swept across the rooftop, making the pink balloon tied to the railing flutter noisily.

He didn’t even take a sip of beer or light a cigarette. All the long struggles would become a most ordinary statement.

“I am indeed leaving the court,” he said.

Lin Wanxing suddenly looked up, her finger pressed on the can, trying hard to keep herself calm.

“Why?” she asked.

The young man looked at the distant court, the stars and moon casting a faint light, but mostly darkness.

“Is it because of that violent incident on the court?” Lin Wanxing thought for a moment and asked directly.

“You finally looked me up?” Wang Fa was momentarily surprised, but his expression quickly returned to normal.

Lin Wanxing shook her head: “Someone left a message for me on the blackboard downstairs and sent me two emails.” Lin Wanxing said honestly, “One was an internal appointment email from Yongchuan Hengda Club, appointing Liu Chuanguang as the first team head coach. The other email had a video clip, British news.”

As she spoke, she took out her phone, placed it on the table, facing Wang Fa.

Wang Fa didn’t open the video; he just looked down at the cover and knew what it was.

Lin Wanxing considered, and although it was cruel, her finger still gently slid across the phone screen, pressing the video play button.

The phone screen suddenly lit up, and mixed, excited background sounds rang out, particularly noisy and heavy in the silent night.

Wang Fa sat across the dining table, and Lin Wanxing observed his expression: “After experiencing something like this, you should have sought professional help, I mean a psychologist. But your problem hasn’t been solved, right?”

Wang Fa’s expression remained unchanged; the fighting scenes on the phone and all the abuse filling the rooftop did not affect him.

He just sat quietly until the camera panned across the distorted faces of fans in the stands, and finally, shoes stepped over the screen, the news broadcast ended, and the screen went dark.

After some time, Wang Fa slowly spoke: “Now I believe you’re a professional.”

“Is this also why you came back from England? The team thought it was your fault and held you responsible?” Lin Wanxing asked.

“Don’t worry, the team wouldn’t fire me for something like this,” Wang Fa held the can, his expression cold.

“So you left Southampton voluntarily? Why?” Lin Wanxing still found it incredible. “I heard from students that it’s hard to be a coach in England, so I looked it up. Germany issues about four thousand regular coaching certificates each year, and Spain and Italy also issue more than three thousand. But England, only six. In England, just getting a coaching certificate is difficult, becoming a professional team’s head coach is harder than climbing to heaven. Why would you give that up?”

“My position at Southampton was Deputy Head of Youth Development and U21 Head Coach. Do you know what that means?” Wang Fa asked in return.

Lin Wanxing shook her head.

“It means I’ve spent a very, very long time in this field.”

Wang Fa sat across from her and slowly began speaking about a life Lin Wanxing had never imagined.

“British football clubs have a long history, are relatively closed, and don’t care much about the coaching certificates you mentioned. What they care about is ‘their people.’ I joined Millcaines youth team at 14, and soon discovered my interest wasn’t in becoming a player. So, I started working as a handyman at Southampton. Every day cleaning the field, tidying up the locker rooms, all unpaid work. Later, a youth coach’s child was learning Chinese, and I found the opportunity to become the coach’s child’s Chinese teacher. After getting familiar with him, I was recommended and got a position as the lowest-level youth team assistant coach, until I became the U17 team head coach, and my team won the England Youth FA Cup. Finally, I could get the position of Southampton’s Deputy Head of Youth Development. I’m 29 this year, and since I was 14, more than half of my life has been spent on this.”

Wang Fa maintained a calm tone throughout, whether talking about being a handyman or winning championships, there was no difference in his recollection.

Lin Wanxing thought that after so many in-depth psychological therapies and conversations, he must have recalled and narrated this experience countless times, determined that there was nothing to miss, which is why his tone was so calm.

“But you think you took the wrong path, that all that time and effort was wasted?” Lin Wanxing couldn’t understand. “Where did the problem arise? What exactly happened on the day in the news?”

“What happened that day is exactly what you saw,” Wang Fa said.

“A conflict on the field, with a player’s accidental death?”

“Yes.”

“You feel responsible?”

“No, I’m afraid,” Wang Fa said.