Chapter 1

A few months ago, because there was hope for a manga adaptation of "Do You Care If I Play Soccer?", I took out the novel again and reread it, only to find that my writing style and thoughts at the time were quite immature, and my writing skills and story structure were not particularly good.

So I expressed to my friends in the group chat that I wanted to revise "Do You Care If I Play Soccer?" and that if I did, it would definitely be better than it is now.

But my friends all said not to bother, that I might as well write a new one. The most important thing is... how can a 33-year-old possibly have the same mindset as when they were 21?

I was shocked—what? I'm already 33 years old! I thought I was only 26!

Well... maybe because I don't work and write full-time at home, I'm not very sensitive to dates, and even less so to my age.

Thinking about it, I realize that I have indeed changed a lot since I was 21.

And Zhang Jun, Yang Pan, and the others are my age. I started thinking about their stories when I was in high school and wrote them out in college. At that time, my views on soccer, love, friendship, and family were basically the same as Zhang Jun's and the others' views on the world.

Many things are different at 21 and 33, and naturally, my thoughts have changed as well.

But I still believe that there are some things that never change and will never disappear.

If you think they're gone, it's just that they're hidden deep down.

For example, dreams and passion.

People often say that youth is reckless, and young people are full of sharp edges, like hedgehogs, easily hurting others and making many mistakes.

Once they enter society, they are gradually worn down by time and life. Then they become smooth pebbles. They can be mixed with cement, thoroughly stirred, poured into a steel frame, and cast into walls or paved into roads. Every day, cars and people pass over them, and they are slowly ground into powder, scattered in the air, and their lives end without leaving anything behind.

The stones that can be carved into statues and stand in prominent places in the city are always a very small number of lucky ones.

This is indeed reality.

But because of this, we need so many novels, comics, movies, music, and games to fill our lives.

Because each of us, regardless of age or gender, needs a space to dream.

Put on your headphones and listen to a song that makes you cry.

Hold a bag of popcorn and sit in the cinema, watching a movie that makes you laugh uncontrollably.

Pick up the mouse, sit in front of the computer, and control the character on the screen, dressed in purple and orange, to challenge monsters that you would never encounter in real life.

Hold your phone and read those thousand-word stories that pay a few cents per word, imagining yourself as a towering hero in the world woven by words, rather than an ordinary person rushing to and from on the subway or bus.

Why do we shed tears and get excited for those fictional stories and characters?

Because they are a reflection of our childhood dreams.

During the summer, "The Monkey King: Hero Is Back" staged a real-life "rags to riches" story, with box office success despite low screening rates.

How many boys and girls idolized "The Great Sage Equal to Heaven, Sun Wukong" in their childhood?

Many of us probably dreamed of wielding the Golden Cudgel and slaying demons when we were young.

But as we grew up, we found that what we pulled out of our ears was not the Golden Cudgel but earwax. The demons and monsters in life are too formidable. Because most of us are ordinary people, we don't have the power or special abilities to fight them.

So gradually, we no longer remember the promises and dreams we made as children.

We care more about cars, houses, and money.

Have we lost our childhood dreams?

No.

On the contrary, we cherish them even more, carefully protecting them, trying not to let the mundane aspects of life disturb them.

They are so precious and so fragile.

Under the calloused shell of life lies a pure heart.

So when we hear lyrics like "Run forward, facing cold eyes and ridicule! How can we feel the vastness of life without experiencing hardships! Fate cannot make us kneel and beg, even if our arms are full of blood...," our eyes moisten.

So when we see the Great Sage on the screen, with his molten armor and flaming cloak, pulling out the Golden Cudgel from his ear, we all get excited: "Aaaaaah! Great Sage! I want to bear your monkey!"

Because it is the pure heart deep within us that is beating!

It resonates with those who pursue their dreams, making us willing to cheer for them, sincerely hoping they will succeed and achieve what we couldn't or couldn't achieve.

I have been writing soccer novels for thirteen years, and it's the same for me.

In reality, I have never been athletic, can't run fast or jump high, and wear glasses. I could only stand in front of the goal as a goalkeeper, a job no one wanted. I know I will never become a professional soccer player, but that doesn't stop me from imagining myself as a star, dribbling past several players on the green field, scoring a world-class goal, and dominating the game... The step-over move of Robinho is a feint, but I really did it, riding my bicycle through traffic, mimicking myself getting past one defender after another...

Since I can't do it in reality, I write it down with words, which is how "Do You Care If I Play Soccer?" came to be, as well as "We Are Champions," "Champion Coach," "Born Loser," "Champion Legend," "The Hero of the Penalty Area," "The King of the Field," and "The Light of Champions."

Similarly, there is now this book, "Champion Heart."

I won't boast about how good this book is, nor will I tell you how painful and slow it was to write, or how much I love this story and these young people.

Saying it is not saying it!

But I sincerely and seriously invite you to read this story, to see Zhou Yi and his friends pursue their dreams, and to see how they chase the dreams we can't achieve in reality.

Yes, on the 29th (actually the 30th) of this month, I will turn 33, and I can no longer have the mindset I had at 21—I even have a wife and children, and it's not easy to be a middle schooler again...

But I believe that some things will never change, whether I am 33 or 21.

That is the dream of soccer, which has never been extinguished by life or the harsh reality of Chinese soccer.

At 21, I imagined a story about a group of young people whose lives were changed by soccer.

At 33, I imagined another story about a group of young people and their soccer dreams.

They have the heart of a champion, the heart of a child, and the heart of a dreamer.

Lin Hai Ting Tao

October 17, 2015, Chengdu

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PS: On the 18th at midnight, I will update a prologue chapter, which was released early on the起点 (Qidian) public platform yesterday. Although many people have already seen it, I believe many more haven't.

On the first day of the book's release, I won't be so stingy. Three updates on the 18th!

In addition to the prologue, there will be two more chapters.

The update times will be 8 AM and 6 PM on the 18th.

Unless otherwise specified, the update times will always be these two times.

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