Chapter 35

After coming out of the University of London, Cheryl looked worried, and Giovani's expression was also somewhat unnatural, because Ye Xuan's living conditions were simply too poor.

Ye Xuan was Cheryl's friend, Giovani's agent, and the matchmaker for the two of them. Giovani, with his Chinese sense of deep affection and righteousness, and Cheryl, who was not a miserly Scrooge, bit her red lips lightly, held Giovani's arm, and said pitifully, "Darling, why don't you buy a house right away? Don't wait until next year. First, you can bring Ye Xuan over, and second... it will be more convenient for us."

"I want to buy one, but where will I get the money? I don't know if those sponsors are all blind. They don't sign contracts with me when I'm cheap, but wait until I become famous and well-known?" Giovani frowned.

The last time they mentioned buying a house, Giovani secretly checked the housing prices in London. A beautiful villa in the city center cost about the same as a two-bedroom apartment in Beijing's Fourth Ring Road, around 250,000 pounds. But these were ordinary residential areas. Real celebrities and big stars had their own luxurious villas in the suburbs of London, costing as much as 3 million pounds!

With Giovani's current capabilities, he could not afford such high housing prices!

In his previous life, Giovani had suffered the pain of being a mortgage slave in China, and he was determined not to endure such hardships again after being reborn. But seeing Cheryl's expectant eyes and feeling the softness of her full breasts pressing against his arm, he changed his initial plan.

"Okay!"

Giovani held back for a long time before finally squeezing out a single word.

"Great, darling, I love you so much!" Cheryl, like a child, jumped happily in Giovani's arms, her trembling chest pressing against his. Looking down, Giovani saw a glimpse of her white, plump breasts through her neckline, almost blinding him.

Cheryl had bright eyes, clear and serene like lake water, with a faint blue glow. When she smiled excitedly, her eyes curved like a crescent moon, as if the spirit was overflowing. She had two shallow dimples, making her look both playful and cute, and noble and elegant, incredibly charming.

"Ah, women are all materialistic, even big stars are no exception!"

Giovani took a deep breath, squinted his eyes, and said solemnly, "Cheryl, my darling, I've decided. I will not only buy a luxurious house in London but also a luxury car!"

"Really? That's great!" At that moment, Cheryl felt she was the happiest person in the world, hugging Giovani tightly.

Cheryl's current annual income was only about 500,000 pounds, which was the combined profit of the GirlsAloud group. So, although Cheryl had gained some popularity in England, she had not yet entered the life of the elite. Giovani's two sentences made her feel like she was in a dream.

Just as the two were being intimate, their eyes suddenly blurred, and a series of rapid flashes of light passed by. Cheryl, with her sharp eyes, tensed her face and pointed at the young man in a yellow T-shirt by the roadside, angrily saying, "Damn paparazzi!"

Giovani, however, hugged the angry Cheryl tightly and said with a light laugh, "Let's kiss."

"Now? But..." As a star, Cheryl instinctively detested paparazzi.

Giovani smiled indifferently, shrugged, and said softly, "What, you don't want all of England to know that you, Cheryl, are my woman?"

Cheryl immediately smiled, her charming dimples reappearing. She gave a flirtatious glance, wrapped her arms around Giovani's waist, and offered her bright red, luscious lips. Her bright eyes gradually turned into two jars of fragrant old wine...

True to his word, in the following days, Giovani contacted his agent, Ye Xuan, and they discussed buying a house and a car together. In the end, after Giovani's decision, they chose a super-luxurious villa in the southern hills of London, where flowers were in full bloom. The villa had an unusual design, with a dark blue exterior and an M-shaped structure, resembling an alien habitat from a Hollywood movie.

The villa's foundation was not large, but it covered an area of 30,000 square meters, with three floors. The third floor had two bedrooms at the top of the "M," and the second floor had five bedrooms. There was also a beautiful swimming pool, a garage, a parking lot, and even a helipad!

The villa was indeed luxurious, but it cost a staggering 3.8 million pounds! In this era, an annual salary of 3.8 million pounds was that of a top football star!

Compared to the villa, the sports car was much cheaper, costing only 180,000 pounds. The light yellow Italian luxury car, the Lamborghini Gallardo, had a power output of over 500 horsepower and a top speed of 325 km/h! This model had only been unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show last year and had been out of stock for a year. Giovani was able to purchase one only because the club's Kenyon personally intervened.

On September 2nd, Giovani officially entered the ranks of the luxurious elite!

During the process of buying the house and car, an interesting incident occurred. The saleswoman asked how many years the payment would be spread over, and Giovani blurted out, "40 years!" almost making the saleswoman's eyes pop out in surprise.

In China, it was common to pay a mortgage over 30 to 40 years, but in England, 15 years was the longest term. If Giovani had not been the famous Chelsea club manager, the saleswoman would have almost called security to remove this troublemaker.

After much persuasion, Ye Xuan used her excellent negotiation skills, and they finally agreed to a 30-year mortgage plan.

Actually, for the ambitious Giovani, a few million pounds was a small matter. However, due to his current financial constraints, he did not want to burden the bank too much. He could always pay it off in full later when he had more money.

After a few days of leisure and extravagance, on September 4th, a highly anticipated day finally arrived.

On this day, the 2006 FIFA World Cup European Qualifiers would take place. In Vienna, Austria, the England team would face their first opponent, Austria, in the qualifiers.

Pre-match statistics showed that England had a significant advantage over Austria, maintaining a perfect record in recent years. The entire England team was united, and many media outlets were eagerly waiting for the match's outcome to use the facts to mock Giovani's bold statements, as he had said that Eriksson's England would not defeat Austria!

In the match, Chelsea's "Lampard" scored the first goal for England, and Chelsea's striker Owen scored another goal from Lampard's pass, leading 2-0!

A one-goal lead might not be secure for Eriksson's team, but a two-goal lead was a sure three points, especially against a weak team like Austria. By halftime and up to the 70th minute of the second half, England maintained control of the game, with number 10 Owen and number 7 Beckham constantly threatening Austria's goal.

At this moment, many journalists had already started writing, trying to come up with creative ways to mock the Chelsea manager's arrogance. Eriksson was Swedish, but the British people should have the broad-mindedness to embrace diversity and not be fixated on nationality when it came to the England manager's position.

However, at the 71st minute, Austria scored a goal through a quick and effective counter-attack by Coleman, making the score 2-1, with 19 minutes left in the game!

Seeing this, many journalists who had interacted with Giovani began to show signs of shock, as they suddenly remembered the incredible comeback of England against France in the European Championship. Could Giovani's miraculous prediction come true again?

Eriksson, a refined manager, was displeased with Giovani's various criticisms but never expressed his dissatisfaction publicly. He secretly competed with Giovani, thinking, "Giovani, you say I can't coach England well? You say I won't win this match? I will win to show you!"

This time, Eriksson once again brought out his secret weapon, making two substitutions! The two goal-scoring heroes from Chelsea, Lampard and Owen, were replaced by center-back Jamie Carragher and defensive midfielder Owen Hargreaves. He intended to defend the 2-1 lead until the end of the match!

Many anxious journalists secretly cheered for England, hoping Eriksson could break Giovani's prediction and give the media a real victory over Giovani. Seeing Eriksson's substitutions, they finally smiled and sighed in relief, "Ha, Austria hasn't had many shots on goal throughout the match. With this iron bucket defense, how can Austria score again?"

The journalists who had stopped writing resumed, continuing to think of ways to mock Giovani. However, just two minutes later, England's goalkeeper, David James, made a low-level mistake, allowing Andreas Ivanitsch's seemingly harmless shot to slide under him and slowly roll into the net!

2-2! The score was miraculously tied!

Austria's fans erupted, and the Vienna stadium was like a concert hall, with loud cheers and songs echoing through the air.

Owen and Lampard, who had just been substituted, covered their faces in pain, their eyes revealing a hint of resentment: "It seems the boss was right. Eriksson, this foreigner, is not suitable for England!"

This scene caused the English fans who had traveled to Vienna to suffer greatly, with many female fans already in tears. From the west stand, a chorus of standard British English echoed: "Support Giovani, Eriksson out! Support Giovani, Eriksson out!"