Chapter 98

When the three of them found out about the matter, it was at the police station.

They were startled when the police knocked on the door. They had seen police conduct room checks before, but checking the room of three grown men seemed a bit unreasonable, right? They weren't into that kind of stuff, nor were they doing anything like Li Tianyi.

However, the police clearly stated that it was related to last night's incident.

What happened last night? At the time, they didn't know they were already on the front page of the news. It wasn't until they saw the online information at the police station that they realized someone had been so kind as to report them...

Everyone knew who was behind it.

"Nothing happened last night. We just drank and went out, and then something happened." Liu Hao, the most sober of the three, was the most suitable to answer, "The other two were so drunk they were out of it, they didn't know what happened. If they knew, how could guys like them end up beaten up like this?"

Especially with Mao Jianqing's 1.87-meter professional athlete's build and height, who would dare to challenge him one-on-one? Even in a group fight, they would have to think twice. But once drunk, he became a sick cat, and even a finger could knock him down.

Mao Jianqing and Ling Zhenbang nodded in agreement, indicating they had no knowledge of the incident.

"It might have been a robbery..."

"Or maybe they mistook us for someone else..."

They were temporarily expelled from the national team, yet they still had the mood to joke around.

"Do you guys have any thoughts on this?" The police officer in charge of the investigation was a bit surprised. From their attitude, it seemed they didn't take the beating seriously.

"Of course not." The three of them cursed inwardly. What good would it do to have thoughts? Are you going to gather a bunch of police to take revenge for us?

When they left the police station, their mood wasn't as good.

"Ah, saying goodbye to the national team, what bad luck." Ling Zhenbang finally sobered up and started to regret it. Being selected for the national team at 20 was the dream of many players. Even if joining the national team wasn't as glorious as before, it was still much better than not joining, right?

"If it weren't for you, would I be in this situation? You're still young, with plenty of time ahead, but I'm almost 30! This is a huge loss for me. I'm not the worst off, though; our Hao is the most miserable..." Mao Jianqing took out a cigarette and lit it, blowing out smoke rings.

"Me? Forget it. It's just the national team, after all. Wherever I go, it's just a formality. Besides, the subsidy is so small, and if we lose a match, we get booed by the fans. Why would I want to join the national team?" Liu Hao looked calm, whether it was genuine or not, but he didn't seem as interested in the national team as the other two.

There was indeed a match between the Chinese national team and the Icelandic national team in mid-May. Since Pellegrini wasn't familiar with the national team members, the actual selection was still handled by Ma Mingyu. It was said to be for training for the 2015 Asian Cup, but what was the point of training against the Icelandic national team, which, although similar to the Australian team in Asia, was not in the same group as China? Could the coaching staff have such foresight to predict that the national team would definitely advance from the group stage and then face Australia?

The coaching staff's confidence probably wasn't that strong. It was just a random match arranged by the higher-ups, and who knew if there was any ulterior motive.

"Even if we perform well this year, whether we can go to the Asian Cup next year is still uncertain. There are so many big shots in the national team, and it's not my turn to be selected..." Ling Zhenbang also consoled himself.

"I don't really care. It's just a bit less bonus money," Mao Jianqing waved his hand. "Anyway, we didn't do anything wrong, but we need to get our stories straight. When we return, the club will definitely hold a press conference to explain to the media and fans. We need to downplay it and can't say it was over Qiao Xianglan."

Don't look at Mao Jianqing as being carefree and impulsive; he actually had his own ideas when it came to handling things. Of course, it might also be because he had more experience in this area...

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Sure enough, when the three of them returned to their respective hotels, they were first scolded by their head coaches.

Ling Zhenbang's situation was unknown, but Liu Hao saw Li Xiaopeng angry for the first time. Although he looked cute even when angry, his anger came and went quickly...

"What exactly happened?" After his anger subsided, Li Xiaopeng asked about the details. "Mao, be quiet. I want Liu Hao to explain."

In Li Xiaopeng's mind, Mao Jianqing was the typical sly and cunning one, and his words weren't trustworthy, so he asked Liu Hao to answer.

"I think the news online might be more accurate than what we say. We really don't know what happened..." Liu Hao scratched the back of his head. "I still have a headache, it's so unfair."

They had already agreed to play it vague. Although it wasn't good to lie at their age, they had no choice. Otherwise, they would be laughed at.

"Hmm?" Li Xiaopeng raised his eyebrows, as if this wasn't the answer he needed.

Who would beat them up for no reason? He wasn't stupid.

He couldn't hold back and cursed.

"Damn!"

Yes, Li Xiaopeng swore in front of the two of them.

Liu Hao and Mao Jianqing were both stunned, it was the first time they had seen Li Xiaopeng swear.

"Do you guys have no sense of honor? No sense of shame? Being famous in the national team, is that something to be proud of? No, this can't end like this. We need to talk to Ma Mingyu."

"..." They were already expelled, how could they talk? Everyone knew, and they couldn't use backdoor methods to get back in, right? The two of them looked at Li Xiaopeng, wondering what he had in mind.

"If you really didn't do anything wrong, why would it be hard to get back in? If you did something wrong, I won't lose face, so you need to tell me the truth!" Li Xiaopeng said seriously.

"We didn't do anything wrong." The two of them answered in unison.

"Ma Mingyu flew back to the capital last night. This matter is a bit tricky. It's better to visit him in person; it's hard to convey the message over the phone..." Li Xiaopeng paced back and forth, eyes darting, lips pursed, muttering to himself, "What should I bring as a gift?"

It seemed he was already thinking about how to use backdoor methods to give gifts. He had a lot of experience in this area. When Chinese football was exposed to many scandals a few years ago, Li Xiaopeng was hit a few times, although not severely, it still had a significant impact.

The issue of giving gifts also caused a lot of controversy, but in the end, nothing happened to Li Xiaopeng. After all, whether you're from Shandong or China, when someone does something for you, it's all about reciprocity...

Now, Li Xiaopeng was thinking about how to handle things for his two national team players...

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