章節 63: Melanie’s Visit
As the summer transfer window heated up, Millwall in East London remained unusually calm.
Millwall fans were feeling a bit downcast. North London's Arsenal had already secured Dutch star Dennis Bergkamp and England's renowned player David Platt, clearly signaling an intention to rebuild their dynasty. Meanwhile, Chelsea in West London made a splash by signing Ruud Gullit, the first-ever European and World Player of the Year in English football, marking a milestone transfer.
After being promoted last year, Crystal Palace faced relegation this season, and West Ham United was complaining about Millwall's unethical behavior in poaching their players. Charlton and Queens Park Rangers appeared perpetually invisible, while Tottenham released White Hart Lane favorites Klinsmann and Popescu.Wimbledon, continuously hard up for cash, still doesn't possess their own stadium and continues to argue with Crystal Palace regarding stadium rental expenses...
London, buzzing with activity every summer day, is filled with news, but the tranquility in Millwall leaves fans feeling frustrated. Each time they gaze north or west towards London, it feels like everyone else is signing star players, while our team has only brought in a bunch of rookies.
However, the fans, who had long been accustomed to a lack of star players at the club, quickly calmed down. In a random survey conducted by *The Sun*, over 85% of Millwall supporters indicated that as long as the club could stay in the Premier League next season, they would be satisfied.
As the summer training days drew closer, Aldrich moved into a new community just a kilometer away from the club. This community was part of his assets, and he chose a mixed-use apartment in the middle of the complex as his residence. Other apartments were sold to loyal Millwall supporters, with fifty units earmarked for them.
Aldrich asked Brady to select a hundred interested fans from the "Lion's Roar" fan organization for potential home purchases, and Millwall's official staff then vetted these fans, investigating their background. After a review, the properties would be sold at a 30% discount from market prices.
One of the reasons for housing these fans was to provide accommodations for youth players. The team would have a bus pick up the youth players daily to transport them to Millwall's newly completed Leo training base.
The remaining vacant apartments would partly host immigrant families like the Villa family and could also address accommodation needs for club staff.
In July, the Spice Girls released a single and officially debuted in the UK music scene. Melanie Chisholm excitedly helped Aldrich move into his new place.
In the clean, spacious apartment, Aldrich set up the sofa downstairs and looked at the rows of cardboard boxes on the floor, lying back on the sofa for a moment of rest.
"Aldrich, can I see your diary?"
Sitting on the stairs of the second floor with a box in her arms, Melanie peeked inside Aldrich's diary she had picked up and asked casually.
"Sure, there's nothing secret in there."
Melanie tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and flipped through a page, reading softly.
"I spent (number of) days in Portugal, trying to find little Ronaldo in his short pants, but ended up getting lost in Lisbon five times. In the end, I gave up the search and arrived here in Porto.
I found a lifelong local who had also come from Lisbon; he's the famous English football manager Bobby Robson. I wasn't interested in him, but Porto had someone who intrigued me.
Before a press conference at Porto FC, I hired a makeup artist to make me look like a twenty-something young man, then I had Andrew send a forged fax to the club in Porto claiming I was a reporter for *The Times*. Wearing a fake press badge around my neck, I confidently walked into the press conference.
Here, the language barrier made Bobby Robson seem like a puppet, but every word he spoke was relayed through a translator. It was my first real encounter with the god-like Mourinho; he was young yet meticulous about his work. Even in his translator's words, I could tell he would mimic Robson's tone flawlessly.
To assert my presence as this fake reporter, of course, I raised my hand during the Q&A session. When the press officer signaled for me to ask a question, I stood up and asked loudly, 'Mr. Mourinho, when do you plan to coach a team?'
I already knew the answer; I just wanted to hear his thoughts.
But clearly, Mourinho was startled. He didn't relay my question to Robson and instead asked me to repeat it.
I repeated it, adding, 'You clearly don't want to just be a translator or an assistant coach; you're an ambitious person. The head coach position is what you aspire to, right?'
To my surprise, Mourinho erupted in rage, and then I was kicked out of Porto FC.
As I paced outside, fuming, Mourinho bolted out, grabbing my collar, angrily questioning whether I wanted to get him fired!
I was also furious. Taking advantage of his momentary distraction, I pinched his thin face hard and shouted in his ear before turning and running. Mourinho must have been stunned; by the time he snapped out of it and chased me, I was already several streets away. After running for ten minutes, it was clear he had stopped pursuing me. I removed my disguise and hopped on a train to Spain; it was a delightful day.
Hahahahahaha..."
By the time Melanie reached the end, she couldn't help but burst into laughter.
She found Aldrich's youth antics, masquerading as a reporter and causing a stir at a press conference, truly hilarious.
Thinking back to those years, Aldrich also smiled knowingly while lying on the sofa.
At the time, he genuinely hadn't anticipated Mourinho's reaction would be that extreme. If he hadn't run quickly, maybe they would have ended up grappling in the street.
Suddenly, a warm body landed in his arms. Melanie, smiling brightly, lay on top of Aldrich and asked, "Why were you such a troublemaker when you were younger? Your brother mentioned that you used to smash other people's windows. How could you be so unruly?"
Aldrich felt wronged; he had nothing to do with smashing windows.
"Hey, why did you choose to live here?"
"What's wrong with this place?"
"I thought you'd stay in a mansion like your brother does in West London."
"Uh, there are a lot of reasons to live here, but the most important one is that I can keep an eye on the younger players and prevent them from hanging out in nightclubs or getting involved with news reporters."
Melanie propped herself up, the opening of her shirt exposing a generous view. Aldrich couldn't help but indulge his eyes, admiring her stunning figure under the black lingerie.
"You want to be a babysitter for the players, but who will monitor you?"
Melanie asked teasingly with a mischievous smile.
Aldrich wrapped one arm around her back and lifted his other hand to caress her tender cheek. With a soft smile, he said, "I would never lower my worth to associate with a stripper. Why would I? I already have a gem like you."
Melanie's eyes softened, as if they could drip water, and she bent down, passionately sharing a lingering kiss with Aldrich.
After a brief moment of intimacy, they resumed unpacking and arranging the apartment until it resembled a home by nightfall.
During dinner time, Aldrich received a call from Brady, inviting him and Melanie out for a meal. He didn't change his clothes, took Melanie out, and drove Arthur's BMW to the restaurant.
As soon as they entered, Brady, who had been waiting, waved with a smile upon seeing Aldrich and Melanie. Aldrich quickly spotted Brady, Fred, and Yvonne at the table, but he noticed that Yvonne didn't look well.
When Aldrich reached the table, Brady joked, "Aren't you going to introduce us?"
"This is Melanie Chisholm."
Melanie graciously extended her hand to shake hands with the three young men present. However, after shaking hands, Yvonne looked pale as she raised her handbag and said, "Sorry, I don't feel well; I need to leave."
With that, she got up and left the table.
As Aldrich brushed past her, he asked with concern, "Are you sure? I came by car; I can take you to the hospital."
Yvonne turned to glare at Aldrich for a few seconds before finally shaking her head calmly. "It's nothing. I just need to rest."
Watching her leave, Aldrich shook his head regretfully. He hadn't seen the talented girl studying IT at university for over two months.
Brady and Fred exchanged knowing glances, both wearing wry smiles.
Even Melanie showed a hint of bewilderment in her eyes, but she instinctively tightened her grip on Aldrich's hand.
The dinner went pleasantly, with Aldrich discussing various matters related to the fan organization with Brady. He hoped the Lion's Roar group would provide the club with maximum support, especially during matches, including enthusiasm and encouragement for young rookies, as this would directly influence the team's long-term development.
Just before dinner came to an end, Brady leaned over to Aldrich and whispered, "Aldrich, you need to be mentally prepared for this season."
"What do you mean?"
"This season, we'll be facing West Ham and Chelsea directly in the league—home and away, at least four matches. I can't control others, and some members of the bushwanker group won't just vanish. The derby isn't just about the game on the pitch; outside, it will be a real war."
Aldrich nodded gravely, his expression serious.
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