Ten minutes later, the two stood in front of Tang En's house. Tang En pointed to the house number and said to the girl, "Did I lie to you? 13 Branford Garden Street. It's where I live. "
The girl nodded and then walked straight up to try to open the door as if it was her own home.
"Hey! What are you doing? "Tang En was startled.
"Going in to rest." The girl looked back at him and said.
"But this is my home. I've lived here … for seven years. It's just me. There's no Aunt Ryan like you're talking about. "
"Liar." The girl stubbornly held on to the door handle.
Tang En looked at the expression on the little girl's face. He suddenly felt that the child's personality was very similar to his in some aspects. So, he took out his key and walked up to open the door. He then said to the girl, "Okay, go in and see. You can look upstairs and downstairs. I'll see if you can find your Aunt Ryan."
The girl did not expect Tang En to let her in so easily. She stood at the door and hesitated.
"What? You don't believe it yourself? "Tang En laughed.
The laughter stimulated the girl's competitive spirit. She walked in with her head held high. "I'll look. Do you think I don't know? You live downstairs. Aunt lives upstairs! "
She said as she walked to the stairs. Tang En followed behind her and nodded vigorously. "That's right! I'm hoping to have a beautiful aunt living with me. She helps me cook and I wash the dishes for her. Then we sit together and watch TV … "
The girl stopped and turned back to glare at Tang En. "Aunt Ryan is already 53 this year."
"Uh …" Tang En scratched his head. "Forget it."
As they spoke, they went upstairs. As soon as they came up, the girl saw an open door. She did not pay attention to the decorations inside. She looked up and saw a large photo hanging on the wall facing her. Under the red waves, a person stood proudly with his hands raised high.
She focused all her attention on the photo and walked straight into it.
"Hey, that's my bedroom …" Tang En did not stop her.
The girl stood under the photo and sighed. "So you're really a football coach …"
"Do I get paid to lie to you?" Tang En rolled his eyes. How could he make himself look like a football coach? Wear a sports shirt and white sneakers all day and hang a whistle around his neck? That look was really silly …
"So cool," the girl exclaimed. She then looked around and asked, "This is your room?"
Tang En also noticed that the room was a little messy. The socks he changed out of yesterday had not been washed, and the quilt was not folded. The clothes he took off were scattered on the floor, and the books he read last night were either on the bedside table or under the pillow.
The little girl's tone was clearly mocking the terrible environment, but Tang En could not refute her. He scratched his head and said, "All bachelors are like this … Alright! Come out, this is my bedroom, I am the master here! I didn't invite you into my room! "He suddenly found himself behaving strangely. Why did he have to be so weak in front of his" guest "?
The girl jumped out, and Tang En said to her, "Look, your aunt isn't here."
The girl pointed at the other three closed doors.
"Two unoccupied guest rooms and a bathroom." Twain pushed open the doors one by one and pointed them out to her.
After seeing these empty rooms with nothing but beds, the girl fell into silence. Tang En did not know what she was thinking, but he had to send his guest off now.
"As you can see, I'm the only one staying at 13 Branford Garden Street. I don't know where your aunt is. You can go now, "Tang En said to the girl as he stood at the top of the stairs.
The girl stared at the room in a daze. Then she said to Tang En, "If I give you money, can you let me stay here for a night?"
The suggestion was really unexpected. Tang En was stunned for a moment, and then realized that the girl wanted to use his place as a hotel.
Seeing the girl take out a handful of coins and notes from her bag and spread them out in front of him, Tang En frowned.
"Is it not enough?" the girl asked carefully. "But this is all I have …"
"Where are your parents? I think I have to call them and tell you … "Tang En was interrupted by the girl's scream before he could finish.
"No!" She clenched her hands. "If you don't want me to stay here, I can leave now!"
Her reaction was even more unexpected to Tang En. He decided to get to the bottom of it. "I can let you stay here, and I won't ask you for money. But you have to tell me about your parents. "
After he said this, the room fell into silence. The girl seemed to be hesitating or considering, but Tang En did not rush her. To him, it did not matter whether he took in the girl for a day or not. He was just a little curious. The girl's behavior from the moment she appeared until now made him feel strange, and he wanted to ask for an explanation.
After a while, the girl finally said, "I escaped from home … Actually, there was no Aunt Ryan. I was adopted since I was young, but they didn't treat me well. I hate them … "She stood in front of Tang En with her head lowered, her shoulder-length hair falling in front of her face. Tang En could not see anything, but the girl's voice was very low. That hateful emotion did not seem to be faked.
This problem had become complicated and thorny … Would she become a problem?
The girl did not hear Tang En's words. She timidly looked up and found that Tang En's brows were knitted even tighter.
"Alright, sir. I also know my request is too much … "The girl with her hopes dashed lowered her head again, picked up her bag, and prepared to leave.
Tang En reached out to stop her. "I agree to let you stay here. But … we have to sign something. Yes, something like a rental agreement. I don't want any unclear problems to appear between us in the future … It's good for you, and good for me. Do you understand what I mean? "
The overjoyed girl nodded vigorously. "I understand! Uncle, you're such a good person! "
Hearing the girl's last sentence, the corner of Tang En's mouth twitched. He extended his index finger. "I have to add one more condition — don't call me uncle. I'm not that old yet! You little devil … Uh, what's your name? "
"Jude, Jude `Shania `Jordana. You can call me Judy, or Shania, or Jor. " The girl replied with a smile. The afternoon sun shone in through the bedroom window and shone on her face, giving her a hazy glow. Looking at the little girl's happy look, Tang En really wondered if her pitiful look just now was an act …
Coming back to his senses, Tang En continued to ask. He had to understand the basic situation of this temporary tenant of his.
"Alright, Judy. How old are you? "
"Thirteen!" Judy Shania Jordana answered crisply. This answer startled Tang En.
He tilted his head and studied her carefully.
Tang En was 1.86 meters tall. The little girl standing in front of him was almost at his throat. This height … Who would believe the girl in front of him was only 13 years old? Especially that pair of long legs … Her face was delicate and tender, befitting her age.
"Uh, can you tell me how tall you are?"
Shania thought about it and then said to Tang En, "Maybe five feet three, or five feet four? I can't remember clearly … "
Five feet three was about 1.6 meters, and five feet four was about 1.63 meters.
Tang En was once again shocked by the number. He really wanted to ask what Shania ate when she was young. How did her adoptive parents abuse her to let her grow to a height that many women could never reach in their lifetime at the age of 13?
Seeing her stand straight even when she was very casual, Tang En praised her in his heart. She's really made for being a model …
The rest was simple. Tang En asked for some basic information about her and then drafted a simple agreement. The two signed it. Shania was a Brazilian girl who crossed the Atlantic Ocean to escape from her adoptive parents who abused her every day. Other than marveling at the girl's precocious attitude, Tang En did not think too much about it.
That night, Tang En brought Shania to the Forest team's bar for dinner. It immediately caused a small commotion.
Many people came up with wine glasses to greet Shania, but they were stared at by Tang En in a very unfriendly manner. Shania smiled and greeted the Englishmen, treating them as if they were greeting her. However, Tang En knew what these people were like when they were drunk.
Even more people crowded around and made fun of Tang En. Even Burns came to join in the fun.
"Hey, Tony. When did you have a daughter? "
"Haha!" The men beside them laughed.
Tang En did not want to be outdone and retorted, "Oh, my dear Kenny. You know, I can't do this for you. "
Even louder laughter rang out. Even Burns chuckled.
Shania looked up curiously at the two of them bickering. Everything here was strange and interesting to her. However, she was not afraid of the excited men. On the contrary, she felt very safe. Why? She did not know.
After dinner, Tang En did not stay in the bar to drink and chat with the group as usual, because he brought Shania along.
"Goodbye, guys. I have to go home. "Tang En pulled Shania to stand at the door and said goodbye to everyone.
A loud sigh immediately rang out in the bar.
"Tony! Go back. No one will ask you to stay, but Shania has to stay! "Burns winked at Tang En.
His words were supported by everyone's laughter. "Kenny is right, Tony!"
"In your dreams!" Tang En waved his fist. "Go home and hug your wives!"
Tang En and Shania left the Forest Bar amidst the laughter of the crowd.
On the way home, Shania was very interested in Tang En's relationship with those people.
"Are you very familiar with each other?"
The curious girl's casual question suddenly tugged at a certain chord in Tang En's heart. The people and events of the past five months resurfaced in his mind. His first meeting with Michael, the exciting halftime and second half with West Ham United, George Wood who loved his mother and his mother who loved him, the surprise of meeting Yang Yan for the first time, the lesson on "humility" that Old Manager Clough gave him, the glorious Mark Hodge, the innocent little Gavin, the play-offs where they lost on the verge of victory … It was a half a year that he still found unbelievable when he recalled it.
"Do you want to hear a story, Judy?"
Shania nodded excitedly.
"This story is very long, and the ending might not be that satisfying. Do you still want to hear it? "
"Yes! I want to hear it! "
"Speaking of which, a long time ago … Hmm, alright, it was actually five months ago …"
As Tang En narrated in his hoarse voice, the two slowly walked towards the sunset, dragging their long shadows behind them.
As there was no longer only one person living in the house, there was a temporary tenant. The next morning, Tang En woke up to make breakfast for Shania. When Tang En was alone, breakfast was always very simple. A bottle of milk and a piece of bread would do. Now that there was a little girl, Tang En had to think of ways to make something delicious and nutritious.
Fortunately, there was still some stock in the fridge.
A cup of warm milk, fried eggs, bread, cheese, and bacon ham. Looking at the breakfast on the table, Tang En thought for a moment and rummaged through the fridge for an apple. He washed it and placed it beside the plate. It had been half a year since he transmigrated here, and this was the first time Tang En was so serious about making breakfast. Going back further, he did not know how many years it had been since he had made breakfast himself. When he was frying the eggs just now, he almost dropped the eggs into the bin and threw the eggshell into the frying pan.
Tang En did not see Shania come down from upstairs as he hurriedly made breakfast. He was sure that it was because of the tiring journey and wanted her to rest a little longer. Tang En sat at the dining table and began to read the day's newspaper.
The name that appeared most frequently was still David Beckham, followed by Chelsea and Bates. The old man was finally overwhelmed by Chelsea's debt of more than 90 million pounds and was planning to sell his club. After several months of speculation, lies, and clarifications, the most likely buyer finally surfaced: the Russian tycoon, Abramovich.
Now, all the media were hyping up this man and the mysterious assets behind him. There were even people who saw him as the savior of the English Premier League.
What made Tang En happy was that reality did not deviate much from the memory he was familiar with. Chelsea was indeed getting infinitely closer to that mysterious Russian. He had already begun to plan how he could reap some benefits from that crazy wave of transfers after the Russian took over Chelsea.
After thinking for a while, Tang En felt very discouraged. His team did not have any great players that could attract the Russian's interest and then take advantage of him. Michael Dawson was not mature enough. Even if the Russian wanted him, he would not sell him. As for the others … if he wanted to sell them, they did not want them. And because of the Russian's entry, in the near future, almost all the clubs would double the price of selling players. With the Forest team's poor financial situation, it would be impossible to pick up any cheap and affordable players.
Thinking about it this way, the Russian's entry into this circle would do more harm than good to Tang En. He cursed and put the newspaper aside.
He realized that Shania had not gotten up yet. The fried eggs would not taste good when they were cold. He decided to wake the child up.
Tang En first knocked lightly on the door, but there was no response even after knocking several times. Then he shouted again, but there was still no answer. Worried, Tang En did not care that a girl was sleeping inside. He took out the key and opened the door.
The black and white sports bag was thrown open on the ground. Clothes and toys were scattered all over the floor. The sheets on the small bed were wrinkled and messy. Half of them were still on the bed, while the other half was dragged on the floor. Shania's petite body was wrapped under the thin blanket. She was curled into a ball and shivering like a pitiful kitten.
Tang En felt that everything in front of him was not right. He rushed to the side of the bed in two steps.
Shania was still unconscious. Her brows were tightly furrowed, and she gritted her teeth, speaking nonsense that Tang En could not understand.
Even a fool could see that the girl had a fever!
Tang En took out his cell phone and dialed Landy's number. Then, he clamped the cell phone to his neck. While waiting for the signal to connect, he lifted the blanket, picked up Shania, who was only wearing a short nightgown, and rushed downstairs.
"Landy, where are you? It's an emergency. I need a car right now! Come quickly. A life is at stake! "
Landy glanced at the GPS in the car and answered Tang En, "Three minutes. Three minutes at most."
Then, he said to the passenger sitting behind, "I'm sorry, sir. Please fasten your seatbelt. I have to change my route to pick someone up. "Just as he finished speaking, the engine roared loudly. A beetle-like taxi immediately transformed into a 'Need for Speed' car. It made a drifting turn at the intersection ahead, shook its butt, and quickly adjusted its direction. Then, it charged towards Branford Garden Street where Tang En's house was.
Tang En stood by the roadside, anxiously waiting for Landy's taxi. From time to time, he lowered his head to look at Shania, who was curled up in his arms. Although she was not short, she was still very light when carried. Tang En blamed this on his cruel adoptive parents. The little girl's forehead was covered in sweat. Her wet hair stuck to her face as if she had just been fished out of the water. The chest area of Tang En's shirt was also wet from Shania's sweat. The girl's body was sticky against him, and it felt very uncomfortable.
He looked at the girl trapped in a nightmare and sighed in his heart. I really picked up a big problem!
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