In Chinese fan circles, excitement reached fever pitch, especially in the coastal city of Bin Cheng.
Suddenly, Ling's posters appeared everywhere on the streets, with some even renting the city's largest billboard.
Man United became the city's favorite team after Shide FC.
Even daily greetings shifted from "Have you eaten?" to "Did you watch the match?"
...
The next day.
The long-awaited victory parade finally arrived, plunging Manchester completely into a red frenzy.
This also served to make up for past regrets.
After fan riots following the 2006 UEFA Cup final, Manchester police had banned United from holding celebration events.
Therefore, when United won the league and Champions League in 2007-08, the celebrations weren't particularly grand.
Today, most Manchester residents flooded the streets, waiting shoulder-to-shoulder for United's parade bus.
"We are champions!"
"I love Mourinho, Paul, David, but most of all Jeremy!"
"I heard Real Madrid has made an offer - Jeremy won't leave us, right?"
"If Ed Woodward dares to sell Jeremy, I'll send some Molotov cocktails to his house! He must give Jeremy the best treatment—our hero absolutely deserves it!"
"The parade bus is here!!!"
Ling held a cigar in his left hand and the Big Ears Cup in his right, proudly displaying them from atop the bus.
Pogba carried the Premier League trophy.
Lingard grabbed a microphone behind them and passionately sang a song.
The United fans lining the streets grew even more excited. Gradually, all voices merged into three words.
"Viva Viva Jeremy!"
Ling's supporters had even created a song, adapted from the German group Snap!'s 1992 hit "Rhythm Is a Dancer." The lyrics roughly went:
"Rhythm is a dancer, Jeremy from China!"
"No matter how brave you are, you can't stop him!"
"He's Man United's savior, scoring goals galore!"
"We all love him!"
Hearing this, Ling quietly put on his sunglasses—he wanted to experience more moments with these wonderful fans!
St. Mary's Gate, Cross Street, King Street, Brown Street, St. Peter's Square...
Amid a sky filled with red confetti, the bus finally reached its destination, and the Man United players stepped onto the main stage set up for the celebration.
They had invited Dua Lipa to sing "One Kiss" once again, as tens of thousands of fans sang along in unison.
Everyone fell in love with the melody and was ready to adopt it as Man United's anthem for the next season.
After the opening ceremony, Mourinho stepped up to the microphone.
"When I first arrived at Man United, I said it would take just two summers to bring the club back to the pinnacle of English football! Now I've fulfilled that promise."
"Here, I want to thank one person who made me realize that praying to the heavens is useless. Only by bravely overcoming adversity can we carve out hope and possibility."
"But in reality, there is still a long way to go before Man United returns to its peak. Today is just the beginning, not the end. Let's keep pushing forward!"
When the two gleaming trophies were brought onto the stage, they were followed by a dazzling array of other awards.
Premier League Golden Boot, Golden Glove, Premier League Young Player of the Season, and the PFA player of the Year.
Under the relentless flash of cameras, the Man United squad took a group photo, with Ling's smile shining particularly bright!
...
Time flew by, and as June arrived, Manchester was still immersed in celebration.
But behind the scenes, a storm was brewing.
Contract renewal talks for Ling were brought to the forefront.
Jorge Mendes, leading a sizable team, engaged in a protracted battle with Man United's recruitment department.
This was bound to be a long and tedious process, with image rights being the most contentious point.
As for the player's salary? In truth, Man United was not being stingy.
Before Man United clinched the Premier League title, Ling's weekly wage had already reached the same level as Pogba's (£290,000).
But after his hat trick in the Champions League final, Woodward had no choice but to offer the highest salary in the Premier League.
But the weekly wage was just the baseline—there were many additional benefits.
£80,000 appearance fee for starting matches.
£1.5 million signing bonus per season.
£1.5 million performance bonus for achieving over 30 goals and assists.
Goals and assists exceeding 40? A bonus of £4 million.
Individual honors: League Golden Boot (£1.5m), Champions League Golden Boot (£2m).
Team honors: Premier League title (£500k), Champions League title (£1m).
It must be said that Mendes' team is highly professional.
And Man United's management has been quite generous—because they recognize the greater benefits Ling can bring.
However, Man United struggled with the demand for 100% image rights, which was simply too excessive.
Everyone knows it's a golden goose that can easily rake in huge sums.
Thus began an endless stalemate.
When news broke, Ed Woodward could no longer sit still, urgently convening a meeting with Man United's top brass overnight.
"Is Florentino insane? They're actually offering 75% image rights! Don't forget Ronaldo only got 60%!" Woodward, with dark circles under his eyes, spoke with deep anxiety.
It seemed Ronaldo's departure from Madrid was inevitable, and Perez grew desperate, seeking a star to maintain Real Madrid's global influence.
Manchester City was even more unscrupulous.
Somehow Pep Guardiola convinced the management—they halted all transfer activities and began clearing high-salary players from the squad.
Their intentions were obvious: going all-in for Ling.
Reports suggested they'd already contacted Mendes, promising him absolute core tactical status.
Not to mention the sensational tabloid stories in England, claiming Ling and Guardiola's daughter were a couple.
"Having De Bruyne and David Silva feed you passes will maximize your dribbling and scoring abilities."
As a forward, who wouldn't be tempted?
The mere thought made Woodward's heart tremble, cursing Guardiola's shamelessness and his endless stream of tactics.
He glanced covertly at Richard Arnold sitting in the corner, feeling the pressure mount.
Although his relationship with the Glazer family was decent, if he ultimately failed to retain Ling, his fate wouldn't be pleasant.
When photos of Ling and Maria out together were leaked by the tabloids, and Man City formally submitted an official offer, Woodward finally chose to compromise.
The contract was signed by both parties as quickly as possible.
Secure in his future and sitting on top of the world, Ling finally embarked on his flight home.