Chapter 6: Buy a Football Club for Fun

The advantage of the information age is that a piece of news can spread rapidly in a very short time.

After Yang Wenfeng arrived at the company, he gave a casual order to the HR department, instructing them to fully cooperate with Yang Huan's requests as long as it didn't disrupt company operations.

While this was just a simple reminder from Yang Wenfeng, the employees saw it differently.

Yang Wenfeng had no siblings, and his only son was Yang Huan. Though many people always said that Yang Huan was a playboy with no ambition, the fact that he came to the company to pick personnel and required full cooperation from all departments was seen as a positive signal that Yang Wenfeng intended to groom his son seriously.

With the Yang family's financial power, throwing tens of billions at Yang Huan to let him learn business was considered a normal thing.

But for the employees, it was a different story.

Yang Huan was still the heir. Following him now meant that when he eventually took over Yang Group, they could claim credit for their loyalty.

So, the entire Yang Group was waiting eagerly for Yang Huan's arrival.

However, the heir took his time.

It wasn't until 11:00 AM that his flashy gold Lamborghini slowly arrived at the front gate of Yang Group's headquarters.

Immediately, a tall, stunning beauty stepped out of the driver's seat. She wore a white open-collared shirt with a row of black buttons, paired with black pencil pants — a classic office lady (OL) outfit that accentuated her nearly perfect hourglass figure.

As soon as this woman got out of the car, the few security guards on duty were left dumbstruck.

Zhang Ning walked over to the passenger side and opened the door for Yang Huan, who stepped out with a nonchalant smile, as if it were perfectly natural.

The four security guards stared in disbelief. They'd only ever seen guys opening car doors for women, but when had they ever witnessed a woman doing it for a man?

This was insane! Completely mind-blowing!

"Good morning, young master!"

"Good morning, Master Huan!"

"Morning, everyone."

Yang Huan and Zhang Ning walked into the lobby, one after the other. The receptionist immediately greeted them.

She had seen Yang Huan before, but she had never seen Zhang Ning. Upon first glance, she was stunned by her beauty and then filled with envy.

Not only was this woman gorgeous, but her figure was incredible, and she exuded a unique, captivating aura.

What was more, she was dressed head to toe in designer labels.

Her outfit was a sleek, elegant OL suit from Valentino, a symbol of luxury and sophistication, which the receptionist had seen in a fashion magazine. The black handbag she carried was from Hermès and must have cost tens of thousands, and although the brand of her high heels wasn't obvious, they certainly weren't cheap.

Could this woman be… the future Mrs. Yang?

"Master Huan, Mr. Yang instructed that you can head directly to the HR department on the fifth floor."

Under the guidance of the receptionist, Yang Huan and Zhang Ning entered the elevator and pressed the button for the fifth floor.

"How does it feel to be the center of attention?" Yang Huan asked with a grin inside the elevator.

After leaving the house earlier, he had purposely taken Zhang Ning to the best mall in Longhai City for a shopping spree, assembling the perfect outfit for her.

"Like a rich man!" Zhang Ning looked down at the tight, white, open-collared shirt she was wearing. She had originally wanted to button it up, but Yang Huan insisted it looked better this way, leaving her with no choice but to comply.

Hearing her slightly teasing remark, Yang Huan laughed out loud. "Feeling like a rich person is exactly what I want. If you're with me, you've got to be on the same wavelength. I think being rich is pretty great—you can have whatever you want, do whatever you want. Isn't that good?"

"Don't let people fool you with all their criticisms of the rich. In reality, it's just envy, jealousy, and resentment. If they had the chance to be rich, do you think they'd refuse?"

Zhang Ning's heart was stirred by his words. Indeed, who wouldn't want to be born into wealth? Who wouldn't want to be worry-free? Who wouldn't want to live like Yang Huan, doing whatever they pleased?

Still, she wasn't keen on becoming someone like Yang Huan.

Yet, she couldn't deny that this unique man was someone she couldn't hate or find fault with.

With a ding, the elevator reached the fifth floor.

"Good morning, Young Master Huan!"

As the doors opened, a middle-aged man in his fifties stood outside, sporting a balding head and wearing a pair of black-framed glasses in the style of Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing. He had the look of someone who had gained weight in middle age. Upon seeing Zhang Ning, his eyes lit up, though he hid it well.

"Young Master Huan, welcome to the HR department. I've already arranged everything for the interviews."

"Do you even know what kind of people I'm looking for?" Yang Huan asked with a smile.

The balding manager was momentarily stunned, unsure of the answer. However, many candidates had arrived—of all types.

"No worries, just gather everyone in the conference room and give each person a sheet of paper and a pen."

As Yang Huan walked through the HR department with Zhang Ning, they immediately drew the attention of the employees.

"Young Master Huan is so young and handsome."

"Yeah, and who's that woman behind him?"

"He's about to walk by. Should we say hello?"

"Oh gosh, seeing Young Master Huan in person makes me so nervous. What should I even say?"

As the employees whispered among themselves, the balding manager quickly tried to restore order. "What are you all doing? Get back to work!"

"No need to worry, it's fine!" Yang Huan waved with a smile. He loved hearing people praise him. "I don't come around often, so it's normal for everyone to be curious. Here's what we'll do—today at noon, I'll treat the entire HR department and all the interview candidates to lunch at Longhai Grand Hotel. Don't be shy!"

"Really?"

"Young Master Huan, you're amazing!"

"I love you, Young Master Huan!"

The entire fifth floor was immediately abuzz with excitement. Everyone was overjoyed.

Longhai Grand Hotel wasn't a place they could casually afford—it was a high-end establishment.

Behind him, Zhang Ning couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Just like that, you threw away tens of thousands of yuan again. You really are a playboy."

"People are complimenting me, so of course I'm in a good mood!" Yang Huan didn't mind at all. "If you were to praise me, who knows? I might get so happy that I'd take you to bed. Then we'd be even."

"Who said you could sleep with me? I…"

Zhang Ning's face turned red again.

"You really don't want to let me sleep with you? If you don't, the price you'll pay is sticking by my side 24/7, never leaving, always together like husband and wife!"

Yang Huan teased her with a mischievous grin, staring at her beautiful face.

Realizing that resistance was futile, Zhang Ning resigned herself to silence, refusing to argue.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Yang Huan entered the conference room. There were more than 60 people present, all of them under 30, and some were even key department members.

"Young Master Huan, shall we begin?" The balding manager approached after Yang Huan sat down.

"Yes, we can start!" Yang Huan scanned the room. "Here's the first question: In last night's World Cup final, when was the only goal scored? Who assisted whom, and with which foot was the goal scored?"

This was the very question that had earned him 300 million last night, and now he was using it to test others.

The Mediterranean manager was full of surprise. Was this a fan interview?

But he didn't dare ask too much and immediately relayed the question down.

A commotion broke out below. Many of the applicants weren't soccer fans, and even those who were couldn't remember such detailed information.

At first, there was a lot of chatter, but when it came time to write their answers, everyone kept their answers very confidential. After all, the person next to them could be their competitor, and nobody wanted their answer to be seen.

Soon, the papers were collected and brought to Yang Huan. Many people had left their sheets blank, and others had incomplete answers. Most knew that Fabregas assisted Iniesta in scoring, but they didn't remember the exact time or which foot Iniesta used to score the goal.

"Master Huan, such a strict question—how could anyone get it right?"

"Maybe we should just use Baidu to check."

"Yeah, we weren't prepared for this."

As the group was expressing their discontent, Yang Huan pulled out a paper from the pile. The answer was written clearly: the time of the goal, the assist, and the fact that Iniesta had scored with his right foot.

"This one's pretty good!" Yang Huan said as he looked at the top left corner of the A4 paper, where the name Sun Yue was scribbled in messy handwriting.

Sun Yue quickly came forward. He was a 29-year-old young man, quite ordinary in appearance, clothing, and demeanor. The kind of person you wouldn't notice in a crowd, with nothing particularly special about him.

The Mediterranean manager, sharp as ever, immediately grabbed Sun Yue's personnel file.

Yang Huan glanced at it and saw that the guy was still on probation and hadn't shown any remarkable performance during this period. He seemed like the type who wasn't doing well in the company.

"Sun Yue, introduce yourself," Yang Huan said, intrigued by him.

Some people are ordinary, yes, but that doesn't mean they don't have talent or capability. It might just be that their skills haven't found the right opportunity, or maybe they've had bad luck.

"Sun Yue, 29 years old, graduated from such-and-such university. My hobbies are football, and I've worked in newspapers, television stations, and advertising companies."

"How would you evaluate last night's final?" Yang Huan asked again.

"Spain's win was well-deserved, and the Netherlands played too ugly!"

"What's your ideal style of football?"

Without thinking, Sun Yue responded, "Attack. Constant attack. The most beautiful, fluid attack!"

"Well said!" Yang Huan praised, standing up.

"So, what are you best at?"

"Watching football, marketing, and public relations."

"Then why have you been in the company for over two months without achieving anything?" Yang Huan asked with a smile.

Sun Yue glanced at the people around him, took a deep breath, and spoke loudly, "I think the current system at Yang Corporation is rigid and lacks the adventurous spirit and initiative it once had. It's not conducive to young people making their mark. I've made a few suggestions, but they were rejected by the department because they were deemed too risky and didn't align with the company's development path."

Yang Huan turned to look at the Mediterranean manager, who then glanced at one of his subordinates. After some confirmation, it was clear that what Sun Yue had said was true.

"Sun Yue, you just said that Yang Corporation lacks a spirit of adventure and initiative. Well, now I'm giving you a chance. Leave Yang Corporation, and come abroad with me. We'll build a business together. How about that?"

"What kind of business?" Sun Yue asked, intrigued.

Yang Huan, full of confidence, smiled and said, "Let's buy a football team and turn it into the world's most beautiful, most aggressive, and most successful football club!"

"Really?" Sun Yue's interest was piqued. "Master Huan, which team do you plan to buy? Barcelona or Real Madrid?"

"Oh wait, no, Barcelona and Real Madrid are member-owned clubs and can't be bought. German clubs also have restrictions, so they're out. Italian clubs don't own their stadiums, which is too limiting. But the Premier League is promising! Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester City are all good options."

Yang Huan watched Sun Yue with interest.

This guy was clearly a hardcore football fan. Once he started talking about football, he became very animated.

This kind of enthusiasm matched well with Yang Huan's own tastes.

"My budget for buying a club is... like this." Yang Huan held up three fingers

"Three billion?" Sun Yue was stunned. "In pounds or euros?"

"Pounds. But not three billion!" Yang Huan remained calm.

"Could it be... thirty billion?" Sun Yue almost fell to his knees. "My God, forget it. Just go buy Manchester United, then buy all the top players, enough for three full squads—one for the league, one for the Champions League, and one for the League Cup and FA Cup. You could even field a team for the reserves!"