At nine o'clock in the morning, the city of Madrid, having slept through the night, slowly began to wake up.
Traffic on the Paseo de la Castellana, the avenue running north to south through the city center, was starting to pick up.
People began emerging from the Santiago Bernabéu metro station, heading toward the stadium located northeast of the intersection.
The league was on break, and there were no matches or events scheduled at the Bernabéu today. Yet, the crowd outside continued to grow.
Soon, passers-by and even drivers began stopping, looking on curiously.
"What's going on?"
"Is there an event at the Bernabéu today?"
"Hey man, what are you waiting for?"
One question after another spread through the crowd.
Just as confusion peaked, a few people pushed through, politely saying, "Excuse me, please make way, thank you."
When they reached the entrance, they flashed their credentials and were immediately let in by security.
This only triggered more murmuring.
A few people quickly blocked them and asked, "Hey, brother, what's going on today? Why so many people?"
"You didn't hear? Gao Shen is here!"
"Gao Shen? Seriously?"
"Oh my God! Why hasn't this made the news?"
"We got short notice too. We rushed right over. Sorry, gotta go!"
The crowd immediately erupted in discussion.
Gao Shen is here!
It was like a bomb had exploded in the center of Madrid.
News of his arrival spread like wildfire. Everyone began making phone calls, and some immediately took to Twitter and other social media.
In no time, all of Madrid, all of Spain, and even all of Europe was buzzing.
Gao Shen was about to officially sign at the Santiago Bernabéu!
For Real Madrid fans who had been waiting years for this, it was massive news.
Within half an hour, even more fans flooded in from every direction.
Some came by car, others by subway, and others by bus...
The entire perimeter around the Bernabéu was gridlocked. It eventually drew the attention of the police, who had to step in to maintain order and urgently requested that Real Madrid open the stadium.
If not, there could be serious safety concerns.
…
"Gao's popularity is off the charts. It's even made the mainstream news."
Inside an office at the Bernabéu, General Manager José Ángel Sánchez was updating President Florentino Pérez.
They had only just made it into the stadium themselves.
Florentino could see the situation clearly.
Outside the window in front of him, more and more fans were gathering, all coming voluntarily.
Three years ago, when Real Madrid signed Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká, the club had to "orchestrate" the entire event.
This time, it was pure, spontaneous enthusiasm. Even Real Madrid hadn't anticipated this.
And it was a working day.
As the head of a massive company, Florentino found it a bit inconvenient, but in his heart, he was thrilled.
Bringing in Gao Shen seemed like the right decision!
While the two were discussing, Vice President and head of Public Relations, Emilio Butragueño, entered the office.
"President, I'm sorry. We had a plan in place, but we didn't expect the situation to get out of hand."
Florentino raised his hand, signaling that this wasn't the time to assign blame. "What matters now is finding a solution."
"I called Gao Shen. He's agreed to meet with the fans at the Bernabéu."
The crowds had already blocked all access points around the stadium. It was serious.
"Then open the stadium. Let the fans in." Florentino decided immediately.
…
As the various entrances of the Bernabéu were opened, fans poured in like a tide.
More and more Real Madrid supporters arrived from all directions. Even though some had already made their way inside, many were still stranded outside.
Staff and police focused their efforts on maintaining order and guiding fans into the stadium in an organized fashion.
At 10:30 a.m. sharp, as scheduled, Gao Shen arrived at the Bernabéu in a Real Madrid Audi vehicle.
Though it was packed, the fans willingly made way for the car.
From inside the vehicle, Gao Shen could hear more and more fans chanting his name. But he didn't dare lower the window.
This, he had to thank Zidane for. The former star had warned him.
If he did lower the window, things could get dangerous.
Not that the fans meant any harm, but in a crowd this size, accidents could happen.
The car slowly pulled into the Bernabéu.
Security immediately surrounded the vehicle.
When Gao Shen and Zidane stepped out, the crowd erupted in cheers.
Thousands of fans screamed his name.
Gao Shen couldn't tell how many people were there, but it was overwhelming, and the number was still growing.
Butragueño stepped forward and escorted him into the stadium.
The fans continued flooding in.
…
With more and more fans entering the stadium, Real Madrid had to adjust their plans.
They decided to broadcast the signing ceremony and press conference live on Real Madrid TV, showing everything on the big screen at the stadium so all the fans could watch.
Afterward, Gao Shen would greet the fans directly.
"There are at least 20,000 people here, and they're still coming," Butragueño said, both excited and nervous.
Real Madrid fans were far too passionate today.
"By the way, Gao, I think you might want to revise your speech."
Originally, Real Madrid had invited around 100 local media outlets to attend the press conference. But now, with thousands of fans in the stadium, the situation had changed.
"Should I ask the press officer to come talk to you?" Butragueño offered.
Gao Shen thought for a moment, then smiled. "It's fine. I didn't prepare a speech."
Butragueño was stunned for a second, then burst out laughing.
"Right, I forgot. You never bring notes to press conferences. You once said you could talk for hours on stage without repeating yourself. Let's see if you can pull it off today!"
Gao Shen chuckled. That had been a private joke between him and Butragueño back when he first coached Real Madrid.
But he really didn't like reading from scripts.
Especially after Martin once stuffed a prepared speech into his pocket. Since then, he had developed a dislike for them.
To his surprise, club captain Casillas, vice-captain Ramos, former captain and current assistant coach Hierro, honorary president Di Stéfano...
Many club executives and influential board members had all shown up at the Bernabéu, proving just how important Gao Shen's signing was to Real Madrid.
With the influx of fans, the stadium was understaffed and required adjustments, so the signing ceremony and press conference were pushed from 11 a.m. to noon.
…
Twelve o'clock sharp.
Gao Shen appeared in Florentino's presidential office.
Real Madrid TV broadcast the whole event live. Fans sat in the stands and watched it on the big screen, but even from inside the building, the roars and cheers could be heard clearly.
In that atmosphere, Gao Shen officially signed a three-year coaching contract with Real Madrid.
When both parties finished signing, warm applause broke out in the office—and outside the stadium.
Next, the group headed to the Bernabéu press conference hall.
Gao Shen was no stranger to this place.
He still clearly remembered sitting here in 2006, just one day after his transmigration, facing this very group of reporters as he began his Real Madrid journey.
Who would have thought that six years later, he'd be back here again?
Only this time, the circumstances were entirely different.
Back then, he was a complete rookie, unknown and underestimated.
Now, he was the number one-ranked coach in the world, a gold-medal manager with four Champions League titles to his name.
To put it bluntly, if he stomped his foot today, the Real Madrid dressing room would tremble.
When Gao Shen and his entourage entered the press conference room, a warm round of applause broke out.
In the front row were invited guests, including honorary president Di Stéfano, the team's captain and vice-captain, and others.
But Real Madrid's top star, Cristiano Ronaldo, was notably absent.
The media immediately picked up on this.
Did this mean the Portuguese star had lost favor?
The press conference began with the contract presentation. Florentino formally announced that Gao Shen would coach Real Madrid for the next three years.
"We are proud and honored to share this great news with all Real Madrid fans worldwide."
"We believe that under Mr. Gao Shen's leadership, Real Madrid will become even more competitive and enter a new era of glory."
Another round of applause followed.
Gao Shen, already used to such scenes, gave a composed and confident speech. He thanked the board for their trust, the fans for their love, and the media for their support.
"I'm very happy to be back here and sitting in front of all of you after six years!"
The crowd erupted in applause again.
Especially in the stands outside the Bernabéu, where the cheering was deafening.
Countless fans chanted Gao Shen's name in unison.
They had waited so long.
And now, he was finally back.
Today would be remembered as a historic day in Real Madrid's legacy.
All Real Madrid fans believed this firmly, because they had never doubted that Gao Shen would succeed at Real Madrid.
And Gao Shen was just as confident.
He said loudly and clearly, "I'm here only for the championship!"
"I have always believed, and still believe, that a great club like Real Madrid should always fight for titles!"
The Bernabéu erupted into a frenzy.
(To be continued.)