On the evening of February 9, at the Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.
In the 23rd round of La Liga, Real Madrid hosted Sevilla.
Gao Shen made appropriate rotations for this match, but players like Ronaldo, who was competing with Messi for the league's top scorer, as well as Kaka and Higuain, still started.
From the kickoff, Real Madrid took advantage of playing at home to launch a fierce attack on Sevilla.
Sevilla were no pushovers. Even away from home, they remained tenacious.
In the 14th minute, however, Higuain seized an opportunity to open the scoring for Real Madrid.
In the 26th minute, Vazquez crossed from the right. Kaka, with his back to goal inside the penalty area, controlled the ball and laid it back. Ronaldo struck with his left foot, making it 2-0 for Real Madrid.
Shortly after the start of the second half, Ronaldo scored twice in quick succession, completing his hat-trick and securing a 4-0 lead.
The Portuguese forward continued to maintain his lead over Messi in the scoring charts.
Once the result was safe, Gao Shen began making substitutions from the 55th minute to conserve energy for the midweek Champions League clash.
Sevilla took advantage to launch counterattacks.
In the 87th minute, former Real Madrid player Negredo pulled one back for Sevilla.
The match ended with Real Madrid winning 4-1 at home.
After the final whistle, Negredo ran over to hug Gao Shen and wished him success in the Champions League next Wednesday.
"Although I play for Sevilla, I am still a Real Madrid fan and I will still cheer for Real Madrid!"
Gao Shen expressed his thanks on behalf of the club.
In truth, Gao Shen still regretted Negredo's departure, as the striker was genuinely useful.
While Morata could also play as a centre-forward, he still had room for improvement.
In this match, Morata, Jesé, and others came on as substitutes and performed reasonably well.
But for a striker like Negredo, returning to Real Madrid was almost impossible. Starting for a club like Sevilla was far better than sitting on the bench in Madrid.
…
The day after the Sevilla game, Real Madrid held a recovery session in the morning and a lighter adjustment session in the afternoon. They also had an analysis meeting, mainly reviewing the Sevilla match.
Gao Shen always believed these post-match analysis sessions were the most valuable.
They allowed players to clearly understand the problems they encountered and how to solve them.
The next time they faced a similar situation, they would know what to do.
The match against Manchester United was scheduled for the evening of the 13th, but preparations began on the afternoon of the 11th.
Gao Shen had the team carry out targeted defensive drills based on Manchester United's attacking patterns.
From the trident of Rooney, Ronaldo, and Tevez in the past, to the current setup with an added playmaker in Sneijder, Manchester United's style was clear.
Gao Shen's approach was to use the team's defensive structure to isolate United's attackers, preventing them from combining and forcing them into individual battles.
Ignoring the wings for a moment, Rooney in the attacking third was not the type to link play effectively. Sneijder's passing was excellent, but he was not strong at connecting the attack. This meant that if Real Madrid held their defensive shape, they could cut off Manchester United's forward play.
In midfield, Real Madrid had the advantage and could press United's double pivot.
Gao Shen had no intention of holding back in this match. He was not afraid of conceding away goals. His plan was to go at Manchester United at the Bernabéu.
The players understood this and trained with extra intensity.
But halfway through training, Carlos Vargas suddenly rushed from the analysis room outside the pitch, sprinting onto the training ground like a gust of wind, shouting for Gao Shen.
"Phone! Phone!" Vargas waved the phone in his hand as he yelled.
Everyone on and off the pitch stopped immediately.
Gao Shen, standing on the touchline, was snapped out of focus. He quickly ran over, grabbed the phone from Vargas, fiddled with it for a moment, and called back.
"Hello, Mom."
"Gao Shen, Xiaoqing's water broke. We're on our way to the hospital. Come quickly."
"Okay, I'll be right there."
After hanging up, Gao Shen waved to Zidane, Carlo, and the others, and dashed off without looking back.
"Boss, good luck!"
"Drive safely, Boss!"
"Congratulations, Boss!"
The players all shouted their well wishes, delighted for him.
Everyone knew Gao Shen's wife was due in the next couple of days. Seeing his reaction now, they understood immediately.
"Alright, alright, keep your focus, train well, and don't distract your boss!" Carlo called out.
The players responded with a cheer and returned to training.
Zidane and Hierro took the opportunity to go over the issues that had cropped up in the drills.
Gao Shen had already shared his ideas and requirements, so now they were simply carrying out his instructions.
…
The media, as always, were everywhere.
By the time Gao Shen reached the hospital, reporters were already waiting at the entrance.
Clearly, they had also caught wind of the news.
But they understood Gao Shen was in no mood for interviews, so they let him through, calling out only for him to share the good news later.
Rushing to the maternity ward, he found his father and father-in-law standing at the door. Seeing his anxious expression, they smiled and reassured him.
"Don't worry, it won't be that fast."
"Yes, the doctor said there's still some time to wait."
It was Gao Shen's first time experiencing this, so he was puzzled. "Why?"
"This is how normal childbirth goes. We told you not to rush," Su Zhijun said with a smile.
Childbirth was once considered a life-or-death ordeal for women, but those days were long past.
With modern medicine, it was far less dangerous.
Gao Shen entered the ward to find Su Qing standing and walking around. He felt much more at ease.
The screams he had imagined never came.
Su Qing was even relaxed enough to tease him when she saw him arrive, out of breath.
"Didn't I tell you to take your time?"
Gao Shen went over to support her. "It's my first time. Of course I'm anxious."
Everyone around laughed. First-time fathers were always like this.
"Honestly, I should have waited until after the baby was born to tell you. There are doctors, midwives, and nurses here. They don't need you at all," Su Qing said, unimpressed.
She knew how busy Gao Shen was.
On the 13th, they would face Manchester United at home in their first Champions League knockout tie in years. All of Madrid was waiting for it, and the pressure on Gao Shen was heavy.
"It's fine. When this kid is born, he'll bring me good luck," Gao Shen said with a smile.
…
Waiting was the hardest part.
Two days earlier, Su Qing had been fine, even attending the 4-1 win over Sevilla at the Bernabéu. Now she was about to give birth.
She was admitted in the afternoon, but by evening the baby still had not arrived. Gao Shen was becoming anxious.
After checking with the doctor and confirming there was no danger, he finally relaxed.
If there had been any risk, he would have chosen to prioritise Su Qing's safety, even opting for a caesarean section.
"Don't worry, Mr. Gao. My whole family are Real Madrid fans. We've already bought tickets for Wednesday's match at the Bernabéu. I can guarantee you everything will be fine," the doctor in charge said.
Gao Shen thanked her repeatedly.
Later, Zidane, Carlo, and others called to check in, followed by close friends like Guardiola and Lucas. Gao Shen thanked them all while continuing to wait.
It was not until nearly nine in the evening that the doctor took Su Qing into the delivery room for a painless birth.
Within half an hour, the sound of a baby crying could be heard.
For some reason, Gao Shen began to cry when he heard it.
He sat on a chair outside, tears sliding silently down his face.
Gao Jianguo, Su Zhijun, and the others were overjoyed. This was the first grandchild for both families, and everyone treasured him.
When the nurse brought the wrinkled newborn out, they all praised how handsome he was, saying his eyes and brows resembled Su Qing's.
Gao Shen was baffled. How could they tell already?
"Oh, right, what's the name?"
"Ming."
"Ming as in 'bright and upright'? Or Ming as in 'a hundred schools of thought contending'?"
"Ming, as in upright and aboveboard."
"Good! Good! That's an excellent character, really good!"
The four grandparents fussed over the baby, chatting and laughing, completely ignoring Gao Shen.
He wanted to say, "Hey, that's my son. Can I at least have a look?"
But did he dare?
Looking at the four elders, if he complained, he'd immediately be branded ungrateful.
"Oh, Gao Shen, what are you standing there for? Come and hold your son."
Gao Shen was almost moved to tears.
They finally remembered this was his son.
The moment he held him, all his frustration vanished.
The little guy was honestly not much to look at yet, but as they said, babies grow into their looks. In a few days, he'd be fine.
He was sleeping soundly, completely unfazed at being passed around.
Holding him, Gao Shen felt a real sense of blood connection.
In that moment, he truly felt he had taken root in this world.
Soon after, Su Qing was wheeled out.
Gao Shen carried his son over and placed him next to her.
He wanted to take a photo holding his son's hand, but the four elders said it was bad luck to show his face so soon and forbade it.
In the end, Gao Shen took a picture of his little feet, posted it on Twitter and Weibo to thank everyone for their concern, and shared the good news.
Soon, congratulatory calls and messages flooded in.
Over the years, Gao Shen had made many friends in European football, and now they were all happy for him.
Naturally, that included Manchester United's manager Ferguson.
But Ferguson said, congratulations aside, the match still had to be won.
That was keeping business and personal matters separate.
(To be continued.)