As soon as the news of Mbappé's contract renewal broke, it quickly sent shockwaves through European football.
On the day France 1 reported it, Mbappé arrived in Leeds from Paris. Accompanied by his agent, his mother, and his lawyer, he went to the AXA Center to formally negotiate an extension with Leeds United.
The two parties had already communicated sufficiently about the renewal, so the talks went smoothly.
That evening, Leeds United announced on their official website, Twitter, and other platforms that Mbappé had officially renewed his contract.
However, Leeds United did not disclose the details of Mbappé's deal, including his 150,000 pounds per week salary and a series of complex clauses. One key clause stood out, during the contract period, if any club offered a transfer fee of 250 million euros, Leeds United would have to let him go unconditionally.
This had been the biggest point of contention before the extension.
Mbappé's mother insisted on 200 million euros, while Leeds United initially proposed 300 million euros, later lowering it to 250 million before both sides agreed.
In other words, over the next few years, any club willing to pay 250 million euros could take Mbappé from Leeds United at any time.
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With Mbappé's renewal finalized, one of the most anticipated transfers of the summer failed to materialize.
But the day after he signed, Leeds United and Manchester City simultaneously announced that the club had sold local center forward Harry Kane to Manchester City for 150 million euros.
This was another core player sold after Van Dijk, and a local one at that.
The transfer immediately triggered heated debate across English football.
Leeds United fans were unhappy, believing that after selling Kanté, the club had now sold Harry Kane as well. Who would the team rely on for goals in the new season?
But before fans could protest, the British media revealed the backstory.
Manchester City offered Harry Kane a weekly salary of 300,000 pounds, three times what he earned at Leeds United.
At the same time, the Yorkshire Post ran a special report stating that with Kane's arrival, City's top salary had risen to 300,000 pounds per week, bound to trigger another round of wage hikes within the club.
No need to mention top stars like Gareth Bale, Hazard, and Suarez. Even David Silva and De Bruyne, who were on 220,000 pounds per week, would likely get raises.
Now, Manchester City's wage bill was the highest in the Premier League and third among European clubs. If it rose further, it might surpass Barcelona and Real Madrid.
The Yorkshire Post published a commentary arguing that Leeds United's sale of Harry Kane was wise, and that the club had to follow a rational path in management, not gamble like it did at the start of the century.
The shadow of bankruptcy still hovered over Leeds United. Even with improved results, White Rose fans remained cautious.
After analysis by several outlets, including the Yorkshire Post, Leeds fans gradually accepted the club's approach, though they remained slightly worried about the new season.
However, Leeds United faced the Community Shield on August 4 after returning to the UK.
At Wembley Stadium, since Leeds had won both the Premier League and FA Cup last season, this year's Community Shield pitted them against Premier League runners-up Manchester City.
Both sides were making final preparations for the new campaign, and the match ended 1-1.
According to the rules, it went straight to penalties, and Leeds United edged Manchester City 5-4.
Vardy scored Leeds United's only goal.
It was worth noting that Leeds United converted all five penalties.
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The Community Shield win greatly diluted the impact of Harry Kane's transfer, and Kane did not appear in the match.
Leeds United then began careful preparations for the new Premier League season.
The team's first league fixture would be at home against West Ham United.
While the club was preparing at the AXA Center, the transfer market continued to progress in an orderly fashion.
Harry Kane's move to Manchester City significantly accelerated several other deals.
For example, Manchester United, who had also pursued Kane, suddenly shifted their focus to Dele Alli.
The 22-year-old English talent was hailed as a future star, widely tipped to become a leading midfielder in world football.
Contract talks between Leeds United and Alli had been like a soap opera, on and off for half a year.
Almost everyone knew Alli was leaving, but no one knew where.
Now the soap opera finally ended.
The answer, Manchester United.
The Red Devils paid a huge 120 million euros for the homegrown talent and successfully signed the future top midfielder.
Chelsea, who failed to beat Manchester United to Dele Alli, immediately turned to Mane.
Originally, Leeds United and Bayern were negotiating over Mane, and even the player believed a move to Bayern was a done deal.
Unexpectedly, Chelsea suddenly made an offer, proposing a weekly wage of 300,000 pounds, far higher than Bayern's.
Chelsea also bid 110 million euros, successfully hijacking the transfer from Bayern.
Just before the Premier League kicked off, Leeds United announced two more major deals, sparking heated debate around the world.
If Dele Alli's departure had been anticipated, Mane's exit was already foreshadowed after Mbappé renewed.
It had long been rumored that Gao Shen believed Mbappé's best position was left winger.
Now that he had renewed, it was natural for Mane, who occupied that role, to depart and make room.
Last season's Premier League and FA Cup double winners, and Champions League runners-up, had sold six key players in one summer. Only Dele Alli could be considered part of the rotation, but it was still a heavy blow.
After completing the Alli and Mane transfers, Leeds United announced that the window was closed to them and rejected outside inquiries.
Even then, several clubs were still eyeing Leeds United's players.
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Six players sold for over 700 million euros, once again causing a major shock around Leeds United.
Although Leeds had been selling players for years and their annual sales income had indeed risen, it had never been as extreme as this season.
Add Ederson's transfer in January, and Leeds United's total player sales for 2018 exceeded 800 million euros.
It was an astronomical figure.
What was even more striking was that everyone could see that the value of Leeds United's players kept rising.
Another defensive midfielder, what was Brozovic's market value when he joined Chelsea in 2016?
60 million euros.
And Fabinho now?
70 million euros, up.
When winger Mahrez signed for Manchester City last summer, the fee was 70 million euros. Now Mane had moved to Chelsea for 110 million euros, another increase.
Not to mention Maguire, who transferred to Manchester United last year for 100 million euros, and now Van Dijk's fee had soared to 150 million, a huge jump.
Not only were sale prices higher, but according to Deloitte, Leeds United's overall valuation had surged after last season's outstanding performance.
Even after selling several core players this summer, Leeds United still ranked third in the Premier League in overall squad value.
Mbappé alone was worth 200 million euros.
In other words, Leeds United remained a strong Premier League side.
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Gao Shen was not overly interested in the club's valuation. He was looking ahead.
It was said to be over 800 million, but in reality he could not access it now.
The reason was simple. Payments were made in installments. Although there were no defaults, some stretched over five years, which was frustrating.
But there was no choice. Before selling a player, you were the boss. After selling, the club that owed you became the boss.
Of course, these partner clubs would not default. If they really could not pay, they would have started selling their own players already.
They were all wealthy and reputable. A debt scandal would severely damage their brand, so they had to grit their teeth and pay.
Now, Su Qing would draw funds from Leeds United each year through various channels to invest in domestic high-end manufacturing and new energy companies. Meanwhile, Gao Shen would start buying mines abroad through a joint venture with Linde Generation.
In recent years, Gao Shen's domestic company had invested in wineries and cherries in Chile. The business was thriving and he had built strong connections. Next, he would invest in lithium mines in Chile.
Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia held half of the world's lithium resources, along with Australia and parts of Africa.
In Gao Shen's view, this not only supported the domestic new energy industry but also provided an exit strategy for himself.
All of this was left to Su Qing. Gao Shen was like a hands-off boss, focusing on football, especially Leeds United, who were about to start the new season.
When he went to Wembley for the Community Shield, he noticed some issues.
Even though he was reluctant to interfere with Pochettino's choices, Gao Shen still felt they needed to be pointed out.
As for the lineup concerns many outsiders had about Leeds United this season, Gao Shen was not worried at all.
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Leeds United's squad for the 18/19 season:
Goalkeepers, Alisson, Ramsdale.
Defenders, De Ligt, Militao, Ruben Dias, Jose Fonte, Robertson, Alexander-Arnold, Ashraf, Cucurella, and Reece James. Post-00 players, Gvardiol, Alphonso Davies.
Midfielders, Kimmich, Rodri, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Milinković-Savić, Valverde, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice. Post-00 players, Bellingham, Joao Ameni, Camavinga, Pedri, Gavi, Musiala.
Forwards, Haaland, Vardy, Mbappé, Dembélé, Grealish, Rashford, Joao Felix. Post-00 players, Vinicius, Rodrigo, Foden, Ansu Fati, Sancho.
(To be continued.)