Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

If he joined Jumbo or UAE, given Vingegaard and Pogačar’s current form, he wouldn’t be able to replace them as the team’s lead rider—not in one or two years, maybe not even in three or four.

Besides, his path to improvement relied on earning UCI points. If he were constantly sidelined by the team and couldn’t even get into major races, he’d never earn enough points to break into the core roster.

At his current level, making significant gains in power and other metrics through routine training alone was already extremely difficult.

He simply couldn’t afford to wait for Vingegaard and Pogačar to ride out their prime years before taking one of their spots to become the new king of the road.

That’s why, while he couldn’t say he’d never join Jumbo or UAE in the future, he certainly wouldn’t join them now, having just reached the World Tour level.

Besides ruling out top-tier teams like Jumbo and UAE, he also didn’t need to consider teams that specialized in signing sprinters with the goal of winning the Green Jersey.

Teams like Alpecin, Bahrain Victorious, and Trek, for example.

Of course, not that they had even made Huang Chong an offer.

Alpecin’s entire team strategy revolved around their two core riders, Philipsen and van der Poel, focusing exclusively on sprint wins and victories in the Classics.

Therefore, they had no interest in signing a GC Cyclist like Huang Chong and had no plans to build a roster for Grand Tours or other stage races.

Trek’s situation over the past couple of years was similar to Alpecin’s. They were looking to sign Milan, who was currently still with the Bahrain Victorious team.

Starting next year, Milan and Pedersen would be competing against teams like Bahrain and Alpecin for various sprinter titles on the flat and classic stages of the World Tour.

Of course, Trek was planning to build a Grand Tour roster by 2026, a shift in strategy prompted by their rider Skjelmose’s success in stage races.

However, Huang Chong, with his Eye of God, was genuinely puzzled by Trek’s future decision to spend a fortune signing Ayuso.

After eliminating these teams, the three Pro Teams were also off his list of considerations.

He knew full well that these three teams were top-ranked in the Pro Level for points and could participate in the World Tour on wildcard entries.

But even on a Pro Team, as a newly signed Chinese rider, he likely wouldn’t be given much priority.

If they signed him only to make him a domestique for other riders in Pro Level races to "gain experience," that would be unacceptable.

After all, in Pro Level races, a domestique had no chance of scoring points. Even winning a race offered pitifully few points. At that rate, when would he ever reach the level of a High-level Professional Cyclist?

Of course, there was no rush to decide which team to join.

The offers he’d received didn’t require an immediate response or a final decision.

The thirty-plus World Tour races for the year were over. The entire winter, all the way until next spring, was the transfer window, so he had plenty of time to deliberate.

Moreover, things like his compensation and whether his contract could guarantee a certain number of race starts would all need to be determined through negotiations between his professional representatives and the interested teams.

Only when he had all the offers on the table could he make a comprehensive comparison and choose the best option based on the various terms and conditions.

...

"Congratulations, Huang Chong. You came to Guangxi for the World Tour race, and you finished with the most perfect result imaginable."

"Now, it seems like half the World Tour teams have extended an olive branch to you. Do you have a particular team you’re hoping to join?"

The day after the race, Huang Chong and Chen Junyi were set to leave Guangxi and return to the Shanghai Team Headquarters.

Although all the UCI-sanctioned road races in China were finished for the year, Huang Chong still had two one-day races left in the domestic professional league.

He had to compete in those professional league races as a rider for the Hengxiang Team.

Hearing Chen Junyi’s question, Huang Chong knew it would be a lie to say no.

As a reincarnator with the Eye of God, of course he had a team he wanted to join.

It’s just that he didn’t want to reveal his preference too early, not before Coach Han’s hired professionals had finished negotiations with the various teams. He didn’t want to influence their judgment.

He knew that joining a World Tour Team was the fulfillment of a personal dream and a crucial step forward in his beloved career, but it was also a major business move.

A Professional Cyclist ultimately has to consider their commercial value; they can’t just make rash decisions based on personal preference.

Huang Chong could even foresee that once he joined the World Tour and started getting good results, every move he made could trigger a cascade of commercial consequences, thanks to the massive, unprecedented market of his home country, China.

That’s why he had to be meticulous and extremely cautious when it came to choosing a team.

But he didn’t want to lie to Chen Junyi, so he nodded and answered.

"I do, but it’s better not to say right now. I don’t want to influence Coach Han’s judgment."

Chen Junyi nodded in understanding. ’In business negotiations, you never want the other side to know what cards you’re holding, or they’ll drive down your price.’

She smiled and teased him.

"I thought so. You’re easy-going and don’t sweat the small stuff, but when it comes to the important things, you always know exactly what you want."

Hearing her say that, Huang Chong’s heart skipped a beat.

He was surprised she understood him so well already.

He really was that kind of person. He didn’t get caught up in the minutiae of daily life; he was content with simple food and simple clothes.

But when it came to professional road cycling, especially in training, he was meticulous. He never cut corners or slacked off.

It was because he always knew what his ultimate goal was.

’Since I have a clear direction,’ he thought, ’I just need to stay on course and quicken my pace toward the final goal.’

"Wow, you really do get me. So, want to take a guess at which team I want to join the most?"

Huang Chong pondered for a moment before asking Chen Junyi with a smile.

Chen Junyi didn’t give a specific answer, saying only:

"I could never guess, but I’m certain of one thing: you won’t be joining Jumbo, UAE, or Ineos!"

Seeing how accurate her guess was, Huang Chong’s interest was piqued. He quickly pressed with a smile:

"Why do you think that?"

"Those are the three strongest professional cycling teams in the world."

"They’re like the Real Madrid of cycling. Shouldn’t everyone want to join them?"

Hearing this, Chen Junyi suddenly tilted her head. She looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes, a clever, shrewd glint appearing on her face.

Beside her, the airplane window framed a small patch of boundless, azure sky.

But in Huang Chong’s eyes, no matter how blue, clean, vast, or deep that sky was, it couldn’t compare to the beauty of the woman right beside him, whose smile bloomed like a flower.

Chen Junyi saw the faint smile on Huang Chong’s face and the deep affection in his eyes as he gazed at her, and her heart couldn’t help but feel a little stirred.

So, although her posture was a bit playful, her tone was completely serious as she spoke:

"Because I don’t think you’re the type of person to be content playing a supporting role!"

"Those three teams are incredibly strong, it’s true. But because they’re so strong, their rosters are already complete."

"As a rookie joining the World Tour, you must know you wouldn’t get many chances to prove yourself on one of those three teams."

"Besides, rather than just riding alongside established superstars, I think you’d rather become a superstar yourself. Right?"