Chapter 381 191: The Last Spectacle of the Tour de France and the Answer Waiting to be Revealed

"Old Huang!! Awesome!!!"

"Huang Chong!! Awesome!!!"

"Huang Chong!! Way to go!!"

...

Huang Chong had just managed to edge out last year's defending champion, Vingegaard, at the finish line of the Baiye Plateau climb when a series of hysterical shouts suddenly reached his ears from beside the finishing arch.

Even though the cheers at the finish line were a thunderous, rolling roar, Huang Chong immediately picked out the few shouts yelled in his native tongue.

He knew those voices all too well.

He turned to look at the shouting crowd and saw it was none other than his best friend Dewey, along with Zhou Ming and Li Zifan.

'This bunch of show-offs. They finally made it to one of my races in person!'

Although he hadn't won the stage—and in fact, had lost another 1 minute and 6 seconds to Pogačar, now putting him 1 minute and 51 seconds behind overall—his shot at the overall Tour de France title was completely out of reach.

But at least, with that all-out effort on the Baiye Plateau, he hadn't allowed last year's Tour de France champion to shrink his time advantage.

After all, second place overall in the Tour de France didn't just come with 200,000 euros in prize money, but also 1,040 UCI points. It wasn't just something the Red Bull Bora Team wanted; he definitely wanted to lock it down for himself.

Besides, if he could prove he was a better rider than Vingegaard during the Tour de France, it would be crucial for skyrocketing his market value after the race.

After all, for a rookie in his first year to be second only to Pogačar in the world's most prestigious road race—it was a sign of limitless potential!

It was no exaggeration to say that offers from top-tier teams would be flying at him like snowflakes.

And Huang Chong was 100% certain that all those offers would be built around him serving as the team's Core Commander.

Of course, actually securing second place in the Tour de France general classification would be anything but easy.

Although Vingegaard had lost another two seconds to him after Stage 15, there were still two summit-finish stages to come—Stage 19 and Stage 20—as well as the Stage 21 climbing ITT.

Huang Chong knew full well that he had to defend the 33-second lead he'd built all the way to the very end.

"Where have you guys been? I was starting to think you'd all gone missing after arriving in France!"

After finishing the race, having a small celebration with his team, and getting through press interviews and doping control, Huang Chong finally had time to find Dewey and his two friends, who were still lingering at the summit, and exchange a few words.

'These rich kids are something else,' he thought. 'They come to watch a race and bring a group of beautiful foreign babes with them, one on each arm.'

'But I guess that's the life of the rich. Normal people can only look on in envy.'

"I wanted to head straight to Florence the moment we landed in Europe and watch you race right from Stage 1."

"But General Manager Li said this trip was primarily for business research, so we just couldn't get away."

Dewey, who was looking increasingly round, gave Huang Chong a hug before continuing with a sigh of resignation:

"You have no idea. During the first two weeks of your race, we traveled to seven or eight different countries in Europe, inspecting top-tier cycling gear manufacturers and closing several international business deals along the way!"

"From now on, the distribution rights in the China Region for many of those ridiculously expensive cycling apparel brands will be ours."

"We've secured their distribution channels, and their products will be launched in our brick-and-mortar stores right alongside our own!"

Huang Chong knew that Dewey and two Brother Fus were producing cycling gear, but he was a complete layman when it came to business. He had nothing to add, so he just smiled and said:

"Well, business definitely comes first. Old Du, you should stick with General Manager Zhou and General Manager Li and keep up the good work."

"It's a shame, though, that I won two stages in the Tour de France and you guys missed seeing it in person!"

"Isn't there still another week of the Tour de France?"

"You'll still have a chance to win one of the later stages, right?"

Zhou Ming chimed in instinctively.

"We're pretty much just waiting to discuss a partnership with your team now, so we'll be able to watch the rest of the races live. How about you push a little harder and win a stage for us?"

Hearing this, Huang Chong shook his head with a wry smile and replied truthfully:

"That's too difficult, General Manager Zhou."

"The terrain in the upcoming stages isn't suited for me to contend for a victory."

"In the high mountain stages, with Pogačar in the race, I don't stand a chance."

"As for the hilly stages, I can't go for a breakaway."

"I'm second in the GC right now, so the Visma Team will be marking me like a hawk."

"If you want to see me win the Tour de France, I'm afraid you'll have to wait until next year!"

"Then we'll wait for next year. We're all young, so what's a year? We can afford to wait!"

Li Zifan, who was standing nearby, chimed in with a laugh.

"The fact that you're this strong this year is already incredible, Huang Chong."

"I'm sure that next year in the mountain stages, you'll be able to drop Pogačar completely."

"By then, our company should be well-established, and we can come back, watch your entire race, and witness a Chinese rider win the Tour de France!"

"That's right! My son will probably be walking by next year. I'll bring Wu Fang, and the whole family will come to the Tour de France to cheer for you!"

Dewey added.

...

The end of Stage 15 also marked the official conclusion of the second week of the Tour de France.

But in stark contrast to the jubilant atmosphere in Huang Chong's team after he successfully fended off Vingegaard's attacks, the mood within the Visma Team was clearly grim.