The host straightened up, then got right to the point. "Mr. Miller, what do you think about the Clippers coming to challenge the Pacers in their next game?"
Reggie Miller thought it over. "Both teams have a chance of winning, but the Pacers have a bit of an edge. After all, we're playing at home."
Reggie Miller was confident the Pacers could beat the Clippers, but the reporters had already made a huge fuss over Wolf King Garnett, leaving Garnett humiliated. He wasn't about to give the reporters anything they could use against him.
Four in the morning the next day.
Li Chen returned to Staples Center.
To his surprise, Kobe was already practicing.
"Kobe, we really are kindred spirits. We understand each other!" Li Chen teased him deliberately.
At those words, Kobe's beautiful fadeaway jumper went straight off the rim.
Kobe felt an urge to pick up the ball and hurl it right at the jerk's face. This is all because of you, he thought through gritted teeth.
If you hadn't been bothering me in the middle of the night every day, would I be getting up to practice at this hour? Sigh! Even Vanessa's gotten mad at me.
Though he couldn't stand Li Chen, the proud Little Blacksmith would never say so out loud.
Putting on a cool expression, he said, "I'm not like that fat slob Shaq, who's content to rest on his laurels. I want to surpass Michael. I want to win more championships."
Li Chen gave Kobe a thumbs-up at just the right moment. "You can do it. Keep it up."
Kobe felt much better after hearing that. Half the anger he'd been feeling even seemed to disappear.
"By the way, Kobe, I watched some videos of Iverson's crossovers yesterday and had a bit of a breakthrough. How about we..."
At that, Kobe's lips curled up slightly. He loved humiliating this annoying guy who kept interrupting his sleep.
He tossed the ball to Li Chen. "You go first."
Li Chen took the ball without hesitation and smiled. "Here I come."
Kobe's lips curled up again. He'd beaten Li Chen up before. They both knew how this would go.
Just then, the ball slammed against the floor with a heavy thud. Li Chen swayed from side to side, and the next thing Kobe knew, a gust of wind had swept past him.
Kobe, who hadn't been taking Li Chen seriously at all, stood frozen. Fast—too fast. It reminded him of Iverson.
Then the sound of the ball dropping through the net and bouncing on the floor snapped Kobe out of his shock.
After shocking Kobe, Li Chen felt great. He'd been bullied badly over the past few days.
Li Chen asked deliberately, "How was that? Not bad, right?"
Kobe nodded and said coolly, "It was okay. But if I really got serious on defense, you still wouldn't stand a chance."
Li Chen blinked and looked at Kobe. "Want to go again?"
Kobe's expression immediately turned a little awkward. But he was never one to admit defeat. How could he lose to someone he'd beaten to a pulp just a few days ago? Impossible. Absolutely impossible.
So the two of them faced off again. This time, Kobe was fully focused, bringing all his concentration to bear.
The ball thudded against the floor, again and again, in a steady rhythm.
Then the sound stopped abruptly. Li Chen took a step forward, his shoulders swaying from side to side.
Kobe was intensely focused, his eyes fixed on Li Chen's movements.
Was he going left or right? Suddenly, Kobe's eyes lit up. He was going left—definitely left.
But by the time Kobe had figured out Li Chen's route, Li Chen had shot past him like a gust of wind, gaining half a step in the blink of an eye.
Kobe cursed inwardly. What was with this guy? Why had his explosiveness suddenly gotten so much better? It made no sense! Fuck, fuck! Had he taken something? For a moment, Kobe felt like dragging Li Chen off for a drug test.
At the same time, Kobe gritted his teeth and chased after Li Chen. Even though Li Chen had gotten past him, he wasn't giving up.
When Li Chen broke through to the basket, he tried a little floater but didn't get the force right. The ball bounced off the rim. Kobe reacted quickly and grabbed the rebound, then leaped up without hesitation and slammed the ball into the hoop.
Only then did Kobe feel a little better. He said coolly, "Nice drive. I couldn't stop you even using eighty percent of my strength. But your shooting is still awful. I don't know how someone as terrible as you keeps playing so well in every game. You can't rely on luck forever. You still need to practice."
Damn lucky bastard, Kobe added silently.
Li Chen pressed his lips together and put on a look of humble attention.
After that, Coach Kobe put in a lot of effort. As they played one-on-one, he explained his own techniques to Li Chen, hoping to distract him with basketball advice so he wouldn't bring up what had just happened.
Kobe succeeded. Li Chen had already forgotten that he'd gotten past him.
Two hours later, Kobe watched Li Chen leave Staples Center, his teeth clenched.
That jerk was too much. No, I can't let this keep happening. This guy's improving at a terrifying rate. No, I absolutely can't let that bastard surpass me.
The thought made him miserable. Oh, Vanessa...
Meanwhile, Li Chen was in high spirits. He'd realized that Kobe really was a good person. No, a great teacher. Coach Kobe, you're my favorite.
As he hailed a taxi, he suddenly thought that he ought to get a car of his own.
On the way, Li Chen thought it over from every angle, but couldn't decide what kind of car to buy. When he got back to Paravilla Stadium, he decided to ask Bill Duffy, a local.
Bill Duffy thumped his chest and promised to find Li Chen a decent car.
After hanging up, he suddenly remembered something else.
His biological parents had borrowed money to send him abroad, so his family was still buried in debt.
Thinking of that, Li Chen felt a pang of emotion.
Back then, his predecessor had fought bitterly with his parents over basketball. In the end, they'd sent him to study in the United States. But he hadn't even registered at school. Instead, he'd...
When the bank opened, Li Chen transferred $200,000 into his parents' bank account.
Then he called the number he'd been reluctant to face.
A short while later, the call connected, but there was no voice on the other end—only a faint rustling sound.
Li Chen's expression grew conflicted. He opened his mouth several times, then closed it again, but in the end he still couldn't bring himself to say those two words.
"I sent the money. Pay off the family's debts first."
"Are... are you doing all right over there? You should keep the scholarship money," Li Mingdong said in a hoarse, concerned voice.
Hearing those caring words stirred something in Li Chen, but Li Mingdong's hoarse voice made him frown. He asked gravely, "Did something happen at home?"
"No, nothing!" Li Mingdong denied it in a hurry.
After thinking back over his predecessor's memories, Li Chen seemed to understand.
"Are those relatives pressuring our family to pay them back again?"
Li Mingdong thought it over, then gave a helpless, low murmur of assent.
Hearing it was only this minor problem, Li Chen felt relieved. The money he'd sent was more than enough to pay off the debt.
After all, he'd taken over someone else's son's body. If anything happened to his family, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
A short while later, Li Chen made an excuse and ended the call.
Li Chen let out a long breath. After steadying himself, he went back to training.
But that afternoon, Li Mingdong called again to ask why Li Chen had so much money.
Of course, Li Chen couldn't tell him he'd earned it playing basketball. To the older generation, basketball was just a frivolous pastime. What really mattered was getting an education.
So Li Chen didn't dare tell them the truth. He was afraid the shock would be too much for his parents to bear.
It took Li Chen more than half an hour to come up with a convincing explanation.
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