Chapter 477: You are a foolish person

When Fan Xi appeared at the press conference backstage of the Meihangzhongxin qiuguan, the reporters at the venue erupted in an uproar, unable to hide their excitement and surprise.

Jieke Fan actually showed up at the press conference— isn't he someone who almost never attends post‑game press conferences?

Why did he come here!

Fan Xi sat down with an imposing air, he looked around. Afterwards, the flashbulbs began to flash in rapid succession.

When the dense flashbulbs gradually faded, this was already two minutes later… It was a very rare scene, showing Fan Xi's tremendous influence in the news media, even though this was in Miami.

As the bright flashbulbs gradually dimmed, Fan Xi straightened his posture, his gaze swept across the room, and he asked, "Do you have any questions?"

Fan Xi demonstrated his initiative with such an oppressive action.

Soon, the local Miami media stood up, trying to put Fan Xi on the spot. He deliberately spoke loudly: "May I ask how you view tonight's loss as well as the previous losses? Do you admit that you have fallen into a desperate situation, and that Nowitzki's injury will become your excuse for losing? Or will you have some other entirely new reason?"

He was aggressive, his eyes locked on Fan Xi, wanting to see Fan Xi make a fool of himself.

Fan Xi's gaze did not waver; he locked eyes with that reporter and said, "I consider tonight's loss a rather good loss—it made me set aside my contempt. Miami has improved greatly this season; Le Bu Lang Zhang Si's outside‑shooting ability has qualitatively improved, and in the paint he is more willing to play the blue‑collar role. I am pleased with his performance."

"The injury report on Derk has come out—his hand bone is fractured again. Perhaps you'll feel pleased or let out a sigh, even brazenly come here to ask me… whether you'll use this as an excuse for your loss. Heh, you should instead consider how to explain to your fans why the Clippers, despite missing Nowitzki, still lost the championship."

Fan Xi's tone was sharp, and his words drew many boos from the Miami reporters present.

Fan Xi coldly said, "Feel free to publish my remarks tonight widely."

This powerful aura quickly calmed the scene; these Miami people had to carefully weigh the weight of each of Fan Xi's words. Although they were delighted, believing Miami's spring was about to arrive, Fan Xi's strength still kept them from acting too recklessly.

Then an ESPN reporter stood up and asked Fan Xi, "Jie Ke, you now have full confidence that the Clippers will win—what is that based on? Is it because Nowitzki previously hampered you on the court, and now that he's injured and sidelined, you can finally go all out?"

When it comes to being sneaky and sowing discord, ESPN takes the cake.

That's not a question that's easy to answer.

But Fan Xi looked at that reporter and said, "If the third game hadn't had a missed call at the final moment, and if Derk hadn't been injured tonight, we would already have swept the series 4‑0 and won the championship."

"You haven't answered my question," the ESPN reporter pressed on.

Fan Xi told him, "Your stupidity is shocking; I hope next time ESPN sends a better reporter to interview me. Next question."

Afterwards, a Chinese media outlet stood up and asked Fan Xi in Chinese: "The upcoming fifth game is still Miami's home court, which to some extent is disadvantageous for the Clippers, because this is a very important Pivotal Game, determining the championship point."

"I've already made preparations; please rest assured, fans nationwide." Fan Xi replied in Chinese.

Then Fan Xi stood up and announced that tonight's interview was over.

Fan Xi answered only three questions in total.

However, the entire Miami fan base was doused with cold water, shifting from excitement to caution: they know Fan Xi well—he rarely appears at post‑game press conferences and seldom makes victorious statements. If it had been Arenas ranting at the press conference tonight, they would have dismissed it.

Yet, it was Fan Xi who came out.

The Heat's Le Bu Lang Zhang Si appeared afterward at the post‑game press conference, with Spoelstra alongside him.

When they appeared, both wore smiles and seemed relaxed.

After the reporters congratulated them on their important victory, the ESPN reporter whom Fan Xi had called stupid stood up and told them, "Fan Xi was just here."

Spoelstra's face, which had been smiling, instantly turned stern. When the ESPN reporter said, "Jie Ke said they would take this series' victory…"

Spoelstra even showed a hint of panic.

But he quickly composed himself.

The reporter asked him how he viewed Fan Xi's remarks.

He hemmed and hawed, but fortunately Le Bu Lang Zhang Si sat beside him; James took the microphone and answered directly: "He needs to rebuild the team's confidence and morale through some actions—I'm not surprised he'd say these things. But we'll have to see how it turns out on the court. No matter what he says, it won't affect the Heat's preparations; we'll fight as hard as we did in the first two games, we'll easily defend our third home court, then head to Los Angeles to bring the championship trophy back to Miami."

James was firm and decisive.

His words drew rounds of applause from the crowd.

The local reporters on site greatly appreciated James's decisiveness.

Over this season he has increasingly shown a leader's aura and sense of responsibility.

He has already established a trustworthy leader image.

Their post‑game interview ended with James's composed image, but after returning backstage they quickened their pace, halted the celebrations before the players had gone home, gathered together to re‑discuss, and began overnight analysis of game footage.

Le Bu Lang Zhang Si said firmly, "Damn, we must have missed something; Jieke Fan surely has a secret weapon—he wouldn't be acting pointlessly, he will surely reveal his dagger at the most vital spot, and by then we'll be unable to stop him."

"We have to race against time."

James, the coaching staff, and the videography personnel began working overnight, and they showed none of the ease of victors who had just won a game.

Their fear stems from Fan Xi's remarks, and even more from the past two years of losses.

They do not want to taste the bitterness of defeat again.

So they are willing to put in extra effort.

Meanwhile, the Clippers' bus headed to the hotel; on the bus the atmosphere was somewhat silent, everyone feeling depressed over the past two losses, and Nowitzki's injury tugged at their hearts.

But none of them felt timid, nor had they any thought of giving up.

They merely sat in silence, thinking: "In the next game, how can I contribute more? If I exert greater effort, I can pull the team onto the winning track."

…