Chapter 51

The Lakers' private jet arrived at Los Angeles International Airport and was greeted by a crowd lining the path.

Taylor Swift's appearance on the plane was the biggest reason; entertainment reporters have a world-class ability to track flights. Swift's immense popularity drew many fans to the airport, and coupled with the news of Fan Xi's buzzer-beater against the Miami Heat continuing to ferment in the City of Angels, fans flocked there to show their support.

The two groups of people converged at the airport, and with many media members stationed there, it was packed with people when they left the terminal.

In the end, they had no choice but to meet up.

Amidst the pushing and shoving, Fan Xi was ushered into Taylor Swift's nanny van.

The two sat in the car feeling somewhat awkward, as Swift's father and her manager were also there.

They had originally come to question Taylor Swift about whether she was truly dating Fan Xi.

But now... Fan Xi was sitting right in front of them.

Instead, they didn't know how to bring it up.

Although Taylor Swift's father really wanted his daughter to sit beside him, she insisted on sitting right next to Fan Xi, and her body language betrayed her affection; her entire upper body was leaning toward Fan Xi.

Scott Swift was a shrewd stockbroker who often dealt with big clients; he had studied "Micro-expressions" and "Human Body Language."

From the moment they got in the car, he knew very clearly that this young player, who had sent all of Los Angeles into a frenzy, had captured his daughter's heart.

In his younger days, Scott Swift had also played basketball; Taylor Swift's tall stature was inherited from him. He was a tall white man, similar in height to Fan Xi.

But honestly, he did not accept his daughter dating a basketball player. Because in his impression, those school team members who played well were just crude guys who were uneducated and had no deep understanding of society or economics.

Especially... those professional players who became famous on TV; they often had chaotic private lives, and their spendthrift lifestyles would cause them to quickly fall into poverty after their short careers.

Countless examples reminded him that he must keep his daughter away from this player who looked infinitely glamorous.

"Hello, I am Taylor Swift's father, Scott Swift." Scott took the initiative to introduce himself to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi smiled politely and shook his hand: "I am Jieke Fan. I'm sorry to bother you, but I did indeed get separated from my team. We didn't expect so many people to come out to welcome us."

"If you followed Taylor often, you would find this normal." Scott said with some pride: "My daughter is the most popular female star right now, and she has widespread fame on a global scale."

He actually said this with a bit of a "looking down on others" feeling; he hoped to make this young player feel the gap between himself and Taylor Swift, and then lose interest.

But unfortunately, Fan Xi didn't think in that direction.

He just nodded.

He wasn't that interested in things in the music industry.

Taylor, however, sensed something unusual and said to her father: "If Jack hadn't let me board the Lakers' private jet, it would have been very difficult for me to make it to the meet-and-greet with the brand this afternoon. Although there are many flights from Miami to Los Angeles, but..."

Swift explained the reason.

Then, her manager complained: "God, if you hadn't gone to Miami, wouldn't everything be fine? Do you know? Taylor, the whole world is reporting on your scandal with this player..."

"Jack, his name is Jack." Taylor Swift interrupted him.

"Yes, the whole world is discussing your relationship with Jack. I think we should clarify it." The manager said powerlessly.

Because Taylor Swift kissed Jack on the forehead at the game, ran over to hug him after the win, took the Lakers' private jet, and now actually brought Jack into her nanny van... it seemed any kind of clarification would lack persuasiveness.

"Why clarify?" Taylor Swift said righteously: "They can report whatever they want to report. I don't care."

Taylor Swift wished these media outlets would help her build momentum; she was truly fed up with those media outlets discussing Selena and Jack's relationship every day, even though Selena was a very good friend of hers.

"It must be clarified. This affects many of your commercial endorsements. Often, sponsors prefer to use a youthful teenage idol rather than a female singer caught in a love scandal." Scott said firmly.

He didn't care that Fan Xi was present.

But Fan Xi looked out the window calmly.

He was not interested in these discussions.

Taylor Swift was very angry and turned her head away. She didn't want her father to interfere with her will; she had always been independent. Moreover, she felt Scott's desire for control was a bit excessive.

The awkward atmosphere in the car was maintained until Fan Xi got off at a hotel near the New York City centre.

Then, the father and daughter argued thoroughly.

"Don't impose your thoughts on me, I know what I'm doing! I just want to date someone I like." After sweetly saying goodbye to Fan Xi, Taylor Swift argued fiercely with her father.

"Someone you like? You don't even know what liking is right now, you just think he looks good playing basketball. You haven't thought about the future at all; your statuses are very unequal. You are the brightest new star in the music scene, and him? A basketball rookie. And a player who is constantly entangled with many women."

Scott said: "If you get married and then divorced, you might even have to pay him a large property settlement."

"Money! Money! Money! Your head is full of money." Taylor said very angrily: "Is this why you and Mom decided to separate? Don't use your wrong view of marriage to restrict me, and you haven't even tried to understand Jack at all. You just simply think his development prospects are not as good as mine, and you want me to find a man who is richer and has a better future than me..."

"Yes, that's right!" Scott said righteously: "At least that's more secure. Although that Jack is in the high-income bracket now, he is always earning money with his body. What happens after he retires after a few years of glory? He has no source of income, and NBA players are generally not good at managing money. By then, the gap in your status will become larger and larger; do you think you can still be happy? My daughter, believe me, no one in the world wants you to be happy more than I do."

Their views were completely different.

And both believed they were correct.

In the end, the manager broke the deadlock and said: "Let's prepare. We are going to talk about a signing contract with Nike this afternoon. They have always wanted to use a new-generation super singer to make a name for themselves in the fashion world. This is our opportunity. Nike has excellent influence all over the world, and the price they offered is not low."

For a female singer, collaborating with a super brand that markets globally is a win-win situation; not only can she get some endorsement fees, but it also helps with image promotion.

Therefore, they attached great importance to this opportunity.

This is why Taylor Swift rushed back from Miami in such a hurry.

After Fan Xi checked into the hotel, he received a call from PR manager Doug.

Doug's tone was very exaggerated, and he said to Fan Xi in an unprecedentedly sharp tone: "Hey, Jack! Do you know? The president of Nike sent me a text message saying he wants to sign a seven-year contract with you for 100 million US dollars. This is even a contract comparable to super-stars like James and Durant."

"You should really be proud of your identity as a Chinese person. If you were an ordinary black player, it would be very difficult for you to get such amazing expectations from a brand."

Doug's voice was high-pitched and sharp.

Obviously, subconsciously, he still thought Fan Xi didn't deserve this contract.

After all, the players who got the same contract were high-and-mighty super-talented players like Le Bu Lang Zhang Si, Ke Li Si Bo Shen, and Derek Rose.

Although Jack was the Miracle Child, his physical fitness hadn't reached that height.

Fan Xi said calmly: I know.

Then, Doug started muttering, why don't you find an agent? Let him help you handle these things.

He even started to recommend himself.

After a series of nonsense, he gave Fan Xi the contact number of the Nike president's assistant, told Fan Xi to contact him, and said that they were waiting for his call.

Fan Xi got a number from his mobile phone.

However, frankly speaking, Fan Xi had no urgent desire to contact him. Although for Doug, 100 million US dollars was an astronomical figure, and in his view, Fan Xi was not worth that amount. He even suggested that Fan Xi cash out while his heat was at its highest.

But Fan Xi knew his own energy very well; he knew he would definitely become stronger and stronger.

Therefore, he was not worried at all that this money would fly away.

He didn't think this money was an unattainable astronomical figure either.

He was looking forward to a higher price.

At the same time, Nike founder and president Phil Knight was on the top floor of the hotel where Fan Xi was staying.

He rarely came to Los Angeles, although he had his own property here, he preferred to work at the headquarters in Portland.

Phil Knight rushed from Portland to Los Angeles overnight, and this morning he personally held a meeting with several vice presidents and marketing managers to finalize the offer: 7 years, 100 million US dollars.

This required great courage.

It even required more courage than giving Le Bu Lang Zhang Si 80 million US dollars back then.

The fledgling Le Bu Lang Zhang Si was already the most famous, most capable, and most appealing high school student in North America at that time, and the entire basketball world regarded him as the Chosen One.

But now Jack had suddenly emerged; he had no fan base before, and he gained his reputation through a few miraculous games.

Nike Vice President George Green said with concern: "What I am worried about is that he will fall rapidly after signing the contract. Even in the NBA, junk contracts are not a minority. Should we be more cautious, or adopt more restrictive clauses or incentive clauses in the contract amount?"

Other vice presidents were also very affirmative.

Phil Knight asked the global head of the marketing department.

This Chinese-American named Jimmy Lin said very frankly: "Jack's fame is very loud. After the madness last night, his All-Star votes have reached an incredible 1.21 million. If he continues this performance in the coming week, he is very likely to surpass Kobe to become the vote leader before the All-Star weekend arrives."

"Remember, this is the result of restricting IPs in other regions."

"In fact, if the voting in the Asian region is opened, Jack's numbers will reach an astonishing order of magnitude."

"Basketball is already very popular in Zhongguo, and young people's love for basketball is surpassing the basketball that disappoints them. Jack's appearance and his record-breaking behavior have made the whole country crazy about it. Many domestic shoe brands are waving staggering checks to find Jack. So, this is one of the reasons why we must make a decision early."

"Another thing is that Jack's popularity in other Asian countries is also rising like a rocket. In the island country, young girls call him Rukawa Kaede... This is a famous basketball manga that has influenced and inspired countless Asian young people. In the peninsula, those guys even claim that Jack is from their country, and they are obsessed with Jack's image, just like a superstar in the entertainment industry. He is regarded as a symbol of fashion."

"In fact, this is also the most important place. Jack is a player with a great sense of fashion. His image is completely different from traditional NBA stars. He has some noble qualities, and his handsome appearance will make it easier for him to win the favor of women."

"We are also actively promoting fashionization recently, and even plan to invite female stars from the entertainment industry to endorse. Jack's two rumored girlfriends are both partners."

Jimmy Lin took out his PPT materials and introduced them to the president.

This made Phil Knight nod crazily and make the final decision.

During this process, one of the vice presidents in charge of the production line looked at his phone angrily.

He was annoyed that the Chinese supplier sent him a text message at this time and asked to meet him.

They had clearly already canceled the cooperation, why did he still stubbornly think he could get an order for new sneakers?

"7 years, 100 million US dollars."

Phil Knight finally said his number and asked his assistant to send this offer to the Lakers' PR manager, let him convey it to Fan Xi, and let Fan Xi contact him.

"This is a number he cannot refuse. How many stars want to cooperate with us for free and get our promotional resources." Assistant Robert said so.

He was a little smug.

However, what made him regret was... half an hour later, an hour later, he didn't receive a call.

He hurriedly contacted Lakers General Manager Ku Pu Qie Ke again. He wanted Ku Pu Qie Ke to call Fan Xi and let Fan Xi cooperate with him.

Ku Pu Qie Ke said that Jack might be sleeping, let them wait a little longer.

Let our president wait longer? Le Bu Lang Zhang Si wouldn't be such a big shot, right?

Robert was very angry.

But Phil Knight was very calm.

He even said to another president: "Aren't you scheduled to meet with one of Jack's rumored girlfriends this afternoon to discuss cooperation? Maybe you can get Jack's contact information from her."

He was even saving the country by a curve.

Humble to the core.

At this time, Fan Xi received a call. When he saw the number, he was overjoyed and hurriedly pressed the answer button: Mom!