"Usually the food at Yao's Restaurant has been improved, but today I specifically asked the chef to make authentic Chinese dishes. Come on, you're welcome." Yao Ming seemed to know this place well, and it seemed that he was from this place back then.
I am a regular visitor, otherwise I would not be so clear about it. "Thank you, Brother Yao Ming." Tang Qian had just finished speaking when Yao Ming laughed dumbly and said: "Brother Yao Ming? This title is quite awkward. I am better than you.
Not that much bigger, right?"
"No, that's not what I meant..." Before Tang Qian could finish speaking, Yao Ming waved his hand and said with a smile: "Don't worry, I know it's not easy for a person to work hard in the United States. I've been there too.
, so when we meet in a foreign country, there is no need to be so reserved. You can just call me by my name." "Well, that's not good. You are always the senior. Otherwise... I will call you Brother Yao.
How about it?" After hearing Tang Qian's words, Yao Ming nodded secretly, because a person who became famous at a young age like him can easily get carried away by the cheers and praises, and then his attitude will tend to be more "selfish". This
There are countless such examples in the sports world. But the young man in front of him is completely different from the "rumors". He is nicknamed "Tyrant Tang", but he treats himself who has retired with great respect.
Respect, compared with some "little people succeed" types, this is really extremely rare and well-educated.
Seeing the discrepancy with the "rumors", Yao Ming smiled and said: "Of course, you can do whatever you want, Brother Yao is always much more palatable than Brother Yao Ming~" After the two of them had something to eat, Yao Ming suddenly spoke
Said: "Tang Qian, do you want to join the Chinese national team?"
Yao Ming and Chen Xin spoke in completely different ways. His wording was "want" rather than "willing", which gave Tang Qian a lot more room for advancement and retreat at the dinner table. Otherwise, Tang Qian would probably have "willed" if he said "willing".
He would be unhappy inside. After all, answering "yes" would be too much of a disadvantage for him, as it would go against his original intention. However, answering "no" could easily have a bad impact. If someone with an intention finds out, I'm afraid he will be slapped with a "nothing" hat.
Patriotism" hat.
Therefore, Yao Ming's speaking posture made Tang Qian more comfortable.
After hearing this, the latter didn't know why Yao Ming was looking for him alone.
"Brother Yao, didn't you expect that you would also come to be a lobbyist?" Tang Qian raised his head and asked.
"Haha~ I didn't say that, but some things still have to go through the motions, right?" Yao Ming continued to say in a relaxed and humorous manner, neither embarrassing Tang Qian nor making himself look ugly. After listening to Yao Ming's words
In a word, Tang Qian had a little bit of confidence in his heart. The former would not force himself to make any promises today. So he rationalized it in his mind and said, "Brother Yao, do you want to listen to the truth or a lie?"
Yao Ming said: "Come and listen to them all."
Tang Qian nodded and began to say: "The lie is that I am a little reluctant; the truth is that I am very reluctant."
"Oh, why are you so resistant? You must know that the methods above are still very powerful. Some people suffered this loss back then." Of course Tang Qian knew who Yao Ming was referring to, but he still insisted on his words and said
: "I have no choice, I just don't want to go against my heart. Everyone is willing to win glory for the country, but if this 'glory' is due to various entanglements of interests and various black-handed transactions, then I would rather ban me in the country."
Tang Qian spoke much more straightforwardly than Yao Ming. After all, he was not "in the system", so there was no need to avoid taboos on many things, and there was no need to be so "vague". "Is that so?" Yao Ming heard this, first
He put away his smile for the first time, and then asked the former again, saying: "I was also an athlete, so I understand the meaning of what you did. But winning glory for the country is still winning glory for the country. Even if there are some things inside that are not very transparent and clean, it can't be done."
It denies this major premise, doesn’t it?”
"No, Brother Yao, I don't agree with your point of view." Although Tang Qian likes Yao Ming very much, he will not change easily what he should say and what position he should stick to: "If you use one person to whitewash peace, what do you think?
Is it true peace? I have said before, it’s not that I don’t want to play for the country, it’s not that I don’t want to wear the jersey of the national team, and I don’t even care if they don’t give me any benefits or rewards. It’s just that some people in the country just
He cares about the immediate political achievements, does not take the future of Chinese basketball seriously at all, drives athletes at will and even exploits them. Brother Yao, what do you think is the meaning of this kind of "glory"? The face of the country is important, but don't forget that the country
It is a whole, but individuals are also individuals. Without individuals, how can a complete and powerful whole be formed?" When Tang Qian said this, he glanced at Yao Ming across the dining table and continued: "There is a saying, maybe Brother Yao, don't you
I like to hear it, but in my humble opinion, it is you who have spoiled a group of people. If you hadn't relied on you to whitewash it, then Chinese basketball would have been the same as it is now. So Brother Yao, what you call 'for
In order to gain glory for the country, it actually harmed the entire domestic basketball world."
"If you hadn't worked so hard and sent the national team to the top eight of the Olympic Games time and time again, how could the 'officials' above have their eyesight getting higher and higher and their horizons narrowing? Look at this year's Olympics.
This is an example. Without positioning, investigation or analysis, the slogan was set on "Guarantee eight and compete for four". In fact, without you, the national team is not the strongest in Asia, but they
Or do you just take it for granted and just open your mouth, but what about the reality? If you set your goals so high from the beginning and shout slogans so loudly, who will be the unlucky ones in the end? It’s not them, but the athletes who are preparing to compete~ In the huge
Under pressure and expectations, how can they still show their normal strength? However, in the end, they were defeated like a mountain, but it had nothing to do with the 'officials'. The ones who were scolded the worst and the most criticized were always these participating athletes.
itself!"
"That's why I think it's time for domestic basketball to change. Otherwise, the London Olympics will be just the beginning of its decline, not the end." Originally, Yao Ming thought Tang Qian was a little reserved and reticent.
He is just an ordinary athlete who "works hard", but he didn't expect that once he talked about basketball, he suddenly seemed like a different person, eloquent and eloquent, and his insights were quite profound and sharp, completely affable.
Some domestic athletes are different.
This shows that the stalemate between him and the Basketball Association Basketball Association was not a momentary act of courage, but a decision made after some consideration.
Yao Ming is also a very smart person, otherwise he would not be doing so well after he retires. So Tang Qian's words made him think a lot. He didn't mind this young man's
Geng Zhi blamed that he had long felt this problem, but there were too few athletes in China who dared to think and do it. He could not stand alone. Now, no, in the future, maybe he would not be so alone.
Already...
When it comes to resistance, Yao Ming is definitely one of them, and unlike Wang, his struggle achieved a staged victory. In the end, the superiors and his Yao team each took a step back and reached a consensus. Here, it is also evident that Yao Ming
Ming has a shrewd mind and is not an ordinary stupid guy. But to be honest, if he were to fight so fiercely and straightforwardly like the young man in front of him, he wouldn't dare. So he was given this instruction and
After the mission, he agreed immediately. The purpose was to see whether No. 29, who was in Los Angeles, was "really brave" or "brainless".
"Okay, then go ahead and tell me, what are your plans? Do you really want to fight to the death with those people in China? This will be very detrimental to your basketball market and basketball money, right?" Yao
Ming asked another key point. His hidden meaning was, how long are you prepared to carry it on your own? After all, for you, this is really a matter of 'harming others but not benefiting yourself'.
But Tang Qian's answer shocked him. After hearing this, the former did not hesitate and blurted out: "I will accompany you for half a year, a year, or ten years."
What, this guy...
"Tang Qian, are you angry? There is no good in being quick to talk for a while." Yao Ming said.
"No, I'm serious." Tang Qian said: "Because if we don't do this, Chinese basketball will always only look forward to the so-called 'savior.' After coming to the United States, I discovered that the success of American basketball is not so-called at all.
Geniuses are springing up, but a complete and standardized basketball system and healthy and fair leagues at all levels are the so-called 'soil for talent cultivation'."
Pa~pa~pa~
After Tang Qian finished speaking, Yao Ming actually clapped his hands, because he could see that all of this was the heartfelt hope and expectation of this young man. "You and most of the country
Athletes are different, I mean athletes in all sports." Yao Ming said: "You are very simple and upright, you are a pure basketball player."
Although he didn't know why Yao Ming said this, he could still hear the complimentary meaning of this sentence, so Tang Qian quickly waved his hand and said: "Brother Yao, you are overly complimentary. I just don't want to see Chinese basketball decline like this again, so
That's why I did such an impulsive thing." "Haha, you don't need to be modest. There are so many basketball players in the country, why don't they act impulsively? You dare to do it and can persevere. This is an extraordinary performance. Chinese basketball
If there were more people like you, the situation might be a lot better." Yao Ming looked at Tang Qian and his eyes changed slightly, showing appreciation, approval, and admiration.
"So Brother Yao, aren't you here to be a lobbyist?" Tang Qian asked.
"Yes, and no." Yao Ming said: "If you only have talent in playing basketball, then I will be a lobbyist today, but if you have opinions, opinions and ideas, then you will become a lobbyist." Tang Qian was stunned when he heard this.
Because he heard this sentence, Yao Ming actually did not object to his doing this, and even vaguely supported it.
"Brother Yao, you..." Before Tang Qian could finish, Yao Ming said: "Nothing, I am also a member of Chinese basketball, so I also hope to do my part in this aspect. Before coming, Coach Li
He also asked me to come over and help you to prevent you from being too negatively affected by the country. Now it seems that he is 'worrying blindly'~" Yao Ming made a joke about Li Qiuping, and then said: "Just stick to your own path, maybe
In the future, you can pry open the dark corners and let the sunlight shine in again."
"But even if you give up midway, no one will blame you. After all, the two sides of this confrontation are very different from each other~ As long as you have a clear conscience~" Yao Ming's smile returned to his face and he said
: "Look, look, I'm just talking here and there, and I haven't even eaten a few bites of this dish. Extravagance and waste are unacceptable~"
Later, Tang Qian and Yao Ming chatted about other things, including many court tips and experiences, and Yao Ming happily taught them without any intention of hiding his clumsiness. Finally, when they parted, the two exchanged phone numbers.
This was the end of today's meeting. Before leaving, Yao Ming turned to say something to the former, saying: "It is difficult for people with yellow skin to survive in the NBA, but I am optimistic about you and hope that one day
You go to my club and take a look, and you can also give guidance to some young athletes in the country who have high ambitions but low abilities."
"Well, no problem, Brother Yao, if I return to China, I will definitely go to Shanghai to see it." Hearing Tang Qian's answer, Yao Ming smiled and said: "Just to tell you this, all the expenses you paid for coming to Shanghai will be paid by me.
All covered! How about it?"
After the car started to move, a member of Yao's team turned to Yao Ming and asked, "Yao, why do you have to accommodate him like this? The mission given to us by the superiors is not like this." Yao Ming raised his eyes and looked at him.
, said in a calm tone: "You are not an NBA player, so you don't understand. The reason why I temporarily changed my attitude is entirely because I saw something in him that you didn't see."
"That thing we didn't see? What is it? It can't be some kind of ghostly aura, right?"
"You can say that." Yao Ming looked out the car window and opened his mouth to answer.
"What? Yao, are you kidding? How can you see such a thing? You..." Before he could finish speaking, Yao Ming cut him off and whispered: "It's invisible to the eyes.
It doesn't mean that he doesn't have it. He has the temperament and aura of a champion. Although I don't know how he does it, but based on this, he is worthy of me changing my mind or even taking a gamble."
"Dayao, are you too arbitrary? Just based on this feeling, you decided to support him?" The man still didn't believe it, so he continued to ask. But Yao Ming said directly: "Based on this, then
That’s enough, you won’t understand what this means~ because you have never played in the real NBA~”
When Yao Ming spoke, a trace of complexity flashed across his eyes, good and bad, bright and dark, and even... there was a hint of jealousy, and a hint of jealousy flashed away.
…
Tang Qian returned to the hotel he booked in Houston to rest and prepare to recuperate for tomorrow's All-Star Game.
But early the next morning, he received bad news.
The helmsman of the Lakers, Jerry Buss, died in the hospital after resuscitation failed.
For other teams, this may not matter, just hearing news, but for the Los Angeles Lakers, it has a significant impact. Because many things disappeared with the death of this 80-year-old man.
The Lakers are now in the midst of competing for a spot in the playoffs. The departure of the leader at this time will have a great impact on the morale of the team and have a very bad impact. When Tang Qian arrived at Toyota Center in the morning, he was preparing to conduct an All-Star interview session.
At that time, the Los Angeles No. 24 had an obviously gloomy and depressed expression. The contrast with the Lakers teammate No. 12 who was laughing and joking around him was sharp and out of place.
Throughout the entire public interview process, No. 24 looked solemn, and from beginning to end, he did not show the slightest smile.
Although Tang Qian only said hello to him, the former clearly felt that the man in front of him seemed to be gradually becoming extreme and extreme in spirit and will.
Like a poisonous snake with a wounded heart.
Say nothing.
Just writing letters and grieving alone.
PS: I was left by my supervisor for a "heart-to-heart talk" today. I was in a very bad mood. I encountered a heavy traffic jam when I got home. As a result, it was almost 9 o'clock when I got home. After eating and washing the dishes, it was already close to 10:30. Alas, the time has been really fleeting recently.
It’s so refreshing~ I can’t break out today~ Let’s break out tomorrow~ I apologize to everyone~