After dismissing the reporter, Zhou Quan saw Zhang Lili waving to him not far away, and went over in surprise: "Brother Zhang, you came to Detroit, why don't you sell beer in Los Angeles?
You didn't even say hello to me when you came over. Why did you spend money to buy tickets? This is my home stadium and I can still prepare tickets for you. "
He looked at Liu Yumin and felt a bit familiar. His memory was level 95, and he immediately remembered that he had met Liu Yumin last time at the Capital Airport when the Olympic delegation was leaving, and the men's and women's basketball teams happened to be passing by at that time, so I have some impression of Liu Yumin.
Zhang Lili quickly introduced: "Director Liu, I just came from China. I told you last time."
"oh……"
Zhou Quan said: "It turns out to be Director Liu, hello, hello."
"Hello Zhou Quan, I came in a hurry and I'm disturbing you." Liu Yumin said politely and extended his hand.
"Don't bother me, you're welcome."
Zhou Quan smiled and asked: "Liu Chu, Brother Zhang, are you here today?"
Zhang Liyi said: "Let me say hello to you today. You go and do your work. We will see you tomorrow. By the way, are you going to the away game tomorrow?"
Zhou Quan said: "It's an away game, but it's on the 4th of next month. I'm free these days."
"Okay, then I and Liu Chu will go find you tomorrow." Zhang Li said.
"OK."
Zhou Quan nodded and asked, "When did you arrive? Are you staying in a hotel?"
"We came from Los Angeles and arrived in Detroit at three in the afternoon. We stayed at the Welsh Motel in the eastern suburbs." Zhang Lili said.
"What are you doing living there? It's not safe for you two Chinese to live there."
Zhou Quan didn't know about a hotel in Wales, but the environment of the motel was definitely not good. He said hurriedly: "Let's do this. I'll arrange a hotel for you. Just wait for me and I'll go ask for leave."
After saying that, he turned and walked towards Chuck Daly.
There is a place to live in his home, with several rooms, but he is used to living alone, and Liu Chu is a woman, so it is not convenient.
Liu Yumin said anxiously: "Old Zhang, I'm embarrassed to say that you asked Zhou Quan to find us a cheap hotel. I don't have much money with me, and I have to buy a plane ticket for the return trip."
Of course Zhang Lili knew the situation in the country and said with a smile: "Don't worry, Chu Liu, the money for a few hotels is nothing to him. Xiao Zhou can't let us pay for it ourselves."
"How embarrassing is that?" Liu Yumin said awkwardly.
"It's okay. No matter what we say, we are still guests from afar. One day he will go to the capital. As landlords, we can entertain him." Zhang Liang said.
"That's okay." Liu Yumin nodded.
Zhou Quan came back soon and said, "You guys wait for me for a moment. I'll take a bath and then leave."
Half an hour later, Zhou Quan drove his pickup truck to the eastern suburbs. Zhang and Liu's luggage was still at the motel.
It took more than an hour and after midnight to get to the Welsh motel in the eastern suburbs.
The hotel is next to the road. This area has not been developed and the surrounding is very desolate. In a large open space in front of the hotel, there is a dim lamp hanging on a wooden pole several meters high, and several broken cars parked below.
Zhou Quan sat in the car, while Zhang Lili and Liu Yumin went to get their luggage, but a minute later, they were kicked out by the boss.
"Get out! Get out of here right away!" The boss yelled at the two men with a rifle.
"Calm down, let's leave."
Zhang Lili was still experienced and pulled Liu Yumin back.
Liu Yumin's face was stern and a little pale.
This was her first time in the United States, so she had seen it. Sure enough, it made sense for Zhou Quan not to let her and Lao Zhang live here.
This damn boss not only drove them away, but also swallowed her and Lao Zhang's luggage, and even drove them away just for the sake of their luggage.
Fortunately, she carried the few dollars she had with her. If this boss swallowed them up, the loss would be huge.
Zhou Quan realized that something was wrong, but he did not get out of the car. There was no gun in his car. In this case, there was no need to risk arguing with the guy. Instead, he immediately opened the door of the passenger compartment and urged: "First Get in the car and let’s leave first.”
After getting in the car, the three people quickly drove away from the hotel.
Zhang Lili smiled bitterly and said: "That boss must have done it on purpose. Seeing that we are Chinese, he just wanted our luggage. Liu Chu, do you have anything important?"
Liu Yumin said with an ugly face: "It's okay, I just need to change clothes, and I take the money with me. But my passport is in the suitcase."
"My passport is also in there. Xiao Zhou, call the police. You can throw away your clothes, but we have to get our passports back." Zhang Liang said.
"Wait a minute, I'll handle it."
After driving one kilometer, Zhou Quan parked the car on the side of the road, picked up his mobile phone and started calling Troy Weaver.
"Hey, Iron Fist, what's the matter?" Troy Weaver asked in a serious tone.
He had just returned home and was about to take a shower and go to bed when he saw a call from Zhou Quan. It was definitely not a good thing at such a late hour, and he was worried. It must not be bad news, such as a car accident or something.
"Troy, two friends and I were in the eastern suburbs. We were threatened with a gun by the owner of a motel called Wales. We were almost shot. Our luggage was also robbed. We need help now," Zhou Quan said.
"Damn it!"
Weaver's sleepiness flew away in an instant, and he quickly started to get dressed while asking loudly: "Iron Fist, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. We have left the hotel and parked on the side of the road." Zhou Quan said.
Weaver breathed a sigh of relief and said quickly: "OK, OK, then you leave there immediately. I will handle the rest. You leave immediately and go home. Don't park on the side of the road. It's not safe there."
"Okay, I'll leave right away. But you have to help me get my friend's luggage, which contains their passports," Zhou Quan said.
"I promise nothing will be lost. In Detroit, no one can rob your friends, not even the police."
Weaver said with a very sure tone.
"OK."
Zhou Quan hung up the phone and said to the two of them: "Chu Liu, Brother Zhang, let's go to the hotel now and someone will get your luggage back."
"Okay." The two said in succession.
Zhou Quan drove the car to the southern suburbs where he lived. This is a wealthy area with good security. There are police and security personnel patrolling at night.
He booked two rooms in a hotel in the community and settled in for the two of them before going home to rest.
At this time, the owner of the Welsh Motel, Welsh, was picking through Zhang Lili and Liu Yumin's luggage to see what they could find.
The timid Chinese people have money, but they don't dare to resist, and they don't even dare to call the police after suffering a loss. This is the reason why he did what he did just now.
But when he opened it with great expectation, he couldn't help but cursed. There was nothing there, except two passports and a few rags. He didn't get any benefits.
But at this moment, there were piercing sirens outside, and there were a lot of them. He opened the door with a rifle and saw police cars coming one after another, and there were many more behind them, no less than twenty.
After getting out of the car, many police officers hid behind the car or behind the car door, took out pistols and even long guns, and pointed their guns at him.
"Damn, what happened? Is there a serious criminal living in my store?" He was a little confused by such a big battle.
"We are the Detroit police. Someone called the police and there was an armed robbery here. I order you now to put down all weapons immediately, put down all weapons immediately, and then kneel down with your hands on your head. Remind you again..."
A policeman shouted with a loudspeaker.
"I?"
Wales woke up with a start and wanted to put his head in his hands, but forgot about the rifle in his hand.
"Bah, bah, bah..."
Intense gunshots sounded immediately.
I don’t know how many shots were fired. There were at least over a hundred shots fired by so many police officers. Some of them were quick to change the magazine, but those who were slow had no chance. Anyway, Wales, who was lying in a pool of blood, had bloody eyes all over his body. They are so densely packed that they are hard to count.
Some people staying in the hotel were also sitting on their beds and did not dare to say anything. They did not know what was going on, but the gunfire was so intensive that they were trembling for fear of being shot to death.
After a while, Zhou Quan received a call from Weaver at home, telling him that the matter had been resolved. The police had taken back the luggage of his two friends and would deliver the things over at nine o'clock tomorrow morning so that he could rest peacefully.
At 8 a.m. on the 30th, the NBA announced its Player of the Month and MVP rankings for November.
Michael Jordan won the Player of the Month award in the first month, but he lost his No. 1 spot in the MVP rankings to Barkley.
The Pistons had 8 wins and 4 losses in November, with a winning rate of 66.7%, ranking third in the Eastern Conference. The second was the Bulls, and the first was the Knicks, who performed very well this season.
With his record improving and his outstanding personal performance, Zhou Quan returned to the top five in the MVP rankings, ranking fifth.
At nine o'clock in the morning, Zhou Quan received Weaver and the deputy chief of the Detroit East Precinct Police Department at his home. In addition to luggage, there was also some cash, totaling $626.
Weaver said: "Iron Fist, I don't know how much money your friend lost. The boss was killed by the police, and only this cash was found at the scene. Do you think?"
"Killed?"
The corners of his eyes twitched, and he quickly said: "Forget the cash, there is no money in the luggage of my two friends. In addition, Director Jackson, I want to express my gratitude to the police..."
After seeing off Weaver and the branch chief, he took his luggage to the hotel and handed them over to Liu Yumin and Zhang Lili.
"The boss was beaten to death by the police and shot at least dozens of times," he said casually.
"What?"
Liu Yumin was stunned.
Zhang Lili, on the other hand, was not surprised. He said, "The police in the United States have great power. If they don't cooperate with law enforcement, they will probably shoot directly. But he was shot dozens of times. Was he shooting at the police?"
"I don't know, I'm too lazy to ask for details."
He shook his head and asked casually: "Brother Zhang, Liu Chu, have you had breakfast?"
"Eat, I just invited Liu Chu out for a burger, but Liu Chu rushed to pay the money, haha!" Zhang Lili said with a smile.
"It's almost ten o'clock. Let me invite you to have a cup of coffee."
They came to the hotel's cafe, ordered three cups of coffee and some snacks, and the three of them started chatting.
Zhang Lijia really hoped that Zhou Quan would join the national team. After chatting for a few words about last night's game, he got down to business and said:
"Xiao Zhou, Liu Chu came to the United States this time for two purposes. One is to inspect basketball in the United States, especially the NBA. We lost miserably in the last Olympics. The other is to see you. She wants you to join the national team.”
Zhou Quan thought for a while and said: "Liu Chu, it's easy to talk about inspecting the NBA. I can first introduce you to the Pistons' management.
However, in your capacity, I think you can contact NBA officials directly. Mr. David Stern has always wanted to develop our domestic market, and I think he will definitely welcome you. "
"I think it's okay." Zhang Liyi nodded.
"That's okay too."
Nodding, Liu Yumin thought for a while and said: "Due to some reasons, the number of domestic basketball personnel is shrinking day by day. The total number of basketball players in the country is only tens of thousands. Many provincial teams have been laid off. For example, Xiao Zhou, your Nanhu team was laid off from the provincial team last year." Now I really hope to create a professional league in China and learn some NBA experience and systems."
"Okay, I'll contact the Pistons' management first, and then they will notify the league." Zhou Quan said.
"Xiao Zhou, let's put this aside for a moment. Are you going to join the national team?" Zhang Lili asked.
Zhou Quan said: "Well, of course I hope to join the national team, for both public and private purposes, who doesn't want to participate in the Olympics?
But there are some questions I want to know first, such as joining the national team, what competitions do I need to participate in? Will it affect the NBA?
I am different from domestic players. I am a professional and I should work after getting paid, so I don’t want to affect the competition here. "
Liu Yumin had been thinking about this issue, and then asked: "Xiao Zhou, the national team has the Olympic Games and World Championships every four years, and the Asian Championships every two years, etc., plus warm-up games, there are many events a year. Less competition. What do you mean?"
Zhou Quan took a sip of coffee, put down the cup and said: "The NBA has 82 games a year, including the playoffs, there may be hundreds of games, and the intensity is very high. If there are too many games in a year, then my chance of injury will increase." Increase, so Liu Chu, can I only participate in the World Series?"
“Only playing in the Olympics and World Championships?”
Liu Yumin frowned at first, but she soon realized that Zhou Quan was not from the system, so she was not angry.
Her personality is very open-minded, and what Zhou Quan said is the truth. There are indeed too many games in the NBA and the intensity of confrontation is too high. Thinking of this, she nodded and said:
"Xiao Zhou, you are the first Chinese player we want to recruit from a foreign professional league, not only for our basketball, but also for other sports. There is no second person engaged in professional sports abroad. There is no precedent to follow. .
Moreover, you are not from the system, you are not an athlete trained by the country, and you do not enjoy a dime of salary from the country financially. There is no precedent for this, and there is no compensation issue.
In principle, I personally think there is no problem, but I have to report to the department in detail before I can reply to you. "
"Okay." Zhou Quan nodded.
"Xiao Zhou, can you video your games? I want to record a few games and take them back for study. CCTV has some highlights, but no game videos." Liu Yumin asked.
"That's no problem. I'll just ask the team to record a few boxes of previous games for you," he said.
"It's best to be your match." Liu Yumin said.
"No problem, I will record the video of this year's Eastern Conference Finals series for you. I played with Jordan. There are six games in total." He said.
After drinking coffee, Zhou Quan called Troy Weaver and talked about the matter. Weaver said it was no problem, and then he took Liu Yumin and Zhang Lili to the headquarters.
When he arrived at the headquarters, Weaver did not neglect, and had already notified all the management to greet Liu Yumin with great enthusiasm.
Zhang Lili found an opportunity and said to Liu Yumin: "Liu Chu, these Americans are actually very arrogant and very practical. You are not good to them. They won't even look at you. They can treat you so well now. They are all petty." Zhou’s face, he is the boss of this team.”
Liu Yumin nodded. She had experienced this for a long time. Whether she was an athlete before or now leading a team to compete abroad, except for a few friendly countries, the reception of the Chinese team in other countries was very poor.
On the other side, David Stern has received a report from the Pistons management. The person directly responsible for Chinese Basketball has arrived in the United States and hopes to inspect the NBA. He was very happy and immediately instructed the Pistons management to receive Liu Yumin well. He would try his best to meet any request, and he also invited Liu Yumin to visit the NBA's New York headquarters.
However, Liu Yumin came alone on this trip, even in a private capacity at her own expense. There was no need to visit the NBA headquarters in an official capacity for the time being. She thanked Stern for the invitation and expressed her willingness to visit the headquarters at the appropriate time.
Zhang Lili was the translator. Accompanied by the Pistons management, she learned about the NBA league and the team's operating model in detail. She had achieved the purpose of her trip. She stayed in Detroit for three days and left on the morning of the 3rd. Went to Detroit, then back to China via Los Angeles.
(End of chapter)
