Chapter 284 - 176: Base Completed, Strength Test
Laura relayed the news in one go, then asked if Don Quixote had any other questions.
"Does that include today’s game in Washington?" Li Wei suddenly asked. "We were just about to leave by car."
"Of course. It’s effective starting with today’s game," Laura said. "The helicopter transfer to Washington and the private flight path approval were all finalized this morning. The plane is scheduled to take off at exactly 12 PM today. Please be sure to arrive at the Lower Manhattan helipad ahead of time to prepare for boarding."
"One last question," Don Quixote asked. "Why didn’t John Mara call me or Li Wei personally?"
"Because," Laura paused, then said in a low voice, "the boss cursed you out. He said you should crawl back to Wall Street and be a blood-sucking parasite."
"Just as I expected," Don Quixote laughed heartily. "Give John Mara my regards, and then tell him to go fuck himself."
"Of course. I’ll tell the boss you wished him good health," Laura said smoothly. "Have a pleasant journey, and I hope you win."
"Of course. We’ll be there on time."
Don Quixote hung up, satisfied. He tossed his phone onto the dining table, spread his arms wide, and burst out laughing.
"A 1.55 million USD annual commuting package, fully reimbursed," he said excitedly. "This is the result of our fight."
Li Wei had to admit that Uncle Don Quixote was indeed aggressive in his negotiations. ’Considering my 53% combined tax rate, this is equivalent to the Giants giving me over three million USD more in pre-tax salary.’
The car trip was four hours, but if Li Wei chose the helicopter, the commute to FedExField in Washington D.C. would be shortened to just 50 minutes, drastically improving his efficiency.
"I’m going to do some more homework then," Li Wei said. "Let Chen Haisheng know, tell him to drive us to the helipad when he’s free, and then pick us up tonight."
Every change within a major organization, every move by a star player, captures the hearts and minds of sports papers, independent media, and fans alike.
Within an hour of Li Wei’s endorsement deal becoming effective, the news had spread throughout the entire media world.
「Around noon. Washington D.C., outside FedExField.」
There were still several hours until the afternoon game, but the stadium’s VIP and player entrances were already impenetrably surrounded by a sea of cameras.
ESPN, Fox Sports, The Washington Post, the New York Post... sports media outlets of all sizes from across the United States of America had dispatched their top teams.
Everyone was eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Giants’ team bus.
After all, this was the first career away game for Li Wei, the rookie "Yellow-skinned God" who had dominated the preseason and the first week of the regular season, single-handedly upending the defensive systems of the entire league.
Just as the reporters were gathered in small groups, sipping coffee and discussing the tragic ways in which the Washington Commanders would be crushed by Li Wei today, a sudden, intense commotion broke out in the crowd.
"Holy shit, Fack! An inside tip!" A young reporter with a *Bleacher Report* press pass stared intently at his phone and suddenly swore. "My inside source says Li Wei never even got on the Giants’ team bus!"
"Didn’t get on the bus? Was he an illegal immigrant who got snatched and deported by ICE? Or did he get into locker room bullying, deliberately targeting the Black players?" another journalist quipped, taking a sip of coffee. "With how hot he is right now, I feel like John Mara would get on his knees and give him a blowjob just to beg him to play."
"No..." the young reporter said, somewhat stunned. "The source says he signed a massive commuting endorsement deal with the Giants this morning, bypassing the salary cap. He’s flying over alone in a helicopter right now and won’t be traveling with the team bus in the future."
As soon as he said it, the area first fell into a dead silence, followed by an eruption of roaring laughter.
"Bro, you need to get a new source. Is that guy high or something?" a senior, balding reporter from ESPN scoffed, patting the young man’s shoulder. "This is the NFL! Not some solo sport like table tennis! This is American football! The most important things in this sport are team Spirit and locker room culture. Going off on your own, separate from the main team? Even GOATs with the status of Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes have to obediently ride the team bus and charter plane with their teammates for away games!"
"Exactly. He’s a rookie. No matter how talented he is, if he dares to demand a privilege that puts him above the entire team, the Giants’ locker room will tear him to shreds by tomorrow. Coach Dabor would never allow such lone-wolf behavior!"
"Taking a helicopter to an away game? Who does he think he is, a billionaire flying to a mergers and acquisitions meeting on Wall Street?"
At first, no one took this news seriously. Even when their own internal sources reported similar information, nobody believed it. Or rather, no one was willing to believe that a young, yellow-skinned man would dare to trample the rules of the NFL and the pride of Americans underfoot, pissing on them with impunity.
It wasn’t until the Giants’ bus pulled into Washington’s FedExField and the players began to file off the bus one by one, with Li Wei still nowhere in sight, that the reporters started to wonder about the truth of the rumor.
At 1 PM, the reporters suddenly spotted a black dot on the horizon, flying closer and closer.
"No way..." the first ESPN reporter said, dumbfounded. "Did he really show up in a helicopter and make the team owner foot the bill?"