Chapter 88: Returning Home

Beijing Airport.

The airport was crowded with fans waiting to welcome Wade Dong.

Wade Dong, holding Li Jiajia's hand and carrying the championship trophy, walked out of the airport and received flower wreaths from the fans.

Although the championship trophy was quite heavy, Wade Dong still had to go through the necessary procedures. Dealing with fans and reporters took him over an hour before he could finally get into the car.

Li Jiajia's family was in Su Province, while Wade Dong was from Beijing. His parents were both high school teachers; his father, Wei Hua, taught physical education, and his mother, Qi Juan, taught physics. Although Wade Dong was a basketball prodigy who entered Beijing University, his academic performance was also excellent, and he could have easily gotten into a top university based on his high school grades.

Wade Dong and Li Jiajia had been dating for a while, and Li Jiajia had visited Wade Dong's family before.

Wade Dong's parents were very fond of Li Jiajia, and they were the ones who came to the airport to pick him up.

"Whew~~~"

After getting into the car, Wade Dong finally let out a sigh of relief. "Being famous is so tiring."

"Stay humble and grounded," Wei Hua said sternly.

Wade Dong understood his father's personality—serious and not given to smiles—but his concern was genuine. Every time Wade Dong achieved something, his father would say, "Stay humble and grounded," but Wade Dong had seen his father secretly rejoicing over his achievements when no one was around.

"I know," Wade Dong replied.

He then turned to his mother and asked with a smile, "Mom, what did you prepare for dinner tonight?"

"Zhajiang noodles," Qi Juan said happily. "Do you like them?"

"I love them!" Wade Dong replied loudly. He hadn't had his mother's homemade zhajiang noodles in a long time.

Qi Juan continued, "Of course, there's also crab, fish, shrimp—all of Jiajia's favorite dishes."

Although Li Jiajia wasn't officially part of the family yet, Qi Juan had already accepted her as a daughter-in-law. She had even learned to cook Huaiyang cuisine for Li Jiajia and could now make dishes like crab meat lion's head.

Wei Hua asked, "What about your two teammates? Aren't you going to invite them over?"

Wei Hua was a physical education teacher and knew many basketball stars, including Iverson, whom he had seen with Wade Dong at the airport.

"No need to worry about them," Wade Dong said. "They're stars too; they'll have commercial companies taking care of them."

...

Wade Dong's family lived in an old neighborhood, but their apartment was quite spacious, with four bedrooms and two living rooms.

Qi Juan had already prepared a separate room for Li Jiajia, not knowing that in Phoenix, Li Jiajia and Wade Dong were already living together.

Dinner was abundant.

Neighbors from left and right came to visit when they heard Wade Dong was back, but most of them just said hello and left. It wouldn't be appropriate for them to stay for dinner since Wade Dong had just returned home.

Many neighbors brought gifts, but Wei Hua refused them all.

After dinner, Li Jiajia helped Qi Juan clean up the house, while Wei Hua sat on the sofa smoking a cigarette and watching TV. Wade Dong knew his father had a lot to say to him, so he sat down on the sofa to give his father a chance to talk and show off.

"Tired?" Wei Hua finally broke the silence after about ten minutes.

"No," Wade Dong shook his head. "Playing basketball is what I love to do."

After a few more minutes of silence, Wei Hua said, "Two days ago, Coach Deng Hua came to the school to see me. He wants you to join the national team."

"I've already agreed," Wade Dong replied.

"That's good."

With that, the father-son conversation ended.

Qi Juan was chatting with Li Jiajia. During this time, Li Jiajia had been with Wade Dong in Phoenix, so Qi Juan could learn about Wade Dong's life through her.

Wade Dong suddenly felt a bit out of place in his own home. He had just won the Finals MVP and should be the center of attention.

"Dad, Mom, I'm going out for a bit," Wade Dong said, feeling bored. He wanted to meet up with Li Pei and the others for some skewers and beer.

Wei Hua just nodded and said, "Don't drink too much. You're an athlete; you need to be disciplined."

"I know..." Wade Dong casually replied.

Discipline? Wade Dong didn't want to think about that. He had the system; if his physical condition really declined due to poor diet, he could just use his talent points to make up for it.

...

Wade Dong changed his clothes, put on a baseball cap, and headed out.

It was late June in Beijing, and even the nights were hot and dry. Wade Dong rode his mountain bike to a nearby barbecue stall, one of his regular hangouts where he often met up with his friends for skewers and beer.

Li Pei had known for a while that Wade Dong was returning to China today, and his movements were all over the news.

As soon as Wade Dong returned, he invited Li Pei for a barbecue. Li Pei was thrilled and also invited Tian Zhen and Wang Meng, who were also part of the Beijing University basketball team and good friends with Wade Dong.

Wade Dong rode his bike leisurely to the barbecue stall but still arrived before Li Pei and the others.

The barbecue stall was by the river, and Wade Dong stood by the river watching people fish until Li Pei and the others arrived.

"Hey, big star!" the stall owner, Xu Mei, a woman in her thirties, recognized Wade Dong immediately.

"Xu Jie, keep it down," Wade Dong said with a smile. "I'm just here for some barbecue, no need to make a fuss."

Xu Mei pointed to a 60-inch TV in the stall and proudly said, "Look, I even installed a big TV just to watch your games."

"Come on," Wade Dong said, seeing through her. "NBA games are broadcast in the morning. You're probably still sleeping at that time."

Barbecue stall owners usually worked late into the night, closing around 2 or 3 AM, so they slept during the day.

"Can't I watch the replays?" Xu Mei retorted, then said to Wade Dong, "It's an honor to have a big star like you at my little stall. Order whatever you want; it's on me tonight."

"We won't hold back then," Wade Dong said.

Before he could say no, Li Pei and the others had already started picking out skewers, making sure to get the good stuff first.

After greeting Wade Dong, Xu Mei didn't make any more noise.

Wade Dong and his three friends sat at a small table under a tree by the river. The night was hazy, and the lights were dim, making it hard to recognize Wade Dong.

"Older brother, you've been hiding your true strength," Li Pei said, taking a sip of beer. "Turns out not only are we no match for you, but even Kobe and James aren't either."

Wang Meng added, "We always knew you were strong, but we didn't know you were this strong."

Wade Dong shrugged, "It's because you guys are too weak. I couldn't show my full strength against you. Only when facing opponents like Kobe and James can I truly show what I'm capable of."