Chapter 2207 - 26: Born Killer_2

Chapter 2207: Chapter 26: Born Killer_2

Soon, all the basketball stars arrived, and Kobe received text messages from Pierce, Hill, and Garnett among others.

Actually, everyone hoped that Kobe would be the representative to go on stage and express the players’ stance.

Before coming, Kobe was quite ambitious, but after witnessing the scene, his morale was cut in half.

Still, he replied to Pierce and the others, called Garnett and Hill, and said he agreed to a strike as a last resort and was willing to speak on behalf of everyone.

He made the call in the restroom, and Vanessa knocked on the door and came in. She knew about Kobe’s recent moves and said, "Kobe, think about us, mother and daughter, more before you do anything."

Ever since the Eagle County incident, their relationship had rapidly deteriorated, especially since the incident led to Vanessa’s miscarriage, causing both psychological and physical harm that was hard to patch up.

Although they maintained their marriage for mutual benefit and appeared harmonious on the surface, the past hurt was hard to erase.

Now, faced with major issues, Vanessa’s first reaction was not to be concerned about Kobe but to think of herself and their daughter, urging Kobe to consider the family more.

This was a stress response to past trauma, also a warning to Kobe not to cause trouble again.

"It’s something about the Players Union."

"Union? You’re not the union president, so why step up?"

"Fisher isn’t an All-Star player; we need an influential star to stand up."

"Can you be more influential than Gan Guoyang?"

"Gan Guoyang is not just a player now; he’s also a team owner. Look at Las Vegas, it’s full of his people. I even suspect that this so-called terrorist warning is completely fake. They’re using it as an excuse to lock down and monitor the entire city, giving us no chance to negotiate. Gan Guoyang is the kind of person who can do that."

"Since you know Gan Guoyang is capable of such things, why do you still want to fight him? Can you beat him?"

"I’ve beaten him before."

"That was on the court; off the court, you’re no match for him. Stop trying to be brave, Kobe. Just play well and live well, don’t make any more trouble."

Vanessa, with a hint of tears in her voice, had the child taken to another room by the nanny and her parents.

Obviously, Vanessa hadn’t overcome the incident from years ago. Although she seemed better on the surface, once conflicts arose, the painful past and feelings surged back like a tide, and the trampled self-esteem still left her feeling on edge.

Kobe tried to embrace Vanessa, but she rejected him and left the restroom, sitting silently on the bed.

In the evening, the All-Star players held a meet-and-greet on the basketball court at Gump Sports Center.

While warming up and training, everyone casually sat courtside to chat with reporters and give interviews.

Garnett, Hill, and Kobe were all in the Western Conference locker room changing, with time to exchange opinions.

Garnett saw hesitation in Kobe’s eyes and asked, "Hey! Are you scared?"

"No, I’m not scared. I’m just thinking, does this really mean anything? What will the fans think?"

"Fans? Of course, fans will support us."

"I don’t think so; fans might resent us."

"That’s impossible; you’re just scared."

"I’m not. How about you? You express the idea of a strike?"

The pressure shifted to Garnett, who also felt a bit timid at the critical moment.

Grant Hill had the qualifications, but his popularity wasn’t quite enough compared to Kobe and Garnett.

While the three hesitated, a commotion arose in the locker room as Gan Guoyang walked in, immediately spotting the trio in the corner.

The Western Conference was the home team’s locker room, typically used by the Glory Team. Gan Guoyang first greeted others with hugs and handshakes.

Then he opened the door to the tactical office and gestured to Garnett and the others, saying, "You three, come in one by one."

The locker room’s temperature seemed to drop instantly, as everyone had heard about the strike, though a strong consensus was yet to be formed.

Hill went in first, coming out shortly with a forced smile, patting Garnett and gesturing for him to enter.

Garnett went second, carefully closing the door, a bit reluctant to meet Gan Guoyang’s gaze.

Gan Guoyang said to him, "Kevin, I heard you want to cause trouble."

"Cause trouble? I... I don’t think so."

"Come, punch me. If you dare, I’ll give you this chance to ruin the All-Star game."

"Sonny, I didn’t mean that."

"Punch me."

"Sonny, I don’t dare."

"If not, then leave, let Kobe in."

With just a few words, Gan Guoyang intimidated Garnett thoroughly.

Garnett, who seemed tough and loud, didn’t dare do anything outrageous.

Otherwise, back in high school during team bullying, Garnett was merely a bystander; he would watch, but if it came to action, he wouldn’t dare participate.

Kobe entered last, his expression serious, eyes fixed on Gan Guoyang without evasiveness.

Gan Guoyang immediately asked, "When you were making mistakes, did you ever consider the harm it would cause Vanessa?"

"Don’t bring this up, Sonny."

"Why can’t I? Do you know this All-Star Game was actually organized by my wife? She’s my boss, she’s been planning it since last year."

"I... this has... this has nothing to do with Fosses."

"Nothing to do?" Gan Guoyang got up, pressing down on Kobe’s head and giving it a shake. In Portland Trail Blazers, sometimes when Kobe was disobedient, Gan Guoyang would press his head.

Kobe’s eyes showed anger. He wanted to push Gan Guoyang’s hand away, but lacking the strength, he couldn’t, and he didn’t dare fight back.

This time, Gan Guoyang grabbed Kobe’s head and said, "There are many ways to negotiate labor contracts. Ruining the All-Star game is the least wise. If you had come to talk with me earlier, I could have given everyone a satisfactory answer. But you didn’t, you want to ruin the All-Star, want me to lose everything?"

Kobe’s eyes flickered, "But you’re an owner now, you’re on their side."

"What the hell are you talking about? Do you think you’re on the side of the regular players? Kobe, I allow you to be greedy, but I can’t stand your stupidity."

Releasing his grip, Gan Guoyang let Kobe sit down and started explaining various aspects of labor negotiations and how to draft a new agreement so both sides could benefit.

After listening to Gan Guoyang, Kobe realized his understanding of labor agreements was lacking.

They were driven to strike because of a new rising group of agents in the League, trying to secure more while also aiming to seize a portion of the discourse.

"We can talk; if not settled, at worst, there’s a lockout—it’s okay. But let’s safely finish this season because the agreement is still in effect."

"You’ve also had..."

"That was dissolving the union, fool; it didn’t affect the games, didn’t affect performances for the fans, understand?"

Kobe was speechless; he knew this so-called strike was already stillborn, and no matter who remained, they couldn’t create waves.

Under Gan Guoyang’s strong suppression, they were a disunited team. Gan Guoyang said, "You should be grateful I’m not yet fully a boss; I’m still on the players’ side."

"When will you..."

"Soon. At that time, the League might become your world; do you want to take the mantle of the first man?"

Talking about basketball, Kobe’s eyes lit up again, realizing Gan Guoyang might truly be close to retiring.

Once Gan Guoyang fully retired, the top spot would be vacant, and Kobe would join the battle for the throne.

Indeed, basketball was his battlefield; off the court, he was far behind.

Kobe also left, leaving Gan Guoyang alone in the tactical office.

He sighed, made a phone call.

"Hey, it’s sorted, it’s sorted... Yes, guaranteed no problem... I know you worked hard; these stars have no culture, don’t be angry... Let it go, take peace as the most precious, don’t always go into a frenzy, kill this and that, you’re not born a killer, right? Everything can be discussed, I’ve negotiated it... After all, it’s basketball..."

After a long call, Gan Guoyang hung up, sighed again, thinking to himself that women can be terrifying when emotional.

Kobe probably doesn’t know he was betrayed by the woman next to him—the alliance of women is even more lethal.