"Bambi" "chicken soup" "body" "negative" "game" "Seahawks" "condition" "purpose" "today" "worry" "fans"…
The buzzing noise was truly overwhelming, hitting him all at once like a tidal wave and leaving him breathless. All the words collided and pulled at each other, and in the end, he couldn't make out any clear phrases, only a bunch of meaningless syllables echoing. Intermittently, he could catch some fragmented parts.
At this moment, Lu Ke's mind was still a little sluggish, and the world seemed to be moving half a beat slower than usual. No, it was more than half a beat. The deep sense of fatigue lingered, making it feel like everything was moving at least two beats slower. He couldn't react right away and just stared blankly at the reporters in front of him, the buzzing noise echoing in his ears wave after wave. His mind was still on the irrelevant "Hollywood autograph" plan, and after a moment of dazedness, he finally realized that the target of this group of reporters was himself. But in the next second, a big question mark appeared in his mind.
"Do you need me for something?"
Then, Lu Ke saw the reporters with a constipated expression on their faces. It was then that he realized he had just said what was on his mind. And everyone had just realized that their interview questions were not working and had quieted down. So, Lu Ke's words were clearly heard. The back and forth between them left everyone speechless and staring at each other. It was as if a flock of crows was flying over with a "caw caw."
At this moment, there were more than 30 reporters packed together, surrounding Lu Ke from all sides. It was completely impassable, and there was not even a small gap to squeeze through. It was literally impossible to take a single step.
This was the first time Lu Ke had seen such a situation outside of a stadium or a game. But now, Lu Ke was the center of attention. Was this the so-called... "superstar treatment"?
The lively scene instantly quieted down, and everyone was a little at a loss. In the end, a familiar face in the crowd found her voice and broke the silence. "Lu Ke, may I ask, in last night's game, you had a physical problem, and what you kept drinking during the game was chicken soup, right?"
This was an... interesting question.
Lu Ke's eyes fell on the person who asked the question, Emily Provo. This was a friendly face he hadn't seen in a while but was a little unfamiliar. When Lu Ke first became a backup in college, Emily came to interview him. Although it was a visit made at Jay Fox's urging, it was indeed the first interview of Lu Ke's career, and he remembered it well.
After graduation, a group of classmates from the journalism department went their separate ways. Lu Ke and Jay had always kept in touch. Although Jay was now a sports journalist, the three roommates' personal relationship was still strong and not affected much. They would often text or call each other. When it came to work and friendship, Jay had his own principles. He would occasionally complain about Lu Ke and Logan, but if they didn't want to talk about it, Jay wouldn't pry.
As for Emily, Lu Ke hadn't been in touch or asked about her. Not long ago, he heard from Jay that Emily had gone to New York to become a journalist for the New York Times. However, Emily focused on social news, mainly serious journalism, and was not closely related to sports or entertainment. So, Lu Ke was quite surprised when Emily wrote a related report after the discrimination incident broke out during the game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Today, he never expected to run into Emily here. On the other hand, he didn't see Jay. And Emily actually asked such a gossipy question, which made him feel like laughing and crying. "I'm not sure if a social journalist is willing to interview a professional athlete?" Lu Ke retorted playfully.
Emily didn't panic at all. "I don't know, does a journalist's profession affect the interview?"
Lu Ke laughed at her rhetorical question. "Of course. I don't think a journalist who broke the Watergate scandal and a journalist who focused on Princess Diana's car crash would acknowledge each other."
"Then, are you the Watergate scandal or Princess Diana?" Emily's questioning technique made Lu Ke's eyes light up a little. In college, Emily was still a bit green, and her questions lacked an edge. But after less than half a year of hard work in New York, she had been reborn. As Lu Ke's joke said, journalists were different from each other after all.
"Prince Harry, I think?" Lu Ke's voice rose at the end, seemingly with a hint of doubt and a hint of a joke. After he said it, he laughed to himself. Among the British royals, Prince Harry was the most cynical and often made headlines in the entertainment section.
The journalists could feel that Lu Ke and Emily must know each other. Their gazes kept shifting between the two of them, trying to find some clues. This made Emily instantly sensitive. After running around for news in the social field for more than half a year, how could she forget that these sports journalists were also very nosy and liked to link everything to a scandal?
So, Emily went back to the topic. "The chicken soup, that's my question."
"Yes, it was chicken soup." Lu Ke admitted it frankly. This was not a secret. The ESPN on-site journalist had even asked about it after the game, which was probably the source of the news.
"So, you did have a physical problem, right?"
"Joe Montana also had a chicken soup game in college. And now you've won the most important game of your career with chicken soup. Do you have any special thoughts about that?"
"Fans are now comparing you to Montana. What do you have to say about that?"
This time, the questions didn't come all at once but one after another, leaving no room to breathe. But at least, Lu Ke heard them clearly.
Lu Ke's reaction was still a little slow, and he hesitated for a moment. "Hmm, I suggest that every player in the league drink chicken soup? As for which brand, I recommend one made by your mom before I get a sponsorship."
The journalists were trying to link Lu Ke's chicken soup game to Montana's chicken soup game to create news, but Lu Ke skillfully shifted the focus and joked about the reporters' efforts. This was indeed a witty response.
But the journalists still didn't give up. "So, what's wrong with your physical condition?"
"That's why I came to the hospital today. I want to get a simple checkup," Lu Ke replied with a smile.
Now, the purpose of the reporters' appearance became clear. Apparently, someone had leaked the news, and they found out about Lu Ke's hospital visit and the chicken soup game yesterday, which naturally led to further speculation about an injury. So, all the sports journalists swarmed over to investigate the situation.
But Lu Ke was more curious about why the reporters were so eager to interview him about a minor injury that hadn't even been confirmed. The size of the interview team was also far beyond what he expected. This situation was truly special. In the past, he had only seen top superstars get this kind of treatment in sports news. Had he reached that level now?
This sounded a little ridiculous.
"Is there a problem with your physical condition? Will it affect the next game?"
"What will be the impact on the playoffs? Will you continue to start?"
"Is the injury serious? Which game did it happen in? Or did it happen in the first half of yesterday's game?"
This was indeed a little ridiculous. With just a wild guess, they were already talking about an "injury" and even started to speculate about the playoff situation. Lu Ke sincerely admired his potential colleagues, but he was more curious about why Emily was here.
But before Lu Ke could answer, the group of reporters parted like a wave, and a clear voice kept shouting, "Quiet, quiet! Lu Ke refuses to answer all questions! The team will answer all related questions! Attention, quiet down, all of you!"
Then, he saw four security guards trying to push the crowd away. In the middle of them was Sophie Brooks. The San Francisco 49ers' press assistant was no stranger to the reporters. When she appeared, all the reporters turned their cameras toward her because they realized that the team's official response had arrived. Although this meant that it would be more difficult to interview Lu Ke, it also meant that the possibility of an injury was increasing because even the team's official personnel had appeared! Was the matter more serious than they thought?
In an instant, the reporters swarmed toward her like a group of sharks that had smelled blood!
In the midst of the chaos and surging crowd, Sophie was like a small canoe in a storm. She made her way to Lu Ke with great difficulty and then shouted, "Get into the hospital, now! Get inside now! I'll handle this here."
Lu Ke glanced at Emily in the crowd. He still wanted to ask Emily why she had flown from New York to San Francisco, but obviously, this was not the best time. He looked at the crowded reporters and finally at Sophie, asking friendly, "Are you sure? Do you need my help?"
Sophie's forehead was a little sweaty, and she looked a bit disheveled, but she straightened her back and stubbornly raised her chin. "This is my job." Then she scanned the crowd and mercilessly retorted, "Or do you want to stay here and feel the reporters' passion?"
Lu Ke shrugged and jokingly mocked himself, "My intentions were exposed, so I have no choice but to leave now. There's no point in staying here and being shameless."
His lighthearted response failed to provoke Sophie, and she couldn't help but grind her teeth and give Lu Ke a hard stare. Then she saw Lu Ke's innocent expression as he slowly made his way through the crowd with the security guards, leaving the scene.
Pulling her gaze back, Sophie braced herself and began to deal with the situation in front of her.
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