He Ximeng smiled and stepped forward, shaking his head and saying, "What you think I don't know, I actually know everything about! My opportunities will always be mine. When I invited you for a drink, from beginning to end, I had no other special purpose. I genuinely wanted to befriend you! Of course, if you insist on a reason, it's what I mentioned before: when you return to China, help me deliver a letter to Mr. Tinker!"
"Is that all?"
"Yes! That's all! Trust me, we'll be great friends..."
After speaking, He Ximeng patted the taxi door, signaling the driver to leave...
The next day, the entire Zhuji Middle School team planned to visit the Great Wall!
The previous evening, Coach Zhang Yide had called the principal to request three days off to lead the team on a tour of Beijing. The principal readily agreed, only reminding Zhang Yide to be careful. The expenses for tickets, transportation, and meals would be reimbursed according to the school's standards for teachers on official trips...
However, with the Zhang Group's sponsorship, the basketball team didn't actually need the school to cover these costs.
He Ximeng had also planned to join the team for the Great Wall tour, but just before they were about to depart, a sleepy John arrived at the hotel with a colleague, stating they had something important to discuss.
He Ximeng wasn't particularly interested in the Great Wall, having visited it many times in his previous life.
Therefore, He Ximeng asked Third Master to take everyone to the Great Wall while he stayed behind to talk with John and his colleague.
Zhang Tian'ai insisted on staying, and He Ximeng, unable to dissuade the stubborn girl, agreed to let her sit in.
"Hello, Mr. Ximeng. This is Mr. Quikley, the head of our company's special task force in China!"
"Hello, Mr. Quikley. I am He Ximeng!"
"Hello, Mr. Ximeng! May I ask who this beautiful young lady is?"
Before He Ximeng could speak, Zhang Tian'ai interjected, "Hello, Mr. Quikley! I am Ximeng's agent. My name is Rachel, Rachel Zhang!"
"Oh? Mr. Ximeng, you already have an agent?"
"Stop messing around!" He Ximeng pulled Zhang Tian'ai aside. "This is my friend, Zhang Tian'ai. Of course, you can call her Rachel!"
Zhang Tian'ai was pulled behind He Ximeng, but she still managed to explain, "I am the manager for the entire team, so logically, I am your manager! It is my responsibility to protect your legal rights..."
"Wait a moment! What Miss Rachel said seems to have merit!"
"Thank you, Mr. Quikley! You are a truly understanding gentleman!"
Quikley chuckled, "Miss Rachel is the most interesting Chinese girl I've ever met!"
"Actually, I lived in the Bay Area for a few years and just returned to China this year!"
"Which Bay Area?"
"Oakland, east of San Francisco!"
"Ah, what a coincidence! I grew up in San Jose, south of San Francisco!"
"San Jose is a very beautiful city!"
"It truly is! I love my hometown very much..."
...
He Ximeng and John exchanged glances, surprised that Zhang Tian'ai had struck up such a conversation with Mr. Quikley, leaving He Ximeng on the sidelines.
The two chatted about everything from the North Bay, East Bay, Peninsula, and South Bay to the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf, Palace of Fine Arts, and Silicon Valley. About ten minutes later, Quikley remembered that he was here to see He Ximeng and invite him to this year's Nike Basketball Summit...
He Ximeng already knew their purpose. He readily accepted Nike's invitation and then proceeded to discuss the specific details.
The 1996 Nike Basketball Summit was scheduled to be held in North Carolina in late January.
Originally, there was only one spot for China. This spot was intended for Da Zhi. Nike had been observing Da Zhi the previous year and wanted to invite him. However, they ended up reallocating the Chinese spot to another region.
Nike's intention was for Da Zhi to develop for another year, further improve his skills, and then attend the Nike Summit, hoping to catch the eye of NBA scouts and directly join the NBA!
If Da Zhi were to join the NBA through Nike's recommendation, according to the invitation contract, Nike would have the first priority to sign Da Zhi as a spokesperson! This would also help Nike rapidly expand its influence in China.
Unexpectedly, in this year's national competition, He Ximeng emerged as a dark horse, dominating all the way and defeating the formidable Tsinghua University, snatching the title of the strongest player that should have belonged to Da Zhi...
This put Nike in a difficult position. When forced to choose between He Ximeng and Da Zhi, Quikley leaned towards Da Zhi. However, according to Nike's own regulations, they should invite the Most Valuable Player of this year's national competition, which was He Ximeng...
Ultimately, after repeated discussions between Quikley and senior management, they decided to allocate two spots to the Chinese region. This was to compensate for reallocating Da Zhi's spot the previous year...
Next, He Ximeng and Da Zhi would obtain their passports and apply for visas with Nike's assistance.
Nike would cover all round-trip airfare and accommodation expenses. Each invited participant would also receive a player development fund of varying amounts after the summit, based on their performance.
In essence, Nike was investing a small amount of money in the most potential high school players worldwide to secure signing priority. This was a typical "casting a wide net" strategy.
For Nike, the investment was small and the potential returns were significant. For young players, it offered a path to prominence. It was a win-win solution.
After finalizing the invitation contract and completing their business, Quikley chatted with Zhang Tian'ai for a while longer about life in the Bay Area.
Meanwhile, He Ximeng took John aside and entrusted him with three tasks.
First, He Ximeng wrote a letter in English and asked John to deliver it to Tinker. The letter detailed He Ximeng's creative ideas and opinions on future generations of the Air Jordan series, believing that each suggestion would resonate with Tinker.
Second, He Ximeng asked John to help him register for the TOEFL exam! In late January of the following year, while He Ximeng was in North Carolina for the Nike Basketball Summit, he planned to take the TOEFL. With his TOEFL scores and his performance at the summit, He Ximeng was confident he could apply to a university, preferably with a scholarship.
Third, He Ximeng asked John to help him obtain two letters of recommendation. With recommendation letters from notable figures, He Ximeng could receive tuition waivers and more easily secure scholarships when applying to universities!
John agreed to help with the first two tasks, but he couldn't guarantee the third, though he would try his best.
After all, the third task would require considerable personal favor.
And given that John and He Ximeng only had their bar-hopping experience, their relationship didn't seem deep enough for that...
However, after hearing John's response, He Ximeng didn't get angry. Instead, he was very confident that John would indeed help him secure those two recommendation letters. This left John bewildered, wondering where He Ximeng's confidence came from...