The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 2 Soul Calling
"Your restaurant's rent is for five years, protected by US law! If you breach the contract, my lawyer will sue you! You can expect to be forced to close down and pay compensation!"

"You...you...we're from the same hometown, after all. When you transferred this shop to us, you promised that we'd make a profit within a year. Who knew business would be so bad here? There are homeless people at the door, hippies upstairs, and not a single decent person dares to come and eat here. We only owe you a month's rent, and you're already coming to collect the money and take over the shop? You've changed your tune way too fast!"

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm just following the contract. When you're in business, it's all about ability. You have to accept the consequences of your own actions. What does your poor management have to do with me?"

"We...we'll declare bankruptcy right now, let's see what you can do to us!"

"Hehe, I'd love to have that! Take a good look at the agreement. If you can't pay the rent, I'll take back your 30,000 yuan deposit and rent this place out again. Hurry up and pay this month's outstanding amount. To be honest, you're not the first, and you won't be the last. I'll give you three more days. You can decide what to do."

Dang Lei vaguely heard a buzzing argument coming from behind the door and walls. He wondered where he was. Was he in the hospital?
I opened my eyes to find myself surrounded by complete darkness, yet the air was thick with the smells of scallions, ginger, and cooking oil. Was this the hospital kitchen?

Dang Lei struggled to get out of bed, but felt that his body did not belong to him. His whole body was in pain and stiff, and every muscle was disobedient, as if it had its own ideas and was fighting against each other, which made it impossible for him to get up.

The arguing outside stopped, followed by a brief, dull silence. An old man's voice said, "Youtang, get this month's rent sorted out first, and then hurry up and find a way to sell the restaurant to someone else. Youwei, go check on Guoyang. If his fever hasn't gone down, take him to Dr. Tang's clinic. Don't go to the hospital, it's too expensive."

Dang Lei gave up struggling to get up. His eyes gradually adjusted to the surrounding darkness, and he could see the low wooden floorboards above him, with a dark water stain on them.

This is definitely not a hospital. Dang Lei felt his mind was in a mess, with a large number of unknown fragments of memory flashing through his mind like a movie. He felt dizzy and had to close his eyes and purse his lips tightly to endure the pain.

He heard the door creak open and footsteps. Someone came in and approached the bed. Dang Lei smelled the aroma of scallions, ginger, and cooking oil, even stronger than before.

A warm, rough hand stroked his forehead.

"It seems the burning has stopped," Gan Youwei murmured, his heart finally at ease.

He was more worried about his son's health than the restaurant business.

Seeing his son's eyes tightly closed and his lips pale, Gan Youwei's heart, which had just settled down, jumped again.

He said softly, "Guoyang, Guoyang? Are you feeling any better? Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?"

At this moment, Dang Lei felt as if his whole body was immersed in the water, and the sounds around him seemed to come from the shore, muffled and ethereal.

Guoyang, who is Guoyang?
Who am I?

Where am I?

What time is it now?
His mind was rumbling and spinning like a cement mixer, fragments of memories and images surging in like a burst dam, and he felt he couldn't take it anymore, as if his head was about to explode.

Gan Youwei watched as his son's face grew increasingly ferocious, veins bulging on his forehead, and lips clenched tighter and tighter, clearly in great pain.

He anxiously called out to his uncle Gan Bingguang and cousin Gan Youtang outside, "Uncle! Youtang! Come quickly and see, Guoyang seems to be very ill!"

The two entered the room, and Gan Bingguang sat on the edge of the bed to examine the situation, frowning as he said, "Is Guoyang possessed by an evil spirit?"

Gan Youtang asked doubtfully, "Possessed by evil spirits? Can one be possessed by evil spirits in America?"

Gan Bingguang glared at his son and said, "China and America are the same! Youwei, has Guoyang been anywhere lately?"

Gan Youwei calmed his anxious emotions and thought for a moment before saying, "Guoyang and Guohui went out yesterday, and they started having fevers when they came back last night. I don't know why they are like this now."

"Where's Ahui? Call him over here!"

Gan Youtang went up to the second-floor attic and pulled his son, Gan Guohui, down from the room where he was fiddling with a game console.

"Yesterday? Yesterday I... I took Guoyang for a walk around the area near the Church of the Assumption of Mary... He just arrived not long ago, so I was showing him around. I really didn't take him anywhere else, let alone any bad places."

Faced with his grandfather's stern questioning, Gan Guohui dared not lie.

"Was he frightened in any way yesterday? Or did he encounter anything strange?"

"Scared? This...this...yesterday, when we were passing by a basketball court, a basketball flew over and hit us. A black guy was yelling at us and even rushed over as if he was going to hit us, but we gave the ball back to him. Then, when we threw the ball to him, a car almost hit us. I think Guoyang was probably scared."

“What are you doing at the street basketball court? It’s full of inhuman blacks. Guoyang is new here and doesn’t know the area well, so don’t wander around. Go, get a bowl of water and a pair of chopsticks.”

"Alright, Grandpa, are you trying to call back Guoyang's soul?"

"Go get it now, stop talking nonsense!"

Gan Guohui immediately fetched a porcelain bowl filled with water and a pair of bamboo chopsticks. Gan Bingguang placed the bowl on the bedside table, held the chopsticks upright in the water, closed his eyes, and muttered incantations:
"I've bumped into your bridge and blocked your path. Regardless of the cause of your death, this was unintentional, so please don't take offense. Now that you've found my husband, I offer you some water and rice for your journey. After you've eaten, please leave quickly. Those who have no grudge against me should avoid this place..."

After reading it aloud, Gan Bingguang let go, and the chopsticks stood upright in the bowl of water.

Seeing this, Gan Bingguang gripped his chopsticks, stirred them in the water, and recited:
"Eat whatever you feel like, then leave. Do not linger. May my son be safe and sound. If he offends again, he will be punished according to the law. May Guanyin Bodhisattva and the Virgin Mary be our witnesses..." He let go again, and the chopsticks remained standing in the bowl of water. Gan Bingguang said, "Go and get some rice."

Gan Youwei took a handful of rice and carefully sprinkled it into the bowl of water. The chopsticks that were standing upright in the bowl immediately tipped over and fell to the ground.

Gan Bingguang glanced at the direction the chopsticks were pointing, his brows furrowed, and he muttered, "Why are the chopsticks pointing towards Guoyang and not towards the door? It means they're not willing to leave."

The tip of the chopstick that had fallen to the ground was pointing directly at the boy on the bed.

Gan Bingguang picked up the chopsticks from the ground and repeated the steps as before; the chopsticks remained upright in the bowl.

As the rice was placed down, the chopsticks tipped over and fell to the ground again. This time, the two chopsticks crossed in a cross shape, just like a cross.

Gan Bingguang was surprised, while Gan Youwei noticed that his son's expression gradually calmed down, his tightly clenched lips relaxed, and large beads of sweat began to appear on his forehead.

"Uncle, Guoyang is sweating."

"Quick, cover him with a blanket to help him sweat it out. Boil a kettle of water and let him drink more hot water so he can sweat it out and he'll feel better."

Gan Youwei quickly brought a quilt to cover his son, boiled some water, and helped him up every half hour to feed him water.

Before long, the boy wrapped in the quilt was sweating profusely. He had soaked through two sets of clothes in a short while, changed two quilts, and then slept soundly all night, only waking up slowly at noon the next day.

When he opened his eyes, he saw the water stain on the wooden ceiling again, and the smell of scallions and cooking oil filled his nostrils.

He knew he wasn't dreaming.

A middle-aged man sat on the edge of the bed, half asleep and half awake, his chin resting on his hand.

"Dad, why aren't you asleep?"

The middle-aged man immediately woke up with bloodshot eyes, but when he saw his son sitting up from the bedside with a normal complexion and no longer looking sick, he immediately smiled and said, "You're awake. Are you hungry? I'll get you something to eat."

The worry and anxiety that had been on Gan Youwei's face were gone, and he spoke casually, though he hadn't slept soundly all night.

The boy got out of bed, but almost hit his head on the floor. Looking at himself in the wardrobe mirror, he was extremely surprised.

"This...this looks exactly like the Gump I designed in the 2K game!"

The boy in the mirror had a square and handsome face, with long arms and legs that almost reached the ceiling in the low room.

He's not that tall, and his arms and legs aren't as strong as in the game; they're rather slender. But his big hands are like fans, so he could definitely grab a basketball with ease.

I was filled with deep regret and confusion, wondering if my past life was a dream or if the present time and space were an illusion.

But in any case, it seems he is about to start a new chapter in his life.

"Name: Gan Guoyang, born on September 1, 1964. Three weeks ago, he came to San Francisco, USA with his father Gan Youwei to stay with his uncle Gan Bingguang's family, who run a Chinese restaurant called Gan Family Restaurant in the Tiandelong District."

"Three weeks ago, on June 17, 1981, we flew directly from Shanghai to San Francisco. Now it's July 8th... In 1981, still in the United States, I was 16 years old... In 1981..."

Dang Lei... who is also Gan Guoyang, stood in front of the mirror sorting through the memories that had been integrated. He felt a mix of emotions, but also a little excited.

Because of this healthy, tall body, perhaps many things can be changed.

"Guoyang! Come out and get something to eat. Can you get up? If not, I'll bring you something to eat!"

Gan Youwei's voice came from outside. Gan Guoyang snapped out of his reverie and replied, "I can get up and come out to eat! Wait for me!"

Gan Guoyang put on his coat and went out, but his head hit the door frame with a "bang." He was at least two meters tall.

Clearly, he's not quite used to this height yet.

"Be careful, you might have hit your head. Did it hurt?"

"It's okay, pain... a little pain is good, it means I'm not dreaming."

"What nonsense are you spouting, kid? Eat something."

(End of this chapter)