Chapter 572: Asia Trip
Chen Yan's first movie shoot ended just like that.
For the next 3 days, he traveled across the United States. There were 2 commercials to film and several commercial events waiting for him.
On July 5, Chen Yan arrived at Capital Airport.
His China tour was about to begin.
Because of the weather, his flight was delayed by 1 hour and 30 minutes.
It was already noon by the time he landed, and Chen Yan assumed there would not be many Fans waiting for him. Reality proved otherwise.
The moment he appeared in public view, a thunderous wave of cheers erupted. Dozens of staff members and security guards were on site trying to maintain order.
It was obvious that after back to back championships, Chen Yan's popularity in China had reached its peak.
He genuinely wanted to stop, sign autographs, and take photos with the Fans, but he knew that if he paused for even a moment, he would be swallowed by the crowd. The scene was simply too overwhelming.
Not wanting to create more trouble for the staff and security personnel, Chen Yan could only keep walking while waving to the Fans on both sides.
"This is insane," his agent, Bill Duffy, said as they made their way out of the airport.
"I think so too," Chen Yan replied with a smile.
"This feels like The Beatles or Michael Jackson. Chen, you're like a king here," Bill Duffy said.
"Our country is one where the people are the masters. There is no king," Chen Yan replied.
Bill Duffy burst out laughing. "There you go again."
The two joked as they got into the car that had come to pick them up.
Along the way, Chen Yan quietly admired the scenery outside.
Although he was Chinese by birth, this was only his 2nd time in Beijing. The 1st had been when he represented the country at the Olympics.
As the car passed the China World Trade Center, Chen Yan suddenly asked the driver to slow down.
He had seen a giant promotional poster of himself.
He could see posters of himself everywhere in Phoenix, but seeing one like this in his homeland stirred a very different emotion in him.
Bill Duffy, sitting beside him, immediately raised the DV camera he always carried and recorded the moment. During this China tour, besides acting as Chen Yan's agent, he was also serving as his personal cameraman, recording some of his more private emotions and reactions.
After about an hour on the road, Chen Yan arrived at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. As more and more NBA stars had been coming to Beijing for business events in recent years, the Hyatt, with its luxurious 5 star facilities, had quietly become the default resting place for visiting players.
Because the schedule had been kept confidential in advance, there was no media ambush waiting outside the hotel. Only a handful of Fans had somehow gotten wind of the news. Chen Yan naturally got out of the car and signed autographs for them.
While signing, he learned that some of them had been waiting there for more than 2 hours. Fortunately, their patience had paid off. They had finally seen the person they came for.
After eating and resting for a short while, Chen Yan headed to the first stop of the tour, Dongdan Court.
2 hours before the event even began, Fans were already gathering outside.
As the starting time approached, the crowd only grew larger. Those with tickets held them high over their heads and squeezed forward, while those without tickets searched desperately for ways to slip inside.
Scalpers crowded the entrance, and a single admission ticket had been driven up to more than 1,500 RMB by these shameless resellers, all just for a chance to get close to Chen Yan.
Outside the court, vendors naturally would not miss a business opportunity like this. They set up stalls everywhere, selling jerseys, hats, posters, and even autographs, some real, some obviously fake.
For this event, the organizers had invited the CL team, the most popular streetball squad in China at the time.
Several of the streetball players were itching to show off, especially Mo Furui, who was known as the streetball king of China. All of them wanted to display their skills in front of Chen Yan and prove themselves. Some had even subconsciously turned Chen Yan into an imaginary rival.
They were young, energetic, and fearless. They were not the type to scream like ordinary Fans. But the moment Chen Yan actually stood in front of them, many of their thoughts changed.
He did not look especially huge or imposing on television, but in person, his build was striking. He looked bigger than even the strongest among them.
So this was NBA level talent.
The streetball players could not help sighing inwardly.
But what they were seeing now was only the static difference. Once Chen Yan actually started moving, they would understand what a real gap looked like.
After greeting the Fans, Chen Yan began with a simple dunk exhibition.
Simple for him, perhaps. For the audience, it was a visual feast.
His first dunk was a windmill so smooth it looked effortless. He slowly approached the basket, took a light jump, and then
Boom.
He hardly seemed to exert himself, yet his head was already close to the rim.
Watching that kind of dunk live was a completely different experience from seeing it on television.
Since he had not warmed up much, Chen Yan only put on a handful of relatively basic dunks, between the legs variations, hand switches, and a 360.
Even so, every single one drew waves of screams from the crowd.
Soon, it was time for the challenge segment. Chen Yan randomly selected a few Fans and several players from the CL team to play.
The streetball players had long been waiting for this chance, and the moment the game started, they turned the intensity all the way up. Some of them even tried to use pure force to challenge him.
One player lowered his shoulder and shoved Chen Yan twice with all his strength, trying to prove something.
Chen Yan did not budge.
Strength was considered one of his weaker points in the NBA, but on an outdoor court like this, it was already at the top level.
In fact, strength was the smallest gap between these streetball players and Chen Yan.
At first, Chen Yan mostly set up the Fans and let everyone have a chance to shine, so both sides could go back and forth a little. But once he seriously started scoring, the difference immediately widened.
Effortless tomahawk dunks. Casual half court 3 pointers. One step through a double team.
The streetball players quickly understood the difference between themselves and a top NBA superstar.
It could be summed up in 4 words.
Completely out of reach.
Mo Furui, the streetball king, still tried to make a statement. At one point he attempted a between the legs nutmeg, hoping to show his flair.
Chen Yan casually clamped his legs, trapped the ball, turned smoothly, glided past him, then sliced through several defenders and finished with a one handed dunk.
When the camera zoomed in, Chen Yan was still smiling.
The whole process could be described in 2 words.
Effortless.
The streetball players were completely convinced. Chen Yan was so much taller than they were, yet somehow even more agile. That kind of talent simply could not be compared.
The truth was, Chen Yan had not even played seriously. Everything he did that afternoon was for the Fans, for entertainment, and as a way of giving back.
And the Fans were completely wild.
Chen Yan appeared, screams.
Chen Yan waved, screams.
Chen Yan dribbled past someone, screams.
Chen Yan scored, screams.
There was even a small incident during the game. After Chen Yan hit a 3 pointer from beyond half court, a Fan on the sideline wearing a Suns No. 0 jersey suddenly dropped to both knees in front of him and made a worship gesture.
This was not a metaphor. He literally knelt.
Overall, the event went very smoothly, and Chen Yan deeply felt the enthusiasm of the capital.
As he left, he deliberately took off his shirt and shoes and handed them to the Fans. Under the crowd's fierce demands, he even gave away his socks and ended up running out of the court half naked.
After his Beijing stop, Chen Yan only had 1 day to rest.
On July 7, he flew nonstop to Shanghai, where a celebrity charity game was waiting for him. All proceeds from the game would be donated to children in poor mountainous areas to help buy sports equipment.
A number of celebrities attended, including Jay Chou.
Jay Chou was famous for being a basketball fanatic among entertainers. The moment he saw Chen Yan, he walked right over.
"I watched every one of your Playoff games this year. Your super deep 3 pointers are ridiculous, and your dunks are explosive. You are the pride of Asian athletes."
Chen Yan smiled. "I've listened to all your songs."
The two immediately started complimenting each other.
Jay Chou grinned. "You've got talent too. If we get the chance, we should collaborate sometime, whether in music or on the court."
Chen Yan laughed. "There will be a chance. Just remember to pass me the ball."
Jay Chou waved dismissively. "Compared to scoring, I prefer passing. Just wait for my amazing dimes later."
Chen Yan very quickly got to experience Jay Chou's Magic Johnson style passes.
First came a behind the back pass after a between the legs dribble.
Then came a behind the head pass after a right hand pullback.
Each one was more outrageous than the last. One nearly flew into the stands, and the other almost sailed out of bounds. Only Chen Yan could catch them cleanly and turn them into assists.
Seeing his passes converted into points by Chen Yan, Jay Chou immediately struck a dramatic pose and pointed to the sky, looking incredibly pleased with himself.
He probably felt cool in that moment.
The Fans, meanwhile, were bent over laughing at him.
Chen Yan only played 15 minutes in the charity game, but still scored 58 points, and that was without any real effort to chase points.
His Shanghai stop lasted 2 days.
The 1st day was the charity game.
The 2nd day was much easier. He only needed to appear in a Sina chat room interview and talk.
Domestic interviews were much easier to handle. Unlike overseas reporters, who dared to ask anything, local media were far easier to deal with.
After Shanghai, Chen Yan's schedule would take him to Chengdu, Changsha, Hong Kong, and Taipei.
And after finishing the China portion of the trip, he would also head to other parts of Asia, including South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines, where large numbers of Fans were also waiting for him.
At this point, Chen Yan was not just an idol in China. He had become a symbol for Asian athletes as a whole, almost like a banner on the world stage.
After finishing that long string of events, Chen Yan finally returned to Phoenix in early August.
.....
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