Chapter 010: The Basketball Association's Sanctions

As soon as the post went live, Lin Feng’s fans flooded the comment section. In just five minutes, the number of comments soared past ten thousand—a testament to their enthusiasm. After sending out the post, Lin Feng shouldered his bag and headed to the training facility with his teammates.

Thanks to their victory the previous day, the team was in high spirits, bantering with one another. Lin Feng, who usually flew under the radar, became the center of their teasing. Who could blame them? Every sports headline that morning was about him.

Head coach Shen Zhiqiang didn’t schedule any intense training. After all, the team had just played a finals match and traveled a long distance. Today’s session was relaxed, focusing mainly on shooting drills.

During the shooting practice, Lin Feng stunned his teammates once again. Beyond the three-point line, he sank twenty-one shots in a row. Even though there was no defense, the feat was still remarkable. Harris, the team’s best three-point shooter, was so shocked he could only stammer out several exclamations of disbelief.

When training concluded, Shen Zhiqiang called Lin Feng over for a private word.

"Your shooting touch is impressive," Shen said, giving Lin Feng’s shoulder an encouraging pat. "Looks like all that hard work lately is paying off."

A month ago, after a breakup with his girlfriend of three years, Lin Feng had poured himself into relentless practice. Everyone on the Jiangning team knew about it, so Shen naturally attributed Lin Feng’s sudden breakout to his diligence.

"You reap what you sow," Lin Feng replied with a shrug.

Shen nodded, his expression growing serious. "I need to inform you of something. Five minutes ago, the Basketball Association issued a disciplinary decision regarding you."

"What? They’re punishing me?" Lin Feng was confused and at a loss.

"It’s about your comments at yesterday’s post-game press conference," Shen said, sounding a bit frustrated. "You went too far when you fired back at Wang Chunsheng. As a professional athlete and public figure, your words amounted to a personal attack. I realized it at the time and even apologized to Wang on your behalf, hoping he’d let it go. But after the press conference, he still filed an official complaint to the Association."

"Since television media didn’t report your remarks, the incident wasn’t exposed right away, so the negative impact was limited. Under such circumstances, the Association could have been lenient. However, at noon, the complete press conference video was leaked online, and the fallout has been significant. As you know, while some support you, there’s been plenty of criticism as well. An hour ago, the Association held an emergency meeting about you. The final decision: a two-hundred-thousand yuan fine for the Jiangning Jaguars club, a one-hundred-thousand yuan fine for you personally, an official warning on your record, and public censure across the entire league!"

"That much?" Lin Feng almost swore out loud when he heard the verdict.

Warnings didn’t bother Lin Feng; the fine was what really stung. As only a semi-professional player, his employment contract with the Jiangning Jaguars was basic, and his personnel files were still with the Beijing Institute of Physical Education. Excluding bonuses, his annual salary was only one hundred thousand yuan before taxes. The team’s bonus system was directly tied to individual match stats, and as a benchwarmer who had never played an official game, Lin Feng hadn’t earned a single bonus. In other words, after a year, his take-home pay was barely over eighty thousand, and with daily expenses, he had just over twenty thousand left in his bank account. Now the Association was fining him a hundred thousand—no wonder he was fuming.

"Don’t worry about the money for now. I’ll request the club to pay the fine for you. Next time, be more cautious with your words. You’re a public figure now; you can’t just say whatever you want in front of the media," Shen advised earnestly.

"I understand," Lin Feng nodded, then asked, "Do you really think the club will cover my fine?"

"I can’t say for sure, but I’ll do my best to fight for you. If it doesn’t work, we’ll figure something out. The Association doesn’t require immediate payment," Shen replied.

"Alright, got it. Either way, thank you, Coach Shen," Lin Feng said, expressing his gratitude before heading back to the locker room to change, ready to return to the hotel with his teammates by bus.

But just as he stepped out the gym’s front doors, a swarm of reporters surrounded him.

"Lin Feng, what’s your response to the Basketball Association’s punishment?" a female reporter thrust a microphone toward his mouth.

Lin Feng was caught off guard—he hadn’t expected to be interviewed.

"You mean you didn’t know about the penalty yet?" The reporter pressed on after seeing his reaction.

"I just found out," Lin Feng replied after a moment’s thought. "If the Association decided to punish me, they must have their reasons. I’ll accept it."

Having learned his lesson, Lin Feng played it safe and said nothing more.

"Do you think a fine of one hundred thousand is fair? Rumor has it your annual salary is only that much," the reporter changed tactics.

At the mention of the fine, Lin Feng felt another surge of anger but held it in.

"Fair," Lin Feng shrugged, then muttered under his breath, "Last year, I bought a watch…"

"What was that?" The reporter hadn’t caught his grumbling, and even if she had, she wouldn’t have understood what he meant.

"Nothing. I have no objections to the Association’s decision," Lin Feng replied with a forced smile, the expression on his face uglier than a cry. It was obvious to anyone that he didn’t mean a word of it.

Knowing she wouldn’t get more out of him on that subject, the reporter shifted topics. "An hour ago, the Beicheng team arrived in Jiangning. At the airport, Coach Wang Chunsheng insisted your game-winning shot and several threes in the last match were just luck. Do you have any response?"

"I already said everything I wanted to at yesterday’s press conference," Lin Feng said, feeling sick at the mention of Wang Chunsheng. If it hadn’t been for Wang reporting him to the Association, he wouldn’t be in this mess.

"Coach Wang also said that a player with as poor morals as you is destined to go nowhere. Any comments on that?" the reporter pressed.

"What? Poor morals?" Lin Feng’s anger flared. "Is that exactly what Wang Chunsheng said?"

"We wouldn’t dare make it up," the reporter replied, eyes gleaming with anticipation. She could sense Lin Feng was about to break—youngsters were always too rash.

Sure enough, Lin Feng let out a cold laugh. "So, it turns out that in twenty years of my life, I’ve learned that defending myself against slander is considered a moral failing? I’d really like to know where Coach Wang learned that kind of ethics. Since he thinks a player with poor morals can’t go far, I’ll win a championship to prove him wrong! I’ll personally defeat his team, let this so-called player of poor morals take the crown!"

With that, Lin Feng slipped past the reporters and boarded the bus.

…