36: Chapter 36 The NBA Sign

When Lin Feng received the system task, he was squatting at the entrance of the old shop.

[Side Quest: Hold a sign at an NBA game that says "LeBron, you owe me $20" and spark a heated discussion across the internet.]

[Reward: $200,000 + Special Skill "Center of Attention" (Passive Skill: When you become the center of the crowd, everyone's happiness increases by 20%)]

Lin Feng stared at the line of text, biting his straw flat.

The old man beside him saw that his expression was off and asked, "What's wrong?"

Lin Feng handed over his phone.

After reading it, the old man was silent for three seconds, then asked, "Who is LeBron?"

Lin Feng said, "He plays ball."

The old man nodded, "He owes you money?"

Lin Feng shook his head, "He doesn't."

The old man asked again, "Then why are you holding up this sign?"

Lin Feng thought for a moment and said earnestly, "To make people laugh."

The old man stared at him for three seconds, then said, "You really are a psycho."

Lin Feng nodded, "I know."

It took Lin Feng three days to prepare the sign. It wasn't because he was being meticulous, but because he didn't know who to ask to make it. In the end, it was Xiao Su who helped.

She had a friend who made billboards. After hearing about it, the friend laughed until they couldn't stand straight, but agreed to do it for free.

"Boss Lin, my friend said he wants to frame this sign of yours once it's out."

Lin Feng, with the straw in his mouth, replied, "Framing is fine, but don't sell it."

Xiao Su laughed, "If I sell it, I'll split the money with you."

The content of the sign was simple. White background with black text, in large bold letters: [LeBron, you owe me $20]

Underneath, there was a line of small text, extremely small, invisible unless you got close: [It's not that you actually owe me, I just want you to see—happiness isn't expensive.]

Xiao Su asked, "This line of text is so small, who can see it?"

Lin Feng said, "It doesn't need to be seen. Once it goes viral, someone will zoom in."

Xiao Su didn't understand, but she was used to it. Eight out of ten things this boss said were incomprehensible.

On the day of the game, Lin Feng brought a group of people. Maria, Frank, Chen Yao, Li Ming, Tommy, the old man, Old Zhang, Lisa, Sofia, Mike, Kevin, Xiao Su, and Lily—everyone who could come, came.

Lin Feng looked at the line of people behind him and suddenly felt a bit dazed. A few months ago, he was still squatting on a street corner handing out coffee cups alone. Now, he was leading a group to watch the NBA.

Frank leaned in and asked, "Boss, where are we sitting?"

Lin Feng waved the tickets in his hand, "The cheapest ones."

Frank's face fell, "The cheapest ones? Won't that mean sitting up in the nosebleeds?"

Lin Feng nodded, "Yes. In the nosebleeds, where the cameras can't quite reach."

Frank was stunned, "Then how are you going to hold up the sign?"

Lin Feng smiled, "Who said I was going to hold it up from my seat?"

Half an hour before the tip-off, Lin Feng disappeared. Maria looked everywhere but couldn't find him. Frank called him, but his phone was off.

Tommy was a bit panicked, "Brother, nothing bad happened to him, right?"

The old man said slowly, "What could happen to him? He's been through the worst of times already."

That said, everyone was still a bit worried. Until the timeout in the second quarter.

The camera swept across the sidelines—a person was squatting in a corner at the edge of the court, holding a huge sign. White background, black text, large bold letters: [LeBron, you owe me $20]

The whole arena was silent for a second. Then, it erupted in laughter.

Maria was the first to recognize him, "That's Lin Feng!!"

Frank widened his eyes, "How did he get in there?!"

Chen Yao covered her face and laughed, "This psycho..."

Li Ming jumped up from his seat, "Boss! Boss!"

Tommy was laughing so hard his wheelchair was shaking. The old man was stunned for three seconds, then he laughed too. The kind of laugh he hadn't had in a long time.

The camera stayed on Lin Feng for a full five seconds. He was squatting there, straw in his mouth, holding the sign, his expression as calm as if he were sunbathing in front of his own shop.

The commentator was laughing so hard he couldn't speak. "This audience member... the sign this audience member is holding... LeBron, you owe me 20 dollars... hahahaha..."

The big screen at the venue cut to LeBron. LeBron stood on the court, looked at the sign, and was stunned for a second. Then he laughed. He made an "OK" gesture toward Lin Feng's direction. The whole arena cheered.

After the game ended, Lin Feng was escorted out by security. Not because he caused trouble, but because too many people wanted to take photos with him.

He was squatting at the entrance of the arena, surrounded by layers of people. It took Maria and the others a long time to squeeze through. Frank grabbed him, "Run!" The group took off running.

They ran two blocks before stopping to catch their breath. Tommy asked with a smile, "Brother, how did you get in there?"

Lin Feng blinked, "I found the arena manager and asked him if he wanted tonight's game to trend on social media."

The old man asked, "He believed you?"

Lin Feng said, "He hesitated for three seconds. Then I showed him our shop's TikTok."

Maria was stunned, "You brought your phone?"

Lin Feng nodded, "I did. But it wasn't turned on."

Everyone was silent for three seconds. Then they erupted in laughter.

That night, #LeBronOwesMe$20 surged to number one on the national trending list. The video with the most views was the five-second clip of Lin Feng squatting on the sidelines holding the sign.

The comment section: "Who is this guy?? That's so absurd!" "His squatting posture looks so familiar... wait, is that the fried chicken shop owner?" "That's him! The psycho from Joe's Fried Chicken!" "He brought a group of people, I saw Maria!" "I'm dying at LeBron's OK gesture, he actually responded!" "$20 for a number one national trend, that's a good deal."

Lin Feng was squatting at the entrance of the old shop, scrolling through the comments, laughing like a fool. His phone vibrated.

[Ding—Side quest complete.] [Reward issued: $200,000 has been received.] [Special Skill "Center of Attention" activated: When you become the center of the crowd, the happiness of everyone around you increases by 20%.]

Lin Feng stared at the skill description, stunned for three seconds. Then he smiled. He stood up and shouted into the shop, "Starting tomorrow, we've got work to do."

Everyone poked their heads out to look at him. Lin Feng said, "I want to let more people become the center of the crowd."

[Chapter 36 End]