The rest is just noise

Chapter 104 Sky-high Price Contract

Louis met Lorraine "Marlena" Molina in a way he never imagined.

On the night when Italy won the World Cup, Lorraine lost confidence in the judicial examination and wanted to die for a time. But she did not have the slightest determination or courage to seek death and just stood on the bridge to show off.

The appearance of Louis made her a little embarrassed, but since she was seriously lacking in confidence in the exam, she still used this strange and somewhat handsome Asian man as an outlet for her stress.

Although Lorraine's father is just a businessman who drives a truck company, her mother is fluent in English, French and Italian. So Lorraine has learned two languages ​​since she was a child, one of which is English.

Only then did the subsequent development unfold.

On the bridge, she denounced the Italian judicial examination as inhumane, with too many test points, too complicated questions, and all kinds of strange laws that made her beautiful black hair turn gray, etc...

On a night when the Azzurri led by Paolo Rossi made the entire country proud, perhaps only Lorraine was sad.

Oh, by the way, there is also the Italian hater who lost 100 euros to Louis.

"Be happy, your country just won the World Cup." Louis enlightened him.

"Because you men are very satisfied as long as you sit in front of the TV, drink beer, and watch sports games all day long!" Lorraine looked like a strong woman, full of momentum, "I have a dream!"

Louis couldn't help but smile: "Strictly speaking, you are not wrong. If you have experienced it, it is like this with a few friends, drinking something, eating some snacks, watching a few exciting games, and being happy for a victory.

Jumping up and down, it feels like..."

"This is one of the reasons why you men are often regarded as fools..." she said stubbornly.

Miraculously, Louis and her had a lot to talk about. Lorraine probably just needed someone to talk to, and Louis showed up at the right time.

The reason why Louis behaved so warm-heartedly was very low-level. Initially, he was only interested in Lorraine because of her looks.

The first time he saw Lorraine reminded him of Sophie Marceau in "The First Kiss".

However, with her current rosy appearance and being several years older than Sophie in that movie, her lethality is astonishing.

The love for beauty is the driving force. After communicating with her, I found that she is very interesting and an extension of my heartbeat.

Starting from Lorraine detailing how inhumane the Italian Judicial Examination is, to her and Louis having different opinions on sports events, the two sides introduced their situations to each other.

After a while, Louis asked her to wipe away her tears and asked her to recommend a restaurant for some midnight snacks.

"Because late-night snacks can dilute all worries."

There were tableware in front of them. The two seemed to get along more easily, becoming more straightforward, less self-protective and more intimate.

The difference between Lorraine and the other women Louis met after time travel was that they did not end up in bed.

Louis sent Lorraine home. He originally thought that it would be over. He and Lorraine would become friends who met by chance, but he had no contact information about each other.

Lorraine came to the door of the house and returned to Louis: "I have seen many people here."

This city is still quite small...Louis feels that Lorraine may have met everyone in this city.

"Those people and I are strangers, just like you and me tonight. Sometimes we say hello, and sometimes they pay too much attention to my every move." This is inevitable, she is so beautiful. "Those people are my first friends.

One side is often the last side."

Louis is a mature man, he knows that Lorraine is only 18 years old, she will meet many people, and he is just coming to Italy for a business trip. Maybe Volker will finalize the contract soon, and he will leave Italy by then, so he'd better

Don't create any emotional entanglements.

That's exactly what Lorraine was thinking as he walked towards the door of his house.

But when Lorraine came back to him and said these words, he saw a young and vigorous young woman expressing her affection tactfully.

"It's possible that we are like that..." Louis decided to try walking down to have a look, "But, it's also possible that it's not."

Louis smiled and said: "I live in the only Marriott Hotel in the center of the city. If you want to see me, you can go there and find a waiter... Of course, if you don't want to walk that far, I can come to you."

Hearing this, Lorraine wrote down her home phone number.

When she handed the piece of paper with her home phone number written on it to Louis, their fingers inadvertently hooked with each other, and they pulled gently on their own initiative.

This is very different from meeting a beautiful woman in an American bar, chatting for the first ten minutes, expressing your wishes in the next ten minutes, and then going to the bathroom/to a nearby hotel/or boldly going to a deserted place to start a fight in the last ten minutes.

Same.

Louis recalled that when he was in high school, he and his first girlfriend went to the park for a date after school. At that time, he was a crazy boy, just like his little girlfriend, he dared to fight the world (actually parents and teachers) for each other.

Louis walked back to the hotel and Walker was already asleep.

The next day, the other party informed him that the contract had been completed.

This means they are leaving Italy.

Louis decided to stay a little longer because it was the offseason, negotiations between the owners and the Players Association were in full swing, the NBA had stopped all operations, and he had nothing to do when he returned to the United States.

"Okay, I'll make it clear to Reid."

"Thank you, Mr. Jane," Louis asked with a smile, "Oh, by the way, do you want me to escort you to the airport then? I will save you from stepping on those people's paintings again. I can provide professional services to deal with such scoundrels.

"

Walker was also a smart man. He asked with a smile: "Do you have other intentions?"

"I'm disappointed that you want to disappoint me so much, because I just want to provide you with the help I can."

Louis originally wanted to borrow Volker's remaining funds and wait tens of thousands of years to pay it back, but unfortunately this guy was very clever and didn't give him a chance.

Fortunately, he is no longer short of money like when he first came to Boston to apply for a job. Taking advantage of such small advantages is purely due to inertia. If you have it, it is best, and if you don't have it, it doesn't matter.

The NBA has entered a de facto shutdown.

From July to August, no free agents were signed.

The only one that has made any moves is the Philadelphia 76ers. Since 1977, they have had the most popular player Dr. J but have repeatedly failed in the playoffs and finals. They are in urgent need of another superstar to join them.

After Moses Malone became a free agent, the 76ers launched an enthusiastic pursuit of him. Their owner, Harold Katz, a high-profile man who likes to show off and loves basketball, was eager to bring Malone back to his team immediately.

Larry O'Brien's warning at the annual meeting stopped the 76ers in their tracks.

However, after several negotiations, the Players Association and the owners showed no sign of reaching an agreement. They could not even reach agreement on a simple reduction in the number of players.

In early August, the 76ers broke the silence first. They sent Daryl Dawkins, who had provided them with many wonderful dunks over the years, in exchange for $700,000 in cash and a first-round draft pick.

Dawkins being traded is a blow to the 76ers.

In terms of athletic talent alone, Dawkins may be the strongest in the league.

The combination of him and the Jones brothers is a nightmare in the Eastern Conference. With Laimbeer, Maxwell, Sampson and Bird, the Celtics played 14 games in two rounds of series, and the inside line always suffered.

After sending Dawkins away, the 76ers' desire to win Malone has changed from a strong want to an urgent desire.

Because Katz publicly supported the league to reduce expenses to maintain operations, the 76ers have been reluctant to make a move on Malone.

But since trading Dawkins, they have become a little restless.

If the negotiations end and teams from other big markets get involved, the 76ers may not be able to bring Malone home.

The 76ers' offensive against Malone can be called the most ironic thing of the offseason.

The day before, the owners had a heated argument with the Players Association, saying that they could no longer survive and that players' salaries must be controlled, otherwise they would be finished in a few seasons. Then there was news about the 76ers.

He frantically threw a 6-year, 13 million contract in front of Malone.

Pistons general manager Jack McCloskey immediately jumped out and accused the 76ers of seriously harming the league.

The Bucks almost rushed to the negotiation site with blood. If this contract comes true, then Malone's contract will be larger than the contract of their entire team.

Jerry Buss' resentment poured out in all directions.

Moses Malone was originally his main target during the offseason. He was sure to offer a price that the Rockets could not match. However, in the past year, everyone has complained that he was too generous and used too much money.

Other teams survive.

Buss sought to dispel that impression by becoming one of the few owners to publicly support the league's efforts to limit player salaries.

As a result, another boss who openly supported this matter slapped him in the face with a contract that he might not even be able to sign.

"Is it true that as long as that person's name is not Bass, he can spend money lavishly?" Bass was furious at the boss's briefing meeting.

The Rockets, the biggest victim of this contract, challenged the league. They believed that the 76ers' actions violated the agreement reached after the Robertson case.

Malone's contract is very complicated, with a guaranteed amount of US$13 million, but there are also five bonus clauses that he is certain to meet. If he completes all the clauses, he will receive US$15 million.

The Rockets can lament their poverty by performing ancestral arts, but in the end, this will not bring any repercussions.

Because the 76ers strictly follow the spirit of the Robertson case and fully pursue restricted free agents. If the Rockets want to keep people, they should match this contract. If they don't want to keep people, they should start preparing how to get some compensation from the 76ers.

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