Chapter 103: Chapter 82: First NFL Contract

"So..." Li Wei glanced at the contract. "Is this money just to buy me as a mascot?"

"That’s not how you should look at it," John Mara said, spreading his hands. "That’s why I’ve offered you 150 million USD in performance incentives. As long as you can meet them—even lead the team to a Super Bowl victory—all that money is yours."

"Let me see the contract," Don Quixote said suddenly.

Li Wei handed the contract to Don Quixote, who immediately started flipping through the final sections, looking at the notes and penalty clauses.

"And to prove my sincerity," John Mara added, glancing at Don Quixote, "the New York Giants won’t touch a single cent of your commercial endorsement or NIL deals."

"An offer this good," Li Wei said, "must come with some strings attached, right?"

"The requirements are actually quite simple," John Mara said. "First, you must be 18 years old. Pushing one special clause through is hard enough; I don’t want to get bogged down haggling over your age. Second, you must win MVP at the All-American Bowl and break a record. That’s the only way I can convince the board to spend tens of millions, or even over a hundred million USD, on PR and lobbying. Third, do not reveal any of this to anyone until after the All-American Bowl is over and you’ve secured the MVP."

"I’d like to discuss this with my uncle first," Li Wei said. "Is that all right?"

"Please, go ahead," John Mara said with a wave of his hand. "But I ask you to be considerate of the stamina of an old man in his seventies with stage 3 cancer. I’m afraid I can’t wait for very long."

"Five minutes is all we need." Li Wei and Don Quixote left their seats and stepped outside.

The late November autumn air was already chilly. Li Wei watched as Don Quixote lit a cigarette—it seemed like he hadn’t smoked in a long time.

"What do you think?" he asked, looking at Don Quixote. "Is this contract legit?"

While Li Wei and John Mara had been talking, Don Quixote had been silently flipping through the contract.

Don Quixote didn’t answer. He closed his eyes, took a long, deep drag from his cigarette, held it in, then exhaled two streams of smoke through his nostrils like a dragon.

He kept his eyes closed for so long that Li Wei started to wonder if he had fallen asleep on his feet, even though it wasn’t yet midnight.

"The contract is solid," Don Quixote said after a long silence. "But the conditions are a little harsh."

"You mean breaking a record at the All-American Bowl?" Li Wei asked. "Don’t worry. I’m confident I can do it."

"There’s another, hidden risk," Don Quixote said slowly, exhaling a cloud of smoke. "Did you notice your contract with him is only for two years?"

"I did," Li Wei said. "What’s wrong with that?" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"All his reasons for backing you make perfect sense," Don Quixote said. "But it’s all predicated on the Democratic Party being in power. What happens if the Republican Party retakes the White House in four years? Do you think he’ll still be willing to spend this kind of money on you then?"

"You’re saying he might not renew my contract after two years?" Realization dawned on Li Wei. "I thought he wanted to see how I performed before deciding."

"That’s part of it, yes, but what worries me is the two-year timeline," Don Quixote said. "Massive corporations and leagues like this start laying their groundwork one or two years in advance. The moment the Republican Party is back in the picture, your leverage drops. Will they—"

"Cut me loose once I’ve served my purpose?" Li Wei mused. ’Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.’

Don Quixote looked at Li Wei, then suddenly smiled.

He clapped Li Wei on the shoulder. "Then go for it." He didn’t ask where Li Wei’s confidence came from. "Sign the contract, and I’ll get to witness the birth of a billionaire and a legendary sports icon."

Li Wei and Don Quixote went back into the room.

John Mara was swallowing two capsules with water from a paper cup. When he saw Li Wei and Don Quixote come in, he said in a joking tone:

"So, have you made up your mind, future superstar?"

Li Wei took the contract and scanned it one more time, making sure it hadn’t been swapped, modified, or altered in any way, before signing his name on both copies.

A genuine smile finally spread across John Mara’s face, the first of the evening. He stood up, swaying slightly from the side effects of his chemotherapy, but he quickly steadied himself.

"Congratulations, future superstar of the New York Giants." He shook hands with Li Wei and then Don Quixote. "I have another round of chemo coming up, but I will be there at the All-American Bowl to personally witness you win the championship and take home the MVP."

"You can count on it," Li Wei replied with a small smile of his own. "I’m going to shock everyone."

"By the way," John Mara said in a low voice, "there’s something you need to be aware of."

He pulled Li Wei into a corner, gripping his hand tightly. "You need to be careful, kid. This isn’t some high school football game. This is real business—a bloodbath fought over tens, even hundreds of millions of USD."

Li Wei tried to pull his hand away but found John Mara’s grip surprisingly strong. He was afraid of hurting Mara’s wrist if he used too much force, so he just patted the back of his hand and said:

"I understand," he said. "I’ll be careful."

"No, you don’t understand," John Mara said. "Once your special exemption is passed, the NFL will be ecstatic—a lot of NCAA superstars will be scrambling to find a way into the league. But do you know who won’t be happy?"

"The NCAA. Even though they’re both football, they’re a completely separate and massive organization, a multi-billion-dollar league in its own right." He stared intently at Li Wei. "They’ll probably get wind of this. When you get to the training camp for the All-American Bowl, you have to be extremely careful. Until this whole thing is a done deal, you must be cautious. If anything happens to you, my hundred-million-plus USD in PR money will all have been for nothing."