The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 16 Settlement of Wages
Back in the locker room, Tang Bei glanced at the treasure chest while showering. He thought that since he had won the championship, there might be a treasure reward.

Sure enough, when I opened the panel, the reward information was displayed.

"Congratulations, host, on winning your first professional basketball league championship and receiving a treasure: an English learning card, which can accelerate your English learning speed. It is valid until you become fluent in English."

"this is not bad."

He felt that being unable to communicate with others was a very unpleasant thing.

After taking a shower, Tang Bei packed his luggage and said goodbye to his coach and teammates. His professional career with the Hai team had come to an end.

After getting into Eric Fleischer's Ford pickup truck, he pulled out a handful of small notes from his pocket and started reading them.

The little note smelled strongly of perfume.

"Tang, what are those?"

Eric Fleischer asked curiously.

John Liu, sitting in the back row, laughed and said, "It's all phone numbers and hotel room numbers. I saw some female fans giving them to Tang."

Tang Bei didn't know what the two were talking about, but it was definitely related to the small notes in his hand. He said somewhat awkwardly, "They were given to me by those female fans. They were so enthusiastic. I think it would be cruel to refuse them."

At this point, he felt a little embarrassed and added, "I am a very kind person and don't want to hurt others."

"Ha ha……"

John Liu couldn't help but burst into laughter, and after the translation was done, Fleischer also laughed uncontrollably, making Tang Bei very embarrassed.

After Eric Fleischer laughed, he said, "Don, normal men have needs. Once you succeed in the audition and sign a big contract, I'll arrange a few models for you."

After listening to John Liu's translation, Tang Bei was taken aback. Did his agent also work as a pimp?
However, Fleischer's words stirred up a certain desire within him.

After the finals, Tang Bei and Hai's contracts with the team also ended.

After playing 8 games and earning a total salary of $2, Eric Fleischer took 3%, leaving him with $19400.

Every April, Eric Fleischer would have the company's accountant handle his tax returns.

According to Eric Fleischer's calculations, after deducting the $2300 individual tax exemption and the $3000 single tax exemption, his tax liability is $14100.

Based on his income, the federal tax rate should be 15%, and state taxes and away game taxes for athletes add up to about 8%. He would have to pay more than $3200 in taxes, leaving him with $16200, or about 20% in taxes.

He planned to wire $10,000 home.

My family owed a lot of money, and we borrowed a large sum for travel expenses when we came to the United States. In total, we had more than 30,000 yuan in debt. After paying it off, we still had some left, which was just enough to improve our family's living conditions.

He's been away for 22 or 23 days, and his family must be wondering how he's doing. He's been wanting to call home for a while now, but since he hasn't received his wages, he's been holding back.

Back at the hotel, Tang Bei didn't use his Motorola phone to make calls; instead, he used the hotel's payphone. John Liu had told him that it was cheaper to make international calls using a landline.

At this time, smoke was rising from the thatched roof of the Tang family's house in Yijie Village, Huanghuadian Township, Wuqing County, Tianjing.

The Tang family had three main rooms, one wing room on the east and one on the west, and a livestock shed and an outhouse in the back. All of them were mud-brick houses with thatched roofs, and were among the worst houses in the village.

The Tang family patriarch and matriarch lived in the front room of the main house, while the back room was the eldest son Tang Bei's room, which was currently empty.

Tang's parents lived in the front room of the west wing, while the second son, Tang Bin, lived in the back room.

The east wing is the kitchen, and outside is a stack of firewood.

The three sisters, Tang Yu and Tang Ning, lived in the west wing, while outside was a shed for storing farm tools and other miscellaneous items.

Tang's mother, Lin Lan, and the old lady, Liu Damei, were preparing lunch, while nine-year-old Tang Ning was in charge of tending the fire.

The Tang family fully supported Tang Bei's martial arts training. Over the past ten years, they have faced severe economic difficulties. Most families in the village burned coal, and even the wealthier ones used gas cylinders, but the Tang family still burned firewood.

"Grandma, Mom, why doesn't my older brother call? I miss him so much." Tang Ning kept talking, though she had a slight lisp and was missing two front teeth.

"Making calls is free? I heard international calls are ridiculously expensive. Adding fuel to the fire is like adding fuel to a fire." Lin Lan said irritably.

"Oh. Cough cough..."

Tang Ning stuffed a handful of firewood into the stove, choked on the smoke, coughed a few times, and then said:
"I wonder if my older brother has eaten enough. Will the owner of that martial arts school let him eat his fill? I've heard that capitalists are all very bad."

"Ugh!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Lan and Liu Damei both sighed, their faces filled with worry.

Tang Zhongchu, Tang's father, and Tang Zhengyuan, the old man, were preparing fertilizer in the front yard. In addition to chemical fertilizer, they also had some organic fertilizer that they had collected.

Seventeen-year-old Tang Bin and fifteen-year-old Tang Yu were already the main breadwinners in their family and helped out as well.

The backyard is where Tang Bei practices martial arts. Next to the fence is a huge stone slab with a stone ball weighing several hundred kilograms in the center—that's Tang Bei's Tai Chi ball.

There was also a large vat next to it, 1.3 meters high and 1 meter in diameter, which was more than half full of sand, weighing nearly a thousand kilograms along with the vat.

This thing was used by Tang Bei to practice wrestling after he came of age. It can also be used for Tai Chi practice and is called "shaking the big vat".

In the corner, there are several stone balls and large vats of varying sizes, as well as many stone locks, stone supports, Bagua stakes, sandbags, wooden dummy stakes, and so on.

The training equipment alone cost the Tang family a lot of money, not to mention the cost of the food and Chinese medicine consumed during training, which was the biggest expense.

Just then, a man's voice rang out from the Liu family next door: "Brother Zhongchu, your eldest son, Tang Bei, is calling."

"The boss's phone call?"

Tang Zhongchu outside hadn't reacted yet, but Lin Lan in the kitchen was the first to react.

Since the boss left, I've been thinking about him constantly, and I get very sensitive whenever I hear his name.

"Oh, my older brother's phone call?"

Tang Ning, who was at the stove, also realized what was happening. He dropped the fire tongs in his hand, got up, and ran away.

"Grandpa, Dad, second brother, third sister, and eldest brother are on the phone!" The little girl shouted as she passed the front yard.

Except for Liu Damei and Grandpa Tang Zhengyuan, everyone else rushed to the Liu family next door. The Liu family ran a small shop with a telephone. Answering the phone was free, but making calls was charged by the minute.

"Tang Bei, when are you going to make your fortune in America?"

Before the Tang family arrived, Liu Gou Shun, with a gossipy heart, seized the opportunity to find out about Tang Bei's situation, but his words were tinged with teasing.

"Uncle Gou Shun, I don't know when I'll get rich. Right now, it's just okay. I've only made a few tens of thousands of yuan in less than a month," Tang Bei said honestly. "Huh?"

Liu Gou Shun's voice suddenly turned shrill, then he realized what he was doing and sneered, "Tang Bei, you can keep bragging all you want!"

"Second Uncle, what are you shouting for?"

"Dog Shun's wife asked as she was tidying up the shelves."

Liu Gou Shun pressed the microphone and whispered, "What the hell? Tang the big idiot said he made tens of thousands in less than a month. He's really exaggerating."

"puff!"

Dog Shun's wife chuckled.

"Uncle Gou Shun, is this my older brother's phone number?"

At this moment, Tang Ning rushed over at the speed of a 100-meter sprint, followed by the third brother, Tang Yu.

"Yes, go ahead and answer it."

Liu Gou Shun quickly put down the microphone.

"Hey, big brother? Big brother, are you there? Big brother, big brother, say something, big brother..."

Little Tang Ning quickly grabbed the microphone and started talking nonstop.

The third girl, Tang Yu, who rushed up from behind, was a couple of steps slower. She scratched Tang Ning's head with her little hand, then reluctantly withdrew it.

"Fourth brother? I'm the eldest brother!"

Tang Bei was thrilled when he heard the voice; it had been almost a month since he had heard his fourth sister speak.

He liked all three of his younger siblings very much. The second child was gentle and not impulsive, and had many friends. The third child was meticulous, but sometimes a little violent. The fourth child was a chatterbox and ran faster than a dog.

Tang Ning excitedly exclaimed, "Hey, it's me! Big brother, are you hungry? Dinner's almost ready at home. We're having steamed buns for lunch today. Can I ask Dad to have someone bring some over for you?"

"I can't send it. Have you forgotten? I'm in America, far away, tens of thousands of miles away," Tang Bei said helplessly.

"Tens of thousands of miles away? What are we going to do? When are you coming back?" Tang Ning asked anxiously.

"Hey, what nonsense are you talking about? Give it to me now!"

Finally, Tang Yu, the third brother, who had reached his limit, took action and snatched the microphone away.

"You're always bullying me. When my older brother comes back, I'll have him beat you up."

Tang Ning was so angry that her face tightened, and she jumped up and down, only to be slapped down by Tang Yu.

Just then, Lin Lan and the others arrived. Before Tang Yu could even speak, her father took the microphone from her, and she pouted in frustration.

"Whee!"

Tang Ning, who had only said one sentence, saw that her third sister hadn't said a word. People are afraid of comparisons, and her mood instantly improved. She smiled and showed at least twenty teeth.

"Humph!"

Frustrated, Tang Yu slapped the fourth brother again, suppressing him once more.

"Hello, Boss?"

Tang Zhongchu brought the microphone closer and said nervously.

"Dad, it's me, Tang Bei!" Tang Bei said happily.

"Oh, um, who stole it... Hey, honey, tell me, tell me."

Tang Zhongchu had just smiled when he noticed someone grabbing his microphone. He turned around and saw it was his wife, Lin Lan, so he had no choice but to let go.

"Whee!"

Tang Yu felt wonderful when she saw that her father, who had taken the microphone from her, had only said three words.

"Boss, it's Mom!" Lin Lan said excitedly as she took the microphone.

"mom……"

Hearing his mother's voice, Tang Bei's eyes reddened.

"Boss, are you doing alright in America? Did you find Chinatown? Are you getting enough to eat at someone's house?" Lin Lan asked anxiously.

"It's a long story... Mom, that's how it is. Professional basketball is very lucrative, so don't worry."

International calls are expensive, so Tang Bei briefly recounted his experiences since arriving in the United States and then ended the call.

"Mom, what did my older brother say? Did he eat his fill in America?" Tang Ning asked hurriedly as her mother put down the phone.

Lin Lan was somewhat dazed and stammered, "The boss said he played basketball and earned more than ten thousand US dollars. He wants to wire ten thousand US dollars back, and he'll do it tomorrow."

"play basketball?"

"Isn't Big Brother going to teach boxing?"

"How much is ten thousand dollars?"

Is the US dollar American money?

The Tang family members looked at each other in bewilderment.

Liu Gou Shun then shouted, "Is Tang Bei lying to you? Where did he get more than ten thousand US dollars in less than a month?"

Gou Shun's wife chimed in, "That's right. I heard that the US dollar is very valuable; one dollar can be exchanged for several dollars of our country's currency."

Upon hearing this, Tang Zhongchu angrily retorted, "Gou Shun, stop talking nonsense. When has anyone in the Tang family ever lied? My eldest son is a man of his word."

"Yes, yes, Brother Zhongchu, you're right. I was just being cheeky and joking. Please don't take offense," Liu Goushun quickly replied.

He only dared to mutter a few words behind his back, but he wouldn't dare to provoke the Tang family to their faces. Although the Tang family had been impoverished by Tang the Big Rice Bucket, Tang the Big Rice Bucket was not someone to be trifled with. He could take down twenty of him with one hand, slapping them one by one, without slapping more than once.

(End of this chapter)