Chapter 158 156: Tit for Tat
The regular season action heated up again in week two. As was their weekly custom, ESPN's football program, "Inside the Alliance," recorded another episode, inviting ten of the industry's top experts to predict the outcomes of this week's sixteen games.
Before the start of every season, ESPN adjusts the composition of its expert panel, bringing in new blood to ensure the group's vitality and expertise, thereby safeguarding its own authority. This lineup remains for the entire season, right up to the Super Bowl. Afterward, they can look back at the ten experts' prediction success rates, which in turn are used to assess their authority and professionalism.
However, after the first week of the regular season this year, only one of the ten experts was left standing: Spencer Larson. He was the only expert commentator who had predicted the San Francisco 49ers would defeat the Seattle Seahawks.
Facing this week's head-to-head showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys, ESPN's ten experts once again voiced their opinions. The result was 8 VS 2—a full eight experts believed the Dallas Cowboys would claim the final victory, while only two thought the San Francisco 49ers would have the last laugh.
Clearly, even a National League Offensive Player of the Week performance wasn't enough to win over the industry's critical and arrogant experts. The predictions were completely one-sided, the tilt so obvious it was staggering.
Ganged up on by the other eight experts, Spencer Larson and Jessica Karney seemed isolated and weak. Especially when faced with the overwhelmingly dominant Charles Davis, they were at a complete disadvantage, unable to even make their voices heard.
Charles's booming, spittle-flecked voice echoed throughout the studio: "Dallas Cowboys! Dallas Cowboys! Dallas Cowboys! That's the only possibility! End of discussion!" Finally, Charles's hands slammed heavily on the table, as if a judge banging a gavel, and he announced crisply, "Case closed!"
That decisive, aggressive, and undeniable forcefulness blew up the episode's ratings, and a fiery discussion spread across the internet. At least, judging from the audience feedback, Charles Davis had won over the public. Aside from the San Francisco 49ers' own fans, it seemed no one believed Lu Ke could repeat his performance from week one.
The Dallas Cowboys fans flooding into Candlestick Park also voiced their agreement with the prediction and the supremely confident Charles.
"Go back to mommy's teat!" "Warm the bench for a few more years before you talk about starting." "Don't let your legs turn to jelly in front of the mighty Cowboys!" "Little Deer Bambi, go home to your mommy, you crybaby."
"You sure you're at the right stadium? Not lost, are you? Better hurry back to playing that sissy basketball!" "It's not too late to back out, otherwise you're gonna piss your pants!" "This is a football field, nerd! Get back to your office and crunch some numbers!"
...
Crude and wild banners encircled Candlestick Park in a vast, unbroken line. Fans dressed as cowboys, fans with their faces painted, and even fans carrying models of bull heads swarmed into San Francisco Candlestick Park. An endless, ferocious tide of navy blue crashed against the gold and red, scattering them like a vast ocean about to drown the stadium.
The San Francisco 49ers' home field was facing a crisis; it had practically become Dallas Cowboys territory!
The vicious, brutal banners were everywhere, unanimously aiming their cannons at Lu Ke alone. The quarterback is always a lightning rod for criticism, but now, Lu Ke was the sole target of everyone's attacks. For a fleeting moment, he had the distinct feeling that the entire world was against him.
Slowly but surely, a volcanic flow of gold and red began to pour into the vast ocean. The local San Francisco 49ers fans started arriving at Candlestick Park in droves, diluting the tide of navy blue. With their brilliant, bright colors, they slowly illuminated the entire scene, powerfully declaring: This is the 49ers' home turf!
"Get lost! The Gold Rush doesn't welcome invaders!" "This is 49ers territory! Not for savages!" "Your quarterback—that fumble. Our quarterback—five touchdowns!"
"Get ready to kneel and beg for mercy!" "You're talking big 'cause you haven't seen what Lu Ke can do!" "Master of mistakes, team of mistakes. Not America's Team, but America's Disgrace!" "Besides selling jerseys, do you even remember how to play ball?"
...
The San Francisco 49ers' counter-chants were just as fierce, firing right back without holding anything back. They didn't have all sorts of bizarre costumes; they were just wearing their team jerseys. The brilliant fusion of red and gold was like a bursting dam, pouring down with a powerful, violent force that gradually reversed the tide, slowly, slowly transforming Candlestick Park back into a sea of gold and red.
A group of fans clustered together, each holding up a chest-high white panel. When they all stood together, the panels formed a massive sign, as large as a wall, that read: "'The Catch,' again?"
This was, without a doubt, a taunt aimed at the 1981 National League Championship. That one sign was enough to make Cowboys and 49ers fans want to tear each other's hair out. And this was a colossal sign, like a resounding slap across the faces of the visiting fans.
Archrivals. This was the definition of an archrivalry: a fight to the death, relentless and uncompromising. No quarter given, doing everything in their power to destroy the opponent. A rivalry that had been dormant for nearly fifteen years was reigniting its flames this week. The two sides were like bulls seeing red, poised to charge.
The Dallas Cowboys fans were instantly enraged. Their shouts and cheers gradually spun out of control.
First, some Cowboys fans threw rocks at the massive sign. Then, 49ers fans tried to shove them back.
Next, Cowboys fans raised a giant poster depicting a cartoon figure on both knees, bowing in submission. The face was unmistakably Lu Ke's, and the one he was bowing to was a cowboy in the likeness of Romo. In response, 49ers fans tore through the poster with wooden sticks.
And then… someone made a move. It was impossible to tell who. One person, then two… it finally erupted into a massive brawl of fifty or sixty people. Luckily, no one rolled up their sleeves to trade punches. It was just shoving, cursing, and grabbing, but the scene was rapidly spiraling out of control.
The San Francisco 49ers' official security personnel promptly stepped forward, pulling apart the enraged fans from both sides. Riot police quickly intervened, nipping the potential riot in the bud before it could fully explode. Then they forcibly separated the fans, opened the gates, and began to disperse the crowd by letting them into the stadium.
"We'll settle this on the field!"
"Don't come crying to your mommy when you lose!"
"Go to hell!"
"Fuck!"
...
The sound of cursing continued to echo around Candlestick Park. The palpable tension, far from dissipating, only continued to escalate. This game between Alliance archrivals was truly living up to its name, reawakening memories of the nineties.
When the San Francisco 49ers' team bus arrived at Candlestick Park, the chaos on site had been brought under control, but it was still simmering, like boiling water bubbling and churning. Even the scorching air began to distort, as if it were noon in the sweltering midsummer again, with the vicious sun and stuffy temperatures making people restless.
Through the window, Lu Ke could clearly see a wide variety of banners. But, compared to the first game, the vicious insults were rapidly disappearing.
"Want respect? Lu Ke, do it again!"
"Five touchdowns. We can get used to that."
"Little Deer Bambi, run, run fast!"
"Respect! A tribute to Little Deer Bambi—Lu Ke!"
"Win one more, and you'll have our support."
"One isn't enough! One isn't enough! We need wins, more of them!"
"We beg you to prove us wrong, to crush it, to go off, to abuse us! Bambi, we're waiting for you to make us eat our words for the second week in a row! Quick, quick!"
When Lu Ke saw the last sign and then looked at the burly man holding it, he couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter. The scene was just too much, and Lu Ke could feel his own cheeks turning red.
"What is it?" Logan couldn't help but get curious. He stood up, leaned over Lu Ke, and looked out the window at the surging crowd. "They're not still cursing Jack and Annie, are they? Those guys!" Logan was talking about Lu Zhengze and Jiang Youning. In the post-game interview after the last game, Logan had specifically condemned the fans for such irrational behavior.
"No. They still don't want to believe in me, and are now begging to be proven wrong, that's all," Lu Ke said lightly. Then he saw the indescribable look on Logan's face, and the atmosphere instantly became cheerful.
In the distance, Lu Ke could glimpse the Dallas Cowboys fans. Their expressions were ferocious, they were constantly roaring, and a sea of middle fingers filled his view. The earth-shattering noise crossed the thirty-meter gap, passed through the bus window, and exploded with perfect clarity inside the cabin. The quiet, stuffy environment was instantly filled with a clamorous racket.
Alliance archrivals. Now, Lu Ke was finally getting a real taste of what that meant.
Logan also noticed the Dallas Cowboys fans' taunts and glanced back at the turbulent undercurrents inside the bus. All the rookies were sitting in the front half, while the veterans were gathered in the back. Scattered in between were the players who were staying neutral and keeping to themselves.
You could clearly feel that the rookies were being ostracized. The atmosphere was stiff, as if a Chu River and Han Boundary had been drawn down the middle of the bus. With Alex Smith returning to practice and Colin Kaepernick stirring the pot, the team's factional struggles were starting to surface.
"So, are you confident about tonight's game?" Logan let out a long breath. Football is a team sport; without the support of their teammates, it was impossible for them to win. Even Logan was starting to get a headache over it now.
Lu Ke followed Logan's gaze and looked back. His eyes narrowed slightly, and then he saw Parris.
Parris arrogantly lifted his chin, a mocking and provocative smile playing on his lips, as if to say, 'There's no place for you here; you'd better know your place.' Then, Parris raised his right hand, extended his thumb, and slowly, slowly, drew it across his throat in a slitting motion. The message could not have been clearer.
They were teammates, yet they stood in completely opposing camps. 'How on earth are we supposed to play this game?'