Standing in the surging crowd and witnessing the bustling scene, Alex Smith was filled with bitterness.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it had been six years since he joined the San Francisco 49ers. For six years, he never seemed to truly realize the passage of time, but when he came to, he was already here. The long and tedious six years had passed in an instant.

During this time, he had experienced being the number one draft pick, the stumbling blocks of his rookie season, the harsh criticism from the media, and the severe condemnation from the team's supporters. But he never seemed to have a moment that truly belonged to him. Even during the draft, people were focused on Aaron Rodgers.

He once thought he could start an era with the San Francisco 49ers. Now, he realized that his time with the San Francisco 49ers was coming to an end.

More than once, Alex had wondered if things would have been different if he hadn't been injured before this year's preseason. Or what would have happened if he had refused Jim Harbaugh's offer to come back after leaving the San Francisco 49ers during the offseason and instead joined another team through a tryout?

But reality was reality, and there were no what-ifs.

So he was standing here, having lost his starting quarterback position and the support of the city of San Francisco. Alex knew that this day was only a matter of time. He just hadn't expected it to come so quickly, so fiercely, and so... cruelly.

"Bambi! Bambi!" The unified and deafening cheers that reached Alex's ears couldn't help but stir up a sense of anger and absurdity. The 2011 season had only just begun. It had only been four games, and these fans were already so eager to show their support?

What about him?

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Alex caught a glimpse of a strong sense of oppression approaching quickly. He looked up reflexively and saw Colin Kaepernick with a gloomy face and fire in his eyes.

Kaepernick's muscles were all tense, and his fists were trembling slightly from clenching too hard. With his head down and the brim of his hat low, it covered most of his facial expression, but he still couldn't hide the tight curve of his jaw. The anger and humiliation that were surging through him were almost out of control.

Everything in front of him was a kind of torment, an unbearable torment, for Kaepernick, who was also a rookie. So, Kaepernick refused to stay here. He strode out, ignoring everyone as he squeezed through the crowd, inch by inch, until he completely disappeared into the sea of people.

The mixed emotions surging in his chest—anger, frustration, bitterness, loss, and annoyance—were all exhaled in a long breath.

Alex knew that this was competitive sports. Everything was based on skill. Even a great player like Brett Favre was tormented in the last few years of his career. The old being replaced by the new and the changing of eras were inevitable. What's more, Lu Ke had earned all of this with his own hard work.

After letting out a heavy breath, his shoulders slumped. He looked at Lu Ke's back, and his eyes suddenly became vacant.

The crazy shouting, the boiling passion, and the surging excitement seemed to make the very air gurgle, rolling over the surface of his skin. His spirits couldn't help but soar higher and higher, as if he could own the whole world just by spreading his arms. That feeling of beauty, happiness, and excitement surged in his chest.

Unconsciously, a smile crept onto his face. Lu Ke raised his hands and applauded the fans, thanking them for their support and approval. At this moment, Lu Ke realized more than ever that he was a member of the 49ers and a member of this city. That feeling was so clear and so moving.

Surrounded by his teammates, Lu Ke took a step and walked toward the fans. But his feet were like they were stepping on cotton. The intense feeling of unreality never went away, making him feel both happy and lost.

"Bambi!" The cheers gradually subsided, replaced by the enthusiastic shouts of the fans. Patrick Willis, Logan Newman, Ted Ginn... one name after another, rising and falling in an endless stream. The lingering echoes of screams and shouts were still in his eardrums, but the sounds finally became clear.

Following the shouts, Lu Ke looked over and saw a few familiar faces on his right. "Hey, Jeff!" Lu Ke greeted him in a friendly manner, only to see a look of disbelief on Jeff's face. "You remember me?"

Lu Ke laughed heartily. "Of course. You were the first fan to ask me for an autograph. Even if I wanted to forget, it would be incredibly difficult." Although his playing time at UCLA was very limited, Lu Ke had his professional starting point there and his own supporters.

Jeff turned his head and grabbed Nate's shoulders. "Did you hear that? He remembers me! God, he remembers me!" The frantic shouting showed his excitement and elation to the fullest. This made Nate pat Jeff's arm. "Calm down, please calm down!" Then, Nate looked at Lu Ke with anticipation in his eyes.

When Lu Ke said Nate's name, Nate also lost control and joined Jeff in screaming wildly. Calm? What was that? Could he eat it?

"Thank you, thank you." That joy and satisfaction also infected Lu Ke, who smiled brightly and thanked these lovely supporters. Then, Lu Ke saw a thin, tall middle-aged man with a scruffy beard. He looked sloppy and down and out, and even a little frail, but his eyes were full of vitality. "Don't thank us."

"What?" Lu Ke didn't react for a moment.

The middle-aged man shouted loudly again. "Don't thank us. Your career has just begun. We're looking forward to seeing more. Today's support is just the beginning. We need you to continue to lead the team to fight! It doesn't matter if you lose the game, but we need to see your perseverance and hard work! But in the end, as long as you can win, we're willing to follow you and continue to go with you!"

More than his words, his bright eyes were more determined and persistent, revealing too much information. "I've always believed that a truly great leader isn't measured by how much they can do or how high they can reach, but by how much better they can make the people around them and how they can inspire others to a level they couldn't reach on their own! Bambi, I'm waiting."

Amidst the surging crowd and heat, such a gaze was like a clear, flowing stream from an iceberg, which calmed his overheated mind a little.

His career had only just begun four games ago. Let's not talk about a long ten or fifteen years. Even the 2011 season was only a quarter of the way through. The future was still long, and the challenges were still great. Today, he had earned the cheers and shouts of the San Francisco 49ers fans, but this was only a small step in his career.

It was just like Cam Newton on the Carolina Panthers. Fan support and team support were just the beginning. Winning was the key to truly having fans. In this week's game, the Carolina Panthers lost to the Chicago Bears, and they had only won one of their four games this season.

Carolina's fans knew that a rookie player needed more time, and they couldn't rush it. But one failure after another was not helping and was like a kind of torment. Newton needed to grow, quickly and even more quickly.

The same was true for Lu Ke.

"You have our approval. The next step is to conquer this city! Do you see it? That's your goal! Not us!" The gaunt middle-aged man shouted. Following his right hand, Lu Ke looked up and saw the flag, the same flag that had once been in the stands of the Cincinnati Bengals.

King of the Bay.

With his heart surging and his blood boiling, the desire for victory, the urgency for a championship, and the expectation for the future all began to well up at this moment. This made Lu Ke laugh happily. He nodded, showing his agreement and understanding, and then looked at the middle-aged man in front of him with sincerity and seriousness. "What's your name?"

"Jonathan Baldwin! The number one supporter of the San Francisco 49ers. I'm a supporter of the team, not you," Jonathan said frankly, completely out of sync with the surrounding noise and fervor.

Lu Ke didn't mind at all. He smiled and nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jonathan. My name is Lu Ke." He shook the other's right hand gently. "Thank you for welcoming us today. I hope to see you again next week at Candlestick Park."

"We need a win," Jonathan said.

Lu Ke chuckled. "Who doesn't?" With that, Lu Ke let go of his right hand and continued to walk with his teammates toward the team bus outside the airport.

The cheering and shouting continued. Although they were cheering Lu Ke's name, as Jonathan said, they were here for the entire team. So, no fans fanatically surrounded Lu Ke. Instead, they watched as all the players of the team got into the team bus and then kept shouting, "49ers! 49ers! 49ers!"

The magnificent cheers echoed among every player and lingered in the night sky of San Francisco. It was a sleepless night, not because the San Francisco 49ers lost the game, or because they were tossing and turning on a Sunday night, but because after a loss, the San Francisco 49ers, who had been dormant for eight years, the listless San Francisco 49ers, the San Francisco 49ers who were used to losing, saw hope again.

It was also because Lu Ke felt the power of the fans for the first time, a power that could rival the support of the Philadelphia Eagles' home crowd. The only difference was that the Eagles' fans were against Lu Ke, while these fans were on Lu Ke's side, supporting the entire team, including Lu Ke.

Now, Lu Ke was finally no longer fighting "alone." The night was too beautiful to close his eyes.

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