Chapter 30 "I just felt you were being shy..."
The person who was invited to dinner was not very polite and took it upon himself to choose an address, sending him the location on WeChat. It was a small barbecue restaurant not far from where Nan Zhiyi lived.
The barbecue restaurant was hidden in a small alleyway in a residential building, and Nan Zhiyi found the store with ease.
You Xin was already sitting at a table inside, waiting for him.
When Nan Zhiyi went out in the middle of the night, she was dressed casually. The person opposite her had changed into another long trench coat, with a black turtleneck sweater underneath. He was sitting there very formally, with a shiny silver necklace hanging on his chest as usual.
This shop is usually busiest around 9 or 10 o'clock, and it gradually becomes quieter around midnight.
Now, besides the two people and the owner, only one guy was left in the small shop, silently drinking.
After Nan Zhiyi sat down, she realized that the other person had already ordered the food: "What did you order?"
You Xin said succinctly: "What you like to eat."
Nan Zhiyi blinked. Just then, the owner brought over a plate of fragrant grilled skewers. Seeing the extra person on the table, he squinted to make sure he was recognized, then exclaimed with delight, "Xiao Yi? It really is you! I thought I was seeing things!"
"Uncle Luo!" Nan Zhiyi greeted him with a smile.
"It's been so long since I've seen you! I thought my cooking had gotten worse and you didn't like what I made anymore!" the owner laughed, placing the plate on the table. "Xiao You, on the other hand, still comes here often. I even asked about you; he said you're very busy with school. How are things? Studying must be tiring, right? Are you graduating soon?"
Nan Zhiyi: "I'm not tired. I'll graduate this year."
He grabbed a skewer of beef from the grill and took a bite. The familiar aroma burst forth between his lips and teeth, instantly filling him with satisfaction.
"Hey, be careful, it's hot," the shopkeeper warned, then the topic circled back to the beginning, "Are you looking for a job now that you've graduated? Young people these days have it so tough. Several young people came to my shop alone late at night to eat, and they started crying while they were eating. I didn't know what to do."
The barbecue restaurant owner is a man nearing sixty who came to the big city from his rural hometown to make a living. He has established himself with his cooking skills and still doesn't understand how to use a smartphone, so he has no idea what the two young people in front of him are doing.
Nan Zhiyi thought about it and realized that although he was luckier than his peers, he had also worked very hard, so he nodded vigorously.
The owner looked at them with affection: "Eat slowly. If you want anything else later, feel free to ask, and I'll give you a discount."
"Thank you, Uncle!"
The owner slowly returned to his stall. Nan Zhiyi whispered behind him, "My God, he actually remembers me."
“He often asked about you,” You Xin said. “I remember him very clearly. He said there were a few kids who looked like high school students, but they would always come over for late-night snacks at one or two in the morning. At first, I thought they were just hanging out in the streets instead of studying.”
Nan Zhiyi smiled.
This barbecue restaurant is very close to CG's youth training base, only a few hundred meters away. In the past, when they got hungry after training until midnight, they would go out to the restaurant for a meal, and over time the owner remembered their faces.
After eating a few skewers of beef, Nan Zhiyi finally managed to remember her business.
“Your account has enough followers now, but Xiaoyu’s doesn’t. In a couple of days, we’ll get him to play a three-player game together, but we won’t stream it; we’ll just let him stream it alone.” He explained his plan to the other person.
"Um."
"There's also the matter of training. Around Tuesday or Wednesday next week, I'll ask the streamers I know if I can schedule a practice match with them."
In ROE's ranked matches, you can only solo queue, and the four-player matches at lower ranks aren't very competitive. If you want to practice and get back together, you can only arrange scrims with other teams.
"Um."
“Since it’s an online competition, we’ll train online for now. I’ll ask Meng Ge if he’s interested in coming back later, otherwise training time might be inconvenient. He and Bai Yu are both locals, so it’s convenient for them to stay.” Nan Zhiyi picked up another skewer of roasted potato chips. “When it comes to the offline competition, we’ll have to consider the training venue. There’s definitely no time to set up a training room on the spot, so we can only look for suitable existing venues.”
"Um."
Nan Zhiyi glanced up and noticed that although You Xin only replied with a single word each time, her gaze remained fixed on him. She left the barbecue in front of her to cool, not eating it.
"Eat something," he said. "Why are you looking at me?"
“It’s nothing. I was just thinking you should apply for a CG manager position,” You Xin said. “You’re much more organized than Yang Lei.”
"Oh my god, I'm not going." Nan Zhiyi chuckled. "I can't control those heavyweights in your team."
You Xin remained noncommittal: "The team is all arranged, what about you?"
"I?"
"Your house. Aren't you moving?"
Nan Zhiyi gets a headache when it comes to moving: "There are a few suitable apartments available now, but I haven't found a roommate yet... The requirements are really too demanding. If all else fails, I'll just move in by myself for now."
Nan Zhiyi doesn't really like living alone; he always feels that having only one person and one bird at home is too lonely. Although most people in the livestreaming industry live in seclusion, since it's really hard to find a roommate with similar lifestyle and schedule, he still feels that it would be better to have someone to talk to every day.
You Xin looked away. He lowered his eyes and suddenly said, "I'm easier to manage than those other people."
Nan Zhiyi: "Hmm?"
"If you don't mind, I can be your roommate."
Nan Zhiyi's first reaction was to jump up and make a passionate speech, stating that she absolutely could not live under the same roof as him, and that she had only stayed at his house out of necessity.
But then he immediately recalled the other party's "friend" rhetoric—as if anyone who refused the offer was up to no good.
Nan Zhiyi was caught in an awkward position for a moment, and after a long while, she stammered, "No... that's not a good idea. I still have to do my live stream..."
“I won’t disturb your live stream,” You Xin said immediately. “I can live on the first floor, not the second. Just call me if you need anything. I can get you takeout, and I can cook if you don’t want to eat. I can feed the birds for you when you’re not home. It’ll also be convenient for communication and training.”
He presented himself in an irresistible way, as if he couldn't wait to sell himself.
But is that the problem?
Nan Zhiyi had a headache. He racked his brains for a reason to refuse, but just then, the plastic curtain next to him rattled. A new guest had come in.
Before he could turn around to look, the person spoke first, in a deep, exaggerated voice: "Oh my, am I seeing things?"
He was a middle-aged man with a large belly and thinning hair on top, but he had a kind face. As he spoke, he stuck his head out of the plastic curtain and said to the people outside, "Guess who I saw?"
Nan Zhiyi recognized him: "Brother Xu?"
HYG team manager Lao Xu turned around and recognized Nan Zhiyi, who was sitting with her back to the door: "Xiao Yi is here too! You two are out for a late-night snack?"
As they were talking, the person outside walked in, wearing a thick coat over his black and gold HYG team uniform.
Milk entered the store and was taken aback when she saw who was sitting inside: "What a coincidence."
"Come on, come on, sit down at one table," Old Xu greeted casually, then turned and shouted towards the owner, "Boss! Thirty more skewers of lamb and thirty more skewers of beef!"
Nan Zhiyi and You Xin moved to another seat. The group then sat down again at a large table.
"Want some drinks?" Old Xu rubbed his hands together, eager to try. "It's been so long since I've seen you two."
Nan Zhiyi: "We don't drink. Is your gout better?"
Old Xu's expression changed, and his enthusiasm immediately waned: "Nobody's drinking? Fine then—boss! Bring two more bottles of soy milk!"
A moment later, two star players from roeCN, a well-known streamer, and a team manager each held a bottle of hot soy milk and silently ate their straws.
Finally, Lao Xu was the first to put down his drink: "Things haven't been peaceful lately, have they? Xiao Yi, what's going on between you and those streamers? Why are so many people talking about you online?"
Nan Zhiyi then recounted the whole story.
After hearing this, Old Xu spat and said, "You're really shameless! You're saying you're cheating? You've never seen someone play a match before. You go up there and beat these gossipy people to a pulp!"
Milk, who had been listening to their conversation with great interest, suddenly interjected, "A competition?"
"You didn't know, did you? Xiao Yi used to be in CG's youth training program. I personally recruited him." Upon hearing this, Lao Xu immediately straightened his chest and introduced him like a proud old father. "I recruited both him and Yux, and they came to the youth training program together later."
milk: "No wonder you guys seemed so familiar to me at the All-Star game that day."
Old Xu was still angry: "Saying you cheated is nonsense. In every training session before, weren't you always the number one in the team? Those marks were clearly made by you."
"With such good results, why don't you go play in the league?" Milk asked curiously.
“...My physical condition doesn’t allow it,” Nan Zhiyi explained after thinking for a moment.
Old Xu: "Yes, what a pity for such a promising talent! Later he went to school, and he won first place in the Baiyu talent show."
milk: "Bai Yu?"
Old Xu waved his hand: "It's the one who accidentally let slip in his live stream that Soso was going to transfer to HYG last time. WD's support."
Nan Zhiyi laughed uncontrollably. Milk suddenly realized, "Pigeon, I couldn't remember who that was when you mentioned the name."
After talking about Nan Zhiyi, Lao Xu immediately turned his attention to You Xin: "You too, how did you end up like that with the team? I was really looking forward to you winning the championship last year, so I could post it on my WeChat Moments and say that you were the champion I personally coached."
"The atmosphere in the team isn't good," You Xin said. "I guess we won't be playing in CG anymore."
"When you debuted, everyone said you were the next big thing, and I was going to be swept away by you." Milk joked from the side, "But now you haven't even made it ashore yet, and you're going to be swept away by you too."
His words were sharp, but they were also true – CG had already won six consecutive games in the Spring Split, and the newly promoted player xww, who replaced yux, even made a boastful statement in a post-match interview: "I feel like yux is just so-so. I will lead CG to win the championship that he didn't win." This statement was widely reposted by various marketing accounts, accompanied by the tweet "The old guard is dying on the beach."
You Xin thought for a moment and said, "I was the runner-up last year. What about him? What about you?"
Milk's face instantly fell: "...Just say what you want to say, don't hurt my feelings."
HYG failed to qualify for the World Championship last year. As one of only two teams with a World Championship title and a veteran star team in the CN region, this was obviously an unacceptable outcome.
After a month into the Spring Split this year, HYG also finished in the middle of the pack with a 2-3 losing record.
Milk and Yux seem to have a good relationship in private, which is completely different from the irreconcilable conflict between them and their fan groups.
Nan Zhiyi couldn't help but feel a sense of novelty. He once again experienced the real length of time that had passed since they parted.
Speaking of results, Milk's smile wasn't as bright as before: "To be honest, when you're looking for a new team, why don't you consider HYG? I don't have any other requirements, just that you can lead me to a championship."
"Hey, hey, hey! I'm still here!" Old Xu immediately put on a very vigilant look. "Pei Xinye, I'm warning you, he's still under contract. If you come out for a late-night snack, don't end up in court with me."
You Xin ignored him: "Win the championship with you? Then who do you want to kick out?"
"It's that guy, he plays elemental magic like crap." Milk sneered. "Anyway, I've had enough of him."
Nan Zhiyi vaguely sensed a hint of palace intrigue. This was his first time participating in the "Professional Players' Backstabber Teammates" activity, so he immediately perked up his ears.
At that moment, he remembered that when Lao Xu led the youth training team out for a late-night snack, he would bring the whole team. He couldn't help but say, "Didn't we just play against MTT today? Why didn't the rest of you from HYG come out to eat together?"
"You remember the schedule so clearly?" Old Xu looked at him in surprise. "Those guys aren't in the mood to eat. They played terribly in scrims, and even playing MTT today was a struggle. They started arguing on the way back, and now they're all sulking in the base."
Nan Zhiyi asked curiously, "Who and who?"
“Soso and the other two,” Lao Xu said. “They think that Soso doesn’t practice the new class, and now that the version has changed, he can’t play the new system.”
"CG was pretty much the same last year. There are many OTG strategies, and zds sticks to one strategy every day, but he gets crushed as soon as he goes in," You Xin chimed in. "Beer was practicing archery when he was with WD, right? Including last year, it's been two whole years, but he still can't bring it out for the competition."
"Is that why you picked the Witch in the fifth game?" milk asked. "I thought you made a mistake and we had to restart, but you locked it in."
You Xin nodded: "I guess so."
“I’m not very familiar with Beer. I had already left CG when he came,” Old Xu said with a frown. “But I guess Wind is the main reason…tsk. Speaking of which, it’s been revealed that you were his mistress.”
“Wind convinced two other people to team up and prevent me from participating in training matches,” You Xin said. “Before, it was just verbal friction. After the finals last year, he told Stone that it was either him or me, or neither of us would be able to participate.”
Nan Zhiyi was stunned: "What?!"
Milk raised her eyebrows in surprise upon hearing this.
"Actually, I guessed it. It's probably related to him." Old Xu shrugged. "Wind has always been like this. He smiles at you on the surface, but he stabs you in the back a lot. Two years ago, Meng, who was on the same team, was kicked out by him like that. And Nova, he won the championship and was so popular, but he was not satisfied with the endorsement and shooting arrangements. Later, his performance declined and he was kicked out."
"I left because I couldn't stand how they were doing it. Wind, Stone, and the boss of CG, and those investors..."
The current owner of CG is named Yan Feng, who just turned 45 this year. His movie was a huge hit across the country 20 years ago. Later, he retired behind the scenes and started an investment business.
After accumulating billions of dollars in wealth over more than a decade, Yan Feng founded CG eSports Club six years ago, the second year after the official release of ROE.
I heard that Boss Yan himself didn't know anything about games, but that CG team accidentally won the world championship. After winning the championship, they became a powerhouse, and the club has been running for years.
As for You Qing joining the ranks of shareholders this year, it is naturally due to his relationship with Yan Feng.
Nan Zhiyi probably knew a little bit about it. Since Yan Feng himself was a hands-off manager, the person who really had a say in CG was Manager Stone, one of Boss Yan's confidants.
But what is the relationship between Wind and investors?
He voiced the question that had been on his mind.
Old Xu's expression suddenly became quite interesting: "Well... why don't you ask Xiao You?"
He passed the buck. Nan Zhiyi immediately turned to You Xin.
“The woman Wind is dating is Boss Yan’s younger sister,” You Xin said casually. “In fact, it was her request that the club be established in the first place. Yang Lei listens to her a lot.”
Nan Zhiyi: "…………"
This actually works?!
"Wow, this is explosive." Upon suddenly hearing this juicy gossip, Milk couldn't help but exclaim, "No wonder CG Entertainment treats him like a prince every day."
“I haven’t heard about this. I have heard that Wind is quite jealous of you—I think it’s because you’re better looking than him? He thinks you always dress up for every game and that it’s pretentious? He said this when he was having dinner with some of our team members.”
You Xin scoffed, "I'm better looking than him anyway."
Old Xu almost choked: "Although you are quite qualified in this area, isn't this a bit too immodest?"
"Your face is a gift from your parents, and whether you're beautiful or ugly is a fact. There's nothing to be ashamed of," You Xin said. "What's most frightening is someone who's ugly but still acts strangely."
Nan Zhiyi had been feeling somewhat depressed after learning about Wind's actions, but now she couldn't help but want to laugh. Milk laughed so hard she pounded the table: "You mean that Beer from your team... I heard he's thinking about getting plastic surgery?"
"He seems to think that if he makes his face smaller, he'll get more fans, and then with more popularity he can become a star athlete and earn a high salary," You Xin said indifferently. "He doesn't even look at how badly he plays with his bow and arrow; making his face into a cone won't help."
Nan Zhiyi suddenly remembered something: "Ah, no wonder you said he had a big face."
It seems that the "award ceremony" that day wasn't just a series of haphazard personal attacks, but rather a precise nuclear strike.
Milk and Lao Xu were laughing so hard they could hardly stand it.
After enjoying a barbecue together, the group chatted and laughed. Old Xu mentioned that there was a training match early the next afternoon, so he took Milk back first. Before leaving, he insisted on settling the bill for the whole table.
Milk stood up and was about to leave when she suddenly stopped.
"Angel Yi, I'm not your WeChat friend yet," he said to Nan Zhiyi. "How about we add each other?"
Nan Zhiyi was about to take out her phone when she seemed to remember something and subconsciously glanced at You Xin sitting opposite her.
Milk chuckled: "No, why are you looking at him like that after we've added each other as friends? It's like you're reporting to your partner."
Nan Zhiyi immediately reacted as if her tail had been stepped on, and swiftly pulled out her phone: "Will you scan me or will I scan you?"
“I’ll scan your QR code… Hey, your profile picture is pretty cute.” Milk sent a friend request and commented, “This looks like your game character, right? I noticed that Yux’s WeChat profile picture is also a little white dog that looks similar. No wonder so many people online think you two are a couple.”
Nan Zhiyi: "?"
Milk, completely oblivious, continued: "On my way back today, I saw on my phone that a lot of people in the fan group were watching your live stream and stopped watching HYG's matches. They even took a bunch of screenshots and posted them in the group, saying things like 'So sweet!' and so on."
"…………"
Having the courage to promote homoerotic content online is one thing, but being called out to your face by someone, even someone you don't know very well, is another.
The former at most requires a little shamelessness, while the latter, for Nan Zhiyi, is no different from stripping naked and running naked in the street.
He felt a burning sensation behind his ears, and just then, Old Xu had to be cheeky: "Tch, those people haven't seen them during their youth training days. They were so lovey-dovey back then, the other would even finish the milk tea that one of them hadn't finished... ugh!"
Nan Zhiyi grabbed a bottle of soy milk that the two of them hadn't finished on the table, shoved one into Milk's hand, and then covered Lao Xu's mouth with the other: "Don't waste food, take it with you. Good luck in tomorrow's training match, I won't see you off—bye-bye-bye!!"
After seeing off the two big shots, Nan Zhiyi collapsed into her seat, utterly exhausted.
You Xin, standing opposite, remarked, "Your ears are so red."
Nan Zhiyi couldn't help but glare at him: "If you saw it, could you please not tell anyone?"
"I'm not laughing at you," You Xin said. "I just think you're quite cute when you're embarrassed."
"..."
Nan Zhiyi jumped up from her seat, turned around, and walked out of the barbecue restaurant.
You Xin caught up from behind and sincerely apologized: "It must be hard to get a taxi at this hour, shall I give you a ride?"
"No, thank you," Nan Zhiyi said curtly.
"I'm really not kidding you anymore." You Xin's smile faded. "Uncle Wang is already asleep. I drove here myself."
His subtle shift in the topic was very effective, and Nan Zhiyi was immediately drawn to his attention: "When did you get your driver's license?"
"The year before last. During the offseason."
"I haven't taken the test yet. I was supposed to finish studying during last winter break." Nan Zhiyi couldn't help but think of her three failed attempts at the third part of the driving test. "I get a little scared as soon as I get on the road."
“I’ll teach you after you take the exam,” You Xin said. “Let’s go, it’s cold outside.”
You Xin's driving skills were far superior to most ride-hailing drivers; he drove steadily and smoothly, seemingly bringing his micro-management talent from gaming to his driving profession. By the time they arrived home, Nan Zhiyi was almost asleep by the window.
After a while, he groggily opened his eyes and found that You Xin had already parked the car, turned off the engine, and was sitting in the dark, quietly watching him.
"We're here... Why didn't you wake me?" Nan Zhiyi rubbed her sleepy eyes and reached out to unbuckle her seatbelt.
He felt his way to the car door handle in the dark.
Just as they were about to open it, You Xin spoke up.
"Nan Zhiyi, you're even willing to adopt Daodao," he said softly, "can't you have one more like me?"
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Author's Note: The true intentions are revealed at the last minute.
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Good news! I discovered I received a scholarship today, so there will be red envelopes dropping in the comments section of this chapter. Also, I'm posting a long [three-colored cat emoji] today – let's share the good fortune hhhh
Also, I wish everyone a happy holiday (it seems a bit late).
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