Chapter 30 Looking at the three pairs of eyes flashing with "eight..."
Looking at the three pairs of eyes gleaming with gossip, Zhao Zhinian sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation. She had just slung her bag over her shoulder and was about to call everyone to set off when Lin Shuang darted forward, dramatically reaching out to take her backpack: "Oh my Nian! This bag looks so heavy! Let me take it!"
As Lin Shuang spoke, she winked at Zhong Yeli, "How can we let our Chinen do this kind of rough work!"
Zhong Yeli immediately understood and joined in the impromptu performance, casually shoving her bag into Wen Kebei's hands: "That's right, that's right, you two worked hard cooking, leave this little thing to us!"
Wen Kebei, eager to hear the latest gossip, slung the obviously women's backpack over his shoulder without hesitation, his movements as bold as if he were carrying some glorious mission.
Zhao Zhinian was both amused and exasperated by their excessive "enthusiasm," and clutched her bag strap tightly: "That's enough! You're going too far! I can do it myself!"
After some laughter and banter, the group finally came downstairs. The bus was already waiting by the roadside, and Zhao Zhinian found a window seat, finally getting a moment of peace. She couldn't help but open that familiar chat window: "We're off."
My phone vibrated as soon as I sent the message.
Zhou Zekai sent a photo of the Reincarnation Training Room, taken at a casual angle, as if it were just a quick snapshot.
Zhao Zhinian: "Back to base?"
The other end replied instantly: "Mm".
Looking at the concise reply, Zhao Zhinian paused for a moment on the screen. She thought for a moment and decided to report it: "I might explain our relationship to everyone in Yizhan later? They are all very nice people and won't talk nonsense."
Zhou Zekai: "Okay."
Immediately afterwards, the dialog box displayed "The other party is typing...", and a new message popped up: "Even reincarnation knows you".
Zhao Zhinian thought of the love lessons the reincarnation group had taught, and dared not think too much about what kind of image she had in their hearts. Instead, she teased Zhou Zekai: "Even without me, the people of Yizhan know you."
Zhou Zekai retorted: "That's different."
She pursed her lips, her fingertips hovering above the screen, pondering how to reply to him. The seat next to her sank, and Lin Shuang leaned closer. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of her phone screen. Although he couldn't see the specific content, it was clearly a chat interface.
"Oh, chatting?" Lin Shuang asked with a mischievous smile, her voice barely audible.
Zhao Zhinian subconsciously tilted her phone screen to the side and rolled her eyes at her, annoyed: "You really want me to hold a press conference in the car?"
Lin Shuang chuckled, patted her shoulder, and lowered her voice, "I was just joking! Even if we're going to talk about it, we should wait until we're back on our own turf, behind closed doors with just our own people. I acted like that just now mainly to buy you some time to make excuses," she said, gesturing towards Zhao Zhinian's phone, "Before you explain to us, you should at least coordinate your statements with Captain Zhou, right?"
Zhao Zhinian glanced helplessly at Lin Shuang, only then realizing why Lin Shuang had been so "enthusiastic" earlier. It turned out that she wanted to buy her some time, and Zhong Yeli had obviously been deliberately making excuses for her. She whispered, "Thanks."
Lin Shuang raised an eyebrow smugly, sat back in her seat contentedly, and stopped bothering her.
The carriage was unusually quiet throughout the journey. As soon as Zhong Yeli boarded, she put on an eye mask and leaned back in her seat, pretending to doze off. After receiving Zhao Zhinian's thanks, Lin Shuang also settled down to play on her phone, seemingly having lost interest in gossip.
This made Wen Kebei, sitting in the back row, extremely anxious. He waited impatiently for the "official gossip report," his eyes constantly glancing towards the front. What was going on? Hadn't we agreed to get on the bus and hear the explanation? Why were all the others so calm? Was he the only one getting impatient?
He was feeling incredibly frustrated, but he couldn't bring himself to ask directly. His restless appearance drew several glances from Zou Yunhai, who was standing next to him. Not wanting to affect his teammates, he could only silently complain about Lin Shuang and Zhong Yeli in his mind.
What's wrong with this teammate? They're not even enthusiastic about watching the drama unfold!
What happened to our promised alliance? Our friendship has capsized so easily!
Despite Wen Kebei's restless heart, as if scratched by a cat's claws, from the bus to the airport, from boarding the plane to disembarking, and finally returning to the Yizhan base, the "earth-shattering scoop" he had been hoping for all along never materialized.
Along the way, Lin Shuang and Zhong Yeli seemed to have made a pact: one was wearing headphones and immersed in her own world, while the other either closed her eyes to rest or chatted with Zhao Zhinian about trivial skincare topics, never mentioning Zhou Zekai's name.
Zhao Zhinian himself remained as steady as a mountain. Apart from necessary exchanges, he spent most of his time looking out the window or quietly looking at his phone, his expression so natural that it was as if the awkward lunch and the sudden appearance of the gun king had never existed.
Wen Kebei was eager to try and started a conversation several times, but he was easily thwarted by the others with glances or other topics, which made him so anxious that he almost suffered internal injuries.
After finally arriving at the Yizhan base, everyone gathered in the lobby, looking slightly tired as they dragged their luggage.
Captain Lou Guanning simply clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention, his tone gentle yet as composed as ever: "Everyone has worked hard. We won't schedule anything else for today. Get some rest, adjust your jet lag and condition. We'll meet in the training room at nine o'clock tomorrow morning for recovery training to prepare for the next match." He glanced at everyone and concluded simply: "You can go now, get some rest."
When the team leader spoke, everyone naturally obeyed, responding with "Okay, Team Leader Lou," before dragging their luggage back to their rooms.
"No... that's it... over?" Wen Kebei stood there dumbfounded, watching the three girls leave hand in hand, feeling a sense of emptiness in his heart as he had been holding back his pent-up energy all the way.
Zou Yunhai passed by and patted him on the shoulder with a puzzled look: "What's wrong, Xiao Bei? You seem absent-minded. Hurry up and go back to your room to pack up. The cafeteria will probably run out of good food soon. The airplane food is so bad that I barely ate any."
Wen Kebei opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed back all his questions and complaints. He glanced resentfully at Zhao Zhinian, who had already gone up the stairs, then at Lin Shuang and Zhong Yeli, who were smiling beside him, and suddenly realized: these two "allies" had known this would happen all along, which was why they were so calm and collected on the way! They lived nearby and could gossip anytime, while he was the only one foolishly anticipating it the whole way!
So he was "isolated" without anyone noticing?
Didn't we agree that "righteousness should prevail over all under heaven"?
Lin Shuang and Zhong Yeli followed Zhao Zhinian all the way back to the dormitory, saying things like "Let me help you pack up" and "See if there's anything I can help you with," but their burning gazes and following-up-steps clearly showed that their real intentions were not what they seemed.
Zhao Zhinian was sandwiched between the two women in the middle of the room. Looking at their faces, which clearly said, "Don't even think about working until you explain yourself," she sighed helplessly, knowing she couldn't get past this. She put down her backpack and raised her hands in surrender: "Fine, fine, I'll talk, I'll talk, okay?"
She cleared her throat and tried to speak in a calm tone: "Actually... Zhou Zekai and I were high school classmates."
"High school classmate?" Lin Shuang's eyes widened instantly, and she immediately perked up, blurting out a string of idioms, "Childhood sweethearts! Innocent childhood friends! Oh, so it's a continuation of your school romance, a perfect match, flying wing to wing..."
"Stop, stop, stop!" Zhao Zhinian quickly interrupted her showing off her idioms. "It's not what you think! Although we were classmates, I went abroad in high school, and he probably went to play professionally soon after. We didn't keep in touch for many years after that. We just happened to run into each other during a live interview."
"Oh..." Lin Shuang's tone was slightly disappointed, but she immediately found a new angle, "Then isn't this reunion... a broken mirror mended? Fate has ordained us?"
Just then, Zhong Yeli, who hadn't said much, frowned slightly, as she keenly noticed something amiss.
She remembered clearly that when Zhou Zekai participated in that online live broadcast, he revealed his experience of being rejected when he confessed his love in high school, which made him a trending topic. At that time, she had gossiped about it with other people.
Adding to the fact that everyone from Yizhan recently joined a professional gamer group, the prevailing sentiment in the group was that Zhou Zekai "pursued the host by revealing his tragic confession experience." However, given the state of the two of them today, Zhou Zekai's "self-disclosure" seems to carry even more significance.
She crossed her arms, her gaze sharp: "Chinen, are you... hiding some crucial information? I remember during the live interview, Captain Zhou revealed his high school confession experience, and it seems the girl he confessed to has gone abroad, hasn't she?"
Zhao Zhinian's cheeks flushed slightly, her eyes darted around for a moment, and she finally had no choice but to admit that the person Zhou Zekai had confessed to was indeed her.
"Wow!" Lin Shuang instantly perked up, her face full of pride and excitement: "Girl! You're amazing! Were you this brave in high school? Faced with Zhou Zekai's confession, you actually asked if it was really him? Was his account hacked? And then you just abandoned him and went abroad..."
Zhao Zhinian tried to explain forcefully: "This can't be entirely my fault, okay? Zhou Zekai basically slept every day in high school, and it seemed like there was nothing he cared about. Then he suddenly confessed his feelings. I was preparing to go abroad at the time, so this reaction... wasn't particularly outrageous, was it?"
Lin Shuang drawled out an "Oh," clearly not accepting this explanation, and then cut to the heart of the matter: "So... what about you two now? Shouldn't this be a 'long-awaited reunion, broken mirror mended' scenario?"
Zhao Zhinian sighed, a hint of confusion on her face that she couldn't quite explain. Her tone was somewhat ambiguous: "Right now... I don't know what kind of relationship we have. Let's take it one step at a time, and take it slow."
"Take it slow?" Lin Shuang and Zhong Yeli exchanged a glance, both seeing the same profound meaning in each other's eyes.
Zhong Yeli chuckled and spoke slowly, "Captain Zhou has practically 'entered the house' today, and those are Zhou Zekai's hands! I bet Reincarnation has insured his hands, but he's washing dishes in your house! Acting like the head of the household... Zhinian, your 'taking it slow' approach, in our opinion, is at most..." She paused, finding a fitting description: "Captain Zhou wants to slowly boil you like a frog in lukewarm water."
Zhao Zhinian retorted irritably, "Can't you use some nice adjectives!"
She then sighed, her voice lowering as she looked at her two friends with a hint of uncertainty, "Do you think... Zhou Zekai and I are a bit too far apart?"
"How far is that!" Lin Shuang immediately objected, switching into full protective mode, and began her analysis, counting on her fingers: "In terms of looks, you two are absolutely a perfect match, neither of you is inferior to the other! Yes! Zhou Zekai is currently the number one player in Glory, he's famous, but so what? He's only making a living off his youth, how many years can he play professionally? He'll retire sooner or later! Look at you, you have a stable job, you're the only host at Yizhan, your future is limitless, and Yizhan was originally going to pay your social insurance and housing fund, but unfortunately your company has already done so," she said with a hint of genuine regret, "It's just that the policy doesn't allow it, otherwise you'd have double social insurance and housing fund! Your hosting and commentary profession, the more experience you have, the more sought-after you become, and your career lifespan is long! Many years later, maybe you'll be the one earning money to support Zhou Zekai!"
The more she spoke, the more reasonable she became. Finally, she concluded with a firm tone: "And judging from the situation today, you clearly have the absolute upper hand, okay? Being liked by Zhou Zekai, you don't need to feel inferior! He's the one who should be anxious!"
Zhong Yeli listened in awe.
From "double social insurance and housing fund" to "earning money to support Zhou Zekai," this set of "rigorous" and uniquely angled consolations directly categorizes the top players in the league as "potentially needing financial support from their girlfriends in the future."
Looking at Lin Shuang's earnest expression that said "my sister is the best in the world," she couldn't help but chuckle softly, rubbing her forehead.
Sure enough, in her best friend's eyes, even if it's Zhou Zekai, she has to carefully consider whether she's good enough for him.
This is no longer just simple consolation; it's clearly a heavily filtered "best friend's pick" standard.
Zhao Zhinian was also amused by Lin Shuang's "profound" remarks and lost her temper. The gloom in her heart dissipated a lot. She smiled and pushed Lin Shuang: "Alright, alright, you're getting more and more outrageous! If you keep talking like this, it'll seem like Zhou Zekai has anything to do with me, or that he's climbing the social ladder."
"Isn't that right?" Lin Shuang retorted confidently, getting more and more excited as she spoke, when suddenly a thought struck her: "Besides, you have the backing of Yizhan! What's Yizhan's most prominent label in the alliance? Wealth and power! If we're really talking about it, you could be considered Yizhan's eldest princess! The prestige of being a princess of a powerful family is self-evident!"
"Stop, stop!" Zhao Zhinian quickly interrupted, "Why are you lowering my seniority? Besides, even if we're talking about princesses, it should be Ye Li!"
"Don't drag me into this!" Zhong Yeli quickly waved her hand, her face showing a polite refusal: "I can't be a princess."
Lin Shuang glared at the two who interrupted her, displeased: "I was just using an analogy! The point is to show that our Chinen family is wealthy and powerful, with plenty of resources! The entire Yizhan clan is your backing!"
Upon hearing this, Zhong Yeli added a casual remark, her tone calm and unwavering: "The entire Yizhan... didn't get a single point against the Samsara Team yesterday."
The air suddenly became quiet for a moment.
Lin Shuang's impassioned speech, which she had been preparing for a long time, suddenly froze, and her expression remained unchanged.
Zhao Zhinian was taken aback at first, then burst out laughing, her earlier sentimentality completely vanishing.
"Ye Li!" Lin Shuang reacted, pinching Zhong Ye Li with a mix of amusement and exasperation. "Can you please stop sabotaging me at a time like this! I'm trying to build Zhi Nian's confidence! Confidence, you know!"
Zhong Yeli nimbly dodged, a smile playing on her lips. "I'm just stating an objective fact. Besides..." She looked at Zhao Zhinian, her tone gentle yet firm, "Relationships aren't a competition where you have to compare every single stat of the characters. Relationships are like drinking water; what matters most is that you both feel comfortable and at ease. But Lin Shuang was right about one thing: in this relationship, you really don't need to belittle yourself."
Lin Shuang pouted, but still took Zhao Zhinian's arm and raised her chin: "Here, you're the best! No matter how powerful Zhou Zekai is, he doesn't know me, Lin Shuang!"
Zhao Zhinian felt a warm glow in her heart as she watched her two friends playfully complementing each other. She smiled and put her arms around them, saying, "I know! With such amazing family members like you, I'm full of confidence!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
