The Black Rose team, who won the semi-finals in an impressive manner, left the venue in the audience standing ovations.
“How are you?” You Jing, who was walking in front, suddenly turned his head and asked.
“Who doesn’t like applause?” Lin Xiao obviously enjoyed it very much.
“…” You Jing paused, “I’m asking how you are doing.”
“I’m full of energy. Want to see?” Lin Xiao said, waving his hand provocatively as he approached.
“Let’s go back.” Before Lin Xiao came over, You Jing glanced at the fatigue hidden in his eyes and walked away without saying anything more.
As veterans, no one knew better than Black Rose‘s fans how important this semi-final victory was to them.
Ever since the car accident that year, the Black Rose team has been waiting too long for the opportunity to reach international competitions. Now, having secured their spot in the finals, they could finally represent the country in international competitions. What was coming next was a true battle of champions.
As for this semifinal match, major esports magazines naturally did not miss any chance to hype it up. From the almost perfect overall performance to Chen Anqi’s perfect harvesting show, there were even speculations about You Jing’s hand injury again due to Zou Qiguan’s two consecutive appearances. Of course, among all these gimmicks, Lin Xiao’s battle that made him famous received the most attention.
The Old Ghost’s successor! This name has been brought to the forefront again.
After the intense and brutal semi-finals, everyone in the Black Rose team felt to some extent what it meant to be exhausted. As soon as they returned to the hotel, almost everyone fell asleep. When they awoke the next day, their focus naturally turned to the reports of the major media outlets.
“Tsk tsk tsk, Lin Xiao is really becoming popular this time.” Sitting at a table in the restaurant, Xiao Li gnawed on his doughnut while looking at the newspaper in his hand with a somewhat disappointed sigh. “If it weren’t for him, the front page would be all about me instead.”
“Well, if we’re talking about performance, Chen Anqi actually outshone you.” Liu Zesheng’s statement lightly drifted over.
“Damn it!” Xiao Li glared. “Don’t kick someone when they’re down, understand?”
“In my opinion, both of us also performed better than you, kid,” Xu Yiming said with a smile and poked Xu Yichen, who was eating rice porridge. “Don’t you think so?”
Xu Yichen continued to eat without raising his head and just nodded with a “hmm”.
“That’s not right,” Liu Zeshen asserted with a sense of justice. “You twins only performed as usual. If we talk about news value, Xiao Li is better positioned.” After speaking, he glanced at Xiao Li with a hidden smirk that seemed to say – see, I’m helping you.
You’re helping, but I can’t hear any praise in it! Xiao Li felt depressed. The inflated emotions from earlier had long disappeared, and he didn’t want to continue this topic anymore. Looking around, he exclaimed: “By the way, where is Lin Xiao? Could he still be sleeping?”
“It’s true, he hasn’t gotten up yet.” Shen Changyu replied but did not say anything more. He had not participated in any discussion since the beginning, as if he was immersed in his own somehow gloomy world. He knew very well that beneath that seemingly smooth victory yesterday, there was an enormous pressure, stirred up by that man alone.
All professional players in the league knew what kind of player Wen Shuqing was. It was not easy to win against his explosive hand speed. Amazing, right? But who knew what kind of burden was behind the seemingly glorious scene, and how many people could see it? And there was also that brutal one-on-three in the team match!
Throughout the entire game, Lin Xiao undoubtedly performed perfectly. However, such a perfect performance could not be established in the short rest period between matches.
“Vice Captain Shen.” Shen Changyu was about to go back after breakfast when he was suddenly stopped as he walked into the corridor. When he turned around, he saw You Jing standing outside the door as if he had been waiting for him all morning.
You Jing usually liked wearing white shirts and now, the two conspicuous large meat buns and a bag of soy milk in his hands seemed out of place with his clean and somewhat ethereal appearance.
Shen Changyu calmed down, walked over, and asked, “Captain You, is there something I can help you with?”
You Jing nodded, “I want to ask you about Lin Xiao.”
Shen Changyu replied: “There shouldn’t be any serious issues with his condition. It’s just that he was too tired yesterday and needed to rest for a while, so he didn’t come down…”
You Jing interrupted, “That’s not what I want to ask.”
Shen Changyu was taken aback, “Then what is it?”
You Jing looked at him for a long time, then enunciated each word clearly: “What I want to know is whether it’s true that Lin Xiao was the ‘Old Ghost‘s disciple.’ As far as I know, Old Ghost has never taken on any disciples.”
Being scrutinized like this made Shen Changyu stiffen. His first thought was to run away but after a while, he finally regained his senses and forced a smile: “Captain You… why are you suddenly thinking about this?”
You Jing sneered faintly: “Is it inconvenient to answer?”
– Yes… oh no! Shen Changyu almost bit his tongue, wanting to cry without tears. Why should he be responsible for filling in the hole Captain Lin dug?
You Jing captured his fleeting change of expression, and for some reason, he felt his heart jump suddenly. After a while, he asked: “So, who exactly is he?”
Shen Changyu was silent, and You Jing did not want to urge him. He finally raised his head and looked him in the eyes, asking: “Captain You, is this important? As long as we know that he is Lin Xiao and our current teammate, isn’t that enough?”
It was not the answer he wanted, or even a direct answer at all, but the look in Shen Changyu’s eyes at this moment was pure calmness.
Time seemed to have stopped, and suddenly, it was silence as the two looked at each other.
You Jing did not know why he felt a trace of frustration, but the emotion in his eyes faded, and his face returned to the usual unperturbed expression as he quietly smiled: “Indeed.”
Seeing that You Jing gave up asking so easily, Shen Changyu felt somewhat surprised and, at the same time, completely relieved. And just at this moment, he suddenly heard him speak again: “Give me the room card.”
Startled, Shen Changyu subconsciously took out the room card from his pocket and handed it over. By the time he came back to his senses, You Jing had already taken the card and was walking away. When he reached the elevator, he looked back and instructed: “After breakfast, take them for three hours of basic technique training.”
The players were staying in double rooms. Having adjusted their rooms for better teamwork training, Liu Zeshen had moved in with Xiao Li, and he now shared a room with Lin Xiao. Right now, Lin Xiao should be fast asleep.
Watching the figure disappear as the elevator door closed, Shen Changyu realized in hindsight: was the breakfast this man was carrying intended for Captain Lin?
Thinking of this, his nervous, uneasy mood lightened quite a bit.
It was definitely a great thing that team members could get along like this! In any case, at least it seemed that Captain You didn’t dislike Captain Lin; things will be much easier then.
…
When Lin Xiao heard the door opening and opened his eyes, he vaguely saw a figure and asked in a daze: “Why are you back? Are there no other training arrangements after breakfast?”
“You know there are training arrangements, and you still don’t get up?”
This voice, like a cool breeze, fell into Lin Xiao’s ears, making him lift the blanket and sit up with a jolt: “You Jing?”
Not Captain You but You Jing?
You Jing raised an eyebrow. He was about to speak when his gaze fell on the slightly disheveled collar of that man’s clothes, revealing some skin. Because he was still drowsy after just waking up, Lin Xiao’s appearance was more laid back than usual. With this unintentional glance, it seemed like yesterday’s memory-triggering profile flashed before his eyes, overlapping the outline of the person in front of him.
You Jing became somewhat absent-minded.
Lin Xiao had already fully awakened at this moment. Walking forward, he saw the steaming big meat buns and immediately grabbed them smoothly: “Oh, I actually bothered Captain You to deliver breakfast in person. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
You Jing finally came back to his senses and took a look at his face. There was no sign of “sorry” at all.
“Are you here to discuss the lineup for the finals with me?” Lin Xiao had already finished drinking the soy milk in one breath while biting into a meat bun. With a conscientious face, he said, “I didn’t mean to oversleep. You know, I was really tired yesterday.”
You Jing didn’t respond.
It seemed like he wasn’t really here for this.
In a flash, Lin Xiao ate them both large meat buns. He wiped his mouth with a napkin and said, “As for the lineup for the finals, I have a general idea. Whether it’s feasible or not is up to your decision. But before you say anything, let me see your hand.”
Saying this, he unceremoniously grabbed You Jing’s wrist and prepared to examine it carefully.
The warmth of his hand spread up to his wrist unexpectedly. You Jing subconsciously took two steps back and broke free. When he regained his composure, he frowned, sensing that something was off since yesterday’s match.
Looking up, Lin Xiao also had a surprised expression. Without waiting for him to say anything, You Jing turned and left the room.
Lin Xiao stood there alone. He touched his chin, and his expression gradually became serious.
His movements were obviously very light. Could it be that his wrist was so seriously injured?
