CH 6

TL: YSIAD “Xiao Yu in chapter 5 is Little Fish hehe I already change it to avoid confusion”

Jiang Min was shocked

Although he had known Little Fish through WOC for several months, he had never considered meeting offline.

Online, they got along well and had a great time, but the offline Jiang Min had a completely different personality than his online self.

Would it be awkward to meet in person?

Jiang Min was caught in the dilemma of whether or not to meet with this online friend.

Little Fish knew his identity as a professional player, but Jiang Min knew nothing about Little Fish.

He only knew that the other person was younger than him, but he wasn’t sure about specifics like whether they were a student or what they did.

However, he felt like he needed to get some fresh air now.

Little Fish had an outgoing personality, and maybe meeting up and chatting would be a good choice.

But, Little Fish often teased him with flirty messages online. Could it be that he actually had feelings for Jiang Min?

Jiang Min was conflicted.

On the other side, Little Fish seemed to sense Jiang Min’s hesitation and continued sending messages: “Let’s meet near your base, my treat. Show Sugar God some face, will you?”

“It won’t take long, just the two of us.”

“Do you want me to pick you up at your base’s entrance?”

Little Fish’s proactive and clingy nature was fully evident, showing that he wouldn’t give up without seeing Jiang Min.

Jiang Min put out his cigarette.

Oh well, it’s just meeting an online friend, why be so hesitant.

Moreover, they had known each other for a long time, and they were both in the same city. Going out for a late-night snack together wasn’t too much.

But picking him up was a no-go.

Just like other Chinese teams, CC team’s base entrance was always swarmed with fans.

Sometime in the past, as e-sports leagues became more formal, fan culture slowly merged with the e-sports fandom.

Some crazy fans camped out at the base entrance day and night just to catch a glimpse of their favorite players.

There were also some fans who weren’t particularly interested in the players’ skills but followed them solely because they found them good-looking.

And Jiang Min represented those good-looking players, so some of his fans were purely based on his looks.

He was sure that if he walked out of the main entrance to meet Little Fish, he would definitely be surrounded by waiting fans.

“No, I’m afraid of getting ambushed by fans at the entrance,” Jiang Min typed quickly.

“Then what should we do? Sneak out? Should I climb over the wall?” Little Fish’s imagination was truly novel. Jiang Min was just going out of the base, not sneaking around.

“Where should we meet? Send me the address, and I’ll drive there,” Jiang Min replied. The garage exit was not at the front of the base, so he wouldn’t encounter the fans waiting there.

If they were going to drink, he could call a designated driver to come back later.

Jiang Min messaged his team leader to inform them of his plans and then casually changed into black clothes before taking his car keys and heading to the garage.

As a star player, he has earned quite a bit of money over the years. Although he hasn’t reached the point of easily paying off his contract-breaking fee, it’s enough to live a comfortable life.

His car is a low-key but secretly powerful royal blue RS5, just like him. Who would have thought that someone with such a delicate appearance would be a mid-lane killer in the competition?

Jiang Min got his driver’s license as soon as he came of age during a break in the season, and he has been driving for a few years now. Skillfully igniting the engine, stepping on the gas, and turning the steering wheel, he drove the RS5 out of the team’s garage.

———–

Little Fish had booked a barbecue restaurant not far from the CC Team base. Barbecue is a common choice for late-night snacks. While waiting for the traffic light on the way, Jiang Min pulled out his black baseball cap and matching mask from the car and put them on. The esports industry has matured considerably, and star players like him are quite well-known among the public. To avoid unnecessary harassment, Jiang Min always disguises himself in this simple way when going out.

After parking the car, Jiang Min looked up at the barbecue restaurant located on the second floor of a commercial square and tilted his head in confusion. This wasn’t an ordinary barbecue place. It was a well-known high-end Japanese barbecue restaurant in S City, and it was said that each table had its own private room.

Jiang Min hadn’t paid attention to the restaurant’s name and had blindly followed the navigation address. Booking a late-night snack at such a luxurious place, Little Fish was probably not an ordinary student or something like that.

Entering the restaurant, Jiang Min told the waiter the table number that Little Fish had sent him. The waiter led him to the corresponding private room. As the curtain was lifted, Jiang Min’s brain froze in that instant. He began to doubt his own eyes.

Damn???

A handsome young man dressed in a light beige sweatshirt and dark gray jeans, with his brown fluffy hair, happily waved at him, greeting him. The key was that Jiang Min was very familiar with this person’s face.

“Sugar, come and sit. What are you standing there for?” Little Fish, no, it should be Yu Hao, smiled.

It was only at this moment that Jiang Min realized that the playful Little Fish he knew online was actually the captain of the JW team, a top-tier team in the league, and he played as the number four player.

Not long ago, Jiang Min had just seen this man in the live broadcast of the group stage of the World Championship.

Yu Hao looked at Jiang Min, who seemed stunned, and smiled, showing his white teeth. It seemed like Jiang Min’s reaction was within his expectations. “Surprised?”

Jiang Min regained his senses and walked to the seat opposite Yu Hao, still looking incredulous, his eyes widened, “No, why didn’t you reveal your identity from the beginning? I always thought you were just a random player.”

“If I revealed my identity, you would have known I’m a professional player. How would I have had a chance to approach you genuinely? It would have taken forever.” Yu Hao rested his cheek on his hand and stared at Jiang Min earnestly, “When we played duo games online, we took turns playing with you. If I wanted to get close to you with my real identity, I would have had to wait for ages.”

Jiang Min indeed rotated between playing duo games with various professional players almost every day, which was almost an unwritten rule, and all the professional players he knew followed this rule obediently.

As a random player, Little Fish could completely disregard his image and desperately try to join Jiang Min’s game every time.

“…” Jiang Min didn’t know how to respond, so he just took off his mask and baseball cap and ruffled his hair, which had been slightly flattened by the cap.

“Sugar, I don’t know what you like to eat, so I just ordered a few random dishes.” Yu Hao’s personality, whether online or offline, seemed to be the same, he was still very easy-going.

On the other hand, Jiang Min felt a bit reserved.

Online, he didn’t feel it, but offline, being called “Sugar” by someone sounded weird, didn’t it?

But Yu Hao seemed to say it very naturally, without any sense of awkwardness.

“It’s fine, I’m not picky.” Jiang Min replied.

Yu Hao’s gaze had not left Jiang Min since he entered the room. “Is there something on my face?” Jiang Min felt a bit uneasy under his intense scrutiny.

“No, I just want to look at you more.” Yu Hao’s tone sounded somewhat resentful.

Jiang Min didn’t understand what he was resentful about.

Just as the atmosphere was getting a bit awkward, the food arrived.

Yu Hao ordered the highest quality Japanese Wagyu beef and some vegetables.

“Isn’t this a bit extravagant for a late-night snack?” Jiang Min couldn’t help but comment.

Yu Hao’s eyes softened with tenderness. “It’s our first time meeting, of course, we should have the best meal.”

After the waiter grilled the meat for both of them, he discreetly left, respecting their privacy, which had always been a crucial rule in their restaurant.

“Sugar, I was really startled when you suddenly ended the livestream that day,” Yu Hao said while eating, bringing up the incident.

“Mm…” As Yu Hao mentioned it, Jiang Min was reminded of his current difficult situation.

“Your team… the way they handled things was really outrageous.”

In the private room with only the two of them, Yu Hao didn’t hold back with his critique.

“I assume you had no idea what was going to happen beforehand?” Yu Hao said, “I’ve never seen any team treat their own players like that.”

Jiang Min sighed, “There are some special reasons…”

Yu Hao picked up a piece of meat and put it on Jiang Min’s plate. “Even if there are reasons, they shouldn’t have treated you like that. I feel angry on your behalf.”

Jiang Min didn’t say anything.

“How about having some alcohol?” Yu Hao suddenly suggested.

“Um, sure.”

But after pondering for a moment, Yu Hao said, “Forget it, you drove here, and calling a designated driver back wouldn’t be convenient. After all, we are public figures.”

“…. Okay.”

Just like online, even when they met in person, Yu Hao still took the lead in their interactions.

“It’s okay; we have plenty of time in the future to drink and have fun together,” Yu Hao suddenly added.

Jiang Min understood it as a promise to meet frequently in the future, so he nodded. “Yeah, when there are no matches, we can still meet often.”

Transitioning from an online friend like “Little Fish” to a real-life friend like Yu Hao, who didn’t have many friends, Jiang Min felt that this was also nice.

“I didn’t mean that,” Yu Hao put down his chopsticks, looking at Jiang Min seriously.

“?” Jiang Min was puzzled.

“Sugar, we will soon become teammates,” Yu Hao dropped this bombshell.

“…. Huh?” Jiang Min’s face was bewildered again after experiencing the “getting transferred” incident.

“In a few days, there should be some news,” Yu Hao said, “Our team owner has agreed to negotiate the deal to bring you over.”

Jiang Min furrowed his eyebrows. “But your JW team has Xiao Nan, who is doing well as your position 2. Why do you want to buy me?”

Yu Hao showed a tinge of regret. “Nan Ge… is preparing to retire.”

Jiang Min was stunned.

Retirement was something every professional player dreaded but ultimately had to face. No matter how outstanding a player was, there would come a day when they retired. For players, choosing retirement was a careful and painful decision because it meant leaving the battlefield where they had shed their sweat and blood.

“…Retiring?”

Yu Hao nodded. “Yes, retiring. Nan Ge is over 26 years old now, and his form has been declining recently. He applied to retire from the team.”

“….” Jiang Min didn’t know what to say.

After all, he wasn’t part of JW, so he couldn’t comment lightly.

“So, we urgently need a position 2 player. Sugar, you being sent to the second team of CC makes you our best choice,” Yu Hao said sincerely.

“But my contract’s protected period hasn’t ended yet. If you want to buy me and transfer me, not only would there be a transfer fee, but also a breach of contract penalty. Do you know how much money that would be?” Jiang Min didn’t dare to think about that number. It definitely wouldn’t be an easy amount to pay.

“That’s the team owner’s concern, not mine,” Yu Hao remained calm. “Besides, I know that other teams are also actively contacting your team owner.”

Jiang Min clenched his fist where Yu Hao couldn’t see.

It seemed like what Xiang Mian had said about the club planning to sell him was true.

He just didn’t expect it to happen so quickly.

He thought it would drag on until the next transfer period, six months later when his contract’s protected period ended, and other teams wouldn’t have to pay a hefty penalty.

It seemed that not only was CC eager to sell him, but other teams were also eager to buy.

“Sugar,” Yu Hao called him, looking into his face with a serious expression. “No matter how much it costs, I will make sure you transfer to JW.”

“….” Jiang Min avoided Yu Hao’s gaze. “The final result isn’t certain yet. How do you know that I will go to JW?”

Yu Hao smiled.

Jiang Min couldn’t recall how he spent the rest of the time. Learning from JW’s captain that JW and other teams were negotiating to buy him had given him another shock.

However, on the way back to the base, one sentence from Yu Hao echoed in Jiang Min’s mind over and over again.

“Sugar, my dream is to win the championship together with you. Will you accept me?”

1TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you ”