CH 54

All the players came on stage to shake hands and salute each other.

The audience in the arena, still immersed in the intense atmosphere of the competition, only then realized that today’s games were over and immediately gave warm applause to all the competitors.

When Wei Chengzhe shook hands with You Jing, he couldn’t help but glance at the people behind him, and although his tone carried a hint of helplessness, he expressed his sincere blessings: “Captain, congratulations on being one step closer to the playoffs. All three new players are excellent, and we hope you can continue to win for us in the next games.”

The Seven Stars team was also initially ranked very low, and this 0-point setback took them out of the race for a playoff spot early, even with one final round of matches remaining.

You Jing squeezed his hand a little tighter, “Sure.”

The other members of the Seven Stars team also had gloomy faces. When he approached Lin Xiao, Jiang Shiqi carefully sized him up, and after thinking for a while, he asked, somewhat aggrieved: “Do you remember me?”

What, another old acquaintance? Lin Xiao carefully looked at the man in front of him again and again, but he couldn’t associate him with anyone he knew in his mind. After a pause, he smiled toothily and earnestly: “Ah, I remember, of course I remember!”

“…” This expression clearly showed that he had no impression of him at all! Speechless, Jiang Shiqi didn’t ask anything else and, with a depressed look, continued to shake hands with the other players.

Amidst warm applause from the fans, the Seven Stars team has officially reached the end of this season.

…

At the post-match press conference, Wei Chengzhe, as the captain, thoroughly analyzed the reasons for the failure in front of reporters. Because the speech was so detailed, the whole stage was full of rustling notes and fewer of the usual sharp questions.

However strong the two teams were, a total defeat did not happen easily in the professional league. But was the 0:10 score today really because the Seven Stars team performed too poorly? This was not the case, actually. Many exciting moments could be found in small operations throughout the game.

The Seven Stars team lost, not because it was too weak overall, but because the other party was too unpredictable.

At this point, most people intuitively thought about a person—Lin Xiao, a new member of the Black Rose team and the operator of the ghost priest, “Adorable Ghost.”

It wasn’t until Wei Chengzhe finished his analysis that the reporter finally asked the question that had been on his mind for a long time: “Excuse me, Captain Wei, what do you think of the three new players of the Black Rose team?”

Such a question was expected, so Wei Chengzhe calmly replied, “Today’s performance of the Black Rose team was obvious to everyone, and the performance of the three new players was outstanding.” Xiao Li is the wanderer King of online games. Whether it is hand speed or reaction judgment, he is very swift. He is a rare and typical 1V1 player. Later, Zou Qiguan replaced You Jing in the team competition. At first glance, it looked like all he had to do was run around, but in fact, he was the key point of the strategy in this match. As for Lin Xiao…”

Saying this name, he frowned slightly: “Perhaps because it’s the same name and surname, it inevitably reminds me of Captain Lin’s ‘Old Ghost‘ from the Black Rose team back then. Judging by today’s performance, this Lin Xiao player is very sophisticated and cunning in terms of technique and tactical positioning. Overall, he is indeed very powerful.”

Perhaps because they were fated to leave, this round of interviews with the Seven Star team was like an open chat box, revealing their inner thoughts without any taboo.

Throughout the whole process, the reporters’ pens almost never stopped, and everyone seemed satisfied.

Lin Xiao is very strong.

They quickly understood the key points in Wei Chengzhe’s words, and upon receiving the most desired news, all kinds of emotional reports were automatically generated in their minds.

…

In the subsequent press conference of the Black Rose team, everyone’s focus naturally fell on the topic of You Jing’s unexpected injury.

As soon as the reporters’ question session started, someone asked directly: “May I ask Captain You, is the news about your injury in the “E-Sports Times” today true? Is the reason why you didn’t play in the team match today also related to the injury?”

You Jing glanced around calmly and replied: “Instead of paying attention to this groundless gossip, it is better to pay attention to the game. I think the record of today’s game speaks for itself.”

Gossip? In other words, that report is really groundless? The reporter who asked the question stopped there, while the other people in the venue showed some gloating expressions.

Although the injury issue was indeed a hot topic, many reporters were not focusing on this matter because, after all, the news of You Jing’s injury was exclusively covered by the “E-sports Times.”

If this report was true, it was like a slap in the face to all the other media that had no reaction. But now, You Jing was denying this matter between the lines, and things didn’t look too good for “E-sports Times.”

Coincidentally, Kong Yan, the author of this report, was also on the scene, and the attention toward him became particularly intense.

Feeling the strange atmosphere around him, Kong Yan’s face sank. Being young and prideful, he was unable to swallow this grievance, so he suddenly stood up from the chair and said with a sneer: “In fact, there’s no need for all this nonsense, it’s easy to see whether or not he is injured!”

Before he finished speaking, he rushed directly onto the stage in front of the crowd and grabbed You Jing’s left hand.

The sudden action caught the security guards by surprise, so they were a step too late to stop him.

The moment he grasped his hand, You Jing suddenly stood up from the table and reacted fast, pushing Kong Yan away.

However, as he fell backward, the man still pulled his wrist viciously before letting go.

You Jing frowned but held back his groan of pain in front of so many people. However, under such a huge joint force, he was inevitably pulled forward and was about to fall as well.

Unexpectedly, a hand appeared from behind, accurately grabbed his arm, and pulled him back, restoring his center of gravity with its own strength.

Kong Yan fell heavily to the ground and was a little surprised that he didn’t drag You Jing down with him. Looking up, he saw Lin Xiao, who was a few positions away a moment ago, and it was unknown how he had ended up behind You Jing, looking down at him.

Under his gaze, the snarking remarks he was about to utter froze on his lips.

Lin Xiao glanced with a frown at the cold sweat on You Jing’s forehead due to the severe pain, looked at Kong Yan with a half-smile, and said: “Mr. reporter, in order to forcibly prove the correctness of your report, you think it’s okay to play this kind of trick in public? Can squeezing his hand prove an injury? Why don’t you let me squeeze your hand ‘gently’ and see if it’s disabled or not?”

“Stop talking nonsense, don’t think that changing the subject can cover up the truth!” Kong Yan’s face didn’t look good after suffering the painful fall, and he raised his chin, trying to look more confident. Meanwhile, the security guards had finally reacted and surrounded him, so his arrogance toned down.

You Jing walked out from behind Lin Xiao expressionlessly, and his eyes narrowed slightly, looking at Kong Yan: “Kong Yan, right? I think there’s something you don’t get.”

Kong Yan felt a little chilled by him and blurted out, “What, exactly?”

“As a reporter, you should behave differently from the paparazzi.” You Jing’s smiled grimly and walked up to him, step by step, his tone emotionless, “It’s not just me in the Black Rose team. Today’s results should be enough to give you the answer. So whether my hand is injured or not does not affect the team’s performance, and it has nothing to do with you.”

Kong Yan was so angry at being called a “paparazzo” that he subconsciously wanted to fight back, but he suddenly realized he didn’t know how to retort.

You Jing glanced at him, then looked at the man next to him: “The competition committee should know how to deal with this person.”

“Of course, of course.” The manager standing next to him immediately jumped up with an apologetic smile and turned to the security guards: “What are you doing standing there, take him out quickly, hurry up!”

Lin Xiao watched Kong Yan being taken away in the middle of the guards and turned to the podium with a smile on his face: “Alright, since there are no more questions, that’s it for today.”

With a frosty face, You Jing left the hall without waiting for the others to respond.

The rest of the Black Rose team walked out one after another without saying a word.

The reporters from other media were initially rubbing their hands, waiting to see the “E-Sports Times” making a joke of themselves, but before they could react, they saw the members of the Black Rose team walking away without a second thought.

Facing the empty stage in front of them, the whole group of reporters felt like crying.

Damn it, while they were understandably unhappy with the way their captain had been mistreated, it wasn’t their fault! It was clearly the fault of the “E-Sports Times,” why couldn’t they ask the questions they had prepared since morning?!

But now that the players have left, what could they do? The reporters had no choice but to take their notebooks and leave. Fortunately, today’s entire round of matches was full of bright events, so even if there were no news from the interviews, it would still be enough to write until next week.

The Black Rose team was obviously not concerned about the plight of these reporters. Li Bochuan had already booked a private room, and after the win, everyone was ready to let loose and have a good night.

The author has something to say: Lin Xiao: No one can touch my wife’s hand! ψ(╰_╯)