Although Lu Sicheng's arrow didn't grant Tong Yao the 400 gold, the lane advantage it created remained—while C's Mid Laner was waiting to respawn, an entire minion wave pushed into the enemy's mid Turret, denying him any farm and setting back his growth, allowing Tong Yao to seize the opportunity to suppress his development.
In the end, with their bot lane dominating and carrying the game, ZGDX smoothly defeated C, delivering a much-needed heart stimulant to fans back home across the ocean.
As the match concluded amidst roaring cheers from the audience, the casters grew emotional—
Caster D: ["This game! LPL has shown us their brilliance—it's like we're seeing those exceptional AD players from the S2 era, bringing that overwhelming pressure and fear to other regions again!"]
Caster D: ["I still remember those players' IDs to this day, haha! They're the reason I've been devoted to casting LPL matches for the past four years up until now."]
Caster F: ["LPL has always been a cradle of top-tier ADCs, but over the last year or two, their performance has been lackluster, with LCK and LCS ADs outshining them."]
Caster D: ["You never miss a chance to bring up your beloved LCS players, huh? But no matter—I hope this match is the horn heralding the dawn..."]
Caster F: ["What?"]
Caster D stood up, raising his arms in exhilaration: ["They're back! Those elite ADs from LPL! Welcome back!!!!"]
Caster D's passionate outburst perfectly riled up the crowd, who rose to their feet like a tidal wave, chanting "LPL"—meanwhile.
With the match over, the players removed their headphones and were immediately met with the deafening cheers for their region, as if this were their home ground... Baffled, they stood up and walked over to shake hands with their Taiwanese opponents—Tong Yao had no idea what the casters had said to whip the crowd into such a frenzy... All she could hear was the enemy Mid Laner, still deeply impressed by that opening Ashe arrow, gripping Lu Sicheng's hand with a grin: ["That arrow was seriously next-level, dude. Pinpoint accuracy—did you plan that? Absolutely insane, I was shook."]
Lu Sicheng humbly replied, ["Not at all, not at all."]
Tong Yao: "..."
So you only remember that arrow?
What about me?
Me?
The precise minion wave calculations, the tricky angles of attack, the flawless combo execution that sent you running for your life—what about me?!After shaking hands with their Taiwanese friends, amidst the cheers from the audience, they walked to the front of the stage as usual to bow to the crowd before returning to their seats to review stats and pack up their peripherals. Tong Yao sat down and glanced at the stats—Lu Sicheng's 11 kills, 1 death, and 5 assists were undeniably dazzling compared to her own 4 kills, 4 deaths, and 12 assists. Her mind involuntarily replayed the final team fights—the slippery Ashe standing at the backline, dealing insane damage while the frontline fell, yet somehow remaining at full health, stepping over her teammates' corpses to secure an Ace, earning two triple kills... During the second triple kill, while waiting to respawn, Tong Yao had looked up and seen many in the audience standing, the foreigners nearly losing their minds with excitement, shouting something... Probably just like now—they were chanting the in-game ID of the AD they worshipped as a god—
"Chessman."
It was as if the ZGDX Team had only ever had one carry, and the most ridiculous part was that this match hadn't even been played with the outdated "protect-the-ADC" strategy.
... So much envy, and a tiny bit of jealousy.
She wanted to be like him one day...
Tong Yao stood up somewhat dazedly, an unease sprouting and growing in her heart—she felt her thoughts were dangerous. The man walking ahead was like the unshakable pillar of the ZGDX Team. How could she even think about surpassing him one day?
Lost in her thoughts, it suddenly dawned on her what Lu Sicheng had meant yesterday when he said, "Seeking immortality is worse than seeking me." Suppressing the urge to beat him up, she quickened her pace to catch up with him, following closely behind. "Lu Sicheng, my heart feels cold."
Without turning his head, he replied, "What's wrong?"
She grabbed the hem of his jacket. "I just realized you're a heartless person."
His steps slowed slightly as the corner of his lips curled. "Oh?"
Amid the clear cheers from the audience behind them, Tong Yao paused before continuing, "Yesterday, you fed me kills, even handed me a quadra, like during the honeymoon phase of a relationship where everything I say is perfect and you indulge me. But today, you snatched kills right from under my nose, turned ruthless, as if warning me—if one day you stop loving me, I'd starve to death, not even getting a sip of warm soup."
Lu Sicheng laughed.
Tong Yao had started off joking, but by the end, she had unsettled herself—even though she knew she was being dramatic and childish, she still frowned and tugged hard at his jacket. "What are you laughing at? I'm serious."
The player corridor was narrow. Little Fatty and the others walked ahead, while Lu Sicheng, having slowed down, lagged behind with Tong Yao. As she yanked at his clothes, he suddenly stopped and turned around. Against the backdrop of the crowd chanting "Chessman" over and over, he held her shoulders, bent down, and kissed her furrowed brow. His voice was calm and gentle as he said, "Then it's simple. I'll just love you for a lifetime."
The surrounding noise seemed to vanish instantly.
Tong Yao froze—had he ever made such a promise to her before?Seems not.
At that moment, Lu Sicheng released her, straightened up, and took her hand in his warm, dry palm.
They walked side by side—somehow, those long legs had learned to slow down naturally to match the pace of the shorter ones beside him… Tong Yao pinched his fingers: “What about when I’m old and haggard one day?”
“What gave you the illusion that you’re winning now with your looks…” Lu Sicheng paused, probably because his fingers hurt from the pinch, “I’m almost five years older than you. By the time you’re old and haggard, I’ll be even older.”
“The standard answer should be: No matter how old you get, you’ll always be the most beautiful in my heart.”
“Oh.”
“But a lifetime is too long, Captain. You’re just trying to make me happy.”
“How long can it be?” The man’s expression was calm, his lowered lashes veiling the light in his deep brown eyes. “Play matches, retire, marry you—the order can be adjusted based on circumstances—have a daughter, then a son—watch League of Legends shut down, carry the kids’ school bags for them—watch them grow up, see them get married when it’s time—then we’ll be old—one day, I’ll stand at your funeral and recount your glorious life, count how many matches you carried and how many Koreans you made cry when you were young, then carve ‘This woman was beautiful her whole life, and I loved her’ on your tombstone… See? A lifetime is just that short. How could you think it’s long?”
“…”
Tong Yao turned her head slightly, lips parted, staring dumbfounded at the man beside her: Did this guy study law or Chinese literature?
Otherwise, how could he be so good with words?
Hearing him describe their possible future in such a calm, unhurried tone made her nose sting—forget the earlier unease about being starved by Lu Sicheng after he stole her minions. Now, she just wanted to give him every last kill for the rest of her life.
Just like how Little Fatty would give up kills for Lu Sicheng.
Ah, look, how terrifying! With just his words, he’d somehow turned a carry-type Mid Laner into someone with the heart of a support.
“Then,” Tong Yao’s voice was slightly hoarse when she spoke again, “why do you think you’ll die after me?”
“Because the wicked live long.”
“Lu Sicheng.”
By then, they had reached the break room, where the faint sounds of Old Cat and Little Fatty chatting could be heard. Lu Sicheng stopped, his hand on the doorknob: “After spoiling you for most of your life, what would you do if I died first? You’d be helpless. Since I’ve decided to take charge of the rest of your life, of course I have to see it through—including your funeral. You’re so high-maintenance, you’ll be a troublesome old lady too. Your funeral demands would be ridiculously picky. Who else would deal with that besides me—”
Before Lu Sicheng could finish, the person beside him had already broken free from his grip and thrown her arms tightly around his waist, her eyes red, her face filled with unwavering devotion… Tong Yao: “I was wrong.”
Lu Sicheng: “About what?”
Tong Yao: “I actually envied you.”
Lu Sicheng smiled: “Oh.”
Tong Yao closed her eyes, pressing her nose against the man’s chest: “You’re already mine. Why would I envy what I already have? That’s just absurd.”Lu Sicheng patted her: "That's a good thing. You're starting to think about how to surpass me and become the Team Tyrant, just like that little brat Greedy Wolf—full of drive. It's much more comforting than you guys always wanting to be carried to victory by me. If that day really comes, I'll be very happy. I'm getting old, and sometimes I'd like to be carried too."
Tong Yao looked up: "Really?"
He lowered his head to meet her gaze and smiled: "Really."
—Little Fatty opened the door and saw their Mid Laner hugging their AD as if holding some precious treasure.
Little Fatty instantly grinned: "Well, well, what's going on here? Ten minutes ago, it was all 'mid and bot lanes severing ties, life or death' drama... Now you're hugging like he's your treasure again? Not breaking up anymore? Not avenging that stolen 400 gold?"
Lu Sicheng patted the back of the person buried in his arms.
Feeling the arms around his waist tighten even more.
He lifted his eyelids and gave Little Fatty an amused glance: "Haven't I always been her treasure?" Then he lowered his head to ask the person in his arms, "Right?"
Little Fatty rolled his eyes, unaware of what kind of sorcery this male Vixen had used this time... Shivering, he stepped aside to let the conjoined twins enter the restroom—at least they wouldn't be standing in the hallway blinding other teams.
Author's Note: Here we go, here we go, here we go………………………… Actually, Tong Yao's mindset is pretty normal. One day, you suddenly start thinking about surpassing things or people you once thought were insurmountable, and then you feel a bit of a gap? It's like when you're running behind someone really fast, you unconsciously speed up too and end up achieving results you never imagined before.
But that's just how novels are written.
In reality, I think a certain celebrity once put it well: I'm happy being second. Let others fight for first place—after all, contentment brings happiness.
Ah, I've digressed.
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