Lu Sicheng climbed a few steps when he heard a squishing sound behind him. He stopped and turned around—startling the person who had been closely following him.
Standing on the slightly higher step, Lu Sicheng glanced down at the innocent face that clearly read, Why did you suddenly turn around? He raised a brow. “Why are you following me?”
“...”
Tong Yao was dumbfounded.
She opened her mouth, hesitating for a long while but unable to say why she was following him… It wasn’t that she didn’t want to say, but mainly because she herself didn’t know why she was following him. But right now, answering I don’t know probably wouldn’t cut it. So, after stammering and struggling for a while, she panicked and blurted out the first excuse that came to mind—one that was so loaded with implications it was downright terrifying—
“Cheng Ge, do you have a girlfriend?”
“...”
“...”
A few seconds of dead silence.
Never had ZGDX’s team headquarters felt more like a graveyard—solemn and eerily still.
At this moment, not just Lu Sicheng, even Tong Yao herself was stunned by her own question… She held her breath, feeling the air around them freeze solid. Under the man’s unwavering gaze, she could feel her ears burning and her tongue tying itself into knots. “No, no, I’m not actually that curious, just asking casually. If you don’t want to answer—”
“No.”
“...”
“Because I lived at home during school, there were a few days every month when my mom would order me around—that’s when I was instilled with the belief that women have the right to act unreasonably during a certain fixed period every month.”
Lu Sicheng’s expression was calm, as if he were discussing something completely ordinary.
“………………Oh,” Tong Yao replied absentmindedly, her soul seemingly having left her body. “That must’ve been tough.”
“So later, I moved into the dorms. In summer, I’d rather die of heat in the dorm than go home.”
“...”
“I won’t casually date a woman.”
“………………Oh, you don’t seem like the type who’d like humans in general.”
“What did you say?”
“...” Tong Yao wished she could bite her own tongue off.
“It’s not that I don’t like humans. I like games. If I were to date someone, I’d want to be with someone who plays games better than me.”
Having said that, Lu Sicheng seemed intent on ending what he clearly found to be a dull conversation. Without a change in expression, he adjusted the jacket draped over his shoulders and continued upstairs—from start to finish, as if he hadn’t noticed the stunned look on the girl’s face, frozen in place by his answer.
Until he closed his door.
The click of the door snapped the person still standing on the stairs out of her daze.
— Someone who plays games better than Chessman?
………………………………………………Excuse me?!
In her dazed state, Tong Yao pulled out her phone—
[ZGDX、Smiling: ………………Damn, your Cheng Ge really is gay 「candle」!]
[ZGDX、Smiling: Or he just genuinely doesn’t like humans!]
A few seconds later, Jin Yang replied with an eerily calm four words—
[A Mao’s Mom: What makes you say that?] 【ZGDX、Smiling: He said he wants to date someone who plays games better than him!】
【A Mao’s Mom: ……】
【A Mao’s Mom: How about Love Nikki: Dress Up Queen?】
【ZGDX、Smiling: ……】
【A Mao’s Mom: He didn’t specify which game, after all.】
Tong Yao put away her phone with a speechless expression and sat alone on the sofa, waiting for the porridge. Now that she was idle, her stomachache flared up again—within ten minutes, she had shifted through ten different positions on the sofa: sitting, lying down, sprawled out—none of them felt right. Eventually, she vaguely concluded that the correct posture was probably to loop a rope around her neck and hang herself. Resigned, she gave up struggling and flopped onto the sofa like a dead dog, picking up her phone to watch a livestream…
As a devoted fangirl, Tong Yao naturally tuned into Smiling’s stream. He was a perfectionist AD Carry—even three years after retiring, his last-hitting skills remained at the level of a top-tier pro player, his movements fluid, rarely missing a minion… Oh, right, she’d heard that Smiling used to be a nonstop talker during matches, constantly chattering at his support—
Completely unlike Lu Sicheng.
After playing one match with Lu Sicheng, Tong Yao realized that this man truly didn’t speak much during games. Aside from necessary shot-calling, most of the time he quietly focused on his own tasks, listening to his teammates ramble on with their nonsense like a comedy duo…
Or maybe he had activated an auto-mute function and simply wasn’t listening to their drivel at all.
Tong Yao: “……”
Her thoughts drifted away as she watched Smiling’s stream.
Then, in the livestream, Smiling fumbled and missed a siege minion. His startled “Ah!” jolted Tong Yao out of her daze, making her hand jerk—the phone she was holding slipped and smacked her right on the nose. With a pained “Oww!”, she curled up like a shrimp, clutching her face. At the same time, a door upstairs creaked open—
Lu Sicheng stepped out of his room, frowning, traces of sleep still lingering on his face, his hair slightly mussed from the pillow… He looked down from the second floor, his voice cold. “What’s going on?”
Tong Yao wiped away the tears from the pain and looked up. “Huh? What? Why are you up? Shouldn’t you sleep a bit longer? The porridge isn’t ready yet…”
“What was that noise just now?”
“…I was watching a livestream.”
Lu Sicheng’s expressionless face grew even more expressionless. Tong Yao bent down to pick up her phone. “Did I disturb you? Sorry, I’ll turn the volume down. Go back to sleep.” Truthfully, her volume hadn’t been loud to begin with—she had no idea how Lu Sicheng’s ears were so sensitive…
“No need.”
His indifferent voice rang out. Tong Yao hesitated but still muted the stream. When she looked up again, she saw Lu Sicheng descending the stairs. As he passed by her, his gaze flickered over her disheveled hair from rolling around on the sofa and her pale, slightly greenish complexion.
The man paused, then suddenly remarked out of nowhere, “I thought you’d burned yourself with the porridge.”
“What?” The girl on the sofa blinked, then laughed. “How could that—as if I’d be that—”When the man turned his head and looked at her with those deep brown eyes that revealed nothing, Tong Yao swallowed the words that had been on the tip of her tongue. She had originally wanted to say, "I'm not that clumsy," but now she kept her mouth shut and awkwardly raised a hand to rub the tip of her nose...
In a daze, she suddenly seemed to hear a helpless sigh beside her. She froze, unsure if she had misheard, when out of the corner of her eye, she saw a tall figure loom over her. One hand gripped her arm, lifting her slightly, while the other gently lifted a corner of her loungewear—
As a warm hand with an abnormal temperature brushed against her icy stomach, Tong Yao let out a soft "ah," her back stiffening.
Lu Sicheng coughed lightly, frowning as he said calmly, "Quiet."
Tong Yao shut her mouth again.
The next second, the hand on her stomach withdrew, and Lu Sicheng stepped back. "Don’t you know how to use a hot water bottle?"
The lingering warmth from the brief contact still clung to her stomach. Tong Yao stared blankly, shivering. "Th-the Team headquarters doesn’t have hot water bottles."
"How would you know if you never asked?"
With that, Lu Sicheng turned and went upstairs. When he came back down, he was indeed holding a hot water bottle. "A fan gave this to Little Fatty last winter," he said, tossing it to Tong Yao. "Is there still hot water left?"
Tong Yao clutched the hot water bottle, which bore a Q-version illustration of last year’s full ZGDX roster, and shook her head—then nodded.
Lu Sicheng raised an eyebrow, looking at her as if she were an idiot. He bent down and unceremoniously snatched the hot water bottle from her hands, then turned and walked into the open kitchen. He casually turned off the rice cooker, which had just finished cooking porridge, and picked up the electric kettle that was still keeping the boiled water warm. With deft fingers, he popped open the stopper of the hot water bottle, then poured the scalding water inside with the other hand.
The entire motion was seamless.
Tong Yao hopped off the couch and followed Lu Sicheng, tiptoeing and craning her neck to watch him fill the hot water bottle from the side. The milky steam rose, slightly blurring the man’s handsome profile...
"How could you just suddenly touch a girl’s stomach like that?"
"A tiger’s stomach? Untouchable?"
"In ancient times, you’d have to marry me for doing that."
"I thought I was doing a good deed," Lu Sicheng said, lowering his gaze. "Why should I be punished like this?"
"..."
Once the bottle was filled, he flicked the stopper back into place with a fingertip, then glanced at the expressionless girl standing behind him. Wiping away the spilled water with his thumb, he shoved the hot water bottle into her arms. "In ancient times, I’d have married you eight hundred times over."
"..."
"And divorced you eight hundred times."
"Isn’t it just plain stupid to divorce and remarry eight hundred times?"
"Who knows? Maybe it’s intermittent blindness."
With that, the man turned, took two bowls from the cupboard, and began serving the porridge.Five minutes later, the only two living souls in the team headquarters occupied opposite ends of the dining table, quietly sipping porridge—Tong Yao sat cross-legged on her chair, a warm hot water bottle pressed against her stomach, making her feel as if she were bathing in a warm ocean. The comforting heat of the brown sugar porridge further eased the chill from her toes, which had finally regained some warmth.
Tong Yao set down her bowl.
"Cheng Ge."
"?"
"Sorry, I was supposed to take care of you, but in the end, you ended up taking care of me."
"?" Lu Sicheng glanced at her from over the rim of his bowl. "When was that ever agreed upon? Didn’t you shamelessly follow me back because you weren’t feeling well yourself?"
Tong Yao chuckled dryly, stood up, and placed her bowl in the sink. Normally, used dishes didn’t need washing—the cleaning auntie would take care of them the next morning. With her stomach now settled, her drowsiness had completely vanished. She curled up on the sofa and resumed watching the live stream.
Lu Sicheng soon finished eating as well. As he carried his bowl to the kitchen, passing by the sofa, the person lounging there suddenly called out, "Cheng Ge." The man paused mid-step, turned around, and looked down at her with his handsome yet indifferent face, his expression practically spelling out: What now?
Tong Yao put her phone aside and scrambled up, tugging at the hem of his shirt to make him bend down. Kneeling on the sofa, she stretched her arm to feel his forehead. "Why hasn’t your fever gone down yet?"
"You think what you just fed me was some kind of miracle cure?"
Tong Yao stood up, took the bowl from his hand, tossed it into the sink, and then began pushing him toward the stairs. "Come on, come on, it’s my turn to take care of you."
"Stomach not hurting anymore?"
"It still hurts."
"Then stay away. I don’t want to see someone with a deathly pale face rolling around on my carpet."
"..."
The two of them bickered over whether the team captain really needed someone to look after him, their voices gradually fading until they disappeared into Lu Sicheng’s room—followed by the loud bang of the door slamming shut.
The headquarters once again fell into silence.
Only Tong Yao’s forgotten phone remained on the sofa, the live stream still playing…
At least she hadn’t forgotten the hot water bottle, which she’d tucked into her waistband and taken with her.
……
Late at night, close to half past twelve.
Finally, there was movement outside the ZGDX Team headquarters. The players, having returned from their evening event, tumbled out of the car in a flurry of exhaustion and excitement. Little Fatty led the charge, shouting, "We’re back! We brought food!" But when he swung the door open, the first floor was eerily quiet—not a soul in sight.
Little Fatty let out a puzzled "Huh?" before realizing the two sick teammates had probably taken their meds and gone to bed. He gestured to the others behind him—
Everyone obligingly softened their footsteps.
Little Fatty muttered, "I’ll go check on Cheng Ge," and, under the watchful eyes of the others, tiptoed upstairs. He opened the door and stepped inside.
Five seconds later.
He practically stumbled out of the room in a panic, not forgetting to slam the door shut with a loud clang .
"...What’s wrong with you?" Lu Yue raised an eyebrow. "See a ghost?"Little Fatty waved his hand, then looked at the crowd downstairs with a bewildered expression... Under the confused gazes of everyone, Lu Yue calmly tossed out the line, "Could it be that my brother died of illness?" and walked upstairs. Passing by Little Fatty without a second glance, he pushed open the door and peeked inside—his expression froze the instant his head entered the room.
On the bed by the window at the far end of the room, a black quilt was piled high. The man on the bed lay facing the door, clearly fast asleep... The captain of the China Telecom Team was very much alive. But what nearly scared his teammates to death was the fact that beneath the quilt on his chest, curled up against him, was another person. Their face was buried deep in the man's embrace, legs hooked up, with fluffy house slippers peeking out from under the covers.
Lu Yue took two steps back, his expression slightly calmer than Little Fatty's—though not by much—and shut the door.
"...What's wrong with you?" Xiao Rui, the team manager, raised an eyebrow and repeated the exact same question he'd asked thirty seconds prior. "See a ghost?"
Lu Yue stayed silent for thirty seconds.
Then, his thin lips parted slightly. "Worse than a ghost."
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