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Old Tan intended to talk to Splendid about his recent status and to do some thinking. When Splendid unexpectedly said, “I want to terminate the contract,” Old Tan was taken aback. Old Tan was aware that something was wrong with Splendid’s thinking, but he didn’t expect the problem to be serious enough to terminate the contract.
Old Tan said: “I don’t think you are speaking in your right mind.”
Splendid said in a hoarse voice: “I thought about it all night yesterday. This is my decision after careful consideration—I’m very sorry.”
Old Tan tried hard to persuade him for a long time: “I understand you are experiencing psychological distress after Xiao Jiang’s participation in the game arena, but this is also proof that in R.H, anyone who is good can participate. I asked the coach and Shine, and they both said your Virus is very close to the standard of playing, and you can’t give up now.”
Splendid was hungover and didn’t sleep all night, and his mental state was very poor. He knew that Old Tan would say this, and he had prepared a way to deal with it in advance, but when he heard the ID “Shine,” he still couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable in his chest.
“The coach showed me Timeless’s training hours and the stats of each hero, and I… I can’t compare to him.” Splendid said awkwardly, “Even with the Virus I practiced the most, I can’t compare to him. With him here, I have almost no chance of playing.”
Old Tan said: “Ninjas and viruses are two completely different concepts. The coach does not want Timeless to practice too much on Virus, so as not to affect his ninja status in the league.”
“Except for this reason… I don’t know how to face the captain.” From initial love and admiration to reluctance and resentment, to final remorse and self-blame. He doesn’t even have the courage to apologize to Shine. “I don’t know why I want to play professionally,” Splendid said blankly.
When he was at the anchors’ party in Beijing, he looked around at his peers and remembered his glamorous and attention-grabbing past; at the fan meeting, the fans felt sorry for him and accused R.H of treating him like a tool.
If it was before, he could say he came to play professionally for Shine. But what about now?
Shine means light, dispelling darkness, and dispelling cold. He had personally denied and misunderstood the light, so what right did he have to continue to bathe in the light?
Old Tan thought that Splendid’s mind was blown by Yu Zhaohan’s scolding, and said, “I don’t know what happened between you and Shine, but whatever Shine says about you, I believe he is doing it for your own good.”
Splendid was already choked up: “Yeah, he was doing it for my own good, I only know now.”
Old Tan remained silent. After Splendid had calmed down, Old Tan said, “Let me discuss this with Old Lu and Shine first, and you can also think about it again.”
Old Tan called Lu Youshan and Yu Zhaohan to the meeting room. Knowing that Old Tan was going to talk about Splendid, Yu Zhaohan said, “Call the others.”
Cheese entered the meeting room with some excitement: “I can also participate in high-level meetings?”
Old Tan was not in the mood to joke, and said bluntly: “Splendid proposed to terminate the contract.”
Everyone reacted differently when this was said. Cheese widened his eyes and opened his mouth wide, Qi Xian sighed and shook his head, Shi Du sneered and remained silent, and Yu Zhaohan and Jiang Di were composed and calm.
Yu Zhaohan expected Splendid to terminate the contract, but he didn’t expect him to make a decision so quickly, and he didn’t even take the initiative to talk to him once.
The one who reacted the most was undoubtedly Lu Youshan: “Terminate the contract? Shine and I spent so much time on him, and he wants to terminate the contract without even playing a game? Fuck, I’ll find him!”
Old Tan immediately stopped the storming coach, and his skillful movements made people feel distressed: “What did you say to him yesterday?”
“What did I say?! I just analyzed his Virus and Ninja data. Then he said he wanted to see Timeless’s training record, so I showed him.”
Shi Du said seriously: “That may be because the contrast is too tragic, so Brother Splendid is embarrassed.”
Old Tan smiled wryly and said, “Don’t tell me, there is really a reason for that.”
Qi Xian asked curiously: “Splendid has been practicing Virus, where did he get the ninja data?”
“Shine found a playmate to practice with him.”
Qi Xian seemed to have found the last piece of the puzzle and said “Oh” meaningfully.
Lu Youshan was in a hurry to find Splendid, and talked to Old Tan on the spot: “I’ll go and tell him—Damn you, let go!”
Yu Zhaohan said, “Let him go.”
“No!” Lu Youshan refused without hesitation, “It is not easy to train a player who can be used now. With so many people in the youth training team and the academy team training for so long, only Splendid and Xiao Jiang can come to the first team as substitutes. Once Splendid leave, all our painstaking efforts in the past few months will be in vain!”
Yu Zhaohan did not deny it. He asked Cheese: “Cheese, why did you choose to play professionally?”
Cheese didn’t think twice and said, “Because I like it. Of course, it’s also because playing professionally pays well.”
Cheese was smiling, but when R.H was ruined by the previous boss and the players were owed salary and bonuses, Cheese never considered quitting.
“Splendid stated that he used to play professionally for me. Such a frail belief can only help him get here. Even if we keep him forcibly, how far can he go?”
Everyone has their reasons for joining E-sports, just like all his teammates— Shi Du joined E-sports because he doesn’t want to lose, Cheese because he enjoys it, Qi Xian because he can’t figure it out, Jiang Di because he doesn’t understand, and many others because of money.
Splendid was not short of money. Splendid was playing professionally for him.
But he was just a good-looking ordinary person, and he should not be someone else’s belief.
Lu Youshan was dumbfounded, Yu Zhaohan’s words made him unable to refute. As a coach, while paying attention to the player’s skills, he can’t ignore the player’s mentality. Lu Youshan knows that he was not qualified to speak on the mentality, but he believes in Shine.
Shine’s choice is always right.
Lu Youshan remembered the scene when he asked Splendid to practice Virus. He talked a lot—prospects, teamwork, coordination, and he had countless reasons to support his tactical arrangements. And Splendid only said one sentence: “But why should I play a hero that I’m not interested in? Can I really play well?”
He was furious on the spot: “You’re not playing rank, you’re playing professional! Who doesn’t want to play a hero they like and can show off? Shine’s life is a black swan, but now he trains most is an archer, don’t you understand?”
Splendid said he understood at the time, but thinking about it now, he might understand, but he couldn’t pass the psychological barrier after all.
Perhaps Splendid isn’t cut out for the professional path, and he’d be better off as a free and casual anchor.
Lu Youshan gradually calmed down, waved his hands, and said, “I don’t care, I listen to Shine. There is just one thing, the operation and control lineup needs to be practiced, who will play the virus in the future?”
Yu Zhaohan and Shi Du said at the same time: “Me.”
Shi Du looked at Yu Zhaohan, and just as he opened his mouth to speak, Yu Zhaohan said, “Or go to the youth training and the academy team to pick one. If it doesn’t work, we can always hire them. We will talk about it later.”
It happened so suddenly that Cheese didn’t even react: “So Splendid is really leaving? I used to like watching his live broadcast. His interactions with water friends[1] are very interesting…”
“Isn’t that great?” Qi Xian said with a smile, “When he returns to being an anchor, he will probably be happier than when he was playing professionally.”
The contract termination process was not simple; it will take at least a week. Splendid will leave the base first, then return to sign the contract once the process is completed.
Splendid packed his belongings and went downstairs with the suitcase the next day. He purposefully chose to leave in the morning because he was afraid of being embarrassed in front of his teammates, but he couldn’t avoid Yu Zhaohan, who got up early.
Yu Zhaohan sat at the dining table, slowly opening a boiled egg with an egg opener. The early morning light shone on him, making his face appear to glow.
Splendid gritted his teeth and mustered the courage to approach.
Yu Zhaohan stopped what he was doing when he saw him.
Splendid’s lips moved, and he muttered: “Captain.”
Yu Zhaohan looked at him quietly, and said after a while, “Call me with my id.”
Splendid’s face turned white and then red, and he took a deep breath: “Shine, I’m sorry.”
Yu Zhaohan gave a faint “hmm.” After waiting for so many days, the apology finally came, and he finally felt a little better in his heart.
There was no such thing as wanting to run away without an apology. You have to apologize when you misunderstand someone, that’s what his mother taught him when he was three years old.
Splendid was ashamed to look at Yu Zhaohan: “I’m sorry, I didn’t know what you did for me. I’m sorry, I said those things… But why didn’t you tell me?” Splendid couldn’t help asking, “If you told me early in the morning that the clownfish was arranged by you to practice with me, I’m sure…”
“You will definitely be more obsessed with ninja training, thus ignoring the coach’s tactical arrangements for you.” Yu Zhao said coldly, “With the support of the captain, you will feel that you are more suitable to play ninja than Timeless, why should you be asked to play the hero you do not want to play, right?”
Splendid was speechless and had nothing to say. Yu Zhaohan seemed to know him better than he thought. He really believed it, believed that Yu Zhaohan did not ignore him, and believed that Yu Zhaohan truly regarded him as a teammate.
“Shine, you…you’re a great captain.” Splendid smiled miserably, “You deserve everyone’s love.”
Yu Zhaohan took a sip of his coffee: “Thank you.”
Splendid walked out of the villa and was surprised to see Qi Xian smoking at the door.
“Ready to go?” Qi Xian held his cigarette in his mouth and picked up one of the two suitcases in his hands, “Let’s go, I’ll see you off.”
Splendid hurriedly said: “No, I can do it myself.”
Qi Xian walked forward as if he didn’t hear it.
Splendid had a sore nose and finally looked back at the R.H base, where he had only stayed for a few months but had had a profound impact on him.
Shi Du was drowsy by the window when he noticed Qi Xian and Splendid walking out the door together—Yu Zhaohan should have received an apology from Splendid, he didn’t need to do anything, and he could continue to sleep.
Not long after Shi Du lay down, he heard the sound of the door opening.
Since he almost missed Yu Zhaohan’s begging for comfort last time, he no longer locked the door when he was sleeping. He wanted Yu Zhaohan to come into his room at any time.
Yu Zhaohan asked softly, “Is Shi Du awake?”
“… Shi Du isn’t wake up.”
Yu Zhaohan lay down beside the bed, poked Shi Du through the quilt, and said loudly: “Splendid apologized to me.”
“And then? Were you mean to him?”
“I think he was almost ashamed to death, so I didn’t treat him too harshly. He finally said that I was a good captain. Well, he didn’t need to say that I was.”
Shi Du was so sleepy that he couldn’t open his eyes, but he tried his hardest to respond with a lengthy speech: “I can’t believe you weren’t too harsh on him? That’s convenient for him… Wait, you’re not going to forgive that idiot just because he said you’re a good captain, are you? Say, did you smile at him?”
“Of course not. At base, I usually just smile at you.”
Shi Du closed his eyes and raised the corners of his mouth: “That’s fine. I’m going to sleep, you go play by yourself.”
<table>References <th>↑1</th> which refers to friends who pour water together or friends who express personal opinions under the same post. It also refers to players or fans who play games with the anchor, and also refers to teammates who lose the chain at critical moments in the game</tbody></table>