Wei Xiaos brain was buzzing, and his good mood from that morning was gone.

He walked woodenly back into the house, his slender fingers clenching his cell phone tightly.

The captain was looking for a substitute.

A substitute for the top lane.

Who was it for?

Wei Xiao had always been more sensitive to these things. His seemingly casual appearance hid a heart sharper than anyone elses.

Many details from before came together, crowding into his confused mind and filling it up

The pause in the captains voice when he inquired about the results of the check-up and todays inexplicable offer to solo.

Bits and pieces of discordant information gathered together, piling up into an answer that Wei Xiao didnt want to face.

He closed his eyes briefly, then dialed Lu Fengs cell phone.

Lu Fengs voice was slightly surprised when he connected the call, Whats up?

They kept in touch for a long time every day, but they usually used WeChat voice messages or video calls and rarely made phone calls.

Making long-distance international calls was very troublesome. There was no need to call if it wasnt urgent.

When Wei Xiao heard his voice, he couldnt help feeling a burst of sourness at the tip of his nose. Substitute. Who is it for.

He didnt try to ease his tone at all, nor did he leave Lu Feng any room to maneuver. He asked the question very frankly.

Lu Feng was stunned.

Wei Xiao suppressed the tiny quiver in his voice, asking Lu Feng in a tone that was so calm that it was cold, Who is the new substitute that youre looking for going to replace.

Was it for Tang Chen?

Was that necessary?

It was just one regular season. Was there any need to be in such a hurry to find a substitute for that?

Although Tang Chens state had its ups and downs, no matter how much it wavered, he would still be much better than a newcomer whod joined without any running in.

It couldnt be for Tang Chen

Which left only one answer. This substitute was for Lu Feng.

Lu Feng.

Close.

The strongest singles player.

Needed a substitute

The rims of Wei Xiaos eyes were red, but he didnt shed tears. He didnt even sob or choke.

Clearly, as long as he suffered even a tiny bit of grievance, he could go and cry to the captain

But this time, he didnt.

Hed crushed all his surging emotions back down.

After a long time, Lu Feng spoke in a low voice, Little Xiao.

Wei Xiao didnt speak. He listened to him speak in silence.

It was difficult for Lu Feng to open his mouth.

It was half past ten in China, and half past ten in North America.

But it was a pity that the sun was rising in one location, heralding a bright and beautiful day, while in the other location, night was falling, a dark and silent night.

Just like him and Wei Xiao.

It had been a month since hed arrived.

The weekly check up reports were on the desk in his suite.

One report, two, three

They were even more shocking to look at when they were stacked together.

There had been no improvement. There hadnt been any obvious improvement after a whole month of physiotherapy.

Dr Chen had been right. This place was indeed very good for treating this kind of external trauma. Even if Lu Feng had come here a year earlier, he wouldve been able to recover until he was just as good as before.

But hed let the injury drag on for a full three years.

From when he was 18 to 21.

Hed picked up the broken FTW and lifted it up with his injured shoulder.

Everyone only saw the hero whod won three consecutive championships, only saw the young head of the club. Who knew what kind of price hed paid behind the scenes?

The price hed paid the effort the persistence

Even before he could return, the regret had already arrived first.

At the end of the day, Lu Feng was only 21 years old.

For an ordinary person, this was still the age of carefree study. For an e-sports player, it was still at the age of reckless pursuit of their dreams. However, for Lu Feng, he had already overdrawn the balance of his health and could see the incoming night.

Lu Feng got up and walked towards the bedside. The electric curtains slowly pulled open, revealing the dazzling lights outside.

He watched these sparks flicker in the dark and said slowly, The substitute is for me.

Wei Xiaos heart already held the answer, but he still felt a bust of buzzing in his ears when he actually heard the words.

He stopped on the steps and sat down powerlessly. His long legs couldnt fit themselves on the steps below him, and his short hair covered his eyes, Send me the check-up reports. His voice was as cold as winter snow.

Lu Feng:

Wei Xiaos thin lips pursed. Send it to me!

Lu Fengs voice was hoarse, Okay.

He hung up the phone and took photos of all four reports, sending them to Wei Xiao.

Wei Xiao listened as the phone beeped with received messages. The hand that held his cell phone was clenched so hard that the white of the bones could be seen.

In the past month, the sound of receiving WeChat messages was the sound Wei Xiao wanted to hear the most.

In the past, as a person who never liked to hold onto his cell phone, he now wished he could stare at his WeChat every day

During breaks in training matches, he would secretly send him WeChat messages.

Call him right after a game.

Before sleeping When he woke up

As long as he had time and it didnt disturb Lu Fengs physiotherapy, he would wish to remain in contact with him all the time.

When the phone rang, it was like a sound from heaven to him.

But now, when he heard this familiar sound, he didnt have the courage to look at it.

What if the captains shoulder couldnt be cured?

What if Close had no way to continue playing?

His faith.

His hero.

His lover

Wei Xiao took a light breath and opened up the Wechat messages with trembling fingers.

The pictures popped out one after another. He opened his eyes wide and tried to look at them.

It was all in English, and he was a little taken by surprise when it entered his gaze.

Wei Xiao concentrated, making use of his excellent reading ability to understand them clearly.

The first week, the second week, the third week, the fourth week

For a whole month, the advice given by the attending doctor wasthere would be no problem for normal life and exercise levels, but there was no guarantee when it came to the fine operations required of professional players.

Four reports. Wei Xiao spent half an hour reading them.

He just sat there on the marble steps in front of the base gate for half an hour.

The cold spring wind swept over, and the heat from the earlier run dispersed completely. The cold air drilled into the back of his neck, chilling him all the way to his heart.

Lu Feng sent him a message, The course of treatment is still ongoing. The specific results wont be clear until the course of treatment is complete.

Wei Xiao looked at these words that were obviously meant to comfort him, and his heart felt terribly pained.

The most miserable person must be Lu Feng, yet Lu Feng was still comforting him.

Wei Xiao clicked on the video call button and almost pressed down, but at the last second, he changed it to a voice call.

He couldnt see him.

His emotions would fall apart.

Lu Fengs voice was very calm, Dont worry

He hadnt yet finished speaking when Wei Xiao first interjected, Why did you hide it from me.

All of Lu Fengs words were gone, dispersing completely with his breath.

Wei Xiao lowered his gaze and stared pointlessly at the dark lines on the marble steps, Its my fault.

Lu Fengs heart clenched, Little Xiao.

Wei Xiao spoke from his heart, Its that Im too weak and cant bear anything, so I cant get your trust.

Lu Feng:

Wei Xiaos eyelashes trembled slightly, big drops of tears remaining hidden in his eyes, never dropping down, Im sorry.

Lu Fengs heart felt like it was being ground to pieces with a blunt knife. It hurt all the way to his Adams apple. Thats not it

Wei Xiaos voice was very calm, and hed thought about the words he was saying, Captain, dont think too much about it. Focus on your recovery. At worst, its just that you can only participate in 5v5.

He was still unable to finish everything in one breath, so he had to breathe again lightly and continue, The singles and the doubles you can give them to me. I wont let you down.

Lu Feng couldnt say a single word.

At first, when the problem with his shoulder had been exposed, Lu Fengs thoughts had been the same as what Wei Xiao said now.

Hed hand the singles competition to Wei Xiao, and if he still didnt have enough energy, hed also give up on the doubles game. What FTW needed more than either of those was the team championship.

But Wei Xiao had told himdont you want to win them, too? Dont you want to have a real singles championship? Dont you want to play the doubles with me? Are you willing to watch me play doubles with others?!

Lu Feng was unwilling. So hed chosen to let the public know, and chosen to cut off all means of retreat and come to receive treatment.

But reality wasnt like a fairy tale.

Cruelty wouldnt go away just because he was unwilling.

One check up report after another woke him up.

He couldnt play the singles, couldnt play the doubles, and may not even be able to hold on until the end for the 5v5.

If he retired, the team would be one position short. Choosing a substitute ahead of time and training them up early was the most rational decision.

He wasnt just a player, but also the person in charge of FTW. He was responsible for themfor the people whod followed him and trusted him until now.

Even without Close, he was still Lu Feng.

Wei Xiao said earnestly, Theres still a months time. Itll be fine no matter what the results are.

He no longer gave Lu Feng any pressure, and no longer forced him to make any decisions.

Close had already been holding on for too long. He wanted to be the shoulder he could lean on.

Wei Xiaos tears ultimately did fall. He wiped them away, his voice remaining unchanged, Captain, try to believe in me, okay? Im not only Quiet, I He paused, trying to speak in a slightly brighter voice, Im also your boyfriend.

Im not just a player in FTW. Im also your lover.

I not only want to chase after you, but also want to stand side by side with you and hold up the new FTW for you.

Lu Feng froze. He looked at the countless lights outside, words crowding together in his brain until only two of them were left. Little Xiao.

Wei Xiao: Yeah.

Lu Feng: Im sorry.

Well then, Wei Xiao energized himself, Im going to go have something to eat. Well be going to the arena later. You should go to bed early.

Bai Cai was the first to discover that Wei Xiao wasnt in the right state that day!

At lunch, he went downstairs and was startled to see a Wei Xiao who was eating seriously.

Holy shit, you havent slept all night?

Wei Xiao set down his bowl and chopsticks, Im finished eating.

Bai Cai: ???

When they went to the venue in the team van, Bai Cai sat beside Wei Xiao and felt the piercing cold air conditioning that was being let out even without words.

What happened to spring? How come the weather had suddenly cooled down again?!

He summoned up the courage to speak with Wei Xiao, Youve already slapped HUs faces until theyre swollen. Today

Even before he finished, he found that he couldnt go on. Damn it, whered this refrigerator come from? His words were turning to ice as they left his mouth!

Chen Feng noticed it too. He glanced at Wei Xiao several times.

However, they were about to arrive at the sports arena, and talking too much would shake the morale of the team. He held back and didnt ask anything in the car.

When they arrived backstage, the make-up artists didnt linger, either. They quickly finished their tasks and bailed.

Ning Zhehan and Yue Wenle also noticed that something was strange and looked over one after another.

Chen Feng couldnt bear it anymore and wanted to call Wei Xiao out to talk to him alone.

Wei Xiao finally spoke, Coach, Ill take the shadow thief later.

Chen Feng was stunned.

Ning Zhehans heart thumped. Brother Xiao, dont be influenced by them.

It was over. Could it be that those dogs had also successfully messed with Brother Xiaos mentality?

It didnt seem like there was anything wrong from their Weibo interactions. Had something else happened in private?

Chen Feng frowned. Winning is the most important thing in the competition.

Dont go and get triggered by fools.

Wei Xiao spoke calmly, Give me the shadow thief. Well win.

Chen Feng:

Because they were the first game of the day, the matches started on time at three.

When it came to BP, HU released the shadow thief as expected.

Because of the fuss on Weibo before, many melon seed eaters had come in to watch the excitement.

I dont think that Quiet will take the shadow thief.

Based on Quiets temper, hes obviously a real man who will go up regardless of difficulties. How could he not take it?

God Q, dont take it! Garbage HU only knows how to use dirty tricks.

Im not a fan, and not a hater, but Im really curious about whether or not Quiet can brush out nine light arcs.

The fans whod all been unwavering in shouting that FTWs shadow thief was inherited all felt a little guilty.

Maybe, it seemed like, perhaps Quiets shadow thief wasnt like Closes where he could brush them out whenever he wanted to.

The BP ended. Wei Xiao successfully obtained the shadow thief.

There was heated discussions on the scrolling comments

There were fans: Amitabha, god bless, Baby Q, please dont collapse!

There were haters: HUs tricks arent very proper, but your God Q really is shit.

There were also the melon seed eating masses, Coming in out of admiration. I heard that there are nine light arcs to be found here?

The director cut the camera lens to show Wei Xiao, and the female fans exploded in the scrolling comments.

Oh my god, how handsome!

Did you really not turn on a filter? Can a boys skin be this good?

Im impressed, Im impressed, my eyelashes arent that curly even when I curl them.

How come it feels like God Q is in a bad mood?

Although it might not be very good to say this, but a Quiet who isnt smiling is very alpha-like!

Im willing, really willing. Im 18 years old and short of a 19 year old husband!

On the HU side, nobody said anything. Their expressions were dignified.

In particular, there was their jungler Han Gu who stared fixedly at the screen. He really wished he could kill this shadow thief thousands of times!

The match began.

The noisy and lively scrolling comments were all stunned silly after the shadow thief reached level six.

Holy shit, who said that he cant brush out nine light arcs?!

The author has something to say:

Cough, cough. Let me say it again, dont be scared, itll be fine, kiss.

xiin: WX *eyes HU* perfect, ive found some sandbags to vent my emotions on.