Jiang Shi sent his message, and couldn’t hold on any longer, quickly fell into a deep sleep with his head covered.
But his dreams were restless, leaving him with the nagging feeling that he had forgotten something important.
The next day, he woke up groggily around 11 AM.
As he squinted at the sunlight filtering through the curtains, his expression was a bit dazed.
Something felt off.
But he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
It wasn’t until he went downstairs for lunch and locked eyes with Jiang Lele, who was slurping noodles, that he realized something was up.
Jiang Lele, upon seeing him, choked and nearly spat out his noodles. He hastily wiped his mouth, unusually silent for once.
Yu Hui and Zhao Jiu also gave him a few odd looks.
Jiang Shi glanced around the dining table. Steaming food, wooden table, chairs—
Nothing seemed amiss.
He turned his gaze to Xie Xu, trying to discern if there was anything unusual in his expression. But Xie Xu looked as calm as ever, even pulling out the chair next to him, saying, “Come eat.”
Without hesitation, Jiang Shi walked over and sat down beside Xie Xu.
No matter where Jiang Shi went, Jiang Lele seemed to follow him like a sunflower tracking the sun.
Jiang Shi took a sip of the chicken soup made by the housekeeper and looked up, noticing that the others were still staring at him.
Not only were their gazes synchronized, but their dark circles under their eyes were also quite uniform.
Puzzled, Jiang Shi asked, “Did you all go out stealing last night?”
Before anyone could answer, Yuan Yang burst in energetically, saying, “The official account posted it! Just like last time, all you need to do is like the post.”
Jiang Lele paused, “Wait, you announced it that quickly?”
He had been looking for a chance to ask this Little White Hair what was going on!
“The recent streams really boosted Jiang Shi’s popularity, so now is the perfect time to announce it,” Yuan Yang said with his usual efficiency. “Jiang Shi sent me his ID, and they worked on the team uniform overnight. I got it this morning and posted it on Weibo as a final warm-up before the official announcement.”
Jiang Shi looked up from his bowl in confusion.
What ID?
Slowly, the memories of last night started to come back—
[Obedient Jiangjiang: I’ve decided on my ID! It’s going to be Time~]
What “Time”?
Jiang Lele, seeing Jiang Shi’s bewildered expression, was even more confused. “Why are you surprised? Didn’t you say you’d be called Time?”
Last night, after Jiang Shi mentioned this ID, Jiang Lele had sent several question marks in the group chat, wanting Jiang Shi to explain. But after waiting for over half an hour, there was no response from him.
The ID “Time” was so familiar that Jiang Lele had tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. In the morning, he saw the same dark circles on Yu Hui and Zhao Jiu’s faces.
Meanwhile, Xie Xu seemed as calm as ever, even making sure Jiang Shi sat next to him for lunch!
“Why? What’s wrong with the ID ‘Time’?” Yuan Yang was puzzled. “Isn’t it quite fitting for Xiao Shi?”
Zhao Jiu helpfully explained, “Yang-ge, do you remember that streamer who brazenly claimed he wanted to sleep with the captain? You even told Lele to stop watching his streams.”
“His ID is Time.”
Yuan Yang, who had so many things to manage daily, had completely forgotten about that streamer’s ID. But now that everyone mentioned it, he finally remembered.
Not only did Yuan Yang remember, but Jiang Shi also recalled the foolish thing he had done in his half-asleep state the previous night.
Jiang Shi felt like he was still dreaming and hadn’t fully woken up yet.
Expressionless, he put down his chopsticks and decided to go back to sleep.
“Don’t leave,” Xie Xu tapped the table with his fingers, “The soup won’t taste good if it gets cold.”
Reluctantly, Jiang Shi sat back down.
Facing the four pairs of eyes staring at him, Jiang Shi wished he could bury his head in the chicken soup.
How on earth had he outed his own ID?!
Yuan Yang looked at Jiang Shi with a complicated expression, not sure what to say.
The others were clearly waiting for an explanation from Jiang Shi.
Only Xie Xu calmly continued drinking his soup.
Jiang Shi: “…”
What could he even say? That the person who had been making shameless, flirty remarks about sleeping with Xu was none other than himself, Obedient Jiangjiang?
His teammates would probably think he was sick in the head.
Even though Jiang Shi’s mind was in turmoil, his face remained calm. However, his hand was sore from holding the spoon for too long, so he gently placed it back in the bowl.
The porcelain spoon made a crisp clinking sound as it touched the bowl.
Jiang Lele felt like his brain got a jolt, leaving him utterly confused. “Say something, will you!”
Could Jiang Shi really be that silly nephew of his? The one who acts all shy and blushes in front of Xie Xu during the day, but then turns wild at night, posting on Weibo about Xie Xu feeding him milk and tagging him, calling him “Husband”?
Jiang Lele’s expression became indescribable.
Jiang Shi slowly lifted his head, blinked, and looked even more confused than the others. “Huh?”
He had always had a face that looked innocent and pure, and with his bewildered expression, his eyes drooped slightly at the corners, making him seem even more naïve and harmless.
After a quick brainstorm, Jiang Shi came up with the best solution for himself at that moment—
Play dumb.
“Are you saying that someone else also goes by ‘Time’?” Jiang Shi asked, feigning surprise with slightly parted lips. “I mentioned ‘Time’ last night because I got inspired by Jiu-ge’s suggestion. I had no idea the name was already taken.”
Obedient Jiangjiang would never watch those inappropriate streamers!
Jiang Shi was putting on a great act, but he felt a gaze subtly directed at him. After he spoke, he faintly heard a soft chuckle from Xie Xu.
What was Xie Xu laughing about?
Jiang Shi couldn’t figure it out. He had been holding his head up while speaking to everyone, and now his neck was sore, and his wide-eyed, innocent look was becoming exhausting.
Afraid that blinking would ruin his act, he held out as long as he could, but his eyes began to ache. Finally, he quickly lowered his head to rub his eyes.
It seemed he had stayed up too late last night, and even his eyes were rebelling.
When Yuan Yang saw Jiang Shi’s reddened eyes, his heart softened. “We’re not interrogating you. Now that we know it was an accident, it’s fine. Don’t cry, don’t cry.”
He subconsciously dismissed the ridiculous suspicion he had earlier. How could such a well-behaved and obedient Jiang Shi be connected to that streamer? It was just a misunderstanding, the similar style, and the fact that Jiang Shi mentioned the ID “Time” had caused the confusion.
“He wouldn’t cry!” Jiang Lele was incredulous. “And besides, when this Little White Hair was arguing online, he’s just like Time—”
Before he could finish, Yuan Yang cut him off. “Alright, are you still secretly watching streams, Jiang Lele? I haven’t even mentioned it, and you’re already getting bold, huh!”
Yuan Yang was worried that pressing too hard would put too much pressure on Jiang Shi.
Jiang Lele shrank back and muttered, “Weren’t we talking about Little White Hair? Why is this turning on me…”
Zhao Jiu, despite his lingering doubts, smiled and tried to ease the tension. “Since it’s a misunderstanding, clearing it up is fine. So, Yang-ge, do we need to change the ID?”
“I’ve already posted it on Weibo,” Yuan Yang said, glancing at his phone. “The reposts and likes are already in the tens of thousands.”
In other words, it was too late to change it now.
He looked at Jiang Shi, who was sitting with his head down, not eating, and bit the bullet. “No need to change it. It’s just a similar name! It’s no big deal. As long as Xiao Shi likes it, that’s what matters.”
Besides, Jiang Shi’s ID would be prefixed with “TLG,” so it wouldn’t be exactly the same.
And just like that, the ID issue was resolved without much drama.
“Jiang Shi, I’ll give you your new team uniform later, so you won’t need to wear Xu’s anymore,” Yuan Yang said. “Whoever queues with Xiao Shi today can start a stream to show off the new uniform and ID, so the audience gets familiar with it.”
Jiang Shi nodded, indicating he understood, though he looked a bit disappointed.
He had hoped to wear Xie Xu’s uniform again today!
After lunch, Jiang Shi went upstairs to change into his new team uniform and spent a long time in front of the mirror, looking at the ID on the back—
TLG-Time.
The name, embroidered in gold thread, was set against a black background, looking sharp and grand.
Yuan Yang was right—he really did like his ID. It wasn’t just because it had been with him for so long, but because it reminded him of everything time had given him.
After changing, Jiang Shi took Xie Xu’s uniform and knocked on the door next to his.
When Xie Xu opened the door, Jiang Shi handed the uniform back to him.
But as Xie Xu reached out to take it, Jiang Shi hesitated and held onto the uniform, saying, “Maybe I should wash it before returning it to you?”
He had sweated a bit yesterday, and only wore a tanktop underneath. There shouldn’t be any weird smell left, right?
“It’s fine,” Xie Xu said calmly, putting on the uniform Jiang Shi handed over and walking with him toward the training room.
On the way to the training room, they passed by a glass-walled conference room, where the reflection of their figures was clearly visible on the wall. The stark difference in their physiques, yet wearing the same clothes, brought a word to Jiang Shi’s mind—
Couple’s outfit.
Jiang Shi discreetly slowed his pace, looking up at the figure in front of him.
Broad shoulders and a strong back—Xie Xu’s impressive physique was evident even under the loose-fitting uniform, living up to his title as the number one male god in the esports world.
Maybe Jiang Shi’s gaze was too obvious because Xie Xu turned slightly to glance at him. “Why are you walking so slow?”
Jiang Shi quickly took a big step to walk alongside Xie Xu. “I was just thinking about something.”
Xie Xu asked, “Hmm?”
“It’s just—” Jiang Shi seemed a bit hesitant, “just about that streamer named ‘Time.’ I looked him up earlier and found out that he seems to really like you and has said a lot of…”
Jiang Shi trailed off, as if too embarrassed to continue.
He was genuinely curious about Xie Xu’s attitude toward Time. Despite knowing that Time had made many bold and straightforward comments, Xie Xu still teamed up with him, followed him on Weibo, and even chatted with him during livestreams.
Could it be that Xie Xu likes the more outgoing type?
But then, Xie Xu didn’t seem to dislike him either!
As Jiang Shi anxiously awaited Xie Xu’s response, Xie Xu instead asked, “How did you find out? All his replays are blocked.”
Ever since Jiang Shi realized that TLG knew about Time, he had disabled the recording and replay functions to avoid being found out.
And now, as someone who supposedly just found out about Time, how could Jiang Shi know so much?
Jiang Shi hadn’t expected Xie Xu to turn the question back on him, and cold sweat started to form on his forehead.
Did Xie Xu still suspect his true identity?
Jiang Shi thought quickly and replied, “I saw it in screenshots and short videos posted by his fans. They’re pretty active.”
Although his explanation sounded a bit dry, Xie Xu seemed to believe it, not pressing further and instead addressing Jiang Shi’s earlier question. “Time is young. He’s just joking around with those comments. I don’t take them seriously.”
Xie Xu had heard more outrageous things before and had become immune to such remarks, brushing them off as childish jokes.
Jiang Shi: “?”
‘How could I be joking? I meant every word I said!’
When they reached the entrance of the training room, Jiang Shi couldn’t hold back and asked, “But what if he’s being serious?”
Xie Xu paused with his hand on the doorknob, raising an eyebrow. “Do you care?”
This question caught Jiang Shi off guard. Why would he care when he’s the one behind Time?
No, wait—as a serious fan of Xie Xu, his normal reaction should be to despise such a perverted pursuer.
Jiang Shi quickly corrected himself, “Of course, I care! He’s too disrespectful. Captain, you shouldn’t get involved with someone like that.”
His righteous tone was even tinged with anger, as if he was determined to shut Time up for good.
Perhaps Jiang Shi’s earnestness moved Xie Xu, who looked at him for a while before giving a vague response, “Hmm.”
Jiang Shi didn’t dwell on it and stubbornly returned to his earlier question, “So, Captain, what if he really means it?”
Xie Xu casually replied, “Maybe.”
Jiang Shi was confused. What did “maybe” mean? Did Xie Xu believe it or not?
Even though Jiang Shi had a million questions, when Xie Xu opened the door to the training room and asked why he wasn’t coming in, he could only sulk and follow him inside.
Xie Xu noticed Jiang Shi’s puffed-up cheeks and said, “I’m going to grab something,” before heading out.
Left alone, Jiang Shi sat by his station, deep in thought.
Why did Xie Xu think Time was joking? Could the microphone have disguised his real age, or had he come across as too immature?
He decided that the next time he streamed, he’d need to adjust his approach.
While he was lost in his thoughts, a glass of milk was placed on the table in front of him.
Jiang Shi’s eyes lit up, and he immediately picked up the glass and took a sip.
The warm, sweet milk soothed him, and all those chaotic thoughts gradually faded away.
After all, his Time identity couldn’t be exposed to the light. He needed to focus on building a good relationship with Xie Xu as Obedient Jiangjiang. Being close to him would surely give him plenty of opportunities to deepen their bond, right?
But before he could drink much, Jiang Lele came over, raining on his parade. “Jiang Shi, you didn’t even thank the Captain. Are you getting too comfortable just a few days into the base?”
Jiang Shi froze, then quickly turned and sweetly thanked Xie Xu, “Thank you for the milk, Captain!”
He seemed to have gotten used to Xie Xu giving him milk.
Xie Xu glanced down at Jiang Shi, whose eyes were now happily squinting, and gave a faint “hmm.”
He hadn’t originally planned to bring him milk.
But Jiang Shi seemed to really enjoy it.
So be it.
