WCG Chapter 45

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Jiang Shi took a sip of Xie Xu’s honey water, and not only did it soothe his throat, but his mood visibly lifted as well. He stayed awake during the ride, listening to the conversations around him.

“Is that surnamed Fang sick in the head? If it weren’t for Little White Hair’s quick responses, he probably would’ve been trapped by those questions,” Jiang Lele said, giving Back a loving look. “Compared to him, Back is still too innocent.”

“Why don’t you let him try talking to me like that now?” Yu Hui responded coolly, elbowing Jiang Lele away as he kept leaning closer. “Stop squishing me. It’s hot.”

Zhao Jiu, also bothered by the interviewer’s behavior, commented, “Does that guy have some grudge against us?”

“I looked into it,” Yuan Yang replied, casting a glance at Xie Xu. “Apparently, he pursued Lin Miao for a long time, but she never gave him any attention. Instead, she has a relationship with Xu.” 

Lin Miao, a famous actress and childhood friend of Xie Xu, had long been rumored to have a special relationship with him. Apparently, Interviewer Fang, who had a small-minded personality, bore a grudge against TLG because of this.

Jiang Lele let out a long “oh,” leaning against Yu Hui’s shoulder and giving Jiang Shi a playful look, as if waiting for him to get jealous again.

But Jiang Shi, playing with Xie Xu’s fan banner, didn’t even look up.

He had come to realize that Xie Xu was like a constant source of light, always attracting attention, though most admirers were just passing by and didn’t mean anything serious.

Just like that little AD from the second team.

If he got jealous every time someone approached Xie Xu, he’d drive himself crazy sooner or later. 

Still, he listened carefully to what Xie Xu would say next.

Xie Xu, reclining in his seat with his eyes closed, calmly explained when the conversation shifted to him. “We were neighbors as kids. Our parents know each other, so we’d chat occasionally, but that’s it.”

His explanation was clear and straightforward.

Jiang Shi relaxed, leaning back in his seat just like Xie Xu. 

The seats were a bit cramped, so when he leaned back, their shoulders naturally touched.

Because the car heater was on, Jiang Shi felt warm and took off his jacket, leaving only a light-colored sweater underneath. His soft sweater brushed against Xie Xu’s black team jacket, creating a stark contrast.

Jiang Shi’s body tensed up for a moment, stealing a quick glance at Xie Xu.

Xie Xu didn’t move, keeping his eyes closed, letting Jiang Shi lean on him.

Feeling bolder, Jiang Shi relaxed his bent leg, allowing his knee to lightly touch Xie Xu’s before settling comfortably together.

The two sat at the back, so no one noticed Jiang Shi’s small moves.

Yuan Yang, still frowning about the host, said, “I’ll talk to their team. Let’s get someone else to handle our interviews in the future.” Since things had come to this, there was no need to hold back.

Then, glancing toward Jiang Shi in the back, Yuan Yang added, “But Xiao Shi, you handled yourself well in that last interview. Your last words really made a statement.”

“TLG will reach the top together.” 

Yuan Yang repeated in admiration. 

Logically  speaking, Yuan Yang should be desentized after having experienced so many games. But when TLG was gradually going downhill, he couldn’t help but being awed by a young and passionate talent like Jiang Shi. 

Yuan Yang was about to say more, but when he looked back at Jiang Shi, he saw him flinch as if pricked by a needle, his face slightly red, eyes avoiding him. “Yes, Yang-ge, you’re right.”

Yuan Yang: “?”

What did he say?

Just then, Jiang Lele was bragging to Chengcheng from the second team about his recent game moves, loudly drowning out their conversation.

“Jiang Lele, could you stop teaching Chengcheng bad habits? That was clearly a mistake, you just happened to run into their jungler,” Yuan Yang said. “If Back hadn’t come to support you, you would’ve been done for.”

Once Yuan Yang’s attention moved away, Jiang Shi let out a sigh of relief, but he dared not press any closer to Xie Xu. He shifted slightly, staring at his phone to distract himself.

With their 2-0 victory over Hurricane and his MVP title, there was bound to be plenty of his highlights and praise for his impressive plays.

Jiang Shi typed a few keywords into the search bar, bringing up a bunch of trending topics.

As expected, his skills were getting recognition, but as he scanned the topics more closely, his smile froze halfway—

#Time openly seduces Xu in front of everyone#  

#TLG’s bottom lane duo feed each other candy at the Spring Split#  

#Time confesses during interview, looking smitten#

Jiang Shi: “?”

When did he do any of that?

Even more absurdly, he had merely fed Xie Xu a piece of candy, but a fan with some serious editing skills had slightly shifted his hand position, making it look as if he had wrapped his arm around Xie Xu’s neck. They even created a GIF, giving the impression he’d stood on tiptoe to kiss him.

The GIF went viral, with the hashtag “mouth-to-mouth candy feeding” rising visibly in popularity.

[Oh my! Is this how they roll in the scene now? Respect and blessings 99.]  

[Not familiar with these two, but the looks and size difference are perfect! Shipping it already!]  

[Didn’t the little idiot say he’s 180cm? Judging by this, he’s barely 175, needing to tiptoe just to reach Xie Xu.]  

[Forget about seeing the ceiling lol.]  

[I was there at the scene. T Bao was so flustered by Xu, he could barely talk. How’s he gonna handle this in the future!]  

[I was there too, and I swear Xu seemed to be enjoying it.]  

[What’s really going on between them?]  

[What’s the point of question? Just @TLG-Xu directly.]  

[@TLG-Xu, is the candy from my silly son’s mouth delicious?] 

[@TLG-Xu, are T Bao  lips soft? Nice to kiss?]  

[@TLG-Xu, did the little white hair swallow his saliva when kissing?]

Jiang Shi’s vision went dark, and to his horror, he heard Xie Xu’s phone vibrating several times in his pocket.

Xie Xu opened his eyes, meeting Jiang Shi’s gaze.

In the dimly lit car, Jiang Shi’s glowing phone screen was quite obvious.

Xie Xu’s gaze naturally drifted downward to glance at Jiang Shi’s screen. “You—”

Jiang Shi’s nerves tightened, and he blurted out, “I didn’t kiss him!”

The car had originally been quiet, and Jiang Shi’s unrestrained volume drew the attention of everyone else who was still awake.

Including Chengcheng from the second team, who looked on with innocent confusion.

Xie Xu raised an eyebrow. “Kiss who?”

Realizing what he’d just said, Jiang Shi turned and thumped his head against the car window.

‘Idiot, idiot, idiot.’

He didn’t know if he was cursing the fans or himself.

Thankfully, Xie Xu didn’t pursue it, and the car returned to its quiet lull. The gentle sway of the vehicle was lulling everyone to sleep, including Jiang Lele, who was murmuring dreamily, “Little  White Hair, you stole my triple kill…”

“Watch me Flash my ult…”  

“Go, go…”

The next second, a muffled grunt came as though someone forcefully covered Jiang Lele’s mouth to silence him.

Jiang Lele’s nonsense managed to ease Jiang Shi’s nerves a little, but as he glanced up, he noticed in the reflection on the window that Xie Xu was scrolling on his phone, swiping through messages with a focused expression.

Even worse, it seemed like Xie Xu’s screen was showing some animated content—a telltale sign of a GIF.

Jiang Shi: “…”

He started telling himself that the vibrations couldn’t possibly have been from those tagged comments earlier. Xie Xu’s phone was always buzzing anyway.

After steadying himself mentally, he inched back, leaning against the seat, closing his eyes, and turning his head toward Xie Xu to pretend to sleep.

A minute later, he peeked with one eye open.

Surely Xie Xu wasn’t actually looking at that kissing GIF?

Jiang Shi stole a glance, but Xie Xu’s phone was tilted just out of his view. Even with his good eyesight, he couldn’t see clearly.

Frustrated yet cautious, Jiang Shi held his breath, slowly inching closer to Xie Xu.

Their shoulders touched again, but this time Jiang Shi didn’t have the mind to care.

After much effort, he finally managed to glimpse Xie Xu’s screen — it was a chat interface on WeChat, and it looked like Xie Xu was messaging someone.

Jiang Shi exhaled in relief.

Thank goodness.

But the awkward angle he’d been holding his head at was now causing his neck to ache.

Just as he was about to adjust his position, his phone buzzed.

Jiang Shi instinctively picked it up to check.

[Xu: Stop playing around.]

Then, a gentle pressure pushed Jiang Shi’s tilted head down, landing it softly on Xie Xu’s shoulder.

“Get some sleep.”