[Esports] I Started an Online Romance with a Big Shot After Retiring Chapter 87

Chapter 87

Duan Mingyue’s home was in Cloud City, so when the New Year holiday ended, they would head directly back to the base.

While packing their luggage, Duan Mingyue gave Shen Yanjin one last chance to back out. “I don’t want to put too much pressure on you. If you feel uncomfortable, meeting my parents can wait for later. It’s not too late to change the flight tickets. If you don’t want to go, we can go on a trip to Europe instead, hmm?”

He had seen all of the young man’s uneasiness.

Moreover, the Duan family wasn’t exactly a peaceful place, and Duan Mingyue didn’t want to put Shen Yanjin in a difficult spot.

Unexpectedly, as soon as his voice fell, a sharp pain came from the corner of his lips.

The young man, whom he had spoiled, acted like a cat and bit his lip unceremoniously. “Are you trying to say you don’t want to take me back?”

“How is that possible?” Duan Mingyue laughed, leaning down to help him close the suitcase. “Let’s go.”

Although it was the New Year holiday, Shen Yanjin didn’t miss a single day of daily training. After all, holiday or not, the playoffs were approaching fast.

He hadn’t live-streamed, and neither had Duan Mingyue after the New Year, but the other KW members hadn’t missed a day.

Sitting in the car to the airport, Shen Yanjin watched the livestream channel on his phone and was suddenly surprised to see Kai’s stream title: Paying a New Year Visit to Tans’ House. “Are Kai and Tans that close?”

Duan Mingyue took a glance and mercilessly exposed the truth. “No. If Tans could move to a different computer setup, he definitely wouldn’t stay by Kai’s side for a second.”

Shen Yanjin asked, “Can’t he move?”

Duan Mingyue said, “He can, but every time he moves to a new spot, Kai moves with him. actually, the spot you’re seeing now is already the fifth place Tans has tried to move to.”

Shen Yanjin was a bit surprised. He had thought Tans was the most antisocial person in KW, but after a few months together, it turned out that Song Yuan, the Top Laner who seemed very cheerful, was the one who kept the strongest distance from everyone.

Everyone had their own personality; that was probably it.

Just as he was about to click in to watch the drama, the phone chimed with a new message notification. It was from Shi Feng (Wind).

Ever since Aiai left and he succeeded as captain, this brother had started pretending to be deep. Even his messages had become much more steady, to the point where Shen Yanjin sometimes suspected that the title of Captain came with some sort of buff.

However, they still duo-queued as usual and played pranks just the same. Since Shi Feng’s form hadn’t shown signs of declining because of it, Shen Yanjin didn’t meddle.

Unexpectedly, in this message, Shi Feng’s tone couldn’t conceal his overwhelming joy. The New Year was over, yet he sent a pile of New Year greetings and red packets to Shen Yanjin. Yes, a pile. Shen Yanjin clicked a few—ranging from fifty cents to five yuan—and lost interest. He got straight to the point: “Stop. Did your phone get a virus or something?”

[Wind: No virus.]

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[Wind: Just wanted to share my joy with you.]

Shen Yanjin was baffled.

He thought for a moment and replied: “What a coincidence, I also wanted to share my joy with you.”

“I met the parents with Moon God.”

He and Shi Feng were half-brothers in misery. Originally, they were both unlucky guys unrequitedly loving straight men. Now that things were completely settled between him and Duan Mingyue, he naturally wanted to let this brother-in-misery know.

Shi Feng’s mood hadn’t been good before, so Shen Yanjin hadn’t mentioned it much. Now that the guy seemed in high spirits, he went along with the conversation.

[Wind: So fast??]

[Wind: Damn, you jumped the gun.]

Hearing his tone, combined with what Kai had said about TWG earlier, Shen Yanjin understood.

[Sliver: Aiai went back to the team?]

[Wind: You guessed it~]

[Sliver: You guys are together.]

He used a definitive tone.

[Wind: Yes, he’s been locked down by me.]

Shen Yanjin pulled the corner of his mouth, noncommittal.

When Aiai left, Shi Feng had been so steady it was like he suddenly aged several years. The moment Aiai returned, he immediately reverted to this heartless, carefree appearance. It was hard to say who had locked down whom.

He lowered his head and typed: “Congratulations.”

Shi Feng bragged for a while on the other end, looking triumphant, as if the person who previously said “So what if Aiai is gone, the team’s results are most important, I can play with the new support just the same” and “It’s just a normal team rotation, no big deal, I can live without him” wasn’t him at all.

Shen Yanjin watched him brag and responded sporadically.

Duan Mingyue didn’t disturb him from the side, lowering his head to send the flight information to his parents so they could send someone to pick them up.

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During the Spring Festival, flight delays skyrocketed. Perhaps due to good luck, the flight Shen Yanjin and Duan Mingyue took only delayed for twenty minutes before taking off.

Shen Yanjin slept groggily on the plane for a while. After landing and exiting the security checkpoint, his footsteps dragging the suitcase paused when he saw the flashy, brightly colored supercar outside the airport and the serious-looking man in a suit standing next to it.

He looked at Duan Mingyue hesitantly.

Duan Mingyue also looked like he hadn’t expected this. He was silent for a moment, looked down at his phone, and then said, “…Perhaps the person arranging the pickup thought young people would prefer this kind of car.”

Like it? Sure, he liked it.

But the problem was, it was too ostentatious.

Duan Mingyue was only wearing a mask today. His tall stature and temperament were already enough to stand out from the crowd. Even though the upper half of his face was covered by slightly long bangs, his eyes were too catching. In just this short while, Shen Yanjin had already heard people around them whispering about Duan Mingyue, and more and more gazes were cast their way.

If they got into that luxury supercar, the trending search tomorrow would guaranteed be something like “KW Captain RedMoon and Member Sliver Spend New Year Together.”

They had just been on the trending search because of that recording. Although it was suppressed later, what happened had happened. Even if no one believed it, a question mark would still remain in everyone’s hearts.

If this happened now…

Shen Yanjin frowned, raising his hand to pull his hat down lower. Just as he was about to say, “How about we split up for now and talk later,” he heard Duan Mingyue suddenly chuckle lightly—a sound that seemed half-disdainful, half-mocking. Immediately, his wrist was grabbed, and he was pulled by Duan Mingyue toward the supercar.

Gazes, exclamations, curious eyes, and raised phone cameras. Shen Yanjin could guarantee that in the minute before getting into the car, he heard the name “RedMoon” from the crowd.

The two-seater supercar had no extra space. The suitcase was handed over to the bodyguard by the car. Shen Yanjin sat in the passenger seat clutching his backpack. Immediately, the accelerator was stepped on, and the engine let out a roar, seeming to shout: Look at me, look at me quickly.

He turned his head to look out the car window. Sure enough, they were the center of attention.

“My aunt and her family did this.” After driving out of the airport area, Duan Mingyue’s face, which had been somewhat gloomy, relaxed a little. He even smiled. “One of the side branches of my family. She heard about my situation and started having crooked ideas again. But don’t worry, the luggage will be delivered. She doesn’t have the guts to withhold my things.”

After speaking, his voice softened. “I’m sorry. I didn’t arrange things well this time.”

He spoke simply, but the human intentions involved were clearly much more complicated.

The moment Duan Mingyue saw the sports car, he understood what his cheap aunt meant. A global limited edition supercar parked brazenly at the entrance of a busy airport—as long as he walked over with Shen Yanjin, even if no one recognized them on the spot, photos would be posted online, and being identified was only a matter of time.

His aunt was someone who strongly opposed homosexuality. She couldn’t control Duan Mingyue, nor did she have the ability to, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t disgust him.

If Duan Mingyue got in the car, without a doubt, there would be another storm of controversy online.

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A rich kid openly flaunting wealth, plus various speculations and rumors about Shen Yanjin and his sexuality.

Actually, Duan Mingyue could have just turned around and left, refusing to take the bait.

But if he left, his aunt could make a big fuss out of that action too, for example: Does he also feel that he’s unpresentable?

He had to jump.

Duan Mingyue smiled faintly, a shadow hidden in his eyes.

Shen Yanjin could tell someone was deliberately trying to screw with Duan Mingyue, but he didn’t expect it to be a relative. The waters of a wealthy family were indeed deep.

He gently hooked his finger around Duan Mingyue’s finger resting on the gear stick and said, “It’s not your fault.” He paused, then asked, “Is she really your aunt?”

Duan Mingyue smiled. “She’s from a side branch and doesn’t have much to do with our main family. Don’t worry, this was an accident. In the future, when we are together, I promise no messy people will come running out to make us unhappy. Meeting today, it’s just my mom and dad. A casual meal.”

Saying this, he turned his hand to hold Shen Yanjin’s, gave a reassuring squeeze, and then let go.

In his words, it was a matter of course that his future included Shen Yanjin, and Shen Yanjin’s future included him.

Shen Yanjin couldn’t describe the flavor surging in his heart. It was just reassuring, like every step was taken on solid ground.

A book he once read said that if you foresee the hidden pain of parting upon meeting a person or environment for the first time, you have definitely fallen in love with them.

When falling in love with someone, insecurity and anxiety over gain and loss are inevitable.

Shen Yanjin was silent for a while, then suddenly laughed. “Looks like we’re going on the trending search again.”

Duan Mingyue asked casually, “Are you afraid?”

Shen Yanjin said, “If it’s with you, I’m not afraid.”

Seeing the sea of people outside through the car window earlier, thinking that his feelings would be bathed under those gazes, panic was inevitable.

But the seed of longing had been buried, and watered by love and a sense of security, it had finally grown into a towering tree.

Shen Yanjin thought, if it were anyone else, he probably wouldn’t be willing to say such words from the bottom of his heart.

Only Duan Mingyue.

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Longing, admiration, possession… any kind of desire could be restrained.

But feelings could not.

Duan Mingyue was obviously stunned by this answer. Immediately sensing the trust and love filling the young man’s tone, his brows relaxed, and he interlocked his fingers with the young man. He thought absent-mindedly: Being able to make Shen Yanjin confess his feelings… looks like that cheap aunt of mine was actually somewhat useful.

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