Chapter 67: Who? The Coach Is Dazed
After the round of interviews, according to the usual procedure, the director would cut the camera to the audience, and they could leave the stage for the backstage to pack up and head back.
However, the commentator pointed to the big screen behind them. “During the quarterfinals, for certain reasons, the family vlog recorded for the VEX players wasn’t broadcast on-site. Today, with VEX securing their ticket to Worlds, I think many fans who support them would like to see this vlog.”
During the quarterfinals, this vlog was originally supposed to be played before the match, but then the incident with Wu Yang’s parents happened. Zuo Chi was worried that releasing a family-related vlog would attract even more public scrutiny, so he had urgently communicated with the league officials to cancel their vlog segment.
So much time had passed that he had almost forgotten about it.
Today… was indeed a very appropriate time.
Warm music began to play, and the fans in the venue quieted down. He and the cubs turned around together.
The first to appear were Beyond’s parents. They were as socially anxious as Beyond and didn’t quite dare to look at the camera, but when mentioning their child, their faces overflowed with pride. “We watch every single one of Lingyun’s matches. We’re just busy with work and can’t come to the venue. If you make it to the Grand Finals, Mom and Dad will definitely come to see you!”
After that was Wall’s father. Wall’s father was a veteran, and his words and actions carried a sense of decisiveness. “Train hard at the base. Take care of yourself, and take good care of your younger brothers on the team!”
And after that was Fugui’s sister—
[Wow! What a beautiful sister! That’s actually Fugui’s sister?]
[Fugui is just a bit chubby; his features are actually decent. But his sister is seriously good-looking! And looking at her style, she gives off major ‘Female Powerhouse CEO’ vibes.]
[The sister is so cool. Hi Fugui, is your sister single? Can the gender of her partner be a bit flexible?]
[I feel like Fugui’s sister looks familiar… I searched it on Baidu. Wang Shuxue, shareholder and CEO of Jinxiu Real Estate, a graduate of a top-tier business school. Incredible, the sister has both looks and brains!]
[I’m stunned. The developer of the neighborhood I live in is Jinxiu Real Estate.]
[Does this mean Fugui is a rich second generation brave enough to break into the esports circle?!]
“When Fu Gui was in high school, he loved playing games. Once, he even skipped school and missed his midterm exams to sneak over to a classmate’s house to play some amateur tournament. When his parents found out, they chased him with a feather duster for the whole afternoon.”
Fugui’s face turned bright red as he whispered his complaint to them, “Aww… my sister is giving me zero face. She’s telling everyone everything!”
Unfortunately, this was a pre-recorded video. Even if Fugui wanted to stop his sister from continuing, it was too late.
“In the past, Fu Gui was always very quick to admit defeat, but that time, no matter how much my parents hit him, he insisted on going to a youth training camp. He said he’d just go for a week, and if he couldn’t handle it, he’d come back and study properly, never touching video games again.”
“My parents deliberately found a training camp with the worst living conditions and sent him there, thinking he wouldn’t last three days before crawling back home to reform himself. As it turned out, he actually stayed for a week, a month, a year…”
“The day he was recruited by VEX, he called me excitedly to share the news. I asked why he didn’t tell Mom and Dad. He said he was afraid they’d look down on VEX’s poor results and still try to drag him back to school. He asked me to be his messenger and put it delicately.”
Wu Yang nudged Fugui with his elbow. “I couldn’t tell, but you actually have times when you’re afraid to speak.”
Fugui: “That’s because my sister’s grades have always been good since she was little. My parents and all our relatives love her and are always kind to her. I’m different. I’ve been addicted to games since I was a kid; I’m the negative example. Going through my sister definitely works better than me telling them myself—”
“I told Fu Gui that actually, after my parents sent him to the training camp, although they were angry for three days, once they heard he stuck with it and entered a professional team… we have always been proud of him. Fu Gui said he didn’t believe it, because he hadn’t made a name for himself yet.”
Fugui froze for a moment. He suddenly lowered his head to stare at the tips of his shoes, falling silent.
“Is someone about to cry?” Wu Yang joked.
Fugui’s voice was muffled. “…I am not.”
“This time, Fu Gui and his teammates made it to the knockout stages together. For this video, he was too scared to ask Mom and Dad to record for him, but I think in his heart, he wants to hear what they have to say to him.”
Fugui’s parents appeared on camera. The family of four looked very much alike, though Fugui looked more festive, while his parents shared a temperament more similar to his sister’s.
However, Fugui probably didn’t hear clearly what was being said on the big screen—because Zuo Chi had handed his phone to him. On the phone were messages just sent by Fugui’s parents.
[Our Fu Gui is going to bring glory to the country. Mom, Dad, and your sister stayed in the livestream today and watched the whole match. We even shared it in the ‘Loving Family’ group.]
[That time you skipped high school, Mom and Dad hit you because we were afraid you wouldn’t learn anything and would become a hoodlum later. It wasn’t because we thought playing games was ‘not doing proper work.’]
[If anything happens in the future, remember to tell Mom and Dad directly. Stop making your sister be the messenger; your sister is very busy with work and has to appease both sides.]
Fugui suddenly burst into laughter, which quickly turned into him wiping away tears.
Wu Yang didn’t tease him this time. He even followed him as he turned away and found a couple of tissues.
Seeing that Fugui’s emotions were being taken care of, Zuo Chi looked back at the screen with relief, only to suddenly hear his own voice after Fugui’s parents’ segment ended.
He realized a moment too late—he had also participated in this vlog recording.
The young man’s ear tips turned red without warning. He stealthily scanned the audience—fortunately, most people were still immersed in Fugui’s inspirational story, and not many were paying attention to him.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
In the vlog, his own voice jumped into his ears word by word.
“This video should have probably ended about now. But Manager Li discussed it with me and wondered, why don’t the two of us count as the players’ ‘family’? Since we’re family, we should appear on camera and say a few words.”
Manager Li beside him acted like the straight man in a comedy duo. “That’s right!”
“Manager Li has always prided himself on being the cubs’ old father—but I feel like calling myself an old father at my age wouldn’t be very appropriate. It would make it look like I’m taking advantage of the cubs, which would affect team unity.”
[Hahahahaha f*ck! I was just feeling all sorts of emotions from the interview with Fugui’s family, then Coach Zuo opened his mouth and I completely lost it!]
[I didn’t realize Coach Zuo had a talent for comedy. Hilarious.jpg]
“Usually at the base, although the cubs call me by my title, our interaction style is more like brothers without much formality. What I want to say to the cubs is very simple. Things like ‘jia-you’ for the match, ‘don’t slack off during training,’ and ‘try to win a championship’ are things a coach says. What I want to say is—may everyone be happy every day, safe and healthy.”
The match venue cleared out.
Fugui’s eyes were swollen like walnuts from crying. He had filled a mineral water bottle with ice water to use as a compress. Feeling too embarrassed to be seen, he insisted on taking a taxi by himself, so Wu Yang ended up accompanying him back to the hotel.
Wall and Beyond were a bit hungry and wanted to get a midnight snack, so Manager Li took them.
That left Zuo Chi and Ning Luzhao to do the “donkey work,” cleaning up the table of food scraps in the lounge and picking up things the other cubs had left behind.
“Land, you can leave it. I’ll do it. You just finished a match and must be tired. Don’t bother.”
Ning Luzhao tied up a full trash bag, set it aside, and briskly replaced it with a new one. “Coach also just finished a match. Two people doing it is faster—Coach, be careful, the World Championship invitation is still on the table.”
“Hiss—” Zuo Chi quickly wiped his hands and picked up the invitation that had almost gotten mixed in with a pile of fruit peels. He carefully placed it into Ning Luzhao’s peripheral bag. “Seriously, from the moment I got this invitation, everything has felt like a dream.”
In just a few months, they had gone from an obscure, third-rate team that was eliminated in the first round of groups to making it to the Grand Finals and securing a spot at Worlds.
Many people online were shocked.
But as a participant, he hadn’t fully processed it yet.
Training day after day, matches one after another.
It was fulfilling and busy, so busy it was almost a blur.
The cleaning rag was suddenly taken from his hand. He looked up and met Ning Luzhao’s gaze. The other was across the coffee table, hands braced on the surface, eyes smiling. He looked even more handsome now than when he was celebrating the win with his teammates earlier.
Ning Luzhao’s face had a certain sharpness when he wasn’t smiling, and even when he did, he often appeared cold.
But right now, although the smile wasn’t deep, Zuo Chi felt an inexplicable warmth, like ice melting into a river.
“Coach has worked too hard lately. Go back and take a hot shower, get a good sleep, and once you wake up and give this invitation a kiss, it won’t feel like a dream anymore.”
Zuo Chi hadn’t expected to hear such a funny joke from Ning Luzhao. He couldn’t help but laugh.
“When did you start learning from Fugui and the others? You’re starting to get cheeky too—but that’s good. Young people should be more lively.”
He reached out and lightly pinched Ning Luzhao’s cheek. “Just like that, smile.”
Ning Luzhao suddenly leaned forward a few inches, very casually.
“Does Coach want to share today’s good news with an old friend?”
Old friend? Who? Share what?
Zuo Chi was dazed.
Then he asked directly, “Who am I supposed to share it with?”
“You know, that old friend Coach mistook me for after getting drunk right when you first arrived at VEX.”
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