Chapter 20: Signing — Shi Wen Is More Important Than a Million.
After the ranking session, Shi Wen happened to end his stream. After saying goodbye to Mu Jiu, he hung up the voice call and casually took off his headphones. He fixed his hair that had been flattened by the headset and gave his chair a push, spinning it around.
Opposite him, the manager was leaning against a desk. He tossed one of the two bottles of water in his hand to Shi Wen and opened one for himself.
He knew Shi Wen had been duoing with the same person all this time and had come specifically to ask about the situation.
“Found the person you wanted?”
Shi Wen gave a light “tsk,” his expression somewhat troubled. “I found him, but…” He seemed to find it difficult to speak.
The manager had no patience and urged him with a frown, “What exactly is it?”
He had seen that Nine’s mechanics and his synergy with Shi Wen were practically perfect. He didn’t know where Shi Wen had found such a treasure. If SG didn’t move now, someone else eventually would. What was Shi Wen hesitating for?
“He’s too young.”
Shi Wen lowered his head and sighed deeply, a look of regret on his face. The kid was only sixteen, still at an age for school. How could he easily invite him? Otherwise, he really would become the “old man luring a minor” the fans joked about.
“If we get the guardian’s consent, it’s not impossible. If it’s inconvenient for you to show your face, I can make a trip to his house and help persuade his parents.” The manager thought for a long time. Knowing Shi Wen’s concerns, he was still unwilling to give up on such a good talent.
A sixteen-year-old genius OB—just that title alone could bring in enough endorsement fees to make his hands go soft later. If he didn’t have confidence in his club’s operations, he wouldn’t dare make promises easily.
One could say that as long as he came, although e-sports didn’t have much public acceptance currently, he believed it would develop better and better in the future. How could it not be considered a path in life?
Shi Wen glanced at him and leaned back against the e-sports chair. “You make it sound so easy.”
He knew Nine’s strength best; a tryout would be effortless for him. But if they really recruited him, would he be taking a leave of absence or dropping out? How many parents could tolerate their child not going to school to play games? If Nine regretted taking this path later, who could be responsible for his future?
He worried about many things, but he never worried that Nine might fail because of a lack of skill; such brilliant talent could not be buried.
“Then tell me what to do. Do you want him or not?” The manager glared at him irritably; he was truly hard to serve.
OB talent was too rare; how many teams were searching high and low for a suitable candidate? He had finally found one, and after duoing for two months, he had basically started treating the kid like his own brother. He had never seen Shi Wen worry so much about a person.
The manager walked over and patted Shi Wen’s shoulder twice, saying, “Find a time to talk to Nine, let him consider it himself. We will respect his wishes one hundred percent.”
Summer break was about to end. Mu Jiu logged onto his account and saw many invitations from clubs in his private messages. Ever since he climbed the leaderboards, they had become a common sight, and he had never replied to any of them.
But it wasn’t because he didn’t want to go pro, but because he had a place he wanted to go.
Unfortunately, his duo partner was too composed. Mu Jiu had hinted to Shi Wen several times that he wanted to join SG, but Shi Wen acted like he didn’t hear it at all, making Mu Jiu lose his confidence.
Could it be that Swen never intended to recruit him from the start? Then why did he invite him to duo!
“Ge, I’m planning to go to TUG. They said they’d give me a signing fee of one million.” Mu Jiu specifically chose to say this while Shi Wen was kiting the Boss. Sure enough, Shi Wen’s thoughts flickered, he made a mistake in his transition, and went down instantly.
Not only did he go down, but he also gave up a slay.
Mu Jiu did it on purpose. Seeing Shi Wen’s status change to “dissociating,” he felt quite vindicated.
Who told him to keep him hanging? He wasn’t unwanted, okay?
Shi Wen was bound to the Dissociation Table and didn’t need to operate anymore. Freeing his hands, he lowered his head and rubbed his forehead, saying helplessly, “Do you actually know what going pro means?”
Mu Jiu didn’t care. He liked being with Shi Wen. He didn’t just want to rank with him; he wanted to play matches with him, to win championships with him.
“Do you think I’m trash?”
Mu Jiu was immersed in his own thoughts and asked back directly. The jump in topic was so sudden that Shi Wen almost couldn’t keep up.
No, when did he ever think he was trash?
“No.”
“Then why don’t you invite me to SG?”
“…SG can’t afford a million.” Shi Wen naturally couldn’t admit he was the one blocking it, or Mu Jiu would throw a tantrum, so he made up some nonsense.
Who knew that Mu Jiu would breathe a sigh of relief after hearing that, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “Then I don’t want the million. As long as I have you, it’s fine.”
Shi Wen was more important than a million.
He took this path never for the sake of money.
Because Shi Wen had gone down too quickly just now, he was sold by his teammates. He watched Mu Jiu’s mechanics from the spectator view.
“Mu Jiu, going pro is different from playing for fun. It’s not something you can just do or stop doing whenever you want. In the future, you might spend a dozen hours a day on the game. Fans will scold you if you make a mistake in a match. If you don’t play well, your prime youth will be wasted on the bench. By then, if you want to go back to school, it won’t be that simple.”
He spoke very seriously, also to make Mu Jiu consider carefully, as it concerned his whole life.
Mu Jiu listened, his expression growing more solemn, but it didn’t stop him from effortlessly rescuing a dying teammate. The teammate kept sending heart emojis to Mu Jiu to show their gratitude.
He could handle such maneuvers even while distracted.
Shi Wen could see that Mu Jiu was intentionally showing off his mechanics to him. He twitched the corner of his mouth in utter speechlessness.
He couldn’t scare him.
A sixteen-year-old youth is at the height of youthful arrogance and impulsiveness, which was why he didn’t dare invite Mu Jiu lightly.
He sighed, logged off the game, and said, “Not playing anymore today. Think about it well, and tell me once you’ve figured it out.”
Mu Jiu was out of contact for three days. It was only when Shi Wen thought he had been discouraged and was going to give up that a message finally arrived. Shi Wen looked at it and waved his phone in front of the manager. “I might have to trouble you to make a trip.”
The manager’s eyes lit up instantly. He clapped his hands and said repeatedly, “No trouble, no trouble at all!”
He immediately booked the earliest flight to Mu Jiu’s hometown, then switched from a plane to a bus, and from a bus to a tricycle.
By the time he arrived, the manager’s pristine suit was a crumpled mess. When he jumped down from the tricycle, a cloud of dust billowed up. The manager hurried to wave it away from his face but still couldn’t help coughing.
He looked up and surveyed his surroundings. There was nothing but grass and dirt. He lowered his head and confirmed the address Mu Jiu had given on his phone again.
Where the hell had he ended up?
Nevertheless, wearing his leather shoes, he trudged through the dirt and arrived at Mu Jiu’s house. He straightened his clothes once more before knocking seriously.
A slender youth opened the door. He was clean-cut and fair. Seeing him, he called toward the house: “Mom, the club manager is here.” Then he opened the door, invited him in to sit, and poured a glass of water on the table.
Mu Jiu’s mother was dressed as a typical rural woman. Sitting before the suit-clad manager, she was somewhat nervous, not knowing where to put her hands.
The manager showed understanding. He had prepared thoroughly; besides the contract, there were also relevant certificates of the club to guarantee they would take good care of Mu Jiu, all to put the parent at ease as much as possible. He had expected to spend a lot of effort talking, but to his surprise, she agreed without much opposition.
At this point, Qiu Tang gave a bitter smile. “Do you know why Mu Jiu’s mother signed so easily?”
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