Desire to Lure [Esports] - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

At three in the morning, Sheng Xu still hadn’t returned to the dorm to sleep. When Yu Wenzhi woke up the next day, Sheng Xu’s bed was already empty.

It’s normal for professional players to have chaotic schedules, especially eighteen or nineteen-year-old boys who can easily pull two or three all-nighters without a hitch. Yu Wenzhi took a glance, then went to wash up and eat.

In the blink of an eye, the first match of the Group Stage arrived.

This year’s MSI was held in S-City. The venue was close to the TEA club, so they didn’t need to stay in hotels and found it convenient to return to the club to train. The Group Stage used a BO1 format, meaning every team played every other team once, with the top four out of twelve advancing to the semifinals.

The teams from wildcard regions weren’t particularly strong. Whether they fielded Ever or Sheng Xu, a victory was guaranteed. Occasionally, Yu Wenzhi would let Sheng Xu take the stage for a trial run.

To be honest, playing against those teams didn’t even require strategy; Sheng Xu’s mindless aggression was more than enough to win. Although the matches weren’t exactly nail-biters, the audience loved it. They adored his “do or die” style. Occasionally, when he swept the field for a Pentakill, the viewership ratings would skyrocket.

With Yu Wenzhi protecting him, Sheng Xu was even more reckless, pushing his personal style to its absolute limit. In contrast, Ever, with his traditional training and steady, cautious playstyle, seemed bland and uninteresting.

Coupled with Sheng Xu’s “bad boy” handsome face and his aura of disdain for the world, he quickly became the new favorite of female fans. More and more light boards bearing his name appeared in the stands. Sometimes, when the audience saw Ever stepping out instead of Sheng Xu, the girls would sigh quite bluntly in disappointment.

This situation was something Yu Wenzhi hadn’t anticipated. He couldn’t change the audience’s preferences, nor could he shut their mouths, so he made an effort to show more concern for Ever.

Xu Rui tried to console them: “Those aren’t the old TEA fans. They’re just teenage girls. The veteran fans still have a sense of propriety.”

While Xu Rui offered comfort, he was also secretly thrilled. A few days ago, someone had edited a clip of Sheng Xu’s highlight plays, paired it with high-energy music, and cut to shots of Sheng Xu’s face in front of his monitor. Within two days, it hit a million views. TEA’s official Weibo gained hundreds of thousands of followers, clearly attracting many young girls from the ACG community.

These fans didn’t care if the teams Sheng Xu played against were weak; as long as he was handsome and a “Bking,” that was enough. Their sudden influx certainly disrupted the existing fan ecosystem of TEA.

Publicly, Ever had to maintain a facade of grace. Regarding the manager’s consolation, he claimed it didn’t matter.

“They’re just young girls. It doesn’t matter if they like me or not, as long as we get results.”

Xu Rui patted his shoulder. “It’s just a trend. It’ll pass quickly.”

Privately, however, Ever vented to Ware: “I’m seriously fed up with those female fans. They aren’t even from the esports scene and don’t understand the game; they just make a fuss over nothing. LoL has never been about individual heroism. If everyone played like him, they’d be dead meat against a strong team.”

Ware understood this logic. “Yeah, but there’s nothing we can do. His personality is a fan-magnet, and since the matches were won, even the Captain can’t say much.”

“I think the Captain doesn’t want to say anything. How many matches has he let Sheng Xu play already?” Ever’s voice was icy, intentionally interpreting things with ill intent.

“Don’t say that. Sheng Xu only played three matches in total, and the coach decides the roster.” Ware felt Ever was becoming too narrow-minded lately. Out of eleven group stage matches, Sheng Xu only played three; Ever was still the clear starter.

“Easy for you to say. Why don’t we find someone to take three of your matches and see how you feel?” Ever snapped back.

Ware looked at him and suddenly lost all desire to communicate. Even as good friends, no one could stand being the target of passive-aggressive attacks every day.

In late May, TEA successfully advanced from the group stage. For the semifinals, TEA drew the European team, V6.

The difficulty spiked, and TEA’s training became even more intense.

Yu Wenzhi woke up at nine in the morning that day. A look at Sheng Xu’s bed revealed it was empty again.

Despite Sheng Xu’s usual defiant and rebellious attitude, Yu Wenzhi guessed his upbringing must have been quite strict. Sheng Xu had a habit of folding his blankets, and he did it neatly a rare sight among modern youth. But right now, Sheng Xu’s blanket was just rolled up, not folded. Yu Wenzhi suspected it was because he didn’t want to wake him by shaking the blanket out.

TEA’s daily schedule required players to wake up at eleven and enter training mode by one in the afternoon. Yu Wenzhi walked over and reached into Sheng Xu’s bed; there was no warmth left at all.

Yu Wenzhi threw on a coat and headed out. On the first floor, he ran into a staff member who greeted him: “Captain Yu, up so early?”

Yu Wenzhi nodded and asked, “Have you seen Sheng Xu?”

“Oh, he’s in the youth trainee room livestreaming. Our manager is quite the exploiter, isn’t he? Making someone stream in the dead of night and early morning every day. He’s about to finish two months’ worth of hours in the first half of this month.”

Yu Wenzhi frowned slightly. Without answering, he walked straight toward the youth trainee room.

When he reached the door, he didn’t go in. Instead, he leaned against the wall, arms crossed, and listened. Sheng Xu’s voice drifted through the crack in the door, still cold, arrogant, and matter-of-fact:

“Not playing on my main. Not playing on the Korean server. Not playing high-rank games. It’s tiring.”

“I like smurfing. It’s easy.”

“Streaming until noon. Training in the afternoon.”

“Sleepy? I’m toughing it out.”

Then came the rhythmic clacking of the keyboard.

Yu Wenzhi listened for a while and closed his eyes. Perhaps he had guessed wrong. Rather than playing matches on stage, Sheng Xu might simply prefer making money through livestreaming. Taking advantage of the recent hype to stream more was indeed a way to make a killing, and the MSI wasn’t technically in Sheng Xu’s contract.

There was nothing to criticize, nothing inherently wrong with it, but he couldn’t help but feel disappointed.

Yu Wenzhi opened his eyes, his expression neutral. He didn’t say hello and left quietly.

After he left, Sheng Xu put down his mouse, rubbed his bloodshot eyes, and downed a gulp of concentrated coffee.

“Can’t help it. I can only stream at these ungodly hours. I don’t want to mess up training; we’re playing V6 soon.”

“Of course I’m going on stage.”

Having said that, he forced himself to stay alert and looked down to send a message:

The house is hard to sell. I’ll pay back one million this month first. I’ll settle the rest in four months.

Fine.

The scrim against Team CA was set for one in the afternoon.

Ware and Maoyi were adjusting their peripherals. Zechuan glanced at Yu Wenzhi: “Captain…”

Lately, the time Sheng Xu and Ever spent in scrims was roughly equal, but it wasn’t a perfect split. Most of the time, Yu Wenzhi decided who played first.

At 12:55, Sheng Xu hadn’t arrived yet. Zechuan meant to ask if they should wait a bit longer.

Yu Wenzhi, however, said calmly, “Ever, create the room.”

Ever blinked, snapped out of it, and immediately replied, “Oh! Okay!”

Three minutes later, just as Sheng Xu returned from the vending machine with a Red Bull, the five-man first team was already assembled. He froze at the door for a second, checked his watch in disbelief, and seeing it wasn’t even 1:00 PM yet, he pursed his lips and sat back in his seat gloomily.

Although the rotation of who played first between him and Ever had varied these past few days, they usually waited for everyone to arrive before deciding. This was the first time they had entered the game before he even got there.

So frustrated he couldn’t even drink his Red Bull, Sheng Xu opened practice mode and began a stress test.

Team CA’s captain, Li Weikai, was a bit of a chatterbox but a good guy. Teams that didn’t make it to MSI should have been on vacation, but because TEA needed to keep their form, he had called up several teammates who had already gone home to act as practice partners.

Li Weikai messaged Yu Wenzhi privately in-game:

WEI: Where’s the time bomb? I heard from Old Xu that you pulled together a ‘League of Avengers’ to beat up TEA just to get him into the team. You’ve really put in the effort, Captain Yu.

Wenzel: I’m touched by your words.

WEI: When are you going to let me see TEA’s new roster system?

Wenzel: See you in the Summer Split.

WEI: Tsk, won’t even show off the secret weapon. We’re brother teams; you have to learn to share.

Wenzel: Understood, brother.

However, throughout the entire afternoon, his “brother” never saw Sheng Xu subbed in. Ever played the whole session. Content, Ever intentionally rubbed his waist and thumped his back after taking off his headset, groaning, “So tired. Team CA really brings the pressure.”

Maoyi: “Of course. Li Weikai isn’t a captain for nothing. Just appreciate that AD shot-calling.”

Ever turned back and smiled. “Well, we still won.”

Zechuan: “Team CA is on vacation and not together; they’re no match for us.”

“Yeah, yeah, I just feel the coordination in that last game was great. We can use it against V6.” Ever finished, glancing triumphantly at Sheng Xu before looking at Yu Wenzhi. “Captain, what do you think?”

Yu Wenzhi had just finished thanking Li Weikai in private chat. Hearing this, he simply gave a fair assessment: “The last game was indeed good.”

Sheng Xu couldn’t stand their laughing and chatting anymore. With a dark face, he ripped off his headset, kicked back his chair, and stormed out of the practice room. The sound alone was enough to tell everyone how furious he was.

Yu Wenzhi glanced over; the glass door of the training room was still swinging.

Maoyi turned around, took a leisurely sip of Coke, and sighed. “The daily explosion. A bit late, but it always arrives.”

But he was used to it and didn’t find it a headache anymore, mostly because the experience of Sheng Xu carrying him in ranked games recently had been quite enjoyable.

Ware had learned to joke: “Good thing our door is sturdy. High-quality stuff. I suggest marketing it to every team with a nineteen-year-old starting AD… Oh, wait, that’s just us.”

Zechuan gave a wry smile. “At least he’s straightforward. He doesn’t hide his emotions.”

Yu Wenzhi chuckled, but just as he was about to speak, he received a call from Coach Zou Kai. Zou Kai was impatient and always feared people would miss his messages, so he would ring twice after sending a WeChat and then hang up.

Yu Wenzhi saw his message:

Wenzhi, let’s talk about the roster issue for the day after tomorrow.

Yu Wenzhi pinched the bridge of his nose and had to go find Zou Kai.

As soon as he entered the room, Zou Kai threw a stack of records at him and tapped the desk. “Look at Sheng Xu’s livestreaming records for the past two weeks. Do you still want to recommend him for the match the day after tomorrow?”

Yu Wenzhi didn’t rush to look. He found a chair and sat down primly, elegantly crossing his legs. He tugged at his sleeves before resting the file on his lap and flipping through it casually.

In truth, he didn’t need to look to know. For Zou Kai to use this to convince him, the hours must be outrageous.

Yu Wenzhi tapped his palm with the file. “I know about this.”

Seeing that he was still unruffled, Zou Kai rubbed his face in frustration. “He holds his own livestreaming contract; he hasn’t signed with the club yet. You insisted on recommending him for the group stage, making him famous, and now he’s turned around to stream for quick cash.”

Yu Wenzhi’s eyelashes lowered slightly. He pushed the records back to Zou Kai and clenched his palm. “Objectively speaking, wanting to make money isn’t a crime. It’s human nature.”

He couldn’t expect everyone to remain indifferent in the face of profit. His expectations for Sheng Xu had been an overstep on his part.

Zou Kai’s eyes widened, unable to believe Yu Wenzhi was still defending Sheng Xu. “Wenzhi, this is the tournament period! If you want to argue this isn’t Sheng Xu’s tournament period because his contract doesn’t cover it, then I have nothing to say.”

Yu Wenzhi’s eardrums hummed from Zou Kai’s loud voice. He gave a helpless smile. “I know. That’s why I won’t push for him anymore. You decide.”

Zou Kai’s mood softened slightly, and his tone lightened. “I have to remind you, because of those three matches, the fans Sheng Xu attracted are under the official Weibo every day begging for him to play, asking for merch, for ‘goods.’ They say they’ll use their financial power to weld Sheng Xu into the starting position. The social media team had to turn off the comments. This can’t possibly have zero impact on Ever. If the semifinals go poorly, you’ll definitely have to go to the higher-ups to reflect and explain.”

Yu Wenzhi nodded repeatedly.

Seeing how unmoved he was, Zou Kai lost his temper too. “You’ve led the team for two and a half years and never once faced criticism. Why bother with all this?”

Yu Wenzhi amused himself by saying, “Life is all about the experience.”

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