The Doctor said I Have to be A Kept Man - Chapter 8

The second day after Chi Ruanfan joined Chaoge, the club officially announced his arrival.

@ChaogeClubV: Welcome @Chaoge-ChiFou (Chi Ruanfan) to the Chaoge Club. Let us join hands to create a new future.

Chi Ruanfan used his newly verified Weibo account to retweet the announcement, adding a concise yet powerful caption: “I am here.”

Although Team Chaoge’s performance had been lackluster this season, their status as a powerhouse remained. As soon as the announcement was posted, it triggered a massive wave of discussion across the community.

“This retweet somehow feels incredibly arrogant.”

“Who is Chi Fou? I have never heard of this player in the pro circuit.”

“Looks like a total rookie; the account was just registered today. Is Chaoge crazy? Instead of buying top-tier players, they signed a newcomer?”

“They didn’t even say which position he plays. Is Chaoge trying to pull a smoke screen?”

While outside speculations flew wildly, they did not affect Chi Ruanfan in the slightest. His daily schedule was packed: fitness training with Jin Zhu and team synergy drills during the day, followed by endless replays and practice at night.

The night before the match, at 11:00 PM, Coach Flying Cloud entered the training room to chase the “internet addicts” off to bed.

“We leave for the venue tomorrow at noon. Everyone, get a good night’s sleep tonight!”

Guzi, a veteran, stared at his screen without looking back. “I’ll sleep right after this game.” Ever since Chi Ruanfan joined, Guzi had seen a new hope for the World Championship in this rookie, and his long-lost fighting spirit had been reignited.

Flying Cloud understood his feelings. He turned to Chi Ruanfan, his tone softening slightly. “Xiao Ruan, playing on the stage is no different from playing in the training room. Don’t be nervous; get some rest tonight.”

Chi Ruanfan laughed inwardly. He had experienced these scenes countless times in his previous life; he truly wasn’t nervous at all. He nodded politely. “Mn, I’m not nervous.”

“The elevator is here,” Jin Zhu reminded him from the side.

The players filed into the elevator. Once inside, Chi Ruanfan noticed Jin Zhu was still standing outside. He asked in confusion, “You’re not going back to the dorm?”

“You guys go first. I’m heading down to the cafeteria,” Jin Zhu said calmly.

As the elevator doors closed, Chi Ruanfan was still puzzled. “Strange, doesn’t Jin Zhu usually skip late-night snacks?”

Lin Huo and Lu Lu looked at each other, their faces blank. “How do you know that? We’ve been on his team for so long and never noticed.”

Chi Ruanfan coughed lightly and lectured them like an old hand. “That is because you aren’t attentive enough. You need to observe more.”

Returning to his room, Chi Ruanfan changed into his pajamas. Passing his desk, he remembered the “streaming” he had mentioned to Meng Dong. He leaned over to turn on his computer, wanting to see how far the streaming industry had developed in this timeline.

He casually clicked on the top-ranked streaming platform.

Knock, knock, knock. A knock sounded at the door.

Chi Ruanfan opened it to find Jin Zhu standing there with a glass of warm milk. The milk was still steaming, clearly freshly prepared.

“You are…” Chi Ruanfan was surprised. Had Jin Zhu gone to the cafeteria just for this?

Chi Ruanfan stepped aside to let him in, but Jin Zhu didn’t enter. He simply handed the milk over and said softly, “Milk helps soothe the nerves. Have a good sleep.”

“Are you also afraid I’ll be too nervous to sleep?” Chi Ruanfan laughed as he took it.

At that moment, a strange, high-pitched, and cloyingly sweet voice suddenly drifted from inside the room:

“Thank you to our Number One VIP for the rain of roses! Mwah~ I am so happy! Let me dance for everyone! Music, cue~!”

Cheerful dance music instantly filled the room. Chi Ruanfan felt his scalp go numb. He turned stiffly and saw a “cross-dressing mogul” in a short skirt on his computer screen, blowing frantic kisses at the camera.

In front of him, the look in Jin Zhu’s eyes had shifted from concern to something extremely bizarre and complex.

A scene of total social death!

“Bamboo! It is not what you think! Let me explain!”

Chi Ruanfan scrambled back to his desk, set down the milk, and grabbed his mouse to mute the sound and hide the webpage. Having done this, he turned back awkwardly, only to see that Jin Zhu had already turned to leave.

No, my image cannot be ruined like this!

Chi Ruanfan lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Jin Zhu’s waist from behind. Using his full strength, he forcibly “carried” the man back into the room.

“You… let go.” Jin Zhu was startled by the sudden physical intimacy. His arms were pinned by Chi Ruanfan’s grip, and he could only manage a forced calm.

“I will let go once I explain!” Chi Ruanfan kicked the door shut, looking aggrieved. “I wanted to find game streams, but I didn’t know the platform’s homepage would recommend this kind of stuff. It has nothing to do with me!”

He stared into Jin Zhu’s eyes and asked seriously, “Understand?”

Jin Zhu avoided his gaze and looked at the screen. “At this hour, there are no matches.”

“It’s not a match; it’s a personal stream.” Chi Ruanfan pulled Jin Zhu down to sit and gave a live demonstration. This time he was careful, his hand speed at its peak as he typed “Infinite Tower Defense” into the search bar.

The page jumped to show a vast number of Infinite Tower Defense streams. Chi Ruanfan clicked the top one, which showed a mediocre Melee Mage.

“A match at the 3,000-point level actually has this many viewers,” Jin Zhu noted with some surprise.

“Skill is sometimes secondary,” Chi Ruanfan explained. “Don’t be fooled by how niche game streaming is now; it will be the backbone of the industry in the future. Bamboo, how about we cooperate to build a game streaming platform? I’ll provide the ideas and capital, and you provide the professional team.”

His experience from his previous life told him this was a massive gold mine. And the Jin Group’s background in the internet industry made them the perfect partner.

Jin Zhu thought for a moment, then picked up the warm milk and handed it back to him. “It’s a possibility. But first, drink your milk and get some rest tonight.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll listen to you.” Chi Ruanfan took it helplessly.

As Jin Zhu reached the door, he suddenly stopped and looked back. “Xiao Ruan about that stream, why did you have to explain it to me?”

Chi Ruanfan froze, his tongue licking a trace of milk from his lip. He said naturally, “For my image, of course! It is normal to want to clear up a misunderstanding, right?”

Jin Zhu stared at the corner of his mouth for a second and replied softly, “Indeed.” He then turned and closed the door.

The next day at noon, Chi Ruanfan put on his custom-made team uniform and boarded the bus with his teammates for the Panda Team’s home stadium.

In the lounge, Lin Huo was incredibly nervous, hovering around Chi Ruanfan. “Brother Chi, are you nervous? Brother Chi, are your hands shaking?”

After being demolished by him in training for days, the teammates had all switched to calling him “Brother Chi.” Aside from the coach, the only one who still called him “Xiao Ruan” was Jin Zhu.

Jin Zhu felt Chi Ruanfan’s gaze and reached out to lightly press his arm. His voice was gentle. “Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

Chi Ruanfan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Fine, since everyone thinks I’m nervous, I’ll just “be nervous.”

“Players, please enter the stage!”

Accompanied by the commentary of Emerald and Cabbage, Chi Ruanfan carried his gear onto the stage.

When the big screen showed a close-up of Chi Ruanfan, the entire Panda Team stadium went silent for a moment, followed by a deafening roar of surprise. The chat in the official stream exploded instantly:

“This is an esports player? With these looks, he could debut as an idol on the spot!”

“This beauty is killing me! Sorry Captain Jin, I am jumping ship for a second!”

“The visual peak of Chaoge this mid-jungle duo is so handsome it hurts!”

The pick-and-ban phase began. Coach Flying Cloud walked up behind Chi Ruanfan. “Giving you the Melee Mage, how is that?”

Chi Ruanfan smiled confidently. “I am fine with anything.”

Lin Huo shouted excitedly, “Brother Chi got his main; this game is in the bag!”

Chi Ruanfan glanced at him. “Just don’t feed, and I’ll carry us to victory.”

The coaches of both sides stepped up to shake hands. The Panda Team coach lowered his voice and sneered, “Flying Cloud, is this your new guy? Since you can’t win matches, you’re trying to use a player’s looks to attract fans?”

Flying Cloud smiled slightly, his eyes sharp. “Then you had better watch closely.”

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