"Mo Shen!"
"Oh my god!! It's really Mo Shen!! I didn't dream, did I?!"
"Oh, I'm so dead, I'm so dead!!"
"I have to message my sister, I've actually seen her idol!"
"Mo Shen, can you give me an autograph!"
"Can we take a photo together? I want a picture!!"
Yumo, a phenomenon in the esports industry, was quickly surrounded by fans as soon as he appeared, layers upon layers. Xu, on the other hand, was too excited and tearful to squeeze in, so she grabbed Lin Meng's hand and shook it excitedly, "Senior, aren't we lucky! It's Mo Shen! Oh god!! He's more handsome in person than on TV, and so tall and thin! I'm going to have a nosebleed!"
Lin Meng was being shaken back and forth like a non-stop roly-poly toy, showing a somewhat despondent expression as she glanced sideways at Yumo being adored by fans.
Who knows how long she watched the show there.
At the same time, intuition was pacing outside the crowd, nervously watching Yumo's movements and chewing his nails.
The fact that Mo Shen would come was surprising. She didn't know when he had arrived or how much he had seen.
In fact, the result of the two solo matches wasn't particularly important. Players at Yumo's level wouldn't easily comment on the game, and it's probably to be paid to ask them to comment on the matches. Moreover, to the players of the championship team, anyone's operations were probably considered amateurish.
Intuition was even more worried about whether Mo Shen had seen the scene where he argued with Lin Meng.
But then he thought, even if he saw, so what? He didn't say anything wrong.
Mo Shen was so easily destroyed by a woman in Kars, and his subsequent dispute with Kars was probably related to this. God created women to take care of men in logistics, make tea, cook, and look after children. If they did those things instead of competing in battlefields, they deserved to be ridiculed. The more intuition thought about it, the more he felt that Mo Shen should be on his side. Moreover, Mo Shen's reputation within the circle has always been good, he is righteous and humble, and should not dismantle his platform.
The enthusiastic crowd over there calmed down a bit, dispersed by the E team's manager Zhong Xiang. Intuition took the opportunity to approach and, with a smile, reached out his hand to Mo Shen.
"Mo Shen," he greeted courteously, "It's been a long time."
His attitude towards Mo Shen's conversation was very familiar, and Xu secretly exclaimed, "Truly professional players. I wish I could shake hands with Mo Shen like that."
Lin Meng looked at the two men's socializing like an international summit and snorted, "Birds of a feather."
Mo Shen looked down and paused on the hand extended by intuition, then chuckled, "It has been a while indeed," as he also reached out his hand.
Intuition lit up before his eyes, he was overjoyed, and he quickly reached out to grab Yu Mo's hand. Unexpectedly, Yu Mo only patted his hand in return and then pulled his hand back.
His intuition grasped at thin air, standing awkwardly in place, looking at Yu Mo's turned away figure, he rubbed his palms in frustration and pulled his arm back.
"Um, Mo Shen..." He wanted to say something to lighten the mood, but found his tongue stiff.
Yu Mo ignored him, earnestly watching Lin Meng at the end of the crowd.
"Hey," he smiled, "the little girl over there who won the game, why do you still look unhappy?"
Xu Dan took a sharp breath, and wildly poked Lin Meng with her elbow, "Senior Sister! Senior Sister! Mo Shen seems to be talking to you!!"
Lin Meng: "..."
What's with "the little girl over there"? Do I not have a name?
"Little girl..." She lightly ground her back teeth and muttered under her breath, "I've been an adult for a long time, why am I still called 'little girl'? Look down on me, huh?"
Xu Dan didn't hear clearly: "What?"
At this point, everyone turned to look at them.
Xu Chenggong looked even more excited than Lin Meng herself, as if Yu Mo had called his name: "Hey hey hey, Mo Shen's talking to you!"
"I heard, I'm not deaf." Lin Meng rolled her eyes, lifted her eyes and locked gaze with Yu Mo behind the crowd.
The man stood there, with long hands and feet, broad shoulders and narrow waist, handsome like Apollo in Greek mythology.
His smile was brilliant and gentle, as if no darkness in the world could enter his eyes, clear and serene.
Good looks, good personality, and good at games, everyone would love him, everyone should love him. Who wouldn't love such a Yu Mo?
She was just an ordinary one of the thousands of dust in comparison.
Lin Meng forced a smile.
"Mo Shen," Intuition sensed something was wrong and interjected, "actually, we each won a match just now, the previous match—"
"Mo Shen, I have a question for you," Lin Meng suddenly spoke, cutting off Intuition's words, her voice crisp and decisive, "you used to be a member of the Kars team, right?"
Everyone was puzzled and all turned to look at Yu Mo.
Yu Mo nodded, not getting angry, "Yes."
Lin Meng pointed at Intuition, "This guy said he used to be a member of Kars and even served as your substitute. I just want to know if this is true."
Intuition was furious, "What the hell are you implying!" He regretted saying that immediately, glanced cautiously at Yu Mo, "Mo Shen, I have a contract with Kars, you know that."
Yu Mo narrowed his eyes.
Really still holding a grudge...
"Intuition," he thought for a moment, then said matter-of-factly, "you were with the Rose Gun//Cannon Guild before, right?"
Not expecting Yu Mo to bring up his obscure former team, Intuition was taken aback, "Ah? Yes...yes."
"Rose Gun//Cannon? Have you heard of this team?"
"I haven't heard of it."
"Is it really a team? Mo Shen said it was a guild!"
"A guild, that means it's not a regular operation, right."
The group of small fry underneath began to discuss.
"So I wasn't mistaken. Intuition was indeed poached by Kars from there," Yu Mo said.
But what did that prove?
After the latter half of 2017, the Kars team was no longer a champion team. It lost Yu Mo, transformed from a championship-winning team under the limelight into a declining team.
There was no glory left.
The crowd suddenly felt deceived, letting out mixed murmurs. Xu Chenggong was pushed and whispered in his ear, "Captain, what the heck, bringing in such a cheap imitation as the coach."
"Yeah, how could a player from a real champion team play so poorly."
"And cheating, full of foul language, defaming others, terrible character."
...
Taking advantage of the commotion, Yu Mo motioned to Lin Meng with a crook of his finger.
Lin Meng was stunned, her cheeks slightly puffed out, she turned her head pretending not to see, but her ears turned red.
She was still not feeling too good, sulking for a few seconds, then suddenly heard Xu Dan exclaiming with delight, "Mo, Mo Shen!"
Lin Meng: " ?!"
Yu Mo, hands in his pockets, leaned forward slightly and said with a smile, "I have a few words to explain to your senior sister. Little classmate, would you mind stepping aside for a moment?"
Xu Dan clapped her hands and said, "Sure!"
Lin Meng: "Hey, you can't leave—" She hurriedly reached out to grab Xu Dan, but the girl unexpectedly showed an unparalleled agility at a critical moment, slipping away like a fish.
"Alright, don't waste your energy." Yu Mo put his arm around Lin Meng's neck, pulled her close and smirked, "Come on, come with me."
"I'm not going with you, let go!" Lin Meng's face turned red and she ran around like a little chick, the two of them slipping into an unlocked private room.
After they entered, Yu Mo turned on the lights and closed the door. As soon as he let go, Lin Meng quickly darted behind a gaming chair, using the chair back like a shield, and angrily said, "What are you doing here!"
Yu Mo: "If you don't look for me, can I not look for you?"
Lin Meng: "…"
He's feeling quite wronged?
Yu Mo: "You didn't used to be like this."
Lin Meng: "Like what?"
Yu Mo: "You used to cling to me all the time, about everything."
Lin Meng instantly became irritated, "I didn't!"
Yu Mo: "No?"
Lin Meng: "Of course not!" Her neck and ears turned red, pressing the chair back of the gaming chair, "You tricked me into joining Kars!"
Yu Mo: "So you joined Kars, stayed, pursued a professional career, all because I...tricked you."
Lin Meng: "…Yes."
Yu Mo: "Ah...I didn't expect my rank to be so high."
Lin Meng was stunned, instantly recalling a phrase often seen in Yu Mo's live broadcast—this man's shameless appearance is so handsome!
Just as she was lost in thought, Yu Mo took three quick steps and stood in front of her, pulling the gaming chair apart, breaking the barrier between them, and bending down to embrace the back of her head.
The two of them were once again very close.
The unexpected touch made Lin Meng stiff all over, her eyes widened, the cramped tension making her heart rate soar and her eyelashes tremble.
"Why are you so indifferent to me?" Yu Mo said softly, "I've always been on your side, really."
Lin Meng suddenly choked up, unable to speak.
She was always vulnerable to kindness.
The warmth of Yu Mo's palm penetrated through her hair and skin, reaching her core. Sometimes she felt like a rock, on the verge of melting into molten iron because of this warmth.
She bit her lip, trying hard to sound calm, "Then why did you watch me make a fool of myself for so long?"
Yu Mo: "Wasn't I watching you use your tactics to defeat newbies?"
Lin Meng was half-convinced, "But you also spoke up for that fake!"
Yu Mo: "Did I speak up for him?"
Lin Meng: "You did!"
Yu Mo: "I'm not good with words. Teach me how I should have responded."
Lin Meng: "He's not your substitute."
Lin Meng: "He's a noob."
Lin Meng: "And a shameless straight man."
Wow, a triple slam by Lin Meng.
Yu Mo's eyes revealed a hint of amusement. For some reason, the angrier Lin Meng got, the more he wanted to laugh.
"Alright, I'll remember that," Yu Mo said obediently, "I'll say whatever Lin Meng wants to hear, okay?"
Lin Meng: "…"
It was as if her venting outlet had been stuffed with a piece of marshmallow. After a while, Lin Meng, feeling very frustrated, failed to come up with any substantial complaints, and just ran her hand through her hair, "Ugh, you're so annoying!"
Yu Mo managed to hold back his laughter and said thoughtfully, "I have a feeling that guy looks familiar."
Lin Meng: "He used to get beaten by me at Glorious Dance Club, so how could he not look familiar?"
Yu Mo: " ?!"
With that, he started to remember.
The first place he saw Lin Meng was at a cybercafe called Glorious Dance Club, where Lin Meng had just defeated a group of high school students in a BOD match.
Amongst them was one—
"Do you know why I recorded that?" Lin Meng shook her phone, "Because I knew, a dog can’t stop eating shit."
Yu Mo burst into laughter, "Impressive, my Lin Meng."
Suddenly being praised, Lin Meng couldn’t hold back and turned to look at the host beside her, whispering, "I'm actually very good at it."
"Yeah, very skillful," Yu Mo said. "So, the most skilled LEMON player in the world, would you like to join the Eternal team as a professional player?"
Lin Meng was taken aback.
Going around in circles, they were back to the starting point again.
Yu Mo never easily gave up on her.
Lin Meng lowered her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Is your E-team... still short of people?"
"We're just missing you," Yu Mo's eyes lit up. "You can come at any time, we will always welcome you."
It seemed that they had reached some kind of subtle agreement. The two stopped arguing, and one after the other, walked out of the private room, when Zhong Xiang approached.
"He's using the guise of a professional player to make money from students outside," Zhong Xiang said. "I've reported this to the League, because it concerns your reputation and the reputation of our industry."
"What did the League say?" Yu Mo asked.
"They will probably impose a ban," Zhong Xiang said. "They initially said one year, but..."
"But?"
Zhong Xiang gestured for Yu Mo to come aside, and they began to speak in hushed tones.
"You've signed a trainee?" Yu Mo exclaimed.
"Yes," Zhong Xiang said. "I had Star God and the others assess him, his skills are definitely up to standard, you can trust him."
"Why didn't you get my consent!" Yu Mo's voice rose in anger. "Doesn't the team leader need to approve personnel changes anymore?"
"It's not like that..." Zhong Xiang's forehead was sweating. "This trainee is from the overseas branch, his father is a chairman that our headquarters cooperates with, you get what I mean, so... this kid really wants to play professionally and works hard. Besides, the situation with Doctor is not good, and we still haven't found a substitute for the support position. The headquarters is putting a lot of pressure on us, and the team has a unanimous opinion, so it's a case of ask for forgiveness rather than permission."
Yu Mo's lungs ached with frustration. "Why are you telling me this now?"
"The kid is called Dragon, seems to be good friends with Intuition, just informed the League and spoke well of Intuition. The League's general view is that Intuition is essentially good, just occasionally exaggerates, it's not a big problem. So, instead of a one-year ban, it's been changed to two months."
Yu Mo rubbed his temples.
His temples throbbed with pain.
Just as he had convinced Lin Meng a moment ago, now he was faced with this kind of situation.
"Have you already signed the contract?" He asked in a low voice.
"Yes," Zhong Xiang, still unclear about the situation, tried to reason with him in a conciliatory tone. "Let's make do with what we have. After all, we're short of people, and everyone starts from being weak to becoming strong. We have to give people a chance."
Yu Mo didn't want to talk to him.
He lowered his arm and turned to look at Lin Meng, who was standing against the wall.
The girl's face still bore a cold expression, but her toes tapped the ground haphazardly, inadvertently revealing her good mood.
Yu Mo's heart suddenly ached.
The feeling of helplessness from the past resurfaced, overwhelming him in an instant.
"Lin Meng," he called softly.
The girl raised her head, her gaze as clear as a gentle stream, without any impurities, flowing towards him. "Yes?"
"I..." Yu Mo hesitated.
How was he supposed to say this?
There was simply no way to say it.
How could he give her hope and then extinguish it so quickly?
It was too cruel.
Lin Meng looked at Yu Mo in confusion.
A layer of melancholy covered the man's handsome eyes, his gaze fixed on her face.
Lin Meng sensed the guilt and pity in his eyes.
She thought for a moment and suddenly understood.
"Captain!" She abruptly raised her arm, making a stopping gesture. "Don't say anything!"
Yu Mo was taken aback.
"Don't say anything," Lin Meng repeated, as if trying to adjust her own emotions. "I understand, I really do."
She turned away from the wall, slowly backing away. "You don't have to say it, that's enough."
"Lin Meng..."
"In fact, it's nothing." Lin Meng spoke slowly, as if persuading herself. "Playing professionally or not, it's nothing special." She took a deep breath and angrily cursed, "What's so special about it!"
After speaking, she left the internet cafe without looking back.
You take the blame for her.
Come, throw rotten eggs.