August 22nd, Monday…
At the entrance of the DGE Club, Huang Wang and Team Leader Su prepared to leave. They were heading back to Shanghai. All the team members were present to say their farewells.
“Get along well with your new teammates when you get there. If you play badly, you’ll be a disgrace to DGE.”
“You have to maintain your standards. Don’t let me find out that you’ve become lousy over time. If you do, just prepare to be despised!”
“Come back and play with us more if you have the time.”
Coach Yaling smiled and said, “Keep up the good and healthy habits. You worked so hard over the last few months to get this physique. If you give up so soon, you’ll become chubby again. All of your efforts would be wasted then.”
Zhang Yuan patted Huang Wang on the shoulder. “Tell me if you run into any difficulties. We will help you for sure. Don’t feel embarrassed. No matter where you go, you’ll be a member of our team!”
Huang Wang was so moved that his eyes welled up as he kept nodding.
It was a pity that Boss Pei was not here today. Perhaps he did not want to see Huang Wang and the others saying their goodbyes.
Team Leader Su said, “Rest assured, Manager Zhang. We will put the money from Boss Pei to good use. When we get back to Shanghai, I will have a good discussion with the management of the club and fulfill Boss Pei’s requirements as much as possible, to give Huang Wang and the other team members a better training environment. We’ll take DGE as our benchmark! Then, we welcome you all to come and inspect the premises at any time!”
Zhang Yuan nodded. “Alright, alright. If you need anything, just let me know.”
Just as Team Leader Su started to leave, he recalled something else. He quickly turned back around and said, “That’s right. You won’t be affected by the missing member in Team Two for future mock competitions, would you?”
ZZ Live-Stream’s Performance Competition was already done, and the mock competitions between various clubs would carry on according to the previously planned schedule.
However, Huang Wang was the team leader of DGE’s Team Two after all. Now that he was gone, there would only be four members left. Team Leader Su was worried that the mock competition schedule would be messed up only because he bought a member of DGE over.
Zhang Yuan smiled. “Don’t worry. We already put up a recruitment notice the day before yesterday. Many people have registered to join us. We’ll balance out both teams’ skills again when the time comes. Rest assured that the mock competitions will not be affected.”
Team Leader Su nodded. “That’s good. We’ll make a move first, then. See you!”
As if recalling something suddenly, Jiang Huan quickly caught up with Huang Wang and said, “The new Multifaceted Man has pretty good statistics and will be very useful in the competition. For all we know, it’ll become the hottest hero of the international competition. Spend more time working on it.”
Huang Wang nodded. “Don’t worry—I know.”
Everyone only returned to the club after seeing the taxi that Huang Wang was in disappear into the distance.
“That lad’s very annoying, but why do I feel so sad watching him go?” Zhang Yuan said sorrowfully.
“Don’t worry. The new team member will be here soon. I wonder if he would be able to endure the same training intensity as Huang Wang,” said Old Zhou worriedly.
After all, Huang Wang was the leader of Team Two and the one who trained the most intensely out of everyone in the club. However, any additional training imposed by Coach Yaling would be suited to their body type. She would come up with a custom-made training plan for them.
Even so, the newbie would suffer for sure.
Jiang Huan smiled subtly. “It’s alright. We’ll take good care of the newbie for sure.”
Zhang Yuan exchanged a knowing look with him. “Jiang Huan, do you think you’re so good that you don’t have to worry anymore? Do you think it’s even less likely that Team Two would be able to beat you now that they have a new person on the team?
“Dream on! Once the new person arrives, we will make him the mid-laner in Team One. Little Zhou would be made the midlaner and new leader of Team Two!”
All of the members in Team One and Two were evidently shocked.
“Huh?”
The entire situation looked confusing and impossible to predict now.
Team One had initially been much stronger than Team Two, but their midlaner was now being transferred to Team Two and replaced with a newbie. Both teams were now back at square one.
With Jiang Huan as the commander of Team One, their battle strategy would be slightly better. However, with a newbie as their midlaner, their skills would be slightly poorer. On the other hand, Team Two would be filled with experienced players, but they would need to work more on their teamwork.
This time, no one could say for sure which team would be given additional training.
In particular, Little Zhou was the most confused. Who knew how much additional training he would have to endure as the team leader? He would be tortured!
He did not want to look like a professional boxer like Huang Wang!
Little Zhou quickly said, “Don’t! I don’t know how to lead at all.”
Zhang Yuan sniggered. “You don’t? No worries. You’ll know how after going through a few extra training sessions.”
Everyone: “…”
…
In the evening…
Old Zhou played GOG on his own while watching a live-stream to check on how Huang Wang was doing. All things aside, Huang Wang was quite hardworking. He was live-streaming on his first day in Shanghai.
News that Huang Wang had transferred to another club spread online and on live-streaming platforms.
“Boxer, have you transferred to the H4 Club? Are you playing as a mid-laner with Pang Ling? Is that true?”
“The rumors are spreading like wildfire. Please give us some real updates.”
“If that’s true, doesn’t that mean that H4 has made up for its shortcomings and risen to the skies at lightning speed? This is going to be a new warship!”
“No, the DGE Club’s Team One is the real warship. Weren’t you able to tell during the Performance Competition held over the past few days?”
“DGE is a warship indeed, but they can’t compete. Among the teams that can, H4 is the strongest.”
“It’s too good to be true! They couldn’t win, and so they went to buy over a team member from DGE. Other teams probably never expected to be able to do something like that. What a brilliant move!”
“What are the other teams waiting for? Buy the other members! There are still nine of them!”
“Maybe they haven’t had enough time to react. Let’s keep a close eye on the situation for the next few days. After all, DGE is selling its members at a high price. I heard that H4 paid close to three million yuan for Huang Wang. That’s terrifying.
“H4 was only able to raise so much funds because it had worked so hard to become a veteran club. Would other clubs have such spending power?”
“Three million yuan? I thought it was five million yuan.”
“Stop fighting. It was over a hundred million yuan!”
“Sh*t, esports has really become a competition ground for the wealthy.”
“The professional boxer is going to train with the new hero, Multifaceted Man, today. It looks like he’s getting ready for the competition. That’s excellent—we can see the professional boxer play on the international stage! Just thinking about what the competition would look like makes me feel very excited!”
Old Zhou could not help but feel emotional. Rumors spread fast in the age of the Internet. Yet, there was nothing he could do. It had been no secret to begin with, and the news would be up on the official website soon.
The only thing that was being kept secret was the amount of money they transferred Huang Wang for. Thus, there were all sorts of figures floating around online. Some said a million yuan, some said three million yuan, and some said five million yuan. In short, the number was increasing.
Waiwai had probably spread some fake rumors. After all, the higher Huang Wang’s transfer fee was, the more gamers would discuss him and the more popular Waiwai would become.
However, there was another problem… the other clubs had been shocked.
At first, all the clubs had already thought that DGE’S members could not be bought over because they would be extremely expensive. Now, the rumors were confirming their thoughts.
The poorer clubs had already given up the thought.
The wealthier ones did not dare to fork out millions of yuan at one shot just to buy one person over. Instead, they intended to watch and see the effects of H4’s purchase.
The clubs that wanted to buy members but did not have enough money were in the most awkward position. They had wanted to bluff live-stream platforms at first, with the intention of using the sign-on fee with that live-streaming platform to cover some costs for buying DGE’s members.
In short, H4’s purchase of Huang Wang had given the other clubs a new way out that they had never thought about before.
Were they missing someone?
They could just fork out cash to buy a member from DGE. They had all five roles there and could surely satisfy any demand!
As for the young internet addicts who wanted to make a name for themselves, training at DGE Club would give them a promising future.
So what if they could not compete for now? As long as they held on for long enough, a club would be willing to buy them over for a lot of money!
…
…
August 23rd, Tuesday, in the evening…
Pei Qian sipped his coffee in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe and kept his eye on Huang Wang’s movements. Although Huang Wang had already transferred to another club, the hidden threat had not been completely dealt with.
There was still a chance that the other members would be bought over!
However, H4 and DGE had struck a non-disclosure agreement, and neither party could tell others how much H4 had paid to transfer Huang Wang’s membership. In any case, H4 did not want other clubs to fight for DGE’s members. Thus, there was no reason for them to expose details of the transaction this time either.
Other clubs were interested in buying members as well, but they all thought it would be expensive. So, most of them were standing by and waiting.
After all, Huang Wang was not just a very strong midlaner but also a popular live-streamer who brought a whole fanbase with him. Spending three or four million on transferring his membership would not amount to a loss of any kind.
However, the other members did not seem that talented at live-streaming. They would only act as an ordinary member even if other clubs bought them over. Thus, paying the same price for them did not seem worth it.
Pei Qian was quite satisfied with the current situation, but he knew very well that things might change at any moment.
Once the other clubs started to fight for DGE’s members, Pei Qian would have no choice but to grit his teeth and sell his members. Then, he would restart his club from scratch.
After all, those ten members were so strong… only because they had commenced professional training two months before anyone else. A brand new batch would not dominate as much as they had.
Pei Qian was already prepared for the worst.
Now that he had finished considering DGE’s problems, Pei Qian placed his cell phone back on the table and sipped his coffee as he looked out of the window.
It had been a long time since he had stayed in Fish-Catching Internet Cafe so late and watched the night views from here. Suddenly and for no reason, Pei Qian felt like night time in Jingzhou was a little less quiet and a little more emotional.
He looked at the lamp outside the window and his own silhouette reflected in the glass. Out of nowhere, he began reminiscing on a lot of things.
…
Jingzhou was brightly lit at night.
People were walking to and fro on the streets downtown. For those living in the business district of Jingzhou City, the night had just begun.
A dazzling array of billboards hung above people’s heads, flashing with eye-catching lights. Various beautiful and exquisite ornaments looked tempting under the soft lamplight and through the windows of roadside shops.
Plastic mannequins wore fine and flawless costumes, showing off their graceful figures and seeming to mock the admiring faces of those standing outside but who were afraid to enter.
Young couples stumbled into bars and picked up wine glasses, with the aroma of their wine permeating their hearts.
Restaurants, bars, karaoke lounges… bursts of laughter traveled from the places that brought people joy.
Whether rich or poor, ugly or beautiful; everyone could find a place for their laughter. However, some laughed in satisfaction while others laughed in disappointment.
In a brightly-lit office building, someone was staying behind to work overtime. He stood up, walked over to the water machine, and poured himself a glass of hot water as he looked helplessly at the dark night sky.
In a cheap rental house, someone held a wrench and tape as he struggled to fix a leaking pipe.
In a small internet cafe by the road and within the fog, someone was editing his resume word for word. Once he was done, he accessed recruitment websites and sent his resume into the electronic mailboxes of various companies.
At a food stall by the road, someone was enjoying a few skewers and beers. For some reason, he suddenly burst into tears.
…
Such scenes were visible in cities around the world, but most of the time, the sorrows and joys of people were not interlinked. No one cared about how other people were living. After all, most people were already trying their best to live a good life on their own.
At that moment, the word ‘approved’ appeared on a computer in Fei Huang Workspace.
The next moment, countless accounts received a recommendation for a new video posted by Fei Huang Workspace. Countless fingers clicked their screens, countless eyes watched ‘New Life’, and countless ears listened to Chen Lei’s voice.
…
“A lonely island in everyone’s heart / Maybe we are destined to part
“No matter how close we are / We cannot become one land
“No matter how many mountains I climb or oceans I swim / I would not be able to find the person you used to be
“The neon loneliness of the city / Is an imprint etched in my heart
“The indulgence, luxury, and vicissitudes of life / Cause us to forget ourselves
“I want to go back to the bright, old days / Into the bright and the sunny…”
The melodious singing blended gently with the sound of a guitar.
When the screen lit up, the first thing that caught the audience’s eye was the vast lake. Chen Lei sat in an arc-shaped living room, strumming on his guitar. His back was facing the camera, and he was singing in a low voice.
Genial sunlight shone into the empty living room through the full-length windows that offered a 180-degree view, making viewers feel comfortably warm.
The camera moved through the full-length videos and arrived at the vast lake. After that, it quickly moved upwards to capture the full city-view of Jingzhou. There were many tall buildings in the video, and the aerial shot made Jingzhou look like a huge concrete jungle.
Cars zoomed past, and pedestrians hurried on their ways. Each person was busy with their own affairs, and the entire city never seemed to stop moving.
In Fish-Catching Internet Cafe, Chen Lei strummed on his guitar and sang. By the side of the road, Chen Lei passed by countless pedestrians. At the airport, countless planes took off and landed.
The camera slowly moved upwards, taking another aerial shot.
It shuttled between high-rise buildings and moved further away from the central business district. Slowly, the surroundings became increasingly deserted.
Two unassuming and lifeless eight-story buildings stood alone.
After that, Liang Qingfan’s figure appeared in the frame. He walked towards one of the houses. He began to observe, survey, and sketch the room.
Design drafts began piling up on the table. Liang Qingfan picked up his coffee, but it was so deep in thought that he forgot to take a sip before he put it back down again.
Soon, hardworking construction workers entered the dilapidated buildings and got to work. They blocked the camera’s view so that the audience could not see the dilapidated buildings’ true colors from beginning to end.
As the construction workers worked, the dilapidated and damp-looking buildings changed rapidly.
The details in the design drafts on Liang Qingfan’s table began to look better and better. At last, the buildings were completed.
The audience could finally see the house for what it was. The living room was furnished in the exact same way as the house in which Chen Lei had been playing his guitar before. What had previously been hidden by editing was now revealed as well. The full-length windows proved that Chen Lei had indeed been sitting in this very house from the start.
From the entrance of the neighborhood, Chen Lei walked towards the building with a guitar on his back and a suitcase in tow.
The shot was taken from the exact same angle as when Liang Qingfan had been walking into the building before. In fact, it looked like the re-creation of a certain scene.
Finally, Chen Lei walked into the living room, sat down on the sofa, and picked up his guitar.
The singing finally stopped, and there was a moment of silence.
Once again, Chen Lei gently strummed his guitar. He ended the film with a song that had the same melody as the one at the beginning, but with different lyrics.
“No one is a lonely island / Perhaps we have never parted
“No matter how far we are / The memories never leave
“I would climb countless mountains and swim countless oceans / In order to find the person you used to be
“The neon loneliness of the city / Is proof of our companionship
“The indulgence, luxury, and vicissitudes of life / No longer matter anymore
“Let us go back to the beginning / From the bright and the sunny…”
The end and start scenes blended perfectly, forming a closed loop.
A few lines of words appeared on the screen.
“If you are tired, you might as well slow down and become a sloth.
“Don’t neglect to enjoy the prosperity of the jungle while trying to bear the weight of all of it.
“You deserve to live a better life.”
