SITS CH29

Chapter 29: Care From the Boss

“Alright, I know you guys are worried about me.” Having cracked a joke, Shen Man knew full well everyone was just concerned. He said, “It’s truly nothing major, just needs some time to heal.” He waved his hand. “Stop crowding around me, go do your own things.”

Seeing that his spirits really did seem quite decent, everyone finally dispersed with peace of mind.

Only Xu Zhouye didn’t leave, pulling up a chair to sit beside Shen Man. Shen Man shot him a glance but didn’t chase him away, using his left hand to hold a spoon and unhurriedly sip his porridge.

The porridge was at the perfect temperature, mixed with refreshing green vegetables—exactly the flavor Shen Man liked.

The accompanying side dishes were likely prepared with his injury in mind, not daring to make them too spicy. Yet fearing he’d have no appetite, they added just a touch of spice for flavor. It was delicious, and Shen Man sluggishly finished most of it.

“Ge,” Xu Zhouye’s tone carried a hint of hesitation, “are you really okay?”

Shen Man said, “What could be wrong?”

“Will you have nightmares?” Xu Zhouye asked him. “This afternoon… did you sleep well?”

Slept pretty well—Shen Man very much wanted to answer candidly, but the word “slept” had barely reached his lips when Xu Zhouye tacked on: “Chinese people don’t lie to Chinese people.”

Shen Man: “…Can we stop using that phrase so casually?”

Xu Zhouye: “Then don’t lie to me.”

“Didn’t sleep well.” Finishing his food, Shen Man wiped his mouth. “Hand hurts terribly.”

Shen Man said it casually, yet Xu Zhouye felt a tremor in his chest upon hearing it. He somewhat regretted not charging forward before Shen Man did; otherwise, Shen Man wouldn’t have injured his hand. “If only I had gone up first…”

“Don’t.” Shen Man refused.

Xu Zhouye was taken aback: “Ah?”

Shen Man smiled slyly: “If you got hurt, I wouldn’t sleep well either. Better if it’s me.”

He hadn’t damaged any tendons or bones anyway. It was just a flesh wound that would heal in two months. If Xu Zhouye had suffered a critical injury, he would never forgive himself for the rest of his life.

Xu Zhouye read the meaning behind Shen Man’s expression and let out a sigh: “True.”

“Did you cook the porridge?” Shen Man asked.

“No, it was Auntie…” Xu Zhouye said.

“Chinese people don’t lie to Chinese people,” Shen Man said.

Xu Zhouye: “…Fine, I cooked it.”

The two exchanged a look and both couldn’t help laughing.

Xu Zhouye raised a hand in solemn oath: “I promise not to casually deploy nuclear weapons anymore.”

Shen Man said, “If you don’t, I won’t.”

As they were interacting, Zhao Rui chimed in from the side with a sour tone: “Yo, yo, yo! ‘If you don’t, I won’t~’ Could you two pay a little attention to public decency? There are other people in this room, you know.”

Shen Man shot him a glance: “Did your girlfriend change her perfume?”

Zhao Rui: “Ah? How did you know?”

Shen Man: “So you really did get a girlfriend.”

Zhao Rui: “…” Shen Man, you truly are a cunning villain, actually tricking me into admitting it!!

Zhao Rui dating wasn’t terrifying; what was terrifying was that it wasn’t an online relationship. But that was someone else’s business; Shen Man couldn’t be bothered to pry.

Although the hand injury was a pure accident, it still stirred up a massive storm.

The very next day, iron security bars were installed on the windows of every single room in the base. The number of security guards was doubled, and even the rarely seen team boss suddenly made an appearance.

“Man-er, my darling heart!” Few people knew that ACE’s team boss was a gorgeous woman standing over 1.7 meters tall. Wearing ten-centimeter heels, she towered over most of the players at the base. Carrying a suitcase, she walked with a steady, commanding stride up to Shen Man and slammed it down with a heavy thud: “I brought you some good stuff!”

Shen Man lowered his eyes to look at the suitcase: “What is it?”

The boss let out a hearty laugh, lifting the lid with a flourish to reveal a suitcase full of—tactical protective gear.

From bulletproof vests to tactical goggles, it had everything.

Shen Man: “…”

The boss said, “How about it~”

Shen Man pondered for a moment and said, “I have a question.”

The boss said, “What question?”

Shen Man said, “What reason do I need to find to convince a criminal to wait for me to put all this on before they attack?”

The boss: “Uh…”

Shen Man tugged at the corner of his lips: “Haven’t seen you in days, Boss, and you’re still as humorous as ever.”

The boss laughed, “Haha, haven’t seen you in days, Man-er, and you’re still as thoughtful as ever.”

Although she was ACE’s boss, aside from dropping by for a few days to sign contracts, she was a ghost for the rest of the year. According to rumors, her family was in real estate, and running an esports team was purely a hobby. She rarely interfered with the team’s operations or development. In her own words: leave professional matters to the professionals.

“Lunch is on me today.” Having failed at gift-giving, the boss quickly perked up, waving a hand expansively. “Booked a Japanese restaurant over on Baiyun Road, everyone’s invited! I’m gonna go talk some business with the manager first, we’ll head over together in a bit.”

Quite a few people came to visit Shen Man today. No sooner had the boss left than several more arrived.

It was Zhang Chaoyun and his crew.

“Shen Man, how’s the hand?” Carrying a box of fruit, Zhang Chaoyun felt a chill run through his teeth at the sight of Shen Man’s heavily bandaged arm.

“Didn’t hit anything critical,” Shen Man said.

Zhang Chaoyun said, “That’s good. Fucking hell, looking at Weibo every day is enough to drive someone insane. If you didn’t know better, you’d think you’d already been cremated…”

It was true. Even though the league officials had dispelled the rumors, netizens always marched to the beat of their own drum; some people even believed rumors that he had already been hauled off to the crematorium.

Zhang Chaoyun set the fruit basket down: “Gonna hit the restroom.”

Shen Man: “Go ahead.”

Xu Zhouye happened to be nearby. Spotting tangerines in the fruit basket, he asked Shen Man if he wanted one and peeled it for him.

“Sure.” Shen Man actually quite liked tangerines.

Just as Zhang Chaoyun entered the restroom, someone else arrived outside. Merely standing at the doorway without entering, he drew everyone’s gaze—it was Qin Yixing.

Qin Yixing was also carrying a fruit basket. The scene was uncannily similar.

Shen Man looked at him, and he looked at Shen Man. This moment was truly a historic meeting. Everyone in the base held their breath, waiting to see what Shen Man and Qin Yixing would say.

Only to see Shen Man’s expression turn grave as he parted his thin lips and squeezed out two words: “So sour.”

The tangerines Zhang Chaoyun bought were way too sour.

Xu Zhouye asked, “Is it sour?” He popped a segment into his own mouth: “Wow, it really is sour…”

Were sweet tangerines truly that hard to buy? Or had their base been cursed by the vengeful spirit of sour tangerines?

Standing outside the door expecting Shen Man to have some sort of reaction, Qin Yixing: “…”

Forget it, Qin Yixing thought. The most important lesson he learned at ACE was to never try and argue with Shen Man, or he’d literally die of rage. Sighing, he walked inside.

“How’s the hand?” Same question. Qin Yixing set the fruit basket down casually.

“Alright,” Shen Man said. “How did the security guard let you in?” He glanced at the fruit basket Qin Yixing brought, then shot a look at Xu Zhouye.

Catching the hint instantly, Xu Zhouye reached in and dug one out: “Let’s try another one.”

Qin Yixing: “…” What do you mean, ‘how did the security guard let me in’?

“I know you still resent me,” Qin Yixing said. “But I was just worried about you.”

Hearing that first sentence, Xu Zhouye’s peeling hand paused for a second before he smoothly fed a segment of tangerine to Shen Man’s lips as if nothing happened.

Shen Man opened his mouth and ate it. He was satisfied. Even though Qin Yixing as a person was subpar, his tangerines were at least sweeter than Zhang Chaoyun’s. He said, “Thanks for the fruit basket.”

“Also, I really don’t resent you.” Shen Man had always felt Qin Yixing was a very strange person. He couldn’t fathom what went on inside the guy’s head. Even if Qin Yixing had feelings for him, they were completely innocent, and he had already blocked and deleted him on WeChat anyway—

Qin Yixing’s mouth twitched: “I left ACE, and you truly never blamed me?”

Shen Man: “Me, blame you? The person who should truly blame you is standing right behind you.”

Qin Yixing thought to himself, Who could possibly be behind me? The next second, a hand clamped down heavily onto his shoulder. Turning his head, he met the gloomy, darkened face of ACE’s boss.

The boss said, “Yo, if it isn’t our precious little Qin. Long time no see.”

Qin Yixing: “…”

The boss said, “What brings you to our ACE for a visit today?”

Qin Yixing said faintly, “Boss, your passive-aggressive skills are still top-tier.”

The boss laughed heartily, slapping Qin Yixing’s back several times with heavy thuds. Having practiced Sanda (Chinese kickboxing), her strength was genuinely no joke. Smacking Qin Yixing’s back resoundingly, she said: “Just a joke! Don’t take it to heart! Come visit more often! ACE welcomes you!!”

Qin Yixing: “…” Saying ‘welcome’ with your mouth, while your hands look ready to slap me to death.

You couldn’t blame the boss for being so bitter. Back then, if TKR had actually poached Shen Man alongside Qin Yixing, ACE would have disbanded on the spot. Ironically, the boss and Qin Yixing had been the closest of friends prior to that.

Shen Man didn’t participate in their bickering, still happily eating the tangerines Xu Zhouye fed him. After injuring his hand, he constantly felt the bizarre illusion of having turned into a zoo monkey—everyone wanted to drop by, take a look, and check if he was still alive.

Zhang Chaoyun emerged from the restroom just then and couldn’t help laughing at the scene.

Qin Yixing looked resigned: “As long as your hand is fine. I’ll be going now.”

“Don’t go! Stay for lunch before you leave,” the boss grabbed him. “We didn’t even give you a proper send-off when you left, we have to make it up to you today.”

Actually, Shen Man was right. In all of ACE, the only person who truly had the right to blame Qin Yixing was the boss.

Before Qin Yixing left, she and Qin Yixing had been the closest. But feeling guilty, Qin Yixing waited until the free agency period was almost over before suddenly dropping the bomb, catching the boss completely off guard. It was no wonder the boss harbored such deep resentment and remained depressed for a very long time.

But if someone wanted to leave, you couldn’t stop them.

The boss had once asked Shen Man in private why he hadn’t been poached by TKR alongside Qin Yixing.

Shen Man’s answer was crisp and clear: “Because I’m not as desperate for money as Qin Yixing.”

A person without desires is invulnerable.

The boss gave a bitter smile: “True. Have to understand him. People strive for higher places, water flows to lower places…”

Shen Man thought to himself, This doesn’t sound like the boss, being this reasonable and understanding.

Sure enough, the very next sentence was: “Understand him my ass! That son of a bitch! Just wait till I hire a hundred internet trolls to curse him out under his Weibo every single day!”

Shen Man couldn’t help laughing.

As for whether the boss actually hired those trolls in the end, Shen Man didn’t know. Regardless, the matter passed, and nobody brought it up again.

Back to the present.

The boss said, “Does our God Nine want to grab lunch with us?” Qin Yixing’s in-game ID was nine. Fans who liked him called him God Nine; anti-fans who hated him called him Ghost Nine.

Qin Yixing: “Boss…”

“Haha, just joking,” the boss said. “The meal is three thousand a head. Didn’t reserve a seat for you.”

Pulling out her phone, she made a call: “Security, see the guest out. Don’t let just anyone in from now on.”

Qin Yixing: “…” After all this time, the boss still holds grudges with a familiar flair.

It made him feel a bit nostalgic, and a bit dejected.

Although the outside world always claimed the pressure in Shen Man’s team was immense and the atmosphere toxic, out of all the teams he had been on, ACE actually had the best team environment. Rather than saying Shen Man had a bad temper, it was more like a lethargic reluctance to deal with people, rather than any malicious aggressiveness.

While the two conversed, Shen Man merely watched from the sidelines. Right until Qin Yixing was escorted out by security, his expression didn’t change in the slightest—his emotional fluctuation was lesser than when he bit into that sour tangerine.

However, Qin Yixing’s trip wasn’t entirely fruitless. He now knew Shen Man’s hand truly didn’t have any major issues; otherwise, the atmosphere wouldn’t be this relaxed.

At the very least, his greatest fear hadn’t come to pass. Qin Yixing smiled.

After seeing Qin Yixing out, the boss looked a bit lonely. Pulling up a chair to sit beside Shen Man, she said, “Man-ah, did I delay your career?”

Ever since Qin Yixing left, there had always been a prevalent narrative:

If Shen Man had gone to TKR with him, the powerhouse duo would have highly likely hoisted the World Championship trophy once more.

And Shen Man wouldn’t have wasted several years wallowing in a slumping ACE.

Shen Man said, “If you feel like you delayed me…”

The boss: “?”

Shen Man said, “You can add a bit more to my salary when we sign next year’s contract.”

The boss instantly perked up, saying, “Haha, look at the time! Let’s go get lunch.”

Shen Man: “Tch.”

Raising his salary was impossible; any more raises and ACE would go bankrupt. One Shen Man was bad enough, but this year Xu Zhouye had popped up out of nowhere. The mere thought of the price she’d have to offer Xu Zhouye next year filled the boss with a mixture of agony and joy. Agony over not knowing how much she’d have to pay him next year, and joy over basically getting him for free this year.

The boss looked toward Xu Zhouye, who was currently obediently feeding Shen Man tangerines.

This kid looked bright and sunny, carrying a completely different vibe from Shen Man’s dark, gloomy disposition. Yet watching them interact, one couldn’t help but feel the atmosphere between them was remarkably harmonious.

Was this the legendary ‘opposites attract’?

Stroking her chin, the boss thought to herself: The manager truly dug up a treasure this time.

Lunch was the three-thousand-yuan-a-head Japanese cuisine the boss had promised.

Unlike Qin Yixing, Zhang Chaoyun successfully mooched off the meal budget and snuck into the private room.

Shen Man wasn’t particularly fond of sashimi. He only ate shrimp and didn’t much care for fish. Coupled with the inconvenience of his injured right hand, he barely touched his chopsticks.

The others, however, ate to their hearts’ content. The boss had a bold personality and a formidable alcohol tolerance; after finishing the Japanese food, she planned to switch venues and keep the party going.

Xu Zhouye’s personality meshed perfectly with the boss. Despite having met only a handful of times, the two rapidly closed the distance during this meal and became fast friends.

Fearing alcohol might affect his wound, Shen Man didn’t drink, and nobody pressured him to.

When it was time to switch venues, feeling a bit tired, he mentioned he wanted to head back early to rest.

Xu Zhouye had originally wanted to escort him back, but Zhang Chaoyun beat him to the punch. Zhang Chaoyun said he was leaving anyway and it was on his way, telling them to stay and have fun. With that, he hailed a cab with Shen Man and left.

Watching Xu Zhouye’s eyes linger on the departing taxi, the boss roared with laughter: “What’s wrong with you, kid? Can’t walk when Shen Man leaves, huh? Let me warn you, don’t go falling for Shen Man. That kid has a cold heart and cold feelings. If you really fall for him, you’re doomed.”

The words were half-joking, half-serious. At first glance, it sounded like banter, but upon closer thought, it felt like the solemn advice of a senior.

Xu Zhouye originally wanted to ask, Are there really that many people who like Shen Man? But before the words left his mouth, he laughed at himself. Wasn’t the answer to that question obvious? If there weren’t many people who liked Shen Man, his hand wouldn’t have gotten injured in the first place.

Not only were there many who liked him, their affection even reached the point of madness—wanting to break into his room, stand by his bed, and endlessly murmur their twisted adoration to him.

And Shen Man? He couldn’t even be bothered to spare a fearful glance, as indifferent as a mere bystander.

Thinking of this, Xu Zhouye was amused by himself. What amused him was that upon realizing this fact, not only did he not find any flaw in Shen Man, he actually found him all the more captivating.

“What are you laughing at out of nowhere?” The boss was somewhat baffled by Xu Zhouye’s chuckle.

Xu Zhouye said, “Nothing, just remembered something funny.”

The boss asked, “How funny?”

Xu Zhouye thought for a moment: “About as funny as the fact that the expression Qin Yixing managed to draw out of Shen Man wasn’t even as big as the one caused by Zhang Chaoyun’s sour tangerines…”

Hearing this, the boss burst into uproarious laughter, laughing until tears welled in her eyes. She said, “Kid, you have a venomous tongue. Very much to my liking.”

Xu Zhouye smiled too. He said, “Boss, the contract price is non-negotiable.”

The boss: “…” These youngsters are terrifyingly smart.