SITS CH68

Chapter 68: Sentimental Since Ancient Times

The moment the Spring Split wrapped up, intensive preparations for the Masters Cup kicked into full gear.

Hosted domestically this year, the Masters Cup spared them a great deal of travel hassle. With no need to fly out early to adjust to a new environment, booking flights and hotels ahead of time was more than enough.

The coach scheduled several scrim blocks against TKR. Initially worried TKR might decline, he was pleasantly surprised when they agreed without hesitation. Having lost twice to UN, TKR had failed to even qualify for the Masters Cup this year, earning relentless backlash from their fans.

Their club owner had spent a fortune buying inner only to see zero results. Currently nursing a bellyful of pent-up frustration, he agreed immediately upon hearing ACE wanted scrims.

Shen Man had met TKR’s owner once before: a burly man standing over 1.8 meters tall, decked out in a thick gold chain, a massive watch, and full-sleeve tattoos, looking rather intimidating. Back when he tried to poach Shen Man, he had invited him out for dinner; afraid of getting beaten up after turning him down, Shen Man simply hadn’t shown up.

Everyone had assumed inner joining TKR would usher in their strongest season yet, only for Luo Zhile to emerge out of nowhere and knock their results even lower than last year’s.

Anyone in his shoes would be fuming.

They scrimmed for several days with wins and losses traded back and forth, though overall, ACE held roughly a sixty-forty edge over TKR.

Tempered by the World Championship, Xu Zhouye’s growth was unmistakable. His grasp of discipline and micro-details had sharpened tremendously; ward placements, avoiding minion waves he shouldn’t take, and every minor rule written into the team playbook were all executed cleanly.

Xu Zhouye was barely nineteen. His future truly looked boundless.

Meanwhile, Shen Man maintained his usual rock-solid consistency. Aside from his hand injury last year, his form had scarcely ever dipped; even during ACE’s darkest losing streaks, nobody could ever fault Shen Man’s gameplay.

By now, the wound on Shen Man’s forearm had healed completely, leaving behind only a jagged scar recording that harrowing ordeal.

Shen Man paid it no mind, yet the sight made Xu Zhouye’s heart ache, prompting him to scour everywhere for scar-removal remedies. Shen Man didn’t refuse, letting him fuss as much as he pleased.

It served as a sweet little pastime between the two of them.

Lately, for reasons unknown, Zhao Rui’s form had taken a noticeable dip. As his bot-lane partner, Shen Man naturally spotted it at a single glance.

“What’s going on with you?” Rather than calling him out in front of the roster, Shen Man pulled Zhao Rui aside privately.

Lowering his head, Zhao Rui stayed silent.

“Are you fighting with your boyfriend again?” Shen Man hit the nail straight on the head.

Zhao Rui: “…”

Silence meant confirmation.

There was a crucial reason clubs discouraged players from dating: being young men in their prime, emotional turbulence easily derailed competitive focus. A famously darkly comedic incident involved a pro player whose girlfriend dumped him on the eve of a Grand Final, resulting in a 0-3 sweep; a closer look afterward revealed the ex-girlfriend was actually super close with the opposing roster.

Netizens had joked that planting a twist that deep without going into espionage was a criminal waste of talent.

“Spill it. What happened?” Shen Man lit a cigarette.

Zhao Rui shook his head without uttering a word.

Shen Man warned: “Zhao Rui, your relationship issues already cost us once before. The Masters Cup is coming up. If you let your love life tank your gameplay again, don’t blame me for turning ruthless.”

His words spared zero mercy. Tears welled instantly in Zhao Rui’s eyes, his shoulders hitching as he began sobbing miserably.

Shen Man wore a look of pure helplessness.

He had delivered that warning in his capacity as team captain, yet watching Zhao Rui cry so pitifully, he could only let out a sigh and soften his tone: “Alright, stop crying. I didn’t mean to snap at you. What actually happened?”

Zhao Rui choked out: “M-My relationship with him… got found out by his family.”

Shen Man: “…”

Zhao Rui sniffled: “He hasn’t contacted me in an entire week.”

In romance, mutual bickering and push-and-pull weren’t the worst part; the true nightmare was an abrupt, cliff-edge ending.

Fine one second, complete strangers the next. Such a blow hit anyone hard, especially since Meng Qizhi appeared to be Zhao Rui’s first genuine love.

Zhao Rui whispered: “Does… does this mean we’re broken up?”

Shen Man didn’t know what to say. Did it count? Probably. Nowadays, going a full week with zero contact was practically an automatic breakup.

Mentioning family reminded Shen Man of Xu Zhouye’s graceful mother.

Unlike Shen Man, who stood completely alone in the world, Xu Zhouye clearly hailed from a happy, tight-knit extended family. If a family like that discovered he was dating another man…

Shen Man suspected his and Xu Zhouye’s situation might fare no better than Zhao Rui’s; in fact, it could turn out even worse, considering they played on the exact same team.

Feeling a sudden wave of irritation, Shen Man asked: “Don’t you know where he lives?”

Zhao Rui wiped his nose: “He has way too many properties, and nobody’s at the place we usually go to…”

Such was the downside of dating someone wealthy: when heartbreak struck, you couldn’t even track them down.

Shen Man asked: “So what are you planning to do now?”

Weeping profusely, Zhao Rui wailed, “I don’t know! I miss him so much. Does he not want me anymore?”

Silently handing him a tissue, Shen Man watched quietly as he cried.

After crying for a while, Zhao Rui wore himself out and mumbled: “Captain, why aren’t you comforting me at all?”

Shen Man deadpanned: “That costs extra.”

Zhao Rui: “…”

Shen Man relented: “Just kidding. Want me to go look for him with you?”

Zhao Rui shook his head: “No need, I’ve already gone over several times.” Deflating like a defeated rooster, he sighed, “When someone stops liking you, chasing after them won’t change anything.”

Logically, he understood the truth; yet logic was one thing, and emotion was another.

Looking at Zhao Rui’s red-rimmed eyes, Shen Man pondered for a moment: “His name is Meng Qizhi, right? Are you sure that’s his real name?”

Zhao Rui hesitated: “Not sure.”

Shen Man: “?”

Zhao Rui admitted weakly: “Honestly, it feels like I don’t actually know him that well…”

Having dated for an entire year only for Zhao Rui to claim he didn’t really know him nearly made Shen Man laugh out of sheer exasperation: “The most familiar stranger, huh?”

Zhao Rui sighed feebly: “I’m serious, I really don’t know much about him. He always came to find me. I don’t even know where his actual home is, only that his family is loaded. Still, I’m not poor either! I didn’t get together with him for his money.”

Shen Man asked: “Then what did you get together with him for?”

Zhao Rui answered with righteous conviction: “For his face.”

Shen Man: “.”

Hardly any nobler than being after his money.

“Forget it, just let me mope for a few days,” Zhao Rui said. “I’ll pull myself together as fast as I can…”

Skeptical as Shen Man felt, he couldn’t meddle in someone else’s romance, simply nodding: “Adjust as quickly as possible.” Fortunately, they were only playing scrims right now, with plenty of time left before the Masters Cup.

Zhao Rui nodded.

“What’s wrong with Zhao Rui?” Having noticed Zhao Rui’s off-kilter mood as well, Xu Zhouye asked the moment Shen Man returned.

“Heartbroken,” Shen Man said.

Xu Zhouye blinked: “Huh? He got dumped?”

Shen Man cast him a sidelong glance: “Why couldn’t he be the one who dumped someone else?”

Xu Zhouye reasoned: “If he did the dumping, shouldn’t he be celebrating?”

Shen Man: “…” You’re frighteningly sharp sometimes.

Shen Man briefly explained Zhao Rui’s predicament. Xu Zhouye mentioned that if Meng Qizhi was indeed his real name, he could ask around to look into his background.

“Go ahead,” Shen Man agreed. “Let’s see what kind of big shot he actually is.”

True to his track record of six online relationships in a single year—failing every in-person meetup yet diving straight back into dating—Zhao Rui took another week to bounce back, miraculously recovering his form. At the very least, he stopped committing the egregious scrim blunders that had alarmed the entire roster the week before.

Meanwhile, Xu Zhouye dug up leads, reporting that Meng Qizhi was indeed his real name, though it might have been better if it had been fake.

“What do you mean?” Shen Man found the phrasing odd.

“Put simply, he’s the sole heir of an extraordinarily wealthy family,” Xu Zhouye explained. “I won’t go into the exact background, just know it’s the kind of tier ordinary people can never reach.”

Shen Man: “So he was only playing around with Zhao Rui?”

Xu Zhouye replied: “It’s been two full weeks now, right? And he still hasn’t shown his face?”

The implication was crystal clear: if he wasn’t just playing around, what else could it be?

Shen Man fell silent.

“Even if he wanted to be serious, his family would never agree,” Xu Zhouye added. “An arm can never out-wrestle a thigh.”

Hearing those words, Shen Man desperately wanted to ask: His family won’t agree, so would yours? Yet he sensed that once that question left his lips, their relationship might never return to what it was.

Meng Qizhi was Zhao Rui’s first love, and wasn’t Xu Zhouye Shen Man’s first love too?

Changing the subject nonchalantly, Shen Man asked what they were having for dinner.

Xu Zhouye noticed a faint flicker of something unusual in Shen Man’s expression, though he didn’t overthink it, grinning cheerfully as he asked what Shen Man craved and suggesting making dumplings since they hadn’t had them in ages.

Shen Man smiled: “Sounds great.”

“Morning, Captain!” Full of energy, Zhao Rui greeted Shen Man as he returned from his morning jog with Xu Zhouye.

Seeing his lively spirits, Shen Man remarked: “Looking sharp today. Fully recovered?”

“Pretty much,” Zhao Rui said. “It’s been almost two weeks… can’t stay curled under the covers crying forever.”

Shen Man thought to himself that as long as he had moved on, everything was fine.

“Have the overseas teams arrived yet?” Zhao Rui asked.

With the Masters Cup fast approaching, international squads were arriving early to acclimate to the venue, just as ACE had done previously.

“Probably. Why?” Shen Man asked.

Zhao Rui suggested: “Aren’t we on pretty good terms with WM? Let’s treat them to dinner.”

Shen Man raised an eyebrow: “You still keep in touch with them?”

Zhao Rui grinned: “We chat every now and then.”

Impressive indeed; Zhao Rui’s networking had expanded internationally.

Shen Man nodded: “Sure, we’ll see when the time comes.” Pausing briefly, he asked, “How are things with you and Meng Qizhi?”

“How are things?” Scratching his head, Zhao Rui blinked. “Aren’t we broken up?”

Shen Man: “Broken up for real?”

Zhao Rui: “Of course! It’s been three weeks. If we aren’t broken up, am I supposed to cling onto him shamelessly?” Besides, clinging required an actual target; the guy had vanished like a ghost, leaving nobody to cling to anyway.

Since they had officially split, there was no need to share what Xu Zhouye had uncovered about Meng Qizhi’s background. Weighing his options, Shen Man saw no reason to dampen Zhao Rui’s mood again and kept quiet.

The Masters Cup kicked off in mid-May, spanning over twenty days of competition.

Since it was hosted domestically, arriving two or three days early to check out the stage and attend the opening ceremony was plenty.

Everyone had assumed the saga between Zhao Rui and Meng Qizhi was dead and buried, until one evening when a security guard abruptly informed Zhao Rui that someone was waiting outside to see him.

Mid-duo queue with Shen Man, Zhao Rui pulled off one earcup: “Who is it?”

The guard replied: “Don’t recognize him. Tall guy, long hair, super good-looking.”

Tall, long hair, super good-looking. The moment that description dropped, the entire training room went dead silent.

Although Zhao Rui hadn’t aired his business publicly, everyone had deduced he’d hit a rough patch in his love life and likely broken up. Nobody expected the ex to show up unannounced at the front gates.

Shen Man glanced over at Zhao Rui. Having expected him to look either thrilled or heartbroken, Shen Man watched Zhao Rui’s expression remain completely unmoved: “Too busy. Tell him to leave.”

Unsure what was going on, the guard nodded and stepped out.

Shen Man asked: “You’re not going out to look?”

Baffled, Zhao Rui blinked: “Look at what?”

Shen Man: “…”

Zhao Rui shrugged: “We’re already broken up. Two eyes and one nose, what’s there to look at?” Slipping his headset back on, he muttered, “This new Hero is so clunky to play, good thing the tournament isn’t on this patch.”

The nonchalance on Zhao Rui’s face didn’t look forced at all. Noticing Shen Man’s stare, he asked, “Captain, why are you staring at me?”

Opening his mouth as if to speak, Shen Man ultimately swallowed his words, shifting his gaze onto Xu Zhouye seated beside him.

In the middle of solo queue, Xu Zhouye pulled off his headset and stared right back.

The two exchanged a silent conversation through eye contact.

Xu Zhouye: Ge, why are you looking at me like that? You aren’t thinking of dumping me, are you?

Shen Man: .

Xu Zhouye: ?

Shen Man: …

Xu Zhouye: !!

Wait a second! Zhao Rui ran into a scumbag, not him! Why was Shen Man looking at him like he was a scumbag? How deeply wronged he felt!

A few minutes later, the dismissed guard returned, reporting that the visitor refused to leave and insisted on waiting until Zhao Rui came out.

Waving a hand grandly, Zhao Rui said: “Let him wait then. I’ll finish this game first.”

Once the match concluded, Zhao Rui strolled outside in cheerful spirits.

Watching his retreating back, everyone in the training room burned with fierce curiosity.

“Do you guys think Zhao Rui will come back crying?” Liu Shishi whispered. “When he was in that slump a couple weeks ago, I kept catching him crouching alone in the corner of the garden sobbing.”

Shen Man hadn’t even known about that.

“I bumped into him a few times too,” Xu Xiaochong chimed in. “Didn’t even dare walk over and bother him.”

Everyone sighed sympathetically.

Suffering an abrupt, cold-turkey breakup had clearly dealt Zhao Rui a heavy blow, even if he acted completely unbothered right now. Nobody could tell whether his breezy demeanor was genuine or an act.

“What should we do?” Liu Shishi asked. “Want to sneak outside, vent some anger for Zhao Rui, and beat that guy up?”

Rolling up his sleeves, Xu Xiaochong added: “I know which spots near the base don’t have security cameras.”

Right as they were plotting, Zhao Rui walked back inside.

None of them expected him back so quickly, leaving everyone momentarily flustered.

Judging solely by his expression, nothing seemed amiss; Zhao Rui looked completely relaxed, blinking at them: “Why are you all staring at me?”

“Rui, are you alright?” Liu Shishi asked cautiously.

“Totally fine,” Zhao Rui said. “I cleared things up with him, and he left.”

Shen Man asked: “He came to get back together?”

Zhao Rui nodded: “Mm.”

Shen Man: “Did you agree?”

Zhao Rui scoffed: “Of course not! Agree so he can dump me a second time? A person can’t step into the same river twice…”

Shen Man deadpanned: “Speak human.”

Switching honestly to plain speech, Zhao Rui admitted: “He had scruffy stubble all over his face today. Didn’t look good at all, hard to feel any sparks.”

Everyone: “…”

Zhao Rui insisted: “Pure honesty.”

Sometimes, a devoted romantic and a heartless player were separated by a hair’s breadth. After grieving for so many days, the moment Zhao Rui laid eyes on Meng Qizhi today, he abruptly realized he wasn’t nearly as helpless without him as he had thought. God knew what Meng Qizhi had been dealing with; looking thoroughly disheveled with unshaven stubble across his jaw, he had stood silently for ages when Zhao Rui asked if he had anything to explain, before finally shaking his head and squeezing out a single word: “Sorry.”

Fortunately, Zhao Rui hadn’t harbored any expectations to begin with, sparing him from disappointment. He replied calmly: “Since there’s nothing to explain, let’s leave it at that. I’m heading back inside.”

Meng Qizhi caught his arm.

Turning his head back, Zhao Rui asked: “What?”

Meng Qizhi murmured: “Zhao Rui, I’ve… settled things with my family. Can you give me another chance?”

Thinking it over for a beat, Zhao Rui answered: “Probably not.” He sized Meng Qizhi up and down, wearing a distinctly critical gaze.

Growing visibly uncomfortable under that scrutinizing stare, Meng Qizhi asked: “Really?”

“Really.” Zhao Rui spoke with complete, earnest sincerity. “I thought seeing you again after so long would make me super happy, yet… that heart-fluttering feeling is just gone.”

Perhaps only words spoken from the absolute bottom of the heart could shatter a person’s defenses in an instant, piercing like a sharp blade straight into the softest, most unguarded spot.

The moment Zhao Rui uttered those words, every drop of color drained from Meng Qizhi’s face, leaving him as pale as paper.

A fleeting pang of ache pricked Zhao Rui’s chest, yet he masked it effortlessly behind an indifferent expression without letting Meng Qizhi catch a single hint: “I need to head back in. Can you let go?”

Meng Qizhi released his grip.

Turning around, Zhao Rui walked straight back inside without looking back once.

Only later did Zhao Rui learn that Meng Qizhi had stood motionless outside the base gates for a very, very long time that night.

Spring nights always carried a faint undertone of melancholy.

The fragrance of blossoms lingered in the air, drifting subtly through the cool evening breeze.

In a subdued mood, Shen Man sat out on the balcony smoking.

Suspended in the pitch-black sky was a tiny cloud, floating like a cute charm above the equally small garden below. With barely any wind, the cloud drifted slowly, eventually coming to rest directly overhead above Shen Man.

The sliding door pulled open gently and clicked shut again. Shen Man didn’t turn his head; he already knew who it was.

Wrapped suddenly in an embrace from behind, a solid chest radiating scorching warmth pressed against his back while soft hair nuzzled vigorously against his neck like an affectionate big cat. The big cat murmured: “Ge, why are you in a bad mood?”

Shen Man asked: “How can you tell I’m in a bad mood?”

Sniffing Shen Man’s hair, the big cat replied: “I can smell it.”

Shen Man let out a quiet laugh.

“Did Zhao Rui’s breakup put you in a gloomy mood?” Xu Zhouye asked softly.

Yes, and also no. Shen Man murmured: “I’m fine.”

“Liar,” Xu Zhouye protested. “You’re super upset.”

Holding the cigarette between his lips, Shen Man mumbled indistinctly that nothing was wrong.

Reaching forward, Xu Zhouye plucked the cigarette straight from Shen Man’s mouth and stubbed it out in the nearby ashtray: “I can tell.”

A surge of inexplicable frustration welled up inside Shen Man’s chest. Naturally, none of it was Xu Zhouye’s fault; perhaps witnessing Zhao Rui’s messy breakup had simply forced him to confront inevitable realities lurking on the horizon. Shen Man murmured: “Getting a bit sleepy.”

Xu Zhouye knitted his brows.

Shen Man asked: “Want to go to sleep?”

Xu Zhouye refused: “Not sleeping unless you tell me what’s bothering you.”

Holding Shen Man locked tightly in his arms, refusing to budge no matter how Shen Man pushed against him, Xu Zhouye held firm until Shen Man finally gave up after a brief standoff, letting out a soft sigh.

Xu Zhouye murmured: “Ge, what’s wrong?”

Leaning back into his embrace and tilting his head up to look at Xu Zhouye, Shen Man’s dark eyes shimmered in the dim night light like a midnight sea scattered with starlight. He asked quietly: “Xu Zhouye, how long will you stay by my side?”

Xu Zhouye froze.

Shen Man continued softly: “One year, or two…” Either way, it wouldn’t be forever.

Xu Zhouye let out a quiet, breathless laugh, finally understanding why Shen Man had been feeling down.

To form bonds meant accepting the risk of shedding tears.

Shen Man had grown accustomed to solitude long ago. Xu Zhouye had barged straight into his life, becoming the Little Prince he waited for every day; yet sooner or later, the Little Prince would inevitably return to his own world.

What would become of the fox left behind?

Would he remain standing in that wheat field, waiting endlessly?

A sudden wave of sorrow washed over Xu Zhouye as he pictured how many solitary clouds Shen Man must have stared at from this quiet balcony before Xu Zhouye ever entered his life.

Back then, Shen Man likely waited for no one; without expectation, there could be no disappointment.

“I’ll stay with you,” Xu Zhouye said, “until the day you no longer need me.”

Shen Man: “…”

Xu Zhouye continued: “If you ever stop wanting me, then I’ll leave.” His voice trembled slightly as if choked with emotion.

Shen Man blinked: “Really?”

Xu Zhouye snapped: “Of course that’s a lie!” The mere thought of Shen Man dumping him instantly ignited a blaze of fury in his chest, making him growl low in his throat: “Shen Man, I was fucking lying to you! If you ever dare stop wanting me, I’ll tie you up, lock you inside a bedroom, and fuck you every single day…”

Shen Man: “…”

Xu Zhouye growled on: “…until I fuck you so thoroughly you can never leave me again!”

Saying nothing aloud, Shen Man thought silently to himself: Honestly, we’re practically at that point already.