CH 17.2

Interest (2) – unedited

Linking back to his performance in the first few minutes of the game, Xue Lan could only think of one answer—

The reason why Duan Wenzheng avoided the battlefield was to stay and snipe Deng Ruiqiu.

Through a few gunshots, he distinguished and calculated Deng Ruiqiu’s position.

Xue Lan thought, if anyone were to tell him this, he would think that it was impossible. But if it was Duan Wenzheng—

It was as if nothing was impossible.

Xue Lan opened his mouth. In the end, after a long time, he could only ask, “But, weren’t you feeling sad earlier?”

“Sad?” Duan Wenzheng raised his eyebrows. “I was just thinking…about what to eat later.”

“…”

“That said.” As Duan Wenzheng opened another snack and ate as if nobody was present, he asked, “You ran so fast before…were you angry?”

Xue Lan shook his head. How could he be angry over a trivial matter?

Receiving a denial, Duan Wenzheng asked again, “Then…why did you not call me in the morning? You didn’t want to go with me?”

“It’s not that.” Xue Lan quickly shook his head. “The criticisms I get aren’t that good, I’m afraid…it will affect you.”

Duan Wenzheng’s eyes glimmered. He lifted his brows. “You think I’ll be scared of these?”

“That’s not what I mean.” Xue Lan shook his head like a rattle drum. “And yesterday…thank you for yesterday.”

“Yesterday?” Duan Wenzheng reclined on the bench, pretending not to know what he meant. “Thank me for accepting your invite?”

“…” Xue Lan furiously shook his head with a blush.

“Then?”

“It’s…the account, thanks for helping me reach level 50.”

“Oh.” Duan Wenzheng studied the little friend sitting in a well-behaved manner. “Levelling up an account is a lot of work, you should carefully think of what you can thank me with.”

Xue Lan nodded. “Of course.”

Duan Wenzheng enjoyed the rare idle afternoon. His attention settled on that lovely figure beside him again.

This child was not that much smaller than him. With a soft and plump baby face, if he did not reveal his age, everyone would think he was fifteen or sixteen years old.

And maybe because he also felt the same way, he was poker-faced on a daily basis, different from his appearance in the live stream, and also different from the lovely blushing face in front of him, like this moment as the flush on his cheeks have yet to disappear…

Xue Lan dipped his head as he snacked in a well-behaved manner, but suddenly something poked his cheek…

Startled, he looked up. It wasn’t anything else that was on his cheek—it was Duan Wenzheng’s forefinger.

Xue Lan was baffled. He stopped moving, foolishly staring at the person beside him.

It was soft and smooth under the finger. Xue Lan fixed his gaze on Duan Wenzheng in surprise like a frightened fawn. To top it off, since he had not finished chewing the snack, his cheeks were bulging…and Duan Wenzheng’s finger remained on his cheek. As if touching a switch, a blush gradually spread on his face.

The corners of Duan Wenzheng’s lips raised. “This little child, why do you like to blush?”

As if to observe his blushing face, his body leaned in as he spoke. Following his movement, Xue Lan held his breath.

“What are you doing?”

Xue Lan came to himself from the sudden voice and flicked that finger away. The moment he raised his head, however, he saw the person standing not far from them was none other than Wen Yan.

Xue Lan gulped. He stood up like a student who had done something wrong and was caught by the teacher.

If Duan Wenzheng was disappointed because of the competition, then the person who ought to console him was Wen Yan! He must make a warm ambient for the two to spend some time alone!

“I suddenly remembered I still have to go…”

Before Xue Lan could finish his words, he was pulled to sit down by the person beside him, an arm casually hanging on his shoulder.

“Chatting…among fellow students,” Duan Wenzheng said. He raised his eyebrows and looked at Wen Yan standing at one side. “Special coach Wen, is there any problem?”

Xue Lan was pressed down by Duan Wenzheng. For a moment, he was bewildered about what kind of situation this was.

“Esports is a very pure place, however far you want to walk you have to rely on your own strength.” Wen Yan’s voice was cold and indifferent. “I don’t care what your goal is coming to the training camp, it’s fine if your original intention is not out of passion. However, I hope you will refrain from disturbing other people, especially…people who have nothing to do with your interest.”

Wen Yan’s words were aimed at Duan Wenzheng, but when Xue Lan heard them his ears perked up—

He could not have remembered wrong. In the original work, after “Xue Lan” confessed at the training camp, Wen Yan expressed these words in anger. But what did he mean by “people who have nothing to with your interests”? And most importantly, Wen Yan did not aim his words at him but at the person beside him…Duan Wenzheng.

“‘Nothing to do with my interests’?” Duan Wenzheng narrowed his eyes. He fixed his eyes on Wen Yan and asked, “Special coach Wen, please advise me, what are you referring to by… ‘my interests’?”

A frigid expression dominated Wen Yan’s face as if he didn’t know what to say.

But Duan Wenzheng’s languid expression persisted:

“The ‘interest’ you speak of—could it be referring to me liking men?”

Xue Lan was startled upon hearing that. He gaped as he turned his head to look at the person who still had his arm around his shoulders.