[FLOTG] Chapter 24: An Unexpected Visitor

Shen Huai ended his live-stream and logged back into his side account. As soon as he logged on, he received a message from a friend.

[ Friend ][ Shattered Snow ]: Congrats.

During this whole 'cheater' debacle, Song Xue-Yang had always stood by him. Song Xue-Yang had posted a Weibo announcement for him, which had been a great help.

Shen Huai said sincerely: [ Luckily, I had you. ]

Song Xue-Yang thought, 'You'll need me after this too.' [ Won't you consider creating a Weibo account? I can help you get verified. ]

Shen Huai knew he did not have a good reputation, and he also didn't want to bother mingling on Weibo with an alternate account. And as for his main account, even if he wanted to claim and verify it, no one would believe him.

[ Maybe later. ] Shen Huai said vaguely. [ Don't you need to train? ]

[ No, we're welcoming a new team member. I've gotta wake up early to go pick him up tomorrow, so I'll be heading to bed soon. ]

[ What character class? ]

[ Assassin. ]

Shen Huai was a little surprised; he had not expected Song Xue-Yang to find a new teammate so quickly. Even though this meant that Maple Moon would no longer have room for him, Shen Huai did not feel dejected. He was truly happy that Song Xue-Yang had managed to find a suitable teammate.

[ It's my turn to congratulate you. ] He said.

Song Xue-Yang knew that Ash Wing had had no plans to join Maple Moon, but still, he was rather disgruntled at how easily Ash Wing congratulated him. [ You're congratulating me without even asking what his skills are like? ]

Somehow, Shen Huai could sense Song Xue-Yang's unhappiness from his question. [ The skills of someone you picked will surely be good. ]

Song Xue-Yang felt like he had been fed a mouthful of honey. [ Hopefully he'll like me. What do you think I should wear to meet him? ]

Shen Huai usually had designers pick out his clothes for him whenever he had to go out, so he really hadn't ever had to worry about what to wear. But since Song Xue-Yang was asking him now, he began thinking about it seriously.

When dealing with questions like this, people would often subconsciously substitute themselves into the situation. Song Xue-Yang posed the question, well aware of this tendency.

After a full five minutes, Shen Huai said, [ Go with a more casual look. Things might be strange if you're too formal. ]

Song Xue-Yang then asked, [ Should I bring some greeting gifts? ]

This question was even harder for Shen Huai to answer. He hardly ever needed to perosnally prepare any gifts for others, but he knew that this kind of courtesy was rather important. [ You could. ]

[ What kind of gifts would be better? ]

This time, Shen Huai took even longer to think. He had almost no experience in gift-giving — usually, his assistant would help him choose the right gifts, some of which he didn't even have to deliver personally. He only had to pay.

Shen Huai really couldn't think of anything, so he could only go online and search "What is a good gift when meeting an online friend for the first time". However, the search results left him red-faced... everyone seemed to view "meeting an online friend" with coloured lenses.

He emphasized by adding "of the same gender" after the words "online friend" and tried again. This time, he found a reasonable-looking result after searching for a good long while, and copied the text and sent it over.

[ An overly expensive gift at the first meeting will likely make the other nervous. Local specialties are a better option. They are less grand and formal but are still polite gifts, and are good for promoting cultural exchange. ]

Song Xue-Yang saw through it with a glance. [ You got this online, didn't you? ]

[ ...... ]

[ I've never seen you type out anything this long other than when you're giving commands in-game. ]

Shen Huai tried his best to salvage his sincerity. [ Bring food. ]

He thought hard about what was tasty and yet easy to bring from Shanghai, and his memory jumped straight to Song Xue-Yang's braised prawns. [ Your braised prawns are good. ]

Song Xue-Yang couldn't help but laugh. They usually only talked about topics revolving around games, so he had never discovered how easy Shen Huai was to fool. With just a few simple words, Shen Huai had slipped up.

Shen Huai still hadn't realised that as "Ash Wing", he shouldn't know anything about Song Xue-Yang's braised prawns. [ Go rest earlier then. You won't be able to make a good impression on your new teammate if you go with dark eye bags. ]

Song Xue-Yang glanced at the time. It was about time for him to "rest", while the shops were still open.

[ Good night. ]

Shen Huai replied with a "good night" as well. He watched as Song Xue-Yang's avatar turn grey, feeling a little empty inside.

Song Xue-Yang had found a new teammate, while he still hadn't found a team to join.

After the "cheater" fiasco, BattleGod definitely wouldn't welcome him. That left team WG, last year's second runner-up; Thunderbolt, the 5th place team; and supper, the 6th place team. The teams in 7th and 8th place were much weaker, and since Shen Huai was aiming to become champion, he needed to join a team with decent overall strength.

After Ash Wing proved his innocence in the live-stream tonight, the streamer who had kicked up a big fuss previously about Ash Wing being a cheater went silent and his Weibo was set to no longer accept comments. However, the storm surrounding the issue did not subside.

A horde of side accounts sprouted like mushrooms after rain to condemn the streamer who had tried to confuse the masses with rumours, but it was clear at a glance that these accounts were part of a water army. Even more interesting was how friendly the netizens were towards these hired posters, to the point where even many main accounts stepped up to quip humourously that "more water is needed so people don't think God Wing is easy to bully"!

Shen Huai had not hired a water army, and he did not have many connections in the esports circle, so he figured Song Xue-Yang must be the one behind it.

Meanwhile, no one was accusing Xiao Zhang of anything. The perpetrator of this farce was still living a peaceful life. Shen Huai checked out Xiao Zhang's Weibo and found that the most recent comment on his page was after his live-stream and had nothing to do with Ash Wing at all.

However, someone on the forums did investigate in secret and exposed Xiao Zhang as the instigator, but this person was swiftly attacked by hordes of "God Xiao fans". Most of them did not like Ash Wing and had no qualms at all at talking bad about him. One of the fans had this to say...

[ Even if he wants to go pro, is there any team which will take him? ]

Each word was like a stab to the heart.

Shen Huai did not plan to leverage the power of the fans to do anything about it though. He had never used his fans to pressure others even while he had still been an actor. In his view, the fans' feelings towards their idol were sincere and unconditional, so pure that they should be carefully nurtured and not used.

Personal grievances should be resolved with personal strength.

See you in the arena, Xiao Zhang.

Shen Huai turned off his phone and went to sleep. He had no idea who he would be seeing when he woke up, but he did not sleep well that night. He woke up in the morning groggy and listless.

After a simple breakfast, he logged into the game. As expected, Song Xue-Yang wasn't online, and his other friends were all indicated as busy.

Shen Huai cleared two large dungeons with <One Leaf Skiff> and company, and then he felt rather hungry. He normally didn't like to eat much in the morning, but when he thought about how Song Xue-Yang was meeting his new teammate now with local specialties in hand, he just felt like eating something.

He began searching online recipes and even downloaded a cooking app. After browsing for a while, his heartfelt conclusion was "I don't want to eat what I can make, and I can't make what I want to eat". In the end, he decided to order for food to be delivered.

********

The guard of the residential district looked warily at the smiling boy in front of him. Judging by his age and the way he dressed, the boy did not look like a bad guy, but his fox-like eyes just did not inspire trust.

Song Xue-Yang showed the guard the black screen of his handphone. "My phone really is dead, otherwise I'd just call him myself. Tell me, would a reporter carry prawns around with him?"

The guard thought about the many reporters who had tried to sneak by him in all manners of ways to ambush Shen Huai over the past few days. Those reporters had all lost to his sharp and keen eyes, and if he really had to point out the difference between this fellow before him and those reporters...

Well, this fellow hadn't tried to bribe him with a red packet!

The guard was a man of integrity, who upheld his professional ethics with pride and scoffed at base interests. After some careful consideration, in order to avoid blocking someone important to the homeowner, he placed a call to the homeowner of #8.

Shen Huai's landline rang less than 15 minutes after he placed his order. When he saw the caller ID to be the number of the residential guard, he said without asking any questions, "Let him in."

The guard, having said nothing at all, hesitated for a moment, then said, "Ok."

He stared after the cheerful figure of Song Xue-Yang and his backpack, still finding something strange about the whole thing, and sternly snapped a photo with his handphone.

He needed to have some evidence on hand just in case something happened.

Before this thought could leave his mind, the sound of brakes came from behind him. "Hello, XX Delivery, for house #8."

"......"

The guard stared at the newcomer. "Hold on, let me catch my breath."

********

After an estimated amount of time, Shen Huai opened the door, still looking down at his phone.

He was dressed in a deep blue housecoat, a pair of cotton slippers adorned with cute monsters on his feet. The edges of his flannel pajama pants rested softly at the tops of his feet, the fine fluff accentuating the beauty of his fair feet.

Song Xue-Yang had long seen him standing in the doorway. From his angle, he could see the perfect curvature of Shen Huai's side profile, as well as the lovely pair of hands holding onto his handphone.

If the sight of Shen Huai had left him awestruck last time, this time, Song Xue-Yang only felt an unprecedented sense of peace and warmth.

A strange feeling crept over him, like some unnoticed thing gradually floating up to the surface. The wave of emotions he felt right now far exceeded his original intention to pull Ash Wing into his team.

He was so happy to finally meet Ash Wing. Now that the other was locked firmly within his sights, he was never going to let go again.

"Are you cold?" he asked softly with a smile.

"Huh?" Shen Huai looked up and froze.

It was like his face had been fixed in time, his features carved onto an exquisitely crafted statue.

Amused, Song Xue-Yang said, "Your phone's about to drop."

Shen Huai quickly tightened his grip on his phone and then looked back up at Song Xue-Yang once more. His stunned and confused look was just like that of a lost elf who had suddenly stumbled upon a long-lost miracle. He looked so overwhelmed that Song Xue-Yang itched to pull him into his arms to comfort him.

"Why are you here?" Shen Huai asked, bewildered.

Song Xue-Yang casually stetched out a hand. "I'm here to pick you up to join the team, Ash Wing."

He was dressed in a plaid shirt with a pure white wool coat over it. Coupled with a pair of white sweatpants and sneakers, his outfit was a great match for the winter.

Many guys preferred black because it lended itself well to a dependable and handsome look, but Song Xue-Yang was just as dapper in white. It was exactly like what Shen Huai had prescribed yesterday — mature and mild, not too formal nor rigid — and his gentle smile was like a spring breeze, making others feel like they were being enveloped by the warmest sunbeam in early winter.

Recalling what he had said yesterday, Shen Huai blushed all the way from his neck to the tips of his ears.

Was it necessary for two men to meet in such a grand and serious manner? The other had even asked him about his preferences beforehand, like a boy cautiously testing the waters with a girl he likes before a date.

Shen Huai couldn't help but peek at Song Xue-Yang's hands. Sure enough, the other was carrying a bag of prawns, obviously freshly bought.

He turned aside, and Song Xue-Yang stepped into his house.

Shen Huai took a step back. "I..."

"You better not deny it." Song Xue-Yang gently shut the door behind him and Shen Huai's heart trembled. "When have you ever seen me do something I wasn't sure about?"

---

Previous: Chapter 23: Clarification
Next: Chapter 25: Second Invitation

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