Chapter 48

“Continue what?”

Rong Yi tried to maintain his composure as he looked up at Xiao Yin, who was half-leaning over him.

Xiao Yin replied, “What do you think?”

Rong Yi avoided his gaze, grabbing at the sheets beneath him, his hands restless. “Let’s sleep.”

Xiao Yin stared at him for a few seconds without moving.

Rong Yi pulled the blanket up to cover his face.

Anything would be fine, really. It wasn’t a big deal. The temptation was right in front of him, and he felt a bit embarrassed about not taking the initiative. After all, he was an adult now and had some sense of dignity.

Xiao Yin paused for a moment and then said, “So, continue sleeping?”

Rong Yi moved the blanket aside to reveal his eyes and looked at Xiao Yin. Xiao Yin hadn’t moved; he tilted his head slightly, looking at Rong Yi with a gaze that wasn’t as cold and calm as usual. Instead, it held a slight warmth and a faint, teasing smile.

He seemed to be coaxing him a bit.

Since everything was decided based on Rong Yi’s wishes, Xiao Yin didn’t have many thoughts of his own; he just wanted to see Rong Yi’s reaction.

Rong Yi pulled the blanket back up, his voice muffled under it. “Mm-hmm, let’s sleep.”

He couldn’t handle any more of that look.

Who knew what Xiao Yin had gone through in the past five years? He used to be like a block of wood. Now, although still somewhat wooden, it felt like the core of that wood had turned dark.

Xiao Yin lay down, pulling out a corner of the blanket wrapped around Rong Yi and snuggling closer. His nose brushed against Rong Yi’s neck, his breath warm and steady.

It was both ticklish and hot, filling Rong Yi with a comfortable warmth in the overly air-conditioned room.

After a while, Rong Yi, hearing no further movement from Xiao Yin, took out his phone to check today’s schedule.

Today’s schedule was actually quite relaxed. After the post match analysis in the morning, he had nothing else planned for the afternoon. Today was a directed practice day for Hydralisk and Grey Cat; he only needed to check in briefly, and the rest of the time could be spent on micro-practice.

Training had been slightly relaxed in recent days, partly because the second round of the regular season was about to end.

For the third round of placement matches, VIT had no worries. They had already secured their spot in the national winter champion finals.

Everyone’s performance was far stronger than Rong Yi had anticipated. He thought VIT’s coordination would be lacking, expecting them to suffer some losses in the regular season, but that wasn’t necessarily the case now.

However, it was also very likely that the short training period during the regular season meant some teams were still adapting. Generally speaking, there would be a significant strength gap between teams in the regular season and the playoffs. It wasn’t time to celebrate early just yet.

Rong Yi scrolled through his messages, thinking quietly.

The person behind him shifted slightly and spoke in a low voice, “Aren’t we supposed to be sleeping? Why are you still on your phone?”

Rong Yi snapped out of his thoughts, stuffed his phone back under his pillow, and tried to sleep. “I’m here, I’m trying to sleep.”

He tried for a while but to no avail.

Rong Yi was a player who believed in maintaining his health. Since turning twenty, he had realized that going back to sleep wasn’t as easy. Once he was fully awake, it was hard to fall back asleep no matter how much time he had.

Rong Yi tried hard to sleep, thinking he had been asleep for a long time, but when he opened his eyes, only two minutes had passed.

Xiao Yin was still awake, obviously.

Rong Yi put his phone down and suddenly felt Xiao Yin move. Xiao Yin adjusted his position and whispered in his ear, “I’ll help you.”

Helping someone sleep?

Rong Yi quickly found out that it was indeed possible.

“Just pretend I’m not here. Relax and sleep,” Xiao Yin said.

Rong Yi closed his eyes, trying to ignore the hand and focus only on the sensations Xiao Yin was giving him.

From the outside, it seemed as if both were just lying under the blanket, peaceful and quiet. But Rong Yi’s eyes were closed, his face slightly flushed, and his breathing was a bit erratic with suppressed tension.

Xiao Yin, on the other hand, had his eyes open, looking awake and calm.

After some time passed.

Rong Yi let out a low sigh, and drowsiness washed over him like a tide, making him feel languid.

He had wanted to get up and say something, but Xiao Yin gently whispered in his ear, “Just sleep.”

“Just like before, if you want to sleep, don’t worry about me.”

Rong Yi thought to himself that he never used to just sleep and ignore Xiao Yin.

But Xiao Yin’s words seemed to have a magical effect, and Rong Yi fell into a deep sleep with peace of mind.

Because he knew that with Xiao Yin, everything would be taken care of and indulged.

Of course, he also heard Xiao Yin getting up and pulling out some tissues.

Shame didn’t matter anymore.

He fell asleep.

When Rong Yi woke up again, it was exactly nine o’clock, and there was no one beside him. Xiao Yin had obviously not stayed until the agreed time and had left early.

By the bedside, he found his favorite soya milk and steamed buns waiting for him.

The buns were tofu-filled and cabbage-filled.

Steady and convenient, bringing comfort.

Rong Yi thought, having a boyfriend was indeed convenient.

After washing up, Rong Yi took his steamed buns and soya milk downstairs.

He felt completely refreshed after a good sleep.

There was still some time before nine o’clock, so Rong Yi started the post match analysis early. Everyone else was already gathered in the training room, busy with their own training.

The data team hadn’t yet completed their analysis. Rong Yi ate his steamed buns while checking messages.

On the other side, Xiao Yin had moved especially fast, having already uploaded his portion twenty minutes earlier.

Rong Yi downloaded and printed it, then began working on his own part.

“Is Yin-Ge not here today?” Hydralisk asked, looking drowsy as he had just woken up. He turned on the big projector in the training room, projecting last night’s game, trying to wake himself up as he spoke. “Is he doing business or sponsorship?”

“He’s on a magazine cover shoot with a main feature interview. It’s a collaboration between the league organizers and a fashion magazine, so he couldn’t turn it down. We can watch the livestream later,” Wu Daogu replied. He seemed quite knowledgeable about Xiao Yin’s schedule. Xiao Yin usually avoided ordinary events, leaving some of the operations team tasks to him. “He’s already finished his part. Once the captain and I finish the post match analysis, we’ll do a Q&A session.”

Everyone responded affirmatively and got into position.

Rong Yi also shifted into work mode.

Today, having rested well, his mind was particularly sharp. Several times, Wu Daogu couldn’t keep up with his thoughts. After the post match analysis, a few of them re-entered the game simulation and managed to secure the top spots even in Xiao Yin’s absence.

Time flew by, and soon it was afternoon.

Xiao Yin still hadn’t returned, indicating that the magazine interview was taking longer than expected.

Rong Yi got up from beside Hydralisk, stretched his shoulders, and noticed it was already five o’clock. He said, “Let’s take a break. We’ll have extra practice tonight when Yin gets back.”

“Alright, Captain, you should hurry Yin-Ge along. We can’t wait for him,” Hydralisk responded. Today’s team analysis was very fruitful, and both Hydralisk and Grey Cat were in high spirits, eagerly heading off to ask the auntie what was for dinner.

Dinner was usually at seven-thirty, and since it took the auntie some time to cook, Rong Yi went to the fridge and grabbed a box of coffee-flavored biscuit sticks. Holding his phone, he walked towards the living room.

He started messaging Xiao Yin as he walked.

[Easy]: “What time do you think you’ll be back?”

Just after he sent the message, the “typing” indicator appeared on Xiao Yin’s side. Rong Yi quickly sent another message, “The team is waiting for you to come back for team practice.”

The “typing” indicator stopped for a moment.

Then, Xiao Yin’s reply popped up.

[Yin]: “Still in the middle of the shoot. If I can’t make it back by eight, we’ll reschedule for tomorrow. I’ll handle the livestream tonight.”

It was rare for their schedules to not align. If there was a conflict between time and training, they would usually just adjust their other business plans.

Rong Yi sent a small “OK” emoji.

Then, another message from Xiao Yin came through.

[Yin] (voice message): “I thought you were thinking about me.”

Calm and indifferent.

Rong Yi didn’t know how to respond. He instinctively put his phone back in his pocket, but after a second, he took it out again and thought for a moment.

He replied, “Of course, I’m thinking about you.”

After sending the message, he put his phone away and chuckled to himself.

Things really were different now.

It almost felt like they were dating.

The auntie finished cooking, and Rong Yi went back to tell everyone about the schedule changes.

After dinner, Xiao Yin still hadn’t returned. The others obediently started their streams to complete their required hours and ranked matches.

VIT’s ratio of business time to training time was always 8:2. The partnerships and endorsements they secured were always high quality and well-paid; they didn’t take just any offer.

Rong Yi didn’t have any partnerships this week. They received five or six offers, Xiao Yin turned down two, and left three for Rong Yi to review before handing them off to operations to negotiate.

After reviewing, Rong Yi turned down two more, leaving just one project for operations to continue negotiating.

With everyone else streaming, Rong Yi had no activities scheduled, so he sat in the living room with snacks, watching other teams’ matches.

They had already analyzed everything they could from the regular season. Rong Yi watched for three hours, until it was eleven at night. Feeling a bit tired, he got up to stretch and checked his phone.

Lin Yi had sent him a message.

Seeing over twenty unread messages, Rong Yi was puzzled and quickly opened them.

[Commentator Lin Yi]: “Holy crap!!”

Twenty-something messages of “Holy crap.”

Rong Yi replied, “What? What happened?”

[Commentator Lin Yi]: “You don’t know yet?”

Lin Yi typed: “Today’s magazine interview with Yin!!!! It’s blowing up everywhere! Are you guys at VIT in another dimension?”

He quickly sent a few trending news headlines.

[Commentator Lin Yi]: “[Yin Magazine Spring Photoshoot]”

[Commentator Lin Yi]: “[Yin Love Bite]”

Seeing these sensational headlines, Rong Yi knew something was up.

He clicked on the news links.

It turned out that today, fans had taken some behind-the-scenes photos and shared them online for everyone to admire. However, some Sherlock Holmes spotted a faint red mark on Xiao Yin’s neck.

It could be a mosquito bite, but it looked more like a love bite.

This caused an immediate uproar.

Xiao Yin was dressed in a black shirt today, exuding a mature businessman’s vibe, with a cool and aloof demeanor. The mark on his neck added a touch of sensuality, sparking endless speculation.

The trending news was rapidly escalating, with everyone fervently debating whether or not Yin had a love bite.

At this point, people suddenly remembered that Yin’s personal life was a mystery. Everyone desperately wanted to know about his private life, but nothing had ever been uncovered.

He was the only one in the esports scene with such a well-guarded private life. No one knew if he had a girlfriend or a wife.

“Holy crap! This must be it! Yin is dating someone? Or has he always had a partner and it’s just coming out now?”

“Yin has always protected his family and close ones really well! Damn, I’m so curious!”

“Who is the sister-in-law that he’s been protecting so well!! Help! This gossip is keeping me up at night!”

“How many people are going to be heartbroken over this? Damn, I can’t even imagine.”

Rong Yi looked at the photos, zooming in and trying to recall.

It seemed like his doing.

They had done it twice yesterday. The second time, towards the end, he was sitting in Xiao Yin’s lap, with Yin holding his shoulders. Dizzy from the up-and-down motion, he had bit down on Yin’s shoulder for support.

He didn’t really bite down, just sort of nibbled.

Damn, Xiao Yin’s spotless reputation was about to be ruined because of him.

A whirlwind of thoughts went through Rong Yi’s mind. He decided to ask Xiao Yin about it first.

He typed into the message box: “Have you seen the news?”

Rong Yi hadn’t sent the message yet when he heard the sound of the door lock turning.

It was Xiao Yin’s footsteps.

Xiao Yin casually hung his suit jacket by the door and changed his shoes before walking into the villa’s living room. Rong Yi still had a coffee biscuit stick in his mouth and looked up, meeting Xiao Yin’s gaze.

Xiao Yin’s expression was calm; it was unclear whether he knew about the news.

Rong Yi said, “Did you… see the news?”

Xiao Yin casually loosened his tie and placed it on the side table. “I saw it.”

Rong Yi: “Oh.”

He thought for a moment. “So, how do we explain it to the public?”

“No need to explain,” Xiao Yin said, his expression unchanged. He walked over to Rong Yi, clearly not focused on the topic. Just as Rong Yi looked up, he saw Xiao Yin lean down and take a gentle bite of the biscuit stick in his mouth.

The biscuit stick broke at the point where their lips met. Xiao Yin straightened, and after a few seconds, said, “It tastes pretty good.”

In that moment, their breaths were as close as they could be, tenderly brushing against each other. The air was thick with ambiguity.

Hearing Xiao Yin say it tasted good, Rong Yi clung to the last bit of his rationality and tried to offer the intact biscuit stick in his hand to Xiao Yin. But Xiao Yin grasped his wrist and leaned down again.

This time, he captured Rong Yi’s lips.

Holding his wrist and sucking on his lips, Xiao Yin’s voice, cool and slightly hoarse, came out a bit muffled: “I already responded. Here’s what I said.”

“It was my wife who did it.”