Overnight fame

After the SSQ coach left, Xue Wei continued to hold his thermos and drink tea.

Wen Man sat beside him, head lowered, watching him drink quickly and accidentally scald himself.

He then chuckled softly, though without making a sound.

Hot water was Xue Wei’s life in winter, a quickly recharging medicine.

It was just a shame the thermos couldn’t be used to warm his hands.

Just as Xue Wei was about to get up for another cup of water, Wen Man reached out and gave him two hand warmers.

The hand warmers looked quite high-end, said to be heating packs mixed with traditional Chinese medicine.

Xue Wei unwrapped one and stuck it to his hand. After a few seconds, he remembered to ask him: “Are these all for me?”

He indicated the thermos and hand warmers.

“Mm, all of them,” Wen Man said casually.

Xue Wei said: “Thank you.”

He looked up at him, seemingly weighing their relationship—although they recognized each other, he wasn’t sure about their current relationship, and whether he needed to pay him back.

He decided to take the initiative: “How much? I’ll transfer it to you.”

Wen Man surprisingly didn’t refuse.

He opened his phone, didn’t offer a QR code, but casually held his phone and asked, “Phone number, tell me.”

Xue Wei said: “I don’t use this platform often. You can switch to another payment platform, the one where we added each other’s contact info.”

Wen Man slowly said: “I don’t use that platform often. Give me your phone number.”

He was brazen, as if everything had to accommodate him.

Xue Wei mumbled out a string of numbers.

“This is your phone number, right?” Wen Man said.

He didn’t add him as a contact but dialed the number.

Xue Wei’s phone rang.

“My number is this; save it.” Wen Man no longer mentioned transferring money.

He tapped a few times on his screen, saved him as a contact, then tucked his phone into his pocket and stood up. “Let’s go. The match is over.”

Xue Wei remained seated, unmoving.

The exhibition match was over, and the All-Star Game was nearing its end, with only tomorrow morning’s final day of All-Star variety show plus the closing ceremony left.

Wanshi, Zhao Xiaoyi, and Dangdang had just returned from getting water and were sitting down to rest.

People came and went, scattering into small groups, discussing their plans.

It was just past four in the afternoon.

If nothing unexpected happened, they would still have dinner together as per tradition.

Xue Wei looked at the other three EGT members and said: “I’ll go with them.”

“If you go with me, you’re still with them. Everyone’s going to eat together, right?” Wen Man’s voice was soft, with a hint of a smile.

Xue Wei decided to push back: “It’s not the same.”

“Oh.” Wen Man reached out, pausing slightly before placing his hand on Xue Wei’s head.

Seeing he showed no resistance, he then lowered his hand and ruffled his hair: “But come with me, Naonao.”

Wen Man’s hand was large and strong, very warm.

When it brushed his scattered hair, it had a delicate and soft touch.

His fingertips lingered on his hair for a moment before leaving, and before leaving, he even smoothed down his messy hair again.

Xue Wei again felt his ears subtly heating up.

He didn’t refuse, just stayed put.

The staff outside were clearing obstacles from the security passage, asking the backstage personnel, players, and coaching staff to wait a moment.

The staff members were also preparing to get off work, gathered in another passage.

Xue Wei hadn’t noticed until a flash of light came, and he looked up.

Wen Man raised a hand to block it, gently telling the person on the other side: “Turn off the flash, thank you.”

The staff member taking photos of them scratched his head apologetically, repeatedly saying: “Sorry, sorry, I forgot to turn it off.”

“It’s fine.”

Wen Man looked straight ahead.

Xue Wei heard him say: “Later, there will be more people taking your picture. If you don’t like it, I’ll accompany you to leave later.”

Xue Wei thought for a moment.

Many people always took pictures of Wen Man, so he felt it didn’t matter. Anyway, they weren’t taking pictures of him.

So he said: “No need.”

Wen Man glanced at him, saw his expression, and a slight smile played on his lips, though Xue Wei didn’t know what he was smiling about.

The staff finished checking and clearing the security passage, letting the players and coaching staff out first.

The sounds outside were loud and numerous.

Xue Wei initially didn’t see what it was.

After walking out with Wen Man, he realized it was a roar from the entire venue, and countless fans who had rushed in from outside the venue.

Outside the VIP channel was a sea of people: fans, reporters, production crews, all gathered with their long and short lenses, all pointed at them.

Xue Wei and Wen Man emerged together.

Everyone, a vast, dense crowd, turned around.

The fans’ screams almost burst eardrums.

“Wen Man!!! Wen Man! Captain Wen, look this way! Captain Wen, you’ve worked hard today!”

Wen Man was used to such scenes.

He casually chatted with the fans by the roadside: “It’s alright; I didn’t do anything today. You guys should go home early; it’s getting dark.”

“Boo hoo hoo, good, good!!”

“Ah!!! He spoke to me!!”

“Captain Wen, Captain Wen, look this way!”

“Captain Wen, tell NOW to look at the camera! Captain—Wen—”

“NOW, look at the camera!!! Brother—Nao!”

“Lone—Wolf—”

Several fans in the crowd had loud voices.

A shout of “Lone Wolf” echoed through the sky.

A group of people couldn’t help but laugh.

Xue Wei was distracted, not yet understanding what was happening.

Wen Man suddenly reached out, loosely putting an arm around his shoulder, turning him to face the fans.

The crowd went wild.

“Ahhhhhh! So handsome, so good-looking!!”

A large group of fans shouted into their cupped hands like megaphones: “Naonao! So handsome! See you in the national team next season!! Go, go, go!!!”

There were also male fans holding banners.

On a bright red banner background, white characters read: “Lone wolf, lone wolf, never perish!”

“Lone wolf, lone wolf, forever king!”

“Lone wolf, lone wolf, teammates dead!!”

Xue Wei glanced at it, then immediately lowered his head.

He was so embarrassed he almost wanted to turn and leave.

If a time-space gate appeared right now, allowing him to return to that split second when he first streamed, he would go back no matter what.

Or perhaps living on another planet would be better.

Xue Wei’s entire face was flushed.

His head was slightly bowed, his almond eyes fixed on the ground.

The group of people beside them were all laughing hysterically.

Zhao Xiaoyi was laughing so hard he was almost spitting: “I suggest turning that into team merchandise.”

“Naonao, so many people like you! You have to work hard next season!!”

Flashbulbs flashed repeatedly; all sorts of cameras, long and short lenses, were pointed at them.

People continuously shouted at Xue Wei.

Unbeknownst to him, today’s All-Star match against SSQ and yesterday’s highlight plays against European FEC had already gone viral.

Countless people clicked on the videos to watch, not only amazed by his stunning looks but also by his even more astonishing skill.

“AWM and TRG can be played like this! I’ve learned something. Now everyone is using the M82A1 playstyle, which is very heavy. Turns out, this style is also possible! I’ll study it tonight and release a guide.”

“+1, any more materials?! We want to see more information on NOW! Does anyone know?”

“None. Go watch the stream replays. The lone wolf is very mysterious; he probably hasn’t appeared before. If there’s anything to dig up, do it quickly! I’m also impatient!”

Tonight, Xue Wei became the absolute center of attention.

Unbeknownst to him, countless sponsors and teams had already begun to mobilize, preparing to negotiate with the national team about signing him.

SSQ Training Group.

Below the stage, the atmosphere was heavy; no one looked happy.

The person in charge was currently being reprimanded by the person in charge on the other end.

“Who failed to sign NOW back then?! Someone must take responsibility for the consequences of this All-Star Game!”

“The team’s official Weibo has been bombarded. Tell me, why was our star carry beaten so badly?!”

Su Wei hesitated several times to speak. After listening for a while, she still couldn’t help but say: “Our failure to sign him is our responsibility… but his skill is indeed very strong; we were somewhat unprepared…”

“Unprepared, leading to plays where he ran into walls?”

The general manager said furiously: “At all costs, poach him from the national team! Isn’t that kid poor?! Throwing money at him surely won’t leave him unmoved. Wen Man offered him fifty million, right?! We’ll offer eighty million!”

“BOT…”

“Ming Xu, internal team review! Entire team internal review!! Cancel training! Continue in youth training next season, just see if the national team even wants him anymore.”

The manager had clearly lost his mind in anger; he slammed down the phone and went silent.

God Knife was the last to come out.

He moved slowly because he had coincidentally discovered Chinese characteristic tea bricks in the pantry and had taken many, trying each one.

He passed by a few SSQ members, vaguely sensing their tense atmosphere.

His teammate said: “Did this team play against us?”

“No, they didn’t.” Knife’s usual demeanor had a relaxed indifference, “Their team is very volatile. They’re still ten years too early to be our opponents.”

“It’s a bit much.”

“M82A1 is Pretty’s playstyle. I heard them asking that little boy. ” Knife sneered, “They didn’t understand. Emulating Pretty can only replicate the most basic playstyle. With an M82A1 in hand, the map seen in one’s eyes should be different from others’. This gun isn’t for a typical sniper’s playstyle; it’s artillery, the only artillery-type weapon in 《Fire》.”

“Now that you mention it… that’s true.” His teammate suddenly became interested, “Did Pretty tell you that?”

“He didn’t exactly say it; he mentioned it once before.” Knife narrowed his eyes.

On the other side, Wen Man shielded Xue Wei, helping him avoid the overly dazzling flashlights.

Snowflakes fluttered from the sky, light snow, slightly cool.

Knife said: “Four years ago, the M82A1 was still an unused gun because it was heavy. Pretty never treated it as a sniper rifle. A true sniper must be light and flexible, easy to reposition. That’s the orthodox playstyle we were used to before.”

“He never used AWM because he always felt that sniper wasn’t his role, and he wouldn’t touch any tactics associated with that role.”

“Pretty, that guy… you don’t know, I’ve seen it. His terrifying aspect isn’t as a sniper. His most suitable role isn’t even a sniper.”

“What is it then?”

His teammates’ curiosity was piqued.

But Knife waved his hand, not saying more, just looking ahead with interest: “Let’s go, time to eat. If we’re lucky enough, we might see it next season.”