After finishing dinner yesterday, Mrs. Lu specifically reminded Jiang Mo not to come to the noodle shop in the morning and to stay at home with Chi Yu.
In his imagination, the situation where Chi Yu would have trouble sleeping didn’t happen. Jiang Mo slept until sunrise and had the most comfortable night’s sleep since he can remember.
Jiang Mo hadn’t fully awakened yet. With sleepy eyes, he stared blankly at the ceiling. As his mind gradually cleared, he remembered what had happened yesterday. He turned his head and noticed that Chi Yu, who had been lying beside him last night, was nowhere to be seen.
Jiang Mo quickly sat up. Regardless of whether it was winter or summer, he liked to sleep in short sleeves. Yesterday, with Chi Yu around, he had to wear a hoodie to sleep, which made it convenient for him to get up. He grabbed the jacket from the chair and put it on. He opened the door and the living room was filled with the aroma of food.
There was no door to the kitchen, and at a glance, Jiang Mo saw Chi Yu wearing an apron, busy in the kitchen.
“What are you doing?” Jiang Mo walked to the kitchen doorway.
“Cooking,” Chi Yu turned around, speaking in a matter-of-fact tone.
Jiang Mo: “…” Of course, I know you’re cooking.
“You don’t have to do all this,” Chi Yu came as a guest to his house, so how could he let Chi Yu cook?
Chi Yu smiled, “I woke up early and had nothing else to do, so I asked your brother if I could use the kitchen. He said we’re family, so I can do whatever I want.”
Jiang Mo: “…” Although he was tired last night, he heard everything clearly. Chi Yu clearly promised not to say such things. There are no cameras recording now, so why is Chi Yu still saying these things? What if he takes it seriously?
Jiang Mo: “W-We agreed on something last night, didn’t we?”
“What did we agree on?”
“Don’t say those things anymore, I’ll take them seriously,” Jiang Mo said seriously, word by word.
“Then take them seriously,” Chi Yu’s tone was lazy, as he absentmindedly stirred the eight-treasure porridge in the pot.
Jiang Mo: “…”
Jiang Mo: “How can you lie like that?”
Chi Yu looked innocent, “I don’t remember promising you anything. You asked if I heard you, and I responded to that one sentence of yours.”
Jiang Mo: “…”
Chi Yu turned off the stove, took off the apron, and hung it on a hook. He walked up to Jiang Mo, raised his hand, and touched Jiang Mo’s dumbfounded face.
Jiang Mo froze, and Chi Yu leaned in, palm moving backward, gripping the back of Jiang Mo’s neck, forcing him to make eye contact.
His gaze was gentle, imitating Jiang Mo’s tone, he earnestly said, “Then take it seriously.”
The light-colored eyes were illuminated by the sunlight. In those eyes, Jiang Mo saw his own reflection and the emotions that Chi Yu exposed.
“I hope you take it seriously.”
Jiang Mo’s eyelashes trembled, suddenly understanding something.
He moved his lips, not knowing how to start. Deep down, he subconsciously wanted to deny that answer.
“My manager found out that I came back to City A. I had previously stood someone up, so he urged me to go make it up. I can’t have breakfast with you anymore, nor can I accompany you back to City Z. Thank you for taking me home. I had a great time.” Chi Yu pinched Jiang Mo’s reddened earlobe and released him before Jiang Mo could suffocate from the stimulation.
“We’ll meet at the cabin the day after tomorrow. I hope that by then, you will have made up your mind.”
Chi Yu, just like Jiang Mo, only carried a bag with him. The bag was filled with snacks prepared for Jiang Mo, but Jiang Mo finished all the snacks in the car yesterday. He left the house feeling relaxed. When he went downstairs, he intentionally slowed down his pace, counting each step in his heart.
Counting to eight, they walked past the corner, about to lose sight of Lu’s front gate, when the door swung open and a white figure dashed out.
“Chi Yu.” Jiang Mo’s head was hidden in the hood of his sweatshirt as he lowered it, taking big strides down the stairs and grabbing Chi Yu’s sleeve.
“Hmm?” Chi Yu’s lips curved up, and as soon as he saw Jiang Mo, he stopped in his tracks.
“Eat on the way, don’t go hungry.” Jiang Mo stuffed a lunchbox into Chi Yu’s arms, then let go of his sleeve and quickly ran back upstairs.
The door slammed shut, causing the walls in the stairwell to tremble.
Chi Yu couldn’t help but feel amused and bewildered at the same time as he found himself with a thermos lunchbox forcibly stuffed into his embrace.
But he didn’t need to worry anymore.
The little fool should understand by now.
…
Jiang Mo leaned against the door panel, taking deep breaths of fresh air.
“What’s wrong?” Lu Yu heard the commotion and rushed out with messy hair, noticing Jiang Mo’s complexion. He exclaimed, “Are you running a fever?”
Jiang Mo covered his face, shaking his head like a tambourine.
“Then why is your face so red?” After confirming that Jiang Mo was fine, Lu Yu yawned and glanced towards the kitchen and Jiang Mo’s room.
Strange, he had just taken a short nap, but where did Chi Yu go?
“Chi Yu had something to do, so he went back first,” Jiang Mo explained.
“Oh.” Lu Yu didn’t ask further; it was normal for Chi Yu to have his own schedule.
“Hey, he can actually cook. This porridge looks good.” Lu Yu tasted the Eight-Treasure Porridge in the pot and praised, “It’s delicious, but a bit too little. It’s not enough for the two of us.”
That’s because he had given half of it to Chi Yu.
“Brother, you eat.”
“Aren’t you eating?”
“I have this.” Jiang Mo took off his hat, picked up the sandwich that Chi Yu had left for him on the table, and there was a note beside the plate.
—For Jiang Mo.
“Tsk, such a good relationship and yet playing these kinds of games. Are you afraid I’ll eat your portion?” Lu Yu came out holding the porridge, his sharp eyes immediately scanning the contents of the note.
Jiang Mo’s face was already red, and Lu Yu couldn’t tell if it got even redder.
“N-No, it’s not a game.” Jiang Mo said, “And we don’t have a good relationship.”
“Oh right, I forgot. You have a rule that you can only confess after the show ends, right?”
“Yes.”
Lu Yu said, “You’re quite fast. You brought him home before confessing. Truly my little brother, showing the same charisma as I did back then.”
Jiang Mo: “…”
Lu Yu comfortably sat in a wicker chair, stretching his legs and said, “Okay, I won’t tease you anymore. I could tell a long time ago that he’s not just your boyfriend.”
Jiang Mo awkwardly nodded.
They thought they acted well, but little did they know that Lu Yu had seen through their pretense long ago.
Lu Yu said, “When I was in school, I often had junior female students bring me food. Some who were too shy to give it to me in person would leave a small note inside the box. He treats you well. Nowadays, it’s precious to have someone wake up early to make breakfast for you.”
Thoughtfulness.
Jiang Mo bit the tip of the sandwich, the sauce
overflowing onto his tongue.
Sour and sweet.
It was the thoughtfulness from Chi Yu.
Jiang Mo didn’t rush to catch today’s train back. The program team hadn’t come to urge him, and it would be the same if he returned tomorrow morning.
Having abandoned his livestream fans for several days, Jiang Mo finished breakfast and opened the game he hadn’t touched in a long time.
Since Jiang Mo took over Lu Yu’s livestream, the number of followers had skyrocketed from four to six figures. The last time he checked, it was over three hundred thousand. He couldn’t figure out the reason, thinking it might be thanks to Xie Ning boosting his popularity. He messaged Xie Ning to say thank you and started the livestream.
Without any notification, as soon as he started the livestream, a large number of viewers flooded into the chat room. In just a few minutes, the online count surpassed five figures, leaving Jiang Mo dumbfounded.
To start a livestream without any notification, early in the morning, and to have so many viewers in such a short time was indeed surprising.
Jiang Mo suspected that his account was being targeted, but the barrage was peaceful.
[“Ah, ah, Xiao Jieba! Welcome back~ I guessed you would come today since you didn’t show up yesterday. I’ve been waiting for so long, and you didn’t let me down.”]
[“Where have you been these past few days? Do you know how I spent my days without you?!”]
Jiang Mo: “Uhm, sorry, I’ve been busy these past few days, but I’ll be streaming all day today.”
[“Ah, ah, ah, this familiar taste. I took a deep breath. If you didn’t come, I would’ve almost forgotten your voice!”]
[“Streaming all day? Awesome!”]
Jiang Mo: “Uh, well, after today, I might need a few more days off. It’ll be around twenty-something days.”
[“…”]
[“…”]
[“And you call that not long? Did your math and PE teacher teach you that?”]
[“One second, I was laughing because you’re streaming all day, and the next second, I’m crying. Why?! Aren’t you afraid we’ll forget about you?”]
Jiang Mo looked at the rapidly scrolling barrage, moved his mouse, and clicked the game to queue up.
“Don’t worry, I… I believe you’ll come back to me sooner or later.” He believed that his gaming skills could attract viewers.
[“!!!”]
[“He’s so silly, and it breaks my heart!”]
[“Wuwuwu, I climbed several walls during the days you were gone. Suddenly, my conscience hurts!”]
[“Did this streamer’s mouth eat honey? I followed and hope to hear more nice things!”]
The feeling of depression in the small room disappeared. Behind the screen, he didn’t know who was sending the barrage, perhaps someone who disliked Jiang Mo. But by hiding his identity and staying in this livestream room, he only felt happiness.
If he didn’t have a chance to go pro, being a game streamer wouldn’t be bad.
…
After not playing games for several days, Jiang Mo decided to try his luck in the Chinese server first. Since reaching the higher ranks in the Korean server, his account MOMO hadn’t played ranked games and was currently in the bottom tier of the Master division.
In his first game, Jiang Mo didn’t get the jungle position and was assigned to the top lane. It had been a long time since he played as a solo laner, and in the last few seconds, he chose Master Yi1, a champion he could perform steadily with. The opponent picked Renekton2 for the top lane, and he didn’t feel pressured.
During the laning phase, both of them focused on farming and exchanging blows.
Master Yi’s E ability provided two seconds of defense, and after two seconds, it stunned nearby enemies for one second. Jiang Mo used his E ability to engage with the opponent Renekton and exchanged blows. Both of their health bars dropped to half, and at level three, it was easy to secure first blood. Jiang Mo was calculating the damage when his phone, placed beside him, vibrated twice.
Instinctively, Jiang Mo glanced at the phone screen, his hands pausing for a few seconds, before he detached himself from the mouse and keyboard.
The person who messaged him was an unknown number, and the content of the message immediately made Jiang Mo realize who it was.
[The congee you made was delicious. I obediently listened to you and finished it all.]
This unknown number belonged to Chi Yu.
After entering the small room, the program team provided each guest with a dedicated phone that contained the contact information of all the guests. However, the numbers and WeChat accounts did not belong to the guests themselves.
Jiang Mo obtained Chi Yu’s phone number.
Jiang Mo picked up his phone and read the number repeatedly. He had good memory, so he quickly memorized Chi Yu’s number. Only then did he remember the content of Chi Yu’s message.
It was clearly congee made by Chi Yu. Could this be considered self-praise?
“I obediently listened to you.”
How could someone, without appearing in front of him or calling him, easily stir his emotions with just a short message?
He was really useless.
—“An ally has been slain.”
The opponent Renekton killed Jiang Mo’s Master Yi. The computer screen dimmed, and the barrage assistant rolled out a wave of question marks.
[“Xiao Jieba, what’s wrong with you?”]
[“Why did you suddenly stop moving? Is it lagging?”]
Suddenly, the live chatroom became filled with sarcastic comments—
[“Hey, isn’t this the big-talking guy who said Lull absolutely couldn’t beat your little streamer? Is this all you’ve got?!”]
[“I remember him. He crashed into Xu Li in the previous games and only targeted Xu Li in two consecutive matches, claiming he killed Xu Li because he liked Xu Li’s skin. I don’t believe these kinds of nonsense.”]
[“Do we have to be humble in games? If we know the opponent is a professional player, should we let them win? If Xu Li’s skills aren’t up to par, who can blame him? How can they criticize him like this?!”]
[“Can we report this streamer for AFK?”]
[“He hasn’t streamed for a few days, and suddenly there are so many haters? Are they toxic? Stop maliciously attacking people, okay?”]
[“Let me explain to the newbies in the chatroom. This streamer is a little brother who doesn’t lie. He speaks straightforwardly. If he said something, it’s definitely without malice. He often duo queues with Xie Ning and often teases him during those games. Many people know about it. If you don’t believe it, you can ask Xie Ning’s fans.”]
[“That’s right, I’m a long-time fan of Xie Ning, and everything said earlier is correct. Someone is intentionally trying to stir up trouble. It’s normal when popularity increases, haters naturally appear. Just ignore them. Some of them have foul mouths; the mods can just ban them.”]
The first death countdown was quick. After respawning, Weapon Master Yi hung out in the fountain. He didn’t pay attention to the barrage or even remember it. Hanging out for a long time would lead to reports, which wouldn’t affect him personally but would impact his four other teammates.
A prompt for AFK popped up on the computer screen. Jiang Mo slapped his own face, forcing himself to resist the temptation of quitting the game and picked up the mouse to log back in.
“Um, sorry, something came up just now.”
[“Heh, who doesn’t make excuses? You lost face by being solo killed by the crocodile, so you’re using this kind of excuse?”]
[“Three levels behind, let’s see how you fight. Prepare to surrender.”]
Jiang Mo apologized to the audience in the live chatroom several times, ignoring the sudden influx of negative comments and closing the barrage assistant.
Looking at these meaningless trash talk would only affect his mentality.
Entering the game again, Jiang Mo, as the top laner, caught up to the enemy top laner by three levels. The top lane turret hadn’t been taken down yet, while the other three lanes had advantages in the jungle. Our mid laner and the enemy mid laner were evenly matched.
Fortunately, during the time he was AFK, our jungler killed the enemy top laner once, so the experience gap wasn’t too significant, and he could slowly catch up.
Glancing at the current situation, Jiang Mo confidently said, “R-r-relax, we won’t lose this match. I’ll catch up.”
[“You’re quite confident. What if you lose?”]
[“If I lose, I lose. What can I do? I had something urgent, there was no other choice. If I AFK’d the entire game, feel free to scold me. I came back, didn’t I? Xiao Jieba apologized already, and at most, I’ll help each of my four teammates play two matches. He did the same thing before.”]
[“Xiao Jieba said we’ll win, so we’ll definitely win.”]
[“Really? I know he’s great in the jungle, but this time he’s playing top lane…”]
Jiang Mo was under the turret, soaking up experience. The enemy Renekton had their ultimate, was three levels above him, and underestimated him. They dived under the turret, wanting to solo kill him.
Jiang Mo had already predicted this. He used Flash to create distance between himself and the crocodile. Our jungler was very clever and followed up as soon as Jiang Mo joined the fight. The crocodile’s attempt to dive the turret for a solo kill was doomed to fail.
The jungler secured the kill on the crocodile, and Jiang Mo got an assist. He managed to catch up in levels.
After Renekton respawned, the jungler came to help Jiang Mo again. This time, Jiang Mo took the kill, but he was still one level behind. Jiang Mo told the jungler that they didn’t need to come to the top lane anymore.
With just one level difference, Jiang Mo wasn’t afraid.
After Renekton died twice in a row, their mentality changed.
Jiang Mo capitalized on their positioning mistakes and took Renekton’s life without control abilities.
His equipment caught up, and for the next five minutes, Renekton didn’t even come close to the top lane turret with only 200 HP left.
Every time they showed up, Jiang Mo found various ways to kill them, pushing down the top lane turret. Jiang Mo continued to lead the top lane.
Our bottom lane is still at a disadvantage, and he doesn’t plan to help. With the jungle having a slight advantage, his involvement would only add chaos.
What he needs to do now is to prevent Renekton from leaving the top lane and, at the same time, attract firepower and entice the enemy’s jungle and support to come to the top lane and catch him. This is also a way to relieve pressure on the bottom lane.
Jiang Mo pushed down the second tower in the top lane, and Renekton is hiding outside the high ground tower, afraid to come out and face Jiang Mo.
Earlier, Jiang Mo was three levels behind, but in a short while, the situation reversed.
Jiang Mo is now three levels ahead, and the snowball is getting bigger, with a two-item lead in terms of equipment.
The opponents sensed something was wrong and finally remembered to support the top lane. However, it was a squishy mid laner who arrived.
Jiang Mo tanked the tower and killed Renekton, dodging all of Clockwork’s abilities, and then swiftly turned to engage Clockwork.
— Double kill!
The previously boisterous haters in the live chat fell silent after Jiang Mo solo-killed Renekton
This match only had pressure on Jiang Mo when he was AFK. After Jiang Mo liberated the first tower of the enemy, the pressure completely vanished.
There was a comment from an opponent about Jiang Mo before, stating not to give him an economic advantage. As long as Jiang Mo seized a chance, the snowball would continue to grow.
The victory emblem lit up on the screen, and the fans in the live chat praised Jiang Mo extravagantly. A few haters seemed to have just realized it and posted some sarcastic remarks.
[“What’s so impressive? If it weren’t for your skilled jungler, could you have turned the game around?”]
[“If I could face a jungler like that, I could dominate the top lane too.”]
Exiting the game, Jiang Mo typed a few messages in the public chat.
[MOMO: Thank you, jungle dad, for carrying me.]
[MOMO: Sorry, I had something to deal with, that’s why I went AFK for a bit. T-T]
The haters: “…”
After apologizing to his teammates, Jiang Mo took off his headphones and expressed his remorse, “Next, next time, if something comes up, I will let everyone know. I’ll try to avoid this kind of situation in the future.”
When Jiang Mo said this, he didn’t have much confidence.
If Chi Yu sent him a message while he was playing, it would be hard for him to guarantee that he wouldn’t get distracted again.
“We won this game thanks to our jungler. If, if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have been able to liberate the top lane so quickly. Jungle dad is amazing.”
The haters: “… Is this streamer really so humble?”
[“Hahaha, thanks, jungle dad!”]
[“Wuwuwu, I love this about you, humble and composed! Big praise!”]
[Xiao Jieba’s brother set off a fireworks display in your livestream and left a message: Little Shutter, brother loves you~]
“Tha-thank you, Xiao Jieba’s brother.”
[“Hahaha, it’s still the familiar you. My ears feel so good. Shout a couple more times.”]
[Xiao Jieba’s brother set off a fireworks display in your livestream and left a message: No, no, no, if you’re going to call me brother, forget about the nickname from before!]
Jiang Mo looked at the message from his boss, but before he could say “brother,” he received a new message on his phone:
[CY: Don’t call me that. If you like fireworks, I’ll set off a hundred fireworks for you.]
Jiang Mo: “???”
CY was watching his livestream?
[MOMO: Why would you suddenly want to set off fireworks for me?]
CY’s chat bubble indicated that he was typing but no message came through. He must be thinking about how to reply.
Was there something difficult to say?
[CY: After thinking it over, I’m afraid you’ll get mad later, so I don’t want to keep it from you. But it wasn’t my fault to begin with. Remember to add a note if you add someone in the future.]
[MOMO: What do you mean?]
[CY: I’m Chi Yu.]
[MOMO:…]
[CY: I need to board the plane now. I’ll be very busy today and won’t have time to check my phone. If I see your message, I’ll definitely reply.]
[CY: The fireworks display, I’ll make it up to you when I come back.]
Jiang Mo: “…”
His head turned into mush.
CY was Chi Yu?
Jiang Mo stared blankly at the computer screen covered in countless fireworks effects, like a dedicated thank-you machine, expressing his gratitude without any emotions.
“Tha-thank you, Xiao Jieba’s brother.”
[“!!! Baby, it’s not Xiao Jieba’s brother, it’s just brother!”]
“Tha-thank you, Xiao Jieba’s brother.”
[“… Damn, I’m going to buy a name-change card right now!”]
“Tha-thank you, Xiao Jieba’s brother.”
[“…”]
[“Hahaha, is the boss playing along with Xiao Jieba?”]
[“The boss is at a big loss!”]
The barrage was saying something, but Jiang Mo wasn’t in the mood to pay attention anymore. He repeatedly clicked on CY’s account.
CY’s Moments were visible for only three days, with no updates visible, just a profile picture, name, gender, and a location whose authenticity was unknown.
CY…
Wasn’t that an abbreviation of Chi Yu’s name?
Chi Yu had a white cat at home, but he had never publicly posted any close-up photos of the cat. However, the cat in CY’s profile picture was also white.
Bang—
Jiang Mo covered his head and bumped his forehead against the desk.
He was such an idiot; the hints were so obvious, yet he had failed to notice all this time.
CY was Chi Yu.
“I like movies or people?”
“I prefer people.”
“I like Chi Yu.”
He, he, he… He had confessed to Chi Yu a long time ago!
And moreover…
—Today, I played a little game with the person I like, and I hugged him.
—I’ve been sending out signals all along, but the person I like is a bit slow to catch on.
Chi Yu had responded to him too.
Note :
The baby finally learns who he is talking to