#Wu Yuce

[thekingsavatar-fan]

吴羽策，生日快乐！

Happy birthday, Wu Yuce! [wiki]

[audriel]

fourteen: behind the scenes

this story can be said a character study of Fang Rui and his relationships (tbh when is it not lol).

in truth, in the earliest draft, there's only one relationship that's become the focus, but as it typically happens, the character and the story tend to take a life of its own. but ultimately what brings it to completion is the Secret Santa prompt. as per en's request, the two characters chosen to become the main focus in their relationship with Fang Rui are Ye Xiu and Yu Wenzhou, with two more from the Chinese Glory team. so special mention to en (empatbelas) since they’re the reason this story gets completed.

Huang Shaotian: in comparison to the other three, there's no obvious interaction in the novel that suggests that they are closer than the typical familiarity between top gods of the League. it doesn't help that Huang Shaotian (and Fang Rui himself) is friendly with everyone. Huang Shaotian among the first to comment in Fang Rui's weibo post, then Fang Rui joins Happy's bullying of Huang Shaotian during the pre-match handshakes in the playoffs. until the prequel 'Summer of Blue Rain' that is.

not only Fang Rui shows up in Blue Rain, he also calls Huang Shaotian, Shaotian. again, considering how naturally friendly they are, it might not be enough as an evidence of their closeness. however, it's important to note that both spend time together in Blue Rain, and considering how tight-knit Blue Rain is and how social the two are, it's not impossible that they are more than merely colleagues and rivals, but friends that chat and hangout together outside of games.

Zhou Zekai: in the novel, there's only one notable interaction outside of games between the two, which is when they encountered each other after Samsara-Happy first regular match of Season 10. then there's a mention of a familiarity that's typical between pro players that debut together during the finals, but it doesn't suggest Fang Rui is as close to Zhou Zekai as Wu Yuce or even Zhou Guangyi, though it's interesting to point out that he called the latter Old Zhou, likely because he called Zhou Zekai, Little Zhou. however, then there's the prequel.

there's a pattern in the prequels: For the Glory and the Expectations of the Mediocre. all the stories tends to revolve around first meetings: Ye Xiu-Su siblings. Ye Xiu-Han Wenqing. Ye Xiu-Wu Xuefeng. Sun Zheping-Zhang Jiale. Yu Wenzhou-Huang Shaotian-Wang Jiexi. Wang Jiexi-Fang Shiqian. Yu Wenzhou-Huang Shaotian-Zhang Xinjie-Xiao Shiqin. Zhou Zekai-Fang Minhua. and based on the characters that become the focus, they are all play important roles for each other: partners, rivals, tacticians. they are equals.

and in the latest prequel, in what supposed to be Zhou Zekai and Samsara focus, suddenly a wild Fang Rui appeared. and he's not a mere cameo, unlike his previous appearance. he actually has an actual interaction, genuine exchange. and for people who's quiet and introverted like Zhou Zekai, they tend to stick close to people they're familiar with when they're getting into new place aka the League. Fang Rui might be the first friend he made outside Samsara, and quite possibly, his partner and/or rival in the future (or BB just plain adore FR, which is... fair, me too).

Yu Wenzhou: before the prequel, it's less likely for Fang Rui to be close to Yu Wenzhou, in comparison to Huang Shaotian. although there's a notable interaction in the playoffs when Lu Hanwen attempted to play dirty, the keyword here is 'attempted', making Fang Rui rolled on the ground laughing as he gestured wildly towards Blue Rain team. the one being shown having a reaction towards him is Yu Wenzhou (though this also points out how good of a relationship he has with his old team that he dares to openly tease them right in the middle of the match, it's the playoffs too).

then there's the prequel, while Fang Rui appears to mainly summon Huang Shaotian for his new silver weapon, he stays behind and calls Yu Wenzhou, Wenzhou. Unlike Huang Shaotian, Yu Wenzhou is more reserved and not to mention he's Swoksaar successor and future captain, even young as they were, I don't think any ordinary newbie (as per timeline suggests that the Challengers League conclude around the same time of S3, Fang Rui should only have less than a year in the training camp) would have that kind of familiarity with Yu Wenzhou. i come to believe, as reflected in this story, that in actuality Fang Rui is closer to Yu Wenzhou than Huang Shaotian.

Ye Xiu: and lastly, putting the most important relationship and the one that started everything. as i fall in love with Fang Rui, i recall vividly all his scenes and his interactions with others. his dynamics with Ye Xiu particularly caught my eye. Wei Chen is the first who can keep up with his trash talk in Happy, but ultimately after they officially enter the Glory Pro Alliance, it's Fang Rui. Su Mucheng is undeniably his best partner, but Fang Rui is Ye Xiu's partner in trash talk and in close range offensive. there are plenty of instances of these two working together in dealing damage in close range (i can give the receipt, if anyone wants it). these are some of my favorite interactions:

"Nice snipe." Fang Rui's Boundless Sea said in the public chat.   "I can't stay rusty forever :)" Ye Xiu replied with a smiley face. -Chapter 1163

"Clearly explain? You didn't explain at all!" Fang Rui said. "I saw that he was looking at them himself!" Ye Xiu said. "What use is looking at them himself! Are the rules that easy to digest? You need to properly teach him how to exploit the loopholes in the rules." "You shut your mouth, is exploiting loopholes and whatnot something that a respectable pro player should do?" "But there will always be a few sneaky players that do this. To defeat their sneaky tricks, you first have to understand how they'll be sneaky!" said Fang Rui. -Chapter 1164

"The ones who should be strictly criticized are the two players who went up next. Two players, and you couldn't take down the opponent's one player? Especially the third player, the great general anchoring the group arena, Fang Rui! The team didn't spend so much money to get you over here just so you could be a useless dim sum! You couldn't even take care of a Wang Jiexi?" Ye Xiu berated him. The tone of that "couldn't even take care of a Wang Jiexi" was deafening! Ever since Wang Jiexi had entered the Alliance, the reporters had never heard this kind of sentence before. "Yeah yeah yeah." To the side, Fang Rui confessed, ashamed, "I messed up, I couldn't focus my spirits to play well. Someone like Wang Jiexi, I should at least be able to fight ten of him." "That's a bit much!" Ye Xiu said. "Eight?" Fang Rui said. "Mm." Ye Xiu nodded. -Chapter 1195

“What do you mean? We purposefully gave you a shot at him, y’know?” In the chat, Fang Rui replied to Wei Chen. “Look at what wonderful people we are, giving you a chance to show off in front of your disciple. Where’s your gratitude?” Ye Xiu added. “Fine, thank you, you dumbasses,” Wei Chen retorted. -Chapter 1415

At such a crucial moment of time, Happy’s team members were still relentlessly trash talking Wei Chen, reminding him that it wouldn’t look good if his junior to defeated him. “You’re twice his age!” Ye Xiu reminded. “More than,” Fang Rui corrected. “If you get cut down so easily then that would be quite the embarrassment,” Ye Xiu said. “Indeed.” This time, Wei Chen didn’t reply. Naturally, this wasn’t because he was alright with being mocked like this, but it was because he couldn’t spare any effort into arguing with these two -Chapter 1416

“If you were my opponent, I definitely wouldn’t have fallen for that,” Fang Rui said honestly to Ye Xiu. “Nah, you definitely would have,” Ye Xiu replied back honestly. “Definitely wouldn’t have.” “Definitely would have.” -Chapter 1525

“How’s it going there? If you’re still holding on, type 1,” Fang Rui messaged. “11111111111,” Ye Xiu typed a line of 1s, showing that he was doing great. “Wow, amazing! What are we even here for?” Fang Rui replied. He was actually very shocked. -Chapter 1618

those interactions never fail to bring a smile to my face. their exchange is easy, comfortable. while at the same time when they do it during games, neither loses their focus. there also are times when they use it to cover their real intentions or use it as a mental attack, making their opponents second guess. then, i thought of the teams they left behind. 

i cannot imagine Excellent Era with Liu Hao and Wind Howl with Tang Hao responding positively to their trash talk or their overall playful, not so serious exchange, not realizing it’s also their way to lighten the team’s mood. i imagine how lonely it has been, how difficult and uncomfortable it might be, and yet here they are in Happy. another person, their teammate who can actually give as good as they get, without getting offended or losing focus in game. it’s like finding someone who can get your jokes. if i’m that happy in that situation, i bet Ye Xiu and Fang Rui are too.

and i want to particularly highlight these two interactions:

"Good joke. On the other hand, look at how sincere I am," Fang Rui said to Ye Xiu after leaving the stage, and was met with a kick. -Chapter 1139

"You useless dim sum! Are you looking for death! Hurry up and kneel!" Ye Xiu hit Fang Rui on the head. "My mistake, my mistake!" Fang Rui was weeping and crying. The others didn't know whether to be angry or amused. This communication issue was really a big problem! -Chapter 1208

my memories might be faulty, but i really, really cannot recall Ye Xiu being as physical with others as he has been with Fang Rui (besides Su Mucheng, but like that’s only once too, i think cmiiw). that’s display of another level of comfort right there

this also brings me to the other dimension of trash talk (and dirty playstyle).

Fang Rui had completely ruined the tense atmosphere in the stadium. The peak-level match had suddenly turned into an in-game 1v1 in the Glory Arena.  -Chapter 1605

Fang Rui received a warm welcome from Happy’s fans. As they cheered, he strutted around as if Happy wasn’t the team falling behind right now. He walked onto the stage, waving his hands towards the crowd as if he had won. It was only until the referee rushed over and berated him did he go into the player booth dejectedly. The crowd laughed. The tense atmosphere from Zhang Jiale’s 1v2 had lightened considerably. [...] The public chat had been very calm previously, but Fang Rui’s presence changed that. “How mighty! 1v2!” Fang Rui gave praise towards Zhang Jiale. “It’s not over yet!” Zhang Jiale replied.  “It pretty much is,” Fang Rui said. [...] You could say it was dirty, but that explosive burst of qi was very heroic. You could say that it was tyrannical, but hiding behind a wall and gathering qi was very dirty… In any case, Happy had won this round. It was a clean victory, chasing back the advantage that Zhang Jiale had gained. If Fang Rui’s previous interactions with the crowd had eased the crowd’s tension, then his dominating performance this round was a tranquilizer to Happy’s fans. -Chapter 1491

these excerpts can be said to be the best examples of how much a mood maker (or destroyer) Fang Rui can be. he can only pull this off if he is perceptive, he’s sensitive towards people’s moods and knows how to influence them. so it’s not a stretch to say that Fang Rui is a master at people’s psychology. and interestingly, this exchange sounds a bit familiar…

"Our captain is mighty." "If you've got the time to spout useless words, why don't you use it on moving your character instead?" The praise that he had typed into the public chat was only met with Ye Xiu's disdain. [...] Liu Hao would never forget the icy contempt that Ye Xiu showed towards his well-meaning compliment. To Liu Hao, calling out a beautiful play by a teammate was a way of boosting the morale of the team, but Ye Xiu maintained that his praise was too excessive. -Chapter 1279-1280

why is there such a difference in response from Ye Xiu? is it because of it’s directed towards an opponent instead of teammates, as it can be disruptive? Ye Xiu’s explanation in that very same match is that Liu Hao is always unable to put one hundred percent of his attention into the match. there are far too many other things he’s concerned about. is that all, or is there something else?

my first and main guess, is that Ye Xiu has a higher and better regard for Fang Rui. this started from their first official interaction in the novel.

"In the end, it's the experienced players who are harder to deal with!" When Ye Xiu saw Fang Rui's decision, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart. [...] In the end, it's the experienced players who are harder to deal with! Fang Rui came up with the same evaluation. -Chapter 1110

what’s also interesting in this chapter is that this shows their thoughts, and their thoughts are strikingly similar. this also might be BB sowing the seeds early of how Fang Rui would have fit in Happy under Ye Xiu easily.

“He’s not wasting the foundation that Mo Fan lay down for him. What a reliable guy!” Ye Xiu sighed. -Chapter 1447

Reliable, such an assessment coming from Ye Xiu should be a huge compliment. after all, this is the man who believes that Glory isn’t a single-player game. 

“You gonna be okay?” Ye Xiu grinned as he asked Fang Rui. For the other Happy players who didn’t know that Fang Rui wasn’t himself right now, it didn’t sound like anything was wrong. The team had four senior members. Apart from Su Mucheng, the other three weren’t exactly the most serious people. It was common for them to talk trash about each other. But Fang Rui knew that these seemingly normal joking words had real meaning today. “Even if I’m not, I’ve got to go. The team really can’t do without me,” Fang Rui said proudly. The others on Happy didn’t find anything wrong, but Ye Xiu could hear what Fang Rui was implying: Yes, we don’t have any other choice. No matter how things are, I have to go. Ye Xiu didn’t say anything more. He wasn’t completely clear how Fang Rui’s condition was, but he knew that Fang Rui was a responsible player. He wasn’t going to play if he didn’t think he could win. It could only mean that he could still fight. He didn’t want to go before probably because he only wanted to fight if it was necessary, and right now was the time. -Chapter 1655

Responsible. 

THIS. this might be what sets Fang Rui apart from Liu Hao the most: he’s a responsible player. he always sees the big picture, he thinks of the ultimate goal: victory, and he never forgets he needs a team to achieve that. his trash talk and his playful demeanor onstage and offstage, his silence when he’s not feeling the best, his voluntary choice to step up when needed… are all in consideration of victory, and being as perceptive (and former vice captain) as he is, he knows how important morale is. Liu Hao can preach as much as he wants that he wants to boost the team’s morale, but Ye Xiu isn’t buying it, he knows Liu Hao’s doing it for himself, not for the team, not really as he’s always concerned about other things irrelevant to the game, to victory.

it’s no wonder that Ye Xiu finds it easy to trust Fang Rui despite having less time to build a rapport with, especially compared with the rest of Happy who has been building the team with him from scratch, and even when he’s not exactly close to Fang Rui. i say this with confidence because it’s noted that Ye Xiu needed to open a new chat window to pull Fang Rui to Happy, which means their only contact is limited to around official matches or All-Stars.

Ye Xiu’s trust and reliance in Fang Rui shows up many times throughout the novel, but it’s notably obvious in during the playoffs.

“I would’ve been fine even without your help,” Fang Rui suddenly said. “Huh?” Steamed Bun replied. “Not you, Steamed Bun,” Ye Xiu typed a reply as fast as he could. Though he knew that Fang Rui was talking to him, but if they let Steamed Bun misunderstand, then things would go downhill very fast. “We’re counting on you, Steamed Bun,” Fang Rui also broke out into cold sweat, hurriedly pitching in and making sure that Steamed Bun was focused and happy. [...] Ye Xiu and Fang Rui’s hearts calmed. Let him be as wasteful as he wants; it’s better than going completely out of it. “It’s all up to you!” Ye Xiu once again made sure Steamed Bun focused, but his words had a second meaning. Fang Rui understood, knowing that Ye Xiu was actually talking to him. As for Steamed Bun, the other cheerfully gave an acknowledging reply. Fang Rui didn’t dare tell him the truth of the matter. -Chapter 1474

Ye Xiu is trusting the handling of Steamed Bun, the most difficult to understand player in Happy, the greatest wildcard and variable in the game, to Fang Rui.

then there’s the playoffs against Tyranny.

Back on the battlefield, Happy had regrouped under Ye Xiu’s orders. They clearly didn’t want to continue fighting with Tyranny here. They wanted to reset the battle and fight in a different place. During this gradual process, Happy’s players began to regain their calm. Even Ye Xiu had felt distressed over the loss of Fang Rui. He wasn’t nearly as calm as he appeared. The others were even more so. -Chapter 1565

before finally Fang Rui is sent out of the game, until the very end Ye Xiu tried to save him, even when Fang Rui himself told the team to leave him. In that scene, Ye Xiu is even shown to be visibly distressed, which says a lot.

"Du Ming's in really good condition today. Be careful," Ye Xiu said to Fang Rui. "In better condition than me?" Fang Rui scoffed. "Haha," Ye Xiu laughed. "What's 'haha' supposed to mean!" Fang Rui could feel the disdain from Ye Xiu's laugh. "You're getting paid the most out of all of us. Please," Ye Xiu said. -Chapter 1605

the please tacked on really shakes me to the core, i can imagine it's more so for Fang Rui. that proud and stubborn Ye Xiu, needs to resort to something close to begging in desperation. i may be reading into things, but another interesting point in this scene is how Ye Xiu is not hiding his disdain. Ye Xiu is really careful in revealing his emotions, particularly negative ones. and yet here he is, doing so. for me, it’s like the mask is off, the guard is lowered, in that single moment.

“But… No matter what the map is, have you thought about not letting Fang Rui go onstage?” Chen Guo said. Ye Xiu fell silent.  -Chapter 1635

Just two of them were left. Su Mucheng stood behind Ye Xiu, watching him reclassify the recordings, articles, images, etc. from before and save them. “How do you feel?” Su Mucheng suddenly asked. “How do I feel? You mean about Fang Rui?” Ye Xiu said, without turning his head.  -Chapter 1636

By then, Ye Xiu had returned to Happy’s area. He also had to decide on the next person Happy was to send up. But this was not an easy decision. Even though Ye Xiu did not lose in spirit to Zhou Zekai, not even he could suppress the opponent’s confidence. Zhou Zekai would continue his fight-to-the-death attitude and launch an aggressive offensive. Happy needed to send up someone with lots of experience and ability to quickly adapt to changes to tango with Zhou Zekai. Fang Rui! He was the most suitable choice. When Ye Xiu thought this, his gaze wandered in Fang Rui’s direction. But just as he did so, his heart sank a little. Fang Rui was also looking back at him, but his gaze gave off an abnormal sense of calm. Ye Xiu understood Fang Rui. Even though he was the epitome of playing dirty, he was definitely not the kind to bully the weak and avoid the strong. Fang Rui must also understand how crucial this coming match was. In these moments, judging by Fang Rui’s usual personality, he probably would have already volunteered to play next without being asked. But now, not only Fang Rui did not speak up, but he still stayed silent when he caught Ye Xiu’s eyes. Ye Xiu immediately knew that Fang Rui wasn’t at his best. The burden from last match probably hadn’t been completely erased by the two days’ worth of rest. Fang Rui staying silent was his way of not hurting Happy’s morale. But at this moment, he decided to stay silent after he exchanged looks with Ye Xiu. This was because he knew Ye Xiu would understand him right away. -Chapter 1651

Mo Fan, who hadn’t contributed anything last round, looked even more dejected when he returned. The comforting from his teammates were completely ignored. “Don’t worry,” Ye Xiu looked towards him. Mo Fan walked right past him. Those words were too light. How could he casually wave off such a devastating defeat? “Your teammates are still fighting,” Ye Xiu continued. Mo Fan turned his head. Ye Xiu was no longer looking at him. Mo Fan followed Ye Xiu’s gaze to Fang Rui, who was still holding his clenched right hand up in the air. “So we haven’t lost,” Ye Xiu turned his head to look at him. -Chapter 1655

Fang Rui patted Qiao Yifan, and his attitude was also very sincere. “Without me, you guys will be the ones working very hard.” Everyone laughed. But after laughing, they felt that these words, although shameless, were true. Fang Rui’s strength, Boundless Sea’s strength, were stronger than the new players and new accounts of Happy. Without him, the rest of them really would have to work very hard. “Then we’ll work harder.” Ye Xiu nodded. -Chapter 1675

the first to the last scenes are Ye Xiu not denying Fang Rui’s strength and importance to the team. it also shows Ye Xiu’s tendency to look to and for Fang Rui. i want to remind you of the scene when Ye Xiu was checking on everyone’s state before the playoffs, and kept wondering of Fang Rui’s whereabouts until Su Mucheng told him that he went to bed early. Don’t also forget this infamous scene:

It was a shocking performance, but as Ye Xiu watched and watched, his original smile grew a bit heavy. He glanced at Fang Rui’s booth again, and seeing that there was still no movement, he quickly walked over. [...] Even though Ye Xiu was still smiling, that heaviness from earlier still hadn’t faded. When he saw Su Mucheng looking at him, he returned the gaze, answered Su Mucheng’s doubts. -Chapter 1634

Ye Xiu is the first to notice the abnormality of Fang Rui and the first to make a move to check on Fang Rui. he's also the one who doesn't buy Fang Rui's act.

this trust and understanding go both ways.

"It was well done," Fang Rui nodded. "But it wasn't easy, no?" "What?" Chen Guo was puzzled. When she looked at Ye Xiu, she discovered that he didn't look too happy about his win. Even though Ye Xiu wasn't the type to show his emotions easily, his expression wasn't very relaxed despite winning. Chen Guo realized her perspective of the match was too shallow. She looked at Su Mucheng, and from Su Mucheng's gaze towards Ye Xiu, she could see… worry. [...] "It wasn't easy," Ye Xiu said.  -Chapter 1273

The trophy. The gleaming golden trophy, symbolizing the greatest Glory, was finally given to Happy. Ye Xiu accepted it with both hands. But immediately afterwards, the trophy slipped between his fingers. “Ah!!” As the crowd cried out in surprise, to Ye Xiu’s left and right, Su Mucheng and Fang Rui swiftly reached out to support the trophy. -Chapter 1727

It’s Su Mucheng and Fang Rui who are the first to react and help Ye Xiu to support his tired fingers to lift up the trophy, and Fang Rui himself is unlikely to have fully recovered by then too.

whoops it grows into such a long analysis into Fang Rui and Ye Xiu’s relationship. i’d also point out that Ye Xiu’s trust and reliance on Fang Rui is not baseless, besides the legendary play that heralds Fang Rui’s return to godhood. it’s been pointed out that Happy’s excellent record is due to Fang Rui as much as Ye Xiu’s. (not core player my ass. sorry my beloved dimsum, but we’re gonna agree to disagree)

Fang Rui growing accustomed to his new playstyle was an indispensable contribution to Happy's recent strong performance. After being thrown off by Ye Xiu's unspecialized Lord Grim, the various members of the Alliance now faced another playstyle that they couldn't immediately understand, that caused them just as much difficulty as Lord Grim. -Chapter 1225

this, alongside the brief mention that player(s) from abroad seems to disdain these kinds of dirty tricks from Wei Chen, makes a strong argument that if Ye Xiu has his pick in the national team roster, he will certainly have Fang Rui.

meanwhile, it is merely my speculation that Fang Rui is the one replacing Han Wenqing. however, i feel it’s not without basis. the numbering on the national team, for one. then there’s the distribution of class and ability. I’ve read some analysis, and many are leaning towards Fang Rui as one of the candidates. more so if Wei Chen’s comment of dirty playing is being disdained is true and not mere exaggeration, Fang Rui’s not being the first choice is much higher and for Ye Xiu, who needs to work miracles as the Team Leader in the short time, for him choosing Fang Rui is a no brainer: a player that is unpredictable and unfamiliar to opponents, and a teammate whom he trusts and relies on, with whom he can pick for both individual and team competition. 

i kinda have to add the last one because the younger members of the national team are not very known for their teamwork. and Fang Rui, both as a player and as Qi Master, is incredibly versatile. he has high adaptability. case in point: him fitting in the grassroots, online game background Happy with surprising ease. for this reason Happy is nigh invincible in online games and robbing BOSSes compared to other pro players. this shows that that online game style is not easy for pro players with a formal training background, and yet here Fang Rui who debuted in the Fifth Year easily fitting in like he’s been with Happy from day one.

that’s why i headcanon Fang Rui as a diplomat’s son, who is used to moving to different countries, learning different languages and cultures. it’s also why he’s so perceptive when it comes to people and language (read: loopholes). in the national team, he will be the unofficial vice captain to Yu Wenzhou and right hand to Ye Xiu. while they have single rooms during training, they will have roommates during the actual competition abroad, which i think will make more sense, in the case of anything going wrong (lateness, forgetfulness, you name it). so it’s likely for Ye Xiu and Fang Rui to room together. yeah, i definitely have some ideas for the World Invitationals, writing them is another matter.

thank you for reading this long author’s-note-turned-meta! i’d love to hear more from you about this story (and my note).

[madmaenad]

Ghosts in the Mirror: Meta on Li Xuan & Wu Yuce

Li Xuan and Wu Yuce: Team Void’s dual Ghostblades, a unique and iconic partnership in the Alliance. Where one goes, the other follows, two ghosts standing like reflections beside one another.

‘Mirror image’ is often used to mean ‘perfect copy,’ but that’s not what a mirror really does. A mirror does not reflect what it sees, but instead throws back a reversed image. Li Xuan and Wu Yuce are in that sense a true mirror image - two people who seem similar on the surface, but who function more as foils of one another in reality.

Let’s begin with the illusion of the mirror. Narratively, Void’s Ghostblades are often treated as a single, inseparable unit. The majority of Li Xuan and Wu Yuce’s early appearances are as a pair, creating a strong association between the two characters, and leading to them frequently being grouped into an indistinguishable whole. 

Their similar biographical details also play into this impression of sameness. Li Xuan debuted in Season Four as part of the Golden Generation (718), and Wu Yuce debuted in Season Five (1123). Li Xuan’s age at debut can be reliably set as eighteen because of the league’s age requirement. We don’t have a confirmed age for Wu Yuce, but he was likely near to or already eighteen at his debut, so they’re quite close in age. 

When we meet them in Season Eight, Li Xuan is captain and Wu Yuce is vice-captain, both positions carrying significant authority within the team. From the viewpoint of seniority and power, they’re standing on nearly even ground. Besides both playing the same class, they’re also so close to each other in skill that they themselves don’t know who is better. This is the truest kind of equality between pro players - and equality of ability means equality of prestige.

However, Li Xuan and Wu Yuce’s similarities are only a foundation. The ghost duo form a strong partnership not because they are identical, but because they are not. Instead, their aptitudes balance each other. This is most clearly shown by their playstyles. They may both play Ghostblade, but Li Xuan specializes in the team-oriented support type Phantom Demon, while Wu Yuce uses a Hybrid Sword Demon build more suitable for individual PvP. 

Wu Yuce’s style is noteworthy because it is highly atypical for the Ghostblade class. Ghostblades aren’t suited to hard and direct fighting since they lack high defense or health, yet Wu Yuce’s style is explicitly described as “direct and fierce” (1225), and he is “a very headstrong and forceful fighter” (1230) with a preference toward aggressive attacks. The narration explains that Wu Yuce “preferred this method, as it suited his personality” (1225) and that “[he] was tough and unyielding, thus his Ghostblade also exuded a toughness from the bones” (1225). 

Wu Yuce also doesn’t use typical Ghostblade tactics in his battles. A duel between Ghostblades is a competition in “decision-making, game knowledge, and dirtiness” (305), yet Wu Yuce is the opposite of a dirty player. Wu Yuce doesn’t trash talk during his matches, nor is he disrupted by trash talk at all (1225). He isn’t inclined to chat much in general (1356), and when he does speak he’s rather taciturn (1124, 1129). The narration explicitly contrasts him with Fang Rui, the king of dirty play. His bold and decisive personality negates Fang Rui’s attempts to play psychological games because he’ll simply straightforwardly attack anyway (1356). Wu Yuce is at his most powerful when he can charge forward for his team’s sake, setting the force of his unwavering conviction and ferocity against the opponent in front of him (1356).

Without Wu Yuce’s unshakable willpower, Void’s Ghost Duo would not exist. When he first arrived at Void, the team wanted him to switch classes, but Wu Yuce refused to cooperate, insisting that he wanted to play Ghostblade. Rather than going along with the team's needs, Wu Yuce stubbornly stuck to his choice and Void’s two Ghostblades gradually formed their partnership (1225). If Wu Yuce weren’t a very persistent and persevering person, someone who never gave up easily, they would've never gotten the chance (1260).

While Wu Yuce uses an unusual, unique Ghostblade playstyle, Li Xuan has mastered the traditional, standard Ghostblade style. Phantom Demons are not designed for PvP, so when they need to fight one on one they employ a calculative style. Avoiding close combat, moving strategically, relying on utilizing map features, setting traps, and mind games are all common features and Li Xuan embodies this style (1351). Li Xuan is cautious and avoids risks (1228). Instead, he relies on his awareness, experience, and accurate judgement to compensate for a Phantom Demon’s PvP disadvantage (1351).

In a duel between Phantom Demons, the players contest against one another in decision making and wretchedness (306). As the number one Phantom Demon, Li Xuan is naturally the number one Ghostblade at dirty play. He’s quite willing to trash talk and engage his opponents in the player chat (1086,1351), and he shows that he is capable of matching Ye Xiu’s level of dirty play (1351).

If Wu Yuce is at his most powerful when charging forward to fight for his cause, where is Li Xuan’s moment of greatest power? Ye Xiu himself gives the answer: “Even though Li Xuan’s Crying Devil is the core of Team Void, it’s never his other teammates coordinating with his Crying Devil’s Phantom Ghosts. Watch how Li Xuan deciphers the battles and then uses Phantom Ghosts to create the win for his team” (147).

Li Xuan’s power comes from his context. Void’s captain is at his most powerful when he is surrounded by other people, when he can flow and adapt and direct in response to their actions. This is a softer kind of power than Wu Yuce’s, one that is easily overlooked and hard to distinguish without intentionally looking for it. He values the team’s atmosphere (1728) and is often the person performing the emotional labor of managing his teammates’ mood (1224,1227,1348). There’s a very nice example of this when the China Glory Team discusses who was the replacement player. To preserve team harmony, Li Xuan claims to be the replacement, but because of the class dissimilarity this is highly unlikely (1728). Unfortunately, the emphasis Li Xuan places on what other people think of him gives him a tendency to value himself according to external measures - his fixation on the position of number one phantom demon, for example - and downplay his achievements (1224).

There is an adaptability to Li Xuan that comes from orienting himself using the people around him. Between Void’s two Ghostblades, he is the true mirror. When he plays Ye Xiu, he is the cunning, trash-talking Phantom Demon (1351). With his team, he is the responsible, supportive captain (1227). In the pro chat and with his peers, he is the social, amiable colleague (1105, 1625). With Wu Yuce, his closest friend, Li Xuan is perhaps most himself, more honest and straightforward (1225,1356). The debacle with Qiao Yifan’s rookie challenge occurs partially because Li Xuan mistakes what persona he needs to use - he thinks he’s facing a rival, when he’s really facing a junior who’s only played Ghostblade for a few weeks. During the course of their match, the text shows his process of gradually adjusting himself as he reasons out the correct conclusion (304 - 308). 

Li Xuan shapes himself into the person that the people around him need him to be, but there is an authenticity to every role he plays. There is no sense of him wearing a mask; Li Xuan is sincere in all of his roles. He’s always adjusting himself to his present circumstances, slipping easily into the background. Without Li Xuan’s flexibility and willingness to change around Wu Yuce’s presence, pouring himself into a new shape and a new role, Void’s Ghost Duo would not exist either.

So where does this leave our mirror? How are two such disparate reflections united? Wu Yuce, always true to his own nature, Void’s constant and reliable force. Li Xuan, watchful and clever, who holds his team together with himself as the glue. 

Their mirror exists because Li Xuan and Wu Yuce constructed it with their own hands, linking themselves together in mutual interdependence. Void’s Ghostblades did not inherit a dual core or a legacy. No one expected or asked them to become partners instead of rivals. Void’s Ghostblades chose the harder path on their own, pioneering the use of Dual Linking Ghost Boundaries within the pro league and forming Void’s first dual core. Their tacit understanding was built through their own willingness and efforts, and they continue to maintain their careful equilibrium with each other, despite how the world tries to pit them against one another as candidates for the best Ghostblade - “when asked by the reporters, the two would by tacit agreement always praise the other as superior” (1123). 

In ten seasons, Void has made the playoffs seven times (217), and Li Xuan and Wu Yuce are now each other’s closest friends (1225). By their own will, Team Void’s dual Ghostblades have become each other’s best partner. Where one goes, the other follows, two ghosts reflecting each other in the mirror.

[carmerlaaaaa]

s5

[terra-in]

Carved Ghost from QZGS

[havingonlydreams]

Team Void Monthly Budget

Evil Eye Merch: 2000￥

Milk for Little Ge: 340￥

Pro Alliance Fees: 1000￥

Skill Point Resets: 50000￥

Someone help Li Xuan with the budget, he's seriously concerned Void will be reduced to eating the walls before he gets back from Zurich.

[carmerlaaaaa]

here(´･ω･`)

does anyone know what yu wuce looks like ;-;

[syncogon]

The King’s Avatar Emails

as featured in Season 2 Episode 4

Some of them are good. Some of them show interesting character detail if you take as canon (e.g. LJY having a default string of numbers). Some of them are baffling. Some of them are ridiculous. Some of them are proof that the job of localizing names should not be given to someone who is not a native speaker. 

Ye_iu0529@glory.com: Ye Xiu

waterwaterwater@rong... [@rongyao.com?]: Li Xun

Hanwenqing@glory.com: Han Wenqing

gombogone@gg.com: Huang Shaotian

Wenzhou_YU@glory.com: Yu Wenzhou

zzk123@glory.com: Zhou Zekai

Wang_Jiexi_WeicaoCLUB@... : Wang Jiexi

yihui_li@gg.com: Li Yihui

Sun_fly@glory.com: Sun Xiang

tsubasa2016@gg.com: Wu Yuce

fusheng@gg.com: Deng Fusheng

xsq@glory.com: Xiao Shiqin

395739380@gg.com: Lin Jingyan

nubeGlory@gg.com: Chu Yunxiu

onlyyhero@gg.com: Li Xuan

Ricky_fang@gg.com: Fang Rui

yang_301@glory.com: Yang Cong

Zhao_miemie@glory.com: Zhao Yang

susu_Orange@glory.com: Su Mucheng

Baiyanfei123@rong... : Bai Yanfei

yfbz@glory.com: Wei Chen [ep 8]

This compilation is more for amusement than anything else. But it sure is a lot of amusement. 10/10 episode stay tuned for screencaps maybe

[sakuwritestkafics]

Let’s start the new year of 2021 with an event for both authors and artists! A birthday event for our beloved characters of Quan Zhi Gao Shou also known as The King’s Avatar. Please read the following text to know how to participate in the event!  What is QZGS Birthday Event? As the name itself suggested, for this events artists and authors alike gift presents for QZGS of their choice, on the characters birthday! Due to this, the event with launch on Jan 3rd with An Wenyi’s birthday and end on Dec 22nd when it’s Wu Yuce’s birthday.  What do I need to do?  Due to being such a long running event, the requirements for this event aren’t high. I wanted to keep it stress-friendly event that you can choose to participate in whenever you have time. The requirements are following: 

Writers: a fic of minimum of 200 words Artists: a sketch  

There is no requirements for theme/prompt, it doesn’t have to be about the characters birthday. Ships are also allowed as long as you keep in mind who is the birthday baby. :)  How do I participate?  You can join the event by filling up the questionnaire sheet at the end of this post. You will apply for 2 months at a time, because life is unpredictable and no one knows what they will do in December :) There’s is couple things to keep in mind while filling up the form: 

- The first person to apply for a certain character is the committed work. Each character also has two extra sports, in case more people are interested to write for the same character.  - The minimum amount of commissions is 1 and it can be for an extra spot.  - The application is open for 2 months at a time, you can apply for both months, or one month only.  - You can apply as many times as you want.

After sending in the form, I will contact you to confirm the submission, so please leave me with an address/account that I can reach you in.

Additional Special Days On the spreadsheet you can spot Additional Special Days, and might wonder what that is. Not all QZGS characters have fixed birthday so these are the chosen days where we post our gifts for these characters. The following days are as following. 

5th of Each Month: The Retired Gods - Includes all the characters who have retired before the beginning of the novel, such as For the Glory characters.  19th of Each Month: Active Babies - Includes all the rookies that have debuted after season 8 and other active players without birthdays. 

As these are special birthdays, there are special circumstances to unlock these characters. These are 

1. You write for a character on the list  2. 75% of the list character have already been assigned to someone (and you don’t write to any character on the list.  

Where do I submit my gift? 

You can choose any platform to submit your gift, but I have specifically created an AO3 Collection for the birthday event. My wish is to compile all work in to that collection, but if you not in AO3 but want to participate, fear not! You can still do it :)  For those on AO3, once you’re finished writing add the fic to “QZGS Birthday Event 2021″ collection, before posting it. Each fic is to be posted on the characters birthday and you can also tag the fic as QZGS Birthday Event 2021 if you like. :) There’s many birthday babies, so we need all the help we can get!  Links, links, links!?

[This is the link to QZGS Birthday Event MAY-JUNE]  [This is the link to QZGS Birthday Spreadsheet]  

[rosaeceae]

How about Fang Rui for the character ask? :3

Ayy thank you for the ask! I could probably go on for an eternity about any of my favourite characters from King’s Avatar. Sooo beware this is very long...

How I feel about this character

Our Useless Dim Sum! the Golden Right Hand! now Vice-Captain of Happy! Master of Dirty Playing! Great Fang Rui! I love this character so much. He fits in so perfectly with the dirtiness/wretchedness of Ye Xiu and Wei Chen at Happy and his “recruitment arc” was adorable. (getting so into PKing that he forgot about the need to eat and getting tricked by the original king of wretchedness Ye Xiu.) I also liked how the author gave Fang Rui his own unique Qi Master playstyle that let him keep the core of how he played and who he was. His little aha moment and him successfully getting used to the class and even getting a 1v3! (yesss 1v3 for our boy!) were so great! I’m glad he’s found his place at Happy and feels like he belongs there! And I’m SO glad that he’s gotten recognition for his skill and is part of the National Team!

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I’m partial to Fang Rui being shipped with Lin Jingyan. Criminal Partners! :)  When Happy wins the championship, the first thing he thinks about is Lin Jingyan! That’s so beautiful! I think it’s because of how Wind Howl was his first official team and Lin Jingyan was his first ever partner and a lot of fans like to say “first friend” in the actual pro circle.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

Wu Yuce!: I really like the friendship/rivalry he has with Wu Yuce, like when he texted Yuce for a rematch right in the middle of the Happy vs Void matches. They’re also from the same debut season! It’s especially funny since Yuce’s very different from Fang Rui in terms of personality (at least from a cursory glance at their personalities and playstyles). Yuce plays in a very straightforward, and strong way, while Fang Rui...well he plays dirty! Kind of funny if you consider their current classes too.

I’ve seen some romantic ships of these two as well but as I’ve said. I’m partial to Lin Jingyan/Fang Rui and also the Ghostblade duo pairing (Li Xuan/Wu Yuce) so -shifty eyes-

Also would love to see more Mo Fan and FR interactions. Although Mo Fan being pretty unresponsive to anybody besides Su Mucheng is a huge challenge in that...Would love to see former First Thief FR give MF some pointers about playing Nightwalker classes and not messing up MF’s playing like he did during that one match (”in a rush” pfft.  poor useless dim sum who would’ve though MF would take that seriously?).

My unpopular opinion about this character

Not sure if this is an ‘unpopular opinion’ but although Fang Rui is described as someone who ‘doesn’t care what other people think’ I’m not sure if I really agree fully with that statement. I think at a surface level, he’s seen that way (to those in the canon universe) because of how wretched/dirty he is, but it isn’t true. I think the most prominent thing is the parts we see about him leading up to his transfer from Wind Howl. It’s probably a common thing among the pro-players to appear that way towards the public (at least for the more experienced players. (it isn’t good to give the media fuel for any bad press) and especially cause of his ‘wretchedness’) but I think there’s probably a lot of internal conflict. Especially being part  of a so-so team (at least during Wind Howl days given their match records)  and feeling himself being pushed to the sidelines after watching his own captain and partner having been pushed away until he left the team. Maybe this is also part of the reason why he thinks of Lin Jingyan when Happy wins the championship as well.

TLDR: I think Fang Rui is secretly (at least somewhat) angsty but covers it up with his “wretchedness”

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I have to admit that I haven’t actually finished the entirety of King’s Avatar (and it’s prequel content) so I’m not 100% sure if this didn’t happen. But I would’ve loved to see more of how he developed his dirty playing style as a younger player since it’s such a big part of his character/playing now. Given that he’s known as the “master of dirty playing” and fans in the canon universe assign the description of “dirty/wretched” (in Chinese it’s 猥瑣) to him when asked to describe him. Also would have loved to see more of how Lin Jingyan’s departure from Wind Howl affected him beyond the team moving past dirty playing due to Tang Hao taking over and changing the team’s style.

But the thing is, that Fang Rui, although he’s part of the ‘main team’ (main character’s team) is more of a side main character.

Gonna end off with a repost of the criminal partners chibis I finished a while back~

[unrivaled-super-hottie]

QZGS Top 72 Pairings Per Lofter Tag Activity

Transcription of this video that compiled the top 72 pairings for The King’s Avatar in Chinese fandom judged via lofter tag activity for 2019

Please note that pairing order matters to c-fandom so you may see the same pairing but in different pairing order at different places

https://www.bilibili.com/video/av48491934

72. Bao Rongxing x Ye Xiu (1048)

71. Qiu Fe x Ye Xiu (1100)

70. Ye Xiu x Qiu Fei (1152)

69. Yu Wenzhou x Wei Chen (1187)

68. Zhang Jiale x Ye Xiu (1306)

67. Wu Xuefeng x Ye Xiu (1348)

66. Yu Feng x Zou Yuan (1387)

65. Qiu Fei x Qiao Yifan (1388)

64. Ye Xiu x Zhang Xinjie (1393)

63. Huang Shaotian x Zhou Zekai (1409)

62. Yu Feng x Zheng Xuan (1430)

61. Qiao Yifan x Wang Jiexi (1486)

60. Wang Jiexi x Tang Rou (1494)

59. Huang Shaotian x Su Mucheng (1523)

58. Fang Rui x Ye Xiu (1575)

57. Du Ming x Tang Rou (1592)

56. Zhou Zekai x Su Mucheng (1606)

55. All x Yu Wenzhou (1678)

54. Bao Rongxing x Luo Ji (1669)

53. Chu Yunxiu x Su Mucheng (1701)

52. Xiao Shiqin x Sun Xiang (1748)

51. Zheng Xuan x Xu Jingxi (1821)

50. Qiao Yifan x Gao Yingjie (1891)

49. Wang Jiexi x Xiao Shiqin (1992)

48. Sun Xiang x Xiao Shiqin (2011)

47. All x Wang Jiexi (2029)

46. Ye Xiu x Han Wenqing (2096)

45. Mo Fan x Su Mucheng (2160)

44. Zhang Xinjie x An Wenyi (2171)

43. Wang Jiexi x Huang Shaotian (2844)

42. Zhang Xinjie x Chu Yunxiu (3162)

41. Wang Jiexi x Qiao Yifan (3616)

40. Lu Hanwen x Liu Xiaobie (3659)

39. Ye Xiu x Liu Hao (3805)

38. Gao Yingjie x Qiao Yifan (3816)

37. Ye Xiu x Zhang Jiale (3975)

36. Zhou Zekai x Yu Wenzhou (3996)

35. Sun Xiang x Ye Xiu (4051)

34. Ye Xiu x Sun Xiang (4840)

33. Liu Xiaobie x Lu Hanwen (5208)

32. All x Huang Shaotian (5521)

31. Xiao Shiqin x Dai Yanqi (5620)

30. Ye Xiu x Zhou Zekai (6844)

29. Mo Fan x Sun Xiang (7217)

28. Huang Shaotian x Ye Xiu (8231)

27. Yu Wenzhou x Ye Xiu (8450)

26. Ye Xiu x Wang Jiexi (8626)

25. Ye Xiu x Yu Wenzhou (8669)

24. Huang Shaotian x Yu Wenzhou (9031)

23. Leaf Duo (Ye Xiu x Ye Qiu, but also used for gen fic/content) (9316)

22. Ghost Duo (Li Xuan x Wu Yuce) (9398)

21. Ye Xiu x Su Mucheng (9743)

20. Jiang Botao x Zhou Zekai (9793)

19. Ye Xiu x All (9890)

18. Zhou Zekai x Huang Shaotian (10820)

17. Ye Xiu x Su Muqiu (11516)

16. Wang Jiexi x Ye Xiu (11536)

15. Yu Wenzhou x Wang Jiexi (12905)

14. Wang Jiexi x Yu Wenzhou (13183)

13. Lin Jingyan x Fang Rui (13715)

12. Zhou Zekai x Sun Xiang (14623)

11. Fang Shiqian x Wang Jiexi (16418)

10. Han Wenqing x Zhang Xinjie (16933)

9. Zhou Zekai x Jiang Botao (17202)

8. Han Wenqing x Ye Xiu (28179)

7. Ye Xiu x Huang Shaotian (35492)

6. Blossom Duo (Sun Zheping x Zhang Jiale) (41772)

5. Ye Xiu x Blue River (47731)

4. Su Muqiu x Ye Xiu (51353)

3. Zhou Zekai x Ye Xiu (52273)

2. All x Ye Xiu (90948)

1. Yu Wenzhou x Huang Shaotian (102079)

[thekingsavatar-fan]

吴羽策，生日快乐！

happy birthday, Wu Yuce!

[audriel]

the moon in autumn - winter ii

the birth of hope and the promise of new beginnings...

All the difficult, but necessary conversations...

Also published in AO3

“The reason for that… is that I have a child.” This time everyone in the room freezes. 

And all Fang Rui can think of to break them out of the stupor is…

“Would you like to see her pictures? She’ll be one year old this August.” Fang Rui takes out his phone, unlocks it and opens up his most protected folder. Instead of a picture, what pops up is the last video of Fang Qiuyue waving him goodbye before leaving for Hangzhou.

“Bye, bye, Di, di.” 

Unconsciously soft, affectionate smile blooms on his face at the sight of his daughter. Fang Qiuyue has learned to repeat some syllables, not quite talking yet. It’s only a matter of time. Fang Rui hands over his phone towards Chen Guo’s direction, but seeing she’s still frozen in surprise, Tang Rou takes it.

“Oh. She’s beautiful.” Tang Rou’s visage brightens, a much better look than her previous severe expression, recalling the discrimination she’s experienced. 

“Fuck, you’ve got a kid?” Wei Chen spits out in disbelief, his eyes almost pop out from his sockets.

All the girls quickly gather around Tang Rou to look at Fang Qiuyue. The curious boys slowly inch closer, with Steamed Bun having the easiest time by only needing to loom over the girls to take a peek. Fang Rui notices Su Mucheng’s frown as she reaches over to see more of Fang Qiuyue.

“Hey! She looks like boss!” Steamed Bun exclaims. Fang Rui cannot help it, he has to cover his mouth to keep himself from laughing out loud as the Happy members who are looking at Fang Qiuyue’s images collectively switch their gaze between the screen and Ye Xiu to compare the little girl and their captain.

“I happened to have a heat partner when it came early. Unfortunately, he already went missing when I discovered I was pregnant.” Fang Rui’s mirth dies down the moment disbelieving eyes find his own. Su Mucheng knowingly passes on the phone to Ye Xiu, whispering quietly ‘she looks like you.’

Fang Rui watches as Ye Xiu drinks her in, his sharp eyes noting every detail. He knows what the other sees. Fang Rui’s eyes are the only thing Fang Qiuyue inherits from himself. The rest is all Ye Xiu. When she was still a baby, it’s not so obvious, but as she gets older, there’s no denying her paternity. Zhou Zekai and Wu Yuce already know without being told. Their reactions are another story.

“...What’s her name?” Ye Xiu’s voice is soft, reverent, unknowingly making Fang Rui breathe easier.

“Fang Qiuyue. We call her Yueyue.”

“Fang Qiuyue,” Ye Xiu repeats her name, his eyes not leaving her figure on the screen.

“From an alpha sire and an omega dam, there's a high chance, almost a certainty, that Fang Qiuyue will be a non-beta.” Fang Rui picks up where he left off. “I would like for her to grow up around people she wouldn’t need to hide herself from. I would like her to have a normal childhood as much as possible.”

“That’s why you’re looking for a team that’s also a pack.” Ye Xiu raises his gaze, forcing Fang Rui to look at him.

“All of you noticed just in a glance whose daughter she is. It’ll be the greatest scandal in eSports. There’ll be no hiding of either of our secondary genders if it happens. It’ll affect the team, the whole club. There’s no ignoring the outside world completely.” Fang Rui states calmly.

“I don’t really care about myself. But I’d rather not bring the team into the mess, should the worst happen. So I’d ask you, all of you, to really think about it, whether me joining you is really good for Happy.” Chen Guo is about to speak up, only to be stalled by a raise of his hand.

“Don’t answer too quickly. If Happy is ill equipped to deal with me, me and Fang Qiuyue have another team to go to.”

“Which team?” Ye Xiu’s voice is calm and quiet, but somehow Fang Rui catches an edge to it. He hesitates for a beat, before answering truthfully.

“Thunderclap.”

“Oh, that’s a good one.” Ye Xiu commends his choice, back to normal, as though what Fang Rui heard was merely a figment of his imagination.

“Xiao Shiqin is a good captain and pack leader.” Su Mucheng chimes in, “Little Dai mentions they’re going to form an official pack.”

“Yeah, we’ve been in contact. Our pack culture education is rather lacking. Captain Xiao would like to have the pack ready first.” Fang Rui confirms.

“That’s good.” Ye Xiu nods in approval.

“Wait! Wait!” Chen Guo abruptly stands up, slamming her hands on the table. “Are you just agreeing for Fang Rui to join Thunderclap?”

“Boss, Fang Rui raised valid points,” Ye Xiu smiles helplessly. “Forming a pack is not an easy decision. It cannot be forced. It’ll be against the very purpose of it. You’ve heard his explanation of packs. We haven’t even delved into the logistics, especially if we will have a child in our pack. The worst case scenario will not necessarily happen, but we need to be prepared nonetheless. But in our first year, we will likely not have the resources for it. We’ll need to prioritize.” Ye Xiu glances at Fang Rui, in that brief moment they’ve come to an understanding.

“It’ll be great to have Fang Rui as our teammate, he and his Qi Master will certainly be a good addition to our roster, but unfortunately the complexity his presence brings into the team cannot offset the advantages.” Ye Xiu is calm and rational, laying down all the reasons why it wouldn’t work. Fang Rui agrees, however reluctantly, this is not a matter of one person. It needs to be a consensus among the team members. Happy doesn’t seem to be aware of the status of the secondary genders of their teammates, Happy’s non-betas are still reluctant in sharing their gender. They might not be ready to be an official pack.

“I’m a female alpha.” Fang Rui turns around in shock. Tang Rou’s voice is strong and firm as she meets his gaze. “If Fang Rui’s secondary gender is a problem for Happy, then so is mine. I’d love to have a pack.” Bold and straightforward, exactly like her playstyle, she doesn’t mince words. “I have no intention of using my background for Glory, but I don’t mind making an exception for this. Should anyone come after you or Happy, Tang’s family’s resources are at your disposal.” 

Fang Rui is speechless. This is outside his expectations.

“I-I’m an alpha. I’d love to be part of a pack, too.” Surprisingly, Qiao Yifan is the next to speak up. His eyes are shining in hope. “I have experience with my younger cousins, I can help with Yueyue.” Fang Rui melts at his earnestness.

“Being part of a pack sounds nice… I’m just a beta though.” Luo Ji adds shyly. “I’ll help teach Yueyue when she’s older?”

“I’ve read there are many benefits to being a pack member, even for the beta. It also said it helps with teamwork. I don’t see why not.” For a moment, Fang Rui thinks he sees Zhang Xinjie in An Wenyi’s place. “I don’t know much about children but I can cook?”

“I’ve been in a pack, and I treasure every single moment with my packmates.” Su Mucheng says. “Besides, if it comes to the worst, if they come after Ye Xiu and Fang Rui, I believe the other teams won’t stay still. Not anymore.” Su Mucheng implies the unfair treatment Ye Xiu has suffered and how the pro players reacted to it.

“Blue Rain definitely won’t stand for it. Old Fang will probably come down himself.” Wei Chen crosses his arms in a defensive posture. “I’m also a male omega. We need pack.” He includes himself and Fang Rui in a gesture of support.

“Woah, we get so many alphas and omegas! If we’re a pack, then will boss be the pack leader?” Steamed Bun exclaims. Fang Rui doubts he truly understands the significance of so many non-beta members in the team.

“I’m an alpha, yes. If it’s the consensus, I’ll be the pack leader.” Ye Xiu actually looks as overwhelmed as Fang Rui. All that’s left is… all eyes go to the corner where Mo Fan is sitting. His eyes dart around, hunching over himself as if trying to make himself smaller. Fang Rui finds the gesture odd, all of Happy’s rookies are tough, even tougher than most pro players. He looks… lost. Unconsciously Fang Rui closes the distance between himself and the silent young man, kneeling next to him so he can look Mo Fan in the eye.

“...I don’t know what it means to be an omega.” His voice is quiet, unsure. Fang Rui stiffens, comprehension dawns on him. That’s why his scent is so vague, Mo Fan has a late differentiation. He’s still in the midst of figuring himself out, and it doesn’t help that he doesn't have non-betas in his family.

“I can teach you. If you’d like.” Fang Rui speaks softly.

“You’d have to stay to do that.”

“Well…”

“If I’m to be pack, you’ll stay?”

“He will.” Chen Guo stands firm, determined.

��Boss…” Ye Xiu is speechless.

“We’ve formed a pack. We’ve also somewhat prepared for the worst case scenario.” Chen Guo looks at Ye Xiu. She is not a tall lady, and yet right then, she looks imposing. “You told us our–Happy’s–future is shaped by its players. And our players have made their resolve for their future. Shouldn’t I, as your boss, at the least to match that resolve?” Even Ye Xiu has nothing to say to that.

Chen Guo turns her gaze towards Fang Rui. “I know I’m still inexperienced as a boss. You probably think of me as too naïve and foolish. As a beta, I do not know what kind of experience you’ve gone through, what kind of treatment you’ve suffered. But it also means that as beta, it’s my duty and responsibility to do right by you. You might need to tell me what to do, but I’ll do it.

“I am part of a pack myself. My packmates are my family. They’re not my blood relatives, but they’re mine. I know I can count on them. I know they’ll be there for me. I know all I need is to call and they’ll come, no matter the distance. And I want Happy like that for you too. All of you.” Chen Guo looks at each, every single one of them in the eye. 

Right then and there, Chen Guo earns Fang Rui’s respect and admiration.

“Now logistics. Why don’t I take you to our current lodging at Forest Park and tell me what improvements can be made to better accommodate you and Yueyue?”

“I-” Chen Guo takes him by the wrist, her grip is surprisingly strong. Fang Rui finds himself trailing helplessly behind her.

“We’ll pack up here.” Tang Rou tells them.

“We’ll join you once we’re done.” Su Mucheng smiles sweetly while pushing Ye Xiu forward, definitely not gently. Fortunately Chen Guo doesn’t keep dragging Fang Rui behind her, and instead starts acting as a tour guide as he walks next to her. She leads them to an upper-middle class neighborhood not far from Happy Internet café, to a two-storied terraced house. 

Fang Rui gazes up at the house in disbelief.

“You guys are staying here?” Fang Rui slowly rotates his body, taking in the relatively quiet neighborhood. It’s not quite a gated area, but its residents guarantee considerable privacy. He’s thinking of getting this kind of residence should he move into a new city for his small family.

“I know, right?” Ye Xiu comments by his side, an unlit cigarette in his mouth.

“I don’t think it’s too bad.” Chen Guo takes their comments that neither are impressed with their current home base.

“It’s not bad at all. I’m just surprised. Good kind of surprised,” Fang Rui clarifies. “Shall we go in?”

“Oh yes.” Chen Guo takes out her keys to unlock the door, gesturing to him to come in first when it’s open. The house has a balcony at the top, a garden at the bottom. On the first floor, there are two living rooms connected together where there is a circle of computers and an open space for leisure. There is also the kitchen and dining room. On the second floor, there are six rooms for the team members to sleep, with two people in a room.

“The current arrangement is that Little Tang with myself, Ye Xiu with Old Wei, Little Qiao with Little An, Luo Ji with Steamed Bun, Mo Fan and Mucheng have the room to themselves. I don’t think Mumu will mind if she moves in with the rest of the girls, so you’ll have a room to yourself.” 

She opens the door to the room she shares with Tang Rou, so he’ll have a good idea of what the bedroom looks like. Considering it houses two people, the bedrooms are spacious, not much different from the bedroom in the apartment back in Nanjing. No private bathrooms though, no surprise, but with two bathrooms on the second floor and one on the first, there should not be much problem should he take over one of the bathrooms mainly for Fang Qiuyue. There’s also some open space in the center of the second floor, leading towards the balcony, which will be perfect for a playing area. They’ll probably need some sort of pantry for snacks and toys. He steps out to the balcony, looking down towards the garden. Another space for Fang Qiuyue to explore and run around. She would have loved it. His mother definitely would have enjoyed gardening when she’s not taking care of Fang Qiuyue. 

“Ah, that reminds me…” Fang Rui looks back to find Chen Guo jumps back in surprise, Ye Xiu standing next to her, not realizing they have been following him closely (and nervously in Chen Guo’s case).

“Would you mind having my mother staying with the team here?”

“Eh?” Chen Guo responds blankly.

“She’s actually been helping me with Yueyue since she was born. We live together in the studio apartment for Wind Howl pack. She’s the one taking care of Yueyue when I am training or going for away games. She’ll do the same here, if it’s okay, so our training won’t be much disturbed. I’d rather have my mother than a stranger taking care of Yueyue.”

“Oh oh. Then should we need another room?” Chen Guo looks worried. Considering Happy’s overall age and life experience, they haven’t been around elders around their parents’ age much. Meanwhile, Ye Xiu almost bites the cigarette in half at the mention of his mother.

“No need. Mā is pack. It’s good for us to share a bedroom–a nest together. It also helps whenever Yueyue needs attention at night. We can take turns.” Fang Rui smiles in assurance, then looks towards Ye Xiu. “Is it really okay, Old Ye?”

“It’s fine. I’m sure the team won’t mind.” Ye Xiu pockets the now useless cigarette. “It’ll certainly be awkward at first, but if your mother is anything like you, it’ll be an easy adjustment.” Fang Rui blinks at the unexpected compliment, not knowing how to take it he turns to talk to Chen Guo.

“Honestly, the living arrangement is very good. Personally I really like it.”

“Really?” Chen Guo appears relieved.

“This is the kind of housing I’m thinking of for Yueyue. Some improvements are indeed necessary, mainly childproofing the whole house, not only taking care of the corners and removing all dangerous objects, but also adding a gate to the stairs so she shouldn’t be able to go down the stairs on her own.”

“Oh, definitely!” Chen Guo takes out her phone to take notes. Fang Rui continues: 

“I’m thinking of turning this area in the center for her playpen, so we’ll need some pantry for toys and snacks, with some water heater or other necessities in case we need anything at night. If it’s okay with you, I’d like to ask for a pantry or part of the pantry dedicated for Yueyue’s food and toys near the kitchen and living room. And also to leave the garden for my mother. She likes gardening.”

“Consider it done!”

“I really appreciate your enthusiasm, but let me handle the matters with Wind Howl and Thunderclap first. While my mother supports my decision, I still need to talk with her. And well…” Fang Rui tilts his head towards Ye Xiu. Fortunately, Chen Guo needs no further prompting.

“Oh! I’ll take my leave first. I’ll make sure you’re not disturbed.” The boss lady quickly makes herself scarce in record time. Both of them watch her leave. For a while, they’re avoiding each other’s gaze, awkward silence settling between them, which is a first. Fang Rui knows he needs to be the one to break the silence.

“I’m sorry,” is the first sentence that comes to mind. The moment Fang Rui says that, Ye Xiu’s piercing gaze pins him in place. 

“What exactly are you apologizing for?” Interestingly Ye Xiu doesn’t bring out another cigarette, keeping his hands in his pocket.

Good question. Fang Rui knows a trap when he sees it, but at the same time, he thinks there’s a long list of them. However, there’s one that’s the most pressing.

“It’s not my intention to force you into anything. I can still go to Thunderclap if my presence makes things difficult for you, if you need time and space to figure things out how to deal with suddenly having a child. I had the whole pregnancy to get used to it. It’s not that we cannot visit each other if me and Yueyue settle in Wuhan.” At this, Ye Xiu’s gaze softens, his shoulders relax. Fang Rui didn't realize how tightly strung Ye Xiu had been until then. He manages to deceptively appear as if he's holding himself together. 

“I’m pretty sure it’s too late.” Ye Xiu chuckles. “The girls already love Qiuyue. Mucheng will judge me, thinking I’m not taking responsibility. And the team–the pack–already accepts you as their own, I cannot just ignore that as their captain and their pack leader.” Fang Rui waits patiently.

“I won’t lie, I’ve never thought of having children, of having a family of my own in general.” Ye Xiu smiles helplessly. “For a long time, my life revolved around Glory.”

“I know. I was the same.” Fang Rui understands, and Ye Xiu knows he does. His smile turns genuine.

“...but I don’t hate it.” Fang Rui cannot help the relief that washes over him at that. “It’ll just take time to adjust to it. Honestly, we’ll be doing a lot of running in, both as a team and as a pack. I… we’ll figure it out together. It’s better when you and Qiuyue are close by than far away.”

“If that’s what you think…” Fang Rui trails off.

“I’m sure.” Ye Xiu gives him the answer that he needs to hear the most. Fang Rui lets out a shuddering breath, he doesn’t realize how much he feared Ye Xiu’s rejection. The chance is  miniscule, but he’s afraid nonetheless. Suddenly, he picks up the familiar scent of tea surrounding him, enveloping him. He feels safe, protected. For a while, he lets himself bask in it, before finally squaring his shoulders.

“Well, let’s go get the championship, captain.”

“That’s how it should be.” Ye Xiu pauses, then sighs. “I feel shameless for asking you to reduce your contract.”

“You, shameless, really?” Fang Rui can’t suppress his snort.

“Don’t worry. I’m good. We’re good. We’re not tight on money, though we do need to start saving up for Yueyue’s future. Since we’ll be staying here, it’ll also be less expenses for us. Just give me a face a bit, it’ll be too obvious if my contract is too low.” Fang Rui is not Su Mucheng. It’ll raise too many questions, drawing unnecessary attention.

“...1 million?” Ye Xiu tries.

“Please.” Fang Rui rolls his eyes.

Before long, they’ve bickered just like they always have. They haven’t settled everything. They haven’t said everything that needs to be said. But it’s a good start. 

***

Fang Rui blinks in astonishment as he’s standing at the entrance of the house. He spent the night in Forest Park since he stayed late to discuss the details of his contract and living arrangement. Fortunately it was within his expectations, so all he needs is to catch the first train back home the next day before Fang Qiuyue is awake. The sky is still dark outside, and yet all the occupants of the house are sending him off, not a single member of Happy is missing although in various states of wakefulness. Well, all but one.

“You really don’t have to send me off.” Fang Rui smiles helplessly.

“It’s only proper, especially after we kept you so late when we should’ve known better.” Chen Guo speaks up. She panicked when she realized there was no more G train back to Nanjing. It was only after Fang Rui repeatedly assured her that she finally calmed down. She very nearly booked a driver to send him home, which was definitely not cheap.

“Send our regards for Yueyue.” Tang Rou smiles. It’s rather unfair how pretty she is even in the early morning in messy, comfortable clothes. It is the same for the other Happy beauties.

“You better come back after all of this fuss.” Wei Chen mumbles gruffly, scratching his stomach.

“We’ll wait for your good news.” Su Mucheng smiles warmly.

“The taxi’s here.” Ye Xiu opens the door, so that’s where he went.

“Thank you everyone. We’ll be in touch.” Fang Rui nods to the Happy bunch. He realizes that soon they will be not only his teammates, but also his pack. The thought warms his heart.

“Have a safe trip.” Fang Rui walks through the door, into the waiting taxi with their blessing following him. Ye Xiu closes the passenger’s door on his side, before opening the door to the opposite side and seated himself next to him to his wide-eyed surprise.

“I’ll be going with you.” Ye Xiu confirms his suspicion. Fang Rui then realizes how well the other man’s dressed, at least not in his typical style. 

“It doesn’t look like it's from Taobao.” Fang Rui notes. From the rare times they encounter each other in casual clothes, he recognizes Ye Xiu’s clothing from the top purchases in Taobao.

“Borrowed Little An’s shirt.” Ye Xiu looks slightly embarrassed. It appears he receives quite a scolding when he attempts to wear his version of the best shirt. Fang Rui snickers in amusement.

“Boss lady has bought the tickets for us. She should have sent it to your phone.” Fang Rui checks his phone and there it is: train tickets for two. She did offer to buy the ticket for him, he wondered whether she had already this in mind. 

“She made the suggestion, I agreed.” Ye Xiu says, as though reading his mind.

“Even God Ye is helpless against one Boss Chen.”

“There’s no stopping her when she sets her mind to it.”

“Is that how Happy was formed?”

“Pretty much.” Ye Xiu brings out a fresh cigarette.

“You didn’t intend to form a team?” Fang Rui catches on at the implication.

“I was thinking about it, but forming a team is not a simple matter.” Ye Xiu raises an eyebrow when he catches the skeptical look on his face.

“I cannot see you joining any team but your own.” Fang Rui speaks frankly.

“Why not?” There’s a subtle challenge underneath the question, although Ye Xiu’s eyes are smiling.

“You’ll always belong to Excellent Era.” Fang Rui is surprised at his own vehemence. “At least, Ye Qiu–the Battle God–does.” There’s a slight widening of Ye Xiu’s eyes, before his lips look like they’re suppressing a smile. This close though, Fang Rui thinks he catches in his scent a mix of surprise, amazement, and pleasure? He isn’t sure of the last one.

“You didn’t think I joined Heavenly Justice, then.”

“Nah.”

“...Is that why you didn’t tell me?” Ye Xiu asks after quite a time passes. The conversation takes an unexpected turn. Fang Rui shouldn’t be surprised how Ye Xiu connects his explanation to his reasoning for not telling him that they’ve spent the rut together.

“...yes.” Fang Rui sees no reason to lie. Ye Xiu’s gaze is heavy, forlorn. Before Fang Rui can say anything, they’ve arrived at the station. Not taking any chances, Fang Rui puts a mask over his face.

“Yo. Our Fang Rui is such a celebrity.” Fang Rui hands him another mask from his bag.

“You know you’re the same, right?” Ye Xiu blinks stupidly at the mask. “You’re not the mysterious Ye Qiu anymore.” Eventually he relents and wears the mask, discarding his cigarette. They find their seats in the train without being recognized.

“You’re adjusting to my identity rather well.” Ye Xiu states. Fang Rui realizes how easily he treats him as Ye Xiu instead of Ye Qiu when he should have known about the truth of his identity together with everyone else.

“Ah, that’s another thing I should be apologizing for.” Fang Rui scratches his head awkwardly. “I kinda tracked your ID. For the birth certificate.”

“How do you even know where to look?”

“Um.” Fang Rui is not thin skinned, but he cannot help the blush at the recollection. “At the time… you were pretty insistent on being called Ye Xiu.”

“Oh.” At the corner of his eye, he thinks he sees Ye Xiu’s ears turn red. Fang Rui cannot help but find amusement at that. 

Ye Xiu is such an indomitable figure for many pro players. If anything, his return to the Alliance after his forced retirement only further cements it. Battle God, Glory Textbook, Master Tactician, unspecialized… it seems nothing he cannot do. But it is only in Glory. 

In life, he’s no different than any other young man. They are still in their twenties, after all. They might have the profession they’re passionate about and they excel in, but they are overall clueless in other matters outside it. The only love they know is for Glory and for victory, and the only relationships they have is with others who share the same love. The relationships are more platonic in nature, and transactional at times.

This is a whole new map that neither has ventured before. Somehow the thought comforts him, he’s not the only one who’s flailing around, not knowing what to do, how to deal with everything.

“I’m telling my mother you’re coming with me,” Fang Rui gestures to his phone.

“Yeah, sure.” Ye Xiu watches him text his mother and receives a prompt reply. Zheng Shu is an early riser. She’s actually the only one in the family. However, since he needs to maintain his health, more so with Fang Qiuyue, eventually he also picks up the habit. His mother doesn’t say much, only asking how long Ye Xiu will stay, which doesn’t occur to him.

“How long are you staying?” He tilts his screen, not hiding the conversation from Ye Xiu.

“Um. As long as you allow me to?” Fang Rui translates that as probably until dinner, to which she tells him to stock up for groceries.

“Well, it seems we need to make a stop at the market before we get home.”

“She’s taking it well.” Ye Xiu observes.

“She thinks it’s about time.” Fang Rui puts away the phone after sending an affirmative. “Old Lin is of the same opinion. She actually suggested Happy when I was considering teams.”

“Oh?” 

“Alongside Samsara, Void and Tyranny.”

“...Little Zhou, Little Wu and Old Lin?” Ye Xiu makes accurate guesses. Fang Rui checks around before closing the distance between them to keep their conversation private.

“They’re my packs. Old Lin is the pack leader of Wind Howl with the old members of the team.” Fang Rui pulls out the necklace with Wind Howl colors from underneath his clothes. “Kaikai and A-Ce are from the Fifth Generation pack, well, the weirdos of Fifth Gen.” He grins at the nickname the public and media gave for his generation, pointing at the newer looking band on his wrist. It is an interwoven yarn with their colors. “Weirdos stick together.”

“The watch?” Ye Xiu gestures at the watch, catching that the band is also interwoven yarn. It looks worn but well-cared for.

“My blood pack.” Fang Rui rubs the band of the wristwatch fondly. It’s designed that way so it doesn’t suggest that it’s actually a pack token. In response, Ye Xiu reaches out behind him, pulling out his wallet. Wordlessly he shows two interwoven bands with colorful beads, both look old and worn, but one looks more luxurious than the other from the quality of the gem and the yarn.

“Blood. Excellent Era.” Fang Rui purses his lips at the fading scent. It can be barely considered pack tokens. The freshest scents are the gardenia scent he recognizes as Su Mucheng’s and the faint tea scent that’s less bitter and more fragrant than Ye Xiu’s. His finger hovers over the aquamarine bead where the scent comes from.

“Ye Qiu?” Fang Rui guesses, he is aware that Ye Qiu is the twin whose identity Ye Xiu assumed. 

“Good guess.” Ye Xiu isn’t surprised that Fang Rui knows.

“How’s Su Mucheng taking it?” Fang Rui cannot tamp down his curiosity. Su Mucheng’s reaction is actually outside his expectations. She seems receptive to the revelation of his secondary gender and him having Ye Xiu’s child.

“She has her doubts about the circumstances.” Their closest friends do have similar reactions at being/having heat partner, knowing them too well. Fang Rui expects no less. “But she has an omega acquaintance.” Likely more than one, and more than merely an acquaintance. He knows there are two omegas in the Golden Generation. He isn’t sure Ye Xiu does. The other omega is incredibly careful that they spray beta perfume over their scent blocker. No one would suspect them as anything but a beta.

Fang Rui recognizes them not by scent, but by their eyes. They have similar eyes. They have the same look of fear and desperation hidden beneath their firm determination to prove their worth, that they are not lesser, that they are more capable than they were made to think. Their way is more extreme than his own, but he respects and admires them nonetheless. Fang Rui knows he is luckier than most, he didn’t struggle much with his omega identity since his family instilled a strong sense of self from a young age. His differentiation into an omega didn’t change the way he saw himself then and now. He suspects the other omega still has difficulty in accepting themselves.

“And well, it’s mine. It means Qiuyue, and you, by extension, are family.” Ye Xiu’s voice softens, “She always wanted a big family. For a while there were three of us, then there was Excellent Era, but then it was back to two.” 

“...It’s not just her, isn’t it?” Ye Xiu stares at him for an unnervingly long time at his response, but Fang Rui doesn’t back down. “We need pack. The more we’ve experienced pack, the more we want–long for–pack.”

“...That’s why you did it. It wasn’t just for letting them know what they’re getting into, was it?” Ye Xiu inches closer with every word, his gaze pinning him in place. His presence, his scent, his voice even through the mask but with little distance between them make it difficult to breathe.

“I wanted a pack. I needed to know whether Happy could be one.” For a moment, they are at an impasse. In the end, it is Ye Xiu who pulls away.

“True.” Fang Rui exhales. He isn’t sure what Ye Xiu is trying to prove. Afterwards, they fall into silence that lasts until they arrive at Nanjing.

Skillfully Fang Rui switches the mask with the cap and sunglasses, while Ye Xiu looks on enviously. He pats him on the shoulder with amusement, “Go ahead and take your chances.” In the end, Ye Xiu doesn’t remove his mask. Taking pity on the alpha, Fang Rui decides to call up a taxi to get them to the market instead of using public transportation.

Due to the relatively milder temperature of the summer morning, the market is rather crowded, buzzing with activity, which is the way Fang Rui prefers it. He is just another person among the crowd.

“You can remove the mask. Now, you don’t know the area or have a phone. Make sure to stick with me.” Fang Rui warns Ye Xiu. The man nods obediently. “Anyway, do you have any food preferences? Any allergies?”

“I’m not really particular.”

“Are you leaning towards more Beijing or Hangzhou’s taste then?” Ye Xiu looks genuinely confused at such a simple question. Fang Rui stares at him in disbelief, then looks at him from top to bottom. An Wenyi’s clothing is rather tight fitting, so he can see how thin Ye Xiu is. It’s not to the point of worrisome, at least. However, he’s reminded of the reports of the state of his retirement.  While he looks much better than his Excellent Era days, he does lose weight. His omega’s instincts immediately run wild, telling him to properly take care of his alpha.

“That won’t do.” Fang Rui pulls Ye Xiu by the wrist, walking like a man on a mission. He stops at his favorite vendors, whose owners recognize him at sight to exchange cheerful greetings before getting down to business, at times while chatting. Fang Rui makes sure to involve Ye Xiu in picking the items, checking whether he’s tried it or not, and if he has, whether he likes it or not, and if he’s not, whether he’s willing to try. Fang Rui pays close attention to his reactions. Ye Xiu might not be particular, but he does give away his preferences when he recalls certain dishes when Fang Rui relates the items as the ingredients for them.

“Little Rui, you’re on quite a shopping spree today.” The women selling vegetables and spices next to each other comment at the number of bags he and Ye Xiu are carrying as he goes to pay for his latest purchase.

“I’m trying to feed this guy. Look at how thin he is.” Fang Rui points at Ye Xiu.

Those sweet old ladies examine Ye Xiu thoroughly. “You’ll need more than that.” Then they proceed to slip more items into his bag, refusing the additional payment. “He needs more flesh on his body. Feed him well, dearie.” Fang Rui suppresses his mirth at Ye Xiu’s flabbergasted expression. Fang Rui merely raises a victorious eyebrow, a wordless ‘see?’

“Still, isn’t this a bit much?” Ye Xiu gestures at the various items Fang Rui has bought.

“Do you think Yueyue doesn’t eat them too?” Fang Rui smiles. “She’s already on solid and soft finger foods. She’s also eaten three meals a day with snacks. She can also eat what we eat. So we need to have a wide variety of nutritious food: fruits, vegetables, grains and protein-rich food. Honestly, it’s not much different from pro players’ diet.” Fang Rui stops by at the fruit stall.

“Usually she eats what we give her, but lately she likes peaches.” Fang Rui picks one up, testing its weight and texture. He brings it up to Ye Xiu, “What do you think?”

“If she also likes the smell, this one’s fragrant.” Ye Xiu gives his honest assessment. Fang Rui nods in agreement. He picks several of them, and after a bit of haggling, adds the peaches into their bulging bag.

“Let’s buy some sticky rice rolls to tide us over until breakfast.” After quite a queue, they finally head home while munching on the rolls.

“I’m home.” Fang Rui announces their entrance. He can already smell breakfast filling the spacious apartment

“Welcome home.” Zheng Shu appears from the kitchen, wiping her hands on the apron. He can feel Ye Xiu straighten himself next to him.

“Mā, this is Ye Xiu.” Fang Rui starts the introduction. “Old Ye, this is my mother, Zheng Shu.”

“Hello, Auntie. I’m Ye Xiu,” Ye Xiu politely bows. Zheng Shu simply takes a good look at Fang Qiuyue’s sire.

“What do they feed you?” Zheng Shu frowns. Fang Rui cannot help it, he bursts into laughter.

“Well, good thing I bought a bit of everything, then.” Zheng Shu leans forward to see the content of their bags. She nods in satisfaction.

“Go ahead and put everything away. Help me with breakfast.”

“Thanks, mā.” Fang Rui kisses her cheek as he passes by, Ye Xiu trailing close behind. He immediately directs Ye Xiu on where to put the groceries, and once he sees Ye Xiu has gotten a sense of the organization, Fang Rui goes to assist his mother. Ye Xiu hovers close when he’s finished putting away all the groceries. Sensing his need to be useful, Fang Rui then tells him where all the eating utensils are for him to set up the table. When he returns to the meal preparation, it is to his mother’s twinkling eyes.

“He’s so awkward.” Fang Rui isn’t surprised that his sharp-eyed mother notices. Ye Xiu looks indifferent as usual, it’s rather difficult to see him as anything but comfortable in the Fang family’s apartment. 

“He’s a quick learner, though.” Fang Rui can hear his mother’s approval. Ye Xiu only needs to be told once for him to do everything well. Zheng Shu glances at him briefly over her shoulder, before turning an inscrutable gaze on her son. “How did he know how we have our meals?” 

Fang Rui doesn’t understand what she meant until he takes a good look at Ye Xiu who is meticulously preparing the table, exactly the way their small family prefers it. He recalls not giving much instruction to Ye Xiu. However, he did share with Ye Xiu about their daily lives, especially their meal routines as they went grocery shopping. 

It seems Ye Xiu paid closer attention than he thought that the alpha could recreate the meal arrangement for their family with ease. Fang Rui doesn’t know what to think, but he cannot deny the pleasant burst of warmth that comes up with the realization. He doesn’t think he manages to hide his expression from his mother, sensing her knowing gaze.

“I just told him our family’s routine during our time in the market.” His response earns a thoughtful hum from Zheng Shu. Right when they are finishing up, like clockwork, familiar sounds can be heard from the bedroom. Fang Rui and Zheng Shu exchange fond smiles.

“I’ll have Old Ye help you.” Fang Rui gestures at their breakfast.

“Don’t worry, I won’t bite.” 

“Yet.” Fang Rui adds, to which his mother swats him playfully. He simply laughs it away as he heads towards his daughter.

“Help mā with breakfast. I’ll go get Yueyue.” Ye Xiu nods as Fang Rui passes him. When he arrives at the bedroom, he doesn’t immediately reach Fang Qiuyue’s side. He watches her adorably fussing around the bed, torn between continuing to sleep and waking up. Her tiny, chubby face scrunches up in displeasure. Fang Rui finally walks over and picks her up, his daughter instantly latches on.

“Di?”

“Yes, it’s diedi.” Fang Rui brushes a comforting kiss on her soft head. He checks her diapers to find it’s full. “Ooh, that must be uncomfortable. Let’s get this changed before getting breakfast, shall we? We have peaches. You know, that one colorful and fragrant fruit you like.” Fang Rui keeps chattering as he cleans up his daughter and changes her into a clean diaper. Once done, unable to resist, Fang Rui lands kisses all over Fang Qiuyue, earning him that joyful laughter that easily brings smile to those who heard it.

“Come on. Let’s have breakfast. I’d like to introduce you to someone.” Fang Rui carries the now awake Fang Qiuyue in his arms, only to find Ye Xiu standing by the door.

“Your mother told me to get you.” Ye Xiu offers as an explanation, but he doesn’t take another step into the room, which Fang Rui greatly appreciates. This is an omega’s nest, in order to gain entry, you need to be given permission first. Fang Rui is not ready yet, so he meets Ye Xiu by the door. He bounces Fang Qiuyue around so she faces forward.

“Yueyue, this is baba.”

“Hello, Yueyue.” Ye Xiu slightly lowers himself that he’s on the eye level with their daughter, his expression is the most warm and gentle Fang Rui’s ever seen.

Fang Qiuyue only stares, before suddenly hiding her face against Fang Rui’s collarbone.

“Sorry, she’s a little shy around new people. Just give her a bit more time.” Fang Rui assures Ye Xiu, catching the little peek Fang Qiuyue gives Ye Xiu. Following Fang Rui’s gaze, Ye Xiu also notices the subtle action.

“It’s okay.” Ye Xiu straightens up, the smile doesn’t leave his face.

“Is baba okay?” It only occurs to Fang Rui to ask as they fall into step together.

“What about you?”

“It’s diedi for me.”

“Then baba’s fine.”

Breakfast goes well, if Fang Rui has something to say about it. It’s thanks to Ye Xiu’s ability to carry himself. At the beginning, he kept himself as unobtrusive as possible, only responding when being asked to. It made Fang Qiuyue more comfortable in her blatant scrutiny of him. Her curious eyes barely left Ye Xiu even as she ate her meal. They barely hid their mirth when Fang Qiuyue attempted to copy Ye Xiu, which finally led him to give a tiny spoonful from his breakfast to her. After that, the ice was completely broken. Ye Xiu starts sharing bits and pieces of his own family and packs in exchange for Fang family and Fang Rui’s packs’ stories. 

Fang Rui and Zheng Shu managed to keep the conversation light, exchanging looks over breakfast when they noticed the things Ye Xiu either glossed over or skipped altogether. Fang Rui is glad he hasn’t removed his scent blocker, because his distress will be difficult to hide. He doesn’t want Ye Xiu to mistake it as pity, because he’s sure it’s the last thing he needs or wants. However, he hopes that his respect and admiration will conceal it. Fang Rui thinks he gets a glimpse of what makes Ye Xiu into the person that he is.

Fang Rui cannot quite quell the quiet voice within him that said that’s to be expected from his alpha.

Ye Xiu helps Zheng Shu with cleaning up, while Fang Rui is in charge of Fang Qiuyue, trailing behind them towards the kitchen.

“I’ll go to Wind Howl to discuss the transfer.” Fang Rui breaks the companionable silence, catching the others’ attention. “I’ll also update Xiao Shiqin on my decision.”

Zheng Shu is the first to understand, “How long will it take?”

Fang Rui glances at the digital clock, “I should return by lunch.”

“Okay. Ye Xiu and I will entertain Yueyue while you’re away.” Fang Rui inwardly wishes the best of luck for Ye Xiu, dealing with his best girls.

“Leave the task of chasing Yueyue around to him.” Fang Rui smirks. “Old Ye, you need the exercise.”

“I’ll manage.” Ye Xiu returns, unperturbed. Fang Rui and Zheng Shu exchange amused looks.

“Famous last words.”

***

When the player has a preference as to where they are going, it generally isn’t difficult to reach a deal, that’s why Fang Rui is so certain that the contract negotiations will be finished before lunchtime. Wind Howl is truly shocked at Fang Rui’s final choice, it’s obvious from the boss and the manager’s expressions, more so when they learn that Fang Rui is leaving without Doubtful Demon. Manager Zhu doesn’t hide his disappointment at the latter.

“You… Are you sure?” Boss Yang asks. There are still feelings between Wind Howl and Fang Rui after so many years. For someone who’s already become an All-Star player, it seems like there is no reason for him to change classes. It is illogical. Seeing that Fang Rui wants to do this, Wind Howl has to say something, whether it is for Fang Rui’s own interests, or their plan to sell the player and character together.

“I’m sure.” There’s not an ounce of doubt in Fang Rui’s expression, which is a stark contrast with Wind Howl’s management. Manager Zhu in particular looks bewildered, his plan is messed up. Fang Rui rather enjoys the look on the other’s face, especially knowing that for the sake of the team’s image, the club has to respect the wishes of the player, especially the likes of Fang Rui.

“Very well, I will contact Happy to iron out the details.” Manager Zhu excuses himself, likely wanting to see whether he can persuade Happy to buy Doubtful Demon. Boss Yang and Fang Rui watch him leave.

“If I didn’t know any better, I thought you’d do that to spite Manager Zhu.”

“Nah, it’s just a nice bonus,” shrugs Fang Rui. 

“Ye Qiu…Oh it’s no longer his name. Ye Xiu’s team, huh?” Boss Yang asks lightly, not pushing for details, but willing to take whatever Fang Rui gives him.

“I made the random decision to visit their team. They’re better than I thought.” Fang Rui pauses, “They’re forming an official pack.”

“I see. I’m glad to hear that.” And Fang Rui knows Boss Yang means it. “Well, it might not be official yet, but…” He offers a hand, to which Fang Rui takes in a firm handshake.

“Thank you for everything.”

“That should be my words. Thank you, Fang Rui. I wish you all the best.”

When Fang Rui closes the door to the boss’ office, he is greeted by Ruan Yongbin’s anxious face. He realizes that he has kept everyone in the Wind Howl pack out of the loop, added that he hasn’t been around the club much since the news of him leaving was out. They might have given him space at first, but now they cannot wait any longer and send Ruan Yongbin, who–based on his appearance–has parked himself in front of the office since he heard of his appearance in the club. Giving him apologetic eyes, Fang Rui gestures to Ruan Yongbin to follow to his dorm room.

“I’m going to Happy.” Ruan Yongbin’s gaping mouth is worthy of blackmail material. Finally he gives his closest friend in Wind Howl the brief, but complete rundown from the beginning of his search for a new team to finally deciding on the grassroots team.

“Holy shit. Yueyue’s sire is Ye Xiu??” It speaks how shocked he is that the usually calm and polite Ruan Yongbin ends up cursing. Though he’s kinda surprised that the healer is stuck on the identity of Fang Qiuyue’s sire, of all things.

“I think it’s obvious?” Ruan Yongbin throws him a look of disbelief.

“How often do you think I met God Ye? Not to mention I didn’t follow much of Happy's news.” Oh, that explains it. Ruan Yongbin tends to keep to himself.

“Well, now you know,” says Fang Rui. Ruan Yongbin plops down on the bed while Fang Rui takes the gaming chair. 

“Will they treat you right?” Fang Rui softens at his friend and packmate’s concern.

“They’ll definitely treat me better than the current Wind Howl.”

“That’s a low bar though,” protests Ruan Yongbin.

“They’ll be pack, and they know of Fang Qiuyue. At least, I… We don’t need to hide.” Ruan Yongbin’s shoulders slump at that. After his mother, Ruan Yongbin knows best how much of a toll it takes on Fang Rui to hide his identity and his child.

“I’ll be the only one left of the pack then…” Fang Rui doesn’t need to catch his scent to sense his distress. He moves to the bed to hug the beta.

“I won’t lie and say it’ll be easy. Wind Howl is completely changing their style and you’re their best and only healer… You’ll have to adapt.” Ruan Yongbin leans on Fang Rui, knowing the unspoken because the others won’t wait for him. 

“Should I look for a new team too?” Fang Rui opens his mouth, wanting to reassure Ruan Yongbin that it might not come to it considering how treasured healers are, but he hesitates. While the healer has an important role in the team, it’s still not the core of the team, and look what happened to their core players. Then there’s Liu Hao.

“...it may be best,” is all he can say.

They didn’t say anything else. Ruan Yongbin settles down in bed, burying himself under the covers. It’s a familiar habit among their packs, at least Fang Rui’s packs, when they want to hide and seek comfort, by having the omega’s–his–scent surrounding them. The more effective way is for him to also be with them, but many of them still find it weird and uncommon despite having cuddled together as pack. Fang Rui pats Ruan Yongbin through the thick cover.

“I’m calling Xiao Shiqin.”

“‘Kay,” comes the muffled answer.

It doesn’t take long for the call to connect, “Xiao Shiqin speaking.”

“Captain Xiao. This is Fang Rui.”

“Oh. Give me a moment.” It seems Xiao Shiqin’s not alone. He’s careful in not addressing him by name. Fang Rui can hear the closing of a door. “I’m sorry for that. How did it go?”

“I’m afraid I’ll join his team instead.” Fang Rui earns surprised silence from the other end of the line. He doesn’t want to give the Thunderclap’s captain’s false hopes even a second longer, being so kind and considerate throughout their exchange.

“That’s too bad.” Xiao Shiqin rectifies, “Too bad for Thunderclap, that is. You’ll be a great addition for any team. It’s good that your child will have you both.”

“There were several reasons that made me not consider his team, but I found that it was either not enough reason or could be worked out.” Fang Rui speaks honestly.

“...I feel like I know which team and who it is,” ponders Xiao Shiqin. Fang Rui is certain the Master Tactician has narrowed down the possibilities, but he won’t give away anything. Xiao Shiqin will know, or at least his suspicions confirmed, at the same time as everyone else.

“I really thought I would join you. You have a good team, Captain Xiao, and I have no doubt Thunderclap will be a good pack. I would be honored to be a member of your team and pack.” 

“Thank you,” Xiao Shiqin responds warmly at the praise for his team and soon-to-be pack. 

“Regardless, I will always be available for counsel if you need any help with secondary gender and pack culture.”

“I will definitely take you up on that offer.” There’s nothing else to say. They’ve only spent some time together as potential teammates, but they both already have measure of each other.

“Thank you again, Captain Xiao.”

“You’re welcome. And Fang Rui?” 

“Yes?”

“Your secret is safe with me. You and your team will have my support, should you need it.” Fang Rui is stunned at the unexpected offer. Xiao Shiqin has likely assessed the pros and cons of having him and Fang Qiuyue in his team, and understood that the risks are now shouldered by the team Fang Rui has chosen, and quite possibly greater than if he joins Thunderclap, and to still make that offer speaks of his character.

“Thank you. It really means a lot.”

“I hope you won’t rethink about it when I text you at odd hours. If your partner, your child’s sire, that is, fine with it?” Xiao Shiqin stumbles when he realizes that texting at odd hours might be not welcomed for more than one reason.

“They’ll be fine with it.” Fang Rui doesn’t correct his assumption that he and Ye Xiu are probably only partners when it comes to Fang Qiuyue and that Ye Xiu won’t care about his texting habits.

“That’s good. See you onstage.”

“See you onstage.”

Fang Rui breathes out as ends the call. 

“I’m happy for you.” Fang Rui turns in surprise to see Ruan Yongbin’s eyes peeking behind the covers. “You look so much better now.”

Fang Rui realizes that he is the most relaxed he has ever been. He only notices the aches now that he’s released all the tension after such a difficult season and transfer decision. It’s not fully official yet, both sides haven’t signed the contract. However, he knows that it’s a done deal with Boss Yang’s support. The knowledge that he will no longer need to hide himself and Fang Qiuyue from his team, that he doesn’t have to throw away his dirty playstyle… it brings so much relief and dare to say, happiness to him.

“Yeah.” His cautious nature doesn’t dare him to say more.

And yet it is with this feeling lingering in him that he opens the door to Fang family’s apartment.

“I’m home!” His announcement that he’s home is immediately turned into a loud oomph as Fang Qiuyue straight up barrels into him. “Di!” 

Fang Rui laughs as he raises his daughter high in the air, making her squeal happily. Buoyed by his relief from closing a chapter of his life, his excitement upon the future, the infectious joy from his daughter and the safety and comfort of his apartment, Fang Rui playfully dances around with Fang Qiuyue, nearly tripping over a large lump on the carpeted floor of the living room.

“Old Ye? Are you alive?” Fang Rui lightly kicks the prone body, holding Fang Qiuyue close to his chest so she won’t be able to imitate him. 

“I don’t think I've walked around so much in my life.” Ye Xiu is out of breath. The poor man looks rather pale and haggard, likely unused to much exertion. Fang Qiuyue isn't able to run that much yet, but her attempts do test their heart’s endurance.

“What an old man. I can’t believe you’re still in your twenties.”

“Late twenties. I’m 27.”

“Still not that old.”

“Here, why don’t you drink some water.” Interrupting their bickering, his mother shows up with a tray of cold drinks which she places on the low table.

“Thank you Auntie.” Ye Xiu still knows his manners enough to sit up when Zheng Shu gives him a glass of water.

“Lunch is ready. Thank you for keeping Yueyue entertained,” Zheng Shu smiles warmly at Ye Xiu. Fang Rui’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise. To leave Ye Xiu alone with Fang Qiuyue is a display of trust from his mother, if not the greatest, considering she’s no less protective of her granddaughter than he is of his daughter. 

It is also the greatest test of strength and character because Fang Qiuyue is a handful especially around this time when she’s all wide awake and full of energy. He notices the remains of Fang Qiuyue’s snack over the apartment and Ye Xiu himself, which tells him that Ye Xiu manages to have her mostly eat them instead throwing them all around.

“Well done, Baba.” Fang Rui genuinely compliments Ye Xiu, smiling brightly to which the alpha blinks dumbly in response. He offers a hand to help Ye Xiu up. “Come on, let’s get cleaned up and have lunch. This smells like mā’s best dish. I wanna know what you think about it.”

Ye Xiu takes the proffered hand and lets Fang Rui pull him up. Having purposely trained and used to carrying Fang Qiueyue around, Fang Rui has significant arm strength even when his other arm is occupied with his daughter. Misjudging his own strength and Ye Xiu’s weight, Ye Xiu and Fang Rui nearly smash their faces together. In that brief moment of closeness, Fang Rui gets a deep, intoxicating whiff of pu-erh that is unique to Ye Xiu since he removed the scent blocker while staying in the apartment. Out of reflex, Fang Rui covers his nose, trying to hide his reaction towards the alpha’s scent.

“Oh, did I hit your nose?” Ye Xiu asks.

“Just a bit.”

“...Your mother won’t kill me right?” Ye Xiu genuinely considers it as a real possibility. Fang Rui stares, not comprehending the words he said before choking back laughter. Damn, his mother has put the fear of God in Ye Xiu. He loves his mother.

“Just go.” Fang Rui pushes him towards the master bedroom. The surprise of being allowed entry is enough to distract Ye Xiu. His mother has shown her approval, so Fang Rui should have no more reason to keep him away from his nest. Helping him clean up Fang Qiuyue is another way to get Ye Xiu more involved in raising their daughter.

Once he got rid of the remains of Fang Qiuyue’s snacks on himself, Ye Xiu watches attentively as Fang Rui shows him how to clean up Fang Qiuyue, mentioning that babies around her age don't require daily washing yet unless they get really dirty, and how often should they change her diapers. Fang Rui then steps aside to let him do it himself. He is not surprised at his sure and deft hands, if not a tad distracted by Ye Xiu’s beautiful hands.

“Wow, I feel I’ve done something sacrilegious,” comments Fang Rui. 

“Why is that?” Ye Xiu shoots him a questioning look.

“I’m letting God Ye soil his hands.” Fang Rui states, “I feel like your fans are going after me if they know.” Ye Xiu huffs a quiet laughter.

“You need to make sure my hands are squeaky clean then.” Taking that as a challenge, Fang Rui goes to the bathroom to change the water in the bowl that was used for Fang Qiuyue in record time. Before Ye Xiu can react, he takes one of his hands and starts cleaning up them meticulously, not unlike what he does for Fang Qiuyue, even patting his hands dry.

“There.” Fang Rui raises his head proudly, meeting Ye Xiu’s amused gaze.

“You just want an excuse to hold my hands.”

“Well, duh.” Fang Rui’s mouth runs before he can think. He immediately picks up Fang Qiuyue when his mind catches up with his mouth. “Let’s go get lunch before it gets cold.”

Fortunately, Ye Xiu doesn’t pursue the not-so-much-embarrassing-as-it-is-an-all-too-honest slip. Fang Rui is not that thick-skinned, but considering their situation it might not be the best for borderline flirting. It might be okay if it’s anyone else, even Lin Jingyan. He’s not that close with Ye Xiu to do such things… at least, not yet. 

Otherwise, lunch goes as well as breakfast, if not better. The atmosphere is much more relaxed now that Fang Rui has shared the good news. Ye Xiu mentions how Chen Guo has contacted him and confirmed Fang Rui’s suspicions that Manager Zhu did attempt to sell Doubtful Demon to Happy. Fortunately, Chen Guo is clear that Happy doesn’t need the Thief account, All-Star or not, so she stood firm against Wind Howl’s persuasion though she wasn’t sure about the transfer fee amount. 

Good thing that Ye Xiu asks him instead of just giving the number to Chen Guo, because all the guy knows is the lower the price the better. As the captain of Excellent Era, he wasn’t involved much in contract negotiations, not to mention the club rarely bought or transferred players. Excellent Era wasn’t short of talent in the training camp, after all. Case in point: Qiu Fei, and whatever said of the rest of Excellent Era team, they were not weak. Fang Rui replies to Chen Guo directly and gives her the range where she should negotiate the transfer fee and how she should go around it. 

Lin Jingyan and Fang Rui had a unique division of labor. Being the captain and most senior member of the team, Lin Jingyan interacted the most with management and was in charge of the match preparation and training arrangement for the team. He also had a good understanding of equipment making so he had a dedicated time to visit R&D department. Considering Fang Rui’s habit of talking nonsense, Public Relations had no love for him and vice versa, so Lin Jingyan dealt with them more, not to mention he has a flawless media presence and reputation. 

That left Fang Rui who took advantage of being the youngest member of Wind Howl’s starting roster and his excellent social skills–if he has to say for himself–to deal with the rest of supporting departments, such as training camp. Sponsors were the only thing they handled together. Sometimes the sponsors preferred to negotiate with them instead of the management, so Fang Rui is really familiar with contract negotiations. 

Wind Howl sponsors really adore the Criminal Partners. Even after Tang Hao replaced Lin Jingyan, there are still subtle expectations for Criminal Partners to be continued. He isn’t sure how they will react after both of the original Criminal Partners leave the team. After a brief thought, he decides it’s no longer his problem.

Finished with lunch and the dishes, Ye Xiu and Fang Rui slump bonelessly on the sofa, with Fang Qiuyue on top of him. However, it doesn’t take long for Fang Rui to notice Ye Xiu’s restlessness. Chuckling knowingly, Fang Rui stretches his hand towards Ye Xiu.

“Give me that bundle.” Ye Xiu hands what appears to be an inconspicuous long fabric in confusion. Skillfully, Fang Rui weaves the strong, stretchy fabric around himself and Fang Qiuyue so that it holds his daughter securely against his chest while he can move around comfortably.

“Come on,” Fang Rui makes a gesture for Ye Xiu to follow him. He leads him to the closed door not far from the living room. He opens the door and switches the lights on, revealing rows of computers not unlike in the club’s training room.

“Do you expect a pro player’s, a Glory team’s apartment not to have computers?” Fang Rui smirks at Ye Xiu. Not encountering a computer in sight, Ye Xiu might initially think there is no computer in the apartment.

“Go ahead and feel free to use any of them. This one’s mine.” Fang Rui simply plops down on the gaming chair, rolling away automatically from the table to leave enough space for the precious bundle on his chest. He only needs to move the mouse for the computer to turn on, waking it from sleep mode. The Qi Master smurf account shows up on the screen. 

Fang Rui decides that he’s had enough training and needs more refreshing on his knowledge of Qi Masters for today, so he logs out and instead switches to his personal cloud drive. He exits the folder of Season 9, and goes to search the older folder dedicated for the seasons before his debut. Without thinking, he clicks on a certain video of a team competition in Season 3. 

The recordings of the earlier seasons are not only hard to find but they are also of relatively poor quality compared to the current VODs. While he was in training camp, he had loads of fun hunting for these videos. Unsurprisingly, Excellent Era’s videos are the easiest to find, but most often they are too focused on One Autumn Leaf, so he had to shift through many of them before finding those he can learn from, particularly in regards to his favorite player. 

“This… Excellent Era vs Royal Style Season Three Round 3?” Trust the Glory Textbook to recognize the match in a glance, Fang Rui huffs in amusement. He moves his chair aside, giving Ye Xiu space to roll his chair close to watch the screen. 

“Do you know that this is the first Glory match I’ve watched?” Fang Rui keeps his voice low, noticing that Fang Qiuyue is starting to doze off against him. He senses that he has Ye Xiu’s full attention. “I’ve just returned to China, and all the kids in class talked about was Glory.

“I knew it was a game, but more as a favorite pastime, a hobby. There was no such thing as professional players and league from where I've been. I remembered crowding around our school dorm’s computer, watching the game in the dark since it was supposed to be study time.

“It was an experience.” Fang Rui remembers watching his first official match in wonder, he didn't realize the game could be so interesting, especially the team competition. “But the match itself was… a bit boring.” The video shows One Autumn Leaf was being ganged up on by two Royal Style players. 

“Everyone went ooh and aah for One Autumn Leaf 1v2, but all I could see was that you were completely in control. There was no suspense.”

“Is that so?” Even without looking, Fang Rui can hear the mockery in Ye Xiu’s words. He just snorts and rolls his eyes.

“So I started to check where everyone else was. I found everyone, but one.”

“Ah.” Right at that moment, there was a subtle change in the match, so subtle that all ordinary viewers and normal players realized that somehow the match turned in Excellent Era’s favor, and suddenly Royal Style was being pushed back. Fang Rui manipulates the video so that it finally stops at where they have the best glimpse of hidden Qi Master.

“I remember thinking, ‘How did he get there??’ I had so many questions. Before I knew it, I tried to find out everything about him.”

“You’re Xuefeng’s fan.” There’s a thread of wonder and disbelief in Ye Xiu’s voice.

“Duh. Zhao Yang is so basic.” That earns him Ye Xiu’s rare laughter, making him glance in surprise.

“You know, that’s what most people said of Xuefeng.”

“I’m not most people.” Fang Rui throws him an unimpressed look. “And I saw him with a straight face said that the Alliance built a tunnel for you to escape after matches.*” That certainly leaves a deep and lasting impression on the supposedly bland and harmless vice captain of Excellent Era, establishing him firmly as his role model.

“Xuefeng, what did you teach the young generation…?” Ye Xiu cannot hide his mirth.

“Don’t act as if you’re innocent. If anything, you’ve scarred the younger generations.”

“What kind of scar did I leave you then?”

“One Autumn Leaf really looks ugly playing dirty. At least I’m a Thief.” Fang Rui responds sagely. In their first official encounter, Ye Xiu pulled dirty move after dirty move out of nowhere to teach the rookie Thief a lesson in dirty playing. Of all things that stuck the most to Fang Rui was how ugly the Battle God looked, so he wasn’t sure he got the memo.

“Let’s see how ugly Boundless Sea is in your hands then.”

“Huh. Good point.” Fang Rui will no longer be a Thief, how will his Qi Master look like with his dirty playstyle? Subtle movement draws his attention.

Fang Qiuyue has fallen asleep, burrowing her chubby face comfortably against his neck. She lets out a tiny sigh before settling into an even, relaxed breathing pattern. Fang Rui is overwhelmed with love and affection at the peaceful sight. He cannot help gently brushing her hair and lays a light kiss on the soft head.

“She’s asleep even with the sounds on?” Ye Xiu notes with surprise. Fang Rui set the sound output to the speakers instead of the headphones.

“She’s grown hearing them ever since in the womb. It only takes a little time to get her to sleep once she hears Glory sound effects. It’s her lullaby now.” Fang Rui chuckles warmly, “Not a good thing if she wants to be a Glory pro player, I suppose.”

“You’re a good dam.” Ye Xiu states it so matter factly that it gets Fang Rui flustered. “You have a good family and packs. Yueyue is very fortunate.” Fang Rui is quickly shaken out of his state when he hears how Ye Xiu barely addressed himself. There is a thoughtful pause, a distant gaze in Ye Xiu’s eyes that Fang Rui finds himself holding his breath in suspense.

“...I ran away from home at 15.”

It is the most words without any trace of sarcasm that Fang Rui has ever heard from Ye Xiu. It is also the most he has heard of Ye Xiu himself. The alpha doesn’t go into much detail, but it’s enough for Fang Rui to understand his background.

Ye Xiu’s family has a military background, as such they don’t see playing games as a noteworthy pursuit. So long as it is anything else, the family actually will encourage the children, and they will spare no effort. Naturally, with it comes high demand and expectation. 

Both twins chafe at the strict regimen. It’s just not as obvious in Ye Xiu than in Ye Qiu as Ye Xiu flourish even under the family’s pressure while Ye Qiu’s struggling. However, it was Ye Qiu who actually dared to plan and nearly executed the escape plan from the family if it wasn’t for Ye Xiu, who had clear idea what to do after running away. Somehow Ye Xiu found himself in Hangzhou, where he met Su siblings, and later, Tao Xuan, and the rest is history.

“I once came back after running away, but we parted on bad terms. However, they knew that my dream was the game and that was all. They knew that I couldn’t persist long in eSports. When the time comes, I’ll naturally come back because it’s the only home I know, and by then I am still at the age where there’s time to make a turn around at life.”

“You’re going to retire this season.” Fang Rui says with certainty, seeing where it’s going. Ye Xiu doesn’t appear surprised that he has guessed it. His silence says it all.

“You didn’t have anything to say to me?” Finally Ye Xiu breaks the silence when Fang Rui makes no move to do so.

“I won’t stop you, if that’s what you’re asking.” Fang Rui replies. “I’ve made up my mind when I chose Happy. And… I’m pretty sure it’s not a choice you made lightly. You’ve probably made the decision long before. Yueyue is the result of my choice. It’s a decision I made by myself. It should have no bearing on yours.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong.” Fang Rui is stunned at Ye Xiu’s firm rebuke. “I’m thankful for your consideration, but Fang Rui… You might draw the line because we’re not blood pack, but we are pack nonetheless. Have you forgotten? We are part of Happy pack, and I am your pack leader. You’re my responsibility as much as Yueyue. And that won’t change even after I retire.

“I will certainly need to return home first. It won’t be an easy conversation and it’ll take a while, but I… I don't want to lose our pack. We, non-betas, need pack, don’t we?” Ye Xiu throws back his own words back in the train, but all Fang Rui feels is sourness in his heart, because he can see the scar left on Ye Xiu after losing both of his packs, to which he was the leader of. For an alpha, that must be an unimaginable pain and sorrow. Despite knowing it was irrational and he’s done his best, he must have thought that it was somehow his fault. Such thoughts won’t go away that easily.

It explains so much. 

Why Ye Xiu hesitated, wavered in turning Happy into an official pack for so long, despite his obvious longing for one… until Fang Rui intervened.

“I’m glad you brought it up.” Ye Xiu cuts him off before Fang Rui can question himself. “I wouldn’t be able to do it otherwise.” The acknowledgment of the depth of his scar is humbling

“Honestly, you’re the crazy one. Happy, they were practically strangers to you. And yet, you revealed yourself to them.” Ye Xiu’s gaze is full of disbelief, amazement and admiration. 

Fang Rui agrees wholeheartedly. He wasn’t sure where he got the courage from. In another time, he would’ve vomited in stress after realizing he had made such a reckless decision. He could have paid for it dearly. However, he was calm throughout the exchange with Happy, not once he doubted himself. He did remember being attuned to the changes in the pu-erh scent.

“They are your pack,” is all he can come up with. Ye Xiu is truly rendered speechless at this. For a while neither knows what to say. Surprisingly it is Ye Xiu who picks up their conversation.

“...and I want to see Fang Qiuyue grow up, given the chance.” His gaze is soft as he looks at the sleeping figure of their daughter. “She’s barely a year old and yet she’s been so smart. Though I might be a bit biased, as I haven’t interacted much with babies. But… I feel like I’d regret it if I miss out more of her life.

“I might not be as good a sire as you are as her dam, but I promise you that I will do my best. So, let me share the burden, both as your pack leader and the sire of your daughter.”

Fang Rui cannot help but think that Ye Xiu is not playing fair. How can he say no to such an earnest declaration? He also feels the slight tug, the subtle pull to obey, to follow, to not shoulder all the burden by himself, recalling of the difficult time he endures throughout having and raising Fang Qiuyue only with his mother’s help and support. It would be nice to let someone else take it away from him, to carry the stress and anxiety so he can breathe, live easier.

However, there’s something wrong with that line of thought. They’re talking about sharing the burden, right? They’re talking about not taking all the burden alone. Fang Rui snaps out of it, now he realizes what’s wrong.

“...then will you let me do the same? As the omega of your pack and the dam of your daughter.” Fang Rui challenges him.

Ye Xiu looks so completely taken aback that he leans back in surprise, his eyes wide and assessing.

Fang Rui isn’t sure why he warrants such a strong reaction. But before he can figure it out, Ye Xiu does something totally unexpected: 

He laughs.

It is not a dry laughter or a light chuckle that he tends to do to express mockery or amusement. It is a full bellied laughter that entirely shakes his slender frame, although his laughter is not loud. Still, the sight alone is enough to confound all and any pro players who know Ye Xiu.

Fang Rui only sits there, frozen in shock. Instinctively he closes Fang Qiuyue’s ears in case it wakes her up.

“Truly, as expected from the master of playing dirty.” Ye Xiu finally stops laughing, but his scent exudes amusement, and faint… awe and disbelief?

“Thank you?” Fang Rui replies in confusion, not quite understanding the relationship between him being the master of playing dirty and their conversation, as much as it sounds like a compliment.

“Okay.” Ye Xiu smiles, “I’ll share my burden so long you’ll share yours.”

At that moment, Fang Rui doesn’t realize how much Ye Xiu’s concession means.

[carmerlaaaaa]

Tsubasa

[thehonesthopeofastrawberry]

Fanfiction Idea

YGO x TKA Crossover. 4.1) General: The avatar are monster cards and the pro player are duelists. Every YGO has an ace monster (like Black Magician, Blue Eyes White Dragon etc.). So Desert Dust is Han Wenqing's ace monster etc. At first DM was just a game everyone played and then a competition was made, like Duelist Kingdom or Battle City. YX, HWQ etc. are part of that generation. Later (5ds) people tried to make the competitions more interesting. So some played it on motorcycles. And the whole thing later gets even more commercialized (Arc V). YX always shows up with a mask.

4.2) Vrains-Version: YX is send into another dimension where DM is played like it is in Vrains. Or he is kicked out of his team and helps Chen Guo to make a system with which a player can do the Vrains stuff. Or the international tournaments are in the Vrains style.

4.3) Arc V Version: There are multiple versions of Ye Xiu (like there different versions of Yuya). The TKA characters replace the Arc V characters.

4.4) Arc V Version: Every dimension is represented by a TKA Team and they are at war.

4.5) General 4.5.1) At first DM is just a card game trend with kids and teenager. Then the DM Company (Glory Company) thinks "How can we make more money?" and they know that people love watching other dueling. So they make a competition out of it. It has the Glory format: 3 individual fights, 1 group arena, 1 team comp. In the team comp it is mostly 1vs1 and the tag team fights that happen are a mess, because having decks that complete each other are rare and it is not really a thing in the pro league until “Blood and Blossom” happens. Ye Xiu is the one that thinks up all those different summoning methods and a lot of the strategies. But ZJL and SZP make tag duel big. WXF is the only one in the league or one of the few, whose deck is more neutral and thus useful in a tag duel. That’s why he is such a great help for Ye Xiu. But the fans think WXF is bad because individually his deck is not as strong as the specific decks of everyone else. After Blood and Blossom happened the company makes more cards that are useful in tag duels and all teams try to make their decks more compatible. When YWZ inherited WC’s deck he makes some adjustments. After one season the other teams have already figured out how to counter WC’s deck, which mostly relies on trap cards. YWZ barely has any strong monsters, that why many say he has a crippled deck, but with a good combination of monsters, spell and traps he makes his deck one of the most terrifying. WJX uses a lot of spell cards, and when everyone thought they had found a way to counter them, he just pulls out another card that just stops them from destroying his deck. He has to give up his style for tag duels, so his deck in generals has to be adjusted, since changing your deck during the competition is not allowed.

With time the fan demand more. So the company makes the field spells. During the comp the home team selects the field spell, which cannot be replaced by another field spell. With the years the technology gets better and the player/duelists can interact with the environments. This is how the action duels are invented.

When Ye Xiu returns with team Happy to the league, he has invented a new summon method: link summons. Happy, differently than most of teams, has not specialized in one summoning method, but can do all of them.

4.5.2) The guilds have to search for cards. Either rare or common, as long as the cards is useful to the team, they have to get it. Also they have to prevent the other teams to get good cards, to make sure they cannot customize their decks or change it. Team Void’s Wu Yuce likes to changes his deck’s structure for every match, which is a true headache to everyone. To make sure that other teams don’t do the same, the guild do their best. (Team Void does not have that many cards, but Wu Yuce is good at making small changes that have a big impact.)

4.5.3) The guilds search for special cards that cannot be used for playing but collecting. After collecting a specific amount they can be submitted the collected cards to the company and request the making of a specific card, which will then be produced. Of course it cannot be something too special or OP, because the card is supposed to be made of all to use. However, the guild/team get the first one months before the cards is mass produced.

[havingonlydreams]

TKA/QZGS Sorting Headcanons

Something lighter! Here are my sorting headcanons for the characters of TKA/QZGS - I tried to go for one or two characters from most teams, as well as all of Happy.

Gryffindor:

Tang Rou, Qiao Yifan; Liu Xiaobie;

Zhou Zekai, Sun Xiang; Sun Zheping, Zhang Jiale

Han Wenqing; Lu Hanwen; Wu Yuce

Ravenclaw:

An Wenyi, Luo Ji, Ye Xiu

Wang Jiexi

Zhang Xinjie

Su Muqiu

Hufflepuff:

Su Mucheng, Mo Fan, Bao Rongxing

Gao Yingjie; Jiang Botao; Chu Yunxiu

the entirety of Heavenly Swords' core

Xiao Shiqin, Dai Yanqi

Qiu Fei

Slytherin:

Fang Rui, Wei Chen

Yu Wenzhou, Huang Shaotian

Tang Hao

Why is Qiao Yifan in Gryffindor and not Hufflepuff?

Qiao Yifan is a good, hardworking boy, but without Chapter 145 and “Muster up some courage!” that’s all he would have been. Hard work, loyalty, friendship - Qiao Yifan has these things. Knows these things. Courage is what he needs.

You put almost everyone associated with Blue Rain in Slytherin, holding a grudge? :D

What, you think you can make the argument that Blue Rain isn’t a viper’s nest? Trying to divvy up the pro-players on criteria as shallow as brave/smart/loyal/ambitious meant running into ...certain issues (they’re all professionals, of course they’re all ambitious) so I tried to pick out the characters I thought reveled most in cleverness and trickery. Hence, Blue Rain. I guess you could chalk that up to the atmosphere of the team Dirty Wei founded.

Also makes me wonder how coincidental it was that Dirty Fang used to be a trainee of Wei Chen’s team - I wonder what a conversation between the two of them about Blue Rain would sound like?