Chapter 4

Heartbroken players feeding kills, deliberately not pushing towers, refusing to hit the Nexus even when right in front of it…

“Maybe we should just play casual matches. I’ve already dropped back to Diamond, and I’m afraid I’ll fall to Platinum,” Song Zhen’s voice was full of bitterness. “Aren’t you upset? We’ve lost so many games.”

“Used to it,” Pei Jiyin replied, though she silently reported those aberrant species to her dedicated customer service on WeChat.

[Look how upset the girl is, why don’t you just carry her to one win?]

[Poor girl, but she’s still keeping her voice steady at a time like this—that’s impressive.]

[To be honest, her voice probably sounds nice to begin with.]

…

Pei Jiyin queued for a casual match. Song Zhen picked Yao to take a break, while Pei Jiyin hesitated before locking in Marco Polo. Honestly, she had never played this hero before.

She muted her mic and cleared her throat. “I let her pick jungle for me—she didn’t want me to play it. The mid-laners I usually play are only at Kings of Glory level for me. This is already my normal performance. With decent teammates, we could win. Who knew today’s luck would be this bad?”

“This is insane. Who gets matched with trolls five games in a row?”

“If I don’t practice heroes in casual matches, when else can I?”

Once Song Zhen hit level four, she latched onto Pei Jiyin’s head, only to watch Marco Polo die in increasingly creative ways.

Song Zhen: …

“Let me read the skills real quick.”

“Mm…” Song Zhen responded.

“Once I practice, I can take this into ranked,” Pei Jiyin reassured her.

Song Zhen: …

“Then you should definitely practice more,” Song Zhen said earnestly.

Pei Jiyin couldn’t help but laugh. “By the way, how old are you really? How long are you planning to keep up this voice?”

Song Zhen took a deep breath, softening her tone even further. “Since I’ve decided to put on an act for you, I might as well commit to it, sis~”

“I really am only sixteen, you know~”

Pei Jiyin: …

Song Zhen realized that once you got used to something, it wasn’t so bad. Shame was like a muscle—the more you exercised it, the thicker it got. Besides, it wasn’t like Pei Jiyin knew her in real life.

“Also, you’re putting on a voice too. Maybe you should go first?”

“Then keep talking like this. I just didn’t want you to strain your voice,” Pei Jiyin said.

While they were talking, they died again, their stats becoming even more disastrous. Their teammates had already spammed three question marks in chat.

[WantToWinALottery (Marco Polo): Practicing a hero, sorry for the trouble.]

For the next three matches, Pei Jiyin stubbornly stuck to Marco Polo, while Song Zhen sat on her head, witnessing every possible way to die.

“How did you die again? Stop diving towers,” Song Zhen finally couldn’t take it anymore and switched to another teammate’s head—out of sight, out of mind. Otherwise, she might break character.

“The world is cruel,” Pei Jiyin lamented.

Song Zhen: …

“The enemy bullies me because I’m weak,” Pei Jiyin sighed again.

Song Zhen: …

“I just want to practice so I can carry you someday, so you’ll never cry again. Yet here you are, disdaining my deaths,” Pei Jiyin’s voice was mournful.

“The enemy moves in pairs, while I suffer alone.”

[Yin-jie, stop talking. I think the girl’s about to snap.]

[This is brutal.]

[I bet she’ll leave the room after this match.]

“She won’t,” Pei Jiyin said.

Song Zhen sighed and returned to Pei Jiyin’s head: “Be a bit more cautious.”

“Got it, little sister. I won’t let you die. I knew you had a kind heart,” Pei Jiyin said. “Come on, little sister, I’ll help you take the Blue Buff.”

“By the way, why aren’t you asking for the Blue Buff anymore? Didn’t you always ask for it before?”

Song Zhen: “…”

“I was just bored back then and wanted to see if you’d give it to me,” Song Zhen replied.

Pei Jiyin laughed: “So you don’t want this Blue Buff either?”

Before Song Zhen could answer, she saw Pei Jiyin send a message: “Mage, come take the Blue Buff.”

For some reason, she felt like this person was just teasing her.

The two played until midnight before stopping. Pei Jiyin had been feeling a bit down earlier, but after the game, she felt much better. Glancing at her earnings in the background, her mood improved even more.

The results for the Chinese Dance Club were announced three days later. Pei Jiyin was slightly shocked to see she had been selected.

“It’s normal. Most of the people who went to the auditions were just there to catch a glimpse of Song Zhen or join in the fun. There aren’t many with actual Chinese dance skills. You know a bit of dance and are pretty, so it’s no surprise you got in,” Cheng Yu said nonchalantly.

“You might as well say I got in because of my looks,” Pei Jiyin snorted. “I also joined another club.”

“What?” Cheng Yu asked casually.

“Our faculty’s women’s soccer club.”

“Huh?” Cheng Yu was taken aback.

“Yeah, this club didn’t have many applicants, so there was no audition. I just walked right in,” Pei Jiyin said.

Cheng Yu didn’t know how to express her thoughts in words and finally gave a thumbs-up: “Only you. After seeing how you struggled during military training, you still dare to play soccer? What are you going there for, to be a cheerleader?”

“To stay fit and bring glory to our faculty.”

Cheng Yu: “…”

Pei Jiyin wasn’t lying. She genuinely wanted to exercise and stay healthy. Sitting in front of the computer all day could be deadly. Besides, the regular training was only twice a week, which wasn’t too demanding.

On Saturday evening, the Chinese Dance Club held its first new member meeting. Pei Jiyin usually didn’t wear makeup, but this time, she spent an hour applying a flawless look.

After being selected, all the new members were added to the Chinese Dance Club’s WeChat group. Pei Jiyin had immediately sent a friend request to Song Zhen, whose profile picture was a lotus flower with the words “Don’t Be Angry” written on it. The sight of it made her chuckle.

She had initially thought Song Zhen would be a serious person, but now it seemed that wasn’t the case.

It took an hour for Song Zhen to accept the friend request.

[Pei Jiyin: Hello, senior.]

[Song Zhen: Hi, sorry. I was taking a nap earlier and didn’t see your request.]

[Pei Jiyin: No problem. I’m just glad you accepted.]

Pei Jiyin sent over a cute sticker.

[Pei Jiyin: Will you be at the meeting tonight, senior?]

[Song Zhen: Yes.]

Pei Jiyin carefully selected an “excited” sticker and sent it.

[Pei Jiyin: Then I won’t disturb you further, senior. See you tonight.]

[Song Zhen: Mhm.]

Pei Jiyin rubbed her neck, feeling elated.

How satisfying. Who would’ve thought it’d be so easy to add her as a friend?

Pei Jiyin took out her phone and sent a message requesting leave.

【Chant V: Something came up at school tonight, taking the day off. Will stream tomorrow instead, mwah.】