Lin Feng had called Tian Tian late at night last Friday. The content of their conversation was very simple. It was just a few sentences.
"Are you free tomorrow?"
"… Yes, I have training tomorrow afternoon and rest at night."
"Then let's have a chat tomorrow night."
"… Okay."
Today, the two former teammates sat opposite each other at a table in the corner of the hot pot restaurant.
Tian Tian, who was sitting in his seat, still looked a little uneasy. His round head was slightly sweating, and he rubbed his hands uncomfortably as if he wanted to say something but did not know where to start.
"Lin Feng, you … you did nothing wrong."
"Yes, it's my fault. I should have told you about Eleven a long time ago, but Eleven told me not to tell you about him —"
In the past week, Lin Feng had not called Tian Tian since his unexpected encounter with Eleven in the LSPL arena. The latter had heard from Nian Thirteen that Lin Feng and Eleven had met, but for different reasons, the two seemed to be deliberately avoiding each other and did not communicate with each other.
Until now.
"I know, it's not your fault."
Lin Feng shook his head. "But now that I've met Eleven, there's no need for you to hide a lot of things, is there?"
His tone was very calm. As he spoke, he raised his head, looked seriously at his former teammates in front of him, and made his request.
"So …"
"Now, please tell me everything you know about Eleven, okay?"
Tian Tian's face showed a look of struggle and hesitation. Finally, he met Lin Feng's serious and pleading eyes, gritted his teeth, and made up his mind to nod firmly.
"Okay."
"Listen to me —"
It was early autumn night in Shanghai. The city was still brightly lit, and the cool autumn wind blew the leaves flying on the roadside streets. The hot pot restaurant was steaming, and the customers were noisy. In such a noisy atmosphere, the conversation at the table in the corner seemed to be isolated from the surrounding world, quietly and calmly going on.
One person spoke slowly.
One person listened carefully.
The person's voice trembled slightly. His eyes turned red, and his tone seemed to be choked with sobs.
The waiter brought up the hotpot base and turned on the induction cooker to heat it up. The lid of the pot was removed, and the white mist with the aroma of meat leaped up, evaporated, and spread out, blurring the face of the listener across the table. In a trance, one could not clearly see the expression on the face with its head lowered in silence.
The listener's hands that were holding the glass were trembling uncontrollably.
A long time passed.
It seemed to be short, yet torturously long.
"The situation … is basically like this."
After saying the last sentence, Tian Tian slumped into his seat powerlessly as if he had collapsed. His eyes were red as he forcefully sniffed his chubby nose without a care for his manners, as if this was the only way he could control his sadness and grief.
Lin Feng, who was sitting across from him, finally raised his head slowly. When he opened his mouth, his voice was deep and hoarse, causing people's hearts to tremble.
"Fatty."
Tian Tian sniffled and tried his best to raise his head to meet Lin Feng's gaze.
"Yes."
At some point in time, Lin Feng's eyes had turned frighteningly red. He gritted his teeth.
"These things …"
"You really should've told me earlier!"
… …
It was already Sunday.
Su Xue woke up early in the morning. She had just finished washing up and was walking out of the bathroom with a lazy stretch. When she saw Lin Feng walking out of his bedroom, she was a little surprised.
"Hey, why are you up so early today?"
Before she could finish speaking, Su Xue's eyes suddenly widened in shock.
"Damn, what's wrong?"
Lin Feng's face was covered in dark circles, and he looked a little dispirited. "Didn't you sleep well last night?" Su Xue asked cautiously.
"Yeah." Lin Feng nodded, then shook his head. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
Fine?
Su Xue couldn't help but look at Lin Feng again. She naturally didn't believe him at all, but she didn't ask any more questions. She just smiled and said, "It's good that you're up. I'll go make breakfast."
Lin Feng nodded again. "Okay."
After entering the kitchen, Su Xue busied herself. She picked up the wok and fried a poached egg. She couldn't help but glance at Lin Feng from the corner of her eyes. He was sitting there quietly, not saying a word. His head was lowered as if he was thinking about something.
This kid …
After coming back last night, he went into his bedroom and didn't come out.
Did he say he went to see Fatty?
As she thought about it, Su Xue subconsciously frowned. She wondered what Lin Feng and Tian Tian did or said when they met last night. Otherwise, why would Lin Feng be in such a bad state?
Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind. Su Xue's heart skipped a beat as she recalled a certain scene that happened at the LSPL last week.
She probably …
She guessed what it was.
… …
After breakfast, Lin Feng went straight to his bedroom. No one knew what he was doing in there. He didn't come out until it was lunchtime. Su Xue looked at Lin Feng at the table and asked.
"Don't you guys have the Gold Spear Cup's top 16 matches to play in the afternoon?"
Lin Feng nodded.
"Yeah, it's around two o 'clock. I'll be there after I eat and rest for a while."
"I see …" Su Xue looked a little regretful. "It's a pity I have to go to the LSPL in the afternoon. I have another game to commentate tonight. Otherwise, I could go watch your game and cheer you on."
Lin Feng smiled. "It's fine. Sister Xue, just do what you need to do. It's just a small game."
As he said that, he paused and asked one more question.
"Which teams are playing in the LSPL tonight?"
Su Xue also paused for a moment. Then she thought for a moment and replied, "It's just a BO3 between the third and fourth teams in this year's LSPL season. It's a battle for third place. It's nothing."
Lin Feng nodded. "Oh." He didn't ask any more questions.
Su Xue also didn't say anything more.
The content of the conversation seemed very ordinary, and the tone of the two was very natural. In fact, they knew each other very well, but they just chose not to be completely honest.
After lunch, Su Xue, who had cleaned up the dishes, hurriedly changed her clothes and went out.
Half an hour later, Lin Feng also left home.
After walking a small block, he saw Tang Bingyao standing there under a sycamore tree in front of the intersection. He didn't know how long she had been waiting, but the girl happily came up to him.
"Lin Feng, let's go!"
The girl's clothes today looked fresh and natural. Coupled with that smiling face, people couldn't help but feel happy when they saw her.
Lin Feng also had a smile on his face.
"Mhm, let's go."
After stopping a taxi, the two sat in the back seat, told the driver the address, and then the taxi engine started and flew towards their destination.
At the same time.
Pudong International Airport, Terminal T1.
Accompanied by a roar from the sky, a giant Boeing aircraft slowly landed on the tarmac.
*****
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