Lu Lian was stunned. Year-end bonus?

 

He couldn't quite figure out what was going on in Lin Ao's little head.

 

Lin Ao noticed Lu Lian's hesitation and realized that his question might sound strange. He awkwardly rubbed his nose and said, "I was just asking randomly."

 

Lu Lian chuckled lightly and seemed quite serious as he said, "How about this? Next year, we'll use the championship prize money as the year-end bonus."

 

Lin Ao's eyes lit up, and he said contentedly, "Okay."

 

This year-end bonus was much more meaningful than the bonuses praised by the elderly in the nursing home.

 

Lin Ao rubbed his fists, eager to try, and asked, "So where will we train from now on?"

 

Lu Lian nodded slightly and pointed twice to indicate.

 

"Here?" Lin Ao knew this place would be his training base, but he couldn't help but turn his head to look around.

 

Lu Lian noticed him peeking around and smiled. He said, "Let me show you around."

 

First, they visited the training room. It was a room facing south, with large French windows opening to the backyard. Five computers were lined up against the wall, and the chairs were the latest models, the same brand Lin Ao used.

 

"The keyboards are temporary, but you can bring your own keyboard later."

 

Lin Ao nodded, his gaze falling on the host computer. Once during a live stream, his computer froze, and his fans had been urging him to get a new one, but he hesitated not because of money but because he was just stingy.

 

He patted his future battle companion, then glanced at a pile of "TLD: Legendary Land" action figures nearby.

 

"These were sent by the game's official team. You can take whichever one you like."

 

Lin Ao didn't hesitate and picked a few of his favorite heroes—Dragon King of the Four Seas, Ugly Duckling, and the Three Witches of Hell.

 

Lu Lian noticed that Lin Ao's taste was quite consistent. He preferred mages. However, from his previous research, Lu Lian knew that Lin Ao was also proficient in other types of heroes. In games, his chances of playing top, mid, and jungle were 3:3:3, with occasional games in the bottom lane.

 

Lu Lian suddenly recalled what Lin Ao had said before, "I can play any position." He didn't doubt Lin Ao's abilities, but it didn't fit his usual temperament.

 

So Lu Lian asked, "Do you really want to play any position?"

 

Lin Ao raised his head, looked at Lu Lian with a cunning expression, and said, "Of course, I was just fooling around. My plan is to come in first and foremost and my goal has always been the mid-lane. Luckily, you placed me there, otherwise, your former mid laner would be in danger."

 

"Oh?" Lu Lian was interested. "What do you want to do?"

 

Lin Ao confidently said, "Switch him to another position, and I'll take mid."

 

Lu Lian fell silent for a few seconds and then said with a bit of a wry smile, "Don't keep thinking about beating your teammates. However, you're overthinking it; we don't have another mid laner."

 

Lu Lian smiled faintly, familiar with Lin Ao's personality, and knew this matter was not simple.

 

Unfortunately, Lin Ao was straightforward, and he didn't get it. He continued with a self-righteous tone, "Okay, that's fine. By the way, what's my position? What about the other members of the team?"

 

"There are none," Lu Lian replied.

 

"What?" Lin Ao thought he must have misheard.

 

Lu Lian remained calm and said, "Currently, you're the only member of the team."

 

"???" Lin Ao jumped from the computer to stand in front of Lu Lian, staring at him. "Say that again?!"

 

Lin Ao found that he was shorter than Lu Lian, which led him to appear slightly weaker when questioning Lu Lian. So he raised his chin slightly, trying to look fierce, and stared at Lu Lian.

 

Lu Lian noticed Lin Ao's small actions and a hint of amusement flashed in his eyes.

 

He thought, like a little lion with its fur on end.

 

Lu Lian seemed to be thinking this, then, strangely, he patted Lin Ao's head affectionately.

 

Both of them were slightly stunned by this familiar gesture.

 

"I heard you've brought that kid here?"

 

Hua Zhiheng pushed open the half-closed door, smiling as he walked in. "Let me see..."

 

As soon as he entered, he saw Lu Lian and Lin Ao standing face to face in an ambiguous manner.

 

Lin Ao was almost sticking to Lu Lian's face, as if about to kiss him, while Lu Lian's hand was poised to hold the back of Lin Ao's head, making it look like they were about to kiss.

 

"Sorry to interrupt, you guys can continue," Hua Zhiheng said with a teasing tone. He must have seen a lot of situations like this during his time on the gaming scene and acted as if he had never entered. He smiled and was about to leave.

 

Lu Lian took a deep breath and said, "What are you doing, come in."

 

Lin Ao, after seeing Hua Zhiheng, felt slightly more at ease and calmer. At least with a former professional player here, Lu Lian shouldn't be a scammer. Besides, thinking about it, Lu Lian wouldn't need to go through all that trouble just to deceive him.

 

Then he noticed his face was getting closer to Lu Lian's, so he awkwardly took a step back.

 

Lu Lian introduced, "This is Hua Zhiheng."

 

Lin Ao curled his lips and said, "I know, a retired player from FLY. He played many positions before, support, AD carry, top lane. He was quite good as support..."

 

Hua Zhiheng complained, "Oh, I didn't expect you to pay so much attention to me, you little stinky king. It seems that although I have retired, my reputation is still there."

 

Lin Ao lifted his eyes, glanced at Hua Zhiheng, and continued, "But the more he switches positions, the worse he gets."

 

Hua Zhiheng's face turned a bit sullen. "I knew you wouldn't have anything nice to say."

 

Lu Lian couldn't help but find it amusing. Every time Hua Zhiheng started talking, he didn't bother to listen, and now Hua Zhiheng had encountered his nemesis, someone who could talk back even better, right in front of him.

 

Lin Ao said, "Then what's his position?"

 

Lu Lian didn't bother to correct Lin Ao's perception. He said directly, "Coach."

 

Lin Ao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

 

Hua Zhiheng dissatisfiedly said, "Hey, what's with that look? It's like you're looking down on me? Even though I retired, I'm still not that bad."

 

"I respect the elderly and cherish the young." Lin Ao smiled at Hua Zhiheng with a teasing expression. "Expressions say it all."

 

Hua Zhiheng: "......"

 

"If it wasn't for finding you adorable, I'd punch you!"

 

Seeing that Lin Ao was much more relaxed, Lu Lian said, "We are a new team, and we are still looking for the other members. Coach Hua and I already have goals."

 

Lin Ao put his hands into his coat pockets and said, "So now our team is just me? Boss Lu, don't you think you really look like a liar?"

 

Lu Lian looked calm, as if he wasn't the one who was wrong: "Didn't you sign the contract without asking me about the other players?"

 

Lin Ao: "..."

 

So speaking of it, they are pretty much the same.

 

One dares to speak, the other dares to sign.

 

One rich, one stupid.

 

"Forget it, anyway, I don't really care about my teammates." Lin Ao waved his fist threateningly, "But if you find me a bad teammate, I'll really beat you up."

 

When Lu Lian heard his words "I don't really care about my teammates", he just slightly raised his eyebrows. He knew that Lin Ao was very lonely, like a lone wolf, but he didn't expect to be so lonely.

 

Lian saw Lin Ao's relaxed expression and didn't correct his perception right away.

 

Sometimes, certain things were better experienced firsthand than explained a thousand times.

 

Lin Ao then said, "So can I choose any position I want?"

 

"If you get tired, you can go upstairs and sleep. The bedding in each room is new. If you want, I can have some of your belongings moved here first."

 

"No need. I'm not that pampered. I can even sleep on the side of the road."

 

Hua Zhiheng, unaware of the context, still had to ask, "Have you slept on the side of the road before?"

 

Lin Ao replied, "None of your business."

 

Hua Zhiheng rolled up his sleeves and pretended, "You've already signed the contract, right? Then I can teach you a lesson without worry."

 

But Hua Zhiheng, who was cursing, was held down by Lu Lian: "Then you play first, I have something to do with Coach Hua."

 

"Oh." Lin Ao walked to the window, pulled out the chair and sat down, without looking at them again.

 

After a while, the door of the training room was opened, and Lu Lian's figure appeared at the door. He saw Lin Ao wearing earphones, with the keyboard tilted on the table, quickly pressing skills with his left hand, and clicking the mouse with his right hand.

 

The afternoon sun shone on Lin Ao's body, outlining a young and energetic silhouette.

 

Lu Lian approached, just in time to see Lin Ao taking a double kill.

 

Lin Ao also noticed that someone was coming, so he pulled down one earphone and asked, "What's the matter?"

 

"Hua Zhiheng and I are going out for a trip."

 

"Oh! No need to report to me," Lin Ao said irritably.

 

"..." Lu Lian wanted to rub Lin Ao's head again.

 

After he told Lin Ao the password of the gate, he turned around and left. When he reached the gate, he suddenly asked, "Would you be afraid if you live alone?"

 

"I'm afraid you're a ghost!" Lin Ao turned to look at Lu Lian and cursed angrily.

 

I don't know if it was because of being exposed to the sun, or because of the strong relationship, Lu Lian was dazzled, he actually felt a tinge of blush on Lin Ao's face just now.

 

"Are you going to go or not?" Lin Ao said angrily.

 

Despite spending 10 million, he was still treated with disdain by Lin Ao. But Lu Lian didn't mind, he held back his laughter and said, "Alright, I'm leaving."

 

After Lu Lian and Hua Zhiheng left, Lin Ao temporarily put the game aside.

 

How should I put it, he was not used to playing games without the live broadcast room, so he opened Weibo.

 

Sure enough, the fans from his live stream all came to Weibo to console him.

 

　     [You ungrateful child, you let us wait for so long without seeing you]

 

　     [My son got banned, and this mother is worried]

 

　     [Big brother Ao, QAQ, on the first day you were gone, miss you]

 

　     [No way, when will the foul-mouthed streamer come back? Without you, where can I vent?]

 

　     [Upstairs, isn't it enough to vent about Whiz? Please focus your energy there, alright?]

 

　     [It's not the same. Insulting Whiz is genuine, while venting about Lin Ao is just a daily task]

 

Lin Ao felt speechless; what kind of absurd comments were these?

 

　     [Enough talking, there are too many cheating people recently, and the wall is slow]

 

　     [Even getting into the Atlantis country's server requires queuing...]

 

　     [So trash, not worth a hit]

 

Lin Ao spent the whole day dealing with official matters and didn't know about the server situation. He checked online and roughly understood the situation. The conflicts extended from arguments on Weibo to in-game confrontations.

 

　     [It's strange. As expected, even if Ao Ao's live stream got banned, Weibo wouldn't be so quiet]

 

　     [I even thought he would rush to the Atlantis country's server, play ranked games all night, just to encounter Whiz. But he hasn't said anything at all]

 

　     [Hehe, that's why I said you fans are naive and silly. After all, Whiz is a champion team and the legitimate world's best mid-laner. Can he compete?]

 

　     [Lion180: I declare you the world's number one fool]

 

Upon seeing Lin Ao's reply, his fans got excited.

 

Some asked where he had been, some accused him of replying to Whiz first before his fans, and others just spammed with adoring messages.

 

Of course, most of them asked about his plans during this time.

 

After considering the situation, Lin Ao, as Lu Lian's man, messaged Lu Lian asking, "Can I talk about joining the team now?"

 

Lu Lian was a bit surprised that Lin Ao asked for his opinion first, he was quite obedient. He replied, "Wait for the official announcement."

 

Lin Ao replied to a fan, [Wait a bit longer. My new son doesn't want me to say anything.]

 

Meanwhile, Lu Lian received a notification on his phone that his special attention friend had come online.

 

He looked at Lin Ao's latest Weibo post's rapidly increasing comments and guessed that Lin Ao must have been interacting with fans in the comments. He casually clicked and saw the message, "New son."

 

Lu Lian: "..."

 

He fell into deep thought. Why did he think Lin Ao would be obedient?