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01
Twelve-year-old Lu Hanwen was sitting by the windows, the sunny weather outside fully on display, when he saw Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian, who had come in to observe the training camp, for the first time.
He’d just joined the youth training camp not too long ago, and he was comparatively younger than the other trainees — though not that much younger. His parents had been open-minded about the whole thing; they were letting him try it out for a period of time before making further decisions.
The appearance of Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian had caused a huge commotion among the trainees. Someone’s excited shout of “Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian are here!” caused the group of youths to rush towards the door like a bunch of starving fish gaping their mouths begging for food. The coach ushered them to sit down, and the chattering boys finally returned to their seats. As soon as Yu Wenzhou pushed open the door, the last trace of the whisperings disappeared as well.
Yu Wenzhou greeted the training camp’s coach, and then the coach announced their first exercise: split into groups of two and fight one on one in an arena.
As the rumors had it, Huang Shaotian was a chatterbox. While he wandered between rows of trainees with Yu Wenzhou, he’d point out to one boy “a bit slow” and to another boy “don’t rush in, there’s better opportunity”. Each boy who’d been given advice by the captain and vice-captain had their backs ramrod straight, their gazes burning. For the majority of the trainees here, the two men standing behind them represented what they aimed and dreamed of becoming in the future.
Lu Hanwen, on the other hand, wasn’t nervous. It was as if he just naturally didn’t understand the concept of anxiety, and so when he sensed Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian gradually approaching him, his heart only felt a pang of clarity; or perhaps it was because today’s weather was so beautiful, not a hint of clouds to be seen in the sky.
He could feel Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian had stopped behind him; even in the early summer, the warmth of their presence was impossible to ignore.
Huang Shaotian stood closest to him, and lightly commented “oh, Blade Master” while Yu Wenzhou let out a soft chuckle. With his headphones covering his ears, Lu Hanwen pretended he couldn’t hear them.
His opponent was much more experienced than himself, but as usual, he chased after his opponent tenaciously and slashed in brusque strikes, and when he ran out of ideas, he switched skills even if he wasn’t familiar with the use of some of them yet.
Behind him, Huang Shaotian continued to murmur “almost” and “too slow this time” and “don’t use Shadow Steps, use Immortal Guides the Way” until Yu Wenzhou put a stop to it by saying, “Just let him handle this by himself first; it’ll be over soon.”
As expected, it was quickly over for Lu Hanwen, who pouted a little, pulled off his headphones, turned around and politely greeted them, “Hello, Captain Yu. Hello, Vice-Captain Huang.”
Huang Shaotian raised his eyebrows. “What Vice-Captain Huang… that sounds damn awful! Call me Huang Shao!”
Lu Hanwen obediently called him, “Hello, Huang Shao.”
Yu Wenzhou looked like he was about to break into a smile as he glanced over at Huang Shaotian before he focused on the young boy and said, “You played well.” His tone was genuine yet calm, without a trace of consolation or superficiality.
Lu Hanwen replied with a naturally swift smile, “Thank you, Captain Yu.”
Huang Shaotian cleared his throat and fixed the collar of his uniform. “So kid, why do you play the Blade Master class-”
Lu Hanwen didn’t even hesitate. “Because it’s cool!”
Huang Shaotian’s smile collapsed for a second before he quickly recovered. “Little brat, do you know who’s currently the best Blade Master in Glory-”
Lu Hanwen replied instantly, “Yeah! Sword Saint Huang Shaotian!”
With a loud bark of laughter, Huang Shaotian patted him on his shoulder. “Haha, that’s right, that’d be me — the Sword Saint! Don’t you get nervous! You did your best to bring your initiative into full play, so keep at it!”
Lu Hanwen nodded very hard. “Okay!”
Yu Wenzhou shared a glance with Huang Shaotian, and then he smiled down at Lu Hanwen. “How old are you?”
“Twelve,” Lu Hanwen answered energetically.
Huang Shaotian’s reflexes were quick, and he managed to pat the younger boy’s head before he could dodge it. “That’s great, little brat. You should eat well so you can grow taller, okay? If you’re too short, don’t say you’re from Blue Rain, you hear me? What do you like to eat? Do you eat your vegetables? Does the training camp cafeteria still serve milk?”
Yu Wenzhou was already three meters away from them; he turned around to call for his vice-captain, and Huang Shaotian reluctantly patted the boy’s shoulder in farewell. “You have to finish drinking your milk!”
Watching Huang Shaotian, Yu Wenzhou merely shook his head helplessly and smiled. Huang Shaotian jogged a few steps to catch up to the captain, and the two men continued to chat with the training camp coach.
Faintly whispered phrases like “cafeteria”, “milk”, and “growing body” floated their way into his ears. Lu Hanwen blinked and put on his headphones as he prepared for another round of training.
Half an hour before dinner, Yu Wenzhou was delivering his welcome speech on the stage. Lu Hanwen felt slightly hungry; he rested his chin against his palm, lost in thought.
On one side was Yu Wenzhou’s mild voice telling everyone to treat Blue Rain as their new home, the team uniform that he donned making the eyes of the children watching from below sparkle; on the other side was the crisp and clear outlines of the city, and above it was the sky, the shadows of the clouds moving ever so gently. Both sides had those same simple hues of blue and white that naturally lifted spirits.
Lu Hanwen, who was only 1.49 meters tall this year, still didn’t understand the significance of being a professional eSports player; he just felt his mood was turning for the better.
02
Lu Hanwen waited and waited as he grew taller, one centimeter by one centimeter.
For the past two years, although he hadn’t been growing very quickly, his skills and techniques had improved significantly. Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian visited him often, especially Huang Shaotian. In the beginning, it was Lu Hanwen who insisted on pestering the vice-captain to train with him, and, unsurprisingly, it always ended with Lu Hanwen being heavily beaten up.
Soon after, Huang Shaotian discovered that the more frustrated Lu Hanwen got from his failures, the more courageous he became. Eventually, Huang Shaotian seemed to enjoy their matches so much that he’d even drag Lu Hanwen to the arena at a set time every week.
But it wasn’t enough just to do that; Huang Shaotian kept muttering into his ears, “Hanwen how tall are you right now, huh? How tall? You can’t debut if you’re not tall enough, you know?”
Lu Hanwen got so scared that he halted the movement of his hands, allowing Troubling Rain to land a strike on him. Yu Wenzhou wandered over, chuckling, and said, “Shaotian is just teasing you.” And Lu Hanwen yelped “Huang Shao, that’s cheating!” as a few drops of the milk that Yu Wenzhou brought over earlier spilled over onto the table.
Huang Shaotian said while laughing, “I’m just giving you motivation to grow.”
Lu Hanwen gulped down his milk with a heroic flair, saying, “I’ll grow taller. My mom said that I’m a late bloomer. One day I will be 1.8 meters tall!”
He could wait, but Blue Rain couldn’t.
As Season 8 concluded, the summer season of transfers began. The day after Yu Feng’s transfer had been finalized, the training camp was awash with the spine-chilling atmosphere created not only by the air conditioner’s blast of freezing wind, but also by the tenseness between the trainees with their swords drawn and bows stretched in readiness. This tension only became more prominent the moment Huang Shaotian and Yu Wenzhou stepped into the training room.
Huang Shaotian was still standing by the entrance, and Yu Wenzhou came in to greet everyone with a smile, telling them to keep training; his facial expression and tone were the same as usual.
Lu Hanwen still sat at the computer closest to the windows. The poisonously blazing summer sunlight of City G squeezed into the room through the gap of the blinds, leaving a strand of blinding light that illuminated the cardreader, Flowing Cloud’s account card, Lu Hanwen’s wrist — burning him slightly — and when Yu Wenzhou came to stand by him, the light illuminated his Blue Rain uniform, too.
Yu Wenzhou leaned over and told him with a soft voice to take his account card with him and come outside for a moment. Lu Hanwen made a loud noise of affirmation, and a few nearby trainees turned their heads to stare at him.
Huang Shaotian seemed strangely down. Lu Hanwen attempted to start small talk with him, but he merely let out half-hearted laughter as the three of them made their way to the manager’s office.
Huang Shaotian’s expression became somber as he suddenly stopped and placed his hands on Lu Hanwen’s shoulders. “Hanwen, there’s something I have to ask you. Would you like to — oh man, how should I put this? It’s just. You’ve been doing very well, and we can all see that, even though you’re only fourteen years old, and your height still hasn’t reached the average height of that of a fourteen-year-old boy’s. Speaking of which, why aren’t you growing any taller?”
“Huang Shao!” he rebuked with a displeased tone, “I’m a late-bloomer!”
“Shaotian wanted to ask whether or not you would like to debut this upcoming season,” Yu Wenzhou took advantage of the pause in between the two boys’ bantering and interrupted, “to become a professional player for Blue Rain.”
Yu Wenzhou looked at him with eyes filled with kindness, his face showing the same easy, approachable expression. Huang Shaotian fell into silence, his gaze focusing on Lu Hanwen flashing for a second.
Lu Hanwen burst into laughter. “Of course I’d like that! The reason why I come here is to become a professional player!”
Shoulders slumping in relief, Huang Shaotian returned to his usual talkative self; he lifted his head and shared a glance with Yu Wenzhou as they grinned at each other.
“Wait out here,” Yu Wenzhou told him before he knocked on the manager’s office door.
The windows along the hallway were huge, and the sunlight invaded most parts of the corridor. Lu Hanwen leaned against the wall hidden in the shades, his hands restlessly playing with Flowing Cloud’s account card, as the shadows of the clouds flowed by his feet.
In the office, Huang Shaotian’s perpetual voice became a blurry mess that dispersed out, and when he stopped, Yu Wenzhou’s voice — his every word — was comparatively clearer and stronger.
“I believe in Shaotian’s judgment. Our opinions on this are the same.”
It was absolutely silent in the office for a moment, and then the manager’s flustered and exasperated voice rose up, “What else can I do but believe in you two!”
The door was opened, and Huang Shaotian happily pulled Lu Hanwen in. Inside the room, there were no traces of argument left; on the three men’s faces were joyous and friendly smiles. On the wall across from where he was standing hung the gigantic team flag of Blue Rain, the shade of blue strongly reminiscent of the sky.
“Congrats on becoming a member of Team Blue Rain!” Huang Shaotian said.
“Welcome,” Yu Wenzhou said.
“We still have to ask for his parents’ consent!” The manager flashed a quick smile at Lu Hanwen and then glared at Huang Shaotian. “Hold on! He’s already fourteen? His height doesn’t show it!”
“I’ll grow to 1.8 meters tall!” Lu Hanwen was grinning brightly, and this statement became a few degrees more unyielding, a promise to be fulfilled.
“Good, good, good,” the manager laughed, amused. “From now on, we’ll rely on you to hold up Blue Rain’s half of the sky!”
“And our half of the sky requires the grandest announcement conference!” Huang Shaotian gathered him into his arms and announced loudly.
The manager let out a long sigh. Huang Shaotian was unhappy at this kind of disappointing reaction, and was about to go right up to the manager’s face to argue his tongue off.
Tilting his head to the side slightly, Yu Wenzhou asked Lu Hanwen, “Do you have any other questions you’d like to ask?”
Lu Hanwen considered seriously, and lifting up his head, he asked, “What should I say to the reporters?”
“You can say whatever you want to say,” Yu Wenzhou answered.
Lu Hanwen was a little surprised. “Even things like I’m hungry — I’m allowed to say that?”
Yu Wenzhou laughed. “Sure. We choose you to become our teammate because you are you, not because we want to change you into someone else. Say what you want to say, do what you want to do, and leave the rest to your teammates. The first rule to joining Blue Rain: trust your teammates.”
Only half-understanding, Lu Hanwen nodded, then shook his head. He wasn't distressed, but he blinked his eyes with some confusion. "It sounds complicated."
"That's alright," Yu Wenzhou said calmly. "Later, you'll begin to understand."
On the second week of summer transfers, Team Blue Rain announced what would be known as the new season’s most important transfer — a fourteen-year-old youngster.
Lu Hanwen, who was 1.52 meters tall this year, became the youngest professional player in the history of Glory.
03
During Season 9, due to Lu Hanwen’s major mistakes, Blue Rain suffered a regretful defeat in the first round of the playoffs against Tiny Herb.
Even though he’d already sworn firmly during the press conference that he’d become stronger next time, the heavy guilt borne from his costly mistakes couldn’t be wiped away that easily. Everyone was exhausted right after the match, and they quietly slept it off on the flight back home.
During the bus ride back to the club from the airport, Lu Hanwen was quiet. He stared out the window; July was the season of rain, and City G’s sky was dark and heavy with clouds hanging low as it brewed up a massive, venting storm.
Lu Hanwen’s eyes were still a bit dry and red from crying earlier, and as he kept blinking, the clouds gathered lower and lower within his line of sight.
“A-Xuan!” Huang Shaotian suddenly called out from up front, but it was aimed not at him but at Zheng Xuan, who was seated to his left. “You’re a damn embarrassment! Can’t you just wear some height-lift insoles next time? Even Big-Eyed Wang’s kid is almost as tall as you!”
“That’s a difficult one, Huang Shao…” Zheng Xuan, with a piece of chip balanced between his lips, slid a few centimeters down his seat. “Fang Shiqian teased you for your height from the time he debuted until he retired, so aren’t you the pot calling the kettle black?”
“What do you know!” Huang Shaotian snarled. “Even when you’re 23 years old, you can still grow!”
Yu Wenzhou interrupted faintly, “I’ve heard you say the same thing for the past four years.”
Everyone laughed. Even Lu Hanwen, who’d been listening to their conversation, couldn’t help but let a stupid grin lift up the corner of his mouth.
Sitting diagonally in front of him, Huang Shaotian shot him a quick glance before releasing a sigh. “If we want to defeat Tiny Herb with our heights, we can only rely on Hanwen!”
Xu Jingxi cut in, “What should we do? Should we sell Little Lu to Tiny Herb to pull down their average height?”
Song Xiao continued with a laugh, “Little Lu is still undergoing puberty. If he ends up growing taller when he gets older, then won’t we be at a disadvantage?”
“Then we’ll just sell Shaotian to Tiny Herb to pull down their average height,” Yu Wenzhou announced with a cheerful smile.
“Captain—!” Huang Shaotian protested loudly.
Everyone joined in the boisterous laughter again, and even Lu Hanwen wheezed until there was a snot bubble blowing out of his nose.
Zheng Xuan slowly dealt the last hit: “As soon as he hears Huang Shao is leaving, Little Lu is bubbling with happiness.”
Huang Shaotian yelled “Lu Hanwen, you traitor!” as he slammed against the other boy, reaching out to tickle him. Lu Hanwen laughed until tears fell and he screeched for Huang Shaotian to have mercy on him.
Yu Wenzhou thoughtfully handed him a packet of tissues, and Lu Hanwen wiped his tears and snot clean. In the first rainfall of July, he smiled. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely grow to 1.8 meters tall!”
That day’s rainfall was merely the beginning as the news continued to broadcast the arrival of a typhoon two days from now. Traffic was forced to a halt, and no one was able to return home, and so they decided to stay in the dormitory together. The day before the typhoon was supposed to land, Huang Shaotian brought Yu Wenzhou and Lu Hanwen along to visit the supermarket, claiming that they needed to purchase food reserves for the upcoming storm. They ended up each carrying two huge bags, the three of them — with their sunglasses and masks — throwing themselves and their cargo into the car, and they drove back to the club in such a hurry as if they were fleeing the scene.
Upon returning, they began to sort through the merchandise. Lu Hanwen bought two big bags of snacks while Huang Shaotian bought a variety of games ranging from UNO cards to Aeroplane Chess. On the other hand, Yu Wenzhou bought some fruits, milk, and instant oatmeal, which made Zheng Xuan sigh in relief, thinking that at least they’d be able to stay indoors without starving to death for the next few days.
After Yu Wenzhou received a phone call, he went downstairs and returned with a microwave in his arms. Sensing everyone’s surprised looks, he explained calmly, “When we saw it at the supermarket, we thought this would be useful, so we just bought one.”
Huang Shoatian settled beside Lu Hanwen, a hand dramatically pressed against his own chest. “The captain can just casually bring back a microwave while wandering in the supermarket. I feel like he actually meant it when he said he’s going to sell me off to Tiny Herb.”
Before Lu Hanwen could open his mouth to comfort the other man, Huang Shaotian had already recovered from this grievous news; he rummaged through the treasure chest-like shopping bag in high spirits and pulled out a very, very long… height chart. With its neck sectioned with scale marks, the giraffe had a silly smile, yet Huang Shaotian kept insisting that the giraffe looked exactly like Lu Hanwen.
Huang Shaotian let Li Yuan, who was known for his adoration of small animals, openly attach the height chart that looked more like it belonged in a household with young children next to the doorway of the training room, directly beside the team rules and regulations. This was, it seemed, meant to be an indirect way to encourage and inspire Lu Hanwen to grow taller every day.
Yu Wenzhou watched from the sidelines, his smile kind and gentle. Lu Hanwen called for his captain, and the older man lightly patted him on his shoulder. “It’s fine. If the manager asks about it, I’ll explain.”
That same night, Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian found the perfect place for the microwave — in Yu Wenzhou’s dorm room. Initially, they’d wanted to put it in Lu Hanwen’s room, but since they were worried that Lu Hanwen would use it improperly and endanger himself, they decided to put it in Yu Wenzhou’s room instead.
Huang Shaotian displayed the microwave to Lu Hanwen with a pleased tone, “From now on, come here to claim your warm milk every night at ten o’clock. Finish it before you brush your teeth and go to bed, you hear me!”
Yu Wenzhou nodded in agreement.
An indescribable feeling of warmth flowed through Lu Hanwen’s heart. “Captain, you bought this microwave for me—?”
Cupping a hand over his mouth, Huang Shaotian murmured to Yu Wenzhou, “Look, he doesn’t seem that excited. I already told you we should’ve bought a gas stove and a pot; hot milk boiled that way tastes so much better…”
Lu Hanwen hurriedly and eagerly thanked them, “Thank you, Captain! Thank you, Huang Shao! I love this idea too much!”
***
On Thanksgiving that same year, he called his mother from the club. The first thing that his mother asked was whether or not he’d grown taller. He replied that he’d grown two centimeters, and that the captain had him call home so that he could thank his family for supporting his dreams.
His mother seemed very happy, and again bid him, “You need to make sure to thank your captain, vice-captain, and the other senior members. They must be taking good care of you all the time.”
Lu Hanwen could hear his father’s disapproving voice, “Boys don’t say those kinds of mushy things to each other. Play well, dedicate yourself to the team — that’s the way to repay your captain and the others.”
As a team, it was true that the members of Blue Rain didn’t tend to say anything sentimental to each other. Someday a long time from now, after he finished chatting with the rest of the new generation in the group chat, he’d think back to the past when no one in the team had ever actually told him to lead Blue Rain to victory, or shoulder the future of Blue Rain. Yet despite this, he dimly knew that he had to do this — he wanted to do this.
When he went to Yu Wenzhou’s room to get his cup of milk for the night, he saw that Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian were watching replays and analyzing the new, budding players from all the well-known teams.
He moved a stool and nudged in to sit between them while watching the recordings with them. The mug of milk cradled in his hands was warm, and so were the arms leaning lightly against his on both sides.
“Huang Shao,” he suddenly began, his voice muffled by the rim of his cup.
“What is it? What is it?” Huang Shaotian paused the video as he and Yu Wenzhou glanced over at him.
“What happens if I don’t grow to 1.8 meters?”
Huang Shaotian stared blankly, then said, “...If you don’t, then you just don’t. It’s not like everyone is expecting you to reach 1.8 meters tall just because you said you’d grow to 1.8 meters tall. Even if you end up being 1.78 meters, that’s fine; 1.76 meters, that’s fine, too. It’s fine no matter how tall you become. If victory was determined by whoever’s the tallest, then Royal Style would’ve won the championships ten times in a row… Wait, no, why are you asking us that? Did someone tease you? Who? Tell me and I’ll get even with them!”
The more he talked, the more agitated Huang Shaotian became, and he was about to bomb the pro player group chat when Yu Wenzhou stopped him.
“I was just wondering!” Lu Hanwen finished the last sip of his milk. “My knees have been hurting at night these days — just a little! It won’t distract me from training!”
“Oh damn! Is it because you didn’t wear the cotton trousers when we went to City B for a match last time? You caught a cold, didn’t you? Hanwen, I’m telling you, the heat will make your muscles swell and the cold will make them contract. If you keep letting your knees get cold like that, you won’t be able to grow taller!” Huang Shaotian muttered nonstop, one hand reaching over to rub Lu Hanwen’s right kneecap.
Lu Hanwen was baffled by the vice-captain’s muttering, and sent a piteous glance towards Yu Wenzhou begging for help.
“Our Hanwen is about to have a growth spurt,” Yu Wenzhou said, and reached over to rub his left kneecap.
The most valuable hands of Blue Rain were placed upon his knees, knees that were quietly preparing for a burst of explosive growth.
***
In Season 11, Blue Rain won the championships, and Lu Hanwen reached 1.65 meters tall.
His brows refined; his bones grew and elongated; he measured his frame and had new clothes tailored. The softness in his voice had faded and became more bright and clear. He’d tasted the bitterness of seeking yet failing to attain; he’d tasted the bitterness of narrowly missing opportunities. He’d tasted all kinds of bitterness, yet he didn’t know the meaning of melancholy, and once again, he stepped onto the battlefield with his sword strapped to his back.
04
The Fourth World Glory Invitational Tournament was held in Los Angeles, and starting from last year, the players who had debuted in Seasons 3 and 4 began to retire, one by one.
The day before Blue Rain’s representatives in Team China left for the competition, Lu Hanwen headed to Yu Wenzhou’s room as usual to retrieve his daily cup of milk. But as he was about to enter, he heard Huang Shaotian’s voice, unusually calm.
He said, “Yes, I’m sure.”
Yu Wenzhou’s tone was as placid as ever. “Shaotian, you know I always respect your decisions.”
Even after so many years, every time he said Shaotian’s name, Lu Hanwen could still hear a youthful warmth in his voice, just like how every time Huang Shaotian called for his captain, there was always that vibrant spirit.
“Troubling Rain is the Sword Saint. Only someone standing at the summit deserves to wield him. ‘Almost’, ‘kind of’, ‘a bit more’, ‘still needs work’ – we can’t have any of that.”
Huang Shaotian’s voice once again took on a faint note of pride, reminding Lu Hanwen of that summer when he was twelve, and Huang Shaotian was asking him, little brat, do you know who’s currently the best Blade Master in Glory, that’s right, it’s me, the Sword Saint –
Lu Hanwen quietly withdrew his hand from the doorknob. He returned to his room, returned to his bed, and he thought of returning to that summer when he was twelve.
But it was just a thought. He was Blue Rain’s brute-force attacker, and he needed to keep moving forward. No matter who fell, no matter what kind of mistakes happened, he only needed to keep moving forward. This was what Blue Rain entrusted to him; this was his trust toward Blue Rain.
The car sending Yu Wenzhou and Huang Shaotian to the airport came very early. Through the window, Lu Hanwen saw the summer pre-dawn sky: deep blue in color, thick and cloudless, dotted with a sprinkling of starlight.
***
Two hours before the world finals, Lu Hanwen sat before his computer and waited for the live broadcast.
Although it was three in the morning, he wasn’t the slightest bit tired as he pushed his account card in and out of the slot on the reader. After the eighth time doing this, his phone suddenly rang, and Lu Hanwen instantly picked up.
“How come you’re still not asleep? If you don’t sleep enough you won’t grow tall, do you even still want to grow to 1.8 meters?” A stream of scolding words spilled through the speaker.
Lu Hanwen giggled. In an innocent voice, he replied, “I was sleeping! It was Huang Shao who called and woke me up!”
In response to that, Huang Shaotian spluttered and talked in circles around that point for a while.
Finally, though, his voice took on a serious tone. “Lu Hanwen.”
“Yes.” Lu Hanwen nodded vigorously, even though the other party couldn’t see him.
“Today, open your eyes wide and watch closely. See who it is you’re going to surpass.”
Lu Hanwen suddenly felt as though his heart were blazing with light, the light of a summer sun that not even the shades could block. But this light cut as sharp as a sword, and the pain made his soul shiver.
He felt the urge to run, leap, to laugh out loud, to control Flowing Cloud in a careless battle. And so he stood up, pushed open the balcony door, faced eastward, and took a deep breath.
“Huang Shao!” he shouted. “Over where you are, it’s already yesterday!”
On the phone, Huang Shaotian started to laugh. “Right right right! I forgot, it’s already tomorrow for you!”
By the end, his laughter had started to tremble. Abruptly, the call ended.
In practically the same instant that Lu Hanwen lowered the phone from his ear, a text from Yu Wenzhou flashed across the screen.
“In the future, don’t stay up late, it’s bad for your health.”
“Reporting to Captain~ I only woke up because Huang Shao called me~”
“Then the speed with which you woke up and picked up the phone was really quite impressive.”
Lu Hanwen groaned. As usual, he couldn’t hide anything from Yu Wenzhou.
Outside, the sky began to fade into the colors of dawn.
***
In the Fourth World Glory Tournament, Team China took gold. During the finals, Troubling Rain, with the beautiful coordination of his teammates, pulled off an incredible reversal. The last person standing on the field was the Sword Saint, with 4% of his health remaining.
During the post-match press conference, Huang Shaotian announced his retirement.
***
When the new season began, Yu Wenzhou presented an account card to Lu Hanwen. But Lu Hanwen shook his head, and in a somewhat apologetic tone, said, “I’m not ready yet.”
Yu Wenzhou smiled, and his eyes took on a distant look, as though recalling a memory from long ago.
“Captain, aren’t you going to say something?” asked Lu Hanwen. “I thought for a long time last night how I was going to say this.”
There was a note of concern in Yu Wenzhou’s voice as he replied, “You have to maintain your sleep quality.”
Lu Hanwen’s brow furrowed, and, seeing this, Yu Wenzhou laughed – it seemed that his previous comment was made to purposely tease him. Yu Wenzhou continued to hold out Troubling Rain’s account card, but with his other hand, he pulled from his pocket another account card, labeled with the name Swoksaar.
He maintained this position, holding out these two cards in his two hands, as though displaying to Lu Hanwen the pair called the Sword and the Curse, Blue Rain’s god-level dual-core.
“When I was seventeen years old, my captain presented Swoksaar’s account card to me. And I said the same thing you did – I’m not ready yet.”
Lu Hanwen’s eyes widened.
“Your answer is the best answer I can think of,” said Yu Wenzhou, exaggerating a sigh of regret. “And so, I truly do not know how to reply to you.”
At that, Lu Hanwen laughed. “Captain–!”
The new season hadn’t begun for long. Blue Rain no longer had Huang Shaotian, and contrary to everyone’s expectations, Troubling Rain didn’t fall into the hands of Lu Hanwen. Instead, Lu Hanwen continued to use his Flowing Cloud account to play the role of the brute-force attacker. It was evident that Blue Rain’s style and tactics were in a period of adjustment.
During a press conference, a reporter asked Lu Hanwen, “Why didn’t you choose to take Huang Shaotian’s account card and position? Is it because of your own personal limits in ability?”
As usual, Lu Hanwen wore a bright and confident smile as he replied. “No, it’s not that. I won’t become him; I will surpass him.”
Such an aggressively assertive statement stunned the crowd. Everyone turned to look at Yu Wenzhou, the person who had just lost his battle partner of almost ten years, with incredulous eyes. But Yu Wenzhou maintained his typical calm smile, and it didn’t seem that he planned to contradict Lu Hanwen’s statement.
That night, in the dark training room, Lu Hanwen watched a livestream of someone playing through a new game. He sent a virtual gift to the livestreaming gamer, and then he swiftly exited the streaming room.
“Hanwen.” At some point, Yu Wenzhou had walked up behind him. “It’s late, why aren’t you sleeping yet?”
Lu Hanwen whirled around, stabbing the off button on the computer. He laughed guiltily. “Just now when I was showering, I thought that I grew taller, so I came over to measure myself.”
Yu Wenzhou acted as though he didn’t hear Lu Hanwen’s weak excuse. “Shaotian always livestreams so late at night. But he is abroad, and during the day he has class… You should discuss this with him sometime, find a solution.”
Lu Hanwen panicked. “Please don’t tell Huang Shao I watch his livestreams late at night, he’d rant at me to pieces!”
In his notebook, Yu Wenzhou wrote down a string of numbers, then passed it to Lu Hanwen. “This is Shaotian’s international number. If you miss him, you should give him a call.”
For a second, Lu Hanwen stared at the paper with pure joy. But then, he hesitated.
“I miss him…” he admitted. “But Huang Shao had to leave Blue Rain, which he loved so much. Compared to me, his pain must be much greater. So… I’ll wait until the day when he no longer feels loss for leaving Blue Rain, then I’ll contact him.”
Yu Wenzhou reached out and patted Lu Hanwen’s head, even though Lu Hanwen was already almost as tall as he was. “Hanwen, you’re very thoughtful.”
Somewhat embarrassed, Lu Hanwen rubbed his nose and chuckled.
Yu Wenzhou, while still patting his head, suddenly said, “I think you really are almost as tall as me now. Go measure.”
Lu Hanwen eagerly obliged, trotting over to that silly giraffe and pressing his back to the wall. “Captain, how tall am I?” he asked Yu Wenzhou urgently. “Am I taller than you? Have I reached 1.8 meters?”
“1.77,” said Yu Wenzhou, smiling.
05
“You’re not even participating in Worlds this year?” Lu Hanwen asked, standing in the doorway as he watched Yu Wenzhou pack his belongings.
“It’s your era now,” Yu Wenzhou said, calmly, matter-of-factly.
“Captain-”
Yu Wenzhou pressed a finger to his lips, signaling him to be quiet. “Starting today, you are the captain.”
Season 14, Blue Rain earned second place. Yu Wenzhou announced his retirement; Lu Hanwen would succeed him as captain.
As he was about to go to bed that night, Lu Hanwen suddenly felt hungry. He fumbled his way to the break room and from the fridge, he retrieved a bottle of milk, numbingly cold to the touch. The microwave that had been in Yu Wenzhou’s room, that he had used to warm his milk, had one day started malfunctioning. Lu Hanwen had tried to fix it himself, but the small issue became a big problem. In the end, it was deemed a lost cause and thrown into the dumpster, and at some point was cleared out of Blue Rain.
When he entered Blue Rain, he truly was too young. Sometimes understanding, sometimes clueless, he cried and he laughed and he grew up. The duration of this career was too short – many things happened and passed before he even had a chance to think about what was going on.
The scrapped microwave, the giraffe with its ears curling at the edges, the poster of Troubling Rain that revealed a rectangle of differently-colored wall when taken down. Last year, Blue Rain’s headquarters had been completely renovated, and now had floor-to-ceiling windows, through which one could see the brilliantly vast sky. Two months ago, the cafeteria chef who had made the best milk pudding retired to care for his grandson. Eleven days had passed since that familiar stray black-and-white cat had last come to scavenge for food.
Scattered and blurred fragments flashed through his mind, raucous applause, glimmering trophy, all shattered in the wind. He suddenly remembered being eight years old again, learning to ride his bicycle for the first time. Mom and Dad had been supporting him from behind, saying, Hanwen, just worry about pedaling forward, Mom and Dad will protect you . And so he furiously pedaled forward, the scenery whizzing by, the wind roaring in his ears. He pedaled and pedaled, and when he finally looked back, he saw that Mom and Dad had let go long ago.
Captain said, say what you want to say, do what you want to do, leave the rest to your teammates.
Huang Shao said, hurry and grow tall, whatever height you grow to is a fine height, Hanwen who dares tease you, they’d better run, sleep early wake early wear your cotton trousers in City B come get your milk every day focus harder what are you daydreaming… Huang Shao said a lot. And Huang Shao also said, Lu Hanwen, watch closely .
Lu Hanwen wasn’t used to drinking cold milk. It felt wrong, somehow. And so, the tears began to fall.
But he was going to grow tall. He was going to lift up Blue Rain. And so, even as he cried, he finished the bottle of cold milk.
Lu Hanwen tossed the empty bottle in the trash and rubbed at his tears. As he passed that silly giraffe at the door, he announced, “Starting today, I am captain of Team Blue Rain!”
That night, he slept soundly.
***
The Sixth World Glory Invitational Tournament, Beijing.
Lu Hanwen sat between Qiu Fei and Song Qiying and felt goosebumps along his skin. And then Yu Wenzhou pushed open the door and entered, and the word Captain caught in Lu Hanwen’s throat.
“Hello, everyone. I am the executive director of this year’s World Glory Invitational Tournament, Yu Wenzhou.”
“This feels so weird-” Lu Hanwen took advantage of the pause after Yu Wenzhou finished his introduction to loudly complain, “-this is like when you leave your parents to go to school for the first time, and you cry your heart out as though you’re about to go off to die, and then you go to school only to find out that the head teacher is still him!”
The entire table laughed, even Song Qiying, with a shake of his head.
But afterward, a lot of people couldn’t laugh anymore. The next people to enter the conference room were team leader Ye Xiu, coach Han Wenqing, manager Wang Jiexi.
“This isn’t even like going to school, it’s like going back to daycare,” said Lu Hanwen, shaking his head. “Just because we’re staying in-country this year and don’t have travel fees doesn’t mean you can just furiously pile on the pressure on us…”
Even as he spoke, he peeked at the door again, but no one else walked in. Ye Xiu and Yu Wenzhou were talking off to the side. Apparently, according to Yu Wenzhou, the Alliance was insisting that Zhou Zekai go as an invited commentator, because they couldn’t pass up the chance to show his face more.
Lu Hanwen felt a quiet disappointment.
After the simple introductions, everyone took turns to register the account card they would use in the competition.
“Lu Hanwen, Troubling Rain,” he said to Wang Jiexi, who was holding the register.
Several people glanced at Yu Wenzhou, but Yu Wenzhou only smiled and nodded at Lu Hanwen.
“You’re sure?” asked Ye Xiu.
“Troubling Rain is the Sword Saint. Only someone standing at the summit deserves to wield him,” said Lu Hanwen with a smile.
Wang Jiexi nodded, but as he was about to write, he suddenly stopped, and passed the register to Ye Xiu, seated on his right side. “I’ve forgotten how to write ‘Troubling Rain’, you write it.”
Ye Xiu took it, then abruptly said, “Oh no no, as soon as I think of that name my head hurts. Come, come, Wenzhou, you write.”
Yu Wenzhou smiled and took the register to write the name. As Lu Hanwen walked closer, he said quietly, “Eavesdropping on others is impolite, Captain Lu.”
Lu Hanwen felt his face grow warm. “Captain!”
It was louder than he intended, and a roomful of faces turned toward him. Lu Hanwen suddenly remembered, everyone in the room was a captain. Including himself.
***
Two hours before the world finals, the players were all preparing in the waiting room. Lu Hanwen stared at the phone in his hand for a while, before abruptly standing up. “I’m going to make a call, I’ll be back soon!”
Making this sort of request at this time was somewhat improper, but none of his teammates seemed annoyed. Captain Qiu Fei simply told him to go and quickly return.
He quickly dialed a number, a number he had long since learned by heart. After one ring, the call immediately connected.
Lu Hanwen said, “Why aren’t you asleep yet!”
On the other end, the reply was, “I was asleep, you little brat called and woke me up!”
Lu Hanwen started laughing.
The person on the other end was somewhat upset. “Why are you laughing why are you laughing why are you laughing!” he demanded.
Lu Hanwen continued to giggle. “Not telling you, this is a secret between me and Captain.”
He could almost see the other person’s pout. “Instead of learning the good behavior, you learn some random who-knows-what…”
Lu Hanwen took a deep breath. “Huang Shao,” he said, “watch closely.”
***
Team China took the championship, and the MVP award went to Troubling Rain, player Lu Hanwen. His playstyle was entirely different from Huang Shaotian’s variable and opportunistic style from several years ago; Lu Hanwen was tougher, more direct, but undoubtedly represented another pinnacle of Blade Master.
During the press conference, the first question thrown at Lu Hanwen was very sharp. “Do you think that you have already surpassed Huang Shaotian at his peak?”
Lu Hanwen calmly and confidently took the microphone. “I won’t become anyone’s shadow. I will become their pride. And also…”
The crowd was silent, waiting for his next words with bated breath.
Holding the microphone, Lu Hanwen looked around, looked at Qiu Fei and Qiao Yifan sitting to his right, looked at Gao Yingjie, Song Qiying, and Guo Shao watching anxiously from offstage. He suddenly remembered that conference from not too long ago, when Blue Rain announced that he was the new captain. He had suffered heavy criticism from the media, who had said that he was nothing without his seniors’ direction, that his judgment wasn’t as good as Yu Wenzhou’s, that his technique wasn’t as good as Huang Shaotian’s, that he wasn’t worthy of the title of captain.
But through the criticism, there was Qiu Fei, who, despite being constantly busy, would find the time to ask him, want to PK?
There was Song Qiying, who, after Lu Hanwen replied too honestly to a difficult reporter, would always send him a text, always beginning with “I don’t think you should…”
There was Qiao Yifan, who was always the best at offering comfort and sympathy and kind analysis. Lu Hanwen called him, and suddenly saw a message from Gao Yingjie flash across his screen. Hearing that, Qiao Yifan laughed and said that Yingjie only knew how to comfort people by distracting them. Indeed, when Lu Hanwen opened the window, the message was a random “of the treats I sent you last time, which was your favorite?”
And Guo Shao was much more direct: “Don’t be sad, I’ll tell you a joke!”
Lu Hanwen had been holding the microphone for a while now, but he suddenly smiled, a brilliant smile. “And also I’m hungry. Can I go eat first?”
Qiu Fei’s calm answer: “Go ahead.”
Qiao Yifan sighed, and Lu Hanwen whispered to him, “I’ll call Yingjie up here for you!”
After he left the stage, he pushed Gao Yingjie up with a, “Yifan’s calling you!”
As soon as he was free, Lu Hanwen ran. He didn’t even know to where he was running, but he slipped through the crowd, dodging the flashing lights and microphones. He ran through the player passageways, toward the outside, toward the sky which had already begun to darken.
Finally, at the end of the passageway, he saw two familiar silhouettes.
He didn’t call out. He only ran toward them, grinned and stumbled and ran toward them. As though alerted by an extra sense, the two of them turned around together.
Huang Shaotian laughed. “What sort of urgent news do you have to report, for you to run so quickly?”
Lu Hanwen waved his arms. “Captain, Huang Shao,” he shouted, “I’m 1.8 meters tall-!”
He saw the vast expanse of the clear night sky.