Chapter 25: CH 25

Rong Yi moved slightly and tried to withdraw from his position. But as soon as he moved, he froze and was then jolted away as if electrocuted.

Xiao Yin himself was much calmer and more indifferent than him, as if he hadn’t touched anything he shouldn’t have.

Rong Yi raised his phone to cover his face, but his body temperature had already risen to his ears. After thinking for a long time, he finally said, “You…”

Xiao Yin said, “This happens every morning, don’t worry about it.”

His tone was still calm and indifferent.

Rong Yi blushed and didn’t know how to respond. This was a really difficult thing to answer.

It was too much.

How could he say such stimulating words without changing his expression?

Rong Yi rubbed his head, got up, and started to get dressed. Just as he lifted up a corner of his shirt, he remembered that Xiao Yin was behind him, so he awkwardly grabbed his change of clothes and said, “I’m going to use the bathroom.”

Xiao Yin briefly paused, then said, “Okay.”

Rong Yi quickly changed and washed up in the bathroom.

Xiao Yin should have found him strange, actually. After all, he had never done this before. He used to be timid and would often rely on Xiao Yin to help him change his clothes.

But those were all faint memories of the past.

Rong Yi pushed open the door and saw that Xiao Yin was no longer in bed. He had probably gone to the adjacent suite to wash up.

The door was open and there was a faint sound of conversation outside. The other members of the team, Chi She and the others, had also woken up and were chasing and playing as usual.

Rong Yi packed his things and went out. As expected, he saw Xiao Yin in the next room, discussing technical issues with the department. When he saw Rong Yi, Xiao Yin paused and stood up, saying, “You guys go downstairs and eat first. I’ll be there in a bit, something’s come up.”

“Okay, I’ll take them.” Rong Yi nodded. “What do you want me to bring you?”

Xiao Yin’s phoenix eyes flickered slightly and he thought for two seconds. “Just some bread and coffee.”

Rong Yi nodded and then went downstairs with the kids.

They were late and there wasn’t much left in the buffet area. Rong Yi used a paper cup to make coffee, packed a few bread rolls, boiled eggs, and his own food, and carried it all back upstairs.

He didn’t have the habit of eating in the dining area downstairs. Many media personnel frequented the hotel and there were often suspicious-looking people in the buffet area.

Xiao Yin seemed to have come up with some new small solutions in the algorithm, which required urgent modification. Rong Yi went up with a paper bag to take a look with him.

On the dark blue programming page, there was a bunch of programming languages that Rong Yi couldn’t understand.

Xiao Yin looked calm but extremely focused, even more concentrated and calm than during competitions.

Rong Yi didn’t disturb him and put the things next to him. He was about to leave when Xiao Yin turned around upon hearing the sound. He saw that it was Rong Yi and suddenly remembered something. “Lin Yi is walking with us at noon?”

Rong Yi bit the bread and said, “Yes, I told the assistant group. You were still asleep at that time, and then…”

He suddenly forgot about it.

“No problem.” Xiao Yin stretched and took a small bread out of the paper bag in his arms, biting it and reaching for the coffee cup.

He didn’t see his own paper bag right next to him.

When Rong Yi eats small things like this, he has a habit of first biting the best part of each one, and then slowly eating the rest.

Rong Yi reached out and stopped him. “Um… I’ve already bitten that one.”

Xiao Yan seemed to have not understood his meaning, he looked down at the teeth marks on the small bread, and then said, “It’s okay.”

Rong Yi pointed to the side and said, “That one over there is yours.”

Xiao Yin glanced over and then made a sound of agreement, finishing off the honey-crunch bread in his hand.

When Lin Yi found out that he could even get a seat on a chartered plane, he almost died of happiness and started bombarding Rong Yi with messages before the departure.

” Yin Shen is really rich! I only get reimbursed for economy class tickets every time I go on a business trip. If it’s during the peak tourist season, I can’t even book one and have to pay for it myself. And this is from the league.”

“RS didn’t seem to be this generous before?”

Rong Yi replied, “RS? Does that have anything to do with being generous?”

With endorsement fees, joint merchandise, and skin profits pouring in, his personal training room hardware had not been repaired for hundreds of years, and the air conditioning was always having problems.

However, he was not used to talking behind people’s backs, and didn’t say much, just added, “Yeah, it’s my first time taking a chartered flight in the league too.”

Lin Yi: “But Xiao Yin really seems to be quite rich. When he returned to China, many people offered to help him get settled, but he was too lazy to owe anyone any favors and just used money to solve everything.”

Rong Yi replied, “Of course, he didn’t have enough money to buy a retired team and maintain it for two years.’

Lin Yi appealed to him emotionally, “Quick, capture him! He’s too rich. Marry him quickly.”

Rong Yi said, “You’re a whole round older than me and this is all you can come up with.”

He paused for a moment before typing, “I’ll repay him with the championship prize pool for the two million he gave me.”

“The two of them chatted aimlessly about their personal relationships for a while before Lin Yi arrived.

Lin Yi was a commentator, and if talking could generate electricity, he could power the entire world village on his own. He quickly got along with the rest of Ci She team and they started playing a game of Werewolf.

On the other hand, Rong Yi worked quietly with Xiao Yin in the office.

The technical problems they encountered seemed to be quite difficult, and Xiao Yin was fully focused on solving them. He was on the phone and receiving messages non-stop, and he was still debugging it even after they boarded the plane and turned on flight mode.

Given how busy he was today, Rong Yi didn’t think he would have time to attend Lin Yi’s dinner party this afternoon.

Although the first round of matches had been completed and they had secured their spot in the next stage, they wouldn’t have much rest time. In e-sports, if you don’t play for a day, your performance will deteriorate, let alone resting excessively for two consecutive days.

He informed Lin Yi in advance, and Lin Yi understood. Almost everyone had made preparations for Xiao Yin not being able to come.

However, when the plane landed, Xiao Yin packed up his computer and took the initiative to ask about the matter: “What time are we going?”

Lin Yi quickly replied, “I’m treating everyone to lunch and then we can relax at my newly opened massage parlor. I hired a highly skilled masseur who’s great with lower back strain and herniated discs. If Yin ge doesn’t have time to come, I’ll keep the opportunity open for VIT! Yi Cub and I have known each other for so many years, they’re like family to me, so anyone from the team can come free of charge!”

“That would be too extravagant,” said Xiao Yin.

Thinking that Xiao Yin was going to politely decline, Lin Yi continued, “They’re using my card so it’s free. And in the future, when you come to Boss Lin’s place, I’ll give you an 80% discount.”

Lin Yi was speechless.

This brother was really unexpected.

It was hard to tell if he was joking or being serious, and that made it even scarier.

“Are you going today?” asked Rong Yi.

Xiao Yin turned to look at him, his lips slightly curved, “Mm.”

Having made the decision to go, they returned to the club to pack up their belongings and leave them neatly arranged. They arrived promptly at the massage parlor at 5:30 pm.

Lin Yi had earned quite a bit of money from his years of commentary and team investments, and had invested in a few physical stores. One hot pot restaurant had closed down due to poor taste, but the remaining private kitchen was quite good.

Xiao Yin did show up, but he didn’t say much. He just sat quietly next to Rong Yi and ate.

Lin Yi was familiar with several of the VIT players and was very lively. After finishing the stone pot fish, he clapped his hands and invited them to try the massage parlor.

Rong Yi looked up at the sign, which read “Blind Massage Rehabilitation Center, Acupuncture, Physiotherapy.” A faded sign swayed in the air.

Above the sign was a magnificent and imposing “Ancient Massage with XX Method.”

As soon as Rong Yi stepped inside, he started to back away, “What kind of rehabilitation center is this?”

Lin Yi pushed him in with a smile, “Come on in, Yi Cub. Try out our services and see how you like them. The e-sports players who’ve tried it say it’s great.”

The interior decoration was quite nice and was similar to that of a high-end physiotherapy and massage center.

99.99% of e-sports players have some occupational injuries in their shoulders and back, and so does Rong Yi. His lumbar muscle strain was very serious for a while, and he needed treatment every day after work.

Hui Mao and Ci She had already chosen their respective treatments and went to the next room to change and lie down.

It was Rong Yi and Xiao Yin’s turn. The receptionist politely asked, “What kind of treatment would you like, gentlemen?”

Rong Yi said, “Can you massage my waist? Be gentle.”

Xiao Yin said, “I don’t need anything.”

The receptionist and Lin Yi were stunned. “Then, sir, what about you?”

Only then did Rong Yi remember Xiao Yin’s annoying cleanliness – massage is an inevitable physical contact project, and it’s a minefield for Xiao Yin.

It was difficult for him to follow Lin Yi here just to save face.

Before anyone could explain, Xiao Yin pointed to Rong Yi and said, “Arrange me in the same room with him, and give me a place to rest.”

The receptionist nervously found the corresponding treatment, “Would you like a hot compress on your temples? We also have herbal ice compress and hot compress to choose from.”

“Hot compress.” Xiao Yin casually chose, looking a bit tired and indifferent.

Rong Yi was then honored to be in the same room with Xiao Yin.

His treatment was a two-hour full-body massage, while Xiao Yin’s treatment only cost 20 yuan.

As they entered the room, the lights suddenly dimmed, creating an almost pitch-black atmosphere. The air was filled with the scent of roses and lilies, and a low-pitched piano tune played softly, creating a calming and hypnotic ambiance.

The massage therapist was waiting outside the door, waiting for them to change into their robes.

As he took off his clothes, which still retained some warmth, Rong Yi noticed that Xiao Yin had already quietly laid down on the massage table.

The scene suddenly became somewhat eerie.

Perhaps it was because it was too quiet, and even the sound of breathing could be clearly heard.

When the massage therapist came in, there were four people in the room, but they all spoke in hushed tones, as if they were entering a pre-sleep state.

Xiao Yin was the quietest of all, and the massage therapist placed a hot eye mask over his eyes. He lay there with a concentrated expression, his breathing even, and his posture straight.

The massage therapist whispered, “Does the other gentleman not need a massage?”

“No, he doesn’t,” another massage therapist replied quietly.

The room fell silent once again.

The therapists were all well-trained and had swift, precise, and fierce hands, and they made Rong Yi’s head sweat with their massage.

The therapist also put a warm compress over his eyes. He couldn’t see what was going on outside, but it was really painful.

His lumbar muscle strain was somewhat severe, and he had received specialized therapy during his time at RS. However, there were too many things going on between terminating his contract with RS and coming to VIT, so he didn’t have time to take care of himself.

There were also masseurs within VIT, but he was too busy, and he had come out to compete in the tournament in recent days, so he was delayed.

The room was very quiet, and Rong Yi was used to being introverted, so even if it hurt, he just endured it. His breathing became a bit heavier as he endured.

The three-man team of Ci She, Hui Mao, and Wu Dao Gu had already begun to wail and howl next door.

On the other side, Xiao Yin remained silent, as if asleep.

It was still the therapist who noticed his abnormality: “Sir, is the massage too painful?”

Rong Yi smiled and suppressed his voice, saying, “Actually, it’s okay. It’s just that my muscles are severely strained.”

The therapist said, “Then I’ll try to be gentler, sir. This is already quite gentle, and being any gentler won’t have an effect. Please endure it a bit longer.”

Then he poked his lumbar acupoint carefully.

Rong Yi felt as if his soul was about to fly out.

He trembled as he removed the hot compress from his eyes and picked up his phone to distract himself.

It must be said that the massage therapists at this shop, including Lin Yi, were very skilled. After the initial pain passed, it was replaced by relaxation of the muscles and a gentle feeling throughout his body.

His attention was also diverted by the posts he was scrolling through.

He had been following a fan page of Xiao Yin, and today he saw someone post gossip about him.

“Since everyone knows about his sexual orientation, has anyone dug up his romantic history? Is there anyone besides the person in the photo?”

Someone replied, “Not really, even now no one has dug up anything besides the person in the photo. Yin’s family background is not simple, his records and relationships are all clean, and the only people who claim to know him are his high school classmates.”

“He went to high school in the United States? Wouldn’t that make things messy?”

“There’s some insider information! I know one of his high school classmates! They said his sexual orientation was basically an open secret, but many people failed to pursue him. The person in the white shirt who was with him was really mysterious. Although Xiao Yin came to the United States after that, maybe they haven’t broken up yet.”

“What kind of person is Yin in a relationship?! Just thinking about it makes me crazy excited. Maybe he’s even love-crazed. He looks like an iceberg on the surface but in reality he holds people tightly.”

“Agreed! He’s that kind of person, I could tell from his facial features,” said someone.

Rong Yi glanced at the message on his phone and wondered how one could determine someone’s character from their facial features. If that were the case, wouldn’t the probability of love mattering to Iceberg be even higher?

He enjoyed reading these types of gossip posts because he could blend in and feel closer to Xiao Yin in some inexplicable way.

For the past few days, the forum had been full of posts about Easy’s hidden talent, and how he became more daring after joining VIT. The opinions were divided, but Rong Yi was too lazy to read them.

Skipping the posts that mentioned his own name, Rong Yi clicked on a silly thread of League of Legends player’s emoticons. Before he could find Xiao Yin’s emoticon, the physiotherapist suddenly pressed down hard on his body, and he let out a cry of pain, gripping his phone and clutching the blanket tightly.

Xiao Yin moved his head and glanced at him.

“It hurts,” he honestly admitted.

Although he was explaining to the physiotherapist, Xiao Yin looked back and understood that this was a necessary step in the treatment process.

The physiotherapist tried to calm him down. “Hang in there, we’re going to stretch you out to correct your posture. You’ve been sitting improperly for a long time, haven’t you?”

Rong Yi was sweating from the pain and could only nod in agreement, clutching the massage bed tightly and taking deep breaths to relax.

Adjusting his posture and stretching his body were his greatest fears. He had once had a terrible experience with a chiropractor and never wanted to relive it.

He was both weak and afraid of pain.

The physiotherapist continued to reassure him while applying pressure. “It’s okay, it’s okay, just hold on.”

Rong Yi endured for a while but when the physiotherapist applied pressure again, he couldn’t help but let out another cry of pain, his breathing became erratic, and his voice was filled with the sweet sound of agony.

Xiao Yin moved his head once more.