Shortly after losing to Changan 0:9, the Tongjae team lost to Huaxia by a big score of 0:9.
Lu Xiang just happened to meet his master Liu Chuan in the ring competition, and he was flying kites all the way by Liu Chuan. The puppet Seven Killing Array exploded to death.
To make matters worse, they lost to Qixingcao again with a big score of 0:9 in the third game.
The consecutive blows left the players in a low mood, and they didn't take their chances in the fourth game against a weaker team. Because Lu Xiang was too nervous in the ring match, he accidentally fell on the air combat map and fell into a puddle of meat. In the teamfight stage, the cooperation between Lu Xiang and Shao Zehang was out of touch again, which made Tongjae miss the opportunity to win the red flag. In the end, only relying on Shao Zehang's explosive force to turn the tide and win the black flag, he got a pitiful 2 points.
- That was the first 2 points that Tong Que got after playing a full four games.
The strong teams such as Huaxia, Qixingcao and Changan have exceeded 20 points after four games.
Lu Xiang looked at the Bronze Sparrows, which ranked last in the team standings, and lowered his head in despair, holding the mouse tightly.
Before participating in the game, he thought it was easy to play the game. He and Shao team often scored ten consecutive victories in the online game qualifying match, and the crushing was extremely smooth. But when he actually played in the professional league, he realized that he was still too young and weak compared to those senior gods and experienced veteran players.
The young boy who debuted at the age of 16 had a very difficult journey in the league.
Unlike those rookies who were sharp-edged at the beginning, Lu Xiang's consecutive 0:9 games after his debut caused the Tongjak team to be criticized. Many people mentioned him with a regretful tone: "After all, he is only 16 years old. "It's too young to play the main force at this age" "Looks like a middle school student who hasn't grown up".
Because of this, Shao Zehang, the captain of the Bronze Sparrows, was under great pressure. The public mailbox of the Bronze Sparrows also often received anonymous emails from fans. Some fans who liked the Bronze Sparrows strongly urged Shao to replace Lu Xiang. Let Lu Xiang sit on the bench for two seasons before playing again.
Hearing such remarks a lot, Lu Xiang couldn't help but start to wonder: Is he really too young to take on big responsibilities? Why is he unable to keep up with Shao's rhythm every time? No one wants to be a dragster, and losing several games in a row because of him doesn't feel good.
So, Lu Xiang thought of Liu Chuan. At that time, he only had Liu Chuan, a well-connected senior in the league. When he was at a loss, he immediately thought of asking for help from the most respected master in his heart.
"Master, should I take the initiative to tell Team Shao that I want to play a few substitute games first?"
Lu Xiang sent a private message to Liu Chuan. When he typed this line, he felt very uneasy, because it was equivalent to admitting defeat, and he was afraid that his master would scold him.
In the end, Liu Chuan didn't scold him, but replied calmly: "If Shao Zehang doesn't mention it, don't take the initiative to mention it."
Lu Xiang was stunned for a while, and then retorted: "But I think I should have self-knowledge, and I can't always hold him back..."
Liu Chuan said: "Have you been under too much pressure recently? Don't pay too much attention to the evaluation of the outside world. At the beginning, the chairman and the others were willing to change the age limit of contestants for you, which shows that they also affirmed your talent. You should treat yourself well. Just a little more confidence."
"Oh."
"You have been training in Huaxia before, and the time you spent training with the Tongjak players was too short. In addition, you just started playing the game, and you are not quite used to the rules and rhythm of the game. It is normal for you to make mistakes. Don't make mistakes because of one or two. If you make a mistake, deny yourself and communicate with your teammates more.”
"Oh."
Lu Xiang obediently listened to Master's teachings, he felt that every word Master said made sense.
After chatting with Master, I was in a better mood. Lu Xiang turned around and went to the bathroom to take a shower. Shao Zehang just came to the bedroom to look for him, and found that he had not closed the door. Shao Zehang walked into the room and saw the chat records on the computer at a glance. Lu Xiang actually looked for Master. Asking for help made Shao Zehang feel inexplicably uncomfortable.
After taking a bath, Lu Xiang found that Team Shao was in his room, but he didn't mind. He smiled and scratched his head and said, "Captain, are you looking for me?"
Shao Zehang frowned and said coldly: "You are now a member of the Tongjae team, you should contact me if you have any questions, instead of always thinking of looking for your master, he is the captain of the Huaxia team, it is not easy to interfere with our Tongjak. Internal affairs."
Shao Zehang deliberately emphasized "internal affairs". Seeing Lu Xiang looking at him in surprise, he touched his nose embarrassedly and said, "Cough, I mean... If you encounter any difficulties, you'd better find me, you. Master is very busy, isn't it?"
Lu Xiang didn't understand whether the captain was angry or not, but he still bowed his head and said, "I'm sorry..."
Seeing him bowing his head and apologizing, Shao Zehang began to regret that he shouldn't be sparring like this. In fact, Lu Xiang has always had a good relationship with Liu Chuan's master and apprentice. He has been by Liu Chuan's side for many years. It's normal, I just reacted so much, but it seems like I'm jealous...
Lu Xiang's condition has been very bad recently. Shao Zehang came to comfort him on purpose, but it turned out to be good. He scolded him with a cold face, and Xiao Luxiang's mood must have gotten worse.
Shao Zehang could not wait to slap himself. After a moment of silence, he reached out and touched Lu Xiang's head lightly. He changed the subject and said, "Cough, after taking a shower, right? Let's start the game, let's play ranked together."
Only then did Lu Xiang regain his energy, and he sat back in front of the computer and played the trumpet with Shao Zehang and entered the game.
***
Three days later, the Bronze Sparrow faced Luo Huaci at home in Guangzhou.
At that time, Luo Huaci was replaced by a new generation of Ye Chenxi as the captain after the retirement of old players such as Silan and Hu Liang. The strength of the entire team declined significantly. In this season, it was also abused by strong teams for four consecutive games, followed by consecutive losses. The Bronze Sparrows in the four games are simply a pair of brothers and sisters. Even the points are exactly the same 2 points, and they are pitifully ranked in the bottom two of the team's standings.
This game attracted the attention of many reporters, and the audience was also very interested. Everyone gleefully made a bet: in the end, is the bronze sparrow losing five games in a row? Or Luo Huaci lost five games in a row? Who will be worse off
Facts have proved that the bronze sparrow is even worse.
Although Luo Huaci has changed to a new generation of players, after all, there is a legacy left by Silan. The entire team has very distinct characteristics. Everyone is a player who came out of the training camp together. Under the leadership of Ye Chenxi, they cooperated very well. Array play is also relatively new.
As for the Bronze Sparrow, because Lu Xiang, a newcomer who joined for less than a month, directly played the main force, the cooperation of the entire team was often out of touch, giving Ye Chenxi the opportunity to directly destroy the Bronze Sparrow in a wave of teleportation.
In this contest, in the end, the Bronze Sparrow team won 3 points in the ring with Shao Zehang's defense, but the team battle was defeated by Luo Huaci and scored 6 points in a row.
After five games, Tongjak only scored 5 points in total, and the average score of 1 point per game was not as good as that of second-tier teams. Before the start of the league, the highly anticipated combination of "mixed-race captain" and "genius boy" has now become a It's a joke, Lu Xiang, who lost the team battle because of many coordination mistakes, became the target of everyone's bombardment.
However, when everyone began to question Lu Xiang, Shao Zehang stood firm and said decisively: "Lu Xiang is the best partner I have chosen."
In the post-match interview, many reporters bombarded Xiaolu, causing Lu Xiang to hang his head in shame and dare not speak. Shao Zehang's icy eyes swept across the crowd, and finally fell on Lu Xiang, who was beside him, saying word by word: "Bronze Sparrow's recent performance is very bad, but it's not Lu Xiang's responsibility alone. I hope everyone will give us a little more time and let me have more opportunities to run in with him."
"I think a good partner should face and bear everything together. So please don't say anything like 'replace Lu Xiang', I will never leave him behind."
Shao Zehang's words were very firm, and Lu Xiang raised his head in surprise, just looking at the captain with an encouraging and trusting look.
At that moment, he suddenly felt very ashamed. The captain never gave up on him. No matter how the outside world questioned him, Team Shao always stood by his side to protect him, but because of his consecutive failures, he actually began to lose confidence and even doubt himself.
How about being young? What if you lose so many times? No one can win to the end from the beginning, even the most powerful king of the arena in the league, Haina Baichuan, didn't fall on all fours in the game and couldn't even pass the simple challenge of plum blossom piles
All those who are conferred gods have come one step at a time, slowly.
I am still young and I still have a lot of time, so what qualifications do I have to give up so early
Lu Xiang, who wanted to understand, finally cheered up, looked back at the reporters and said, "Don't worry, I will cheer with Team Shao."
The young boy's expression was serious, and his dark and bright eyes finally recovered. It was also the first time he faced the reporter's questions calmly and no longer had stage fright, because he knew that Team Shao was by his side.
***
After the interview, Shao Zehang convened an emergency meeting with all members of the Tongjak. The meeting lasted for four hours. Shao Zehang carefully analyzed the reasons for the loss of the previous games, pointed out everyone's shortcomings, and took this opportunity to encourage Let's take a look at everyone, I hope everyone will not be affected by the loss of several consecutive games.
After returning to the room at night, Shao Zehang stopped Lu Xiang, put his hand on the top of Lu Xiang's head gently, and said, "Xiao Lu, there is something I have to tell you, in fact, it is not that you can't keep up with our rhythm, but ... we can't keep up with you."
For the proud Shao Zehang, it took several days of psychological struggle to admit this.
-Lu Xiang is a genius, a talented player even better than himself.
It's not that Lu Xiang can't keep up with them, but that Lu Xiang is too fast, and the rest of Tong Que can't keep up with Lu Xiang's speed at all.
Lu Xiang himself is ignorant and does not know how to cooperate and how to arrange tactics. He followed Liu Chuan in one-on-one training in Huaxia, and has no experience and awareness of group cooperation. Therefore, every time he makes mistakes, Lu Xiang Xiang always subconsciously thought that the person who made the mistake was himself, but only those who really understood it knew that, in fact, it was the Tongjae team that couldn't keep up with Lu Xiang's speed.
Facing Xiaolu's shocked eyes, Shao Zehang couldn't help but smile and said, "So, don't always blame yourself, you are actually our best player in Tongque, what we need to do next is for the rest of us to work hard to improve and follow up. to your level."
"Don't always think about how to cooperate with me. In the future, I will take the initiative to try to cooperate with you."
The meaning of Shao Zehang's words is that the real core of the bronze sparrow will be transferred from Shao Zehang to Lu Xiang.
Lu Xiang stared at him blankly, not knowing what to do.
- How much trust is it to entrust such an important position to a 16-year-old boy
Lu Xiang thought of this, his eyes were a little wet, he raised his head and looked at the gentle-looking man in front of him, choked up and said, "Captain, I..."
Shao Zehang touched his head lightly: "Needless to say, you don't need to change yourself, leave the rest to me. Trust me, Tongque will get better slowly."
Lu Xiang nodded vigorously: "Yeah!"
That night, Shao Zehang took Lu Xiang into an online game together. They did not go to qualifying matches, but built a ring to play 1v1 duel, because Shao Zehang said: "To be a good partner, you should at least understand each other thoroughly. It's easier for me to understand your thinking and rhythm if you go head to head."
Lu Xiang felt very reasonable, and immediately accepted the captain's invitation.
The two of them played too high, and they fought for more than ten consecutive rounds, but they didn't rest until half past twelve. Shao Zehang was so tired that he quickly fell asleep. When he got up in the middle of the night and went to the bathroom, he suddenly heard a strange rustling sound from the kitchen, like a rat.
Shao Zehang walked over to take a look, and saw Lu Xiang sitting at the dining table in pajamas, holding a bag of snacks and eating there with relish.
Shao Zehang: "..."
Seeing Team Shao, Lu Xiang immediately stood up nervously: "Captain."
Shao Zehang said, "Are you hungry?"
Lu Xiang nodded: "It's too late to fight in the ring, I'm a little hungry."
Shao Zehang said: "It seems that I will let you have a late-night snack before going to bed in the future, lest you get up in the middle of the night and look through the refrigerator. I thought there were mice in the house."
"No mice, yes, it's me." Lu Xiang grabbed the snack bag with one hand, scratched his hair with the other hand, and said with a smile, "I just digest quickly and have good gastrointestinal function. I woke up hungry in the middle of the night, hehe. "
Seeing the familiar little tiger teeth that he showed when he laughed, Shao Zehang couldn't help laughing. He felt that this little guy was really cute, he was not tall, but he had a big appetite.
From that day on, Shao Zehang built a room called "Waiting for the Deer" in the game every night. After Lu Xiang finished taking a bath, he entered the room to play in the ring. The two of them played a dozen consecutive rounds. Just take the initiative to cook for a late-night snack, cook two bowls of noodles, order some dumplings, or cook some lean meat porridge. In short, you must feed the deer two hours before going to bed, otherwise the big eater will get up in the middle of the night and turn over the refrigerator. Looking for food - this is one of the rules that Shao Zehang found.
Shao Zehang has been eating three meals a day on time since he was a child, but Lu Xiang likes to eat late-night snacks. I got into the habit of having a late night snack at 10pm.
The arrival of Lu Xiang has changed a lot for Shao Zehang.
Not only the change in his own living habits, but also the change in the style of Tongjak's entire team.
After the Bronze Sparrow team experienced a low point in the early stage, Shao Zehang finally found a suitable play style for the team - that is to keep up with Lu Xiang's rhythm and play fast!
At first, Tongjak's tactics were to seek stability and control the field. Now with Lu Xiang, they can completely formulate a new strategy for Lu Xiang. Shao Zehang will take the initiative to match Lu Xiang's attack rhythm. The auxiliary invincibility time, the two of them can use the fastest speed to drop the opponent's core in seconds.
This new tactic surrounding Lu Xiang worked wonders in the second half of the regular season. The Tongjae team, which had been ranked at the bottom at the beginning, soared into the sky like a bird spreading its wings. Scored many times in a row, rushed into the playoffs in one fell swoop, and even won a bronze medal!
The Bronze Sparrow team became the most surprising dark horse in the fifth season, and Lu Xiang also won the "Best Newcomer" award in the fifth season.
He quickly became a god in one season, and Lu Xiang set a record for the youngest player in the league's history.
However, Lu Xiang knew that he could quickly become one of the first-class players in the league, and there were two people who had the most influence on him: one was the master Liu Chuan who discovered him, cultivated him, and decisively sent him to the Bronze Sparrow, and the other was Shao Zehang, the captain of the bronze sparrows, who stayed by his side to protect him no matter what the situation was and did not hesitate to change his tactics for him alone.
In a later interview, Lu Xiang always said that he was a very lucky person to meet such a good master and captain.
But in fact, only Shao Zehang knows how serious and hard Lu Xiang trains every night. Sometimes Shao Zehang feels tired, but Lu Xiang never shouted a word of tiredness. The young man is simple-minded and works hard every day. His achievements today are also the result of his own efforts.
***
In the past few years, Shao Zehang and Lu Xiang have been living together, playing in the ring and eating supper every night. This kind of relationship has almost become their habit. Shao Zehang is also well-known in the league for his short guard. Even reporters joked: Shao team always guards the deer everywhere, no wonder the deer has not grown tall.
Shao Zehang knew that he shouldn't do this, Lu Xiang also had a time when he was growing up, and there was a day when he had to shoulder the responsibility of the bronze sparrow.
But Shao Zehang can't help but want to protect Lu Xiang, because he likes this simple boy, and he doesn't want this person to be hurt in the slightest.
But over time, this unilateral maintenance method is no longer applicable, and Shao Zehang also began to think about the future of Tongjak.
—If one day I leave the Bronze Sparrow team, what I leave to you will surely be the best and most convenient Bronze Sparrow for you to manage.
Zhou Xinchuan and Lu Xiang have a very good relationship and are of similar age. After Chen Weisen, the healer of the Tongjak, retired, Zhou Xinchuan could take over the treatment class and serve as the vice-captain in the future, just to help Lu Xiang manage the Tongjae team; Chang Sheng's condition can still be played again. For two seasons, he must choose an auxiliary successor before he retires; Ding Rong and Feng Chao, the two players who were transferred from Chang'an, are still young and can play for a few more seasons...
When Lu Xiang happily played with the team every day, Shao Zehang began to think about the replacement of the bronze sparrow very early. Lu Xiang usually also tries hard to learn tactics, but his brain is not enough. Those tactical analysis are too complicated. He can only understand and execute them, but he cannot take the initiative to analyze and command.
—There is Team Shao anyway.
Lu Xiang always carried this idea until one day, he finally realized Shao Zehang's intention.
That was fourteen seasons. Longyin just won the championship in the thirteenth season, and Qixingcao won the runner-up. Since the middle of the fourteenth season, both Longyin and Qixingcao are preparing to be updated. The Longyin side is all commanded by Wu Zewen, and the old Xiao of Qixingcao also In the decentralization of command, even Xue Kelai, the apprentice of Lun Shen, was the commander of the playoffs.
Even the sluggish Lu Xiang could smell that the two strong teams were about to change their captains. Once, when he went out to dinner with Chang Sheng, he couldn't help but say, "It seems that the next captain of Longyin will be Wu Xueba, the captain of Qixingcao. The next captain is Lun Shen's apprentice Xue Ke, I always thought it would be Chen Xiaobei."
Chang Sheng said: "Chen Xiaobei's character is not suitable for being the captain, it is better to choose Xue Ke. That guy is young but very stable."
"Yeah." Lu Xiang agreed, "Ye Chenxi from Luohuaci seems to be cultivating newcomers as well. The one named Hu Bin has started playing the main force this season, and he is quite good."
Chang Sheng said with a smile while drinking: "That is, the captains of many teams will pay attention to their successors. This is also the responsibility of the captain. The same is true for us Tongjak. The legacy is quite good, with clear thinking and style of play. Calm down, before Team Shao leaves, it is estimated that he will also be trained as the next commander. If you are the captain, Zhou Xinchuan will be the deputy captain."
Lu Xiang was stunned for a while, then raised his head and said, "When did Team Shao say they want to leave?"
Chang Sheng looked at him in surprise: "It's very obvious, this season, Chuan Shen and the others are going to retire, and Shao should be able to retire after playing for at most two years. His family has been urging him... Don't you know? "
Of course Lu Xiang knew this. As a roommate, he overheard Shao Zehang calling his family many times and knew that Shao Zehang's family had been urging him to go abroad.
However, Lu Xiang never thought that this day would come so quickly...
Shao Zehang has been by his side since his debut. No matter how much difficulties he encounters, as long as Shao Zehang is there, Lu Xiang has never been worried, because Shao team will always solve all problems smoothly. No matter if the bronze sparrow wins the championship or nothing, Lu Xiang's mood has never been ups and downs. Because Shao Zehang is there, he feels that as long as we play games together, he will be very happy. The result is not the most important thing, the important thing is to be with Shao The process of fighting side by side with them.
Today, however, Chang Sheng's words made Lu Xiang feel enlightened.
- Shao will also retire.
- One day, Team Shao will retire before him.
***
The atmosphere of the awards ceremony in the fourteenth season was extremely sluggish, because Chuan Shen, Ye Ye, Si Lan, Lao Xiao, and Lun Shen, the five remaining first-generation great players in the league collectively announced their retirement. Long Yin and Qi Xing Cao successfully completed the captain's job. handover.
After the award ceremony, the alliance organized a farewell party, and it was rare for everyone to have a dinner party to send off these five senior gods who had a profound impact on the professional alliance.
During the banquet, Liu Chuan was introduced by everyone to speak as a representative. Liu Chuan picked up the microphone and said with a smile: "After retiring, we don't have to play games, our mood will be more relaxed, and we will have more time to accompany our lover and want to go out to play. I don’t even need to ask for leave. I feel very happy every day when I sleep until I wake up naturally. Don’t feel sorry for us. It should be said that the five of us are finally free, and you will continue to struggle.”
Before Chuan Shen finished speaking, a group of people ran over to pour him alcohol: "Okay! If you're going to retire, don't hold grudges!"
"That is, you are relieved, we are still struggling in the sea, do you find it particularly interesting to see us frowning over the game from the perspective of a bystander?"
It was a sad farewell party, but after Liu Chuan said this, everyone was happy - retirement is actually a new beginning. Although the five outstanding players have left the competition arena, everyone believes that they will be in other fields in the future. will be fine.
Lu Xiang has been sullen from start to finish, he didn't speak after returning to the hotel, he lowered his head and seemed to be thinking about something on his mind.
Shao Zehang thought Xiaolu was sad about Master's retirement, patted him on the shoulder lightly and comforted: "Don't be sad, although your master can't play again after retirement, he will stay at Longyin as the boss, and, The approval from the e-sports association has also come down, he will be the director of the e-sports association next year, and it will be easy for you to see him in the future."
"Yeah." Lu Xiang replied softly, suddenly raised his head and asked, "What about you? When will you retire?"
Shao Zehang was startled, and found that this guy's eyes were actually a little red.
After being silent for a long time, Shao Zehang asked softly, "Are you so sad because you thought I was going to retire?"
Lu Xiang whispered: "Today I saw so many people retiring, I feel very sad, thinking that you will also leave in the future, I don't know what to do..."
Since his debut, Lu Xiang has habitually relied on Shao Zehang. When he is harassed by reporters, as long as he bows his head, Shao Zehang will take the initiative to solve the trouble for him; when he is besieged in the competition, he does not need to speak at all, and Shao Zehang will catch up in time. Come and save him; fight in the ring every night, eat supper together, watch the video of the game in the training room during the day, practice the lineup together...
They have always been the best partner, the best partner of childhood sweethearts who have grown from rookies to great gods.
Lu Xiang never thought about what he would do if Team Shao left one day
He, Lu Chi, who is often targeted by other teams, how can he lead a team like the Bronze Sparrow? How can he find a partner who understands him best and can cooperate with him best
When Lu Xiang raised his head to stare at him and met his red eyes, Shao Zehang's heart was so soft that he almost melted, he couldn't help reaching out his hand, gently hugging the boy in front of him into his arms, touching his head and said softly: "Don't worry, although my family is urging me very hard, I won't rush to retire. I used a reason to hold them back for a while, and I can stay at Tongjae for at least another two years as the captain."
Hearing this, Lu Xiang felt a little relieved, and asked again with confirmation, "Is there two more years?"
"In fact, it doesn't have to be two years. If possible, I can continue to stay, it depends on whether the person is willing or not."
"Which one?" Lu Xiang wondered, "What would you like?"
Shao Zehang replied: "My parents urged me to go home. The most important reason is that I have been single for the past few years in order to play games. I told my dad, give me three years, and I will bring him a daughter-in-law back. If they can really take that person back, they won't rush me again, and I can continue to stay in the country to accompany him."
Lu Xiang was stunned, and finally understood: "Bring your daughter-in-law home? Do you have someone you like?"
"Um."
Lu Xiang asked curiously, "Who is it? Could it be Lin Tong from Longyin Team?"
Shao Zehang: "..."
Realizing that he had not guessed correctly, Lu Xiang continued to guess: "Could it be He Fang from Qixingcao? She's also a beauty. Li Suyue from Team Snow Wolf... Isn't it right? Could it be Yan Ziyi from Team Prosperity Tang? But Team Leader Yan is older than you. How old are you, do you like sibling relationship?"
Shao Zehang: "..."
Team Shao's face became more and more ugly, Lu Xiang had no choice but to stop guessing, scratch his head and ask, "Who is it?"
Shao Zehang looked at him helplessly. In order to satisfy the curiosity of the little boy, Shao Zehang decided to tell him the answer, so that he would not guess the whole alliance.
"It's you."
Lu Xiang: "???"
Seeing the dazed look on the young man's face, Shao Zehang reluctantly repeated, "The person I like is you."
Lu Xiang: "… "
Xiaoluxiang's open mouth can directly stuff an egg.