Crashing a scene in front of a couple deeply in love late at night is something that people with normal social awareness would never do. Timeless was being so arrogant, but the others didn’t dare to say a word.

As it seemed that Timeless was about to successfully show off, Qi Xian, the team’s designated spokesperson and representative with strong emotional intelligence, stepped forward, “Can we really join you?”

Timeless was certain that Qi Xian wouldn’t join this fun, and he replied with a smile, “Of course. Would you like to come, Brother Xian?”

Qi Xian chuckled and said, “Thank you for the invitation. I don’t have that hobby, but I think someone does, right, Coach Lu?”

Lu Youshan was the last one to go upstairs and was blocked by this group of people at the stairs, “What’s wrong?”

Qi Xian pointed at Shi Du and said, “Timeless said he was going to play in the captain’s room and asked if we wanted to go together.”

Lu Youshan was overjoyed: “Oh, that’s perfect! I was just thinking of discussing playoff matters with Shine, and Timeless can listen in too.”

Timeless had impeccable game knowledge and a great mindset, so the coaching staff intended to groom him into a vice-captain. In case something happened to Yu Zhaohan and he couldn’t command, Timeless could step in.

Shi Du couldn’t help but smile: “Brother Xian, did I do something to offend you?”

“Little brother has misunderstood. I just want to tell you a life lesson.” Qi Xian said with a mischievous smile, “We must keep a low profile as human beings.”

Cheese realized later and looked at Qi Xian with admiration: “Xianxian, you are killing someone with a borrowed knife! One word: epic!”

Shi Du: “…”

Indeed, the real monsters were always the ones who smiled the most. He had underestimated him.

Lu Youshan said: “You two go to the room and wait for me. I’ll grab the gear.”

Shi Du’s voice was cold, “Why bother with a room? Let’s head to the conference room.”

As the captain’s significant other, he might not like it, but he wouldn’t delay the captain’s actual responsibilities. That’s what they called having the right perspective.

Just a few hours ago, Guangzhou ZC lost to the Tokyo Sakura team with a score of 2:3 in their last game of the regular season. The fact that they pushed the third-ranked team to the decider game hinted at how much progress ZC had made in just a month.

With the conclusion of the regular season, the outlook for the team’s advancement was set at 100%. The top eight teams from both the Eastern and Western Divisions, totaling sixteen teams, smoothly advanced to the playoffs.

Among the six Chinese teams, four successfully made it to the playoffs. Shanghai R.H, Hangzhou DSD, and Beijing IPL were in the winners’ bracket, while the narrowly qualified Chongqing Eau was in the losers’ bracket. However, Shanghai Thrones and Guangzhou ZC would have to start their holidays early and meet again next season.

While an undefeated regular season was certainly exciting, Yu Zhaohan had some underlying concerns.

A perfect winning streak might gradually reduce the team’s ability to handle pressure. Once the winning streak is broken, it can be more challenging to cope with failure, especially considering the harsh and intense nature of the playoffs, which are on a completely different level from the regular season. In the Western Division, Lawman had also achieved a 15-game winning streak, even more impressive than R.H. They hadn’t lost a single map in 45 maps.

Comparatively, R.H had some hurdles. Qi Xian couldn’t participate in matches in the short term, and Stone, as a new starter, needed time to develop himself. Their path in the playoffs wouldn’t be easy. Fortunately, they were in the winner’s bracket, which had a safety net that could withstand the expense of a single loss.

The playoff schedule would be determined by drawing lots, with the official draw to be broadcasted live a week later. They would face not only teams from the Eastern Division, some of which they were familiar with, such as DSD, IPL, and Sakura but also new opponents from the Western Division.

“Teams in the Eastern Division are quite familiar with each other. Besides DSD, IPL, and Sakura, who are strong contenders, we should mainly focus on the Western Division teams,” Lu Youshan explained their latest training plan, primarily centered on practice matches. “When we return from the break next week, we’ll have five practice matches each day, two in the afternoon and three in the evening.”

Shi Du quickly glanced at the arrangements for the training match and asked, “Isn’t there a missing team?”

Yu Zhaohan also noticed it, “Are you talking about Lawman?”

Lu Youshan had a weird expression: “Old Tan has approached their manager. But Lawman’s manager said that there are too many teams wanting to invite them to play training matches these days, and told us to wait in line.”

Yu Zhaohan used the skill [eyes narrowing].

“Give me a break,” Shi Du scoffed, “Only the top eight teams in the winners’ bracket would approach them. Waiting in line? They can wait for my ass.”

A standard team should play at least three matches a day. For Lawman, as the number one team in the Western Division, it made no sense to refuse the invitation from the top team in the Eastern Division. It was a more valuable opportunity than playing with mid-tier teams.

So, Lawman was acting arrogant when asking them to wait in line.

Yu Zhaohan was somewhat annoyed and muttered to his husband, “Wait for my ass.”

Returning to their room, Yu Zhaohan was still thinking about the playoffs with a stern face, and he hadn’t transformed into a Yuyu yet.

Shi Du knew what Yu Zhaohan was worried about, so he told Yu Zhaohan not to think too much. Start putting pressure on yourself now, and your dinosaur pajamas won’t be able to save you when the real game comes. They finally had a break, so they should balance relaxation and preparation, and release as much stress as they can. Then prepare for the playoffs with all their strength after the holiday.

Yu Zhaohan thought for a while and thought that what Shi Du said made sense and that he should release some stress.

“Okay, please play with the ball for me.”

Shi Du found himself feeling like a circus performer: “I don’t want to play ball; there are more ways to relax than just playing ball and with the dinosaur.”

Yu Zhaohan asked, “Then what else—watching anime? Eating junk food? Eating junk food while watching anime?”

“Sleeping is the best way to relieve stress.” Shi Du sat on Yu Zhaohan’s bed: “It’s such a big bed, I’m sharing it with you tonight.”

Yu Zhaohan was momentarily taken aback, his cheeks slightly flushed as he nodded: “Shi Du, do you want the vegetarian option or the meat option?”

Yu Zhaohan’s reaction was something Shi Du had never imagined. He was also startled: “Is there any difference?”

“Yes. The vegetarian option is just pure sleep, without anything else, while the meat option is…”

Shi Du held his forehead: “Alright, I get it.”

After their relationship was established, Shi Du had also learned some of the rules for sharing a bed from the internet. However, after a long day of traveling, there weren’t any necessary props in Yu Zhaohan’s room, so tonight wasn’t suitable for the “meat” option.

Shi Du said: “Then let’s go with the vegetarian option for now.”

“Okay.” Yu Zhaohan picked up the air conditioner remote control and adjusted the temperature to 20 degrees.

Shi Du asked strangely: “Are you hot?”

During their time in Korea, they usually kept the air conditioning at around 25 degrees.

Yu Zhaohan explained, “I like to be warm when I sleep. I was afraid you might get too hot.”

After both of them took a shower one after the other, they put on pajamas and lay side by side on the bed. They lay flat, staring at the ceiling with an air of nonchalance as if they were completely unaware of what was happening.

When Yu Zhaohan slept alone, he wouldn’t lie there so stiffly. It was his first time sharing a bed under the blanket with his boyfriend, and Shi Du’s tension was getting to him.

He carefully touched Shi Du’s body with his arm and was surprised to find that Shi Du seemed to be quite tense.

Tokiwatari was the one who took the lead in the first kiss. This time it was him who should be the one to do it. It was time for him to show his big brotherly charm.

Yu Zhaohan moved closer to Shi Du, asking, “Shi Du, can I snuggle up to you?”

Shi Du’s throat tightened, and he turned to face Yu Zhaohan as if nothing was amiss, saying, “Sure.”

“Thank you.” Yu Zhaohan got into Shi Du’s arms. His cheek rested against Shi Du’s chest, and his head found a comfortable spot on Shi Du’s chin. However, he was unsure where to place his hands, no matter where they went, it felt awkward.

Shi Du felt the person in his arms was moving and looked down at Yu Zhaohan: “What’s wrong?”

“I want to find a comfortable position in your arms.” Yu Zhaohan moved again, then suddenly paused: “Shi Du, you know it’s…”

“I know,” Shi Du closed his eyes and said in a lazy tone, “Every time it’s like this when I’m with you. I can’t be bothered anymore. I can’t do anything about it. Just let it be.”

Yu Zhaohan sympathized with its predicament because he had a similar experience. He knew it could be quite frustrating. “It’s so pitiful to have an owner like you.”

Shi Du was speechless. “What’s the difference between it being pitiful and me being pitiful? It’s not an independent entity. Don’t just talk about me; you don’t seem to be any better.”

Yu Zhaohan’s ears perked up when he was caught and tried to defend himself: “You do it every time, and I only do it occasionally.”

Shi Du sneered: “You’re proud of occasionally doing it? You’re only twenty, Yuyu.”

“Of course, this shows that I am an upright person and I am not lecherous at all.”

Yu Zhaohan felt a bit guilty when he said this. He had fudged the data.

It wasn’t just occasionally; he was quite lecherous.

“Alright, alright, you’re upright, and you’re not lecherous. I won’t compare with you,” Shi Du turned over and changed into a position where he pressed Yu Zhaohan, “Baby, how about a kiss before sleeping?”

Yu Zhaohan readily agreed, “Sure, today let’s review the Italian kiss we learned last week.”

Yu Zhaohan was so dazed by the kiss that his cell phone on the bedside table vibrated three times in a row. He picked up the phone and saw the sender of the messages, which made him wake up quite a bit.

[Tide: I know about the training match]

[Tide: I will try to communicate with the coaching staff and ask them to arrange a training match with R.H as soon as possible]

[Tide: How are you doing lately? Captain]

Yu Zhaohan watched as Tide withdrew the last message and sent a new one.

[Tide: How are you doing lately? Shine]

Yu Zhaohan showed his phone to Shi Du and asked, “Is responding with just a ‘Hmm’ cold enough, or should I simply reply with a period?”

“Even replying with a period is too kind,” Shi Du took Yu Zhaohan’s phone and set it aside, “Don’t mind him, let’s continue.”

However, Yu Zhaohan’s mind wasn’t fully focused anymore. While they were kissing, he suddenly pushed Shi Du away and said, “Last year, both you and I lost to Lawman.”

In the previous year’s playoffs, which were single-elimination matches, R.H lost to Lawman in the quarter-finals. At the same time, Shi Du’s IPL made it to the finals and battled through seven games but ultimately came in second.

Shi Du said, “That’s because last year’s R.H didn’t have me, and last year’s IPL didn’t have you. This year is different…”

“This year can’t be the same. I don’t want to let them show off again. If they really win three consecutive championships, I will definitely be angry and cry on the spot.” Yu Zhaohan whispered, “But Lawman is really strong, and now with Qi Xian…”

He hugged Shi Du’s neck and asked softly, “Shi Du, you’ll help me beat Lawman and win the championship, right?”

“I won’t help you.”

Yu Zhaohan looked at him silently.

Shi Du lowered his head and lightly nibbled on Yu Zhaohan’s lips. “It’s not like you’re the only one who wants to win the championship. I’m helping myself, damn it.”