TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 71

The base’s heating was on full blast. Lin Mingfei wore only a light cotton long-sleeve, and Xia Tong could easily reach out and touch his hot, firm waist muscles.

It might be because Alphas train all year round, or maybe it was just his natural physique—but Xia Tong felt that the sensation under his palm was completely different from touching himself. In fact, it felt much better.

So he gave Lin Mingfei’s abs another squeeze, then pinched his own soft belly, then happily went back to squeezing Lin Mingfei again.

“Hey.” Lin Mingfei felt this little thing getting all lively again. What did he take him for, some kind of stress ball? He twitched at the corner of his mouth. “That’s enough,” he muttered, holding Xia Tong’s wrist and pushing his hand away.

“Do you hate it when I do that?” Xia Tong persisted.

“Well…” Lin Mingfei hesitated, then mumbled, “If it’s you… I guess it’s fine.”

Xia Tong grinned. “Hehe…”

The two exchanged a smile.

Meanwhile, poor Young Master Shi—“guilty of being too good-looking,” as He Youjin scolded—had been dragged off to try on sample outfits. After quite a while, he finally came out of the bedroom. The group of carefree onlookers downstairs all let out a synchronized “Wow!”

Xia Tong clapped enthusiastically. “It looks so good!!”

Lin Mingfei crossed his arms in satisfaction and nodded. “Having you try on the samples was definitely the right call.”

Zhou Yanjun leaned miserably on Bo Yu’s shoulder. “Damn it, I can tell I wouldn’t even fit into that thing…”

Bo Yu couldn’t relate at all, sincerely admiring, “Shi-ge not becoming a model and choosing to be a pro player instead—that’s truly a loss to the fashion world.”

From the neck down, it was all legs—an actual walking clothes hanger. Young Master Shi rolled his eyes dramatically at the group of troublemakers commenting from the sidelines. “Ha. Ha.”

He Youjin had been clicking away on his camera nonstop. “Timer, give me a side angle!” he called out.

Shi Ya turned reluctantly.

“Now the other side!”

“Can you do a different pose? Don’t just stand there!”

“Something more advanced! Come on!”

“Look a little melancholy!”

“Or more passionate!”

“Stop looking so blank! Pretend I’m the Omega you’re trying to flirt with!”

The group could barely keep from laughing as Shi Ya cycled through seventeen or eighteen poses in ten minutes, forced to keep “working,” his expression growing more and more deadpan.

When He Youjin finally got enough shots, he happily put the camera away—only to grab a measuring tape next, approaching Shi Ya with the aura of a man about to perform torture.

“Don’t move! Stand straight!”

“Damn, you Alphas are all too tall—let me grab a step stool…”

“Add a bit more looseness to the waist, that’ll be more comfortable.”

“The logo print on the chest could be more prominent—or maybe use a different material…”

“The shoulders could fit closer… hey, stop breathing so deep, I can’t measure properly!”

Shi Ya deadpanned, “Just destroy me already. I’m tired.”

He Youjin said, “How are you tired already?”

Shi Ya: “If you tighten this collar any more, I’m going to suffocate.”

He Youjin: “You’re giving up after one outfit? There are four more!”

Shi Ya: “……????”

Shi Ya: “ZERO!!!”

“Yeah, I’m here,” a lazy Alpha called back. Lin Mingfei turned his head, only for the little Omega beside him to tug gently on his sleeve.

“I want to see you wear them,” Xia Tong whispered. “That cardigan and that hoodie—I want to see both…”

Lin Mingfei froze for a moment, then rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Alright,” he said with a slow smile, patting Xia Tong’s hand affectionately. “I’ll wear them for you.”

Upstairs, Shi Ya finally lost his composure, his gentlemanly façade gone. “LIN MINGFEI!!!”

“I’m coming, I’m coming—stop screaming like a ghost.” Lin Mingfei grabbed two outfits and headed up the stairs. “You’d think we were forcing you into prostitution just because you had to try on some clothes.”

“Try it yourself before saying that!” Shi Ya shot back coldly.

“Well, I am coming to keep you company, aren’t I?” Lin Mingfei replied.

The two joined forces in the fitting battle, while Xia Tong stayed downstairs, happily enjoying the view of handsome men.

Lin Mingfei and Shi Ya were two completely different kinds of Alphas. Compared to Shi Ya’s harmless, refined good looks, Lin Mingfei was more of the classic Alpha type—tall, long-legged, narrow-hipped, with broad shoulders that filled out clothes perfectly.

“I’m doomed, I’ve got decision paralysis,” Zhou Yanjun clicked his tongue. “All three of those cardigans look amazing. Seriously, are those two cursed or what? They’d look good even wearing garbage bags.”

Bo Yu agreed. “Right?”

Xia Tong, dazed and starry-eyed beside them, sighed dreamily. “They really do look so good… I want to try one too!” he said suddenly, clasping his hands together in excitement.

“Then go for it. If you want to, just try it.” Zhou Yanjun said casually. “There’s a hoodie over there no one’s touched yet!” He pointed.

“Then—then I’ll try it!” Xia Tong jumped up excitedly, grabbed the hoodie, and scurried off to his room.

Once Lin Mingfei joined the mix, He Youjin’s source of material exploded—he snapped over a hundred shots and gleefully scrolled through his camera. “Perfect! I’ll pick a few for a nine-grid post tonight, and the rest I’ll save for making calendars, mousepads, body pillows—just from merch sales alone I’ll make a fortune!”

“I swear, I can see the dollar signs in your eyes,” Lin Mingfei said, speechless. “You’ve fallen straight into the money pit.”

Shi Ya muttered under his breath, “No kidding. Our positions are in danger… At this rate, I’m half afraid he’ll burst into the bathroom one day to take nudes, claiming it’s for fan service.”

“We’ve got to find someone else to divert his attention…” Lin Mingfei rubbed his chin, deep in thought.

“Not happening until Zhou Yanjun loses some weight,” Shi Ya said. “Maybe Xiao Bo… you think we could develop him a bit?”

“If Xiao Bo had even one-tenth of your natural charm, he’d have more than ten thousand followers on Weibo,” Lin Mingfei said.

The two men looked at each other and suddenly felt a deep sense of shared misery.

A moment later, they heard the sound of a door closing.

Everyone instinctively turned toward the noise.

The little Omega shuffled out of the bedroom. On his petite frame hung a blue-and-white hoodie—fashionable, yes, but clearly designed for tall Alphas like Lin Mingfei or Shi Ya. On him, it was absurdly long and baggy, the hem falling past his knees. The sleeves drooped far beyond his hands, covering them halfway so that the empty cuffs swayed when he moved, making him look like he was wearing some sort of stage costume.

“Manager He… Zero…” Xia Tong said hesitantly, his voice tangled with distress. “Why do I feel like something’s really wrong with this outfit…”

He lifted his head—only to be met with a row of utterly stunned faces.

Shi Ya: “…A… a dress?”

Bo Yu: “…Aside from not being very practical… it doesn’t actually look that bad?”

Zhou Yanjun: “…I knew he was short, but not this short!!”

Lin Mingfei: “Pfft.”

He tried to cover his mouth, but failed miserably—and once he cracked, the rest followed.

“Hahahahahahaha!!”

“If that hem were any longer, I wouldn’t be able to see his legs at all—hahaha!!”

“He’s literally a Hobbit, oh my god!!”

Xia Tong: “……”

He felt the whole world’s malice weighing on him. His little face flushed bright red, and he shouted in a fit of indignation, “I know it looks bad! You’re not allowed to laugh!”

The threat had zero effect—it only made the tall Alphas laugh harder. Mortified, Xia Tong stomped his foot. “I’m not wearing it anymore! Hmph!” He turned to storm back to his room.

But before he could take two steps, He Youjin and the two scheming Alphas lunged forward, blocking his way. Lin Mingfei and Shi Ya pinned him from either side, sending frantic winks at He Youjin.

“Take the shot! Quick!”

“Yeah! This is way better material than shooting us!”

“Already shooting, already shooting!”

Xia Tong: “……!!!!”

Realizing what was happening, he fumed, grinding his little teeth. “You’re all bullying me!! Let go!!”

“We’re not bullying you! We just love you so much we want to take pictures of you!” Lin Mingfei coaxed, half-laughing.

“Liar! I’m changing! Nobody’s allowed to take pictures of me!” Xia Tong struggled desperately, but caught between two Alphas, he couldn’t move an inch. Every flustered, furious little expression of his was perfectly captured through He Youjin’s lens. The man’s shutter speed was lightning fast—after grabbing plenty of shots, he scrolled through his camera, thoroughly pleased, and gave Lin Mingfei and Shi Ya a meaningful nod, looking like a kidnapper who’d just received the ransom.

The two Alphas immediately let go. Xia Tong bolted like a mouse escaping a trap—whoosh!—and disappeared into his room, slamming the door shut behind him with a bang.

“Perfect,” Shi Ya said, folding his arms with a smirk. “Suddenly, I feel much better.”

Within a single day, He Youjin had efficiently accomplished several major tasks. First, he finalized the sample designs and sent them to the manufacturer for confirmation. Then, he updated two posts on Polaris’s official Weibo account.

The first post went up at 7 p.m.—a nine-photo grid featuring Lin Mingfei and Shi Ya modeling the new samples. The two Alphas were, without exaggeration, stunning—handsome from every angle. The club’s account usually stayed silent for ages, so when it finally dropped such a bomb, fans went absolutely wild. The comment section exploded like a tidal wave.

【Aaaaaahhhh I’m dead! These two bastards are too handsome!!】

【Even with all those layers of fabric, you still can’t hide Zero’s abs!!】

【Young Master Shi looks like he just walked out of a manga!! prprprprprrr!】

【I’m done for!! I got pregnant just scrolling through this post!!】

【Are those legs real?? Are those proportions humanly possible??】

【Is this the new team uniform?? I love it!! The color scheme is perfect!】

【The design is gorgeous too!! You’re totally selling this soon, aren’t you? My wallet’s ready!!】

【Hurry and release it! I want to match with my husband!!】

【The official account finally learned how to spoil fans!!】

【Please post more! I’m begging you! My next month’s phone wallpaper depends on this!!】

Within no time, likes, comments, and shares all passed a thousand.

Then, ever the schemer, He Youjin reposted it with a teasing caption:

Polaris Holographic Esports Club: [If we hit 3,000 likes, there’ll be a special bonus surprise~ 🐶] //@Polaris Holographic Esports Club:

Satisfied, he closed the app and went to collect signatures for the paper contracts.

Little Xia Tong, who’d been humiliated earlier, was still sulking in his room with the door locked tight. Lin Mingfei and Shi Ya had tried coaxing him out to no avail. When He Youjin arrived with the contracts, he knocked firmly on the door.

“Hey, Xia Tong, come out and sign.”

Silence.

He continued, “Once you sign, you’ll officially be a professional player. You signing or not? I’m counting—one!”

Sure enough, nothing mattered more to Xia Tong than that. Before He Youjin even said “two,” the little Omega opened the door, pouting. “Of course I’m signing! Hmph!”

—

At 8 p.m., the meeting room at the Polaris base was brightly lit.

He Youjin stood before a projected PowerPoint, pointer stick in hand—no one knew where he even got it—and paced around the circular conference table again and again.

“I told you to sign here, not there!”

“Damn it, didn’t I say the consent form needs two signatures? Were you just daydreaming?”

“You can’t even sign a contract properly, and I was expecting you to win a championship—am I crazy, or are you??”

He Youjin’s pointer tapped the heads of Zhou Yanjun, Bo Yu, and Xia Tong one by one as he scolded them, muttering under his breath.

The league’s contracts changed every year, and to patch loopholes and add details, the number of pages only kept increasing. The clauses were getting more and more complicated. It took quite a while for He Youjin to guide the three through signing the entire thick stack.

“I swear, one day I’m just going to sign the damn thing for you myself,” He Youjin said, rolling his eyes.

The three shrank back under his scolding, not daring to make a sound.

“Alright. All the preliminary procedures are done now,” He Youjin said, gathering the scattered documents. His tone became serious. “From this moment on, you’re no longer some random wild King’s Tomb players—you’re officially professional league players. Besides your daily training, you also need to follow the live-streaming schedule made by the platform to the letter. Starting next Wednesday—December 1st—the ‘Pre-Battle’ event begins. The streaming platforms will require you to start a live broadcast the moment you go online. It’s a new rule this year. If you don’t, you’ll get fined.”

“‘Pre-Battle’” was a unique feature of King’s Tomb. One month before the official competition, major clubs would run events like dungeon raids or field boss hunts—partly to improve players’ gear, partly to train their competitive skills. During this period, there’d be constant rivalries and mind games between clubs, making it one of the biggest highlights of the entire league.

This year, the league had cleverly signed agreements with streaming platforms requiring players to stream whenever they went online. This meant there would be dozens of King’s Tomb-related streams live nearly 24/7, serving as both publicity and fan engagement—and also letting the public keep an eye on players’ conduct.

“Here we go again,” Zhou Yanjun propped his plump chin on his hands and groaned. “Once the streaming starts, I know my good days are over.”

“What’s wrong?” Xia Tong asked curiously.

“He can’t go around flaming people in-game anymore,” Shi Ya said quietly with a smile. “Since everything’s live during Pre-Battle, any misconduct that gets reported means fines.”

“Oh, I see!” Xia Tong nodded in realization.

Lin Mingfei cleared his throat. “There’s one more thing I need to emphasize. During Pre-Battle, all our competitive activities will be visible to fans and viewers. That means every win and loss isn’t just Polaris’s private matter anymore—it’ll affect many people’s emotions, and even their opinion of us. The public pressure will be several times greater than it is now. I’m not saying this to scare you, but to remind you—take this game seriously. Take everything you do seriously. Be responsible—for yourselves and for the players who support you. Understand?”

“Understood!!” they all shouted in unison.

“Okay, meeting dismissed,” Lin Mingfei said.

“Hey, hey, hey! Why are we dismissing already!” Xia Tong suddenly jumped up, waving his short little arms. “Wait! Wait, I have something to say! Nobody move!!”

Everyone stopped.

“I—I have something to say…” Xia Tong tried to make his tone sound fierce and authoritative.

“Go ahead,” Lin Mingfei said leisurely.

After hesitating for a long while, Xia Tong blurted, “I… I’m not short!!”

The room went silent for two seconds. Then everyone waved him off.

“Pfft, that’s it?”

“Yeah, yeah, we know.”

“You’re not short, you’re not short.”

Flustered, Xia Tong stomped his foot. “I’m really not short! 165 centimeters isn’t short! You can go check—lots of people are shorter than me! Bo! That time we did that dungeon, that player Hua Feihua—she was way shorter than me!”

Bo Yu: “…She wasn’t that much shorter.”

Xia Tong: “…”

The little omega looked like he was about to cry out of frustration.

“You guys always say I’m short! What if I stop growing because of that! Taller people are more popular!” he huffed.

“Who said tall people are always more popular?” Shi Ya asked.

“You and Zero are the perfect example!” Xia Tong shot back.

He Youjin clicked his tongue softly.

He pulled out his phone. Half an hour ago, the first post he made had already surpassed three thousand interactions. As promised, he posted a follow-up.

Polaris Holographic E-sports Club: [Surprise drop! Polaris’s secret weapon of the season!] [two attached photos]

A delicate, petite boy stood in an oversized hoodie, one arm half raised like a little elf who’d wandered into the human world. His face was full of confusion, his innocent eyes staring straight into the camera—captured perfectly.

In the following nine-photo collage, his expressions shifted from blank to surprised to frowning in irritation—each one irresistibly cute and vivid, like a lifelike doll.

The comments exploded:

[blink!!!! Mama loves you!!!!]

[AAAAHHHH what kind of explosively adorable little fairy is this!!!]

[Polaris’s official mascot, confirmed!!]

[Is that his boyfriend’s team hoodie? Is it?? Is it???]

[If I buy the team hoodie, does that mean Blink and I are a couple now!!!]

[Waaahhh baby Tong give mama a kiss please!!! Mama’s dying from the cuteness!!]

【You guys are so mean!! You didn’t even give him a proper outfit!! And you scared him too!!】

【Angry little Tongtong is so adorable, awww!!】

【Hurry and start the livestream!! Mama’s going to send you a yacht-sized shoutout!!】

【Little brother is so cute!! Such a cute little brother playing holographic esports??】

【I’m downloading this game right now!! What’s it called? King’s Tomb?】

【I’m hooked!! Can someone guide me?? I want to join a professional team too!!】

…

He Youjin glanced at the time. The likes, comments, and shares had already passed 5,000, and there were plenty of non-King’s Tomb players excitedly talking about joining. He turned to show Xia Tong his phone.

“Timer and Zero together barely got 3,000 shares, but you alone have already broken into broader circles. If I were the official King’s Tomb team, I’d pick you as the game’s ambassador,” he said with a half-smile. “Clearly, short professional players still have a fan market.”

“Then grab another championship and MVP later,” Lin Mingfei smiled. “You might end up being someone all the Alphas in our club can’t handle loving.”

Feel free to buy me a coffee/show your support on ko-fi! Thank you ❤