TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 99

The harmonious act of brotherly goodwill came to an abrupt end at that moment.

Ping Shuai had carefully considered his approach before contacting Shi Ya. As he himself had said, deep down he had always been a little afraid of Lin Mingfei, so he didn’t dare to discuss such sensitive matters with him directly.

Aside from Lin Mingfei, the most hot-tempered person on the team was Zhou Yanjun, who was basically a brainless hothead. He would get angry before thinking about anything, and trying to talk to him was exhausting before any real conversation could even begin.

As for Bo Yu… Bo Yu had little presence within the team. Whether he agreed or disagreed wouldn’t really make much difference. So there was no need—absolutely no need.

After thinking it over again and again, Ping Shuai chose Shi Ya.

Shi Ya’s status within Polaris was second only to Lin Mingfei’s, and people listened when he spoke. Moreover, Shi Ya seemed more clear-headed than Zhou Yanjun and more mild-tempered than Lin Mingfei. He wasn’t so sharp-edged—he seemed like someone who could be reasoned with.

Besides, the last time someone personally came to invite him back to the team, it had been Shi Ya—not anyone else. That at least proved that Shi Ya’s attitude toward him was relatively friendly compared to the others. Even though things had ended unhappily that time, it had been because Ping Shuai himself didn’t want to return.

But now he did want to come back.

That meant the root cause of their conflict no longer existed, so the events of that day wouldn’t repeat themselves. All he needed to do was apologize again, show a little humility, explain that he had only been momentarily confused back then, talk about the promising future ahead, and reminisce about the bonds they had forged in those earlier years. Shi Ya would probably soften and stand on his side.

Ping Shuai had worked out his plan very carefully.

He had already imagined the entire sequence of events that would follow.

First, he would persuade Shi Ya and open a breakthrough toward rejoining the team. Then Shi Ya would act as his intermediary to persuade Lin Mingfei. Ping Shuai would play the role of the pitiful one while Shi Ya helped set the mood from the other side, reminding Lin Mingfei of their glorious past.

Surely Lin Mingfei wouldn’t be so heartless as to reject him outright when Shi Ya was speaking up for him.

By then, the two biggest pillars in Polaris would both have been dealt with. As for Bo Yu and Zhou Yanjun—what did their opinions matter? They would have to accept it whether they liked it or not.

And that omega who had taken his place…

Ping Shuai thought that once he officially returned to the team, he would have plenty of ways to deal with that seductive omega, Xia Tong.

Every step of this scheme had been rehearsed over and over in Ping Shuai’s mind. He believed it was already fully formed and mature, and only then did he put it into action.

He decided to start with Shi Ya.

The first thing he did was call Shi Ya’s home. One reason was that Young Master Shi was rich and carefree—he had a whole pile of mobile phones, and Ping Shuai had no idea which number he currently used. The second reason was that he hoped calling the Shi family’s landline would awaken Shi Ya’s memories of the old days, when the team had struggled together from nothing.

The first step went smoothly. He successfully fooled Mrs. Shi and got her to write down his phone number.

The second step was even more fortunate—he managed to catch Shi Ya returning home for the holidays!

God knew how excited Ping Shuai felt when he received the call back. Originally he had thought he might have to wait half a month for that call. After all, social butterflies like Shi Ya weren’t exactly known for staying home.

But to his surprise, he got the call in less than half a day.

It felt like heaven itself was helping him return to the team.

Ping Shuai was filled with surging excitement, and his confidence in the road ahead grew stronger than ever.

After the call connected, just as expected, Shi Ya began by mocking him. Ping Shuai kept smiling. Shi Ya launched personal attacks, and Ping Shuai still kept smiling. In the end, through his own effort and humble attitude, Ping Shuai successfully softened Shi Ya’s stance.

When Shi Ya said, “I’ve accepted your apology. I forgive you,” Ping Shuai almost wanted to publish a book titled “The Ping School of Thick-Skinned Success Studies” to commemorate his journey—from the low point of his life back onto the right path and toward glorious success once more.

Seizing the moment while the iron was hot, he diligently put on another round of pitiful sobbing. Just as he was about to take Shi Ya down in one decisive move, Young Master Shi’s attitude suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse. Shi Ya dropped the line:

“You’ll have to ask Lin Mingfei’s opinion. As for me… I don’t really want you to come back.”

At that moment, Ping Shuai heard something shatter inside his mind.

His consciousness had still been immersed in the fake warmth Shi Ya had fabricated for him. Then he suddenly realized something: this Young Master Shi—the so-called heartbreaker who had been cursed out by countless omega players online for years—had not been hunted down for no reason.

This cold-hearted scumbag alpha was actually a master at doing exactly this kind of thing.

Sure enough, Shi Ya continued to mock him coolly from the other end of the phone.

“Ping Shuai, you really picked the wrong person to play the pitiful act with. Back then so many cute little omega boys and girls cried in my ear and I still didn’t change my mind. What do your little tricks amount to? I’m not into alphas anyway. Besides, the thing I hate most in this life is eating leftovers.”

Ping Shuai didn’t say a word. All that could be heard was his rapid, disordered breathing, like a bellows pumping air.

“And besides, I’m a very vindictive person,” Shi Ya said lightly. His voice carried almost no real humor. “All the things you said about me, about Zero, and about Zhou Yanjun and Xiao Bo—I remember every single punctuation mark. If you showed up in front of me right now, I’d probably still feel the urge to slap you twice.”

Ping Shuai: “……”

At last he couldn’t continue the conversation. He hurriedly muttered, “I have something to do,” and hung up.

Shi Ya was still holding his phone. He stared straight ahead and let out a long breath, snorting coldly.

“What the hell…”

With that, he tossed the phone onto the sofa and turned to head for the bathroom to take a shower and go to sleep. After walking two steps, he suddenly seemed to remember something and stopped.

Then Shi Ya turned back, went to the sofa, picked up his phone, and immediately called Lin Mingfei.

The line rang twice before it connected. Lin Mingfei’s voice came through amid the howling sound of cold wind.

“Hello? What’s up?”

Shi Ya froze for two seconds. “What the hell—you’re not at the base?”

“No.” Lin Mingfei sounded slightly confused. “I came out to buy something. What’s wrong?”

“In weather this cold, you ran out in the middle of the night to buy stuff? Wow, you really know how to be romantic,” Shi Ya said speechlessly.

“Are you done talking nonsense… You think I wanted to?” The comment hit Lin Mingfei right on a sore spot. On the other end, the alpha rolled his eyes at the sky and said irritably, “So what exactly do you want? If you’ve got something to say, spit it out.”

“You left Xia Tong alone at the base?” Shi Ya dropped the teasing and went straight to the point.

Lin Mingfei paused for two seconds, then said quietly, “Yes. Why?”

“Mmm…” Shi Ya thought for a moment and said seriously, “Maybe I’m overthinking it, but Ping Shuai just called me.”

“Ping Shuai?” Lin Mingfei’s tone instantly changed, taking on a sharp edge. “Why did he call you?”

“What else could it be? Probably because sitting on the bench at Sabertooth has made his ass hurt and he regrets it now. After all, the goblin’s performance has always been pretty stable,” Shi Ya said indifferently. “He wants to come back to Polaris and play again… Man, the way he apologized was so sincere I almost thought he was confessing his love to me.”

Lin Mingfei sounded deeply displeased. “Why did he go to you instead of me?”

“Isn’t it obvious? He’s afraid of you. Thinks I look kind and easy to talk to,” Shi Ya replied.

Lin Mingfei said faintly, “…Easy to talk to?”

“Clearly that was his illusion.” Shi Ya shrugged lazily. “I shot him down directly. Told him that regardless of whether you agree or not, I don’t agree.”

Lin Mingfei remained calm and rational. “And then? What did he say after that? Otherwise you wouldn’t have bothered calling me.”

“He didn’t say much,” Shi Ya said after thinking for a moment. “But I just have a bad feeling. I don’t think he’ll let it go that easily.”

“You think he’ll shamelessly come to me next?” Lin Mingfei asked.

“It’s not just that. I’m even wondering if he might run straight to the base and cause trouble,” Shi Ya said. “Ping Shuai doesn’t understand me, but I understand him very well. That guy is incredibly proud. If he’s willing to lower himself this much to beg me, he must be completely unable to stay at Sabertooth anymore and has nowhere else to go.”

“In my opinion, these past two years have basically ruined him. Not only does he get no chance to play, I doubt he’s even participated in proper training many times. The only thing he’s got going for him now is the huge penalty fee Sabertooth set in his contract. If even that falls apart… well, when a rabbit is cornered it’ll bite. And Ping Shuai definitely isn’t a rabbit.”

After a pause, Shi Ya suddenly added, “Oh right—what did you say just now? Xia Tong is alone at the base?”

Lin Mingfei: “…!”

Shi Ya sucked in a breath and said seriously, “Zero, I definitely can’t go back to the base tonight. I have to stay home with my mom. Anyway, that’s the situation—you should keep it in mind. It’d be best to lock the doors at the base and tell Xia Tong not to open the door for strangers. Also… Zero? Are you still listening? Hello? Hello??”

There was no response from Lin Mingfei anymore. Only the fierce, sweeping sound of the cold wind remained on the other end of the line. Shi Ya called out “hello” several times without hearing anything.

Then there was a click, and the call was abruptly cut off.

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