TCWSITD – Chapter 35.1

Chapter 35 has 3 parts; 35.2 and 35.3 will be uploaded tonight at 10:00 and 11:00 EST.

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Chapter 35.1 – Applying Medicine For Him

In youth, one should never meet someone too dazzling. Otherwise, they’ll never forget them for the rest of their life.

Before meeting Lin Jiang, He Gu had never felt his heart stir. After meeting Lin Jiang, he never encountered anyone who could make his heart race the same way again.

He tried his best to control his emotions, to suppress his feelings for him, deliberately avoiding him, even finding opportunities to study abroad.

He used every means possible to end this unrealistic dream, but he didn’t expect that the only one who had been hopelessly trapped from the very beginning… was himself.

Lin Jiang could easily step back into the role of just an ordinary friend, or even leave KUG altogether and thrive on another team just as well.

He Gu was obviously the one who ruthlessly severed ties, but it was Lin Jiang who was the first to walk away.

His fingers interlaced tightly, knuckles turning pale.

After a deathly silence, he finally chose to compromise. “What will it take… for you to come back?”

The lights outside the car were flashing rapidly, time slipping away bit by bit. Lin Jiang didn’t answer his question. Instead, he gently picked up the contract He Gu had placed on the table.

The terms inside were genuinely tempting—so tempting that He Gu hardly seemed like a shrewd businessman but more like someone swayed by emotions.

To concede defeat before even fighting—this wasn’t like He Gu at all.

Lin Jiang finished reading and set it down.

He knew that if this conversation didn’t reach a conclusion now, He Gu would just seek him out again later.

If so, it was better to lay everything out clearly now.

Lin Jiang leaned back against the seat, relaxed. “I’m doing well at OT, and I’m satisfied with how things are now. Even if they can’t give me what I want, I’ll give it a shot before making any decisions.”

He Gu’s grip loosened slightly, then tightened again. “Where exactly are you satisfied?”

Lin Jiang didn’t know how to explain it to He Gu. After all, he was not a professional player. He tried to describe it: “OT gives me something emotional. Some kind of emotional value.”

Emotional value was the least practical thing to a businessman like He Gu.

He Gu drank all the wine in his glass, staring out at the streetlights blurring past the window. A flicker of emotion hovered in his eyes. “It’s because of Shen Ju, isn’t it?”

The words made Lin Jiang pause. “What does he have to do with this?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” He Gu’s voice grew heavier without him realizing it. “Lin Jiang, you having a girlfriend was just a front. You don’t actually like women.”

For a moment, Lin Jiang genuinely wanted to throw the drink in his face. “Back then, it was your mother who came to me and asked me to consider your reputation. That’s why I was forced into having a girlfriend. And now you’re using that to attack me?”

He Gu hadn’t meant to attack him. He just…

He held back his emotions. “I know. Let’s both stay calm.”

Lin Jiang was calm—so calm he almost wanted to calmly slap He Gu in the face.

Back then, it wasn’t just him who had crossed the line in their relationship—He Gu had been part of it too. But Lin Jiang had never used that against him, nor did he expect it to be thrown back at him.

The feelings in their youth were as fragile as a sheet of paper.

No matter how strong Lin Jiang had become, the mere mention of it still wounded him.

His patience reached its limit. “I hope you never bring that up again. I haven’t done anything to betray you these past years.”

“Sorry,” He Gu admitted, lowering his head. “I’ve had a little drink, it’s not appropriate for me to talk to you about this.”

He wiped his glasses clean, put them back on, and concealed his emotions behind them.

Glancing at his watch, he said, “Five more minutes. Let me take you back.”

Lin Jiang relaxed slightly, leaning back in his seat.

But then He Gu brought it up again. “Lin Jiang, I still have to say it. Shen Ju isn’t suitable for you. He’s too childish—”

“Are you out of your mind?” Lin Jiang shot up from his seat. “Just because I liked you once doesn’t mean I’m attracted to every man I see!”

He Gu froze, eyes wide as he looked up.

The anger in Lin Jiang’s eyes made him look more and more like he was back then, resurrected from the depths of He Gu’s memories.

His fingers curled tightly together, an uncontrollable emotion breaking through his restraint. The words neither of them had dared to say back then were now spoken in the worst possible way.

His eyes reddened slightly behind his glasses, strained from holding back.

Silence fell between them.

The five-minute ride dragged on like a slow torture.

When the car finally stopped, Lin Jiang opened the door and stepped out.

As the door shut behind him, He Gu called out, “I’m sorry.”

Lin Jiang found it bitterly amusing. In his previous life, he had never received an apology from He Gu—now, here it was.

Maybe it was fate—heaven itself couldn’t bear to watch and sent him back to live it all over, so he could make right what once went wrong.

“At least you got one thing right,” Lin Jiang said, glancing back down at He Hu. “The reason I stayed at OT… it really is because of Shen Ju.”

With that, he slammed the door and walked away.

He had to say that He Gu really knows how to arouse the rebelliousness and innate defiance in Lin Jiang’s bones.

Whether it was revenge or the frustration of youth, it didn’t matter.

Lin Jiang had never been free of bitterness over how He Gu had refused to acknowledge their past, forcing him back into the role of a friend.

If he wasn’t willing to admit it then, fine—he could keep denying it forever.

Lin Jiang returned to the base in a foul mood.

Song Zhixu proudly showed off his training results, but Lin Jiang only muttered, “I’m tired,” before turning and heading upstairs to his room.

Zhou Wen and A’Deng exchanged glances. “What’s wrong with the captain…?”

“Probably because Shen Ju didn’t go to the hospital today.”

As Lin Jiang opened his door upstairs, his gaze fell on a milk tea sitting on the windowsill. His heavy mood suddenly lightened.

He picked it up just as Shen Ju passed by the window. Lin Jiang called out to him, “Shen Ju, what did the doctor say at the hospital?”

Shen Ju paused, his gaze flickering slightly. “Not bad.”

Lin Jiang didn’t suspect anything. He lifted the milk tea from the table. “Thanks for the milk tea.”

Then he added, “Did you bring back the report? Let me see.”

Lin Jiang was really worried about Shen Ju’s hand. He remembered that in his previous life, Shen Ju had suddenly announced he was quitting the game because of a hand injury.

Shen Ju’s training was brutal, putting a lot of strain on his hand. Since it wasn’t serious yet, Lin Jiang felt it was his duty to keep an eye on things.

Seeing Shen Ju remain motionless, Lin Jiang thought he hadn’t heard clearly and asked again, “Where’s the report?”

Downstairs, Song Zhixu was still gossiping with Zhou Wen when they suddenly heard a loud slamming noise from upstairs. “Shen Ju’an! You’ve got some nerve, huh? You dare to lie to me?!”

A’Deng’s heart nearly jumped out of his chest. “Brother Zeng Yuan wasn’t lying. When the captain gets angry, he can really smash a table into pieces.”

The next day, Lin Jiang personally escorted Shen Ju to the hospital.

Shen Ju sat obediently across from him, not daring to move a single strand of hair.

After the scans were done, the doctor’s expression darkened. “Why is your condition getting worse? Didn’t the medication I prescribed help?”

Shen Ju muttered, “They’re too greasy. Messes with my touch.” Then he shrank back, scared Lin Jiang might smack him dead.

Lin Jiang really did feel like smacking him to death.

How could there be such a disobedient teammate?

After leaving the hospital, he finally couldn’t hold back anymore. “Your hand is the lifeline of a pro player. If you’re ready to throw that away, then what do you even want?”

Shen Ju looked straight at him and said nothing—yet it felt like he had said everything.

Lin Jiang froze, unsure if he was misreading things, but Shen Ju’s gaze seemed unusually direct.

Shaking off the odd feeling, he said, “If you keep pushing yourself this hard, you’re just going to make things worse. As your captain, I’m ordering you—no more overtraining.”

Shen Ju didn’t respond.

He knew he was wrong, but he wouldn’t change.

It had been years since Lin Jiang had been this furious. In all his years as a captain, what kind of troublemaker hadn’t he dealt with?

Yet someone as stubborn as Shen Ju, he had never encountered it before, someone who refused to yield to either soft or hard approaches.

“Fine, I give up.”

He turned away, but Shen Ju suddenly grabbed his wrist.

“Captain.”

His grip was tight, his palm burning with heat. “I don’t want you to leave OT.”

Lin Jiang looked at the hand holding his, and a trace of softness unexpectedly bloomed in his heart. Shen Ju had truly grown up—his palms were broad, his grip strong, and he had his own thoughts now.

The next second, Shen Ju let go again. “Don’t be mad, okay? How about I buy you some milk tea?”

“Is this problem something a cup of milk tea can solve?”

Fifteen minutes later, Lin Jiang sipped his milk tea while lecturing him, “You don’t feel it now because you’re young, but in a few years, when you can’t even grip a mouse properly, you’ll know what fear is.”

Shen Ju nodded obediently, but the moment they returned to the base, he went right back to intensifying his training as usual.

Lin Jiang gave up trying to control him. Out of sight, out of mind.

Fine, train all you want. Wreck your hand and get the hell out of here.

His phone buzzed—it was a message from Old Mao.

[Old Mao: I found the guy you asked me to look for. He just returned to the country and said he’s willing to talk if it’s for you.]

[Lin Jiang: Send me his contact info.]

Lin Jiang had OldMao track down a coach who’d just retired from the LCK—Li Qian. He’d spent some time at KUG before, and Lin Jiang always thought highly of him.

Unfortunately, KUG hadn’t managed to keep him. The moment Lin Jiang heard he was back in the country, he immediately asked Old Mao for help.

Old Mao’s network was extensive and his insider connections were endless. No surpirse, he found the man in no time.

Lin Jiang added him and was still figuring out how to phrase his message when the other party replied first.

[Li Qian: Hey, Lin Jiang, long time no see.]

Li Qian was cheerful in private, and his fashion sense was trendy, nothing like someone his age.

Lin Jiang deleted the polite small talk he’d drafted and simply greeted him.

[Lin Jiang: Heard you’re back. Want to grab a meal?]

[Li Qian: No need for that. I’ll come to the team to find you directly. We are so familiar with each other, there’s no need to go through the formalities.]

Lin Jiang took a deep breath.

[Lin Jiang: You’re agreeing just like that?]

[Li Qian: No, no, no—I’m just dropping by to see. Not promising anything. You know me, I’m basically retired now, not much teaching left in me.]

[Lin Jiang: Alright, then let’s make it tomorrow.]

[Li Qian: No, no, no—got plans tomorrow. Today’s better.]

[Lin Jiang: ?]

Is he in such a hurry?

Lin Jiang quickly contacted Duren to prepare for the meeting.

At 3 PM, Li Qian showed up in a leather jacket and black sunglasses,kind of giving off a slightly outdated, tacky vibe.

The moment he stepped in, Song Zhixu locked eyes with him. The two stared at each other for a while before Li Qian suddenly took off his glasses and flashed him a charming smile. “Hey there, handsome.”

Song Zhixu, thinking he seemed a bit gay, avoided shaking hands and slipped away as soon as he could.

Duren shot Lin Jiang a questioning look, seeming to ask if this guy was reliable.

Lin Jiang nodded in confirmation.

The three sat down in the office, where Duren enthusiastically demonstrated OT’s strengths, talking so fervently that beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

Li Qian only cared about one thing: “That Shen Ju guy. Is he really as violent as they say online? Does he actually hit people?”

Lin Jiang sighed. “No.”

Li Qian gave a simple “Oh” and instantly lost interest. “No fun.”

Duren was baffled.

What on earth is this person here for?

Lin Jiang couldn’t hold back any longer and pulled Li Qian aside. “Qian-ge, if you’re not sold on OT, just say it straight. Don’t mess around like this—it’s kinda scary.”

Li Qian removed his sunglasses. “Fine, I’ll tell you the truth. I’m really not impressed with OT.”

Lin Jiang’s heart sank. “Then why…?”

“However, I’ve taken a liking to you and Shen Ju, and I have some ideas I’d like to implement with you.” Li Qian put on his flashy sunglasses again, grinning boldly. “If the team doesn’t mind, I can serve as a behind-the-scenes consultant. Salary isn’t important to me—just have them decide the amount. Oh, and I won’t sign an LPL contract. You know why.”

Lin Jiang understood. Back then, Li Qian had been screwed over by KUG’s contract and had to pay a hefty sum just to leave. Since then, he’d held no fondness for the LPL and had been developing his career in the LCK all these years.

“I’ll explain it clearly to Manager Du. Don’t worry.”

Li Qian nodded, then looked at him thoughtfully. “Lin Jiang, I’m a bit curious. How did you fall out with KUG? Was it really just because of the contract?”

Lin Jiang wasn’t driven by money. Back then, many teams had tried to poach him with high offers, but he’d never left. It couldn’t have been because of money.

Li Qian took off his sunglasses and met his gaze. “I guess it was about rotations, right?”

For a moment, Lin Jiang felt as if his thoughts had been laid bare. He took a step back to maintain distance. “It was a bit of everything.”

Li Qian smiled without another word, putting his sunglasses back on.

Waving as he left, he said, “Contact me if there’s any progress.”

Lin Jiang nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

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