"Because we worked hard together, were teammates, Mosquito's first reaction was to believe. He knew Yang Yu and Han Fengyan for so many years, playing games together since the game existed. He felt this matter was no small thing and couldn't rush to judgment without certainty. He said he would handle it, so he set up a meeting. It was just him, Yang Yu, and Han Fengyan, a heart-to-heart talk. It went well, and before long, Chen Jing was sold out, at an extremely low price... all that time they supposedly worked hard together, those 'teammates for life,' turned into a joke."
"The moment this news broke, Mosquito went to find Yang Yu. Yang Yu knew he'd come, so he had a watch prepared. The moment Mosquito saw the watch, he understood everything. They had already had one heart-to-heart talk, but it didn't resolve anything, and it even harmed Chen Jing. Mosquito certainly wasn't going to have a second pleasant talk with Yang Yu. Seeing that emotional appeals wouldn't work and expensive gifts couldn't buy him, and all gentle persuasion failed, Yang Yu decided to get tough."
"Mosquito had an older brother who ran into some trouble that summer and needed money. Mosquito was short, so he borrowed from Yang Yu. Yang Yu said that money was something he and Han Fengyan had acquired, and if Mosquito dared to expose this, he'd drag Mosquito down with them, leading to the ruin of Mosquito and Han Fengyan..."
"I..." Sheng Kuang lowered his eyelids, his face expressionless. "I went to find Yang Yu a little after Mosquito. I happened to overhear these words."
"I thought Yang Yu was utterly shameless, not fit to be human. Not only did he sell Chen Jing, but he also wanted to harm Mosquito. I... I acted impulsively, kicked the door open... Then, Yang Yu's phone rang."
"I don't know who he answered. I don't know what the person on the other end said to him, but his face turned ashen, like he had to leave in a hurry. He didn't clarify things, so how could I let him go? Yang Yu ignored me completely. When I grabbed him, he just shoved me away and told me that someone would die if he didn't get there soon. How could I believe him? In his desperation, he attacked me, and then I retaliated... I was more ruthless. I picked up a chair and smashed it at him. The chair didn't hit Yang Yu because Mosquito blocked it..."
"Yang Yu was stunned, and I was stunned. Mosquito was in so much pain he was trembling all over. None of the three of us reacted. Suddenly, the outside descended into chaos, and then, someone shouted... someone had jumped to their death."
Lin Jing sat beside him, listening quietly to Sheng Kuang's voice.
The preceding story had already been difficult for her to process. This last sentence, casually dropped by Sheng Kuang, was like a landmine, blowing her mind into a blank void.
After a long while, she blinked, as if she had misheard, and slowly turned her head. "Com... mitted suicide?"
"Yes, suicide." Sheng Kuang was very calm, so calm as if he were recounting something completely unrelated to himself. "It was October. October jumped to his death."
"October had already been contemplating suicide for a long time. Yang Yu often talked with him and kept it a secret for him. The person who called Yang Yu was October. Yang Yu didn't lie to me; he really was going to stop October. It was me who stopped Yang Yu."
Lin Jing's fingers trembled. She moved her lips, wanting to say something, but no sound came out.
"If I hadn't gone to find Yang Yu, if I hadn't overheard Yang Yu's words with Mosquito, if I hadn't acted impulsively, if I had believed Yang Yu just once, October wouldn't have died."
"Not only would October be alive, but Mosquito wouldn't have retired."
"That's right. The internet is scolding me, saying I'm the reason Mosquito retired. It's absolutely true, it was me..." Sheng Kuang lowered his head, his voice growing softer. "Do you know why he did that? Because he knew that if I threw that chair at Yang Yu, Yang Yu wouldn't let me off. I would have been expelled from the league."
Sheng Kuang would never forget that day.
He was at the hospital, with the emergency room on one side and the morgue on the other.
Five people in one team. Excluding their time in the youth training, and only counting the time they competed together, it was almost three years, yet it ended with one dead and one injured.
He stood outside the hospital all night, not daring to go to the ward, nor daring to see October.
He stood until his legs were numb, completely without sensation, when Han Fengyan appeared before him.
"Sheng Kuang, October's parents have arrived. His mother fainted three times from crying. His grandfather, upon hearing the news, had a heart attack and was hospitalized."
"Mosquito's rescue results are also out. His waist is ruined. He needs bed rest and has basically bid farewell to his esports career."
Han Fengyan lowered his head and let out a light laugh. "You harmed both of them, Sheng Kuang. Do you know that? You are carrying a life on your shoulders."