WG - 81

The match ended, and the big screen displayed the final overall rankings.

YG ranked first, Fot second, and Drop third.

The entire audience stood up, screaming and shouting for YG, Wild, and China!

The commentators were also excitedly recounting the name of this champion, some even breaking into hoarse voices as they described Xie Ye’s god-like performance.

The atmosphere was enthusiastic and spectacular.

Chi Zhiyu sat in the stands, her lips pressed together as she watched Xie Ye on stage. He had removed his headphones and was staring at his computer screen, silent.

Beside him, Ding Hui, Yang Bin, and Lin Jie had already risen to their feet. Without a word, they patted his shoulder heavily.

The audience watching below witnessed this moment, and some fans suddenly realized that their earlier guesses might be true.

Their Wild was leaving.

After securing the championship for them, he was leaving without regrets.

“Wild! Don’t go!! We believe in you! You’ll always be our god!”

Some fans, crying, began to shout out their pleas, their calls echoing in waves.

Xie Ye silently and calmly packed up his equipment, then stood and followed Ding Hui and the others toward the front. Backstage, Old Mu and the rest arrived immediately, red-eyed, and hugged each of them one by one.

The host on stage handed the trophy to them according to protocol, then stood still while the national anthem played, everyone watching the flag rise as the audience sang along.

After this solemn and sacred process, the host exited, leaving time for the four men on stage.

The production crew focused all cameras on the man who had just created this championship moment.

The excitement in the venue had faded. Fans half-covered their faces, tears streaming down as they stared intently at Xie Ye on stage.

They refused to believe the guesswork, hoping to see Xie Ye make his usual arrogant remarks and then coolly exit the stage.

And next time, they hoped to see him again on the battlefield.

Welcoming back their god.

Xie Ye took the microphone, looking at the audience below. First, he expressed gratitude in English on behalf of YG, then switched to Chinese, saying, “Next…”

“…”

Two seconds passed.

Xie Ye continued, finishing his sentence, “This is my retirement announcement.”

The moment those words left his mouth, Ding Hui, Yang Bin, and Lin Jie beside him immediately turned their heads, as if holding back tears, while Old Mu was already in full-blown tears.

The faint hope fans had clung to was shattered by Xie Ye’s own words. Below, fans broke down, crying and shaking their heads, shouting “No!” Some male fans couldn’t believe it either, holding the national flag and sobbing loudly, pleading with him not to retire.

Below, Chi Zhiyu finally couldn’t hold back. Her nose stung sharply, and the tears she had been holding back spilled from her eyes.

Her boy.

Had always fought for his honor and dreams.

Never disappointing anyone.

He was everyone’s Wild God, and her proud, dazzling young man.

And now, at this moment, this young man was preparing to leave behind all the honor and responsibility that had rested on his shoulders today.

To belong to this era.

This stage’s Wild.

Xie Ye looked at the fans below, speaking slowly, “At eighteen, I became Wild and won my first Asian championship. After that, you all know the records—basically all champions.”

His familiar cocky tone instantly broke through the somber atmosphere below.

Li Taoran, sobbing, cursed under his breath, “Damn, how can this guy still be so cocky even now?”

After saying that, he buried his head on Su Le’s shoulder and cried again.

Su Le pushed him away, his eyes also glistening with tears.

“The championships are facts,” Xie Ye smirked slightly. “Of course, there were occasional runner-ups and third-place finishes, but I don’t feel any regret because every match was the result of me and my teammates giving our all. These are our achievements and glory.”

“I have no regrets. I can only say…” Xie Ye paused, turning to look at Ding Hui, Yang Bin, and Lin Jie beside him, “Sorry that I can no longer fight alongside my teammates. Sorry.”

Xie Ye looked at the fans, “From now on, Wild can no longer bring you glory.”

“There’s no serious problem with my health, but I’ve started noticing some symptoms. However, over these five years, I’ve done my best and never let anyone down.”

“In the future, it won’t just be Wild. Many excellent players are working hard. And even though I won’t be here, my teammates and YG will continue moving forward, living up to your expectations.”

“Today, I gave my all as Wild. In my career as an esports player, I fulfilled Wild’s responsibilities and mission. And from now on, in the days belonging to Xie Ye…”

Xie Ye raised his gaze to look at Chi Zhiyu sitting in the audience, his voice soft but clear as he spoke a solemn and heartfelt sentence.

“I will accompany someone.”

“I will make up for all the days I couldn’t give her.”

“So, here, I thank everyone for being with me these past five years.”

“I, Xie Ye, YG esports player Wild…” His voice grew slightly hoarse. After pausing for two seconds, he earnestly delivered his final words: “Will officially retire today.”

“Thank you all. Goodbye.”

Everyone watched their unwavering faith bow deeply toward them. After a long bow, they turned and walked away.

By now, everyone’s vision was blurred with tears.

Their god.

Had left.

The award ceremony concluded after Xie Ye’s speech, and the other teams gradually exited the stage as well.

After delivering his retirement declaration, Xie Ye led Ding Hui, Yang Bin, and Lin Jie off the stage.

“Brother Wild! Come here! Let us comfort you!”

Yang Bin, crying, reached out to hug Xie Ye, but Lin Jie quickly pulled him back, “What are you comforting him for? Chi Zhiyu is coming.”

Upon hearing this, Xie Ye lifted his head and looked ahead.

Old Mu had already come down to bring her over. Chi Zhiyu followed behind him, and as soon as she looked up, she spotted the four men not far away.

Xie Ye stood still, watching her from a slight distance. His eyes were dark, yet he seemed somewhat silent.

When Chi Zhiyu saw his expression, her throat tightened.

The next moment, without thinking, she ran toward him, throwing herself into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his chest.

The sudden embrace made Xie Ye pause for a moment before he reciprocated, pulling her close. Before he could say anything,

Chi Zhiyu lifted her head first, her eyes red as she looked at him, her voice hoarse, “Wild.”

“My champion, I’ve come to take you home.”

Don’t be sad.

You have me.

Whether it was loneliness and helplessness in the past or moments of confusion in the future.

I’ll always be here.

Xie Ye paused, lowering his gaze to look at her.

The venue was noisy, filled with cries of sorrow and sadness over his retirement.

But in that moment, he had shed all his pride and glory, leaving only himself.

One person.

But his girl had said she would come to meet him first.

So she came.

To welcome her champion.

Xie Ye cupped Chi Zhiyu’s face, lowered his head, and placed a solemn kiss on her lips.

Now.

My Ayu has come.

Ding Hui and the others nearby saw this scene, exchanged glances, smiled, and walked ahead first.

The surrounding audience also witnessed this romantic moment. After a brief moment of astonishment, the venue erupted into wild cheers once more.

At the same time, in this moment,

The fans would forever remember their undefeated god choosing to leave on this day.

But he hadn’t gone far.

Carrying his ailments and初心 (original intentions), he returned to the side of his beloved girl.

Still dazzling, still radiant.

News of Wild’s retirement spread online almost instantly, along with the confession Xie Ye made during his farewell speech and the kiss that followed after he stepped off stage.

The internet buzzed with heated discussions, some reactions even explosive.

“So, both of you in this KidnappedCP are more famous than celebrities.”

Wu Xuan sat in the back seat, scrolling through Weibo and marveling.

Chi Zhiyu, sitting beside her, nodded, “Then can you give me money?”

“Nope.” Li Taoran in the passenger seat chuckled, “Sister Chi, aren’t you being a bit materialistic?”

Chi Zhiyu laughed lightly, “Aren’t celebrities pretty rich?”

“Richness is their affair.” Wu Xuan glanced at her, “Are you a celebrity?”

Su Le, driving in front, raised an eyebrow, “Sister Chi could become a celebrity.”

“No way.” Chi Zhiyu waved her hand, “I’d rather stay low-key.”

“…” Li Taoran choked, “With you and Xie Ye’s situation, do you really think you can stay low-key?”

“It’ll calm down in a few days.” Chi Zhiyu casually replied, “Right now, it’s just a lot of hype.”

Wu Xuan nodded, “Anyway, Xie Ye has retired. After this, he probably won’t appear on screen much. It won’t take long for people to stop paying attention.”

Mentioning retirement, Li Taoran clicked his tongue, “I actually cried for Xie Ye just now. Thinking about it now gives me chills.”

“You didn’t cry?” Su Le mocked him.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know.” Li Taoran shot him a glance, “Didn’t you cry too?”

Su Le: “….”

The two girls in the backseat burst into laughter, showing no mercy to them.

Su Le coughed and changed the subject, asking, “When is Xie Ye coming?”

Chi Zhiyu glanced at the time, “It might take a while. He still has things to discuss with the team.”

“What things?” Li Taoran guessed, “Not having a farewell party and hugging each other in tears, right?”

Wu Xuan’s lips twitched, “Do you think that’s possible?”

Just then, the car arrived at the restaurant. Su Le parked the car in a spot, “Let’s get out and eat.”

When the match ended, it was already noon. Chi Zhiyu let Xie Ye go back first, while she went to eat with Wu Xuan and the others, waiting for him to join them later when he finished his tasks.

Li Taoran picked a relatively famous local restaurant. The four of them walked in, casually chose a window-side seat, ordered, and the food arrived quickly.

Chi Zhiyu was a bit sleepy and felt full after a few bites. While listening to the three of them talk, she sent Xie Ye a message asking how he planned to eat lunch.

Xie Ye might have been busy; after waiting a while, she didn’t see a reply.

Chi Zhiyu put away her phone. Wu Xuan looked at her plate and frowned, “Are you dieting?”

“Hmm?” Chi Zhiyu replied clearly, “No, I’m not very hungry.”

“You ate too little.”

Wu Xuan said, “Eat a bit more. Later, if Xie Ye sees this, he’ll say we mistreated you.”

“What nonsense.” Chi Zhiyu found it amusing, “I’ve gained weight, alright?”

“Gained weight?” Li Taoran looked at her, wide-eyed, “You call this gaining weight?”

“I really gained weight.” Chi Zhiyu sighed helplessly, nodding, “I weighed myself a few days ago and gained several pounds.”

Xie Ye always made her eat, occasionally buying snacks and nuts for her.

Chi Zhiyu hadn’t thought much of it before, but a few days ago, she suddenly noticed her face looked rounder. When she weighed herself, she was shocked.

“I really can’t tell.” Li Taoran shook his head, “You look the same as before.”

“You wouldn’t understand.” Wu Xuan glanced at him, “No wonder you’re still single.”

“?” Li Taoran was dumbfounded, “Why bring me into this? Su Le doesn’t have a girlfriend either.”

Su Le glanced at him and shook his head, “You truly don’t get it.”

“What do you mean?” Li Taoran asked.

Chi Zhiyu understood, “Do you have a girlfriend?”

Su Le nodded, his tone slightly smug, “Almost.”

Wu Xuan: “What do you mean ‘almost’? Do you or don’t you?”

Su Le: “Someone is pursuing me, and I’m still considering.”

Hearing this, Li Taoran looked at him skeptically, “You’re lying.”

Su Le: “….”

After eating, Chi Zhiyu followed them to their hotel.

After checking in at the front desk, Chi Zhiyu couldn’t resist her drowsiness anymore. She grabbed her room card and went straight to her room to sleep.

“Didn’t you sleep last night?” Wu Xuan saw her lie down and close her eyes, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah, I didn’t sleep.” Chi Zhiyu pulled the blanket over herself, “I’m going to sleep now. You can leave. Take the room card with you.”

Later, when Xie Ye came, she didn’t want to get up to open the door for him.

“Alright, sleep well. I’ll leave.”

Wu Xuan took the room card and left.

Once she was gone, Chi Zhiyu closed her eyes and drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

On the plane, she hadn’t slept much either, lost in thought or thinking about Xie Ye. Now that the competition was over, her tense nerves relaxed.

……

Chi Zhiyu thought she would sleep dreamlessly until morning, but halfway through, she vaguely heard the sound of the door opening. Then, she felt the bed sink slightly beside her, and a familiar warmth approached.

Chi Zhiyu was extremely sleepy and didn’t want to open her eyes, but she knew Xie Ye had come.

She didn’t know how long she slept again, but she was woken up by Xie Ye.

Chi Zhiyu lay in bed, struggling to open her eyes, looking at the man in front of her. At some point, he had lain beside her, one hand around her waist, the other playing with her hair, calling her annoyingly.

Chi Zhiyu’s mind was foggy, and she didn’t want to deal with him, but hearing his persistent calls, she frowned in irritation, “Xie Ye, can you stop talking?”

After saying that, she rolled over and continued sleeping.

Seeing that she was awake, Xie Ye was about to sit up, but hearing her words, he looked at her thin back and raised an eyebrow, “What are you doing?”

Chi Zhiyu pulled the blanket over her head, silently expressing.

Don’t disturb my sleep.

Seeing her like this, Xie Ye chuckled, sat up, and pulled her along with the blanket.

Chi Zhiyu, weakly, was pulled up by him. Without lifting her eyes, she dragged her voice, “What do you want…”

“Don’t sleep.” Xie Ye pulled her into his arms and smiled seeing her like this, “Look what time it is.”

Hearing this, Chi Zhiyu struggled a bit, opened her eyes slightly, and squinted at him, “What time?”

Xie Ye: “Six o’clock.”

“…” Chi Zhiyu seemed to not fully understand, hummed, “Six o’clock.”

Xie Ye was exasperated, pinched her cheek, “Don’t sleep. You haven’t eaten lunch yet. Eat first, then sleep.”

“I’m not eating.” Chi Zhiyu hugged him, sleepiness returning, “I want to sleep. I’m not hungry.”

“Who says you’re not hungry.” Xie Ye directly stated, “If you wake up starving in the middle of the night, don’t bother me.”

Chi Zhiyu closed her eyes, nodded, “Then we’ll talk about it later.”

“…” Xie Ye lifted her head, grabbed the warm water from the bedside cart, and brought it to her lips, “Drink water.”

Hearing it was water, Chi Zhiyu didn’t resist. With her eyes closed, she drank shallow sips from his hand. After drinking a few sips, she shook her head, “I’m not drinking anymore.”

After saying that, she wanted to flop back down and continue sleeping, but the next second, Xie Ye directly pulled her.

His expressionless face said, “Thinking of slacking off after drinking water?”

“…”

Chi Zhiyu was somewhat helpless. Only then did she open her eyes to look at him. Truthfully, after being disturbed by him, more than half of her sleepiness had dissipated.

Xie Ye met her resentful gaze but completely ignored it. He reached out for the noodles nearby, twirled some with a fork, and fed her. He tilted his chin, “Open your mouth.”

Chi Zhiyu sat in his arms, opened her mouth to eat a bite, and looked at him, “Have you eaten?”

“You eat first.” Xie Ye fed her another bite.

Hearing this, Chi Zhiyu frowned, reaching out to take the fork, “I’ll do it myself.”

Xie Ye didn’t give it to her. Instead, he put down the bowl and fork first, then carried her to sit on a chair nearby, making her sit properly.

Xie Ye pulled over the cart and placed the noodles in front of her.

Chi Zhiyu ate while asking him, “When did you come back?”

Xie Ye sat opposite her, his tone casual, “While you were fast asleep.”

“…” Chi Zhiyu responded with an “Oh.” She was indeed a bit hungry now and ate more than usual, but still didn’t finish and pushed it towards Xie Ye, “I’m full.”

Xie Ye glanced at it, “Finish it yourself.”

Chi Zhiyu began to scold him, “If I turn into a fatty, it’ll definitely be because of you.”

“Hmm.” Xie Ye sized her up, “Show me you’re fat.”

“I’ve gained weight.” Chi Zhiyu frowned, “I weighed myself a few days ago and gained quite a bit.”

Xie Ye glanced at her, “Can you say something reasonable?”

“…”

Chi Zhiyu was momentarily speechless, too lazy to argue further. She got up, walked to the bed, and picked up her phone to check for any missed calls or messages.

After replying to a few WeChat messages, she casually sat on the bed and started browsing her phone, naturally opening Weibo to see the online reactions about Xie Ye’s retirement that morning.

Most netizens and fans were hysterically posting texts saying they didn’t want him to leave, expressing their reluctance.

Some even made retrospective videos of Wild’s career, urging everyone to watch and remember Wild, the esports god who dominated countless matches.

However, by the afternoon, some fans had gradually accepted this reality and began focusing on Xie Ye and her relationship.

Comments were filled with sighs.

[Even if Wild retires, he still formally declared his love for Wild’s wife.]

[“In the future, belonging to Xie Ye, I will accompany one person, making up for all the days I couldn’t give her.” Sob sob sob sob sob sob sob Our Wild is so loving.]

[Sob sob sob sob These five years, Wild and Wild’s wife might have spent little time together, but Wild’s wife understands Wild so well!]

[Heaven! Wild’s wife is truly a goddess, beautiful and talented. The key point is she’s childhood friends with Wild! And they’ve been together for so many years!]

[Heaven! What kind of love is this sob sob sob sob sob]

[I’m really curious, what kind of girl is Wild’s wife to Wild!!!]

[Does the person above even need to ask? Didn’t he say she’s the delicate girl at home?]

[Our Wild’s wife isn’t delicate!!!]

......

“What are you looking at?” Xie Ye finished tidying up the table and saw her holding her phone, intently staring. Sitting beside her, he casually asked.

Chi Zhiyu handed him the phone, “I’m looking at netizens saying I’m delicate.”

Hearing this, Xie Ye took the phone, glanced at the screen, and skimmed through the comments. Noticing one particular comment, his eyebrows slightly raised.

Then, he exited her Weibo and logged into his account, found that comment, and moved his fingers on the keyboard.

Chi Zhiyu sat beside him, watching him use her phone, seemingly typing something.

“What are you doing?”

Chi Zhiyu leaned over to look. Lowering her eyes, she immediately saw the tweet he had just sent on the familiar interface.

In the latest post, he had retweeted and commented on the comment he had just read.

[I’m really curious, what kind of girl is Wild’s wife to Wild!!!]

Chi Zhiyu’s gaze quickly scanned upward, seeing Xie Ye’s concise response.

—WildGardenia: [The girl I liked since I was ten.]