Chapter Eight: We Both Have Bright Futures Ahead
#EDG Support Meiko and Former RNG Player Are Longtime Friends#
A topic quietly climbed the trending list on the forum.
As news of Lin Ruo joining EDG spread like wildfire, resourceful netizens quickly unearthed details about his background.
Lin Ruo had known Tian Ye since 2014.
Lin Ruo had gone a fortnight of streaming without playing ranked games.
Before joining, he had openly criticized Ming Kai, the soul of EDG, during live streams.
Such behavior sparked quite a heated debate on the forum, with the hottest posts garnering over a thousand comments.
“Just the day before yesterday he was insulting them, and now he’s joining EDG? Is the coach some kind of masochist?”
“This ‘broken factory’ gets thrashed at Worlds every year; maybe he actually likes being insulted.”
“Unbelievable. Someone like this can join EDG? Without Han Daddy, are they just going to tank the season?”
“The ‘broken factory’ fled the Spring Split with his tail between his legs, and they bring in a rookie jungler from the academy? No tanking and still aiming for the championship?”
“EDG won’t seriously believe someone who hasn’t played League for half a month has talent, right?”
“Better to pick mid-laner Zet instead.”
“Coach Nofe ran off overnight, and now they’re playing with two rookies, one of whom doesn’t even regularly play in the league.”
“With no domestic rivalry king, LPL is about to rise.”
“After watching the clips, the insults were spot on; it’s like he was speaking for me. The ‘broken factory’ probably couldn’t even utter a single rebuttal.”
On Weibo’s fan forum, the aggrieved fans of Ming Kai launched a collective attack after hearing about Lin Ruo’s insults during his stream. They swarmed the official EDG account with a barrage of criticism.
“Anyone who insults the team’s cornerstone deserves to be kicked out. Isn’t that disgusting? How can you betray Ming Kai like this?”
“Kick him out immediately; I’ll pretend this never happened.”
“Management is incompetent for recruiting this kind of person.”
“Let’s be rational. This might just be misinformation. How could EDG really sign a player with no skill and no character? Don’t let the haters mislead you.”
“Some commenters in the thread, don’t drag innocent people into this. How could Tian Ye have such a friend? Even if he does, it must be a mistake in judgment. He definitely didn’t recommend him to the club.”
“Exactly, Tian Ye would never tolerate someone around him badmouthing Ming Kai.”
The fan uprising was fierce and relentless, and within half an hour, EDG’s management was forced to close the comment section.
This move spoke volumes.
EDG was protecting their player; Lin Ruo’s joining was essentially set in stone, becoming nearly indisputable.
The fans exploded completely.
Meanwhile, in the RNG fan forum, supporters popped champagne in celebration.
“Feels good. Evil meets its match.”
“I support Lin Ruo playing other games at the EDG base, but no ranked League.”
“Suggest dragging his good buddy Lian Nan along.”
In the midst of this, hardly anyone noticed RNG’s Ming’s account logging in and browsing the fan forum.
Near noon in RNG’s training room, Shi Senming, having just finished catching up on the gossip, sat at his computer in utter surprise. “Damn, Lin Ruo actually went to EDG?”
The chubby Uzi sitting beside him looked up and couldn’t help but ask, “Wait, you weren’t even at the club when he left. You actually know each other?”
YM failed to rejoin the LPL this year, and Ming had just transferred from YM at the start of the month to replace former support Mata.
Lin Ruo had left after the Spring Split. Logically, neither Ming, who came in at the start of Summer, nor Shi Senming, should have had contact with him.
“You don’t know? We knew each other back in LSPL. He wasn’t old enough to play, so we only faced off in scrims. But at the start of this year, once he turned seventeen, he played a few matches and RNG management promoted him to the main roster as a substitute. The guy’s pretty funny,” Shi Senming casually explained.
Uzi nodded but didn’t probe further; he simply didn’t believe a former RNG substitute would make it to EDG.
Shi Senming opened WeChat to Lin Ruo’s account and sent a message to confirm the rumor, eager to get the full scoop.
“You really went to EDG?”
“Where else could I go?”
At the EDG training room, Lin Ruo sat at his desk, fiddling with his phone and replying instantly.
At the same time, he was happily engrossed in all the gossip.
After all, controversy is still attention.
More heat only helps him stir the pot.
“Don’t overthink it; the club will handle the backlash,” Tian Ye said lazily as he strolled into the training room after lunch and sat down.
Though he said this, he was muttering inwardly—who told him to openly badmouth someone during his stream?
Didn’t he know Ming Kai’s fanbase stretched across the entire LPL?
Ming Kai was gracious enough to let it slide, but his loyal fans would not show mercy; they’d tear him apart mercilessly.
“No big deal. I’m an orphan anyway, so it doesn’t matter,” Lin Ruo smiled cheerfully.
Ailuoli sat nearby with a complicated expression, a hint of fear creeping in.
As Ming Kai’s heir apparent, she worried that if he got too close to Lin Ruo, he might suffer repercussions by association.
If Lin Ruo heard that, he would surely burst out laughing.
Zhao Chuanxiong—the first failed heir...
Plenty of days to get scolded await in next spring’s split.
Who told you to be so bad at the game, unworthy of Ming Kai’s successor?
...
“I can’t believe it, he really went to report to EDG.”
With solid confirmation, Shi Senming couldn’t wait to share the news with Uzi.
Uzi’s expression visibly blanked; he stopped what he was doing, and the game on his computer suddenly lost its appeal.
“No way. On what grounds?”
A substitute who had never played in the LPL miraculously joining EDG to replace Deft?
Putting aside all the doubts swirling in his mind, Uzi couldn’t help but feel a secret thrill; his mood instantly lifted.
He had been suppressed by Deft all year, unable to fight back.
Haters mocked him daily as “Mr. Dai’s favored son.”
And he couldn’t argue because it was a hard fact.
Only a month ago, in the Demacia Cup semifinals, Deft had crushed him utterly.
Countless days and nights, Uzi had questioned himself.
Was the gap between him and Deft real? Or was it between Mata and Meiko?
But now, all that could be cast aside.
After enduring so long, the enemy was finally gone, and the sky was clearing.
Now EDG was bringing in an unknown AD carry.
With this EDG in the Spring Split? They’d be unstoppable.
With this, no one in next year’s LPL could stop him from being the number one AD.
Winning both Spring and Summer titles and aiming for Worlds would be just a matter of time—within reach.
Uzi sat before his computer, unable to suppress a pure smile unique to the chubby boy.
Then… he suddenly froze.
No, EDG wasn’t stupid. They wouldn’t just bring in a useless player for no reason.
That meant Lin Ruo must have some real skill.
Thinking this, Uzi glanced sideways, alert, and asked, “Shi Senming, is Lin Ruo strong?”
As soon as he asked, Uzi felt a twinge of regret. A player casually discarded by RNG couldn’t be that strong.
Shi Senming shook his head. “Not sure. Let’s wait for Tiger to come back from vacation in a few days and set up a scrim. Then we’ll know.”
He was still very happy; his friend joining EDG meant bright futures for them both.