ATLAS TRANSLATES

Yu Nuo was startled by him, and in her panic, she unconsciously loosened her fingers.

The half-eaten donut fell onto Chen Yuzheng’s leg with a thud, scattering crumbs before rolling onto the ground.

Someone was approaching from the front, so Yu Nuo quickly withdrew her hand and quietly said to Chen Yuzheng, “Sorry.”

He had food in his mouth and didn’t speak, chewing slowly while glancing at her.

Yu Nuo froze for a moment, then took out some paper and bent down slightly, intending to pick up the donut from the ground.

The donut had fallen near Chen Yuzheng’s feet. She was afraid of touching him and stopped her searching motion.

Chen Yuzheng spread his legs a bit to give her space.

Yu Nuo took a deep breath and struggled to reach for it. Just as her fingers touched the donut, she heard coughing from above.

Killer coughed heavily again, “Um, you two, be mindful of how this looks.”

He patted Chen Yuzheng’s shoulder.

Yu Nuo hurriedly picked up the donut.

—

The car started moving, swaying back and forth. Reading made her feel a bit dizzy.

Yu Nuo closed her book, and her lower abdomen started aching again. She didn’t know why, but she felt confused. The person sitting beside her made her even more confused.

Chen Yuzheng spoke up: “Where did you buy the donut?”

Yu Nuo: “Just from a random shop on the street.”

“Oh, it was pretty good.”

She managed a weak smile.

Chen Yuzheng: “Take me there next time.”

Yu Nuo said: “I’ll give you the address. It’s near your base, you should be able to find it.”

Chen Yuzheng: “……”

After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked: “Are you in a bad mood today?”

“Hm?” She took a few seconds to react, avoiding his gaze and shaking her head, “No.”

Chen Yuzheng’s expression remained neutral as he made a sound of acknowledgment.

The atmosphere suddenly turned cold.

Yu Nuo pulled out her earphones from her pocket, put them on, and stared blankly at the seat in front of her. In her peripheral vision, she saw Chen Yuzheng turn his head several times.

She pretended not to notice and closed her eyes, feigning sleep.

Perhaps sensing her resistance, Chen Yuzheng didn’t ask anything more.

The journey continued in silence until they reached the venue for the Continental Championship’s send-off ceremony. Yu Nuo got off the car, greeted Qi Ya’nan, got two temporary work passes, and messaged Xu Yitong.

They would meet at the entrance.

The two found their seats, and Xu Yitong raised her hand to show Yu Nuo her new bracelet, “I had it custom-made online, is it pretty?” It had a dark blue background with two fish, and on the back was a desert landscape with “Fish” written in cursive script.

Yu Nuo examined it carefully for a moment and sincerely said: “It’s beautiful, is this my brother’s name?”

“Yes.”

The venue was noisy, and Xu Yitong spoke loudly. She had sharp eyes and grabbed Yu Nuo’s wrist, looking confused for a moment, “Hey, Nuo Nuo, why aren’t you wearing the bracelet Chen Yuzheng gave you?”

Yu Nuo froze for a moment.

Xu Yitong had only asked casually, but seeing her expression, she sensed something was wrong, “What’s wrong? You two…”

Yu Nuo didn’t want to say much and shook her head: “Nothing.”

Though she was smiling, her eyes couldn’t hide the truth.

From when they met today, Xu Yitong had felt that Yu Nuo’s mood was a bit low, but she hadn’t thought too deeply about it.

Xu Yitong asked directly: “Did Chen Yuzheng upset you? Tell me, I’ll deal with him.”

“No, no.” Yu Nuo said, “He didn’t do anything to me.”

Xu Yitong made a surprising statement, “Isn’t he pursuing you right now?”

“What?” Yu Nuo knew she had misunderstood and quickly explained, “That’s not true.”

Xu Yitong scoffed, “I know him better than you do. In all these years, I’ve never seen him bring any drunk girl to me for help, nor have I seen him buy gifts for any ‘friend’.”

She emphasized the word “friend.”

Yu Nuo remained silent.

Xu Yitong thought about recent events and suddenly remembered something, exclaiming: “Little Nuo Nuo, you didn’t take what I said last time seriously, did you?”

“Hm?”

“You know, last time when we were watching movies, I said Chen Yuzheng was being ambiguous with several girls at once,” Xu Yitong quickly said, “Don’t take that seriously, I was just talking nonsense, just joking.”

Afraid Yu Nuo wouldn’t believe her, Xu Yitong swore, “Really, I’m not just speaking up for my brother. Mainly because Chen Yuzheng has always been a loner since childhood, showing a cold face to everyone, with poor grades, a bad temper, and likes to argue with people. Except for his good looks, he basically has no shining points. But I can guarantee that the Chen family, generation after generation, from old to young, they’re all quite faithful.”

Xu Yitong counted on her fingers: “Starting from my uncle, then my grandfather, cousin, elder cousin, anyway, all those with the surname Chen are like this. The whole family has a fierce temper, only being nice to their wives, doing whatever their wives say, it’s a very strong genetic trait.”

Yu Nuo didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Xu Yitong looked very serious: “Although I don’t know what Chen Yuzheng would be like in a relationship, surely his genes couldn’t have mutated?”

Yu Nuo: “His future girlfriend will probably be very happy.”

“Then why don’t you consider him?” Xu Yitong smiled suggestively, “Be my sister-in-law?”

“Ah?” Yu Nuo hesitated, “This…”

“Do you dislike his bad temper?”

Yu Nuo denied: “No.”

The words were on the tip of her tongue several times, but she didn’t know where to begin.

Actually, Yu Nuo didn’t think Chen Yuzheng had a bad temper at all. Except for sometimes liking to tease her, at other times, he even gave her a feeling of being very gentle.

Like adopting stray cats, quietly waiting outside the bathroom while she cried, telling fans not to photograph her, taking her to see the sunrise by the sea…

It had indeed sparked many inappropriate fantasies.

When Yu Nuo was young, her parents divorced, and her stepmother wasn’t kind to her and Yu Ge. Along with Yu’s preference for sons over daughters, Yu Nuo developed a submissive, people-pleasing personality from childhood.

Fu Yidong often said she was starved for affection.

She knew she was probably like that. Whenever someone was just a little bit nice to her, she would treasure it all in her heart. She would cherish it and ponder over it repeatedly for a long time.

But Chen Yuzheng was clearly not the same type of person as her.

From Xu Yitong’s casual remarks, Yu Nuo could deduce that he probably had a healthy, happy family. He grew up carefree, never lacking in others’ care or love.

And Yu Nuo knew she wasn’t very likable… she had to be careful with everything she did.

Including liking someone.

Seeing Yu Nuo fall silent, Xu Yitong was about to say more when the venue lights suddenly dimmed, drawing her attention away.

Following the commotion of fans in the venue, the host made a few introductions.

The central big screen displayed a caption and played the 2021 LPL Continental Championship send-off video.

Each of the four teams had chosen three players for filming.

First came a man’s back view, the camera slowly moving down to reveal the OG-Fish logo on his back.

Then, he turned his head halfway.

Just that profile shot immediately triggered screams throughout the venue.

Xu Yitong excitedly pounded her leg, joining in the cheering: “Damn, so handsome!!!”

Half a minute later, TG’s signature black, white, and gold colors appeared, showing Chen Yuzheng and Killer sitting in a chair. Killer’s hand rested on his shoulder.

Chen Yuzheng’s black short hair was wet, and the camera zoomed in for a close-up. His lowered head slowly lifted, casually glancing at the camera.

Water droplets rolled from his chin down to his Adam’s apple, disappearing at the edge of his clothes.

Xu Yitong made a “pft” sound and leaned closer to Yu Nuo to discuss: “Why do I feel something’s off, do you get that feeling?”

Yu Nuo: “What?”

“No, this is too funny,” Xu Yitong couldn’t help laughing, “Look at Chen Yuzheng’s dreamy eyes, doesn’t he look like he’s shooting a sexy photo shoot?”

Yu Nuo: “……”

—

After the send-off ceremony, Xu Yitong received a phone call and told Yu Nuo: “Give me your work pass, I need to go outside to get something.”

Yu Nuo searched in her bag for a while and handed it to her, “Want me to come with you?”

“No need, no need, you go to the backstage first, I’ll be there soon.”

Xu Yitong had ordered a large bouquet of desert roses.

With the temporary work pass hanging around her neck, she strutted to the backstage and leaned against the corridor.

After playing with her phone for a while, she looked up to see TG’s people passing by.

Xu Yitong called out to Chen Yuzheng.

He hadn’t noticed her at first, but when he heard someone calling his name, he stopped and frowned, “Why are you here?”

Xu Yitong held a large, extravagant bouquet of roses in her left hand, smiling, “Little brother’s grown up, looking quite presentable. Just now downstairs, so many girls were swooning over you.”

Killer pondered for a moment and asked: “This is…?”

Xu Yitong introduced herself: “I’m Chen Yuzheng’s cousin, the one who played games with you guys last time!”

Killer made a sound of recognition and looked at the flowers in her arms, “Cousin, why… why are you being so formal?”

Chen Yuzheng’s disgust was evident.

He was already used to her random acts and said impatiently: “What are you up to now? Such a tacky thing, don’t give it to me.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Yitong’s eyes suddenly lit up, and she ran past Chen Yuzheng with the huge bouquet of roses: “Hey hey, Yu Ge, Yu Ge!!! Wait a second, wait for me!”

Chen Yuzheng: “…?”

He turned his head.

Xu Yitong happily ran through the crowd, excitedly tugging at Yu Ge’s clothes, “Hey, don’t go, don’t go, I’ve been waiting for you for so long!”

Several OG members were stunned for a moment, thinking it was some female fan who had snuck backstage.

They saw the bright red roses and were momentarily frozen, not knowing what was happening.

Yu Ge stopped walking and looked down at his clothes being pulled.

His gaze moved up, stopping on Xu Yitong’s face.

She grinned and, without caring whether he would accept them or not, forcefully pushed the roses into Yu Ge’s arms: “These are for you!”

Xu Yitong had a ‘don’t be too moved’ expression: “These are desert roses, air-shipped from the Gobi Desert!”

Yu Ge: “…?”

Xu Yitong didn’t feel embarrassed at all and happily explained to him: “Isn’t your name from ‘Gobi’? Desert roses suit you the best.”

Even though Yu Ge had encountered all kinds of female fans confessing their love, he had never met someone as straightforward and bold as Xu Yitong. Awen and Will couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

There were many people here, and Yu Ge’s brow twitched slightly as he said to her: “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me, no need.”

Yu Ge tried to leave but was blocked by Xu Yitong’s hand again.

He paused for a few seconds, suppressing his temper, and asked calmly: “What do you want?”

“I don’t want anything, I just want to add you on WeChat.” Xu Yitong looked pitiful, “I’ve tried to add you dozens of times, and you won’t block me, so I can only keep trying. When will you accept my request?”

Yu Ge: “……”

—

After the send-off ceremony, the LPL officials had specially booked a hotel, planning to take the four teams who were about to compete for dinner.

Sitting on the bus, Yu Nuo listened to what had just happened, imagining the scene, and holding back her laughter, asked, “So did my brother add you in the end?”

Xu Yitong pouted, “He ignored me and left!”

Yu Nuo consoled her, “My brother may seem cold, but he’s actually just shy. He must have been embarrassed.”

Xu Yitong wasn’t discouraged, “Ah well, at least he took the roses with him, I’m somewhat consoled.”

Yu Nuo laughed.

Xu Yitong thought of another idea, “Nuo Nuo, why don’t you help me steal your brother’s phone later and add me on WeChat?”

“Um…” Yu Nuo thought carefully and raised a question, “What if he discovers it and deletes you again?”

Xu Yitong: “……..”

She let out a long sigh.

As they were talking, the TG members who had been smoking outside gradually got back on the bus. Xu Yitong stood up and waved, “Chen Yuzheng, come here, sit in my spot.”

After getting off stage, Chen Yuzheng had taken off his long coat and was only wearing a t-shirt. He walked to the back, glanced at Yu Nuo who was by the window, said nothing, and sat down beside her.

Xu Yitong was separated from them by an aisle.

She crossed her arms on the back of the seat in front, speaking to Yu Nuo across Chen Yuzheng: “Ah, little Nuo Nuo, since you can’t be my sister-in-law, I’ll just have to become your sister-in-law.”

Chen Yuzheng: “……”

—

The bus started moving, and everyone was a bit tired, so no one talked.

Yu Nuo silently turned her head and watched the changing scenery outside for a while. The shadowy streetlights slipped past, and she put on her earphones and switched through several songs.

Chen Yuzheng glanced to the side: “What are you listening to?”

“Ah?” Yu Nuo pulled out one earphone, and because the bus was quiet, she instinctively lowered her voice to answer him: “I’m listening to music.”

“What song?”

“Hmm…” Yu Nuo momentarily forgot the song name, turned on her phone, and showed him, “This one, by Liu Jiachang.”

“Oh.” Chen Yuzheng said, “Let me listen too.”

Yu Nuo: “……”

For some reason, Fu Yidong’s words suddenly appeared in her mind: Run, sister, stay away from players!

Yu Nuo paused for a moment, handed Chen Yuzheng one earphone, “Then I’ll adjust it, you can listen from the beginning.”

He took the earphone, looked at it, but didn’t put it on.

“What’s wrong?”

“Let’s switch.”

“Hm?”

Chen Yuzheng handed her the left earphone, lifting his chin to indicate she should give him the other one.

She was stunned for a moment, not understanding his meaning. But she still switched with him.

Yu Nuo was originally sitting on Chen Yuzheng’s left side, but now she was listening to the left earphone and he was listening to the right one. Due to the limited length of the earphone cord, the two had to move closer, their shoulders almost touching.

Yu Nuo mentally cautioned herself.

She really wasn’t good at handling these kinds of situations.

She knew her current thoughts about Chen Yuzheng were a bit inappropriate, and she should keep some distance from him, but she wasn’t sure… what distance would be appropriate.

The song was playing, but Yu Nuo wasn’t really listening. Her thoughts wandered, pausing for a moment.

…She had a small habit – she always wore the left earphone when listening to music because her right ear’s hearing wasn’t very good, and sometimes when she had a cold or fever, it would easily ring. Yu Nuo pondered for a moment, she didn’t think she had ever mentioned this to Chen Yuzheng…

After Liu Jiachang’s song finished, it automatically switched to the next one.

A melodious prelude played, with a male voice softly singing. Yu Nuo was still lost in thought when a husky voice came through the earphones: “Wishing I accidentally fall into your gentleness.”

Someone nudged her arm, and Yu Nuo turned her head, meeting Chen Yuzheng’s gaze.

Yu Nuo was confused, “What’s wrong?”

The bus lights weren’t on, and the night’s alternating light and shadow fell on his face. Chen Yuzheng’s eyes held a subtle malice as he slowly asked: “What song is this?”

Yu Nuo: “……”

At this moment, Ultraman and Killer started horsing around in the back row again. Yu Nuo gathered her thoughts and quietly answered him, “It’s… Yan Renzhong’s song.”

He asked again: “What’s the name?”

Yu Nuo held her phone up to his eyes, directly showing him the name.

Chen Yuzheng had his legs spread, one extended outward, sitting lazily. He slowly read it out: “Wishing You’ll Love Me Till the End of Time.”

Yu Nuo nodded, “Mm.”

Chen Yuzheng seemed to find something amusing and couldn’t help but curl his lips into a smile, “Really?”