You're Beautiful When You Smile - Chapter 161 Part 2

Translated by Team DHH at http://dhh-workshop.blogspot.com.

You’re Beautiful When You Smile

Chapter 161 Part 2

Qing Dynasty had relied on Xu Tailun carrying them. The team which people said was ruled by the voice of one Korean player. Xu Tailun was recently let go because of discipline issues and the team had become an all Chinese team at the later stages of the summer competition…… Tong Yao was partially the reason for the change in players. Though the team was freed from the Korean player, the team nonetheless didn’t perform well in the competition.

Tong Yao pulled on Xiao Rui and lowered her voice to ask: “It’s almost 10 o’clock now. Their club doesn’t have a curfew anymore? How can they let their coach and players come out drinking at this hour.”

Xiao Rui also lowered his head and replied in a small voice: “To the other 9 teams that don’t have to go to S6, all competitions for the year are basically done…… What the hell do they need curfew for!”

Tong Yao: “Oh.”

Lu Sicheng kicked Tong Yao and Xiao Rui and said in a low voice: “You two shut up. They’ve been relegated.”

Tong Yao was stunned.

After her team won the championship of the summer season, Tong Yao wasn’t paying much attention to the rest of the matches for the other major league teams-- --She naturally wasn’t concerned with the relegation/promotion playoff either-- --Qing Dynasty failed at the relegation game? They had been relegated? Dropped down to the minor league? So Qing Dynasty wouldn’t be among the 12 teams in the major league next season?

All sorts of questions popped into Tong Yao’s head. While Tong Yao hadn’t gotten over the shocking news, a tall and slender young man sitting at the Qing Dynasty’s table had stood up with a glass in his hand. Tong Yao knew him, his game id was “Civet Cat” and he was the support and captain of Qing Dynasty, a veteran player…… Civet Cat filled up his glass with liquor and staggered over to ZGDX’s table. He looked at Lu Sicheng and Little Fatty, steadied himself, then said with a smile: “Brothers, I saw the drawing for S6 this morning. Your team got the best one!”

Lu Sicheng and Little Fatty stood up.

Xiao Rui also stood up-- --He was once bitten twice shy. He was very sensitive to drinking especially during the post-summer competition period. He was equally sensitive to people who were drunk, worrying that an intoxicated person would stir up trouble…… But to his surprise, Civet Cat only stood there without any movement. His speech was a little slurred and eyes a little out of focus. When he raised up the glass, some of the liquor spilled over.

Civet Cat said: “This year, hic, this year, don’t get into trouble. Play good since you have the ticket. Earn some credit for the China region in front of the Koreans-- --”

Civet Cat paused for a moment, laughed as if to himself, and looked a little lonesome: “We can’t take your place like last year.”

At first, Tong Yao felt his words sounded strange. Then she thought it over and remembered the answer she couldn’t recall this morning before she fell asleep-- --It was Qing Dynasty, as the second place in the stepladder tournament, that replaced ZGDX to go to S5 last year.

That year, Qing Dynasty was quite strong and was led by some veteran players. Those veteran players were well respected in the team and the team was well disciplined. They had won last year’s spring competition. Because the team had such a glorious past, they had a lot of fans, even up to this day, sometimes it looked like they had more than CK……

Late in last year’s summer season, though they didn’t do as well as the spring due to a certain veteran player thinking about retiring, they still performed quite well…… In the end, they lost the chance to get the last ticket to go to S5, losing to CK at the last match in the stepladder tournament. Tong Yao had heard that that night Qing Dynasty’s fans wailed on Weibo. It was quite a scene.

Qing Dynasty eventually got the chance to go S5 because ZGDX backed out of the competition, making their fans’ dream come true. Yet what they didn’t expect was that this dream, in a strict sense, was actually a nightmare for the team.

Qing Dynasty was eliminated at the group match stage in S5 and returned disgraced. Their veteran top and jungler retired right afterwards. With new players joining the team, their performance in the spring season this year was disastrous at the start until the team hired the Korean player Xu Tailun. Xu Tailun helped save the team during the relegation tournament at the end of the spring season and gradually the team started to perform better……

-- --After Xu Tailun left the team, the team once again lost their competitive edge. In the latter half of the summer season, they didn’t win a single match and were relegated to the minor league, taking last place in the summer competition.

It was not hard to imagine the torment their fans suffered as they watched the team from hope to despair.

Tong Yao: “......”

Tong Yao had mixed feelings as she thought about how sad those Qing Dynasty fans felt these days and how heartbroken Civet Cat was feeling. He had led the team when they won the spring championship and was now facing the relegation of the team under his leadership. Suddenly, Tong Yao wasn’t sure whether the decision to let go of Xu Tailun was a good idea.

She put down her chopsticks. Though she was still hungry, she suddenly lost her appetite.

Civet Cat raised up his glass and touched glasses with Lu Sicheng and Little Fatty, who were drinking tea instead, in a toast. He laughed and unlike earlier, slowly spoke in a much more sober tone of voice: “I really like to play professionally and the feeling of playing with teammates as a team. Though there are still many regrets, perhaps I have reached the end on my path. Yet there are always others who will continue to move on and move on further than I…… I hope you’re that group of lucky people.”

Civet Cat raised his head and drank all the liquor in his glass. Then he put down the glass.

“Best wishes to you all.”

After finishing what he wanted to say, Civet Cat returned to his team’s table.

Translated by Team DHH at http://dhh-workshop.blogspot.com.