In this match, the two of them spent most of their time hunkered down in a safe spot far from the enemies, listening to the distant crack of gunfire while chatting idly.
Xu Yueliang regaled her with plenty of amusing game stories and useful tips. Lin Qimian committed them all to memory. When it came time to make a move, she stuck close to Xu Yueliang, always ducking into cover and making sure she didn’t cause any trouble.
They managed to turtle their way into the final circle, but it shrank too tight, and the remaining enemies were far too strong. Xu Yueliang charged out ahead of everyone and got gunned down. Lin Qimian poked her head out for a split second and met the same fate.
They snagged third place. Laughing “Hahaha,” Xu Yueliang returned to the lobby and praised Lin Qimian. “We did pretty great this round! You picked it up so fast—we racked up a ton of points!”
Lin Qimian: 【It’s you who’s amazing.】
Xu Yueliang’s avatar spun in delight. “Hehehe, my aim’s trash, but my strategies are on point~~”
With just the two of them in the lobby now, Weiwei sent a message saying her match had wrapped up quickly and to give her a moment.
Lin Qimian glanced at Xu Yueliang’s fluttering skirt, then down at her own dusty white T-shirt and jeans. 【How do you change clothes?】
Xu Yueliang quickly guided her to the shop and reminded her, “11 Bigshot, you’re on a female character right now. Gender’s in the top left of the character settings. There are matching guy clothes too, and they’re pretty stylish.”
Lin Qimian checked out the men’s outfits. 【The guy ones aren’t good-looking.】
She bought a few sets but couldn’t find the one Xu Yueliang was wearing. 【Where’s your black-and-white panda outfit?】
Xu Yueliang replied, “Ah, mine’s from a limited event draw a while back—it’s not available anymore. If you like it, next game I’ll take it off and let you have it~~~”
Take it off for her.
Lin Qimian cleared her throat. You could do that?
But she was an upright bigshot; she had no need for Xu Yueliang to strip.
Lin Qimian: 【Of the ones available now, which clothes do you like?】
Xu Yueliang caught on immediately. “11, are you gonna gift me clothes? We just added each other as friends, so we can’t trade for three days.”
Lin Qimian: “……”
What kind of stupid rule was that?
But she was quick on her feet. 【Whichever one you like, I can take it off for you to wear.】
Xu Yueliang burst into giggles, like a chirping little chick. “11, you learn so fast—you’re a natural at thinking on your feet~ In that case, I want that Peacock Qipao you just put on. I’ll teach you how to unequip it later…”
【Mm.】 Lin Qimian listened attentively.
Weiwei finished her game and rejoined the squad.
The moment she hopped in, she saw 11 Bigshot’s character cycling through outfits nonstop—every new release, practically buying out the entire shop.
“What the heck happened?” Weiwei asked. “PUBG Miracle Nikki?”
Grinning, Xu Yueliang explained. “11 wants to send me clothes, but since we’re new friends we can’t trade yet. So she bought a bunch to show me, and whichever I like, she’ll unequip it for me in the next game…”
“Yooooooo—” Weiwei drew out the sound. “That’s some serious spoiling!”
She paused, then added in a joking tone, “Bigshot, carry me to a chicken dinner next round—can you unequip a set for me too?”
Lin Qimian’s hands paused mid-change. She didn’t reply right away.
She waited for Xu Yueliang to say something, but Xu Yueliang fell silent, not uttering a word.
After a few awkward seconds, Lin Qimian typed: 【Win first, then we’ll talk.】
Weiwei: “Deal! I’m going all out this round—unleashing my PUBG close-quarters gun king skills~~ Let’s go, jump in, jump jump jump!!!”
The trio matched with random teammates and boarded the plane. This time, Lin Qimian stuck right with Xu Yueliang from the start, both parachuting down the same trajectory and landing just a few steps apart.
Lin Qimian dashed over, unequipped her Peacock Qipao, and Xu Yueliang slipped it on. Xu Yueliang’s black-and-white panda outfit naturally dropped to the ground.
Lin Qimian picked it up and put it on.
Weiwei ran up to them. “Bigshot, you’ve got all those clothes—why wear Moon’s?”
Lin Qimian: 【Mm.】
Weiwei: “Stick close to me. I’ll leave gear for you.”
Lin Qimian stayed behind Xu Yueliang and didn’t respond.
Weiwei ducked into a building to loot supplies.
This round, Weiwei was putting in real effort, constantly checking on her teammates’ positions and directing them with solid tactics.
Whenever enemies appeared, she’d tell Lin Qimian to hide, then whittle them down to a sliver of health before calling her over to finish them off with a couple shots.
Lin Qimian landed two such kills. It felt utterly dull.
Xu Yueliang whispered to her, “11, Weiwei’s feeding you kills here.”
Lin Qimian: 【Mm, thanks, but no need.】
Weiwei laughed. “Bigshot figures finishing them off isn’t thrilling enough—gotta land the kills yourself to feel the rush.”
“Bigshot, got any sensitivity settings? I’ve got a guide right here—I’ll send it over after we finish this round.
“I’ve also got tutorial videos for aiming techniques, all the best stuff from top streamers across the servers. Super easy to learn, and you’ll improve fast. I guarantee you’ll be dominating Gold rank in a week…”
Weiwei was a gaming streamer herself, decent at the game and full of know-how.
When she buckled down, carrying newbie teammates and dishing out lessons came naturally to her. Xu Yueliang couldn’t squeeze in a word, except when she snagged some good loot—then she’d quietly drop it off by Lin Qimian’s side.
Luck was on their side this round. As they closed in on the final circle, they’d only lost one random teammate, while the two remaining enemy squads were down to lone wolves.
They wiped one in a straight-up clash, but the other just hunkered down, refusing to show.
Weiwei’s voice carried a hint of irritation. “No clue where he’s holed up. We’ve swept the whole area, and nada. This guy’s camping harder than anyone…”
Xu Yueliang piped up. “I’ll bait him out. Keep your sights on him.”
With that, she vaulted from cover and dashed into the open field ahead. She planted herself in the middle of the barren road—no cover in sight—and broke into a dance.
Her peacock-green cheongsam gleamed vividly under the clear sunlight, the moves flowing one after another, some downright seductive.
Lin Qimian stood up.
Weiwei called out. “Bigshot, stay put…”
Lin Qimian crouched low and sidled out from cover, settling by the roadside to watch Xu Yueliang dance.
Xu Yueliang glanced over and cracked up. “Hahahaha, Bigshot, what are you doing? Get back inside…”
The words barely left her mouth when a shot cracked the air—an AWM sniper round straight to the head. Lin Qimian crumpled to the ground.
“Hey—!” Weiwei yelped.
Xu Yueliang popped smoke in a flash and rushed to revive her.
“I’ve got eyes on him, 125 direction…” Weiwei eyed the pair shrouded in smoke and couldn’t resist. “Come on, you two—at least try paying attention…”
Lin Qimian fell back behind a boulder. Xu Yueliang stayed glued to reviving her, ignoring the fight.
Weiwei dueled the enemy and clinched the victory just before the poison circle tightened further.
The chicken dinner emblem flared to life as Lin Qimian finally got pulled upright.
Truth be told, that last revive had been pointless. Lin Qimian brought zero firepower to the table—Xu Yueliang would’ve been better off teaming with Weiwei to finish the final foe.
Weiwei fired off the flare gun in celebration. “Told you we’d snag chicken dinner this round! Hahaha, Bigshot, don’t forget our deal…”
But Lin Qimian’s gaze was fixed on Xu Yueliang.
In the game, Xu Yueliang stood right beside her.
Skirts swaying in the breeze, the scene was picture-perfect.
Back in the team lobby, Lin Qimian started typing a private message to Xu Yueliang—to tell her that wins and losses didn’t matter to her.
Kills or thrills? Didn’t matter.
Xu Yueliang shouldn’t sweat it. Just enjoy the game.
Before she hit send, though, Xu Yueliang dropped offline.
Seconds later, Weiwei chimed in. “Bigshot, Moon got a call—something came up. She might be tied up for a while. Wanna queue up without her?”
Lin Qimian:
-【Wait for her.】
-【Go ahead and play. Don’t worry about me.】
Weiwei: “Okay, we’ll wait then. Hey, wanna add WeChat? I’ll shoot you the tutorials and sensitivity guides. Anything confusing, I can walk you through it.”
Lin Qimian: 【Sure.】
Getting better at the game was definitely worth it. Judging by the Voyage Group chatter, Xu Yueliang hosted gaming events all the time. Next one, Lin Qimian wanted to be the protector—not have Xu Yueliang babysitting her every step.
They swapped WeChat IDs. Weiwei’s was Weiwei vivi, her bio linking straight to her live streaming room.
Just like Xu Yueliang’s—a fan-add account streamers curated, brimming with extras.
Lin Qimian took one look and returned to the chat.
Weiwei bombarded her with tutorials. Lin Qimian dove in, studying intently.
Ten minutes passed, no Xu Yueliang. Lin Qimian asked few questions, so Weiwei stretched. “Gonna grab a bite.”
Twenty minutes in, still nothing. Weiwei finished her meal and drink, then asked, “Bigshot, up for a practice round?”
Lin Qimian: 【You go ahead.】
Weiwei held off on queuing. Five minutes later: “Bigshot, Moon’s out for the count. Something came up—she’s dealing with it.”
Lin Qimian tabbed over to Orange, checked WeChat. Her chat with Xu Yueliang sat empty, no new messages.
【Got something too. Logging off. Thanks for today.】 Lin Qimian fired off to Weiwei.
Once out of the game, Weiwei sent more tutorials—and links to a few live streaming rooms.
【These are all streamers who are pretty good at the game.】
【Including me hahahaha】
【Bigshots, feel free to drop by my live stream anytime. I’ll carry some water friends too.】
【If you’re playing with Moon, call me along! The three of us together—we’ll snag a chicken dinner every match!】
Lin Qimian: 【Okay, thanks.】
That night, Xu Yueliang didn’t come home. She posted a notice in the Voyage Group, pushing back the queued slots to later dates.
It didn’t seem like anything too serious, though. The next day, her stream went live as usual. While Lin Qimian was at work, her phone buzzed in her pocket with the stream alert.
After getting off work, she tuned in. Xu Yueliang was her usual self, greeting her warmly and asking how the game was going. Was she having fun?
As far as the matches she’d already played, Lin Qimian sent a danmu: 【Having fun.】
Over the next few days, Lin Qimian made time to seriously practice the game.
Killing real players was tough at first, but she picked it up fast with her steady hands and quick learning. After a week, she still struggled a bit with head-on firefights, but her sneaky sniping was spot-on.
By Xu Yueliang’s next day off, Lin Qimian was practically itching to play.
She signed up and cut in line early, without a shred of guilt.
Xu Yueliang messaged her on WeChat: 【11, it’s just us and Weiwei again today~~】
Lin Qimian replied: 【Can we duo instead?】
The game had solo, duo, and squad modes, and squads were the most popular. More teammates meant covering weaknesses, better strategies, and higher win rates.
But Lin Qimian preferred duoing. Winning took a backseat to soaking in the scenery and listening to Xu Yueliang chatter away.
Xu Yueliang’s typing slowed a bit: 【Eh? You want to duo? Sure, I’ll let Weiwei know.】
Lin Qimian: 【Yeah.】
They queued up, just the two of them this time.
Xu Yueliang was still rocking that black-and-white panda dress from last time. Lin Qimian opened the shop, breezed through a purchase, and sent over a skin gift box that landed straight in Xu Yueliang’s inventory.
Xu Yueliang let out a soft “Ah.”
Lin Qimian: 【Now we can match.】
Xu Yueliang’s voice pitched up a little, playful as ever during streams: “Thanks, 11! You’re my fairy guardian angel no matter where we go!”
Lin Qimian couldn’t help but smile.
Xu Yueliang paused, then said suddenly, “11, could I ask you for a little favor?”
Lin Qimian: 【Go ahead.】
Xu Yueliang hesitated. “So… last time we were playing, remember how Weiwei said if we got a chicken dinner, she wanted you to strip off a set for her? If that’s awkward in-game, could I pick one of the outfits you sent me and pass it to her?”
Lin Qimian gripped her phone, sensing something off.
She hadn’t agreed to Weiwei’s request last time. And Weiwei had only wanted her to unequip it in-game for her to use. Now Xu Yueliang wanted to straight-up gift it away.
Lin Qimian got why Weiwei, as a streamer, would try to snag a generous fan like her. What she didn’t get was Xu Yueliang offering her up on a platter.
Sure, they streamed in different zones, but everyone aired around the same hours. Catch one stream, miss the other—gifts went here, and the other got shortchanged.
Did close streamer friends always share fans like this? Or was there something else going on?
【Which set does she like?】 Lin Qimian asked Xu Yueliang.
Xu Yueliang: “The Golden Python one. She’s been hyping it up in my stream forever—says it’s super flashy and she wants it bad~”
Lin Qimian navigated the game interface. A few seconds later: 【Done. Sent it over.】
Xu Yueliang: “Ah?”
She sounded flustered. “11, that’s not what I meant! You just gave me some—I could’ve just forwarded one of mine. I only asked to check if you minded, not to make you spend more…”
Lin Qimian: 【It’s fine. Let’s get into a match.】
Xu Yueliang didn’t bring it up again and hit match.
After a week of practice, Lin Qimian could finally sync up properly with her teammate.
When Xu Yueliang faced off head-on, she’d flank. When Xu Yueliang rushed in, she’d provide cover fire.
They had a blast for two rounds—one fifth place, one early crash-and-burn. For the third, Lin Qimian wanted to stretch out their time together, so she picked a remote, resource-poor drop spot.
Each grabbed a shotgun. They faced the sea, taking in the view, and picked off a couple of players who’d splashed down nearby.
Xu Yueliang took a deep breath, as if she could really taste it. “Ah, sea breeze… so salty~~~”
Lin Qimian smiled and typed: 【I really like the scenery in the game too.】
Xu Yueliang replied, “Then you should check out every map—desert, snowy plains, island, rainforest. Oh, and the new valley has this gorgeous field of flowers~~”
Lin Qimian: 【Let’s go together.】
Xu Yueliang paused for a moment. “I don’t actually have much time to play games, you know that. Most of my time goes to streaming~~ You improved so fast today; you must practice a lot on your own, right?”
Lin Qimian:
【I’ll make some time to practice.】
【But it’s all solo queue, or watching tutorial videos.】
【I didn’t use to play games.】
Xu Yueliang suddenly went quiet on the other end, not responding.
Lin Qimian tossed out another weight: 【I didn’t use to watch streams either.】
The waves lapped gently at the shore. Xu Yueliang’s game character stood motionless, dressed in the cute outfit Lin Qimian had gifted her.
Lin Qimian knew she was smart—extremely smart. Years as a streamer had honed her into someone effortlessly charming, able to tailor her words to any audience, always reading their thoughts perfectly, always keeping her emotions in check.
As the top donor, Lin Qimian had laid it out this clearly. She had to understand.
Understand that Lin Qimian was pledging her loyalty, showing just how special Xu Yueliang was to her.
If it wasn’t because of you, I wouldn’t watch streams or play games. So if it wasn’t you, I wouldn’t watch streams or play games either.
Don’t try to push me off on someone else.
I’m not interested, and it won’t work anyway.
Gunfire echoed in the distance. Xu Yueliang’s character sprang into action, hopping into a vehicle. “New circle’s up,” she said to Lin Qimian.
Lin Qimian climbed in too, without pressing her to respond.
In the second half of the match, Xu Yueliang grew much quieter, but whenever danger loomed, she still rushed ahead to shield her.
When the game ended, Xu Yueliang let out a soft “Oh no” and said to Lin Qimian, “11, sorry, I’ve got a call coming in.”
A faint chill crept up Lin Qimian’s spine. She replied: 【Go ahead and take it.】
Then, ever considerate, she gave Xu Yueliang an easy out: 【I’ve got stuff to do too. See you next time.】
Xu Yueliang’s voice turned sugary sweet. “Okay, bye then~~ Get some rest soon.”
The game screen now showed only Lin Qimian.
She opened her friends list. Xu Yueliang’s avatar had gone dark.
Getting a call mid-game was normal the first time. The second felt deliberate.
And this time, Xu Yueliang had made it so obvious—she hadn’t even quit the game.
A new WeChat notification popped up on Lin Qimian’s phone, from Weiwei vivi.
【Bigshot, I just logged out and saw the clothes you sent me. Aaaah, thank you so much!!!】
【This is my favorite outfit this season! You have such great taste!】
【Bigshot, I see you’re still online. Wanna play? Wanna play?】
【I’ll carry you to victory, I’ll be your level-four armor!】
Lin Qimian curved her lips in a smirk. This was Xu Yueliang’s response to her—or rather, to 11 Bigshot.
She would warmly welcome and respond to her during streams, protect her wholeheartedly and keep her happy while duo-queuing. But any extra gifts? She’d bend over backward to return the favor. As for that special attention? She sincerely suggested spreading it around to the other girls.
This was her job. She kept work and personal matters strictly separate.
Lin Qimian suddenly recalled one afternoon in the lounge when Zhenzhen had clutched her phone, wailing in a mix of agony and ecstasy.
When Lin Qimian asked what was wrong, Zhenzhen showed her a video. In it, a stunning actress beamed at the camera and said, “Sis is just sweet-talking. Sis doesn’t really have you in her heart.”
Lin Qimian mirrored Zhenzhen’s exact expression.
