Grumpy Esports God Becomes a Wealthy Family’s Stepmom - Chapter 12

Zhong Lu could guess what Zhuo Yin was here for—WN was short on people. The fact that they had sent Zhuo Yin instead of a manager or coach meant the club wasn’t taking it seriously. They weren’t willing to continue investing in WN, but they also couldn’t bear to fully give up and sell off what was once a glorious team.

Unknowingly, he had walked into the MOBA group. Huo Yu’s roommates were also part of the weakest bunch, their computers lined up near the back door. Their coordination was a mess.

Trainees were grouped by skill level, and so were the coaches. The coach for Group D was average, and with too many students, guidance was minimal.

Before deciding to go the RESCUE esports route, Zhong Lu had also played this game.

There were shared fundamentals across games. Zhong Lu leaned against the back door with his arms crossed, and couldn’t help but offer some pointers.

Wang Qun was stunned that Zhong Lu could play. “The coach said the same thing earlier! But I think you’re even better than the coach!”

Zhong Lu said, “Eyes on the screen. Quit yapping.”

“Oh! Right!”

Zhong Lu stepped in as the team captain and led them through a game. They ended up winning, and it left him with one clear realization—trash attracts trash, and people find their kind.

After a day with them, Zhong Lu learned that the five were high school classmates. They loved gaming, had failed their college entrance exams, then worked in factories to save up enough money to enroll in the camp together. Wang Qun had a gentle temper and was the cleanest of them all. He was the one who kept their dorm hygienic. As a support player, he even earned extra cash cleaning Huo Yu’s shoes—far cleaner than the previous bunch in Room 303.

When Huo Zhehan left yesterday, he sternly told Huo Yu to take care of his own chores. Wang Qun had actually been disappointed—each pair of shoes earned him 100 yuan, enough to treat the whole dorm to a barbecue.

Huo Yu came up with a solution. To have Wang Qun clean the dorm next door. One hundred per session, as a way to “honor” his stepdad. Surely Huo Zhehan wouldn’t object. Ha, it was a classic case of: where there’s a stepmom, there’s a stepdad.

These five youths from a small town had no diplomas and no skills. What road would they take after the training camp ended?

Zhong Lu had also started out in a rural internet café. Every time he heard “people from the countryside think they can play pro,” he would see red.

He never lost his way, and he always knew what he wanted.

Watching the five of them beam with pride after just one win, Zhong Lu frowned and said, “What, your mouse is too hot to touch? Ready up for the next game.”

“Oh—oh!” They all nodded like pecking chickens.

——

The esports god thrived at the youth training camp, totally at ease, not missing home at all—especially since the canteen served three meals a day, no one bothered him, and he could train for ten hours straight. Honestly, it was better than the WN base back in the day.

He hoped Huo Yu would stick with the program, but the stepson himself was desperate to escape. He would rather shine shoes than repeat sniping drills 500 times a day.

Every time Huo Yu sat down to train, it felt like walking into a grave. He had never wanted his stepdad to give a lecture so badly—anything to avoid the torture of the training room. All those things he used to ignore now sounded so precious but all Zhong Lu would say was, “Train properly. Slack off and your time gets extended.”

Huo Yu: “…”

Damn, my stepmom’s even more ruthless than the coach.

The cold-blooded stepmom showed no mercy. In the end, it took his biological dad to step in.

With two days left in training, Huo Zhehan finally showed some mercy and allowed Huo Yu to wrap up his miserable trainee days and go home.

Every summer, Huo Zhehan would carve out time to take Huo Yu on a trip.

He had been swamped all July, leading the second half of the year’s project launches. After two long business trips, he finally got a week off but the house was cold and empty. With no one home, he returned to work the very next day.

He checked his schedule and only the beginning of August would overlap with Huo Yu’s break.

Three months ago, Huo Yu had mentioned wanting to go skiing. Huo Zhehan thought about it and decided to take him to Northern Europe.

Come to think of it, it was him who had taught Huo Yu how to ski three years ago. The little guy had great coordination and was fearless—he picked it up fast.

He instructed his secretary to book flights and hotels.

The secretary asked, “How many rooms?”

He remembered last time, Huo Yu was only ten. He had booked two rooms, but in that unfamiliar country, Huo Yu had come knocking in the middle of the night clutching his pillow.

Huo Zhehan thought of something else—he remembered Zhong Lu’s résumé listed skiing as a skill.

“Two rooms. Book Zhong Lu’s ticket too.”

The educator helped cure Huo Yu’s gaming addiction. He deserved a bonus in the form of an all-expenses-paid company trip.

Huo Yu packed in a flash. Meanwhile, the educator slacked off and happily searched online for divorce agreement templates. He even downloaded one.

The thought of bringing it up to Huo Zhehan made his scalp tingle. He kind of understood now why Huo Yu was scared of his dad. That face when serious? Intimidating. A CEO getting served divorce papers… would he hit someone?

Zhong Lu didn’t have much—just a few sets of summer clothes. Huo Yu, on the other hand, had packed an entire suitcase just for his shoes.

The Huo family driver wouldn’t arrive until afternoon, but Huo Yu was already saying goodbye to his roommates at lunch, leaving behind whatever they could use. He sat by the door, waiting eagerly.

Zhong Lu was annoyed. He wasn’t used to being picked up by Huo Zhehan’s driver and it made him feel like some pampered wife, which was creepy as hell. He said, “We’re taking the subway.”

Huo Yu: “Huh?”

Zhong Lu put on a baseball cap. “Can’t wait, right? Low-carbon and eco-friendly.”

Now that his stepmom had left the training camp, Huo Yu suddenly felt like it had turned into a torture camp. Without him around, what if he got stuck and couldn’t leave? What if his stepmom went home first, and Huo Zhehan changed his mind and turned it into a honeymoon trip?

Terrified of being left behind, Huo Yu ran after him, dragging two huge suitcases.

The early August sun was blazing. The two of them, wearing hats and sunglasses, walked a whole kilometer to the subway, sweating by the time they arrived.

Fortunately, the subway wasn’t crowded. One transfer and they would be home.

Zhong Lu passed the time watching replays of other teams’ matches. His phone screen faced away, cap pulled low, lips pressed tight—not someone you would want to mess with.

Seats were full, so Huo Yu stood, holding onto two suitcases. He was taller than Zhong Lu, who was leaning against the wall.

Huo Yu daydreamed about skiing, imagining snow and ice cooling him down from that long hot walk.

Suddenly, someone poked his arm.

Huo Yu turned and saw a pretty girl with light makeup. She looked shy but confident. “Hey handsome, can I add you on WeChat?”

Huo Yu: “?”

Zhong Lu: snort

Huo Yu had no idea what was going on, but being laughed at by his stepdad made him defensive. His instincts told him not to give his contact because it might be some kind of scam, and if he fell for it, Zhong Lu would never let him live it down. He mumbled, “I don’t have WeChat.”

The girl looked down and caught sight of the name tag on his suitcase: “Class 3, Grade 8 – Huo Yu.”

She stared at this supposed “cool guy” again. Beneath the height and sunglasses, he still had a baby face. She quickly switched train cars.

Huo Yu didn’t get why the scammer had come to him instead of Zhong Lu. He copied his stepdad’s icy face, trying to look unapproachable.

From the subway station to the villa was a long walk. Huo Yu dragged his suitcases like a dog, sweating and regretting not waiting for the driver. Had Zhong Lu cast a spell on him?

Huo Zhehan happened to be home. Seeing the two come back by subway, he was briefly surprised. “Shower up. Flight’s at four.”

Zhong Lu immediately asked, “Where to?”

Huo Zhehan: “Family trip.”

Zhong Lu thought, Why take me? Isn’t this father-son bonding time?

Wait, isn’t this the perfect excuse to fake being sick and stay home?

He gave a vague nod, went upstairs, took a shower, changed clothes, ordered some cold medicine, and when the time was right, he lay in bed looking weak with brows furrowed in fake discomfort.

The Huo men were all packed and ready to go when the doorbell rang. A delivery guy showed up with the medicine, and the moment Huo Zhehan saw Zhong Lu’s name on the package, he realized he was sick

He grabbed the medicine, climbed the stairs in two steps, and pushed open the bedroom door. Zhong Lu lay in bed looking weak. Huo Zhehan poured hot water and set it by the bed. “If you were sick, you should’ve said something earlier. We have medicine at home.”

He opened the package and split two pills according to the instructions.

Zhong Lu said softly, “I had a headache and forgot where I put them.”

Huo Zhehan touched his forehead. Zhong Lu turned slightly, uncomfortable—aside from his grandfather, no one had ever checked his temperature like that.

Huo Zhehan pulled his hand back. “No fever. How did you catch a cold? Do you need to go to the hospital?”

Zhong Lu sniffled, “Probably from taking too long in the shower last night. I’ve had it before, I just need to rest,” He added sweetly, “I won’t go on the trip. I get dizzy on planes. Hope you and Huo Yu will have fun.”

Huo Zhehan stared at him, gazing heavily as if trying to see through his lies. Zhong Lu didn’t look pale, just mildly sick. “Then rest at home. Call He Mian if you need anything—he’ll get the family doctor.”

He Mian was the housekeeper.

Huo Yu waited by the stairs. “What happened?”

Huo Zhehan said, “Zhong Lu has a cold. He’s not coming. The car’s here—let’s go.”

Back in the master bedroom, hearing the car leave, Zhong Lu immediately sprang to life, ran downstairs, and claimed Huo Yu’s gaming setup.

Just as he booted it up, his phone rang. It was Wang Qun.

Zhong Lu said, “Hello?”

Wang Qun stammered, “Can you come to the police station? We got into a fight and we need a coach’s signature to be released.”

Their training was over. They had received F-level certificates—no chance at a pro career.

They were officially moving out today. A group of boys had come to S City full of dreams and slammed into a brick wall. They had trained harder than others, spent all their money, and walked away with nothing. Frustrated, they went to a net café to vent by gaming.

During the game, someone brought up how bad their teamwork was—just like Zhong Lu said. Tempers flared. After five ranked losses in a row, they started blaming each other, and when they left, a fight broke out.

They didn’t actually hate each other. It was the stress. With no idea what came next, and likely heading back to their hometowns in defeat, they needed an outlet. Blood and violence were classic male instincts. They’d figure out a plan after they cooled down.

The problem was, they had been fighting on the street and even dragged an outsider into it.

A toddler. One and a half years old.

He tried to stop the fight but in the most absurd way. Holding a milk bottle, he tried to mediate. Whoever lost got a sip of milk. Instead of stopping, they got even more fired up—“Help me up, I can keep fighting!”

So five guys and one toddler got hauled off by the police.

They didn’t know anyone in S City. Thinking of Zhong Lu, they just told the cops he was their coach.

Zhong Lu was speechless, grabbed his e-scooter keys, and went to bail them out.

At the station, he saw the five of them slumped over eating instant noodles—courtesy of the toddler, who had asked the cops to buy it. Zhong Lu took a deep breath. He almost wanted the police to keep them overnight.

“Where are you staying now?” Zhong Lu asked.

“We haven’t figured it out yet.” Their luggage was still at the corner store.

Zhong Lu had Wang Qun’s WeChat. He transferred him 2,000 yuan. “Figure out what you’re doing next. Don’t start fighting over nothing—you guys are worse than a toddler.”

He had made it in esports and wanted to give a hand to those who failed along the way.

He did had tight days too. To others, he was just a troublemaker haunting internet cafés, but they didn’t know he was scrambling every day to pay his grandfather’s medical bills.

The five of them hung their heads in shame.

“We’ll start job-hunting tomorrow.”

——

At the airport VIP lounge, Huo Yu stood with Huo Zhehan. Their shared genes were obvious in their height and build.

Huo Yu asked shyly, “Is Stepmom’s cold really bad?”

Huo Zhehan, always stingy with words, “It’s fine.”

“Not serious?”

Huo Zhehan considered. “Maybe.”

Huo Yu said, “If it’s not serious, can’t we just wait for him? What’s the difference between leaving today or tomorrow?”

Huo Zhehan had always kept his promises to Huo Yu. “No difference?”

“Yeah.”

“Fine. Let’s go back.”

Huo Yu was surprised. They were almost boarding—was it really that easy to change his mind?

Why did he get the feeling his dad had been waiting for him to say that?

——

Ding dong. Ding dong—

The doorbell rang nonstop. Zhong Lu finished his match before answering. Annoyed, he looked up to see Zhuo Yin beaming brightly.

After going home, Zhuo Yin couldn’t let it go. He was used to being shameless anyway, so he had looked up Huo Yu’s address in the training records and came straight over to make his case.

Seeing this old friend, Zhong Lu acted like he didn’t recognize him but inside, he was secretly pleased. Being remembered, being sought out—it was like he was still the cool, unbeatable God Abandon. Like returning to his comfort zone.

“You again. What do you want?”

Zhuo Yin opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly remembered what the coach said. He glanced left and right, then cautiously and politely asked, “Is your husband home?”

BANG—

Zhong Lu slammed the door in his face.

Get lost!

God Abandon is dead. Burn incense if you need him.