I Really Like the Male Supporting Character (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 53

In the box, there lay a round golden medal, with his gaming username, ‘Zero,’ engraved in the centre.

Ah Luo stared blankly at the medal, then looked over at the young man. His eyes sparkled, filled with a subtle sense of anticipation.

When Shen Xi heard the mission’s requirements, the very first thing he thought of was this medal. She liked him so much—he had to give her something that matched the sincerity of her heart.

Seeing her stay silent for so long, the brightness in the young man’s puppy-dog eyes began to fade. He pressed his lips together and softly asked, “Sister, don’t you like this gift?”

[Why isn’t Xin Luo saying anything? This is the highest honour our Lingshen has ever received! It’s the top award in the entire e-sports scene—he spent three years as a pro before earning this one and only individual awards medal. Don’t tell me she’s looking down on it?]

[Oh no, oh no, I think Zero God is really done for. He actually gave her his medal!]

At the moment, while most people online shipped them, not many truly believed they were real. Xin Luo’s acting was just too good. People genuinely couldn’t tell whether she really liked Shen Xi or if it was all just a performance.

But one thing was clear to everyone: Shen Xi must have really have fallen for her.

This young man, with his whole heart, had brought his greatest honour to present before her. To everyone watching, the act was nothing short of romantic. Viewership in the livestream surged, and the on-screen chat was flying so fast it nearly obscured the screen.

Ah Luo’s silence made the young man visibly anxious. He felt as if he’d been doused in a bucket of cold water. He made to withdraw his hand and forced a nonchalant smile, but couldn’t quite hide the disappointment tugging at the corners of his eyes and mouth. “If you don’t like it, Sister, I can find another gift…”

Before he could finish the sentence, Ah Luo suddenly reached out and grabbed his hand.

“I like it,” she said, one word at a time, while looking him squarely in the eye.

The young man’s eyes widened in surprise as he stared at her.

Ah Luo took the box from his hands, lifted out the dazzling golden medal, and examined it closely for a long moment. Then she looked up and said to him, “This gift is more precious than anything else. You gave me something so meaningful. I’m afraid whatever I give you won’t be worthy in return.”

Just now, Ah Luo had been truly stunned. That was why she hadn’t reacted right away. She never imagined Shen Xi would give her something like this.

In the original storyline, the young man had very few appearances. During the entire variety show filming, he spent most of his time holed up in his room playing games—in short, he was completely uncooperative. At this segment, he didn’t give Xin Luo anything at all. Even when the production crew reminded him, he still did whatever he pleased.

But now, things were happening differently from how it was in the novel. Could this mean his feelings for her were different too?

As she spoke, Shen Xi’s face lit up again, and he broke into a grin, revealing his adorable little tiger teeth. “No matter what Sister gives me, I’ll love it!”

“Really?”

He nodded repeatedly, firmly and with conviction. “Really!”

What no one else knew was that he’d already received her gift.

In Shen Xi’s eyes, someone’s heartfelt sincerity was more precious than anything else.

Ah Luo smiled brightly. She got up and left the room. A short while later, she returned, holding a cardboard box in both hands. “Here’s the gift I got for you.”

There was a logo printed on the box. As soon as Shen Xi saw it, his eyes went wide.

“Sister, this is…”

Ah Luo opened the box with a smile and said, “I got it by chance not long ago. Take a look. Do you like it?”

Because she knew the storyline in advance, she’d already anticipated this segment before the show even started. That was why she’d gone out of her way to find this limited-edition gaming console. It had been discontinued on the market, and even second-hand ones were nearly impossible to get. It had taken her a massive effort to finally acquire one.

The young man leaned in and carefully took the console out of the box. His eyes were shining. He ran his fingers lovingly over it, and he couldn’t put it down. With excitement, he exclaimed, “I love it, I love it so much, Sister! This is the best gift I’ve ever gotten!”

Shen Xi’s joy and excitement were plain to see — not only Ah Luo noticed, but the viewers saw it clearly too.

[Holy crap, Shen Xi is too lucky!! The console Xin Luo gave him—that Sennheiser game console—is basically impossible to buy now. Someone listed one six months ago, and it shot up to 200,000 yuan!]

[AAAAHHH! It’s the Sennheiser game console! Every man’s dream!! Oh my god, this is just too romantic!!!]

[I’m so tired of saying how jealous I am. Boohoohoo, did Shen Xi save the galaxy in a past life or something? Is that why the goddess is treating him this way in this life?]

[Just a minute ago I thought nothing Xin Luo gave could compare to Lingshen’s medal. But I was wrong—her gift is amazing too!]

Half the netizens were burning with envy, while the other half was screaming about divine romance. Traffic in the livestream skyrocketed, which made the director behind the scenes beam with joy.

Seeing Shen Xi looking completely smitten, Ah Luo thoughtfully suggested, “I’ve never played this game before. Want to try it together?”

‘Playing together’ was really just an excuse. She’d seen how eager he was to play, and she was simply giving him a reason to go ahead.

The young man’s eyes lit up like stars as he nodded enthusiastically and said, “Okay!”

This kind of game console was best played when hooked up to a big-screen TV. Shen Xi skilfully turned on the TV in the room, connected the console, then plugged in two controllers.

After being pulled down to sit on the floor, Ah Luo found that the young man had even thoughtfully placed a soft cushion underneath. She held the controller he handed her and stared at it blankly for quite a while.

“Um, I’m not really good at video games…” she said hesitantly while glancing at the side of the young man’s face, which was so full of enthusiasm, to subtly remind him.

Shen Xi waved it off with grand confidence. “Don’t worry, Sis. I’ll carry you.”

After all, this wouldn’t be the first or second time he’d carried her to victory in a game. Shen Xi was more than used to this sort of thing.

The two of them sat cross-legged on the floor, each holding a controller. Just like that, they started playing. The sight of such a scene on a romance variety show looked strange no matter how you looked at it.

Especially once the game actually began—Ah Luo’s utter lack of gaming skills was completely exposed. This wasn’t a game like The Hero Returns, where you could just attach yourself to another player and get dragged through. Shen Xi had to give her verbal instructions.

Inside the spacious room, the two could be heard exclaiming back and forth. Ah Luo’s most frequent line was, “Ah! I died again!” while Shen Xi kept shouting, “Don’t worry, Sister, I’ll avenge you!”

A perfectly normal romance show had somehow turned into a gaming session. The director was freaking out, but when they checked the livestream… the viewer count had actually gone up!

[If I didn’t already know this was a romance show, I’d have thought it was a gaming stream.]

[HAHAHA. The vibe changes every time it cuts to Xin Luo and Shen Xi. These two are incredible]

[This is honestly so fun. I never knew Goddess Xin was this bad at games. Not even Lingshen can carry her. She’s dying from start to finish… This is absolutely wild.]

[She’s so cute though! That little pout she does every time she dies… ughhh! come here, Baby, let Mommy hug you!]

Most of the games playable through the Sennheiser console were single-player games based on a level system, and as they progressed, the difficulty ramped up. Ah Luo kept dying over and over again—viewers even started joking that the game they were playing should be renamed A Hundred Thousand Ways for Xin Luo to Die.

With zero gameplay enjoyment, Ah Luo decisively quit. There was no point in subjecting herself to more frustration.

Without Ah Luo dragging him down, Shen Xi—true to his reputation as a professional gamer—started clearing levels much faster on his own. Ah Luo simply dragged over a beanbag and curled up in it, watching him play.

Every time he cleared a level, the young man would turn excitedly to glance at her. His bright, dog-like eyes sparkled like twin stars, as if eagerly waiting for her praise.

When he finally beat the last level, Shen Xi instinctively turned around—only to freeze. The words on the tip of his tongue stuck in his throat, and the joy on his face was abruptly suspended.

The woman had curled up in the beanbag and somehow fallen asleep quietly. Her eyes were shut tight. Her long, thick lashes curled and cast a fan-shaped shadow below them.

The room was silent, the sunlight was warm, and she was so breathtakingly beautiful.

His heart, which had been racing from the final victory, slowly cooled. The young man’s expression settled into calm. A gentle, faint smile rising in his eyes.

He moved closer, carefully and quietly, then bent down and softly picked her up.

On the big screen, the game’s ending animation played, but Shen Xi didn’t glance at it even once. He carefully held the woman in his arms. He carried her back to the bedroom and gently laid her on the bed.

[This suddenly feels so tender… I don’t want to disturb the moment.]

In the next shot, the young man stood silently, gazing at the sleeping woman. He looked for a long, long time. He did so long enough that viewers grew confused—until he leaned in and pressed a feather-light kiss to her forehead.

[Holy crap!!! Are you seeing this!? Shen Xi is totally falling for her!!!]

[If Lingshen isn’t catching feelings, I’ll eat my keyboard!!!!]

[Aaaaa! Kiss her lips, not the forehead! Shen Xi, be bolder!!!]

That kiss sent the show’s popularity skyrocketing once again. After #I’m giving you all my love and glory# trended, another hashtag, #Xin Luo Seinnheiser# followed close behind. Now, a third hashtag, #Shen Xi Kiss# climbed the list as well.

Xin Luo and Shen Xi alone were carrying three trending topics, leaving the production crew nearly speechless in disbelief.

No one could’ve predicted that the pair they had the least confidence in would end up as the show’s breakout stars.

After two days of live broadcasts for ‘We’re Living Together!’, each of the other couples had shown their own appeal—Lu Tao and Yan Jiaqi’s ‘getting back together’ arc, Zhou Jiayin and Wen Yuxin’s sweet romance, Sun Ningyu and Zhao Qianqian’s bickering chemistry.

Each couple had their charm and made for good content, but the one that felt the most emotionally real was undoubtedly Xin Luo and Shen Xi.

Even though they seemed like the least compatible—one a stunning beauty who could topple kingdoms, the other a fresh-faced, handsome young man—they somehow radiated a hazy intimacy that everyone could see.

At the start of the show, the comment section was flooded with jokes calling for the seductive consort and tyrant CP. People said they were only watching for Xin Luo and Zhou Jiayin. But now, no one even mentioned that pair anymore.

Online, a craze for younger men swept the internet. CP fans and fan forums dedicated to Xin Luo and Shen Xi popped up one after another.

And that lingering question—what exactly had Xin Luo seen on Shen Xi’s computer—was finally answered that very night.

During the livestream, Shen Xi accidentally switched windows and briefly revealed his desktop wallpaper. In that instant, the comment section exploded until it completely covering the screen.

[Everyone look!!! Isn’t that Xin Luo on Shen Xi’s wallpaper? I’m crying, this is so sweet]

[Say no more. Lock Xin Luo and Shen Xi in as endgame please!]

[WTF! Guys go check out Xin Luo’s Weibo, RIGHT NOW!!!]

That last comment seemed random, but people followed it and opened Weibo—only to see that Xin Luo had just posted something.

[Xin Luo (V): > Some people are just adorable… even when they’re sleeping [flower emoji] [image attached]]

In the photo, the young man was curled up with face buried into the sofa. He was fast asleep with a pink flush on his cheeks and his hair tousled. He looked just like a little kid.

Looking closer, the picture had app icons overlaid—it was clearly her phone wallpaper!

[Whoever said Xin Luo wasn’t sincere to Shen Xi, look at this, right now!]

[They’re clearly in love—this is totally mutual!!!]