Let Me Sleep a Little Longer [Esports] - Chapter 14

This Thursday is destined to be a stormy day.
Yesterday, a Weibo post from GI stirred up a storm among fans overnight.
The comments section under the official account exploded.

**[“The information is too overwhelming! I can’t handle this!!!”]**
**[“Is it the Sleeping I know?”]**
**[“Wait… a girl?? Did I read that right??”]**
**[“Let me sum this up: The original jungler was suspended for fighting, replaced by the currently trending ‘Silver Slayer,’ Sleeping (details here: http://dsnbcm.com/5heoifd). And the most shocking part—Sleeping is a woman.”]**
**[“Alright, GI, even a big-name team like you is this bold.”]**
**[“A woman??? Are you kidding me?”]**
**[“Pro teams should focus on proper training, not gimmicks like these. LPL’s days are numbered.”]**
**[“The jungler position has always been GI’s weak point, and now they’re switching to a female jungler? Hah.”]**

Amid the chaos, a few users who had previously recommended Sleeping stood out:

**[“Oh my god, did they take my advice???”]**
**[“I can already see Sleeping causing utter chaos in the matches, haha.”]**
**[“Sleeping’s mechanics… and you’re telling me she’s a girl?”]**
**[“I’m rooting for Sleeping! Ever since I ran into her in ranked games, it’s been like opening the door to a new world, 23333.”]**

While the internet was in turmoil, Su Heng slept in until 3 p.m., oblivious to the uproar.

When she went downstairs, Wave was grinning slyly at his phone, occasionally letting out a sinister chuckle.
Old Fish was eating noodles from a bowl bigger than his face while watching cartoons.
Meanwhile, Zhou Lingxing and Sun He were having a serious discussion.

No one noticed Su Heng until she quietly sat down in front of the computer.
Startled by her sudden appearance, Wave almost dropped his phone. “Can you *not* sneak up like that? People die from scares, you know!”

Wave’s outburst successfully drew everyone’s attention to Su Heng.
Sun He glanced at Wave. “Enough. The match is tomorrow. Focus.” Then, turning to Su Heng, he said, “We saved you lunch. Have the auntie heat it up, and start practice after eating.”

Su Heng shook her head. “I’m not hungry. I’ll start when Old Fish finishes.”
Sun He frowned, clearly disapproving.

Zhou Lingxing chimed in from the side, “Skipping meals with narcolepsy? You want us to waste more time finding another jungler?”

After a moment of silence, Su Heng reluctantly made her way to the kitchen.
Sun He’s eyes glimmered with amusement as he shot a side glance at the sharp-tongued Zhou Lingxing.

*Tsk tsk.*

The team remained undefeated during their five-stack practice that afternoon.
Half an hour before the scrimmage with the second team, Wave couldn’t resist bringing up the topic.

“Did you see the comments under yesterday’s Weibo post?”

Su Heng blinked, as if surprised that he initiated a conversation. “What Weibo post?”

Wave grabbed his phone from the table, opened Weibo, and handed it to her. “See for yourself.”

Su Heng took the phone and read carefully, her expression betraying no emotion.

After a while, she returned the phone to the gloating boy and calmly asked Sun He, “So, Shen Sinian won’t be back next year?”

“No.” The door swung open as Shen Jianian entered, cutting in firmly.

Wave rolled his eyes—this woman always seemed to miss the point.

Shen Jianian continued, addressing Su Heng, “You don’t need to think about him or worry about the online chatter. Just focus on playing.”

Su Heng’s clear black-and-white eyes landed on Shen Jianian, and after a moment, she gave a slight nod.

Shen Jianian then asked, “I heard from Sun He that you’ve only practiced two champions, Lee Sin and Rek’Sai?”

Su Heng pressed her lips together. “I’ve mainly practiced these two champions, but I’m familiar with the mechanics of most other jungle champions.”

Shen Jianian nodded. “Before the match, the official account needs to announce the new jungler. Most of the videos circulating online feature your Lee Sin. If tomorrow’s opponents have done their research, your Lee Sin will most likely get banned.”

After a brief pause, he added, “Use Rek’Sai for today’s scrim. Let’s see if there are any issues.”

Shen Jianian hit the nail on the head—this was exactly what Zhou Lingxing and Sun He were discussing earlier when Su Heng came downstairs, though they hadn’t had a chance to tell her yet.

When Su Heng saw the posts on Weibo, she realized the same thing and had no objections. It only reinforced her resolve to deepen her champion pool.

She didn’t want to drag down her teammates, but with limited time, she could only focus on mastering those two champions as much as possible.

As it turned out, no one was foolish.

In the evening scrim, the second team banned Lee Sin first, without hesitation.

Shen Jianian raised his eyebrows in slight surprise. Although Lee Sin had been decisive in earlier games, it shouldn’t have prompted the second team to target it so heavily.

He glanced at Su Heng, who was frowning at the screen. He realized he might have underestimated her impact in the game. After just one match, she had already become a significant enough threat for the second team to take precautions.

Even Shen Jianian himself hadn’t fully noticed this until now.

While he was deep in thought, the two teams entered the game interface.

At the start, Su Heng teamed up with Sun He to invade the enemy’s red buff, catching the opposing jungler off guard.

The enemy jungler cowered under Su Heng’s control of the jungle.

The game was won easily, but Shen Jianian still identified several issues. After the post-game review, he asked Su Heng to stay behind.

“Not a fan of playing Rek’Sai?” Shen Jianian lit a cigarette.

Su Heng rubbed her thumb. “How did you tell?”

“When you play Rek’Sai, it doesn’t feel as smooth as your Lee Sin. Your mechanics and game sense are decent, but just that—decent,” Shen Jianian said directly, unwilling to waste time.

Su Heng nodded in agreement. “I feel like this champion isn’t strong.”

Shen Jianian chuckled and shook his head. “There are no weak champions—only weak players.”

He exhaled a puff of smoke, and the haze spread under the office’s hanging light, creating a misty scene.

“If you’re strong enough, you can dominate with any champion. Make your opponents see you behind the champion, not the champion controlling you.”

Su Heng’s eyes flickered slightly. For the first time, Shen Jianian’s words stirred something in her.

Seeing her interest, Shen Jianian continued, “Right now, your gank routes are too predictable. I know you like to calculate every route and optimize your timing and economy, but official matches are full of uncertainties. Things won’t always go according to your plans.”

“No matter how much you practice tonight, it won’t be enough. What you need is accumulated experience over time.”

“Think carefully about what I’ve told you. I hope to see something different in tomorrow’s game.”

Without waiting for a response, Shen Jianian strode out of the meeting room, leaving behind a heavy silence.

That night, Su Heng stayed in the room until the early hours of the morning.

When she finally stepped out, the confusion in her eyes was gone.

Her ambition reached the mountaintop—why linger for the view?

The journey ahead is long, but what’s the fear in a distant road or a fallen horse?

—

No matter how anxious Su Heng felt, Friday inevitably arrived.

The match was today.

She had barely slept the night before. Although Shen Jianian had said that matches are full of surprises, her strength lay in calculations.

So, she spent the entire night accounting for every possibility and came up with over a dozen strategies.

**Ensure that every unexpected event can be handled.**

When the others woke up and saw Su Heng sitting in front of the computer, they all silently chose not to say a word.
Even Wave, who usually clashed with Su Heng, refrained from adding fuel to the fire this time.

Zhou Ling walked over to stand behind Su Heng and glanced at the notebook spread open on the desk.
Su Heng’s handwriting was elegant and fluid, with detailed plans and calculations neatly filling the pages.
There was no difference in the handwriting from start to finish—no trace of fatigue or impatience.

Zhou Ling’s heart skipped a beat when he saw Su Heng staring intently at the video of CEO’s match against FHL on the screen.
Su Heng’s pale skin made the dark shadows under her eyes even more prominent.

Hearing the movement behind her, Su Heng took off her headphones and stood up.
She looked at the other four without surprise and gave a rare smile. “Morning.”

The group was briefly stunned by her smile, and only Zhou Ling spoke in a low voice: “Did you stay up all night?”
Su Heng nodded. “I watched some old matches of CEO and made a few plans.”

Then she turned to the others. “You don’t need to adjust to me today. I’ll adapt to you guys.”

Sun He smiled. “Don’t worry.”

Today, GI would be facing CEO, one of the top teams in the LPL. GI’s previous matches against CEO had ended with mixed results, but CEO was the first team to develop strategies specifically targeting Shen Sinian, which was also the reason behind Shen’s altercation with their players.

The CEO team’s base was right next to GI’s, so despite being neighbors, they could barely tolerate each other.

After a brief preparation, the group boarded the team bus. Before getting on, Su Heng ran back to her room to grab something, which led to a long string of complaints from Wave throughout the ride, though his grumbling ironically eased Su Heng’s nerves.

Just before stepping on stage, Zhou Ling glanced at Su Heng to check on her, only to see her large, dark eyes staring back at him. At some point, she had put on a mask that covered most of her face.

Zhou Ling locked eyes with Su Heng for a moment. “What are you doing?”

Su Heng blinked and answered in a muffled voice from behind the mask, “Am I not allowed to wear a mask?”

Zhou Ling raised an eyebrow and shook his head slightly.
**Women really make things complicated.**

Hearing their conversation, Sun He turned around and noticed the oversized mask on Su Heng’s face. Remembering how she went back to her room before leaving, he couldn’t help but chuckle.

Wave glanced over and rolled his eyes so dramatically it seemed they might reach the sky. “Drama queen.”

At that moment, a backstage staff member rushed over, shouting, “They’re introducing the players! Hurry up!”

Sun He’s expression immediately turned serious, and he gave the staff member a nod.

The group stepped forward onto the stage.

The match was about to begin.