After seeing this reply, Dong Jiaoyan felt a wave of comfort in her heart.
It seemed her boyfriend did have a good sense of boundaries after all—at least he wasn’t welcoming every strange woman he met.
Qiao Liuyue naturally noticed the smugness on Dong Jiaoyan’s face, which practically radiated through the screen.
So she tentatively asked,
“He won’t play games with me, and probably won’t play with other girls either… So, should we still test him?”
“Test him!”
Dong Jiaoyan suddenly seemed struck by a flash of inspiration.
Her eyes darted around as she leaped up from the bed.
“Here’s the plan… Ask him this: Tell him you’ve seen his match record and think he’s really skilled. Ask if he wants to carry you for fifty bucks a game. In or out?”
“Huh?” Qiao Liuyue was stunned again, her mouth slightly agape.
What kind of move was this?
Was testing her boyfriend supposed to involve tempting him with money?
Was this a loyalty test or a poverty test?
Dong Jiaoyan pouted, wearing an expression that said, “You just don’t get it.”
“I just want to know if he’d be lured away by some sugar mama.”
“I mean, he’s so handsome. What if one day some rich woman drives a sports car to pick him up at the school gate? I wouldn’t even have a place to cry.”
She said it with utter conviction.
Qiao Liuyue let out a quiet sigh, lowered her head, and started typing a message.
The alt account she was using now had a low level, but all the skins were full sets—from exclusives to limited editions.
She looked every bit like a walking whale, a solid persona of a rich girl without doubts.
"The World's Cutest Support": [Your match record’s impressive. Fifty bucks a game. Want to play?]
After the message was sent, the other side went silent for a few seconds.
"Thanks, Goodbye": [……]
"Thanks, Goodbye": [You serious?]
This reply completely surprised both of them.
Dong Jiaoyan’s mouth twisted in anger, and she couldn’t help muttering a furious outburst under her breath:
“A rich woman gives a little hook, and he bites right away? I never thought he was this kind of person!”
Her tone was filled with heartache.
“Should I reply?” Qiao Liuyue turned to look at her, phone held up in midair.
“Reply!” Dong Jiaoyan almost ground her teeth as she forced the word out.
Her emotions were a mess—fury, disappointment, resentment all swirling together.
Qiao Liuyue lowered her head again and kept typing, her fingers tapping out line after line on the screen.
"The World's Cutest Support": [We have each other on WeChat. Pay after each game.]
"The World's Cutest Support": [Don’t worry, I’m loaded. I just get bored with no team to play with. Even if we lose, I’ll still pay.]
As she sent this, Qiao Liuyue found it a little funny herself.
“Even if we lose, I’ll still pay.” Wasn’t that just asking to be taken for a ride?
She painted the perfect picture of a sugar mama with money to burn, just looking for someone to play with.
"Thanks, Goodbye": [……Would I lose?]
Just three words and a question mark, but the cocky attitude behind them was palpable even through the screen.
Qiao Liuyue stared at the line for two seconds, curving her lips just slightly before quickly hiding the expression.
"The World's Cutest Support": [Then let’s start. I’ll transfer the money to you now.]
Qiao Liuyue switched to the WeChat interface and logged into the alt account that Dong Jiaoyan had set up.
The remaining balance in WeChat was just the leftover change from when Sui Feng had transferred money to buy hero skins.
It was just enough for her to waste a few matches.
She opened her friend list, and the other person had a clean, solid black profile picture.
Their username was also simply "Thanks, Goodbye."
No bio, no Moments posts.
Qiao Liuyue tapped into the transfer interface, entered "50," and hit confirm, all in one smooth motion.
Dong Jiaoyan watched the money drain from the balance beside her, wincing in sympathy, the corner of her mouth twitching.
Testing a boyfriend, and it was her own money being spent—no matter how you looked at it, this deal was a loss.
She frowned in confusion and couldn't help asking:
"Liuyue, you haven't even started playing yet, why did you transfer the money first?"
Qiao Liuyue's tone was natural and calm as she replied, "If I'm going to pretend to be a rich woman, aren't all rich women supposed to have a lot of money?"
"Transferring money before the game even starts—doesn't that prove my wealth better?"
She didn't even lift her eyes as she said this, completely focused on the screen.
Dong Jiaoyan thought it over and felt it made some sense, so she nodded.
"... That does sound right."
Though the sting of spending the money lingered, at least the logic held up.
She then urged Qiao Liuyue to switch back to the game interface and keep chatting.
"Alright, alright, go back and talk to him. Don't let the conversation go cold."
After receiving the money, the other person's attitude improved noticeably—his reply speed more than doubled, as if he'd become a different person.
Thanks, Goodbye: [Boss, which lane do you want to play?]
"Boss?"
Qiao Liuyue pronounced the word with a subtle tone, her voice trailing up slightly.
Thanks, Goodbye: [Yeah, since you paid me.]
Just as Qiao Liuyue was about to reply, Dong Jiaoyan tapped her arm.
She spoke quickly.
"Say you'll play support and follow him, so there can be some interaction."
Qiao Liuyue's finger hovered over the screen, pausing for a moment.
"Huh? But I don't know how to play support."
She said this with genuine confusion in her voice.
Dong Jiaoyan then remembered that her best friend mostly played carry roles that could attack and secure kills.
She bit her lip and thought for a moment, then said:
"My boyfriend is great at support... How about this: you play marksman, and he plays support for you. Isn't that the same thing?"
Qiao Liuyue nodded. "Okay."
This whole test of the boyfriend was conducted under Dong Jiaoyan's supervision—or rather, her control.
Every word, every move was under her watchful eye.
Fortunately, it was easier than Qiao Liuyue had expected; at least so far, nothing had come up that she found difficult to handle.
The World's Cutest Support: [I'll play marksman.]
Thanks, Goodbye: [OK, I'll support you.]
The game matched successfully, and they entered the hero selection screen.
Qiao Liuyue swiped through the hero list and, with hardly any hesitation, picked the one she'd been using most recently:
The marksman, Galio.
But before she could confirm, Dong Jiaoyan's lecturing voice rang in her ears.
"Don't pick that one. Galio is too squishy and dies easily."
"Pick Hou Yi or Lu Ban instead. They're more stable—you can deal damage just standing still."
Qiao Liuyue's eyes flickered behind her lenses as she said seriously:
"Jiaojiao, I actually really like playing Galio, and I've been practicing with this hero a lot lately. I know the skills well."
"What's the use of knowing the skills well?"
Dong Jiaoyan’s speech grew faster and faster, her brows furrowed in impatience. She leaned over and reached for Qiao Liuyue’s phone, muttering under her breath, “My boyfriend doesn’t like playing games with people who are too bad. If you die too many times, he might lose interest and stop playing.”
