Chapter Seventeen: Su Xiaoqiang, Prisoner—Step Forward! (Extended Chapter)

It was the first time Feiji Tou had seen someone play the game like this. Five atomic bombs—if they had been dropped into his own troops, he might have turned the tide. Yet, the bombs were instead dropped right inside his own base.

What was the reason? Was it merely to flaunt his strength?

“Aren’t you losing by doing that?” Feiji Tou couldn’t help but ask.

“If you had dropped all five atomic bombs into our troops earlier, maybe we could have turned things around,” Lu Mingfei replied sullenly. “But since you dropped them inside our base, we can still push through and destroy your base.”

“When did I say I dropped the atomic bombs?” Lu Mingfei snapped back.

“What?”

Before Feiji Tou could finish, a massive army suddenly appeared in his field of vision—the vanguard of the Human faction’s battlecruisers, the Protoss’ aircraft carriers, and the Zerg’s corrupted units, all flanked by dense ground forces.

Where did this army come from? Was it a backup left by Lu Mingfei?

No, that couldn’t be. Even if it was Lu Mingfei’s backup, there were only two players on their side—one controlled the Humans, the other the Protoss. Why were there Zerg units in that army?

Wait, Protoss?

“I’m here to help you!” Su Xiaoqiang shouted excitedly.

Feiji Tou switched the screen to that army and realized that the battlecruisers and carriers he had seen earlier were just a small vanguard.

As the camera moved, the army stretched on and on like an endless river.

A quick glance estimated there were at least five hundred units, almost all high-level troops.

Feiji Tou suddenly recalled a legendary Protoss strategy.

...

In StarCraft version 1.08, the strongest late-game faction was usually the Zerg.

If a player was very skilled with micro-management, the Humans’ late-game forces could rival the Zerg.

As for the Protoss, they were notoriously weak in the early and late game, only able to sneak a mid-game advantage. If they couldn’t finish off the opponent quickly, they could only resign with “GG.”

But the Protoss had a theoretically strongest late-game strategy: using the Arbiter to capture enemy workers and then use those workers to build structures from other races.

This way, the Protoss could simultaneously harness the technology and troops of the other two factions.

That wasn’t even the scariest part.

In StarCraft, a single race’s population cap was only 200. No matter how well a player developed, their army size could not exceed 200 units. However, the population cap wasn’t calculated per player but per race.

In other words, a player wasn’t limited to 200 population, but each race was capped at 200.

So, when Protoss had both Human and Zerg buildings, their population caps for those two races would also increase.

With enough resources and development time, a Protoss player could theoretically reach a terrifying 600 population cap.

This was why Protoss was called the theoretically strongest late-game race.

However, this strategy required massive resources and time. Since Protoss were usually weak early and late, they rarely survived long enough to build other races’ structures before being crushed.

Coincidentally, this game was played on a rich resource map called “Big Game Hunters.”

Moreover, Lu Mingfei’s skillful play was so dazzling and his blocking tactics so infuriating that Feiji Tou and the others focused all their attention on him, neglecting Su Xiaoqiang, the novice player.

This gave Su Xiaoqiang ample space to develop.

Under Lu Mingfei’s guidance and thanks to her own quick learning, she rapidly built an Arbiter and immediately captured the enemy Human and Zerg workers.

Feiji Tou and the others, hearing warnings of workers being attacked in their headsets, thought it was due to Lu Mingfei’s blocking tactics and didn’t realize it was Su Xiaoqiang capturing their workers.

...

Su Xiaoqiang was indeed a novice; her troop formations were visibly poor, and she had no idea how to command a battle.

But it didn’t matter anymore. With over 500 population, all high-level units, even automatic attacks were enough to clear Feiji Tou’s broken forces.

Su Xiaoqiang frantically boxed troops and clicked randomly, then saw on the screen Feiji Tou typing: “GG.”

Others followed suit, typing “GG” one after another.

“What does ‘GG’ mean?” Su Xiaoqiang asked, confused, turning to Lu Mingfei.

“‘GG’ stands for ‘Good Game.’ It means they’re complimenting your gameplay.”

“Really?”

“Really. Don’t believe me? Ask them if you played well.”

Squinting suspiciously at Lu Mingfei, Su Xiaoqiang felt he was probably kidding her.

She knew very well how well she played. Although she had destroyed the enemy, it was Lu Mingfei who had been commanding her the entire time.

He was battling multiple opponents alone while still teaching her how to play.

He seemed unremarkable, but he was quite skilled at the game, Su Xiaoqiang thought.

“Impressive, really impressive,” Feiji Tou said with a flattering smile, bending slightly. “Su, you’re a natural. You don’t look like a beginner at all.”

Earlier, Feiji Tou had been a bit angry at Lu Mingfei’s blocking tactics, but now he was genuinely convinced.

In esports, skill speaks.

Lu Mingfei’s blocking wasn’t humiliation; it was strategy!

He deliberately blocked to distract, steal workers, and draw fire away from Su Xiaoqiang.

Besides, if he could carry a newbie to a 2v6 victory, then being humiliated by him was deserved. In Lu Mingfei’s eyes, they were no better than AI bots.

While sending his underlings to buy drinks, Feiji Tou respectfully approached Lu Mingfei and asked:

“God Ming, what was that opening strategy? How did you get so many units in eight minutes?”

“Oh, you mean the Lü Bu swarm?”

“The Lü Bu swarm?” Feiji Tou shuddered at the name, thinking great strategies always had great names.

“Want me to show you again?” Lu Mingfei didn’t hold back; after all, this tactic wasn’t special in later times.

...

Years later, when StarCraft 2 launched and Korean pro player Lee Yeon-hyung rose to fame, this tactic became widespread online.

“Sure, sure.” Hearing Lu Mingfei agree so readily, Feiji Tou nodded like a puppy. If it weren’t for the crowd, he would have knelt down to adopt Lu Mingfei as his godfather.

“May you never abandon me…”

Two bottles of Coke were placed in front of Lu Mingfei and Su Xiaoqiang, with Feiji Tou and others crowding behind.

Su Xiaoqiang curiously moved her chair next to Lu Mingfei, watching him demonstrate the previous moves.

Lu Mingfei’s fingers danced across the keyboard like lightning; the screen flickered erratically.

Feiji Tou and the others’ expressions shifted from anticipation to shock, then to stupefaction.

“Did you learn it?” Lu Mingfei asked, glancing back.

“...”

They all looked grim, thinking there was no way they could match his APM (actions per minute).

Compared to the tactic itself, the real terror was the player who could execute it.

...

After bidding farewell, Lu Mingfei and Su Xiaoqiang left the internet cafe.

“Leaving?” the net cafe manager, Old Lei, greeted Lu Mingfei.

“Yeah, heading out,” Lu Mingfei said, pointing to Su Xiaoqiang. “I’m escorting her to the station.”

Su Xiaoqiang curiously studied Old Lei, feeling she had seen him somewhere before.

Old Lei ignored her gaze, waved his hand to signal Lu Mingfei to go.

Just as Lu Mingfei pushed open the door, Old Lei’s voice followed behind:

“Remember, don’t take the small alley. Stick to the main road.”

...

The internet cafe was dim and cool, so when Lu Mingfei stepped outside, the glaring sunlight and heat made him a little uncomfortable.

A fresh breeze blew in.

“Hey,” Su Xiaoqiang walked beside Lu Mingfei with her hands behind her back. “What did the net cafe manager mean by that?”

“No idea,” Lu Mingfei shrugged.

“Okay,” Su Xiaoqiang nodded, then looked down silently.

At first, Lu Mingfei thought she was looking at the ground, but following her gaze, he realized she was staring at her own toes.

Today she wore Prada soft lambskin sandals in quartz color. Lu Mingfei had seen the same pair in a large city mall—each pair cost over 6,000 yuan.

Su Xiaoqiang, being of mixed Chinese-Portuguese descent, had skin whiter than most girls. The sandals made her skin look even paler, with faint blue veins visible on her feet.

Her ankles were slender and delicate; her toenails neatly trimmed, unpainted, yet exuded a unique youthful pink.

Looking at Su Xiaoqiang’s Prada sandals, Lu Mingfei sighed inwardly.

He didn’t even have a knockoff phone, while Su casually wore a Nokia N96 on her foot.

Suddenly, Su Xiaoqiang stopped walking.

Lu Mingfei looked at her curiously.

“Why aren’t you moving?”

“...”

“Hmm?”

“You keep staring at my feet. It makes me uncomfortable,” Su Xiaoqiang said with a complicated expression.

“Ah?”

Lu Mingfei froze, then suddenly realized what she meant.

Although he was looking at her Prada sandals, Su Xiaoqiang didn’t see it that way.

She only felt his gaze fixed on her feet.

“I-I-I...” Lu Mingfei stammered, “If I say I was looking at your shoes, would you believe me?”

“What do you think?”

“But I really was looking at your shoes.”

“Why are you looking at my shoes?”

“...I was admiring your Prada sandals. They’re stylish and rare, so I glanced a few times.”

“So you mean my feet aren’t pretty?”

“How would I know if your feet are pretty?” Lu Mingfei quickly caught that she was setting a trap. “I wasn’t looking at them.”

“Pfft.”

Seeing Lu Mingfei not falling for it, Su Xiaoqiang huffed with a bit of pride.

Actually, Su Xiaoqiang didn’t really mind whether he looked or not. Having lived abroad for some time, she was used to a more open, even wild culture. Compared to that, someone just looking at her feet wasn’t a big deal.

She just wished he wouldn’t do it so blatantly in broad daylight. After all, she was still a girl.

Su Xiaoqiang had already accepted that Lu Mingfei was indeed looking at her feet.

“By the way, I haven’t asked your name yet,” she suddenly said. “You didn’t go to school today. You must be a graduating ninth grader, right? What’s your name?”

Lu Mingfei hesitated, unsure whether to tell her.

According to his previous life’s timeline, he didn’t even know Su Xiaoqiang at this point.

Their complicated relationship only began after the start of senior high.

Back then, he was socially awkward and once said in front of her that Chen Wenwen was prettier than Su Xiaoqiang, earning her mockery for three years.

But since his rebirth, some butterfly effect seemed to have changed many things.

He had entered Nibelungen with Chu Zihang, met Odin and Shami; then Liu Miaomiao inexplicably invited him on a graduation trip; now he met Su Xiaoqiang at the internet cafe.

It was like triggering a hidden route in a visual novel.

Still, after a moment’s hesitation, Lu Mingfei truthfully told Su Xiaoqiang:

“Lu Mingfei.”

She asked, “Which characters?”

“‘Lu’ as in road, ‘Ming’ as in bright tomorrow, and ‘Fei’ as in extraordinary,” Lu Mingfei said, gesturing in the air.

“That's an unusual name,” Su Xiaoqiang clicked her tongue. “What does it mean?”

“A road that’s broad and smooth tomorrow.”

Su Xiaoqiang paused for a few seconds, then asked, “Why?”

Lu Mingfei rolled his eyes. “Tomorrow’s Thursday, a workday. So the road will definitely be smooth, no traffic jams.”

“You’re really something. You should be a comedian.”

Su Xiaoqiang burst out laughing and brushed her bangs aside, carefully enunciating:

“My name’s Su Xiaoqiang. ‘Su’ as in Suzhou, ‘Xiao’ as in dawn moon, and ‘Qiang’ as in the phrase ‘qiao qing ji cui’—remember, not ‘qiang’ like rose.”

Lu Mingfei nodded. “Got it, the ‘qiang’ from ‘qiao lu hui fei yan mie.’”

Su Xiaoqiang frowned, feeling something was off even though he hadn’t said it wrong.

While they chatted, the bus stop appeared ahead.

Since it was a workday, few people were there—only an elderly lady carrying two heavy baskets, one with vegetables and the other with eggs.

Lu Mingfei wanted to see Su Xiaoqiang onto the bus before leaving, but she waved him off.

“No need. You go ahead. I’ll call my driver to pick me up.”

“Okay,” Lu Mingfei agreed. After two hours of StarCraft in the internet cafe, he almost forgot she was from a wealthy family.

In terms of assets, she might be richer than Liu Miaomiao or Zhao Menghua.

But Lu Mingfei still didn’t understand why she had come to the internet cafe.

Su Xiaoqiang pulled out her phone from her skirt pocket and dialed.

The call connected immediately after one beep.

“Uncle Li? Yes, it’s me. Nothing’s wrong. Can you come pick me up? I’m at—”

She looked at Lu Mingfei, who promptly named the location.

“Wuliqiao Road, Hanting Hotel bus stop.”

“Wuliqiao Road, Hanting Hotel bus stop—male? No, I don’t have one! I was just outside clearing my head.”

Lu Mingfei noticed Su Xiaoqiang’s ears turn bright red, wondering what the person on the other end said to make her so angry.

Just then, Su Xiaoqiang slammed the phone down and glared fiercely at Lu Mingfei.

“What the hell?”

“Why’d you say such a stupid place name?” she snapped through gritted teeth.

Lu Mingfei pointed at the bus stop sign innocently.

Su Xiaoqiang followed his finger and saw the words “Wuliqiao Road Hanting Hotel” clearly printed.

She was speechless, realizing she was in the wrong.

“Hmph, forget it. Let’s just drop it,” she said, sulking with hands on her hips while skillfully scrolling through her phone. “Give me your phone number.”

“Huh?” Lu Mingfei was caught off guard.

“P-h-o-n-e n-u-m-b-e-r,” she waved her phone in front of him.

“Oh, right,” Lu Mingfei suddenly remembered. “I don’t have a phone yet.”

“Ah?”

Though Su Xiaoqiang knew phones weren’t universal yet, she assumed a student at Shilan High School would have one.

“Then you have a QQ number, right?” her voice softened.

“Yeah, I do.”

“Tell me your number. I’ll add you later.”

“9484…”

After giving her his QQ number, Lu Mingfei wanted to wait at the bus stop for her ride, but Su Xiaoqiang firmly sent him away.

Watching his back disappear down the alley, she finally relaxed.

Joking aside, she nearly got misunderstood by Uncle Li on the phone just now. If he had seen Lu Mingfei waiting with her, who knew what trouble would have started?

Thinking this, Su Xiaoqiang felt her ears warm again.

About ten minutes later, a black Audi A6 stopped in front of the bus stop.

Su Xiaoqiang stepped down, skillfully opened the door, and slid into the back seat.

“Miss, heading home?” the driver, Uncle Li, asked.

“Yes, let’s go.”

Leaning lazily against the seat, Su Xiaoqiang suddenly felt exhausted at the thought of going home.

The engine roared, and the Audi sped off, kicking up dust.

Su Xiaoqiang opened her contacts and saw “Lu Mingfei” displayed clearly.

She had saved his QQ number.

“Such a weird guy. I wonder if we’ll be in the same class in high school,” she thought. “I’ll have him play StarCraft with me again sometime. It’s actually pretty fun.”

StarCraft…

Suddenly, Su Xiaoqiang realized something odd.

She had just told him her name.

Why, then, did he have that group call her “Sister Su” back at the internet cafe?