LPL History

Chapter 224 Jiangdong Zhou Lang sets up a net to catch fish, and the two souls reunite tonight.
Zhu Gong, whose given name was Yihang, was the heir of a wealthy merchant family in Lingnan. In the winter of the year Gui Si, he sent his advisor Abu to secretly collude with WE's forces, luring Mingkai and Juanmao to flee in the night, resulting in a desperate situation. WE was outraged, and all the other teams despised his actions, thus sowing a deep rift in the LPL.

In the summer of the year Yiwei, in order to attend the Huayi banquet, the competition was postponed for seven days, and all the princes abandoned the established schedule.

In the spring of 2016, QG's mid-laner failed to arrive, yet a "15-minute BO5" game was decided, leaving thousands of ticket buyers with empty seats.

Whenever there is a dispute over refereeing decisions, the organizers always take sides, which the public jokingly refers to as "regent's treatment," thus earning them the nickname "Prince's Team."

Between the years of Yiwei and Bingshen, Hou relied on Han Yuan as his right-hand man. The fat general, despite being ill, led troops into battle, repeatedly saving the situation from peril; his golden camel arrows never missed, slaying generals and capturing flags. However, on the day of victory, when someone asked about Han Yuan's merits, he sneered and said, "They are nothing more than ribs; their contributions are not yet apparent, and what difference does it make if they are not?" Those around him felt a chill run down their spines upon hearing this.

In the year of Dingyou, Hou ordered his troops to attack the Polish IEM. On the eve of the battle, he suddenly claimed that "the signing documents were not prepared" and hastily withdrew his troops. The Polish officials angrily posted a letter stating, "The proclamation was sent in December, yet EDG has repeatedly delayed!" Other warlords ridiculed this as "a blitzkrieg against Poland that crumbled before even halfway through," causing an uproar in Shanghai. Zhu Hou, ashamed, exclaimed, "Do you want to destroy Chinese esports?" Thus, the name "National Esports" was born.

Zhu Hou spent a fortune to support his retainers, and in the end, S11 won the championship, which is indeed worthy of being called a hero.

However, observing his management of his subordinates reveals that Abu slandered his former master and indulged him, Han fought valiantly in battle but treated him poorly, and used the tournament as a public tool for personal gain. In the past, he shirked responsibility for the "blitzkrieg against Poland," and his "fight to the death" approach chilled the hearts of righteous men, ultimately earning him the reputation of "discarding a donkey after it has served its purpose."

As the proverb says, "Those who act righteously will find many supporters, while those who act unrighteously will find few." While esports is about winning and losing, it cannot stand without integrity. In the past, those who abused their power in the name of the crown prince may now win the Silver Dragon Cup, but can they silence the criticism of the world?

Now, with General Zhou Li leading his troops in eight battles, utterly destroying EDG's camp without a single defeat, Zhu Hou, seeing that his routed army was beyond recovery, sheathed his sword and retired from esports, fleeing far away. The general then met with Pei Gong, spent money to gather his remaining troops, changed their banner, and called themselves "WE.B".

In the past, Abu was a treacherous villain who misled Mingkai and Juanmao into betraying their former master, splitting WE's territory to establish EDG, which aroused the hatred of the world. Now, General, you have avenged this humiliation, reclaimed the lost lands, gathered the scattered soldiers, and restored the banner of the dynasty. Your achievements are worthy of being recorded in gold and stone!
—Records of the Grand Historian, Annals of Zhu Gong

Zhou Li realized that he had been trapped in a misconception all along.

He wanted to break records, but he kept his eyes on the players.

However, looking back, based on my previous two experiences of unlocking the Records of the Grand Historian, I realized that my thinking was clearly too narrow.

Based on the two previous unlocked chronicles, it's easy to see that the owner of the chronicle must be someone who has had an extremely significant impact on the future development of the LPL.

But this impact could be positive or negative.

For example, Clearlove, who had just debuted in Season 2, became the first player in the LPL to be named Season 2 player.

The current owner of the S3 record is not a professional player, but Abu.

In the eyes of many, Abu, this old woman, is clearly unworthy of being named in this annals.

But in fact, if you really look at Abu's resume, he has had a huge impact on the structure and ecosystem of the LPL from the early days of the league to the present.

Abu was a part of the glory of the old WE team, and he even stood in the center when WE won the championship.

EDG's glory was facilitated by him. Without Abu's desperate measures, EDG would not have achieved two championships in one year, thus becoming the national powerhouse and a veteran powerhouse team in the LPL.

And the owner of the Historical Records and Annals of S4 is none other than S4.

It's none other than EDG's owner, Edward Zhu!

Zhou Li also unlocked his abilities from Ed Zhu.

[Key character (Edgeju) unlocked; ability gained: Capital.]

[Capital: It has been proven that substantial capital can help you accomplish most things, and you will be more likely to gain favor with investors. You can now directly purchase hero proficiency.]

This ability is a godsend for Zhou Li right now.

After all, buying EDG essentially drained his savings.

With the current era unlocked, Zhou Li felt much more at ease as he watched the unlocking progress of the S4 era reach 80%.

His next task is to train the current EDG team and get them into the World Championship.

Simply qualifying for the World Championship is not enough.

The real highlight of this match is the clash between WE's ten players and Samsung's ten players!
Zhou Li was quite confident about this.

After all, EDG's original roster was not weak.

In comparison, considering only their strength, Strawberry and Smile are not actually what EDG needs.

Bringing Strawberry and Smile over was more of a business decision; they could be rotated in for a few games when facing weaker teams.

This is also the main reason why Zhou Li spent a huge sum of money to acquire EDG.

With the establishment of WE.B, coupled with the WE ten-man team versus the Samsung ten-man team, and all the hype surrounding it, Zhou Li is certain that this year's World Championship will be the most watched World Championship in history!

All this attention will bring Zhou Li a fortune!

Although Zhou Li knew that after this World Championship, regardless of whether it was because of Samsung or WE, Riot Games would definitely issue a rule to prevent a club from having two teams.

But Zhou Li is the owner of WE.B. What does that have to do with WE?
If all else fails, he removes the points and transforms himself into the web team.

WE is WE, what does it have to do with my Web?

It's possible that such a move won't even be needed in the end. Although the possibility is slim, what if WE sends all ten players to aid Korea?
EDG Esports Club.

Training room.

The factory manager and Curly sat together, looking slightly awkward.

He even has an urge to run away right now.

When he chose to abandon Abu and stay, he didn't know that Smile and Strawberry would come too.

Former teammates, after going through a life-or-death struggle, always feel a bit awkward when they meet again.

Even though the factory manager felt he had a clear conscience.

After all, WE was in such bad shape at the time! If they stayed with WE, they wouldn't even be able to qualify for the World Championship.

As a professional player, if you're not aiming for better results and a bigger stage, what's the point of just drifting along aimlessly?
Driven by his dream, he resolutely decided to leave WE, ignoring Strawberry's desperate pleas on Weibo.

Everyone has their own pursuits, and there's nothing wrong with that.

In the final stage of this year's Summer Split regular season, WE was just a few points away from entering the top four and overtaking LGD.

EDG also encountered WE at this time.

In that match, the factory manager and Curly were so bad that the game was practically a free throw, they were practically handing it away outright.

Even so, WE still failed to win the game.

The factory manager felt he had done more than enough.

But now that they are about to meet, the factory manager is still somewhat anxious for some reason.

I don't know how to greet them when we meet. What if I'm too enthusiastic and they're cold, leaving me feeling like I'm putting my face on their shoulder? What if I'm too cold and they think I'm targeting them?
Fortunately, Zhou Li didn't keep the factory manager hesitant for long. A short while later, he walked into the club with Strawberry and Smile.

Furthermore, Zhou Li very considerately started the meeting without giving the others a chance to greet them.

"I don't think I need to introduce Strawberry and Smile. They will be the new members of WE.B from now on."

Zhou Li's sharp gaze swept over the crowd.

"Krou and Strawberry will rotate, Nami and Weixiao will rotate, and the final decision on who starts and who comes off the bench will be made by me and the coaching staff through comprehensive consideration, and we will clearly tell you the reasons. Everything depends solely on your performance on the court, and there will be no favoritism."

As soon as Zhou Li finished speaking, Kou Rou and Nami were noticeably less nervous than before.

After all, the two of them had been feeling rather heavy-hearted when they heard that Strawberry and Smile were coming to the club.

As everyone knows, Zhou Li has a close relationship with WE. Now that he has transferred Strawberry and Smile from WE, if he really wanted to show favoritism, he could just say so and make Strawberry and Smile start. They have no power at all.

But since Zhou Li has said this now, it is clear that he will indeed give them a fair chance to compete.

Zhou Li then looked at the factory manager and Curly.

"I know there might be some misunderstandings between some players. I won't concern myself with those. If you can treat each other as friends, then treat each other as friends. If you can't, remember that you are at least colleagues, my employees! In my club, I only look at your training and match performance! I think you all know me. I know how to play a game better than you do, so don't try to fool me! If you can't achieve the results I want, then I'm sorry, WE.B has no shortage of players."

The WE.B team looked at their young boss, who was only eighteen years old, but felt no dissatisfaction whatsoever.

Although Zhou Li's words were somewhat sharp, there was nothing wrong with what he said.

What do professional players look at besides match results?
Zhou Li himself is also a top professional player. He knows the game too well, so the team doesn't need to worry about teammates deliberately targeting them or making them take the blame for nothing.

And it is precisely this kind of impartial and incorruptible attitude that motivates the players to work even harder. This time, Zhou Li is not their teammate; his role is simply that of their boss.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Zhou Li took the initiative to ease the atmosphere.

"Starting today, change your goals. I'll bring Tabe to the club to help you train and develop tactics. Reaching Worlds is not your goal; the semifinals are! Of course, the best outcome would be to see both WE teams in the finals!"

Zhou Li's words clearly excited everyone.

However, Zhou Li himself didn't really believe in this kind of inspirational talk.

After all, there's not much time left before the World Championship, and the time given to him to transform WE.B is far too tight.

Although I don't expect to meet in the finals, I definitely want to make it to the top four.

As for the championship, it still depends on him.

After all, this is WE.B, while the team he's on is WE.A.

Old A is definitely a bit better than Old B.

This also proves that he is not a pure businessman, otherwise he would have gone directly to WE.B.

Compared to the players of WE.B, the group of young people in WE.A with an average age of only seventeen have a much brighter future.
-
2014 9 Month 6 Day.

Mercedes-Benz Arena, Shanghai.

The S4 World Championship China Qualifier has officially begun!

This Chinese regional qualifier, like the summer playoffs, also uses a double-elimination format.

Because WE.A defeated EDG as the Summer Split champion and directly secured a spot in the S4 World Championship, the next four teams to compete in the qualifiers will be WE.B, OMG, LGD, and Royal Club for two more World Championship spots.

Due to the double-elimination format, teams in the loser's bracket need to win multiple consecutive BO3 matches to advance to the loser's bracket finals, while teams in the winner's bracket only need to win one BO3 match to secure their place in the grand finals.

The first match today is between WE.B and the dark forces OMG!

At this moment, the stands at the Mercedes-Benz Arena were filled with a sea of ​​black.

WE.B's support color is black, and OMG's support color is also black.

Zhou Li did not change EDG's previous support colors.

The two teams, WE.B and WE.A, one black and one red, can be said to complement each other perfectly.

At this moment, Bella, looking excited, stared at her notebook in the commentary booth.

Because she knew there was another bombshell piece of news that no one else knew about!

The news of Zhou Li acquiring EDG and renaming it WE.B has been making headlines on the internet these past few days.

However, no one knows that this WE youth player not only bought back Clearlove and Curly, but also added Smile and Strawberry to the team.

Zhou Li, in a rather mischievous way, did not choose to announce the news in advance, saying that he would give the fans some surprises at the competition.

To Bella, this was hardly a surprise.

If the 60e members suddenly saw the four of them reunite, those with weak hearts would probably faint on the spot.

Amid cheers from the audience, the players from both sides began to take to the field.

The director clearly knew exactly how to add a sense of ceremony to this "grand event".

When the players entered the arena, they did not go directly to their seats, but instead lined up on either side, with an additional introduction of the players to ease the tension.

They also specially adjusted the lighting so that the spotlights that were illuminating the contestant would turn on only after each contestant's name was called.

After the OMG players were introduced, some viewers in the live chat began to express their dissatisfaction.

【No, why all this fancy stuff? Everyone knows OMG.】

[This is hilarious, it's like the finals are happening!]

[There's really no need for that. Everyone can easily count how many pimples a contestant has on their face.]

At that moment, Bella cleared her throat.

"Next up are our WEB players!"

"Top laner WE.B Strawberry!"

The moment Bella finished speaking, the live stream chat exploded!
【? ? ? 】

【ah? ? ? 】

【No, what's this woman yelling about? Where did this strawberry come from?】

[Can someone really make such a basic mistake as calling out a contestant's name?]

However, the next second, when the spotlights were turned on, Strawberry waved her hand shyly.

"boom!!"

At this moment, the scene completely erupted!

The black ocean surged violently, and among it were team flags bearing the name OMG.

It's worth noting that many of these OMG fans were also fans of the old WE team!
Meanwhile, the live stream chat was now filled with a dense barrage of comments!
【Holy crap?!】

Wait, what's with the strawberries here?!

【My God, what am I seeing?! It's like a blast from the past!】

So, is there a strawberry factory manager today?

[It's not that the comments are off, it's that they're blocking my view of Strawberry's handsome face!]

[A dream team! Will Ruofeng and Weixiao come?!]

If Ruofeng and Weixiao come, it will be absolutely explosive! Will the old WE team be resurrected in EDG's fold?!

[Forget about Ruofeng, he's been retired for too long. But Weixiao is really something!]

Bella's introduction continues.

"WE.B Clearlove, the jungler!"

"Mid laner WE.B, U!"

She paused deliberately, then shouted loudly again:

"ADC player WE.B Smile!"

"Support player WEB Curly!"

At this moment, netizens went completely wild!

Holy crap!!

[Tears welling up! This is truly a blast from my past!]

[I never thought I'd see the old WE team reunite! Especially in such an official competition!]

All I can say is, the general was truly great!

A man named Zhou Lang from Jiangdong was skilled at making nets for fishing. One day, while traveling in Shanghai, he suddenly saw that his old net was tattered and the fish and crabs had scattered like birds and beasts. He sighed and said, "The fish are dead and the net is broken. This is not the way of a benevolent person!" So he sharpened his blade and mended the net, making it as good as new.

At that time, the river fish either darted into the deep abyss or hid in the crevices of the rocks. The boatman stood at the bow, his eyes like torches, his hands like pools of water, casting his net into the turbulent current. In a moment, the fish returned to their formation along the clear water, swimming upstream into the net. What were once scattered scales and broken armor were now shimmering like brocade on the river!

(End of this chapter)