Reborn as the King of Traffic on Kangping Road

"Congratulations! You've been reborn!"

"Today is February 11, 2019"

The peak Bo9 showdown made Gu Lizhou so sleepy he wanted to send the starters to the bench and rotate the roster. Frustrated, he left early to take a walk, only to be hit by a drunk driver who fled the scene, sending him from 2025 straight back to 2019.

"Being reborn comes at a price. We've detected an unfulfilled wish. If, three years from now, on February 11, 2022, you have 5 million followers and 1 million haters, you can continue living in this world!"

Gu Lizhou, who had fewer than 500,000 active and zombie followers combined on Weibo in his previous life: ?

On February 11, 2019, Gu Lizhou, who had failed his high school entrance exam, had no parents, and had spent half a year living off his uncle, was about to head to an electronics factory in Guangdong with his uncle, who was returning to work on the seventh day of the Lunar New Year.

Wait a minute? One smartphone, one train ticket, and 500 yuan.

Starting as a streamer, then moving to the bench, the starting lineup, and transfers.

This king of traffic from Kangping Road, willing to do anything to win fans and haters, took sponsorships, appeared on variety shows, livestreamed, and played up bromances.

K-forum and Douban earthquake!

Is this really the KPL? Where the hell did you send me?

When asked about bullying on his team, he tactfully replied in an interview, "My teammates take great care of me. Whenever I suggest something, they never hold it against me."

When a bratty celebrity threw a tantrum on a show, he kindly reminded them, "You have fewer heroes than a new player gets for free."

When rumors spread that he was neglecting scrims to pursue a career in entertainment, he set the record straight: "I train for twelve hours every day and sleep for six. What's wrong with spending the rest of my time working out? I'm handsome. Are my fans not allowed to look at me?"

He was even a natural at playing up the BL angle, but, uh... you call your best friends your OTP, and your actual partner a crack ship?

In his previous life, Gu Lizhou worked at an electronics factory while taking boosting orders, reaching the top ten in the peak rankings. A club noticed him, and he won a championship at nineteen, only to be put up for transfer. For the rest of his career, he bounced between the A and B divisions.

The title of rising mid-lane king faded away, leaving only Wan Li Chuan, the player whose spark had been completely drained, and the one people remembered as, "I had no idea he'd ever won a championship."

The reflexes of a sixteen-year-old, the experience of a twenty-two-year-old, and knowledge of future game updates.

This time, he chose the strategy that would get the most comments.

Haters, fans, trolls, and shippers, all at the same table.

If he couldn't hold onto the top, he might as well walk the path again.

(Fake) heartthrob mid-lane king top x his ideal type bottom

Notes:

The author has no favorite team and just enjoys KPL antics. No posting comments or personal attacks.

Characters are inspired by real people but aren't based on anyone in particular. If you spot a similar nickname, please let me know and I'll change it right away.

Only the timeline is the same; all characters are original. Don't read if that's not for you.

★★

Here's a story I'm planning

After Pretending to Be a Girl and Dating a Female Stand-in Online

Jiang Xunyuan did one of the worst things in his ridiculously messy life.

He got into an online relationship.

His partner was a female stand-in he'd been dating while pretending to be a girl.

The female stand-in was an insanely good player for bargain prices, and even threw in two extra games when you bought a low-ranked account.

Looking at the friend requests that said, "Got a spot? Dad's here," and, "Want to go pro? KW is recruiting," Jiang Xunyuan fell silent, wondering if he should ditch the gig.

[Symphony: Your rank is that high?]

[Female Stand-in: It's my sister's account, sweetie. I got there filling in every role. It's a gift for you.]

The female stand-in had a tragic family life in Genshin Impact, earning tuition money by boosting accounts while getting squeezed by relatives on both sides of the family. And yet she was kind and strong.

[Female Stand-in: This money is from my parents. After this, we're done for good.]

[Symphony: What will you do without money?]

[Female Stand-in: I'll take a leave from school and work full-time boosting accounts for a while.]

How could she drop out because she had no money? The old-fashioned Chinese sense of responsibility kicked in. Jiang Xunyuan knew the other person liked him, so he said:

[Symphony: Stay in school. I'll pay your tuition and living expenses.]

[Female Stand-in: Sister, you can't.]

[Symphony: If you stay in school, I'll agree to be with you.]

[Female Stand-in: ...]

And so Jiang Xunyuan spent his days earning a wage at his internship, and his evenings looking at his girlfriend's report card.

Four hundred points isn't bad. Jiang Xunyuan, a graduate of a top university, thought with a smile.

His friends began to suspect the small and medium-sized transfers he'd been making for more than half a year. When they found out the other person was still attending vocational school...

Friend: "?? Do we turn on the electric shock first or start yelling?"

Friend: "Could the other person be catfishing an old guy?"

Jiang Xunyuan: "Get lost. I'm young."

#

By the female stand-in's third year at vocational school, she was doing an internship, and Jiang Xunyuan had found a stable job.

When the other person finally suggested meeting in real life, Jiang Xunyuan had already finished renovating a home for the two of them.

There weren't many visitors by West Lake on a weekday.

Jiang Xunyuan went to the place the other person had mentioned, but the only person on the bench was a man over six feet tall.

That's right.

This was Jiang Xunyuan's online girlfriend.

And worse than finding out his little girlfriend was a guy was the fact that he'd slept with him.

Jiang Xunyuan: ...

Jiang Xunyuan: "You said your internship was at an electronics factory?"

Sui Shan: "I play esports."

#

Sui Shan's parents were both dead, but they'd left him an apartment. All he needed was enough to support himself, so he spent his days playing games and earning a little extra on the side.

Until he met "Symphony."

An older sister six years his senior, who chatted with him and spent holidays with him. By the time Sui Shan fell for this person, he realized just how little he had.

No money, no education, and he couldn't even make the other person happy by passing physics.

He hadn't deceived many people in his life, but he'd lied to Symphony about everything.

His gender was a lie, his school was a lie, and his internship was a lie.

But even after learning that Symphony was a man, he was still going to make his way to Symphony, one step at a time.

Right after signing a contract with the PR Club, Sui Shan went to see Symphony.

Symphony greeted him with a cold face and said nothing.

Sui Shan took out the only two things he'd brought: his ID card and his phone.

"If you won't look at me, I'll throw my ID into the lake, then my phone, and then I'll jump in too."

Jiang Xunyuan curled his lip. "Jump first. Otherwise, I won't believe you."

#

Broke and penniless, Sui Shan eventually clung to Jiang Xunyuan and moved back into his home. When he realized Jiang Xunyuan still liked him, he pestered him until they ended up in bed.

Sui Shan: "We slept together. I thought you'd take responsibility for me."

Jiang Xunyuan: "Ha. I should take responsibility for my asshole, not for you."

Jiang Xunyuan: "And pay me back."

#

The autumn split began. Sui Shan, who had several alleged girlfriends according to his stalker fans, publicly announced his relationship. He had only one partner, whom he'd been dating since before joining the academy team.

In the final game of the autumn regular season, someone photographed Sui Shan leaving with a beautiful cosplayer with unbelievably long legs and a perfect figure.

Not only was the cosplay of Sui Shan's favorite character, he was also carrying her high heels.

[Pro gamers with good results and a well-behaved girlfriend, that's a great relationship. Wishing you two the best.]

[But I heard the cosplayer speak, and I think it was a guy.]

[Huh?]

[And doesn't anyone else think the cosplayer looks familiar?]

[Huh?]

#

Little skit

Everyone who knows SS's SS knows SS has an SS.

Jiang Xunyuan: Someone decode this for me.

SS: SS, your Kun keeps provoking me.

Jiang Xunyuan: ?

#

Down-and-out pro gamer top x tsundere cosplayer bottom

Content warnings:

1. When the top and bottom were dating online, they both pretended to be girls. The top pretended to be a female stand-in to earn money.

2. One of them is uncultured, and the other has no manners.

3. More to come.

Reading guide:

1. The game is original, and there isn't much game-related content, so it's easy to follow.

2. The story uses flashbacks. The leads are already together at the beginning.

3. Age gap: the bottom is six years older than the top.

4. The story is set in a semi-alternate 2029.

Theme: Never forget your original aspirations.