Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Registering an account was just a matter of moving a finger, and Rong Yuan wasn't the type to easily get addicted. Gu Shenhan quickly set up an account for him and even topped it up.

Rong Yuan also dragged Lin Xiaotang into it. Then the two of them asked Yan Yu to teach them, claiming they wanted to play the game too.

Yan Yu was warm-hearted and immediately explained how to play without hesitation.

However, he said they could only have dedicated teaching time during the day.

Rong Yuan asked him, "Can't you teach us at night?"

Yan Yu said, "At night, I play with someone else. He works during the day, so during the day I can teach you two brothers."

Lin Xiaotang pretended to be sad: "So we have to wait in line behind him. Sigh, as expected, once romance comes, friendship takes a back seat."

"Then wouldn't Xiao'an Gege be the first? He doesn't come at night either."

"How can that be compared?" Rong Yuan said. "He's my married husband, my legal spouse, my legitimate family, the father of my child."

The first part made some sense, but what was that last part?!

Yan Yu hesitated for a moment: "Xiao'an Gege, you and Han Ge are going to adopt a child?"

Rong Yuan sucked on a yogurt cheese stick: "Hmm... maybe."

"Better not," Yan Yu said. "Isn't it nicer just the two of you? Look at my brother—if he hadn't been stuck with a burden like me, he might have started a family long ago. Although your situation is different from his, in the end, two people have fewer constraints."

"..."

Rong Yuan had been happy for Yan Yu, thinking he might have really met a good person. But hearing him say this, he suddenly wondered if Yan Yu might not like that person as much as they imagined.

If he truly liked him, he probably wouldn't have a trace of loneliness in his eyes when mentioning Yan Que, right?

Rong Yuan suspected that Yan Yu might be seeing that person just to show Yan Que.

He took Yan Yu's hand: "Don't say that about yourself. How could you be a burden? You're clearly family who depend on each other."

Yan Yu smiled: "That's true. Let's not talk about this. Aren't we going to play games? Choose your favorite characters."

Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang exchanged a glance and clumsily followed Yan Yu's lead.

Everyone has different talents. They found that gaming wasn't as simple as they had imagined. When the perspective shifted, they felt dizzy.

Especially Rong Yuan—he threw up after playing for a while.

He spent a long time in the bathroom retching, almost bringing up bile. Fortunately, Lin Xiaotang quickly brought him a glass of juice to settle his stomach.

Yan Yu looked suspiciously at Rong Yuan's pale face: "Xiao'an Gege, have you been feeling unwell lately? Should you go to the hospital for a check-up? You seem to have lost a lot of weight since autumn."

"I already went. The doctor said it's nothing serious."

Yan Yu was skeptical and secretly sent a message to Gu Shenhan, asking him to make sure to take Rong Yuan to the hospital for a thorough check.

Rong Yuan then said half-jokingly, half-seriously: "Xiao Yu, what if I could actually get pregnant? Would you be surprised?"

Yan Yu: "...How about we just look at the game rules, bro?"

Sure enough, he didn't believe it.

Rong Yuan didn't press it and continued asking about the gameplay with a smile. It was really uncomfortable at first, but after a few more tries, he seemed to gradually adapt.

To avoid arousing Yan Yu's suspicion, he and Lin Xiaotang didn't immediately ask to team up with that person at night. They just logged on and played a few times whenever they remembered.

Meanwhile, Gu Shenhan did tell Yan Que about the possibility of Yan Yu falling in love, and also that Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang had created new accounts to scout out the "enemy."

Yan Que didn't respond.

Gu Shenhan asked, "Not going to intervene?"

Yan Que said, "He's grown up. I can't hold his hand with everything."

Gu Shenhan understood that reasoning. Still, having watched Yan Yu grow up, he asked a few more questions. He asked Yan Que, "When does your teacher plan to go public and let us meet him?"

Yan Que said, "When Xiao Yu's situation is settled. Anyway, Tang Lin doesn't care much about these things."

Gu Shenhan knew that Yan Que's lover was a teacher at a prestigious school, which was a sensitive topic for Yan Yu, who had never been fond of studying and wasn't good at it.

All this time, Yan Que hadn't brought that person to meet Yan Yu, probably for this very reason.

Gu Shenhan didn't ask further and turned his thoughts to planning a trip abroad with Rong Yuan.

That day, the renovation materials for the embroidery room were finally delivered to Cui Xi Garden, ready for construction. Worried that the noise might disturb Rong Yuan, Gu Shenhan took him to Bi Shui Wan early in the morning.

It should have been renovated long ago, but considering that new materials always have a bit of a smell, they waited until it had aired out for quite a while before bringing it over.

Rong Yuan said, "I think I'll just stay at Bi Shui Wan for a couple of days and hang out with Xiao Yu and Xiao Tang."

Gu Shenhan happened to have a new contract to sign in another city, so he agreed: "Then stay here while I'm away. I'll come pick you up when I get back."

Rong Yuan said okay.

During the day, Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang mainly focused on making and designing Hanfu. Yan Yu also worked on his various cosplay costumes. At eight in the evening, they all started their break and would log into the game.

Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang had low ranks and couldn't play ranked matches with Yan Yu, but they could still play casual matches.

The three brothers each had a phone in hand. Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang were still noobs who couldn't even find their bearings. Meanwhile, Yan Yu and another player called "Hellfire" were very skilled.

Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang couldn't accumulate enough wealth for a long time and had weak levels, clearly holding the team back in decisive battles.

However, since this was just for them to experience the game without affecting rankings, Yan Yu comforted them: "You'll get better with more practice."

Hellfire said, "They won't gain much experience this way. Why not let me call two friends to give them proper guidance and play together?"

Yan Yu asked Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang, "Want to join?"

Rong Yuan asked quietly, "Will this affect your time with this friend?"

Yan Yu replied without hesitation, "No. We can play other times later."

So Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang didn't refuse Hellfire's offer to bring in two more people.

The wait was a bit long. During that time, Yan Yu and Hellfire played a ranked match. Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang went to the kitchen to get some midnight snacks.

Both felt that Hellfire was a nice guy, not treating them coldly just because they were beginners.

Lin Xiaotang said, "To judge whether someone is reliable, looking at their friends is also important. This way, we can take the chance to learn about his friends."

Rong Yuan thought the same. They never intended to alienate Yan Yu from that person; they just wanted to make sure he was a good person so they could rest easy.

At ten o'clock, Hellfire's two friends logged in on time. Rong Yuan was already feeling a bit sleepy. He knew that ever since he became pregnant, he slept early and needed to ensure at least eight hours of sleep each day. But since Gu Shenhan wasn't around this time, he indulged himself a little.

He, Lin Xiaotang, Yan Yu, and three others formed a team to do quests together.

These quests didn't boost rankings or have any special rewards, but they could gain experience. The two that came, one named June Star and the other Tianmu, split up—one guiding Rong Yuan and the other guiding Lin Xiaotang.

At first, Rong Yuan and Lin Xiaotang didn't feel anything was wrong. They thought these two were quite dedicated and patient. They themselves knew they were bad at playing, yet the two never once showed any impatience.

But after playing for just two days, Rong Yuan began to sense something off.

It started when June Star bought him an expensive skin. It was a limited edition newly released by the game company, costing 3,600 in real currency, not game coins.

To him, this amount wasn't a lot, but in practical terms, it wasn't a small amount. However, the other party sent it without even asking. He only noticed it when it appeared in his inventory, gifted to him in-game.

A similar thing happened with Lin Xiaotang. Tianmu also bought him a limited-edition skin. Different from Rong Yuan's, but equally pricey.

June Star said, "We're all friends of Hellfire. It's just a small welcome gift. Don't worry about it."

Rong Yuan found it hard not to worry. Both he and Lin Xiaotang felt this was a bit too much.

If they had known each other for a long time and had a good relationship, it would be one thing. But they had only known each other for less than three days. Giving something this valuable—what if they wanted to quit later?

Yan Yu said, "Just take it since they gave it. It's not like we asked for it."

Rong Yuan didn't feel that way. But what came next was even more ridiculous. While playing, June Star would make his character get closer and closer to Rong Yuan's. Sometimes he even squeezed up against him. He even made the character touch his face!

How obnoxious!

Rong Yuan felt that even though he was gradually adapting to modern life, and the in-game character wasn't really him, he still couldn't accept this.

This made him think less of Hellfire too.

He decided to stop playing. He returned the expensive skin to June Star without using it and then stopped logging in.

Yan Yu said, "Xiao'an Gege, don't be mad. If you don't like it, just don't play."

Rong Yuan asked, "If those two are like that, what about Hellfire himself?"

Yan Yu thought about it. He said he had received quite a few things from Hellfire. But he didn't care too much about it. First, the other party was willing to give, and he did play with him, so he didn't feel obligated. Besides, he sometimes gave things to the other party too.

Rong Yuan said, "These people seem well-off, but Xiao Yu, you haven't even met the guy in person. You should be more careful. At least meet him first before doing anything else."

Not long after he said this, someone delivered a large bouquet of yellow roses, about the same size as the green roses Yan Yu had received earlier—so big you could barely hold them.

There was also an apology card attached.

— I'm sorry, please accept my apology. I'll be more careful in the future.

The delivery person said it was for Yan Yu, but Yan Yu only found out after taking the flowers that they were actually for Rong Yuan. It was from June Star, asking Yan Yu to pass them on.

Rong Yuan found this even more unsettling: "Xiao Yu, did you tell Hellfire that we all live together?"

Yan Yu said, "I just casually mentioned that we all live together. It's just a bouquet of apology flowers, Xiao'an Gege. You don't need to be so tense."

Rong Yuan didn't think he was tense, but he felt a really weird feeling.

Just then, as he was holding the flowers and pondering, Gu Shenhan came back from out of town.

Gu Shenhan saw him holding flowers, his expression unchanged. But somehow, Rong Yuan hid the card behind his back without thinking.

He didn't know why he did it. He only realized it after he'd already done it.

Gu Shenhan's smile dimmed a little: "Wife, what are you hiding?"

Rong Yuan crumpled the apology card into a ball: "Nothing. Just something from some boring person. I'm gonna toss it."

He threw it in the trash.

Gu Shenhan didn't bother to pick it up, but motioned for Fang Yankai to set down the gift box. Gu Shenhan said to Lin Xiaotang and Yan Yu, "Thanks for looking after An An these past few days. I'm taking him now. The gift box has some local specialties. They'll go bad soon, so eat them quick."

Lin Xiaotang and Yan Yu instinctively said, "Thanks, Brother Han."

They wanted to say something in Rong Yuan's defense, but their damn mouths clamped shut!

Gu Shenhan draped Rong Yuan's coat over him: "You wanna keep holding those flowers?"

Rong Yuan said, "No."

Gu Shenhan ruffled his little wife's head: "Come on, let's go home first."

Rong Yuan got into the car, feeling kinda guilty. Gu Shenhan didn't ask many questions, but he still felt like he'd messed up.

After arriving home, he wanted to explain but found it annoying to talk about, so he stayed silent.

Seeing him sulking, like he was mad at himself, Gu Shenhan couldn't bear to say anything harsh. He said, "I brought you some fabric made using intangible heritage techniques, some local snacks, and some toys for the baby. Don't you want to take a look?"

Rong Yuan's eyes lit up: "Yes!"

Baby toys and fabric!

Gu Shenhan signaled Aunt Lu to take Rong Yuan to see them. Then he called Xiao Ke: "Go find out who delivered those flowers and see who's got such nerve."