"No, Dad, what's wrong with you today?" Yan Chi was completely baffled by Yan Qingyuan's strange thoughts. "Did Shen Mingsu do something again?"
Forgive Yan Chi, but he really couldn't think of any other possibilities. Yan Qingyuan was only prejudiced against Shen Mingsu and was quite happy for Yan Chi to say goodbye to him as soon as possible.
Yan Qingyuan recounted everything he had seen, “Yes, he had your student tie your ex to a tree and threaten him, and your ex even cried.”
“Wait a minute.” Yan Chi looked puzzled, “My ex? Where did I get an ex? Also, students in our class tied someone to a tree and threatened them… Are you sure it was our class? Our students are all very well-behaved.”
“Only one was from your class, Lian Deng.”
Upon hearing that it was Lian Deng who did this, Yan Chi disregarded the issue of exes; his first reaction was absolute impossibility, “Lian Deng is a very good kid, he couldn’t possibly do such a thing.”
Although Lian Deng had a few monster cubs, they only liked to dress up and weren’t vicious or harmful. In short, Lian Deng was a good student.
“I saw it with my own eyes.” Yan Qingyuan said, while also subtly criticizing Shen Mingsu, “Oh, he said it was their principal who ordered it.”
That makes sense.
Yan Chi's face was grim. He knew his teaching wouldn't go wrong; how dare Shen Mingsu lead his student astray? He truly didn't respect his teachings.
The evening sun's rays streamed through the window into the room. Shen Mingsu leaned back on the sofa, glancing frequently at the closed door, a sense of foreboding creeping into his heart.
Shen Chang Le was turning over the soil on the pink mushrooms and white rabbits on the windowsill when her voice rang out, "Teacher Xiaochi's father is very angry, Uncle, what have you done now?"
"What do you mean, 'what have I done now'?" Shen Mingsu was displeased. "Am I some kind of antisocial person who would deliberately commit crimes?"
Shen Chang Le glanced at him silently. "Want to hear the truth?"
"You're innocent, tell me."
"Your mental state is somewhat unstable, and your moral standards aren't high. The possibility of you becoming a potential antisocial person isn't small."
"...That's slander."
Shen Chang Le shrugged, not wanting to engage in any more pointless arguments with him, because you can never wake someone who's pretending to be asleep—that's a saying Teacher Xiaochi taught them in class.
Chu Xi, sitting in his walker, ran around the living room. Hearing Shen Mingsu's words, he mimicked them, "Baa! Baa baa baa."
Shen Mingsu covered his mouth, telling him, "You're a fish, don't imitate a sheep."
Chu Xi blinked, confused, then suddenly jumped up and down happily, pointing behind Shen Mingsu.
Instantly, a chill ran down Shen Mingsu's spine. He stiffly turned around, seeing Yan Chi approaching menacingly. Knowing something was wrong, he quickly stood up and went over, "Xiao Chi..."
Yan Chi glanced at him expressionlessly. Because the two children were present, he suppressed his anger. "Come upstairs with me."
Shen Mingsu, feeling guilty, said, "Okay, don't be angry."
The two went upstairs one after the other, while Shen Chang Le stared blankly at them, holding a small shovel.
Yan Chi had always been a gentle person, rarely seen losing his temper, but now, although he tried to hide it, Shen Chang Le still noticed his anger.
Seeing Yan Qingyuan strolling over, Shen Chang Le asked worriedly, "Are they about to fight?"
Yan Qingyuan, somewhat fond of children, reluctantly answered his question, "It was your uncle who started it."
Shen Chang Le knew without a doubt, "Will they break up?"
"I don't know." Yan Qingyuan asked him, "If they break up, who will you go with?"
"...Can I go with Teacher Chi?"
Yan Qingyuan was satisfied, his eyes showing approval. "You're a good child. Xiao Chi didn't spoil you for nothing."
Downstairs, the custody of the children had already been discussed. Upstairs, Shen Mingsu looked at Yan Chi anxiously.
Yan Chi crossed his arms, scrutinizing Shen Mingsu. "Tell me quickly, did you instigate Lian Deng to kidnap someone? And what's with my so-called ex?"
"Uh… a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding." Shen Mingsu's attitude was remarkably apologetic. "I just thought you really did pursue Zhu Ge Yun, so I wanted to keep him away from you."
So it really was Zhu Ge Yun who was kidnapped. Yan Chi laughed in exasperation. "Didn't I tell you? He's a celebrity I used to like, there's no other personal relationship. Why are you still jealous of him?"
Shen Mingsu lowered his head, reaching out to tug at Yan Chi's sleeve. "I was wrong, I'm sorry, Teacher Chi, it won't happen again."
This time, Yan Chi wasn't deliberately showing him any mercy. "If you keep getting jealous like this, I… I really won't talk to you anymore!"
This seemingly harsh but actually quite harsh statement successfully frightened Shen Mingsu. He quickly promised Yan Chi that nothing like this would ever happen again, or he could slap him hard.
Yan Chi's anger slowly subsided. He glanced at the darkening sky outside the window. "Tomorrow, I'll go with you to apologize to Zhu Ge Yun."
This whole affair was entirely undeserved for Zhu Ge Yun, and since it was all Yan Chi's fault, Yan Chi's conscience wouldn't be at peace if he didn't apologize.
Shen Mingsu didn't dare say anything more and immediately nodded in agreement.
The next day, after finishing his morning classes, Yan Chi took Shen Mingsu to find Zhu Ge Yun. The players were all settled in vacant student apartments, but Yan Chi couldn't find him there. After asking the students living there, he learned that Zhu Ge Yun mostly stayed in the commercial street.
Yan Chi was puzzled. "What's he doing there? He doesn't have any money to buy anything."
Shen Mingsu: "Maybe he has a special way of making money."
They went to the commercial street instead. They didn't even need to specifically look for Zhu Ge Yun; the man's singing led them there.
The main customer base of the commercial street is students, but it's school time, and there are hardly any students to be seen. Zhu Ge Yun, having somehow acquired a microphone and speakers, is singing loudly on the street.
He also has a bowl borrowed from Song Qian in front of him.
Yan Chi, seeing his focused singing, didn't disturb him, but listened to the song. He remembered Zhu Ge Yun singing theme songs for TV dramas before, which were quite good.
"Even if I die, I'll still love you! Not singing with all my might, not singing with exhilaration."
Yan Chi: "..."
This song sounds different from what he's heard before.
Shen Mingsu doesn't understand. "Has human musical creation reached this level? Is this even meant for human ears?"
He's mostly listened to mermaid songs before; hearing Zhu Ge Yun's voice for the first time, Shen Mingsu feels like his ears are being assaulted by the sound.
"Don't generalize," Yan Chi said, trying to salvage the reputation of human music. "This is just his personal act; don't drag the whole group into it."
Shen Mingsu had no choice but to continue listening. "Fine."
Zhu Ge Yun's rendition of the song was wildly inconsistent; not a single note was correct, and every part fell into unexpected places, making it incredibly agonizing.
It was at this moment that Yan Chi finally understood how noble the profession of a sound engineer truly was.
Yan Chi's silence didn't mean the viewers in Zhu Ge Yun's livestream could tolerate it.
[Shut up! Someone go and poison his ears!]
[My ears are killing me! How can someone sing so terribly? I'm leaving.]
[To be fair, the monsters here are really good-natured; they haven't killed him yet.]
When the song ended, Zhu Ge Yun felt quite pleased with himself, but looking around, there wasn't a single person who had supported him. Even Zheng Yu had disappeared sometime earlier, and the bowl in front of him was empty.
Zheng Yu returned after the singing stopped. "I told you your busking method wouldn't work."
Zhu Ge Yun sighed. "It must be because there aren't enough people right now. I'll try again tonight."
"Zhu Ge Yun."
Yan Chi seized the opportunity and pulled Shen Mingsu towards Zhu Ge Yun.
Zhu Ge Yun stopped, startled when he saw Shen Mingsu behind Yan Chi, and hid behind Zheng Yu.
Physically speaking, Shen Mingsu had broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and strong, powerful arms. He looked like he could easily punch Zhu Ge Yun to death. Not to mention he was the principal of this school, his rank was ridiculously high. Even if he didn't lift a finger, a few students could easily beat him up.
Zhu Ge Yun was truly terrified and dared not mention Yan Chi as his fan in front of Shen Mingsu again. He hurriedly distanced himself, "I...I really have absolutely nothing to do with Teacher Xiao Chi, please let me go."
Seeing his pale face, Yan Chi glared at Shen Mingsu, annoyed. "We're not here to cause you trouble. This time, he acted impulsively and hurt you. We're here to apologize."
"Apologize...?"
Zhu Ge Yun was stunned.
Yan Chi: "Yes, today due to some misunderstanding, my boyfriend had one of our students hurt you. I'm really sorry."
After saying that, he tugged at Shen Mingsu's hand. Shen Mingsu glanced at Zhu Ge Yun, and although reluctant, he still said sorry.
"N-nothing." Zhu Ge Yun scratched his face, then lowered his head uncomfortably. He hadn't expected Yan Chi to come specifically to apologize for this, and he was overwhelmed with mixed feelings.
Zhu Ge Yun had never been particularly bright, only his mixed-race appearance could fool people. Since being bound to the system, he couldn't hide his intelligence anymore, and being bullied was a common occurrence—who could blame him when those people were stronger than him?
Having been treated like a stranger for so long, the sudden change to being treated as an equal brought tears to Zhu Ge Yun's eyes.
So, being bullied could actually earn him an apology.
Yan Chi, seeing the tears in Zhu Ge Yun's eyes, felt even more guilty. He noticed Zhu Ge Yun had been looking at street food earlier, so he asked Shen Mingsu to buy some for him.
When the steaming hot wheel cakes and jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes) were placed before him, Zhu Ge Yun stammered a thank you, then wolfed them down. Of course, he remembered Zheng Yu was his good friend and shared half with him.
Zheng Yu held the food in his hand without eating, looking at Yan Chi and Shen Mingsu. "What do we need to do if we want to stay in Yunzhou?"
Yan Chi didn't speak, looking at Shen Mingsu.
"Yunzhou doesn't accept just anyone," Shen Mingsu said calmly. "If you want to come in, you naturally have to show me your value."
Zheng Yu pondered for a moment, "...Can you turn off our livestream?"
[So, will love disappear?]
[Huh? Bro, what did you say? You're just going to abandon us like this?]
[Is there anything a esteemed viewer like me can't hear? Don't turn off the livestream, don't make me kneel down and beg you!]
The surging livestream chat vanished without a trace in an instant.
Shen Mingsu: "Speak."
"You hate the members of the Termites, don't you? I can help you kill them." Zheng Yu adjusted his glasses, looking directly into Shen Mingsu's eyes with neither servility nor arrogance. "Perhaps their heads can be my ticket to Yunzhou."
Shen Mingsu nodded and smiled. "You're a smart man, but why should I trust you?"
Zheng Yu frowned. "I can bring their corpses back."
"Then how can I be sure you didn't just kill a few ordinary players and try to fool me with their bodies?"
Zheng Yu fell silent. In their eyes, this unfamiliar player indeed had nothing to be trusted, and their suspicion was understandable.
"So what do you want?"
"It's simple. Come with us to see someone. But let me warn you, after you see her, you won't have complete control over your body anymore. If you even think of betraying us, no matter how far away you are, we can easily kill you."
After explaining this to him, Shen Mingsu asked, "So, are you going?"
This time, Zheng Yu didn't agree immediately. He clenched his fists, constantly analyzing the pros and cons, the benefits he could gain, and the risks he would bear. After a period of deep thought, he looked up at Shen Mingsu, "We'll go."
The word "we" made Zhu Ge Yun look up from his food, his face full of disbelief. "What? Me? I'll kill the termites?"
The termite members' reputation for madness was widespread among the players. Most players would avoid them like the plague, and Zhu Ge Yun naturally avoided them as well. Now, being asked to voluntarily kill them made Zhu Ge Yun's heart tremble.
Zheng Yu glanced at him. "You don't want to live in Yunzhou anymore?"
Zhu Ge Yun: "Yes... I dream about it."
Who wouldn't want a life without the fear of being killed at any moment?
The two reached a consensus and followed Shen Mingsu and Yan Chi to find Ming Danxi. Ming Danxi was cooking for her three daughters at home. She casually glanced at Zheng Yu and Zhu Ge Yun and told them to leave.
Afterwards, Zhu Ge Yun was dazed. He looked at his hands, then touched his head. "Is that all? I don't feel any change."
Zheng Yu: "Maybe we'll both be dead when it really takes effect."
Zhu Ge Yun chuckled. "Yeah, right."
A few days later, none of the players who had come in stayed in Yunzhou, much to the astonishment of those who had tried to settle there. Wasn't it supposed to be that everyone could stay once they arrived? Why could everyone else stay, but they couldn't?
The players were completely baffled. Then, a rumor spread from who-knows-where that Yunzhou hated members of the Termites organization, and would refuse to accept any player even remotely associated with them.
This made the Termites' already tarnished reputation even worse. Before making friends, players would always ask if the other person was related to the Termites and what their attitude towards them was. If they sensed anything amiss, they would immediately distance themselves.
A newcomer to the Termites organization began to doubt his decision, as he constantly heard players cursing and disdainfully defaming the organization as he passed by.
The veteran player who was mentoring him saw the struggle on his face, took him to a secluded corner, and slapped him hard across the face. The newcomer's face was turned to the side, and blood trickled from his lip.
"Are you awake now?" The veteran player gently cupped his face, his voice tender. "Child, have those voices clouded your judgment? Have you forgotten why you joined the termites in the first place?"
The newcomer: "I...I want to live peacefully."
"Yes, we must survive. That's exactly what we need to do now." The veteran player patted his head. "We have no home, so we must find one for ourselves. We must use our efforts to take what we deserve from those NPCs."
"They only went to those small worlds before us, so why can they live there peacefully? While we are forced to live a life of wandering. It's not fair. The world belongs to everyone, and we have the right to decide where we live."
The veteran player leaned on the newcomer's shoulder, telling him earnestly, "Heroes are always looked down upon, and those mediocre people always claim to be righteous and judge us."
"But one day, when they are driven away by those NPCs, like homeless dogs, they will understand that we were right."
The newcomer's eyes gradually hardened, and he nodded emphatically. "Yes! We were right!"
The veteran player smiled with satisfaction. "Good boy."
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