MS Chapter 50

Ouyang Bai truly thought Lu Qingjia was impressive.

To say that administrators are also human is normal; before becoming transcendent beings, they have experienced losses, been deceived, and undergone unimaginable trials—except for him, of course.

Lucky person, no solution!

Everyone has a starting point; no one is born knowing everything.

However, the dark history about Zhong Liyu that Game revealed left the administrators in awe.

Because this guy was deceived after becoming an administrator.

He was completely toyed with, and the one who deceived him was just an ordinary person. Based on the weight of the confidential information Zhong Liyu initially disclosed, it could be said to be the most absurd scandal in Game history.

Moreover, not only that, but afterward, this guy also refused to admit that he was simply deceived.

When Game exposed his dark history and the administrators mocked him in unison, he still insisted that they were true love.

What the hell is the difference between this and the brainless male protagonist in a melodramatic novel?

Oh! There is a difference; he is submissive to the con artist but strikes hard at his colleagues.

At that time, curiosity was piqued, and he wanted to see what kind of emotional con artist in reality could turn an administrator who was almost omniscient about the world, dimensions, and time into a foolish dog.

As a result, Zhong Liyu flew into a rage and immediately fought with the meddlesome fake celestial master and the two-headed snake, taking on three without holding back.

The fake celestial master was fine; he was already carefree and heartless, so it was just gossip that got beaten up.

But the two-headed snake held a grudge, and the more he was told not to provoke, the more he wanted to explore. Unfortunately, although the two-headed snake’s code name represented two Players occupying one position, their combat strength combined was far inferior to Zhong Liyu.

And Zhong Liyu’s reality was not the same world as theirs; the instance world had its own spheres of influence, and the real world naturally could not be casually crossed.

So they could only resentfully take note of this, and both sides grew to dislike each other.

After that, the nickname “Green Hat Char Siu” for Zhong Liyu became a laughingstock among the administrators, and the two-headed snake certainly played a significant role in that.

But it was indeed fitting.

Looking back, when Zhong Liyu received the nickname “Green Hat Char Siu,” “Sucker” and “Fake Celestial Master” each held one of his hands: “Bro, this nickname is loud, both impressive and memorable.”

“Just four words, the amount of information revealed is shocking. The courage of someone who dares to bear this nickname is something ordinary people cannot reach. This is really good; brother, you should keep it.”

Zhong Liyu almost fought with them again on the spot: “Damn you two, stop trying to get close. Don’t drag me into claiming a humiliating nickname you willingly accepted.”

“Especially you, Sucker, do you still have the face to laugh? Didn’t you see that beast from Game sitting in your wife’s chest again?”

The already battered conference room erupted into another round of applause!

However, afterward, Zhong Liyu shielded that con artist from the heavenly secrets, cutting off any investigation from others, even Ouyang Bai couldn’t figure it out out of curiosity.

He never expected it would be his old classmate Lu Qingjia.

Ouyang Bai immediately held Lu Qingjia in high regard, and then his gossip spirit ignited: “Come on, tell me about it.”

“How did you manage to con this guy? Honestly, I’ve always envied your emotional intelligence. Although I have pretty good social skills in reality, I somehow have a bad reputation in Game. At this point, relying on natural charm is no longer enough.”

“I think your ability to turn an administrator into a fool is exactly what I need right now. If I could learn your skills of being a well-dressed beast—uh, I mean, your sweet-talking ability, I wouldn’t be so disliked.”

As he spoke, he noticed Zhong Liyu still standing aside, looking innocent, and urged, “Old Zhong, weren’t you supposed to prepare skewers for us to drink? Why are you still here?”

Zhong Liyu pressed down on Ouyang Bai’s head, his large hand enclosing it, making his little head squeak.

His face appeared beside Ouyang Bai: “You don’t need to be modest, your ability to play dumb is pretty good too.”

“Aren’t you supposed to call me dad? Go ahead! Your dad is waiting.”

Ouyang Bai’s heart skipped a beat, but since he could lie his way into becoming an administrator and was inexplicably feared by all the powerful Players, at least he was clever.

His talent was to grasp the key points, whether by accident, relying on strong intuition, or self-analysis.

In short, his methods were often incisive.

So he glanced at Lu Qingjia, broke free from Zhong Liyu, and pounced on Lu Qingjia: “Mom, you can’t ignore me.”

Lu Qingjia, having such a big son, instinctively took advantage of the situation—

He immediately smoothed Zhong Liyu’s hair and said affectionately, “Hey! Good son.”

Then Zhong Liyu’s face turned red as he walked out, saying, “I’m going to get the barbecue; you two sit for a while, and remember to light the mosquito repellent when you go outside.”

He then told Ouyang Bai, “Take good care of your mom; your dad will be back soon.”

Ouyang Bai: “…”

For some reason, he still felt like he was at a disadvantage.

Ouyang Bai was unhappy and immediately said, “Wait, what are you holding in your hand?”

Zhong Liyu’s body stiffened, glancing at the bathrobe in his hand, and took a few steps back to carefully fold it and put it back on the bed: “It’s nothing; I saw Jiajia’s clothes were thrown around when he entered Game, so I planned to help him fold them.”

“Call the boss!” Lu Qingjia said.

“Boss!” Zhong Liyu replied obediently.

Ouyang Bai interrupted again: “Why do I feel something is off?”

“What’s off?” Lu Qingjia asked.

Zhong Liyu quickly pushed his head away: “It’s an illusion; go bump your head against the stone mill in the yard a couple of times to make sure.”

“That’s not it; there’s a time issue here,” Ouyang Bai asserted: “The time in reality has been paused, not a large range, probably just in this room.”

Then he pointed to the alarm clock on Lu Qingjia’s bedside: “Huh? Why is your room’s clock half an hour behind the one in the living room?”

Having experienced the last instance, Lu Qingjia’s strength had improved, and his perception ability could penetrate thick barriers, so he looked directly at the large clock in the hall, and indeed, as Ouyang Bai said.

He glanced at Zhong Liyu, and this fool’s face stiffened, revealing an expression of impending doom.

Lu Qingjia looked at him, his eyes narrowing, and beads of sweat began to appear on Zhong Liyu’s face, looking as cowardly as possible.

Lu Qingjia sneered: “Where’s the stuff?”

Zhong Liyu quickly defended himself: “What stuff? Are you accusing me of stealing your things?” He showed an incredulous expression: “No, you should at least follow basic principles when wronging someone.”

“Bro—what does a worker like me lack? Coming out to work is purely a hobby, to realize my life’s value. Why would I steal your things?”

“Then what’s with the two seconds in my room turning into half an hour?”

“Is it wrong that I didn’t have enough time to help you fold your clothes?” Zhong Liyu argued: “Think about it, that was only two seconds; what could I do in two seconds?”

“I haven’t really done much work in my life, so my efficiency is a bit slow; you have to let me adapt. Am I not doing well enough? I saw the clothes you threw around in your bedroom and folded them; where can you find such an observant employee?”

“It’s just that two seconds is too short; I was halfway through folding when you came out, and not only did I not finish the task, but I also ended up hugging your bathrobe like a pervert. How does that make sense?”

Not to mention Lu Qingjia, even Ouyang Bai had never seen such a fool who inadvertently confessed.

He thought for a moment; he hadn’t interacted much with Zhong Liyu before, just occasionally nodding at administrator meetings, and those meetings weren’t frequent, so in reality, he had only seen him a handful of times.

But he had always thought this guy was quite clever; before Game exposed his dark history, Ouyang Bai had always felt this dude was cool, handsome, and imposing, but he never expected him to be such a fool.

Lu Qingjia said slowly: “So that’s why it took you half an hour to fold a bathrobe, and when I came out, you were still holding it?”

Zhong Liyu awkwardly replied: “I have high standards; it must be perfectly sized, smooth on the surface, and not have a single wrinkle.”

“And then the more you folded, the less satisfied you became, so you started borrowing tools to assist, right?”

“Yes, yes!” Zhong Liyu quickly said: “Boss, you’re really smart.”

Lu Qingjia nodded: “Then tell me, the ironing board is one thing, but how do you use the toothpaste, toothbrush, shower gel, bath ball, and a shirt and two pairs of underwear from my bathroom as tools?”

Zhong Liyu braced himself: “Isn’t that why I came to borrow these things from you? I was afraid you’d forget them after going in today, so I prepared some for you.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not greedy; I didn’t touch anything that wasn’t unsealed; I only took what you used before, absolutely no waste.”

“So, does that mean I should thank you for helping me deal with my old stuff?”

“No need to thank me; it’s all about being frugal.”

Zhong Liyu nervously looked at him, pondering if this would barely pass.

Then he saw Lu Qingjia break into a smile, charming enough to make him feel dizzy, just as he was about to follow suit with a silly grin.

That beautifully shaped mouth opened to utter just one word: “Get lost!”

That night, Xiao Wei, who was hungry and planned to go out for a bowl of noodles, went downstairs and saw Zhong Liyu being kicked out of the boss’s room.

It was a real kick, the kind with cartoonish effects, where he flew out first and then landed face-first on the ground, pitifully sitting there.

In anger, he shouted inside: “Is it really necessary to treat me like this for taking the wrong things? I only take half the salary and do the work of five people.”

The door slowly opened a crack, and Zhong Liyu’s face lit up with joy, but when he saw that it was Ouyang Bai peeking out, the joy instantly faded.

However, Ouyang Bai didn’t notice his disappointment and cautiously said: “Even though he told you to get lost, could you at least finish making the skewers before you go?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll persuade him to give you a day’s pay.”

Zhong Liyu immediately exploded: “Who the hell do you think you are? If you can’t be my dad, then you’re nothing here; go roast your own worms to eat.”

Ouyang Bai closed the door in disappointment.

Zhong Liyu waited for a long time, but there was no movement inside, clearly indicating they didn’t want to deal with him.

He suddenly felt a surge of sadness, pointing at the door: “Fine, you chase me away, but don’t regret it later.”

Saying that, he left with a gloomy face, not knowing where to go at night.

Xiao Wei was just trying to eat some instant noodles, but now she saw such a juicy piece of gossip.

What just happened? Why did Zhong Liyu run into the boss’s room in the middle of the night? Why was there a handsome guy in the boss’s room? Where did that handsome guy come from? They hadn’t seen him before their shift ended; could it be that he sneaked in at night—

No, this is the boss’s place; is there a need to sneak around?

Also, Zhong Liyu’s words just now were so tragic, it was like a husband bringing home a mistress and making the original partner serve tea and cook.

The amount of information was too much; Xiao Wei lost her appetite for instant noodles and hurried back to the dorm to share the gossip.

As for the topics in the girls’ dorm, Zhong Liyu’s departure didn’t hinder Lu Qingjia and Ouyang Bai from reminiscing over skewers.

Although they had spent enough time together in Game, it was still not reality.

The two took a few cans of cold beer from the fridge, cut up some leftover marinated dishes from the day, and Ouyang Bai had plenty of delicious food in his space, casually taking out a few dishes.

Tonight, the moon was bright and the stars sparse, with a gentle breeze; enjoying beer with marinated dishes was quite pleasant.

Ouyang Bai looked at Lu Qingjia, somewhat hesitant to speak.

Lu Qingjia leisurely sipped his beer and smiled: “If you want to say something, just say it; you really don’t have any of that big shot’s demeanor.”

Ouyang Bai shyly smiled: “Hey, this isn’t really a skill; I don’t feel much about Game, everything has been too smooth. Except for the initial bloody horror that took some getting used to, later I found those ghosts and monsters quite pitiful, and it was just like that.”

“I can’t say I’ve seriously passed the levels; I haven’t fought for my life for any reason. It’s just like clocking in at work; what can I expect to feel?”

Lu Qingjia: “…Forget it, you don’t need to say anything.”

But speaking of it, this guy was sociable and loved to be lively, a typical social animal.

Staying alone for too long would be boring, not to mention the situation in Game where people are disliked. The happiness that is taken for granted in reality, the ease of making friends, and good social connections are incredibly difficult in Game.

What’s the difference between how a corporate worker views work time and personal time? Of course, the constraints and anchors of reality are deeper.

But at this moment, Ouyang Bai no longer wanted to keep quiet; he opened his mouth and directly asked: “Jiajia! Is that grave mound behind the field six hundred meters away related to your family?”

Lu Qingjia was silent for a moment, then chuckled: “No wonder you’re an administrator; you can trace the origins of ashes that have been dead for eight hundred years.”

Ouyang Bai said: “It doesn’t need to be that complicated; remember my ability? Your fate line’s source is so obvious right there, it’s clear at a glance.”

“No wonder you could extract so much information from Zhong Liyu; it turns out you have a close relative who is a Player, so ‘you won’t forget.'”

If it were an ordinary person, even if someone held a loudspeaker next to their ear every day to explain Game and reviewed regularly, they would still forget.

Ouyang Bai asked again: “You dislike Gold-digging Players and Villainous Players so much; is it because of this relative?”

Lu Qingjia glanced at him, puzzled: “Can’t it be that I have a sense of justice?”

Ouyang Bai shook his head: “You don’t have much of a sense of justice.”

“Is it again that Jingjing senior told you?” Lu Qingjia was unfazed, instead intrigued: “Now I want to meet her.”

“No, this is just my own feeling,” Ouyang Bai said: “The first time I saw you, I knew you were a cold person.”

“But it’s strange; usually, I can’t even see through a scammer, yet I just feel certain that you’re not as you appear.”

Lu Qingjia thought for a moment, as if the cold-blooded creature they were discussing wasn’t himself.

He proposed a closer-to-reality answer: “Perhaps those things aren’t worth worrying about?”

Ouyang Bai was taken aback, then suddenly smiled in realization: “Speaking of which, it seems to be like this in Game too; generally, I think someone is a bad person, even if they disguise themselves well, they ultimately won’t be wrong. On the contrary, the clumsy ones are easily deceived by me.”

He said, troubled: “Is my judgment really that bad?”

The two chatted idly, and Lu Qingjia suddenly asked: “Can you help me calculate something?”

Ouyang Bai replied: “Sure, but don’t ask anything too outrageous. I know what you want to know, but a direct answer is definitely out of reach; indirect ones are also very limited, as reality suppresses me by ninety-nine percent.”

“That’s fine; even if I can only get a vague answer, it’s okay.”

Saying this, he went back to his room and brought out a string of prayer beads, which were ordinary in quality, round and smooth, showing signs of frequent wear; it was a simple wooden bracelet.

Lu Qingjia handed it to Ouyang Bai: “Since you can trace origins, can you see where this thing has been?”

The moment Ouyang Bai took the item, he actually already had an answer in his mind, but it seemed he saw something else.

Furrowing his brow, he returned the item to Lu Qingjia: “I know, but I can’t tell you yet.”

Lu Qingjia’s expression darkened: “Why?”

“Because the moment I tell you, the mystery might be revealed. This is a judgment made by the rules based on your performance; now it restricts me—no, it should be restricting you.”

“If I tell you now, my influence won’t be significant, but you might face a disaster you can’t handle in advance.”

Lu Qingjia was silent for a moment, then said with understanding: “Indeed, it’s not that easy.”

If this indirect method could uncover the coordinates of the instance where his uncle was harmed, he would have already extracted it from Zhong Ye.

Zhong Liyu had long been his source of information, and all matters regarding Lu Qingjia were fraught with obstacles when he tried to investigate.

Lu Qingjia could tell that even Zhong Ye might not have found the culprit who harmed his uncle at this moment.

But Ouyang Bai was different; the two had been apart for years and could be said to no longer be in each other’s social circles. Now that they had reunited, it was indeed much easier for him to calculate than for Zhong Liyu.

Lu Qingjia said: “Outside the rules, the source is probably not simple either. If it were just an ordinary intermediate or Advanced Player.”

“Even though I am still an intermediate Player, I can send three people to become Advanced Players, so the rules should have unsealed some parts.”

Ouyang Bai nodded: “Right, below the administrator level, unless a few have reached quasi-administrator strength, no Advanced Player deserves the current treatment. You may not be stronger than the other party, but as long as they are not administrators or quasi-administrators, they should already be at a level where they can grasp the outline of the truth.”

“And now that the rules don’t apply logic, we need to extend our vision.”

“For example, to other Games!” Lu Qingjia said.

Ouyang Bai nodded; this made everything make sense, why they, as administrators, faced so many restrictions, and the closer they got to Lu Qingjia, the more restricted they became.

Because this matter was far beyond the limits of a Game’s rules.

Ouyang Bai finished a bottle of beer and said cheerfully: “But it doesn’t matter; I just calculated this matter for you.”

“I found that not long from now, you will overlap with the line you are pursuing. This means the day you get truly useful clues is coming soon.”

Even Lu Qingjia couldn’t help but have his eyes light up a little at this moment, but the light in them was not purely hopeful, which made Ouyang Bai shiver.

As for Zhong Liyu, after being kicked out as a pervert, he felt extremely wronged. Leaving the farmhouse, he walked nearly half an hour over a hundred meters, and no one came out to stop him.

When he probed his consciousness, he found that the two were already sitting in the garden drinking under the moonlight.

He was both angry and jealous, but after just flipping over, he didn’t dare to go back. With a heart full of grievances and nowhere to vent, he could only return to find his stepmother in shame.

Southeast Asia has a time difference with this side; although it’s only an hour, Madam An, who is used to eating dinner after sunset, had just sat down at the table.

Hearing the servant say the young master was back, she hurriedly said: “Close the main door, turn off the lights, and if anyone asks, say no one is home.”

Uncle Zheng, with a long face, said: “Sister-in-law, the young master doesn’t need anyone when he returns home; he’s not a guest.”

Madam An was exasperated: “It’s all your old folks’ fault.”

“I’ve told you so many times, times have changed. It’s not easy to find a partner these days; smart boys have already lowered their status to learn cooking and take care of children, living happily. You guys, looking at it now, would any woman pay attention to you?”

“Aye, you all spoiled him; leaving too many escape routes, he doesn’t know to fight to the death. Am I really that heartless as a mother? Do you think I want my son to be lonely for life?”

Uncle Zheng’s teeth were already starting to ache, and for a moment, he didn’t know where to start complaining.

“So you think you were easy to pursue back then?” he couldn’t help but say: “The first time my brother asked you out, he got hit on the head with a brick.”