Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 26: Night Talk

If someone had told him four days ago that he could share a room with Wu Sheng—not the school’s bunk beds—without any other beds or roommates around, just the two of them, lone men together, staring into each other’s faces, Xu Wang could have imagined a hundred dramatic and explosive scenarios, each with its unique thunderous roars and flames.

Now, this dreamy scene had actually become a reality.

Exhausted to the point of not wanting to move even a finger, Xu Wang was looking forward to diving into bed and sleeping soundly.

Drive*?

*Referring to driving a car, which is a euphemism for sex. 

That’s for when one is alert. Driving while fatigued isn’t recommended!

His eyelids growing heavier, Xu Wang mustered the energy to head to the bathroom. Halfway there, he remembered to call out to Wu Sheng, “You don’t need the toilet urgently, right? I’ll just wash my face first.”

He didn’t look back. It was more of an announcement than a question.

Hearing no response from Wu Sheng behind him, Xu Wang took it as consent and went into the bathroom, hastily washed his face with cold water, brushed his teeth, and finished within a few minutes. Coming out, he found Wu Sheng squatting in a corner, inspecting a half-person-tall hiking bag.

“Isn’t that Xiao Kuang’s bag?” Xu Wang curiously approached.

When they had returned to the room, they were still shocked by the “auntie’s memory loss” and hadn’t noticed anything new in the corner. The issue of Kuang Jinxin’s missing backpack had long been forgotten.

“Yeah, it’s Xiao Kuang’s,” Wu Sheng confirmed. “It must have been stopped at the last moment, just like your fruit knife.”

He opened the backpack, not to rummage through but just to look.

Xu Wang stood behind him, also peering in, noticing that the surface was filled with daily necessities and occasionally glimpsing bits of snack wrappers deep inside.

Clearly, this was a “camping” type of bag, consistent with what Kuang Jinxin had said, and it didn’t contain any dangerous items.

So, such a harmless bag was also stopped…

“Is it really because it’s too big?” Other than its impressive size, Xu Wang couldn’t find any other faults with the bag.

“Maybe,” Wu Sheng mused, still squatting there, thoughtfully.

Xu Wang knew this meant Wu Sheng was starting to enter new information into his database, preparing for future similar queries or updating the answers when the truth was revealed.

Wu Sheng’s mind was like an empire of hackers—at least, that was what Xu Wang thought in high school.

Unable to match Wu Sheng’s brainpower, Xu Wang could only resort to talking; otherwise, it’d be too awkward just standing there. “You and Xiao Kuang really need to balance out.”

After completing his input, Wu Sheng turned back with a puzzled look.

“You two are just two extremes.” Xu Wang gestured towards Wu Sheng’s slim dual-shoulder laptop bag. “His bag can hold an entire world, while yours seems to be full with just a laptop.”

Wu Sheng stood up, raised his eyebrows slightly, and said in a slightly raised tone, “Are, you, sure?”

Xu Wang involuntarily stepped back, his mind suddenly flashing with numerous domineering CEO lines from idol dramas—great, you’ve caught my attention.

His heartbeat skipped, then pounded erratically. Xu Wang tried to maintain a natural expression as he watched Wu Sheng stride over, pick up the laptop bag, then turn back and place it on the table, unzipping it and taking out the items one by one—

Laptop.

External hard drive.

USB drives.

Memory cards.

Power bank.

Kindle.

Earphones.

A box full of identical-looking data cables.

A small pack of clothes and daily necessities that seemed to be stuffed in as shock absorbers for the electronic devices…

Finally, after the display, Wu Sheng slowly raised his eyes with a proud smile at the corners of his mouth, nonchalantly shaking his head at Xu Wang. “Never underestimate a programmer’s laptop bag.”

Xu Wang: “……”

His flustered heart felt foolish!

Wu Sheng, satisfied with his equipment, touched this and looked at that, casually flipping out a box not much bigger than his palm from a pile of mysterious items.

Xu Wang craned his neck to see, finding it to be a small, transparent plastic box with a conspicuous red cross.

“You even brought a medical kit?” Xu Wang was truly surprised. “When did you start living so delicately?”

“It’s called being prepared for anything. The first level was a bear—who knows what we’ll encounter in the second level. I never think my life is too long.”

“Alright, you’re thorough; you’re the best.”

“Still, it’s overkill. After all, with my agility, it’s hard to get injured and even harder to use it.”

“……”

He had blindly praised, so why did he still not dodge the show-off strike?!

“Forget it. Let’s give it to someone who needs it more.” Wu Sheng sighed, walking over and stuffing the medical kit into Xu Wang’s hands, feigning reluctance.

Xu Wang’s mouth twitched, feeling the “gift” was more like a curse. “I, don’t, need, it.”

Wu Sheng tilted his head, innocently asking, “How’s your back after that bear pounce?”

“……” Xu Wang was defeated.

Five minutes later.

Xu Wang took off his shirt and lay on the bed. His mind was in chaos, unable to sort out how things had progressed to this point. If he remembered correctly, it all started with Wu Sheng finding Kuang Jinxin’s hiking bag, so how did it end up with Wu Sheng changing his bandages?

“The wound isn’t too deep,” Wu Sheng commented as he removed the old bandage, inspecting it for a couple of seconds.

Xu Wang rolled his eyes, swearing he couldn’t detect a hint of concern. “Sorry to disappoint you.”

As he waited for Wu Sheng to retort, a sudden chill from the iodine on his wound made Xu Wang gasp. “Brother, are you applying iodine or seeking revenge!”

“Only if you stand the greatest hardships can you hope to rise in society*.”

*Idiom referring to those who have endured innumerable hardships will gain fame and wealth and become a person respected and loved by others. 

“Is that even applicable here?!”

“Now I know why there are fewer and fewer people willing to help others.” Wu Sheng, undeterred, diligently dabbed the iodine around the wound perimeter, meanwhile lamenting the deterioration of the world. “It’s not that there are no good people; it’s just that it’s hard to do good deeds.”

In his soft sigh, there wasn’t only the bitterness of kindness unappreciated but also the frustration of being misunderstood, coupled with a bit of the nobility of repaying evil with good. It was a fully-dimensional, comprehensive occupation of the moral high ground, exerting moral supremacy over his opponent.

Beggars can’t be choosers*. Xu Wang was using Wu Sheng’s bandages, iodine, and labor. He kept his mouth shut under the weight of his conscience.

*One who eats from others has a short mouth; one who takes from others has soft hands. It’s a proverb that means if you accept someone’s generosity or favors, you might feel less obliged to be able to speak out or act freely against them.

As the conversation—or rather, the bickering—came to a halt, the room quietened down, so quiet that it felt like you could hear time ticking away with each of Wu Sheng’s not-so-gentle movements.

“Not really gentle” was Xu Wang’s subjective view. In reality, apart from the initial cold shock of the iodine, he hadn’t felt any discomfort afterward. On the contrary, it was quite cooling and comfortable.

Unable to turn around and see Wu Sheng’s movements and expression, he could only rest his chin on his crossed hands, obediently being a “patient”.

Unfortunately, this patient had a guilty conscience, unable to endure the prolonged silence and peace, always feeling that if he didn’t say something, some ghost might appear. And if, by chance, the person behind him caught it, then he’d never be able to lift his head in front of him again.

“You think…” Xu Wang shuffled uncomfortably, breaking the silence.

But as soon as he spoke two words, he was sharply told, “Don’t move.”

His shoulder was still under Wu Sheng’s care, so Xu Wang didn’t dare to move recklessly, lying still and looking forward. But his mouth still pursued freedom. “What do you think the next level will be?”

“We don’t need to worry about that.” Wu Sheng carefully placed a new bandage on Xu Wang’s wound. “Tomorrow, no, tonight we’ll get the coordinates again.”

“The reward will come too, right?” Xu Wang, resting on his hands, dreamt of the future. “I wonder what stationery we’ll get this time.”

He was genuinely looking forward to it, which Wu Sheng could tell. But precisely because he could tell, he felt the other person’s focus was amusing. “What’s the point? Will it decrease the difficulty of the levels? It’s just a drop in the bucket.”

“……” Xu Wang’s budding desire to have a “nice chat” was squashed with a single comment.

He didn’t oppose being pragmatic, but being pragmatic doesn’t mean every conversation has to be doused in cold water. That hell of a place doesn’t pay wages or provide insurance, and the rewards are the only thing to look forward to. Isn’t even daydreaming allowed anymore? Is living not allowed?

“Hey, later go next door and switch with Xiao Kuang.”

“Huh?”

“Talking to you shortens my life.”

“……”

From where Wu Sheng was, he could only see the back of Xu Wang’s head, but even just that was enough for Wu Sheng to sense the imminent crisis of “the sports rep and the class monitor can’t talk, so the class committee is facing dissolution”.

After a silent ten seconds or so.

The disheartened sports rep heard the class monitor behind him ask in a sincere, curious, and amiable tone. “What do you think the stationery will be?”

The sports rep’s mood brightened.

Sports rep: “Definitely something even weirder and more interesting!”

“Haa…” The class monitor let out a long sigh full of survival instinct. “I think so too.”

Xu Wang was satisfied. Good, the class committee can cooperate for another five hundred years.

Finishing with the last piece of tape, Wu Sheng patted Xu Wang’s lower back. “Done.”

Xu Wang, tickled by the pat, let out a cry. Regretting it immediately, he braced for comments like “Are you made of tofu?” or “You’re overacting.” But after waiting a while with no response, he turned his head to find Wu Sheng already at the bathroom door.

As if sensing something, Wu Sheng, who already had one foot in the bathroom, stopped and turned back to look at Xu Wang.

Their eyes met, and the air froze.

Xu Wang, who was using his small hands as a pillow, felt blessed at the moment. “Thank you.”

Wu Sheng’s eyes softened, and he waved his hand lightly. “No need to be too moved.”

If he weren’t so tired that lifting a finger was hard, Xu Wang would have definitely thrown a slipper at him.

Wu Sheng took a shower and came out almost twenty minutes later. He thought Xu Wang would have already drifted off to the ninth heaven, but when he approached the bed, he found his bunkmate wide awake, staring at the ceiling in deep thought, as if it held the ultimate secrets of life.

“What are you thinking about?” Wu Sheng climbed into his own bed, shaking out his blanket while curiously asking.

“Why hasn’t it disappeared?” Xu Wang said, unsure if he was answering or just talking to himself.

“What disappeared?” Wu Sheng listened but didn’t understand.

Xu Wang simply turned over to lie on his side, staring intently at his bunkmate with an attitude ready for a long night’s discussion. “The stationery. Why hasn’t it disappeared?”

“Is it about [Cao Chong Weighing the Elephant]?” Wu Sheng guessed naturally in that direction. “The reason it might not be usable is probably due to not meeting the conditions, like not enough scores, wrong level, or some other restrictions.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about.” Xu Wang shook his head. “I mean, my head also hurts, but when I entered the ‘Owl’, my [Stationery Box] wasn’t emptied, and none of the stationery disappeared.”

“Did you call the police?”

“No, when Auntie Ling came over, I had the thought of opening the door, hoping she’d discover everything and then help us call the police. Just thinking about it made my head hurt.”

“But you still didn’t open the door, right?” Wu Sheng also lay on his side, facing Xu Wang across the bed. “Thinking and doing are still different.”

“But there was also deliberate intention. This is no different in essence from the others’ calling the police, and I was also warned by the headache.”

“They persisted in calling the police even after the headaches. You didn’t persist in opening the door, did you?”

“Er, no.”

“That’s the essential difference,” Wu Sheng said. “In programming, a command issued is issued, not issued is not issued. The program doesn’t execute a certain command because you ‘want to issue’ it.”

Xu Wang glared at him. “That’s a programmer’s way of thinking.”

Wu Sheng yawned. “How do you know the world inside the ‘Owl’ isn’t a large program?”

“Program?” Xu Wang repeated dully.

“It’s just a metaphor,” Wu Sheng said. “Every world has its operating logic. Here we rely on natural laws and social norms. The ‘Owl’ has its own logic too. It’s just that we haven’t figured it out yet.”

“Crazy. Having to break through levels, explore rules, match wits and courage with ‘colleagues’, and now I need to study its logic too…” Xu Wang sighed deeply, too exhausted to be angry. “I never win the lottery, and yet I’m always accurate in these unlucky situations.”

He expected Wu Sheng to agree, but the other bed was quiet for a while.

Xu Wang looked over curiously and found Wu Sheng’s expression calm, not showing any sign of discontent or anger.

“Don’t you think it’s unlucky?” Xu Wang asked seriously.

Wu Sheng pondered for a moment, then answered seriously, “It’s okay.”

Xu Wang doubted his ears. “It’s okay?”

“Although life is severely disrupted, sleep completely reversed, and work struggle forcibly interrupted, but…” Wu Sheng quietly watched him for a while, then suddenly smiled. “It’s okay.”

Xu Wang watched the smile on Wu Sheng’s face incredulously, taking almost a minute to digest and finally believing that the man was serious.

It reminded him of a test in high school when Wu Sheng complained that the test paper was too easy—a glance before the test would score full marks, not reflecting the real level of learning, making the test process extremely boring and unenjoyable.

Although Xu Wang didn’t understand the term “the fun in learning”, it was clear that the teacher took the words to heart. To give these “top students,” who were unaware of their limits, a lesson in humility, the difficulty of the second test jumped from bronze to king level. For the final big question, Xu Wang couldn’t even understand the question, and Wu Sheng also didn’t solve it within the exam time. In the end, they both handed in their papers without scoring any points for this question.

Later, when the teacher was reviewing the paper, before explaining the answer to the last question, he first gave a lesson in humility, saying that even if you’re good at studying, you need to be modest, prudent, and not too ambitious. But before he finished, Wu Sheng raised his hand, claiming he had solved the question and was “invited” by the teacher, albeit reluctantly, to write three solutions on the board, the last of which was specially marked as not using “formulas learned”, just for reference.

To this day, Xu Wang still believes it was the teacher’s moral fortitude that he didn’t reprimand Wu Sheng with a ruler.

“What are you thinking about now?” Wu Sheng watched as Xu Wang got lost in thought while talking to him, feeling complicated.

Xu Wang brought his thoughts back and sighed at Wu Sheng. In a rare moment, he said earnestly, “I’m thinking, why do you like solving difficult problems and tackling challenges so much? Isn’t it nice to live easily? Ever heard of ‘contentment brings happiness’?”

“I’ve never really understood that phrase.” Wu Sheng sincerely asked, “What’s there to enjoy when you’re satisfied? Isn’t it better to always have a direction to strive in, to always have the joy of climbing?”

“…Forget it. I don’t understand your high-IQ world.” Xu Wang gave up the discussion, turned over, and lay facing away from Wu Sheng, so as not to get more upset by looking at him.

“You don’t need to understand.” Came the understanding voice from the next bed. “Just admire me.”

Xu Wang: “Good night!”

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