Zhang San looked at Zhao Shang in confusion. "Shang, did you notify Chao Musheng?"
Zhao Shang shook his head slowly. He had just taken out his phone but hadn’t yet had the chance to message Chao Musheng.
"I was just passing by when I heard—" Chao Musheng stepped into the bathroom and saw Zhou Yi, drenched from head to toe. The smile on his face instantly faded. "Old Zhou?"
The younger boy, terrified at the sight of Chao Musheng, shrank into a corner and stayed silent.
Chen Er shot Zhang San and Zhao Shang a fierce glare. "Mind your own business!"
With that, he stormed off, sidestepping Chao Musheng as he left.
What a cowardly piece of trash!
Zhang San wanted to tell Chao Musheng right then and there that those two had been bullying Zhou Yi. But seeing that Zhao Shang remained silent and Zhou Yi kept his head down without a word, he had no choice but to stay quiet as well.
The bathroom fell into silence, broken only by the dripping faucet.
Chao Musheng walked over to the sink, turned on the tap, and began washing his hands. "I kinda feel like sneaking out for some barbecue. You guys in? My treat."
"Huh?" Zhang San was baffled, but seeing Zhao Shang nod, he followed suit.
"Old Zhou, you’re coming with me too." Chao Musheng shook the water off his hands and slung an arm around Zhou Yi’s neck, whispering in his ear, "I’m not too familiar with these two exchange students yet. If you don’t come along, the vibe’s gonna be off."
The warmth of his arm seeped through Zhou Yi’s chilled skin, little by little.
Finally, some expression returned to Zhou Yi’s numb face. Meeting Chao Musheng’s pleading gaze, his lips parted slightly before he gave a stiff nod.
"Let’s go, let’s go. I’ll take you back to the dorm to change first." Chao Musheng grinned and tightened his hold around Zhou Yi’s neck. "You’re such a bro. The other three in my dorm just wanna game all day."
"Zhang San, Zhao Shang, wait for us at the school’s back gate. We’ll be quick." With that, Chao Musheng draped an arm over Zhou Yi’s shoulder and led him out of the bathroom.
Once outside, Zhang San turned to Zhao Shang and asked quietly, "Shang, do you think Chao Musheng really didn’t notice Zhou Yi was being bullied?"
"No, he noticed." Zhao Shang shook his head, his gaze lingering on the retreating figures of Chao Musheng and Zhou Yi. "He’s protecting Zhou Yi."
Zhang San still didn’t get it. "What do you mean?"
"He’s protecting Zhou Yi’s dignity." Zhao Shang lowered his eyes, masking his emotions. "Zhou Yi seems like the introverted but proud type. The fact that he didn’t say a word even after being bullied by Chen Er means he’s already emotionally broken. If we made a scene and drew a crowd, how do you think that would affect his mental state?"
"But if we don’t do anything, he’ll keep getting bullied." Zhang San muttered a curse under his breath before brightening slightly. "Maybe Chao Musheng has a way to handle it?"
Hearing this, Zhao Shang couldn’t help but give Zhang San a long look.
Zhang San probably didn’t even realize it himself—he was starting to trust an NPC from the game.
"Shang, why are you looking at me like that?" Zhang San rubbed his arms uncomfortably.
"You’re right. Maybe Chao Musheng has a plan." Zhao Shang opened his phone to find a new message from Chao Musheng:
[Let’s just enjoy the barbecue tonight. We’ll talk about the rest tomorrow.]
Reassured, Zhang San even started wondering if eating barbecue could boost his HP.
By the time the four of them met up and settled into their seats at the barbecue stall outside the school, Zhang San suddenly remembered something. "Chao, does the school have a curfew?"
"Yep." Chao Musheng was busy ordering a feast, including a round of chilled drinks. "But don’t worry. With me around, I’ll make sure you get back safe. Right, Old Zhou?"
"Yeah." Zhou Yi, seated beside Chao Musheng, nodded. He didn’t seem like much of a talker, but whenever Chao Musheng addressed him, he responded earnestly.
Zhao Shang noticed how careful Zhou Yi was—even his used skewers were neatly lined up in a row.
Still, compared to how lifeless he’d been in the bathroom, he now seemed a little more alive.
After the meal, Chao Musheng went to pay but ran into some issue and called Zhou Yi over.
After a brief exchange, Zhou Yi pulled out six yuan from his pocket and handed it to the stall owner.
Chao Musheng’s face lit up. He glanced over at Zhang San and Zhao Shang, as if trying to keep them from noticing, then leaned in to whisper something to Zhou Yi.
For the first time, Zhou Yi smiled.
Zhao Shang averted his gaze, focusing instead on the pile of skewers on the table.
"Shang, were you just smiling?" Zhang San leaned in to ask.
Zhao Shang pushed him away with a straight face. "No, you’re seeing things."
He just happened to know a bit of lip-reading.
Chao Musheng had said he was six yuan short and didn’t want to lose face in front of the exchange students—thankfully, Zhou Yi had his back.
Minutes later, the four stood outside the school’s perimeter wall.
"Chao, when you said we’d get back ‘safe and sound,’ you meant climbing the school wall?" Zhang San was stunned. In a high-stakes elite school scenario, an NPC was leading players to scale the walls?
Exploration missions really were different—no unbreakable rules, just NPCs with zero regard for convention.
"Relax, this part’s easy." Chao Musheng hopped over first, then pulled Zhou Yi up after him. Peering through the bars, he waved at them. "Hurry up!"
Zhao Shang vaulted over the railing with one hand.
Chao Musheng clapped. "Smooth!"
Zhao Shang’s ears turned red as he helped Zhang San down from the wall.
"We just… got in?" Zhang San stared back in disbelief.
"What, were you expecting a teleportation spell?" Chao Musheng slung an arm around Zhou Yi’s shoulders, laughing at Zhang San’s disheveled state.
Only Zhao Shang understood Zhang San’s shock. The day before, they’d tried entering the school from other points, only to be blocked by an invisible barrier.
The only way in had been through the main gate with their IDs.
But now, that barrier was gone.
In the distance, a security patrol vehicle noticed the commotion and veered toward them.
Zhang San’s heart raced. Was this it? The classic "players chased by campus security" trope?
But as the vehicle drew closer, one of the guards stuck his head out, locked eyes with Chao Musheng—and without hesitation, the car smoothly turned around and drove off.
Zhang San exhaled in relief. So Chao Musheng hadn’t been bluffing—this really was the "safe and sound" route. "Chao, you’re tight with security?"
"That guard’s my neighbor from downstairs," Chao Musheng coughed. "C’mon, let’s head back to the dorms."
Zhang San marveled at how straightforward connections could be, even in a game world.
Back in the dorm, Zhou Yi’s three roommates were still awake.
When he returned, his roommates looked worried. "Zhou Yi, why are you back so late? Chen Er came looking for you earlier with two other guys. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Zhou Yi paused for a moment before adding, "I went out for late-night snacks with Chao Musheng."
Hearing that he was with Chao Musheng, the roommates relaxed. "Then hurry up and shower. Lights-out is soon."
Zhou Yi opened his closet and rummaged for clothes, revealing a fruit knife and several bottles of alcohol hidden at the bottom.
He stared at them silently for a few seconds before covering them with his clothes.
Just a little longer. He had to wait at least until next month.
Chao Musheng and his roommates were short on living expenses right now, and they relied on him to help them at the cafeteria window.
In the neighboring dorm, three roommates were devouring the skewers Chao Musheng had brought back.
"Old Fourth, Old Fourth, you went out for barbecue and didn’t take us? Guess our bond means nothing now, huh? No love left, huh?"
"Then don’t eat the skewers I brought back." Chao Musheng wiped his hair as he sat down, eyeing the three grease-covered faces with disdain. "I’m going home this weekend, so don’t expect me to bring you anything."
"No, no, no! Our brotherly love for you is as eternal as the sun and moon!" Old Third put down his skewer and grinned, pouring him a glass of water. "Old Fourth, Brother Chao, our savior! My high school friend is visiting tomorrow—could you lend me some money?"
Chao Musheng raised an eyebrow. "High school friend or secret crush?"
Old Third chuckled sheepishly, rubbing his hands together.
"Money’s sent." Chao Musheng took a sip of the water Old Third had poured him. "Now scram, Thirdie."
"Your Majesty’s grace is boundless!" With the money secured, Old Third retreated in satisfaction.
+++++++
"Last night, I had a dream. I saw a dorm room engulfed in flames, and the hallway was filled with panicked shouts from boys, yelling about someone being killed. Not long after, someone jumped from the eighth floor."
The female player speaking had a unique skill—prophetic dreams—but this ability only activated randomly once per mission.
With no progress made in the mission for days, the players took advantage of today’s school festival preparations, when the supervisors were too busy to monitor their studies, to gather and discuss.
"Are you sure the hallway in your dream was full of boys?"
"Yes."
"Then the incident must have happened in the boys’ dorm." The responding player frowned. "But the campus is huge, and there are so many male dorm buildings. How do we even begin to find the right one?"
"I remember now!" The female player exclaimed. "The building had rose bushes blooming beautifully underneath, vibrant and colorful."
"And—and—" She pressed a hand to her throbbing temple. "In the dream, I saw a student’s phone light up with a news alert: 'Horrific Incident on the Eve of First University’s School Festival—Who’s to Blame?'"
"That’s strange." The player nicknamed "Vegetable" interjected. "Today is the school festival. If something that big happened last night, no matter how foolish the school administrators are, they wouldn’t ignore public backlash and proceed with such a grand celebration. Are you sure you didn’t misremember?"
The female player began doubting herself. "I—I don’t know."
"Alright, if no one has useful leads, let’s not waste time." Two male players stood up, brushing grass off their clothes. "We’ve got things to do. Later."
Zhao Shang watched as the two hurried toward a familiar-looking guy near the sports field—one of Chen Er’s lackeys from last night.
The two players bowed and scraped before the guy, their faces full of sycophantic smiles, before following him away.
"Didn’t expect them to latch onto a local’s coattails." Vegetable muttered enviously. "No wonder they’ve been acting so high and mighty."
Using locals to clear missions was a common tactic among players, but the ones in this mission were notoriously hard to please. How had those two managed to get in good graces?
Zhang San crossed his arms proudly, chin lifted. What kind of "big shot" was that?
Could they even compare to Brother Chao?
No taste at all.
