Chapter 15: The Miser’s Demise
On the fifteenth day of the lockdown, it snowed in Mulan City. The coldest time of the year was often the period before snowfall. After the white blanket settled, the temperature actually rose. The hotel had floor heating, so the subtle temperature changes weren’t noticeable. Only the gradually accumulating icicles on the balcony silently announced the arrival of winter.
Chen Jianing’s health had slightly improved, and she now had the energy to wander around during the day. She especially liked going to the billiards room. She didn’t know how to play, but she enjoyed swinging the cue stick like a golden cudgel. She also said she loved Sun Wukong. When other girls wanted Barbie dolls as children, she would clamor for the Monkey King. After learning about her uncertain fate, Chen Jianing’s mentality changed. She became more talkative with Lu Li and more uninhibited.
In the first few days, she would still get out of bed and try to tidy up her room. Later, when Lu Li pushed open the door, all he saw was a mess.
Lu Li brought back two lunch boxes. The portions were smaller than before. The kitchen staff had said that the supplies in the warehouse weren’t infinite. For the long term, the staff’s meals had been halved. Only when absolutely necessary would they reduce the meals for the distinguished guests on the fifth floor. Lu Li didn’t mind. He and Chen Jianing didn’t have big appetites anyway.
Chen Jianing was sitting on the bed, watching cartoons on the children’s channel with great interest.
Come on, even Jingyi wouldn’t watch such childish cartoons. Lu Li curled his lip and placed the lunch boxes on the bedside table.
“I’m not hungry.” Chen Jianing was engrossed in the cartoons.
“You’re a college student. Still watching Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf? Isn’t that childish?”
“You’re just a high school student, what right do you have to call me childish?” Chen Jianing glared at him fiercely. “If you calculate our ages carefully, you should call me ‘sister.’ Hmph, call me ‘sister’ and let me hear it.”
“A little kid who doesn’t even reach my chest wants to be my sister?” Lu Li scoffed.
Chen Jianing hated it the most when people called her short – she was indeed short, petite and slender, her delicate features making her appear even smaller. She puffed up her cheeks and glared at Lu Li. “Don’t call me short!”
“Short, short, short, short, short…”
Furious, Chen Jianing grabbed Lu Li’s right hand and bit down hard. The pain made Lu Li jerk his hand back. “You dog, let go!”
Chen Jianing clenched her teeth and refused to let go, her eyes narrowed in a smile. She said through gritted teeth, “Still calling me short? Hehehe…”
“You’re drooling, isn’t that disgusting?”
“I’ll disgust you to death.”
“You’re hopeless.”
After a while of fooling around, the cartoon ended. Chen Jianing finally picked up her bowl and started eating, but her appetite wasn’t good. Lu Li examined the teeth marks on his arm and winced in pain. This damn girl really didn’t hold back, biting so hard. Did she think he was a piece of pork?
He couldn’t help but look at Chen Jianing’s profile. “Delicate” was the perfect word to describe her. She had a small face with beautiful features, but lacked a certain grandeur, the typical Jiangnan girl. But her personality was truly annoying.
“Don’t look at me.” Chen Jianing suddenly said.
Was that sarcasm or not? Lu Li was confused.
“Hey, Lu Li.” She spoke again. “About that first wish, let’s forget about it.” After waiting for so long, Lu Li hadn’t given her any updates. Chen Jianing naturally assumed that he had given up. She didn’t want him to waste any more effort. After all, he had already taken care of her for so long, he had done enough.
“I was just about to talk to you about that.” Lu Li left the room under Chen Jianing’s puzzled gaze. He returned shortly with his laptop and logged into her Valve account in front of her. “Look at the backend data.”
“Positive rating… 36%?” Chen Jianing’s eyes widened. “How did you do that?” The positive rating of Black Wolf’s Ring was only 3% before. How could it have increased more than tenfold in just seven or eight days? It was unbelievable.
“I opened the refund channel.” Lu Li’s words made Chen Jianing, the big cat, bristle.
“What?!”
Chen Jianing had another hidden attribute: she was a miser. She loved hoarding money, like a hamster. If anyone tried to touch her little treasure trove, this little tiger would fight them to the death. When Chen Jianing heard Lu Li’s words, her only thought was “He’s lying to me.” She grabbed the mouse, quickly clicked into the game page, and after a quick glance, her eyes rolled back, and she fainted on the spot.
Lu Li hadn’t just opened the refund channel, he had also posted a heartfelt apology letter on the announcement page.
What was this? If those haters saw this, wouldn’t they think that Orochimaru had caved? Wait, why had her profile picture been changed too?
In her daze, Chen Jianing saw Lu Li’s smiling face. “Who, who sent you?”
“The Imperial Army asked me to give you a message…” These were the last teasing words Chen Jianing heard before she fainted.
***
When Chen Jianing woke up again, she refused to say a word to Lu Li. The little tiger looked at him as if he were her mortal enemy, her face sullen.
“Don’t talk to me!”
Lu Li was sure that Chen Jianing wasn’t being sarcastic this time. He obediently took his laptop and left, saying respectfully before leaving, “Miss Chen, just call me if you need anything~” Chen Jianing was so angry that she laughed. “Come back here!”
Lu Li sat back on the edge of the bed, sitting upright and silent, like a first grader in class.
Chen Jianing snorted a couple of times. She was definitely angry, but only for a moment. Now that she thought about it, Black Wolf’s Ring hadn’t made much money anyway. It was fine that he opened the refund channel. What she was truly angry about was that Lu Li apologized to those haters on her behalf. But what could she do about it? Would being angry really drive Lu Li away? If the room was empty, with only her alone, it would… it would be a bit lonely.
Even if she was going to die, she couldn’t die alone, right?
Chen Jianing found some excuses for herself in her heart, and her expression softened slightly. “Delete that apology announcement, and I’ll forgive you.”
Why delete it? To be honest, Chen Jianing’s game was indeed a “money laundering scheme” as the comments said, but Chen Jianing refused to admit it. And why did she refuse to admit it? Simply because she had placed too many hopes on this game. To persuade someone, you had to address the root cause. Blindly denying others would only lead to arguments.
“Chen Jianing, would you like to join my game development team?” Lu Li didn’t directly answer Chen Jianing’s request, but instead repeated his offer.
He had asked her once before when they first met, but the little tiger had refused.
“No way!” Chen Jianing was annoyed again.
“Don’t you want to make a high-quality game with rave reviews? The haters who replied to your apology letter in the Black Wolf’s Ring comment section today will all become your fans in the future. Isn’t that more satisfying than simply cursing them out?” Lu Li suddenly asked.
Chen Jianing was stumped. She paused, as if it was indeed true… But… but…
“What future?” Chen Jianing asked with a trembling voice. “I, I’m going to die.”
“If you really die, then it’s all over. What does it matter if there are a million more haters?” Lu Li’s gaze was intense, and Chen Jianing didn’t dare to meet his eyes. “But what if you don’t die?”
Chen Jianing lowered her head and mumbled, “If I survive this, what’s wrong with promising you?”
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