I turned reality into a romantic comedy.

However, Shen Nianqiu next to him was the same. Rather than trying to identify the constellations and stars, all his senses and thoughts were filled with a more direct and simple shock and stimulation in the face of the scenery.

The seats reclined, and the two people lying there seemed to be lying on their backs on a sea of ​​sand, or floating in a sea of ​​stars. The faint light of stardust cast soft shadows on their faces, turning their eyelashes silver.

Humans are always insignificant in the face of the vast natural world and the universe. If one were to come here alone, one might inevitably feel a sense of loneliness because of the scene before one's eyes.

But now that they are two people, it feels romantic, like a pilot who crashed in the desert meeting the Little Prince.

"So lovely."

"Yes, it's really beautiful."

They simply expressed such sentiments at the scene before them on a summer afternoon at the Saudi Arabia Pavilion of the Shanghai World Expo.

All adults were children at first, and the starry sky before them is one of the backdrops that most easily reminds them of this fact.

Will we ever see something like this together again?

Chen Junqian heard Shen Nianqiu ask him this softly beside him. This was probably the first time the two had met since then, and he heard a rare hint of melancholy in her voice.

"Yes, next time, we'll go see real stars."

No matter how realistic the images in front of you may seem, they are essentially virtual projections.

But just as the two of them have evolved from a virtual relationship that only existed online to an offline relationship that is now connected hand in hand, the virtual can certainly be transformed into reality as long as one is willing to do so, and the starry sky in front of us is no exception.

However, Shen Nianqiu is not the only treasure in the story. All the memories she can give away are those of the female protagonist in this starry sky. From the beginning, she wanted to create more and more memories with her, as countless as the stars in the sky.

However, unlike Chen Junqian, she is not yet certain that she can accomplish such a thing. For example, their current meeting is entirely due to the fact that the other party has put in more effort and came here after winning first place in the grade four times in a row.

"Yes, I believe so too, and I will work hard."

As she nodded in agreement, the moment the achievement "Starry Sky for Two" was successfully unlocked in Chen Junqian's mind, Shen Nianqiu had already made a decision in her heart.

In fact, just like Zhu Wenyun, who has already earned her first pot of gold by far surpassing her peers with her writing skills, her basic ability adaptability evaluation in the system is also A.

Chapter 67: You Smell Like Her Perfume (Part 2)

Because they spent too long queuing, by the time Chen Junqian and Shen Nianqiu finished viewing the exhibition and got up to leave the Saudi Arabia Pavilion, it was already dusk.

Although many national pavilions at the World Expo were open until around 10 p.m. and even had extra programs, it seems that Shen Nianqiu's parents couldn't accept their daughter wandering around alone so late at night. So, the older sister who couldn't completely occupy Chen Junqian's time for the whole day had to say goodbye to him temporarily and made an appointment to get up early the next day and head straight to the Japan Pavilion to queue up.

"If you're going to see the exhibition in the evening, the UK Pavilion, France Pavilion, Germany Pavilion, and African Union Pavilion all have some great special programs. Little brother, go see them by yourself. Bye-bye."

"Okay, goodbye, sister."

After parting ways with Shen Nianqiu, Chen Junqian quickly found his parents and Lin Mu at the Chinese Food Street. They seemed to have visited the American Pavilion in the afternoon and were still talking about some of the exhibits and games there.

Since they planned to continue exploring the World Expo site that evening, the group decided to have dinner there as well, choosing a small, unassuming Shandong cuisine restaurant.

While waiting for the food to be served, Lin Mu, who was sitting on the same bench as Chen Junqian, also moved closer to him, turning her head to ask him, shoulder to shoulder:

"Which country pavilion does Qianqian want to visit tonight?"

"I heard the French Pavilion's evening sessions are pretty good."

"It seems I've indeed heard it's very romantic."

In this age of rampant stereotypes, for a primary school student like Lin Mu, France is synonymous with romance, Germany with rigor, and England with afternoon tea. So, upon hearing this, he simply nodded in agreement.

"Then let's go to the French Pavilion."

After deciding on their destination for the evening, Lin Mu took the initiative to tell Chen Junqian about the interactive experiences she had had at the American Pavilion that afternoon, such as watching 4D movies and shooting hoops with virtual NBA stars. However, she made no attempt to ask Chen Junqian where he had gone or what he had done, acting as if nothing had happened if she didn't know.

However, Chen Junqian wouldn't bring up such a thing on his own initiative. After all, he hadn't watched so many episodes of romance anime since winter break. If he were to use the storylines in the anime as an analogy, the current situation would be that Shen Nianqiu's solo episode had just passed, and now it was Lin Mu's turn to take center stage.

Although he wasn't quite like those male protagonists in anime who, after each episode, seemed to forget everything that happened and immediately faced the next female lead with a completely new attitude, Chen Junqian was still very clear that what he needed to do now was to appease his slightly resentful childhood sweetheart again, just like at noon.

The number of visitors to the Expo site at night was significantly less than during the day, and the queues were noticeably shorter. It was estimated that it would only take about ten minutes to get in. Chen Jun himself was reading from the guidebook in his hand to the French Pavilion, which was designed like a French vertical garden:

"The theme of the French Pavilion is 'Sensual City,' which centers on art, romance, and technological innovation. It aims to showcase France's achievements in urban sustainable development and the humanities through a multi-sensory experience that engages the senses of sight, hearing, smell, and touch... This is what the pavilion's guidebook says."

"It seems there's an art exhibition, including works by Van Gogh and Cézanne. Do you want to go see it?"

It can only be said that neither Chen Junqian nor Lin Mu are children who are interested in painting. If Xu Youwei were here, she would probably go and take a look. Therefore, they shook their heads at their father's suggestion.

"Then we'll go directly through the garden corridor in a bit. The outdoor courtyard behind it is said to be modeled after the gardens of Versailles Palace, and it's even decorated with special lights at night."

Following the children's wishes, Chen Jun quickly finalized his route. After entering the French Pavilion, the group bypassed the art exhibition area and began walking along the garden corridor towards the outdoor courtyard.

The surrounding walls are all high-tech screens, continuously displaying Parisian street scenes and French natural scenery, accompanied by elegant jazz music, which really gives people the illusion that they are strolling through the streets of Paris.

“Qianqian, look at that—the corridor of the official’s office.”

Upon seeing an interesting tunnel at the intersection ahead, Lin Mu grabbed Chen Junqian's hand and ran over first, tilting her head slightly to read aloud the Chinese text on the sign outside:

"It seems to be saying that it contains all sorts of iconic French scents."

As a national pavilion themed around the city of senses, France's Sensory Gallery is the only large-scale exhibit at this World Expo that focuses on 'smell'. You can see many visitors standing inside, sniffing the air as if trying to detect the scents.

"Let's go in and take a look."

Lin Mu, somewhat impatient, took Chen Junqian's hand and rushed inside. Following the example of the other tourists, she twitched her small nostrils and, with the accordion music playing in the background, she indeed smelled a sweet fragrance.

"This tastes like bread."

"Hmm, I can smell the aroma of butter, it seems to be mimicking the smell of a bakery commonly found on the streets of France."

After exchanging their thoughts, the two slowly walked forward and found the answer on the notice board on the wall. Just as they had thought, it was the aroma of bakeries on the streets of Paris, seemingly the result of a collaboration with a famous local bakery.

After passing through a designated area where atomized fragrance was released to avoid mixing scents, the two arrived at the location of a second scent. Under the warm orange-yellow light, they smelled a clear floral fragrance. However, this time they were stumped. After all, there are so many beautiful flowers in the world, and they really couldn't guess which flower it was.

"I think it smells like lavender. A laundry detergent I bought before smelled a bit like this."

After hesitating and thinking for a long time, Lin Mu gave his answer with some uncertainty, and the two of them then walked forward together to see the correct answer.

"Lavender fields in Provence, Mumu, you guessed it right!"

"Hmph, of course."

If Lin Mu had a tail or a nose that could grow longer, Chen Junqian felt that her tail would probably be sticking up to the sky and her nose would be touching his neck. However, he still cooperated and continued to praise her, since he originally intended to coax her more.

The third scent is the summery aroma of Nice coastline, a blend of sea breeze and citrus; the fourth is the rich aroma of red wine oak barrels from a Burgundy winery; and after passing through the elegant base notes of Chanel perfume in the fifth luxury store, the final scent is Paris after the rain, composed of damp cobblestone streets and chestnut trees.

After walking out of this sensory corridor filled with six iconic scents, the first thing Chen Junqian and Lin Mu saw was a fragrance wall displaying perfumer manuscripts and perfume bottle art installations. Not far away, there were also shops selling the corresponding perfumes and even more adorable perfume samples.

Lin Mu and Chen Junqian, being their age, weren't particularly interested in the product itself, since neither of them had really been exposed to makeup yet. However, Chen Jun and his wife, who had just followed them out, were different. Since they were already there, they figured they should buy some souvenirs, so Chen Jun decisively bought his wife a bottle of French perfume.

It can only be said that the two of them don't care about anniversaries when giving gifts. They are the type who will buy whatever they see outside that they think is suitable for each other. Otherwise, Chen Junqian would not often express the sentiment that his parents are his true love and he is the unexpected one.

Watching Chen Jun receive the perfume and a small sample (only a few milliliters) from the sales clerk, Chen Junqian tilted his head, as if he had just remembered something, and ran over to take the sample, then handed it to Lin Mu beside him.

"How about giving this to Mumu? I saw you seemed to really enjoy the scent of that perfume while you were inside."

"Okay, thank you, Qianqian."

Whether it was because she was moved by what Chen Jun and his wife did, or because she genuinely accepted Chen Junqian's gift without hesitation, Lin Mu readily agreed.

However, before he could even warm it up in his hands, Lin Mu opened it and, after taking a quick sniff, sprayed it on himself and Chen Junqian, letting them both get soaked in the atomized perfume.

After doing all this, Lin Mu first raised his hand to smell his own scent. Perhaps feeling that he couldn't smell it clearly enough, he then leaned over and sniffed Chen Junqian's neck from his chest. Only after confirming that the two of them smelled exactly the same did he finally smile and say:

"This smells so good!"

"It tastes a bit like the lavender from before, but there should also be a hint of rose."

Chen Junqian was a little stunned when Lin Mu suddenly approached him. However, this was not only because of the girl in front of him, but also because of the sound effect of unlocking an achievement that suddenly rang in his mind.

You smell so good

As we all know, the male protagonist of a romantic comedy is sometimes like a human aphrodisiac. This is not only reflected in how they can easily win the favor of the female protagonists just by patting their heads, but also in the scent they exude.

That's why there are female protagonists who can wear their boyfriend's shirt and say that the scent makes them feel at ease, female protagonists who can throw themselves on the male protagonist's bed, hug his bedding and pillows, and bury their heads in the scent. If you want to be a bit more daring, there will also be mysterious characters who secretly take away the clothes you just took off.

Of course, the above scenarios could also lead the story in a strange direction; please see the related entries for this achievement for details.

Conditions for achieving this: The female protagonist, who is adaptable to romantic comedies, takes the initiative to smell her clothes, bedding, pillows, and other personal items and makes statements such as "it's reassuring" or "it smells nice."

Other achievements associated with this one include: 【Why does it smell like another girl?】

Ignoring the system's consistently godlike judgment and the ominous-looking related keywords, this twentieth achievement triggered by Chen Junqian marks another milestone for him.

It has to be said that this Shanghai World Expo was indeed a wonderful trip. After all, before setting off, Chen Junqian had only triggered thirteen achievements. However, in less than two days, he had already won seven new achievements. In terms of scoring efficiency, Lin Mu and Shen Nianqiu really scored seven points together.

After all, two of the achievements were triggered around the same time, one after the other.

Lin Mu originally wanted to spray a little more, hoping that when Chen Junqian went out with Shen Nianqiu tomorrow, he would smell exactly like her now, just like the lyrics of that song that you can hear every day in your ringtone: "You have her perfume on you, it's my nose that's guilty—".

However, considering that the two of them would need to take a shower after returning to the hotel, Lin Mu temporarily abandoned the idea of ​​doing so, put away the perfume sample, and walked with Chen Junqian towards the outdoor courtyard.

At this time, the courtyard has started its exclusive nighttime light show. Four thousand hidden miniature LED lights illuminate the entire garden like dancing fireflies, and Monet's "Water Lilies" are projected onto the building facades in sync. Accompanied by the musical fountain not far away that rises and falls with the piano music of "Moonlight Sonata", it truly achieves a multi-sensory enjoyment.

After finding an empty seat on a carved bench under a shaded walkway made of French sycamore trees, Chen Junqian and his family first enjoyed the five-minute musical fountain show. Then they each started taking photos, as every view in front of them looked quite photogenic as a backdrop. They could also see many other tourists taking photos here.

First, they asked a passing tourist to take a group photo of the four of them. Then, they automatically split into groups of adults and children. After borrowing their father's phone to contact each other and take photos, Chen Junqian and Lin Mu strolled leisurely in the outdoor courtyard.

Whether it's the herb garden planted with classic Provençal herbs such as rosemary and thyme, or the embroidered flower bed built with colored gravel and outlined by LED light strips at night, both bear the footprints and commemorative photos of the two of them.

Without a doubt, Lin Mu has always been a child who likes to preserve memories perfectly in various ways using concrete objects, including diaries, photos, and gifts received from him.

Now, as she lowers her head and reaches out to curiously touch the lavender flower, she still believes that these solid memories are the most sturdy bricks, and the ever-growing wall formed by more and more of them will unbreakably guard her and her tree inside, making anyone who takes a look choose to retreat.

Chapter Sixty-Eight: Cherry Blossoms, Cherry Blossoms, I Want to See You (Part Two)

As one of the most popular pavilions at this World Expo, the Japan Pavilion also attracted a large number of visitors. However, Chen Junqian and Shen Nianqiu were quite lucky today. They rushed to the Japan Pavilion to queue up as soon as the Expo Park opened and managed to get a relatively good spot at the front.

The Japan Pavilion is shaped like a purple silkworm. The semi-transparent purple exterior walls are actually solar panels that control the lighting. At the entrance, there are two mechanical crested ibis statues that constantly spread their wings to the visitors.

The crested ibis, a unique bird species in East Asia known as the "Oriental Gem," was once extinct in the wild in Japan, and the last wild crested ibis died alone in 2003.

Fortunately, with China's help, the once extinct Japanese crested ibis has been repopulated in captivity.

It is precisely because of this connection that the crested ibis was chosen as the prototype for the welcoming statue in front of the Japan Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo.

After glancing at the crested ibis, Chen Junqian and Shen Nianqiu turned their attention to the promotional video for this year's Japan Pavilion, "A Day in Japan," playing on a small screen in the nearby corridor. The video showed the natural and cultural landscapes of various parts of Japan throughout the day.

At the Osaka World Expo, which was about to take place before Chen Junqian's rebirth, the promotional video for the China Pavilion, "The Twelve Hours of the Chinese People," can be seen as a callback to this promotional video for the Japan Pavilion.

However, what surprised Chen Junqian the most was that this level of promotional video actually featured quite a few scenes from anime, including cosplayers of anime characters, a maid café in Akihabara, and several scenes from "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya".

"There's Haruhi Suzumiya in it."

"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya?"

Compared to Chen Junqian, whom he recognized at a glance, Shen Nianqiu clearly hadn't seen the work, so he casually offered an explanation:

"It's a character from a Japanese anime. He appeared in the promotional video earlier, but that's all now."