I turned reality into a romantic comedy

Chapter 48: Impromptu Performance Time (Two-in-One)

The third thing is about Shen Nianqiu.

It's safe to say that, without any surprises, when Chen Junqian went to Zhong Yu's house during the winter break, the kid was still engrossed in CrossFire: Giant City Ruins. Upon seeing him, he immediately pulled him into the team without saying a word. At home, he had one computer and his father had another, so the two of them could play together.

"I didn't come here to play games today. Last summer, I played challenge mode with you and it almost hurt me."

"It's okay, it's okay. The Giant City Ruins map is easy. You can just leave it there for the first dozen or so levels. I'll give you a free gold chest."

The new map has only been out for a month, and the battle-hardened Zhong Yu has already quickly summarized a strategy of "two water and two yellow" (two crystal chests and two gold chests). After all, unlike the old fourth map, the Giant City Ruins is indeed much easier, but the rewards in the chests are even richer than before. So it was an unprecedented success as soon as it was released, and various strategies were released very quickly.

Following Zhong Yu's instructions, Chen Junqian controlled his game character to hang on the highest platform on the third floor. Then he put down his mouse and keyboard, sat in the computer chair, and moved next to Zhong Yu. While watching Zhong Yu frantically rack up points with the MG3 Silver Killer, Chen Junqian wondered if his rebirth could improve Zhong Yu's luck and help him get that damned Golden M249 sooner.

It's fair to say that the gold-tier weapons in CrossFire at this time do have a certain inexplicable sense of prestige. Zhong Yu just shared a popular CrossFire fan-made video with him a couple of days ago. It used lyrics from the viral internet song "Can't Afford to Be Hurt" released last year. The opening line is, "You have so much equipment in your inventory, like gold AKs, tiger-skin Razers, bro, don't scare me. I'm a poor CrossFire player. I haven't even had a QQ membership, let alone gold equipment." It was quite amusing to watch.

"Qian'er, after level nineteen, we just need to gather together and fight the bonus level with the dwarf."

Because he was worried that Chen Junqian hadn't played this map much before, Zhong Yu emphasized it again beforehand. As a master who could run several games simultaneously and chat with his girlfriend on voice chat, he was currently juggling the Snake Woman, who kept emerging from the ground amidst smoke, while chatting with Chen Junqian at the same time without any pressure:

"What brings you here today? Is it about Lin'an, which you only half-asked about last time?"

"Yeah, I have an online friend over there."

"Damn, could it be your online boyfriend? You're really something else, Qian'er."

Standing expertly on the third-floor platform, Zhong Yu used his Vulcan Gatling gun to mow down a whole wave of small green giants walking along the route. He then turned to Chen Junqian, winking and raising an eyebrow.

"Are you planning to meet up in person? Well, I'm very experienced, so feel free to ask me anything."

"I wouldn't call it a meeting in real life. We had met before, during the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, but we haven't seen each other since then."

After all, he was facing his best friend, so Chen Junqian didn't hold back or worry about anything when he spoke, and frankly told him his thoughts:

"Actually, I initially thought I'd ask you to bring her some gift, but then I realized it's been quite a while since we last met, so I thought I might as well go by myself."

"I think it's great. Anyway, my girlfriend always says that the best gift I can give her is the chance to go and see her. So, is that your girlfriend?"

"...My sister."

"Oh, I got it."

It's unclear what he actually understood, but Zhong Yu, while using his Berserk mode to snatch the small potion boxes that spawned on the ground, chuckled to himself twice.

"So she lives in Lin'an?"

"Yes, I've already asked about the exact location."

"Oh, we communicated beforehand. I thought you were the type who wanted to surprise people."

“I don’t think it’s necessary. On the one hand, informing each other in advance allows both parties to prepare better. After all, if you secretly go there alone and encounter any unexpected situations, such as the other party having something to do, you’ll be caught off guard. On the other hand, as long as it’s not a sudden breach of contract at the end, even the waiting days in between will feel fulfilling and exciting.”

"...I feel like you could start your own class. I'm sure a lot of people at our school would be willing to buy your courses. Oh, come down and gather around."

At the end of the eighteenth level, Zhong Yu casually sent 1861 in the chat box (leave one small monster to replenish bullets in the eighteenth level), and then started a radio communication of 'request to assemble', calling Chen Junqian, who was AFK on the server, down as well.

While the short man was grinding through the nineteenth bonus level, Zhong Yu continued to communicate with Chen Junqian:

When are you planning to go? Before or after the New Year?

"A little after the New Year, around the fourth or fifth day of the Lunar New Year, how should I put it?"

Actually, according to Shen Nianqiu, she really wanted him to come and spend the Spring Festival with her on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day, but it was unrealistic to think about it, so she could only postpone it for a few days.

“That’s perfect. My family will go back on the 30th, then come back on the 2nd of the new year, and then go again on the 5th. You can come with me then.”

After discussing it this way, Zhong Yu himself also had some doubts:

"But speaking of which, Qian'er, you don't need to go through such a big circle to ask me for help. Given your family status, wouldn't it have been enough to just tell your parents? Or are they too busy to be with you or worried about you?"

"That's part of the reason. To be honest, I actually kept my trip to Lin'an a secret from them. Anyway, I could go and come back on the same day, and you could cover for me when I made the phone call, so there shouldn't be any problems."

Actually, what Zhong Yu said made no problem. After all, Lin'an wasn't that far away. Whether he told his parents to help him buy train tickets or went directly to the company, it wouldn't be a problem.

However, Chen Junqian knew very well that both his family and the company had powerful figures behind them, including his one and only childhood sweetheart from a certain system. Lin Mu happened to be the only girl on Guoning's side who knew of Shen Nianqiu's existence and didn't get along with his older sister. So, he could only go around to Zhong Yu's side.

Seeing that Chen Junqian was being vague and clearly didn't intend to elaborate, Zhong Yu didn't press further. He simply sighed inwardly and then turned his attention back to the game.

It seems that Chen Junqian's luck really did reach Zhong Yu's side. This time, both of them got gold in the crystal box and gold box after the settlement. Chen Junqian, who had been AFK for most of the game, happily got a gold RPK, while the latter finally got the gold M249 he had been longing for.

After exiting the somewhat grueling Challenge Mode with their newly acquired weapons, the two returned to the Biohazard Pyramid to play Terminator Mode with their new weapons, spending the entire day shouting and yelling without realizing it.

Of course, no one would object to Chen Junqian and Zhong Yu playing games together... but that doesn't necessarily mean it will happen.

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Generally speaking, the winter vacation near the Lunar New Year is always the time for the younger sister to make her appearance. However, starting this year, the situation seems to have changed. This time, there is another person standing there waiting for Chen Junqian.

Seemingly feeling that calling him "brother" in Chen Xi's presence would be confusing, or perhaps simply wanting to tease Chen Junqian, Gu Linguo cleverly changed her address to him upon seeing him:

"Ah, you're so slow, senpai! If you keep going like this, I'll have to use a Command Spell to command you. But what class are you, senpai?"

"...What are Command Seals? What is a senior? And what the hell is a class?"

Completely oblivious, the younger sister was clearly a bit out of sync with the conversation. After all, all she knew was that her brother and best friend were about to become new neighbors. She was only slightly taken aback by the fact that the two seemed to have a good relationship, but then she accepted it naturally and even thought it was a good thing, since Gu Linguo's house was indeed a bit strange.

The last child to hold this view was named Lin Mu.

However, Chen Junqian was still very touched by this. In this era where New Year's gifts are still diverse and have not yet become the era of big yogurt, he almost wanted to bring a case of Anmuxi to each of Lin Mu and Chen Xi when he wished them a Happy New Year.

All I can say is that if all the girls I know have this kind of personality, then it's better not to trigger the "[Scandal in Progress]" achievement. After all, Chen Junqian doesn't even dare to imagine how much trouble this would save him.

"Senior is my senior. As for Command Seals and class, they are actually settings from an anime that my senior and I watched together."

After explaining this to Chen Xi, Gu Lingguo pointed to the little boy who was cosplaying as Yanlongxia, waving his hands in the open space next to the residential area:

"They're pretty much the same in essence."

"Oh, I see."

However, since Chen Xi was indeed there, the two of them couldn't immediately switch into anime mode like before. After exchanging a few words, they entered normal social mode.

The main reason is that the new anime series that just started airing in January 2012 didn't have any particularly popular new works. The main focus was still on "Guilty Crown" and "Fate/Zero," which didn't finish airing last October. Chen Junqian himself is currently mainly watching "Nisemonogatari," the second sequel to the Tokimonogatari series, and "Daily Lives of High School Boys." He hasn't figured out the rest yet, since only one or two episodes have aired so far.

"However, if Xixi agrees, I can also call you brother, since your brother is my brother."

"Sure, I think it sounds better than any weird senior or senior title... This doesn't feel like the kind of title you'd hear in China."

"So, what does Xixi think this kind of relationship should be called in China?"

"Senior brother?"

Amused by his younger sister's answer, Chen Junqian reached out and patted her head. In fact, she wasn't wrong. When he was in college, that's how he addressed his seniors in the same department. However, when it was said by a primary or middle school student, it sounded like he was imitating a fantasy drama, but it was still quite cute.

With two junior sisters on his left and right, Chen Junqian experienced the feeling of Araragi Koyomi with his two younger sisters in "Nisemonogatari". However, in reality, it was not as strange as in the story. Neither of the two sisters he was holding hands said to their older brother, "Don't become mature on your own because it will be boring".

After all, Gu Lingguo, who knows this line, might be longing for his mature and reliable side, while Chen Xi, who has the right to say this, is completely unaware of this and is simply enjoying the pampering and recognition from his family elders.

They're going out to see a movie today.

The 2012 Chinese New Year film season was not a suitable time for children.

Although the classic film "Let the Bullets Fly," which can still be enjoyed many times even after more than a decade, was released and won the championship of this year's Spring Festival film season, Chen Junqian certainly would not choose to take his two children to see such a film. Therefore, he could only settle for the usual Lunar New Year film of Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, namely "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf: Happy Dragon Year," which is related to the Year of the Dragon this year.

"...But it's so boring."

As a loyal viewer who had supported the previous Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf movies in theaters, Chen Xi made this comment as soon as she left the cinema, and then turned to Chen Junqian and said:

"I won't watch it next year. I feel like it hasn't been as good since 'The Tiger's Might'."

"really."

Chen Junqian nodded in agreement.

2012 was indeed a very important year, as the TV version of Boonie Bears, which took over the ecological niche of Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf, officially premiered that year. The series will release an experimental New Year's short film called "Boonie Bears: Chinese New Year" next year, and then officially hit theaters in 2014 with "Boonie Bears: The Treasure Hunt". In 2015, the Year of the Sheep in the Chinese lunar calendar, it defeated Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf head-on with "Boonie Bears: Snow Daze". With a large number of fixed audiences, it has since become the gatekeeper of the Spring Festival film season.

As for why Chen Junqian knows so much about these films, it's because for many years afterward, he would bring his relatives' children to the cinema during the Lunar New Year to watch these kinds of movies.

After watching the movie, Chen Junqian first took his younger sister home, and then arranged to have dinner at their house again around the Lunar New Year's Eve. Only then did he turn to Gu Lingguo and ask:

Is anyone home at your new house today?

"Yes, my mom is cleaning there today."

There was a sense that Gu Lingguo hesitated subconsciously for a moment when she said those words.

"That's just right."

Chen Junqian simply nodded, then took her hand and squeezed it tighter.

"After all, they're our new neighbors, so we should definitely give them a visit."

"Didn't Lin Guo just ask me what job I should be in?"

"Now I can tell you, I'll be an Actor in a little while."

Chapter 49: The Only Place to Cry is Here (Part 2)

Of course, Chen Junqian's confidence in saying such things at this time was also based on his own strengths. Besides the fact that his current appearance would easily pass muster with the parents, another source of confidence came from the third milestone reward he had just unlocked a few days ago:

【versatile】

To win over the hearts of heroines with different tastes and dreams, the male protagonist of this romantic comedy naturally needs to possess the talent of being a jack-of-all-trades, master of none, and helpful in every aspect. This talent can be obtained for free after unlocking a total of forty achievements, helping the host master the basic skills of various talents including singing, dancing, photography, drama, and writing.

Actually, in terms of the number of achievements, Chen Junqian has not yet successfully unlocked forty achievements, but he has achieved several repeatable achievements that are relatively easy to obtain two or three times, such as feeding play and head pat. In addition, Mu Mu's scoring efficiency during last summer vacation has brought the total to forty, which helped him unlock the reward for this third milestone.

At the same time, the reward for the fourth milestone also appeared before Chen Junqian:

The will of the world will protect you.

The world of romantic comedies is always a gentle fairy tale world, where the characters surrounding the male protagonist always end up happy. So if there is a world will, it must also hope for this. If not, then there must be something wrong with the world itself, and we just need to correct it.

Each successful completion of a romantic comedy achievement will help the system correct the progress of this world. After eighty completions, the system will receive partial favor from the world's will, allowing the host to take another step towards becoming the true male protagonist of a romantic comedy.

To be honest, the new milestone is not only mysterious, but also looks a bit like a cryptic advertisement from Pinduoduo offering to help you cut the price if you're a brother. However, compared to the former, the system is quite generous in providing specific numbers, doubling the previous forty to eighty.

Judging from the fact that he has only managed to complete forty milestones in the two and a half years since his rebirth, he probably won't reach that milestone until high school.

However, if the girl next to him is included in the system, it's hard to say what will happen. After all, the two of them have already reached a relevant agreement, and Chen Junqian himself doesn't even dare to imagine how fast they will be able to rack up achievements.

As for the third milestone reward, versatility, Chen Junqian was quite satisfied. After all, although the description only mentioned the 'basic skills' of various talents, many skills are difficult to master, and often just the basic skills are enough to surpass many of his peers.

Anyway, Chen Junqian is definitely more confident about going to karaoke with Mu Mu someday. He can drag Lin Mu to sing a duet and then do a rating, which will surely raise the score for childhood sweethearts.

The Actor-related abilities and skills he just mentioned to Gu Lingguo are actually included in this. Combined with the appearance, physical fitness, and learning ability he unlocked earlier, it feels like he could easily debut in the entertainment industry. However, Chen Junqian himself really has no interest in this area.

"I'll go back first, brother, come back in a few minutes."

When it was just the two of them, Gu Linguo habitually switched back to calling him "brother".

It can only be said that Chen Junqian already had a vague premonition that this kid would probably greet him with "Onii-chan" or something similar, just like in a romantic comedy, even before his real sister Chen Xi. After all, the other party had already pranked him with the term "senior" when they met today.

"Okay, let's say that."

After deliberately separating from Gu Linguo in front of the residential area, Chen Junqian slowed down his pace and began to think about the specific scenarios that would follow.

To be honest, whether in his previous life or after his rebirth, he had never truly faced such parents before. Even though Shen Nianqiu's parents were equally important, he had never met them before, and his understanding of them was limited to snippets of information from Shen Nianqiu herself.

Gu Linguo's situation was even more different from Shen Nianqiu's, because at least Chen Junqian only got secondhand information from his sister, but his understanding of Gu Linguo's mother was only thirdhand information from Chen Xi and his own mother (the two had met during the renovation).

As for why he didn't ask Gu Lingguo directly.

That means that even though they had only been in contact for less than a month, Chen Junqian already felt a sense of unease, a premonition that if he wanted to get any information from Gu Lingguo, he would end up with an even more distorted description.

So you still need to see it for yourself.

In Chen Junqian's current view, the relationship between this mother and daughter might be a bit like a line from the movie "Claw Machine" released more than ten years later. He even really thinks that one day in the future, this line will be spoken by the other party's mother, and it is this very line that ultimately led to the tragedy of his previous life.

"You think I control your life? You control our lives too!"

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Gu Linguo has always liked a line from CLANNAD: "The only places you can cry are the bathroom and your father's arms."

But that's just a line from a work of art, because Gu Linguo himself couldn't actually do that.

The bathroom at home is very small, so the noise can be easily heard outside, and it's the same at school.

As for the latter, it's even more impossible.

Rather, she would say that she thinks the ability to cry in front of her parents is an amazing skill in itself, one that she simply cannot learn and has no time to learn.