Unknowingly, it was already 12:30 a.m. Xie Mingzhe returned to his personal space and went offline immediately. He washed his face and went upstairs to sleep, but when he got there, he found Chen Xiao smoking alone on the balcony.
The balcony lights were off. Illuminated by the streetlights outside the window, the man’s tall figure was shrouded in smoke, looking particularly tired and lonely. Xie Mingzhe didn’t dare to disturb Chen Xiao and secretly slipped back to the dormitory behind him. He had a feeling that Chen Xiao might be thinking about his departed brother again.
In the dormitory, Pang Yu was eating snacks. This guy’s mouth was always busy and he didn’t seem to care about his widening body.
Xie Mingzhe sat opposite him and asked softly, “Brother Yu, I heard from Brother Chen that this house belongs to his older brother. Do you know where his brother went?” Initially, he didn’t dare to ask Pang Yu rashly since they weren’t familiar with each other. Now after getting to know each other, he found that Pang Yu was a clumsy guy with no slyness and was very enthusiastic towards him. Xie Mingzhe was really curious and couldn’t help asking.
Pang Yu immediately became serious upon hearing this question. “People who have just arrived at this studio know that this is his older brother’s house and they are all curious about where his brother went. However, he looks very unhappy if you ask him directly. Actually, I am also curious. I asked him once and he only answered with the word, ‘Gone.’ I guess his brother might’ve passed away. Please don’t mention this in front of him.”
Xie Mingzhe recalled the figure he had just seen and felt a pang of sadness.
He was evicted for not being able to pay the rent when he was first reborn. It was Brother Chen who gave him his first job, introducing him to the Star Card game and allowing him to discover his card-making talent. In just one week, he earned hundreds of thousands just from selling cards. If it wasn’t for Brother Chen, he might still be looking for work. He was always very grateful to his boss, Chen Xiao.
If Brother Chen needed his help in the future, he would definitely do his best. However, he couldn’t interfere in other people’s private affairs if he didn’t ask. Xie Mingzhe sighed softly at the thought, temporarily suppressing his doubts.
The next morning, Xie Mingzhe woke up half an hour earlier than everyone in the studio as usual. He logged into the game at 7 o’clock.
He connected his mental power to the card-making system in the game and made 10 modified Lin Daiyu cards. Then he made 10 Xue Baochai cards.
Making cards was quite mentally taxing. Xie Mingzhe estimated that his colleagues would be going downstairs soon, so he took off his helmet and logged off to have breakfast.
Yet the moment he turned around, he suddenly met a pair of deep eyes staring straight at him. Xie Mingzhe was startled. “B-Brother Chen! What are you doing standing behind me?”
The man’s hair was a mess, his clothes were wrinkled and he hadn’t shaved. He looked very disheveled. However, the moment he turned around, Xie Mingzhe was sure that he wasn’t mistaken. Chen Xiao’s gaze carried a sharp, all-seeing edge.
Upon meeting Xie Mingzhe’s gaze, Chen Xiao walked up to him with a laugh. “You log into the game earlier than us every day. You are so dedicated! How is your game research going?”
Xie Mingzhe smiled. “I’ve been studying the characteristics of the five elemental creatures. They are quite complex.” He gave a casual, perfunctory reply. Then he saw Chi Qing coming downstairs, so he went over and said, “Sister Qing, let me make you breakfast.”
Chen Xiao watched the young man being busy in the kitchen and slightly smiled. He glanced back at Xie Mingzhe’s helmet but said nothing.
After breakfast, Xie Mingzhe eagerly joined the studio’s dungeon clearing team.
They completed five large dungeons in a row that morning. Then Chen Xiao checked his inventory and said, “I’ve farmed all the seven star fragments that the boss wanted. Ah Qing, can you ask if the boss is there? It would be best if we could deliver the order in person to avoid the trading house’s commission.”
Chi Qing sent a message to a friend and quickly received a reply. “The boss agreed to deliver the order in person. I will invite him to my apartment.”
Everyone entered Chi Qing’s apartment together. The style of her apartment was very different from the one provided by the system. The sofa was dark blue. The display cabinet in the study and the bed in the bedroom were also changed to a matching blue.
Xiao Pang exclaimed, “Sister Qing, your apartment is so beautifully decorated!”
Jin Yue asked, “Ah Qing, did you study design before? It is decorated quite professionally.”
Chi Qing replied, “I minored in this area when I was in college.”
Just then, the doorbell rang. Chi Qing got up and opened the door. A man with the system’s default face and the ID of ‘7456789’ walked in, saying with a smile, “Hello, are you delivering the materials in person?”
“……” Wasn’t this Tang Muzhou?
Xie Mingzhe looked up at him. Tang Muzhou obviously saw the Chubby Uncle sitting on the sofa as well.
The two of them exchanged looks and tacitly pretended not to know each other.
Tang Muzhou finished checking the materials and paid Brother Chen.
Before leaving, he suddenly sent a private message to Xie Mingzhe. “Chubby Uncle, are you still a game booster? Don’t you think it is a waste of time?”
Xie Mingzhe also replied in a private message, “I signed a contract, so I have to finish what I started. I will quit after this month and focus on making cards.”
“Game boosting might have a stable income but it is very time-consuming. Don’t waste your energy on grinding boring dungeons every day.”
“I know.”
“Have you made a new card yet? You promised to save one for me. Don’t forget.”
This expert was obviously very interested in his new card. Xie Mingzhe smiled and said, “Don’t worry, God Tang. I’ll make one and send it to your email in a bit. You can also help me decide what price would be appropriate if I want to sell this card.”
Tang Muzhou readily agreed, “No problem.”
A moment later, Tang Muzhou received a card in his email.
It was the level 1 Xue Baochai. The skill Baochai Catches Butterflies dealt instant death to butterfly-type cards. It also had 30 agility.
Tang Muzhou couldn’t help laughing loudly. “Xiao Zhu, you were laughing at me in the group yesterday but you will probably cry when you see this card today.”
Tang Muzhou suppressed his sense of schadenfreude and replied seriously to Chubby Uncle, “If you take this card to an auction, it could sell for 300,000. However, if you sell the level 1 one-star cards in bulk in sets of ten, a price of 100,000 is more reasonable.”
Scarcity drove up prices. Once there were too many cards, the price would naturally drop. Xie Mingzhe naturally understood this principle. He didn’t want to line up cards one by one for auction. It would be better to list Daiyu and Baochai together in the store to boost their popularity.
Selling in bulk for around 100,000 per card was around the price Xie Mingzhe had initially estimated. It seemed that Tang Muzhou’s purchase of Daiyu for 660,000 at the auction was indeed a ‘rich and willful’ move. He felt a bit guilty for earning 660,000 gold coins from his man, so Xie Mingzhe said, “God Tang, you spent far more than the market price of the Daiyu card at the auction. How about this? I will give you this Baochai card as thanks for your help.”
“Then I won’t be polite. Feel free to ask me anytime if you have any questions in the future.” Tang Muzhou didn’t care about the money, but he had no reason to refuse a card offered by Chubby Uncle. It was a good opportunity to build a closer relationship and maybe trick the other contestants.
Tang Muzhou was watching a wicked plan while Xie Mingzhe and the others from the studio logged off.
Brother Chen said cheerfully, “The boss’ order is finally finished. I will treat everyone to lunch!”
Xie Mingzhe couldn’t miss a group activity, so he followed Brother Chen along with Pang Yu, Jin Yue and Chi Qing.
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