My Romance Game Updated – Chapter 121
by Little PandaThe Worst-Case Result
With the people from Ning’an Base behaving themselves, Qi Sheng actually felt a bit of regret. Just a moment ago, he’d been fully prepared to throw down and rush in to help! Besides, just as Mu Ning had said, if some people “accidentally” ended up dead with no way back in the middle of a brawl, it would’ve been deemed a mere accident.
It was the apocalypse, and this world had long since cast off the shackles of the law. It was common for espers to lose their lives in brawls simply because someone couldn’t control their abilities. Therefore, in this apocalyptic world, if you didn’t have the strength to back it up, you really shouldn’t act so arrogant. Even if you came from Ning’an Base—the strongest base in the country—so what? Even if you tried to go back and bring reinforcements, traveling from the far north to the far south was such a long journey that you’d probably get killed countless times before you even made it. Besides, in such a dangerous world, even if these people had powerful backers in Ning’an Base, most wouldn’t bother traveling across the entire country just to back up a friend on someone else’s turf.
Recognizing his current predicament, even if Zhou Zhilong wanted to demand justice for Chen Jie—who was now nothing but an ice sculpture—he couldn’t ignore the predatory, murderous glares surrounding him. Thus, Zhou Zhilong was forced to drop any attempt to hold Mu Ning accountable for the killing. Instead, he gently requested that she return to Ning’an Base with him, explaining that their schedule was extremely tight. Their group had taken over a month to travel from Ning’an Base to Nanhai Base, and returning along the same route would undoubtedly take just as long.
According to Zhou Zhilong, Mu Ning’s grandfather would be celebrating his eightieth birthday next month. If they didn’t hurry back, they might not make it in time to celebrate the old man’s milestone. Therefore, they hadn’t planned to stay overnight at Nanhai Base at all. Their original plan was to pick her up and leave the very day they arrived. Of course, the haughty espers of Ning’an Base looked down on Nanhai Base as a backward, rural dump and didn’t want to spend a single day there anyway.
Hearing that Zhou Zhilong was trying to coax their Boss away again, Chen Gu and the others couldn’t hold back anymore. They rolled up their sleeves, ready to throw hands. In their eyes, since their Boss had already killed one of the other side’s men right in front of everyone, she obviously had no intention of leaving with them.
To their surprise, however, Mu Ning raised her hand to stop Chen Gu’s group. She didn’t outright reject Zhou Zhilong either, only flatly stating, “Give me one day,” before turning to walk away.
“Give me one day”—was this a rejection, or was she agreeing?
Zhou Zhilong looked in confusion at Mu Ning’s two cousins, but the two of them looked just as baffled. They wanted to ask Mu Ning what she meant, but she had already left everyone behind and entered the base. Seeing that the base leader, Qi Sheng, clearly had no intention of welcoming them, they decided not to make fools of themselves and returned to their armored RV. Since they hadn’t retrieved Mu Ning, no matter how much they hated the idea, they had no choice but to wait at the gates of this crappy base for a whole day.
However, Qi Sheng was unwilling to let them park even at the gates of his crappy base. Under the pretext that their armored RV was too large and would obstruct other vehicles entering and exiting, Qi Sheng drove Zhou Zhilong’s group even further down the road.
Such humiliation was something Zhou Zhilong had never experienced back in Ning’an Base. Though he was absolutely fuming, Chen Jie’s fate served as a stark warning. None of them dared to make a scene, and they could only obediently drive their RV further away.
Meanwhile, Mu Ning’s ambiguous attitude had Zhang Tongqi and the other girls incredibly anxious. As soon as Mu Ning walked off, they scrambled after her, desperate for a clear answer. Ren Chenxi simply watched Mu Ning’s retreating back with a slight frown, trailing behind the crowd at an unhurried pace.
Ren Chenxi had a nagging feeling that she already knew what Mu Ning’s answer would be.
Sure enough, when evening came, Mu Ning—who had locked herself in her room since the afternoon and remained silent throughout dinner—suddenly looked straight at Ren Chenxi. This was the first time in a very long time that Mu Ning had addressed her directly.
“I’m going next door to confirm something with Ren Muhui. Do you want to come with me?”
Mu Ning stared intently at Ren Chenxi, her dark eyes concealing emotions that Ren Chenxi couldn’t decipher. Intuition told her that the issue Mu Ning had been avoiding and suppressing for so long was going to be completely laid bare tonight.
It was like a death row inmate who, before the execution, was incredibly anxious, restless, and terrified, but on the actual day of the execution, suddenly found themselves completely calm.
Ren Chenxi felt that she was currently in that exact state of mind. The truth they had both been avoiding was finally going to be exposed tonight. It was bound to happen sooner or later, wasn’t it?
Besides, today Mu Ning hadn’t clearly refused Zhou Zhilong’s offer to take her back to Ning’an Base, nor had she rejected the repeatedly mentioned engagement, had she? Although those lackeys from Ning’an Base left a bad taste in her mouth, Zhou Zhilong himself… was truly patient and gentle enough with Mu Ning, wasn’t he? Just like… the “Ren Muhui” she had once played.
Unconsciously, memories of the past flooded back, and the sudden wave of sour jealousy that surged in her heart couldn’t be suppressed. Ren Chenxi could only furrow her brows, enduring the heavy bitterness in her chest, and nodded. “Alright.”
If everything was fully exposed, then whether she left or Mu Ning left, wouldn’t it be about the same? After all, in this virtual game world, they were bound to part ways sooner or later anyway.
Even though their Boss had finally spoken to Xi-jie, the unmistakable, heavy tension between them made the other girls shrink back in silence. None of them dared to make a sound, hardly even daring to breathe. Watching their Boss and Xi-jie leave one after the other, the girls exchanged glances before quietly, stealthily slipping out to follow them.
With such a long tail following behind them, it was impossible for either Mu Ning or Ren Chenxi not to notice, but neither of them said anything to stop them. Mu Ning was too lazy to bother, while Ren Chenxi… simply didn’t care.
When Mu Ning knocked on the door of the building next door, the guys were still upstairs eating dinner and watching a movie. It was only after Zhang Tongqi noticed that no one was coming down to open the door for a long time that she let out a loud shout from below. Only then did Chen Gu and the others scramble downstairs in a panic to open the door. When they saw Mu Ning standing at the head of the group with a grim expression, their hearts sank. They were terrified that their Boss would be annoyed with them for being so slow to answer the door, and then… abandon them.
Meeting Chen Gu’s anxious expression, Mu Ning didn’t explain or comfort him. She merely swept her eyes calmly over the group, and seeing that Ren Muhui wasn’t among them, she flatly asked, “Where is Ren Muhui?”
“Ren Muhui?” The Boss was here to find Ren Muhui? Oh! Right! Ren Muhui was, after all, the boyfriend their Boss had personally acknowledged! If her boyfriend didn’t want her to leave, then that ridiculous fiancé’s engagement was not worth shit1! But… given their Boss’s usual attitude toward Ren Muhui… would she really listen to what he wanted? Compared to Ren Muhui’s words, why did he feel that Xi-jie’s words held much more weight in her heart?
Inexplicably, Chen Gu recalled what Tang Ying had mentioned before—about how the Boss and Xi-jie had been hugging each other and doing all that lovey-dovey stuff2—so his eyes unconsciously drifted toward Xi-jie, who stood behind their Boss with an equally blank face. But before he could figure out why Xi-jie had come along today, Mu Ning shot an impatient glare his way. Terrified, Chen Gu immediately pointed to the second floor and stammered, “B-Boss, Ah Hui is still upstairs. I-I’ll go call him down right away!”
Ever since Ren Chenxi and Mu Ning had fallen out, Ren Muhui—who was already terrified of Mu Ning—had the self-awareness to never approach her again. For some reason, the few times their eyes had met, he could see a deep sense of disgust and disdain in her eyes.
The realization that the Goddess hated him made Ren Muhui very sad. But compared to sadness, his survival instinct had cleverly made him give up his plan to cling to the Goddess’s thigh3. To avoid being an eyesore, he did everything he could to stay out of her way. So when he heard Mu Ning arriving earlier while he was upstairs, his first instinct was to hide so he wouldn’t receive a cold glare from the Goddess.
Who could’ve expected that the Goddess was actually here for him this time?
Recalling the times the Goddess had hurt him with glares that made him feel like literal garbage, Ren Muhui’s intuition told him that nothing good would come of this. Thus, when Chen Gu called him down, he dawdled, making all kinds of excuses. However, the impatient Chen Gu couldn’t stand his foot-dragging. Relying on his raw strength as a Strength Esper, Chen Gu simply grabbed Ren Muhui and dragged him downstairs, then turned to fawn over Mu Ning to take credit:
“Boss, Ah Hui is down! What do you need him for?”
The moment Mu Ning’s chilling gaze swept over him, Ren Muhui involuntarily shuddered. He immediately shot a look at Ren Chenxi behind her, trying to seek help. However, as his actual twin sister, when Ren Chenxi received his silent plea, she only gave him a helpless, wry smile and shrugged.
For some reason, Ren Muhui felt he could detect a hint of resignation in his sister’s subtle gestures.
So… what exactly does the Goddess want with me? Why’s the atmosphere in this room getting more and more terrifying? Her murderous intent feels like it’s intensifying by the second! I’m so scared!
Just as Ren Muhui was panicking, his legs trembling violently under Mu Ning’s oppressive aura, feeling like he’d drop to his knees and beg for mercy at any second, Mu Ning finally spoke.
“I’m going to ask you a question. Answer me honestly, without hiding a single thing. If you dare lie to me…” Along with her words, a thick vine suddenly materialized and lashed violently against the floor.
The sharp crack of the whip frightened Ren Muhui so badly that he collapsed straight onto his butt on the floor.
Ren Chenxi looked at her brother’s pathetic display. Even if she wanted to go over and back him up or stop Mu Ning from terrifying him like this… well, considering what Mu Ning was about to ask, wasn’t she herself just a clay bodhisattva crossing a river4?
Hadn’t she already prepared herself mentally when she followed Mu Ning to the Men’s Building? Hadn’t she already braced herself… to face the worst-case result?
Footnotes
- Pì dōu bù shì: A highly vulgar slang phrase meaning 'not worth shit' or 'absolute bullshit.'
- Jiàngjiangniàngniàng: A playful, euphemistic internet slang term used to describe couples being physically intimate or doing lovey-dovey things.
- Bào dàtuǐ: Literally 'clinging to the thigh,' this slang term means to latch onto someone powerful or skilled for support or protection.
- Ní púsà guò jiāng: Short for 'ní púsà guò jiāng, zìshēn nánbǎo' (a clay bodhisattva crossing a river cannot even save itself), meaning one is barely able to save oneself, let alone help others.
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