Chapter 40

Lin Si sighed, giving up on the idea of trying to catch the scent of his own pheromones.

The phone on the edge of the bed buzzed.

Y: [Are you sleeping?]

Lin Si: [No, no. Have you eaten?]

Y: [Mm, I’ve already eaten.]

Lin Si immediately asked: [Then shall we play in the virtual world?]

Y: [Mm.]

After a brief loading screen, Lin Si took in the sight of his bedroom. Beside him, Y also sat up and said, “Good evening.”

Lin Si grabbed his hand, shook it slightly, and smiled. “Good evening!” He pressed a button to activate the bedroom’s special effect lights. In the shifting, hazy glow, Lin Si sat cross-legged on the bed and grabbed Y’s other hand as well. “I haven’t had much chance to talk to you today. I kind of missed you.”

His palm couldn’t fully wrap around Y’s hand, but his eyes held all of him.

“Baby,” Y called him softly.

Lin Si grinned, revealing a row of white teeth, and threw himself into Y’s arms, whispering, “Did you hear what I wanted to tell you yesterday?”

“I guessed,” Y replied.

Lin Si lifted the corners of his mouth. “But you said this afternoon that you didn’t hear everything.”

“I didn’t hear everything,” Y admitted, his hands resting politely at Lin Si’s waist, hovering slightly.

“Then tell me the part you didn’t finish saying this afternoon,” Lin Si said.

Y patted his lower back. “I’ll take you there now.”

Lin Si immediately jumped off the bed and reached out to pull him up. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

Before they left the room, Y asked, “Do you like it here?”

Lin Si turned back. “This one-bedroom apartment?”

“Mm.”

“I do. The bedroom is so nice, and there’s a big balcony too,” Lin Si replied.

Y: “Then let’s buy it in a few days.”

Lin Si: “??? You’re already planning to buy a place when your daily wage is just five gold coins?”

Y smiled. “That’s right.”

They went downstairs and exchanged gold coins for silver coins at a convenience store before taking the tram to the northernmost part of Queenstown, arriving at the Wanqi Market.

“This place is…” Lin Si looked at the rows of storefronts. “A chessboard market?”

Y held his hand and led him to the far end of the market. He lifted the curtain hanging over a door and guided him inside.

“Welcome to Chess & Cards Street,” the shop owner greeted them at the entrance. “Please, come in.”

Evening was the busiest time, and all the small tables inside were occupied. Y leaned in and whispered in Lin Si’s ear, “The fixed area on the left is the AI battle zone. Insert a coin to enter, and if you win against the AI, you’ll earn gold coin rewards. The higher the difficulty, the greater the reward.”

“The right side is the player zone, where you can place custom bets.”

Lin Si walked to the left, inspecting each table—Chinese chess, military chess, Go, international chess, bridge…

“Can the two of us play against the AI together?” Lin Si asked.

Y shook his head. “Only one person can play, and the other has to spectate.”

Lin Si nodded. “Then shall we give it a try?”

Y glanced around. “Let’s do AI matches later. Right now, there are plenty of free players—let’s open a player game.”

He walked over to a Go table, sat cross-legged, and pulled over a cushion for Lin Si to sit with him.

“Hello,” Y greeted their opponent.

Across from them sat a young man. Lin Si studied his face, vaguely reminded of a model, guessing that the avatar was custom-made to resemble one.

“Two of you?” The man scoffed. “Doesn’t matter. Even with two, you still won’t win.”

“I’ll play.” Y held Lin Si’s hand. “My little gentleman is just here to watch—he won’t interfere.”

Lin Si, who had been distracted studying the model-like face, felt his heart jolt. A sudden flicker of warmth shot through his chest, spreading like fire to his limbs, cheeks, and earlobes.

Without thinking, he shifted closer to Y, cushion and all, rubbing his hand against Y’s in a silent show of affection.

Their opponent glanced at them, let out a snort, and said impatiently, “If you’re betting, hurry up.”

Y reached out. “As you wish.”

The man placed a bet of 25 gold coins. Y raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were confident about winning.”

He then placed 100 gold coins on the table. Lin Si sucked in a sharp breath.

“First day here, and you’re already talking big,” the man sneered, adding the remaining 75 gold coins to match the bet. “Careful not to lose so bad you have to start over with a new account.”

The electronic screen on the table activated, revealing a Go board. Y played as white.

Lin Si didn’t understand Go at all, so he simply watched in silence as the game unfolded. Move after move, the number of black stones dwindled, while white pieces spread across the board. Their opponent’s expression grew darker with each turn.

Two minutes later, the screen flashed three words: White Wins.

Lin Si clung to Y’s arm. “We won!”

They collected the opponent’s 100 gold coins. Lin Si, a little money-lover, grinned and chirped, “Thank you, thank you!”

“Again!” The man demanded.

Y turned to Lin Si. “Are you getting bored?”

“Not at all!” Lin Si thought to himself—winning 100 gold coins in less than twenty minutes? There was no way he’d get bored!

For the second round, Y once again bet 100 gold coins. Their opponent, caught in a dilemma, hesitated before only betting 50.

This match lasted longer than the first—Y finally won after half an hour, earning 50 gold coins.

Seeing that the man was reluctant to continue betting and suspecting he didn’t have much left, Lin Si and Y decided to switch tables.

At the Chinese chess table, they racked up another 300 gold coins. Instead of moving to another game, Y set up his own table in the player zone, borrowing a piece of paper from the shopkeeper and sticking it beside them.

[Prize pool: 1,500 gold coins. Choose any board game. Win one round to take it all.]

“Will this really work?” Lin Si whispered to Y.

“No idea,” Y replied. “But if we lose everything, we’ll have to sleep in the garbage dump tonight.”

Lin Si chuckled softly and leaned against Y’s shoulder, waiting. “Then you better get ready to work as a restaurant waiter with me tomorrow.”

Sure enough, the tempting prize soon attracted players eager to try their luck.

“Entry fee is 300 gold coins,” Lin Si told the first challenger. “If you win just one round, the whole 1,500 is yours.”

The price to enter was steep, but some were willing to take the gamble.

However, throughout the night, Y never lost a single match. He played smart—not winning outright too quickly, but giving opponents just enough hope that they might stand a chance, only to ultimately lose.

This created a cycle—more and more players believed they could win, eager to try their luck.

“Each person only gets one challenge per week,” Lin Si told repeat challengers. “Don’t get addicted to the game.”

Whether it was Chinese chess, Go, or even Gobang, Y remained undefeated.

Lin Si, meanwhile, kept his eyes glued to their gold balance on the interface. His grip on Y tightened—from holding onto his arm to practically hugging half of Y’s body, as if he wanted to shove his little “golden treasure chest” into his pocket.

“Event’s over,” Lin Si finally announced, turning off the electronic screen and closing the stall.

Y glanced at him—he had been grinning all night without a single break. Unable to resist, Y reached out and ruffled his hair. “Happy?”

“Super happy!” Lin Si eagerly pulled up the interface to show him. “Over 8,400 gold coins… We must be the richest people in the virtual world right now!”

Y held his hand, leading him through the chess hall. “Do you want to play something yourself?”

“But I only know how to play Gobang, and I’m not good at bridge either… I’ll just lose money,” Lin Si admitted.

Y pointed toward a four-player table in the upper right corner. “How about Ludo?”

Lin Si rubbed his fingertips together. “Well… okay, let’s play a round?”

Y led him over.

During their previous Gobang game, Lin Si had clung to Y’s arm the whole time, looking like he was itching to say something but holding back.

Now, as they settled into their seats, Lin Si ended up in the center, with Y positioned protectively beside him.

The three other players at the table had heard about tonight’s “game king” and seemed a bit nervous seeing them sit down.

“Uh… 5 gold coins per round?” they suggested cautiously.

That was just what Lin Si wanted. He tossed 5 gold coins into the prize pool, and the game began.

Their color was blue.

Two minutes in, Lin Si pressed his lips together. “I got sent back home.”

Ten minutes in, Lin Si slumped over the table in defeat. “I got sent home again…”

Twenty minutes in, he clung to Y, wailing. “I was right at my doorstep, and they sent me back!”

Y chuckled, gently holding Lin Si’s hand as he rolled the dice. The die landed on the electronic screen, showing a six.

Lin Si: “!”

His just-grounded little airplane took off again!

With the help of luck-god Y, Lin Si barely avoided coming in last, finishing in third place—losing only three gold coins in the end.

As they left the chess street, Lin Si rubbed his hands in frustration. “Why are my hands so unlucky…”

Y took his hand in his own, leading him through the dazzling night market.

It was already past midnight. While waiting for the tram by the roadside, Lin Si asked, “Are we coming back tomorrow?”

“In a few days,” Y replied. “People recognize us now. If we come back too soon, there won’t be as many challengers.”

Lin Si nodded, then hesitantly asked, “We’ve made so much money—will we get penalized for it?”

“We controlled the number of participants and the bet amounts. One challenge per person, 300 coins per round—it’s not enough to trigger a penalty,” Y explained.

Lin Si clung to his arm. “How are you so good at chess?”

“I used to work on board game software. Had to study the gameplay first to design the algorithms,” Y said.

Lin Si sighed in admiration. “You’re all so amazing…”

“We?” Y asked.

“Oh, and my boss—the one I mentioned before,” Lin Si said. “He seems really knowledgeable about the tech industry too. We even talked about the virtual world of ‘Bubble’ today.”

Y went quiet for a moment, then asked, “You mean the boss you said you didn’t like?”

“Yeah,” Lin Si thought for a second. “But now I think he’s actually pretty nice. We’ve made peace. It’s still a bit awkward working together, but it’s way better than before.”

Y asked, “Is that so?”

“Mm. Back when I didn’t like him, I thought he hated me in every way. But when he said I was great, I started thinking he was great too.” Lin Si suddenly remembered something and shook Y’s arm, saying, “Oh right! I found out what my pheromone smells like today!”

Y feigned ignorance. “Oh? What do they smell like?”

Lin Si glanced around cautiously, then leaned in close to Y’s ear, as if revealing a top-secret piece of information. “Milk! It smells like milk! Sweet and fragrant!”

Y chuckled softly, his laughter brushing against Lin Si’s ear like a feather—warm and ticklish.

Lin Si lowered his head, his cheeks turning red. “Why are you laughing at me…? Is a milk scent too ordinary?”

“Not at all. It’s unique,” Y replied. “I like it a lot.”

Lin Si lifted his head, eyes filled with anticipation. “Really?”

“Mhm. No one would dislike it,” Y assured him.

Satisfied, Lin Si grinned. “I also heard there’s a hint of freesia. It smells really nice too.”

Both of them laughed together under the midnight glow of the tram station.

Just then, a small white cat trotted by, pausing under the signpost to look at them.

Lin Si noticed it and tugged on Y’s hand. “There’s a cat.”

“Looks like a stray,” Y said, squatting down and reaching out his hand.

The cat immediately approached, rubbing against his palm and letting out a soft “meow.”

Lin Si hid behind Y, peeking out from the side. “How does a virtual world even have stray cats?”

“The pet system exists,” Y explained. “Do you want to adopt one?”

The little cat meowed again. Lin Si felt as if it had scratched his heart with its tiny paw, but he still hesitated to get closer.

“Why are you afraid of animals?” Y asked, holding the cat gently in his arms.

Lin Si pressed his lips together, eyes downcast as he stared at the neatly laid bricks beneath his feet. “They bite. And if you get bitten, you need shots. I don’t like injections.”

Y’s expression shifted—caught off guard. Seeing his reaction, Lin Si felt a little guilty and added, “But I want to try—”

Before he could finish, Y pulled him into a warm embrace with his free arm. “Baby, everything will get better from now on.”

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Author’s Note:
Lu Wei: Left hand holding my wife, right hand holding a cat. Life is perfect.

(Just a reminder—characters in this world can’t smell their own pheromones!)

T/n: New chapter is up 🥰 if you want to support me you can buy me a Ko-Fi or go to my paypal page. Happy Reading 🎉😺