23. This Brother Is Not Proper

Chen Sheng paused for a moment, his steps faltering. He glanced around with a hint of surprise in his eyes, but the astonishment didn’t last long; soon, his expression returned to calm as he drove home.

It was a bit odd, yes, but not so strange as to be disturbing. In fact, he couldn’t quite put his finger on exactly what was out of place.

Upon arriving home, Chen Sheng called his younger sister.

“Brother,” came the cheerful voice of a girl through the phone.

Before Chen Sheng could say anything, his sister began to chatter away, sharing all sorts of stories from her recent days—troubles with her studies and daily life, a minor spat with a friend that was quickly resolved, and finally, the news that a classmate had confessed their feelings to her.

Chen Sheng was ten years older than his sister, Chen Youyou. Because of his own life experiences, he had always treated her as an equal, rarely taking on the airs of an elder brother. As a result, Chen Youyou had loved confiding in him since childhood, sharing even her smallest secrets.

After listening quietly, Chen Sheng only said, “The one you argued with—no need to distance yourself on the surface, but once you graduate, keep your distance.”

“Why, brother?” The girl’s voice was puzzled. Wasn’t a proper older brother supposed to ask who had confessed to her, tell her to focus on her studies, and warn her against young romance?

Such an improper brother!

But then, Chen Youyou remembered her brother had never acted like other people’s siblings; he never postured as an elder. And so, she let it go.

“The argument started because you were busy that day and forgot to fetch water for her,” Chen Sheng said blandly.

“That’s right!” Chen Youyou nodded on the other end.

“Fetching water is a trivial matter. If someone fetches it for you, it’s a favor; if not, it’s only right. She took it for granted, which speaks to her character. Also, she never truly considered you a friend,” Chen Sheng explained. Even if he hadn't spent years as a psychiatrist, at nearly thirty, he could see through such things.

“What about the one who confessed to me?” Chen Youyou asked, preferring her brother’s advice over her dorm friend’s suggestion to accept the confession.

Chen Sheng tried to see things from a young girl’s perspective, then asked, “Is he handsome?”

“Not as good-looking as you.”

“Does he have any habits you dislike?” Chen Sheng continued.

“He smokes, swears, and likes to fight,” Chen Youyou replied without hesitation.

“Do you even need to think about it? Be careful, or mom and dad will use this as an excuse to cut your allowance,” Chen Sheng said expressionlessly. Which girl likes all three of those traits? If he has all three and isn’t even good-looking, he loses all hope as a potential partner!

“In fact, I was already planning to refuse. It’s not my fault I’m pretty, but if he’s only interested because of my looks, that’s his problem,” Chen Youyou said seriously, insisting that she wasn’t just worried about her allowance. Then she quickly asked, “Brother, the New Year’s coming soon—have you found a girlfriend yet?”

“No.”

“Then you’d better hurry. You’re almost thirty! And besides, you—”

As his sister began to nag, Chen Sheng sneered, “Chen Youyou, you’d best remember what you said today. When you graduate, you’d also better have a partner and be married, or I’ll ask you ten times a day!”

“Ten times? Brother, are you even human?” Chen Youyou cried out in mock outrage.

“Every action has its consequence,” Chen Sheng replied, offering no further explanation.

After all, when it comes to revenge, it’s best to be heartless!

He then changed the subject. “The game I bought you—have you been playing it lately?”

In truth, he had called just to ask for advice on leveling up in that healing game.

“Of course I’ve been playing! But not much—only when I go home on Fridays. But listen, brother, I’m a natural at it...”

“Have you leveled up?” Chen Sheng couldn’t help but interject—this was what mattered most to him!

“Leveled up?” Chen Youyou was briefly confused. Wasn’t the whole point of the game to explore, build, plant crops, and share with friends? Where was there any leveling up?

But then, it occurred to her that her brother was probably talking about unlocking new exploration permissions.

In this game, though you didn’t have to level up, you did have to improve your exploration rights. The higher your permissions, the more places you could go, and the more resources you could gather for building or farming.

Thinking of this, Chen Youyou grew excited and replied with smug pride, “Of course! And brother, I’ve already upgraded twice!”

So far, the highest exploration permission anyone had reached in the game circle was three upgrades.

Yet she, Chen Youyou, had already reached the second tier!

On the other end, Chen Sheng’s face remained wooden and silent.

He hadn’t even unlocked the first level?

And Chen Youyou had already advanced twice!

So how could he possibly ask her how to level up?

Of course, he couldn’t! He had his pride, after all!

Chen Sheng instantly made up his mind—he would figure it out himself. He refused to believe he couldn’t level up!

No matter how extraordinary this healing game might be, it was still just a game!

With a torrent of exclamation marks surging through his mind, Chen Sheng quickly steered the conversation elsewhere, talked about other things with Chen Youyou, and promised to come home that weekend, take her out, and treat her to some delicious food. Then he hung up.

Afterward, Chen Sheng glanced at the fridge, opened it, and found a couple of cabbage hearts, a small frozen hunk of pork leg, a few shiitake mushrooms, and a potato. He decided to make dinner at home.

Those ingredients, combined with some dried chili and rice vinegar, would make a perfect stir-fry.

After eating, Chen Sheng lounged on the sofa and once again put on his pair of gold-rimmed glasses.

He planned to play a bit more before bed.

After all, his sister had already leveled up twice, while he was still stuck at “LV0.”

He could only blame the healing game for its excessive realism, mirroring real life so perfectly that it reproduced the faces of most bosses and capitalists in vivid detail!

Chen Sheng’s vision shifted. As the words “All clear, curse immunity granted” flashed on his glasses again, he vanished from the sofa without a trace.

...

Upper Sanjiang City.

The moment Chen Sheng entered this “game world,” he heard the rumor that the police chief had punished him. Not only would he never be promoted, but he’d been sent off to guard an old residence.

Here, “old residence” didn’t mean an ancient house. It referred to homes left vacant after every member of a family had been killed by something bizarre.

Such places were unique to Upper Sanjiang City—no other place was plagued by such supernatural occurrences.