Chapter 2776: The Online Game Master's 'Straight' Roommate 17/18

Cheng Lang was somewhat reluctant to break the moment's atmosphere, his ears burning, his heart pounding like drums, an unfamiliar, taboo-laden emotion surging in his chest.

The Bell Signal suddenly rang out.

Cheng Lang frowned, still holding Jin Chen with one hand, fished out his phone to answer—it was an unknown number.

"Senior Cheng……" Hua Yue's voice was a little tense.

Hearing his voice, Cheng Lang's expression cooled, his voice turning a few degrees colder: "Hua Yue? Where did you get my number?"

Hua Yue sidestepped Cheng Lang's question, saying on his own, "Senior Cheng, I've made Xu Qian pay the price; the previous matter was all a misunderstanding, it's my fault."

"But Senior Cheng, I truly like you—will you let me pursue you?"

As soon as he said that, Cheng Lang hadn't even spoken yet—his originally loosened grip on Jin Chen tightened, his brow jerking up.

Immediately after, he pressed down again heavily.

His teeth clamped down, not too light nor too heavy, sinking into the flesh with force, even a bit fierce.

Cheng Lang was caught off guard, his eyes jerking; pain made him suck in a cold breath, a pained cry caught in his throat, he instinctively grabbed Jin Chen's hair at the back of his head, afraid of hurting him, he could only helplessly curl his fingers, lower his gaze, and look at the head buried in his neck.

"…Xiao Chen?"

What's wrong? How did you suddenly bite so hard?

Jin Chen ignored him, continuing to bite hard, grinding, his nose bridge sinking deep, his breath scorching.

Cheng Lang, bitten and feeling both pain and numbness, could only endure the pain while distractedly answering the phone: "Hua Yue, I don't agree. I've said it many times—I'm straight, I have no interest in you. If you keep calling to harass me, I'll report it to the police."

Jin Chen: "……"

"Senior Cheng!" Hua Yue's voice even cracked, "I'm right downstairs at your place now—outside it's freezing, the snow is so heavy, I'm not feeling well, I really can't take it… can you just see me once, hear me out?"

Cheng Lang felt a wave of annoyance: "I said it—I could never go see you. You'd better leave right away, or I'll call the police to handle it."

Having said that, he hung up directly and added Hua Yue's number to the blacklist.

At that moment, Jin Chen gradually released his bite.

He sat up straight, slowly lowering his gaze; his eyes fell on the red mark where the teeth had pressed, he looked for a few seconds, then lifted his gaze to Cheng Lang.

"Senior," Jin Chen's lips curved, his tone Youyou, "are you truly straight, or… are you just rejecting him?"

The sudden loss of warmth and breath exposed Cheng Lang's skin to the cold air, triggering a shiver.

His fingers felt a bit weak, he wanted to zip up his down jacket to hide the mark; the fabric rubbed, leaving a stinging sensation.

Cheng Lang wasn't quite used to Jin Chen's gaze and question right now.

"I'm definitely straight." Cheng Lang said, still a bit irritated, "I also don't know why he'd think that—I can't explain it to him."

Jin Chen let out an "oh," then suddenly gave a low laugh; his deep gaze wandered over Cheng Lang's flushed ears and tightly pressed lips.

"Then…" he leaned in slightly, closing the distance between them, a coaxing, dangerous tenderness.

"Senior, when do you plan to find a girlfriend?"

Cheng Lang froze.

He seemed never to have considered this question.

Before, he thought it was troublesome; now…

Now like this, isn't it pretty good? Cheng Lang and Jin Chen eat together, play games together; when cold they can warm each other, when tired they can rely on each other.

Why must he find a girlfriend?

"I don't know." Cheng Lang looked away, "I haven't thought about it—okay, let's not talk about this, let's go home first."

"It's freezing outside, your hands are totally icy."

Cheng Lang pulled Jin Chen; snowflakes fell onto their clasped hands, also onto Cheng Lang's tumultuous feelings.

Jin Chen let him hold on; his gaze fell on their clasped hands, then slowly moved up, he blinked, and the smile in his eyes deepened.

"No rush," he thought.

The snow kept falling, gradually covering their footprints.

The path they came on was clear, but the direction home seemed to have become a bit blurry.

——

This belated first snow fell intermittently for three days.

Jin Chen also finally got through the busiest stage of the group project, and over the weekend he rested thoroughly at home for two days.

Cheng Lang was pleased with this, even feeling a secret delight.

He liked seeing Jin Chen relax beside him, and liked the feeling of the house filled with traces of their shared life.

Sunday afternoon, the two had just returned from grocery shopping, big and small bags of ingredients stuffing the fridge.

Cheng Lang had just finished putting things away when he heard Jin Chen's voice from the kitchen: "Senior, let me prepare lunch today—how about sukiyaki?"

He leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching Jin Chen roll up his sweater sleeves, revealing fair wrists.

The winter sunlight streamed through the glass window, making him look clean and warm.

"Sure," Cheng Lang replied softly, "Do you need me to help?"

"No need, just wait to eat." Jin Chen turned and smiled at him, eyes crinkling.

Cheng Lang thus relaxed into being a hands-off manager, that pleasant feeling continuing to brew; the warm yellow kitchen light, the gurgling bubbling pot, and the busy figure at the prep counter made him feel steady and content.

Jin Chen suddenly thought of something: "Senior, could you save that assignment summary on the computer desktop to a USB drive?"

"Sure." Cheng Lang replied, walking into Jin Chen's room.

On the desk, the laptop was still open, screen lit.

He found the document, dragged it onto the USB drive, task completed.

As he was about to close the laptop, his gaze suddenly caught the game icon for Wind and Moon Rivers and Lakes, and he let out an surprised "hng".

What a coincidence, Xiao Chen also plays this game, yet he never mentioned it.

Cheng Lang felt a surge of surprise, then a hint of regret—having lived together so long, eating meals and playing mobile games together, he never even asked Xiao Chen whether he played Wind and Moon Rivers and Lakes.

Cheng Lang closed his laptop, walked into the kitchen with light steps, and said, "Xiao Chen, you have Wind and Moon Jianghu installed on your computer; you play this too?"

Jin Chen spread butter on the pot bottom, hearing this he replied, "Yeah, I've been playing for a while."

His hands kept moving, laying several slices of beef onto the hot pot bottom, which sizzled, sending out fragrance.

Jin Chen, unable to free his hands, smiled and turned his head, saying, "How about it, senior—do you want to join me?"

"Sure, of course!" Cheng Lang immediately agreed, already thinking in his mind which instance to take Jin Chen to grind that evening, and also planning to show off his skills.

Cheng Lang silently apologized in his heart to the expert Xunchen.

"Great god, great god! Although I'm your loyal fan, bringing Xiao Chen is more important!"

Jin Chen placed the cooked beef onto a plate, then added fresh beef to the pot, saying, "But… tonight probably won't work."

Cheng Lang, "What's wrong?"

"I've made plans with someone tonight," Xiao Chen said, "We agreed to play the newly released duo instance; we can't stand each other up."

Cheng Lang's excitement deflated instantly.

"... Important?" he asked.

"Mm." Xiao Chen responded, just then finishing cooking a slice of mushroom; he picked it up with chopsticks and brought it to Cheng Lang's lips, saying, "Come, taste the saltiness."

Cheng Lang instinctively opened his mouth and ate it.

The mushroom was fresh, tender, and juicy, cooked just right, but as he chewed it in his mouth, he felt it was somewhat bland.

Cheng Lang returned to the living room sofa and sat down, a little absent-minded.

Xiao Chen now has a regular gaming partner, and it's for a duo instance.

"Tsk, is it a guy or a girl? Do they get along? Is it more fun than playing with him?"

Cheng Lang actually wanted to ask Xiao Chen, but when the words reached his lips, he felt asking like that would be overstepping and nitpicky.

——

After the meal, Cheng Lang voluntarily took on dishwashing; the water sounded splashing, but it couldn't dispel the inexplicable annoyance in his heart. After finishing up, he returned to his room, somewhat irritably scratching his head, and logged into the game.

As soon as he went online, the private chat channel popped up—it was Xunchen.

【Private Chat】Xunchen: The newly released Sword Tomb Seek Seclusion duo challenge instance—interested in giving it a try? It's said to be very difficult, but the first clear and hidden boss have a chance to drop rare materials^^

Cheng Lang stared at that line, stunned for a moment.

Another duo instance—he's now a bit sensitive to that term.

【Private Chat】He Liangyue: Expert, are you free today?

【Private Chat】Xunchen: Yeah, just finished up; want to come? The rewards are still good.

Cheng Lang wasn't particularly interested in item rewards, but… anyway, Xiao Chen isn't playing with him tonight—does he have to sit alone in front of the computer looking foolish?

【Private Chat】He Liangyue: Sure. I happen to be free.

After setting the time, Cheng Lang and Xunchen formed a party and teleported into the instance.

The instance opened quickly; the setting was a gloomy, mysterious ancient sword tomb, requiring extremely high coordination and skill.

Xunchen still moved with sharp, flamboyant footwork; Cheng Lang focused, suppressing his chaotic emotions, and matched Xunchen's rhythm—blades flashing, swords clashing.

But in the segment where both had to simultaneously solve separate mechanisms to proceed, Cheng Lang stared at the distorted light-and-shadow runes on the screen, while a thought flashed through his mind.

Xiao Chen……is he also doing this instance with that person right now?

How well do they cooperate?

This distraction caused Cheng Lang's hand to lag by a beat; he almost got struck by a lightning bolt from the mirror image, his HP dropping sharply.

At the same time, a soft white light fell on him—a timely heal from Xunchen.

The purple-clad youth appeared at his side, waving his folding fan to block the subsequent attacks.

The two quickly resolved the trouble and returned to the main scene.

Xunchen turned around, facing He Liangyue, with a text bubble appearing above his head.

【Party】Xunchen: Your condition seems a bit unstable tonight—do you have something on your mind?

Cheng Lang stared at that line, hesitating. Anyway, over the internet, the other party is the expert he trusts and admires; perhaps… he could confide a little.

【Party】He Liangyue: Hmm… there's a little something, expert—I want to ask you something.

【Party】Xunchen: Go ahead.

Cheng Lang organized his wording, trying to blur real‑world details.

【Party】He Liangyue: I have a roommate with whom I get along well; he also plays this game. He told me today that he made plans with an in‑game friend to tackle a duo instance tonight, and said he absolutely couldn't stand them up. When he mentioned that friend……he smiled quite happily.

【Party】He Liangyue: You say—is that friend quite important to him?

After sending the message, Cheng Lang stared at the screen, feeling a bit nervous yet also hoping Xunchen would give a negative answer.

A few seconds later, Xunchen's reply popped up.

【Party】Xunchen: Sounds like it is^^

【Party】Xunchen: Moreover, this instance, because its mechanics especially test coordination and trust, forum players jokingly call it a CP‑training exclusive map.

Cheng Lang: "……"

CP‑training exclusive map!

Xiao Chen, behind his back, has such an important person in the game—important enough to tackle a CP‑exclusive instance together?

And he stood him up for that person!

Cheng Lang's subsequent actions all seemed a bit absent‑minded; he relied entirely on Xunchen covering for him to avoid messing up.

In the latter half of the instance he played in a daze, barely managing to clear it; the first‑clear rewards and rare items were automatically distributed into his inventory.

Cheng Lang, however, felt little joy.

Xunchen casually topped off his HP lost in the final boss fight.

On the screen, the purple‑clad, jade‑fan young master lightly tapped the sword‑bearing warrior with his fan, making the latter look somewhat dejected.

【Xunchen】: Speaking of which, this coming Zhousan is the A City comic expo. Really looking forward to meeting you^^

Cheng Lang perked up and recovered.

【He Liangyue】: I'm also really looking forward to meeting up with the expert!

After logging out of the game, Cheng Lang leaned back in his chair and let out a long breath.

He felt really ill at ease.

He glanced at the time, guessing that Jin Chen's CP Instance should also be about done.

After thinking, Cheng Lang got up and went to the kitchen, cold-faced, took out the coffee beans, ground them with a force a few notches stronger than usual, as if he bore a grudge against those beans, and brewed two cups.

Still cold-faced, he walked toward Jin Chen's room.

He knocked on the door, and without waiting for a response, pushed it open and went in.

Hmph, Jin Chen said before that he didn't need to be polite with him.

In the room, Jin Chen was holding a controller, playing an action game on the TV screen; the screen was full of dazzling light and shadow, and the character fought with vigorous vigor.

Hearing the movement, he turned his head, casually paused the game, and put the controller aside.

"Instance cleared?" Cheng Lang put the coffee on the table.

"Yeah, cleared."

Jin Chen nodded, opened his arms toward him, leaned back slightly in the chair, indicating he wanted a hug, which he had become increasingly adept at recently.

Cheng Lang: "……"

Cheng, heart sour, surface cold, Lang stood in place for a moment, then eventually stepped over and sat beside him, the familiar scent of agarwood lingering around his nose.

While hugging him, he couldn't help but raise his hand and vigorously rub Jin Chen's ears, with much more force than usual, feeling uneasy inside, as if he were a cherished treasure he had carefully kept, suddenly realizing others might also covet it, and perhaps it had already been shared.

Cheng Lang felt that tonight he was practically being given the cold shoulder.

In real life he was stood up, in the game he learned of bad news, and still had to personally deliver the coffee to his door.

But……

After a moment's thought, that person on the other side of the screen, whose gender and shape are unknown, couldn't do what he does—being able to hug Jin Chen anytime, rub his ears, and feel his aura.

The sourness and suffocation in Cheng Lang's heart only slightly eased.

He is the one who actually lives day-to-day with Xiao Chen under the same roof.

Jin Chen watched Cheng Lang's expression and facial expression change repeatedly, smiling as he found a comfortable posture in his embrace, happily anticipating as he continued to add more intense elements.

"Brother, let's go together to the Zhousan comic expo; it's perfect—I want to meet up in person with my game partner."

Cheng Lang: "……"

Cheng Lang:????!!!!

Just after barely calming his emotions a bit, this sentence blasted him into disarray.

Comic expo, meet-up, and that very important partner!

Xiao Chen not only wants to be lovey-dovey with that person in the game, but also wants to develop it into meeting in real life!

"Brother, do you think he might also be really looking forward to meeting me?"