Li Shuoxing took all the little person’s answers as adolescent rebellion.
It’s about time…
To go out.
If he goes out earlier, he can always come back earlier, so it’s better to go earlier than later.
Don’t panic, hold on. At least I have an email system. It’s no problem to send ten emails a day if I want to.
Li Shuoxing convinced himself.
He made up his mind and was about to use the ticket when suddenly, on the screen, the little person spoke again.
Su Mingqian: “Let’s buy some pumpkin seeds.”
Li Shuoxing was stunned, not understanding how the topic had jumped here. Did pumpkin seeds have anything to do with now?
He sent a question mark to Su Mingqian.
Su Mingqian explained, “You just bought so many things and must have spent a lot of money. Didn’t you say last time that we could make some money by planting pumpkins and selling them? I’ll help you plant the pumpkins before I go on my trip, so that you can water them every day and harvest them again after three days. The money may not be much, but it’s still a bit. The rest…”
When he came to this point, Su Mingqian was actually a bit hesitant. He didn’t know if his decision was right or not.
But the words that’d been rolling around in his throat for a long time were finally gently poured out.
He made an agreement with Ximu:
“I’ll plant the rest when I come back.”
Li Shuoxing was surprised by this game again.
It was no exaggeration to say that after playing so many games, it was the first time he’d encountered a game where the character worried about the player’s wallet and took the initiative to remind the player not to forget to plant pumpkins for money.
How come…
While it was most likely a set-up by the producer, it was so cleverly done that Li Shuoxing was still caught in it without resistance knowing it was a set-up.
I was wrong.
Before, I thought the cub had grown up to be rebellious so insisted on running away from home. It turns out, he has grown up to be sensible and knows how to share the burden of the family… But our family really isn’t poor.
Li Shuoxing was moved and typed, “Cub, you’re really great. It doesn’t matter if you go straight on your trip. I can plant the pumpkins myself.”
But Su Mingqian didn’t agree.
He asked Li Shuoxing to buy pumpkin seeds and insisted on planting them all on his own.
There were always things that men must uphold all the time.
For example, not to be a kept man.
After planting the pumpkins, it was noon.
The time to leave had finally arrived.
Li Shuoxing had made all the psychological preparations.
He took a deep breath, took out the plane ticket and used it.
In a flash, the plane ticket disappeared and a blue translucent light door appeared in the courtyard.
The light door was deep, and the shimmering blue light from it spread out in the simple courtyard, dyeing every person and object here with a faint colour.
On the screen, the little person had fully equipped himself and reached the light door.
One of his feet had even stepped over the blue boundary and probed into the other side… But at that moment, the foot abruptly shrank back for some reason.
It was just a small movement.
But Li Shuoxing strangely saw some of the little person’s hesitation and nervousness in it.
His heart moved, and he began to type, “Cub.”
Su Mingqian: “?”
Li Shuoxing: “Enjoy your trip and have fun.”
+5.
And a smiling little expression.
Su Mingqian: “I will.”
Su Mingqian: “I’ll also answer your emails.”
With that, he took a step once more.
This time, he firmly passed through the light door to the world behind it.
The game suddenly blacked out.
After a few seconds of black screen, a new scene appeared on the screen.
The game’s art style suddenly switched from a 2D paper art style to a 3D realistic landscape.
A wide road occupied the centre of the screen, twisting and turning like a long grey snake; on either side was forest, dense forest and jagged rock mixed together, rough, wanton and beautiful.
And in the high-definition photo-realistic landscape, there stood only one person.
His 2D body, wearing a hat, carrying a backpack and pulling a suitcase, appeared alone in the middle of the road. There was no village ahead and no shop behind <sup>1</sup> 前不着村，后不着店 figuratively means to be stranded in the middle of nowhere. , not to mention a car, a person or even a bird to be seen on either side.
This wasn’t the trip Li Shuoxing had imagined.
This wasn’t the trip Su Mingqian had imagined.
About a minute or two of silence.
A text bubble appeared above Su Mingqian’s head.
Su Mingqian: “…Ximu, are you there?”
Li Shuoxing: “…I’m here.”
Li Shuoxing was shocked. “I’m actually here?”
Li Shuoxing was shocked three times. “How could I be here?”
At this moment, he finally realised.
Actually…
The game never seemed to have popped up the novice guide to tell him what the travel system was like.
He just saw the keywords “unknown destination” and “travel”, then subconsciously put the framework of that popular travel game into it.
So…
This wasn’t a game of waiting at home alone for the cub to return, but a game of travel romance for two.
But…
The truth came too late.
He had not only rambled on all morning, performing countless shameful plays of reluctantly parting, but had also spent 150 favourability points and 700 contribution points to buy a whole bunch of stuff.
He still had 463 favourability points left, but only 455 contribution points left.
Li Shuoxing went black before his eyes.
This game, is it really still playable?
“Roll.”
“Roll, roll.”
Su Mingqian took a couple steps forward.
The wheels of the suitcase rubbed against the ground, making a dull sound that spread far across the open road.
He tried walking forward for a while, but the more he walked, the heavier his mood became.
There really was no people here.
Not only were there no people, there weren’t even any larger animals.
It was beautiful and open, but also cold, like a static space, a world where only he existed.
It was frightening.
Su Mingqian spoke once more, low, like his low mood, “Ximu.”
The light screen flashed and the inside refreshed with text: “Hmm?”
In any case, the familiar presence released the pressure on his mind.
Su Mingqian could clearly feel his tense nerves relaxing. He said again, “Do you know where we are now? What are we going to do now?”
Li Shuoxing was stumped.
At the same time, the screen suddenly refreshed and a task popped up.
[Travel Task]: Enjoy your vacation
Relax your mind and get away from the crowd.
At sunrise, a new day comes!
Please find the most beautiful sunrise in this place to welcome a better tomorrow.
Li Shuoxing compared this task to the previous one and found that it had no time limit or reward.
Although it could be because the travel itself was a reward, a task without a reward still felt like something was missing…
But Li Shuoxing could at least answer one question. “What we’re gonna do now should be to walk along the road until we reach a place where we can see the most beautiful sunrise. As for where we are now, well…”
Li Shuoxing also wanted to know where they were.
He searched around the game, no hints, and was suddenly in a bit of a predicament. He looked around and saw a new map in a completely realistic style. He might as well try all he could in this desperate situation, so he screenshotted the game screen and uploaded it to the search engine.
There really were search results.
Grand Canyon National Park.
A famous scenic spot in the United States.
Li Shuoxing told Su Mingqian his search results.
Su Mingqian was puzzled. “Why’d we appear here? Generally, if we’re travelling, shouldn’t we get off at a station or airport? Even if we don’t, we should arrive at the scenic spot, but we seem to be halfway there…”
Li Shuoxing also wanted to ask the game this question, but the game upheld its usual mode of playing dead.
I’ll let you curse. It’ll be my loss if I make a sound.
Li Shuoxing was helpless. “I also don’t know…” he typed, “but I just looked and there’s no way back now. We probably have to finish the trip and watch the sunrise before we can go home.”
There was nothing more the two could do.
Su Mingqian: “The road hasn’t forked yet. Let’s go ahead for a while and see.”
Having made a decision, they hit the road together. Li Shuoxing saw on the screen the tiny figure moving bit by bit along the road. The art style of the 2D body was seriously disproportionate with the surrounding scenery, looking a little awkward and cute.
Although the road was long, it wasn’t a single road access.
After the two walked for a while, a fork appeared ahead of them. Before the fork was a road sign with the destination of each turn.
Su Mingqian asked Li Shuoxing, “Which way should we go now?”
Li Shuoxing looked at the road sign. English, he could understand, but place names were just like that, with little difference between understanding and not understanding. He put the place names in the search bar and searched for them, but it wasn’t much help, so he blindly sniped a road and had the little person go ahead.
But after walking for a while, they found that the road was under construction.
Two people: “…”
They returned to the fork in the road and chose to go in another direction.
This time, they seemed to be luckier, going forward without any hindrance.
The scenery in the game was indeed beautiful. After all, it was a complete copy of scenery in real life.
But, no matter how beautiful the scenery was, it’d be tiring looking at it all the time, especially when the person walking in it was also carrying a heavy burden on their shoulders and lugging a heavy load.
Su Mingqian opened his mouth and said, “Ximu.”
Li Shuoxing: “?”
Su Mingqian: “We’re walking on a road.”
Li Shuoxing: “…”
Su Mingqian: “It’s so far out here and you’re still making me carry so much stuff.”
Li Shuoxing was guilty. “…Accident.”
Su Mingqian: “Not only that, you also just pointed the wrong way.”
Li Shuoxing was guilty a second time. “…Second accident.”
Su Mingqian made a small accusation: “It’s all your fault.”
Li Shuoxing affirmed the third time, “I’m sorry for my fault.”
Su Mingqian said, “Ximu.”
Li Shuoxing: “?”
Su Mingqian: “I’m a little tired.”
He said this in a whisper, even a little ashamed.
He thought he shouldn’t be like this.
He was the one who insisted on travelling. He should have enough tolerance to tolerate all the problems.
But still… still, he wanted to talk to someone.
Even if it was across a screen.
But there was no answer from the other end of the screen.
Just when Su Mingqian was feeling a little lost, he suddenly felt his body lighten.
Su Mingqian: “?”
Before he could voice a question, the light screen flashed and new content appeared.
Li Shuoxing: “I tried, and it turns out I can help you with your backpack. That’s good. Let’s go, I’ll carry the backpack, you drag the suitcase, and we’ll wander to the ends of the earth together~”
1
前不着村，后不着店 figuratively means to be stranded in the middle of nowhere.