Making Progress

Late at night.

"Beep beep..."

A phone call came in, unsurprisingly from Milo.

"Ding Han, what the hell is wrong with you?!"

He launched into a tirade. "After I helped Xiao Bei get the business license this afternoon, she went out happily, saying she was going to have some alone time with you. But as soon as it got dark, she came back to the hotel crying, slammed the door shut, and wouldn't say a word to me. What are you trying to do? What did Xiao Bei do to deserve this? How did she end up with such a heartless guy like you!"

"Milo, don't be angry. How is Xiao Bei now?"

"She's locked herself in her room. She's not replying to my messages or answering my calls. She's probably crying. Damn it... What's going on? Xiao Bei brought millions of yuan to Huaining to open Flagship Store internet cafe. You don't really think this store has to be in Huaining, do you?"

"I..."

I was somewhat Wu Yan.

Can you tell me something from the bottom of your heart?

Milo seemed a little tired and said, "What do you really think of Xiao Bei? Don't tell me you don't like her at all; I can tell you like Xiao Bei too."

"I've already said it, it stops at just liking."

I slumped into the sofa and said, "Luo'er, do you think I should accept Xiao Bei under these circumstances?"

"Right."

Milo said, "No man would refuse Lu Xiaobei, so aren't you Ding Han, a man?"

"I am, but..."

I frowned. "Let's analyze this. What do you think Xiao Bei likes about me?"

"This..."

That one sentence completely stumped Milo.

Let me put it this way.

I calmly said, "When I was in Creek City, I was the only internet cafe manager at Feiyang Internet Cafe who had repair and programming skills. You could say I was a jack-of-all-trades. I helped Xiao Bei a lot, and I was also the one closest to her among the managers. This inevitably left a positive impression on Xiao Bei. In addition, on the day Typhoon Ginkgo raged, I rescued Xiao Bei from the typhoon and brought her home. Perhaps it was the sense of security that I gave her that made her the way she is now."

"So..."

Milo asked, "What does all this analysis prove?"

"Xiao Bei's personality is too unpredictable. Her behavior is always habitually driven by her emotions. Otherwise, she wouldn't have taken advantage of me while I was drunk and slept with me. So I think Xiao Bei's feelings for me might also be emotional, like a young girl Worshipped a hero. This kind of feeling will eventually pass, so I asked you..."

I paused for a moment, then said, "If I really do fall in love with Lu Xiaobei, and one day in the future, her feelings fade, she no longer settles into the mundane routine of daily life, and instead continues to pursue exciting things, leaving me all alone, what should I do then?"

"..."

Milo said, "You mean Xiao Bei's feelings for you are too emotional and lack rationality, and that's what you're worried about?"

"It's one of them."

I frowned. "What she needs is someone to joke around with her, to go crazy with her, to travel and wander around with her. And I'm clearly not that, Milo. I'm a pretty steady person, and I'm not looking for those things. Besides, we're players, and I feel that right now, the issues I should be considering are definitely not dating or starting a family, but how to become stronger in <Star Abyss> and survive well. So, the reason I can reject Lu Xiaobei is that I don't want to become a burden to her in the future, nor do I want to be a burden to her in the future."

"I see..."

Milo calmed down, lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and said, "Ding Han, now I finally understand why you treated Xiao Bei like that."

"Brother, I'm glad you understand."

"However, it's really heartbreaking to see Xiao Bei like this. Even if you reject her, you shouldn't hurt her like this. I just saw that she changed her tickets, changing both our tickets to the earliest time tomorrow, 10 o'clock."

He sighed. "I think you should come and see her off."

Will she let me deliver it?

"Couldn't you have come secretly and tried to appease her?"

Milo said speechlessly, "After all, you, her, and Old K have a partnership with the Feiyang Internet Cafe Flagship Store. Besides, even if you can't be lovers, you're still friends. Do you really want to lose Lu Xiaobei as a friend?"

"In no mood!"

"That's settled then. I'll send you the flight information in a bit, so you can go to the airport early tomorrow."

"OK!"

After hanging up the phone, I messaged Fatty and asked him to ask for half a day off for me tomorrow so I could go to the airport to see Lu Xiaobei off.

The next day, early morning.

I woke up early, washed up, went downstairs to buy a jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe), and walked along the street, munching on it. Then I came to a nearby gift shop, looked around for a while, and finally my eyes settled on a music box. This music box suited the aesthetics of a typical straight man; it had the words "happy" and "joyful" engraved on it, so I bought it.

Looking at the time, there was no time to pack it up, so I grabbed the music box and got into a taxi.

Half an hour later, at Huaining Airport.

I didn't go anywhere else; I stayed hidden at the security checkpoint.

"Drop!"

A message came from my inside contact, Milo: "Our car is parked on the second floor of the airport. Get out now. Xiao Bei is still angry and will definitely head straight for security. Make the most of your opportunity."

"OK!"

I held the music box and hid in the crowd.

Sure enough, Lu Xiaobei and Milo walked into the hall one after the other.

I rushed over and slid to a stop in front of Lu Xiaobei!

"You..."

Lu Xiaobei's eyes were still red. She looked at me, then at the music box in my hand.

"Xiao Bei, don't be angry. I apologize for what I said yesterday. I admit I was too harsh. Please don't take it to heart. To put it another way, we're still good friends, the best kind."

"Oh..."

The resolve in her eyes softened considerably.

"Here, a little gift for you." I handed him the music box.

"This..."

Lu Xiaobei was stunned. "What kind of straight male aesthetic is this?"

"Damn it..."

Milo glanced at the music box and sighed, "What kind of junk is this...?"

I said earnestly, "Xiao Bei, this music box has the words 'happy' and 'joyful' on it. I think it's very meaningful. This music box tells us that we must be optimistic, look forward, and not be trapped in the past or the future. People should live in the present, and happiness is the true meaning of life."

"All right."

Lu Xiaobei hugged the music box to his chest and said, "I'll only be happy if you come with me to the Moon Gazing Sea. What should I do?"

"I'm too busy with work, I don't have time..."

"Um."

Lu Xiaobei finally smiled, "Ding Han, you know what? You've finally started making up lies to appease me instead of just rejecting me outright. That's a big improvement, and I'm actually quite happy about it."

"..."

I Wu Yan and felt somewhat ashamed of myself.

"Alright, alright, security check complete."

Milo said, "Xiao Bei, if you really want to go to the Moon Gazing Sea, you can take a picture of your back at home, and I'll have a friend Photoshop it into the background of the Moon Gazing Sea."

"Xie Xie you so much, Milo."

"Don't be so polite, we're all family!"

"Ding Han, come here!"

Lu Xiaobei grabbed me and pulled me over, then unlocked his phone, opened the camera, and said, "Let's take a picture of the three of us together."

"Okay!"

Milo immediately came over.

I was slightly taken aback. Lu Xiaobei's phone screen saver photo looked rather gray and... somewhat familiar, but I didn't have time to ask before the two of them headed for security.

Shortly after, the two passed through security and appeared on the other side.

"Ding Han!"

Just as I was about to leave, Lu Xiaobei suddenly jumped up and down at me from the security checkpoint, waving and shouting, "You should be happy too! I'll come see you again!"

Many people looked over.

For no apparent reason, my nose suddenly stung with tears.

In the afternoon, Luo Mei.

"Is your sister-in-law really gone?"

The Haozi stared at me wide-eyed. "How could you bear to do that?"

"Holy shit..."

I really wanted to kick him. "I told you, she's not my sister-in-law! Xiao Bei and I are just friends, not lovers, at least not yet! If you keep calling me 'sister-in-law,' I'm not done with you!"

The fat man quipped, "It's a real shame. Lu Xiaobei is such a pretty girl, and she's so devoted to you. If it were me... I might be having my second child by now..."

"Your sister..."

I was speechless and could only pretend to be dead and remain silent.

"Oh, right."

The fat man said, "Ding Han, do you know what day it is in a few days?"

"I know, December 22nd is your birthday!"

"Um!"

The fat man said, "Shen Yue and I have already agreed to treat everyone to a music restaurant on the 22nd to celebrate. It'll just be the three of us, plus Shen Yue. It won't be many people, but we'll all be family, so we can talk about anything."

"Sure!"

I nodded and smiled, "What kind of gift do you need?"

"Tch, what does a grown man need a gift for? Besides, my birthday is just two days after yours. Are you trying to boost Huaining City's GDP by sending gifts back and forth? Let's skip it, don't bother with gifts, let's just have a few drinks."

"Alright!"

I sighed with emotion, realizing that my first birthday in <Star Abyss> was almost here.

Around four o'clock in the afternoon.

"Drop!"

A WeChat message, surprisingly from Lin Qingying: "Ding Han, my business trip is over, and I've landed at Huaining Airport."

"Good!"

I replied, "Want to have dinner together tonight?"

"Next time."

Lin Qingying said, "I have to go back to the company immediately. There's an urgent meeting I need to attend, and I'll probably be busy until very late today. You can eat by yourself."

"Good."

After that, the two stopped chatting. Lin Qingying was too busy, and I didn't want to distract her.

At night, lying in my room, I logged onto the Dark Web on my phone to look at various useful information, as well as information on equipment and weapons for sale on the Dark Web. But it didn't seem necessary to look at it. High-end equipment is very expensive now, and I've already invested 500,000 yuan in an internet cafe. Even if there was equipment suitable for me, I could only look at it.

Lin Qingying still hadn't finished work by midnight.

And so, in a hazy, dreamlike state, I drifted off to sleep.

I woke up and it was already morning.

"Knock knock~~"

There was a knock on the door, followed by Lin Qingying's voice. "Ding Han, I'm going downstairs to buy breakfast. Get up and wash up quickly."

Soon, the sound of her closing the door and the clatter of her high heels as she walked downstairs could be heard.