A Touching Brotherhood

Much later, someone asked Wu Wei, "If you could live your life over again, what would you do to make yourself better?"

Wu Wei thought for a few seconds, then replied, "I can't think of anything that would make me better than I am now."

At the time, Wu Wei had no idea why the person had asked him that. He understood later, but still didn't care.

Because he truly couldn't imagine what it would be like to be better than himself.

Everyone in the world strove to make him their goal.

He stood alone at the pinnacle, looking in every direction, with no one in sight.

Beneath his feet lay the end of the Great Way.

The Great Qin Empire, 2222.

Imperial Capital University, School of Computer Science.

After class, Li Long called out to Wu Wei.

"Wu Wei, the four of us are getting together tonight. Don't forget."

"Don't worry, I'll be there on time. After all, you're the rich one treating us."

There were four people in Dorm 307: Wu Wei, Li Long, Wang Zixuan, and Kuang Zhiguo. They got along pretty well. They were all the same age, and playing games or basketball together was enough to make them friends.

Li Long had suggested they call each other Big Brother, Second Brother, Third Brother, and Fourth Brother based on their ages, but Wu Wei had vehemently objected and shot the idea down. His reason was that it was too corny; even in novels, that sort of thing was considered a dealbreaker nowadays.

Li Long was a webnovel author himself. After thinking it over, he agreed, and the idea was dropped.

But that didn't affect the friendship between the guys at all.

Their dorm had a tradition of going out for a meal once a week. They'd promised to remember each other if any of them struck it rich, so they kept in touch and strengthened their bonds ahead of time.

Most of the time, they split the bill, but Li Long's new novel seemed to be doing really well. So this time, he'd taken the initiative and made it clear well in advance that he was paying.

There was nothing more to say.

8 p.m.

The four of them raised their glasses in a private room at a restaurant near the campus gates.

The only difference was that the other three were drinking beer, while Wu Wei had a bottle of Nutrient Express.

Wu Wei couldn't drink. One drink and he was out, and his roommates all knew that, so they'd never pressured him.

But today, Li Long had had a bit too much.

Holding a bottle of beer, he put an arm around Wu Wei's shoulder and asked loudly, "Wu Wei, are we brothers or not?"

"Of course."

"If we're brothers, have a drink with me. I'm in a great mood today. My novel hit ten thousand subscribers! From now on, I'll be one of the handsome, rich webnovel authors."

Wu Wei was a little surprised.

As Li Long's roommate, Wu Wei had picked up quite a bit about webnovels just from being around him, so he knew how impressive ten thousand subscribers was.

He never thought Li Long, whose talent he'd considered pretty average, could hit ten thousand. To be honest, Wu Wei had always thought Li Long was a typical workhorse typist with no real talent, and that a respectable average of three thousand subscribers would be the best he could manage.

I really underestimated him. Looks like writing webnovels isn't all about talent.

No, I can't think that way. It'd be a lousy thing to think about a friend.

Wu Wei quickly pushed those thoughts aside, then picked up a bottle of Nutrient Express and clinked it against Li Long's. "That's definitely worth celebrating. I'll drink to you, Brother Long."

"Cut the nonsense, Wu Wei. Do you know why I insisted on drinking with you? Because you're the reason my novel hit ten thousand."

"I'm the reason?" Wu Wei was genuinely confused this time.

"Yeah. I wrote you into the book. I thought I'd just toss you in for fun, but it turns out people nowadays love stories about top students. The novel blew up."

Wu Wei: "..."

"So, shouldn't we have a drink to celebrate?"

"Exactly, have a drink! Wu Wei, we'll carry you back to the dorm tonight."

"We can just get Brother Long to book you a room, Wu Wei. Come on, have a drink."

Wu Wei frowned.

"What, Wu Wei, you think you're too good for me? If you consider me a brother, have a drink. I'll book you a hotel room right now. Tomorrow's Saturday; you don't have class." Li Long's expression had turned sour.

To be honest, Wu Wei felt a little helpless.

It wasn't that he couldn't drink. On the contrary, he had a high tolerance. Drinking all three of them under the table would have been no problem at all.

He just didn't like drinking. He couldn't stand the taste of alcohol. To Wu Wei, liquor burned, beer was bitter, and wine tasted strange. He simply couldn't understand what anyone liked about it.

So he always told people he couldn't drink and would pass out after one glass, which put a stop to anyone trying to pressure him.

Drinking wasn't the hard part for Wu Wei. The hard part was acting drunk afterward.

He couldn't break the rules; Wu Wei knew all too well how terrifying drinking culture could be.

But Li Long and the other two had gone this far. It really would be rude not to humor them a little. It wasn't that Wu Wei cared all that much about them; it was just that falling out with his roommates as a college student would make the next few years awkward.

Because of Li Long, Wu Wei had paid some attention to webnovels and knew that many protagonists loved to stand apart and make enemies of the whole world. But he wasn't going through an edgy phase, so he had no desire to be that kind of person.

After weighing it all up, Wu Wei could only say helplessly, "Just one drink."

Li Long beamed. "One drink it is. What a good brother! Your first drink is with me, and I'll remember this. Tonight, I'll book you a five-star hotel room."

Wu Wei really did "pass out" after one drink.

Li Long and the other two burst out laughing. They'd never seen anyone with such a low tolerance.

After they'd eaten and drunk their fill, Wang Zixuan and Kuang Zhiguo had also had quite a bit to drink. Li Long waved his hand and booked four rooms at the nearest five-star hotel.

They helped the "sleeping" Wu Wei into his room, then Wang Zixuan and Kuang Zhiguo went back to their own rooms.

Wu Wei wondered why Li Long still hadn't left.

Just then, Li Long pulled out his phone and made a call.

"Have you got the girl I asked you to arrange?"

"Don't worry. Your money came through, so we'll make sure our girl does too."

"Good. XX Hotel, room XXX. Get here right away."

Wu Wei didn't open his eyes, but his heart warmed.

Li Long really was a great friend. He hadn't expected him to find a woman for him, too.

That was what he called service. This friendship had been worth having.

Just as he was thinking that, he sensed Li Long come to the bedside, then heard him say quietly, "Wu Wei, when you find out you have AIDS, you don't need to thank me. It took quite a bit of effort to find a girl with AIDS."

Wu Wei: "???"

"Good brother, don't blame me. You brought this on yourself. You're the one who treated me that way in your previous life."

Wu Wei nearly blew his cover.

"You knew I liked Lan Meng, but you still accepted her advances. You even livestreamed a video of the two of you getting a room together.

"Such a great friend, Wu Wei. I'm so damn moved, so I have to repay you."