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ntranslator: baumkuchen editor: serefina

nYang Baihua hesitated for quite a while, “Mister Lou?”

n“Yes. Mister Yang, would you like to come in and take a seat?”

n061 wasn’t clear on his own appearance so naturally he didn’t have any reaction, but this kind of tranquility and calmness, in Yang Baihua’s eyes, took on a slightly different meaning.

n……He seemed to have been aware of his existence since a long time ago, and so he wasn’t at all surprised by how similar the two of them looked.

nBut Yang Baihua didn’t know anything about the person standing in front of him.

nYang Baihua wasn’t one who tended to think too much, but that face made it impossible for him to not overthink.

n061 invited Yang Baihua into the house and informed him, “Xiao Yuan’s out right now. You can just wait a while for him here.”

n“I have something going on so I can only stay here for a bit before I have to leave.”

n“In a hurry? ……Would you like some alcohol, or just tea?”

n“Plain water is fine.”

n061 smiled slightly, “That isn’t the proper way to treat a guest. I’ll prepare some tea.”

nThe apartment had a traditional tea set which had been bought back by Cheng Jian, but because preparing tea was too cumbersome, it probably had only been used two or three times before Cheng Jian abandoned it in a cabinet.

n061 took out the tea set and a box of high-quality Phoenix Oolong tea leaves, started the fire, fanned the flames of the stove, then heated up the teapot, his actions graceful and relaxed, showing his calm, unhurried heart.

nHe’d been through hundreds of worlds, so this bit of acting was no problem for him.

n061 asked, “What are you looking for Xiao Yuan for?”

nYang Baihua snapped out of his daze, “En?”

nThis person in front of him looked very similar to himself, but his every feature perfectly surpassed his own, whether it was his nose, eyes, height, or legs. This did not even include his clean temperament that made it clear from a glance that he’d been tenderly raised by a good family.

nThis feeling was both strange and stifling.

n061 didn’t know what he was thinking and couldn’t be bothered to guess, simply repeating his question.

nYang Baihua didn’t answer, merely replying with another question, “Where did Xiao Cheng go?”

n061 said, “I don’t know.”

nYang Baihua said, “He is living at your place, but you don’t know where he went?”

n061 calmly replied, “I’m his friend. Not his guardian, nor his prison warden.”

nYang Baihua suddenly became suspicious.

nHe questioned doubtfully, “Did Xiao Cheng say something to you?”

nCould it be that Cheng Yuan complained about him? Said that he watched him too closely?

nBut he did it for Cheng Yuan’s own good.

nWhen Cheng Yuan’s older brother, Cheng Jian, wasn’t beating him up, he was scolding him, simply not treating him at all like a brother. If he didn’t want Cheng Yuan to interact with him too often, was that wrong?

nCheng Yuan’s friends were all utterly dissatisfied with him in every way. If he told Cheng Yuan to stay away from them, was that wrong?

nOther than music, Cheng Yuan didn’t know anything. Even when just buying vegetables, when the vegetable seller would haggle with him for price that was two or three mao higher, he would just smile happily and accept the price without question. If he told him to just stay at home and not run around outside, was that wrong?

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nWhile Yang Baihua’s thoughts were running wild, 061 was as immovable as a mountain.

n061 had travelled extensively, operated a mecha, battled zombies, and grown used to all kinds of scum, so at this moment his attitude was extremely calm.

nHis movements didn’t falter. He smiled and said, “He hasn’t said anything to me. You should trust him.”

nOther than this, he didn’t say another word of explanation, but if Yang Baihua tried to ask any further, it would seem as if he had no class.

nYang Baihua forcibly suppressed his inexplicable irritation, “When is he coming back?”

n“When he wants to.”

n“&#k2026;&#k2026;You’re his childhood friend?”

n061 thought, so he finally asked.

nHe had even started worrying for Yang Baihua.

nHe poured out the cup of tea used to warm up the cup, and replied, “We grew up together, so I suppose that’s correct.”

nYang Baihua forced himself to remain calm, “Are you two very close?”

n“We’re alright.”

n061 pulled up a memory fragment from his vast sea of data and added, “When we were younger, he made a bet with me, saying that the person who lost would have to go out in a skirt for a day. Afterwards, he lost.”

nAs he thought of that incident, the corners of his mouth unconsciously curled up in a smile.

nWhen putting on the skirt, that person had been very bold and totally unconcerned, but about fifteen minutes after he left the house, he became embarrassed, his face bright red as he clutched at the hem of the short skirt, unwilling to walk another step no matter what as he was scared of bumping into someone they knew.

nIn the end, 061 had to carry him home.

nThe entire trip back, he buried his face into 061’s back, too embarrassed to raise his head.

nEvery time 061 entered this memory, he always wanted to clearly see that person’s face. However, with the reformatting, that person’s exact image had been shattered into broken fragments.

nNoticing 061’s faint, nostalgic smile, Yang Baihua clenched his back teeth for two seconds before relaxing.

n……It seemed like they really were quite close.

nFortunately, he was very good at controlling his emotions, “Thank you for taking care of Xiao Cheng for the past two days. It’s really a pity that I didn’t get to know you before.”

n061 put his mind back on track. He handed a cup of tea over to Yang Baihua and followed the ridiculous backstory Chi Xiaochi had casually made up, “I’ve been abroad for a long time. It’s only natural that we haven’t met before.”

nYang Baihua brought the teacup to his mouth and gently blew on it, “But I’ve never seen Xiao Cheng contact you or heard him mention you before. So when I heard he was going over to your place to stay, I was really surprised.”

n……His words were barbed.

n061 started to understand what he was thinking.

nIf Yang Baihua had always been subtly influencing Cheng Yuan like this, cutting him off from his friend circle and making him into a doll that belonged to him and him alone, then it was no wonder that in his most difficult moments, Cheng Yuan couldn’t find even a single bosom friend with whom he could share his troubles.

n061 rested his elbow on the armrest of the armchair, let out a smile as fresh as the spring breeze, and gave him a response filled with hidden meaning, “There’s no need to be surprised, all our associations were private.”

nYang Baihua choked on a mouthful of tea.

nApproximately fifteen minutes later.

nSitting in a shopping mall lounge chair and playing a mobile shooting game, Chi Xiaochi heard a soft, drawn-out sigh in his brain.

nChi Xiaochi put down his phone, “You got him to leave?”

n061, “He’s gone.”

nChi Xiaochi, “It was effective?”

n061 carefully thought back for a moment, then truthfully conveyed, “When he left, his face was green.”

nChi Xiaochi sighed contentedly, “Ah, no wonder he called me six times just now.”

n061, “Did you pick up? What did he say?”

nChi Xiaochi, “My phone kept vibrating, affecting my gameplay, so I put the phone on mute.”

n061, “……” Okay then.

nBefore his words fell, Chi Xiaochi slapped his thigh regretfully, “Aiya, if I had known beforehand, I’d have asked you to record your conversation.”

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n061 smiled, “Do you want to see it?”

nHe uploaded a recorded video to the shared digital display. “You’re welcome.”

nChi Xiaochi said affectionately, “Liuliu, you’re the best.”

n061, “……”

nFine, Liuliu it is, Liuliu sounds very nice.

nChi Xiaochi began to study the report 061 sent from the scene.

n061 noticed that while Chi Xiaochi was excitedly watching the video, he was breathing into his cupped hands.

nCheng Yuan’s body couldn’t take the cold. Although the department store had heating, his palms were still cold.

nChi Xiaochi didn’t care too much about this, but as a system, 061 felt that he should be more conscious of serving his host.

nHe adjusted and revised Chi Xiaochi’s internal temperature system, and in passing, recombined a series of data streams.

nSoon, an open thermos of tea, still piping hot, appeared in Chi Xiaochi’s right hand. The rich fragrance of tea filled his senses.

nChi Xiaochi, “……Where did you get this from?”

n“I made it at home. If I first digitised the tea cup, then restore it, I can bring it here. It wasn’t too difficult,” 061 explained, “This Phoenix Oolong is authentic, but he didn’t take more than two sips and wasting it would be such a pity. Also, this kind of tea is good for your liver and eyes, and since you have problems sleeping, drinking more of this kind of tea is good for your health.”

nChi Xiaochi remained silent.

n061 took it as him being moved, and kindly didn’t say anything else, instead turning his attention to the current point levels on the digital display.

nThe goodwill level kept jumping between 75 to 55 points, incredibly unstable.

n061 thought, understandable.

nAfter all, Yang Baihua constantly had the “First Love” halo over his head and Cheng Yuan would always obediently obey his every word, so he naturally thought of him as an object in the center of his palm that was his to mess around with and manipulate at his will.

nNow, a strong enemy with a “Childhood Friend” halo had suddenly appeared out of the blue and Yang Baihua’s feelings towards Cheng Yuan weren’t entirely fake, so naturally he would feel a sense of crisis. Hence, the constantly fluctuating goodwill level wasn’t surprising.

nBut the regret level, the key to accomplishing the task, remained in the pitiful single-digits.

n061 was a little worried.

nSo he decided to watch some of Chi Xiaochi’s variety shows to calm himself down.

nHe watched the variety shows, Chi Xiaochi watched the video, and the system and host were in perfect harmony.

nChi Xiaochi held the cup of tea, taking the occasional sip as he watched the show, but his thoughts were still revolving around that sentence he heard.

n“When we were younger, he made a bet and lost, and had to accompany me for a day outside in a skirt.”

nChi Xiaochi shrugged to himself, It seems like their investigation on me was really thorough, since they even dug up what Lou-ge and I did together when we were younger.

nBut this couldn’t be considered anything serious, so Chi Xiaochi didn’t bother questioning the system about it.

nChi Xiaochi studied this precious data with great interest.

nThe video was shot from 061’s perspective, with the cameras being 061’s eyes. The recording started from when Yang Baihua rang the doorbell.

nFrom this angle, Chi Xiaochi judged that the body 061 materialised was at least 5 or 6 centimeters taller than Yang Baihua.

nEven though he couldn’t see his appearance, 061’s bearing was rather graceful. After making Yang Baihua choke on his drink, 061 also engaged in a discussion with him about software engineering.

nObviously, in the field of specialized knowledge, Yang Baihua’s human brain had no way of competing with 061’s huge database of knowledge that he accumulated over many years.

nIt could only be said that Yang Baihua tried his best.

nLike 061 had said, when Yang Baihua left, his face was indeed spinach-coloured.

nChi Xiaochi decided to save this video to watch whenever he was bored. It would definitely never fail to amuse him.

nAfter Yang Baihua rushed home, his parents were still asleep, so he was met with thunderous snoring originating from the bedroom.

nHis third sister had taken her children out to play with her sisters working in the city. Xiaoyan had been busy these past two days and so she also wasn’t home to accompany him.

nYang Baihua, feeling a full on manic depression, tried to call Cheng Yuan again.

nOn his end, Chi Xiaochi was engrossed in watching the video and didn’t pay him any attention.

nYang Baihua paced several rounds around the living room like a caged beast. The more he looked at his fifty square meter rental apartment, the more he found it displeasing to the eye. When he turned and his gaze landed on the floor-length mirror, he saw the human figure reflected in it and erupted in fury, snatching the sofa cushion and ferociously throwing it at the wall.

nDidn’t Cheng Yuan say he was his first love? Then what was up with that surnamed Lou?

nIf he was only a simple childhood friend, Yang Baihua might not have thought too much about it, but that face? That face!

nAccording to what surnamed Lou had said, he had left the country when Xiao Cheng was fourteen, and since then they hadn’t met, at most keeping in contact through the phone and video calls.

nBut after having met him, why was it that Xiao Cheng had never once mentioned that person? That was too strange.

nWas he intentionally hiding something?

nWas he intentionally looking for someone’s shadow in him?

nThe more Yang Baihua thought about it, the more aggrieved he became.

nIf Cheng Yuan hadn’t appeared, chased after him, and bent him, he might have already married a city girl by now, like a normal person. Why would he have to tremble in the face of his parents?

nHow could Cheng Yuan treat him like this?

nHis thoughts were in a whirl. He trembled with anger as he wrote and rewrote a text message questioning Cheng Yuan, eventually just sending a text reading “Why aren’t you answering the phone”.

nHe wanted to see how Cheng Yuan was going to explain this!

nAfter staring at his cell phone for about three hours, he finally received a reply: “Sorry, sorry Old Yang, I was out playing with my friends and wasn’t paying attention to my phone.”

nThis explanation wasn’t enough to satisfy Yang Baihua.

nJust as he was about to start interrogating Cheng Yuan, his mother said, “You’ve stared at your phone for a whole afternoon now, don’t always look at that thing all the time. There’s radiation, and you’ll hurt your eyes.”

nYang Baihua listened to her, simply leaving his phone to the side intending to ignore Cheng Yuan for a while.

nCheng Yuan wasn’t someone who could keep his calm, so if he didn’t receive a reply he definitely wouldn’t be able to resist taking the initiative to contact him.

nWho knew that even up till late at night, as he laid in bed and stared at his phone, he still didn’t see any response from Cheng Yuan.

nYang Baihua gritted his teeth and sent, “Why didn’t you call me back?”

nThe text that was sent out disappeared like a clay ox entering the sea. Yang Baihua fell asleep, still clutching his mobile phone.

nIt wasn’t until he was eating breakfast the next morning that his cell phone buzzed with a reply. Cheng Yuan’s response was perfunctory, “I thought you didn’t get my text.”

nYang Baihua almost snapped his chopsticks in half.

nWhen his parents went back to the village, he definitely needed to have a good talk with Cheng Yuan!

nSince Yang Baihua wanted to ignore him, Chi Xiaochi didn’t mind playing a little game of time difference with him.

nBut after he sent out the new text message, Yang Baihua didn’t reply.

nHaving lost a “harassment target” x1, Chi Xiaochi felt as lonely as snow.

nHowever, two days later, Chi Xiaochi’s proper business found its way to his door.

nHe received a phone call from an unfamiliar number.

n“May I ask if this is Mister Cheng?” The person calling asked, “I’m an employee of Xingyun Entertainment. It’s like this, we’ve received the demos you sent. May I confirm that the songs in the demos you sent are all your original works?”

nChi Xiaochi calmly answered, “Yes.”

n“Then may I ask if you, sir, would be free to come by the Xingyuan Entertainment Office at 18 Jinsong Road, East District Three, at 9am this Friday? We’d like to assess your music.”

nThe author has something to say:

nThe scum Yang who was beaten black and blue by his own phone 【spreads hands】

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nTN: if anyone was confused over the memory fragment: 061 was talking about a fragment that he had in his own memory, so he couldn’t remember who the person wearing the skirt was, but he was the person who piggy-backed the skirt-wearer. XCX, on the other hand, remembers the same scene in his memory, so he thought that 061 did research into his memories with LY, thus resulting in his thoughts.

nsere: YASS 061 is so cuteeeee also omg hints for who 061 is!!!

nbaum: 061 is the best <3

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