Chapter 67 You Are My Ninth Art

Later, when Yue Qianling recalled this birthday, what she remembered most was not the surprise she felt when she saw the star lights and the cake.

It was the romance she encountered on her way home.

She had all the birthday cake, presents, roses and chocolates she wanted.

Although not all of it was given out by his hands, he distributed his love to every ordinary person around him.

Let Yue Qianling feel that she is a lucky person and that the whole world loves her.

At the moment when the tears fell, she stared at him closely, her eyes tracing his outline, and finally realized that she thought she was not pretentious, but it was because she had not met someone who could make her cry on her birthday.

When they were kissing passionately, she wanted to stay young forever, but at this moment, she just wanted to turn gray overnight.

-

This night was the only respite for Yue Qianling and Gu Xun during this period.

They clumsily cooked a dinner at home and made a mess in the kitchen. After finishing the meal, I forced myself to eat some cake, then snuggled on the sofa to watch a boring movie.

Yue Qianling didn't remember what the movie was about, nor did she know when she fell asleep.

The next morning, she woke up from Gu Xun's arms, looked out the window at the still dark dawn, and felt full of strength.

The discouragement caused by Wei Han's criticism was swept away. Even if there was an endless deep ocean ahead, as long as Gu Xun was by her side, she felt that she could swim to the end.

And the situation now is not as bad as before.

For Gu Xun, the most difficult engine development has seen the dawn of hope, and all Yue Qianling needs to do is to speed up the efficiency to provide the overall picture effect.

During this period, their lives were confined to the office, where they spent almost eighteen hours a day. Home was just a place for them to sleep, and even New Year's Eve became an ordinary day.

Especially Yi Hong. While others were thin, he was visibly fat due to overwork. As long as his hands were free, he would eat non-stop to relieve stress.

As the progress began to approach the original time schedule step by step, the boss' heart sank a little. Fearing that everyone could not hold on, he asked everyone to have a good rest tonight.

Everyone was thinking about finally being able to go home and have a good sleep, except Yi Hong who wanted to find a place to have a big meal.

When he saw that Gu Xun and Yue Qianling had lost weight, he insisted on treating them to a meal.

Although he was crying, Yue Qianling and Gu Xun both knew that he was just afraid that he could not order many dishes by himself.

However, they knew the truth but did not say it out loud, so they still accompanied him.

Having grown tired of eating at the restaurant downstairs in the company, they went to a business district a little further away and found a Chinese restaurant that seemed to have a lot of customers.

When Yi Hong ordered the tenth dish, Yue Qianling stopped him and told him to restrain himself as it would be a waste if he couldn't finish it.

But Yi Hong refused. He said it would look good even if it was left there. After all, he hadn't sat at the dining table to eat properly for a long time. Now there were a lot of rice grains in his keyboard.

Yue Qianling had no choice but to let him go. She didn't expect that the food in this restaurant was so delicious. In the end, they didn't have much left.

When we left, the restaurant was still packed.

Yi Hong walked in front, while Yue Qianling followed behind Gu Xun. With him holding her hand, she buried her head in her phone.

As a result, after walking a few steps, the person in front suddenly stopped, and Yue Qianling was caught off guard and bumped into Gu Xun's back.

"What--" Before she could finish her words, she followed the gaze of Yi Hong and Gu Xun and saw a familiar figure at the dining table next to her.

If she remembered correctly, he was one of the three main developers who changed jobs, Che Jiayou.

Yue Qianling was not familiar with him, but she could confirm this from the looks in Yi Hong and Gu Xun's eyes.

At this time, Che Jiayou was drinking and chatting with a table of people.

His voice was not small, and if you paid a little attention you could hear what he was saying.

"They originally planned to release a real machine demo on New Year's Eve. I said it was impossible and too late. Now, there are only Gu Xun and Yi Hong in the development, and the others are useless. What can they accomplish? I don't think they can finish it until New Year's Eve."

"Then He Chang is just an idiot. A woman who knows nothing thinks she can make games just because she has played games for a few years? She is always bossing people around. Does she really think she is great just because she has a few bucks?"

This was what Yue Qianling heard when she came to her senses. She didn't know what Yi Hong and Gu Xun had heard before that. She only saw veins bulging on Yi Hong's temples.

The next second, Yi Hong rushed over with his fists clenched.

Fortunately, Gu Xun reacted quickly enough and grabbed Yi Hong before his fist hit Che Jiayou's head.

But the movement was not small. Che Jiayou turned around immediately, and his expression froze when he saw Gu Xun and Yi Hong.

After a moment, he turned back very unnaturally, pretending not to see anything.

In fact, Yi Hong is a very easy-going person. Yue Qianling has never seen him lose his temper.

But at this moment, he faced Che Jiayou like a warrior.

What they are facing are not enemies, but rebels who have turned against them.

So at this moment, due to his upbringing, he would not resort to violence again, but no one could stop him from opening his mouth.

"After all, their dirty money is earned by themselves. It's more legitimate than some people who lose their dignity just for a little money."

Che Jiayou's shoulders trembled, as if he was trying to hold back.

But in the end he couldn't help it, he turned around, his face flushed, not sure if it was because of anger or because of drinking.

"People like you are naive at best, but stupid at worst, and you don't even realize it."

"If you are a bit more sober, you will know what a woman like He Chang can do. She knows nothing but thinks she is awesome all the time. What good can you expect from following her?"

"Are you tired now? Are you suffering? You have the money but don't know how to make it? You asked for it!"

"Don't look at me like that. I'm going to make this clear today. If you can make something with He Chang, I, Che Jiayou, will show you how to walk upside down!"

Seeing that Yi Hong was about to rush forward again, Gu Xun grabbed him again and dragged him out.

As she took a step forward, she did not forget to look back at Che Jiayou.

"Okay, then remember to take care of your hair. Your scalp is so shiny, don't let it slip when the time comes."

"You're fucking arrogant..." Che Jiayou hadn't finished cursing when he caught a glimpse of Yue Qianling looking at Gu Xun with starry eyes, and then she turned her head and shrugged at him with a pouty face. Her expression seemed to say, "My boyfriend is so arrogant and I like him so much. He's really handsome."

At the moment when Che Jiayou was furious, Gu Xun grabbed Yi Hong with one hand and Yue Qianling with the other and left.

That night, Yi Hong told everyone in the Ninth Business Unit about this matter.

Naturally, everyone shared the same hatred for the enemy, and some even said that they would go back to work overtime immediately if they didn't take a break.

However, Yue Qianling didn't know whether the man went back to work overtime or not. In any case, when she arrived at the company the next morning, she felt that the atmosphere around her was even more solemn than before.

But at this time, although the situation was solemn, everyone was not as anxious as before, and the dark clouds pressing down on their heads were dispersing little by little.

Before we knew it, winter had finally arrived.

The schedule moved forward step by step and finally caught up with the original plan.

That night, a group of people stood quietly in front of the time schedule, with different expressions but their eyes were all looking forward.

Yue Qianling didn’t know what they were thinking, but it was the first time that she felt “touched” at work.

She finally understood why Su Zheng chose to come back when his father was injured, and why this group of people devoutly regarded video games as the ninth art.

Someone once said that doing things right is science, doing things well is art.

It was not until this moment that Yue Qianling felt that she had completely integrated into them.

Inspired by them, what I pursue is no longer to complete the task, but to do my best to make every stroke to the utmost.

When she was very young, Yue Qianling was flipping through her father's book and saw a sentence in it.

“When you come to this world, you have to leave something behind to prove that you have been here.”

At that time, Yue Qianling said that she wanted to become a world-famous painter.

But when she learned that most painters did not have enough food to eat during their lifetime, she immediately kicked the idea away.

And now, she seemed to have returned to her innocent childhood and found something she really wanted to leave her mark on.

After standing for a long time, Yue Qianling turned around and found that Gu Xun was also looking at her in the conference room not far away.

The moment our eyes met, he leaned back in his chair, tilted his head to the left, raised his right arm, and pointed his thumb at his neck.

He didn't say anything, but Yue Qianling got his meaning from his seemingly arrogant action.

Well, I believe you are right.

-

This year's Spring Festival came relatively late, and on the night of New Year's Eve, the wind was cold and bleak. The subway was empty, there were few vehicles on the road, and there were no pedestrians to be seen.

The lights are only on in the reunited homes, and the office buildings in the city center are plunged into darkness on such a large scale only on this day every year.

Only the top floor of hc Interactive Entertainment was still brightly lit, as bright as day.

When the actual operation demonstration demo of "Planet Baker" was released to various platforms at a scheduled time, the cheers that Yue Qianling had imagined did not appear.

Everyone just stood there motionless, surrounding the computer with serious eyes. The surroundings fell into silence so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Until Yi Hong came to his senses and let out a loud shout that pierced the sky.

"What are you all standing there for?! Get excited!"

The next second, cheers and excitement finally came.

The crowd rushed towards Yi Hong like a tide and lifted him high into the air.

Yue Qianling staggered a bit due to the crowd squeeze, and then was pulled back by a warm hand, away from this group of crazy people.

She watched their exaggerated and funny celebrations and laughed so hard that she fell over.

In fact, everyone knows that the actual machine demonstration demo is only a phased result, and the future is still unknown.

How many predecessors have taken this step, but failed in the final process.

They also don't know how many hardships and how much time it will take from this step to the official release of the game.

Maybe two or three years, maybe five or six years, maybe a lifetime, everything is still uncertain.

But at this moment, the passion is eternal.

After the commotion, Yue Qianling suddenly remembered something and turned around to ask Gu Xun: "Where's your phone? Let me use it."

Gu Xun didn't ask her what she wanted to do, but just handed her the phone.

Yue Qianling unlocked the password lock, opened the contact list, and found the name "Che Jiayou".

Her finger hovered a millimeter above the key and she looked up at Gu Xun.

Gu Xun put his hands in his pockets, not knowing what he was thinking. He turned his face away and smiled, then raised his chin towards her.

So Yue Qianling broadcast the call. After a few seconds, the other party answered the call, but no one spoke.

Yue Qianling didn't say anything either.

After a moment's silence, the other party got annoyed.

"Why, are you here to show off?"

"No."

When Yue Qianling's voice sounded, even though one couldn't see his face, one could imagine that he was really confused at the moment.

After all, this gentle and sweet female voice was unfamiliar to him, and he didn't know what the meaning of this call was.

The next second, Yue Qianling smiled and said, "I just want to ask when you will perform handstand walking? Live broadcast?"

Just before the busy tone sounded, Yue Qianling raised her voice: "Don't hang up! Or we can record a video! I'm not picky!"

Hearing the sound, the boss turned around and asked Yue Qianling: "What are you doing?"

Yue Qianling hid her phone behind her back, smiled and shook her head: "Nothing, I was thinking about contacting an acrobat to entertain everyone."

The boss laughed, then turned around and clapped his hands, attracting everyone's attention.

"Everyone, go home and celebrate the New Year!"

-

This was the first time Yue Qianling missed the New Year’s Eve dinner at home since she was a child.

On the morning of the first day of the new year, Gu Xun sent her to the high-speed railway station.

There were still many people rushing home at this time, and the waiting hall was crowded and noisy.

Gu Xun handed her the suitcase and whispered, "Go in, it's getting late."

Although Yue Qianling reached out to take the suitcase handle, she was reluctant to move.

She glanced at the crowd in the terminal, lowered her head and muttered, "It's so crowded in there, let's wait until we're about to get on the bus before going in."

"You have to queue up for security check, don't miss it."

Gu Xun smiled and said, "Then you can only come home with me."

Yue Qianling glanced at him and said nothing more. She pulled her suitcase and walked slowly towards the entrance.

In fact, she was just a little reluctant.

At the same time, I missed my parents very much, so I wanted to spend more time with him in the remaining time.

Who knew that this straight guy was so unromantic.

After entering the terminal hall, the dark crowd blocked all vision. After Yue Qianling could no longer see Gu Xun, she had to find an open space to stand.

There were still ten minutes before ticket checking, and she took out her cell phone out of boredom to send a message to Gu Xun.

But when she thought about how he had just urged her, she suddenly didn't want to pay attention to him anymore.

So she opened the work group and continued to read the reactions from all walks of life sent by her colleagues after the release of the demo.

Just one night had passed, and countless gaming bloggers had written long analysis articles on this demo, flooding major gaming discussion boards.

Yue Qianling was staring at it in a trance when a new WeChat message suddenly popped up at the top of the screen.

She curled the corners of her lips and opened it immediately, but was disappointed to find that it was not a message from Gu Xun.

[Huang Jie]: By the way, I have been so busy with the New Year reunion these days that I forgot to tell you a piece of news.

【Glutinous rice twisted dough sticks】：?

[Huang Jie]: Yin Qin took n+1 and left!

【Glutinous rice small twist】: =. =

[Huang Jie]: You don’t know how wonderful her expression was when she was moving out that day. The intern asked her why she was leaving, and she said she had quit her job and was going to work for a company run by a relative. Hahahahaha. I also asked her when did she have such a powerful relative? A little later, when I went to ask Chen Yin, I found out that she was fired.

After chatting with Huang Jie for a while, the broadcast announced the start of ticket checking, and Yue Qianling hurriedly dragged her suitcase towards the ticket gate.

Sitting on the escalator, Yue Qianling's cell phone vibrated a few times again, but she thought it was Huang Jie again, so she didn't take it out to check.

When she got on the high-speed train, she put her suitcase away and adjusted her seat to a comfortable angle before taking out her cell phone.

When she opened it, she snorted and laughed.

[School Prince]: Are you in the car?

【Glutinous Rice Dough Sticks】: It’s heavenly.

【School Prince】：OK

[School Prince]: It’s very sunny today in Qing’an. Be careful when flying, or you may get roasted into spicy chicken wings.

[Glutinous Rice Dough Sticks]: You seem to be sick.

【School Prince】: Give me an address.

【Glutinous rice twisted dough sticks】：?

[School Prince]: I was too busy in the past few days. I have some free time today so I will send you a New Year gift.

【Glutinous rice fried dough twist】: Hehe

【Glutinous Rice Dough Sticks】：Okay.

[School Prince]: If you dare to give me the address of the police station again, you will stay in Qing'an and don't go back to Jiangcheng.

[School Prince]: Otherwise I’ll make you lie in bed for several days.

Not quite sure whether his words were a threat of violence or pornography, Yue Qianling did not dare to ask and honestly sent him her home address, even down to the exact house number.

This way, she has one more thing to look forward to during this holiday.

The days back home were no different from previous Spring Festivals, but Yue Qianling's parents prepared a special New Year's Eve dinner for her.

At the table, Ju Yunzhen picked up some food for her and asked, "Didn't Gu Xun come back with you?"

Yue Qianling chewed some food and said incoherently, "He also has to go back to spend the New Year with his mother, and he's too tired during this period. What's the rush today? Let's talk about it later. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Ju Yunzhen wanted to say something, but Yue Wenbin interrupted her, "Why are you so worried? Didn't you call his mother yesterday? It's not like you haven't met her before."

Ju Yunzhen then pursed her lips and stopped talking about this topic.

On the second day of the Chinese New Year, Yue Qianling followed her parents to her uncle's house to pay New Year's greetings and played hide-and-seek with her little nephew for an entire afternoon. At night, she thought she had time to play games with Gu Xun, but her aunt brought her daughter to her house again and asked her to draw.

After a busy whole day, Yue Qianling started looking forward to the third day of the New Year as soon as she got up.

If the New Year gift Gu Xun gave her was sent by SF Express, it should have arrived today.

So for the whole morning, Yue Qianling sat on the sofa and watched TV with her parents, but her mind was always on her mobile phone.

Unfortunately, until noon, when the smell of food had already wafted out of the kitchen, Yue Qianling still hadn't received the call from the courier.

The greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment.

She repeatedly opened Gu Xun's chat box and wanted to say something, but in the end she just got up and went to the balcony.

The balcony at home is open air, perfect for basking in the warm sunshine of early spring.

Yue Qianling leaned on the railing and dialed Gu Xun's number.

Soon, the other side picked up the call.

"What's wrong?"

Yue Qianling stared at the window of the resident opposite and said gloomily, "Can't I call you if nothing happens?"

"Isn't it time for dinner?" Gu Xun said slowly, "Haven't you eaten yet?"

"I'll eat it later."

Yue Qianling stretched out her hands and plucked the small leaves of the green plants beside her. Her voice sounded a little unhappy, "Where's my birthday present? It hasn't arrived yet?"

“Almost there.”

"All right."

After saying this, Yue Qianling stopped talking.

She lowered her head, too embarrassed to say what she was thinking.

Gu Xun could tell through the phone that she was hesitant to speak, but he didn't urge her. The two of them just listened to each other's breathing quietly.

After a moment, Yue Qianling still hesitated and said: "Gu Xun, that..."

"Yeah, I'm listening."

"That's it..." Yue Qianling lowered her eyes, her eyelashes fluttering, her fingers restlessly twirling the ends of her hair. She was hesitant when she suddenly heard faint voices coming from the open-air balcony next door.

It was a clear and sweet female voice, and she seemed to be talking on the phone with her boyfriend.

"I'm going to attend the wedding tomorrow."

"My senior in college."

"You are my senior. Why didn't anyone call you senior when you were in college?"

After a pause, the female voice sounded again.

"Don't change the subject. You haven't answered me yet. Do you miss me?"

"What do you mean by your sneer?"

"Forget it. I won't argue with you."

"But I still want to tell you..."

"I miss you so much~"

After hearing the last sentence, Yue Qianling seemed to be infected and said softly: "I miss you so much."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment.

Next second.

"Really? Then bow your head."

"What are you doing—"

Halfway through his words, Yue Qianling lowered his head, and suddenly a tall and thin figure appeared in his sight.

Then, his words rang in my ears.

"Come down and sign for your New Year's present."

Yue Qianling's gaze froze at that moment, and the figure in her sight gradually became clearer.

He just stood there, still wearing his favorite black pilot jacket, looking up at her from a distance.

A few seconds later, Yue Qianling shuddered as if waking up from a dream, then turned around and ran to the living room.

She hurriedly passed by her parents, ran to the entrance and quickly opened the door.

"Hey?! Where are you going? It's time for dinner!"

Yue Qianling didn't answer. She ran towards the elevator in her slippers, leaving only an afterimage behind her parents.

"What's going on?"

“I don’t know!”

Ju Yunzhen and his wife looked at each other in confusion. It took them a while to come to their senses. They picked up their phones to call Yue Qianling, but found that she didn't even bring her phone.

After waiting for another ten minutes or so and still not seeing Yue Qianling come back, the couple became even more confused.

However, just as they were hesitating whether to chase after them to see what was going on, there was suddenly a noise at the door.

They both turned their heads to look over there.

At the bright doorway, Yue Qianling bent over and looked at them, her cheeks red, and it was unclear whether it was because she was happy or because she had just run too fast.

In short, Ju Yunzhen and his wife didn't say anything, they just stared at Gu Xun.

Gu Xun stood there openly, and estimated that the two elders had looked him over and found nothing wrong with him, so he said, "Happy New Year, uncle and aunt. I'm here to wish you all a happy new year."

Before Yue Wenbin could react, Ju Yunzhen had already adjusted her expression and nudged him with her elbow without changing her expression.

"Why don't you go get some more bowls and chopsticks?"

-

Ju Yunzhen and his wife were not surprised for too long by Gu Xun's arrival.

As for why he suddenly appeared, they didn't ask, but they knew it clearly.

After all, who hasn't been young?

However, although Ju Yunzhen and Gu Yunping were college classmates, they had very little contact after all, and she had only met Gu Xun twice in total, so the moment Gu Xun entered the room, Ju Yunzhen looked him in the eye.

Before this, most of the couple's knowledge about Gu Xun came from Yue Qianling's description. Now that they saw him again, they couldn't wait to ask him all kinds of questions, as if they were trying to confirm one by one that what Yue Qianling said was true.

Yue Qianling had indeed not lied. After the couple asked for a long time, they could not find any dissatisfaction with Gu Xun.

After dinner, Ju Yunzhen thought about the card game she had in the afternoon, so she asked Yue Qianling to take Gu Xun out for a walk and told them to remember to come back for dinner in the evening.

-

The temperature in the first month of this year was higher than in previous years. The two of them wore light clothes, held hands and walked slowly through the streets of Qing'an.

Yue Qianling actually didn't know where to take Gu Xun, so she had to follow his previous method and take him through her elementary school, junior high school, high school, and the art studio where she studied art.

Along the way, she talked to him incessantly about everything she remembered.

Some things had clearly been buried deep in my memory, but for some reason they all came to light today.

She was sometimes excited, sometimes regretful, sometimes dancing, and sometimes beating her chest and stamping her feet.

Like a painter, he vividly spread out the scroll of his youth in front of Gu Xun.

It was not until dusk that Yue Qianling finally got tired of talking and pulled Gu Xun into a simply decorated milk tea shop.

There were only three or four tables in the store, all empty, and the boss was so bored that he was taking a nap at the counter.

She ordered two cups of milk tea, and while waiting for the boss to make them, she introduced them to Gu Xun as usual.

"When I was in middle school, I would come here every week to buy a cup of milk tea when I went to the studio. It was cheap and delicious. The Heytea and Yidiandian I tried later were not as good as this one."

Not long after he finished speaking, two cups of milk tea were placed in front of them.

Gu Xun had just inserted the straw and handed it to Yue Qianling when he heard a commotion.

Four or five boys who looked like high school students came in.

They were sitting at the table next to Yue Qianling, separated by only a one-meter-wide aisle. They had never been quiet since the moment they entered the door, and they were still noisy now. Even milk tea couldn't stop them from talking.

Moreover, they had just played ball and were sweaty and noisy. Yue Qianling couldn't stand this environment and planned to leave with Gu Xun.

Just as I picked up my milk tea, I heard the boys at that table change the topic and talk about games.

"Did you guys see the promotional video for 'Planet Baker' the night before? It was so awesome!"

Yue Qianling's hearing had never been so sensitive. As soon as she caught the key words, she put down the milk tea in her hand.

She looked up at Gu Xun, and he also stared at her and raised his eyebrows. The two of them just sat there quietly, eavesdropping on other people's conversations openly.

"I saw it, and I posted it in the class group, but it was pushed up by someone who was sending out red envelopes."

"It's fucking awesome! I can feel the impact of the gun just by watching the operation video, and even the sound of the bullet hitting the ground sounds so fucking real."

"The character action design is also amazing. The action of drawing a gun is so cool. It's so cool to watch."

"But I saw someone say that the things in the timing screen are definitely not rendered in real time. They are probably CGs made for publicity. Don't take them too seriously."

"Bullshit, do those idiots know how to play games? Didn't someone catch the traces of the delay in the shadow generation when the bullet is flying? This is a real game demonstration."

Amid their noise, Gu Xun remained silent and just listened quietly.

In fact, ever since the night when the demo of "Baker's Planet" was released, the response it caused has been almost the grand event in the industry in the past two or three years.

In less than 48 hours, in addition to the heated discussions among gamers, there have been olive branches extended by major game companies, as well as unprecedented attention from all fields.

But the appreciation from these investors is far less real than hearing the praise from ordinary players in person.

Someone on the other end said, "Did the official say when it will be officially released?! I've been bored for a long time, I can't wait another three to five years, right?"

Gu Xun answered in a low voice at his desk.

"Who knows?"

"Yes." Yue Qianling turned around and conveyed the meaning of Gu Xun's words to the group of children, "No matter whether it is three years or five years, that day will definitely come."

“…”

Those people turned their heads to look at Yue Qianling and Gu Xun. Perhaps they thought they were weird, so they left with their milk tea in whispers.

The milk tea shop was empty again.

Wu Jin chased westward, and the afterglow reflected on Gu Xun's face.

Yue Qianling held her chin and looked at him, feeling that the young man in front of her seemed to always be so golden.

"Are you happy?"

She asked.

Gu Xun said nonchalantly: "Of course I am happy."

Yue Qianling turned to support herself with her temples and tilted her head to look at him.

"Luckily you held on. Now think about it, it was worth it, right? With it, all your efforts have been witnessed by others, and you have a clear goal for the future."

She reached out and poked Gu Xun's chest. "How lucky you are! Many people never reach this state in their entire lives. Cherish your ninth art."

The setting sun beamed between the two of them, and Gu Xun's eyes were reflected in a light lake color. When he lowered his eyes to look at Yue Qianling, his eyes passed through the beam, pious and clear.

"As you describe it," he said, "you are my ninth art."

――End of the text――