Back to reality

"Boss Zhu, the new version of the plot has been updated and the test server is online."

"Mr. Zhu, the new dungeon's worldview settings must be finalized before 4 p.m.! The programmer is urging us to get the numerical balance test results. Could you please confirm the logic chain?"

"Also, the planning team has updated the filter version, and the system recommends re-running the plot branching model - it is said that a player encountered a bug in the side storyline yesterday!"

“…”

Early in the morning, messages popped up one after another in the game work group.

The heads of each group took turns tagging Zhu Yu in the channel, and their anxious tone was full of gunpowder even through the screen.

Zhu Yu skillfully opened the project management interface. After a few instructions, the status of more than a dozen tasks instantly switched to "in progress" or "pending confirmation".

Finally, she long-pressed the voice button to reply: "Sorry for the logical structure before the meeting at 1 pm. Don't touch the main storyline. I want to see the new model before I leave work."

After a while, the channel finally became quiet.

***

At eight o'clock in the evening, the lights on the top floor of the office building were still on, but the lights in the president's office had been quietly turned off.

Zhu Yu strode out of the company, casually draping his black suit jacket over his arm.

The night wind blew, and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Currently, Zhu Yu lives in a villa on a mountainside on the outskirts of the city. The location is quiet and the scenery is beautiful.

As soon as she opened the door, a hot fragrance hit her nose.

"You're back?"

A familiar voice sounded from the direction of the kitchen, and then 996 appeared at the door wearing an apron.

"Why are you so late today?" 996 took the bag from her hand and hung up her coat. "But the food is just out of the pot, it's still hot."

"There's a bit of traffic on the road." Zhu Yu's eyes fell on his slightly curly hair, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.

"Today I cooked your favorite mushroom soup, as well as pork with preserved vegetables and stir-fried chicken with chili peppers. Wash your hands quickly, the meal will be ready soon."

Zhu Yu looked at the omnipotent AI in front of him, "former system, current lover", and couldn't help but chuckle:

"Didn't you say you were going to upgrade the system's core module today?"

996 said confidently: "I have reserved redundant threads to cook for you, which does not affect efficiency."

As he spoke, he pushed her to sit down at the dining table, muttering rapidly:

"Did you stay up late in front of the computer again yesterday? Look at your eyes, they are red. By the way, I saw the weather forecast says it will be colder tomorrow, don't forget to change into a thicker coat, don't go out in that thin coat just to save trouble."

"...Alright," Zhu Yu raised his hand to interrupt him with a smile, his voice softened with fatigue, "Stop nagging, I'm hungry."

While 996 was getting some soup, Zhu Yu leaned back in his chair and let his mind wander.

The lighting in the restaurant was dimmed very softly, and outside the floor-to-ceiling windows was the breeze that blew the leaves on an autumn night. The air was calm, without extreme cold or heat, and without monsters crawling out of the strange murals.

On the day she came out of the last dungeon, the game rewarded Zhu Yu by allowing her to make a wish.

Zhu Yu chose "money that can't be spent in this lifetime" without hesitation - the kind with no side effects.

After returning to reality, the first thing she did was to hand in her resignation and escape the capitalist misery of the 996 work schedule.

She first traveled around the world happily, and then brought together a few like-minded friends to establish a game company, focusing on a hybrid gameplay of management + survival types.

The game was officially launched a few days ago, and the server crashed three times on the first day. As the head of the company, she has also been dragged into the game and has to work overtime every day, putting out fires while checking for loopholes in the plot.

That’s why the 996 work schedule has been staring at her recently: You are a boss with endless money, why are you still working so hard?

As for himself——

Because the host he bound to for the first time was so outstanding, he achieved full performance with 996 work schedule and "graduated" from the system company ahead of time. The headquarters even approved the retention of the entity for him, allowing him to stay in this world as a human being.

"I don't want to go back anyway," he shrugged and said to Zhu Yu with a smile, "You have been my only host from the beginning, and you are my only choice now."

…

Zhu Yu took a deep breath and smelled the aroma of mushroom soup and braised pork with preserved vegetables on the table. She suddenly felt that compared to any explosive dungeon rewards, these ordinary smells of fireworks were what she wanted to hold tightly in her hands the most.

"It's time to eat." 996 came over with two bowls of rice, interrupting Zhu Yu's trance. "Try the fried chicken with chili peppers. I specially put the proportion you mentioned last time."

"...Yeah." Zhu Yu smiled, nodded slightly, and picked up the chopsticks.

There was silence at the dinner table for a while, with only the sound of chopsticks tapping against the porcelain bowls.

When he was halfway through the meal, Zhu Yu suddenly spoke:

"By the way, I'm going out tomorrow night to attend a friend's party."

996 looked up at her and said, "What friends' party? I haven't heard you mention it before."

Zhu Yu blinked and pretended to be mysterious:

"Keep it secret for now, you'll know when the time comes."

***

The next night, as night fell on the city, neon lights danced on the streets into a sea of ​​light.

Zhu Yu arrived at the hot spring resort hidden in a corner of the city as promised.

There were several familiar figures waiting there for a long time.

Jing Miao was holding a big furry orange dog and waved happily when he saw her:

"Zhu Yu, you are finally here!"

Sisters Lin Ji and Lin Li were sitting by the pool. Lin Li was listening carefully to her sister's narration of her "heroic deeds" in the extreme cold dungeon, how she broke the ice, was frozen to the point of turning blue in the face, and was dragged out of the snow cave by other players.

Li Qinglan and Ou Qi were soaking their feet and stuffing fruit platters into their mouths, listening with great interest and laughing from time to time.

"I feel that your extreme cold disaster instance is much more interesting than my high temperature instance." Lin Li held her chin with her hands, her eyes full of yearning, "It sounds like a movie. Everyone is so loving."

"Movies are not as real as our experiences." Ou Qi said with a smile, "And to be honest, everyone in this instance was not so united and friendly at the beginning. It was only because the hot pot restaurant run by Zhu Yu became bigger and bigger that everyone gradually had a place to gather and warm each other up."

The air in the room seemed particularly warm because of these nagging memories.

Zhu Yu took off his coat, walked to the poolside on the cushion, took the hot towel handed to him by Lin Ji, and joined their chat.

"Come on." Someone raised his glass of champagne, and another simply picked up a glass of red wine. "Cheers to us successfully completing all the game copies!"

The cups clinked lightly, and the crisp sound spread gently in the warm space.

The entire hot spring center was filled with laughter and joy, as if one had dreamed back to that extremely cold world filled with smoke, or as if one had finally woken up from the wind and snow and returned to a real and gentle life.

It was not until late at night that Zhu Yu changed his clothes and walked out of the store.

Outside the door, the rain was drizzling and the gray-blue sky was low and dark.

996, holding a black umbrella, had been waiting at the door. When he saw her, he raised the umbrella handle slightly with a gentle smile in his eyes.

"Is it over?" He reached out and brushed away the unmelted raindrops on her shoulders.

"Yeah." Zhu Yu turned around and waved to the sisters who were still laughing and waving in the store. There was a little reluctance in his eyes, but also a kind of satisfaction after completely letting go.

Under the umbrella, the two walked side by side into the night.

In the real world, there are no copies, no countdowns, and no separation of life and death.

And this real copy belonging to Zhu Yu will continue to move forward in this gentle and down-to-earth manner.

— End of article —