Surprise! My online crush turned out to be... - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

After hearing Shu Yang’s words, Chen Yi frowned, his features drooping as he said with a bitter face, “Young Master Chen, I have nothing but a lot of money. Isn’t that perfect complementarity? How can we be in two completely different worlds?”

“Your money isn’t yours.” After hearing this, Chen Yi didn’t see anything wrong unless he thought deeply. “At least Xu Mengran earned the money through hard work. Where did your money come from?”

After hearing Shu Yang’s words, Chen Yi became even more confused. “I used my pocket money to buy two small companies, and I make a little money every month. How can that not be considered my own money? Doesn’t it mean that I have to work hard to earn money?”

“…” Shu Yang was speechless, but he still felt something was amiss.

Fatty Shen rose from his bed, the slumped mattress quickly returning to its original flat state. He patted his head, “Given my family’s complicated situation, I’d love to be a brainless rich kid, but does reality allow it? My stepmother is pushing me to grow up.”

Despite his usual unassuming image, Chen Yi was the first among the group to experience the world of business. He hadn’t even graduated from high school, but every winter and summer vacation he’d spend time at his family’s company studying departmental projects. If his father hadn’t insisted on his studies, he might be a small manager by now.

After all, it was his own company, and there weren’t any academic requirements.

Xu Mengran must have known something about Chen Yi before, and wouldn’t have backed off just because of his family’s financial situation. There had to be something else going on. As for what that was, it wasn’t for an outsider like Shu Yang to know; only those involved would know better.

Chen Yi smacked his lips, looking impatient, but his dialing hand didn’t slow down at all. “Women are troublesome. I’d better give her a call and coax her out.”

…

Shu Yang: You’re really not here to show off your affection?

…

Ever since Fatty Chen started dating, Shu Yang felt like his house was filled with the sour smell of love, and it was getting stronger every day. It was making him feel sick.

Chen Yi came and went in a hurry, not doing anything in between, but he completely woke up Shu Yang’s sleepiness.

Shu Yang glanced at the time, feeling furious.

[Big Pigeon!! Do you have a girlfriend? ]

[No. ]

[That’s good!! Then, Big Pigeon, have you ever been in a relationship? ]

[No. ]

[Ah! That’s really a bit tragic!] Shu Yang felt relieved and typed this sentence.

[Not bad. ]

This two-word reply was so aloof it completely stifled Shu Yang. He held it in for a long time before sending his own reply.

[Big Pigeon, are you in a bad mood today? I was just kidding. I’ve never been in a relationship either. Sigh. My friend has completely changed since he got out of singlehood. He’s never been the same again.]

Shu Yang looked at his long, drawn-out message, wondering when he’d become so chatty. He’d originally wanted to talk to a stranger about his thoughts, but this Big Pigeon had completely shut him down.

[You’re a pretty good driver.]

Huh? Shu Yang was stunned by this incoherent sentence. What driving skills? The only car he had any connection to was the simulator he played at the Wild Dog Club. Had he seen it?

Is such an abrupt change of subject okay?

But Shu Yang looked at his phone. What on earth could connect to the internet and send videos? Why wasn’t there any notification? This must be a major bug!

He’d completely forgotten that he’d originally labeled the software a virus.

[Hahaha, just average, third in the world.]

Although he was a bit of a coward in real life, when it came to boasting online, Shu Yang had never been afraid of anyone.

[Can I see your car?]

This was the first time Da Ge had asked for something, and Shu Yang, figuring it wasn’t a big deal, agreed immediately.

[No problem, I’ll be there tomorrow and show it to you then.]

[Yeah.]

…He got a “hmm” and then there was no reply for a long time. Shu Yang rubbed his chin. Da Ge was being rather distant today.

[You know about racing too?]

Shu Yang praised his own wit. When your conversation partner is quiet, you need to proactively bring up a topic of mutual interest. That way the conversation can continue and avoid becoming awkward.

New topic!

[No, I’m just really interested in your car. After spending so much time with his circle, Shu Yang knew that a man’s love for cars was something truly profound. But he seemed to be an anomaly; he wasn’t particularly fond of cars and rarely drove them.

[Really? If we were in the same place, I’d let you drive, not just show you around!]

Thinking this was a virtual network, Shu Yang’s words became less restrained. He wasn’t afraid anyway. If he said he’d come, could he really come?

[What’s your planet code and location?]

…Shu Yang stared at this unusual message reply, lost in thought. Was this… a face-to-face meeting?

That wasn’t good…but he decided to give it a try.

[Da Ge, what about you? Where are you?]

[Capital Planet.]

Shu Yang, Spartan? Were they from the same place? Was the world really that real?

Thinking of the complete profile page on the website, Shu Yang clicked on it and scrolled to the end, where there was a location. How many… light-years is this Francis Pigeon away from him?

What the hell.

[Big Pigeon, I’m not from the capital planet. My home is too far away. Maybe we’ll try someday.] Shu Yang had already decided that the distance was beyond the reach of the Donkey Man, and he began his careless talk again.

[Okay.]

The atmosphere suddenly cooled again. Shu Yang rubbed his head. He was really dreading the sudden silence.

[Big Pigeon, you like cats so much. Do you have one? What are your hobbies?]

After sending this message, a page suddenly popped up: [The other party has requested a video call with you. Do you accept?]

No no no no no no!!!

Shu Yang was startled. When he realized he had manually clicked “Reject,” he had already sat upright in bed, with his phone held 45 degrees above and in front of him… mmp…

[Sorry, I clicked the wrong button. Shu Yang breathed a sigh of relief. He said, “Isn’t it strange that two grown men would have a video call?”

—
Francis, without even looking up, stared at the terminated call and said to Joyce, “He hung up.”

“I figured he’d hang up too. Seeing his face would make it easy to find him.” Joyce’s fingers tapped on his computer, so fast that afterimages appeared.

“I’ve checked every planet I mapped out last time, and it’s not him.” Francis frowned. He still hadn’t found many clues. Finding someone in such a vast interstellar space was indeed difficult.

“Marshal, give me a little more time. I’m sure I can crack it. I’m starting to get some clues.” Joyce’s eyes gleamed with determination. This was the first time he felt his skills were truly valuable. If he couldn’t seize this opportunity, he could die.

“But I’ll have to trouble you for a while. It’s best to chat with him regularly. That way it’ll be easier to track down his location,” Joyce continued. Francis pursed his lips and uttered a single word, “Okay.”

He was undoubtedly intrigued by the person on the other end of the line. Their words were frantic, yet they hinted at a certain sincerity. They seemed unaware of his identity, yet they always managed to hit the nail on the head.

Francis had never met anyone like him before.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t met them before, but rather that no one had ever been able to approach him before.

Joyce had just arrived and then left. He glanced at the empty office, typed a line, thought for a moment, deleted it, and pressed record.

[No time for that. Can you speak?]

Sometimes, a person’s voice is incredibly recognizable.

Francis hadn’t intended to reply so briefly. The message arrived midway through the military meeting.

According to his habit, he should have ignored any messages unrelated to the meeting that might distract him, but at Joyce’s advice, he replied anyway.

Because his mind was still focused on the officers’ reports, the message couldn’t be replied for long.

Even so, it was enough to shock everyone today. Their ruthless and heartless marshal was actually multitasking during the meeting. Judging by his fingers, he was probably sending private messages to someone!

Shock!

Francis didn’t have the heart to care about the generals’ thoughts. After the meeting, he hurried to find Joyce and asked if he could quickly decipher this person’s information.

After all, that feeling of being out of control just now was really unpleasant.

For the past few days, he had been chatting with Joyce about useless things, but the longer he went on, the less he understood the person he was talking to. One mystery had become countless mysteries, making him want to find out more. It was a terrible feeling.

He could only feel at ease if this matter was resolved quickly.

And tonight, that person had actually discussed his mother’s favorite topic. Francis sincerely thought that perhaps he should temporarily lend the computer to Mrs. Tulsi.

Perhaps he would gain something extraordinary.

But he didn’t do that. Even if the computer malfunctioned, he couldn’t just hand it over to someone else. If anyone knew about it, it would be an excellent opportunity to attack him. He wouldn’t hand his own secrets over to his enemies.

Those members of the royal family had been comfortable for too long. Their power-hungry faces had forgotten who protected the empire’s peace.

Francis touched the computer, a cold glint in his eyes, and then a voice message automatically played on it.

[Of course you can talk. By the way, Big Pigeon, if you don’t have a cat, would you consider cloud-raising one? Meow~ Meow~ Meow~ Meow~!]

…

Francis recorded this conversation and sent it to Joyce.

He remained expressionless throughout.

If anyone were here, they would still see the slightly reddened tips of the mighty Marshal’s ears.

What a troublesome fellow.