The Moon Shines on Me (GL) - Chapter 6

That’s how Gu Shiwei met Ming Yue.

After meeting Ming Yue, the difficulty of her game dropped drastically. Monsters that she used to spend an hour grinding down were now solved by Ming Yue with a single sword stroke before they even made a sound.

During that time, the thing Gu Shiwei looked forward to most every day was waiting for Ming Yue to come online.

Being with Ming Yue, even if they didn’t do any quests, she felt an inexplicable sense of happiness.

However, this sweet two-person world didn’t last long before it was interrupted by Lin Qinghuan. When Lin Qinghuan heard that the star student Gu Shiwei was actually obsessed with gaming, she also registered an account. But she wasn’t as lucky as Gu Shiwei. After being decimated by monsters one hundred and fifty-seven times, Gu Shiwei finally showed up with Ming Yue.

But this time, it was Gu Shiwei who stole the spotlight.

Gu Shiwei simply moved her fingers to help Lin Qinghuan defeat the monster, and then she and Ming Yue worked together to level Lin Qinghuan up to the maximum level. After reaching max level, Lin Qinghuan gradually got the hang of it and often joined Gu Shiwei and Ming Yue in dungeons.

A few months later, Sword Quest River released a new dungeon, and it was because of that dungeon that they had the opportunity to ‘turn on the microphone to communicate.’

The new dungeon was too difficult; after more than ten attempts, their teamwork still wasn’t great. However, the three of them weren’t the type to get angry while gaming; even when they wiped repeatedly, their chat log was full of laughter.

Gu Shiwei was mainly responsible for the giggles, and Lin Qinghuan was mainly responsible for the full-on laughter.

Ming Yue was responsible for interspersing some highly professional commands between their giggling and laughing.

Later, perhaps because it was getting late, Ming Yue typed in the team chat that they would try one more time, and if they couldn’t pass it, she would log off and try again next time.

Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan naturally had no objections. Just as they finished typing ‘ok,’ a voice, slightly distant but very pleasant, came through the computer: “Zhao Zhao, can you hear me?”

The moment Gu Shiwei heard Ming Yue’s voice, she suddenly held her breath.

Zhao Zhao: “1111” Mu Mu: “Holy heck, Ming Yue, are you a broadcasting major?”

How could someone’s voice sound so good, even over game software?

“No, as long as you can hear me.”

Ming Yue’s voice was mixed with some static; she was probably adjusting her microphone and looking for her headset.

Under Ming Yue’s calm and systematic voice commands, they cleared the new dungeon in just half an hour.

Later, Ming Yue said she had a “parent buff” and logged off, and only then did Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan realize what had just happened.

Mu Mu: “She’s so calm and so awesome when faced with a problem, I’m starting to crush on her.” Mu Mu: “The voice of a gentlewoman with a cute model—the ultimate contrast.” Mu Mu: “I hereby announce this is my new wife.” Zhao Zhao: “???” Mu Mu: “Don’t you think so? Although her voice is cool, it’s really pleasant, and she’s so emotionally stable. She didn’t scold me even though I messed up so many times.”

Gu Shiwei certainly felt the same way. Sometimes Lin Qinghuan made such foolish mistakes that even she couldn’t help but want to curse, but Ming Yue showed no displeasure and instead focused on finding a way to compensate.

Very calm, seemingly good-tempered. Her emotions were also very stable. And her voice was… very young. Very pleasant.

Ming Yue had a “parent buff,” so she was probably around the same age as them, or maybe even younger than Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan.

Gu Shiwei placed her hands on the keyboard and, expressionlessly, typed a few words and sent them.

Zhao Zhao: “Stop fantasizing. She’s my Master.” Mu Mu: “It’s precisely because she’s your Master that I’m crushing. You wouldn’t actually fall for your Master through a screen, right? Hahaha.” Zhao Zhao: “Shut up. I don’t want you to be my Mistress-Mother. Logging off.”

After logging out of the game, Gu Shiwei suddenly began to chew over what Lin Qinghuan had just said. Would a normal person fall for someone they didn’t know the appearance of, separated by an internet connection?

Probably not. Maybe it was the ‘hatchling effect,’ or perhaps ‘bridge panic.’ When they cleared the dungeon just now, all three were very excited. Lin Qinghuan had been screaming, and Gu Shiwei’s heart was also pounding quickly as she listened to Ming Yue’s steady voice through the headset. Was it because of the game she was nervous? Or was it because of Ming Yue?

Gu Shiwei had a rare bout of insomnia that night. She couldn’t figure out what kind of feeling that was.

Since that day, the three of them would occasionally turn on their microphones to chat. Ming Yue introduced them to her friends and also pulled them into mainstream dungeons to “work” (i.e., help other players clear it for a reward).

Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan were quite extroverted (E) in real life but became introverted (I) online. Upon entering the dungeon, they felt somewhat overwhelmed looking at the dense array of UIDs on the screen.

Sword Quest River’s team dungeons had 10, 30, 50, and 100-person modes. They entered the 30-person mode this time. Five or six people in the team were Ming Yue’s friends. When Ming Yue introduced Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan to her friends, she said they were “two very smart friends I just met.”

Her friends extended a warm welcome to the “smart friends” personally certified by Ming Yue.

Thanks to Ming Yue’s efforts over this time, Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan’s gear were not bad; they were capable of running the 30-person dungeon. Although they were still far from the top-tier progress, they could at least put out an above-average DPS. However, because neither of them knew about the in-game Mall, and Ming Yue hadn’t specifically informed them, both wore their shoddy, original default outfits into the dungeon.

A flashy little beauty in the team noticed Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan wearing the most basic initial outfits and sent messages in the team chat subtly mocking them for being poor. She also sarcastically suggested that Ming Yue would probably have to pay for their gear later.

Mu Mu privately to Zhao Zhao: “Isn’t she sick in the head?” Zhao Zhao: “I think so too.” Mu Mu privately to Zhao Zhao: “Should I give her a piece of my mind? I can’t hold back, I really want to curse.” Zhao Zhao: “Don’t. Ming Yue is still here.”

Because they were grouped and entered together, everyone in the team knew they were a unit. Gu Shiwei didn’t want to cause trouble for Ming Yue, nor did she want to show a bad side of herself in front of her.

Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan hadn’t felt there was anything wrong with their characters before. Ming Yue had never looked down on them, but after that person’s comment, they felt an inexpressible sense of humiliation.

Gu Shiwei had actually noticed a long time ago that Ming Yue had many different outfits, never wearing the same one two days in a row, and they were all sparkling and very beautiful. They must have cost a lot of money. Someone who could ‘All In’ every season’s outfit in the game likely had substantial financial resources in the real world. Since Ming Yue was probably just a student, Gu Shiwei speculated that she, like herself, must be a second-generation rich.

Gu Shiwei didn’t know where her competitive spirit came from, but being mocked like that, she opened her phone and scanned the QR code for the Mall. Without blinking, Gu Shiwei topped up a six-figure sum (in RMB).

Gu Shiwei finished topping up, closed her phone, and started warming up.

Five minutes later, the battle began. The 30 of them worked together to fight three bosses, with a one-hour time limit. Each boss and its accompanying mobs would take about 15 minutes, with the remaining time for the Raid Leader to open the microphone and auction off the gear.

This time they were very lucky; an Ultimate Treasure Chest dropped, which could contain the best top-tier gear in the entire server. However, because this item was very expensive, most people couldn’t afford to bid for it. Only three or four people in a 30-person team usually participated in the bidding.

The person who mocked Gu Shiwei was also bidding. Lin Qinghuan glanced at her bid price and sneered contemptuously. With such a meager ability, how dare she look down on them? Did she think Gu Shiwei was a pushover? This whole game was practically a gift from her mother, and Gu Shiwei was going to take over the Gu Group in the future.

As far as Lin Qinghuan knew, Sword Quest River and Zhaoyang (a company/entity with a similar name to Gu Shiwei’s nickname) were both founded the year Gu Shiwei was born, and Zhaoyang was even named after Gu Shiwei’s childhood nickname. How dare this little nobody despise Miss Gu? It was truly “wielding an axe before Lu Ban’s door”—blind and ignorant.

Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “Do you want this? [Ultimate Treasure Chest]” Zhao Zhao: “Why?” Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “If you like it, consider it a master-apprentice gift, and I’ll give it to you.”

Gu Shiwei’s hands were on the keyboard, her fingertips trembling slightly. She took a deep breath and typed a few words.

Zhao Zhao: “Thank you, Master. I do want it, but I want to bid for it myself.”

Ming Yue didn’t reply for a long time. Gu Shiwei switched out and saw that Ming Yue was already bidding in the team chat. An Ultimate Treasure Chest that would normally only cost a few thousand RMB had already escalated to 30,000. This time, they had clearly encountered someone who genuinely needed it, but Gu Shiwei was driven by pride. She directly typed “100,000” into the team chat and sent it.

After the message was sent, a massive string of “??????” suddenly flashed in the team chat.

No one expected the team member who had been silently playing since entering the dungeon to suddenly jump into the fray at the critical moment and raise the bid by several multiples.

Gu Shiwei’s private messages exploded. Some scolded her for pretending to be rich, warning her that if she couldn’t afford to pay later, she would be reported on Tieba and Weibo. Others congratulated her. Gu Shiwei filtered through them and found the message from Ming Yue.

Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “I’ll pay for you.”

No accusation, just four simple words, which instantly bolstered Gu Shiwei’s confidence.

However, Gu Shiwei ultimately didn’t let Ming Yue pay for her. She was looking for a way to spend the money she had just topped up anyway, and she wasn’t short on cash, so she instantly paid for it herself.

The question marks in the team chat were followed by Lin Qinghuan’s sarcastic retorts. Gu Shiwei’s operation thoroughly impressed her. The earlier frustration was completely swept away, and she even felt like laughing at the little clown who had mocked them.

Stupid, huh? The one thing your Gu-Sis isn’t short on is money.

After Gu Shiwei paid the money, the team chat was filled with “Congrats, Boss!” The messages from the sarcastic person were long gone, and the chat was full of joyful vibes.

Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “That’s a bit over-inflated.” Zhao Zhao: “It’s fine. We can’t let people look down on us.” Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “What do you want for your master-apprentice gift?”

Master-apprentice gift? This was the first Gu Shiwei had heard of such a thing. Did she need to serve tea to her Master as well?

Zhao Zhao: “I haven’t thought about it yet. I’ll tell you when I decide.” Ming Yue privately to Zhao Zhao: “Okay.”

After that day, Gu Shiwei and Lin Qinghuan seemed like different people. They cleared out the Mall, becoming two flashy, colorful “cute noobs”.

Ming Yue continued to take the two flashy cute noobs through challenges and dungeons every day. They played together like this, joking and fighting, for two years.

Two years later, their friendship grew even closer, until one day, Gu Shiwei boldly brought up what she wanted for the master-apprentice gift.

Zhao Zhao: “I want to meet you.” Ming Yue: “Why?” Zhao Zhao: “I’ll tell you why after we meet.” Ming Yue: “Okay.”