Part 44: Radiance
It’s a brief moment of silence before the atmosphere is light up in enthusiasm. ButterflyDreams finally finds back the feeling of being the center of attention. She smiles, “Let’s introduce ourselves.”
“I’m BlueDreams. Wow, ReedWeiWei (HumbleReed), I can’t believe how pretty you are!” a girl wearing a purple t-shirt introduces herself first.
“SandWashingLargeWaves. We fought the Dragon King of Lake Tai together.”
“Tobacco.”
“Hi, I’m DeepPupils.”
“Tony here.”
“I’m StopAndGo.”
“LordOfVibratingDuck, haha”……
Those who spoke are the players who have interacted with Wei Wei before. The following two are new members of the guild after Wei Wei left.
“My name is a bit hard to pronounce. You can just call me Albus.”
“Beautiful, you can call me BlueWaterLake.”
There are four to five other people who have not spoken yet. The guy beside LittleRainYaoYao (LittleRainEnchantress) looks as if he wants to say something, but he stops abruptly after saying “I–.”
The man beside ButterflyDreams stands up. Just from the way he looks and dresses, it’s apparent that he has already joined the workforce. He holds up his glass to gesture a toast towards Wei Wei, “Reed, I’m BattleTheWorld. We’ve had some unhappy moments in the game, but now that we’re here, let’s put the past behind us.”
“Of course,” Wei Wei says generously.
It’s clear that BattleTheWorld’s words are not only meant for Wei Wei, but also for the LittleRain clan. LittleRainYaoYao says elegantly, “I’m LittleRainYaoYao. ReedWeiWei, it’s nice to finally meet you.”
Although LittleRainYaoYao is polite in her speech, but her words make others uncomfortable; everyone in the room feels cold sweat running down their backs. Wei Wei obviously knows the deeper meaning of her words, but even though she possesses a sharp tongue, she has no interest to entertain her. She shines a smile and says gracefully, “Hello.”
The young man beside her attempts to speak again. He’s finally able to look at Wei Wei directly, “I’m RealWaterIsScentless.”
The two girls on the other side of LittleRainYaoYao stare at each other for a moment and say reluctantly, “LittleRainQingQing (LittleRainForeverYoung).”
“LittleRainMianMian (ContinuousLittleRain).”
After the introductions, everyone can’t help but circle their inquisitive gazes between Wei Wei, RealWaterIsScentless, and LittleRainYaoYao. Everyone finally stops when LittleRainYaoYao starts to look irritated.
RealWaterIsScentless stands up to call for a waiter. He orders a few more bottles of expensive red wine and says imposingly, “It’s my treat today. Please help yourself.”
“This is too expensive, isn’t it?”
“RealWater, you’re so rich.”
Everyone is in awe of the price of the red wine.
BattleTheWorld smiles, “If it weren’t for RealWater treating us, we wouldn’t be eating here. Each dish costs three digits.”
LittleRainYaoYao smiles politely, “I was the one who brought up this gathering, so of course he needs to treat everyone.”
Watching her talk like she’s the queen at the table, ButterflyDreams sneers in annoyance. She turns to Wei Wei and comments deliberately, “Wei Wei, your dress is really nice. It suits your body so well. How much did you buy it for?”
Wei Wei glances at her, shifts her gaze away, and says, “I just bought it randomly. I don’t remember.”
Everybody’s attention is on Wei Wei again. They start talking enthusiastically to her.
Albus asks, “ReedWeiWei, how should we address you?”
She’s probably asking for her real name. Wei Wei doesn’t know her well, so she pretends that she doesn’t get it, “Just call me Reed.”
“Wei Wei, I remember that you’re a student. Which school do you go to?”
This is BlueDreams asking. Wei Wei knows her a bit better, but her question has put her on a tough spot. If she doesn’t answer or try to be vague, it’ll make her embarrassed, but she doesn’t want to tell them the truth. Wei Wei has always been protective of her privacy to avoid any problems. There is no way that she’ll reveal her true information under this circumstance. Therefore, she thinks for a moment and smiles, “The food at our school is delicious.”
She is speaking the truth; the food at University A is indeed quite delicious. However, the following saying is widely spread among students of City B: University A for the brand name, University X for the gossip, E for the beauties, and H for the men……
BlueDreams has indeed misunderstood her words as she says, “So you’re from University X. Which program are you in?”
Wei Wei skips over the first question and answers, “Computer Science.”
“I’m also in Computer Science at University X!” an excited voice suddenly interrupts. The player named, Tobacco, stares at Wei Wei in full of surprise, but he immediately questions, “But how come I haven’t seen you before?”
The rest of the table also stares at Wei Wei suspiciously.
Can there be such a coincidence?
Wei Wei is struck dumb inside her heart, but her face is still calm. Just as she is about to speak, LittleRainQingQing chuckles and says sarcastically, “I heard that there are some working women who likes to say that they are University students.”
No one was expecting her to say something like this, so everyone is stunned.
Wei Wei is raging with fire inside. Her eyes turn cold as she directs her gaze at her and scorns, “How come a young girl like you have a mind that is full of dirty thoughts?”
Wei Wei, who’s gorgeous to begin with, is now donning a sullen face, which actually makes her look condescending; not only for LittleRainQingQing, but also for everyone else at the table.
LittleRainQingQing is startled by her gaze; she subconsciously shifts and avoids eye-contact.
Wei Wei’s disgust for her is growing by the minute just from looking at her. She turns her head away steadily and asks Tobacco, “Which campus are you in?”
The reason why Wei Wei chooses to mask herself as a student of University X is because she has accompanied Er Xi once to meet up with some computer science students at University X. Therefore, she knows quite a bit about University X’s Computer Science department.
Tobacco answers, “The Quan Shan campus.”
“You can’t move to the main campus until the third year, right?” Wei Wei asks prudently.
Tobacco is suddenly enlightened, “You’re a Senior from the main campus? No wonder I haven’t seen you before, but you don’t look older than me at all.”
Wei Wei smiles and doesn’t comment.
Although Wei Wei is pulchritudinous, her gaze is pure and decorous; definitely doesn’t suggest one to think otherwise. The group already thinks that LittleRainQingQing is stupid for what she said, and after hearing Wei Wei’s “explanation,” they’re even more convinced that LittleRainQingQing has no manners and that her mind is indeed full of dirty thoughts.
LittleRainQingQing’s arrogance has been completely obliterated by Wei Wei. Although she’s loath, she backs down and turns to LittleRainYaoYao to say something.
The atmosphere is a little awkward after the commotion she has caused. ButterflyDreams, feeling satisfied in her heart, takes the initiative to dissipate the conflict, bringing life back to the table.
Wei Wei has already decided to leave early, but she doesn’t show it. Whenever someone glances at her, she takes a bite of her food calmly.
A few streaks of lightning suddenly appear outside of the window, followed with thunder. After a brief moment, it starts to rain, capturing everyone’s attention.
“Why does it keep raining these days?”
“It’s okay. We’re going for karaoke right after and it’s just right beside here anyway, so we won’t get wet.”
Wei Wei’s cell phone rings amid the discussion. She pulls it out from her bag; it’s Xiao Nai as she has expected. Since Wei Wei is sitting on the inner side of the room, it would be too obvious if she gets up and walks outside, so she picks it up from where she is.
“It’s raining. I’ll come get you.”
“Mm,” Wei Wei answers seeing that everybody is about done with their meals, “you can come over now.”
“Okay.”
Xiao Nai knows the place, so he hangs up without further ado.
The chattering has come to a stop and all eyes are on Wei Wei. BlueDreams asks curiously, “Wei Wei, is it your boyfriend?”
Wei Wei nods without hesitation.
ButterflyDreams takes a peek at RealWaterIsScentless and LittleRainYaoYao’s reactions and says quickly, “Wei Wei, why are you in a hurry to leave? We’re going for karaoke right after, why don’t you join us?”
Another person sitting on the side cheers, “Yeah! Let us hear the beautiful girl sing.”
“Ask your boyfriend to come with us.”
“My singing is very average,” Wei Wei smiles politely, “and I have something else to do later, so sorry, I cannot go.”
The crowd doesn’t give up, but Wei Wei doesn’t sway as she has already made up her mind. They finish their meals soon after and RealWaterIsScentless generously pays for everyone with his credit card. Everyone starts to make their way to the entrance.
Wei Wei stands at the front doors to wait for Xiao Nai. Everyone else also stands with her with no intentions to leave; they tease that they want to see what a beautiful girl’s boyfriend looks like.
Wei Wei is a bit annoyed, but since the place isn’t hers, she can’t say anything to chase them away.
LittleRainYaoYao is also standing at the front doors. Although her expression shows that she is simply following the crowd, she is also curious to see what ReedWeiWei’s boyfriend looks like. She feels victorious just for the fact that RealWaterIsScentless is handsome and rich, which is a rare catch.
The rain gets heavier.
A sedan slows as it comes near through the rain. The crowd can tell that it must be Wei Wei’s boyfriend just from her gaze; they can’t help but feel excited.
LittleRainQingQing says condescendingly, “This car isn’t anything spectacular. It’s not as nice as what RealWater drives, right, YaoYao?”
LittleRainYaoYao glances at Wei Wei while holding onto RealWaterIsScentless’s hand to announce her possession. RealWaterIsScentless’s eyes flick towards Wei Wei subconsciously, but see that she isn’t looking his way at all because her focus has been completely drawn away by the car coming near. He feels a bit of bitterness in his heart.
In the night, the car slowly stops at the bottom of the steps. The car door opens, and a tall and straight silhouette holding an umbrella in the rain walks up to the restaurant.
Under the pouring rain, regardless of whether or not people walking on the streets are holding umbrellas, they all seem drenched and in a hurry. The silhouette is also walking quickly, yet it’s taking steady strides. It’s as if everyone else has suddenly turned into the lifeless background of a painting and he alone is walking with his umbrella in it.
He gradually makes his way up the stairs, and his facial features become clearer under the light. Xiao Nai has always been good looking, but his strong personality often overshadows this. However, under the glowing neon signs right now, his dashing figure and charming good looks captivates everyone in a heartbeat.
LittleRainQingQing and the rest are completely stunned by his radiance.
Wei Wei doesn’t like the gazes of LittleRainQingQing and the others; she doesn’t wait for Xiao Nai to come all the way before she bids goodbye to ButterflyDreams and the rest, “Enjoy the rest of the evening, everyone. I’m leaving now.”
ButterflyDreams attempts to persuade her to stay again, “Wei Wei, why not ask your boyfriend to come join us too?”
“No, it’s okay,” Wei Wei gives a slight smile and declines firmly, “He’s rather shy and doesn’t like to be around strangers.”
There is clearly an underlying meaning to her words, making ButterflyDreams unable to say anything more.
Xiao Nai has already made it to Wei Wei while she was talking. Wei Wei walks into his umbrella.
“Let’s go.”
Xiao Nai knows that Wei Wei was supposed to meet with ButterflyDreams only. But seeing the crowd standing together, it’s obvious that things turned out differently, yet he doesn’t ask about it. He’s used to being arrogant, so he doesn’t bother saying hi or even glancing at them; he leads Wei Wei down the stairs to leave.
Everyone silently watches them walk away. Just as the two beautiful silhouettes holding an umbrella are about to disappear into the rain, LittleRainQingQing bites her lips and suddenly shouts, “Hey! Your girlfriend has gotten married to a couple of guys in the game already, did you know?”
Wei Wei stops her footsteps in bewilderment. She turns to look at her full of thought. They haven’t walked too far, so she can capture LittleRainQingQing’s expression fully; her face is twisted and her eyes are blazing with the intent to kill.
“She has cheated in her relationships in the game. She has bad reputation, and everybody here knows that. A handsome guy like you shouldn’t be fooled by her.”
Wei Wei has grown up in a pure and innocent world; it’s really her first time meeting someone as obnoxious as LittleRainQingQing. She can’t even find words to describe her. Disgust overflows in Wei Wei’s heart. Her eyes turn glacial as she is about to speak, but Xiao Nai stops her.
Wei Wei glances at him, thinking that he’s going to reveal himself as ASmileNaiHe, but he suddenly shows a despondent face. He stares at her as he says the words softly with deep emotional love, “As long as she is willing to be with me, I won’t mind these things.”
Their car is miles away now, but just from thinking about LittleRainQingQing’s grimace back at the restaurant, Wei Wei can’t contain her laughter, causing her shoulders to shake.
LittleRainQingQing probably wanted to break up her and the Great Master, but who knew that the Great Master would be unbothered by the possibility of her cheating. He displayed true devotion to her regardless. This probably makes LittleRainQingQing even more begrudged and agitated.
Wei Wei can’t agree more that the Great Master is better than her more than just a bit in terms of offending and making others angry.
Xiao Nai continues driving impassively.
After absorbing herself in glee for a moment, Wei Wei suddenly asks Xiao Nai, “If I really do cheat on you, would you mind?”
“No,” Xiao Nai answers nonchalantly.
Eh? Wei Wei stares at him in shock; she thought he would be angry enough to kill.
Noticing her dubious gaze, Xiao Nai chuckles. He stops the car on a red light, and turns to look at her, “At most, if you try to climb over the wall one inch, I’ll layer it up an inch. If you try to walk a meter away, I’ll follow you a meter.” (I’ll do anything to stop you from cheating)
Although his voice is soft, his words shudders Wei Wei’s heart; there’s a tinge of feeling inside that she cannot explain.
How I want to strangle that LRQQ! She’s so irritating! Hope her guy will dump her soon…
Thank you for this chapter!
Great Master you are the best. Little Rain and RealWater just got served. LOL. I feel so happy for Weiwei. Still Butterfly was being a bit too much now, trying to rope in Great Master as well. Tchh.
Little Rain Qing Qing is the most annoying character ever… her jealousy is no joke… what a mess..
as expected xiao nai handle it well.. butterfly is too much for doing this to weiwei, but i think its overreact for weiwei if she break the friendship just for this, butterfly thought was clouded with jealousy and accumulated grudges, i think she deserve a forgiveness. if i were in weiwei’s place, i might willing to play along with butterfly bcause i do have grudges towards the people who came (little rain clan) and im not as polite as weiwei xD.
You are right. People are human and make errors in judgement. How many of us have made mistakes because we’ve only heard part or one side of a story? It’s so easy to respond in a petty way or to not listen to others or to not think deeply enough. However, it is great when karma strikes!
seems like her fellow online gamers are quite mean
but the last bit makes it up….
too sweet the ending……
thanks for the translations!
Thank you for this beautiful novel translation. I love Gu Mans novel so much. They are so deep and smart but have a cute and sweet sense
Thank you. Great master does know how to reply. 🙂
I love Xiao Nai.,he is so sweet,protects WW and know how to do with WW.^^
Wow.. As someone that has played a lot of mmos, and even met ppl from it IRL, let me say this..
What ButterflyDreams did is /unforgivable/. That was utter betrayal.
Outing someone’s real id like that, /specially/ when such person went to such lenghts to keep it hidden, and knowing you were probably the first person/exception to it…
Really…
Not to mention she also deceived her so she would come, used her as bait so there would be a commotion. And that because she was her /friend/.
I’m sorry but this was an utter douche move. Ppl have their reasons to keep their identity secret in games, and some of these are for safety/security reasons, or need for privacy or keeping one irl life untouched. Of course there’ll be people that don’t mind. But for someone that went through such lenghts to preserve her rl, outing someone like this, is grave. It is a violation. You’re intruding at someone’s sanctuary.
I don’t care if her thoughts are “muddled by jealousy, revenge” or whatsoever, she was her /friend/, WeiWei never did anything to her, on the opposite. She didn’t have the right.
If you are a closet (insert something here) which never came out, and after a long time, you finaly, for whatever reason, tell one of your oldest friends, in confidence, about it, for the first time ever. And sooner than you can realize, without you knowing, that person sells you out for everyone?
And by doing so, it has dire implications to you, from nosy (even random, unkown) ppl seeking you out, being the word on everyone’s mouth/object of curiosity, being the target of the rumour mill factory, to even perhaps being in actual, physical danger (it’s the internet after all. Maybe in China it’s safer, but still…). Think stalkers, bullies, ppl trying to take advantage.. Anything…
And she did that so she could get something out of it.
She then leaves all the fall out, which might have some real consequences, to you. And doesn’t care, or even realize it in the least cause she got what she wanted/or feels justified?
How would you feel?
Well, I? If I did talk to this person after all that, it would be only to have her know exactly what the sh** she did.
You have a very passionate point of view. I am sorry if someone has wronged you in the past. Did they understand your need for confidentiality and safety concerns? Do not let anyone tell you not to feel betrayed. Just be aware of what you have lost.
In this story, however, it does not feel like the on-line friendships are deep (except were people know each other out of the game), nor that they should cause scars. My take on Butterfly was more that she wanted to set the story and rumors straight, not cause harm to Wei Wei. And if justice had a little vengeance in it, she was not opposed to it. Many people do not think of long-term consequences until it is too late.
You’re completely right. Doxxing is wrong, and dangerous. In the story it all works out, and is forgivable because PLOT, but in real life this would be a major violation.