Going to Meimei's House to Take a Bath!

Because Lin Jia’s hands were injured, he could only watch helplessly every day as Boss and Fourth Brother played Legend with smug satisfaction, while he was reduced to miserably watching movies. After two or three days, he had already finished an entire 40-episode Korean drama. By the third day, he simply couldn't take it anymore and insisted on tearing off the gauze wrapped around his hands like a baseball, leaving only a thin layer of cotton wrapping his fingers. Wiggling his stiffly bound fingers, he began playing Legend.

It had to be said that Lin Jia possessed an extraordinary self-healing ability, or perhaps the dark, muddy ointment from the Mongolian-licensed bonesetter truly possessed some kind of miraculous power. In just two or three days, the wounds on Lin Jia’s finger joints were basically scabbed over. Aside from not yet daring to bend them into a fist, he could barely manage to press the keyboard and mouse. Typing was also somewhat inconvenient, forcing him to use his index fingers to jab clumsily at the keyboard like practicing a one-finger Zen meditation.

Meanwhile, over these past two days, Boss had unexpectedly found a job. Truth be told, she hadn't specifically gone out looking for one; because the internet cafe's other internet attendant had suddenly "resigned," the cafe owner decided to hire a female replacement. Mei Mei put in a good word with the owner on Boss's behalf and helped her secure the position.

Initially, Boss was reluctant, but considering she could play games while working, she agreed. Now, she and Mei Mei shared shifts, with one handling the day and the other the night.

During the two days when Lin Jia's fingers were immobile, Boss and Fourth Brother dragged the innocent Mei Mei into the fold, starting to teach her how to play Legend. Since Lin Jia couldn't personally take the field, he sat right behind Mei Mei to act as her coach. Because the kind-hearted Mei Mei disliked fighting and killing, she followed Boss's example and chose a pretty female Taoist character, prompting Boss to tease Lin Jia that he now had a dedicated babysitter.

Having ascended to the rank of internet attendant, Boss and Mei Mei worked very well together. When one of them was on duty, she would play Legend on the main computer at the front desk downstairs, while the other played on the vacant machine inside the VIP private room. Neither pursuit interfered with the other.

Watching Mei Mei play Legend was both agonizing and hilarious for Lin Jia. Girls seemed to lack an innate talent for gaming compared to boys; her learning curve was extremely slow, and she constantly made comical blunders. Of course, mutants like Boss had to be excluded from this category.

Sitting behind Mei Mei to guide her through Legend from the novice village onward, Lin Jia first taught her step-by-step how to name her character and choose a class. However, Mei Mei spent a full five minutes just trying to think of a name, almost fulfilling the legendary stereotype of "taking half an hour just to choose a name." Anxious, Lin Jia suggested she simply use her QQ screen name, but Mei Mei insisted on a brand-new name. After pondering for a long time, she finally entered the seductive ID: "Seductive Glancing Eyes."

After much fuss, Mei Mei finally succeeded in creating her character. Her birthplace was the Border Village nursery, and her character—wearing only pink undergarments and appearing half-naked—prompted Lin Jia to tease her relentlessly. First, he remarked, "Whoa, Mei Mei! Your thighs are so pale!"

Then, moments later, he quipped, "Hehe, Mei Mei! Your 'kept woman' character must be a 34D, right?" He even deliberately cast lecherous glances at Mei Mei’s full chest, tightly clad in a small T-shirt. Initially, Mei Mei didn't quite understand what a "kept woman" meant, but once the realization dawned on her, she flushed with embarrassment and tackled the disabled Lin Jia onto the sofa, beating him up soundly. She displayed the true demeanor of the gentle heroine Sun Ermiang, laughing Fourth Brother into a spasm right beside them.

However, Mei Mei was a lively and cheerful girl, possessing enough fiery spirit to talk back regarding banter between men and women. Coupled with her previous "intimate encounter" with Lin Jia and their ambiguous "couple" relationship, she blushed deeply and decided to brazenly play the role of a bold beauty, retorting, "Hmph! Want to find out? Try it yourself!" With that, she flashed a charming, coquettish glance that instantly mesmerized Lin Jia. Once he fully comprehended her words, the shock stunned both Lin Jia and Fourth Brother into silence.

When recovery finally hit, Fourth Brother let out a strange howl, bounced off the sofa in excitement, and crouched on the cushions to egg Lin Jia on. Lin Jia, conversely, grew shy, stammering and failing to find a retort, which cracked Fourth Brother up endlessly. Mei Mei covered her dainty mouth, shaking with laughter in a manner so breathtakingly shy and pretty that it drove Lin Jia to a fit of simulated rage. He bounced off the sofa, retaliating with a vengeful "Dragon-Clawing Hand," which startled Mei Mei into a shriek as she bolted away, scattering a crisp and melodious trail of silver bells across the VIP room floor.

Young people always possessed such boundless energy. On this autumn night, even after working up a sweat from their horseplay, the three of them were laughing so hard they collapsed, temporarily abandoning Legend just to lie panting on the sofa. After a while, Mei Mei finally caught her breath, sat up, and furrowed her pretty, delicate brows with a suppressed smile. "Ouch! No more laughing! My stomach's going to burst if I keep this up! You bad guy, Madman!" Lin Jia chuckled foolishly, his eyes fixed on Mei Mei as she continually massaged her adorable little belly, completely captivated.

"No more messing around! No more messing around! Are you going to play Legend or not?" Lin Jia's energy was spent, and the commotion had caused his injuries to start throbbing dully again. Begging for a truce, he instructed Mei Mei to resume operating her little female Taoist character, "Seductive Glancing Eyes," to hack at chickens and slay demons. Unfortunately, because there were still far too many novice players and the population had remained high for so long, Mei Mei's poor operational skills meant that after running around in circles for ages, she had only managed to snatch three plum blossom deer and a single hen.

Recalling the Senior Warrior's Home quest his trio of brothers had completed previously—where a vast multitude of small monsters like deer and sheep spawned for slaughter—Lin Jia directed Mei Mei on a long-distance expedition straight from Novice Village to the Senior Warrior's Home. Yet, due to comrade Mei Mei's utter innocence, she encountered unfamiliar monsters along the way, such as man-eating plants, poisonous spiders, half-orcs, and pitchfork-wielding cats. Prompted by intense curiosity, Mei Mei attempted to attack them, heroically sacrificing her level-1 female character four times before finally arriving safely half an hour later!

Mei Mei rejected Lin Jia's proposal to entrust Fourth Brother with the controls, fiercely demanding to level up by herself. The ultimate result was that Lin Jia, serving as the mentor, grew thoroughly frustrated and fell asleep right beside her.

"Here! Right! Go in! Yes! Into that small door!" Lin Jia pointed at the screen using hands still bandaged up like corn cobs. Annoyed, Mei Mei swatted Lin Jia's hand away and complained, "Get that away! I can't see the screen! Ugh—right! Madman, how many days has it been since you took a bath?" Pinching her nose in disgust, Mei Mei turned her body sideways to dodge him; evidently, Lin Jia's previous pointing gestures had accidentally assaulted Mei Mei with his body odor.

Lin Jia froze. He raised his arm to sniff himself and rolled his eyes internally. It seemed he hadn't bathed since the night of the street fight. Internet cafes certainly didn't provide shower facilities. Fourth Brother also pulled at his undershirt and sniffed, nearly vomiting from his own scent. Unable to stand it, he howled bizarrely, "What the heck! I think we've all gone sour!?"

Although the late October weather was no longer scorching, going several days without a bath remained unbearable for ordinary people. Judging by the resilience of the hardcore overnight regulars in the internet cafe, however, it was apparently just barely tolerable. Many gamers who were deeply addicted to their gaming hadn't washed their faces, brushed their teeth, or bathed for over a week. Leaving aside their greasy faces, the wild-grass-like stubble and the potent "manly aura" radiating from their bodies would make any sudden visitor feel as though they had walked straight into an animal pen.

"How about..." Lin Jia looked at Fourth Brother, then at Mei Mei, and chuckled slyly. "We hold out for a few more days? Wash up when we get home? Anyway, there's nowhere to bathe in the internet cafe! It's not like we can just make do by rinsing off with water from the toilet bowl, right?"

"Ew!" Mei Mei cried out in disgust. "Madman, you are so gross! Look, how about tomorrow morning I take you all to my dormitory to wash up? I have a shower there! Even if you guys can bear it, Sister Fangfang is a girl—she won't be able to stand this!" The fact that Boss could endure going two or three days without a bath just like Fourth Brother and Lin Jia truly proved she was a heroine among women!

"Go to your place?" Lin Jia's imagination began to run wild, but he immediately asked doubtfully, "Is that a good idea? Wouldn't it be inappropriate for a few guys to go wash up at a girl's place? Won't it be super awkward if your parents find out?"

Hearing Lin Jia mention her parents, Mei Mei’s gaze flickered for a fraction of a second. She smiled and said, "It's fine! I rent a place and live alone outside! My family doesn't live here!"

Lin Jia was dumbfounded. Only now did it occur to him that he hadn't understood a single thing about Mei Mei. Up until this moment, he didn't even know where she lived or how many family members she had.

"Oh! Well, that's fantastic! What are we waiting for then? Let's go wash up right now and then come back to surf the net! My skin feels all sticky and itchy. I can't take it anymore!" Hearing this, Fourth Brother leapt up in eager anticipation. He had no idea why he hadn't felt the itch at all before Mei Mei brought it up.

"Right now?" Mei Mei hesitated. "It's so late now! It's pitch black outside! The place I rent is deep inside Wulidun Village right in front of the residential complex. Those are all private houses built haphazardly, and there are no streetlights!"

Fourth Brother patted his chest with grand assurance. "It's no big deal! With so many of us accompanying you, what is there to be afraid of? I'll go tell Boss!" With that, Fourth Brother bounced off, rushed downstairs, and reported to Boss. Upon hearing the news, Boss came stomping back up the stairs, pleasantly surprised as she declared, "Really? That's wonderful! I've been about to go crazy myself! Hurry, hurry!" Grabbing her backpack from the resting sofa in the VIP room, she urged Mei Mei onward.

Mei Mei blinked, stunned. "If both of us leave, what happens to the internet cafe? Old Zhao is resting today and isn't working the night shift!"

Boss was equally stunned for a moment, but her eyes rolled instantly as she pointed directly at Lin Jia. "Tell Madman to watch the place for a while first. Fourth Brother and I will wash up, and then we'll swap out so he can go!"

Refusing to yield, Lin Jia protested, "Why do I have to stay? Make Fourth Brother stay..." He turned around to look for Fourth Brother, only to discover that Fourth Brother was already long gone. Moments later, Fourth Brother's voice drifted up from downstairs: "Hurry up, you guys! What are you dilly-dallying for? Oh, my character is still logged in to prepare for leveling up in the Centipede Cave!"

Speechless, Lin Jia watched as Mei Mei and Boss chuckled and bolted away in a blur, leaving poor Lin Jia behind. He had no choice but to temporarily substitute for Boss as the internet attendant guarding the cafe. Fortunately, the peak hours had passed, and there weren't many people left surfing the web; otherwise, Lin Jia would have been completely at a loss as to how to use his two corn-cob-wrapped hands to open the cash register and make change for customers.