Chapter 4

Compared to Sun Ran's stunned expression, the two women in the room were all smiles. They had known he would appear and were well-prepared mentally.

The one closest to him, Sun Ran's forty-ninth wife, looked no more than sixteen or seventeen years old, with a charming and delightful appearance. Her face was round, still carrying some baby fat, just as it was when Sun Ran had married her.

She was the first to jump up from her seat, giggling as she skipped over to Sun Ran. She skillfully hugged his arm, pouting playfully, and her well-developed chest inadvertently brushed against his arm. She said in a sweet voice, "Husband, why did you take so long to come?"

She spoke naturally, without any hint of shyness.

Sun Ran, with his thick skin, had already recovered. He realized that the women in the room must be the three of his forty-nine wives who had not sued him.

He gently patted the head of the young girl beside him and smiled, "Madam, how have you been? The pleasures of our wedding night are still fresh in my mind."

At the mention of their wedding night, the young girl finally couldn't hold back. Her face turned red, and her heart raced. She let go of Sun Ran's arm and hid behind Lan Xin like a rabbit, not saying another word.

When she entered Earth, she was just an ordinary player, there to take a break and adjust her mental state, just like Lan Xin, with her memory shielded. At the time, living in the virtual world felt normal, but now, recalling it, she felt extremely embarrassed.

"Sun Ran, don't be so flirtatious," Lan Xin scolded Sun Ran, then turned to the young girl with a smug look and said, "And you, didn't we agree not to mention this?"

After scolding both of them, Lan Xin began the formal introductions.

She first pulled the young girl out from behind her and said, "This is Ke'er, codename Purple Rose."

Then she pointed to the woman sitting quietly and smiling at Sun Ran, "This is Bai Tingxuan, we call her Xuanxuan. Her codename is White Rose. As for myself, my codename is Red Rose. We are all Black Iron-level Maintainers."

Sun Ran looked at Xuanxuan, his forty-eighth wife, took a few steps forward, and said seriously, "Ms. Tingxuan, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Among his wives, Sun Ran had a deep impression of Xuanxuan. In Earth, she was always graceful and elegant, with a noble demeanor and a deep understanding of how to handle situations. She was a rare virtuous wife, and even Sun Ran, who treated Earth as a game, genuinely respected her.

Xuanxuan smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Mr. Sun Ran."

Sun Ran also smiled, but unlike with Lan Xin, he didn't have much emotional attachment to these two women.

A game is a game, and life is life. Once the game is over, the connection is severed, and there's no need to entangle oneself emotionally in the real world.

The fact that these two women could meet him calmly suggested they felt the same way.

After the introductions and some small talk, they began to discuss the main business.

Lan Xin, as the team leader, first assigned Sun Ran's tasks.

"Sun Ran, you're new, so you're a trainee Maintainer. You need to accumulate experience to advance to a Black Iron-level Maintainer before you can join us on missions."

"How do I accumulate experience?" Sun Ran asked casually.

"Go to some newly established small virtual worlds and complete some commissions. I've already prepared this for you. I have a commission from the Shu'er Virtual Company. Their virtual world, called 'Age of Dragons,' was established less than half a year ago and is now facing many problems."

"What kind of problems?"

"Numerous small issues, like vampires, werewolves, and undead, all sorts of cheats are being used. The most serious one is that someone has taken control of the strongest creature in the Age of Dragons, the dragon. Shu'er suspects it's their rival company, but they have no evidence. Their strategy is to hire a powerful Maintainer to slay the dragon."

"Sounds exciting. Can I be the dragon slayer?" Sun Ran was eager to try.

Lan Xin shook her head, "That's not your job. Shu'er has already spent a lot of money to hire a Bronze Maintainer as the hero. Your task is to assist him. This is also a trial to obtain Maintainer qualifications."

"Alright. How long will it take?" Sun Ran wasn't too concerned.

"Of course, the faster the better. Also, the commission fee is 500 credit points." Lan Xin handed the detailed information to Sun Ran.

500 credit points? That's cheap. It seems Shu'er is indeed a small company with limited funds.

Sun Ran glanced through the information and put it away. In the past, as a Disruptor, he could easily destroy such a small world, even burning the servers to ashes with a flood of redundant data.

Now, as a Maintainer, he had many more restrictions, but protecting a person was still a trivial task for him.

However, he couldn't take the Maintainer's fee; if he did, it would be considered a penalty to the Earth operator. With a 900 million penalty, 500 credit points wouldn't even make a ripple.

Sun Ran quickly drafted a reward distribution agreement and sent it to Lan Xin through a private channel, "Here, sign it."

The three women were discussing their tasks. They all had confidence in Sun Ran's abilities and weren't worried he would fail the commission.

Lan Xin received the agreement, glanced at it, and frowned slightly.

Her voice immediately came through the private channel, rejecting it, "No, I can't accept this."

The agreement stipulated that Sun Ran would not take any of the commission fees, 95% would go to the Rose Team members, and the remaining 5% would be considered a penalty to the Earth operator, to show that he was working and doing his best to repay the debt.

Sun Ran insisted, "Take it. Listen, from now on, you take all my rewards. I'll rely on you. Otherwise, I'll only be able to live at the basic survival level, which is worse than death."

By transferring the rewards to Lan Xin and having her provide him with various living supplies, he could avoid the minimum living standard penalty. With a 900 million debt, he could still eat and drink well.

As for whether Lan Xin would take advantage of him, Sun Ran never even considered it. They were old partners, and such low-level trust issues were not a concern.

Lan Xin thought about it and signed the agreement, "Alright. I'll take the money, and you can ask me for it when you need it."

Thinking about how Lan Xin usually lived on barely palatable nutritional liquids, Sun Ran felt a bit choked up. He said generously, "Since it's for you, you have full control. Use it as you see fit. From now on, I'll take care of you."

"Go to hell. What do you mean by 'take care of you'? That was just a game!" Lan Xin's voice came through the private channel, with a hint of anger and some indescribable emotion.

Sun Ran smiled slightly and fell silent.

Ke'er's voice suddenly rose, "Sis Xin, you're not paying attention. We're discussing the mission."

The three women were discussing their tasks, and Lan Xin had been distracted several times while talking to Sun Ran.

"Oh, oh, I was just thinking. I'm sorry," Lan Xin quickly apologized.

Ke'er didn't pursue it and continued discussing the mission world.

Sun Ran listened for a while. The three women were preparing to go to a medieval fantasy world, and they were discussing things he had already experienced, which he found uninteresting. He said goodbye, "I'll go to the Age of Dragons as a bodyguard, then."

"Go, be careful," Lan Xin said with concern. Xuanxuan nodded and smiled, her smile full of encouragement, while Ke'er secretly made a face at him.

After Sun Ran left, Ke'er's face turned worried, and she said, "Sis Xin, to be honest, Sun Ran is a deep and unpredictable person. Is it too risky to work with him?"

Lan Xin was naturally at ease but didn't comment. She looked at Tingxuan, "Sis Xuan, you're the best at reading people. What do you think?"

Tingxuan smiled and shook her head, "It's fine. I lived with Sun Ran for ten years, observed him for ten years, and analyzed him for ten years. He is a trustworthy person. Although he may seem lazy, as long as we treat him as a true partner, he will not let us down. You've all lived with him for a while, and you should be able to sense this."

Lan Xin agreed, "I reviewed Pengzu's life records. His status wasn't low, and he even ruled a country. But in 800 years, he only married and never took a concubine. At least while his wife was alive, he was devoted to her."

Ke'er also nodded, "He was very good to me, always accommodating me."

Then she giggled, "Sis Xuan, are you attracted to him, speaking up for him like that?"

Tingxuan smiled and said openly, "He's a good person. I lived with him for ten years, and the bond of family is still there. Speaking up for him isn't strange. But to say I'm attracted to him, that's not the case. Maybe in the future, who knows."

Ke'er narrowed her eyes and smiled, "I believe you're not attracted to him. But Sis Xin definitely is."

Lan Xin, whose thoughts were exposed, felt a bit flustered, like a little girl whose secret had been revealed. She waved her hand dismissively, "What's so good about that guy? Let's not talk about him. Let's focus on preparing for this mission."

Seeing her unusual behavior, Ke'er and Tingxuan exchanged a glance and smiled secretly.

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