Chapter 96

"Does this mean no one will be around to supervise in the evening?" Wang Bai was delighted upon hearing this, which made Lu Lu's heart skip a beat. She secretly wondered if he was planning something. She regretted her impulsive decision yesterday, driven by guilt, to offer him something. What if he made some unreasonable demands? Should she resist? Or not?

Little did she know, Wang Bai had already grabbed his schoolbag and left, the sound of the TV turning on following shortly after. He sat on the sofa, leisurely flipping through his homework and piling it on the low table, then started changing channels with the remote.

It turned out that with no one at home, the first thing he thought of was to watch TV while doing his homework, completely unaware that this was the first time he and Lu Lu were alone at home. Perhaps because they had previously shared a room, he didn't think it was a big deal.

Lu Lu sat at her desk, listening to the TV sounds from the living room, and gave a self-deprecating smile, shaking her head as she continued her homework. After a while, her pen paused again, and she thought to herself: That's not right, is he not taking me seriously? What does this mean? Does he not care about what happened yesterday?

So, many misunderstandings arise from overthinking. In fact, Wang Bai was very concerned about Lu Lu's behavior, even to the point of being scared, but she couldn't fathom his calm demeanor, which left her feeling uneasy.

Initially, she was afraid Wang Bai might do something to her, but now that he was more interested in the TV than in her, she felt a sense of frustration. Lu Lu was caught in a conflicting state of mind, feeling both anxious and resentful.

Wang Bai, after adjusting the channel, stood up to find some snacks. He grabbed quite a bit but found nothing to drink. After sitting down again, he got up and went to the bedroom door, asking, "Sis, do you want any snacks? I'm going out to buy some drinks, and I can get you some too."

Lu Lu shook her head and said, "No, thank you." He then closed the door, changed his shoes, and went out to the convenience store near the neighborhood to buy a large bottle of drink. Coincidentally, he met his classmate Li Weiyeh, who was walking his dog, and they chatted for a bit.

"Coming down to buy this in the evening instead of doing your homework? Aren't your parents going to scold you?" Li Weiyeh pointed at the two-liter soda in Wang Bai's hand.

"Aren't you free to walk your dog too?" Wang Bai chuckled, then explained, "My parents aren't home, so I'm free."

"I'm only doing this because I'm forced to. My mom loves this little guy more than me," Li Weiyeh said, picking up his dog. "Your parents are working overtime again tonight? How about we play a game tonight? It's been a while since you played with us."

Wang Bai's parents were often busy and not at home, which he was well aware of, so he wasn't surprised. In the past, he would take advantage of these opportunities to play computer games with his friends, but he hadn't played in a long time.

"Have you finished your homework?" Wang Bai asked.

"Not yet, no rush. I can always copy it at school tomorrow," Li Weiyeh said nonchalantly. His grades were average, and he and Wang Bai used to be in the same boat, so he had a laissez-faire attitude towards studying. He added, "So, did you quit gaming after your grades improved?" Then he laughed, "If I did as well as you, I would have asked my parents to buy me a new computer long ago!"

"Alright, I'll play with you guys tonight," Wang Bai finally agreed. "Let's start at eight. I'll finish some homework first, then I'll find you in the group." There was a gaming group in the class, similar to the private boys' group, where a bunch of enthusiasts gathered. His desk mate Qian Ning, like Wang Bai, was involved in everything, but the kid was the group leader in the private group and a perennial lurker in the gaming group.

After agreeing to play games with them, Wang Bai hurried home to do his homework. To minimize distractions, he deliberately turned the TV volume down. He wasn't really watching TV, but even glancing at the screen and hearing the sounds made him feel comfortable.

During this time, Lu Lu came out of her room to use the toilet, giving him a rather strange look but saying nothing as she returned to her room to continue her studies. As it approached eight, Wang Bai finally finished his homework. He shook his slightly sore wrist and walked into the bedroom to discuss with Lu Lu, "Sis, I've got a game with my classmates later. It might disturb you. Why don't you go to the living room to study?"

Lu Lu frowned, feeling quite annoyed. She thought to herself, I'm not even as important as the TV, and now I'm not even as important as a game? He's actually sending me out so he can play with others?

However, she held back and said nothing, calmly tidying up her reference books and carrying them out of the bedroom. Seeing her cooperation, Wang Bai felt a sense of satisfaction: It seems that with no one at home to back her up, she has to listen to me. Yes, this feels good, I haven't felt this good in a long time.

Since Lu Lu moved in, Wang Bai felt his status had been declining, reduced to sleeping in a small, musty room, almost like a servant. When he initially suggested the arrangement, he thought he would have to argue with her, but her unexpected compliance made him feel extremely comfortable.

Wang Bai bent down to turn on the computer, connected the microphone, and sat in the chair with his legs crossed, feeling very satisfied. He thought to himself: Indeed, when my parents aren't home, I'm still the boss, and the girl dares not disrespect me.

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly felt thirsty and, without hesitation, shouted out, "Sis! Get me a soda. The cup and soda are on the table, thanks!"

As soon as the words were out, he felt a bit guilty, wondering if he was being too demanding, treating her like a servant. If his mother found out, would he have to kneel on the washboard? As he was thinking this, Lu Lu came in with a cup of soda, expressionless, and placed the soda bottle on his desk.

"Thanks, thanks!" Wang Bai bowed his head, feeling the weight of Lu Lu's usual authority. After she left, he thought to himself: What's wrong with getting a drink? As her brother, I haven't been unfair to her. I give her a six-digit allowance, so can't I ask her to get me a drink? Ah, right, did she change the password today? Knowing I gave her a hundred thousand, she must be grateful, which is why she's so obedient?

The more he thought about it, the more he felt this was likely, and he felt even more satisfied, finding a sense of superiority as a brother. In reality, Lu Lu hadn't touched the card and was still using her own savings, but he was just guessing.

He drank the soda and went online, opening the group chat. He saw that others were already online and chatting, so he greeted them and joined in. A group of people chatted noisily, and soon the voice chat started. Another game enthusiast in the class, Li Liang, said, "It's rare today, Wang Bai and Qian Ning, you two perennial lurkers are finally showing up, ha ha..."

Today, his desk mate Qian Ning was also free and had appeared in the group chat, so he was pulled into the team. Qian Ning said, "Less talk, don't hold me back. We hardly ever win when we're on the same team. Just thinking about it makes me want to cry, I don't want to talk about it."

Li Liang's voice got louder: "Come on, it's always you who holds me back. You play so recklessly, it's no wonder we lose."

They were talking about the most popular game in the class, League of Legends, which they were going to play together. There were five people in the group chat, including Li Weiyeh, who started the group, and another person, Lu Guanghe, who was a teammate on the school football team and familiar to Wang Bai.

"Guanghe, what position are you playing today?" Wang Bai and Lu Guanghe had played a few times together and were familiar with each other. They were also teammates on the school football team, so they were closer and more casual with each other.

"I'll take the top lane, I'm practicing the Croc," Lu Guanghe replied. The top lane means playing solo in the top lane to push the minion line. Wang Bai said, "Oh, then I'll take the jungle..." The jungle means playing in the jungle to level up by killing jungle monsters and ambushing opponents on various lanes. Their positions were somewhat overlapping, so when they played together, one would take the top lane and the other would take the jungle.

Li Weiyeh usually played the mid lane as a mage or ranged physical damage, but with Li Liang present, he gave the bottom lane physical damage position to Li Liang, while Qian Ning played the bottom lane support. After assigning positions, they entered the game and started the team match.

While Wang Bai was selecting his champion, Lu Lu suddenly pushed open the door and came in, glanced at his computer screen, and then calmly left.

"What's this all about..." Wang Bai turned his head and muttered. Someone in the group chat immediately asked, "What's up? What happened?"

"Oh, nothing! Damn, you guys have already picked your champions..." Wang Bai turned around and saw that his teammates had already made their selections, so he quickly picked a champion he liked and confirmed it.

The group chat was filled with groans: "Damn, really? The dog head?" Li Liang was very confused, "We're going to lose again!" Qian Ning's eyes were already welling up with tears. Li Weiyeh was relatively calm: "Well, let's do our best. The other team shouldn't be strong either."

The system automatically matches players, so it wouldn't put teams with vastly different skill levels together. If there were weak players on their team, there would likely be weak players on the other team as well.

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