Chapter 3: Night Shift

Win?

Chen Guo was instantly stunned. The appearance of the two words "Glory" was the iconic symbol of victory in the arena, equivalent to "K.O."

However, how long had she been away? 40 seconds? 50 seconds? Chen Guo glanced at her watch; it was definitely less than a minute. The result? The opponent who had beaten her 52 times in a row was "Glory"ed by this person in less than a minute?

Chen Guo even forgot to rush over and snatch back the account. She hoped this person would play another round so she could watch closely, but instead, she saw him log out of the game very skillfully. He stretched lazily, seemingly not very interested in the computer, and began to look around. As he turned his head, he saw Chen Guo staring at him with wide eyes and quickly explained, "You didn't log out of the game, so when I sat down, the battle had already started. I helped you win, don't worry!"

"How long did it take?" Chen Guo asked.

"About 40 seconds!" Ye Qiu said.

Chen Guo's mouth dropped open, and the other person even added with a hint of regret, "My hands were a bit stiff; otherwise, it would have taken just 30 seconds."

30 seconds... 30 seconds to defeat an opponent she couldn't beat in 52 rounds, who could this person be?

Could it be a professional player from the Jia Shi team? Chen Guo suddenly thought. She knew the Jia Shi club wasn't far from her internet cafe. But then she thought, if it were a Jia Shi player, she would recognize them! Unless this person is the mysterious expert Ye Qiu who never shows his face.

Ye Qiu! Just thinking of this name made Chen Guo excited, but she remembered that this expert was always low-key. If she rushed over to ask, he probably wouldn't admit it. After hesitating for a moment, Chen Guo suddenly remembered something and ran back to the front desk.

"What name did the customer at C47 register with?" Chen Guo asked the barista.

"Ye Xiu," the barista said.

"Ye Xiu... Ye Qiu? Indeed!" Chen Guo was excited. To her, this was like "the silver is not here, three hundred taels," which only proved that this person was Ye Qiu. If he had written "Ye Qiu," she wouldn't have believed it!

"Hehehe..." Chen Guo's smile was sinister. She was already preparing to gather all the items she could find to get this person's autograph. Ye Qiu's autograph! Who had it? No one!

Just as she was thinking, the barista casually added, "He even forgot his ID card."

"ID card?" Chen Guo was taken aback, realizing she had been so excited that she had forgotten the basics. Internet cafes required real-name registration, and one had to show an ID card; no one could register with a fake name.

"ID card? Let me see." Chen Guo took the ID card from the barista and saw that it indeed read "Ye Xiu." She felt a wave of disappointment and had a strong urge to change the "Xiu" to "Qiu."

Upon learning that this person was not the low-key expert she had long admired, although she was still curious about his skills, her interest had waned significantly. Chen Guo returned to C47 with a sullen expression and handed Ye Xiu's ID card back to him, "You forgot your ID card."

"Oh, thanks." Ye Xiu quickly took it back, "Are you from the internet cafe?"

"Um, I'm the owner," Chen Guo said.

"Oh? Owner, that's great. I saw on your internet cafe's website that you're hiring a network administrator, right?" Ye Xiu asked.

"Ah... Yes..." Chen Guo hadn't expected this sudden question. She was thinking about how to get this person to spar with her, and this gave her a good excuse.

"I looked at the requirements, and I think I meet them. The job and the benefits are fine with me. What do you think? Consider it, boss," Ye Xiu said.

"Oh, you have to win a one-on-one match against me in Glory first," Chen Guo said.

"What? Is that a requirement?" Ye Xiu turned to look.

"Don't bother looking, I just added it," Chen Guo said.

Ye Xiu was taken aback but then understood that his previous win had been too professional, piquing the interest of this beautiful owner. Unfortunately... Ye Xiu shook his head with a bitter smile, "I can't win you."

"Why?" Chen Guo was surprised.

"Because I don't have an account that can beat you," Ye Xiu said.

"Account... What level is your account? What equipment do you have?" Chen Guo asked.

"No level, no equipment," Ye Xiu said.

"Really?" Chen Guo was skeptical. Someone who could defeat a strong opponent in 40 seconds with a new account, how did they achieve such skill?

"I gave my original account to someone else," Ye Xiu said.

"Oh, I see... You're quite generous," Chen Guo remarked. With such strong skills, his account must have been powerful. A strong account is very valuable, and to give it away so casually was quite generous.

"Yes, very generous," Ye Xiu smiled bitterly. The account he had given away was the legendary "One Leaf of Autumn." To describe it as "generous" was too modest.

"Are you planning to play in the new district?" Chen Guo asked.

"New district?" Ye Xiu was taken aback, looked at the date, and suddenly understood.

Tomorrow was the tenth anniversary of Glory's operation. Since the second anniversary, a new district would open at midnight on the anniversary day. The sale of the tenth version of the account card had started three months ago. Old players who were unhappy with the old districts and new players eager to join Glory had already prepared their new district accounts, eagerly awaiting this day.

The current district was Glory's tenth district. One Leaf of Autumn was originally from the first district. Later, during the update of Chapter 5, "God's Domain," he and many other experts reached the standard and completed the skill challenge, becoming one of the first players and accounts to gain access to the public map "God's Domain."

Now that One Leaf of Autumn had a new owner, Ye Xiu's professional career in Glory had come to an end. Coincidentally, the annual opening of a new district was approaching, and Ye Xiu's thoughts were stirred. Ten years of memories suddenly flooded his mind.

"New district?" Ye Xiu murmured to himself.

"I remember you can transfer to a new district before it opens, right?" Ye Xiu suddenly asked Chen Guo.

"Only 1-level empty accounts can transfer," Chen Guo said.

"Let me try." Ye Xiu took out an account card from his pocket and quickly entered the transfer application page. Chen Guo looked at the account card in surprise, "This isn't the first edition card, is it?"

"It is the first edition card," Ye Xiu smiled. Glory's account cards were released annually, and the first edition card was nearly ten years old.

Chen Guo looked at Ye Xiu curiously, "How long have you been playing Glory?"

"Almost ten years," Ye Xiu answered, confirming that he and the card were one.

Chen Guo considered herself quite experienced with five years of playtime, but she never imagined that the person in front of her had twice as much experience. Ten years, that was one of the first players of Glory. To continue playing until now and still be interested in the new district, what kind of spirit was that?

While they were talking, the page displayed "Transfer successful."

"Done." Ye Xiu took back the account card, holding it in his hand, and instantly recalled the memories associated with this first edition card.

"You said you want to be a network administrator?" Chen Guo suddenly brought up the topic again.

"Yes." Ye Xiu quickly returned to reality.

"Which one did you see?" Chen Guo asked.

"The night shift one." Ye Xiu said.

"Oh, can you do it?" Chen Guo was surprised. The night shift was from 11 PM to 7 AM, with a salary 300 yuan higher than the others, but few people applied. After all, many people were unwilling to have their day and night reversed. Currently, everyone at the internet cafe took turns, so if someone applied for the full-time night shift, everyone would be relieved.

"I can, I like being busy at night," Ye Xiu said.

Chen Guo carefully examined the person in front of her. His hair and beard hadn't been groomed for at least half a month, his face was slightly puffy, and although pale, it had a sickly pallor. His eyes were fixed on her, but they lacked energy. She had seen this look many times, often from young people who frequently stayed up all night at her internet cafe. This person was older but looked just as listless, which she found contemptible.

Despite her contempt, Chen Guo was happy to have someone willing to work the full-time night shift. Moreover, she was curious about the skills of someone with ten years of playtime. She immediately decided, "Alright, I'll hire you."

"Thank you, boss."

"You've read the conditions, right? Follow them," Chen Guo said.

"No problem."

"Alright, follow me!" Chen Guo was straightforward. After hiring Ye Xiu, she immediately started treating him like an employee, instructing him to move a stack of new keyboards to the second-floor storage room.

Chen Guo's internet cafe was called "Xingxin Internet Cafe," a relatively high-end place with two floors and over a thousand machines. The second floor was smaller but more luxurious, the high-end area. Inside, there was a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment, and the storage room was in this apartment. Ye Xiu, while moving the keyboards, had already inspected the apartment. The job listing mentioned "room and board provided." Ye Xiu had just left the club and hadn't decided where to go next. The condition of room and board was like a temporary home for him, which was why he was interested in the network administrator position.

Now it seemed that this apartment was where he would be staying. The decoration was simple but clean and tidy, very nice. Ye Xiu was satisfied and, while thinking, arranged the last few keyboards.

"Alright, this is your place," Chen Guo pointed to a low bed squeezed into the storage room as Ye Xiu finished his task.

"Ah?" Ye Xiu was taken aback. He had imagined staying in the bright and clean apartment, or at least on the living room sofa. Here... Ye Xiu looked up. The small storage room had a small window on the west wall, facing the street lamp outside. When the light was turned off, the small window was dim, almost eerie.

"Uh, it's a bit cramped, but you'll have to make do... Actually, my internet cafe isn't very short-handed. The job listing is quite old," Chen Guo said.

"Oh, I see! No problem, no problem, this is fine," Ye Xiu immediately responded, his nonchalant attitude making Chen Guo feel a bit guilty. The small storage room indeed didn't seem like a place for living.

"Usually, you can just play on the computers downstairs when there's nothing to do. No charge for you," Chen Guo said.

"You're very generous, boss!"

"Cough, with over a thousand computers, one more or less doesn't matter," Chen Guo said.

"How's the customer flow usually?" Ye Xiu asked.

"Not bad, I'm quite satisfied," Chen Guo said, "Of course, the night shift you'll be working has fewer people. Mostly college students from nearby universities who come to stay up all night. You won't have much to do, just keep an eye on things."

"Understood."

"How about this, to adapt to your new job, why don't you stay up all night tonight? I'll also evaluate your ability to stay up all night," Chen Guo said.

"No problem, I'm fully capable," Ye Xiu gave Chen Guo two thumbs up, indicating that staying up all night was his strong point.

"Alright, let's go down. I'll treat you to some late-night snacks," Chen Guo said.

"Oh? What are we eating?"

"At this time, there's not much. There's a small restaurant across the street that should still be open. Go check it out and buy a few dishes. I don't eat celery," Chen Guo said, taking out 200 yuan and handing it to Ye Xiu.

"It's snowing!" Ye Xiu said.

"Just across the street, it's not far. How much snow can fall? Go quickly," Chen Guo said.

Ye Xiu had no choice and went out to buy the snacks. Just after changing jobs, he was being ordered around, but he didn't feel particularly upset. This woman chatted casually and treated people like family, which made him feel comfortable and close. At this moment, Ye Xiu suddenly realized he hadn't even asked his new boss's name.

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