PTYS Chapter 199

When Shen Qingqiu was held by Xiao Muyu, the happiness in her heart suddenly turned into heartache. She could feel that Xiao Muyu had a lot on her mind, and it was all because of her.

She also embraced Xiao Muyu, gently stroking the top of her head to comfort her, “Alright, alright, you were too emotional last night to notice it. It’s strange, it was previously tied around our wrists, but after we got together, it automatically moved to our ring fingers. Look, isn’t it amazing?”

Xiao Muyu finally let go of Shen Qingqiu and looked up. Her left hand was still held by Shen Qingqiu.

Seeing her look over, Shen Qingqiu released her left hand and placed Xiao Muyu’s left hand next to her own. With their hands side by side, the red strings wrapped around their ring fingers were clearly visible and indeed very magical.

Xiao Muyu gently moved her ring finger, and the red string swayed as if swimming in water. She watched it for a long time, and Shen Qingqiu watched her for a long time.

When Xiao Muyu finally turned to look at her, Shen Qingqiu interlocked her fingers with Xiao Muyu’s and said in a low voice, “Actually, I’ve been thinking that we might spend a long time here. Although I’m not so obsessed with marriage, we still need some ceremonies, so I was considering whether to buy a pair of rings.”

This was a normal thought and conversation between lovers, but Shen Qingqiu seemed a bit shy when she said it, not daring to look at Xiao Muyu, only staring at the red string.

She continued, “But we haven’t been together for that long, and buying rings might seem a bit abrupt. Besides, Skynet is virtual, so even if we bought them, it wouldn’t feel the same, so I held back. Unexpectedly, this red string now serves as a ring.”

With bright eyes, she turned to look at Xiao Muyu.

Xiao Muyu felt a mixture of emotions, touched and heartbroken, all at once. She nodded after a moment, “Mm.”

Shen Qingqiu got a bit excited. Lying on the bed, she suddenly moved closer to Xiao Muyu, playfully saying, “I still don’t know what my status is with you. Be honest with me. Now that this red string is bound, do we have any special status indicators?”

Xiao Muyu’s eyes flickered as she pretended to be serious, “I told you, you’re my bed warmer. There’s no other title.”

“I don’t believe you. Tell me. Before, you wouldn’t admit it and acted proud. Now that we’re like this, why are you still hiding?”

At this moment, Shen Qingqiu didn’t care about pride, acting spoiled effortlessly. Xiao Muyu couldn’t resist and had to surrender.

Blushing, Xiao Muyu opened her control panel and handed it to Shen Qingqiu.

Shen Qingqiu then noticed that on Xiao Muyu’s panel, next to her name, there were small words saying ‘Blocked Role Title’. Therefore, on her panel, she could only see Chen Kaijie and the others as teammates, with no title for herself.

But on Xiao Muyu’s panel, under Shen Qingqiu’s name, it clearly displayed ‘Wife’.

She had teased Xiao Muyu before, asking if she was her wife, but it was just a joke. She never expected it to be true.

Before they were officially together, this red string had bound their status, and after they were together, it automatically became the red string on their ring fingers.

Shen Qingqiu was stunned for a long time before finally embracing Xiao Muyu, asking, “Can we be considered married now?”

Xiao Muyu was a bit embarrassed, averting her gaze and pretending to be indifferent, “If you think so, then we are.”

Shen Qingqiu’s eyes curved with joy, kissing Xiao Muyu on the cheek, “Yes, of course, we are!”

Xiao Muyu was infected by her undisguised happiness and couldn’t help but smile too.

They weren’t wearing any clothes, and watching each other smile, the atmosphere gradually changed.

Shen Qingqiu looked at her left hand and whispered, “This red string has faded.”

Xiao Muyu glanced at it and indeed saw it was faint, almost invisible. Actually, they usually couldn’t see the red string; at least Xiao Muyu hadn’t noticed it. It only appeared when they were intimate.

Shen Qingqiu gently kissed Xiao Muyu’s forehead, “I want to see it again.”

Previously, Shen Qingqiu had relentlessly teased Xiao Muyu, but after succeeding, she didn’t just tease; she preferred to take the initiative.

Xiao Muyu quickly became flustered, and when she saw the red string becoming clearer and redder, she bit her lip to suppress any sound.

Shen Qingqiu’s voice was hot and hoarse in her ear, “The description of this red string says that the matchmaker’s red string has its wonders for us to explore. Muyu, do you think it can stimulate emotions? Otherwise, why do I feel like I can’t get enough of you?”

These words made Xiao Muyu even more flustered. She held back for a long time before angrily biting Shen Qingqiu, “You’re not a man. If it really has that effect, you should be obedient and let me take over.”

Shen Qingqiu’s response was a melodious laugh.

They met Shen Shiyi again half a month after returning to the instance. Shen Shiyi looked a bit unwell, not as spirited as before.

“It seems Mr. Shen has encountered some problems,” Xiao Muyu said after glancing at Shen Shiyi.

Shen Shiyi smiled bitterly, “It’s true. I’ve been dealing with some tricky issues and haven’t had the chance to congratulate you on clearing the 007 instance.”

“Are these tricky issues related to us or not?” Shen Qingqiu asked coolly.

Shen Shiyi looked at the two of them, remained silent for a moment, and then smiled again, “Well, if you dig deep, it is related to you, but it won’t affect you right now. I can’t say too much about the specifics.

You wanted me to show my sincerity before. Now that we’re working together, I’ll express my stance.

I know your current predicament and some things about the assistance system. I also understand the system’s power. I just want to remind you that the system is starting to become unstable. Have you noticed?”

Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu were startled, but before they could speak, Shen Shiyi raised his hand to stop them, shushing them.

“This instance has a three-year interval. Previously, I would have suggested you take a rest, as such free time is rare.

But with the system becoming unstable, many things will be out of control, making you even more vulnerable. You need to make your decision.”

“By the way, the next instance is a multi-team competitive one with a rather ruthless mechanism. So be wary of others, and don’t hesitate when necessary. As for me, I’ll enter the last instance with you.” Shen Shiyi reminded them about the next instance.

“Besides this, do you have any other advice?” Xiao Muyu frowned slightly. In fact, she had already guessed this outcome early on, considering they hadn’t yet encountered a large-scale team conflict. Su Jin’s card also remained unused.

“Don’t trust NPCs. Also, stay alert at night and pay attention to details around you.”

Shen Qingqiu nodded. She was straightforward as well, “Your words sound like a lot, yet like you haven’t said anything. Still, thank you.”

Shen Shiyi spread his hands. He lightly tapped his finger, “You’re welcome. It’s getting late, and I have things to attend to. I can’t treat you to dinner today. You might be more comfortable at home.”

Xiao Muyu nodded. As they prepared to leave, Shen Shiyi suddenly said, “The apartment you’re renting is quite good. Living there should be nice. You should tidy up at home more; it’ll be more comfortable that way.”

Shen Qingqiu and Xiao Muyu were taken aback by these words. It was clearly meaningful, but Shen Shiyi didn’t say more. His expression was natural as he waved goodbye to them with a smile.

Xiao Muyu didn’t press further and left with Shen Qingqiu.

Back home, Xiao Muyu and Shen Qingqiu carefully pondered Shen Shiyi’s words. Xiao Muyu then said, “Shen Shiyi mentioned the system’s instability, and we’ve been feeling it too. Not only did it miss the bugs in this room, there were bugs with Qu Mu Xi in ‘Orphan’s Complaint,’ and even in this instance…”

Thinking of Meixian’s chilling words that made her shiver, Xiao Muyu quickly stopped herself and added, “Before, there was a situation where another system temporarily replaced due to system issues, all confirming Shen Shiyi’s words: the system is malfunctioning.”

Shen Qingqiu nodded. “Muyu, actually, I found the voice of that alternate system familiar. Did you feel it too?” Her expression turned serious as she looked at Xiao Muyu.

Xiao Muyu’s lips twitched. She smiled bitterly, “Actually, you mean the voice sounded like mine, right?”

Shen Qingqiu didn’t speak, her heart trembling now. She didn’t dare entertain that thought because if their feelings were correct, it meant Xiao Muyu’s relationship with Tianwang wasn’t just adversarial but intricately entangled.

Shen Qingqiu cleared her throat and said softly, “I don’t know if this is true. If it is, Muyu, have you considered that your familiarity with the instance could mean two things: either you’ve entered that instance more than once, hence it’s in your memory, or…”

Shen Qingqiu couldn’t bring herself to say the second possibility—it was too unbelievable.

Xiao Muyu continued, “Or it’s possible I was involved in creating the instance.”

She trailed off, shaking her head. “It’s absurd. How could I possibly create something like that, let alone let it…”

Xiao Muyu couldn’t continue. In truth, the second possibility seemed more likely because if that were the case, the system’s desire to obtain something from her would make sense.

Xiao Muyu had thought about this outcome but felt a sense of dread. Seeing her expression, Shen Qingqiu knew her thoughts. She walked up to Xiao Muyu, looking at her firmly, “Whatever the truth is, I’ll be by your side to face it together. So, just stay firm in seeking the truth, and we’ll handle the rest together, alright?”

Xiao Muyu held her hand and nodded.

“But his last words… He must have known there was a problem with this apartment. By his implication, he’s reminding us to thoroughly investigate this place. I don’t know if he’s suggesting we find Tonglin or if he already knows we’ve found Tonglin and wants us to search for something else.” Xiao Muyu frowned.

When Xiao Muyu needed someone to help organize her thoughts, Shen Qingqiu never hesitated. After a moment of contemplation, she said, “Regardless of his intention, I think we should continue searching thoroughly. If our speculation is correct and someone intentionally left Tonglin for us, it’s likely they didn’t just leave Tonglin behind. After all, knowing there’s a bug here can only provide us shelter; it can’t help us fight back. Also, I really want to confirm who left Tonglin.”

Xiao Muyu fully agreed.

They had already asked Tonglin many times about the details of the woman who brought her here, but Tonglin’s information hadn’t been very useful.

The two carefully inspected the house but found nothing suspicious.

Due to Shen Shiyi’s reminder, after Xiao Muyu and Chen Kaijie discussed it, they decided to take some time off from Tianwang before attempting Instance 008 again.

Author’s note: The new instance hasn’t been well thought out yet. Recently, it feels like fewer people are reading it. I can’t even flip through many comments, feeling uncomfortable.