Before getting off work, Xu Yin received a call from an unknown number.
The caller politely said, “Hello, Mr. Xu, I’m your new manager, Qin Yue. Can you come to the company tomorrow morning to discuss the termination of your contract?”
Xu Yin was surprised that Wen Yan eventually arranged for this contract termination discussion. After a moment of thought, he replied, “Can we meet at 9 a.m. tomorrow?”
Qin Yue replied, “That works.”
With this arrangement, Xu Yin asked for a day off from Gu Lin, explaining that he would be busy tomorrow.
After packing his things, he changed his clothes and jogged back home. Since he had to complete his jogging task anyway, and the random tasks for today hadn’t appeared yet.
018: “You don’t seem to be in a hurry.”
Xu Yin smiled and replied in his thoughts: “Well, The timing for the random tasks are quite random and mysterious and they also aren’t that hard to complete. As long as I don’t stay in the same place all day, the system should eventually assign me more random tasks.”
018: “That makes sense.”
After a pause, another speech bubble appeared: “However, later on, as the mission in this world changes, there might be days when you can’t get a single random task all day. Even phased missions1TL: Phased missions are the main missions that Xu Yin needs to complete.may become scarce. So, as much as possible, until that happens, you must complete every task and mission given to you, to accomplish your life mission.”
The concept of this Xu Yin’s “life mission” was something 018 had explained to him before. This life mission was literally like a life objective or the purpose of these missions, where Xu Yin must complete to accumulate points, to get back to his original world.
As Xu Yin’s record grew longer, this world might offer more phased missions based on the completed tasks/missions. Once he achieves his life mission and completes it, he could earn the highest number of points.
Currently, Xu Yin’s task level was still in the initial stage, and he hadn’t even received any phased mission, let alone considered his life goal. This “life mission” was quite novel to him, as he had never thought about such things in his life.
Xu Yin took a deep breath and, in the tranquil night, increased his jogging pace.
When he arrived at Shijin Street—the same street where he had received the random task last night—018 popped up a bubble: “It appeared!”
Xu Yin immediately opened his task panel and saw the notification that asked him to stop. He quickly halted and looked around in confusion. In the next moment, he saw a figure emerging from an alley a few steps away, followed by a weak-looking bespectacled2TL: Bespectacled means wearing eyeglasses. So the man was wearing eyeglasses. man who weakly exclaimed, “Thief!”
Task Panel: [Catch the thief and return the wallet to the cute bespectacled guy. Reward: 10 points.]
Xu Yin: “…”
Yesterday, he climbed a tree, and today, he’s supposed to fight?
The thief darted past him. Xu Yin closed his eyes, feeling that nerve in his head pulsating again.
The thief glanced back at the frail bespectacled man and scoffed disdainfully. How naive. Hardly anyone likes meddling in others’ affairs nowadays, especially Four-Eyed…
“Ah!”
Suddenly, a hand appeared from the side, long and fair, swiftly grabbing the thief’s collar from behind. The thief was yanked so hard that he nearly fell on his butt. He turned to see a handsome young man with a face so charming that it temporarily blinded him. When he regained his senses, he yelled, “Stop meddling, or do you want me to take you both down?!”
“Sure,” Xu Yin replied sincerely.
He didn’t think that doing two days of push-ups and two days of jogging could turn him into a superhero, so he had no intention of facing this thief barehanded.
Xu Yin grinned as he gripped the backpack he had already taken from the thief.
There wasn’t much in the backpack, and it looked deflated. The thief chuckled again, thinking that this guy wanted to knock him out with this stuff.
In the next moment, Xu Yin forcefully pulled the thief toward him, sweeping his legs out from under him. The thief, who had been grinning on the ground, suddenly exclaimed, “Uh!”
The backpack ended up wedged around the thief’s neck!
Bespectacled guy, who had stopped nearby, was now panting and supporting himself on his knees. He watched as Xu Yin knelt on one knee over the thief, suppressing the thief’s struggling leg. One hand captured the thief’s right hand, while the other hand, ignoring the thief’s attempts to pull or hit, held the backpack against the thief’s neck. Bespectacled guy’s eyes widened in astonishment.
The thief landed a punch on Xu Yin’s arm, and Xu Yin, with a somewhat forced smile, said, “That hurts.”
“Fvck… Let go!” The thief hadn’t expected that he’d be tackled to the ground without a fight, and this chokehold seemed too ruthless. Wasn’t he worried that someone would die?
Xu Yin felt that, in any case, he had to complete this task, and his own safety was most important. He grinned and said, “Hand over what you stole, then lie still and don’t move until the police arrive, alright?”
The thief grumbled, “No…Argh… Shit!”
He clenched his teeth and suddenly extended his free hand behind him, pulling out a small knife from his back pocket.
The bespectacled guy exclaimed, “He has a knife!” and tried to rush over to protect Xu Yin.
“Stay back!” Xu Yin sternly warned. He released the thief’s hands and stood up. Taking advantage of the thief’s slow reaction, he lifted his leg and kicked the hand holding the knife hard.
The thief had been using the knife to intimidate but couldn’t even hold it steady himself. When Xu Yin’s powerful kick sent the knife flying two or three meters away, the thief was frightened and stepped back a couple of paces.
The thief’s wrist was throbbing with pain, and his breath nearly stopped for a moment. Then, he felt his throat being choked again. This time, he distinctly felt something sharp pressed against his throat through the rough fabric of the backpack. It was as if it were penetrating his flesh.
Calmly, Xu Yin said, “We all have knives like this.”
The thief thought, ‘I’m going to kill you on the spot!’
Fifteen minutes later, in the middle of the road, a red traffic light turned on, and two or three cars formed a queue.
In a black luxury car, Wen Congyan hung up the phone, loosened his collar, and casually scanned the surroundings with his peripheral vision. He noticed the scene on the pedestrian walkway outside the car window. He paused.
A police car with its lights flashing was parked nearby, and two police officers were detaining a young man in black clothes who was keeping his head down, looking rather dejected. The situation was obviously not simple.
A bespectacled young man was excitedly talking to the police, then turned his head, his eyes shining brightly, and gave the charming and delicate young man on the other side a meaningful smile.
Yes, it was the same young man who had climbed the tree by the roadside yesterday.
Wen Congyan lowered the car window and looked deeply.
“You’re amazing, really amazing! I’m so thankful to you today!” The bespectacled guy was so excited he was almost stuttering.
“No problem, as long as your belongings are recovered,” Xu Yin said, suppressing the pain in his arm from being hit by the thief a moment ago. He maintained his usual gentle demeanor.
The bespectacled guy blushed from excitement.
The thief today, rather than being a mere pickpocket, was more like an armed robber. He was walking in the alley when he suddenly felt something wrong with his backpack. When he turned around to check, it was open, and the thief had slipped past him and dashed out. He chased after the thief for a while, but there was no one in the alley, and when he finally reached the main street, he saw no sign of the thief.
Many people dislike getting involved in other people’s business, and when they witness such scenes, their reflex is to avoid it. He understood this very well. He was on the verge of giving up when suddenly, this young man in front of him reached out without a word, intercepted the thief, and easily subdued him with just a few moves.
Of course, Xu Yin had to explain something about this. It turned out that today’s thief seemed tough but was actually quite cowardly. Otherwise, Xu Yin might not have been able to complete this random task. Tonight at midnight, he might have to “die” again. After all, he didn’t have a real knife. What he had in his backpack was just a black hard-shell folder, only the corners of which could intimidate people.
In any case, the bespectacled guy looked up at Xu Yin in admiration and said, his face blushing, “I’m really, really grateful to you…”
Xu Yin smiled and suddenly felt a very strong presence. He turned his head and saw a familiar black car and a familiar man staring at him.
Xu Yin: “…”
It’s quite a coincidence, this unknown gentleman. Although he seemed serious and dignified, he appeared to enjoy spectating.
The green light came on, and amid the strange gaze of the two, the gentleman continued to stare at Xu Yin while the car slowly moved forward.
The night breeze blew, bringing a hint of coolness different from daytime.
In the midst of the police reprimand and the thief’s sobbing, beneath the night sky and the starry sky, Xu Yin found this situation somewhat amusing.
He raised his hand to cover his mouth and let out a light laugh.
Messages from 018 filled the screen:
“Random tasks won’t be the kind that you can’t complete as long as you can trigger them. Don’t be afraid, just go for it!”
“Left hook! Right hook! Spinning kick!”
“You’re too weak! It’s just this and that, and you’re already panting!!”
“Plus, your panting isn’t even manly!”
Xu Yin laughed even harder.
018 : “What are you laughing at??”
Xu Yin replied in his mind: “What does ‘panting manly’ even mean?”
018 was momentarily at a loss for words and stammered: “A-Anyway, you are not panting manly! And why are you being seductive!? How can a tough guy be seductive!?”
Xu Yin replied: “A true tough guy is irresistibly charming when he’s being seductive.”
018: “???”
On this day, when Xu Yin returned home, it was already quite late. On Weibo, a person named Weiwei, a Huge fan of artists, posted a tweet: [*squeal* Today, on my way back to school from work, I got robbed! The thief was so fast I thought I was done for, but then a handsome man suddenly tackled him to the ground!! When the thief pulled out a knife, the young man even shouted at me, ‘Stay Back!’ Ahh!!! He’s so cool, so manly! After dealing with the thief, he smiled so gently, so gently!! Ahh!!! I love his smile so much!]
Likewise, the comments section was rapidly filling up:
[Wait, there was a knife involved? Is Weiwei okay?]
[Weiwei is fine, but by the way, isn’t Weiwei a guy, cough.]
[Another handsome young man?! Yesterday, A-Zi also encountered a young man!]
[This post feels oddly familiar. By the way, don’t A-Zi and Weiwei live in the same city?]
Not long after, A-Zi herself replied: [Not only do we live in the same city, but also in the same district (sweating emoji). By the way, is Weiwei okay?]
Weiwei replied: [I’m fine, but I’ll never walk on Shijin Street again TAT]
A-Zi: [Shijin Street? That’s where I met the guy who saved the cat last night!]
Weiwei: [My guy is around 1.8 meters tall, incredibly handsome, and smiles a lot!]
A-Zi: [Compare that to my post from last night!]
Weiwei: [WTF?!]
Others: [Eh???]
*
Xu Yin naturally had no idea what was happening in certain corners of the internet. Early the next morning, after completing his push-ups, he went to the company and met his new manager, Qin Yue.
Qin Yue was dressed in a shirt and trousers, wore gold-rimmed glasses, and had a calm and meticulous demeanor. He appeared to be much more reliable than Xu Yin’s previous manager.
After Xu Yin arrived, Qin Yue asked him to sit down and placed a script in front of him. He said, “Actually, the discussion about terminating the contract was a lie.”
Xu Yin took a quick glance at the script and remarked, “I figured.”
Qin Yue adjusted his glasses, sat down across from Xu Yin, and continued, “Mr. Wen has not agreed to terminate the contract. He urged me to quickly arrange work for you. Currently, I don’t have many scripts on hand, but this might be the most suitable one for you. You can take a look. The role is a 4th Male Side Character. Due to unforeseen circumstances with the original actor, we need to replace him urgently, so time is tight. No need for an audition. If you agree, you can take this job directly.”
Xu Yin shook his head and was about to speak when suddenly, 018 popped up a bubble: “Oh, you just got a phased mission.“3TL: I just want to remind you that the 2 Primary Tasks which are the Basic Tasks and Random Tasks, and this Phased Mission are different from each other. We will just call the Phased one a ‘Mission’ and not Task as it was related to Xu Yin’s ‘Life Mission’. Phased Mission is also like the main mission with more coins as a reward than the Primary Tasks.
Xu Yin was taken aback. He opened the task panel and saw the first entry in the phased mission section.
[Act in a drama, any role. Task completion upon the wrap of the role. Reward: 2000 points.]
Xu Yin was surprised. The first phased mission was actually this?
018 explained: “Since your current identity is most closely related to the entertainment industry, it’s most likely to generate entertainment-related phased missions. I’m not particularly interested in the entertainment industry, but phased missions, including your ‘life mission’, are mainly about tempering a person. Regardless of your preferences for the tasks, as long as you can complete them, you’ll undergo a certain level of refinement.”
018 continued: “It’s quite risky to rely solely on completing basic tasks and random tasks to earn enough points to survive another day… I suggest that as soon as you receive a phased mission, you take it. If you try it and still don’t like this path, you can explore other industries later. Wait until you can generate phased missions of other types and then claim them.”
018 added: “Life has many possibilities, and that’s one of the main themes of this series of missions. But to explore more possibilities in life, the prerequisite is to stay alive, and the desire to stay alive must be strong.”
So, in the beginning, Xu Yin should try to earn as many points as possible to ensure each subsequent day.
Listening to 018, Xu Yin began to understand.
Aside from the tangled male-male relationships involving Wen Yan and Nan Ye, Xu Yin didn’t actually dislike acting. He had acted in plays when he was younger and had even been persuaded by acquaintances to participate in university productions. He had once had an interest in Theathres. However, as a person grows up, many things happen, and many passions are slowly worn down. Even his most beloved hobby, drawing, seemed to have become a mere tool for survival.
Yet this was the first time, after all these years, that he realized acting, drawing, or any other endeavor could be part of his “possibilities” for the future. They should naturally be more vital aspects of his life.
This realization was foreign, magical, but undeniably, it held a certain allure for Xu Yin.
Xu Yin’s fingers twitched.
Allure…
He could feel that, under 018’s guidance and within this mission world, he was undergoing rapid changes.
But these changes… didn’t seem to be a bad thing.
Xu Yin curved his lips into a smile.
The more diverse experiences Xu Yin has, the more varied the phased missions he can generate. By accepting phased missions, Xu Yin increases his chances of achieving his ‘life mission’, which is his life goal.
But to go all the way, the first step is to ensure survival.
So, the first phase mission is quite crucial.
Xu Yin got his mood in order and started to think it over seriously.
At the other end of the corridor, three people emerged from the conference room. After exchanging greetings, one of them took the elevator and left. Seeing Wen Yan turn towards the front of the corridor, Nan Ye bit his lip, followed him, and tugged at Wen Yan’s sleeve.
Wen Yan turned around and saw Nan Ye’s eyes were red. He immediately stopped, his tone gentle as he asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
Nan Ye raised his gaze, hesitating for a moment. Finally, he spoke in a low voice, “Wen Yan, have you really fallen for… Xu Yin?”
Nan Ye was genuinely infuriated. First, their previous manager was replaced on a whim, and now Wen Yan was readily providing work for Xu Yin. Of course, he couldn’t just say it outright, so he had to be tactful. Luckily, Wen Yan could understand!
Wen Yan understood very well. He patted Nan Ye’s hand gently and consoled him, “Don’t overthink it. A-Yin’s previous manager was irresponsible, and his career has been stagnant for a while. This time, I’ve arranged a role for him as the 4th Male Side Character. It’s just an opportunity. In this industry, I can only provide opportunities. Your future development depends on your own efforts!”
4th Male Side Character?
Nan Ye rolled his eyes. That wasn’t too bad.
Wen Yan assigned him a role as the 3rd Male Side Character, and Xu Yin as the 4th. It seemed that Wen Yan’s heart was still with him, wasn’t it?
It made sense… After all, Wen Yan had pursued him for three whole years. Even if Nan Ye shed a few tears and held out his hand, wouldn’t Wen Yan obediently come running?
So, Nan Ye’s confidence returned!
He wiped away his tears and nodded warmly, “Yes, you’re right. I just… misunderstood.”
Wen Yan clapped his hands and flashed a meaningful smile.
Nan Ye responded with a gentle and delicate smile.
…Then Wen Yan turned around and continued walking forward.
Nan Ye thought, Don’t think he doesn’t know that Xu Yin’s new manager’s office is just up ahead!’
He gritted his teeth, suppressed the urge to kick this guy, and hurriedly followed, wanting to be part of the action.
Wen Yan walked briskly to the office door, while Nan Ye followed behind, huffing and puffing. He still wanted to show off a bit of acting skill in front of Xu Yin, but when he opened the door and saw the scene inside, Wen Yan’s expression immediately turned serious!
Inside the office, Qin Yue nodded calmly at him and called him “Mr. Wen.”
Meanwhile, Xu Yin was pondering, resting his chin on his fingertips and furrowing his brows in thought.
Wen Yan turned to Qin Yue and asked, “What’s the situation?”
Qin Yue replied, “He’s been thinking for ten minutes.”
Xu Yin snapped out of his thoughts, glanced at Wen Yan indifferently, and then turned back to his contemplation.
Wen Yan was taken aback by this look that seemed to treat roadside garbage. It hurt him, shook him, and left him swaying for a moment.
However cold and disdainful that gaze might be, it carried such an irresistible charm!
Wen Yan’s heart thumped heavily, and he instinctively clutched his chest.
Nan Ye didn’t know how Wen Yan, a grown man, suddenly lost his footing, but he certainly wanted to lend a hand. After helping Wen Yan steady himself, he gently called out, “Wen Yan…”
Then, Nan Ye softly said to Xu Yin, “Xu Yin, do you have any dissatisfaction with the role? Honestly, given your current situation, 4th Male Side Character might be the most suitable for you. Take it slow with your career. Don’t aim too high.”
Xu Yin’s brows furrowed even deeper, and Nan Ye smiled radiantly.
In the next moment, Nan Ye’s hand was unexpectedly waved away, leaving him bewildered.
Looking closer, the man who had trouble standing just a moment ago had now strode forward and leaned on the back of a couch, striking a handsome pose. He casually swept his bangs aside and in a magnetic tone, he said, “Not satisfied with the 4th Male Side Character? How about the 2nd Male Side Character? I have a great role that suits you perfectly. If you like it, we can go with that, what do you think?”
Nan Ye: “???”
‘What the Fvck!?‘ Nan Ye thought.
Xu Yin, “…”
Then he said, “There’s no need.”
He had just been considering whether the role of this Side Character might have too many scenes for him. While he had experienced stage plays, he hadn’t acted in a proper film before. Xu Yin wanted to earn points but didn’t want to do anything irresponsible. To be safe, he thought having fewer scenes would allow him to ensure the quality of his work.
Wen Yan, on the other hand, was shocked. It was clear that yesterday’s phone call had left Xu Yin feeling down, to the point where he couldn’t even muster a smile for the 2nd Male Side Character role!
However, even though he’s the young master, there currently wasn’t a Male Lead role available.
Wen Yan immediately turned around, intending to kneel on one knee and hold Xu Yin’s hands, but Xu Yin calmly evaded him.
Nan Ye, with a distorted expression, interjected, “Wen—”
Wen Yan pleaded, “A-Yin, I was wrong yesterday! Please don’t be like this! Just accept this role, I’m begging you!”
Nan Ye: “???”
Nan Ye stood there in shock, took a step back, and held onto the door frame, feeling a surge of bitterness rising in his throat.
Xu Yin’s brows furrowed even tighter, and two clear tears streamed down Wen Yan’s face.
Xu Yin: “…”
He suddenly considered rejecting this First phased mission after all. He couldn’t do it, he really couldn’t!
018: “Hang in there! At least earn these 2000 points first!”
Xu Yin immediately stood up, picked up the script that Qin Yue had placed on the table earlier, and said sincerely, “I think this script is quite good. I’ll study it thoroughly when I get back. Goodbye.”
Qin Yue calmly took a sip of tea and nodded.
Wen Yan followed Xu Yin but reached out his Erkang hand 4TL: lol- Erkang hand is a meme in china where the male character of a certain movie/series extended his hand like he’s reaching someone but couldn’t. Note the desperate expression XD. You can even edit your own version of erkang hand on the net. Just google Erkang hand and see it for yourself.and said, “A-Yin!”
Xu Yin had already quickly descended the stairs.
Wen Yan wanted to chase after him but had his hand grabbed. Nan Ye gently asked, “Wen Yan, which 2nd Male Side Character role were you talking about? Why didn’t I know about it!?”
Wen Yan calmly wiped away the tears from his face and replied, “Oh, it’s nothing. We are still planning on it.”
Then, he patted Nan Ye’s hand and said warmly, “Take things step by step in your career. When you’ve honed your skills, you won’t need my help, and there will be plenty of Male Lead roles coming to you. Keep up the good work, A-Ye!”
Nan Ye: ‘What the heck!? I’m such a fool!’
