Age of Legends

Chapter 293 I've remembered it for a long time

Zhang Chen promised Jing Qinming, Xie Yu, and Luo Chengyue that there would be a favorable wind, which fooled the three of them. Zhang Chen was about to play the charlatan and keep them in suspense when they pinned him down on the sofa and started tickling and punching his thighs.

"Trying to dodge the question, huh?"

"If you don't finish your sentence, I'll skin you in half!"

"Are you treating us like Zhou Yu, the legendary general?"

Seeing that he could no longer be the riddle solver, Zhang Chen finally understood the principle that one cannot fight city hall. Under the coercion, enticement, and torture of the three men, Zhang Chen had no choice but to reveal the "East Wind" in detail.

"Telecom upgrade, oh, that's right, how come we didn't think of that?"

“This requires a thorough understanding of the policies and the plans issued by the government in order to anticipate this step…” Zhang Chen said.

"Hey, still pretending, brothers, let's get him talking like a human being!"

The three of them pinned him down again, and Zhang Chen immediately became obedient. Oh my god, he hadn't been able to pretend at all as a prophet!
Of course, the "east wind" that Zhang Chen mentioned is not only the market supported by the future broadband upgrade that will provide the hardware conditions to play this game, but also the huge wave of popularity brought to their game by the launch of "Legend of Mir 2," a benchmark work representing domestic online games.

There are benefits in internet cafe environments and channel collaborations. Most importantly, "Legend of Mir" will educate China's earliest online game players about the concept of "paying to play games."

Before that, no one knew what "online games" were. After 2001, internet cafes were filled with shouts like, "Who can help me form a team of warrior, mage, and priest?" or "I got a paralysis ring, I'm rich, anyone want to buy it for 2,000?"

By leveraging the momentum at that time, they can reduce their issuance costs by at least 80%.

This is also one of the "East Winds".

……

Actually, during the winter vacation of 2001, Zhang Chen would occasionally go to internet cafes with Wang Shuowei and discuss and follow up on game production with Jing Qinming and the others, which was considered entertainment.

In business, Zhang Chen has invested in Tencent. His father is now the Chinese technical representative in the joint venture between Chenguang Display Technology, Nanguang, and LG Philips, holding half of the technical influence and being worth hundreds of millions, making him a very important figure.

His mother and godmother's first Lanyuan project was a resounding success, currently in its peak sales season, attracting envy from all sides. And this industry, with China's economic boom following its accession to the WTO, is poised to become the most profitable real estate sector for the next decade or so.

In addition, he also has advertising revenue from his godfather's side. Zhang Chen has a clear future and is not short of pocket money. In the current business world, he is really too lazy to take advantage of the money-making opportunities that are readily available around him.

Mainly laziness.

With limited energy, the rest of the time was devoted to doing problems (and meeting) with Shen Nuoyi.

The Xinhua Bookstore tea bar became their regular hangout spot.

Well, Zhang Chen really enjoyed spending time alone with Shen Nuoyi. The two of them would do problems together, and even if all they could hear was the scratching of pens on paper, there was a strange sense of understanding and peace. Home is where the heart is.

Zhang Chen quite enjoyed watching Shen Nuoyi's focused expression, and the most touching moment was when she noticed his gaze after being stared at for a long time. Her eyelashes twitched noticeably, and her eyes widened slightly as she glared at him, looking at him with a mixture of helplessness and embarrassment, "Why are you staring at me!"

Zhang Chen said, "I'm tired of writing. The book says that looking at beautiful women can prolong life. Let me look at you to soothe my eyes."

Shen Nuo glanced at him, said nothing more, and simply closed the book gently, saying, "Oh, then you'll live to be a hundred."

She spoke calmly, but her face subtly flushed. A slight smile involuntarily curved her lips, her cheeks radiating a delicate shyness and self-assurance. Clearly, she was delighted to be appreciated by Zhang Chen. This was also why she would carefully tidy her clothes before leaving the house, considering what she was wearing. In the past, when going out with Zheng Xue, Shen Nuoyi would have grabbed her bag and stormed out, slamming the door behind her. The word "ladylike" was never a description of her.

Sometimes, when she got tired of doing her homework, she would fall asleep on the table, trusting Zhang Chen to leave the surroundings to her. Zhang Chen would just watch her dark head buried in her pillow, sunlight streaming in from the window, the vines outside swaying in the wind, casting flickering shadows inside. Winter in Rongcheng was cold; the bookstore had its air conditioning on, but the temperature wasn't high, with only occasional gentle breezes. Zhang Chen wondered what brand of laundry detergent Shen Nuo's family used—it smelled quite nice.

However, this interaction wasn't a real date. It was more like Shen Nuoyi had a plan to go to the bookstore to do exercises and read books, and during her free time of two or three hours, she casually asked Zhang Chen if she wanted to go. It lasted from after lunch until almost four o'clock in the afternoon.

When it's time to leave, Zhang Chen and Shen Nuoyi will come out together. If she has plans, whether it's going home or meeting friends, she'll catch the bus at the bus stop outside the bookstore. If Zhang Chen has something to do, he'll leave first. If they happen to be free, they'll walk a bit further outside the bookstore, either because Shen Nuoyi is going to buy something in the shopping street in front, or because Zhang Chen is going somewhere else and they'll walk together to catch the bus.

When the two were together, they behaved very properly. After all, bookstores were crowded and noisy places, and the streets outside were also public spaces. Sometimes Zhang Chen wanted to grab Shen Nuoyi's hand, but she seemed to have a third eye and could avoid him at just the right moment. There were also times when she couldn't avoid him and obediently gave in, but after walking for a short while, when they encountered oncoming crowds, she would always naturally pull her hand away, as if nothing had happened.

However, when the two had to part ways, Shen Nuoyi would take the initiative to hold his hand and shake it briefly.

Her hands were slender, long, and jade-like; judging from this, her legs were the same. The touch of her fingertips was so exquisite that one couldn't help but savor it again and again.

That was all. Zhang Chen didn't have any further thoughts. Firstly, Shen Nuoyi was indeed innocent and pure, which was captivating, but secondly, Zhang Chen was very indifferent and didn't have much desire to desecrate her innocence.

Of course, it wasn't that he was just blessed with a saintly aura. On the contrary, his two lifetimes of souls made him realize that many things could get out of control, especially at this time. But ultimately, at Shen Nuoyi's most crucial time, Zhang Chen didn't want to make any further breakthroughs that could lead to loss of control. Anyway, there's plenty of time in the future.

At the same time, there is another reason why the two of them only hold hands: they both know that the vague awkwardness comes from too many years of familiarity.

After all, they had known each other for a long time. When Wang Shuowei took Zhang Chen to visit other neighborhoods, the two could be considered to have grown up together. There was a sweet and expectant feeling in their romantic relationship, but also an ambiguous sense that they were too familiar to cross that boundary.

After all, their families know each other, and they have many friends from childhood. It seems that if they take another step closer, it might not be as simple as just romantic moments. Instead, the entire familiar environment might collapse, things would change, and they would be out of control.

All thoughts were interrupted in the blink of an eye.

Suddenly, a series of urgent shouts came from the nearby open-air basketball court: "Hey—ball! Ball! Watch out for the ball!"

Shen Nuoyi was lost in thought at that moment. Zhang Chen subconsciously grabbed her hand, turned around, and shielded her behind him. He forcefully blocked the basketball that was thrown at him with his left shoulder.

Shen Nuo exclaimed in surprise, her body uncontrollably crashing into Zhang Chen's arms.

"Are you alright?" She looked up, her expression panicked.

“It’s nothing…” Zhang Chen looked down and saw her phoenix eyes, close to his own, beneath the wisps of hair on her forehead, clear and slightly trembling.

Her nose was almost touching the collar of his hoodie, their breaths mingling. She had never been so close to smell the laundry detergent on him before, and at that moment, her heart pounded, like a basketball hitting the ground.

She tried to back away, but found that Zhang Chen's hand was still around her waist.

The air suddenly became still, even the wind stopped.

But the expected thunder and fire did not occur.

Just then, a jeer came from the other side of the court: "Hey, they've got them hugging!"

Only then did the two realize they had been dreaming and release each other.

Zhang Chen coughed and said, "Don't get distracted just now... I can't always be by your side."

Shen Nuoyi hummed in response and lowered her head without saying anything.

Her heart was still pounding. Not from fright, but from a different kind of excitement she had never felt before.

The feeling of crashing into his arms... she thought she would remember it for a long time.

(End of this chapter)