Age of Legends

Chapter 362 Bodhisattva's Mortal Mind
The two sat on a bench under the shade of a tree. The summer driving school season was in full swing, and the eyes of those standing or sitting at the training ground waiting to practice would always drift towards the man and woman, intentionally or unintentionally.

To be precise, the blame falls more on Shen Nuoyi.

There are many legends about her: a top student at Tsinghua University, and the most beautiful girl at Yude School. But it is precisely because of these accolades that only people dare to look at her from afar. Some young students were so engrossed in watching her that they almost bumped into the training car in front of them. There were also a few girls sitting not far away, glancing in this direction while exchanging whispered glances, their eyes filled with a mixture of curiosity and barely perceptible envy.

She was wearing a simple, loose-fitting, light pink short-sleeved T-shirt. The soft cotton fabric had some casual wrinkles, which made her neck look even longer and smoother. She paired it with gray casual jogger pants, the cuffs neatly tucked into striped athletic socks, and beige comfortable sneakers.

This outfit has a clean and crisp feel, and is refreshing and relaxed.

She listened to the young man beside her with her head slightly tilted, her simple, loosely tied ponytail swaying gently with her subtle movements, the strands of hair gilded with a layer of gold in the dappled sunlight.

In this driving school vacant lot filled with the smell of gasoline, dust, and anxious waiting, she stands out as a unique sight, refreshingly out of place yet dazzlingly impossible to ignore.

From the moment Zhang Chen started trying to play games with Jing Qinming and the others, he didn't hide it from Shen Nuoyi and even asked her to help come up with names, which she found very engaging.

Initially, she didn't really think Zhang Chen and his friends were seriously starting a business. She just felt that everyone has things they want to do, and it was fine for Zhang Chen to do these things to relieve the pressure of his senior year of high school. He and Wang Shuowei used to enjoy playing computer games, and going from playing to designing and creating their own games was a big step forward, putting their hobbies to practical use.

However, Zhang Chen explained things to her step by step, and the entire process of implementation has been consistent. It wasn't just a hobby, and there was no abandonment due to a loss of perseverance or willpower. This aroused Shen Nuoyi's strong interest.

"I want to play too. And I really want to get involved."

"You play too?" Zhang Chen asked, somewhat surprised.

“I also play computer games, but I prefer puzzle games, like ‘Mysterious Island’,” Shen Nuo said, then went on to talk about some of the games she had played.

Zhang Chen understood. Although Shen Nuoyi didn't play the kind of mainstream games that were generally popular among them, she was a hardcore puzzle game enthusiast, and this girl had played quite a lot of games, such as "Star Factory", "Uncharted Waters", "The Sims", and even "Tokimeki Memorial".

She had also played "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," but while she knew how to play games, she wasn't addicted and couldn't be considered a veteran player, unlike Zhang Chen.

"But what can I do once your game is released?" Shen Nuo said. "Besides, where did you get so much money to develop the game... Are you going to set up a formal company?"

Shen Nuoyi, after all, had only recently left the ivory tower of high school and was just beginning to escape the pressure of her studies, so how could she possibly understand Zhang Chen's ideas? But in fact, she didn't reject them; on the contrary, she secretly hoped to participate, harboring a sense of anticipation and excited longing.

Because of this, I can get a little closer to him.

The family business seems to have caught its breath, and her father is no longer facing imminent debt problems. At least the family can definitely guarantee her tuition and living expenses, and besides, Tsinghua University's tuition is not high.

Undoubtedly, being financially independent during university and being able to earn tuition and living expenses on your own is both a challenge and a great achievement.

The idea of ​​"self-reliance" had actually been deeply ingrained in her mind for a long time. It wasn't just because of Shen Mingbo's bankruptcy crisis; there had been hints of it long before, but that crisis had affected her more deeply. Back then, she had considered that if her family were to go into debt, she would choose a university where she could get high scholarships and have a path where she could quickly monetize her knowledge in the future. However, Zhang Chen later got her father to help her out of that predicament. Now, even without Zhang Chen asking her, she planned to work part-time at university, try to get scholarships, or do something else.

Now Zhang Chen has paved a path for her, and Shen Nuoyi feels both reliable and warm—as if he can understand her unspoken desires.

But a very clear question is: how can Zhang Chen afford the expenses of a company? Can he really accept his compensation without hesitation? Can their games really make money?

As soon as Zhang Chen saw Shen Nuoyi, he knew she was pondering something again. Shen Nuoyi liked to keep many things to herself and would keep thinking about them without asking others. She might have doubts and uncertainties, but if you really needed her to do something, she would eventually give you a reassuring and undisappointing response.

This is why she was called a "heroine" back then, and that's true for most people. It's even more true for Zhang Chen.

“I have money. The source of my money is helping my godfather, Lao Wang, who is Wang Shuowei’s father, come up with creative ideas. You could say that the ideas for their currently popular shows all come from me. And Lao Wang has never shortchanged me in this regard, so you could say that I am quite wealthy now, wealthy enough to support this company,” Zhang Chen said.

Shen Nuoyi had heard about Zhang Chen's previous practice of making money with Wang Shuowei through television during his holidays, but Zhang Chen was always unconventional, and Shen Nuoyi only thought he had a talent for it, so she wasn't surprised that he and Jing Qinming's group had formed a partnership to develop games.

But if we're talking about the hottest creative ideas in Rongcheng recently, it's easy to guess. Everyone in Yude knows what Wang Shuowei's father does. If all of that is related to him... Shen Nuoyi finally gave him a cold glance: "If you put all that into your college entrance exam essays and these abilities into your studies, you'll get into Tsinghua and Peking University, and you'll be able to get them all."

"How can you say such cold words with such a pretty mouth?" Zhang Chen said, both amused and exasperated. "In my opinion, doing these things is much easier than doing math problems. Do you think I don't want to get into Tsinghua or Peking University? I'm not as smart as you, so I have no choice but to become a heretic."

To Zhang Chen's surprise, Shen Nuo turned her head to look at him with a flushed face. Her phoenix eyes, with their elegant, calligraphic strokes, now held a hint of cunning. "So, you admit you're dumber than me?"

Zhang Chen immediately realized that this girl was taking advantage of him. This kind of taking advantage started from his stubbornness when he was young. Among the group of kids, each one was more arrogant than the last, and none of them were willing to back down. When the two of them did something stupid, Shen Nuo would use "stupid" to provoke him and Wang Shuowei.

The two of them naturally disagreed. Wang Shuowei could only yell, "Who's stupid! If it weren't for xxx, I would definitely xxx," which was not as offensive and precise as Zhang Chen's muttering, "It's better than you being all brawn and no brains."

After that, Shen Nuoyi held a grudge and would often use IQ questions to mock him. Zhang Chen was smart; he would retreat when the enemy advanced and harass when the enemy was tired. He was always in control and never challenged her on the high IQ level, leaving her with no way to use her full potential.

Well, Zhang Chen has walked right into the trap, and Shen Nuo can now see that he's about to get revenge for what happened years ago.

Zhang Chen was not one to sit idly by and wait for his doom. He raised an eyebrow, met Shen Nuoyi's long, slender eyes, and drawled, "Yes—I'm stupid." He suddenly leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them, his gaze falling on her lips, which were even more luscious with pride. His voice carried a hint of helplessness, yet also a meaningful smile, "So, I'll have to find our family's academic genius... to give me some 'tutoring' in the future."

Shen Nuo's breath hitched slightly, and then a faint blush quickly rose to the tips of her ears.

But she remained seated, her chin held in a perfectly balanced, slightly upturned curve. Her phoenix eyes narrowed, her gaze clear and sharp as she fixed her gaze on his face, cold and aloof like a jade statue collecting homework, aloof and official. Only the subtle reddening of her ears betrayed a hint of worldly emotion. Her lips moved almost imperceptibly, her voice soft and distant, carrying a deliberate air of detachment:
"Zhang Chen, you've gone astray."

(End of this chapter)