February 14, 2023, Pengcheng.
Looking out from the floor-to-ceiling windows of the company, there was an endless stream of cars on the street. Mei Fang, guessing that he would be stuck in traffic for a long time on his way home, decided to continue working overtime tonight.
"Brother Fang, today is Valentine's Day, you know... I won't work overtime tonight."
"OK, no problem, just relax."
"Brother Fang, me too!"
"Brother Fang, then I will also—"
"Xiao Cao, you don't have a partner, why are you celebrating today?"
"I'm going to work part-time at the trash can, hahahaha!"
The younger brothers in the project team said goodbye to Mei Fang one after another. Mei Fang watched them leave one after another. Without his usual dining companions, Mei Fang could only go downstairs to eat by himself later.
The restaurant that used to have long queues was empty today. Mei Fang ate while looking at his phone. After a while he finished and went back to work. There were not many people left in the company, only the boss, Brother Yu, was still working hard at his workstation.
Around nine o'clock, Brother Yu also stood up from his workstation. He first went to get some water, and then asked Mei Fang at the workstation:
"Mei Fang, how is the project progress now?"
“The current progress is still optimistic... As long as there are no major changes, I believe the finished product can be put online for testing next month.”
"Yeah, thank you for your hard work these days! When the company recovers and has the opportunity to go public, you will definitely get a share of the equity."
"Yeah, thank you Brother Yu for your cultivation."
"Today is Valentine's Day, don't work overtime too late. Your partner... ah... yes, even if you don't have a partner, you still have to take good care of yourself."
"I know, haha."
"Let me think... The company has set a KPI for this year, and I'll help you find a partner."
"That's not necessary, haha."
Mei Fang smiled and scratched his head. "At my age, my family doesn't have the financial resources, so I am just like that. Now I can only think about making money."
"Oh, how can this be possible? A successful family and career are necessary for a fulfilled life."
The boss wanted to say a few more words to Mei Fang, then he looked at his watch, picked up his coat and said to Mei Fang, "I have to go to the show, otherwise your sister-in-law will scold me again."
"Go quickly, Brother Yu."
Mei Fang said goodbye to his boss with a smile, then heaved a sigh of relief and began to focus on the progress of the project.
Without the programmer to collaborate, it would take a little time to figure out the process, but after all, they have been connected for so long that he can handle many things on his own.
However, if I had studied programming in college, would it be easier and more flexible now, and would the project progress faster
Mei Fang couldn't help but sigh.
The lost days will never come back. Even if we ask him to learn the code again now, he doesn’t have the energy given the intensity of his current overtime work.
Let’s launch the project as soon as possible.
It would be better to go online sooner.
This way, at least I can get a bonus, and the salary I cut before may even increase...
Then, the debt owed by my father can be paid off, and we will have money to renovate the new house in my hometown.
What happens after that
Mei Fang couldn't help sneezing. He looked out the window at the mottled night sky. He was the only one left in the company.
Today everyone really went home.
Obviously, few of them have a partner, and they are probably just taking advantage of the holiday season to relax...
But it's understandable.
I'll go back early today too.
After working overtime until half past ten, Mei Fang turned off all the lights in the company, locked the door and went downstairs. On the way to take a taxi home, all the restaurants were closed and only the Lawson convenience store next to it was still brightly lit.
It’s better to have some midnight snack before going back... so that you don’t have to eat instant noodles when you’re hungry.
Mei Fang walked into the convenience store, ordered a simple bowl of oden and a few skewers, then took a can of sugar-free cola, and then sat down at the buffet table.
Next door is an urban office lady who looks quite elegant. She has long black hair, but it is a little frizzy. She usually goes out without makeup and doesn't look like she knows how to take care of herself.
At this moment, she was looking out the window with her chin in her hand. There were many empty beer cans on the table.
You have pretty facial features, but you actually spent Valentine's Day alone
He drank so much, it seems he is a sad person.
In fact, this was not the first time Mei Fang had seen her. Usually, Mei Fang would stay in the convenience store for a while after working overtime, and the two of them would almost always run into each other.
Of course, we didn't talk much before that.
Mei Fang is not the type of person who would actively approach women.
Mei Fang was eating oden while refreshing today's game-related information.
Oh, Wolong is about to come out.
You can also kill Yan Liang and Wen Chou together with Guan Yu, which is really cool to watch.
Unfortunately, the project is so tight that I can only watch the big guys’ clearance videos at noon...
While watching the video, Mei Fang unconsciously glanced towards the woman.
She had been keeping the same posture for a long time. He couldn't see her expression from this angle, and the beer can in her hand had been hanging in the air without moving, which was always a cause for concern.
Wow, she must have fallen asleep...
Mei Fang wanted to raise his hand to greet the other party, but his hand hanging in the air unconsciously retracted.
Ha... I hope I won't be mistaken for a pervert.
Mei Fang once was complained by a girl when he was taking the subway to work in the capital because he was too close to her. At that time, she deliberately shouted very loudly, making Mei Fang embarrassed. After that, he would subconsciously keep a certain distance from women.
Let’s finish eating the oden first and then wait and see. If she’s still not awake after I finish eating, I’ll call her.
Mei Fang lowered his head and finished eating the oden, with half a can of sugar-free cola left.
She still maintained a stiff posture.
…
Mei Fang was really worried about her condition. He cleared his throat and called out to her softly.
"Um... hello? Pretty?"
The woman moved slightly at Mei Fang's response. She rubbed her numb elbow and looked at Mei Fang in a daze, with some confusion in her eyes.
At the same time, the work badge hanging around her neck fell down.
Mei Fang was stunned for a moment when he saw the name on the other party's work badge. When he was about to start a conversation, his cell phone rang.
"Feel sorry… "
The person who sent the video chat was Mei Fang's mother Xiang Xiaoxia. Upon seeing this, Mei Fang quickly turned off the video request and instead called back for a voice chat. The two began to talk in their hometown dialect.
"The signal here is bad, what's wrong?"
"Isn't this just caring about you?"
"Didn't we contact each other on the weekend?"
"You're still outside now. Have you eaten yet? Are you still working overtime?"
"No, I'm outside..." Mei Fang paused, "I'm having dinner with friends!"
"Today is Valentine's Day, so it should be with a girl, right?"
"Uh... don't worry about it."
"Okay, I don't care, you guys just chat, haha... Work less overtime, your health is more important."
"Know."
Mei Fang hung up the phone in a hurry, and then saw that the woman he woke up was staring at him.
"I'm sorry... I saw you didn't move just now, so I thought you were asleep."
The other party shook his head gently, "Thank you, I'm fine."
"Um… "
Mei Fang glanced at her work badge again with some concern, but didn't say anything more.
The young woman took a sip of beer, shook the beer can and thought for a while, then turned her head to look at Mei Fang, and asked with a smile, holding her chin:
"You are from Baimei County, right?"
She asked this question in her hometown dialect, and Mei Fang was also surprised when she heard it, "What a coincidence... Are you also from Baimei County?"
"Yes." The young woman nodded, "But I haven't been back for many years."
"Um... You're not going back for the New Year?"
"There aren't many people at home. My mom died in a car accident when I was very young, and my dad died of illness when I just graduated from college. As for other people, there's nothing much to mention."
"… "
Mei Fang didn't expect that she could tell a stranger about her misfortune so lightly, and he didn't know what to say for a moment.
"Well... well, it may not make sense to say this now, but people always have to look forward."
"Look forward..."
Mei Fang smiled slightly at the other person's dazed gaze and said, "Were you a senior at Baimei No. 1 Middle School? Did you do very well in school and always rank first in the grade?"
"Do you recognize me?"
"You are indeed the Lin Youxi. We are from the same grade, in Class 14, and on the same floor. Oh, by the way... my name is Mei Fang."
Lin Youxi stared at Mei Fang for a while, and finally smiled warmly:
"I remember your name."
"Haha... How could you possibly remember me? I didn't do anything famous in high school, and my grade ranking wasn't high."
"I went to the same kindergarten as you. You peed in your pants in kindergarten and borrowed someone else's pants. Everyone called you the bed-wetter."
"Hey, hey... When did that happen? You remember it so clearly from decades ago! I have completely forgotten it!"
Lin Youxi smiled at Mei Fang and said, "Because you wet the bed at that time, the teacher asked you to take a bath in a tub or something, and everyone was watching you, so I remember it. That was the first time I saw a boy's pussy."
"Let's not talk about this dark history..."
"Ha ha ha ha-"
Lin Youxi smiled and rubbed his eyes.
When she was in high school, she was a university bully who was kept away by strangers. After she started working, her goddess temperament was reduced a lot, but she still had a cold face from a distance. Mei Fang didn't expect that she could smile so brightly.
"The top student is worthy of being a top student. His memory is so good... He even remembers everything in kindergarten so clearly."
"Not really... There's actually another reason why I remember it so clearly."
"Um?"
Lin Youxi held his chin and gulped down the beer in the can.
"When you were in kindergarten, you had a very good relationship with a childhood sweetheart of mine. She was always around you."
"Really? Is the childhood sweetheart you're talking about a girl? I've been single since birth and have never been popular with girls."
"At least there was one at that time."
Lin Youxi lightly touched the beer cans around her and found that she had drunk all the beer. She stood up and went down to get another can of beer. Mei Fang was surprised to see that she seemed to be fine.
"Isn't your boyfriend worried about you after drinking so much?"
"I don't have a boyfriend. I'm single like you."
Lin Youxi put a can of beer on the table. "It's rare to meet a fellow countryman in a place like Pengcheng. Do you want to drink with me? I'll treat you."
"Forehead… "
Mei Fang didn't have a habit of drinking and would get drunk easily, but the other party seemed interested, and Mei Fang was also interested in the childhood sweetheart she mentioned, so she agreed immediately, opened a can of beer with Lin Youxi, and took a sip.
"By the way, what was the name of your childhood sweetheart? I might still remember it."
"Her name is Xia Yuan, do you remember her?"
"It seems a little bit..." Mei Fang tried hard to recall her impression of [Xia Yuan], but she could only remember some vague memories. "Is she also studying at Baimei No. 1 Middle School? Which class is she in?"
Lin Youxi stared at Mei Fang for a long time, then suddenly shook his head and laughed.
"You really don't remember her."
Then she lowered her head and gulped down her beer.
"Sorry, I really don't have any impression..."
"I don't blame you."
Lin Youxi looked up at the bright ceiling and said softly, "After all, she died when we were in the fourth grade of elementary school."
Mei Fang also felt it was incredible when she saw Lin Youxi talking softly about this past event. This was comparable to the plot of the novel "To Live". Lin Youxi actually encountered all the sufferings in the world, and it was remarkable that she did not become disgusted with the world.
This also made Mei Fang feel very guilty: "I'm really sorry for making you think of sad things again."
"It's been so many years, I definitely don't feel sad, at most I just feel nostalgic."
Lin Youxi said to Mei Fang gently, "Yuanyuan is really a very good friend to me."
"I have been without a mother since I was a child, so she has been playing the role of my mother in house;"
"My family was very poor when I was young and we couldn't afford to buy dolls or toys. Yuanyuan always shared her things with me. And they were not leftovers. The things she gave me were all brand new. "
"Also... when I was a kid, I was always dirty and couldn't even tie my shoelaces. No one liked me. It was Yuanyuan who taught me how to be clean and tie my shoelaces. She was the only one who was willing to be my friend... She's like an angel, you know?"
Lin Youxi vividly told Mei Fang about her childhood sweetheart Xia Yuan, but the more she talked, the more Mei Fang felt sorry for her experience. As he drank cans of beer, he gradually learned some things about the past of this legendary female academic master.
After a few cans of beer, Mei Fang was already feeling a little dizzy, but Lin Youxi seemed to be fine. Seeing that Mei Fang was a little groggy, Lin Youxi didn't make things difficult for him and took the beer can from him, "You don't look like you usually drink much, it's okay... You don't have to drink with me."
"It's okay... I can drink a little more..."
Mei Fang's cheeks were a little tipsy, and his eyes looked a little blurry. "It's rare to meet a fellow countryman, so it's okay to drink a little more."
"You're kind of cute when you're stubborn."
Lin Youxi held her chin and looked at Mei Fang. "Come to think of it, do you also work around here? I seem to run into you around this time often... What do you do now?"
"Me? A game developer..."
"What a coincidence! I also make games." Lin Youxi smiled and said, "Are you an art planner or a programmer? I'm a programmer at Penguin here."
"So awesome! I'm a dog planner. Although I'm the chief planner, in a relatively small company, you may not have even heard of me."
"Small companies also have their own advantages. At least you don't have to deal with too many idiots, don't you think?"
"You're right... Haha, there must be a lot of great people in Penguin."
"Um… "
Lin Youxi smiled at Mei Fang and said, "Actually, working for others is boring. I really want to make games myself."
Mei Fang became interested when he heard this, "What kind of game do you want to make?"
"I haven't decided what kind of project it will be. After all, you guys are better at planning project plans."
Lin Youxi said gently, "However, for the first game, I hope it will be a work to commemorate Yuanyuan, my childhood sweetheart, my lifelong best friend."
"That's great. In memory of my best friend, I wish you success."
"Hehe... Thank you."
Lin Youxi touched the beer can to Mei Fang and said, "Just one touch, you don't have to drink anymore."
"It's okay... I'm fine actually."
Mei Fang gritted his teeth and gulped down the beer, while Lin Youxi watched him from the side.
"I'm quite envious of you for still pursuing your gaming dream."
"If we want to continue living in this world, we must have some hope, right?"
Lin Youxi looked at Mei Fang, "What about you, Mei Fang? What are you looking forward to?"
"Me? As for me... I want to wait until the overall environment gets better before I see what's going on. After all, these issues like game licenses are very troublesome..."
Mei Fang thought, of course I'm just thinking about making money.
Mei Fang said on the surface that he supported Lin Youxi, but in his heart he knew very well that gaming dreams were the toy of those second-generation rich people and had almost nothing to do with working people like him.
He doesn't have the ability to make independent games, and now he doesn't expect to do that anymore.
but…
Why…
Don’t you dare express your thoughts to Lin Youxi
“Indeed, the overall environment is very difficult.”
Lin Youxi smiled and nodded, "But if you keep persevering and continue to work hard in this industry, I think it will be great."
She looked at the clock on her phone and it was just past 12 o'clock.
"This way, you haven't lied to your mother."
Lin Youxi smiled at Mei Fang, "You had dinner with a girl and spent Valentine's Day chatting with her."
"That's it..."
"I just heard from the phone that your mother really cares about you. Don't let her worry too much."
"Yes, I know."
Mei Fang looked at Lin Youxi, who was finally a little tipsy. Under the influence of alcohol, he became much bolder than before.
"By the way... do you want me to take you home? After all, it's so late, it's not safe for you to go back alone."
"Yeah... not bad."
Lin Youxi smiled and waved at Mei Fang, "After so many years, I've gotten used to being alone, and I know how to protect myself. Thank you for your concern. Can we add each other's contact information?"
Mei Fang and Lin Youxi exchanged prestige with each other. Lin Youxi's business card is called [山有林兮].
After paying the bill and coming out of the convenience store, Mei Fang and Lin Youxi waited for the bus at the intersection, one after the other. During this time, neither of them said anything more.
Mei Fang also blamed himself for his rash behavior just now.
What the hell was I doing just now... How could I just ask to go to the house of a girl I just met
He must have been disliked as a creepy man, right
However, she and I just happened to meet in Pengcheng by luck.
Although her life is not going well, she would not look down on someone like me.
People like me...
What kind of person am I
Mei Fang was actually also very interested in the game that Lin Youxi wanted to make.
But working was hard, his job was very busy and he had no time to do something that was almost impossible to make money.
I can only wish her success.
Just as Mei Fang was thinking about this, the car that Lin Youxi called had already arrived.
"Then I'll go back first?"
Mei Fang came back to his senses and greeted Lin Youxi, "Well, have a good trip."
"The same to you."
Lin Youxi waved to Mei Fang and then got into a taxi.
Her gentle smile came to an abrupt end the moment she got on the car.
She gently rubbed her swollen head. Drinking too much beer gave her a terrible headache.
I drank too much today...
Why would you say so much to that person
She had almost never talked so much about her feelings to someone before, and it was like she was using him as a trash can to vent all her past emotions.
She looked down at the newly added WeChat of Mei Fang, and some distant memories gradually flooded her mind.
The taxi stopped at a long red light.
Lin Youxi gently rolled down the car window and felt the February evening breeze, which made her feel more comfortable.
I almost vomited.
She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the night scene in the distance.
Maybe if I had made another friend earlier, I wouldn't have felt so lonely these years.
but…
If you do that...
I will forget about Yuanyuan.
After Xia Yuan passed away, Lin Youxi has been unwilling to make a second friend, nor does she want anyone else to get close to her heart.
Because that would make her forget Yuanyuan.
At that time, Yuanyuan was truly dead.
Don't want to do that.
Lin Youxi persisted in this persistent idea for many years.
Many, many years...
She might continue to persist like this, anyway... So far, no one has ever truly entered her heart.
Valentine's Day 2023 ended without any surprises.
—
Just as Lin Youxi was waiting for the red light.
Another person's footsteps were approaching hurriedly.
His pace was getting faster and faster.
Faster and faster.
Accompanied by the sounds of shouting and waving.
“Wait, wait!”
"Master, wait a moment!"
The taxi that Lin Youxi was in was about to start when someone suddenly grabbed the window next to Lin Youxi.
"Wait a moment!"
A hint of surprise flashed across Lin Youxi's eyes. At this moment, what she saw was a sweaty, flushed and embarrassed face.
Mei Fang chased up from behind and stopped Lin Youxi.
"What's wrong?"
“About… about that game you wanted to make…”
"A game to commemorate your childhood sweetheart, Xia Yuan."
"I thought about it later. According to what you said, she should be considered my childhood sweetheart."
Mei Fang was panting, but he asked Lin Youxi word by word, "If possible, can we finish this game together?"
"Although I'm a rookie, I'm still a chief planner after all... I have all the skills a planner should have."
"Since you want to make a game to commemorate the good old days of childhood sweethearts, the game you want to make must be related to Baimei County, so I am also suitable..."
Mei Fang stated his advantages word by word, and Lin Youxi's eyes gradually brightened as he looked at him.
"OK."
"Then let's try it together!"
At this time, the driver's impatient voice came from the front seat, "Hey, does this person want to get in the car? The horn is honking in the back."
"Master, please let him up first. I have something to say to him."
"Ah... I, I'll just say this and then I'll leave."
"It's okay. You can come to my house and sit for a while. I have sour plum soup to sober you up."
Lin Youxi opened the car door and pulled Mei Fang in, then took out a tissue and wiped Mei Fang's face.
"But why didn't you just say it on WeChat? Why did you come all the way here to say it?"
"I think... this is more ceremonial."
Mei Fang smiled at Lin Youxi, "Because project establishment is an important decision after all, I think it would be better to talk about it in person..."
"Have you thought about what kind of game to make?"
"Are you asking me right now? Hmm... Let me think about it. I think this kind of game can be made into a text adventure or a role-playing game. It depends on the scale we are going to make, whether it is realistic or fantasy..."
Mei Fang and Lin Youxi chatted for a long time in the taxi.
Valentine's Day 2023 has passed, after all, it is February 15th now.
A new day begins.
This chapter is an if-line extra, assuming that Mei Fang did not die suddenly and be reborn. It will be a little bit exaggerated, and the main theme is a healing story of two lost people hugging each other for warmth in a lonely city. If you like this kind of plot, I will continue to serialize it when I broadcast the extras in the future. If you don't like it, you can skip this fantasy line of plot. It has nothing to do with the main story and there is no parallel dimension memory.
(End of this chapter)