RHWHEG – Chapter 29 Game Sharing

On the other side, Yu Qunqing invited She Lulang to go see the huge farm that had suddenly appeared next to the residential compound. Without a word, She Lulang followed along.

In peaceful times, although Penguin Farm had many players, it was plagued with terrible reviews. One reason was its nearly virus-like promotions. Whenever players grew impatient waiting for crops to mature, the game would promptly remind them: Share the game with one friend to quickly gain a large amount of growth points! Share with seven friends, and you can unlock the assistance of the penguin circling the island.

With such aggressive promotion, the game’s lifespan was prematurely exhausted. It quickly faded from public sight and became a relic of history.

But when the game became reality, everything was different. Yu Qunqing’s “friends” were none other than the residents of the compound.

His very first choice was She Lulang. Even though in this timeline they had only known each other for a few days, Yu Qunqing couldn’t help but treat She Lulang as an old friend—different from all the other teammates.

What’s more… such an easygoing deputy leader really made him feel unaccustomed.

Yu Qunqing recalled how She Lulang had just now followed him with such trust.

Compared to the sarcastic back-and-forths of his past life, She Lulang’s current appearance could almost be described as… docile?

But “deputy leader” and “docile” put together created a truly terrifying feeling.

So Yu Qunqing dared not behave as he had in the previous life—for example, blurting out at their first meeting, “When you turn fully into a bird, what happens to your clothes?” (that was back when they first fought), or saying, when the shelter forced them into a team, “I don’t want to be a babysitter.” (to which She Lulang had replied, “That’s just a different mission difficulty.”)

Now he had to carefully weigh his words and actions, afraid he might “warp” this She Lulang into something else.

But still… when faced with Lin Luyi, little She Lulang would hit him when he deserved it. Was Yu Qunqing the only special case?

Yu Qunqing felt a little dazed. If someone from their past life saw the way they were getting along now, their eyes would probably fall right out.

“These plants exert a kind of irresistible force,” She Lulang remarked, slipping through a gap into the farm, pulling Yu Qunqing’s drifting thoughts back. “Good defense.”

“I thought about making a maze out of them. That way, if enemies came, they’d have to get through the maze before reaching the compound,” Yu Qunqing said. “Too bad there aren’t enough seeds.” He casually picked a berry and handed it to She Lulang.

“You want to protect this farm? Actually, the safest way would be to wipe out the surrounding Calamities,” She Lulang replied. His eyes flicked aside suspiciously. “We could go together. And stockpile some Disaster Stones as backup.”

“Great idea!” Yu Qunqing said. “Let’s call Sun Min and the others too—they look like they’re broke.”

Wait—just for a moment, he’d glimpsed the deputy leader from the past life.

An intangible killing aura nearly spilled out.

That must have been his imagination… right?

Bringing more people along just made things more efficient. What was wrong with that plan?

As expected, She Lulang agreed.

Yu Qunqing then picked up the little watering can provided by Penguin Farm and had She Lulang water a plant.

A bubble floated up above it: “+1”.

In Yu Qunqing’s head, the muted system voice persisted tirelessly:

“You have successfully shared the game with a friend – She Lulang. Share count: 1. Reward: 10,000 growth points!”

He used the 10,000 points to buy watermelons, quickly filling twenty-five plots. Merging the first two units of watermelon produced a new crop—sugarcane.

All these actions played out openly before She Lulang’s eyes. From the garden decorations to Yu Qunqing’s especially complete and good-looking house, everything pointed to one obvious answer. But he asked nothing. He simply thought: this must be Yu Qunqing’s power in this life. He needed to grow stronger, so he could protect everything.

He always kept the special reagent gifted by the shelter hidden on him. The path Yu Qunqing walked—this time, he would walk it too.

Yu Qunqing watered the sugarcane while idly chatting with She Lulang.

Meanwhile, the system, according to his settings, was broadcasting a crocodile mission from the first floor of Building Four:

“Crocodile Mission 1: Dear residents, a new scenic spot—the Great Farm—has been developed south of the compound. Water a plant to earn 10 building materials. Mission requires 1 person. Each person may accept once per day. No overall limit.”

Yu Qunqing had earned a bit by reselling produce, but now he was immediately funneling it back into rewards.

The mission’s effect was gratifying. Soon Yu Qunqing spotted a few black dots running toward them. Ten building materials were enough to buy three apples—what reason was there to refuse just one trip? Some people came just out of curiosity too.

Outside the compound was far drier than within; the air held no trace of moisture. The mud from previous days had hardened into plates and even cracked. But since it had rained not long ago, no one worried—in fact, they welcomed it.

When they reached the farm, they quickly realized the nature of the succulent plants: one had to squeeze through the gaps to get in.

Seeing the growing fruits and vegetables, their eyes immediately glazed over with hunger, and they lunged forward to harvest. But the produce didn’t budge. They were no longer in that “starving ghost reincarnation” state as before—just suffering food shortages and fearing a sudden syndrome flare-up. So, when stopped, most of them did not persist.

With a few calmer heads reminding them, the others suddenly realized this might be the crocodile’s property, and dared not cause damage.

Everyone obediently lined up in a long queue, watering one by one.

“Today’s share count reached three, gaining the help of the Little Blue Penguin: for the next ten minutes, all growth values will increase threefold!”

“Today’s share count reached seven, gaining the help of the Ringed Island Penguin: choose any type of crop and make its growth speed permanently double.”

Before their eyes, the accumulation speed of growth values visibly quickened. But the required growth values for new crops also multiplied—just one unit of sugarcane cost 5,000 growth value.

Two units of sugarcane combined into a Corn Tree, and the 25-plot farmland expanded to 36 plots. At this moment, the 14th person arrived, upgrading the Emperor Penguin’s help by one level. Today’s daily mission could be considered complete.

Based on growth rates and what everyone ate, he distributed the crops: 2 plots of berries, 3 of apples, 5 of sunflowers, 3 of grapes, 8 of watermelon, 5 of sugarcane, and 10 of corn. The staggered arrangement of tall and short crops looked neat and pleasing to the eye.

Others assumed their arrival had triggered the farmland’s change. Nobody would complain about more food. They even began worrying that natural disasters nearby might be attracted and discussed organizing a siege.

After confirming the data was correct, Yu Qunqing muted the system again and casually chatted with She Lulang.

He found this scene a rare kind of peaceful daily life. But in the eyes of the onlookers, the two men’s expressionless faces, with the giant succulent plants in the background, looked eerie. No one dared to approach, leaving a vacuum around them, which made the atmosphere seem solemn.

“Don’t go over. The two bosses are having a friendly talk, maybe marking territory.” People said.

It was just a small interlude.

Suddenly, Yu Qunqing noticed a new request had appeared on the task board—this one from 060: Let me work in the café!

The message board was usually for communication between residents. 060, wanting to earn building materials, had tried to use it to talk to the crocodile. By accident, it ended up in front of Yu Qunqing—ironically, it worked out as communication.

Yu Qunqing replied: Approved.

He adjusted the relevant game settings: 8-hour work shifts, no late arrivals or early departures, daily wage of 600 building materials, salary increases along with the café’s level, and staff permissions granted to 060.

Immediately, the café rumbled loudly. With the addition of a new staff member, the café leveled up, expanding from two floors to three. More dessert recipes unlocked, such as raspberry mille-feuille and cherry chocolate éclairs—luxurious treats priced at over 100 building materials each.

As long as 060 successfully made a dessert following the recipe, it would be available for sale. Yu Qunqing’s cooking skills barely extended to not burning food, so he had never planned to keep upgrading the café. 060’s arrival was perfect timing.

Right now, 060 was wagging her tail excitedly, looking everywhere for a cart to wheel herself over. She had thought her limited mobility would make survival difficult, yet the crocodile had given her a job! She wanted to start working immediately—she was the most devoted worker in the world.

“My brother!” 060 hugged the crocodile admin and kissed it several times. “My sister!”

“061,” she called to the patient in the next bed, “do you want to be a staff member too? While no one knows about this application method, hurry and grab a spot. Who knows if the chance will come again? I’m only reminding you because you helped carry me down here.”

In the second-floor therapy room, 060 had wheedled and nagged until Lin Luyi finally used his vines to send her downstairs.

“No need,” Lin Luyi said stiffly. “I’m not interested. I was leaving anyway, I only helped bring you along.”

Then he turned decisively to leave.

But his inner thoughts weren’t so firm. His mind was blank; aside from basic life knowledge, he had no memory of his past. Occasionally, fragments of life in the laboratory surfaced: he floated in a tank while researchers outside ate their meals. In every lunchbox, there was a fried egg browned at the edges and a scoop of minced eggplant with pork. The fragrance seemed to seep through the glass and into his nose.

He had been starving then. Hunger—the most primal, unbearable human feeling—was like a thousand arrows stabbing his stomach, twisting it relentlessly. His stomach acid felt like it would devour him. But after a while, the hunger faded; his stomach had transformed into plant tissue, and he felt light, as if his human soul were being drawn out of his body.

“What’s wrong with 061?” the researchers asked. “Did the mutation suddenly progress?”

“Maybe some organ of his turned into a plant,” another replied. “Forget it, let’s talk later—food’s getting cold.”

Lin Luyi also recalled waking up here. The pain had driven him mad. But during the beating, he had suddenly absorbed a trace of sweetness. The flavor jolted through his brain like lightning, familiar yet strange—it made him feel human again.

Damn it. That milk tea turned out to be brought in by that person. If he wanted a fight, fine—but why bring milk tea along!

Lin Luyi spent some time leaving the residential area. He didn’t encounter those two people who always stopped him. Relieved, he felt a complicated mix of emotions.

Maybe it was just frustrating that he hadn’t yet beaten them…

Being suppressed had been humiliating…

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Should he take revenge first?

He knew they were at the southern farm. His steps unconsciously carried him that way. He didn’t notice that, hundreds of meters above, a gliding egret had already locked onto his trail.

Lin Luyi spotted the two chatting casually and shouted: “Hey!”

Yu Qunqing turned his head. “First of all, I’m not called Hey.”

Then he continued, “You came at the right time. Looks like you can move around freely now. How about coming with us this afternoon to wipe out a natural disaster?”

“I’m not teaming up with you guys,” Lin Luyi snapped.

“This isn’t about what you want.” Yu Qunqing explained, “It’s about the fact that you owe me a lot of money.” He began listing: “One session in the therapy room—150 building materials. Using the deluxe pod—extra 200. Overnight stay costs money. Milk tea costs money. Setting up an account costs money…”

Lin Luyi was momentarily speechless. He had thought himself disconnected from the world, yet now he was drowning in debt?

He cursed himself for clinging to human morality. Yu Qunqing said he owed money, and unbelievably, he actually felt pressured to pay it back.

“Let’s go back,” Yu Qunqing said. She Lulang nodded, plucking a bunch of grapes and handing it to Lin Luyi, thinking they were just the same as in their past life.

“This is free.”

The grapes glowed with a healthy sheen, exuding a faint fruity fragrance. Their weight rested heavily in his hand. And suddenly, Lin Luyi felt hungry again.