Chapter 17: Master Level, Guitarist

After breaking up with Liu Hanyue, the first thing Cheng Yao did upon returning to the dorm was take a shower, then do his laundry.

There was no washing machine in the dormitory, so everything had to be scrubbed by hand.

Fortunately, over the past few years, he’d gotten pretty good at these things. After all, with Cheng Cheng—a burdensome tagalong—around, all the chores had to be handled by him, whether it was cooking or doing the laundry.

Wang Wenbo remarked, “You couldn’t get skills like yours without scrubbing for three or four years. Want to help me with mine?”

“Get lost. I can smell the stench from your underwear from a mile away…”

“Don’t talk nonsense, that’s just sweat!”

After finishing his laundry, Cheng Yao discussed things with Zhang Lei and Zhu Huiyang, then transferred money to Wang Wenbo.

When Wang Wenbo came out of the shower and checked his phone, he frowned. “What’s this about, you three? You look down on me?”

“Don’t be upset,” Zhu Huiyang replied. “Eating is eating, joking is joking, but when it comes to money, we keep things clear. We can’t take advantage of you.”

“That’s right. Usually, if we treat each other to a meal, it’s no big deal. But this time, we ate over a thousand worth. Yours isn’t money that fell from the sky. If we don’t pay, it just doesn’t feel right.”

The truth was, did they have money?

No. The lobster dinner had stretched them thin, but what was done was done, so there was no point dwelling on it. Still, the money had to be paid—after all, even blood brothers settle debts clearly.

If they didn’t pay, it would weigh on their consciences and leave them feeling guilty.

Cheng Yao said seriously, “That’s how it should be. Next time, let’s do it again, and we’ll all feel better about it. Otherwise, it creates problems—no one is looking down on you; and don’t pity me, either. In fact, after my parents passed away, the compensation my family received was quite substantial…”

In reality, Cheng Yao was just trying to give his money source a plausible cover—otherwise, it would be hard to explain.

Even though the “My Love Game” manual stated that the money he obtained had legitimate legal origins—albeit from some mysterious avenue—he still felt uneasy.

It was fine for now, but when the amount reached several million or even billions, it would be troublesome not to have a proper identity and background.

So, once he had enough money, he planned to register a company, even if it operated at a loss. It didn’t matter—he could handle it.

After being frank, Wang Wenbo wasn’t stubborn and didn’t argue about the money.

With that, Cheng Yao and the others felt relieved.

After opening the game, Cheng Yao’s attention was once again drawn to the panel. Behind Lu Mengyao’s name, it now showed a skill was available for extraction.

[Extract skill?]

[Congratulations, you have obtained the ‘Guitar’ skill at ‘Master Level.’]

As the prompt fell, Cheng Yao’s fingers seemed electrified, dancing rapidly across the keyboard.

Zhang Lei glanced over and said, “No one gets that kind of hand speed without being single for twenty or thirty years. You have a girlfriend—how’d you get so fast?”

“Just picked it up by osmosis. My girlfriend plays piano, so I get to mess around with music sometimes…”

Cheng Yao smiled, focusing on his ‘Master’ level guitar skill.

So it was guitar. If only it had been piano—he could have shown off in front of Zhang Ya, slapping faces left and right, and had a perfect excuse to ask her to a hotel to practice together.

This skill felt a little random.

Still, it was better than nothing. And now, with the favorability at ninety, there was another chance to draw a skill.

A master-level guitar skill meant having significant influence in the entire cultural sphere, inspiring many to imitate—like Jack White did for garage rock.

He might be surpassed, but his unique style made him nearly impossible to fully copy.

Such a master would be destined for a future Hall of Fame position, having won major awards, collaborated with legendary musicians, and produced works across many genres.

In short, he could handle any style.

His recognizability would be textbook-level.

In the game, acquiring a skill didn’t feel like much—he might not even glance at it. What use was guitar skill?

But reality was different. This was practically a godlike cheat.

Now, if he entered the music world, he could become a guitarist worshipped by thousands, a role model for many.

With just this one skill, he could rake in fame and fortune.

If guitar were his only skill, Cheng Yao wouldn’t hesitate to join the music industry in pursuit of wealth and status. But now, things were different…

Was there really any challenge left in gaining money and prestige?

Did he need to chase after these superficial things, or care about pleasing others?

The answer was no.

Inspiration struck instantly.

Everything about guitar—knowledge, techniques—was now second nature to him. In the future, it would be a hobby, a way to cultivate his temperament.

His fingers itched—should he show off with the guitar?

Why not? Some things were worth learning anyway, and it would save him a lot of time.

So, chatting with Zhang Ya, he couldn’t resist the urge to show off: “I’ve been practicing guitar lately. I’ll play something for you next time.”

“Great. Not practicing piano anymore?”

“I still practice…”

“Then I’ll teach you when I have time. I’m planning to sign up for the Shanghai Piano Open at the end of the year…” Zhang Ya replied.

When it came to piano, Cheng Yao could clearly feel Zhang Ya’s joy and enthusiasm—much more than usual. Perhaps he really did need piano skills.

That way, they’d have more to talk about in that area.

Name: Zhang Ya (bound)
Looks: 92
Figure: 81
Special: 93
Favorability: 79

Judging by her favorability, Zhang Ya did have feelings for him—Cheng Yao knew this better than anyone. But after two years together, her favorability was only seventy-nine…

His understanding of the game told him that seventy-five was enough to reach the couple threshold.

Sometimes he wondered if just saying the wrong thing could cause her favorability to plummet; meanwhile, Lu Mengyao, after only two days together, already had an eighty!

Of course, it wasn’t the same situation at all.

After chatting for a while, Cheng Yao started to feel stuck—he really was a piano novice and couldn’t keep up the conversation.

“I’m going to go stomp some people in the game—been in a foul mood.”

“Just don’t stomp us. Go easy and don’t throw.”

Cheng Yao was about to lock in Yasuo, and Zhang Lei, Zhu Huiyang, and Wang Wenbo all looked over nervously, “No, please, man, we’re begging you…”

Heh.

No matter how good you guys are at the game, whenever I’m about to pick Yasuo, you all end up begging me, don’t you?

“All right, I’ll play Lux then.”

“Thank you for sparing us…”

Cheng Yao glanced at the game info and said, “Hey, five girls on the other team—make sure to help me ambush. I’ve got crowd control. If I catch one, she’s dead—come get some easy kills.”

“Sure, I’ll gank your lane at level three.”

After a few matches, the dorm was lively. Sometimes, happiness among guys was just that simple. They had military training early the next day, so they couldn’t play too late or they’d be exhausted.

Lying on his bed, Cheng Yao wondered if he was a scumbag…

…