DSMC Chapter 61.2

The stingy rich kid and the generous poor student finished packing the red envelopes and prepared to go to the Chen family’s birthday banquet.

They didn’t seem to plan on bringing Yan Jiyun along, so when they were changing shoes, he pushed the backpack onto the floor himself.

And then Tang Shi understood.

Liang Yu looked at Tang Shi. “You’re sure about bringing him? What if they don’t allow black cats inside?”

Tang Shi pointed at the backpack. “He already chose his own way of going out.”

Liang Yu muttered thoughtfully, “Oreo is way too smart… Fine, let’s bring him.”

Thanks to Oreo, he was able to communicate smoothly with Tang Shi, the human encyclopedia of Qingyun Town. Otherwise, since he was supposedly someone Chen Xiaoyu liked, Tang Shi would’ve refused to talk to him at all.

[Want to be Human] livestream channel:

“I wonder if the reason Liang Yu couldn’t get close to Tang Shi before was because he was rumored to be Chen Xiaoyu’s boyfriend? Tang Shi saw him as a love rival.”

“Obviously! Would you want to hang out with your rival?”

“Ever since the kitty appeared, I can’t see any rivalry vibes at all. Tang Shi’s personality is too good. He’s even letting Liang Yu stay at his place.”

“Seems like it’s all thanks to our Kitty Baby! One cat resolved all the awkwardness. A cat is worth a thousand words!”

“Am I the only one excited for the upcoming birthday banquet?”

“Me me me! I’m excited too!”

On the way to the Chen family home, Yan Jiyun noticed several familiar NPCs heading in the same direction. They were all invited to the Chen family banquet.

This time, he didn’t dare stick his head out openly. He peeked from inside the backpack. No matter who looked in, they definitely wouldn’t realize a cat was hiding inside.

They passed through Xiaoyun Street, then crossed an arch bridge, the one that must have been the “merit bridge” Tang Shi mentioned. A stone stele stood at the bridgehead, draped in red silk. The characters carved on it were too fine for Yan Jiyun to read, but they probably listed the contributions the Chen family made to Qingyun Town, along with messages of gratitude and praise.

All the way, Yan Jiyun kept observing the passersby.

There were a few players who deliberately hid their number tags. Their sleeves had mismatched patches sewn over them, the contrast so obvious it couldn’t be missed.

Yan Jiyun thought to himself that they were only deceiving themselves. Players could spot them at a glance, while NPCs automatically ignored the players’ number plates.

Of course, if someone deliberately shoved their arm in front of an NPC and pointed at their number plate, the NPC would react. Getting the NPC to take off their number plate could buy them some survival time.

Yan Jiyun still needed to take the chance to search the Chen family house for his own number tag. If the NPC who took his plate showed up and got discovered by players, he would be finished.

The closer they got to the Chen family residence, the more he could feel the atmosphere of the birthday banquet.

There were so many people he couldn’t distinguish who was with whom. The Chen family had invited the entire town, and they certainly had the means to do so.

Everywhere he looked were NPCs he had seen before; most faces were familiar.

The Chen family was indeed the richest in Qingyun Town, so the decorations were grand everywhere. Two stone lions stood at the gate, and the tall entrance door was practically like an archway.

They had hired lion dancers at the door to create a lively atmosphere, their clanging sounds echoed nonstop.

The open space outside the gate was filled with cars, which were still not very common in this era. Many young people from town were standing beside the cars discussing their value.

Tang Shi and Liang Yu looked too youthful. When they entered, the Chen family relatives responsible for greeting guests stared at them several times.

Only after someone said they were Chen Xiaoyu’s classmates were they allowed inside.

This was how Yan Jiyun entered the outer courtyard banquet area of the Chen family residence.

With Tang Shi and Liang Yu appearing together, no one should still be unaware that these two were the NPCs of Player No. 29. Everyone definitely knew that No. 29 was present too.

He could already hear the footsteps of players he had interacted with before.

Some players were disguised quite convincingly. For example, one of the lion-dancers outside. Did he really think wearing a lion head meant Yan Jiyun wouldn’t recognize which member of Team B he was? Too naive!

Just as he expected, Liang Yu and Tang Shi had indeed been specially invited. After entering, they were guided to Chen Xiaoyu’s “classmates’ table.”

Aside from the two of them, Yan Jiyun also spotted several classmates he had previously seen at the hotel.

Two of the girls seemed decent. They quietly asked Tang Shi what had happened, why he had stormed off angrily last night. Tang Shi casually made up an excuse. He wasn’t the type to slander others out of jealousy.

Yan Jiyun praised him inwardly. This guy truly had good character. A person worth befriending.

Of course, it was also possible that people had to bow their heads under someone else’s roof…

Everyone at their table were Chen Xiaoyu’s college classmates. The two neighboring tables were for her elementary-school, middle-school, and high-school classmates.

Today was Grandfather Chen’s birthday celebration. These classmate tables weren’t too close to the main table, but not too far either—about two or three tables away.

The Chen courtyard was big enough to hold forty to fifty banquet tables.

With ten or so people per table, at least four to five hundred people could sit and eat here. Among them, who knew how many players and NPCs belonging to players were hidden.

In order not to draw attention, Tang Shi took off the backpack and placed it between him and Liang Yu. Yan Jiyun quietly pulled the zipper open a bit wider. Thanks to his pitch-black coloring, no one would notice him inside. Of course, he was also keeping watch on the players eyeing Tang Shi and Liang Yu.

Players from other teams could be hiding anywhere, just waiting for Player No. 29 to show himself.

Yan Jiyun wasn’t afraid of them coming. He was afraid they wouldn’t come.

At the table across from him, an NPC kept glancing around. Beside this NPC was a player chatting enthusiastically with the others, fitting in perfectly. If it weren’t for the extra jacket in the middle of this scorching weather, covering his number plate, Yan Jiyun might not have recognized him.

At his nine o’clock direction, he saw Player No. 21 and No. 22, the couple and former member of Team F. They were now members of Team E, practically “three-surname players.”

Seeing them, Yan Jiyun couldn’t help sighing. Fortunately Team E accepted them. If the couple had ended up in different teams, things would’ve been worse. They would eventually be forced to kill each other.

At his two o’clock, at a table nearer to the main one, likely reserved for important Chen family guests and relatives. He saw Team A Player No. 28 and Team C Player No. 19. Being placed at such forward positions meant their social skills were good.

Clearly, the two of them were the current leaders of Teams A and C.

They weren’t sitting together. Each had their respective team members and NPCs beside them. They were probably in a temporary cooperative state, unlikely to start conflict for now.

But the members of Teams A and C were not hiding their intentions well. Their eyes kept drifting toward Tang Shi and Liang Yu’s table.

After scanning the area, Yan Jiyun looked at Liang Yu. He had changed into black clothes and pants and carried his trademark black hat. Though he hung the hat on the backpack without wearing it, otherwise it would be too eye-catching. Yan Jiyun suspected Liang Yu was preparing for something.

How to stir up chaos at the banquet to give Liang Yu a chance? No chaos had happened yet.

Giving Liang Yu a chance also meant giving himself a chance.

NPCs could only be eliminated by NPCs. Players couldn’t eliminate each other’s NPCs.

Right now, everyone was still sitting during the seating period, before the banquet officially began. Whoever moved first would lose the initiative.

With Teams A and C openly allied, his space for survival was shrinking.

But once their target was taken care of, the alliance would immediately dissolve, and that target was him.

Yan Jiyun racked his brain over how to make them switch targets.

It was almost time for the banquet to start.

The musicians on the temporary stage stepped aside. In the center was a large red cloth embroidered with the character for longevity (寿 “shòu”), showing that the Chen family had spared no expense, hiring lion dancers and musicians.

The musicians moved aside. Chen Xiaoyu’s father, Chen Gang, was a middle-aged man with a round belly like a standard beer gut. He walked onto the stage to give a speech, offering a long list of blessings for his father.

The banquet began.

Tang Shi and Liang Yu really did eat according to the amount they had put in their red envelopes.

As expected of the richest family. The ingredients were extremely fresh. The two ate happily.

Until someone interrupted them.

A polite woman in a suit approached and quietly asked Liang Yu, “You’re Liang Yu, correct? I’m President Chen’s secretary. Mr. Chen would like to speak with you privately. Would that be convenient?”

Yan Jiyun thought, ‘There it was, the opportunity.’

Liang Yu froze for a moment, then pretended to be confused. “Huh? What does he want to talk to me about?”

The secretary smiled. “I’m not sure.”

Liang Yu pointed at Tang Shi. “Can he come with me? I’m not familiar with this place.”

Secretary: “That’s fine. This classmate can wait for you in the outer hall.”

Liang Yu turned to Tang Shi. “Tang Shi?”

Tang Shi said, “Of course, no problem.”

Yan Jiyun had to admit Liang Yu’s thinking was thorough. If Tang Shi didn’t come along, given his personality and offensive strength, he probably couldn’t handle a team attack from NPCs. Now that they were going into Chen Xiaoyu’s father’s private territory, they could temporarily avoid many players.

The banquet was in the front courtyard. The secretary led them toward the back courtyard.

The Chen family residence was huge. It was comparable to multi-section compounds from ancient times. The inner courtyard had pavilions, artificial mountains with flowing water, and ponds. As expected of the richest family. No wonder Chen Xiaoyu looked down on an orphan like Tang Shi.

The secretary settled Tang Shi in the outer hall, then led Liang Yu to the meeting place arranged by Chen Gang.

The backpack stayed with Tang Shi, so Yan Jiyun couldn’t follow. He felt he had just missed a great opportunity.

Tang Shi walked around the spacious outer hall, then relaxed his posture and placed the backpack on his lap. He pulled the zipper open to let Yan Jiyun stick his head out for air as he examined the layout of the room.

Suddenly, his usually light voice dropped several tones, turning low and deep:

“Oreo, do you know? Everything here never belonged to the Chen family. They’re nothing but a band of thieves.”

Yan Jiyun: ???

[Want to Be Human] livestream channel:

“Holy crap! Tang Shi just unlocked his original instance’s character setting!”