78: Chapter 78 is no longer a game
Looking at the brown rice in the bowl, Wang Ye fell silent.
He felt a bit uneasy in his heart.
Seeing the expectant gazes of the old man and Li Yans Mother, Wang Ye lowered his head and shoveled the brown rice into his mouth.
Even when he bit into a pebble, he didn't show any reaction.
Instead, he endured the toothache and discomfort, swallowing it down.
He looked up at the two of them with a smile and asked, "Why aren't you eating?"
"It's fine, young man. You eat first; we'll eat in a while," the old man said, shaking his head.
Wang Ye heard this and looked at the table, only to realize that while his bowl was full of brown rice, the bowls of the old man and Li Yans Mother were less than half full.
He thought of the children; it seemed they hadn't eaten yet.
"Old man, what about the children? Are they not joining us at the table?"
"We have a custom here; when guests arrive, the children don't eat at the table," the old man explained.
Wang Ye nodded upon hearing this and silently finished the rice in his bowl.
Only when he was almost done did the old man and Li Yans Mother start eating.
They ate very slowly, taking small bites.
At this moment, Wang Ye suddenly realized he hadn't seen the old man's wife.
He wanted to ask, but suddenly realized something and closed his mouth.
After finishing his meal, Wang Ye saw they were still eating and felt embarrassed to keep sitting there.
He walked out of the earthen house to bask in the sun.
The weather was nice, and Wang Ye couldn't help but recall his days at the Battle of Luodian.
The weather there hadn't been good; it was always overcast and rainy, with only occasional clear skies.
It was hot one moment and cold the next.
Wang Ye turned back and suddenly saw the children from inside the house come out, huddled at the wooden table.
The old man and Li Yans Mother shared the food in their bowls with the children.
They hadn't eaten much themselves.
Seeing this, Wang Ye froze.
He realized something, and a wave of guilt washed over him.
His actions had apparently caused some difficulties for this family.
He should have thought of this earlier.
The young men of this village had all gone to be soldiers; only the elderly, children, and Li Yans Mother remained.
They needed to live and work.
Originally, the food would have been enough for the old man's family to have a meal.
Now that he had arrived, they had given him most of the food, while they themselves ate only a little.
They had even chosen to hide it so he wouldn't know.
Their grain was surely limited, which was why they were so frugal with every meal.
His arrival meant they had to eat less or consume more grain.
He had originally wanted to mooch a few more meals, but now he felt ashamed of his own thoughts.
"Brothers, I'm truly damned!"
Hearing Wang Ye curse himself, the audience in the livestream room was momentarily confused.
They didn't know what was going on and kept asking in the barrage what had happened.
Wang Ye explained the situation to them.
After hearing it, the audience also felt he was truly damned.
"No way, they can't even feed themselves, yet they still want to host a guest properly?"
"This is the simplicity and hospitality of our Chinese people. I've been to some underdeveloped areas before; even if they aren't very wealthy, they will take out their best things to treat guests."
"That's true; this is their sentiment, don't feel too much pressure."
"It's a pity Brother Wang has nothing left in his pockets; otherwise, giving a return gift would be possible."
Seeing the barrage from the audience, the guilt in Wang Ye's heart lessened a bit.
He wanted to help the old man and the others now, but he truly had nothing left on him.
After the meal, Wang Ye saw Li Yans Mother carrying a hoe, preparing to go out.
Wang Ye saw this, but he had never seen such a thing.
He didn't know what it was and immediately asked the audience.
"Brother Wang, you don't even recognize this? It's a hoe."
"Don't blame Brother Wang; he's a city person, it's normal he hasn't seen it."
"Plus, many things are mechanized now; unless it's an underdeveloped rural area, you rarely see this thing."
"If I hadn't studied agriculture, I wouldn't know what this is either. Since I started studying it, I've found carrying this thing to work in the fields is simpler than using machines, and it also exercises the body."
Wang Ye nodded slightly.
"Can I use this thing? I want to go help," Wang Ye asked.
"Brother Wang, better not. You can't do it with one arm; you'll just be a hindrance."
"It's okay to try, it's just not very convenient; the hoeing speed will be a bit slower."
Wang Ye nodded and walked towards Li Yans Mother.
"Can I help?"
Hearing Wang Ye's words, Li Yans Mother was a bit startled.
But seeing Wang Ye's injured arm, she quickly waved her hand and said, "No need, young man. Your arm is injured, it's not convenient. Besides, you are a guest; how could we let you help us with work?"
Saying this, Li Yans Mother left.
Wang Ye thought for a moment and followed.
If he couldn't help, he would still feel bad.
However, he had only walked a short distance when his vision suddenly blurred.
Then, four large characters appeared before his eyes: "Game Over."
The game was over?
Wang Ye couldn't believe it.
He had wanted to help; how could the game end?
[Battle of Luodian concluded, survival mission completed.]
[Deaths: 1. Enemies killed: 23.]
[Glory Moment: Killed one high-ranking Japanese officer.]
[You successfully survived to the end. Your performance was decent. Game rating: 60.]
Seeing this rating number, Wang Ye wasn't very surprised.
Although his previous record was quite good, it couldn't be denied that he only performed well in the early days.
For the last ten days or so, he had been on the road delivering the handkerchief.
But he felt it was worth it.
This game was no longer just a game.
Compared to the game rating, Wang Ye felt the process was more important.
Regardless of winning or losing, these experiences were deeply memorable to him.
Many in the livestream room also hadn't reacted; the game had ended just like that.
This war had lasted for nearly a month, and they had watched for nearly a month.
Fortunately, it was viewed in a virtual pod, and the time flow was consistent with Wang Ye's game livestream.
Nowadays, with virtual pods, much of their work, life, and entertainment was spent in the virtual world.
People were less and less willing to go out.
After all, what could be done online didn't need to be done offline.
This not only saved commuting costs, but companies could also save on venue costs.
Wang Ye let out a long breath.
Having played for so long, he felt physically and mentally exhausted.
But at least this battle was over.
Although the rating wasn't high, he no longer cared about game ratings.
The things he had experienced these days had made him understand many things.
"Brothers, I'm logging off. I'll livestream a new battle for you tomorrow."
Saying this, he went offline.
In a certain rental apartment, a young man wearing casual clothes came out of the virtual pod.
His hairstyle was a bit messy.
He was Wang Ye.
Wang Ye looked at the familiar room and the familiar layout.
He felt as if he hadn't been back in a long time.
Having stayed in the game for too long, he felt a disconnect between reality and the game.
For a moment, he couldn't tell which side was real.