My Virtual Girlfriend

Shocked, Chen Yan shifted his gaze away and hurriedly took out his phone from his pocket, opened the game, and checked it.

In the game interface, Yu Qiao Qiao's pixelated chibi character was still in the convenience store, with the words "Shopping…" above her head.

Chen Yan clicked on Yu Qiao Qiao, and her photo popped up in front of him.

Chen Yan looked at Yu Qiao Qiao on the screen, then raised his head to look at the girl in front of him.

Apart from the confident smile on the girl's face in the photo, while the girl in reality had a worried frown...

It really was... exactly the same.

Chen Yan was a bit surprised.

Was this a coincidence? Or did the game steal this girl's photo?

But he had to say, just after "adopting" the girl in the game, then meeting her in reality right away, it really felt like fate.

Putting the phone back in his pocket, Chen Yan withdrew his gaze, not daring to look at the girl anymore, afraid the girl would notice something abnormal.

Luckily, at that moment, Aunt Liu came out carrying a box of instant noodles.

Chen Yan quickly went up to her and took the instant noodles.

Aunt Liu patted Chen Yan's shoulder contentedly and said, "Xiao Chen, are you still not working, playing games at home?"

Chen Yan laughed and replied, "What I do is called a professional player, it's also a profession."

Aunt Liu waved her hand, "I don't understand all that. What I want to ask is, do you have a partner?"

Chen Yan coughed twice, knowing Aunt Liu's old habit of matchmaking was acting up again.

He chuckled, saying, "Let's not talk about that, not about that."

Aunt Liu spoke earnestly to Chen Yan, "You, it's time to find a partner. Don't just stay at home playing games as you get older. It worries your dad."

Hearing Aunt Liu mention his father, Chen Yan forced a smile, and didn't respond.

The two chatted as they walked to the counter.

Only then did Chen Yan notice that the girl was already waiting at the counter with items in hand.

Seeing Chen Yan arrive with a box of instant noodles, the girl made space and said in a pleasant voice, playfully, "You go ahead."

Chen Yan, holding the instant noodles, shook his head with a smile, "Thanks. No need, you go first."

The girl didn't insist further, just nodded her head.

While Aunt Liu was scanning the items for the girl, Chen Yan quietly observed this "girl who looked exactly like his digital girlfriend."

The more he looked, the more similar they seemed.

It felt like they were the same person.

Was this fate?

Should he take the initiative to get to know her?

But...

How could he start the conversation?

... Hi, you look exactly like my cloud-raised girlfriend from a game, can I get to know you?

That's crazy!

He needed to find the right opportunity...

Just then, he suddenly heard the girl's surprised voice, "Eh? Where's my phone? I'm sorry, auntie, please wait a moment."

Chen Yan looked toward the girl and realized she was frantically searching her pockets, but after several tries, she couldn't find anything.

Chen Yan thought for a moment, then suggested, "Did you forget it at home?"

The girl paused, her lips slightly parted, revealing a confusedly cute expression, "Oh. I might have left in a rush, maybe I left my phone in the dorm."

Chen Yan glanced at the items on the table, two packs of braised beef noodles and a sausage, not worth much.

He thought again about the strange "fate" between him and the girl.

He offered, "I'll pay for you."

After saying that, not waiting for the girl to refuse, he took out his phone and said, "Aunt Liu, scan mine." Then he winked at Aunt Liu.

Aunt Liu gave Chen Yan a knowing look and cheerily scanned his payment code.

After paying, Chen Yan nodded to the girl and left with the instant noodles.

Having probably never experienced such a generous act of paying for her, the girl stood there stunned, somewhat at a loss.

Aunt Liu coughed to remind her, "Girl, don't worry, I know that boy, he's a good lad. Take your stuff and go. It's alright."

"But, you better go thank him, he did help you after all."

The girl finally snapped out of her daze. She quickly picked up her things, bowed to Aunt Liu, said, "Thank you, Auntie," and then ran out.

Aunt Liu watched the girl's pretty figure with satisfaction, humming a little tune.

Facilitating a marriage was a fun affair for her age, as well as accumulating virtue for her descendants, why not enjoy it?

Chen Yan hadn't thought about "marriage" that far, he just felt quite fated with the girl, and so he wanted to get to know her.

Directly getting to know her was too abrupt, so he let the girl take the initiative to get to know him.

As for whether the girl would just take the stuff and leave...

A few yuan's worth of things, consider it a charitable donation. If everyone contributed a little love, the world would be a better place.

Just as he was thinking this, a calling voice came from behind him, "Hello, hello, wait a minute."

Chen Yan timely stopped in his tracks.

Turning around, facing back, he put on a textbook-like surprised face, "Eh, it's you? How did you come here?"

The girl caught up to Chen Yan, stopping in her tracks, and a faint scent of Big White Rabbit Milk Candy wafted toward him.

Maybe because she'd been running, her cheeks had a delicate blush, she was breathing hard, and her chest rose and fell with her breaths.

After taking a couple of deep breaths to steady herself, she spoke somewhat apologetically, "Hello. Thank you just now."

Chen Yan waved it off with a smile, "It's nothing. It was the least I could do."

The girl hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Could I add your WeChat? I'll accept it when I get back, and then I'll transfer the money to you."

Chen Yan waved his hand again, "Really, it's not necessary. It's not much money."

The girl bit her lip and insisted, "Please give it to me. I don't like owing people money."

Seeing the girl was serious, Chen Yan pretended to ponder a moment, then put the instant noodles down, took out his phone, unlocked it, opened WeChat, and handed it to her, "Alright then."

The girl took the phone, crinkling her nose as she seriously punched in a few things.

Chen Yan watched the girl's cute actions, finding it slightly amusing.

After she finished, the girl handed the phone back to Chen Yan, bowed slightly, and said, "Thank you. I've added you. I'll accept it when I get back and transfer the money to you."

Chen Yan nodded with a "hm," pocketed his phone, picked up the instant noodles from the ground, and was ready to leave.

But just as he was about to turn around, it was as if he remembered something and he stopped in his tracks, turned his head, and asked, "By the way, what's your name?"

The girl wasn't expecting Chen Yan to suddenly ask her name, so she was stunned for a moment, but still said, "I'm Yu Qiao Qiao."

Chen Yan was taken aback for a moment, shocked inside, but he didn't show it on his face, just nodded with a smile and said, "I'm Chen Yan."

After that, he smiled and nodded again, then turned around and kept walking.

But as he walked away, the smile on Chen Yan's face slowly faded, turning into confusion,

"Not only does she look the same, but even the names are the same... Is it really such a coincidence?"

"Is this a case of too much information leakage?"

"Or..."

"...Is there a problem with this game?"

With this question in mind, Chen Yan returned home, shut the door, placed the instant noodles on the ground, and then took out his phone, wanting to see what was really going on with this game.

He opened the game, and the game's main interface appeared.

Chen Yan noticed that the always unchanged game now had a new development.

The most noticeable was the values in the top right corner.

Originally, "Affection Points" and "Wealth Value" were both zero.

But now...

[Affection Points for Yu Qiao Qiao: 3]

[Player Wealth Value: 11.5]

This...

Chen Yan clicked on the Affection Points, and a detailed breakdown appeared,

[Acquaintance: Affection Points +1]

[Helped out: Affection Points +2]

Chen Yan's eyebrows knotted, a startling thought suddenly occurring to him.

He clicked on Wealth Value, and the Wealth Value also had a new breakdown.

[Convenience store feeding: Wealth Value +11.5, can be cashed out 10 times.]

Chen Yan's heart was hit by a wave of emotion, his hands trembling slightly.

After a while, he managed to control his excitement and gently clicked on the [Withdraw] button.

Shortly.

A pleasant female voice on his phone announced, "Payment arrived from Bao: one hundred and fifteen yuan..."