Sun Jiao's words left both Jiang Chen and Yao Yao stunned. Jiang Chen remembered Sun Jiao saying she was born in Shelter 071, so how did she end up connected to this villa? However, after hearing Sun Jiao's explanation, Jiang Chen finally understood the situation, including why he had found Sun Jiao unconscious from hunger in this very villa.
It turned out that the villa had originally belonged to Sun Jiao's father before the war. But when the nuclear conflict came too suddenly, Sun Jiao's father became separated from his wife and son while they were fleeing. Later, in Shelter 071, he met and fell in love with Sun Jiao's mother. They married with the blessings of other survivors and had Sun Jiao and another daughter—her younger sister. However, the good times didn't last long. When resources ran out and the shelter was forced to open, they were attacked by bandits, and Sun Jiao was separated from her family.
Fortunately, she survived. Lost in the ruins, she wasn't attacked by mutants, zombies, or slave traders but instead encountered a strange person, or perhaps, a mentor?
The person, who called herself a PLA soldier from the PACA (Pan-Asian Cooperative Alliance) formed in 2139, took her in and taught Sun Jiao how to survive on the wasteland. She taught her how to use a gun and how to tell right from wrong. Unfortunately, Sun Jiao's mentor died in a battle with unidentified armed forces, and after that, Sun Jiao began wandering alone.
While wandering the wasteland, Sun Jiao had always been searching for her family. She longed for the warmth of a family like the one she had known in Shelter 071, even though she knew that finding them might not return things to how they once were. But it was the driving force that kept her going. She searched relentlessly, even around the outskirts of Wanghai City. From an old neighbor in Liuding Town, she learned that her parents had died in the chaos, but there was still no news about her sister. Sun Jiao stubbornly continued her search, eventually discovering her father's old residence…
The very villa she had collapsed in from hunger.
And then, by coincidence, she had crossed paths with Jiang Chen, and the rest was history.
"...I see now. But I'll keep an eye out for your sister. You'd be really happy to find her, right?" After listening to Sun Jiao's story, Jiang Chen smiled and said.
"Jiang Chen…" Sun Jiao's eyes shimmered with moisture. If Yao Yao weren't here, she would have pounced on him, wanting to pour out all the emotions she felt—gratitude, affection, and more.
Ahem... although it might be a bit inappropriate, Sun Jiao didn't really know another way to express her feelings.
"What about Yao Yao? Is there anything I can help with? Since we're all family now, don't keep anything to yourself—just say it," Jiang Chen said, affectionately rubbing Yao Yao's head.
Yao Yao shook her head and gently covered Jiang Chen's large hand with her own.
"I'm already very content. My family is just you, Brother Jiang Chen, and Sister Sun Jiao…"
Her smile was so happy, yet it made Jiang Chen feel a little emotional.
For lunch, it was Yao Yao who cooked. This sweet girl had put in a lot of effort to learn how to cook, which really moved Jiang Chen.
This was the first meal a girl had ever cooked for him!
He was so touched he almost cried… well, maybe that was a bit too much.
Yao Yao smiled happily as she watched Jiang Chen wolfing down the food. As for Sun Jiao… she had always eaten like that. If she suddenly started eating delicately one day, it would be the real surprise.
After the meal, the three of them cleaned up the dishes together. Sun Jiao went to organize supplies in the living room, while Jiang Chen followed Yao Yao to her room, as he still had something to discuss with her.
"Yao Yao, is the preparation for the bank vault done?" he asked.
Yao Yao giggled, "Heh, Brother Jiang Chen doesn't know yet. Sister Sun Jiao already emptied out the vault for you! She must have been too surprised to tell you earlier. She's really looking forward to your praise!"
Jiang Chen blinked in surprise, then a smile spread across his face.
"Ha! Sun Jiao's not like you—she's not interested in my praise," he said, unable to resist ruffling Yao Yao's hair because of how cute she looked.
"Hehe…" Yao Yao squinted her eyes like a little squirrel, enjoying the moment. Then, suddenly, she seemed to remember something and looked at Jiang Chen with big, innocent eyes. "Ahem! Wait! Sister Sun Jiao definitely wants to be praised by Brother Jiang Chen too!"
She nodded seriously, clearly thinking her reasoning was sound.
Jiang Chen was taken aback, then laughed. "Hmm. You're right."
He'd have to thank that little brat properly. Though she could be a little "mischievous" at times, she also had moments of surprising thoughtfulness…
Putting aside the matter of the gold, Jiang Chen shifted the conversation to another topic.
"Mobile games? The kind you play on phones? Are those popular in your world?" Yao Yao asked curiously, not fully understanding the concept. Jiang Chen was a bit surprised, as Yao Yao had grown up before the war—didn't she have access to video games before?
He voiced his confusion, but the answer he received was both unexpected and amusing.
"Oh, I get it now. I think I understand what you mean," Yao Yao replied. "But back before the war, games were mostly played in gaming pods."
"Gaming pods?"
"Yeah, most popular games were based on virtual reality systems. You'd lie down in a pod that also helped relieve physical fatigue. Some people even used the game as a way to sleep. There were also portable neural connection helmets that offered similar features, so very few people would bother with games on their communication devices."
Jiang Chen finally understood. It wasn't that games didn't exist, but with advancements in technology, the old gaming formats had been phased out. It was like how handheld consoles such as the PSP had struggled against the rise of smartphones.
What should he do now? Jiang Chen furrowed his brow, deep in thought.
Should he give up on mobile games? But for a company still in its early stages, launching virtual reality products seemed too much of a stretch. He'd have to come up with another solution…
"Brother, could you show me that phone of yours?" Yao Yao asked meekly.
"Ah, right. Here you go." Jiang Chen quickly handed over his Samsung phone and removed the SIM card. "Feel free to explore."
Yao Yao took the phone and immediately began working on it at her desk.
"Mmm… Why's the CPU so weak? And what's with this tiny amount of memory?" Yao Yao mumbled to herself as she tinkered, making Jiang Chen feel a bit embarrassed.
Not long later, after much fiddling, Yao Yao finally took off her glasses and looked up at Jiang Chen.
"Well, it's not that hard. If we use D++ to write the code, we should be able to compress a lot of stuff into this small space," Yao Yao said, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "But, hmm, I have no experience with game design, especially with art, music, and gameplay…"
Jiang Chen stood there, stunned, realizing that he had missed a key point. Not every programming expert could become a game design legend like Sid Meier or Will Wright. The essence of a game is its gameplay. Even if Yao Yao could compile complex content into a more advanced programming language, reducing hardware requirements, the core still remained—would it be fun to play? Without that, who would bother with it?
Just as he was about to say something, Yao Yao suddenly tapped her little head as if an idea had just occurred to her.
"Wait! Leave it to me, brother! I guarantee I can get what you need done in five days!"
"Five days?!" Jiang Chen was shocked. He had initially thought it would take Yao Yao at least two months to make any progress.
"Hehe..." Yao Yao blushed a bit, rubbing her nose shyly. "Starting from scratch with coding might be a bit of a hassle, but I just remembered there's a city library nearby. The professional books I have came from there. The library's database has a lot of historical code, and I'm sure it contains the kind of mobile games you want. So, all we need is for Sister Sun Jiao to go there again, copy everything from 2100–2020 related to games, and then I can just modify the code. Wow..."
Before she could finish, Jiang Chen suddenly picked Yao Yao up in a big hug, startling her into a surprised squeal.
"Yao Yao, you're so amazing! You've saved me so much trouble!" Jiang Chen laughed, kissing her flushed cheek, "I'll leave it to you!"
"Hehe, I'm so cute, being praised…" Yao Yao was so flustered that her face turned as red as an apple. This made Jiang Chen feel slightly embarrassed, especially considering what had just happened moments ago.
Jiang Chen shook his head, mentally berating himself. What's going on with me today? Am I really turning into a beast?
He quickly left the room, quietly closing the door behind him, and headed for the basement.
In the basement, Jiang Chen found Sun Jiao carefully sorting supplies. Canned food and compressed biscuits were neatly stacked in the corner, while rice and other items were stored in high-seal polyethylene boxes. These boxes were commonly used by the military in the early days to store airdropped emergency supplies.
The basement was cool, a former wine cellar belonging to Sun Jiao's father. But, of course, there was no wine left. It had long been looted by survivors.
With so many supplies, it seemed they would need to break into nearby homes for more refrigerators or similar items. Once repaired, they could be put to use. But that would also require additional solar panels; the current power generation barely supported the villa's needs, and adding a few refrigerators might push the limits.
"Finally done..." Sun Jiao wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead, adjusting her tank top. Just then, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist from behind.
She didn't even have to guess—it was Jiang Chen.
"Sweetheart, you've worked hard."
"Oh? I didn't see you helping me move things," Sun Jiao replied without turning around, clearly enjoying the moment as she stretched lazily.
"Who knew you'd be so eager to move everything into the basement?" Jiang Chen said helplessly. He had planned to take a nap first and move things later.
"It's better to store it earlier; after all, it's food!" Sun Jiao shot him a sharp look and then spun around, giving him a playful glare.
This food lover... Jiang Chen couldn't help but smile.
But Sun Jiao's behavior made sense. Unlike Jiang Chen, she had faced the threat of starvation countless times and knew just how precious food was. While Jiang Chen might see these supplies as worth no more than a few thousand RMB, to Sun Jiao, they were worth more than the entire treasure vault of Wanghai City.
"Don't worry, I won't let you go hungry," Jiang Chen whispered in her ear. He knew how to handle her—while she was often tough and bossy, she had a soft spot for kindness.
Sure enough, when he blew a breath near her ear, her earlobe immediately turned red.
"...I've already gathered all the gold and piled it up in the pool over at the back. You can go take a look," she said, shifting awkwardly. For some reason, Sun Jiao felt flustered, as though she wanted to escape the situation.
Jiang Chen wasn't about to let her get away. This was the perfect chance to tease her a bit.
"How about we take a little break?" Jiang Chen teased, his voice low as he blew hot air into her ear.
"R-really? Here?" Sun Jiao's face flushed with embarrassment, her legs instinctively pressing together as she shivered slightly.
"Yes, hehe, this is your reward for what you did to me this morning!"
Jiang Chen almost wanted to laugh out loud—he was certain that even if she screamed her lungs out, no one would come to her rescue!
With a click, the door was locked. This time, there would be no interruptions.
They resumed their passionate reunion, continuing where they had left off that morning...