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Chen Rui certainly did not take Ye Han to a hotel, even though he knew she would not refuse if he did. However, Chen Rui truly had no such intentions.
As the saying goes: one should not toy with a friend's wife. From the beginning, Chen Rui always regarded Ye Han as Peng Hao's partner. Even though there was no significant progress between them at the moment, every action of Peng Hao's conveyed his feelings for Ye Han. Chen Rui could not ignore this effort and affection, so he subconsciously believed that Ye Han would eventually be won over by Peng Hao.
"Then you should go rest too. I'll stay here alone for a while," Chen Rui said.
After Ye Han left, Chen Rui walked into the restaurant, grabbed a bottle of Wuliangye from the kitchen along with a plate of peanuts, and sat down at a table, unable to resist daydreaming.
"What would I do if all of this were real?" Every time he undertook a mission, Chen Rui would ask himself this question. First, it was to better complete the task; second, it was out of doubt—doubting himself and doubting whether this world was also fictional. Chen Rui often felt an inexplicable sense of this.
"Drinking alone? Feeling lovesick?" Zhang Shi walked in through the front door of the restaurant and couldn't help but mock when he saw Chen Rui drinking by himself.
"Lovesick! I love you! Marry me! I really love you!" Chen Rui rolled his eyes at Zhang Shi. "Can't sleep? Want a drink?"
"Sure! Bring me a bottle!" Zhang Shi sat down next to Chen Rui. "Who can sleep? Those who do are not normal."
"Oh? So those two aren’t asleep either?"
"How would I know? Normal people definitely can’t sleep. As for Yu Shiming and Liu Xiwen, I can't say for sure—they seem carefree." Zhang Shi downed a glass and poured another for himself. "What about you? I thought you were in the best state; you never seemed flustered before, but now it doesn’t look so great."
Zhang Shi clinked his glass against Chen Rui's and took another drink before pouring more for himself. "Don’t look at me; my drinking capacity is pretty good. I can handle two bottles of this fifty-two-degree liquor without any problem."
Chen Rui smiled slightly, watching the liquor swirl in his glass as if he were trying to turn the shot glass into a wine goblet. "Hypothetically speaking, if all of this were just a dream, then you wouldn’t be so worried, right?"
Zhang Shi paused for a moment and then chuckled bitterly. "It’s easy to say; who can actually do it? Don’t tell me you’re treating this like a dream. How did you become Captain? You must have some mental issues!"
"It’s Co-Pilot," Chen Rui corrected him. "If the world were to become like this, would you prefer to believe it’s a dream or accept 'reality'? It’s just psychological comfort." With that, Chen Rui raised his glass. "Let’s just treat this as a dream; at least we can wake up and see."
Zhang Shi shook his head, clinking glasses with Chen Rui and downing his drink in one go. He didn’t pour more but instead grabbed a handful of peanuts and began to savor them slowly. "These peanuts aren’t that great; they’re not as good as those from my hometown. Those peanuts pair perfectly with liquor; they’re nicknamed 'Drunkard Peanuts.' Hahaha."
Seeing that Zhang Shi was unwilling to discuss that topic further, Chen Rui decided to change the subject. "So, are Drunkard Peanuts from your family?"
Zhang Shi escorted Chen Rui back to his room, giving him a pat on the shoulder with a smile. "If all of this is just a dream, then you should forget about being a pilot and come work for my company instead. I'll start you off as my assistant."
"You think too highly of me. I only know how to fly planes, and that's all I want to do," Chen Rui replied honestly. "Most importantly, I don't want to do anything else. I'm quite lazy."
"Get lost," Zhang Shi laughed, playfully scolding him.
Chen Rui lit a cigarette and made his way to the rooftop. He rarely smoked—so rarely that most people thought he didn't smoke at all or didn't even know how to. He only lit one when he was truly troubled.
"You hardly ever smoke," Ye Han's voice called out from the pool.
"There are no swimsuits here; it wouldn't be good if someone saw me," Chen Rui replied, blowing a smoke ring. "Customer satisfaction is key; let's be mindful."
"They're all asleep."
"Are you sure you didn't have anyone from the Support Team help out? I prefer to minimize their involvement; we need the whole operation to feel as real as possible."
"Is it really just about deceiving their feelings?" Ye Han countered.
"This is just a game, or maybe a dream. Besides, all the customers signed personal obligation agreements at the beginning; it was their choice, no one forced them." Chen Rui defended himself, though he was still avoiding the main point. Regardless of how they tried to disguise it, the emotions of all the 'dream' customers were genuine, and it truly amounted to deception.
"I don't want to do this anymore."
"I can transfer you to another team if you'd like. Where do you want to go? Coordination or support? I doubt you'd be interested in the Recording Team."
"I mean it; I don't want to be in this company anymore." Ye Han said calmly as he climbed out of the pool and sat down on a lounge chair, conjuring a glass of juice from thin air and drinking it nonchalantly.
"Peng Hao, if you mess around again, just wait and see what happens," Chen Rui warned as he looked at Ye Han.
A beam of light suddenly pierced the gloomy sky, sunlight pouring down in front of Chen Rui. A figure, faintly visible, appeared behind the light, seemingly bearing two wings.
“Mortal, accept the blessing of the divine,” a commanding voice echoed from the beam.
“The bonus for next month is gone.”
“Boss, I was wrong.” The light, the wings, and that voice faded away, revealing a chubby man with an oval face. Although he was called chubby, he wasn’t really fat; standing at 178 centimeters and weighing 75 kilograms, combined with his regular workouts, he was more of a muscular guy. With a serious yet handsome face, he could easily be considered a new generation heartthrob. The previous talk was all nonsense.
Well, calling him a heartthrob was indeed nonsense; his serious expression was somewhat pleasing to the eye. When he smiled, the flesh on his face made him resemble a comedic actor—one who could bring joy to anyone.
“You always come to plead at this time. What were you thinking while teasing me?” Chen Rui ignored him and comfortably settled into another armchair.
“I’m just worried you might get too into character! I’m doing this out of kindness, Boss~ I have an elderly grandmother above me and a baby nephew below me. Most importantly, my fiancée hasn’t been completely won over yet. How am I supposed to live?” Peng Hao leaned in with a grin. “I know you’re joking; don’t be so harsh! If you’re happy, I’m happy; everyone’s happy!”
“Get lost.” Chen Rui waved his hand with a smile. “You can’t do this anymore. If customers see us like this, no one can take responsibility.”
“I promise there will be a next time!” Peng Hao chuckled and gave a loose salute before glancing at Ye Han and vanishing into thin air as if he had never been there.
“If it really comes to that, I’ll throw you into the Coordination Team. The work is pretty much the same but easier,” Chen Rui said as he looked at Ye Han, who appeared vacant and absent-minded.
Chen Rui genuinely meant well; the Execution Team directly interacted with customers and required the highest standards. They were practically trained to be professional actors.
The Coordination Team was much more manageable. Each member controlled five AI or so; these AIs would automatically follow their schedules once released from control. The Coordination Team merely needed to fill in the background scenes properly—for instance, the Business Class and Economy Class at an airport were all controlled by AIs from the Coordination Team, which was indeed much easier than being part of the Execution Team.
The Support Team primarily handled minor tasks. If customers acted outside the scripted limits, they would create various ‘accidents’ based on the situation to steer things back on track—essentially controlling the script's direction.
The Recording Team had it even easier; each member monitored customers closely from a specific viewpoint and recorded key actions.
The Command Group was more comprehensive. Someone like Chen Rui could serve directly in the Execution Team or manage logistics to oversee broader developments. According to Chen Rui’s philosophy, if you didn’t understand customer psychology, you couldn’t naturally drive the plot forward; thus, he always preferred to be on the front lines.
Ye Han finally realized something after a long moment of confusion and hurriedly said, "No need for that. Just pretend I never said anything before. I'm sorry for the trouble."
"Did Peng Hao teach you to say that? It doesn't sound like you," Chen Rui remarked, resting his chin on his hand and looking at Ye Han with a hint of amusement.
"How could it? I'm going to bed now. Even in dreams, I can still feel tired. It's so annoying to have this false sense of reality. I'm leaving now; you can handle it, Boss." With that, she headed straight for the stairs.
Chen Rui sighed as he watched Ye Han descend. Suddenly, it seemed like the swimsuit she had been wearing vanished, and he quickly averted his gaze. After counting to himself for a moment, he looked back, only to see Ye Han had changed into a white uniform.
"Idiot! Don't be so brazen in front of me," Chen Rui muttered under his breath, unsure whether he was scolding the Support Team or the girl walking down the stairs.
In truth, Chen Rui knew Ye Han was right, but the world isn't always as one perceives it; often, many things are beyond one's control.
After all, the world cannot be changed by just one person. Sometimes, you can't even avoid being changed by it. Most people abandon their principles in the face of reality and alter themselves accordingly.
In this regard, the Dream World bore an uncanny resemblance to the real world; perhaps every Dream World is merely a reflection of reality—cold-blooded and ruthless. What lies beneath the sun is not warmth but a stark and cruel world.
And everyone is just struggling in vain, much like now; this dream will almost certainly end with everyone's demise—a fact that is beyond doubt.
So at this moment, the scenery along the way had long surpassed any significance related to outcomes. Rather than anticipating an ending, it was better to enjoy the present.
"It’s time for something exciting! If I stay like this any longer, I might as well become a philosopher," Chen Rui declared from the stage, resembling an ancient king issuing commands to his ministers in the grand hall. "Speed things up; let’s get started tonight."
Under the bright moonlight, the tranquil earth trembled with vibrations that awakened those who had just fallen asleep.
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