At night, at 22 o'clock sharp.

The lights are shining near the bustling university town, and a mid-to-high-end Internet café with not too many customers is outside.

The billboard of "Heart Rain, Heaven on Earth" displays a variety of familiar game covers.

The flute shatters dreams, the electricity is light, and the Internet café is as lively as ever.

The hum of computers, the sound effects of games, and the laughter and scolding of a group of esports enthusiasts mingled in the middle of the night.

Suddenly, a yawning sound sounded in front of the bar.

"Network administrator, help me open a machine."

Chen Mofan, who was wiping the glass behind the bar, raised his head, and after seeing the person clearly, he smiled kindly: "Yo, it's Xiao Liu, long time no see." ”

"Harm, isn't there an exam going to take place some time ago, hurry up and review, otherwise, if you fail the course, the living expenses given by the family before passing the make-up exam will be less, and you won't be able to take care of Brother Chen's business."

"Hehe, the top student who has won a first-class scholarship for three consecutive years since his freshman year is worried about failing the course?" Chen Mofan sneered, then cleared his throat and said, "Okay, your number has been played for you, Zhou Japan is full, and I will give you an additional 200 formula fragments, oh yes, there is good news and bad news, which one do you want to hear first?" ”

"Huh? Let's listen first. ”

"The good news is, as soon as I got my hands on it, the accessories were accidentally crooked for you, congratulations, I like to mention the 8th-order golden gun!"

Thump!

"Huh, what about people?" Chen Mofan suddenly found that Liu Hui had disappeared all of a sudden, and looked around with some confusion.

But the next moment, a hand slowly rose from under the bar, startling Chen Mofan.

"Grass (a plant), what are you doing lying on the ground, it's scary."

Angrily burst into a foul mouth, Chen Mofan grabbed Liu Hui's hand and pulled him up.

Without waiting for Chen Mofan to speak, Liu Hui held Chen Mofan's hands with tears in his eyes and said, "Brother Chen, you don't need to say it, I already know the bad news, my profession is a warrior, you want to say this, right?" ”

"It's really not good, you turn to a rifleman, version of your own son, much better than any sewer samurai."

"No, samurai are my faith!" Liu Hui stretched out a hand and sternly rejected Chen Mofan's persuasion, "Brother Chen, needless to say, it's impossible for me to change my career, is the machine running well?" I'm going to have an all-nighter tonight! I'll transfer the balance of the booster to you first, a treasure or a goose letter? ”

"Everything." Chen Mofan smiled and waved his hand, and handed the small note of the password on the computer to Liu Hui along with Liu Hui's ID card.

At that moment, a loud shout came from the hall.

"Network management, a secret braised pork set on the 39th machine, plus braised eggs! Iced tea! ”

"Okay!" Chen Mofan turned around and responded, and then hurriedly urged, "Okay, let's go to the machine, otherwise the password will be invalid and reopened in a while." ”

"Okay, Brother Chen, make me a spicy chicken set meal with Coke."

Liu Hui said with a smile, and then ran to the box with a run.

"This kid ......" Chen Mofan shook his head kindly, and after calling the little sister in the stands next to him, he picked up the apron under the bar and tied it, and turned around and walked to the kitchen in the corner of the Internet café that was converted from a utility room.

Chen Mofan, 30 years old, graduated from a bachelor's degree, and at the age of 27, he couldn't stand the whispering of the saddle in the workplace, and there was a boiling overtime culture.

So, in the midst of all the incomprehensible and even questioning voices of relatives and friends, he chose to take off his long shirt and resolutely became the network manager in his hometown mountain city, in an Internet café next to a university.

Although the income is a little meager, it is better to be idle, and engaging in a job that can bring happiness to everyone also makes Chen Mofan feel satisfied.

As for being in charge, it is purely Chen Mofan's personal hobby.

How to say it, the owner of Xinyu Internet Cafe is a woman with a bumpy fate, 34 years old and a little older than Chen Mofan.

It is said that when he was young, in order to support his boyfriend to go to college and go to graduate school, he dropped out of school early and engaged in some manual labor that did not require any education.

From the dishes in the dining room to the car washing in the car dealership......

But unexpectedly, I didn't expect that the 7-year-long love run and youth dedication were exchanged for the first sword to go ashore to kill the person I liked.

Fortunately, the scumbag is not completely inhumane, out of guilt, within a year after the breakup, he used the money earned from selling patents to make up for 7 years of kindness and debt, so far the two have been cleared.

Shortly thereafter, an Internet café called "Heart Rain, Heaven on Earth" opened next to the university where the scumbag had studied.

Perhaps those 7 years have exhausted all a woman's enthusiasm for life.

In the years that followed, the boss lived a lazy life of staying at home and taking out food for a long time.

Until Chen Mofan's arrival, after tasting Chen Mofan's craftsmanship at a colleague dinner, the small kitchen of Xinyu Internet Cafe was renovated in a week.

In the words of the boss, seventy percent of the net income of the small kitchen is Chen Mofan's, and she doesn't care how many copies she sells every day whether it is open or not. As long as you bring one to her room on the second floor every day.

In this regard, Chen Mofan took the errand with a wry smile.

Out of the hobby of self-taught cooking, it is naturally not as good as those real professional chefs, but with the blessing of talent, it also exceeds the level of ordinary people, mainly because of homely practices with the taste of home.

Naturally, you will not be too picky about the taste when you come to order food at an Internet café, and most of Chen Mofan's dishes will say "delicious" as long as you have eaten them.

There is no need for such a gorgeous compliment, the phrase "delicious" is the greatest encouragement to the chef.

Since then, the reputation of a "cook who has been delayed by network management work" in Xinyu Internet Cafe has spread, and it has attracted a group of college students to the Internet café.

It's a pity that this "cook" is too lazy, and only takes orders in a few fixed free hours every day, and goes back to the network management "after work" as soon as he arrives.

Now that it is 2025, the business of Internet cafes has long since lost the popularity of ten years ago, and the business model has changed from quantity to quality, and the network management can do its own thing when it is not busy.

After delivering the set meal ordered by the customer and sending a supper to the second floor, Chen Mofan returned to the bar with two plates of french fries and fried chicken wings and other small snacks.

At 11 o'clock in the evening, after this point, there will be no more customers in the future, Chen Mofan opened an anime that had been hoarded for a long time on the computer monitor at the bar, ready to spend this beautiful night leisurely.

"Wow, Brother Chen is ready to eat again." After watching for half an hour, the little sister saw Chen Mofan return to her post, and hurriedly smiled and snatched the chicken wings from his plate.

Chen Mofan smiled and pushed the plate between the two, he was used to this kind of life, relaxed and beautiful.

But at this moment.

A beam of red and blue fireworks burst into the night sky.

Whew~boom!

Fireworks exploded into brilliant fireworks.

Chen Mofan, who heard the movement, had already put down his plate and came to the door, looking at the brightness in the sky.

"It's so beautiful......" A familiar voice came from his ears, Chen Mofan turned around, and it was actually the boss who also came to the door of the store at some point.

"I just don't know why, there seems to be a very sad sound in this firework."

Sad voices? Chen Mofan pricked up his ears, but he didn't hear anything.

But just thinking about it for a while, Chen Mofan seemed to think of something, and suddenly said: "Sister, the past is over, people have to look forward......"

"Yes, the store manager, it's been so many years, you should be relieved, the scumbag is gone, and our lovely employees are with you......" The little sister at the front desk also came over at this time.

"No, I really felt it, there was a sad voice...... It's hidden in the fireworks......" The woman looked at the sky in a daze and said seriously.