The Great Thief

Lu Li eventually bought Water Fairy some cosmetics on the grounds that she helped him pick things out for Lu Xin.

They also visited some clothing stores, but Water Fairy bought fewer items there.

“Are your clothes limited edition or bespoke? You probably can’t find them here, right?” Lu Li asked. He had heard similar remarks before. Sometimes his group of poor boys would have nothing to do, so they would gossip about the rich life because it was what they wanted.

“Well… I don’t think so. I like going to the shopping mall and my secretary likes coming on these strolls with me,” Water Fairy responded.

In fact, she didn’t tell Lu Li that most of her clothes were dresses to be worn on formal occasions. Those were made to order. Moreover, she was a VIP member of several well-known brands who would send her new designs each season. These would then be delivered to her door.

However, she was afraid that saying that would put more distance between them.

Regardless, she wasn’t lying. She wasn’t someone who was out of touch with regular people. She enjoyed going shopping like a normal girl, and would go on guided tours during business trips. She also enjoyed taking a moment to appreciate local customs and would eat from the roadside food stalls.

After the two of them walked around for a while, Water Fairy picked a coffee shop where they could take a break.

“What would you like to drink?” Water Fairy asked after ordering for herself. Lu Li looked at the list of items and had never seen these drinks before.

Water Fairy seemed to sense Lu Li’s stunned feeling, and simply helped Lu Li order something.

“It’s my first time; it tastes a bit funny. I’ve never had a chance to try this before.”

Lu Li didn’t feel the need to send a message to ask how to react when drinking coffee for the first time.

“Drinking too much is bad for your sleep, so you should only have it occasionally. I drink water most of the time,” Water Fairy said.

“Here I was thinking that the things you wore and ate was different from us,” Lu Li laughed wryly. Poor people would often think that the toilet used by the emperor was made of gold and that they would always have meat buns. They wouldn’t think that the rich were living somewhat similar lives to them.

“I even used to grind my teeth in my sleep when I was young,” Water Fairy giggled.

“I have a joke about coffee. Actually, my sister told it to me.”

Lu Li must have really liked this one, because he would normally tell jokes.

“What kind of joke? I don’t know if I’ve heard it before. Although I don’t laugh much normally, I can enjoy a good joke to relax.”

Water Fairy was immediately curious. Most people would tell her jokes quite often, as many men who wanted to pursue her would try to express their humour. However, this was the first time Lu Li tried to tell her a joke.

“A long time ago, there was a great general whose wife was a famous celebrity. After a triumphant battle, he and his wife walked down the street. He suddenly loudly declared that this coffee shop must be good. The wife was very surprised because the general seemed quite interested in it and asked why he said that. The general said that if you had a few machine guns lined along the shelves, you could blockade the entire street.”

Water Fairy stared absentmindedly for a moment before bursting into laughter.

She had two small dimples when she smiled which were even more prominent when she laughed. It was very cute.

That day, Lu Li had seen Water Fairy at her happiest, but he felt like the joke he told wasn’t even that funny.

The next day, they logged back into the game and Lu Li went to see Ruling Sword’s Stronghold.

It had become a large-scale construction site. The original stone wall had been completely demolished, and there was a pile of rubble left. There were people everywhere. Several goblins were giving instructions with whips in their hands. They would wave them around from time to time, but they didn’t dare hit the players.

“Due to the terrain, if someone attacks the city, they can only pick one of the three paths. Two of the paths are quite rugged, which makes it hard to Stealth with their Mounts. I can make this terrain even more rugged,” the player who was responsible for designing the area came over and explained to Lu Li.

His name was Jia Ren and he had a brother called Jia Yi.

Lu Li was just getting to know Jia Ren, but he was very familiar with Jia Yi. He was a Druid Party Leader in the guild and a skilled combatant. He was also responsible for leading an elite group and had scored quite well in Blackrock Tower’s three Instance Dungeons.

Jia Ren was a Trade Skill player and disliked fighting and killing.

He had originally only come up because of the connection he had through his brother. The IDs of the two brothers – Jia Ren and Jia Yi – had a clear connection. Lu Li didn’t know their real names, but he could only guess that their surname was Jia.

However, after the Stronghold appeared, he had become a celebrity.

There was normally very little opportunity for a whole guild to follow a single person’s instructions, but now Jia Ren had that opportunity.

Jia Ren was actually a professor of architecture at a prestigious school in real life. He was also responsible for the design and construction of many well-known buildings in China. He was an expert with rich theoretical and practical knowledge. He had quickly become the Chief Engineer of Ruling Sword’s Stronghold construction.

Even when Water Fairy saw his drawings, she suggested that Master Jia Ren help them design their Stronghold in future.

“if you need anything, just ask,” Lu Li said. He didn’t understand design and was more concerned about another problem. “If you use this stone to make the wall, can you complete it within three days? Next week, we will become the target of attacks, and if it’s not finished we’ll be in trouble.”

The defensive side had a significant advantage, but they had to have a completed wall for that advantage to be real.

“Relax – it’s not as difficult as you think. As long as the three sides are built, the last side will face a riverbank and I won’t build a wall there. This is a game, so we just need to follow the rules of the game,” Jia Ren said confidently as he shifted his glasses.

Glasses were also engineering items in the game, and were not that difficult to make.

No one actually needed glasses in the game. After all, virtual reality relied on transmitting data directly to the nerves. Anyone wearing glasses just did it out of habit or for fashion.

“Although we won’t be charging tax, will it be unsafe to not have a wall along the river?” Lu Li asked. He regretted not studying about walls in his previous life. He couldn’t even remember if

Strongholds had walls along the river.

“We will build it, just not yet. From an aesthetic point of view, the bare iron doesn’t look good and we don’t need it yet,” Jia Ren insisted.

“Alright then, just temporarily build the three sides with the best materials. The first attack will probably be quite fierce. We will need to stock up on materials so we can repair the walls if necessary,” Lu Li reminded.

“Don’t worry, I’ve already accounted for that. The few goblins supervisors have been very

helpful, and they are very good at ensuring that our plan is carried out perfectly.”

Jia Ren appreciated the greedy little goblins. It was hard to imagine a program feeling so human.