POV: Wang Shang
Location: the Wang family manner
Country: China
Continent: Earth
Time: Early evening
As the evening grew longer, you could not help the envy that felt like a lump of lead in your stomach. That is because unlike usual when you were in your smaller apartment they were only three people in the house who really had no time to talk to or bother with you, you were in the Wang family manor which was full with many more members of the family who came for a reunion. Like most rich families, the younger generation of the Wang family took the opportunity to boast about their accomplishments and about their role in the American branch of the Trust life financial which was the family business. The sad thing was that unlike the rest of them who had their jobs or their bank account to brag about, you could only keep silent because you were nothing more than a technical servant. If you were not why were you here running around with the servants instead of sitting in the main table in the first place?
"Shang my water is running out."
Wang Shi one of the younger members of the family called.
"Coming young mistress."
You reply as you quickly grabbed a cup of water from one of the passing servant and delivered it to her.
"Why is this water cold? Don't you know I do not like cold water?" She said harshly
'How the hell am I supposed to know?'
You thought to yourself
"I am sorry youg mistress."
You said gently
"I shall change it immediately."
Having no other choice, you swallowed your pride, brought a warm water and gave it to her. She collected it and just turned back to the discussion on the table without saying anything else.
"And then I made her call her husband right in front of me and I fucked while she was still on the phone." Wang Liu the eldest son of the family said
"And her husband did not notice anything?" Wang Shu the fifth brother asked
"I'm pretty sure he noticed but what could he do."
Wang Liu replied proudly
"You see my brother there are two type of men in the world. Those who others serve and those who serve others. When you are a man that other people serve you to get away with everything because men whom serve others would not dare lift a finger against you"
His eyes then spotted you
"For example."
He took the green tea he was drinking and poured it over the best suit you had worn just for that occasion.
"What is the meaning of that nonsense brother?" the fourth child Wang An cried
"Don't you realize that that man is my husband?"
"Oh come on sister it's just a joke. We all know he doesn't deserve you anyways."
He said casually
"And I'm sure brother shang doesn't mind (he turned to you) do you?"
The anger that rose from deep within your heart would be enough to rival a dragon's fury and you could feel your fist tightened to a point where blood drew from your palms as you watched his confident smile. However the reasonable part of your brain quickly reminded you that these were the people who were paying for your legal studies as well as your mother's housing and accommodation so you took a deep breath and said
"No problems at all master Wang. I am sorry I was in the way"
Wang Liu just sat down without even acknowledging your statement and continued telling his story
"So you see my brother even if the husband had found out about his wife's little dalliance with me, the best he could have done was to turn a blind eye. That is because in this world money and power turns can turn anything around."
He concluded and the people at the table burst into laughter.
"Anyways."
The second child Wang Shi quibbed
"Since I invited you all here then I should tell you my big news."
She then took a sip of water, closed her eyes and started radiating an aura so powerful that it shook the table and sent you slamming head first into the ground."
"Wow sister Wang Shi broke true again?"
One of the family members asked with joy
"As expected of the greatest genius of our generation." Another echoed
"I don't understand why you all seem surprised"
The family patriach said with a proud smile
"Is she not from my Wang family? When have we ever produced mediocre children?"
You don't need a genius to tell you that your wife felt very uncomfortable with that statement because for sometime she refused to drink her tea.
"Anyway aside from the happy news of Wang Shi breakthrough there's another reason why I asked for this family reunion." The patriarch continued
"I took a trip to the hospital today and my doctor has diagnosed me with a chronic hearts illness that will require a heart transplant."
Hushed murmurs broke out everywhere
"Silence
Wang Liu cried
Can't you see that father is talking."
The table quickly quietened and the patriarch gave him an appreciative nod before he continued.
"The doctor has advised me to take it easy on myself for the period before I undergo the and briefly after that. So the reason I'm calling this meeting is that I intend to find from amongst you the one who will serve as temporary CEO during the time of my recovery."
The whole house became silent than a tomb as everyone began thinking of what that announcement would mean for them.
"Father?"
Your wife called
"What criteria would you be using to judge who succeeds as CEO?"
"Management abilities and initiative, cultivation level and general respect."
The patriarch replied
"Does that mean I can compete as well?" Your wife asked
"Does that mean you will keep things fair?"
"Why would you bother you're pretty head about this matters sister?"
Wang Liu asked
"You do not have the cultivation level to even begin to entertain such thoughts."
Your wife turned towards him in anger
"In case you have not noticed while you have been sleeping around in Korea, I have been the one managing the headquarters of this company from the ground up."
"And are you not happy with that?"
The second daughter counted smoothly
"Despite lacking cultivation and your mediocre business skill this family has proven to be a support for you do to the fact that you share our blood. Why should you ruin such things with your petty greed?"
"My greef? "
Your wife asked
"I'm not the one who spent over half a billion yen for my secluded cultivation now am I?"
"Enough." The patriarch Boomed
The competition will be fair and proper and I will judge equally amongst all my children."
"As you say Patriarch."
The all declared
"Wang An please wait for a while after the meal." The patriach asked.
Just like that the meal passed by in its usual manner and you tried very hard to block out the rest of it.
After the meal your wife waited as per the patriarchs request and when she came out from their talk you could clearly see that she was sad and angry.
"I take it the talk did not go well."
Your mother-in-law said as she entered her car.
"I don't want to talk about it." Wang An replied and then turned to you
"You are right shang we shouldn't have come here in the first place."
Without another word she started the car and you all drove home in absolute silence.
Just before you were about to enter the house your mother-in-law stopped you in the garage
"Do you understand why the family treats her like trash?"
'Not again'
You say to yourself
"Ever since she honored the agreement with your grandfather and got married to you, the entire family sees her as less than them. And why should they not. Their spouses have money, connections or cultivations what do you have. No spirit root, no money, no reasonable friends and only serving as a liability to my daughter."
"With all due you respect madme, I believe the fact that they even married her to me in the first place was because they never valued her much to begin with."
"Excuse me"
She cried out in shock
"You heard what Wang Liu said didn't you?Some men are served and some men serve. If the family saw Wang An as someone who others were to serve, will they give her inmarriage to someone who they clearly know is meant to serve others?"
Without warning your mother-in-law gave you a sound slap across the face.
"Is this what you used to justify the role you play in this? Some stupid parable spouted by a drunkard?"
She yelled
"You have only a year before the marriage contract expires shang I hope you make good use of them."
She then left you there and walked into her room.
Having nothing to do (and needing some serious release) you walked into your own room and started skimming through your legal text book trying to cover as much pages as you could before you slept.
Before long your phone rang and you picked it top.
"Hello!" You said
"Rough night isn't it."
A voice that sound as though it argues for a living answered
"Depends."
You reply
"Who is asking?"
"Someone who have something you swollen need Mr Wang."
"And what is that?"
You asked back
"Respect." The voice replied candidly
You are shocked for some time due to the candid nature of the voice but you quickly think things over and came to the conclusion that it is some sort of scam.
"Look I appreciate what you're trying to do here but I have things to do."
You said boldly and hung up the call but the call refuse to cut
"Do you think I am man with so much time that I will call a man like you simply to scam you?"
The voice sounded insulted
"What do you want from me?"
You said
"I told you already have I not."
He replied slowly
"I want to make you respected Mr Mr Wang not just by your wife but also by her family and by the rest of the world."
"And how do you plan on doing that?"
You asked skepticaly
"A game Mr wang." The voice replied
"Something so for freeing that it will give you the money you need to stop being the pending on your wife's family."
Your eyes widened at the implication
"You're going to pay me for playing a game?"
You asked in surprise
"I'm going to pay you for risking your life Mr Wang."
The voice reply
"The grim gate is not the sort of game that you can play and sleep at night Mr wang. it is the sort where you will play and wake up with blood on your hands and bad memories in your head. For that sort of game we will need beta testers and needless to say we will pay them well."
"How do I know that this isn't some sort of joke?"
You asked
The voice kept silent for a while and then said
Name Wang Shang (formerly Lu Shang). Age 24. Current profession legal advisor and solicitor turned full-time house husband. You grew up in the average section of Beijing born to sir Lu Tan and lady Lu An. You attended new age high school where you got a scholarship to study law in a first rate University. You were doing quite well for yourself until during your second year in the university when your father passed away due to a heart attack and his creditors took everything away in the name of bankruptcy, and your mother's chronic illness took the rest. You were then forced to take crippling student loans and the loans became too much to the point where you were almost forced to drop out. That was when the Wang family who had a previous agreement with your grandfather decided to honor the agreement by giving a daughter in marriage to you. They paid off your student debts, cleared your father's loan, settled your mother in a fine condo in the city and they turned you into her full time house husband. A shame though because during your time in the university you were one of the top if not the top students of your set with quite a few bright ideas.
"Okay what exactly is the point of this conversation?"
You asked in irritation
"During your time in school when all those students were willing to pay good money just to be tutored by you. How did you feel?"
You turn around to see if your mother and wife were still awake
"Oh don't worry about them. They are sound asleep by now."
The voice assured
"I felt wanted, I felt needed, I felt appreciated I felt....respected."
You reluctantly admitted
"Do you want to feel like that again?"
The voice asked
You run the offer through your head multiple times picking apart for traps that you cannot see but soon realized that whether there was traps in it or not. This was something you wanted so badly that you would do it irrespective of the consequences.
"When do we begin?"
You asked
"Receive the package, crack the code and play the game."
The phone hung up
Soon after you saw a mysterious notebook on your desk that you were sure you did not keep there.
Received the package
The notebook was written entirely in Latin and you realized that if you wanted to find out what this was all about you would have to interpret them
Crack the cold
Just like that you started consulting your books on Latin and slowly but surely began interpreting the book one word at a time. A short time later you have a complete quote that said
Follow the lights to greener pastures.
You then began looking around for a light and eventually followed the fire lights in the fireplace and came across a large green book in your study that was next to a small pill box. When you open the box you saw a small red capsule inside with the paper beside it
"Dear player"
The paper said
"If you already reading this that means you are one of the lucky four people who are choosing to be the beta testers of the grand game grimgate online congratulations. If you are confused about our game and as to what it represents or are doubtful about our sincerity, then we invite you to take the pill and open the first page of the book.
Already convinced you obeyed the instructions given in the paper and when you opened the green book the page cuts your fingers and drew blood into it.
Before long you watched as that blood turn into an image of you with writings written besides it.
Name: Wang Shang
Age: 25
Malee: 4
Friction: 3
Senses: 3
Skills
Legal advisor: level 5
Automobile engineer: level 3
Chronic masturbation: level 7
Evaluation: Subject is an all rounder who is limited by his own cowardice
Recommendation: Break subject into a million tiny pieces re make him and then break him again.
You didn't turn back to the letter.
Are you now excited about our game? Are you know curious? Are you now afraid?Wonderful. This is so because in the grim dark a rational man will survive but curiousity and fear when properly applied can make a man stand above all others and in the grim dark you are either the most powerful person in the room or you're nothing. The Grim Gates is not for the week subject, if you cannot be strong then die and get out of the way of those who come. Welcome to the dark."
Rather than filling you with fear,the grim message in the letter filled you with the sort of excitement that you have not felt in a very long time and when you later went into your room after a good night's study you could not help but feeling a little bit eager for what was to come. As you later learnt the hard way that was a very big mistake.