The imperial proclamation did not only appear at the city gates; it also appeared in various places within the city.
At this moment, a large crowd had gathered in front of the commoner district's notice board.
"Is this real or fake? The rewards make me want to go!"
"This is an imperial proclamation, so it shouldn't be fake, right?"
"That's true, but what is that Internet Cafe written on it? It feels a bit sinister!"
"Should I go or not?"
They looked at the imperial proclamation, discussing it animatedly, with various expressions.
Just then, a young man, about sixteen or seventeen years old, dressed in a blue cloth robe, with a somewhat monkey-like appearance, cleverly squeezed in from outside the crowd and began to read the imperial proclamation.
The young man's name was Li Xiaoyao, and he was originally a student at a martial arts academy in the city, possessing some martial arts aptitude.
He was originally working hard to pass the Royal Academy entrance exam.
Unexpectedly, his father at home suddenly fell ill; although his life was not in danger, he became bedridden and required a large amount of medicine and recuperation to fully recover.
Now, relying on his mother's meager income, let alone medical expenses, it was difficult to support his younger siblings at home.
Therefore, he could only drop out of the martial arts academy and look for a good job.
It just so happened that he saw the content on the imperial proclamation.
His eyes lit up.
He almost instinctively ran towards the Security Team's station on Commercial Street.
"Are there already so many people?"
Li Xiaoyao felt that he had arrived quite early compared to those who were still hesitating in front of the imperial proclamation; it was still barely dawn at this time.
But when he arrived, he found that the line of people was already quite long.
After waiting for a while, it was finally his turn.
"Fill in your information clearly!"
A Security Team member handed him a form and reminded him, "Don't write carelessly; we will verify it. Once you've filled it out, you can go in for training!"
Training?
Li Xiaoyao was stunned for a moment but still filled out the form seriously.
After filling it out, he was led to an open-air courtyard, which was already filled with others who had also come to sign up.
After a while, Zhao Yan, the captain of the Security Team, walked in and, after glancing at everyone, said,
"Hmm, good. You are the first batch of people, so I will personally conduct your training!"
Saying this, he waved his hand, and several of his subordinates handed a small booklet to everyone.
"But before the formal training, I need to give you some basic knowledge. Please read this carefully first, and then we'll discuss other matters!"
Li Xiaoyao was puzzled, and so were the others.
They clearly intended to come and farm to earn money, so why did they need some training and basic knowledge first?
Although they didn't understand, for the sake of the wages, they still opened the booklets and began to read.
The first line on the first page of the booklet read: What is an Internet Cafe?
However, it wasn't for them to answer.
The answer was written below: A shop called "Nine Heavens Internet Cafe" located at the end of Commercial Street, in Alley 12. The owner's name is Su Ran; please address him as Boss when you see him.
Then the second line read: What is a computer?
It also said: A magical machine that can be used to play games. By wearing a virtual device, your consciousness can enter the game world.
They continued to read downwards.
The entire booklet explained everything about the Internet Cafe and games.
Because it was written very clearly and in detail, one could generally understand it by reading it carefully.
But precisely because of this, the clamor in the courtyard grew louder and louder.
"So, this so-called farming means we have to plant those magical crops in the game?"
"Can they really mature in one day?"
"My heavens, this is too outrageous!"
Everyone felt that everything written there was truly unbelievable.
Li Xiaoyao finished reading, his face full of surprise, but at the same time, his eyes seemed to hold some curiosity and longing.
"Alright, quiet down!"
At this moment, Zhao Yan spoke up: "You don't need to doubt its authenticity. Besides that, if you have any other questions, you can ask them one by one now!"
Someone asked, "Activating games and logging in at that Internet Cafe seem very expensive. We don't have money!"
Zhao Yan replied, "Don't worry, we will provide the money for activating games and logging in for free!"
Another person asked, "Can we really earn 1 gold coin every day?"
Zhao Yan nodded: "Yes, but the prerequisite is not to be lazy, otherwise, you will bear the consequences!"
Someone else asked, "Then… "
This continued until several people had asked a good number of questions.
Zhao Yan saw that no one else was asking questions, so he said, "Alright, since there are no more questions, I will now talk about the team divisions. There are two types: the Farming Team and the Game Team!"
"The Farming Team does not require long-term gaming. Once you learn the special cultivation methods for crops, you are responsible for farming in reality. There is no limit to the number of spots!"
"The Game Team needs to be in the game long-term, grinding for achievement points, and then exchanging them for seeds, fertilizer, and soil!"
"The Game Team has limited spots. Although the rewards are high, the difficulty is very great, and we will also regularly check game progress. Those who are unqualified will be eliminated!"
"Since you are the first batch of registrants, you can now choose which team you want to join!"
No sooner had Zhao Yan finished speaking.
Everyone looked at each other. While they were still considering.
Li Xiaoyao, however, almost without thinking, went to sign up for the Game Team.
Afterward, the others also made their choices one after another.
"Alright, now, let's officially begin the training!"
Saying this, Zhao Yan had someone bring out a second, thicker booklet.
Upon opening it, it detailed the specific gameplay of the Stardew Valley game, from how to start, to how to plant, how to find residents to build relationships and unlock crop cultivation methods, and so on.
It could almost be considered a game guide without special effects.
As everyone read, Zhao Yan also provided explanations.
This also made those who had never played games become more and more familiar with this game.
… …
At the same time.
Outside the Internet Cafe.
Because there was still some time before opening, many players were chatting, and they were still talking about Stardew Valley.
In fact, when they first played Stardew Valley, it was simply to grow ingredients, but as they played, they discovered other joys in the game.
Suddenly, a player exclaimed, "Holy cow, you actually fell in love with an NPC in the game?"
"What?"
"Who's that fierce?"
This exclamation immediately attracted many players who gathered around: "No way, with whom?"
The player who was surrounded blushed and said somewhat awkwardly, "Penny!"
"That's amazing! Can you really fall in love with residents in this game?"
The player nodded and said, "Yes, I asked the Boss, and it seems you can, as long as your favorability is high enough. You can even get married!"
Upon hearing this, everyone was even more amazed and became interested.
"Then I want to try too! I like Leah!"
"I like Leah too."
"Haley is actually pretty good too."
Suddenly, a player weakly asked, "Can you pursue Robin?"
The other players looked at him with strange expressions: "If I remember correctly, Robin already has a husband, and her children are already so grown up!"
Just as everyone was chatting excitedly.
Liu Shiwan also arrived. Hearing everyone talking about Stardew Valley and hearing Robin's name, she couldn't help but be curious and walked over to ask them what they were talking about.
The players then told Liu Shiwan that they had discovered that this game actually had a romance and marriage system.
At this time, a player even teased Liu Shiwan: "The Boss said that even male residents can be romanced, Shi Wan, do you have any favorite male NPCs?"
"Boring!"
Liu Shiwan gave everyone a disdainful glare and then walked away.
She certainly had no intention of falling in love with residents in the game.
But upon hearing that this game actually had such a mechanism, while surprised, she felt that the characters in the game seemed to become more vivid and real.