Chapter 75: Three Days of National Day Joy

“Qiao Shu, calm down!”

He Chen urged.

Qiao Weidong saw he was disturbing other guests, quickly suppressed his anger, bowed and apologized one by one with a forced smile, then sat down, sullenly drinking his wine while thinking—each thought grew more terrifying, hateful, and furious.

If one or two coincidences were just chance,

there was no need to take them seriously.

But now it was three, four, five—any more such similarities—and how could he, as a father, not take this seriously?

After all, Lin Daiyu ultimately returned to purity as she came, yet she still took her own life…

Even if now it seems his Yingzi couldn’t possibly do something like that for Fang Yifan, who can say for sure?

What if one day Fang Yifan also “wanders the Realm of Grand Void,” his bond with Yingzi deepens, and Yingzi’s heart becomes entirely fixed on Fang Yifan—then, inwardly tormented by her neurotic mother Song Qian, and outwardly provoked by Fang Yifan’s fickle, deceitful nature…

“No! I won’t let the Fang family move beneath Yingzi’s floor!” Qiao Weidong drank a few more cups, eyes red with rage.

Living upstairs and downstairs, a boy and a girl—it’s far too easy to “wander the Realm of Grand Void.”

“Qiao Shu, I support you!” He Chen, seeing Qiao Weidong stare blankly at him after speaking, paused his chopsticks, raised his milk carton, and gave a half-hearted smile.

“He Chen, you’ve helped me immensely! I must thank you!” Qiao Weidong fixed his gaze on He Chen: “What do you want? Say it—Qiao Shu will buy it for you! Don’t be polite with Qiao Shu—I truly thank you!”

“Alright then, I won’t be polite.” He Chen glanced at him, nodded with a smile: “I know you won’t feel at ease unless you give me something.”

“You say that? Qiao Shu admires you most—why would I feel uneasy?” Qiao Weidong, as always, concealed thoughts he knew were better left unsaid.

He genuinely felt He Chen had helped him greatly, and he was truly grateful.

Of course, any debt repayable with money, he refused to let linger.

“Then consider this: I won’t ask for a gift so you can repay this debt—and I’ll feel uneasy if you don’t.” He Chen smiled, and as Qiao Weidong shot him a sidelong glance, revealed his plan.

“Tomorrow is National Day—we get three days off. Originally I planned to camp on a nearby mountain, to experience the joy of cultivation in the wild.

Since Qiao Shu is so generous, I won’t be polite—I’ll indulge myself. Please help me buy round-trip plane tickets to Yao Mountain.”

“Camping on Yao Mountain?” Qiao Weidong was stunned.

He had indeed intended to pay off the favor with money, but seeing He Chen even more eager and honest than him to avoid being bound by debt, he felt a pang of irritation.

What now?

Is my precious Yingzi not good enough for you?

Yet despite this slight irritation, compared to Fang Yifan, who shamelessly clings to Yingzi, Qiao Weidong was overall pleased with He Chen’s conduct.

He was merely puzzled by He Chen’s National Day plans.

“Yes!” He Chen nodded: “Qiao Shu, you’ve seen me practice. Why do I stand beneath pine trees? To emulate the mood of ‘To the Monk Weiyen of Yao Mountain, Two Poems’: ‘Form trained to resemble a crane, two scrolls of sutras beneath a thousand pines.’

Now I’ve begun to feel it, and with National Day’s three-day break, I plan to go into the mountains, to live the life of a monk beneath a thousand real pines.

With Qiao Shu’s divine wealth backing me, I won’t settle for some nearby hill—I must fly straight to Yao Mountain, the one in the poem, to feel the authentic atmosphere, and cultivate with greater depth!”

“You’re quite the character—really want to become a monk?” Qiao Weidong chuckled: “Aren’t you a Daoist?”

This poem carried more Daoist aura—if not for the title mentioning a monk, one would first assume it was about seeking immortals and Dao.

He truly couldn’t understand: other youths rushed headlong into crowds of girls, yet He Chen—with such advantages, so many girls drawn to him—was determined to vanish into the mountains, as if eager to become a monk.

“Qiao Shu, Buddha is originally Dao,” He Chen reminded him.

“You’ve got something, kid! Fine! Qiao Shu agrees! I’ll arrange it right away!” Qiao Weidong smiled, pulled out his phone, and called a subordinate.

As a billionaire boss with a personal driver, this was just a phone call away.

After arranging it, he still felt uneasy: “That’s it? Anything else you want? Tell Qiao Shu! I’ll arrange it all—truly! If you ever give me even a hint, help me protect Yingzi, Qiao Shu will be grateful to you for life!”

How much could round-trip tickets cost?

Even during National Day Golden Week, the tickets cost less than the home telescope Qiao Weidong had bought He Chen before!

And that time, when he gave the telescope, He Chen had already seen through his hidden motives—it wasn’t a pure gift.

This time, He Chen had again warned him of Yingzi’s possible danger—and this time, two warnings at once, one more than at the observatory.

Two mere plane tickets couldn’t soothe his unease.

“Qiao Shu, if you want to repay me, it’s not about what you have!” He Chen pointed seriously at Qiao Weidong, then at himself: “It’s about what I want!”

“… ” Qiao Weidong laughed and groaned.

He always felt this serious He Chen had an inexplicable comedic quality, as if he were a cartoon character.

Yet he admired He Chen even more.

Not only was his insight sharp and perspective unique, but he truly didn’t care about money or material things—not the detached indifference of someone who already had wealth.

Not caring about money when you have none—that’s the true high-mindedness!

Could this kid really be a Daoist?

The thought flashed through Qiao Weidong’s mind.

Curious, Qiao Weidong asked He Chen in detail about his mountain camping plans; He Chen spoke at length, and Qiao Weidong listened with great interest.

Soon Qiao Weidong was certain He Chen genuinely loved this camping trip and had prepared it sincerely.

Qiao Weidong quickly added: “I’ll also provide all the camping gear—don’t refuse, or you’re deliberately disrespecting Qiao Shu.”

“Thank you, Qiao Shu!” He Chen, now focused entirely on making “Crane Calculation, Turtle Longevity” his innate spiritual skill, truly didn’t care about money or possessions—since Qiao Weidong needed to give to ease his conscience, He Chen accepted without further refusal.

In his eyes, Qiao Weidong always reminded him of Lao Bai from The Wulin Outlaws.

Lao Bai often teased little girls, tricking them out of their candied haws and pears—now Qiao Weidong had the means to give “candied haws and pears,” yet insisted on giving—why should He Chen feel ashamed to accept?

Both were satisfied; the dinner ended perfectly. Drunk, Qiao Weidong was carried off by his young girlfriend Xiao Meng, and He Chen took a taxi home.

As soon as he entered, Ruan Lu and Ruan Liuzheng stared at him in unison; Ruan Liuzheng immediately asked why he’d suddenly decided to have dinner tonight. He Chen gave a brief summary, and Ruan Liuzheng exploded: “You’re not only going to camp on Yao Mountain—you’ve accepted such an expensive gift from Qiao Yingzi’s father?”