Chapter 47: Turning a deaf ear, a turtle chants sutras

Wu An woke up, glanced at the alarm clock, it was half past four in the afternoon.

Everyone says waking up at this time makes one feel abandoned by the world, with a huge sense of emptiness.

He felt none of that; instead, he felt refreshed and full of energy.

He took out his phone and saw several missed calls.

He called back.

The call connected quickly, and A Qing's voice came from the speaker: "Brother, you're awake, my mom called you to come eat."

"She slaughtered two chickens today."

Then Li Juan's voice came from the speaker: "A An, how do you want it prepared?"

"Braised or poached? Or would you like chicken soup?"

A Qing shouted that he wanted braised, I want braised.

"Auntie, I can't go today." Wu An hurriedly explained: "It's not just politeness."

"My sister-in-law invited me to eat at her home."

Saying this, he inexplicably felt a little happy; he too now had a home where he could eat.

Li Juan said: "That's fine."

"Today you eat at your home, then tomorrow come to my house for a meal."

"Put the chicken in the fridge first; leaving it a day won't matter."

A Qing shouted: "Mom, I want to eat it today!"

Li Juan replied: "What's the rush to eat? You can eat it tomorrow."

"These two chickens are for inviting A An to a meal."

A Qing shouted: "Mom, you're playing favorites—I'm your son!"

Wu An responded with a sound and hung up.

This truly is a happy worry.

After being kicked out of his home, he would worry about what to eat; now he also worries, but the reason is completely different.

After getting up, he washed up simply, put on a straw hat, whistled, and walked to the small shop.

He planned to go to Lao Jiang's to buy some braised food to bring home, in case his father was in a good mood, they could have a drink together.

Just as he reached the shop's entrance, Mao Mao came out from inside, holding a few ice creams.

Seeing him, Wu An frowned, instantly feeling uneasy; a sycophant appearing at this time surely had a reason.

He glanced around, and sure enough, where the sycophant appeared, within ten meters there must be his goddess.

Under the tree shade, Shen Fang and the freckled girl were talking.

Wu An quickly averted his gaze, pretending he hadn't seen anything, lowered his head and walked to the small store.

He greeted Lao Jiang.

He ordered pig ears, five-spice beef, and chicken claws, totaling exactly 100 yuan.

Lao Jiang asked: "Is that all for dinner?"

Wu An said: "No way, I'm going home to eat today."

"After all, having been kicked out of the house, returning empty-handed wouldn't be proper."

"Bringing another gift home would seem too formal; bringing braised food is appropriate."

Lao Jiang gave a thumbs-up: "Good, you've matured, your thinking is quite thorough."

Wu An smiled, the braised food came out, and he couldn't stop after just two steps.

He was stopped by Shen Fang.

Shen Fang said: "Wu An, I've thought about it a long time; I think we can still be friends."

"You're older than me, I can call you brother."

"From now on, I'll be your sister."

As she spoke, she looked at the plastic bag in Wu An's hand, full of braised food, all of which she liked to eat.

Wu An was completely bewildered.

"Recognize brother on the spot?"

He really wanted to ask, "Are you serious?"

Looking at Shen Fang's appearance, it was obvious she was serious.

Wu An suddenly realized it was 2012; although non-mainstream culture was said to have declined, one could still catch its tail.

Nowadays, young people's favorite thing to do is to recognize brothers and sisters.

"Who is my brother, who is my sister"—in their mouths it seems like a very proud matter.

Actually it's useless, and in the future it will become an embarrassing black mark in history.

The freckled girl chattered: "Wu An, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and show your acknowledgment."

Wu An laughed: "I'll acknowledge jack shit."

"Can I refuse?"

Having said that, he walked around to the side.

"Being shameless makes one invincible; Shen Fang's ability to live so carefree in her past life was probably because she had no shame."

Regarding Shen Fang, he truly didn't have much hatred or resentment; this woman is purely selfish, and using a term from her past life to describe her, she is a refined egoist.

He simply found her annoying, completely unwilling to have any further interaction with her, not even wanting to see her.

However, Shen Fang's appearance did give him a reminder.

He had fought Chen Long, but he and Shen Fang weren't enemies; instead, they could become "comrades-in-arms" to together mess with Chen Long.

He can be a criminal, or he can be "Seeing Justice and Courage", beating up the "lewd" Chen Long to protect the bullied Shen Fang.

Shen Fang's attitude is crucial.

However, he doesn't have time to talk much with Shen Fang right now; he must hurry home, can't just sit down to eat when he arrives, and see if he can help with anything.

He has to keep his reformed playboy persona!

Shen Fang's complexion changed dramatically.

She didn't expect that after she lowered herself and took the initiative to be friendly, Wu An would despise her so much.

What's wrong with Wu An? He used to be so easy for her to manipulate.

Since the fight with Chen Long, he seems like a different person; it was Chen Long who was beaten and ended up in the hospital, so how can his temperament have changed so much?

She shouted excitedly, "Wu An, stop!"

"I'll make you stop!"

Wu An walked even faster.

Mao Wang couldn't stand it any longer, reached out and blocked him: "Wu An, are you a man!"

"How could you treat a girl like that?"

"As a man, you should…"

Wu An shoved him aside in one motion, strode forward, muttering, "Won't listen, won't listen, a turtle chanting sutras."

Mao Wang was dumbfounded.

He didn't expect Wu An to be so disrespectful; after all, they're from the same Village and grew up together as peers.

He swore to heaven that he had never in his life suffered such a disgraceful humiliation!

He turned back to Shen Fang and said, "Shen Fang, Wu An doesn't deserve you like this…"

The freckled girl added, "Right, I think he's just reluctant to give up those braised snacks; he's really stingy."

Mao Wang's eyes lit up: "If you want to eat braised snacks, it's on me."

Shen Fang glanced at him and said, "You only have ten yuan on you, you just treated us to ice cream, where's the money for braised snacks?"

Mao Wang said, "I'll go home and ask my parents."

Shen Fang shook her head; hearing Mao Wang say that, she felt even more that Wu An had changed a lot.

She suddenly regretted the hasty breakup they had earlier.

She heard that Wu An earned money and paid off the usurious loans; he's also doing well.

But she was the one who initiated the breakup, and now wanting to reconcile, she can't save face.

Today, when she talked about acknowledging a brother or sister, she was just testing.

Indeed.

Wu An still cares about her; otherwise his reaction wouldn't be so strong.

It's precisely because he cares too much that he pretends not to care; this push‑pull tactic is all she has left to play.

She has her pride; she must make Wu An be the one to suggest getting back together.

She flashed a look and said, "Mao Wang, not that I'm blaming you, but you're an adult; it's one thing not to have a hundred or ten yuan in your pocket, but to ask an adult for money just to treat us to braised snacks."

"I heard Wu An went to the sea and made a lot of money; if he can earn it, so can you!"

"You're not any worse than him!"

Mao Wang, fired up by the words, shouted, "You're right!"

"I'm sure I'm stronger than him."

"The tide hasn't risen yet, wait a moment, I'm going right now."

After saying that, he ran toward the seaside.

The freckled girl said, "Mao Wang, can you do it?"

Shen Fang smiled, "It doesn't matter."

In her view, the tug‑of‑war between her and Wu An now depends on who loses their temper first.

With Mao Wang as a tool, she firmly holds the victory.