Chapter 18: Keeping Accounts

The white cat was curled up in a cool spot sleeping, its tail flicking against the ground every now and then, its fur fluffy.

Xiaoxiao walked over quietly and scooped it up into her arms in one motion.

Chen Shu stood beside her and urged her: "I'm going to Yujing with Ning Qing for school, so you'll be the only one left at home. You must eat on time every day while you're home alone. It's best to eat at shops outside; if you're too lazy to go out, order delivery, or eat at the school cafeteria. Do you understand?"

"I understand."

"You cannot eat potatoes for every meal."

"Okay."

"When the weather gets cold, you must put on more clothes."

"Okay."

The young girl nodded repeatedly, struggling to hold the cat so it wouldn't run away, her face still devoid of much expression.

But inside, she had already begun to feel down.

It had always been Chen Shu who cared for the young girl: reminding her to add clothes when it was cold, forbidding her from eating potatoes every day, telling her to eat meat and drink milk, and taking her to buy clothes. Occasionally, Ning Qing would also give the young girl a little more care and attention at Chen Shu's request. Now that both of them were going to Yujing, Chen Shu was very worried that the young girl wouldn't be able to take good care of herself.

He was afraid she would suffer, afraid she wouldn't eat, and afraid she would be lonely by herself.

"Make a few more friends at school."

"Mm."

"But you cannot date."

"Mm."

"I'm leaving now."

"Mm."

The young girl hurried to the doorway to open the door for Chen Shu, and only after seeing him walk far away did she close the door.

Back inside the house, Chen Shu picked up the vase, checked the water inside, went to the kitchen to add a little, and then placed the flowers he had cut from Ning Qing's garden into it.

Instantly, the entire living room looked much better.

These cut flowers could last for quite a few days.

Wei Lvshi watched him bustle about and asked, looking up: "You're going to Yujing alone?"

"Ning Qing is coming too."

"I mean, do you want your dad to take you?"

"Why don't you take me? Why ask Chen Jiaoshou to do it?" Chen Shu glanced at the slightly plump Wei Lvshi.

"I don't want to take you either."

Wei Lvshi spread his hands, speaking without any burden.

"Very good."

A harmonious family is just like this.

After hugging the vase and sniffing it for a long time, absorbing quite a bit of pollen, Chen Shu turned his head and said to Wei Lvshi: "I'm going out for another ride, and I'll return Ning Qing's little scooter to her while I'm at it."

"Establish a relationship with her sooner; don't be ambiguous every day. What kind of behavior is that?" Wei Lvshi's tone was somewhat stern.

"Is it illegal?" Chen Shu asked weakly.

"It's not illegal, but it's immoral."

"Oh..."

Chen Shu nodded, deciding to tell Qingqing that this was very immoral.

"I'm heading out."

"Come back early, I'll cook for you."

"I'll just cook when I get back."

"Good."

Chen Shu rode the little scooter, and after two kilometers, he arrived at the edge of Jinghai, then followed the ring road counter-clockwise, leaving the urban area before long. He was in no rush to speed up, instead driving along the lake as if strolling, blowing in the lakeside breeze and admiring the scenery he was accustomed to.

An hour and a half later, he arrived at the foot of Beauty Mountain.

The landslide on Beauty Mountain had been cleared; at least the road was open, and the mountain face had been treated so it wouldn't continue to slide or have rocks roll down.

The Square Body had been closed off and a Forbidden Seal had been set.

Many tourists from out of town rented convertibles to take photos here, and there were even internet-famous young ladies dancing for the Square Body.

The massive Square Body was embedded in the mountain, its design ancient and heavy. Looking at it from afar, it still had a visual impact, looking more awe-inspiring than other Square Bodies.

It was estimated that Bai City's tourism revenue this summer would increase significantly.

Chen Shu parked the little scooter on the side of the road, found a hillside to lie down on leisurely, set an alarm, and began to circulate his self-created, simplified version of the Hypnosis Technique.

Within a few seconds, he entered dreamland.

"Alone in a foreign land as a stranger?"

"Long time no see."

"Alone in a foreign land as a stranger?"

"I'm just testing if I can still activate this mechanism."

"Alone in a foreign land as a stranger?"

"I hope there's a chance to meet again in the future."

"..."

"For you, I used half a year's savings, traveled across the ocean to see you..."

The sound of the alarm woke Chen Shu up. His head hurt a little; it was the aftereffect of the Hypnosis Technique being too simplified and its mechanism being too crude.

In reality, only a few minutes had passed since he closed his eyes.

After confirming that he could still activate the mechanism left behind by the Square Body and still had a chance to inherit part of his fellow countryman's legacy, Chen Shu shook his head, carried his helmet down the hillside, and got back on the little scooter to ride counter-clockwise along the ring road, preparing to circle the lake.

Evening is the time for returning home.

Chen Shu stepped into the house, and a faint, slowly released floral fragrance filled the entire room; if one sniffed carefully, they could distinguish different scents, and the lemon-citrus fragrance was one that could be smelled a hundred times without tiring.

He washed his hands and walked into the kitchen.

……

Early morning, high-speed railway station.

Chen Shu carried a suitcase and wore a backpack; the backpack was full of food, and all other luggage had been shipped away.

It was quite rare; today, it was actually Curator An who brought Ning Qing to the high-speed railway station.

Xiaoxiao was also sitting in the car, silently watching her sister get out of the car and walk with her luggage to her brother-in-law's side.

Chen Shu greeted Curator An and also waved to the little girl in the car, then walked into the high-speed railway station with Ning Qing.

Ticket check, enter the station, board the train.

The two people's seats were next to each other.

From Bai City on the southwestern frontier all the way to Yujing in the very center of Yiguo, it is over four thousand kilometers by car, and it takes ten hours by high-speed rail. This morning train was very hard to buy; Chen Shu had asked many classmates to help him before he managed to grab the tickets.

The train began to start.

Chen Shu originally had the window seat, but he gave the window seat to Ning Qing and leaned against the aisle himself.

He took out his earphones and asked Ning Qing, "Do you want one?"

"Yes."

"Why do you want everything..."

Chen Shu handed an earphone to Ning Qing.

Soothing music began to play, and it became quiet between the two; the scenery outside the window flew by, and smelling the faint fragrance on Ning Qing, time passed very quickly.

Only when he noticed the middle-aged man on the other side of the aisle picking up instant noodles did Chen Shu realize that it was already noon.

"Time to eat."

Chen Shu poked Ning Qing's arm; her skin was soft and cool, and then he stood up to take down his backpack.

The bag contained a box of Spicy Sour Chicken, a plate of dumplings, a box of Cold Rabbit, a box of Tiger Skin Egg, and two small boxes of Milk Egg Fermented Glutinous Rice as dessert after the meal.

Except for the dumplings and the Milk Egg Fermented Glutinous Rice, everything else was made by Chen Shu last night.

At this moment, he took them out one by one and placed them on the small table.

Ning Qing was responsible for opening the packaging boxes.

Clang, clang.

Chen Shu finally placed two cans of Hama Beer on the table; this beer produced in Ha City had a very good taste, and one could taste a faint hint of Sichuan peppercorn; besides alcohol, it also contained special Spirit Power, allowing those Martial Artists or Cultivators with high poison resistance to also experience a feeling of being slightly tipsy.

"Have you had it before?"

"No."

"Shall we have one can each?"

"Does it taste good?"

"Try it!"

"Okay."

"Here."

Chen Shu raised the beer and lightly clinked it with hers.

Being able to eat such a sumptuous meal on the train, drinking a little wine, and having a childhood sweetheart by one's side, drinking together with oneself—this feeling was very pleasant.

The scenery outside the window was still retreating rapidly.

After eating and drinking his fill, Chen Shu took the plastic boxes to throw them away; his complexion was already a bit flushed, but when he returned, he saw that Ning Qing's expression remained the same, and the skin on her face was still as white and delicate as ever, just as if she had only drunk an extra can of Milk Egg Fermented Glutinous Rice, so he couldn't help but ask curiously:

"How come you aren't drunk at all?"

Ning Qing tilted her head to glance at him and pursed her lips:

"Next time, put some medicine in it."

"That works too."

Chen Shu sat down in his seat and leaned to the side, his shoulder touching Ning Qing's shoulder, and he reached out to grab Ning Qing's hand:

"Would you mind if I hold your hand for a bit?"

Ning Qing did not speak, nor did she make any movement.

Watching his hand grab her hand, his five fingers interlacing through her fingers, holding her hand firmly, she then spoke softly: "I remember someone once told me that the probability of a first love leading to marriage is only one in ten thousand, and the earlier the relationship is confirmed, the easier it is to break up."

"Yeah, so what?"

"Someone is in a hurry."

"I am not."

"This is..."

Ning Qing lowered her head and glanced at his and her hands.

Chen Shu explained to her: "I'm just holding hands in advance, consider it credit payment. After we confirm our relationship in the future, you can tell me, and I'll find a day to hold them for less time."

"Heh..."

"Then are you in a hurry?" Chen Shu paused, "If you are in a hurry, it makes me seem very immoral."

"I have more patience than you."

"That's good, that's good."

Chen Shu was naturally very patient.

His past life's experience told him that formalism was undesirable; the time before falling in love was the most interesting, and being in a hurry to confirm a relationship was nothing more than being in a hurry to put a period to the beauty of this romance. Having lived another life, he was like a player replaying a game; he not only had enough patience to slowly savor the sweetness of love but also knew the correct method for a perfect clear.

Only the male and female leads in novels never break up, and they don't even argue, while in this country, the divorce rate is ridiculously high.

Life spans are long, and getting along is too difficult; being too impatient makes it hard to reach the end together.

The difficulty of this approach lies only in whether the woman has enough patience, whether she thinks the same way, and whether one might be delaying her.

Fortunately, it is Qingqing.

Chen Shu poked his head out to glance at the scenery outside the window: golden rice paddies and low-hanging dark clouds, yet the sunlight was still dazzlingly bright, and harvesters were rushing to gather the crops in the fields.

So, autumn has truly arrived.

Chen Shu let out a yawn: "I hope it won't be delayed, otherwise it will be pitch black by the time we reach Yujing."

"It won't be delayed."

"How do you know?"

"I guessed."

"By the way—"

Chen Shu shifted his gaze from outside the window and glanced at Ning Qing: "So your inheritance is..."

He used his mouth to form the shape of the two words "Secret Sect".

"Yes."

Ning Qing was also looking out the window, yet she knew what he was saying.

She never hid anything from Chen Shu.

"No wonder."

Thanks to having a father who was a historian, Chen Shu had some understanding of the Secret Sect, knowing it was an extremely mysterious and powerful Cultivation System. In modern times, many ancient mysteries had been unveiled, but only the Secret Sect remained mysterious.

"Heh~~"

Chen Shu let out a yawn, feeling a bit sleepy.

So he tilted his head, leaned on Qingqing's shoulder, and closed his eyes: "I'm borrowing your shoulder to sleep for a while, don't move around."

"Are you putting this on the tab too?"

"Putting it on the tab too."