Chapter 396: I, a Man Who Lives Off a Woman

June in Yujing is at its most sweltering; even though it is already night, the residual heat has not yet dissipated.

Seemingly aware that he was returning, a string of lights was glowing in the small courtyard, and the persimmon tree was lit up as well; the bright yellow light cast the flowers and plants in the courtyard into shadowy silhouettes. In this midsummer, only a small portion of the varieties were blooming, emitting a faint fragrance in the quiet environment, adding a few touches of warmth to the scene.

A figure sat quietly on the swing waiting for him.

Chen Shu turned back to close the courtyard gate and greeted her:

"Good evening, Ning Shener."

"Good evening."

"Aren't you all having a get-together after finishing your exams today?"

"There is no need to go."

"Four years of being classmates, no feelings at all? I see that you and Lao Zhang next door have developed quite good feelings after sharing a dorm for four years."

"I have almost no interaction with them."

"You are just too cold."

Chen Shu said casually, not saying much more, and walked over to sit beside her, causing the swing to sway slightly.

A head poked out from the courtyard wall nearby, with exquisite features:

"Who called me?"

"No one called you..."

"Oh."

That head retracted back.

Ning Qing pursed her lips, lowered her head to look at the ground in front, and spoke in a low voice: "Are you reluctant to leave it?"

"A little. The classmates in my class are actually all quite good, tolerant..."

"Mm."

Ning Qing understood him very well.

It was not necessarily that he was reluctant to leave those classmates—perhaps he was, perhaps not—but it was more that he was reluctant to leave that period of time. In his own words, that was probably the most beautiful period of his life, and the beauty lay in youth. Although Ning Qing understood the principle that youth is precious and could analyze the reasons behind it, because she rarely experienced youth and had never lost it, she did not have a very deep feeling about it. With her indifferent personality, perhaps she would not have many feelings about it in the future either.

Fortunately, she had participated in every one of his graduations.

"Where is Xiaoxiao?"

"She hasn't returned."

"Not back yet this late? What did she go do? Is there an exam tonight?"

"..." Ning Qing glanced sideways at his expression and couldn't help but remind him in a low voice, "She is already nineteen."

"So..."

"She has been working on a project with her teacher recently, applying for a patent."

"Oh..."

Just then, footsteps came from outside.

The footsteps were somewhat brisk, seemingly telling of the owner's happy mood.

"Bang."

The courtyard gate was pushed, but it did not budge.

Then, Spirit Power penetrated through, causing the door bolt to shake up and down and move to one side; at the same time, the young girl's muttering came from outside the door: "This Qingqing, knowing full well I hadn't returned yet, actually locked the door on me. Just wait until I see how I deal with you later..."

It was clear she was indeed in a very good mood.

Ning Qing turned her head to look at Chen Shu.

Chen Shu grinned.

With a creak, the courtyard gate was pushed open.

The young girl stepped inside and caught sight of her brother-in-law and sister sitting on the swing looking at her, and she couldn't help but feel a Surprise in her heart.

"..."

The young girl turned back to close the door as if nothing had happened and walked into the courtyard.

It wasn't until the voice of her brother-in-law came from the side:

"Are you done with your exams?"

"?"

Only then did the young girl see her brother-in-law and sister sitting on the swing; she turned her head and answered honestly: "There is one more subject tomorrow morning. After that, it's break, but the teacher asked me to continue doing research with him, so I still have to go to school..."

"How truly hard-working."

"Yeah." The young girl paused as she said this, her face becoming serious, "But I am going to become rich very soon!"

"Is that so?"

"Mm!"

The young girl nodded heavily and secretly peeked at her brother-in-law, waiting for him to ask.

Chen Shu played along and asked:

"Why?"

"Because I am a genius. I discovered a very powerful technology and have already applied for a patent; I will be able to earn a lot of money in the future." As the young girl said this, she secretly glanced at her sister beside her brother-in-law, "I will be richer than my sister very soon."

Upon hearing this, Ning Qing looked at her and said only faintly:

"Bring your money to me, and I will keep it for you."

"!?"

Upon hearing this, the young girl was instantly stunned, her breathing became sluggish, and her hands clenched into fists.

For a moment, she was surprised, angry, and afraid all at once.

She was furious.

After being angry for a while, she suddenly realized that she was already an adult, at least according to the laws of Yiguo, she was an adult, and she could completely ignore her sister's behavior.

"..."

The young girl silently organized her thoughts in her heart, preparing to give her sister a powerful rebuttal.

Just as she was about to speak, she saw her sister get up from the swing and, without even paying her any mind, walk straight back into the house.

"..."

It was just so infuriating.

The next morning.

After eating breakfast, Chen Shu returned to the Dormitory; today, Brother Meng and Brother Jiang were also taking their final exams, and they would be on vacation once finished.

"I wish you both success."

"Many thanks, Brother Chen."

"I feel like I might fail this subject," Jiang Lai said with some worry.

"Just say a few nice words to the teacher, and it will be fine," Chen Shu said. "Explain what you have been busy with lately; usually, you won't fail in the second semester of your senior year."

"Okay."

The two of them went out together.

The room suddenly became quiet.

"An empty-nester now."

Chen Shu shook his head and muttered to himself; fortunately, he had prepared in advance and brought Taozi along as well.

He then began to pack up his personal belongings.

During this process, Taozi stood at the door, stretching its neck to stare at him.

Fifth-year students didn't have classes, at most a graduation defense and the Graduation Ceremony, but since he lived in Yujing, he probably wouldn't return to the Dormitory again; in fact, he could have cleared out the entire room. However, to be considerate of Brother Meng's feelings, Chen Shu decided to leave the bedding behind, taking only the scattered small items, creating the impression that the room was still habitable and that he might return to live here again.

To avoid Brother Meng feeling like he was the only one left in the entire Dormitory.

Besides, taking the bedding was useless; he was currently living off Qingqing, and even if he packed the bedding and brought it over, there would be nowhere to put it.

Once finished packing, with a wave of his hand, he put everything into the Crystal.

The Dormitory room was suddenly empty and tidy.

"Woof?"

Taozi's eyes went perfectly round, it shook its head from side to side, looking left and right, even running into the room to check the corners and looking under the bed, finally staring at Chen Shu with inquisitive eyes.

"I ate them."

Chen Shu said to it, "I ate them all; if you don't let me pet you, I'll eat you too."

Taozi stared at him with an unfriendly expression.

This person was trying to fool it like a fool again.

However, smart as it was, it still couldn't escape his clutches...

Soon, Chen Shu returned to the living room holding Taozi, sat on the sofa, and boredly scrolled through short videos.

Major discovery! Ling'an Academy announcement: A junior student has discovered a more perfect Driver Rune Carrier, which produces a leap in overall performance compared to before!

"Isn't this the one Xiaoxiao made..."

Chen Shu finished watching the video, but didn't see a name, nor was a face revealed; it was just an announcement.

The entire video only contained text.

Chen Shu shook his head and continued to scroll to the next one, while his other hand held Taozi, pinching the tip of its fluffy tail and playing with it unconsciously.

"So boring..."

"Woof~"

"Are you bored?"

"Woo~"

"You're bored too?" Chen Shu turned his head to look at it. "But you don't usually have anything to do either, so it should be about the same..."

"Woof woof!"

Taozi spoke up to refute him.

It usually had plenty to do—

It could play with paper Tuanzi, it could do parkour, it could follow its master everywhere, it could chase bees and butterflies, catch bugs in the flowers, and when there were many people in the courtyard, it could follow humans to conduct human observation, learn the survival skills of higher organisms, and it could also go out to beat up other people's cats in the neighborhood...

"Sigh..."

Chen Shu petted it all over, and seeing that the time was about right, he took it out to buy groceries and returned to stir-fry a few home-cooked dishes.

When Brother Meng and Brother Jiang returned, this would be the farewell dinner for the Dormitory this year.

Brother Meng brought out a bottle of chilled yellow wine; in Chen Shu's impression, he hadn't touched alcohol since he decided to become a Cultivator last year, whereas before that, he would pretend to drink a cup even when he had nothing to do.

"Produced by the cellar in the north of the city, exactly one hundred years old, well-preserved; would you two like to taste a cup?"

"Since that is the case, I shall have a small taste."

"I... half a cup?"

The last sentence was said by Jiang Lai.

Although Jiang Lai still did not have a Spirit Sea and could not be considered a Cultivator, he was different from the Martial Artist he once was; occasionally drinking a little wine was harmless to his martial arts practice.

Seeing Meng Chunqiu lift his cuffs and elegantly pour wine for them, the dark, thick liquid flowed down, filling three cups.

"Clink~"

The three of them raised their cups to clink them together at the same time and took a small sip.

The wine was cold, the taste was rich, and it was slightly sweet and sour.

"Ah~~"

Chen Shu sighed, then glanced at Brother Jiang, and seeing him frown, he couldn't help but ask with a smile, "How does it feel, drinking for the first time?"

"A bit... strange..."

"Is it very unpleasant to drink?"

"Uh..."

"I also think it's unpleasant," Chen Shu said.

"Drink it a couple more times, savor it carefully, and you will be able to taste the beauty in the cup," Meng Chunqiu said.

"Don't listen to his nonsense; he's just fooling himself," Chen Shu said, then picked up some food with his chopsticks and turned to ask, "Where will Brother Jiang live in the future?"

"I'll stay in the Dormitory first, live there until graduation, and then go rent a place outside."

"Is the research institute outside the city or inside the city?"

"Outside the city."

"Then living in the suburbs is quite convenient; Xicheng District, right by the University City, is the most convenient," Chen Shu said to him. "As soon as you step out, you're out of the no-fly zone and can fly directly to the research institute. Xicheng District has many schools, many young girls, lots of food, many options, the cost of living isn't high, it's quiet, and it's familiar."

"I think so too..."

"You could rent in our residential complex, though I don't know if there are any vacancies," Chen Shu said. "You can come over to my place for meals often."

"We'll see when the time comes..."

"If the Imperial Family grants you an Honorary Title in the second half of the year, according to custom, they will gift you real estate," Meng Chunqiu interjected from the side. "It's usually in the luxury residential area next to Central Park, where all the high-ranking officials and nobles live."

"It's that good?"

"What do you think? The Imperial Family doesn't confer nobility anymore, only Honorary Titles, and an Honorary Title is as good as it gets. In the last hundred years, only a dozen or so people have been able to obtain an Honorary Title," Meng Chunqiu glanced at Chen Shu. "Compared to the nobles of ancient times, this is the ultimate low-end version."

"That's true..."

"Brother Chen, if you wanted one, you could get one too; I'll go apply for you."

"Forget it," Chen Shu shook his head. "I'm just a man who lives off his partner, what use do I have for a house?"

"..."

"..."

This one sentence left both Meng Chunqiu and Jiang Lai silent.

---Author's Note---

My leg suddenly cramped in the middle of the night last night, and it still hurts so much now; maybe I'm going to grow taller again.