Chapter 92: A Day Trip Before Returning Home

Yujing truly has no special local products.

Chen Shu led Qingqing around for an afternoon, only seeing some places selling dried fruits and snacks, putting up slogans about imperial palace cuisine, but they were actually not tasty at all.

Yujing does produce a type of tea, but after wandering around, Chen Shu felt that buying it online might be better than in physical stores. At least online, one can place an order directly at the flagship store of the most famous brand, whereas the things sold in these shops outside are truly a mixed bag.

Besides that, Yujing has another specialty, a genuine one that cannot be bought elsewhere—

The handicrafts sold by the Daoist ancestral court, Yuan'an Temple, and the Buddhist ancestral court, Xinzheng Temple.

In this world, there is no such thing as "consecration"; if one really wants to talk about consecrating or warding off evil, any Cultivator who understands Runes can do it.

The advantage of these handicrafts is that they are exquisitely designed, handmade, produced by Daoist and Buddhist disciples, and even carry anti-counterfeiting marks, which sounds very high-end.

They often come with simple Rune Groups, capable of providing simple effects like calming the mind and soothing the spirit.

These runes are also hand-engraved.

If you want to buy an amulet with basic protective effects, or accessories with higher-end effects, they exist, but their Spirit Power accessories are not necessarily better than those sold outside, yet the brand premium is higher, so most people only buy those cheap accessories that are more for decoration and commemoration.

However, to buy these, one must go into the Daoist temples and monasteries.

Chen Shu could not be bothered to go.

The street below the Astrology Tower also sells them; the small vendors all shout that they are authentic goods obtained from Yuan'an Temple or Xinzheng Temple, and some even claim they were handmade by some famous monk or Daoist priest, but they are obviously all fake.

"Sigh."

Chen Shu sighed, feeling very tired from walking.

Leaving the area of the Astrology Tower, Chen Shu bought two cups of plum juice, one for each, and as the two walked side by side, he suddenly saw a familiar figure.

That figure was still wearing very little in this deep winter, a loose long-sleeved T-shirt and very old pants, carrying a huge box as he stepped into a gate. As he entered the gate, Chen Shu saw his profile; it was a baby face that looked very well-behaved.

"Jiang Lai?"

Chen Shu called out.

Ning Qing beside him turned her head to look at him, and followed his gaze to look ahead.

That figure who had already stepped into the gate retreated back out, turned to look at Chen Shu, then looked at Ning Qing beside him, looking somewhat surprised, and then somewhat embarrassed:

"W-what a coincidence!"

"Yeah, we came to wander around the Astrology Tower." Chen Shu walked toward Jiang Lai, "Isn't this what you recommended?"

"Y-yeah."

"Let me introduce you." Chen Shu patted Qingqing's shoulder beside him and said, "This is that girlfriend of mine I'm not in a relationship with, named Ning Qing. This is one of my roommates, named Jiang Lai, the 'Jiang' from ginger, the one who practices martial arts."

"Hello," Ning Qing said calmly.

"Hello, hello." Jiang Lai was a bit shy.

"She has a small portion of Heavenly Human Bloodline, so she is cold and doesn't like to talk." Chen Shu said, then paused, "But actually, under my education, she is still a very easy-going person; anyway, don't think she has any opinion of you."

"No, no..."

Jiang Lai said repeatedly while holding the box.

"As long as you understand."

Generally speaking, "Heavenly Human Bloodline" is still very useful in Yiguo; as long as Chen Shu tells others during introductions that Qingqing possesses a certain Heavenly Human Bloodline, everyone can immediately understand why she is so cold and aloof, and they won't think anything else.

"You live here?"

Chen Shu looked up at the plaque on the gate, which read "Starlight Welfare Institute".

Starlight seems to be the place name for this area; in ancient times, this was the suburbs, a small town, and because there was an Astrology Tower, it was called Starlight Town. Later, as the modern city gradually expanded, it became part of the city, but the bus stop in front is still called Starlight Station.

"Y-yeah..."

Jiang Lai shook the box he was holding and glanced at Chen Shu.

Chen Shu was calmer than he had expected, only letting out a slightly long "Oh," as if he had known all along, and then leaned close to him, looking into the box:

"What are you carrying?"

Inside were all blue-black courier packaging bags, bulging and full.

"Clothes."

"So many?"

"Bought them for the younger brothers and sisters."

"It's almost the New Year."

"Yes..."

"One for each?"

"A set, I haven't finished moving them all yet." Jiang Lai said, hesitating for a moment, before finally gathering his courage, "Have you two had dinner?"

"Not yet."

"If you don't mind, you can come in and eat."

"Is it a bother?"

"There's a cafeteria anyway, it's no bother." Jiang Lai paused, "It's just that there are a lot of small children inside, it might be a bit noisy."

"Just as well, we're free, and we save on a meal." Chen Shu said, looking at Qingqing, and seeing that Qingqing had no objections, he smiled and said, "I like playing with children the most; you might not know, but actually, I was a child when I was little too."

"..." Jiang Lai was silent for a moment, not knowing what to say, and could only nod in agreement, "I was too when I was little."

"What a coincidence."

"..."

"You haven't finished moving them? I'll help you move!"

"Okay."

During this process, Qingqing stood silently in place, listening to them chat, her expression calm, as if she had returned to the time when she practiced Jingxin Dao, needing only to observe their expressions and dialogue to be able to glean all the information.

"Uncle Li, these are my classmates."

"Good, good, good."

The fat security guard let them in with a chuckle.

The environment inside was quite nice, like a primary school, with many sports and fitness facilities, as well as seesaws and slides, and lush banyan trees planted about.

A group of younger children were playing in the distance; they were all dressed quite well, neither ragged nor old, and their spirits were very good. When the children played with excitement, the sounds they made were so shrill they felt like they could pierce one's eardrums.

Chen Shu and Ning Qing began to help Jiang Lai with the deliveries.

Jiang Lai had bought a lot of clothes, and every single one was different; to take care of the children's self-esteem, it was truly difficult for a rough man like him.

After moving them, Chen Shu saw Jiang Lai start to unpack the parcels. Originally, he also liked unpacking parcels, but these parcels were all clothes, lacking any sense of surprise. After unpacking, they still needed to be checked over and over, which he felt was troublesome, so he told Jiang Lai he was going to play around and ran off to find the children.

Ning Qing followed silently behind him.

This person saw others playing on the slide and ran to line up. When he got stuck halfway, he didn't feel embarrassed; he even told the child behind him to slide down, and when they slid behind him, to give him a kick to knock him off.

The little girl was naturally introverted, and it was her first time seeing him, so how could she be embarrassed to kick him?

"Please, I beg you!"

"If you don't kick me, I can't get down!"

"Hurry up, hurry up!"

The little girl finally slid down and gave him a kick, but she didn't budge him. The little girl was at a loss, while Chen Shu and the other children burst into laughter.

Ning Qing stood to the side, a faint glimmer flickering in her eyes.

Afterwards, this person ran to the tree nearby, where a few children of about five or six were playing marbles. He used every persuasive word he knew to borrow one from them, but in no time at all, he had won half of their marbles. Even when they said he was too good and didn't want to play with him anymore, he didn't return them.

At this moment, Chen Shu, having been ostracized, looked toward the seesaw in the distance and turned his head to aim his gaze at her:

"Come, let's play on the seesaw!"

"..."

"Come on!"

"I don't want to."

"Hurry up! Come over!"

"..."

Ning Qing still walked over, neither happy nor sad.

Chen Shu grabbed her wrist, pulled her to one end of the seesaw, almost pressed her down to sit, and then grabbed her hand to make her hold the handle, while he walked to the other end of the seesaw and sat down with a grin.

"..."

Ning Qing was hoisted high into the air.

Chen Shu sat on the ground looking at her, head tilted back in laughter. Not far away, a group of children were also secretly watching and whispering.

These two adults seem to be dating.

Until the bell of the orphanage rang, the group of minors ran toward the canteen in an instant. Jiang Lai also came over to find the two of them and told them to go eat dinner.

The canteen used a cafeteria-style service. A long table was set with several basins containing rice and dishes. The children, big and small, each took a bowl and lined up, walking from one end of the table to the other to get their rice and dishes served.

This orphanage housed more children than Chen Shu had imagined, at least over a hundred, and the line for food was very long.

Chen Shu also took a bowl and lined up at the very back.

From time to time, someone would walk past him carrying steaming hot food, and he would stretch his neck to look into their bowls.

Their food was actually quite good.

There was potato-braised chicken with plenty of chicken, green peas with minced meat, and tomato-scrambled eggs. Afterward, everyone also got an orange and a carton of pure milk. Some of the younger children were clearly not happy when they received the milk, presumably because they didn't like drinking it.

When it was Chen Shu and Ning Qing's turn, every auntie serving the food was very generous, giving them full portions of rice and dishes, and two oranges each.

Chen Shu chuckled and didn't refuse.

After getting their food, they sat nearby to eat. Ning Qing picked all the chicken from her bowl and put it into Chen Shu's.

As for the taste of the food...

To put it euphemistically, it wasn't very good.

It was mass-cooked food, almost boiled.

However, this was a matter of culinary skill; in terms of nutrition and attitude, it was impeccable. The standard of the food was at least two hundred years ahead of the sister-in-law far away in Bai City.

At eight o'clock in the evening, it was already dark.

The two left the orphanage.

The lights of the Astrology Tower lit up. It was a very tall and large wooden building, antique and elegant, standing in this modern city, inexplicably giving people a sense of contradictory visual impact.

In Yujing Cheng, at the feet of the Son of Heaven.

The number of orphans and widows had not decreased because of this; on the contrary, it was even higher than in other cities. This city was too big and too hurried; some things were inevitably left behind in certain places. These places were unknown, and why they were left behind could not be explained in a few words.

However, Yiguo and Yujing were still quite good to these orphans; it was impossible to let them roam the streets, and basic food and clothing were guaranteed, as was schooling. But the living standard of this orphanage was clearly far beyond this minimum guarantee. If these children were taken outside, no one would think they were orphans. Relying solely on government funding and the help of caring people from all walks of life was likely not enough to achieve this.

Only then did Chen Shu know what Jiang Lai used the money he earned for.

The food and living expenses for so many people were a huge expenditure.

Perhaps Jiang Lai didn't know how to invest in himself, but his entire income was already struggling to improve the living standards of the children in the orphanage, and he even had to appear in the Arena with high frequency; he really couldn't save money to engrave Runes.

And Jiang Lai's frequency of appearances in the Arena was indeed considered very high among all the Martial Artists in the Arena.

Before the last time he engraved a Rune, there was a period when the injuries on his body were almost seamless; just as he recovered, he would immediately face new injuries. It was only by gritting his teeth and fighting in the Arena at such a high frequency that he was able to save up this engraving fee.

And this was even without considering the design fees.

If this were not a world with extraordinary abilities, he would have been broken even if he were an iron man after torturing himself like this.

Chen Shu didn't have any extra feelings; there was no heaviness or pity. After a knowing smile, he reached out and put his arm around the shoulder of Qingqing beside him:

"We've been walking for half a day today, I'm so tired!"

"So?"

"Have you ever had a massage?"

"?"

"Then let me take you for a massage? After walking around the streets for half a day, ending with a massage is perfect." Chen Shu's hand was swatted away by Qingqing, but he didn't mind. "We're going home tomorrow, so I suggest we seize the time to experience the massage techniques of Yujing! By the way, you're paying!"

"..."

Ning Qing turned her head and looked at him quietly.

"Haha!"

Chen Shu took out his Mobile Phone and started searching for nearby massage parlors while continuing to walk forward. He had kept two marbles in his pocket, which clinked together as he walked; he had left all the rest with Jiang Lai for him to return to those children.

The two he kept were very meaningful—

They could serve as a souvenir of victory, and could also spark conflict among those children over the uneven distribution.

Killing many birds with one stone.