Chapter 94: Nonsense
Chen Shouyi listened helplessly to Shell Woman’s weak and feeble threats.
As if she could actually go back?
How childish!
He wasn’t swayed by such threats and mercilessly refused, “No!”
Shell Woman’s lips quivered with grievance, on the verge of bursting into tears.
“The big one is the only one I have, and I’ve already given it to you. Do you want a small one?”
As if flipping a switch, Shell Woman instantly brightened and eagerly shouted, “Yes!”
Chen Shouyi grabbed his backpack, opened a small pocket, and took out the tiniest glass bead inside.
Shell Woman impatiently stretched out her hand. “Hurry, hurry!”
“What’s the rush? Here!” He placed the bead in her palm.
Shell Woman stared at the tiny gem in her hand, her eyes widening in disbelief. She had expected the Giant to give her a medium-sized gem, but he was so stingy as to give her the smallest one.
Furious, she stood up, hands on her hips, and loudly threatened, “#@% Giant, I’m going back!”
Ever since getting the crystal ball, such a tiny gem was no longer worthy of her attention.
Watching Shell Woman puff up in anger, as if she had suffered the greatest injustice, Chen Shouyi sighed and reluctantly swapped it for a larger one.
He regretted it now—he never should have given her the crystal ball in the first place. Her standards had been spoiled, and he had no idea what he could use to tempt her in the future.
…
Four days passed in a row, and quite a few people came to view the house.
But just like chasing rising stocks and selling falling ones in the market, the more housing prices dropped, the more people hesitated. Even though the price was already extremely low, and many had expressed interest, no one was willing to commit on the spot.
That afternoon, after accompanying his parents through yet another picky potential buyer’s visit, Chen Shouyi abruptly heard a burst of gunfire, sharp and rapid like popping beans.
“Quick, hide in a shop!” Chen Dawei said in a panic.
They hurriedly took shelter in a clothing store. The owner reacted swiftly, pulling down the rolling shutter.
Fortunately, the gunfire was distant, and within half a minute, it had completely died down.
They waited a few more minutes, and when no further shots were heard, they finally left the store.
Passing by a street corner, they saw a military vehicle speeding past, packed with fully armed soldiers, their expressions grim.
Clearly, there had been a major breakthrough in the recent cult incidents, and it had now escalated to open confrontation.
“Don’t look, let’s just go back!” Jiang Fen said anxiously.
Chen Shouyi nodded, and the three of them quickly returned to the Hotel.
“Dongning is too chaotic. Let’s leave tomorrow. We can always sell the house later—there’s no rush. The money we have now should be enough to buy a place,” Chen Dawei said.
“You haven’t even counted my relocation allowance yet. It should be quite a bit,” Chen Shouyi added.
“Your money is yours. You’re already a Martial Artist—that counts as ‘establishing your career’ in the saying ‘settle down and establish your career.’ These things should be separate. Buying a house doesn’t require your contribution!” Chen Dawei insisted.
“Yeah, Brother!” Chen Xingyue chimed in.
Chen Shouyi didn’t mind either way. “But with just over four million, we won’t be able to buy much. I don’t want to end up sleeping in the Living Room.”
"Thirty thousand per square meter, that should be enough to buy a hundred-square-meter place, right?" Chen Dawei said doubtfully, completely unaware of how much housing prices in Hedong City had risen. He still thought it was around thirty thousand.
"That’s old news. Now it’s at least fifty thousand or more."
"That expensive?" Jiang Fen exclaimed in surprise.
Chen Dawei fell silent for a moment before saying, "It’s not that much more. We’ll just take out a loan when the time comes."
"Dad, why split hairs over family money? You still need funds to open the restaurant, and the initial investment won’t be small. Besides, this money was meant for settling down anyway. From now on, I’ll have the national Martial Artist Allowance every month, plus subsidies from the province and city government. We won’t be short on money in the future," Chen Shouyi said helplessly.
At the very least, they wouldn’t lack small sums.
Chen Dawei glanced at Chen Shouyi, seeing no pretense in his expression. After hesitating, he sighed and said, "Alright then. You’ve really grown up."
…………
Early the next morning, the family boarded a bus and left Dongning.
Along the way, the bus was stopped and inspected several times. It wasn’t until they neared Hedong City that the checkpoints finally disappeared.
Upon returning to Changmen Town...
"You’re really leaving?" the Landlady said with reluctance, Zhou Xue standing beside her.
"Yes, we’re moving to Hedong City today. The conditions there are better," Jiang Fen replied.
"That’s true. Hedong is the provincial capital, after all."
...
Before long, Chen Shouyi’s family left, each carrying their luggage.
The Landlady and Zhou Xue watched as they walked out of the courtyard.
The Landlady suddenly sighed. "I didn’t expect them to leave so soon. Who knows if we’ll ever see them again?"
Zhou Xue remained silent, staring at the now-vanished figures, her heart feeling strangely hollow.
She couldn’t help but think that maybe she should have said goodbye before he left, instead of keeping such a cold face. After all, he had helped her before.
"Xue’er, Xue’er!"
"Ah, Mom, you called me?" Zhou Xue snapped out of her thoughts and quickly responded.
"I called you three times already," the Landlady said, then eyed her suspiciously. "You’re not secretly fond of that Chen Shouyi, are you?"
Zhou Xue’s face flushed red. She stomped her foot and protested, "Mom! What nonsense! Of course not!"
"Then why are you blushing? It’s only natural to like him. Not only is he handsome, but he’s also become a Martial Artist at such a young age, and he’s not arrogant at all. It’s just a shame they moved to Hedong. Otherwise, finding a match like that would make me laugh in my sleep!" the Landlady teased.
Her daughter had always been sensible, but her personality was too cold, especially toward the opposite sex, which made her constantly worry about her future. Today, however, was a good sign.
"Mom, if you keep spouting nonsense, I won’t talk to you anymore!" Zhou Xue’s face burned as if steaming, her voice a mix of embarrassment and anger.
"Fine, fine! I’ll go cook then," the Landlady said with a cheerful laugh.
Zhou Xue returned to her room, pressing a hand to her still-flushed face. She thought to herself: What’s so great about being a Martial Artist? I’ll definitely become one too someday!
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