Chapter 26: Meeting Up

The taxi stopped, and after Little An let Chen Fengshi get in, she did not plan to get in herself.

“Since we are companions now, you can’t just keep me in the dark, right?” Chen Fengshi found that Little An’s way of thinking was really hard to guess.

“Didn’t I say what that was for just now?” Little An was not planning to let bygones be bygones? Chen Fengshi could only cup his hands in a gesture of respect and say, “So principled and unique, I admire that. Well then, goodbye.”

Little An quickly said a string of numbers, which was obviously a phone number. “Passing on a message for someone.”

After she said that, she walked away directly without looking back, looking as if she did not care who the person was or whether he was willing to contact them, now that she had given him the number.

Chen Fengshi liked people with personality, because he felt that this kind of clash was quite interesting… alright, he did not know what kind of mentality this was either. Was he just looking for trouble because he was too full? Anyway, he did not say anything to make her stay, and just took the taxi and left.

He could not go back to school for now, and even the Big Guy’s rental apartment had people watching it. He was not afraid of being hurt, but there was absolutely no need to clash head-on with them when everyone was angry and many people’s emotions were not calm! Wouldn’t that just be needlessly escalating the conflict? It would not be good if anyone got hurt; they were all victims to begin with.

The phone suddenly rang. After Chen Fengshi answered it, he heard Skinny’s anxious voice saying, “Old Chen, Old Chen! Some people have appeared on the school forum supporting you!… I heard that some people in the school suddenly got a strange illness, and you can visibly see them getting much thinner day by day, so some people think what you said might be true! Don’t worry, hide for a couple of days first. Maybe the storm will pass soon.”

“I got it. Tell me if there is any further news!” After hanging up the phone, Chen Fengshi felt his spirits lift, but then he worried about the people who got the strange illness. However, blind guessing was useless right now, and he could not show his face either. He could only find a hotel and wait for further news.

Before checking into the hotel, Chen Fengshi bought a travel bag and some clothes to change into. Stacks of money were stuffed into the travel bag, and when he slept, he still worriedly held it in his arms.

Even though thinking about it carefully, he knew this behavior was very lame, especially compared to Young Master Wang casually throwing so much money around in his car, tossing it out as casually as a bag of instant noodles. Because of this, his behavior of needing to hold two hundred thousand to feel safe enough to sleep seemed even lamer in comparison.

However, Chen Fengshi did not feel ashamed; he felt it was only natural. He had never handled this much money before. The feeling right now was like getting rich overnight. Being careful was always better than being careless and having the money stolen. Thinking this way, he no longer felt his current behavior was very low-class.

He was not unfamiliar with the things in the hotel room. Thinking about it, this was thanks to his dad. Given his mother’s personality, she was very traditional, and money that did not have to be spent would always be chosen not to be spent. His father was different. Driving back to their hometown was only an eighteen-hour journey, but he insisted on finding a city halfway to stay for a day or two, saying it was for sightseeing along the way.

Chen Fengshi’s mother would argue about the cost, while his dad would reply that it was for comfort, and also said that spending money for the child to experience new things was very worth it. Their family did not have a hobby for short-term travel. The only time was a three-month long trip to the three cities of Jiangnan. They stayed in three cities, rented places short-term, and ate and explored every part of each city.

His dad said that only in this way could you truly get to know a place. Unfortunately, there was no second vacation of that length, and Chen Fengshi’s mother never mentioned traveling again. For one thing, the experience made her feel that new things were just so-so, and once you understood them deeply, there was actually nothing to it. For another, she was scared by his dad’s ‘luxury’ of not considering the cost. Just thinking that three months spent half a year of their family’s total income made her heart ache so much that she did not want to do it again.

Therefore, Chen Fengshi’s lack of novelty toward hotels relied on the experience of stopping for lodging midway on the trips back to their hometown. In the past, he did not notice, but now, holding a bag of money to sleep and recalling that he had not stayed in a hotel for three years, he suddenly realized that his father was truly a weirdo.

If he were made to spend the money in this bag over three months, he would feel—unless he went crazy! But his father, as long as he decided to pay, never blinked, never regretted it afterward, and would never chat with others about spending and such things.

Chen Fengshi had actually always admired his father. Now, holding two hundred thousand in his arms, he felt even more that his dad was an impressively generous weirdo, with a mindset completely unlike what a middle-income earner should have.

So he sent a message to his father: ‘If you brought two hundred thousand in cash, no, if you brought one million in cash while staying at a hotel, what would you do?’

While Chen Fengshi was guessing how his dad would reply, the message came quickly.

‘There is a thing called: an ATM.’

Chen Fengshi wanted to punch himself!

Alright, he had no experience with depositing money, only withdrawing, so he completely forgot that there was also a function to deposit cash.

But he was unwilling to be defeated like this, so he continued to ask: ‘In the middle of the night, aren’t you worried about safety? As the saying goes, don’t show off your wealth!’

‘First: if you don’t act like you are carrying too much cash, criminals don’t have mind-reading or x-ray vision; Second: the Universe Bank has security personnel on night duty at multiple locations in this city.’

Chen Fengshi leaped up, remembering that the ATM of the Universe Bank in his residential area did have a security guard sitting on duty at night. It was hard to say if they were there if it was too late, but at this time, they should still be there. Besides, he actually was not worried about being robbed…

The money had to be deposited into the card eventually, so Chen Fengshi did not wait for dawn and took action directly.

The Universe Bank branch in the residential area indeed still had staff on duty. Carrying the travel bag did not attract that person’s attention. Keeping a thousand in cash, Chen Fengshi felt it would be more than enough. But thinking about it carefully, he realized that with his current appetite, it really was not enough to last him a few days.

But having struck it rich after all, he felt it would be too unkind to continue taking advantage of the boss at the Tutu Noodle Shop. When there was no other way, that was one thing, but now that he had a way and still tried to save money, that would be maliciously taking advantage of others.

‘Ah… great Mother, why did you educate me to have such a lofty sense of morality?’ Chen Fengshi felt that if it were Skinny, he would spend money when there was free food? In his dreams!

Thinking about food, he felt hungry again, and he was not sleepy. He thought of the phone number Little An left before they parted, guessing it very likely belonged to a police companion who had covered their evacuation.

So he made a call. After it connected, it was actually a woman’s voice, and before Chen Fengshi could introduce himself, she said directly, “I get off work in half an hour. If it’s convenient, meet me at Shanji Food Stall on Donglin Road.”

“No problem. My surname is Chen, and my name is…”

“We’ll talk later.” The other side hung up directly. Chen Fengshi did not know if it was inconvenient for her to talk or if she had concerns. He remembered that when he first met Little An, the woman in professional attire was also unwilling to let him know too much. Did this policewoman have the same worry?

Or perhaps, this was a basic tacit understanding? And he, because he was a novice who knew nothing, so he did not know?

The agreed location was easy to find. It was a food stall by the road in an old neighborhood. The place itself was quite large, and at night, they set up a whole row of dining tables on the spacious sidewalk. Every table had diners, and business was incredibly booming.

Chen Fengshi usually did not like to join crowded places. Perhaps influenced by his father, if he was in a hurry, he would take a taxi, but if not, he would rather wait for three or four buses or subways in a row than squeeze into a crowd. As for lining up to eat, such memories were very limited.

Usually, this only happened when he could not decide, like right now.

Fortunately, there was barbecue sold next to the food stall. Chen Fengshi wanted to buy some, but then he found that many diners at the food stall had also ordered barbecue. By the time it was his turn, who knew how long it would take.

Fortunately, the agreed time soon arrived.

Chen Fengshi saw a group of six or seven people in police uniforms coming from a distance, among whom there was only one woman. When they got closer, he could see that this policewoman had dark skin, a thin face, and an even skinnier body. Her facial features were quite pretty, but her eyes were flashing with a sharp light.

Just as Chen Fengshi guessed it was her, he saw the policewoman wave goodbye to her colleagues, and then jog over to him. She acted very familiar and directly linked her arm through his, leaving the food stall.

So they were not eating here. That place did not seem suitable for talking anyway.

Chen Fengshi remained silent as she pulled him along. She was about one meter sixty-one or sixty-two tall, and thin, yet she was a policewoman.

After they were far from Shanji Food Stall and turned a few streets, she let go of Chen Fengshi’s arm and calmly gave a slight smile. “Your Power of Life just awakened not long ago?”

“Just these past two days.” Chen Fengshi quite liked this straightforward approach.

“Then there is way too much basic knowledge you need to learn.” The thin policewoman stopped, thought for a moment, and asked him, “Come to my place for a late-night snack.”

“Thanks to your help today, and since it’s so late and you have to get off work to teach me, it’s only right that I treat you.” Chen Fengshi felt this was necessary politeness.

The policewoman was a bit surprised and said with a smile, “So you’re a little rich guy. If you confirm that paying the bill won’t hurt your heart, then of course I’m willing.”

“Even if it hurts, it’s what I should do, and what I must do.” Chen Fengshi was full of confidence. Only now did he understand a saying: when you have money in your pocket, you will be especially confident. Money gives people courage, and that is so true.

“I haven’t eaten and drank heartily outside for a long time.” The policewoman thought for a bit and chose a hotpot buffet.

Did he think he could eat his fill at a hotpot buffet? No, there was a time limit. With a single-person small pot, you could not put too much food in at once. You had to wait for it to cook before putting more in, plus the time limit, which meant that even a big eater could not gain much of an advantage.

Chen Fengshi had no experience, but seeing that single-person small pot, he felt it would be tough. But soon he realized he was wrong.

Because the policewoman directly opened a table with six seats. They each took one side, with three single pots in front of each person.

“Turning on three pots at the same time, the pace can keep up, unless you choose ingredients that are very hard to cook.” The policewoman seemed experienced. Chen Fengshi was very happy to hear this. Clearly, they were truly companions, so even though she looked thin, her appetite must be amazing.

“Gold is a category of the Power of Life, right? I wonder how many types there are in total, and what the differences are?” Chen Fengshi asked a string of questions, finally having someone who could answer them.