Said He WAs Stupid, and He Still Won’t Admit It
Su Jingyang didn’t expect that helping Ah Yuan apply some ointment would unexpectedly earn him a small wave of energy. It was far too little, though. He looked at the progress bar and it hadn’t moved at all.
Su Jingyang sat in his spot, utterly dejected, and let out a long sigh.
He lifted his hand and stared blankly at that red mole that still hadn’t changed. The contradictory feeling in his heart only grew deeper.
Change was bad, because he didn’t want to have a kid. No change was also bad, because before the energy collection filled up, he would have to keep doing it with that man whose face he hadn’t even seen, whose looks were a mystery, until the end of time. The system wouldn’t let him off.
He and that man were basically two puppets being controlled. The system’s resentment was forcing them together. Su Jingyang thought about how the five-day deadline was coming up again soon. He had already grown numb, yet he still felt exhausted, and he still felt it was absurd. He truly didn’t want to continue, but what choice did he have?
Was he supposed to be like last time, coughing up blood to force his way out? Or hurt his own body to avoid it?
The thought flashed by and Su Jingyang rejected it himself. Leaving aside how stupid self-harm was, even if he could escape a few times, the system definitely wouldn’t let it go. If he enraged it, who knew what utterly deranged thing it would do next. It was better not to take that risk.
Su Jingyang leaned back against the chair and closed his eyes. The thought of setting out for Jincheng became increasingly strong in his mind. Only by going to find the protagonist of this story and collecting energy would he have the most foolproof way to fight the system!
Of course, he still had to stay for a while longer and make sure Lin’s Small Eatery got on track first. Only then could he leave with peace of mind.
At dusk, a carriage suddenly stopped outside the bookshop. Liang Lu leaned out from inside and called Su Jingyang’s name. Su Jingyang stood and went out. Liang Lu studied his face, saw that he seemed to have already applied medicine, and felt a little more at ease. “What did the physician say? Your face is fine, right?”
“It’s fine,” Su Jingyang replied casually. Curiosity immediately filled his face as he asked, “That old woman, how did the yamen handle her?”
“Her?” Liang Lu let out a cold laugh before he said, “I told her to pay, and she bit down hard insisting she has no money. Lock her up for ten days or half a month first and see whether those old bones can hold out. She dared offend me without even asking who I am.”
Su Jingyang nodded and didn’t speak.
Seeing Su Jingyang look deep in thought, Liang Lu paused before he said, “Jingyang, you’re not soft-hearted and wanting me to let her go, are you? Yes she’s old, but she’s a shameless old scoundrel. Not only did she wreck my shop, but she also scratched up your face like this. Even if you’re soft-hearted, I won’t let her off. Otherwise where would I put my face?”
“Why let her off? Don’t let her off. She tore up so many books. She should be made to pay,” Su Jingyang said. Su Jingyang obviously wasn’t going to be soft-hearted. He just couldn’t help sighing that no matter ancient or modern, anywhere in the world, having connections really did make things easier. If Liang Lu hadn’t been there today, it probably wouldn’t have been solved so cleanly.
Su Jingyang sincerely thanked Liang Lu. Liang Lu waved a hand and let out an “Ah.” “Alright. Don’t say thanks between you and me anymore. Get on. I’ll take you home.”
Su Jingyang didn’t agree, saying it was fine for him to go back himself.
Liang Lu lifted his gaze and looked at him deeply. A moment later, he let out a soft laugh. “Afraid I’ll learn where you live and go harass you, or is there some secret you don’t want me to find?”
Su Jingyang answered with a straight face, “Both.”
“Fine, fine, fine.” Liang Lu sounded helpless as he changed his words. “I’m not specially sending you. I happen to need to go home too, and it’s on the way, so I’ll give you a ride. That alright?”
Su Jingyang thought about it and didn’t refuse again. He caught a free ride. The two of them rode in the same carriage. On the way, while chatting, Liang Lu suddenly said, “Jingyang, if you have any difficulties later, you can still come to me. I promise I’ll help you solve them. For example, when it comes to hiring help…”
Hiring help? Su Jingyang’s body swayed gently with the carriage. He looked at the inscrutable smile at Liang Lu’s lips, and a strange feeling abruptly rose in his heart.
Su Jingyang had told Liang Lu before that since the shop would be small, he planned to be the manager himself, and the cook was already hired, so he didn’t need anyone else for now.
Ah Xuan though, really did need a reliable person to help watch over him. Su Jingyang had never mentioned that to Liang Lu.
Liang Lu suddenly saying that line now, did he know something?
The more Su Jingyang thought about it, the more likely it seemed. After all, even though this guy usually looked like a frivolous, grinning, unreliable sort, he was actually extremely smart. It wouldn’t be surprising if he’d discovered Su Jingyang and Ling Li lived together…
Su Jingyang had a rough sense of it and didn’t ask him anything directly. Just then, the carriage stopped by a tea stall at a fork in the road, and Su Jingyang got down.
Liang Lu lifted the carriage curtain with the fan handle, revealing his face, and said to Su Jingyang, “Tomorrow, bring your identity plaque and go straight to your Lin’s Small Eatery to meet.”
“Alright.” Su Jingyang nodded. Liang Lu smiled at him, then lowered the curtain and had the driver head off in the other direction.
Su Jingyang turned and walked home, thinking about how to explain the injury on his face to Ling Li. A sense of alertness struck him. Footsteps had been following him closely from behind, as if they had started from the tea stall.
Su Jingyang’s body tensed. He abruptly turned back to look and was shocked to find that the person five steps behind him was Ah Yi.
Ah Yi seemed to have been watching him the whole time. The moment Su Jingyang turned around, their gazes met.
Ah Yi’s ink-dark eyes flickered slightly. He didn’t speak, expression cold.
Su Jingyang didn’t speak either. He frowned and turned his head back, puzzling over how it could be this coincidental that he would run into him twice in one day. He quickly realized it was the road home. Ah Yi lived next door, so of course it was normal to run into him.
Even though Ah Yi had helped him today, Su Jingyang still instinctively wanted to keep his distance from this guy. He didn’t want to get cursed at for no reason.
With that thought, Su Jingyang’s steps unconsciously sped up. He was walking quickly while sneaking glances behind him, and his foot slid on something. With no warning at all, he fell hard.
Su Jingyang quickly got up, dusting off his clothes. He realized he stepped on a piece of melon rind someone had tossed in the middle of the road. He ground his teeth and cursed that whoever did it had no manners, then kicked the rind into a corner by the wall.
Ah Yi’s long legs brought him right to Su Jingyang’s side. He stopped and turned his head slightly. His voice was cool and faintly eerie. “Someone gave you a ride and you got this excited? If he sent you all the way home, you wouls be so thrilled you wouldn’t sleep for ten days or half a month, right?”
Only then did Su Jingyang understand. Liang Lu sending him back had been seen again.
Su Jingyang glared, lifted his chin, and snapped, “It is that exciting! I am so thrilled I can’t sleep! What’s it to you!”
“It really has nothing to do with me.” Ah Yi shot him a cold glance, then withdrew his gaze and stared forward without speaking again.
Su Jingyang stood there for a moment, shot him a chilly sideways look, and then charged forward in a sullen rush, acting like whoever walked in front would win.
He’d already rushed ahead some distance when Ah Yi suddenly spoke. “Wait…”
Wait my ass. Su Jingyang didn’t even turn his head.
Ah Yi seemed to have followed and called again, “Su Jingyang…”
Su Jingyang paid him no mind, quickening his pace and continuing to run forward.
He reached home quickly. Su Jingyang hurried to open the courtyard gate. Before going in, his gaze still darted aside, and he saw that Ah Yi had also reached next door. While pushing his door open, Ah Yi even cast a half-smiling glance this way before he went inside.
Tsk! Little brat. Acting all profound and mysterious!
When Su Jingyang walked into the courtyard, Ling Li was tidying up woven baskets. Hearing movement, he looked back. When he saw the long red scratches on Su Jingyang’s face, he was startled. He hurriedly wiped his hands and stood to go over.
Su Jingyang didn’t want him worrying, so he quickly explained that someone had accidentally done it. Ling Li frowned and fell silent for a moment, clearly not believing it, but he didn’t press further.
Before bed that night, Ling Li carefully applied ointment to Su Jingyang’s face again. Ling Li had just put the medicine bottle away when he turned around and saw Su Jingyang, butt sticking up, rummaging frantically through the pile of clothes he had just taken off on the bed. Ling Li leaned in and asked what was wrong. Su Jingyang shook out all the clothes. After confirming it wasn’t there, he said, “My identity plaque is gone!”
He needed it to sign the agreement tomorrow. If it was lost, what would he do? If he had to reissue it, he would have to wait months again.
Su Jingyang put his clothes back on, planning to go out to search. Ling Li wanted to go with him, but he couldn’t leave Ah Xuan unattended.
Ling Li lit a rabbit lantern A small handheld lantern shaped like a rabbit, commonly bought at or left over from festival nights. I am thinking, maybe similar to these? Hehe for Su Jingyang. It was something he picked up on the street after a lantern festival one year, for Ah Xuan to play with.
Wearing a robe, Ling Li walked Su Jingyang to the courtyard gate, still uneasy. “It’s pitch-black out. Are you really alright going alone? Wait until morning. I’ll go with you to look.”
“It should be nearby.” Su Jingyang’s hair hung loose as he carried the rabbit lantern glowing warmly. He spoke gently to Ling Li. “Go back in first. I’ll check where I think it is. If I can’t find it, I’ll come back.”
Ling Li still didn’t go in. He stood at the gate watching him leave, not turning away until Su Jingyang’s figure melted into the darkness and became completely indistinct. Only then did he silently let out a sigh and lightly close the door.
Ling Li turned around and saw a shadowy figure in the courtyard. He jolted, his face turning white. “Who?!”
“It’s me.” A tall, black-clad figure approached. The voice was clear and familiar. Ling Li recognized it as Ah Yi, yet his heart still held a few traces of unsettled suspicion. He didn’t know how Ah Yi had suddenly appeared in the courtyard.
Ah Yi walked up to Ling Li. Under the moonlight, his striking features looked a little blurred and indistinct. Ling Li saw him glance around. Ling Li hesitated and asked, “You…”
“I think I heard you talking about going out. Going where? Where’s Su Jingyang?”
Ling Li froze at the phrase “heard you talking” before he answered, “He lost his identity plaque and went out to look for it.”
“He went out at a time like this?!” Ah Yi’s breathing sank sharply, like he was speechless. He gritted his teeth and said, “Going out in the middle of the night to look for an identity plaque? Is something wrong with his head? Does he need it urgently?”
“He said it might have fallen nearby, so…”
“I said he was stupid and he still won’t admit it.” Ah Yi gave a cold laugh and held out a rectangular copper plaque to Ling Li. Ling Li took it and froze. The light was poor, but he could still vaguely see the character “Su” engraved on it.
This should be Su Jingyang’s identity plaque. How could it be in this person’s hand?
Ling Li had no time to think further. He clenched it tightly, ready to go call Su Jingyang back. Ah Yi stopped him. “Stay home and watch Ah Xuan. I’ll go.”
He didn’t wait for any response from Ling Li. He strode out with forceful steps.
Ah Yi used qinggong and reached the spot where Su Jingyang had fallen during the day in no time. He had picked up Su Jingyang’s identity plaque back then. It had probably slipped out when he fell.
He called out to Su Jingyang then wanting to give him the item, but that ungrateful idiot had run off like his soles were smeared with oil, head down and faster than anyone.
“That stupid thing, where did he run off to search?” Ah Yi was a martial artist, and his night vision was far better than an ordinary person’s. He searched around, yet he didn’t see even a shadow of Su Jingyang. His brows knitted tightly, and an indescribable restlessness and stifling irritation rose in his chest.
Nothing could have happened to him at this late hour, could it?
Was that guy’s brain made of wood? Couldn’t he guess the plaque had been picked up by someone? He was stubborn too, foul-tempered too, single-minded too. If he wanted to search, couldn’t he wait until dawn? He just had to run out in the dead of night.
The longer Ah Yi searched, the more irritable he became. The more he searched, the heavier the viciousness in his heart grew. He even climbed over several households’ walls to check whether there was any abnormal movement.
In the end, at the mouth of an alley, he found a big, burly drunkard. The drunkard was slumped against the wall, clutching tightly to a sky-blue outer robe in his arms. It was the one Su Jingyang had been wearing during the day, the once-neat clothing now crumpled into a mess.
Ah Yi’s mind blew up with a loud boom the moment he saw that scene. His gaze turned vicious. He lifted a foot and kicked the drunkard, voice heavy and cold enough to pierce bone. “Where is the owner of this robe?!”
The drunkard let out a painful groan, but he was so drunk he couldn’t even open his eyes.
Ah Yi was in a foul mood and kicked him again. This time, he didn’t hold back. The drunkard went straight from unconscious sleep into full fainting. Blood even seeped from the corner of his mouth, and his body toppled limply to the ground.
Ah Yi’s eyes swept the area, cold and heavy. There still wasn’t any trace of Su Jingyang. His fists clenched tight and ground his teeth. His breathing growing heavier.
It felt like something was being pressed hard against his chest, about to crush him until it burst. Where the hell did he run off to??
Ah Yi finally found Su Jingyang by a small lake. Su Jingyang had his upper body bare and was washing clothes with a loud splashing sound, cursing under his breath about something. Under the hazy moonlight, his short black hair fell over his shoulders. His pale, thin back lay softened by the moonlight. A rabbit lantern sat beside him, its flame already extinguished.
Ah Yi’s mouth was drawn tight. His gaze was so dark it was frightening. He stood there and stared at Su Jingyang’s back, teeth clenched. Seeing that stupid scene made him furious. He had been searching for him for so long, anxious and unsettled, and this idiot was here, leisurely scrubbing clothes.
Su Jingyang had no idea and kept washing the clothes that had been dirtied by vomit. He had come out and searched around the spot where he fell during the day. He couldn’t find it, so he’d been about to go home.
His luck was terrible, though. He ran into a drunkard who chased him relentlessly, trying to harass him. That guy was tall, big, and freakishly strong. Su Jingyang got his clothes snatched, got his ass grabbed, and then got vomited on all over.
This inner garment had been made by Ling Li. Su Jingyang couldn’t bear to throw it away. Taking it back home like this though, he was afraid the whole house would stink. He searched around and found this small lakeside, planning to wash it clean before returning.
He was shivering from the cold while washing. He also felt disgusted that the drunkard had groped him, so disgusted that he wished he could wash his ass too.
He gave up on that only because he was too cold. The feeling still made his skin crawl. F*ck. Su Jingyang’s nose practically twisted with anger. Ever since he came to this world, why did he keep running into this kind of garbage situation?
After he finished washing, Su Jingyang hugged the wet clothes to his chest. With one hand, he picked up the rabbit lantern and stood, wanting to rush home and dive into a warm bed.
He turned around and saw the black-clad youth standing behind him. The youth’s face was usually pale-skinned with red lips and strikingly handsome. Now it held a cold, ominous gloom that felt like it could swallow people alive. He pressed his lips together, staring at Su Jingyang without a word.
Paired with the icy lake air spilling all around in the dead of night, it was like a vengeful ghost appearing out of nowhere. Su Jingyang jolted so hard he shuddered from head to toe, his soul nearly flew away. Several “F*ck!” slipped out in a row. When he realized it was Ah Yi, his eyes flew wide and he yelled, “You you you you you, why are you here???!!!”
Author’s Note:
Warning, nonstop chatter ahead!!!
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So, so… I actually already said this once in the previous story, but I’ll still post it here again early, just in case. I don’t like being pushed about the plot. I really, really hate being pushed about the plot. It doesn’t matter whether your tone is good or bad. The moment someone pushes the plot, my scalp tightens up!
When you read, maybe you’re here for a certain hook, or a certain scene, but what I’m writing is a novel. It needs to be completed over more than a hundred thousand words. It isn’t a few thousand words of an outline, or a few hundred words of a hook. I also can’t preview or spoil things in advance. Pushing me won’t help. I’ll still write how I’m going to write.
So I’m sincerely posting this again: If you feel like I never write the scenes you want to see, if you feel like I’m deliberately dragging it out, padding it with filler, always writing irrelevant things, or you have any dissatisfaction or dislike toward the plot at all, then hurry up and drop the story to stay safe. Cut your losses in time. Don’t waste your energy. I mean it.
After all, even though the author is a huge trash heap, and my ability really is extremely, extremely, extremely limited, I still have to write according to my own rhythm and outline. Even if that rhythm is kind of a mess, and the outline is kind of scattered, at least it’s within the range I can control. If things really changed easily just because of comment trends, that’s when it would collapse into sh*t.
So when you have any dissatisfaction with how this story develops, don’t force it. Please don’t force yourself to keep reading. Continuing might just make you even more irritable. Reading should be fun. If it isn’t fun, quietly drop it. You’re good, I’m good, everyone’s good. The world becomes peaceful~
Posting this before VIP is probably a bit suicidal, but I really don’t want to end up like the previous story, where I would slack off and type a few lines in the day, then go home at night and after eating and showering, I would sit down and write until eleven or twelve, only to have people say I was padding, scamming money, scamming word count, saying the plot collapsed, saying my pacing was chaotic because they didn’t see the scenes they wanted. That feeling was truly too~~~ sour =_= I can only say that everything I’m presenting now is already my best effort.
I know a lot of people don’t read author’s notes. Even after I write this, there might still be people pushing. I also don’t like always rambling in huge chunks in the author’s notes, so I’ll say it this once… If it happens again later, I’ll just pretend I didn’t see it.
Same line as always: If you want to push, push for updates, not plot. ￣▽￣
Of course, most importantly, if you drop the story, you really, really, really, really, really don’t need to spend extra time coming to notify me. Thanks, everyone!!!!!!^^
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