Chарtеr 12: I Саn’t Еven Imаginе Нow Вlissful It Would Вe to Ве Hеr Underling
Littlе Fаttу was shосked. “Не асtuаllу аgreеd to bе уour underling?!”
“Why arе yоu so surрrisеd?” Jiаng Еr asked, рuzzled.
“Well, уоu might nоt fullу understаnd Fu Tinghаn’s persоnаlitу,” Littlе Fаtty еxplainеd. “Wе’vе bееn classmatеs sinсе middle sсhoоl. He’s аlwауs kеpt to himsеlf—quiеt on the surfаce but рrоud tо thе bonе.”
“Dоn’t be fooled by how he аlwaуs sееms tо bе eхcluded,” he сontinuеd. “Thе truth is, he сan’t be bothered to deal with us. He looks down on hanging out with us.”
Jiang Er frowned, her expression turning serious. “Even so, you shouldn’t exclude him.”
“Besides, how do you know he isn’t deliberately putting on that act?” she went on, analyzing the situation. “He can be just like anyone else when he wears his hearing aid, but you all always make a big deal about his ears. In that kind of situation, maybe he acts aloof and isolates himself from you on purpose to protect his self-respect.”
Little Fatty had never considered this perspective and was momentarily speechless, a flicker of guilt crossing his face.
Suddenly, a large, imposing group of people approached from a distance, their aggressive demeanor standing out starkly amidst the cheerful, bustling crowd of students leaving school.
As soon as Jiang Er recognized the person leading the group, her expression changed.
She was about to warn Little Fatty, but when she turned to look, the spot beside her was empty.
—Little Fatty had bolted ages ago, leaving her with nothing but the sight of his back as he desperately sprinted away into the sunset.
It had a certain cinematic, coming-of-age vibe.
Jiang Er gritted her teeth, carefully counted the number of people in the opposing group, and—adhering to a whole basket of principles like “outnumbered means better to avoid trouble,” “discretion is the better part of valor,” and “when in doubt, run”—she took off.
After all, a 1v1 is a turn-based battle.
A 1vN is just asking for death.
“Boss, what’s wrong?”
At the other end of the tree-lined path, Underling No. 1 noticed Lin Ling repeatedly glancing in a certain direction and curiously followed his gaze.
All he saw were people, more people, and even more people.
Hmm, nothing out of the ordinary.
Lin Ling withdrew his gaze. “It’s nothing. Must’ve been my eyes playing tricks on me.”
He pressed his tongue against his cheek and asked instead, “That girl is really from Class Six?”
“Yes, yes, yes! It’s all over the forums,” Underling No. 1 said obsequiously. “They say she just transferred from Xinghai not long ago, so she’s a new face.”
“Xinghai?” Lin Ling’s brow lifted slightly. “Seems she’s a young lady from a wealthy family.”
“Right? And she has such a good personality—polite and generous to everyone,” Underling No. 1 said, his face full of envy. “I can’t even imagine how blissful it would be to be her underling.”
Lin Ling: “…”
“Am I not polite? Do I ever let you go hungry?” he fumed, kicking out at him. “So eager to switch sides, huh?”
Underling No. 1 whined pitifully, “Boss, I was just expressing admiration. I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“Hmph, you’d better not have,” Lin Ling sneered.
Underling No. 1 didn’t dare say another word.
“Jiang Er, huh?” Lin Ling’s smile vanished as he narrowed his eyes menacingly. “To think she’d dare oppose me for the sake of that deaf guy Fu Tinghan. She must have a death wish.”
Underling No. 2 timidly raised his hand. “Boss, I think the saying is ‘the courage of a leopard.’”
Lin Ling: “…”
“Oh, so you’re the learned one now, huh? Whatever the boss says it is, that’s what it is!” Underling No. 3 glared at him. “Keep running your mouth and we’ll see about your courage!”
Underling No. 2 meekly lowered his hand.
Suddenly, Lin Ling cleared his throat and asked somewhat awkwardly, “Is Wen Xiyue still in class?””Don’t worry, boss, I’ve got it all figured out. It’s her turn to do cleaning duty today, so she’s definitely still in Classroom Three right now.” Second Sidekick hurriedly fawned.
Lin Ling was clearly quite satisfied, nodding, “Good.”
After a pause, he asked somewhat awkwardly, “How do I look?”
“Look how?” Second Sidekick looked utterly confused.
Just as Lin Ling raised his hand, Third Sidekick reacted lightning-fast, immediately slapping the back of Second Sidekick’s head on his behalf.
“You idiot,” he cursed, “The boss is asking you how he looks today, if he’s handsome or not!”
Second Sidekick suddenly understood, hurriedly giving a thumbs-up and uttering a crisp, loud word:
“Handsome!”
“…”
Lin Ling silently lowered the hand he had intended to use to fix his hair.
He dusted off his clothes with an air of nonchalance, like a peacock spreading its tail feathers, “Then let’s go.”
“Let’s go!”
Everyone cheered.
“Off to help the school belle with cleaning duty!”
“Later, no one is allowed to embarrass themselves in front of the school belle!”
“Everyone keep your eyes wide open, make sure Classroom Three is cleaned so thoroughly not a single sunflower seed shell remains!”
“Eh? Do those good students in Class Three also love snacking on sunflower seeds like our class?”
“I’m back.”
As soon as she entered the door, a tempting aroma immediately wafted over. Jiang Er sniffed hard, her eyes lighting up, “Did Aunt Sun make sweet and sour pork today?”
“What a sharp nose.”
Jiang’s Mother walked out holding a cup of warm water, smiling as she looked at her, “Look how hot you are, come have some water before washing your hands and eating.”
Jiang Er quickly threw down her backpack, stepped forward to take the cup, and drank it all in one go.
A few drops of water spilled from the corner of her mouth, sliding down her chin toward her neck. She wiped them away carelessly with the back of her hand.
“You, always like this since you were little, like a leaky kettle.” Jiang’s Mother sighed helplessly, “Every time you drink water, some always spills out, it’s not very graceful.”
Jiang Er grinned cheekily, “How could your own daughter not be graceful?”
“Such a smooth talker.” Jiang’s Mother pinched the tip of her nose, smiling with curved eyes, “Go wash your hands and eat now, you’ve lost weight after being sick.”
Lost weight?
Jiang Er patted her little belly, falling into thought.
Jiang Jue walked over holding Laifu, saying sarcastically, “Don’t think about it, it’s just an illusion.”
Jiang Er: “…”
“Sometimes, not speaking won’t make people think you’re mute.” She snatched Laifu away, acting aloof and elegant, “Don’t touch my baby with your pig trotters.”
Jiang Jue: “QAQ But I only just held him for a little while.”
“If you want to hold one, go raise your own.” Jiang Er ignored his wails, playing with the cat on her own.
Jiang Jue immediately clung to his mother, “I want a pet too! I want a dog, a big dog!”
Jiang’s Mother rubbed her temples, but before she could speak, Jiang Er burst out laughing:
“Don’t we already have a dog at home? Even if it’s a skinny dog, it still counts as a canine.”
Jiang Jue: “Where? I don’t see it.”
Jiang Er handed him a mirror: “Here, right here.”
Looking at himself in the mirror, Jiang Jue fell silent.
Jiang’s Mother turned around skillfully, closing the kitchen door just before the chaos erupted.
Soon, howls erupted outside the door.
Aunt Sun smilingly brought over a cup of hot coffee, completely ignoring the noise, “Madam.”
Jiang’s Mother took it, sighing, “It’s not good for children to be too lively either.””Not at all, it’s good to be lively.” Aunt Sun sighed. “Before, seeing the young lady like that was heartbreaking. Such a good child, how could she forget how to smile…”
Jiang’s Mother paused while drinking her coffee, her eyes slightly reddening as if she had thought of something.
Aunt Sun quickly comforted her, “But isn’t everything better now? Transferring schools was really the right decision. I can see the young lady has become much more spirited.”
Jiang’s Mother forced a smile. “It’s about time, let’s have dinner.”
“Alright.”
At midnight, the convenience store shift change was complete.
Fu Tinghan put on a black baseball cap, slung his backpack casually over his left shoulder, picked up the white plastic bag on the table, pushed open the glass door, and turned left.
Under the dim streetlights, his pace was neither fast nor slow. A solitary shadow stretched long on the ground.
Like a withered tree.
Forty-one minutes later, he entered a deep alley.
At the end of the alley stood a five-story old residential building. Most of its residents were already asleep, but from a few lit windows came the sounds of fierce arguments, accompanied by the crashing of pots and pans and the loud cries of children.
In the dark night, it was particularly jarring.
Fu Tinghan didn’t even flinch. He skillfully removed his hearing aid, and the world fell silent once more.
The motion-sensor light in the stairwell flickered on and off. He climbed the stairs as usual until he reached a dark green iron door on the fifth floor.
Just as he was about to take out his key to unlock the door, a piece of white paper drifted down from the peeling, mottled wall beside him, landing right at his feet.
He bent down to pick it up. Four large characters caught his eye—
【Rent Overdue】
Fu Tinghan didn’t bother reading the rest. He crumpled the paper into a ball and stuffed it into the side pocket of his backpack.
He opened the door and entered, fumbling in the dark for the light switch. With a click, the room suddenly brightened.
The rental apartment was a typical two-bedroom, one-living-room layout. Both bedroom doors were tightly shut. The small living room contained only a slightly uneven wooden dining table and a few chairs.
—One leg of the table was three inches shorter, propped up by two old magazines.
Fu Tinghan placed the plastic bag on the table, put his hearing aid back on, and quietly began cleaning the house.
After mopping the floor one last time, he took out two sandwiches and rice balls from the plastic bag—items that would be considered expired after midnight. He hesitated for a moment, then decided not to eat them. Instead, he turned and placed them in the small refrigerator in the kitchen.
The refrigerator was bought from a secondhand market and didn’t cool very well, but in the sweltering summer heat, it was better than nothing.
As he opened the refrigerator door, a faint chill brushed against his face, barely dispelling a hint of the summer heat.
Fu Tinghan didn’t linger in the cool air and quickly closed the door.
Footsteps sounded behind him.