…
Tang Xin was the procurement manager at Xingge Hotel, something Chu Tianshu naturally knew.
This made him even less inclined to cooperate with Xingge.
It definitely wasn’t because Tang Xin disliked him.
Putting himself in her shoes—if his buddy’s wife didn’t act like someone building a life together, constantly wandering outside with someone else in her heart… he’d definitely advise divorce too.
He could only blame his own past foolishness. Tang Xin had always been good to Jiang Furong, treating her like a real sister.
His reluctance to cooperate stemmed from three reasons. First, he genuinely didn’t want to interact with Tang Xin—the woman talked too much. Unlike Zhou Sai’s straightforwardness that made interactions effortless.
Second, Xingge Hotel wasn’t particularly impressive—a barely four-star establishment in a town, hardly a premium distributor. Though their chef Old Deng truly had remarkable skills.
Third, encountering such a massive wild fish was pure luck. How could he guarantee regular supply to anyone?
Finally, fishing was too labor-intensive.
He needed to find a simpler, more direct approach.
His current consideration of selling ready-caught fish stemmed from immediate financial need.
He estimated some short-growth-cycle crops would mature tomorrow, providing alternative income.
The river’s large fish were exceptionally high-quality, having reached such size through rare circumstances. He wasn’t in a hurry to mass-sell them. Eventually, he could catch some for sale in district or city markets where prices would be higher.
Chu Tianshu politely declined Zhou Sai’s inquiry: “Wild fish depend entirely on luck—encountering them is unpredictable. How could I guarantee stable supply?”
Zhou Sai relayed this to Tang Xin.
The outcome was expected.
Tang Xin sighed but didn’t give up: “It doesn’t have to be such large ones. Even quality farmed fish would suffice.”
Zhou Sai conveyed the message again.
After some thought, Chu Tianshu responded: “Maybe later. If we have supply, I’ll definitely contact you.”
Fish farming was indeed feasible.
There was a section of Ring River—wide, under two meters deep, forming a river bend quite suitable for aquaculture.
But having just started farming, he had countless matters to handle systematically, one thing at a time!
Zhou Sai’s group finished the entire large fish, everyone still craving more.
Having tasted such a fish today became life’s great regret—because they might never experience such top-notch cuisine again!
Zhou Sai lamented: “After eating this fish today, I won’t be able to eat anything tomorrow or the day after. Old Deng, why don’t you come home with me?”
This wasn’t his first attempt at poaching staff.
Most of Xingge’s regular customers came specifically for Old Deng.
Tang Xin grew anxious: “Manager Zhou, you can’t take our lifeline! Keeping a chef at home leads to weight gain—soon you’ll have three high indicators requiring dietary restrictions, unable to eat anything!”Old Deng, earnest and simple in appearance, merely chuckled honestly at this, his face radiating steadiness.”
…
At the Tang residence.
Chu Tianshu originally wanted to spend more time with his wife and children.
Unexpectedly, barely half an hour after dinner, Jiang Furong started shooing him away: “I still have work. If you have nothing else, go rest. Stop lingering around outside.”
Chu Tianshu protested: “I do have matters! I—I miss my wife and children!”
Jiang Furong ignored him.
Li Fengzhen chuckled softly, saying leisurely: “Go back. I’ll look after the children. You should spend more time with your mother.”
“…” Chu Tianshu had no rebuttal.
Old Lady Li genuinely adored his two children—otherwise, why would someone unrelated provide years of childcare?
But this elderly lady loved playing mahjong, and whenever Chu Tianshu thought about his past life experiences along with the frequent social news reports, he couldn’t help feeling secretly worried.
He couldn’t resist mentioning: “Aunt Zhen has indeed worked hard, sacrificing so much mahjong time to take care of the children. That leaves absolutely no opportunity for child traffickers!”
Li Fengzhen waved her hand: “Of course not. I can still distinguish priorities – mahjong is just entertainment.”
Seeing how clear-headed the elderly lady was, Chu Tianshu felt somewhat relieved: “Good, I’ll come see you all tomorrow and bring some groceries along.”
“Oh, there’s no need…”
“Alright, you should hurry up and leave now.”
“Bye bye daddy! I want to eat, eat little…”
Amidst the jumble of voices, Chu Tianshu was pushed outside by his wife, and the Tang family’s door slammed shut with a bang.
Li Fengzhen chuckled and picked up a comic book.
Xiuxiu hugged the Tang family’s white cat while Lingling held her Mecha Warrior, both ready to listen to a story.
“Finally he’s gone.”
Jiang Furong quickly took out her unfinished knitting from daytime – she’d have to work overtime tonight too.
She was clever and deft, knitting quickly and beautifully. Having developed this habit over the years, she’d knit various items whenever she had free time.
She had also opened a small online shop for handmade crafts. After several years of operation, she had managed to build a small base of regular customers. During good months, she could earn several thousand yuan.
Though it couldn’t compare to Chu Tianshu’s income, she persisted. At least if they really divorced, she’d have her own career and wouldn’t be left destitute.
Moreover, watching various colored yarns transform under her hands into flowers, cartoon characters, patchwork blankets, small bags, hats and other beautiful objects filled her with satisfaction.
Being clever and inventive, she’d stop making any particular flower pattern once she saw others selling it frequently. Even for the same type of flower, she’d create different designs. This allowed her to charge slightly higher prices.
These knitted items ranged from forty to fifty yuan for cheaper pieces to three or four hundred for more expensive ones. Anything priced higher would require too much time for larger pieces that were harder to sell, so she preferred making smaller items.
While cooking, she’d occasionally film videos, edit them herself, and post them on various media platforms. With good luck, these could bring in some additional monthly income.
Payments from her online shop only reached her account after customers confirmed receipt;
Video earnings were withdrawn at fixed times each month.
In a few more days, she could make another withdrawal.
Jiang Furong calculated that this month’s total after-tax income, combined with her previous savings, would push her little treasury past one hundred thousand yuan.
The accumulated money all came from the living expenses Chu Tianshu gave her. Though he was often away from home, he never shortchanged them for food, clothing, or daily necessities.
Now Jiang Furong was wrestling with whether to transfer this hundred thousand to Chu Tianshu.
What if he hadn’t truly reformed and was just putting on an act? Then the money would be like meat buns thrown to a dog – gone forever, leaving her and their two children in difficult circumstances.
After both children started kindergarten, they’d truly become money-consuming machines.
But currently, he had debts outside, probably quite substantial ones…
The thought of his debts made her feel suffocated, as if a heavy stone were pressing on her chest.
“Sigh… Why do I always worry about him? So annoying, can’t I just stop thinking about it?”
Jiang Furong’s heart was tangled like a ball of yarn clawed apart by a cat, completely chaotic.
…
Chu Tianshu stood outside the Tang residence for a while before finally leaving.
Looking in the mirror, he noticed his hair had grown somewhat long.
After some thought, he went for a haircut.
As someone busy earning money, he simply got a buzz cut to avoid spending too much time on maintenance.
With a new hairstyle, he looked much more energetic, appearing even more sunny and handsome.
Chu Tianshu took the opportunity to buy a new phone and SIM card.
His old WeChat account had contacts like Shen Miaoyan and others—it was no longer clean, so he wouldn’t use it much from now on.
He wanted to make a completely fresh start.
Chu Tianshu sent his new WeChat ID and phone number to a few reliable people.
Just as he was about to send the new number to his wife, he chuckled softly and held back.