Chapter 25: A Sincere Apology

Well, another price hike. That’s the old man’s temperament for you; it’s never going to change. I can’t count on him for much else, but he’s certainly proactive when it comes to asking for more money.

"Fifty thousand is enough. How much more do you want? Careful not to be like the snake that tried to swallow an elephant—if you overreach, you’ll only end up hurting yourself," I said. "Just get the incense burner business sorted out over the next two days. Once everything is finished, we’ll go collect the payment."

"But Young Master Jiang, what about the fifty-fifty split you mentioned earlier...?" the old man asked with a fawning grin.

"Fifty-fifty it is. Do you think everyone is as greedy as you?" I rolled my eyes at him, annoyed. A fifty-fifty split is fine; it really makes no difference to me.

"Alrighty then! I’ll make sure to get that incense burner business done in the next two days," the old man nodded, looking excited. After a fifty-fifty split, I’d get twenty-five thousand and he’d get twenty-five thousand. For him, that was effectively a raise—ten thousand more than he’d expected!

...

After seeing the old man off, I prepared to head back to the dorm. Over the past two days, while my roommates were busy with their physical exams, I’d been wandering around outside, which earned me plenty of envy. According to Fatty Wang, one of the instructors was incredibly fierce, demanding they do squats the moment they started. During military training, it’s not the standing posture that’s the most agonizing, but the squats—a form of punishment that even some veterans find hard to endure. Fatty Wang and his training squad were forced to squat for half an hour; when they finally stood up, their legs were almost numb. Military training is indeed tough, but compared to real recruit training, it’s nothing. Still, it’s good for college students to suffer a little; it builds character. Anyway, since I wasn’t doing the training, it was easy for me to talk.

As soon as I entered the dorm, the other three guys, who had been chatting happily, immediately fell silent. Fatty Wang walked up to me and started venting, "Old Jiang, you aren't doing the training, so you don't know the misery of it! Once the training is over, you have to treat our dorm to a meal!"

Fatty Wang and the others assumed that I had some powerful family connections, which was how I’d managed to skip the training.

"No problem, I’ll treat you all to a good meal then." I didn't think much of it; a meal wouldn't be that expensive. Besides, I’d have twenty-five thousand in labor fees coming my way soon, so I was becoming someone with a little pocket money.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Just as I lay down on my bed, the dorm manager knocked and stepped in. "Which one of you is Jiang Chen? Someone is looking for you outside."

Looking for me? Could it be Liu Qingya? Why would she be looking for me at seven or eight in the evening? I couldn't be bothered to go out. "Got it, ma'am."

I climbed down from the top bunk. Sleeping on the top bunk always makes getting up and down a hassle.

"Brother Jiang, is it that girl from before?" Fatty Wang asked eagerly. "If it is, don't forget what you promised me!"

"I know, I know. Always thinking about getting a girl's WeChat, you’ve got no ambition." I put on my shoes and went downstairs.

Downstairs stood a woman with her back to me, wearing a thin jacket and a ponytail. It didn't look like Liu Qingya. A moment later, she turned around, and I realized it was the girl who had caused a scene at noon—the one who looked just like Li Yiran. She claimed to be the president of the school’s Taekwondo club.

"You’re Jiang Chen, right? What happened at noon was my fault. I apologize," the girl who looked like Li Yiran bowed slightly and said.

Such a good attitude? It was obvious she’d been chewed out by the school leadership. I was genuinely annoyed about what happened at noon.

"Is that how you apologize? Zero sincerity," I muttered.

Hearing this, the girl looked like she was about to curse. "I... then what do you think I should do for you to accept my apology and feel it’s sincere?"

"Treat me to a meal?"

"Forget that. If you treat me to a meal, I’d be worried you’d poison the food," I replied bluntly. "But I do have a question. Do you know Li Yiran?"

The girl immediately turned guarded. "How do you know Li Yiran?"

"None of your business how I know her," I said. Looking at her expression, I knew she must be related to Li Yiran—likely her younger sister.

"You..." The girl was rendered speechless by my retort.

"My name is Li Yifeng, and I am Li Yiran's sister," she said, sounding irritated.

"Got it. Let’s just leave the morning’s business as it was. Please, try to curb that spoiled princess temper of yours in the future." I left her with that and walked away. They were sisters, alright—their styles were just as overbearing.

Ignoring Li Yifeng’s reaction, I headed straight back to the dorm building. Speaking of Li Yiran, there was still something I had to handle. She had stolen the brass box Uncle Dazhuang had left behind. I had told Liu Qingya not to get involved with the brass box, to sell it if possible, and to stay out of the deeper mess. But the box was already gone, and the money had to be paid. That was twenty million! In this ancient capital, where the average housing price was fifteen thousand, that was equivalent to ten houses!

With that in mind, I opened WeChat and sent a message to Liu Qingya, asking her to meet me at the school gate at ten o'clock tomorrow morning. I had to get this sorted out quickly. If I waited too long, what would I do if they decided to deny the debt?

"Old Jiang, man, your luck with women is exploding lately! Did I just see you with another pretty girl downstairs?" As soon as I entered the dorm, I heard Fatty Wang clicking his tongue. "That girl was quite a looker, too. You, with your abundant resources, you’re always so stingy when I ask you to introduce me to a girlfriend."

Judging by Fatty Wang's tone, he must have been peeking out the window and saw me talking to Li Yifeng.

"I don't even know that person!" I said flatly.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Stop acting with us. Can’t you be a little more sincere?" Fatty Wang looked unconvinced. "It’s really a case of feast or famine these days. Some people are 'sea kings' dating several people at once, while others have been single since birth for eighteen years!"

"I’m going to sleep. Don't bother me." I lay on my bed. Feast or famine, indeed. And what was this "sea king" nonsense? Did he think I was some kind of master player? I tried to tune it all out. Three girls—Liu Qingya, Li Yiran, or the Li Yifeng sister duo—they were all incredibly beautiful, but the problem was that none of them were mine! Even Liu Qingya and I were only on friendly terms.

Sigh! Wasn't I just like that, too? Single since birth for eighteen years. To this day, I’m still a virgin who has never even been in a relationship.

"Ding!"

A WeChat notification popped up. It was from Liu Qingya, just a single character: "Okay."

I’d go see Li Yiran tomorrow and figure out how to get that money back. Twenty million is a huge sum, not two hundred. If it were just two hundred, I’d be happy to let her keep it.