CHAPTER 28: CHAPTER 27: SUMMER VACATION BEGINS

The school was a decent choice, Zhou Li thought. His scores were definitely good enough for a 211 university, and when considering the province he wanted to go to, there weren’t many options.

After browsing majors for a while, he went out with Zhu Shuang for breakfast. Zhou Li thought to himself, Since there’s nothing else to do, I might as well go for a morning run along the Jiuqu River.

The riverside had a small path running alongside it, specifically for people to take strolls. In the evenings, the railings would light up with colorful lights. In the mornings, however, it mostly attracted elderly men listening to music and women walking their dogs; young people were rarely seen. They weren’t in any hurry, leisurely enjoying the morning’s dampness and coolness, the crisp chirping of birds, and watching the city awaken in the dawn light.

Zhou Li suddenly felt that the world at this time of day was quite different from other times.

He whooshed past these people. Sometimes, pet dogs would try to play with him, chasing for a few steps before being pulled back by their leashes. They could only bark twice as they watched Zhou Li disappear into the distance.

Above was the highway, noisy with the sound of cars.

Zhou Li ran for about ten kilometers, which took him an hour. Perhaps because his pace wasn’t very fast, he wasn’t tired at all, just a little sweaty. After all, a small path is no match for a proper track.

Zhou Li returned home and pushed open his bedroom door. Immediately, he heard a song coming from the top bunk—

"I’m afraid I’ll never have the chance..."

"To say goodbye to you..."

It was the song from last night. He was surprised Huai Xu had learned it so quickly.

"You’re up early," Zhou Li said, closing the room door.

"Yes!" Huai Xu rolled over, staring at Zhou Li. He had returned to his original form—a boy.

"Was it fun last night?" Zhou Li sat down at his small desk, removed his headphones, and tossed them onto it. His ID card and wallet were already lying there.

"It was fun!" Huai Xu was still excited recalling last night’s experience. But then, his eyelids suddenly drooped, and he looked at the ground. "It’s just a pity they don’t recognize me, and they won’t know it was me playing with them. This experience feels like it belongs neither to you nor to me... Oh, your deskmate is quite interesting and good-looking too. I wish I were human."

"Did you pay for the barbecue last night?"

"No, your deskmate paid for the all-nighter too."

"Oh."

So Zhou Li took out his phone and texted Brother Nan, "How much was last night’s gaming and the late-night snacks?"

Brother Nan did not reply.

Zhou Li sensed Huai Xu approaching. When he turned his head, Huai Xu was standing right behind him, bent over and looking at his phone screen, very close.

Huai Xu quickly straightened up, asking, "How much?"

"She’s probably catching up on sleep," Zhou Li replied.

"Oh, then let me know when she replies," Huai Xu said.

"What for?" Zhou Li turned off his phone screen. "You don’t have any money anyway."

"What do you mean I don’t have money? There’s money everywhere."

"Stealing is not good."

"If no one sees, it’s like it wasn’t stolen."

"That’s still not good."

"So what do I do? I can’t go work." Huai Xu didn’t want to steal. "When I used to go play games, I stole those coins too."

"It’s not a lot of money, don’t fuss over it."

"How can that be okay!"

"...It can be okay." You defend stealing so brazenly, yet you fuss over these details, Zhou Li mused.

"I already feel quite guilty freeloading off you for food and sleep," Huai Xu said, looking distressed. He thought for a moment, then added, "Well, you want to learn about those Heavenly Masters, right? In a few days, I’ll go around and ask if any Demons know about them. If someone knows where to find a Heavenly Master, I’ll take you there and make sure they teach you."

"You still remember that."

"Of course! Are you still interested in learning martial arts? My skills are pretty good. For someone like you, who’s inherently extraordinary, if I casually teach you a bit, you’ll be able to take down ten Li Daimaos."

"Oh."

At that moment, Zhou Li heard a knock at the door. He got up quickly to answer it.

Aunt Jiang stood at the door, hands full of groceries, smiling at him. "Oh, you’re home! I thought you hadn’t come back yet..."

"Why did you buy so much?" Zhou Li quickly went to help.

"I bought a bit more; I’m too lazy to go out every day. Since you’ve finished your exams, we go through food pretty fast. How about I make you braised rabbit for lunch?" Aunt Jiang bent over to take off her shoes. "You must be bored at home now that your exams are over and there are no more books to read. You could go out with friends, or if you have any close friends, invite them over. I bought a lot of groceries today, so it’s a good time."

"Yeah," Zhou Li opened the refrigerator door.

"Let me do it, I’ll put them away. Some of this food is for lunch today; you wouldn’t know which." Aunt Jiang walked over to him. "You kidder, are you just brushing me off? Seriously, invite some friends over!"

"Oh."

"My cooking isn’t something to be ashamed of, you know!"

"Yeah."

"You see, Zhu Shuang often brings friends over for meals. He even said he’s bringing his deskmate over this week," Aunt Jiang hinted, her meaning very clear.

"Is it that cute girl who often walks with him?" Zhou Li retorted.

"What?"

Aunt Jiang’s expression instantly became serious.

Zhou Li remained very composed. "Oh, I misspoke."

He successfully made his escape.

Back in his room, he couldn’t find anything to do. He sat at his desk looking out the window, while Huai Xu asked from behind him, "Are you really going to sell out your brother like that? Your brother is such a good kid!"

"He was a spy for a month, and I only brought it up once." I’m already being very generous, Zhou Li thought.

"Hehe..."

Huai Xu also broke into a smile.

The truth was, Zhu Shuang wasn’t just spying. Every day, after observing what his older brother was doing at school, he would usually let his imagination run wild. Then, he would report his ’inferred’ content to Aunt Jiang and Old Zhou. After a whole month of this ’serial drama,’ Aunt Jiang and Old Zhou had completely stopped believing in the supposedly pure friendship between Zhou Li and Brother Nan.

「After lunch, the outside was filled with glaring sunlight.」

The air conditioning was on in the room. Huai Xu sat directly under the vent, enjoying the cool air while watching *Bright Sword* on Zhou Li’s tablet. A plate of watermelon sat beside him. Days like these are just too comfortable, he thought.

Zhou Li, meanwhile, was continuously making phone calls.

For someone who just finished his college entrance exams and had decent scores, there was a perfect part-time job.

Tutoring. Teaching elementary or middle school students would both work, and the pay wasn’t bad either.

Once his results were out, if he scored above the admission line for first-tier universities, then although it wasn’t exceptionally prestigious, it would still carry some persuasive power, and he could probably raise his rate slightly.

However, after making three phone calls, he found that other students who had just finished their exams had beaten him to it.

The fourth prospect offered a high salary but also had very high demands. The client’s child was in the first year of high school and reportedly had excellent grades. After Zhou Li called to inquire, he was told that only students capable of getting into a 985 university would meet their standards. Zhou Li politely excused himself and ended the call.

"Sigh..."

Zhou Li felt somewhat dejected. Still, I’m not in a rush, he thought. If all else fails, I can distribute flyers or sell water.

It’s just that those jobs have too low a return for the effort.

He not only wanted to earn his tuition but also to buy a computer once he started university.

He could also work at Old Zhou’s place. The problem was, Old Zhou never hired part-timers, and the entry requirements weren’t low. If I wanted to, I could probably get a position, he considered, but wouldn’t that just be an odd job Old Zhou specially arranged for me? Besides, such a job wouldn’t pay much—three thousand yuan at most.

Suddenly, Huai Xu said to him, "How about I give you an idea? It’ll guarantee big money."

"What?"

"Let’s team up," Huai Xu winked at him.

"??"

"Don’t you get it?"

"Just say it."

"Eh, aren’t you usually sharp? How come you’re not getting it now?" Huai Xu was exasperated; he felt it was best when such things were understood implicitly. "You were born able to see Demons; you can deal with Demons! Do you know how high your status would have been in ancient times? Dignitaries and aristocrats would have treated you as an honored guest!"

"And then?"

"And then let me tell you, even if you didn’t work and just played around all the time, you could eat wherever you went! And look at you now, actually stumped by a little job!"

"..."

"Still don’t get it?"

"..."

"I’m really done with you!" Huai Xu was speechless. "Alright, I’ll spell it out. We find a rich person. I’ll be responsible for showing them a little glimpse of the true nature of the world, and you’ll be responsible for helping them solve their problems. I’ve seen plenty of rich fools in this era of yours."

"Like that, huh."

So that’s what he means, Zhou Li thought.

Huai Xu nodded vigorously. "I think making a few hundred yuan a day would be no problem at all! Just give me a little, enough to go online and buy some snacks!"

A few hundred yuan is already a lot, Huai Xu thought.

However, Zhou Li shook his head, "That’s fraud."

"How is that fraud? They genuinely have problems, and you genuinely solve them!" Huai Xu tried to convince Zhou Li. "Or look at it this way: we’re just cooperating to showcase your abilities, to let them know you can actually deal with Demons. The money they give can be considered a ’meeting gift.’ In the future, as more and more Demons awaken, if they run into trouble, we can go help them again. How great is that!"

"That’s sophistry," Zhou Li said. "Besides, have you considered what would happen if the human Heavenly Masters you mentioned find out? We could be in trouble."

"I’m good at solving these kinds of problems."

"...What episode are you on now?"

"Episode seven."

"Is it good?"

"It’s good."

Zhou Li nodded and looked out the window. Geese were flying by outside.