Benevolent Charity

"Is that Xiao Shi? It must be Xiao Shi!"

Before Huai Shi could react, he saw the thin woman standing behind him. Her face was sallow, and despite the summer heat, she wore a plush hat, revealing no trace of hair.

"...Sister-in-law?"

Huai Shi couldn't recognize her after not seeing her for a while. He wasn't sure if this was the wife of the unscrupulous agent, Old Yang, arguably the last shred of conscience in the Yang family.

When Huai Shi had last seen her, she was a great beauty with long black hair reaching her waist and a rosy complexion. But now, all her hair had fallen out during chemotherapy, and her complexion was unnaturally weak.

Only her smile remained warm and welcoming.

"Oh, your brother Yang said you were working here these past couple of days, and I didn't believe him. I didn't expect it to be true..."

Before Huai Shi could speak, she walked over, carrying groceries in one hand and grabbing Huai Shi with the other. "You haven't eaten yet, have you? Come on, it's your brother Yang's birthday today, come home for dinner!"

Half an hour later, across the bubbling hot pot on the table, Huai Shi and Old Yang stared at each other in silence through the rising steam.

After a long pause, Old Yang glanced at his wife busy in the kitchen, then turned back and said with a sigh, "You actually came when I invited you..."

"Isn't that what you said?" Huai Shi slapped his knee. "Didn't you say you wanted to treat me to a meal?"

"I was just being polite, you shouldn't have taken it seriously..."

"Then what about you stuffing me into that gigolo den?"

"That was a misunderstanding."

Old Yang rolled his eyes so hard they almost hit the ceiling. "Besides, didn't you enjoy it? You even brought your colleagues home. It shows that while there are many talented people, there aren't many who can recognize them..."

"That's enough from you!"

The mention of it made Huai Shi furious. If this scoundrel hadn't sold his conscience for a small agency fee, would Huai Shi be this unlucky right now?

"Are we eating soon? I'm hungry."

Liu Dongli, looking up from the corner of the living room, asked. This guy was also the type who wouldn't stand on ceremony; if someone was treating, he'd happily tag along. He was currently squatting in front of the fish tank, playing with Old Yang's fish food.

Old Yang, that stingy old miser, was so angry his eyeballs were about to pop out.

"Oh, coming, coming! Sorry to keep you all waiting. Come, let's eat."

Sister-in-law came out of the kitchen with the cut vegetables, calling Liu Dongli to join them, and also prepared their dipping sauces. Seeing Old Yang's unhappy expression, she even shot him a glare. "Xiao Shi finally came to visit, who are you putting on a long face for? Oh, and is this Xiao Shi's colleague? He's quite handsome... Come, let's eat."

Glowered at by his wife, Old Yang lost his temper. He listlessly dropped a piece of meat into the pot, muttering about how Huai Shi hadn't paid the agency fee this time.

With Old Yang's sour face as a side dish, Huai Shi thoroughly enjoyed the meal. After dinner, Old Yang was sent to the kitchen to wash the dishes. Huai Shi sat in the living room, chatting casually with Sister-in-law. Her complexion had improved significantly compared to before, proving that Old Yang's ill-gotten gains had some use after all.

"You live one day less each day, so you might as well live each day as it comes." Sister-in-law, ignoring Huai Shi's attempts to dissuade her, nonchalantly lit a cigarette. "It's one thing for this illness to torment me alone, but it's also a burden on Old Yang, making him suffer. I can't bear it."

"What are you saying?"

Old Yang, eavesdropping from the kitchen, poked his head out, furious. "Li Xuemei, what are you doing? What did the doctor say? Put out that cigarette, immediately! Now!"

"What did you say?" Sister-in-law turned and looked at him.

"..."

Old Yang's legs went weak, and his voice lowered. "Please put out the cigarette."

"That's more like it."

Sister-in-law gave Huai Shi a smug look, dropped the cigarette into the ashtray, and whispered to Huai Shi, "See? If he cheats you out of money in the future, tell me, and I'll deal with him."

"...Okay, okay."

Huai Shi's eyes lit up. He could only say that even the most venomous snake has its antidote; in this world, there's always someone who can keep another in check...

Dinner was finished, the dishes were washed, and Old Yang, still wearing his apron, finally got his wish and saw the two freeloaders out the door.

Along the way, he glared resentfully at Liu Dongli, who had been showing off in front of his wife. After nudging him into getting a taxi, he turned back to Huai Shi.

His expression was strange.

"What's wrong?"

Huai Shi instinctively took a step back, his first thought being: this scoundrel is embarrassed and wants to fight.

Old Yang stared at him suspiciously for a long time, then pulled him over and asked in a low voice, "You haven't offended anyone, have you?"

"Huh?"

Huai Shi suddenly became alert. Then, he heard Old Yang say, "Someone was asking about you at my place last night. They paid quite a bit of money."

"You didn't tell them anything, did you?" Huai Shi's voice was tense.

Old Yang rolled his eyes. "Nonsense. If I hadn't said anything, would I still be human?"

"Then... wait!?" Huai Shi's eyes widened. "What did you say?"

Old Yang, who had just sold him out completely, sighed and held up five fingers. "They gave me fifty thousand yuan for information about you. Even if I hadn't said anything, do you think they couldn't find out from your school? You should think carefully about what shady things you've been up to lately."

"..."

Even though he already knew this guy's character, Huai Shi still felt the urge to punch him.

Immediately after, he saw Old Yang throw off his apron and shove two rolls of something into Huai Shi's pocket.

Huai Shi felt them and was stunned.

There were two thick stacks of cash.

They were at least twenty thousand in thickness.

"This time, I wasn't a good brother to you, I'm sorry... I'm really short on cash. If you're really angry, you can hit me."

He lowered his head and begged, "Take the money and go play somewhere else for a few days. Don't come back yet. I'll make some inquiries, and I'll call you when things have settled down."

Huai Shi hadn't expected this bastard to suddenly have a change of heart. A mix of emotions surged within him, and he didn't know what to say. After being scammed so many times, he was finally seeing his money returned, and he felt a touch of gratitude.

Although he really wanted to hit him, he thought of his sister-in-law's pale face and felt a sense of helplessness.

Forget it. They'd been through thick and thin together for so many years. If he didn't scam himself, would he just watch his own wife die?

He asked one last question.

"Who exactly was asking about me?"

"Those people didn't say, they were being mysterious," Old Yang said, smoking his cigarette and snorting coldly. "Do they think I'm an idiot? Can't I even check license plate numbers? It seemed to be some kind of charity foundation. The name they chose was quite imposing, something like..."

He scratched his head for a long time, then smacked the back of his head, finally remembering.

"—Benevolent Charity!"

Two hours later, Huai Shi sat in an armored vehicle, looking at the soldiers heavily armed all around him, completely bewildered.

What the heck was going on?

What happened?

What should he do now?

The familiar three questions of life once again filled his mind.

Happy days passed in a flash, and his saved drafts were running out...

All he could say was that life was truly too bleak.

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