The Nineteenth Layer of Hell

Playing mahjong is a fun activity, both in terms of calculation and luck. When planning to win, getting a good hand is incredibly enjoyable. You might have a blank expression on your face but feel a mix of excitement and nervousness inside, wondering how many points you'll get if you win, while simultaneously sighing or fidgeting with your wrist, lamenting how unlucky the hand was.

If they win, they'll naturally raise an eyebrow, a hint of smugness in their expression, "I've been waiting for you for so long!" If they don't win, they'll just lay down their cards and say, "This damn hand, it just won't give me a chicken, what's the point?"

Liu Chang'an was thinking of going back and gathering a group of people to play Zhuanzhuan Mahjong, but he was about to leave when Bai Hui grabbed his arm.

Liu Chang'an was slightly puzzled. Couldn't they be a little more reserved? They kept pulling his arms towards her. Didn't they know how big their breasts were? They were practically the Grim Reaper.

As usual, Liu Chang'an pressed down on Bai Hui's shoulder and pulled her hand away. It seems that Bai Hui's claim that people always try to chat her up wasn't just empty talk. Even this simple action attracted some envious, jealous, and incomprehensible glances.

Liu Chang'an didn't care about other people's opinions. He pointed to the door, took a cup to add water, and walked out with Bai Hui while drinking tea.

"What's going on?" Liu Chang'an revealed his true colors as Junsha, speaking in a thick local accent.

"You really don't want it? You got 200,000 for your act of bravery last time, and you still want it?" Hearing this, Bai Hui was a little envious of Liu Chang'an's good fortune; there were always people offering him money.

"Saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-story pagoda," Liu Chang'an said after thinking for a moment. "I saved Zhao Wuqiang's life, rescued a family, and prevented a young man from withering away, allowing him to continue to forge ahead and create a bright future. That 200,000 yuan is well-deserved, and the Xiangtan University Affiliated High School's education fund was originally set up by my father. Although it's a bit higher than the usual reward amount, I can accept and understand it."

"Ah, your father?" Bai Hui looked at Liu Chang'an in surprise. Her attention was naturally diverted. She only learned about Liu Chang'an's father during her three years of high school. Before that, he had always been an orphan and there was no other information about him.

"What's with that look? Is it so strange that I have a father? Can't I be born of parents and evolve from a single cell myself?" Liu Chang'an's pride was hurt.

"No, no, that's not what I meant," Bai Hui explained, her face flushed. "I just found out... no, I meant I... anyway, that's not what I meant. Your father is amazing! The education fund sounds like it costs a lot of money."

"He's an expert with outstanding academic achievements, a philanthropist with a strong sense of social responsibility, but he's not a very good father." Liu Chang'an laughed again, "Maybe when you get to Xiangtan University, you'll hear some gossip and rumors about him."

"I knew it... you really do have some family background in learning, you're so knowledgeable and talented." Bai Hui said with a slightly exaggerated tone. Actually, she had always thought that Liu Chang'an's mind was a jumbled mess, but she used a different word to describe it so as not to make him angry again.

Bai Hui found herself actually quite concerned about whether he was angry or not; it was probably just that he was usually a gentle person, but when he got angry, it felt even more intense.

"Hmm, are you alright now?"

"No, I have so much money in my bag. If you leave me here alone, I won't dare to move!" Bai Hui became nervous again.

"Then how did you get here? You withdrew the money from the bank, right? Even a bank can't deliver 200,000 to you."

I walked here by feeling my way along the wall.

"Then you can feel your way back along the wall."

"No!" Bai Hui tugged at Liu Chang'an's sleeve, looking at him pitifully. "We're classmates, can't you spare a little of the patience you have for An Nuan?"

Bai Hui was genuinely frightened and had no choice but to compromise.

Since things had come to this point, Liu Chang'an nodded. "Alright, but not because I'm sharing the same patience I have for An Nuan with you. It's just out of consideration for our friendship, and because your foolishness is so touching."

Bai Hui smiled and jumped up and down.

Seeing the little dwarf jumping, Liu Chang'an wanted to reach out and stop her, but then decided against it. Bai Hui was, after all, a grown woman with a strong sense of self-respect, unlike Zhou Dongdong, who was an innocent and lively little animal.

"I have two big wishes in my life."

"Oh."

"My first wish is that when I have money, I'll go to the bank and withdraw a large sum of money, put it in my bag, and let others watch me withdraw money with envy. Because I used to be so envious when I went to the bank and saw people withdrawing huge amounts of money. My second wish is to carry a big bag of money to buy luxury goods, and when I pay, I'll unzip the bag, reveal my money, and take it out one wad at a time," Bai Hui said contentedly, gently stroking her bag.

"Madness."

"I'll call An Nuan first." Bai Hui didn't mind; that's just how Liu Chang'an always talked. In his eyes, ninety-eight out of a hundred people were stupid.

Bai Hui called An Nuan and told her about her cousin helping her sell Gold Coin. She accepted An Nuan's unexpected and sincere blessing. Bai Hui offered to share some of the money with An Nuan, but An Nuan naturally refused, saying she was eating snails and put the call on speakerphone. Her mother and grandparents also felt she shouldn't accept the money, reminding Bai Hui to be careful with her account, manage her finances wisely, and not let too many relatives and friends know about the windfall. Bai Hui thanked An Nuan for her kind reminder but still insisted. An Nuan also insisted. After several rounds of refusals and feigned anger, they reached an agreement to go shopping together at a certain time, with Bai Hui going to bleed a lot of money, but she absolutely refused to accept the money.

"So slow."

"No wonder you two are so loving... I think that having similar values is the foundation of a stable relationship. For example, you don't value money as much as I do," Bai Hui said, feeling a little strange.

You don't value money that much, otherwise you wouldn't have taken out so much to distribute. You just think that money gives you more security. Liu Chang'an thought for a moment, but didn't say it aloud.

Come with me to the mall.

Have you ever heard of the nineteenth level of hell?

"Ah?"

"Men who are promiscuous, who start relationships and then abandon them, and who have too many romantic entanglements, go to the nineteenth level of hell after death. This level of hell is completely different from the previous hells of being burned alive. Instead, it's a giant shopping mall filled with women's shopping goods from countless timelines around the world. The punishment for these men who come to the nineteenth level of hell is to accompany female ghosts to shop in this mall."

"Liu Chang'an! If you're so capable, why don't you say the same thing when An Nuan makes you go shopping with her?"

"I'm not stupid."

Bai Hui, puffing out her cheeks, dragged Liu Chang'an into the mall. Liu Chang'an was about to press her head down when he vaguely sensed two malicious gazes. He hesitated for a moment, then decided not to try to shake her off and lazily walked into the mall.

Bai Hui was satisfied with having fulfilled her wish. After wandering around for an hour, she finally got a bag from Hermès, and her own bag no longer felt so heavy.

After buying the bag, Bai Hui became even more nervous than before, with an incredulous expression. After leaving the store, Bai Hui stared blankly at Liu Chang'an, "Hit me, see if I'm dreaming, I actually own Hermès."

Liu Chang'an readily obliged and slapped her across the face.

Bai Hui snapped out of her daze, her cheeks flushed. She looked around and quickly pulled Liu Chang'an away, taking him to a secluded corner. Then, she angrily said, "Why did you slap me? People will think we're a couple! The girl just bought a really expensive bag to satisfy her vanity, and the boy couldn't stand it, thinking she was too vain, so he slapped her. It's like she can't afford it and has to make a scene. It's so embarrassing!"

"You're overthinking things." Liu Chang'an nodded, acknowledging that what she said made sense, but the main point was actually this? Women's thinking is truly unique.

Bai Hui touched her face, then looked at her newly bought bag, and a silly smile appeared on her face again.

"This is a bag that every woman should own, no matter how hard she tries in her life. You don't have to have many, but you must have one." Bai Hui looked like she had achieved the ultimate in life.

That's women for you. They have so little money, and it feels like they can spend it all in two or three days, and they still think it's all necessities.

Liu Chang'an had no objections; he believed that people should carry out their own ideas and take responsibility for them, and he wouldn't criticize or give any pointers.

Having spent most of her money, Bai Hui was no longer nervous. She prepared to say goodbye to Liu Chang'an and took a taxi home.

"Thank you," Bai Hui said sincerely.

"Follow me this way, let's walk around a bit more." Liu Chang'an shook his head.

"Ah?"

Liu Chang'an waved and walked ahead. Bai Hui hesitated for a moment, her heart pounding. Did Liu Chang'an want her to walk with him for a while?

Liu Chang'an chose a small alley and walked over. In the city center of big cities, the alleys are often brightly lit, allowing food stalls to survive by avoiding the higher rents of storefronts. The alleys are very safe. Bai Hui also bought a serving of potatoes and a serving of spicy edamame to eat.

After walking through the alley, I arrived at the square park, which was much quieter. At this time, the elderly people who came out for a walk had already left, and the nightlife had not yet started, so the park was very quiet.

The two thieves who had been following Liu Chang'an and Bai Hui finally broke out and demanded that Bai Hui hand over the money.

"I... I bought a bag, how about I give it to you... please don't kill me!" Bai Hui trembled with fear as she timidly handed over the bag.

"All your life's work has been given away like this?" Liu Chang'an couldn't help but find it amusing.

"Laugh your mother..."

The thief was furious; this man had no respect for his professional authority. Before he could finish his tirade, Liu Chang'an grabbed the two men and threw them under the bridge in the garden square.

"Ah!"

Seeing Liu Chang'an's brutality, and still feeling tense from before, Bai Hui momentarily lost her senses and stumbled into a nearby flowerbed.