I Have Lots of Fellow Townsfolk

"Um..."

Chen Shu felt plenty of eyes on him, including Cao Shengying's as she waited to receive the "Most Colors in an Outfit Award." But he maintained the composure expected of a bodyguard, without the slightest expression on his face. "You've got the wrong person."

Wen Han and Highness Cinnabar fell silent. That familiar voice made their memories snap into focus. They exchanged a look, as if each had read the thought in the other's eyes.

"Let's talk somewhere private."

Highness Cinnabar took Chen Shu's arm with easy familiarity, like a little sister from next door coaxing him along, and pulled him backstage.

"I'm working..."

"Big Sister Yingying, can I borrow your bodyguard for a moment?"

"Oh. Sure, sure..."

In Highness Cinnabar's private dressing room, the two continued to study Chen Shu.

"The longer I look, the more alike you seem."

"I think so too."

"But, sir, why do you have two names...?"

Chen Shu sat across from them and gave up resisting. He spread his hands. "I'll tell you the truth. You've misunderstood. Li Zongsheng and Jay Chou are both from my hometown."

"Your hometown?" Cinnabar asked.

"Then your name...?" Wen Han asked.

"I'm Chen Shu. I only started my first year of college this year."

"What's going on?"

"Here's the situation," Chen Shu said, his face numb. "These fellow townsmen of mine are all cultivators. They're rather... how should I put it? They lean toward the reclusive-sect way of life. They like cultivating deep in the mountains and old forests, away from worldly disturbance, and generally never come out. But they also love music and have written quite a few songs. So they found me and asked me to sell the songs on their behalf, under their own names, of course. If you check carefully, you'll find I'm the one who signed the contracts."

That was obviously a lie!

Wen Han didn't believe a word of it, but there was nothing he could do.

Highness Cinnabar, on the other hand, blinked and nodded, sounding as if a great truth had dawned on her. She didn't seem especially bright. "Oh, those kinds of hermits! I've heard about lots of them! When they're bored in the mountains, do they play chess and write poetry? Or brew tea and sing to pass the time?"

"Exactly, exactly!"

Thank you, Highness Cinnabar.

Chen Shu looked back at Wen Han—

Hurry up and believe it, will you?

Wen Han looked dazed.

"Really?"

"Mm-hmm!"

Highness Cinnabar nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling as though she'd discovered something marvelous. "It gets boring deep in the mountains. They have to find ways to entertain themselves, right? I've heard many traditional masterpieces were written by reclusive cultivators like them. I just never expected them to write pop songs too."

"Such as?"

"Like the guqin piece Her Majesty loves, White Crane Melody."

"I see."

Wen Han closed his mouth and said no more.

Highness Cinnabar wasn't a princess in the formal sense, but she did have royal blood and was popular with netizens. That was why people respectfully called her "Highness."

These days, royals becoming singers or actors was nothing unusual. Two of Highness Cinnabar's elders had gone before her, and both had become veteran artists. The royal family's position was that they had to maintain a positive, uplifting image, and the works they performed or sang had to carry positive messages. As long as they could guarantee that, the family didn't mind them becoming entertainers. They even considered it a good thing for royal descendants to be liked by more people, and would hire specialists to manage their image and review their work.

Winning over young people had been standard practice for the royal family in recent years.

A while back, Highness Cinnabar had danced too much in a fit of youthful rebellion and received a warning from the royal family. She no longer danced and was concentrating on honing her singing.

Wen Han wasn't in a position to argue much with a member of the royal family.

"Oh, right—"

Highness Cinnabar suddenly turned to Chen Shu and asked, "Are these seniors short of money?"

"They aren't. Up in the mountains, they have everything they need."

Chen Shu paused. "But a while ago, a fellow townsman of theirs needed a large sum for a personal matter. You know how it is with hermits like them. Money isn't much use to them, and they aren't in the habit of saving it, so they couldn't come up with it on short notice. They came to me and sold a few songs under different names."

"A personal matter?"

"He was in a car accident."

At that, Wen Han immediately asked anxiously, "Another fellow townsman... ahem. Has that gentleman recovered?"

"He has."

Chen Shu looked troubled. "But as luck would have it, another fellow townsman has recently been stranded away from home. He wants to return, but he needs a large sum of money. He's raising the travel funds now..."

Highness Cinnabar was deeply moved. "Such noble character! These gentlemen are truly worthy of respect!"

Wen Han nodded repeatedly, in complete agreement. By now, he no longer cared whether the story was true. He took Chen Shu's hand and looked at him earnestly.

"Please let me do my part!"

"Me too, me too!" Highness Cinnabar seemed to have only just realized something. "Does Senior Jay Chou have any other songs? I really need works like that—positive, not vulgar. They can be about love, but they can't be too cloying or pandering. Ideally, they'd have a high level of artistry too. Are there any? Are there?"

"Your Highness, your singing needs work."

"I'm working hard to improve! I—I'll work even harder! I'll make sure the teachers and seniors are satisfied!"

"We'll talk about it later."

"Then let's add each other on Feixin!"

"Sure, sure..."

Chen Shu took out his phone and added them both on Feixin.

Then Highness Cinnabar looked Chen Shu up and down. Her brow suddenly furrowed, and she asked:

"Is your name really Chen Shu?"

"I've never changed my name, standing or sitting."

"Oh. All right..."

"What is it?"

"It's nothing. You look a little like a student I saw online." Highness Cinnabar felt somewhat ashamed of mistaking him for someone else. It was rude. "Just around the eyes and brows."

"Lots of people have similar eyes and brows!"

"True."

"I need to get back to work."

"Why are you working as a bodyguard?"

"I need money. Those fellow townsmen aren't giving me a cut."

"What? They aren't giving you any share at all?"

"Those gentlemen are of such noble character. How could I have the nerve to take a commission?" Chen Shu declared righteously. "I'm doing it voluntarily. Every bit of the money has gone to the fellow townsmen who need it, and it's all been spent where it should be."

"Truly admirable!"

"You're too kind."

Chen Shu left the dressing room and returned to his post. He exchanged a glance with Lu Xing and resumed standing straight.

Huang soon came over and politely asked Chen Shu what had happened. He only said Wen Han and Highness Cinnabar had mistaken him for someone else, then promptly went to escort Cao Shengying offstage. Selling out his fellow townsmen for money was only a minor interlude, a way to earn a little cash for cultivation. His sights were set at least on the Ninth Tier; he wasn't about to become obsessed with this.

Besides, there were too many people here. It would cause trouble.

Eleven at night.

Chen Shu dutifully saw Cao Shengying into the car bound for the airport. His daylong assignment was almost over, and he couldn't help growing restless. He needed to pee.

Cao Shengying turned back to them once more. "I couldn't have managed today without you two. Thank you."

Chen Shu nodded, maintaining the cool reserve expected of a bodyguard. He hoped she would leave soon so he could finally relieve himself.

Lu Xing, on the other hand, said warmly, "We didn't have to do much. Just our job. If you're happy with us, you can hire us again next time."

"Absolutely."

After answering, Cao Shengying looked at Chen Shu and smiled sweetly. "I hope we can work together again."

She knew exactly where to draw the line.

"Sure."

Chen Shu smiled.

When it came to making money, the easier the better. Ideally, it would all deposit itself straight into his account.

As for Chen Shu, when he had enough money, he barely gave it a thought. But cultivation was expensive, and he didn't know when he might find himself short. Establishing a convenient way to sell out his fellow townsmen was rather necessary.

There was no selling out your fellow townsmen just once. It was either zero times or countless times.

Sorry, fellow townsmen...

The car pulled away without a sound. The young woman was still waving to them through the window as the taillights receded.

Chen Shu turned to Lu Xing. "How are you getting back, Brother Lu?"

"I'll get a taxi. You?"

"It's not far from my school. I'll ride a bike."

"All right, we'll part here, then. Get back and rest early." Lu Xing was steady as ever. "We still have to return the clothes to the company tomorrow."

"See you around."

Chen Shu unlocked another shared bike and rode toward the school.

There were still plenty of people around. The gala had just ended, after all, and many audience members were leaving in their own cars or by taxi. But after he'd ridden a while, the roads grew quiet, with only the occasional car passing.

Chen Shu did the math—

Over the past few days, he had earned nearly twenty thousand yuan from jobs of all sizes through the commission agency.

Most involved Spell Principles. Since that was his specialty, tasks ordinary people couldn't do, or would have to spend considerable time and effort on, were easy for him. By contrast, today's job was one others would consider lucrative and easy, but to him its return for the effort wasn't especially good.

Payday was the twelfth.

Unfortunately, he would only receive payment for jobs completed by the thirtieth of last month. Including his savings, he'd have around a hundred thousand yuan.

Copyright royalties from the songs he'd sold were still trickling in too.

Chen Shu checked. The Second Tier breakthrough potion from Blue Light Company, the one he bought most often, cost a hundred and thirty thousand yuan. He was still about thirty thousand short.

The next day was Sunday.

Following the address, Chen Shu arrived at Angelica Orchid Garden.

It was another neighborhood of courtyard homes.

Because Yi Nation had more land, fewer people, and certain policies in place, housing prices were fairly low overall. Suburban villas and courtyard homes, in particular, cost no more than apartments in the city. In a city like Jade Capital, a courtyard home in the suburbs would certainly cost less than an apartment downtown, let alone one west of the university district.

He found number 12.

The courtyard was a little smaller than the one in Bai City and more traditional in style. With its white walls, dark tiles, and Otherworldly Beasts carved on the corners of its eaves, it looked more refined.

Knock, knock.

Chen Shu knocked on the door.

Before long, footsteps sounded inside, light and slow. He knew them well.

Creak~

The wooden courtyard gate opened inward.

Ning Qing stood in the courtyard, looking at him quietly.

"Morning."

Chen Shu held out a leaf. "Picked this up on the way. It's for you."

Ning Qing took the leaf and examined it closely. It was a large parasol-tree leaf, already yellow-green in the autumn weather, though not completely withered. Traces of green were still visible along its veins. It probably hadn't fallen naturally. Either a strong wind had blown it down, a small animal had knocked it loose, or someone had picked it.

She put the leaf away, then tilted her head slightly. She noticed the shadows beneath Chen Shu's eyes and the beads of mist clinging to his eyelashes.

Chen Shu walked past her into the courtyard.

Flowers and other plants had once grown there. Some had withered, while others had sent out unruly branches. To the left of the entrance stood a persimmon tree. Its fruit had only just begun to form, but there was plenty of it.

"Not bad."

Chen Shu looked around as he spoke. "Qingqing, you're so rich. Why don't you keep me? I was running around earning money yesterday. I didn't get home until midnight, and I still had to cultivate."

There was no sound behind him.

Chen Shu glanced back—

Ning Qing had merely closed the gate. She was still standing by it, watching him from several meters away.

"Oh..."

Chen Shu scratched his head. "You're mute now."

Ning Qing's expression didn't change.

Chen Shu went into the house and looked around. It was clean and tidy, and some things were clearly new. When Ning Qing followed him inside, he said casually, "Looks like you spent some time cleaning and buying things after you found the place. Mm, it's starting to feel like a home."

Ning Qing watched his back, her thoughts unreadable.

It seemed she didn't need to speak for his voice to go on and on, perfectly naturally:

"Why didn't you bring the cat?

"Oh, Xiaoxiao must've refused!

"You've already tidied the bedrooms? Did you stay here last night? You probably did. You thought I'd come over yesterday, didn't you? Heh...

"You only made your own bed? Looks like I'll have to sleep next to you when I come over.

"Why'd you leave a blanket on the sofa? You think I'd sleep there?

"No cookware in the kitchen? If you had some, I could cook for you."

Chen Shu talked as he ran upstairs and down, touring the main house and side rooms, the kitchen and bedrooms, as though it were his own home. At last he sat down on the living room sofa. When Ning Qing sat beside him, quiet as ever, as if she couldn't speak, he looked at his childhood sweetheart. His eyes darted, and he couldn't help smiling.

"Can I touch your leg?

"If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes.

"All right, you've agreed. You can agree, but don't hit me afterward.

"Oh no, my hand has a mind of its own!"

Chen Shu put his hand on Ning Qing's knee. Two seconds later, he slid it upward.

Ning Qing neither pulled away nor hit him. She only lowered her head to glance at the hand resting on her trousers, then looked up at his face, calm as ever—

Barely a foot separated them.

Through the smile on Chen Shu's face and the eager glint in his eyes, she felt she could see into his heart.

There wasn't much lust in it. More than anything, he wanted to tease her and play with her. He thought it was fun.

Besides—

Who touched a girl's leg by rubbing it back and forth, nonstop and at top speed?

What an idiot.