Equipment shopping

[Affection]: 20

"People's hearts really are strange."

Xia Xu glanced at his unexpected gain.

He had even braced himself for Luo Hongyun to dislike him, but the result had been the exact opposite. Instead of dropping, his affection had jumped by ten points.

"Ow... Forget it. I'll lie down first."

The pain kept him from concentrating. He stopped mulling it over and went into apartment 201 in the building where he had rented a place.

He had been staying in a hotel for the past few days anyway, so moving somewhere else was straightforward. Last night, he had signed the lease with the landlord, bought a new set of bedding, and moved straight in. Otherwise, he could never have arrived so early today.

The apartment had a bedroom, a living room, a bathroom, and a small kitchen. Although the exterior looked a little shabby, the inside was actually quite decent. The only drawback was the lack of furniture, which left it looking empty.

Whether he was utterly exhausted or simply felt safer here, Xia Xu fell into a deep sleep shortly after lying down.

Yesterday's sleep and this one were probably the two most restful stretches he had enjoyed in days.

Honestly, staying next door to Zhang Jianmin had never been particularly reliable protection. At most, it had offered psychological comfort. This was a real world, after all. No monster would absolutely refuse to enter a place just because it was not allowed to "intrude" on another story.

Although he had failed to persuade Luo Hongyun to become his personal bodyguard, at least he now had a formidable man he could call on for help. At the very least, he did not have to worry quite so much about being killed off by the monsters in Hunter while at home, and he could sleep a little easier.

After sleeping groggily until noon, Xia Xu grabbed a casual lunch and started roaming the city to shop.

Now that he had both money and free time, he decided to buy some equipment to arm himself. Whether it helped or not, at least it would give him peace of mind.

A stab-resistant vest, a compound bow, pepper spray, a portable stun gun, a Damascus steel dagger, and a sharpened manganese steel miaodao from Longquan Town that was legal to own as a collectible.

After visiting numerous shops selling sporting goods, hardware, collectibles, and the like, Xia Xu finally assembled a deluxe set of equipment within the bounds of the law. It had taken him nearly half a day.

The most eye-catching piece was naturally the manganese steel miaodao. It resembled a Tang sword or a katana, but was much longer than either. At a full 1.6 meters, it was taller than some shorter people.

Forged from manganese steel, the miaodao was remarkably tough and sharp. In the hands of someone who knew how to wield it, a single stroke might even cleave through both horse and rider.

Of course... in the hands of someone who did not, it would probably cut off his own leg first.

It was also awkward to carry around. Xia Xu had only bought it on a whim because it looked devastating in a real fight and he had money to spare. For now, it seemed destined to stay at home as a collectible.

Apart from the miaodao, everything else was a carefully chosen purchase. The compound bow was one of the few ranged weapons he could legally own in the Xia Kingdom. Even if he had no immediate use for it, he could practice when he had time.

The pepper spray and stun gun went without saying. They were excellent means of self-defense against an opponent far stronger than him, while the Damascus steel dagger was an excellent bladed weapon he could carry on his person.

The stab-resistant vest could be worn directly beneath his school uniform or outerwear, protecting against stabs and slashes. Compared with offensive equipment like the stun gun, this was what would truly keep him alive. Unfortunately, he had not found a full-body version, so it could only protect his upper body.

"Phew. It doesn't breathe very well, but I finally feel a lot safer."

Having thoroughly armed himself, the safety-first Xia Xu finally breathed a relieved sigh.

With his shopping finished, Xia Xu dropped the cumbersome compound bow and miaodao back at his rented apartment. He kept all the smaller items, including the stun gun and pepper spray, on him, then called another car to take him to the Golden Sun KTV.

One reason for going there was naturally to pick up the clothes and other belongings he had left at the hotel over the past few days. The other was to check on Zhang Jianmin.

The bargain-hunting plot had already ended-or rather, had fallen apart because of his involvement. In theory, he should now be able to see the next scene of the story through him.

But when Xia Xu arrived at the Golden Sun KTV, Zhang Jianmin was nowhere to be seen. He could only call Yang Bowen.

"Boss, he's at the Xieyou Travel Agency near that construction site from last time. Looks like he's had enough partying and wants to sign up for a tour to get away for a bit."

Fortunately, Yang Bowen was dependable. He was still dutifully keeping an eye on Zhang Jianmin today.

"He's still thinking about signing up for a trip. Maybe the plot really does have some degree of inertia. At least the parts that can still continue will keep going..."

Xia Xu ventured a tentative guess.

But it was only a guess. Zhang Jianmin might simply have decided on a whim that he wanted to travel, just as he had decided to indulge himself at the Golden Sun KTV.

When he reached the Xieyou Travel Agency near the construction site, Xia Xu met Yang Bowen and also saw his "old friend," Zhang Jianmin.

Zhang Jianmin did not look particularly healthy. His dark circles and eye bags were pronounced, and he looked thoroughly drained. Clearly, his days of "wine and women" had taken their toll on his body.

["The Dying Man": ...After turning Qian Chenghe over to the police and asking Lin Zhengping to sell the Angong Niuhuang Pills for him, Zhang Jianmin received a call from the travel agency. He joined a tour group heading to Tibet, ready to embark on a soul-cleansing journey.

However, during a stop along the way, he clashed with the tour guide over the group's compulsory accommodation and shopping arrangements. Eventually, when he got off the bus for a smoke during another stop, they abandoned him there. Fortunately, he met Old Xu, who was also driving to Tibet...]

"Looks like there's no need to follow this storyline for now..."

Having seen the new plot introduction for The Dying Man as he had hoped, Xia Xu shook his head.

Judging from this introduction, it was probably just a comedic sequence or one intended to give the story more emotional depth, quite possibly something like the classic Lost on Journey series.

There was no need to agonize over whether that was really the case. Either way, he could not possibly go to Tibet with Zhang Jianmin.

First, he did not have the time. Second, it was not worth it. The main story of The Dying Man was a comedy, not a money-making venture. This trip to Tibet might offer no plot points he could profit from, and instead subject him to one mishap after another.

Still, he did not intend to abandon it entirely. After all, both of his first two windfalls had come from this story. There might be another opportunity once Zhang Jianmin returned. At the very least, it was certainly a more reliable source of money than Hunter or Night Owl.

A million looked like a lot, but it did not go far once he actually started spending it. Renting the apartment and buying equipment alone had already cost him tens of thousands.

Hiring Luo Hongyun as a bodyguard would certainly require a substantial salary, and the same went for Yang Bowen. Living off his savings would not last him long, never mind his desire to start a real company. A million might not even be enough in startup capital.

"Yang, do you have any way to find out as soon as Zhang Jianmin gets back?"

Rather than rack his brains over how to track Zhang Jianmin's movements, Xia Xu decided to seek the advice of a "professional."

Yang Bowen scratched his head, then soon offered hesitantly, "How about... I call him after he leaves and spin him a story? Say I want to discuss some business or something, and ask him to call me when he gets back?"

"Ha! You really do have plenty of clever tricks. A top-notch detective talent, all right."

Amused, Xia Xu gave him a thumbs-up.

Yang Bowen's suggestion was indeed convenient and saved a lot of trouble. The only flaw was that the pretext needed changing.

A man on the verge of death would hardly be in the mood to discuss business. A hospital wanting to discuss his condition, a lawyer wanting to discuss his will, or the police wanting to discuss his earlier gambling incident would all be much better pretexts.

Still, having someone working for him made things easier. He could simply leave this little matter to Yang Bowen. He only offered a few minor adjustments.

(Good grief, I thought I'd written it wrong. After thinking it through carefully, I realized I hadn't.)