Chapter 28 - 25: What’s It Like to Be Carried?

On the curb outside the Jingtang Club, Chen Jue and Jiang Zhe squatted side-by-side.

Watching Wang Xing’s BMW X5 being driven away by a designated driver, Jiang Zhe fished a cigarette out of his pocket and offered it over. "Old Si, don’t forget me when you make it big!"

"Get outta here!"

"Don’t get ahead of yourself," Chen Jue chided with a laugh.

He didn’t refuse. He took the cigarette, borrowed a light, and squatted there, puffing out clouds of smoke.

’Quitting smoking is really damn hard!’

Even though he knew smoking was bad for his health, in the dead of night, no smoker could resist a smoke to cap off the evening.

Recalling what had just happened at the Jingtang Club, Chen Jue couldn’t help but feel a bit wistful. ’A rich person’s reputation really carries a lot of weight!’

If Zhu Hongbin and that President Tang hadn’t shown up out of the blue, this job opportunity would have been dead in the water.

As for that Hang City International Darts Club, he planned to check it out too.

He was free anyway, and if he could really carve out a path as a professional darts player, it would be a huge improvement to his life.

This kind of life-changing opportunity was something no one would turn down.

Especially not a loser like Chen Jue, who had just lost his job and was about to live off his meager savings.

...

They squatted and smoked for a while, shooting the shit and trading some mutual praise before each calling for a designated driver.

Back in his cramped rental apartment in Changhe District, Chen Jue lay in bed, his mind racing.

’If I hadn’t unexpectedly awakened this Attribute panel, I probably would have continued to drift through life aimlessly.’

’A world away from my current situation, where I’ve not only landed an internal referral to a top-three industry giant but have also caught the eye of a big name in darts.’

He took out his phone and scrolled through Zhu Hongbin’s Friends Circle. The account seemed to be for work, mostly filled with content related to international darts.

There were short posts about organizing club activities, videos of him taking the club’s professional players to international competitions, and group photos from charity events and community service.

In short, the bigwig’s life was rich and colorful—unlike corporate drones like Chen Jue, whose Friends Circle was locked to "visible for the last six months," terrified others would see how unimpressive their lives were.

...

「The next morning」

Chen Jue woke up just after six.

Probably because he had been drinking last night, he woke up with a dry mouth and throat, and his breath reeked of stale alcohol.

He brushed his teeth twice, changed his clothes, and headed out.

He wasn’t in a hurry to eat breakfast. Instead, he took the opportunity to head to a quiet corner of his residential complex.

Seeing the usual group of seniors practicing Tai Chi, Chen Jue went and joined them.

This simplified version of the Tai Chi Twelve Forms looked soft and gentle, and it possessed no real martial power, but its focus was on health and wellness.

After a previous hospital check-up, Chen Jue knew he had a pile of health problems.

Unwilling to undergo surgery and have his organs cut out, he could only pin his hopes on the magical panel and this kind of wellness-focused practice.

Starting position, followed by Part the Wild Horse’s Mane and White Crane Spreads Its Wings. Chen Jue followed the soft, soothing music, slowly performing the Tai Chi.

Now that his [Tai Chi Twelve Forms] was at Lv1, his movements were no longer unfamiliar or sluggish. It was just that his breathing was still a bit chaotic, not as steady as the seniors who practiced regularly.

After practicing for about an hour, he was lightly sweating, and the Skill Level for [Tai Chi Twelve Forms] had increased by over 80 points. Then, a notification appeared on the Attribute panel in his vision:

——————

[Ding~]

[Completed one qualifying session of aerobic exercise]

[Free Attribute Points +0.01]

——————

[Ding~]

[After a period of moderate exercise, your body’s muscle groups have been well stretched. Your Cardiovascular Ability, metabolic rate, and muscle recovery speed have slightly increased.]

[Constitution Attribute +0.01]

——————

[Ding~]

[Total Constitution Attribute has reached 1.00]

[Milestone Achievement Unlocked: Escaped Sub-health Status]

[Character Evaluation has changed]

——————

Watching the series of scrolling notifications, Chen Jue completed his form, stood up straight, and let out a long breath. He could feel a warm current nourishing his entire body.

It seemed this [Tai Chi Twelve Forms] accumulated Constitution Attribute much faster than normal exercise.

Previously, through training [Stone Skimming] and [Darts], he had gained quite a few attribute points, but the process was grueling. He basically had to completely exhaust his stamina just to gain a fraction of a point.

But with this Tai Chi Twelve Forms, he just had to practice casually and his attributes would keep climbing.

’Is this wellness practice really that effective?’ Chen Jue wondered, glancing at his current attributes on the panel:

——————

Character: Chen Jue

Strength: 0.82+

Constitution: 1.00+

Spirit: 1.07+

Skills: [Stone Skimming (Perfection)], [Darts Lv3 (1623/2000)+], [Tai Chi Twelve Forms Lv1 (85/200)+]

Assignable Free Attribute Points: 0.01

(Character Evaluation: A corporate drone who has finally seen the light. Although your body has escaped its sub-health status, some hidden dangers remain. It is recommended you seek targeted treatment. Don’t hide your sickness for fear of treatment and let a minor ailment develop into a serious illness.)

——————

’Don’t hide your sickness for fear of treatment?’

’Is it talking about me?’

Reading the new Character Evaluation, Chen Jue couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

Even the panel was reminding him to get treatment. It was clear that these minor issues he had were a genuine threat to his health.

’Forget it. I’ve put it off for so long without any major issues. A few more days won’t make a difference.’

’I’ll get the job situation sorted out first!’

Chen Jue reassured himself, planning to go to the hospital in a day or two.

If it came down to it, he could accept conservative treatment—taking some medicine, getting a shot, or something like that.

The one thing he wouldn’t do, even if it killed him, was undergo surgery to have an organ removed.

This was the stubbornness of an old otaku; once his mind was set, no one could change it.

...

His morning exercises finished, it was almost 8:00 a.m. While he was in the middle of eating breakfast, President Wang—the Wang Xing he had met last night—sent him a WeChat message.