Chapter 45: Self-Reliance

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Self-Reliance

Han Wenwen turned her head away, her cheeks puffed out like a little fox. "Hmph! I’m never talking to you again, Lin Zhengran! A single sentence from you makes me feel like a clown."

Lin Zhengran looked bored. "Why do you spend all day trying to act cute? But you’re renting a place now. Are you trying to be completely independent?"

Han Wenwen’s expression softened. She lowered her hands and crossed her legs, a weary smile suddenly appearing on her face.

"Yeah, I have to make something of myself. My aunt said they could support me until I graduated junior high, and that I could keep asking them for money, but..."

She smiled. "But I really can’t bring myself to stay at my uncle’s house any longer. That feeling of living under someone else’s roof is so uncomfortable. And for the sake of my uncle’s family’s happiness and harmony, an outsider like me should be the one to leave."

She brought a finger to her lips, looking cheerful.

"Think about it. When I was little, even my own mother didn’t want me, but my uncle took me in. This is a debt I feel I can never truly repay. Now he has a girlfriend,

and my aunt is pregnant. How could I shamelessly stay in their house and keep asking for money? If I have any sense at all, I shouldn’t be a burden to them any longer."

Lin Zhengran grunted in acknowledgment, but he knew, ’This little fox is still too naive.’ "I’d probably do the same if I were you. But judging by the place you’re renting, I take it money isn’t easy to come by."

Han Wenwen blinked her fox-like eyes, full of confidence. "It’s the internet age. There are plenty of ways to make money without a nine-to-five job. You can earn money through all sorts of channels. Isn’t that how I made this five hundred, by posting a women’s style guide?"

’A style guide...’ Lin Zhengran recalled how she had been secretly on her phone for a while now, even that day on the athletic field. ’So this is what she was doing online.’

After speaking, she leaned closer to Lin Zhengran. "Are you worried I’ll go astray, Lin Zhengran? Don’t be. I won’t follow in my mother’s footsteps. I’d starve to death before I’d ever do... that kind of thing."

Lin Zhengran actually knew nothing about her mother... ’This time, Han Wenwen let it slip herself.’

He let out a long sigh. "Do you want my help?"

Han Wenwen looked surprised. "Help me? How? You’re not planning to lend me money, are you?"

"Of course not. A week from now. This week I have to help Jiang Xueli with her singing practice. I’ll come find you again in a week, and I’ll teach you how to make money. As long as you’re serious about learning from me, you’ll definitely earn more than you do on your own."

Han Wenwen stared at him blankly. She wouldn’t have believed any other guy who said that, but for some reason, she didn’t doubt Lin Zhengran at all. A smile broke across her face.

"Okay! Then thank you, Lin Zhengran. Oh, right! You have to keep what I just told you a secret, okay? Don’t tell anyone. As payment for helping me with the apartment, keeping my secret, and teaching me how to make money, I’ll treat you to lunch today. How about hot pot?"

"Don’t worry. I’m not in the habit of spreading other people’s secrets."

"I figured as much. Otherwise, how could you have kept so many secrets from me, Lin Zhengran? In that case..." Han Wenwen bit her lip shyly.

"Since you’ve already helped me this much, could you just... help me one more time? Could you help me move my things over later? Some of it is really too heavy for a girl to move on her own."

Han Wenwen tugged on Lin Zhengran’s sleeve, her voice turning sweet and pleading. "Zhengran~ Pretty please?~"

[Today, you witness the Demon Sect Witch attempting to leave the Demon Sect and venture into the Jianghu alone. However, her cultivation is still shallow, a fact of which she is aware.]

[In light of the Spiritual Elixirs and Medicines she has given you and the favor she did for He Fairy, you choose to intervene. You help her find a temporary shelter and decide to teach her a Cultivation Technique. She offers you a serving of Flame Blood Transformation Soup as a reward.]

[Flame Blood Transformation Soup is a secret recipe of the Demon Sect. Consuming it causes an unbearable, fiery pain in the mouth, but it grants the rare ability to greatly enhance one’s cultivation and temper the physical body.]

’Flame Blood Transformation Soup... Is that what it’s calling the hot pot?’

Hearing this, Lin Zhengran held up four fingers. "I can help you move, but you have to treat me to hot pot four times."

Han Wenwen blinked. "Four times? But I don’t have that much money..."

"You don’t even have enough for four hot pot meals? Then how were you planning to get through the summer? Live hand-to-mouth?"

Han Wenwen just giggled sheepishly.

Lin Zhengran stood up, exasperated. "You really are a bold little fox. Fine, just get the soup base ready. I’ll buy the ingredients."

"Ooh! Really? You’re the best, Lin Zhengran! Don’t worry, when I’m rich, I’ll definitely treat you to a huge feast!"

Han Wenwen caught up to Lin Zhengran, and the two of them headed to the school to get her things.

With Lin Zhengran’s current strength, carrying the large bundle of bedding felt no different than holding a bottle of water.

Han Wenwen was completely stunned. "You’re so strong, Lin Zhengran... I feel like you could lift me with just one hand."

By the time they had moved everything into the rented room, made the bed, and tidied up a bit, it was already four or five in the afternoon. It had to be said, the Little Fox was well-equipped.

An electric kettle, a small wok, a hairdryer—she had all the essentials.

’It seems this little fox has been planning to move out for a long time; she’s bought a lot of household items.’

They placed the small wok on the table and put in the hot pot base they had bought.

Han Wenwen put the ingredients Lin Zhengran had brought into the pot, then pulled two cans of beer from her bag and handed one to him.

"Here. One for each of us."

Lin Zhengran took the can, but eyed it curiously. "Wait a minute. Don’t tell me you and that girl He Qing drink this stuff in your dorm on weekends?"

Han Wenwen, who had been standing by the bed about to change her clothes, froze. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she slowly turned back. "Of course not! Qingqing would never drink this. Besides, I just bought them. It’s my first time."

With that, Han Wenwen grabbed a skirt and went into the bathroom to change.

Before closing the door, the Little Fox peeked at him with her sly eyes. "My clothes got all dirty from the move. I’m just changing into a skirt and top. You’d better not peek, Lin Zhengran."

"I’m not that bored," he said, picking up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and popping it into his mouth.

Han Wenwen blinked. ’No matter how much I tease this guy,’ she thought, ’he never gets embarrassed.’

’Is that really normal for a teenage guy?’

[You and the Demon Sect Witch have consumed a pot of Flame Blood Transformation Soup. Your cultivation has increased significantly. Strength +3, Physical Strength +1.]

「One week later.」

Han Wenwen’s aunt and uncle came to the rented room. They were shocked to see that Han Wenwen had managed to find a place and pay the security deposit all by herself.

Her uncle signed the contract with the landlord as her guardian. During their visit, the couple tried to secretly leave Han Wenwen five thousand yuan, but she refused. She told them she was already earning money online and would ask if she ever ran short.

Even though Han Wenwen didn’t want to take it, the couple seemed to feel they had let Wenwen down and left the money for her anyway.

Han Wenwen stood in the doorway, smiling and waving at them. "Bye, Uncle! Bye, Aunt! I’ll be fine on my own, so don’t worry."

Her aunt and uncle waved back as they left. Han Wenwen watched from the window as they went downstairs. Down below, she saw her uncle, aunt, and their newborn baby in the car, a perfect, happy family.

A smile touched Han Wenwen’s lips. ’I hope Aunt won’t fight with Uncle anymore now that I’m gone,’ she thought. ’Their little family of three should have a much happier life now.’

But as fate would have it, the very next morning, Lin Zhengran came to find Han Wenwen after he was finished helping Jiang Xueli.

He planned to teach her a few ways to earn money, but instead, he found that the little fox had unexpectedly come down with a fever.

When she opened the door, she looked completely listless, greeting him in a weak voice. "Lin Zhengran... you’re here..."

She lost her balance and collapsed right into Lin Zhengran’s arms.