NovelOnline Chapter 101 : Chapter 101
Chapter 101 : Chapter 101
Chapter 101
At first light the next morning, the five of them immediately set out for the nearest town. The safehouse was only a simple place for nearby hunters to rest briefly outside the city, so it was not suitable for a long stay, and its food stores were limited as well.
If they wanted proper rest and recovery, the best option was to head to a nearby town.
The situation outside the city was too unpredictable.
To avoid unnecessary complications, the five of them returned as quickly as possible. Since Gu Yueqing still had work to handle, Ji Qing and the others soon said goodbye to the two parents. Gu Yueqing still bought first-class tickets this time, and this time Meng Jiangrou did not complain.
She had already realized how right her husband had been.
Even if accidents on the southern rail lines were rare, if something really did happen, the ones who would regret it most would be their own family. It was better to spend a little extra money for peace of mind. Their family was wealthy anyway.
As long as they were alive, they could always earn more money.
But after thinking of something, a trace of worry immediately appeared in Meng Jiangrou’s brows. She looked at her daughter as if she wanted to speak but hesitated, then took Gu Lingxue’s hands and said, “Xiaoxue, although Mom is very happy that you’ve found your own path, your father’s company still needs an heir…”
“It took so much effort to build it up to its current scale. In the future, we can always have a husband marry into the family.”
Gu Lingxue stared blankly. “…”
She flung her mother’s hands away, covered her face in embarrassment, and cried out, “Mom! Don’t say things like that to me! I fully support Dad’s decision, but why do you think someone with absolutely no blood relation to me would treat me well for no reason? Aren’t you afraid he’d just marry in and take over the family fortune? Just hire a professional manager instead, please!”
Meng Jiangrou nodded. “That’s true, but we can write up a contract. Only your husband would be able to obtain the company’s management rights and…”
“No, absolutely not!” Gu Lingxue shook her head like a rattle drum. “Don’t arrange my marriage this early. What if? What if? What if that really happens?”
She said “what if” three times in a row, and the depth of her resistance could not have been clearer.
Gu Yueqing, standing to the side, could not help laughing at the sight.
He finally stepped forward and patted his wife’s shoulder, saying helplessly, “Let’s talk about that later. Most of the company’s shares are in our hands anyway. Even if Xiaoxue doesn’t inherit the company in the future, she’ll still receive more than enough dividends.”
“But, dear…” Meng Jiangrou said plaintively. “Aren’t you afraid of what if?”
Gu Yueqing smiled. “I’ve already made a will.”
“Oh my, my Mr. Gu really is amazing.” Meng Jiangrou immediately clapped, then asked the next second, “Then should we try nurturing one of the younger relatives on your side, or mine? Our daughter is already out of the question, and we don’t even know whether a future son-in-law would have any talent for business.”
Gu Yueqing said with a headache, “I really am thinking about that problem. Sigh… When the two of us first got together, we didn’t have this worry…”
Meng Jiangrou clapped and laughed. “That’s why my Mr. Gu is so capable.”
Gu Lingxue, wedged between the two of them: “…”
Damn it. Her parents had started openly showing off their affection again. It had to be because their own marriage had been arranged that her mother had such unrealistic ideas. Gu Lingxue huffed inwardly. Where in the world were there that many good men?
From the bottom of her heart, Gu Lingxue did not trust her mother’s judgment.
By the time the conversation reached that point, Gu Lingxue glanced up at the station clock. Her train back to school was about to depart, so she hurriedly called out to her parents, “You two keep talking. Just remember to tell me you’re safe after you get home! My classmates and I are leaving first!”
The moment she said that, Gu Lingxue ran off like a puff of smoke.
She had no desire to hear any more of her parents’ talk about her future husband. Gu Lingxue thought with burning cheeks, I’m only in my first year of high school. I’m still underage. Don’t make me get married the moment I graduate. I refuse. Absolutely refuse.
She ran so quickly that she soon left her parents far behind.
By the time she reached the carriage of the train back to school, Gu Lingxue once again saw her two classmates. Ji Qing was sitting by the window with his eyes closed, resting, while Xie Chang’an had his head lowered as he scrolled through the light screen of his Terminal. The warm winter sunlight fell equally over both of them.
The familiar scene, the familiar people… all those familiar things loosened the tension in Gu Lingxue’s heart.
She naturally sat in the nearest seat, beside Ji Qing, then imitated Xie Chang’an and started checking the messages on her own Terminal. The moment its light screen lit up, Gu Lingxue saw a message from her father.
Dad: 【(Terminal transfer: 30,000 yuan)】
Dad: 【You can try finding a chance to treat your classmates to a meal, or just find an excuse to pass this along to them. Consider it reimbursement for the travel expenses and everything else this time. If there are more expenses later that need to be reimbursed, tell me then as well.】
A few minutes later, her father sent another message: 【Just don’t spend all of it on food.】
The instant she saw those three messages, Gu Lingxue immediately replied in a huff: 【What do you mean? Haven’t I always done a good job managing my figure?】
Even so, she happily accepted the money and quickly split it between her two classmates.
Xie Chang’an, who had been scrolling through the news, blinked in confusion.
With trembling fingers, he tapped into his chat window with Gu Lingxue and discovered that the large transfer was real. He thought blankly, Huh? Huh? Huh? She’s that rich?
“Lingxue, did you send this to the wrong person?” Xie Chang’an asked shakily.
The last time he had seen a five-figure transfer was when the school had distributed the Team Competition scholarship. Back then, he had taken it with complete peace of mind. Now, however, he felt uneasy inside. Why was she giving him so much money for no reason?
“Hehe, it’s a reward from my dad.” Gu Lingxue made a sly little gesture. “I’m splitting it with everyone. It would be a waste not to take it. My dad is really rich. He just never wanted to pay for my martial arts classes…”
Her tone at the end was full of grievance.
Xie Chang’an said awkwardly, “But this is too much…”
If it had just been a favor owed, Xie Chang’an could still have accepted it. But with an exact amount of money transferred to him like this, it made him feel as though his intentions were impure. He truly did not want his relationship with Lingxue to become transactional. After all, he did not have many friends…
“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Gu Lingxue waved her hand casually. “It isn’t even that much. Besides, didn’t you want to sign up for the Firearms Club, Chang’an? Now both of us can afford it. Next summer break—no, whenever we have time later, let’s go learn together!”
Xie Chang’an fell silent.
Xie Chang’an shut his mouth.
Xie Chang’an’s heart wavered wildly.
After staying quiet for a long while, he finally accepted the money in silence. In a small, ashamed voice, he said, “Th-then that does sound pretty good…”
He did not want Jiang Cuo to mock him again the next time they met for lacking foresight.
As a prospective wasteland hunter, Xie Chang’an also felt it was about time for him to learn how to deal with enemies he could not fight in close combat. This time it had been a flock of birds. Next time, who knew what it would be…
“Ha…”
Ji Qing, who had been awakened by their conversation, suddenly let out a low laugh.
He accepted the money quite naturally. After all, this was obviously Gu Lingxue’s father’s idea. If they refused to take it, Gu Lingxue herself would be the one put in an awkward position. Besides, they had saved her life. Taking a little money was not too much, was it?
But after accepting the transfer, Ji Qing said in a light tone, “Thanks. Perfect timing for a good meal.”
At last, he could go try one of Yancheng’s high-end restaurants.
This trip had truly paid off. As expected, the father of an entrepreneur really knew how to handle things. Ji Qing thought in a good mood, Not only is there no reason to feel any resentment now, even the little resentment I had before is almost gone.
Only an idiot like Xie Chang’an would try to refuse. Ji Qing mocked inwardly.
The warm sunlight was gentle, and the beautiful scenery outside the window stretched out in full view.
After resting for a while, Ji Qing lazily stretched, then turned his gaze back toward the wilderness beyond the window. Before his eyes lay the very wilderness they had crossed last night, the forest they had run through, and even a few of the Aberrants they had seen there.
The wilderness at night was fraught with danger, yet by day it looked almost peaceful.
The fatigue from all the rushing about attacked Ji Qing’s consciousness once more. He still wanted to take another nap, but before that… Ji Qing lowered his eyes and opened his Terminal, then saw one message after another popping up in the Class S group chat.
Looks like I’ll be seeing You Xingluo and the others this afternoon.
The three of them would definitely come together. When they did, he could mooch a meal off Shao Huayu while also asking around about Central City. Ji Qing needed to keep an eye on You Xingluo’s situation. What if the original manga storyline’s “chain withdrawal effect” really happened in the future?
After that, he still needed to investigate the Dawn Society files and meet with Emerald.
Things really were piling up more and more. Ji Qing sighed inwardly.
But for some reason, Ji Qing suddenly found himself looking forward to how the manga plot would develop in the future. The fact that Gu Lingxue’s family troubles had ended so perfectly probably had Yuexia’s hand behind it as well. Ji Qing had no idea what the manga readers thought after seeing it…
In any case, he himself was in quite a good mood.
From the next seat over, Gu Lingxue suddenly asked curiously, “Ji Qing, I’ve wanted to ask since earlier. What have you been looking at out the window this whole time?”
Ji Qing smiled and replied, “The forest we walked through yesterday, of course.”
“Eh?!” Gu Lingxue was utterly shocked.
She immediately sprang to her feet and leaned forward in amazement to lock onto the scenery outside the window. “It really is! That hill over there was so hard to cross. When I was walking through it, I thought it was a cliff. So it was only a small dirt slope? I really must have been exhausted back then…”
“Let me see too!” Xie Chang’an instantly became interested as well.
For a moment, the two fellow passengers seated beside the aisle both gathered by the window. They pointed at the scenery beyond the glass and chattered all at once about what had happened to them yesterday, while Ji Qing merely smiled gently at the sight.
To be honest, he quite enjoyed warm moments like this.