Chapter 30: Let’s Go Find Fatty!
After living in advance a retirement life of accompanying Wu Xie fishing every day, occasionally eating West Lake Vinegar Fish, and otherwise staying at home watching TV or lying idly in the backyard, Lin Yan suddenly remembered a question one day: “Wu Xie, aren’t you worried about running out of money since your Wu Shan Ju hasn’t had any business for so long?”
Wu Xie was sprawled on a lounge chair in his own backyard, basking in the sun. He waved his hand: “No rush. If it really doesn’t work, we can keep it on credit. Once the jade burial suit money comes in, it’ll be fine.”
Lin Yan suddenly became very curious: “Doing business like this, if you hadn’t gone to Lu King’s Palace to make a haul, wouldn’t you have lost everything?”
Wu Xie looked completely matter-of-fact: “It’s exactly because I had no money to turn over that I wanted to go to Lu King’s Palace to make a haul.” His expression changed, and he gave a bitter smile: “Who knew after going around, the money still didn’t end up in my hands.”
Well, Lin Yan had black lines all over his face. So Wu Xie got involved because a single coin stumped the hero! If he wasn’t short on money, it’s hard to say if this whole mess would have continued to his next generation. But a strange question arose: “Didn’t you say you couldn’t turn it over? Then how are you still so rich now?”
Wu Xie gave him a strange look: “I counted, and our combined total assets don’t even reach 100,000, with 50,000 of that being the check from Mute Bottle. You call this rich?”
Lin Yan felt hit by Versailles: “Almost 100,000, and you call this not rich?” But when he saw Wu Xie’s bewildered expression looking at him, he got it—Wu Xie was at least the current head of the Wu Family. His Second Uncle, Third Uncle, including his mother and grandmother’s side, all boiled down to him as the sole heir. This was a hidden king bachelor! How could a mere 100,000 catch his eye? If he ran out of money, he probably wouldn’t even need to open his mouth before a bunch of people sent money directly.
Lemon, lemoned. Must skip this topic, too heartbreaking.
He wanted to skip this topic, but Wu Xie didn’t. Because Wu Xie remembered a very important question: “Lin Yan, did Mute Bottle say anything to you before parting? Like where to find more after you use up these two pearls? Or did he say he’d deliver them?”
Speaking of this, Lin Yan remembered that he had been knocked out! Before knocking him out, that Mute Bottle really hadn’t said anything!
Thinking that he had already eaten the last pearl three days ago, Lin Yan felt completely unwell.
What to do? He looked at Wu Xie in confusion, and Wu Xie looked back at him with puzzlement on his face.
“So, he really didn’t say anything to you and just shipped you over?”
This word “shipped” was used so aptly.
“Yeah, yeah?”
Confused fruit on the confused tree, under the confused tree it’s you and me.
After staring at each other for a dozen seconds, Wu Xie clapped his hands: “So that’s how it is!”
“What?”
Wu Xie sat up straight and looked at him: “I was saying, Mute Bottle actually had the heart to send money. So that check was meant for you!”
“Check? What check?” Lin Yan was really confused now. Could it be that while he didn’t know, Zhang Qiling and Wu Xie had quietly made a deal?
Wu Xie magically pulled a light piece of paper from his pocket—it was exactly that check for 50,000. He held the check in front of Lin Yan: “Here, this one. Found it in your pocket, along with a small note saying it was money for the pearls. I thought you knew. I was wondering back then, he’d already put the pearls in, so why send money too. Now I get it—this money is for you to buy pearls.”
Lin Yan took one look—damn, four zeros. Owed Zhang Qiling money again. Plus travel expenses, shipping fees, and such, by the time the jade burial suit money came in, paying off the miscellaneous debts in one go would leave just enough to rent a place!
Sigh, when could he ever have money!
As a black household without identity, he couldn’t do jobs requiring an ID card, and most money-making businesses were already off-limits. Not much was left that he could do. Go move bricks? Allow him to refuse. If it came to that, better to go tomb-raiding with Wu Xie to make money! The tombs Third Master Xiao went to were definitely no ordinary ones. Just casually taking some things out in this era before prices inflated would let him live well! Otherwise, why was the antiques trade said to be three years without a deal, then eat for three years once one came?
No wait, didn’t he have to stick with Wu Xie? There was still something in his mind being suppressed!
Thinking carefully, following Wu Xie wasn’t that easy either. If he remembered right, Fatty and Xiaoge seemed to just risk their lives following him. Except for the first time at Lu King’s Palace bringing out a jade burial suit, did they bring out anything from other tombs? Seemed like really nothing. They spent most of their time escaping for their lives—where was the time to take things? Seemed like only Fatty pocketed some small items? So… how had they not gone bankrupt after so many years! Damn! He got it now—these guys except him were all filthy rich!
Coming back to his senses, he discovered Wu Xie had already pulled out his mobile phone and was fiddling with something.
After typing, Wu Xie put away his mobile phone. Turning back, he saw Lin Yan looking at him curiously, so he lifted his chin: “Coming? Let’s take a long trip to get you those beads!”
“Long trip? How far? Can’t get them in Hangzhou?” Lin Yan was a bit puzzled. With the Wu Family, was there anything they couldn’t get in Hangzhou?
“Hangzhou isn’t impossible, but Beijing’s are better quality. Plus, we can meet up with Fatty—he should have wide connections around Panjiayuan. I haven’t been to Beijing much; this trip can double as tourism on official business.”
Lin Yan hesitated a bit. After all, it was for his stuff—not going would be improper, but there were a few small issues.
“Then where do we stay? What about the coffin? Hotels won’t allow it, right?”
Wu Xie had one hand in his pocket, looking at him with high spirits: “No problem, ship it as luggage! Put it in a box and no one will notice. Fatty said you asked him to investigate something? Said details in person, with a surprise!”
Many years later, Lin Yan could still clearly recall this afternoon, Wu Xie’s smile still carrying innocence and youthful spirit. He was only twenty-four or twenty-five then, not yet having experienced the later brushes with death, not yet formally stepping onto the path of seeking the truth. As he encountered more and more truths later, it became hard to see this smile belonging only to young Wu Xie again.
It was also a regret.
After all, on the road of growing up, you always have to pay something.
It was so for Wu Xie, and so for Lin Yan.
And now the young them were still worrying over Lin Yan’s identity.
“How do we get there?”
“Airplane, buying a ticket is easy, and it doesn’t take long—way more comfortable than the train. You don’t have a fear of heights, right?”
“I don’t have a fear of heights.” Lin Yan showed a complicated expression: “But the problem is, I don’t have an ID card!”
“You lost your ID card? No problem, I’ll help you get a replacement. Add some money for express service, done in a day.”
Hearing this, Lin Yan’s smile became even more complicated: “The problem isn’t that… the problem is, I never got an ID card in the first place!”
“Huh?” Wu Xie was shocked. There were adults without an ID card?
“Then… what about your birth certificate or something?”
Lin Yan spread his hands: “Do I look like someone who has those?”
Wu Xie then remembered that after Lin Yan arrived here, he’d never seen him go back to his previous place, nor contact anyone besides him, not even having a mobile phone! He hadn’t realized this! He probed: “Nothing from your parents’ side?”
Lin Yan shook his head: “I’m an orphan.”
“Then what about the previous orphanage?”
“Can’t even find the orphanage now.”
“…” Wu Xie was speechless. “So, you’re actually a black household?” He widened his eyes: “There are still black households now?”
Lin Yan pursed his lips and secretly scorned: That’s because you’ve seen too little. Wait till you meet other Zhang family members… those scheming old foxes with twenty-something faces but actually at least a hundred years old, all black households!
Wu Xie didn’t expect Lin Yan to answer this, so after scratching his hair and circling in place twice, he grabbed Lin Yan and went out: “Let’s go find Second Uncle; he should have a way. Worst case, help you re-register household! Might even help you find your family! Not to brag, but in Hangzhou, Second Uncle is one who can handle this!”
Dragged along by him, Lin Yan was a bit curious too. The Wu Family name went one poor, two poor, three from the provinces… Wonder what this guy was like, who barely appeared in the original but was feared by all sides. Wait, no! This guy was the deepest and most ruthless schemer in the Wu Family! Going there wouldn’t be walking into the tiger’s mouth? He’d probably be thoroughly investigated before even arriving! Maybe from the moment he appeared at Wu Xie’s doorstep, his info was already on this guy’s desk! But then again, except for the Lu King’s Palace trip, did he have any records in this world?
Damn! Good question!
Lin Yan couldn’t help but fall into thought… If they found out he had a legitimate identity in this world, was it body transmigration or soul transmigration? He was pretty sure it was body, but if everyone was numb, what the hell! Why did it feel like the problems were piling up more and more?
PS: Always dissatisfied with the first few chapters, took some time today to revise… Feels like the writing style has changed so much from start to now, like a completely different person.
