Chapter 179: Jiang City (1)

Gu Ting paused for a moment. Thinking of Shen Qing's mother and grandfather, he delayed for a couple of seconds before speaking. "Mm, did you bring the calming incense?"

"I brought it." Shen Qing patted the small box in her crossbody bag, narrowing her eyes as she leaned back against the chair.

"Qingqing."

"Speak like a normal person."

Gu Ting was taken aback, then chuckled softly. "Classmate Shen Qing, shall we video call tonight?"

Shen Qing rubbed her temples. "Denied. I have serious business to attend to."

Hearing Shen Qing's explanation, Gu Ting was in a very good mood. "Alright, then I'll call you tomorrow. Make sure to rest well and don't work too late."

"Nagl." Shen Qing muttered a complaint and ended the call with one hand.

"Hey..." Gu Ting still wanted to nag a bit more, but the other end had already hung up.

Eleven stood to the side, waiting until Gu Ting put down his phone before speaking. "Master, Lord Cheng is back and is sitting downstairs."

Gu Ting stood up. "Mm." With that, he strode out of the room.

In the first-floor parlor, a young man with dazzling, dyed-yellow hair sat with his legs crossed, tapping away at a computer.

"Oh, you're here." Dongfang Cheng glanced at Gu Ting, a rare look of seriousness on his face.

"Mm, how is it?" Gu Ting sat down on the sofa opposite Dongfang Cheng.

Dongfang Cheng closed his laptop. "The materials we need have already been procured by Wuxie's side, and the engineers have been contacted as well. There is a Dr. Zeng from the medical association—you've heard of him, right? He's also on the list."

"The one who developed the intelligent purifier?"

Dongfang Cheng nodded. "That's him."

"Alright, I'll leave this matter in your charge."

"Huh? Just me alone? Then what are you going to do?"

Gu Ting stood up from the sofa, casting a sidelong glance at Dongfang Cheng. "Going to check out the casino."

With those words, he had already walked out the door.

***

The sky was gradually darkening. Shen Qing stepped out of a taxi. The temperature in Jiang City was lower than in Fancheng, and the biting night wind felt as though it were piercing straight into one's bones. Shen Qing could not help but pull her down jacket tighter around herself.

The aging streetlamp was broken and no longer lit. Shen Qing walked through the pitch-black alleyway, where the wretched wail of a cat could occasionally be heard in the distance. Emerging from the alley, lights began to appear not far ahead, shining from the windows of residential buildings.

The small town had no nightlife; most people finished dinner around five or six o'clock, and once darkness fell, they tucked themselves safely into their beds.

Shen Qing walked into a building, and even in the stairwell, the sound of a neighbor's television could be heard.

"Eh? Is that Qingqing?" Just as Shen Qing stopped in front of a doorway, the door next door opened from the inside, and a woman well past sixty bent over to toss out a bag of trash.

"Granny Zhong, long time no see." Shen Qing smiled and greeted the elderly woman.

Granny Zhong placed the trash bag by the door, raised her head, and looked closely at Shen Qing. "It really has been a long time. How have you been living in the big city? You look a bit fuller than before, and Qingqing is getting prettier and prettier."

"Not bad." Shen Qing smiled and nodded.

"Oh? Didn't Zhongyi come back with you for the New Year?" In Granny Zhong's memory, Zhongyi had always followed closely behind Shen Qing since they were children.

"His school doesn't give time off."

"Is that so? Have you eaten yet, Qingqing? Granny will cook you a bowl of noodles." With that, Granny Zhong reached out to pull her inside.

Shen Qing didn't stand on ceremony, said thank you, and went inside.

"Oh, you child, what are you thanking me for?" Granny Zhong placed a freshly cooked bowl of noodles on the table, topped with a beautiful fried egg.

"Eat it while it's hot, but be careful not to burn your tongue."

"Mm." Shen Qing removed the bag from her shoulder, set it aside, picked up her chopsticks, and began to eat the noodles.

Granny Zhong watched her for a moment. "Qingqing, your house hasn't been lived in for so long, and it won't be clean. Why don't you stay here with me tonight?"

"No need, thank you, Granny." Shen Qing smiled at her, finished the last bite of noodles, set down the bowl, and prepared to take it to the kitchen to wash.

"Oh my! Let me wash it. You must be tired from traveling from out of town, get some rest early."

"Alright, Granny, I'll be heading back first."

Granny Zhong nodded, saw her to the door, and tucked two bottles of milk into Shen Qing's hands.

Shen Qing put the milk into her crossbody bag. She had long since forgotten where she had thrown the house key. Pulling a slender hair clip from her head, she inserted it into the keyhole and gave it a slight twist, and the door clicked open.

The apartment was not large, featuring a layout of three bedrooms and one living room. Shen Qing walked into her own room, took a fresh set of bedsheets and quilt cover out of the wardrobe to replace the old ones, and then walked out to the living room to boil a pot of hot water before entering the study. It was the largest room in the apartment, and its desk held only a single inkstone.