Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
In the multipurpose hall of No. 1 High School.
While Fang Ping racked his mind for ways to earn money and increase his Mentality, Wang Jinyang explained how the martial sciences examinations worked.
...
At the same time.
Lakeview Gardens.
Block 6, Unit 201.
A man in his forties said good-naturedly, “Sister, you can relax. I promise not to damage any of your furniture.
“If any of them gets damaged somehow, you can deduct the loss from my deposit!”
Opposite the man stood a slightly older woman. She smiled upon hearing his words and said, “That’ll be nice. This house was only furnished a few years ago.
“Although Lakeview Gardens has a little history, its surrounding environment is pleasant!
“There are restaurants, supermarkets and everything else. The bus station is just next to the entrance...
“With a rent of only 600 bucks a month, you’re definitely getting the better end of the bargain!
“It’s only because I’m not short on funds for now. Where else could you find a place like this for 600 bucks otherwise?”
“You’re right, you’re right. Thank you, Sister Chen, for looking after me,” the middle-aged man replied with a good-natured smile.
Sister Chen reminded him after some thought, “You told me that you’re going to live alone. You must keep the place clean.
“If I didn’t think that you could keep the place neat, I wouldn’t have rented it to you...
“Oh, right, everyone in this area knows one another, so you better not bring some unknown person home.
“Also, you must use a bucket to catch the water when you shower. The area leaks sometimes due to old age.
“There’s a kid downstairs preparing for Gaokao. Don’t make too much noise in the house. The sound insulation of this old house is a bit lacking...
“Also, you’ll have to leave if we return to live here...”
The woman reminded him of all sorts of things, but the man did not show any signs of impatience, acknowledging her concerns with a kind smile instead.
The woman was more relieved after seeing that he was reliable. At last, she handed a set of keys to him and said, “The house isn’t too dirty because I come back and tidy it up sometimes.
“Everything you need is here. You’ll only need to purchase some daily necessities.”
“Yes. Thank you, sister.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll leave first.”
Sister Chen did not stay for long. After she left, the middle-aged man closed the door quickly, sighed shallowly in relief and muttered, “This kind of ancient residential area shouldn’t have CCTV, should it?”
The man walked out to the balcony and looked outward. Standing in his spot, his brow furrowed, and he whispered, “Who knows if the people in Sun City can discover the hints I left...”
He had deliberately lured them to the direction of the White Mountain, so as to cause the misconception that he had run away from here. If he appeared to be no longer in their jurisdiction, they might no longer pay attention to him.
The man massaged his temples as he thought of these issues. No, he did not care about those small fries in Sun City.
It would be no big deal even if he was discovered.
What he feared was that he would attract unwanted attention from the higher-ups.
That little skill he possessed was enough for him to show off in small towns like Sun City. He would have died without even realizing it if he tried this in the big cities.
The man felt powerless when he thought of this. He had to go overseas somehow. Mucking in some chaotic third world country was much better than constantly worrying in Sino.
Although Sino was huge, it seemed tiny sometimes.
CCTVs were everywhere, so people like him were easily discovered unless they hid in the mountains and in hidden corners.
However, if he really had to live in those hidden corners, his daily needs would pose a problem. Martial artists were not deities, they still had to eat and drink too.
Plus, the residents in the countryside ran a tight ship with one another more often than not. If a stranger popped up suddenly, he would have to conceal himself even more.
He exhaled and quit thinking about it. There were no particular threats in Sun City, so he could recuperate here for a while before taking his next step.
After he had achieved his breakthrough, he could inform his contacts and leave Sino once and for all.
This ancient residential area did not even have a management team; it could be said that no one would notice him very much.
There were restaurants and convenience stores nearby, and living here was easy, so he would not leave too obvious traces here.
He replayed the entire plan in his head and ensured that there were no gaps before exhaling in relief again.
Deep down, he was slightly regretful, though. He should not have committed wrongdoing.
If he was not careless, he would have waited for a few years and collected all the resources he needed.
Martial artists were people that fought against time. He was already in his forties. If he waited for a few years, he would no longer have the chance to pursue martial arts further.
As his age increased, his Vitality depleted in turn. How could he not be anxious?
He was still unwilling to concede.
...
In No.1 High School.
After approximately two hours, the pre-exam guidance session had finally come to an end to raucous applause.
Fang Ping had wanted to greet Wang Jinyang, but he was surrounded by a horde of students, so he dismissed the thought instantly.
They did not need to return to class after the session and could go home.
Fang Ping said his goodbyes to Wu Zhihao and the others and got ready to depart, but then Wu Zhihao called out, face alight with eagerness, “Fang Ping, wanna come to my house tonight?”
Fang Ping’s expression stiffened. If that was said by a pretty woman, there would definitely not be a problem, but what was a man like him doing, saying something suggestive like that?
Wu Zhihao did not think too much at his facial response. He continued jovially, “Aren’t you curious about your current Vitality?
“Brother Wang said that you’ve got a shot at gaining admission to martial sciences, so your Vitality must have been increasing sharply! Do you want to come to my house for another test?”
Fang Ping sighed in relief. Couldn’t he finish his sentence in one go?
The people not in the know would misunderstand and assume that there was something between them.
“It’s fine. I don’t want to trouble you.”
“It’s not troublesome at all. Fang Ping, just come.”
“I don’t want to bother, really. I have something to do tonight. I’ll go when a chance comes up.”
Fang Ping did not want to rile the guy up. Envy makes people crazy; Wu Zhihao could still be normal as long as he did not know how much his Vitality was.
He would probably go off the rails if he knew that Fang Ping’s Vitality had already surpassed 120cal.
Wu Zhihao was a decent person; it would be undesirable to crush him into an unmotivated pulp.
Although Wu Zhihao was still dying to know his Vitality, he let the matter go when he saw Fang Ping’s resolve.
Fang Ping then bid farewell to some other classmates before setting off to his home.
...
Just after Fang Ping had left, Wang Jinyang turned down an invitation to have dinner together with the higher-ups.
Coming to No.1 High School was only a side job for Wang Jinyang.
By coming, he made them owe him a favor, and he got money out of it too. It could be said that he profited without any cost.
The main source of profit was the job from the Department of Investigation Services here in Sun City. Although five hundred thousand was not much, it was quite a hefty sum to Sun City.
Missions in small cities were easier to complete, too, and there was less risk. If everything went smoothly, he could complete the mission with ease.
He grabbed his backpack and walked out of the school. After a short while, a black Volkswagen stopped in front of Wang Jinyang.
He got in the car and as soon as he had sat down he asked, “According to the intel, the target has entered the White Mountains. There are some tourists in the mountains during the day, so the target probably won’t make his move at that time. Does this mean that the target is still in the White Mountains, in the area within Sun City’s jurisdiction?”
The driver said immediately, “Mr. Wang, what you said is right. The target must still be in Sun City.
“If he has really ventured out of Sun City, we’ll catch wind of it.
“The Director has said that he’ll inform you if the target has really left Sun City so that you won’t be sent on a wild goose chase.”
Wang Jinyang furrowed his brow. If the target had really gone out from Sun City, the officers here could not capture him despite their desire to, because he was already out of their jurisdiction.
If he received the instruction to not give chase, that did not mean that his mission was completed, but rather that he had failed.
According to how the department worked, there would not be any reward whatsoever if the target was not captured. He would consider it lucky if they even reimbursed his transport expenses.
After some thought, Wang Jinyang asked, “The target has lived in Sun City for a while. Have your people not interacted with him before?”
The driver chuckled dryly. “The target is very wary of pursuers...”
“Has your Director never tried to lure him out?”
“Regarding that...”
Wang Jinyang curled his lip. These old farts valued their lives more than anything; they would not dare to set a trap or attempt any risky luring.
“Is the target really at Rank-2?”
“This...”
The driver was loath to divulge information initially, but then he replied immediately when he saw Wang Jinyang’s expression worsen from the rearview mirror. “He’s at Rank-2, definitely!
“The target committed crimes in other places to obtain the resources needed to achieve a breakthrough.
“But for now, it seems like he still hasn’t collected enough resources.
“Even if he has everything he needs, he hasn’t had the time to achieve a breakthrough. We’ve been monitoring him closely during his time in Sun City.
“Everything’s normal. We’ll know if he achieves a breakthrough.”
It seemed like it was not much of an issue, after all, breakthroughs do not happen overnight for martial artists.
Wang Jinyang nodded slightly and did not speak after that.
Once he completed this mission, he would receive five hundred thousand yuan. This, coupled with the sixty thousand he received from No.1 High School and his current possessions, would add up to 2 million in total.
He would have the amount he needed after applying for a subsidy from the school.
He recalled how just a year ago he was still struggling to purchase a Blood-replenishing Pill that cost a mere few thousand bucks.
Now he had millions, but even that was far from enough.
Ordinary citizens would probably find it hard to imagine earning so much money in a year.
Wang Jinyang smiled self-deprecatingly at the thought. He had earned so much, yet it was never enough.
Except for those high-ranked powerhouses whose corporations were immensely lucrative, resources were limited, even for those working in the government.
The fact that he could earn so much in a short time was nothing short of miraculous.
Some martial artists had no connections and no channels. The situation would be better if they had graduated from martial arts universities. Those martial artists who relied on themselves had it worst.
Many people found themselves unable to advance beyond Rank-1.
This man was an example. Students or alumni of martial arts university would hardly commit crimes and risk being caught just for several millions’ worth of resources.
He could not resist the temptation, though. He was living proof that some martial artists were not faring as well as society imagined them to.
Wang Jinyang hoped that he could find something else to do after he achieved his breakthrough.
Maybe he could become a legal representative for some small-scale corporation?
Wang Jinyang dismissed the thought after considering it for a while. While there was nothing much to do initially, he would need to solve some little problems on their behalf from time to time.
If he was needed frequently, he might as well do some missions instead.
This was also the reason why martial artists were rarely willing to become legal representatives for businesses. It was troublesome, and they would not gain as much for the time and effort they had invested in it.
Most of them who did so were casual martial artists with lots of time in their hands.
Even so, not everyone fulfilled the criteria the companies set. They were more willing to employ university students or graduates with a clean political background.
After all, according to the law, the business would belong to the legal representative.
Nothing could be done if the martial artist they employed decided to take over the company themselves.
This was also why casual martial artists fared worse. No company, not even small ones, would dare to employ them, so they could only set up a company of their own if they wished to venture into business.
Wang Jinyang thought on as the car sped in the direction of the White Mountains.