Chapter 17 (1/2)

Calling Out The Aunt

Whoosh!

Xu Qian hurled a diamond-shaped stealth weapon from the roof with little care. He was in the inner courtyard of the house.

The weapon found its target—the wooden stake 20 steps away.

It was not skill Xu Qian had but luck.

“There’s definitely something wrong with my body,” he muttered under his breath.

He was too fortunate. For a whole month, he had been finding silver maces left and right, amounting to more than half of his monthly salary.

The money could feed an ordinary family of three for a month. If they were especially thrifty, it could last three months.

It was unusual to find maces of silver everywhere he went. It could not be pure luck.

Xu Qian knew something odd was at play.

“System? Come on out, stop playing hide and seek,” he called out into the empty air.

There was no response.

In the past month, he had tried countless times to wake the System.

The silence only confirmed the absence of a System.

What was the explanation for the extraordinary luck?

In his past life, he had spent a decent amount of money on lottery tickets but never won anything. Who knew his luck would change for the better? He wondered if the luck came at the expense of his life.

Xu Qian was sure the host did not have such luck. If he did, his aunt would not have picked on him. The exceptional luck would have granted him a blessed childhood.

The family would have relied on his silver-attracting ability and forgo work.

“An unexplained gift makes one suspicious. Guess I’ll just have to watch my steps.” Xu Qian sighed.

It was a rest day. Xu Qian leaped over a wall his height and entered his uncle’s house for breakfast.

The place Xu Qian was living in was originally occupied by the Xu family’s old housekeeper. One wall separated it from the manor proper.

After the housekeeper passed away, the place had been vacant until Xu Qian took up residency as a result of an argument with his aunt.

The host was a stubborn man. He made his own meals every day though sometimes his uncle would come over with some wine and food.

Xu Qian did not share the same principles as the host. Sleep was more important than preparing breakfast and eating out would cost a significant amount of money.

His money was reserved for the playhouse—the enchanting melodies coupled with thinly-veiled women swaying their hips.

…

Inside the hall, Li Ru was dressed in a deep red, wide-sleeved robe. When she saw Xu Qian enter, she pursed her lips and proceeded to eat her porridge.

She did not hail from a prestigious family—her father had passed the county-level imperial examination, earning the title of a scholar. Li Ru picked up behaviors from her father and learned to be diplomatic. Her family was recently saved by the unlucky nephew so she held back her caustic remarks. The nephew had grown into a man of some worth so she turned a blind eye to his presence.

Xu Lingyin was standing by a round stool. Her breakfast was placed atop the stool: three meat buns, two breadsticks, a side dish and a bowl of porridge.

“Brot—” she greeted incoherently with a stuffed mouth.

Xu Qian glanced around and asked, “Where is Cijiu?”

Cijiu was Xu Xinnian’s courtesy name.

Xu Pingzhi offered the answer. “He’s locked up in his room writing a poem.”

Xu Qian took a seat. Lu Er served him a bowl of porridge, six meat buns, a plate of pickled radish and a bowl of soft bean curd.

A martial artist at maximum refinement had a large appetite.

Once the martial artist reaches the Qi stage, his appetite would return to normal like Xu Pingzhi’s.

Xu Qian was only half full. He glanced at the little bean and said, “Lingyin, can you give me one of the meat buns?”

Everyone at the table observed their exchange. The youngest daughter of the family cared only about food—she would fight anyone who tried to steal from her plate.

“No!” Xu Lingyin stretched her arms wide and guarded her food like an eagle would her chicks.

“Come now, I will give you something in return.” Xu Qian took one of his meat buns and placed it on her plate.

He pointed at her plate of meat buns and said, “We both have a share of these meat buns, right?”

Xu Lingyin scratched her head.

“We’ll split them equally, yes?”

Xu Lingyin angled her head as she processed the logic, then she nodded.

“You get two buns and I get two buns. Then, I’ll give you half a breadstick. Isn’t that great for you?”

“Yes.” Xu Lingyin was completely swayed by his words. She smiled happily as if she had won the jackpot.

Xu Lingyue was speechless.