Chapter Sixteen [Taking Advantage]
Chen Nuo's mentality at the moment was actually quite complex. He inhabited the shell of a youth, but his soul was that of an old ghost—and not just any old ghost, but a malicious one, the most malevolent kind. Towards Old Sun's daughter, he actually didn't have many thoughts. It was just that typical impulse of a middle-aged man, upon seeing a young and pretty girl, to tease her a bit if the opportunity arose—just for fun. But he really didn't harbor any excessive intentions. Old Sun's judgment of him was completely off the mark. Yet, this inherent kindness that shone through still touched Chen Nuo. People like that were rare nowadays and would become even rarer in the future. And such people... they should be duly rewarded. That was the greatest form of fairness in this world.
After taking care of the business in South Korea, Chen Nuo had recently fallen into a state of idleness. There was certainly more to do in the future, but that was still a long way off.
So, he preferred to use this period to just let himself loaf around. He had lived through too many days of waltzing on the razors' edge amidst hails of bullets in his past life. Even during the eight years he self-imprisoned at sea, he was constantly on edge, managing his team and stirring up trouble around the world. In this life, free from all those entanglements, Chen Nuo was more inclined to first let himself enjoy a period of being idle—the kind of days where he could just hang around, bask in the sun, with nothing particular to do.
So, he didn't go to school that afternoon.
He wandered aimlessly on the streets, hung out in a video arcade for a while, strolled through a mall, and even went to a cinema to watch a movie.
Since it was a weekday, the movie theater was almost empty. Chen Nuo spotted a couple sitting in the back row and, with a bit of mischievous delight, deliberately sat next to them.
The lovebirds endured ten minutes before finally moving to another spot.
Chen Nuo laughed heartily, watched the movie for a while, and then fell asleep.
When he woke up, he continued his wandering, entered a KFC, bought a milkshake to go, and sipped it on his walk home.
Upon reaching the entrance of his building, he saw School belle Sun's face.
"Why did you skip school today?"
"Do you know how much my dad cares about you?"
"Do you know that over the weekend, he rode his bike up and down your street several times, just to find you a job? When he came back last night, he was hobbling; he said he fell off his bike. I saw a long bruise on his calf when he was soaking his feet!"
"Chen Nuo, can you please stop being so irresponsible?"
The girl seemed to have been holding in her words all day, and now they all came pouring out at once.
It was a lot of information to take in. After listening, Chen Nuo pondered for a moment, then looked at the girl's flushed face.
"How long have you been waiting for me?"
"Huh?"
Chen Nuo frowned, reached out, and grabbed School belle Sun's hand. Frowning again, he asked, "It's so cold. How long have you waited?"
The girl was a bit stunned.
She had never, in her entire life, seen a boy so audacious as to just grab her hand so boldly.
She wriggled her hand a few times but couldn't break free. School belle Sun's face reddened even more. "I-I've only waited a little while..."
"Come with me." Chen Nuo started to pull the girl upstairs. School belle Sun panicked, forcefully shaking off his hand and stepping back. "N-no, I can't..."
Chen Nuo smiled, realizing. Hmm, it is a bit inappropriate. "Alright, I'll take you somewhere else."
Saying so, he led the somewhat bewildered girl away.
They walked down one street and found a coffee shop called Ivy. It was actually the kind of place where you could get tea or coffee, a mishmash of simple meals like steak, and even private rooms for playing cards or mahjong.
They found a quiet corner and sat down. The blush on School belle Sun's face hadn't faded; if anything, it looked like her face was about to bleed.
Chen Nuo directly called over the waiter. He ordered a hot chocolate for her and a cup of green tea for himself, along with some assorted nuts and melon seeds. After a moment's thought, glancing at the young girl, he also added a small fruit platter.
The young girl was initially a little nervous. But when the hot chocolate arrived and she took a small sip, her eyes curved into crescents.
At that age, both boys and girls tend to have a sweet tooth. Besides, she hadn't yet reached the age where she'd have to avoid sweets to maintain her figure.
Their conversation covered a wide range of topics. For someone like Chen Nuo, an old rake from twenty years in the future, it was easy to control the pace of the conversation, subtly coaxing out a lot of information.
School belle Sun, at her young age, wasn't very crafty yet. Furthermore, she had been thoroughly protected by her father, Old Sun, who doted on his daughter. Thus, with just a few prompts from Chen Nuo, she spilled everything, whether it was appropriate to share or not.
Chen Nuo was mainly asking about Old Sun.
School belle Sun shared a lot, but when it came to one particular matter, Chen Nuo's gaze grew solemn.
It must have been a few years ago, back when Old Sun wasn't yet the Director of Teaching Affairs and was still a homeroom teacher.
"...Back then, my dad often brought a student home for dinner. He was a guy much older than me, tall, and looked quite fierce. I was pretty scared of him at first. I overheard my parents talking and learned that he didn't have much family, wasn't doing well in his studies, and was always out fighting and messing around. Once, my dad tried to stop him from going out by holding onto him, but the student pushed him, and my dad fell over."
Chen Nuo felt a stir of agitation. He pulled out the pack of cigarettes he had bought during the daytime and hadn't finished. He glanced at the girl in front of him, resisted the urge to light one, and put the pack away.
School belle Sun continued, "...Later that night, that student came to our house and knelt before my dad. He was crying, snot running down his face, apologizing to my dad and begging him to stop caring about him, saying he wasn't worth it. My dad was really upset that day."
School belle Sun was still a young girl, so when she recounted past events, her storytelling tended to be rambling and lacked much logical structure.
She mentioned that the boy from those days was really nice to her, like an older brother, and would sometimes bring her candy to eat.
At that time, School belle Sun was in elementary school and initially feared the boy, but later on treated him like her own big brother.
And then...
"A few years ago, my dad suddenly stopped being a homeroom teacher and was transferred to be the Director of Teaching Affairs. My mom even had a big fight with my dad about it. Before that, my dad was the grade level leader and also the only teacher in the school who had been recognized as outstanding... Our school might be subpar, but when my dad was teaching, the years with the best student promotion rates for the entire school were thanks to the graduating classes he taught. But then, my dad suddenly refused to be a homeroom teacher anymore.
"I heard my mom say that by not being a homeroom teacher and grade level leader, he'd lose out on a lot of income—bonuses, rewards for promotion rates, all sorts of things. But my dad just refused to do it, and I don't know why."
"What was that boy's name? Do you remember?"
"...His name was Han Kejian. My dad actually gave him that name; he said it was to encourage him to overcome hardships and bravely face life." School belle Sun shook her head. "My dad was really good to him during those years. Sometimes, I, his own daughter, would get jealous. At home during the New Year, when the school distributed hairtail fish, my dad would always pick the thickest pieces and save a portion for Han Kejian to take home.
"Oh, right! He was actually really good at math. My dad said he had a talent for mathematics. It's just a shame he didn't study well in junior high, so by the time he got to our high school, that talent was wasted.
"I remember, during those couple of years when he often came to our house for dinner with my dad, he even used to help me with my math homework."
Chen Nuo nodded.
After that, the young girl's conversation veered off-topic, and she started talking about various miscellaneous things at school.
Chen Nuo noticed the girl was very interested in the fruit platter they'd been served and was picking out all the small tomatoes. Hmm, back then, they weren't called 'cherry tomatoes' yet; everyone just called them 'small tomatoes.'
Chen Nuo watched as the girl enthusiastically picked out all the small tomatoes. Feeling somewhat bored, he got up and asked the server to bring another platter.
Around eight o'clock, School belle Sun's phone rang. The girl answered with some nervousness, stammering a few words.
Chen Nuo heard the girl say, "…I'm at a classmate's home, yes, at Lin Xiaona's… Okay, okay… I'll come back right away…"
After the girl hung up the phone, Chen Nuo didn't wait for her to say anything and stood up directly. "Come on, I'll walk you home."
After walking School belle Sun to the staff dormitory building of No. 8 Middle School, Chen Nuo didn't say much. He could see the girl was reluctant to go upstairs, lingering and dragging her feet. Pretending not to notice, Chen Nuo turned and walked away. In reality, he hid not far off, watching her go upstairs. Only after he saw the lights turn on in the fifth-floor corridor did he finally leave.
Over the course of the evening, Chen Nuo managed to get some matters straightened out.
The process was simple. He just wandered around the all-night internet cafes and computer rooms near No. 8 Middle School, handing out a few packs of Zhonghua cigarettes.
In the internet cafes and video arcades, he cozied up to those whose dress and demeanor most resembled that of petty thugs.
After the packs of Zhonghua cigarettes were all handed out, Chen Nuo had gathered the information he needed.
Han Kejian. His nicknames were Han Dazhuang and also Big Bro Dazhuang. Yes, he had once been a well-known figure in the street gangs. The 'once' was because this person was already dead—stabbed to death. About four or five years ago, one night, he had been stabbed to death behind a trash bin in a narrow alley. Over a dozen stab wounds! That was also the year Old Sun stopped being a homeroom teacher, stopped teaching students, and became a despondent Director of Teaching Affairs who just went through the motions each day.
Chen Nuo suddenly understood something.
「The next day.」
As Old Sun entered the classroom right on time, he smiled with relief when he saw Chen Nuo sitting in his seat.
Chen Nuo also smiled back at Old Sun.
Even when Old Sun, seemingly just to pick on him, assigned Chen Nuo to clean the classroom as the student on duty after school, Chen Nuo didn't show the slightest dissatisfaction.
He had already grasped Old Sun's intentions. In Old Sun's eyes, Chen Nuo was a student isolated by family troubles, so he couldn't let this lost lamb stray from the flock. Whether it was having Chen Nuo join the snow-shoveling team on the playground or making him the student on duty, these actions weren't primarily about harboring any personal vendetta... Well, perhaps there was a little of that. But Old Sun's main intention was to encourage this young man to integrate more into the group, participate in more activities, and live like a true... student!
He made a couple of trips back and forth, carried a few buckets of water, and mopped the classroom floor along with several other students from his class.
Throughout this, the other students were laughing and joking around. Chen Nuo mingled with them, chiming in a few times. It was actually quite nice. These kinds of days, while a bit childish, were very relaxing.
When they finished, Old Sun came over and took Chen Nuo back to his place for another meal.
Of course, Old Sun remained as vigilant as a guard dog regarding any contact between his daughter and Chen Nuo.
School belle Sun's mother was, as usual, working overtime and returned late; Chen Nuo didn't see her before he left.
However, this time before leaving, Old Sun stuffed a black plastic bag into Chen Nuo's hands.
"It's frozen hairtail fish, distributed by the school. There are only three of us at home, and we can't finish it. Take it with you, and when you cook for yourself, just cut a few slices and steam it. It's very simple."
Chen Nuo didn't say anything, nor did he refuse. He took it, feeling its weight in his hands.
Hmm, it was quite heavy.
Just as he was about to leave, Old Sun suddenly called out to him again.
"Wait a minute. Stay right there, don't move." Old Sun looked as if he'd remembered something. "I bought some oranges today, bought too many. Take some home with you."
Chen Nuo: "..."
What the heck, Old Sun! Are you trying to take advantage of me?
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