Mom, Dad, I'm back.
You're back?
Chen Shu's parents were coincidentally having dinner.
His father, Chen Ping, got up, looked towards the door, and asked, "Any pursuers?"
Chen Shu was speechless. "Dad, what are you thinking? I'm not a fugitive!"
He remembered something else and said, "Although there were no pursuers, I met a lunatic today."
His father, Chen Ping, asked, "Your roommate?"
Chen Shu gave a dry laugh, "Heh."
"You seem to be in a good mood," his father Chen Ping said with relief.
Chen Shu returned to the dining table, served himself a large bowl of congee, and said, "It's natural to be in a good mood when I'm back home."
His mother said, "We thought you'd be upset about Da Li's situation."
Chen Shu raised an eyebrow. "Da Li? Didn't he get into Kyoto Spiritual Chef University? Why would I be upset?"
His father, Chen Ping, sighed. "It's precisely because he got in. Although the three of you grew up together, with Fang Si and Zhang Da Li being so outstanding, and you being so weak, it's inevitable you'd feel unbalanced."
"Even if we're weaklings, at least we have a good mindset."
Chen Ping patted his shoulder and said, "As long as you have a good mindset, you'll live longer. Whoever laughs last laughs best!"
"Heh, Dad, you're really good at comforting people," Chen Shu said. "Besides, I'm just accumulating strength for a later burst. Once I get serious, they'll both have to rely on me for support."
Chen Ping said, "Oh no, your mindset might be good, but it seems like your mind is the problem."
Chen Shu simply closed his mouth and focused on eating.
The next day, Chen Shu had planned to go into seclusion for a day to rest and clear his mind.
Unexpectedly, his phone rang first thing in the morning.
Unknown number? Marked as scam by 9999 people!
Chen Shu's mouth twitched. "You don't even change your number? My friend, you're really bold."
He answered the call, and before he could speak, the other party attacked first.
"Old classmate, oh my, I've missed you so much."
"No, do you even know who I am? You're calling me an old classmate?"
"You can't even recognize my voice? You really are a forgetful distinguished person, it's me! Old Zhao!"
Chen Shu's mouth twitched, and he asked with a smile, "Old Zhao, do you believe in 'Lao' or 'Zhao'?"
The other side was silent for a moment before speaking again, "You haven't changed at all, still so fond of joking."
Chen Shu said, "Haha, just kidding with you. Of course, I wouldn't forget you, Old Zhao."
His eyes darted around, and he asked again, "By the way, what have you been up to lately?"
"Me? I've been a fitness coach recently, but I always feel like I don't have enough money. I want to invest and do business and need to find a partner."
"Get out of here, Old Zhao. I remember you used to have epilepsy since you were a kid, convulsing and foaming at the mouth from time to time. How can you be a coach? Teach people to convulse?"
There was another long silence from the other side.
Chen Shu forced himself to suppress a laugh, already imagining the other party's expression.
"Heh, medical technology has advanced, and I've recovered now."
"Recovered? Congratulations, congratulations."
"Never mind the past. Shall we talk about investing now?"
A mischievous smile appeared on Chen Shu's lips again. "That's not right, Old Zhao. In middle school, you drank too much and were dancing on the road, and you got hit by a cement truck. Your left leg was amputated, right? How can you be a fitness coach?"
The voice on the other end became a bit unnatural. "Old classmate, you must have misremembered."
"Right, right, right! See, my brain. I misremembered," Chen Shu said apologetically.
"It's been so many years, you're just always forgetful."
"I misremembered. I recall now, it was your right leg that was amputated back then. Look at my memory."
*Beep, beep, beep...* The other party fell silent and, utterly defeated, hung up the phone.
"Hello! Hello! Old classmate!"
"Hahaha!" Chen Shu couldn't help but burst into laughter, guessing the scammer on the other end had broken down.
As he was chuckling, another call came in.
Another unknown number? Are there so many scammers these days?
Chen Shu answered the call and directly said, "What's up, Old Zhao? Have you recovered from your epilepsy?"
A familiar voice came through. "It's me, Xie Sunan. What are you talking about?"
"Uh, Xie Bu Rou," Chen Shu explained. "A scammer just called, and I was messing with him."
After speaking, Chen Shu seemed to remember something and asked, "You're not a scammer, are you?"
"What do you think?" Xie Sunan's mouth twitched. "Are you free today? I've taken on a mission, are you interested?"
"What mission?"
"A 'Nanjiang Great Thief' has recently appeared!"
"Not interested. You should find the police for that kind of thing."
"There's a reward of fifty thousand yuan!"
"I, Chen Shu, can't stand criminals. Where are you now? I'll come find you!"
Xie Sunan was speechless. "Are you doing a Sichuan opera face-changing act here?"
"To dare call yourself the 'Nanjiang Great Thief' is clearly a challenge to me, the 'Nanjiang Fierce Bandit'!"
Chen Shu got out of bed, got ready, and left the neighborhood with his backpack.
Half an hour later, at the intersection of Xiafei Road.
Xie Sunan, wearing a blue t-shirt and jeans, looked remarkably young, if you didn't look at his face.
"Old Xie, you're not selling pork anymore?"
"Pork prices are sluggish recently, so I'm not selling. Besides, it was just a part-time job for me."
"Part-time pig butcher. Honestly, you're quite something." Chen Shu patted his shoulder and said, "But you're doing alright. Last night, I actually saw someone moonlighting as a lunatic."
Xie Sunan said, "This is my legitimate part-time job, okay?"
"Enough talk. Take a look at the mission intel."
Chen Shu nodded and took a small booklet.
[Mission Name]: Capture the Nanjiang Great Thief.
[Mission Difficulty]: None
[Mission Content]: Recently, a 'Nanjiang Great Thief' has appeared in Nanjiang City, specializing in stealing from wealthy families. Their methods are sophisticated, leaving no clues at the scene. The stolen wealth amounts to millions. It is requested to apprehend them as soon as possible!
[Mission Reward]: One hundred thousand yuan
[Mission Difficulties]: 1: There is no basic information about the Nanjiang Great Thief; their gender cannot even be determined. 2: Their methods are strange, bypassing all surveillance. They may be using the abilities of a Contract Spirit.
[Mission Hints]: It can be determined that the Nanjiang Great Thief is a single individual, and there is no possibility of a group operation. 2: Their Beastmaster level will not be too high. 3: After committing the crime, they will leave the words "Rob the rich, help the poor" at the scene, possibly residing in a slum.
"Beastmaster?"
Chen Shu frowned slightly, his expression growing a little serious.
"What's wrong?" Xie Sunan asked. Although he was a Beastmaster, his combat power was almost zero, which was why he specifically sought out Chen Shu as a bodyguard.
"If the culprit is a Beastmaster, it'll be tricky. Criminals are usually cruel and unscrupulous, and their Contract Spirits share the same ferocious nature, making them difficult to deal with."
"Can't handle it? I've already found out the specific information," Xie Sunan frowned. "Da Feng Novel Network."
Chen Shu chuckled and said, "What others can do, I can do. What others can't do, I can do even better!"
"What I mean is," his voice paused, "we need to add more money!"