Chapter 86 - 83: Taking a Shortcut
Chapter 86: Chapter 83: Taking a Shortcut
As this thought occurred to her, Huo Sining’s eyes immediately lit up, “Boss Yu, do you really think my koi have a shot?”
Old Fish feigned displeasure, “Would I deceive a young girl like you? I’ve raised koi before, but I’ve never seen ones with qualities like yours. From my experience, your koi should be considered top-tier. Give it another two months for them to grow, and their colors will shine through. By then, they will certainly be very beautiful.”
With Old Fish’s advice, Huo Sining suddenly became interested in the Fish Fighting Competition, “When is this Fish Fighting Competition held? Where do I sign up?”
Seeing Huo Sining’s eagerness, Old Fish couldn’t help but laugh:
“Weren’t you uninterested before? Why the sudden rush now? There’s still two months left, you just need to take good care of those koi darlings, I’ll handle the registration for you.”
Old Fish was clearly reliable, and upon hearing this, Huo Sining nodded in relief and continued to inquire about some details of past Fish Fighting Competitions.
They talked at length, and just as Jin Chenyu and Su Qingqing arrived at Xianyu Shop one after the other, Huo Sining’s phone began to ring off the hook. She hurriedly excused herself from Old Fish and returned to Xianyu Shop.
As soon as she walked through the door, she heard Su Qingqing’s wailing like a banshee, and Huo Sining quickly ran to the back parlor.
Upon inquiring, she found out that this person had excitedly forgotten herself upon seeing the crabs in the pond and had thoughtlessly reached out to grab one, not expecting the crabs to be so fierce. A crab had clamped down on her with its pincer.
Su Qingqing didn’t manage to dodge in time and got pinched squarely by a crab.
Huo Sining looked at Su Qingqing’s finger and sure enough, saw a purplish bruise on her right index finger. In a short while, there was slight swelling, and while not serious, the mere thought of it felt painful.
Su Qingqing was grimacing in pain, but her eyes still couldn’t bear to move away from the crabs.
Huo Sining was both amused and exasperated, tearing up with laughter. She ran upstairs to grab a band-aid and while bandaging her up, she discreetly channeled a stream of Spiritual Energy over the wound.
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“Huh?”
Feeling a cool breeze coming from the wound, Su Qingqing turned her head and asked curiously,
“Ningning, where did you buy this band-aid? It’s so cool and comfortable. Just now it hurt, but now it feels like it doesn’t hurt at all.”
Huo Sining pretended not to know and rolled her eyes at her, “It’s just a band-aid. It’s not as exaggerated as you say. There, it’s all patched up. Don’t tear it off, okay? You should be more careful and avoid getting pinched by a crab again. Though the wound isn’t big, if it gets infected with tetanus, it won’t be fun. Serious cases can be fatal.”
Scared by these words, Su Qingqing shrank her shoulders, but Huo Sining didn’t pay her any more mind and directly asked Wu Jun to pack a dozen or so crabs, each weighing four to five taels, for Jin Chenyu.
Jin Chenyu insisted on paying, but how could Huo Sining accept it?
Not to mention the several favors Jin Chenyu had done for her, even without them, he was her former homeroom teacher. Based on their teacher-student relationship, it was only right for her to give him some crabs. How could she possibly accept money?
Knowing that Huo Sining was now in a different position and that such a sum of money might not matter to her, Jin Chenyu stopped insisting when he saw that Huo Sining refused to take it. He smiled, accepted the crabs, and walked back.
Jin Chenyu didn’t eat crabs often, but lately, his mother had been reminiscing about how crabs were coming into season. He knew that bringing these crabs home would definitely please his mother.
After seeing off Jin Chenyu, Huo Sining turned her head only to see Su Qingqing filling a plastic bucket with crabs.
This person clearly didn’t know the meaning of restraint; in just a few minutes, she had filled an entire plastic bucket.
The crab bucket was full, and Su Qingqing, satisfied, put the lid on and carried it to the car. Seeing that Huo Sining was still standing there, she turned her head and called out to Huo Sining, “What are you standing there for? Come on.”
Huo Sining was as puzzled as a monk encountering a koan, “Where are we going?”
A sly twinkle shone in Su Qingqing’s eyes, “Get in the car, then I’ll tell you.”
Huo Sining, somewhat puzzled by Su Qingqing’s secretive demeanor, still followed her into the car.
As the car started, they quickly drove out of Chenghuang Temple street. Huo Sining had thought that Su Qingqing would take her back to the Su Family home, but the car kept veering further off course. She couldn’t help but furrow her brow and ask in confusion, “Qingqing, where are we really going?”
As she drove, Su Qingqing replied, “We’re going to my master’s place.”
“What?” Huo Sining was stunned. “But didn’t you say Professor Xie was off to America for some exchange and wouldn’t be back for half a month?”
Su Qingqing nodded, “Yeah.”
“Then why are you?” Huo Sining was baffled.
“Silly, if the master isn’t there, the mistress is.”
Su Qingqing gave Huo Sining a look that said ‘you’re missing the point.’
“You, you want to transfer to the College of Biology without putting in the effort. Once the National Day holiday passes, the transfer quotas will be set in stone. Right now, those transfer students are all busy pulling strings. If you do nothing, just waiting for fate, how can you compete with them?”
Huo Sining was taken aback. Su Qingqing shrugged and said, “You’re lucky you ran into me. I have a good relationship with Professor Xie, so I’ve heard that his wife, Mrs. Gan Lijun, has a special talent besides breeding fish—she’s an expert at picking crabs apart. Mrs. Gan loves hairy crabs and eats several hundred pounds each year, making her quite the crab-picking master. No need to thank me.”
Huo Sining finally understood, “You want me to bring her a gift?”
Su Qingqing rolled her eyes at Huo Sining, “When did you hear me say anything about gifts? It’s just a visit to the mistress, offering a few crabs to let her taste the freshest catch. You are so inflexible. Your business is ornamental fish, so wanting to transfer makes sense. The mistress values talent; as long as you explain your situation, she will surely help.”
Huo Sining wanted to object, but she knew that everything Su Qingqing said was true.
The quotas were limited, despite the open policies. Others were doing everything they could to leverage connections, and she would be foolish not to use the ones she had.
But the idea of using backdoor dealings left Huo Sining feeling uncomfortable.
Su Qingqing didn’t care about Huo Sining’s discomfort; she drove all the way to Xie Daoyuan’s house and confidently rang the doorbell as if returning to a familiar place.
Unexpectedly, the door was opened not by Gan Lijun but by Qin Shaoyou, whom Su Qingqing had met once before on the day the Xianyu Shop opened.
Su Qingqing paused, then smiled and asked, “Brother Qin, you’re here too? Is the mistress at home?”
Qin Shaoyou glanced at Huo Sining, who was following Su Qingqing, and instantly understood her reason for visiting the Xie Family home.
It seemed this girl had more than a few tricks up her sleeve; she’d come to Professor Gan’s place in her bid to transfer departments!
A look of derision flashed in Qin Shaoyou’s eyes, yet his face remained expressionless as he nodded, “Come in.”