Notebook of Fortune - Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Helpful Shen Zhe

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
“What a petty man…”

The beggar shook his ragged bowl and left.

“You haven’t taken my money yet…” Shen Zhe said as he looked at him leave.

“I don’t want it anymore… You can keep it for yourself, sir…” said the beggar without looking back.

“I need to pay you more if I take your four wen. Do you think I’m an idiot?”

“Don’t go…”

Shen Zhe stood up.

He had met many fake beggars, and it was easy to distinguish them: give food to those who asked for money, and money to those who asked for food. There was indeed something wrong with that beggar. However, since he was there, it didn’t matter if he wasted a few wen on him, as long as it could give Shen Zhe more pencils.

Thinking about that, Shen Zhe snatched the beggar.

He would try it whether or not the beggar was faking.

“Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!” cried the beggar as his wrist cracked.

“Bro, I’m only begging for money… You can refuse me, but beating me up is too outrageous!”

“I’m sorry…”

Shen Zhe hurried to retract his hands.

He wasn’t used to the power of the seventh stage of body polishing yet, and he exerted too much strength…

“Sir, it’s not that I don’t want your money… but I really can’t buy what you wanted with two wen. Please let go of me! I’m just a beggar…”

Seeing that his hand was red and swollen, and knowing that it would take days for his hand to recover, the beggar wept.

“I really just want to beg for some money…”

“I wouldn’t have talked to you if you weren’t a beggar!”

Pausing for a moment, Shen Zhe said, “Fine, you don’t need to buy anything. Here are two wen!”

Then, he gave the beggar two wen.

“You’re really giving them to me?”

The beggar found it hard to believe after he accepted the money.

“Yes!” Shen Zhe nodded.

“Thank you, sir…”

Putting the money in his bowl, the beggar left in a hurry for fear that Shen Zhe would regret it.

“Huh? No pencils?”

After doing the good thing, Shen Zhe hurried to concentrate his attention and checked if there were new pencils. But he frowned.

It seemed that assisting a fake beggar was useless.

“Is this… a good thing?”

His face cramping, Wang Qing couldn’t help but ask.

He had witnessed everything. It wasn’t a good thing at all; it was more like a robbery.

Forcing a beggar to accept his gift…

“…” Shen Zhe held his forehead.

Fine. The misunderstanding was completely justified.

…

“He’s too scary…”

The beggar left the restaurant in a hurry.

He was bummed about his wrist being so badly hurt, when he did nothing more than beg for money. However, he didn’t dare stay any longer.

“Unsympathetic and petty… It’s really not easy to earn two wen…”

The beggar grabbed the coins in his bowl and was about to put them in his pocket, when he heard a voice not far away.

“Unsympathetic? Did the young man in school uniform bully you?”

The beggar turned around, only to see a pair of bright eyes and an impeccable face.

It was Ling Xueru, who had followed Shen Zhe to that place, fearing that he would cause trouble.

She didn’t enter the restaurant because she feared they might discover her. She watched the beggar begging for money and when he was captured by Shen Zhe. However, she didn’t hear what they said, due to the long distance.

“Exactly! Are beggars not human beings, and do we deserve no respect?”

Seeing the beautiful and caring girl, the beggar rolled his eyes after being briefly stunned.

As an experienced beggar, he knew that such girls were the most sympathetic, and he would earn a lot if he pretended to be miserable.

“How did he bully you?”

Ling Xueru almost exploded hearing that Shen Zhe took advantage of a beggar.

Teachers, classmates, and even a poor beggar… Did Shen Zhe not let go of anyone at all?

“Look…”

With glittering eyes, the beggar knew that he had tapped the girl’s sympathy. He hurried to raise his wounded hand, which was holding the ragged bowl, because he had just picked up the coins with the other hand.

Ling Xueru lowered her head, only to see a broken bowl with multiple holes. She burst into fury. “He broke your bowl! How outrageous! Are beggars not allowed to use good bowls? This is unbelievable!”

Then, without any hesitation, she grabbed the bowl and threw it to the ground.

Clang!

The bowl was broken into smithereens.

“…” The beggar was speechless.

“Are they lunatics?”

“Was I showing you the bowl?”

“Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?…”

…

After he was full, Shen Zhe negotiated and paid another twenty wen for a griddle, as well as a bunch of seasonings.

“I don’t know if he’s a real beggar, and it’s pointless to find him now. Where should I do good things?”

After they left the restaurant, he looked at his friend.

Most beggars that day were fake. They earned even more than some in the working class. Giving them money was not a good thing but an encouragement of corruption.

He should think of other ways.

“Well… The good things I know are helping the beggars and the old. I don’t know about anything else!”

Wang Qing scratched his head in embarrassment.

They had been partnering up with mathematics, physics, and various data in school since the age of six or seven, and they didn’t know much about the normal life. Good things were an ambiguous concept for them.

A lot of geniuses were actually terrible at their personal lives.

“So… We’d better wait for old men here…”

Shen Zhe hesitated, seeing that his friend was clueless about it.

“Alright…”

Wang Qing nodded.

They waited for ten minutes, but they didn’t see a single old man.

“Do old people not go to the streets at all?” Shen Zhe frowned.

Hesitating for a moment, Wang Qing proposed, “Should I ask someone to capture a few, so that we can carry them across the street? It’s certainly a good thing!”

“…” Shen Zhe was at a loss for words.

While they waited gloomily, a young approached them.

“Mr. Shen Zhe, our young master invites you to meet with him!”

The young man was around fifteen and was quite handsome.

“And your young master is…?” Shen Zhe frowned.

“Lu Zihan!” The young man nodded.

“Oh! I was looking for him. Where is he?”

The guy promised that he would provide the herbs in the afternoon, but Shen Zhe didn’t find him after school. As it turned out, he sent a servant to Shen Zhe.

The young man bowed and said, “Please follow me!”

Then, he led the way.

For convenience, the Lu family had bought a house for Lu Zihan near the school. He usually stayed there and barely lived in the dormitory.

Shen Zhe went to the house and saw Lu Zihan in the middle of the yard.

After a morning, his wounds were a lot better.

“Here are the herbs you demanded!”

Hatred emanated from Lu Zihan’s eyes when Shen Zhe approached. He picked up a bag of drugs; an intense fragrance was spreading out from it.

He thought that it would be easy to obtain the drugs, but when he returned to his family, he was told that even the Lu family had to pay a huge price to offer so many herbs at the same time.

However, since he failed, he had to pay the price.

If he went back on his promise after being beaten up, it would be the greatest scandal.

Shen Zhe nodded in satisfaction. He reached for the bag, but Lu Zihan sneered and loosened his fingers.

The bag hit the ground.

“Aya! Shen Zhe, I’m too badly wounded to hold the bag. Sorry…” Lu Zihan smiled.

“There’s no need to apologize…” Shen Zhe chuckled, “You can pick it up. I’m not in a hurry…”

Lu Zihan sneered and sniffed, “Forgive me, but I can’t bend right now. There’s nothing I can do…”

“You can’t bend? Let me help you!”

After a brief daze, Shen Zhe’s eyes glowed.

He finally had a chance to do a good thing…

“Finally!”

“Help me?” Lu Zihan was puzzled.

“You’re going to help me treat my back?”

Before he finished the thought, he suddenly felt that a pair of hands were laid on his head.

Then, Shen Zhe exclaimed, “Let’s do this!”

Crack!

Under the enormous pressure, Lu Zihan’s face kissed the ground, with blood spreading out, before he realized what was going on.

“Damn you…”

Lu Zihan went crazy.