Chapter 108: Chapter 108 – Moved Heartstrings
Translator: Exodus Tales Editor: Exodus Tales
Edited by RED
“I did it, I did it, Zhang Xiaoche! I finally succeeded in raising the star tier of a beast card!” Huang Tielan cheered excitedly in a high-pitched voice.
Zhang Che hurriedly brought his personal terminal away from his ear, asking doubtfully, “What are you talking about, Huang Tielan? You managed to raise the level of a beast card?”
Heh, he didn’t expect that this extroverted miss chubby was actually capable of studying cultivating beasts quietly. Really, a person cannot be judged by their cover!
“Right, right! Are you surprised!? Amazed, even?”
Even though they were on either ends of their personal terminals, Zhang Che could feel Huang Tielan’s excitement in her voice.
“Mmm, I am a little surprised, and shocked, too! Right, so you’re not in school now?” Zhang Che asked with a smile.
“Of course! Do you think the school would let me use the beast card cultivating lab freely? Have you registered yourself, Zhang Xiaoche? Wait for me at your neighborhood if you’re done. I’ll be right there.”
Zhang Che blinked his eyes in succession. -This Miss… shouldn’t she celebrate at home? Why is she coming to my place?-
He agreed, however. He exited the school gates and flagged down a taxi, rus.h.i.+ng back to his neighborhood.
——
Half an hour later, Zhang Che alighted the taxi and saw Huang Tielan’s figure standing at the entrance to the neighborhood, like a crane in a flock of chicken. After noticing him, she immediately broke out into a beautiful smile.
-What’s wrong with me? Why did I feel that Tienan (Iron Man) is smiling beautifully? – Zhang Che shook his head violently, expelling this strange, unexpected thought from his mind, and strode towards the entrance.
Huang Tielan started shouting from afar, “Hurry, Zhang Xiaoche! Let’s go grocery shopping; we’re having dinner at your place tonight!”
Her voice was a little loud from her excitement, drawing the attention of others. When they realized she was calling out to the thin Zhang Che, their gazes turned especially strange.
An eighteen-year-old youngster who was neither the overweight type nor the type who trained himself usually looked like a bean sprout; a little too thin.
Moreover, Zhang Che’s height was adding insult to the injury. Although he was over 175 cm tall and not considered short among his peers, he looked out of sorts when standing next to the tall and chubby Huang Tielan. It was hard to not be the focus of others’ gazes.
Fortunately, Zhang Che only moved to this neighborhood recently. Otherwise, some elderly women who knew him might be pointing fingers and gossiping about him.
“Strange. You successfully became a beast card cultivator; shouldn’t you be looking for your parents to celebrate? Why did you come to my place?” As they walked into the district, a certain man whose dignity was hurt asked thoughtlessly.
Huang Tielan looked at Zhang Che with a slightly bitter gaze, answering softly, “Because… this is a celebration for you.”
Zhang Che was baffled. -Why did it become a celebration for me?- He blinked, seemingly having understood the situation, and smiled, “What’s there to celebrate for me? Although my registration went through, whether I’m accepted into a good university will depend on my exam results afterwards.”
“Aiya, you dunce!” Huang Tielan stamped her feet habitually. Dust clouds were raised immediately. “I’ll tell you when we reach your place later. Let’s hurry and go buy the groceries.”
After saying that, Tienan (Iron Man) grabbed Zhang Che’s arm and pulled him along to the district supermarket, almost dragging him there.
Zhang Che subconsciously wanted to struggle himself free after being grabbed by Huang Tielan. However, he hesitated for a moment, and let her be. Well, it was mainly the fact that Tienan was very strong. He felt that he couldn’t break free even if he tried…
The two ended up buying a few bags’ worth of groceries. When it came time to pay, Zhang Che wouldn’t cede no matter what.
He was already feeling a little out of place standing next to Huang Tielan. He would lose all face if others were to think that he was living off of her.
~~~~~~
Hearing a knock on the door, Sun Lan revealed a hint of bliss in her smile as she walked towards the door, saying, “You’re back, Xiaoche? Did your registration go smoothly? Really, you always forget your keys when you leave the house. What if someday I’m-”
The door was pulled open. Sun Lan’s face froze, swallowing whatever inauspicious words she was about to say.
“h.e.l.lo, Auntie Sun!”
“Aiya, so it’s Xiaohuang. Come on in, quickly!” Sun Lan came back to herself and quickly opened the path. Afterwards, she s.h.i.+fted her gaze to her son, who was standing by the side, and asked with her eyes, “What’s going on with you two?”
Zhang Che returned a helpless gaze to his mother, and walked into the living room carrying a few large bags, saying, “Mom, Huang Tielan officially became a beast card cultivator today! She’s excited about it, and so we decided to celebrate it at our place.”
Although Huang Tielan was only following someone else’s recipe and successfully strengthened a beast card by luck, by prevailing standards, she was now barely considered as having officially entered the ranks of beast card cultivators. However, she was only at the level of an “intern”, not even an “apprentice”.
Sun Lan blanked out for a moment after hearing this. She blinked a few times and smiled at Huang Tielan, “Aiya, congratulations then, Xiaohuang!”
“Thank you, Auntie. I was merely lucky, that’s all. I had to try concocting the same cultivating fluid a few dozen times before I succeeded. I still have a long way to go,” Huang Tielan replied humbly.
It was getting late, and the two had bought a lot of groceries. Sun Lan let the two youngsters rest in the living room while she went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.
Unexpectedly, Huang Tielan actually learned how to cook, and strongly recommended herself to help out in the kitchen, saving much trouble for Sun Lan.
Looking at Tienan plucking, cutting, and even stir-frying the vegetables expertly in the kitchen, Zhang Che couldn’t help but be impressed. -I didn’t expect this chubby chick to actually be a proper housewife material!-
-No, what the heck am I thinking today!?-
Zhang Che shook his head violently for the second time today.
——
Almost an hour later, a table full of sumptuous dishes was freshly prepared. The three sat by the dining table, with a bottle of wine opened. Zhang Che was the first to raise his gla.s.s, saying, “Here, to Huang Tielan successfully becoming an official beast card cultivator! Cheers!”
“Congratulations again, Xiaohuang!” Sun Lan raised her gla.s.s to Huang Tielan with a face full of smiles.
“Thank you!” Huang Tielan cleared her gla.s.s in one shot. Afterwards, she took the initiative and refilled their gla.s.ses. She raised hers, looking at Sun Lan and said seriously, “I wish you’ll find a cure someday soon, Auntie! Don’t worry; when I enroll into Bei Du University’s beast card cultivator major, I’ll surely ask Professor Sun Qilong to help you with his healing-type subdued beast.”
-Healing-type beast!- Zhang Che’s heart shook. He hurriedly looked towards Huang Tielan, asking, “You’re saying that Professor Sun Qilong from Bei Du University’s beast card cultivator major has a healing-type beast?”
Huang Tielan nodded, “That’s right. I heard from my mom that Professor Sun Qilong succeeded in raising a beast of his to gold-quality recently, and awakened a healing-type ability. So, I’ll definitely work hard to enroll into Bei Du University’s beast card cultivator major. Once I become his student, I’ll have a chance to ask him to help cure Auntie Sun’s illness.”
At that moment, Zhang Che felt something stir deep in his heart…