Chapter 188
Chapter 188
In the end, they managed to coax Liu Ye out. He felt he had already caused his big brothers more than enough trouble and couldn’t let them keep worrying about him.
“Well, you really don’t have to be so sad. You’re not the only one. It’s hard for everyone to find work these days.”
“Exactly. Just look at Ah Biao. He went to the Arctic to sell popsicles and lost every last cent. His entire life savings went down the drain.”
Liu Ye fell silent.
He knew he shouldn’t feel this way, but why did that suddenly make him feel so much better?
“By the way, did you get paid this month?”
“I did.”
Before coming home, Liu Ye had deliberately withdrawn the money from his account. In total, he had earned five thousand yuan.
“See? That’s progress. Before, you didn’t make a cent. This time, you earned five thousand. Shouldn’t you treat your big brothers to a meal?”
“That’s right, that’s right,” the others chimed in.
“Then I’ll go buy groceries and make something good for all of you.”
Liu Ye thought that made sense. He had troubled his big brothers for so long that treating them to a good meal was only proper.
But the moment he stood, several Fiends pounced and held him down.
“Come on, you’ve only just gotten back. Why bother cooking? We’re eating out today!” the Driver said.
“Exactly. You made all that money. The least you can do is take us somewhere nice.” The Shadow Fiend pushed Liu Ye toward the door.
Liu Ye considered it and agreed. If he was treating someone to a meal, he couldn’t be stingy.
And so he led the group out. Their first stop was an upscale restaurant downtown.
Before leaving, the others had already discussed their plan. They couldn’t let Liu Ye continue like this. The kid was a blank sheet of paper.
Some unknown bastard had filled his head with all sorts of nonsense in the past, which was why the kid now behaved without the slightest restraint.
They had decided to straighten him out. They weren’t asking him to become normal, but at the very least, he needed to stop acting like a complete lunatic.
Making an entire mountain disappear every few days was terrifying for any Fiend forced to live around him.
Naturally, there was a method to their reform. They had decided to turn Liu Ye into a spoiled rich playboy.
Once he learned to enjoy life, he presumably wouldn’t have time to torment them anymore.
The first step was getting him accustomed to lavish places.
“Wow, this place is beautiful,” Liu Ye exclaimed.
“It’s nothing special,” the Driver said. “Listen to your big brother. If you see something you like later, order it. Don’t worry about the money. Money’s nothing but a bastard-when it’s gone, we’ll earn more. If you don’t have enough, I’ll cover the rest. Do you know why you kept failing at every job before? You haven’t seen enough of the world. Your horizons are too narrow.”
“Exactly. The old saying has it right: you have to learn how to spend money before you can learn how to make it.”
“Oh, I understand!”
So that was how it worked. Liu Ye made up his mind. No matter what happened, he was going to broaden his horizons today.
They entered the restaurant, but before they had taken more than a few steps, the manager came over with an apologetic expression.
“I’m terribly sorry, gentlemen, but our restaurant is closed today.”
“Why? You think we can’t afford this place? Don’t judge us by our clothes. We have money!” Yellow Hair snapped.
“No, no, you misunderstand. There have been a lot of gas leaks lately, haven’t there? We’re carrying out maintenance on our gas lines, so we’ll be closed for the foreseeable future.”
The Fiends fell silent.
“It’s fine. If this one is closed, we’ll go somewhere else. Their food was only average anyway,” the Driver said.
They went to the next upscale restaurant.
“We’re sorry, but our Chef injured his hand today. We can’t prepare any food.”
At the next one…
“Our refrigerator broke, and all our ingredients spoiled, so…”
And at the one after that…
“It’s our owner’s dog’s birthday…”
Bang!
“Your owner’s dog is having a birthday, so you closed the restaurant? Do you want me to kill your entire family tonight?”
Humiliated and furious, the Driver lifted the manager by his collar.
“Sir, there’s nothing we can do. Those were the owner’s orders!”
“Forget it, Big Brother. If it comes to it, I can buy some groceries and cook. I’ll get abalone and lobster and things like that. Wouldn’t that be just as good?” Liu Ye couldn’t help suggesting.
“No, don’t rush. Let us think this over.”
The Driver and the others were beginning to find this strange. How could every upscale restaurant be closed at the same time?
They looked at Liu Ye, then recalled his past. A terrible suspicion began to creep into their minds.
“L-Liu Ye, your big brother will… will take you for a foot massage today!”
The Driver’s voice was trembling. He needed to test his theory.
His offer left Liu Ye bewildered. Why would anyone need to treat someone else to a foot wash?
Without another word, the Driver dragged him away.
A short while later, they reached the most famous foot-massage parlor in the city, only to find the place surrounded by police.
“What happened here?” the Driver hurriedly asked.
“They were running an illegal prostitution business, so the place got shut down,” a bystander explained with a regretful expression.
The Driver said nothing.
Half an hour later, they spent a little over a hundred yuan on bowls of zhajiangmian at a hole-in-the-wall restaurant on the corner, then returned to the apartment.
When they told the Old Man what had happened, he pondered it for a moment before asking gravely, “Have any of you heard of the Five Drawbacks and Three Deficiencies?”
The so-called Five Drawbacks and Three Deficiencies were widowerhood, widowhood, orphanhood, childlessness, disability, and the lack of money, power, or lifespan.
Legend had it that practitioners in ancient times were certain to suffer one of these afflictions as punishment for cultivating mystical arts and defying Heaven’s will.
The Driver had read a few books himself. He hastily asked, “Are you saying this kid might suffer from the poverty deficiency?”
“It’s possible. Think about it. He’s had so many jobs, but why does every one of them fall apart? He barely makes any money, just enough to keep himself from starving. Could that be the price he pays for all that strange power?”
The moment the Old Man finished, he saw that the Driver was on the verge of tears.
“Old Wu, it can’t be that! If the kid really is fated to be penniless, he’ll be fine, but we’ll be doomed! If he doesn’t have money, he can’t go home. If he can’t go home, he’ll stay here and cling to us. We’ll be the ones suffering! Old Wu, you’ve seen a lot in your time. Hurry up and think of a way to break this curse!”
The Old Man realized the implications as well. If his guess was right, didn’t that mean the kid had effectively moved in with him for good?
“Don’t panic. Here’s what we’ll do. We’ll find a Master and have him take a look. Our luck has felt poor lately anyway. We can ask the Master if we’ve offended something.”
The Fiends fell silent.
Offended something? They had offended Liu Ye!
Still, the whole matter was undeniably uncanny, so they immediately sent the Driver to take Liu Ye for a consultation.