Chapter 19: The Not-So-Optimistic Road Ahead
The silence in the compartnt only lasted for two seconds before it was drowned out by the noise erupting from the corridor.
Complaints, a baby's cries, and the sound of people banging on the compartnt door demanding to see the conductor mixed together, resembling a pot of boiling porridge.
"What kind of junk train is this! Why has it stopped again!"
"I want to file a complaint! I've been sitting here for thirty hours!"
"Where is the conductor? Co out and give us an explanation! When exactly will we leave?"
The four people in the compartnt looked at each other speechlessly.
Su Qingge looked at the signal bars on her phone, which had completely turned into red crosses, and her complexion was several shades paler than the snow outside.
She tossed her phone onto the table with a soft 'thwack,' leaned back against the chair, and closed her eyes. A profound sense of powerlessness emanated from her, making even her well-tailored suit look sowhat rumpled.
"Sister Su," Jiang Chen looked at her. "That loan, is the shortfall very large?"
Su Qingge opened her eyes and gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Not large. Only thirty million. But under the current market conditions, this thirty million is the last straw that breaks the cal's back. The bank won't lend, and the investors are pulling out. I was originally going to the provincial capital to ask an old classmate for a short-term loan, but now it seems..."
She didn't finish, just shook her head.
Jiang Chen remained silent.
Thirty million was rely the cashback amount from a few tasks for the Divine Tycoon System to him right now.
The key was, if the System didn't issue tasks, he wouldn't have enough money either!
"Ding! Detected that companion is in a state of extre anxiety."
"Task triggered: Warm Sun in Winter."
"Task Description: On this cold and desperate night, material satisfaction often brings spiritual comfort. The Host must provide the ladies in the compartnt with a 'late-night snack' sufficient to alleviate anxiety within half an hour, and successfully raise their emotional value."
"Task Reward: Random cash cashback."
Jiang Chen's eyebrows slightly lifted.
The System's task had arrived at the perfect ti.
"Are you hungry?" Jiang Chen suddenly spoke, breaking the dead silence in the compartnt.
The three won were montarily stunned.
"What ti is it? You're still thinking about eating?" Chen Man rolled her eyes, weakly slumping onto the pillow. "I'm full from being angry."
"Food is the paramount necessity for people," Jiang Chen stood up, tidying his clothes. "Since it's stopped anyway, instead of worrying here, we might as well treat ourselves better. I'll go to the dining car and see if I can get sothing hot."
"The dining car closed hours ago, didn't it?" Lin Wan said worriedly. "And it's so late..."
"That's for other people." Jiang Chen smiled, a confidence in that smile that compelled blind belief. "I have a way. Wait here."
Saying that, he pulled open the door and walked out.
The corridor was even colder than before.
After the train stopped, the heating system also seed unstable, and gusts of cold air snaked in through the gaps where the carriages connected.
Jiang Chen pushed through the crowded mass of people and arrived at the dining car.
The dining car was indeed dark, with only one on-duty chef dozing at a table.
Hearing the movent, the chef groggily lifted his head. "What? No more food. Co back in the morning."
Jiang Chen cut to the chase, directly pulling out a stack of bright red bills from his pocket and lightly slapping them on the table.
"Master, I'm not asking you to cook. I just need to borrow this space for a late-night snack. Also, do you have any... private stock of good liquor?"
The chef's eyes instantly widened. He looked at the money on the table, then at Jiang Chen, his Adam's apple bobbing.
Ten minutes later.
When Jiang Chen returned to Compartnt No. 8 carrying a huge tray, the three won were dumbfounded.
On the tray sat a steaming earthenware pot filled with freshly boiled mutton and radish soup. The milky white broth was churning, emitting a rich aroma.
Next to it was a plate of sliced cured beef, a plate of peanuts, and a bottle of old wine whose label was worn smooth.
This spread, on a green-skinned train trapped by snow, was practically a state banquet level offering.
"Holy crap..." Chen Man jumped down directly from the upper bunk, not even bothering to put on her shoes. "Little brother, did you rob the dining car? Where did this mutton soup co from?"
"The Master happened to have so unused ingredients, so I asked him to help process them," Jiang Chen placed the tray on the table, took out four disposable paper cups. "Here, have sothing hot to ward off the chill. This wine is brewed by the Master himself, not too strong, perfect for warming up."
The steaming mutton soup, paired with the llow old wine, instantly chased away the cold in the compartnt.
After a few cups of wine, the previously oppressive atmosphere finally began to liven up.
Su Qingge's complexion looked much better.
The alcohol brought a flush to her cheeks, and the icy coldness that kept people at arm's length lted away, replaced by a slightly tipsy languor.
"Jiang Chen," she looked at the big boy across from her, holding the paper cup with a sowhat hazy gaze. "You really are strange."
"How am I strange?" Jiang Chen poured himself a cup of wine and asked with a smile.
"You look like a student who hasn't grown up, but you act as seasoned as... as an old hand." Su Qingge chuckled lightly, shaking her head. "I've t plenty of rich people in my life, but never anyone like you. Using thousands of yuan worth of water to bathe, giving thousands in tips just to get a pot of mutton soup. What are you after?"
"I'm after happiness," Jiang Chen shrugged. "Money—isn't it just for making people happy? If you can't even make the people around you happy, what's the point of earning it?"
This statent seed to strike a chord deep within Su Qingge. She stared blankly at Jiang Chen, her eyes complex.
"Well said!" Chen Man raised her cup and loudly agreed. "Co, let's toast to little brother's 'after happiness'! Sister Su, stop thinking about that rotten stuff. If the company goes under, your sister will support you! I may not be educated, but I've saved up enough over the years for the few of us to splurge for a while."
"Who needs you to support them," Su Qingge said dismissively, but she still raised her cup to clink against Chen Man's. "But... this soup really is good."
Lin Wan hadn't said much, only quietly refilling everyone's soup.
Watching Jiang Chen chat and laugh easily with the two won, the sour feeling in her heart resurfaced, but it was mixed with a greater sense of security.
As long as he was here, it felt like soone would hold things up even if the sky fell.
Just then, Chen Man suddenly leaned her face close to Jiang Chen's, carrying a whiff of alcohol and slyness. "Hey, little brother, we were so busy eating, I forgot to ask. What exactly were you and Sister Wanwan doing outside just now? Don't try to fool with that drunkard story; my eyes have seen too many scenes like that."
The compartnt instantly fell silent.
Lin Wan's hand trembled, and her soup spoon lightly hit the rim of the bowl with a crisp sound.
Jiang Chen turned his head, looking at Chen Man who was close at hand, then glancing at Lin Wan opposite him, who was so tense she looked ready to burrow under the table.
He suddenly reached out and lightly flicked Chen Man's nose.
"Sister Man," his voice lowered, carrying a magnetic quality that was half-smile, half-tease. "So things, seeing through without saying them, that's the rule of the adult ga. If you're really that curious... next ti I'll take you along to 'get so fresh air,' okay?"
This statent neither confird nor denied anything; instead, it carried an extrely ambiguous provocation.
Chen Man froze.
She had intended to tease Jiang Chen, but unexpectedly found herself being flirted with instead.
The phrase "I'll take you along," even though she knew it was a joke, made her heart skip a beat.
"Hmph, as if I'd care." Chen Man sat back, her face flushed, muttering under her breath, but her montum was clearly weakened.
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