Chapter 128: Rich Harvest

She admired him from the bottom of her heart. “Captain, you really know how to make money. Joining you is the wisest choice I, Zhuo Yuqing, have ever made!”

Luo Chen laughed heartily. “Not at all. Once you enter this line of work, you’ll learn all this yourself.”

“Forget it. I’ll just stick with you!” The thought of even having to collect feces made Zhuo Yuqing feel a little sick. After all, she was a girl, and it was only natural that she liked to keep clean.

Luo Chen, however, did not care in the slightest. In his eyes, the demonic beasts’ droppings were not filthy waste, but copper coins. He took out a sack and packed them inside without the least concern. He also skinned the beast, sorting the meat and bones into separate sacks.

Since Zhuo Yuqing was present, Luo Chen could no longer openly put the prey into his Jingle Bag. He had therefore bought several sacks in Miracle City. He still could not quite figure out the girl’s temperament. When she was in a good mood, she called him “Captain” with great enthusiasm, but if she discovered that he possessed such a marvelous treasure as the Jingle Bag, who knew whether she might try to snatch it again? Luo Chen felt that it would be better to keep it secret.

While they were cleaning up, Zhuo Yuqing noticed the ring on Luo Chen’s hand and asked curiously, “Captain, where did you buy that ring? It’s quite unusual.”

Luo Chen gave the same answer he had given Shi Feng. “A street-stall trinket. I bought it for a few copper coins.”

“Heehee, wearing it on that finger represents a longing for love. So, Captain, does that mean you still don’t have a girlfriend?”

“Not yet,” Luo Chen replied casually. “Actually, I don’t know what it means. I just wear it for fun.”

“Don’t deny it. Hmm, our classmate Joanna seems to know you very well. Are the two of you…”

Luo Chen hurriedly interrupted her. “There’s nothing going on!”

What a joke. If Joanna heard that he and she were being linked together, he would be finished. She would definitely beat him half to death.

Zhuo Yuqing teased him, “But one night—yes, the night when Raphael, the student who was expelled, provoked you—I saw you and Joanna counting the stars together!”

Luo Chen’s eyes widened. “What? You saw us?”

“Of course. I happened to pass by that night, but you two looked so romantic that I didn’t have the heart to disturb you.” In truth, after the vicious fight had ended, Zhuo Yuqing had followed Luo Chen to the disciplinary office, though she had remained hidden outside. She would have felt guilty if her little prank had caused Luo Chen to be expelled, so she had followed him to see what would happen. That was how she had discovered Luo Chen and Joanna counting the stars together.

Luo Chen wiped away a bead of sweat. “Zhuo Yuqing, you absolutely must not tell anyone about this. Otherwise, Joanna will think I’ve been gossiping about her everywhere, and she’ll beat me up.”

Zhuo Yuqing giggled. “Captain, are you really that afraid of Joanna? All right, I’ll keep your secret. But shouldn’t we split the proceeds from our hunt forty-sixty?”

Luo Chen said angrily, “Are you taking advantage of having something on me to raise your price?”

Zhuo Yuqing blinked. “Captain, I wouldn’t dare. If you got angry and fired me, where would you find another captain as wise and mighty as you?”

Although Zhuo Yuqing had never formally studied flattery, she was surprisingly good at it. Everyone had a little vanity, and the thought of the school’s number-one beauty flattering him naturally put Luo Chen in a pleasant mood. Hunting together with this beautiful junior—no, beautiful little sister—did not seem so dull after all.

Zhuo Yuqing continued, “By the way, Captain, this demonic beast was only a fourth-level one, right? We killed it so easily, and the chance of it dropping a core is so small. Why don’t we look for some higher-level beasts?”

Luo Chen shook his head decisively. “No. I received word today that a beast tide may break out near Miracle City soon. Demonic beasts are unpredictable by nature. Even with experience, it wouldn’t be wise to venture too deep into the Forest of Fear. If we happened to encounter a few powerful high-level beasts—or even a demon spirit—we’d be in serious trouble.”

Zhuo Yuqing’s eyes lit up. “Doesn’t that mean we could make even more money?”

“You’re right,” Luo Chen said with a dry cough. “It also means we’re more likely to become beast food.”

“Heehee, look at how nervous you are. I was only joking, Captain. Of course I’ll do whatever you say. So, where are we going next?”

“Let’s continue hunting in the areas where fourth-level beasts usually roam. That will reduce the chance of running into higher-level beasts or demon spirits. Even if we don’t get any cores, the materials alone will still bring in a decent income.”

“Okay~~”

With Zhuo Yuqing’s help, combat became much easier. Even four or five fourth-level demonic beasts could be dealt with effortlessly. Thus, by evening, the two of them returned with a full haul. They had obtained only two cores, but together with the several large sacks of beast materials, the total was quite substantial.

After Luo Chen brought the final batch of materials to the apothecary and collected the payment, he counted it up. They had earned seven gold coins, five silver coins, and several dozen copper coins. Even if they split it evenly, each of them would receive nearly four gold coins.

Luo Chen was delighted. Hunting as a team had not reduced his efficiency; instead, they had earned even more. On his luckiest days, he could only make slightly more than this amount, while on unlucky days, he might not earn even a single gold coin from dawn to dusk.

After dividing all the money equally, he pushed one share toward Zhuo Yuqing. “Zhuo Yuqing, this is yours.”

Zhuo Yuqing was excited as well. To be honest, the amount was pitifully small. The Saint Martial Hall gave her several times more as pocket money without a second thought. But this money had been earned with her own hands, which gave it an entirely different meaning.

She put the money away and extended her hand. “Captain, it’s been a pleasure working with you!”

Luo Chen shook her hand. “Likewise!”

Because he was in such a good mood, Luo Chen did not think much of it at first. But when he felt Zhuo Yuqing’s delicate hand in his, his heart began to stir. It was the first time he had ever held a girl’s hand, even if it was nothing like the hand-holding of lovers.

Zhuo Yuqing said cheerfully, “To celebrate what we earned today, Captain, dinner is on me!”

“Sure!” Luo Chen agreed without hesitation. He loved free food more than anything.

During the meal, Luo Chen asked, “Zhuo Yuqing, you really seem like someone from a wealthy family. You joined me on this hunt just to earn a little spending money, didn’t you?”

Zhuo Yuqing smiled. “No. I really do need money for my living expenses. My family is very wealthy, but I wasn’t obedient, so they cut me off. I even left home. From now on, I’ll have to earn my own living!”

“You left home?” Luo Chen was startled. “Zhuo Yuqing, isn’t that going too far? Your family will worry about you.”

“They won’t. They know where I am, and I’m doing very well now. To be precise, the people who used to provide my living expenses weren’t really my family anyway. I don’t want to rely on them forever. In short, I’m completely independent now!”

Luo Chen nodded. He figured that Zhuo Yuqing might be a girl whose parents had suffered some misfortune and who had been raised by relatives. Living under someone else’s roof could not have been pleasant. Even if they were relatives, some might still regard her as a burden. Perhaps that was why she had run away, while those people had chosen not to concern themselves with her.

Luo Chen’s guess was fairly reasonable, but he had no idea that Zhuo Yuqing’s background was far more complicated than he imagined. Unaware of the truth, he felt quite sympathetic toward her.

“Taking care of yourself isn’t easy,” he said. “From now on, you’ll have to budget carefully. How about this? Later, I’ll take you around Miracle City. I know which shops sell good, affordable products, so you can go there when you need necessities and save some money. It may only be a little each time, but small savings add up.”

Zhuo Yuqing agreed immediately. “All right, Captain!”

After dinner, Luo Chen took Zhuo Yuqing through the streets and alleys of Miracle City. He told her where to find inexpensive clothes with fashionable designs, which shops sold weapons made of decent materials, which stores did not inflate their prices and cheat customers, and which markets regularly held promotions and clearance sales. He even taught her various tricks for bargaining.

At last, Zhuo Yuqing clicked her tongue in amazement. “Captain, you’re incredible. You know the prices at all the various businesses in Miracle City so well. And when you bargain, you’re really…”

She gave him a thumbs-up. Earlier, when she had taken a liking to a piece of clothing, Luo Chen had managed to haggle the price down to slightly less than one-third of the original. He had talked so rapidly that the shopkeeper had been left speechless, his face pale and his body swaying as though he might collapse.

Then, while paying, Luo Chen had even muttered, “Ah, I think I gave him one copper coin too many.”

The shopkeeper had nearly fainted on the spot.