mijobooks Chapter 13: The Unconventional Uncle
Chapter 13: The Unconventional Uncle
Lynch didn't dwell on it too much.
He was prepared whether Song Shiyin lent him the money or not.
Even with just the two thousand or so he had, he was confident he could earn enough money; it would just take a few more days.
Searching his memory, he dialed another phone number.
The call was answered very quickly.
"Feed?"
A middle-aged woman's voice came through the receiver.
"Teacher Liu, I am Lin Qi."
This middle-aged woman was Liu Yan, Lin Qi's homeroom teacher.
"Lin Qi? What's wrong?"
It was quite noisy on Liu Yan's end, like they were eating out.
"Teacher, I missed my bus today and can't go to school. I'd like to ask for leave and go to school tomorrow morning."
Liu Yan is a very conscientious and responsible teacher. Although she is a bit strict, she is very kind to all the students in her class.
Lin Qi has decided not to go back to the dormitory tonight.
But if he doesn't return to his dorm overnight, the school will definitely cause trouble for Liu Yan.
He didn't want to implicate Liu Yan, so he called ahead to let her know.
"Didn't we say that day students should ideally come by noon? Why didn't you make it?"
Liu Yan couldn't help but complain a few times.
However, it was already dark, so after grumbling a few times, she agreed: "Then I'll call the dormitory management office and tell them to come early tomorrow, so you won't be late."
"I know, I'll definitely be there before morning self-study."
After hanging up the phone, Lin Qi returned to the store and gave the phone back to Zhang Haozhe.
"I'm not going back to the dorm tonight."
"Huh? Where are you going?"
"I'm going to find my uncle."
"Shall we go for an overnight stay?"
Zhang Haozhe was very envious upon hearing this.
Lin Qi's uncle works as an internet cafe manager near Yunfeng Middle School.
Previously, when Lin Qi brought Zhang Haozhe to see him, he even turned on the machine for them and let them play for a few hours for free.
Zhang Haozhe still remembers it fondly.
"I have important business with him."
Lin Qi casually explained, "We're going out with him this time."
"Where are we going?"
Zhang Haozhe was very curious.
"Go to Shouguang."
Lin Qi didn't hide it from him and told him directly.
"Huh? That far?"
Upon hearing this, An Xin asked with some concern, "I thought you were joking. Are you really going on a long trip? What are you going to Shouguang for?"
"To make money!"
Lin Qi didn't hide it from her either.
What kind of money can you make in Shouguang?
Knowing his family situation, An Xin couldn't help but advise, "The college entrance exam is in a few months. There's no need to go out and earn money now, is there?"
How about we go after the college entrance exam? I'll go with you then, and I can earn some money too.
"No need, leave the money-making to me!"
Lin Qi smiled and shook his head: "Besides, now is the perfect time to get in. It will be too late if we wait until after the college entrance exam."
After saying that, he didn't explain further, but simply asked, "Are you all full? If you're not eating, just pack it up!"
An Xin originally wanted to say a few more words of advice, but seeing that he was no longer going to continue the topic, she could only helplessly shut up.
But she was still a little worried, so she winked at Zhang Haozhe, hoping he could help persuade her.
But Zhang Haozhe was already impressed by Lin Qi's performance today and had no intention of persuading him. Instead, he was very curious about the money-making opportunities in Shouguang that Lin Qi had mentioned and kept pressing Lin Qi for answers.
It was almost time for the school to close, so Lin Qi didn't explain in detail. He just told him to ask for leave the next day and meet at the school gate, and he would explain in detail then.
Lynch has already asked for leave.
He dropped An Xin and Zhang Haozhe off at the back gate of the school, then hailed a taxi and went directly to the internet cafe where his uncle worked.
Internet cafes in that era did not have the sophisticated decor and environment of later internet cafes.
The internet cafe was located in a basement, with rows of computers crammed together and full of people. The air was thick with secondhand smoke and other body odors.
Behind the front desk, a young man in his early twenties, sporting a messy, burgundy hairstyle and bangs that fell to his left chin, was intently staring at the computer screen in front of him.
His right hand flew across the keyboard, while his left hand rhythmically rose and slammed down on the space bar, producing a rhythmic, heavy thumping sound.
With each tap, he would flick his bangs, looking quite arrogant.
This unconventional young man is Lin Qi's uncle.
Zhang Xin.
"Pafee-Kote".
Wearing headphones, he lowered his voice, forcing out a deliberately irritating, magnetic tone, and encouraged her into the microphone: "Very good, Bao Mei, keep the rhythm."
Looking at his smug expression, Lin Qi couldn't help but feel a surge of anger.
Lin Qi had a lot of complaints about his uncle.
Of all his relatives, his uncle was the one he had the best relationship with from childhood to adulthood.
They were close in age; when Lin Qi was in elementary school, his uncle was in middle school.
So when Lin Qi was a child, his uncle would always stand up for him if anyone bullied him.
It was because of this affection that Lin Qi later thought of inviting his uncle to join him after he started his own asset management company.
He put a lot of effort into teaching his uncle how to get started in the industry, even at the cost of nearly a small fortune in tuition fees.
But he eventually discovered that a person's mindset is fundamentally unchangeable.
My uncle's mind wasn't on making money at all.
My uncle started dating when he was in junior high school.
In the decades that followed, he had countless romantic relationships.
What's strange is that he was extremely invested in every relationship, falling completely into it, only to have it end for various reasons.
After a period of sadness and heartbreak, he will throw himself into the next relationship with renewed energy and enjoy it immensely.
Lin Qi couldn't understand why he liked dating so much.
It's like being addicted.
Will he die if he doesn't have a partner?
But his uncle told him in a serious tone that this was the most essential part of human emotion, and that robots could not understand it.
"Robot" is what Lin Qi's uncle calls him.
Lin Qi called him a sucker.
Because almost two-thirds of his romantic relationships were online.
Many of them had never met, and didn't even know if the other person was male or female.
But my uncle was always completely fooled, and he was cheated out of his money countless times.
Take this incident, for example.
Lin Qi still remembers that the person his uncle met in the game Audition Online was the one he was most devoted to and who he spent the most time and energy with.
He earns 800 yuan a month, and he can save 600 yuan to buy outfits for his girlfriend in the game.
After talking for more than a year, he discovered that the other party was a burly man from Hefei, Anhui.
Crackle! Pop!
Crackle! Pop!
Zhang Xin was still playing his game and had no idea that Lin Qi had been standing outside the front desk for ages.
Just then, a girl carrying a broom and dustpan returned to the front desk after cleaning, and only then did she see Lin Qi.
"Xiao Qi? You're here?"
The girl was in her early twenties, a little chubby, with short hair that reached her ears, and a very kind smile.
Upon seeing her, Lin Qi almost instinctively called her "Auntie".
The girl's name is Qin Jiahui, and she was my uncle's classmate in vocational school.
She always liked her uncle, and even went so far as to follow him back here from another place.
But her uncle didn't like her.
She didn't mind and just quietly stayed by her uncle's side.
In her past life, her uncle had so many relationships, but she never abandoned him.
Even though Lin Qi has a poor understanding of emotions, he can still sense her love for her uncle.
So even though her uncle never accepted her, Lin Qi already considered her his future aunt.
"Please sit down."
Qin Jiahui smiled and pulled Lin Qi to the front desk, sat him down, and then patted Zhang Xin on the shoulder, reminding him, "Xiao Qi is here."
"Oh? You're here?"
Zhang Xin glanced quickly at Lin Qi before looking back at the screen: "You sit down first! I'll finish this round."
Lin Qi wasn't in a hurry; he simply sat quietly in the back, watching him type away on the keyboard.
Qin Jiahui warmly brought him a drink and washed an apple for him to eat.
After a while, the game ended.
Zhang Xin flicked his bangs, pressed the microphone on his headset, and said in a low voice, "Bao Mei, I'm logging off now, my nephew's here. I'll come back on later! Come here, give your darling husband!"
After he finished speaking, he stared at the screen intently until a message popped up saying "Okay, muah," at which point he finally took off his headphones, satisfied.
"What brings you here?"
He tossed his side-swept bangs, turned around, and asked with a smile, "On holiday?"
Today is Sunday.
Lynch answered casually.
"Oh, Sunday?"
Zhang Xin nodded, then immediately realized what she meant: "Huh? Aren't you going back to the dorm tonight?"
"I won't reply."
Lin Qi stated his purpose directly: "Uncle, I've come to see you this time because I need your help with something."
"What's wrong? Out of money for food?"
Knowing about Lin Qi's family situation, Zhang Xin would occasionally steal some instant noodles and sausages from the internet cafe and bring them to Lin Qi at school.
Lin Qi shook his head and pointed to the computer screen: "Do you want to know what your partner looks like?"
"Um?"
Zhang Xin immediately perked up: "What do you mean?"
Lin Qi didn't explain, but simply crossed his arms and gestured: "Come with me on a long trip next week to take care of some business. If you succeed, I'll tell you the password to his QQ album."