Chapter 7: We’ll Talk Again When I’m Tired of Playing

Good grief.

She really hadn’t expected that all the back-and-forth inner turmoil she had been going through earlier was completely unnecessary. Hah.

This man truly was ruthless—hogging the bed for himself and kicking her to sleep on the couch.

Late at night, Jiang Ning lay on the sofa hugging her little pillow, feeling emotionally wrecked, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Now she deeply suspected that this Lu Dingquan was nothing like the character described in the script.

Honest? Meek? Tolerant and forgiving…? That was just a disguise!!

Behind the scenes, he actually had the nerve to do this kind of thing to his own wife!

Jiang Ning bit the corner of the blanket with a grudge and drifted off to sleep, so upset that even her fear of the dark didn’t bother her anymore.

…

She had thought the first night after transmigrating would be hard to adjust to, but surprisingly, she slept pretty well.

Early in the morning, sunlight filtered through the floral curtains, falling on the young woman’s porcelain-like face.

Jiang Ning kept her eyes closed, unwilling to wake up, and stretched lazily.

Oh, right—she didn’t have to go to work or school anymore. Why get up?

She rolled over and went back to sleep!

As her body sank into the soft quilt, something felt off. Still groggy, she slowly opened her eyes.

Huh?

How did she end up back in bed??

Jiang Ning sat up, bleary-eyed, and looked around. The room was quiet—Lu Dingquan had probably gone out early.

When did she get into bed?

She clearly remembered having a dream in the middle of the night.

In the dream, a male bodhisattva waved at her, his deep magnetic voice coaxing, “Wanna see abs? Forty bucks a look, satisfaction guaranteed.”

She had been struggling with herself, about to pay up, when another shadowy figure appeared, glaring coldly at her.

With a stern voice, he scolded: “Haven’t seen enough at home? Still want to ogle men outside? Jiang Ning, I’m so disappointed in you. I can’t live like this—I want a divorce.”

She panicked then, running after him, shouting: “No divorce! Absolutely not! If we must, you better strip and let me have some fun first. We’ll talk again when I’m tired of playing!”

“…”

Thinking about it now, Jiang Ning’s expression was… complicated.

Ahem. What kind of absurd dream was that…

But she didn’t sleepwalk, so maybe Lu Dingquan had put her back in bed after getting up?

Jiang Ning couldn’t remember it at all, and frankly didn’t care. She hugged her pillow, flopped back down, and went back to sleep.

She was only woken by hunger when the sun was high in the sky.

Now that she had some living expenses and had paid back her second sister yesterday, she wasn’t worried. Today she planned to go out and find something good to eat again.

Unexpectedly, after just getting dressed, she spotted two covered dishes on the small table in the outer room.

Lifting the bowls that covered them, she found a plate of steamed buns and a butter cake!

Her stingy husband had brought her breakfast?

Jiang Ning was thrilled. Last night’s resentment from being kicked to the sofa vanished instantly. She quickly freshened up and came back to eat.

She had slept in, so the buns were only slightly warm, but it was better than nothing, and she couldn’t be bothered to reheat them. With hot tea, she devoured everything in one go.

Even the buns from this era tasted amazing—thin skin, juicy meat, full of savory flavor. Very satisfying. And she thought these ones tasted even better than the ones she bought yesterday—the bottoms were pan-fried to a crispy crust, extra delicious to chew.

Full now, she checked the time and decided to go visit Su Chanzi.

Previously, Su Chanzi had dealt with Jiang Mei, not Jiang Ning, and only knew that the two Jiang sisters were easy marks.

Thinking she could make money in this line of work? Pfft, dream on. This business ran deep.

These inexperienced women, seeing others making a profit, would grab whatever they had and rush over, hoping to gain without risk. That kind of thinking was just asking to be ripped off.

Su Chanzi was a local, born and raised. He started running the streets as a teenager, and had been in this trade for many years. Though he kept a low profile, he had a sharp eye.

Recently, some trouble had stirred up in the black market, affecting his business, so he’d taken a few days off.

Even though he had a lot of unsold stock now, he wasn’t too worried.

Whether there were real treasures in the haul wasn’t the key—what mattered was that he, Su Chanzi, had the ability to sell it, and for a good price.

That afternoon, just as he was about to head out, he saw a young unfamiliar woman walking into the alley.

The woman had hair like black clouds and snow-pure features. She wore a bright yellow ruffled blouse tucked into a long skirt, with slim white ankles peeking out—so fair they were almost blinding.

This ruffled-front blouse was very trendy in the city right now, though the bright color would look tacky on someone with darker skin.

But on her, it looked perfect, making her fair oval face even more stunning.

Her inky hair fell over her shoulders, almond-shaped eyes glimmered like water, and her delicate features were starlet-tier—like someone straight off a calendar or an old Hong Kong movie poster.

Su Chanzi watched her with great interest, eyes fixed and unblinking.

He didn’t bother leaving anymore, planning to enjoy the sight as she walked past his place.

But then—she kept getting closer.

Eh? Why does it seem… like she’s heading right for me?

Jiang Ning hadn’t expected Su Chanzi to be this young.

He looked just over twenty, skinny and scrappy—not at all like the chubby, red-faced tycoon he’d become later.

She came today for two reasons: to check on her batch of items, and to try establishing a connection, see how these “shovel men” did business.

With more liberalization, ordinary folks were daring to trade away old valuables. The men who went door-to-door collecting those things were called “shovels.”

Su Chanzi was fairly well-known among the locals.

Jiang Ning spoke first: “You’re Xiao Su, right? I’m Jiang Ning.”

Seeing him staring silently, she added, “I’m Jiang Mei’s sister. A while ago, thanks to you guys, I lost quite a bit of money. My sister said there’s still a batch of stuff with you—I’m here to take it back as debt repayment.”

Su Chanzi finally made the connection.

He had met Jiang Mei before—but this was her sister?

Though the girl was stunning, once business came up, he immediately shelved any thoughts and gave a lopsided, cheeky smile.

“Sis, I know who you are, but that’s not how this works.”

“In this business, you win some, lose some. It’s all luck. You just had a streak of bad luck, that’s all. You’re upset you lost money, but I lost a bunch too. We’re all in the same boat—I get it.”

“But you want to take that batch of goods as repayment?”

His smile was still there, but his tone turned lazy and dismissive: “Sis, I’d suggest you think of another way. Honestly, most of that stuff is junk. Who’s gonna buy it from you? You take it to a trash heap, and people would still complain you’re being unsanitary.”

He figured she just couldn’t accept losing money and wanted to scrape something back.

So he said a few lines to try and send her packing.

Jiang Ning listened calmly, and her sharp eyes caught the pile of goods tucked under some old fertilizer bags in the corner of the yard.

She didn’t argue right away. Instead, she looked him straight in the eyes and suddenly smiled: “What year were you born?”

Su Chanzi frowned at the random question. “Nineteen—I’m nineteen. Why?”

Jiang Ning’s smile disappeared instantly, her voice cool: “Then you should call me Sis.”

Su Chanzi: ?

Next thing he knew, Jiang Ning pushed past him and strutted right into his courtyard. She looked around, arms crossed, chin up:

“Who cares how much I sell them for—they’re mine. Even if it’s trash, I’m taking it with me!”

“All that rambling, but it boils down to one thing—you shovel men just aren’t capable, which is why we lost money. Tsk, I heard all these big things about you, Su Chanzi—thought you were some big shot. Turns out, you’re just a green little kid.”