Chapter 170: Am I Seeing Things
Chapter 170
When Li Xiaoya went to pack up her things, she realized that the vases and paintings were still piled up messily in the living room.
She had no choice but to call Ke Muning again.
This time he answered quickly.
Is she really crying? Ke Muning wondered.
"What should I do with these things?" Li Xiaoya sent him some photos.
Ke Muning: "..."
He'd rather she had sent photos of herself.
"Take it all, do whatever you want with it," Ke Muning said.
Though hugging a vase while crying might be a bit difficult.
And a bed wouldn't fit such large objects.
Li Xiaoya hung up the phone and turned to Qin Sui with a troubled look, saying: "It seems we'd need a bigger vehicle to take everything away..."
Qin Sui was a bit stunned.
So what kind of place was this exactly?
The person on the other end of the phone... now didn't sound like a dangerous individual anymore.
More like Santa Claus.
"Alright, let me make a call," Qin Sui said.
"Wait," Li Xiaoya thought for a moment and asked, "How much would it cost to hire a big truck to move everything?"
"These all look like genuine pieces, we'd need a professional moving company to transport them safely..."
"That sounds expensive, doesn't it?"
"It's not too bad, just a few tens of thousands..."
Li Xiaoya promptly gave up on the idea of transporting everything.
Leaving it here wasn't appropriate either, as no one would be here to look after things afterwards.
She really disliked having these fragile objects around her, just like the bag Qin Sui had given her before. It made her feel uneasy rather than secure.
Li Xiaoya quickly made a decision: "I'll make a few more calls."
Qin Sui nodded.
Li Xiaoya called her classmates, asking them to check with their fathers if they wanted any of their things back, and if so, to come pick them up themselves.
This delighted those little rich kids.
"Aww boss, you're the best!"
"My race car can finally come home..."
"You actually managed to convince your dad."
"My dad never listens to me..."
After excitedly chattering away, they went home to relay Li Xiaoya's message to their parents.
The adults' thoughts were a bit more complex, a bit dirtier.
After hearing the message, they all told their children: "Tell her I understand, I'll send someone to collect the items right away."
Li Xiaoya sat down on the sofa: "Let's wait for a while."
Qin Sui nodded.
They didn't even have to wait half an hour before luxury cars started arriving one after another.
Most of the people who came were secretaries or assistants.
"Thank you for your kindness, Miss Li. We'll take these items with us. This is for you, we've left it here," they all said something to this effect, leaving behind one big bag after another.
Li Xiaoya walked over and peeked inside one of the bags.
It was full of cash.
Li Xiaoya: "...?"
Qin Sui was also a bit shocked.
After a while, he finally managed to say: "Xiaoya, has your business of buying and selling grown this big already?"
Li Xiaoya: ??
Li Xiaoya had no choice but to take another photo and send it to Ke Muning, then call him again.
"I couldn't take the things away, so I let my classmates' dads take them back."
She had originally intended to do Ke Muning a favor.
"But now there's a lot more money..."
Ke Muning, who was in quite a good mood after receiving three consecutive calls in one evening, said excitedly:
"They're paying ransom!"
"You really have a talent for being a bad guy! You were born to follow me and trample those Wall Street elites under your feet!"
"Come on, tell me, how did you extort... I mean, how did you get them to willingly bring you money?"
"I just told them to come and get their things."
"Just that?"
"Just that."
"Hey, you've already mastered the core principle of being a mafia boss."
"?"
"The fewer words, the more scared they are."
"But you talk a lot."
Ke Muning choked a bit, then said: "That's because I also have big fists."
"If you talk little and have big fists..."
"Then people will be scared to death."
I've learned it, Li Xiaoya silently said in her heart.
But she quickly shook her head and quietly crossed it out in her mind.
No, this shouldn't be learned. Can't become a mafia boss.
But Ke Muning on the other end of the phone was already happy enough. He said: "Go spend the money, consider it pocket money from dad."
"But it's a lot of money..."
"Is it? You could buy a yacht and it would be gone. A plane would be nice too. Buy a private jet and fly here to have dinner with me."
It sounded very wasteful.
Li Xiaoya didn't agree.
But she said: "I can borrow a plane to come see you."
"Great, great!"
"Bye bye."
"Wait, what should you say?"
"Bye bye, daddy?"
Ke Muning put away his phone in a good mood: "Being a father feels pretty nice. Should I have one of my own?"
"...Nevermind. Only a little crazy one like her would be fun." Ke Muning rejected his own idea.
Meanwhile, Qin Sui accompanied Li Xiaoya as they carried the things back to the Zhang family's house.
The Zhang family's secretary watched as they brought in bag after bag, and couldn't help but ask curiously: "What's that?"
"Pocket money from family," Li Xiaoya answered truthfully.
Since when did pocket money come in bags?
The secretary considered himself quite worldly, but he had never seen such an extravagant family.
Which family did this little girl come from?
"Are all her family members sick?" the secretary asked Qin Sui.
Qin Sui finally explained: "Do you watch variety shows?"
The secretary shook his head.
He was nearly fifty years old and couldn't keep up with young people's interests.
"Her parents have passed away, leaving only relatives from her grandfather's side, but some are sick, some are injured..."
The secretary sighed: "We're in the same boat."
He turned around and briefly relayed this to Old Mr. Zhang.
Old Mr. Zhang sat inside the door, listening to the sounds of things being moved outside, and murmured: "She lost her parents, I lost my son. We're kindred spirits, this old man and her. Let her and Qin Sui stay for a while longer."
"Yes," the secretary also felt sympathy.
Having just moved to another unfamiliar place, Li Xiaoya still had trouble sleeping.
The body that was already old suddenly sparked with a bit of spirit.
He had never comforted his son when he was little, which became a regret. Today, he thought, it shouldn't be too difficult to comfort a little girl, right?
"Xun Yuan, build her a snowman," Old Mr. Zhang called the secretary by name.
"It didn't snow today."
"It's not summer either, and there are no cicadas to catch..." Old Mr. Zhang mumbled, "Then make her a clay figurine."
"I don't even know what kids like these days..." Old Mr. Zhang said regretfully.
The secretary went out to dig for some clay.
Meanwhile, Li Xiaoya had finished washing up and sat down at the dining table, ready to eat.
Of course, the little one had a good appetite.
She ate with her cheeks puffing in and out, which made Old Mr. Zhang, who usually had a poor appetite, feel a bit hungry too.
After Li Xiaoya finished another bun, her phone rang.
"Little sister Xiaoya, where are you? I'm coming to bring you money!" Ning Heng's excited voice came through from the other end.
Li Xiaoya moved the phone away a bit and looked up to ask Old Mr. Zhang: "Grandpa Zhang, my friend wants to come and bring me something. Is it okay for him to come here?"
"Of course, I'll have the secretary go out to meet him," Old Mr. Zhang said agreeably.
The Zhang family hadn't had so many guests in a long time.
The housekeeper went out temporarily to buy some candies and melon seeds.
Old Mr. Zhang first handed a piece of candy to Li Xiaoya.
He knew that children should all like this.
Li Xiaoya took it, ate the candy, and then folded the wrapper into a paper crane.
"Here you go," she gave the paper crane back to Old Mr. Zhang.
Old Mr. Zhang was delighted: "Xinian used to fold these for fun when he was in school... It was popular among kids back then. I even thought he was in puppy love, but who knew he'd end up filling two big jars with them without giving any away."
Li Xiaoya asked curiously: "Who's Xinian?"
"He's my son."
At that moment, Li Xiaoya saw a hint of sadness in the old man's eyes.
Just then, Li Xiaoya's phone rang again.
She answered, thinking it was Ning Heng arriving, but it turned out to be a courier.
Was it Ke Muning's overseas express delivery?
"What should I do? I don't live there anymore."
"No problem, please give me your new address and I'll deliver it to you," the person on the other end said quickly.
After Li Xiaoya reported her new address.
The "surprise" Ke Muning mentioned arrived almost at the same time as Ning Heng.
Ning Heng strode in, with Sheng Yuxiao following behind him.
"Xiaoya! Why did you change locations?"
"Big brother is here to bring you money!"
Ning Heng's arrival instantly made the courtyard noisy.
He tossed the bag in his hand and unzipped it in one smooth motion. "Are you happy to see this?"
Li Xiaoya nodded slightly.
He then borrowed a small knife from the housekeeper to open the package.
Ning Heng asked, "What's this? Shouldn't we count the money first?"
"I don't know what it is either. Let's check if it got damaged during transport," Li Xiaoya said as she peeled away the layers of packaging, revealing the sculpture inside.
It looked familiar...
Very familiar...
Ning Heng suddenly jumped up. "Brother Sheng! Am I seeing things? How did this item come back again?"
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