Observation Chapter 13
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Chapter 13: [Master Lin, have a smoke]
The second period came to an end.
Lin Qian stood by a window in the corridor, using a phone app to search for part-time jobs.
Meanwhile, Wan Cheng and Wu Dongqiang emerged from the classroom.
The latter took out a packet of cigarettes from his pocket, offering one to Lin Qian. “Here, Master Lin, have a smoke.”
His eyes narrowed, Lin Qian calmly took the cigarette from Wu Dongqiang, and said: “My dear brother, I know I haven’t had much time to carry you in games lately. How about this— I’ll take this cigarette and in return, get Boss Wan to boost your rank.”
“Don’t worry about the cigarette or the rank boost.”
Wan Cheng also took a cigarette from Dongqiang. Lighting it up, he said, “That’s not what we’re here for. We want to ask you to take us under your wings and school us in your ways with the ladies.”
“My ways with the ladies?” Lin Qian blew a cloud of smoke out the window. “You’ve got the wrong guy then. I’m clueless when it comes to that stuff.”
Even if he had any skills in that department, they would be purely theoretical — untested in reality.
“We’re all dorm buddies, so don’t play dumb with us,” Wan Cheng said with a wink. “The way you were flirting with Ye Li? Even if you’re not the best in the country, your skills are definitely top-tier.”
“Exactly! Wan Cheng and I may not be as handsome as you, but we could still score if we had your way with words,” Wu Dongqiang added. “There are plenty of girls in Public Administration too. Even if things don’t work out with the art students, we can still try our luck with the ones at home, right?”
“Look guys, I appreciate the compliment, but I honestly have no idea. That was just a casual chat, nothing more.”
Lin Qian continued helplessly, “If I were good with the ladies, I wouldn’t be single, would I? It was just a brief chat between classmates —We weren’t interested in each other like that. That’s all there was to it.”
“The girl’s a bona-fide contender for the campus belle, and you had smitten her so much she even took the initiative to ask you for your name! How can you claim you’re not good with women?” Wu Dongqiang asked with a hint of doubt. “I’ve been eavesdropping that whole time, and you were steering the conversation towards her interests! Even had her following you cheerfully and chatting nonstop like a chatterbox!”
“That’s something I wouldn’t dream of doing! I’d be tongue-tied after a couple of sentences.”
“… I’d love to help you guys out, but I honestly don’t know where to start.” Lin Qian shrugged.
It was not that he was stingy with his knowledge; This was simply something that could not be taught.
“Alright, alright. Let it go, Dongqiang. Maybe she was just into Lin Qian because he’s handsome.” Wancheng noted Lin Qian’s reluctance to continue the topic and took the initiative to change the subject.
“It’s complicated. Let’s not talk about it.” Lin Qian said, taking in a deep breath of smoke. “Do you know any places around here that are looking for part-time employees?”
“Part-time employees…?”
Wan Cheng thought for a short moment before saying: “There should be some over in West Serenity Way.”
“West Serenity Way? You mean the street that’s filled with bars?”
“Yup, the bars there always need people to hand out flyers. They pay you when you finish, so it’s really convenient,” Wan Cheng said after a moment of contemplation. “I heard from a friend that it’s around 30 bucks an hour. They usually have you working really late, ending sometime after 9-10 pm.”
“That said, they don’t really care how many flyers you hand out, so there’s plenty of opportunities to slack off.”
“…”
‘Thirty bucks…’
A glint of shrewdness flashed in Lin Qian’s eyes, as he pretended to adjust the non-existent glasses on his nose.
‘If I took public transport now, I would be able to get there around 4pm… and work all the way till 10pm…’
‘Hmm… that’s $180 for six hours of work. With that amount of money, I would be able to grab a whole case of instant noodles on my way back home, maybe throw in some cabbage and canned meat too.’
‘Damn. That’s way more than I make writing at home.’
Only someone in his shoes would truly understand. The paltry sum he got each month from writing left him scraping by with little to eat after paying his rent and some basic living expenses.
On top of that, he needed to save up for his tuition fees as well…
Lin Qian had considered applying for a scholarship before, but quickly abandoned the idea.
He was not particularly outgoing and had almost never participated in school activities. Even exams were just a formality to him, with his grades satisfactory but not remarkable.
Given his average relationship with both his peers and teachers, he figured his chances of getting a scholarship were slim to none, thus the thought of applying never crossed his mind again.
“Thanks for the tip, Boss Wan, I’ll go there now.”
“You’re heading out now?” Wu Dongqiang asked. “But we still have two more periods before class ends.”
“Don’t sweat it,” Wan Cheng said, patting Lin Qian on the shoulder. “Just go. I’ll make up something if the teacher calls on you.”
“Mhm.”
Lin Qian nodded. After a quick glance around to make sure no one was paying attention to him, he silently left the corridor and snuck his way into the staircase.
Not long after, the sound of the bell signaling the start of class rang out, cutting short Wan Cheng and Wu Dongqiang’s exchange.
The pair headed back to their seats.
Soon after the teacher started his lecture, Ye Li, who was sitting next to them, lightly tapped the table with her finger and asked, “Hey, where did Lin Qian go?”
“…”
Wan Cheng and Wu Dongqiang exchanged glances, each recognizing the envy in the other’s eyes.
‘Ugh… How could the campus belle fall for Lin Qian?’
‘Talk about unrequited love. She’s crazy for him, but he’s completely clueless! 1’
After briefly pondering, Wan Cheng replied, “I don’t know. He just said he needed to use the toilet.”
“Humph~ So he left. Guys are all the same.” Ye Li continued after a pause, “Don’t worry, I won’t say anything to the lecturer. I’ve got better things to do than that.”
“…”
Wan Cheng was not sure what to say for a moment.
………
Lin Qian’s search led him to Ocean’s Revival Bar on West Serenity Way, where he found exactly what he was looking for: a job handing out flyers.
The shift ran from 4 PM to 11 PM, with a 15-minute break at 7. Dinner was included, and he was free to head out after 10.
That was no coincidence; West Serenity Way grew increasingly crowded as the night progressed. The same was true for the adjacent [Tenichi Avenue], which was known for being the largest and most opulent street in the city.
It only made sense that most of the flyers were handed out at night.
After receiving his flyers, Lin Qian was assigned to Tenichi Avenue, where he worked all the way til 9.
“Handing out flyers is truly tough work.”
He lamented while rubbing his stomach, where the first rumbles of hunger were beginning to make themselves known.
Seeing that no one was around him, Lin Qian found a bakery and bought the cheapest bread available.
He could only conclude that it lived up to the reputation of Tenichi Avenue. Even a piece of bread was not immune to the astronomical rents of real estate.
The cheapest option had managed to set him back more than 10 dollars.
“There goes my hard-earned cash… They sure don’t make it easy for us poor people.”
A bitter smile covered Lin Qian’s face as he forced the bread, along with his tears, down his throat.
Suddenly, a crisp voice called out, “Eh… Aren’t you Lin… Lin Qian?”
There was something familiar about that voice.
Lin Qian glanced to the side and spotted Ye Li, whom he had met for the first time earlier that day, walking together with a short, petite girl.
At about 164 cm, she was easily a head taller than her companion, who was likely around 158 cm in height.
“Yup. Good evening, Ye Li.”
Lin Qian polished off the last bit of bread and threw the wrapper into a trash bin on the side of the road.
Ye Li, in a white dress with puffed sleeves, slowly walked up to Lin Qian. Her long, dark hair, the shade of black tea, cascaded naturally over her delicate shoulders.
“Are you out shopping?”
Lin Qian asked, noticing the paper bags in their hands.
“Mhm.”
Seeing the stack of flyers in his hands, Ye Li asked: “What about you? Are you working?”
“Yeah, I’m handing out flyers for a bar down the street to earn some cash.” Lin Qian said with a smile. “Want one?”
“Sure.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Ye Li reached out, taking a flyer from Lin Qian’s hands and giving it a glance. “It’s not from Bar Mellow…”
“Thanks, that’s one less for me to deal with.”
Saying that, Lin Qian glanced at the time on his phone. “Ye Li, I have to get back to work. You ladies enjoy your shopping and have fun.”
“…Are you sure? How about…”
Ye Li tilted her head, her large eyes sparkling with an idea. “…You give us some of those flyers. We’ll pass them out while we’re shopping. That way, you won’t have to work so hard.”