Chapter 048

After returning from the Lin family home, it took Qiao Man many days of hard work to finally catch up on his schoolwork.

The moment he finished the last arithmetic problem, he tossed his pencil aside and flopped backward. He sprawled out his limbs, looking like a little salted fish¹ who had lost all hope.

Lu Jianxing checked his homework. After this period of diligent study, the boy’s accuracy in arithmetic had improved significantly, and he had learned many new words. Now, he could read children’s picture books on his own without Lu Jianxing having to read them to him.

After quickly grading the homework, Lu Jianxing looked up to see the child sitting on the bed, happily counting money.

The bulk of the money he earned from his business trips was kept in a separate bank account. The money he could actually count was just loose cash. Since getting his phone watch, even his cash had dwindled. What he was counting now was his previously accumulated secret stash. Lu Jianxing watched him count it several times, use his fingers to calculate the total, and then neatly tuck it all into his backpack.

Well, his recent studies were indeed effective; he could even count money correctly now.

Qiao Man swung his feet back and forth as he finished inventorying his little vault. “Xingxing, I asked Maomao. Buying a big house with a swimming pool in A City costs over a hundred million! Just wait until I earn a bit more money. I’ll buy you a house, a swimming pool, and a piano!”

Although he knew how to do math now, he still didn’t quite have a concept of how large a unit a hundred million actually was.

Lu Jianxing didn’t dampen his confidence, nodding pleasantly. “Alright.”

The phone watch started beeping. It was a call from the little friend on the other side. Qiao Man quickly scurried off with his watch to chat with his new friend.

If there was anything else gained from that business trip besides the payment, it was that Qiao Man had made a friend his own age.

The two children had a lot to talk about every day. Xiao Jing shared his school life and things that happened at kindergarten, while Qiao Man shared his daily life on the film set and his usual business of drawing talismans and fortune-telling. Both children listened to these unfamiliar worlds with great interest.

“My mom said she saved a room for me in her new home, and she even set up a toy room for me,” Xiao Jing said over the phone. “Qiao Man, once my mom’s new home is finished, you have to come over and play!”

Qiao Man said happily, “Okay!”

“Tomorrow is Saturday. My dad and mom are going to take me to the amusement park together.”

“That’s so nice,” Qiao Man said. “I have to stay with Xingxing while he films. He doesn’t get days off. He has to work even on Saturdays.”

Xiao Jing whispered, “Qiao Man, I feel like my dad is…”

On the other end of the line, Xiao Jing’s voice suddenly cut off. A moment later, Qiao Man heard Xiao Jing call out, “Dad.”

President Lin had arrived.

President Lin’s voice came through the phone watch. “Xiao Jing, are you free?”

“What is it, Dad?”

“We agreed to take you to the amusement park tomorrow. Contact your mother and ask her what time would be convenient for her,” President Lin said.

“Okay, Dad.” Xiao Jing turned back to Qiao Man. “Qiao Man, I’ll call you tomorrow night. I’ll take photos of the amusement park for you.”

Qiao Man said, “Alright.”

With a beep, the call ended. On the other side, Xiao Jing went to help his father contact his mother.

As for the aftermath of the Lin family’s situation, Qiao Man heard about it later from Xiao Jing over the phone.

After Mrs. Lin—Tang Wangshu—returned, she learned that the original occupant of her body had signed the divorce papers on her behalf. Before the incident, she had never agreed to a divorce, but she hadn’t expected the matter to be settled by the time she returned. Upon hearing the news, she was stunned for a long while before eventually accepting it.

On the contrary, President Zhang was unable to find peace for a long time. After hearing the full story from President Lin, he realized his friend hadn’t suddenly gone mad. The situation had actually involved something as terrifying as Fate Swapping! Setting aside the horror of having one’s own fate stolen, the mere thought of a different person suddenly inhabiting the skin of the spouse you lived with day and night was terrifying enough!

Qiao Man even received a call from President Zhang. Only after confirming that he and his family were safe did President Zhang breathe a sigh of relief. Even so, he only felt at ease after buying several talismans from Qiao Man for warding off evil and ensuring safety.

After the divorce, Ms. Tang took her share of the assets and purchased a luxury villa that was being liquidated at auction.

The villa had originally belonged to the “Tang Wangshu” who had suddenly passed away in a hospital bed, leaving behind nothing but a mountain of debt. The bank had no choice but to auction off the assets under her name. That was the place where Tang Wangshu had grown up. Although it had changed significantly, it still held many memories. She bought the house and hired a renovation team to redo it. Meanwhile, she was busy preparing to study abroad.

Xiao Jing’s mother planned to return to her old profession. Before that, she intended to pursue further studies and had applied for a master’s program at a well-known university abroad. Of course, despite her busy schedule, she didn’t forget to care for her precious young son. She called him every day and took him out to play whenever she could.

Like the trip to the amusement park tomorrow.

But… why didn’t Xiao Jing’s dad just call Xiao Jing’s mom directly?

Qiao Man scratched his little foot, sitting on the bed and thinking for a long time without figuring it out.

But he soon stopped thinking about it.

Lu Jianxing finished changing his clothes and called out to him from the doorway, “Qiao Man, let’s go.”

“Coming!”

Qiao Man scrambled up, put on his shoes, and ran over to take his hand.

During the day, the Movie Queen Shao Jingqiu had finished her cameo scenes. She was leaving the Film and Television Base tomorrow, so there was a farewell dinner tonight.

The venue was a high-end local restaurant. The private room had only one large round table, seated with old friends like Director Yang.

The food at the restaurant tasted somewhat familiar. Qiao Man recognized it as soon as he took a bite; it was the same place Shao Jingqiu often ordered takeout from. Ever since he helped Shao Jingqiu and Xiao Xia reunite, he had been frequently invited over to share their meals. After several days of this, Qiao Man’s little face had grown noticeably rounder.

While he was focused on eating, Director Yang chatted, “I heard you’re joining Director Jin’s crew next?”

Shao Jingqiu set down her water glass and nodded. “Yes, we’re in talks.”

Lu Jianxing looked over curiously.

Director Jin was also a well-known big-shot in the industry. Unlike Director Liu and Director Yang, Director Jin only made movies. His films had won countless awards and earned high ratings and great reputations. He was an international director of a caliber that a third or fourth-tier actor like Lu Jianxing usually couldn’t even hope to approach.

Shao Jingqiu had always been a film actress, and she had worked with famous directors in the past. This time, she had only come to do a cameo out of respect for an old friend. She had been retired for several years, and yet, just as she finished her scenes here, she was already looking at new scripts.

As an old friend, Director Yang could see her intentions. “Are you planning to make a full comeback?”

“I have no choice.” Shao Jingqiu looked at her daughter sitting beside her with a smile. “Our Xiao Xia likes watching the movies I star in.”

Xiao Xia’s eyes were bright, filled with joy. “I’ll continue being your assistant.”

“You can do whatever you want.” Shao Jingqiu turned back to Director Yang and complained, “I don’t know why, but this child just loves being my assistant. She won’t go even when I tell her to do something else.”

Though her words sounded like a complaint, her tone was clearly a boast.

Director Yang said with a chuckle, “You’re loving every second of it.”

Shao Jingqiu’s eyes crinkled with a smile. “Yes, I am.”

She had only just found her daughter and hadn’t spent nearly enough time with her yet. How could she bear to be apart? She wanted to tuck her into her pocket every day to make up for the twenty-odd years they had lost.

She looked at the child across the table who was focused on his food and rotated the lazy Susan to bring the sweet soup to him.

After a satisfying meal, the group parted ways at the restaurant entrance.

The night was a bit chilly. Shao Jingqiu took a light-colored scarf from her bag and wrapped it around her neck.

Autumn had arrived with a vengeance. Not long ago, the late summer heat had been fierce, but in the blink of an eye, it had cooled down, and the wind felt biting. However, no matter how fast the temperature dropped, it wasn’t quite cold enough to warrant a scarf yet.

Everyone couldn’t help but steal an extra glance at her neck.

Director Yang couldn’t help himself. “That scarf of yours…”

“How is it?” Shao Jingqiu stroked the soft yarn affectionately. “Doesn’t it suit me perfectly?”

Director Yang: “…”

“Xiao Man, this is for you.” Xiao Xia took a bag out of the car and handed it over.

Qiao Man didn’t react at first. “What is it?”

When he pulled a sweater out of the bag, his entire face lit up. He let out a “wow” and gestured excitedly with his small hands. The sweater was a perfect fit, and better yet, it was knitted with a character from a cartoon he’d been liking lately. He reached into the bag again and even pulled out a little brown hat!

Not caring that it wasn’t that cold yet, Qiao Man immediately put the hat on. Two round ears popped up from the top of the hat. Upon closer inspection, white yarn had been used to knit the inner ears and the muzzle, with two shiny black beads sewn on for eyes. Once it was on the child’s head, he looked like a little round bear.

The two ears on top of Qiao Man’s head wobbled back and forth along with his happy mood.

“Sister Xiao Xia, thank you,” he said gleefully. “The sweater is great, and the hat is great too. I love them so much. You’re the best, Sister Xiao Xia.”

Xiao Xia couldn’t resist patting his two ears. “Xiao Man, I’m leaving now. See you next time.”

“Bye-bye! Have a safe trip!”

“Safe travels.”

Qiao Man waved his little hand at her. Shao Jingqiu and Xiao Xia got into their car and drove off in the opposite direction of the hotel.

On the way back, Qiao Man was reluctant to take off his new hat. If the weather hadn’t been so unsuitable, he would have wanted to put the sweater on immediately too. His appearance drew Lu Jianxing’s gaze the whole way back, and the man couldn’t resist sneakily pinching those wobbling ears several times.

“Xingxing?”

Qiao Man, whose hat had suddenly been pulled off, looked up at him in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.” Lu Jianxing pulled the hat back onto the boy’s head without changing his expression.

And so, Qiao Man continued hopping and skipping forward.

Not long after Shao Jingqiu finished her scenes, Director Liu’s crew next door also finished filming.

When their whole crew wrapped, they even invited Qiao Man to the wrap party. When Qiao Man returned, he had a little tail following him.

The Long-braided Ghost had followed him home!

“After their crew disbanded, I had nowhere else to go, and they can’t see me anyway.” The Long-braided Ghost was working hard to sell himself. “I was a scholar when I was alive. Little Master, I can be your tutor. Although students nowadays don’t study the Four Books and Five Classics², I know a bit about the four arts of the scholar³. I hear elementary students these days have to attend so many interest classes⁴. I’ll do it for free, no money required!”

Qiao Man: “…”

He… he didn’t really want to take extra interest classes!

To prove his usefulness, the Long-braided Ghost didn’t just rely on persuasion; he even gave Lu Jianxing a trial run.

One day during filming, Lu Jianxing had to shoot a scene where he wrote a letter. Usually, for this kind of scene, he would just scribble a few words on the paper, and the shot would be replaced by a hand-double’s work during the close-up. But just as he picked up the brush and struck a pose, he felt a chill in his right hand.

Then his hand was no longer his own. Lu Jianxing watched helplessly as his right hand moved with the vigor of dragons and snakes⁵. Without being controlled by his will, his hand flew across the paper, producing a page of calligraphy with beautiful, powerful strokes.

Lu Jianxing: “…”

A sense of professional ethics allowed him to keep his expression composed for the camera.

“Cut!”

Director Yang walked over in surprise and clicked his tongue. “I couldn’t tell, Lu Jianxing. Your calligraphy is that good?”

Lu Jianxing: “I…”

Director Yang waved a hand. “You should have said so earlier. I wouldn’t have needed to hire a hand-double for you. Let’s do another take, a close-up this time.”

Lu Jianxing: “…”

Once this part of the scene was finished, the Long-braided Ghost floated over to claim credit. “Little Master, see? I am of some use.”

Qiao Man glanced at Xingxing, whose face was a bit paler than usual on the set, and said hesitantly, “Maybe you should just go and reincarnate…”

The Long-braided Ghost: “…”

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Translator’s Notes

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1. salted fish: A popular Chinese internet slang term (咸鱼, xiányú) describing a person who has no ambition, energy, or desire to do anything, similar to a ‘couch potato.’ It originates from the Cantonese saying that ‘a salted fish cannot flip itself over.’ ↩
2. Four Books and Five Classics: The foundational texts of Confucianism in China, which served as the core curriculum for the imperial examinations for centuries. They represent the traditional education of a scholar. ↩
3. four arts of the scholar: Refers to qin (stringed instrument), qi (the game of Go), shu (calligraphy), and hua (painting). These were the four academic and artistic accomplishments required of a refined Chinese scholar (literatus). ↩
4. interest classes: A common term in modern China for extracurricular classes (such as music, art, or sports) that parents enroll their children in to develop hobbies or competitive skills outside of the standard school curriculum. ↩
5. vigor of dragons and snakes: A translation of the idiom ‘bi zou long she’ (笔走龙蛇), literally ‘the pen moves like dragons and snakes.’ it describes exceptionally bold, fluid, and masterful calligraphy. ↩