"I have no idea what's wrong. It was perfectly fine before." The young man's voice was filled with vexation.
The shopkeeper's voice, however, held a hint of schadenfreude. "This thing is notoriously difficult to care for. Maybe it decided it didn't want to live anymore because you entered the greenhouse left-foot-first today."
"Some brother you are. You know perfectly well that this is..."
Chi Wan had no intention of eavesdropping, so she deliberately made her footsteps heavier.
As Chi Wan entered the shop, the two men did indeed stop their conversation and look over at her simultaneously.
"Junior Sister Chi Wan?"
One of the young men greeted her with pleasant surprise. It was none other than Zhou Huaijin, from whom she had parted ways not long ago.
Seeing Zhou Huaijin's reaction, Zhou Huai'an revealed a meaningful smile, his probing gaze shifting smoothly between the two of them.
Chi Wan feigned ignorance, smiling as she said, "What a coincidence, Senior Brother Xiao Zhou."
To be honest, they weren't even in the same department, let alone the same specialization, so the whole "senior brother-junior sister" dynamic was a bit of a stretch.
But since Zhou Huaijin didn't mind, Chi Wan certainly wasn't going to turn down a good connection. 'If we get along well, not only will my family's orchard gain a capable consultant, but when it comes to the experimental base, I can also help them better understand the villagers' "rustic charm."'
She just hadn't expected Zhou Huaijin and this Zhou Huai'an to actually be related. She had suspected it when she first saw Zhou Huai'an's name, but the two didn't really look alike, and Chi Wan hadn't paid it much mind back then.
Zhou Huaijin took the initiative and asked, "Are you planning to pawn something?"
Chi Wan didn't try to hide it, nodding openly. "News about my family has probably spread all over the village by now. We're tight on cash, so I thought I'd pawn some of my old jewelry for some emergency funds."
'She was actually saying this for the shopkeeper's benefit, providing a clear reason upfront so he wouldn't grow suspicious if she came back later to pawn less-valuable pieces of jewelry.'
Zhou Huaijin had indeed heard about the Chi family's bankruptcy. After all, he and his professor had been surveying Qingshui Village for four or five days; the local gossip was impossible to avoid.
He found her candor quite admirable. "These difficulties are just temporary. With your and your parents' positive attitude, you'll surely get the orchard back to its former glory."
Hearing this, Chi Wan laughed. "Senior Brother, you sound so formal."
Zhou Huaijin paused, then couldn't help but smile as well.
Seeing the two of them getting along so well, Zhou Huai'an cleared his throat theatrically. When they both looked over, he grinned. "Huaijin, so you two know each other? Aren't you going to make an introduction?"
Zhou Huaijin shot Zhou Huai'an a warning glance before saying, "This is Chi Wan, a junior from my university. We met when I went to Qingshui Village with my professor for a survey. Junior Sister, this is Zhou Huai'an. He's my older cousin."
"If you ever come here and he tries to rip you off, just let me know."
Zhou Huai'an tutted. "What kind of way is that to talk? I've always run an honest business. And this Junior Sister Wanwan here is practically a regular. I might have known her even longer than you have."
Zhou Huaijin silently rolled his eyes. "Since when is she *your* junior sister? You can't just call her that."
"You're my younger cousin, and Junior Sister Wanwan is your junior sister. By extension, doesn't that make her my junior sister too?" Zhou Huai'an said, completely self-assured. He then turned to Chi Wan with a warm smile. "You should have told me you were family! From now on, when you come here to pawn things, I'll give you a twenty-percent discount!"
Chi Wan's smile froze. 'Wait, something's not right,' she thought. 'I'm here to pawn my things. What kind of twenty-percent discount is that?'
"Shoo, shoo, don't get in the way of my business." Zhou Huai'an waved Zhou Huaijin aside and turned back to Chi Wan. "Junior Sister Wanwan, are you here to pawn something else today?"
"The craftsmanship on that last pair of earrings was truly exquisite. If you're just doing this for some emergency cash, I can hold on to them for you. You can buy them back later when you're on your feet again."
Although Zhou Huai'an seemed a bit flippant, his manner was perfectly tactful and never crossed the line into being offensive.
Thus, Chi Wan simply thanked him for his kind offer before taking out the items she intended to pawn this time.
Two bracelets and a small, 100-gram gold bar. The bracelets themselves were quite substantial, each weighing nearly 60 grams.
'This was the first time she had cashed out items worth over a hundred thousand yuan. Her recent expenses were likely to be high, after all. A hundred thousand wasn't a small sum, but it wasn't so large that it would be impossible to explain.'
'Besides, she was always meticulous about issuing invoices and paying her taxes.'
Zhou Huaijin sat on a pearwood chair to one side, sipping his tea and silently watching their transaction, a little lost in thought.
"Senior Brother Xiao Zhou, what are you thinking about so intently?"
Chi Wan's voice snapped the pensive Zhou Huaijin out of his thoughts. He looked up. "Are you all finished?"
From the side, Zhou Huai'an chimed in with a wicked grin, "He's probably wondering which foot he should enter the greenhouse with tomorrow."
Zhou Huaijin: "..."
He couldn't be bothered to even acknowledge Zhou Huai'an and spoke directly to Chi Wan. "Are you here to do some shopping today?"
Although he didn't know Chi Wan had moved, Zhou Huaijin had seen her family's old home. It was very simple, and it was obvious she would need to buy many things for it; otherwise, she wouldn't be in such a rush to pawn her jewelry.
When Chi Wan nodded, he started leading her out of the shop. "As it happens, I came here to do some shopping today, too. Since we ran into each other, why don't we go together?"
Zhou Huai'an snorted softly behind them. Then, an idea seemed to strike him. He snapped a photo of the two of them backlit by the light as they exited the shop and sent it directly to the family group chat with the caption: "@Zhou Huaijin, Looking good together."
Instantly, the chat was flooded with question marks. Zhou Huai'an, however, simply muted the group notifications, put his phone away, settled into his personal recliner, and began to leisurely sip his tea.
Chi Wan was completely oblivious to all this. Her original plan had been to buy some high-end supplies for Li Xingye after she finished shopping for her own list, but with Zhou Huaijin right there, it would be awkward to buy too much.
So, she headed directly for the general goods section of the market with a clear purpose. 'I'll just buy my things quickly, say goodbye to Zhou Huaijin, and then go buy food for Li Xingye.' The night before, Li Xingye had specifically asked her to pick up some medical supplies like anti-inflammatory medication and bandages.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Watch out!"
CRASH—!
As Chi Wan was walking, a short, stout man suddenly barreled into her from behind and to the side. He was moving so fast that she had no time to get out of the way.
With the impact, the object the man had been cradling in his hands fell to the ground, shattering into pieces.
Zhou Huaijin instantly steadied Chi Wan, who had nearly been knocked over, pulling her behind him.
The man, however, had already started slapping his thigh and wailing. "My orchid! Oh, my precious orchid! The one I worked so hard to keep alive! Why don't you people watch where you're going?! My flower is ruined! Can you even afford to pay for it?!"
"Do you have any idea what this is? A Ghost Orchid! A single one of these could buy your house! I'm telling you, you're not going anywhere today until you pay up!"