Lu Fei was stunned.
Huh? Was what I said that persuasive? He asked, bewildered, "It's good to know you're wrong and correct yourself, why are you crying?"
The boy in shorts continued to sob, not replying, crying more and more sadly, as if a deep-seated reverse scale had been touched.
Lu Fei stepped forward to comfort him with some helplessness, "Come, tell big brother if anything is making you sad, big brother is best at comforting people."
Although this little brat was a bit rebellious and arrogant, he was fundamentally a child. Lu Fei wanted to discipline him, but there was a limit to everything; he wouldn't truly leave the other party with childhood trauma. Otherwise, he would become the bad guy in a fairy tale.
Just then, two bodyguards pushed the door open. If they hadn't reacted to the pig-slaughtering cry from earlier, they really could have been fired on the spot.
The two burly men were about to grab Lu Fei and question him, but they saw him squatting beside the boy in shorts, seemingly comforting him.
After some hesitation, the two exchanged glances and decided to observe first.
Finally, the boy in shorts stopped crying and choked out, "I miss my mom. She used to love wearing red clothes, that's why I had Xiao Hong wear red. I thought she liked it too... *sob sob sob*."
"This..." Lu Fei frowned slightly. The boy's answer was beyond his expectations.
"Where is your mom?" Lu Fei asked softly.
"She left me when I was little."
Oh... so you don't have a mom either... Lu Fei suddenly understood.
Of course, this was the Lu Fei of this world. According to the original host's settings, he was an orphan.
For no reason, he thought of his parents in his original world. Resonating with the boy's emotions, his nose stung, and he tilted his head back with a long sigh, "Mom and Dad must be frantically searching for me everywhere..."
Earth, Sanya. A clear blue sky, golden sand. A middle-aged couple lay on lounge chairs, leisurely enjoying themselves.
The middle-aged woman asked, "Honey, we've been out for so long, should we call our son?"
The middle-aged man replied nonchalantly, "He's old enough to not even have a girlfriend. Let's take advantage of this time and have a second child."
...
Lu Fei pondered for a moment, then snapped back to reality. He recalled the comforting words used for orphans in TV shows, "Child, don't cry. Perhaps your mother is watching you from heaven right now." His tone was mature and steady.
As soon as he finished speaking, the boy in shorts retorted angrily, "My mom isn't dead!"
"Ah?" Lu Fei was taken aback.
The atmosphere, which had been built up, suddenly became a bit awkward.
"She just doesn't want me anymore," the boy in shorts said somewhat aggrievedly.
"Then what about your dad?" Lu Fei asked.
The boy in shorts pouted, becoming even more saddened, "He's already gone..."
Lu Fei: "..."
After more than ten seconds of silence, Lu Fei felt his comfort was counterproductive! He decided not to continue inquiring about his family background...
After all, the main problem had been resolved. Children from wealthy families like this were always eccentric. If he said the wrong thing, it might cause unnecessary trouble. What he needed to do now was to get his reward!
He slowly stood up and looked at the manager surnamed Wang, "I've resolved the issue with the bounty you posted."
Hearing this, the manager surnamed Wang's expression brightened, but he couldn't believe the other party's words. Whether the task was completed depended on the employer's response.
However, at this critical juncture, he couldn't rashly inquire.
Just then, the boy in shorts' voice rang out.
"He has completed my task," the boy in shorts wiped his tears and extended a small hand, smiling, "My name is Ji Hao, what's yours?"
"My name is Lu..." He stopped halfway, then retracted it. To avoid being discovered by Chen Zhanpeng and the higher-ups of the Beast Tamer Association, Lu Fei had registered his name as Mr. Lu.
After careful consideration, Lu Fei replied, "You can call me Brother Liu."
The nickname Brother Liu was what his roommates called him when he was in school. At that time, a friend from Anhui used to pronounce "Lu" as "Liu" every day. Over time, his roommates also started calling him that.
Ji Hao gave a soft "Mm."
"If there's nothing else, I'll be going now." Saying this, Lu Fei prepared to leave the room.
"Wait." Ji Hao called out to him from behind.
Then, he waved to the bodyguards. The burly men, understanding the signal, took out a card.
Ji Hao handed the card to Lu Fei and smiled, "Thank you. I'll take better care of Xiao Hong from now on."
Lu Fei nodded, thinking to himself, "I advise you to change its name too!"
"This card contains two hundred thousand异币 (Yì Bì), as my token of gratitude," Ji Hao added.
"Two hundred thousand?" Lu Fei was stunned. "Wasn't it one hundred thousand?"
The manager surnamed Wang chuckled and explained, "Mr. Lu, this is an additional thank-you gift. The original commission will still be given to you as usual."
A bright glint flashed in Lu Fei's eyes. He suppressed his excitement and nodded silently.
Ji Hao, now on good terms with the Gentleman Monkey, was in a very good mood. He casually said that if Lu Fei ever came to Yanbei City, he would invite him to his home, mentioning that his grandfather was Ji Shence.
Lu Fei took it with a smile.
Who your grandfather is, is none of my business...
But in the end, he still exchanged contact information with Ji Hao. Lu Fei felt that the child wasn't inherently bad; perhaps he just thought this was a better way to get attention...
Before leaving, Lu Fei carefully wrote a long article on how to care for a Gentleman Monkey. This care guide was actually based on his previous observations of monkey behavior and research. It might also be useful for monkey-type contract beasts.
After following the manager surnamed Wang to the front desk to collect the remaining commission, Lu Fei hastily left the Beast Tamer Association building.
He planned to purchase some supplies for surviving in the wild. In a few more days, he would be going on a trial journey with Ke Xin. He needed to prepare a comprehensive protective gear for himself. The revolution had not yet succeeded, comrades still needed to live!
...
Cangzhen Beast Taming Academy, Principal's Office.
On the sofa sat several high-ranking officials of the academy, including Zhou Nanfeng, along with several teachers from different grades. They were all on their annual leave but were summoned by a phone call from Lin Yuansheng's secretary.
Everyone had a thousand unspoken grievances in their hearts, but after understanding the content of the meeting, they all became serious.
"Principal, if this news is true, I suggest changing the trial venue, or even canceling this year's annual leave trial!"
On a sofa near the front, a middle-aged man with a receding hairline spoke agitatedly.
His name was Lin Zuodong, the Director of Teaching at Cangzhen Beast Taming Academy.
"I agree with Director Lin's opinion. If members of the Hunter organization are indeed appearing in the Yanshan region, then it would be too dangerous to keep our trial venue in the Yanshan region!"
The speaker was Ling Lu. With her seniority, she wouldn't normally be qualified to attend a meeting of this caliber. However, thanks to her student, she was, she was! No, it was teacher due to student, Lin Yuansheng, after much deliberation, made an exception and brought her in.
Other instructors also began to voice their suggestions one after another, but their opinions were largely consistent: the trial could not be canceled, as it was related to the reputation of Cangzhen Beast Taming Academy, but the venue had to be changed. The students' safety always had to come first.
Everyone fell silent. After a short while, a voice sounded.
"But Pingzhen Beast Taming Academy next door, and Longzhen Beast Taming Academy have already stated that they will not change their venue for this trial."
Everyone looked at Zhou Nanfeng.
Zhou Nanfeng leisurely took a sip of his strong tea and continued, "The three of us have always been in competition. Although the annual leave trial does not affect the academy's promotion assessment, if we change the venue this time, it would be equivalent to admitting defeat to them."
He looked at everyone and said, "If this gets out, I don't need to say more, right?" Finally, he fixed his gaze on Lin Yuansheng and said with a respectful smile, "As a member of the academy, we should indeed help the Principal with his concerns, shouldn't we?"
Everyone exchanged glances, their expressions complex.
Some senior instructors were very aware that Zhou Nanfeng had been coveting the position of principal for a long time. Something was fishy!
Lin Yuansheng, who had been observing coldly, finally spoke.
"Heh heh, my thoughts are the same as Nanfeng's."