Old Mo exclaimed, "Damn! That was fast! I was just planning to send a couple of my guys to check out the construction team."
That’s just how Old Mo was: an honest old farmer with a kind heart, always ready to help relatives and friends.
After a moment of silence, Old Mo asked, "What’s wrong with you? You haven’t said a word."
Chu Hao’s eyes welled up with tears. He had no relatives left in this world. Sister Ya Xiao was gone. That, combined with Ankang Mo’s phone call and his earlier feelings, made his heart ache terribly.
"It’s... it’s nothing."
Old Mo laughed. "No place to stay? You really should’ve told me. Come and stay with your old brother for a few days."
Chu Hao replied, "Alright."
He just wanted to find someone to talk to, and Old Mo was the perfect person.
Taking a taxi to the South City District, he arrived at a relatively quiet street lined with one-stop funeral service shops, one of which belonged to Old Mo.
Ankang Mo, a big, deeply tanned farmer, had many wreaths and funeral supplies in his shop. His wife was at the entrance, weaving wreaths.
Ankang Mo’s wife, though not conventionally beautiful and a rural woman herself, was kindhearted and warm to everyone.
Chu Hao greeted her, "Sister-in-law, it’s been a long time."
Ankang Mo’s wife warmly invited him in. "Come in and sit. Ankang Mo went to make arrangements for his brothers; he’ll be back shortly."
Before long, Ankang Mo and two men who looked like farmers arrived on a tricycle.
Ankang Mo, still his honest and simple self, said, "Ah-Hao, come meet them. These are a few of my brothers."
His two brothers were dressed like rural folk, carrying large and small bags, looking as if they had come to the city to find work.
Chu Hao also stepped forward warmly to greet them. Ankang Mo’s wife had prepared a table full of dishes. One of the men, a chubby, good-natured farmer, took out a jug of wine and asked, "Young man, do you drink?"
"I do," Chu Hao nodded.
"Haha! That’s the spirit! Bottoms up!"
The chubby one, named Wang Meng, was tall and very dark-complexioned. He insisted on drinking with Chu Hao.
Another man, tall and thin, was named Xu Yusicheng. He had a sun-bronzed complexion. He was expressionless, never smiling, but when it came to drinking, he didn’t waste a single drop.
Chu Hao listened to them chat for a while, talking about common affairs back in their hometown.
Wang Meng sighed. "It’s hard to find work these days."
Ankang Mo sighed as well. "Isn’t that the truth? Don’t be fooled by the fact I run a shop; ever since the national burial policy was implemented, very few people order wreaths anymore."
Wang Meng took another big gulp of wine and said, "Old Mo, I have an idea: let’s open a Paranormal Agency."
Ankang Mo frowned. Being in his line of work, he naturally knew there were some eerie and malevolent entities in this world. There were especially many of them in the mountains near his hometown.
Ankang Mo asked, "Do you have the ability for that?"
Wang Meng laughed. "I don’t, but Si Cheng does."
Ankang Mo looked at Yu Sicheng in surprise.
Yu Sicheng nodded. "I’ve learned a bit and helped the villagers solve quite a few issues. I just don’t know if the malevolent entities in the city are as formidable as those in the mountains."
Ankang Mo grew somewhat excited and invigorated. "The malevolent entities in the city can’t possibly be more formidable than the ones in the mountains! That’s a good suggestion. You don’t know how easy it is to earn money in the city. Just one successful job can feed you for a year or two."
At that moment, Ankang Mo said, "Ah-Hao, how about coming over to help out?"
Chu Hao hadn’t expected Ankang Mo to invite him.
Wang Meng frowned. "Old Mo, our funds are limited. If we hire staff now..."
Wang Meng’s meaning was clear: they simply didn’t have the money to hire employees. They were all very poor.
Ankang Mo felt awkward.
At this moment, Chu Hao said, "Brothers, if I were to invest, I wonder if that would be acceptable?"
Chu Hao’s idea was simple: if they opened a Paranormal Agency, he would encounter more ghosts, and the Ghost-catching System needed to encounter more ghosts to upgrade.
Moreover, Old Mo had helped him a lot, and he wanted to return the favor.
Wang Meng laughed, took a sip of his drink, and asked, "Young man, how much are you prepared to invest?"
They looked at Chu Hao’s young age and doubted he had much money. They even chuckled when they heard he wanted to invest.
Ankang Mo also said, "Ah-Hao, save your money for school. Although school isn’t like the real world, you still need money for everything. Don’t worry, as long as your Old Brother Mo is around, I won’t forget you."
Hearing Ankang Mo say this, Chu Hao was touched and became even more determined to help Old Mo.
Yu Sicheng also spoke up, trying to persuade him. "Young man, even though we only met today, we brothers can’t take your money. Listen to Old Mo; save it for your education. In the future, you can help us with errands. Once our Paranormal Agency is up and running, we definitely won’t forget you."
Who says the world is filled with malice?
The three men sitting beside him were truly good people.
Chu Hao was deeply moved. "Thank you, brothers," he said. "I believe that if we’re going to run a Paranormal Agency, we must do it properly. Nowadays, the city has all sorts of businesses, and there’s no shortage of people in this line of work, although most of them are charlatans. However, their décor and storefronts are very presentable. When wealthy clients walk in, seeing that makes them feel much more at ease."
Wang Meng gave a wry smile. "A scholar is indeed different. If you hadn’t mentioned it, we three brothers wouldn’t have realized its importance."
Even Yu Sicheng nodded. "Ah-Hao is right; the shop must be presentable."
As he spoke, he took out a bank card. "I have seventy thousand here. It’s money I’ve earned on construction sites over the years."
Wang Meng also pulled out his bank card. "I have fifty thousand."
Ankang Mo gritted his teeth, took out a bank card, and said, "I... I have one hundred seventy thousand here. It’s my entire savings from all these years. Don’t laugh, but I want to go all in. Everything in the big city costs money, and my two kids are about to start kindergarten, which will cost even more."
The three of them had a total of two hundred ninety thousand. While this was a considerable sum, opening a respectable Paranormal Agency would still be challenging.
A bank card slid forward, stopping in front of the three cards.
All three men looked at Chu Hao, their hearts filled with complex feelings—a mix of helplessness and gloom.
Sigh... You are all such good people; you’ve moved me deeply. Although, I really don’t want to show off in front of good people.
At this point, it’s no longer about showing off, but about genuinely helping these three men.
Chu Hao said, "I have two million."
The three men’s jaws dropped as they stared at Chu Hao in disbelief.
DING. Host has successfully shown off, gaining 30 Pretentiousness Points.
Ankang Mo’s mouth twitched. "Ah-Hao, stop kidding with your old brother, will you? My heart can’t take it."
Chu Hao earnestly replied, "This card really does have two million."
Ankang Mo’s mouth hung open. He felt as if he were seeing Chu Hao for the first time.
"Where... where did you get so much money from?"
Old Mo knew best. Not long ago, Chu Hao even had trouble paying for his meals. Where could he have gotten two million from?
Wang Meng’s mouth twitched. "Young man, are you sure you’re not teasing us?"
Yu Sicheng muttered, "Even if he sold his body, he wouldn’t get that much money, would he?"
Chu Hao was speechless.