The Game of Life-Chapter 665 - 663 [Zhang Chu’s Worries]
Chapter 665: 663 Chapter [Zhang Chu’s Worries]
After catching up on old times, it was time to talk about serious matters. Lu Sheng’s excuse for mooching a meal was that he had to discuss with Zhang Chu in detail about the wooden furniture in Yonghe House. Although the real point was mooching a meal, the furniture still needed to be mentioned.
The window frames of Yonghe House were repaired by Zhang Chu and many years had passed, so it was time for a new refurbishment. Back then, a big fire had burned down most of Yonghe House, but due to the special location, all the window frames on the second floor had been preserved intact. Lu Sheng took Zhang Chu upstairs to check the window frames, and Zhang Chu said there were no major problems, but some wood was showing signs of rot and fracture and needed to be replaced.
Zhang Chu started chatting with Lu Sheng about maintaining the window frames, while Zhang Zhiyuan, beside them speaking with his grandfather, listened in a daze. He even took out his phone to reply to a couple of messages mid-conversation and only much later did he suddenly ask, “Grandpa, are we still going to invite Master Peng for a meal at Shunhe Building tomorrow?”
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“No, we’re not going. The taste has changed; it’s not the same anymore. There’s no point in going,” Zhang Chu shook his head, and continued discussing the wood with Lu Sheng.
Zhang Chu felt that Lu Sheng had been ripped off by the renovation company last time—the material of the tables and chairs on the first floor of Yonghe House wasn’t worth the price.
“Ding, a new optional sub-quest has been discovered.” The game, which had been playing possum for a long while, suddenly squeaked, startling Jiang Feng into almost performing an airborne 180° turn and jump on the spot.
...
A quest?
The game, having played dead for so long, hadn’t issued any quests, but of course, this was also because Jiang Feng had been focusing on grinding experience recently and hadn’t gone out to farm wild monsters to trigger the plot. The progress of existing sub-quests and main quests were as stagnant as standing water, so a fresh quest seemed precious.
Jiang Feng excused himself to see if Peng Changping needed help in the kitchen, found a secluded corner, opened the attributes panel, and decisively accepted the quest.
[Zhang Chu’s Worries]: On the surface, Zhang Chu came to Beiping to meet his long-uncontacted brother-in-law, Peng Changping. However, he had another purpose, which was unfortunately cut short before being revealed. The rare encounter with an old friend is precious, and if something is missing, it inevitably leaves regrets. The player is tasked to uncover Zhang Chu’s worries and help him fulfill his wish.
Quest Progress: Discovery (0/1) Completion (0/1)
Quest Reward: [A Piece of Zhang Chu’s Memory]
Jiang Feng: ?
An ulterior motive?
Could it be that there is an unknown tale of love and resentment between Zhang Chu and Peng Changping?
Peng Changping had previously expressed to Jiang Feng that he treated Qin Guisheng and Cao Guixiang like his own brother and sister, and now the game abruptly refers to him as Zhang Chu’s brother-in-law. This made Jiang Feng’s thoughts wander, instantly recalling the family soap operas Mrs. Jiang watched in previous years, filled with love clashes, defiance, elopement, reconciliation, ruptures, and endless cycles of drama.
“Jiang… Jiang Feng? What are you doing here? If you feel hot, don’t stand there; there’s no breeze. It’s cooler by the windows on the second floor,” the youngest guy noticed Jiang Feng hiding in the corner.
I had been drawn into the world of family soap operas and hadn’t closed the attributes panel. Now, I was explaining with a face full of words to the young fellow, “Not hot, I just came down from the second floor. I was about to see if the kitchen needed any help, then my foot seemed to twist a bit, so I’m standing here to rest for a while. I’m fine now.”
Upon hearing that Jiang Feng might have twisted his ankle, the young guy immediately became concerned. “Are you okay? Our stairs are a bit steep; someone has tripped and sprained an ankle when coming down too hastily before.”
“I’m fine,” Jiang Feng waved his hand.
“Really fine? Your complexion seems off, and there’s something odd about your eyes too.”
How could I look alright, conversing with someone while staring at a screen full of text—I felt my eyes were almost cross-eyed by now.
“I’m fine. I just need some fresh air, just stand aside, and I’ll be okay soon,” dismissed the concerned young fellow, Jiang Feng hurriedly closed the attributes panel, but before he had time to rub his eyes, the young guy came back again.
“By the way, have Mr. Zhang and the others arrived? The grandmaster had me come out to check. If they’ve arrived, I’m to serve some fresh fruits and tea snacks first,” the young man asked.
“They arrived a while ago and already finished their tea. They’re upstairs looking at the wood with Mr. Lu now.”
The young man: ?
Jiang Feng and the young man each carried a plate of fresh fruits and tea snacks upstairs. In terms of scenery, the second floor of Yonghe House certainly had a better view than Lu Sheng’s office. Lu Sheng didn’t have the heart of a domineering CEO like Ling Guangzhao—to insist on having a floor-to-ceiling window in his office; his office was half cluttered reception room and half surveillance room. If you said it was a storeroom, people would believe you.
It was now mid-afternoon, and the sun was slowly descending, casting a warm, gentle, and non-glaring light through the second-floor windows onto the tables, chairs, benches, and the people sitting on them. The warmth and comfort, a cup of hot tea, a few pieces of fruit, a couple of snacks, and idle chatter were enough to let every person there experience the joy of a wealthy, leisure-retired old man.
Peng Changping was still in the kitchen preparing for the Swallow-wing Feast. Jiang Feng had just checked in with the young lads, and progress was going very smoothly. Peng Changping’s apprentices and disciples were so worried about him getting tired that they wished they could stand by his side and help him wield the ladle while he cooked. Despite the multitude and complexity of dishes, he didn’t feel weary at all. The young lads had finished washing the vegetables and then moved on to the dishes, washing until there was nothing left to wash. It happened that the evening business had just started, and only two tables of customers had arrived on the first floor. With nothing to do in the kitchen, they were directed to go find people.
Zhang Chu sat by the window drinking tea, not sure if he preferred the window itself, the sunlight or perhaps the breeze that came with it. Suddenly feeling inspired, he said, “Why don’t we just eat here tonight? It’s a nice spot.”
“I specifically reserved a private room for you and Master Peng,” replied Xu Cheng.
“There’s just a few of us, why go to a private room and waste your business? I think it’s quite nice right here,” Zhang Chu said cheerfully.
“A private room is more secluded, and with the doors closed, it also blocks the smell,” Lu Sheng suggested diplomatically.
His implication was clear: you might find it nice here, but once we start eating, the people next door might not think the same.
Zhang Chu: …
Jiang Feng had been listening intently to Zhang Chu’s conversation, trying to pick up on something useful, but so far he had no leads. Lu Sheng had indeed asked Zhang Chu about Peng Changping, and from Zhang Chu’s response, Jiang Feng could tell that their acquaintance hadn’t been close back in the day. Their current joy stemmed entirely from the passing of time; after all, it was with Cao Guixiang that he had a romance, not with Peng Changping.
This was the point that puzzled Jiang Feng the most. If their acquaintance had not been deep, what could be the regret? Or was it a sorrow that perished before it even had a chance to reveal itself?
After much thought, Jiang Feng figured the breakthrough lay in the Shunhe Building. Asking Zhang Chu directly would certainly yield nothing, and would seem overly deliberate. Zhang Zhiyuan was a more approachable target.
University students who haven’t left school and experienced society’s harsh lessons are easier to talk to.
“Zhang Zhiyuan, since Sir Zhang is so concerned about Shunhe Building, why didn’t you go there when you visited last year?” Jiang Feng asked casually.
“Sir Zhang didn’t mention it last year,” said Zhang Zhiyuan. “Last year was all about playing, Sir Zhang just said to go to Yonghe House for a meal, then my dad insisted on trying an authentic roasted duck, and nobody mentioned Shunhe Building. I didn’t even know that place existed.”
“So, why did Sir Zhang suddenly decide to go there this time?” Jiang Feng pressed.
“I’m not sure either. I took the bus home last night, and then took a flight with Sir Zhang this morning. He never brought it up before. It was right before we landed that he suddenly asked me to check if we could reserve a spot at Shunhe Building for tomorrow, because he wanted to invite Sir Peng there for a meal,” explained Zhang Zhiyuan.
“Did you mean to invite Master Peng for a meal at Shunhe Building or to invite Master Peng to have a meal at Shunhe Building?” Jiang Feng clarified.
Zhang Zhiyuan thought for a moment: “To invite Sir Peng to have a meal at Shunhe Building.”
Jiang Feng nodded, acknowledging that indeed Shunhe Building was the key, and inviting Peng Changping to a meal was also critical.
But why did it have to be Shunhe Building?
“Feng, why are you asking about this?” Zhang Zhiyuan, who had been reserved in the meeting room facing several strangers he didn’t know and couldn’t talk with, called Jiang Feng ‘Feng’ now that he felt more relaxed.
“Just curious. I wasn’t aware that Shunhe Building was as famous as Yonghe House and always thought it was just one of those places that never really took off. It made me wonder why Sir Zhang suddenly wanted to go there to eat,” Jiang Feng explained with a smile.
Zhang Zhiyuan nodded and remarked, “Actually, Feng, I’m really grateful that your family restaurant was originally opened behind the school. Otherwise, I would have never known about my grandparents’ past.”
“Oh?”
“They never like to talk about it, and our family never does visits with other relatives. My aunt and uncle live just above us; even on New Year’s, we don’t need to make a special trip to visit relatives. Growing up, I never knew they were from Beiping. I always wondered why my accent was a bit different from my classmates—I thought it was because I watched too much crosstalk and skit shows at home and picked up the ‘erhua’ accent,” Zhang Zhiyuan said wryly. “Maybe the older generation just doesn’t like to talk about those days.”
Jiang Feng: Oh?
That’s certainly not the case with my family’s older generation.
Intuitively, Jiang Feng knew that the real breakthrough of this side mission lay right here.
