Chapter 157: I'm really bored
People often focus on the success stories, thinking it all seems so easy, but countless others don’t even make a ripple.
Xu Qing carefully explained to Jiang He why her business plan wouldn’t work. Only then did Jiang He reluctantly give up on her dream of building a self-dia ecosystem.
“How about I start with just one thing? If it works, I’ll add more,” she suggested.
“Why do you want to do so much?” Xu Qing asked.
“Well, don’t you do a lot too?” Jiang He retorted.
“That’s because I enjoy it. I do it out of interest.”
“Like how you enjoy my shoes?” Jiang He suddenly realized that Xu Qing seed to have too many interests.
By comparison, Jiang He moved bricks for money, practiced martial arts out of habit, and truly only enjoyed learning new recipes.
“Just like I enjoy your legs!” Xu Qing retorted with exasperation as he set down his mouse. “Start with one thing and give it a try. Only by doing it will you truly understand why I said it wouldn’t work.”
“Oh.” Jiang He looked down at her legs, swaying them back and forth before suddenly stepping on Xu Qing’s foot.
“What are you doing?” Xu Qing asked, confused.
“I…” Jiang He was at a loss for words.
“…”
“…”
“Hmm… Think about what you really like to do first, and then explore it. If you have questions, ask .”
After a mont of silence, Xu Qing stood up from his chair and nonchalantly added, “I’ll be in my room.”
Standing too close to Jiang He, he felt like he could almost hear her breathing. Her dazed look made him retreat quickly; otherwise, his figurative "tail" might have been exposed.
This old soul was becoming more and more like a modern young girl.
Getting up early can make a day feel much longer. Compared to sleeping in until ten, it was almost like gaining double the ti. When you wake up late, a quick wash and lunch will already push you into the afternoon. By the ti you start working, the evening has arrived. But if you tackle tasks in the morning, the whole day feels completely different.
Xu Qing knew this well. Especially after martial arts training, his mind was much clearer compared to his lazy hobody days. Feeling energized all day, he moved the couch closer to the window—and also closer to Jiang He. Bathed in the spring sunlight, he lounged with his laptop, enjoying the peace.
If it weren’t for the clacking of Jiang He’s keyboard and the howls of monsters in her ga, the mont would have been idyllic.
At noon, he put 6,000 yuan into the stock market, bringing his total investnt to 8,000 yuan, half of which was poured into a company called Jiangxiang Tech. Xu Qing had a clear understanding not to get carried away. Previously, he only used half of his money for trading. With 40,000 yuan in savings, putting 20,000 in the market was his limit. It was risky, but as soone living alone without dependents, he considered it manageable—even if he lost it all, he’d just feel a bit of heartache.
Having already halved his limit once, he lowered it further to 10,000 yuan. The bearish market of last winter had passed, and seeing the market sentint warm up recently, he decisively invested heavily.
In the afternoon, he went out and ca back with a small mirror—a compact one with a cover—and gave it to Jiang He for her bag.
Jiang He treated the little mirror like a treasure. Although it wasn’t expensive, it was extrely handy when needed. After admiring herself with it for a while, she curiously asked Xu Qing, “What are you doing?”
Xu Qing had only bought the mirror on a whim. He had also bought a large pack of stainless steel split rings—a thousand of them for just 40 yuan—and two pliers. At the mont, he was using the pliers to clamp the rings together. When Jiang He asked, he replied offhandedly, “Nothing much, just making a vest.”
“A vest?” Jiang He was shocked. She even stopped playing her ga and ran over from her chair to look. “With these?!”
“Yeah, watch…” Xu Qing demonstrated by connecting two split rings and clamping them shut with the pliers, locking them together tightly.
Jiang He frowned and gave Xu Qing a concerned look, wondering if he was losing his mind. Who would make clothes out of this? Was there even a point?
Oh, not everything needed to have a point.
“How long will this take you?”
“I’ll just work on it when I feel like it. If I don’t, then I won’t. I don’t know.” Xu Qing seed quite enthusiastic, his energy bubbling over.
If Xu Wenbin saw him now, he’d definitely call him lazy and idle.
“Will you wear it when it’s done?” Jiang He asked, suddenly thinking he might be making this to defend himself against her. Was he planning to wear armor to withstand her punches?
“I could make it for you too. If you want, I could turn the bottom part into a skirt…”
Xu Qing hadn’t even made a palm-sized piece yet but was already thinking of skirts.
“Does it have any purpose?” Jiang He couldn’t help but ask again.
“Let’s just say I’m doing it because I’m full and bored,” Xu Qing sighed, adding after a mont of thought, “When people are idle, their minds wander. They might play with their legs or feet, or indulge in food and fun. These are basic human needs. Once I’ve had enough snacks, I need to find sothing to do. Otherwise, I’ll feel restless.”
“…”
Jiang He mulled over his words and eventually understood what he ant. After a mont of hesitation, she glanced at her room, then at Xu Qing, who was busy clamping split rings. She tentatively said, “How about… I give you my old shoes?”
“I thought you were going to offer your legs to play with,” Xu Qing said, glancing at her. He shook his head theatrically before continuing with his work.
“If you want… you could hold like last ti while watching a movie,” Jiang He suggested.
“Sure.”
Xu Qing agreed without hesitation.
Spending so much ti with Jiang He, he sotis needed to redirect his thoughts. Otherwise, watching her sit there would lead to all sorts of daydreams. This was part of the reason, but only a small one. The main reason was that spending too much ti in front of the computer wore him out ntally. He needed a change of pace.
He used to go out drinking and partying often, but now he rarely did. He had also developed the habit of going to bed early and waking up early, giving him plenty of free ti to do what he wanted.
Jiang He curled her toes inside her slippers, realizing there wasn’t much else to do. Xu Qing hadn’t looked for a movie either. He was still fiddling with the split rings.
“Why don’t you read a book? Or play a ga?”
“Aren’t we watching a movie?” Jiang He asked.
“Hm? You want to watch one now?” Xu Qing paused. If she wanted to watch a movie now, he was happy to accompany her.
“No! It’s you who…”
Jiang He felt like she had fallen into a trap. Weren’t they supposed to cuddle?
This miscommunication lasted only a mont before Xu Qing realized what was going on. He had casually teased Jiang He earlier, thinking they could get closer while watching a movie later. Jiang He, on the other hand, thought he wanted to get touchy and was looking for a movie now.
“We can watch tonight, after we’ve both had baths and sll nice,” Xu Qing said as seriously as he could.
“I’m going to play my ga!” Jiang He huffed, running back to her chair, unwilling to continue the conversation.
“Hey, pass that cara later,” Xu Qing said.
“You want to take it off?”
“Yeah, take it off and set it up on my laptop.”
After using the pliers for about ten minutes, Xu Qing had gotten the hang of the process. He moved the cara from Jiang He’s computer to his and adjusted it to focus on the desk.
“Don’t make any noise,” he instructed her.
“Huh?” Jiang He was puzzled.
“I’m recording a video. It’ll take about ten minutes.”
Watching Xu Qing clamp split rings while explaining things to the cara, Jiang He propped her chin on her hand from her seat.
It felt like she’d been tricked again. All that talk about being bored, wanting to play with legs, and finding distractions—it was all just work.
Although she had no idea what kind of bizarre job this was, she was sure it wasn’t as simple as Xu Qing made it seem.
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