40: Chapter 40 Never Tired of Learning

Han Jingyang returned home and called Liu Jing to tell her about Shen Lele coming to the shop to work.

Liu Jing was stunned: "Boss, why do we need her? She doesn't know anything, doesn't understand anything, and has no manners. Are you trying to invite trouble?"

Han Jingyang sighed: "No choice. Mr. Shen brought it up; how could I refuse?"

"Hehe, how about I put some pressure on the little girl?"

"Don't go too far."

"I'm not that stupid. I'll make sure she decides to quit on her own."

In their lighthearted conversation, the two little foxes decided Shen Lele's fate.

It was foreseeable that Shen Lele's holiday work experience was about to have an unpleasant start.

It wasn't fair to blame the two of them for being black-hearted.

If anyone was to blame, it was Shen Lele herself for truly having no manners and not being very likeable.

What?

Liu Jing and Shen Lele got along very well?

That was only because Liu Jing had high emotional intelligence and was giving Shen Lele a pleasant face out of respect for Mr. Shen; otherwise, she would have been met with a baseball bat long ago.

Han Jingyang was the same, just giving face to Shen Yuhai.

If anyone else had asked him, he wouldn't have agreed at all. The shop currently had almost no business, the counters were two-thirds empty, and Liu Jing was so bored she wanted to find someone to fight; they didn't need a manual laborer at all.

Of course, he also understood that Shen Yuhai letting Shen Lele work at his shop wasn't for anything else but to ask for his help in educating Shen Lele, and incidentally, to strengthen the friendship between them.

The intention was good, and he didn't mind helping Shen Yuhai pull Shen Lele along, but whether Shen Lele could withstand his and Liu Jing's schemes was entirely up to her. He hoped Shen Lele could hold out for a couple of days.

The 28th.

Nine o'clock in the morning.

Shen Lele arrived at Jiguang Zhai on time.

She had changed her outfit; it was actually quite plain, and paired with her handsome short hair, she looked quite capable.

Han Jingyang nodded, neither cold nor enthusiastic: "You're here. Drink some water first, then look around and help with whatever work there is."

Shen Lele gave an unwilling grunt.

Liu Jing, however, was all smiles and gave Shen Lele a big hug: "Don't listen to him, listen to me. Stay at ease; with me here, I definitely won't let him bully you."

Shen Lele had a completely different attitude toward Liu Jing, smiling sweetly: "Thank you, Sister Jingjing."

"Come, come, come. There isn't much work in the shop, just mopping the floor, wiping the tables, and cleaning the counters and various objects. It doesn't matter if you're slow, just be careful. Come, start by mopping the floor."

"I, I don't know how..."

"I'll teach you."

Liu Jing was incredibly enthusiastic, teaching her everything hand-in-hand.

The result was that Shen Lele was exhausted, while Liu Jing didn't feel a thing.

Although it wasn't heavy work, the same tasks had completely different experiences in different hands.

Shen Lele had never done these things before and couldn't take it after just a while, but she was too embarrassed to defy the enthusiasm of her good sister Liu Jing, so she could only struggle to persist, and by noon, she was so tired she couldn't straighten her back.

Liu Jing was still enthusiastically encouraging her: "Lele, you're really great. You performed so well on your first day of work. Keep it up, continue in the afternoon. Even if we're exhausted to death, we can't let that bastard boss look down on us..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lele, who had originally planned to slip away, instantly regained her fighting spirit and nodded heavily, gritting her teeth.

Han Jingyang, watching from the side, wanted to laugh. When Shen Lele wasn't paying attention, he gave Liu Jing a thumbs-up, then continued playing his villain role.

Of course, he wasn't idle either; whenever he had free time, he would wander around other antique shops looking for treasure.

But the harvest wasn't rich.

He spent over four hundred thousand to acquire nine appraisable items, eight of which were ordinary Grade 7 goods without even any skills.

Only one was Grade 6.

"Name: Qing Guangxu Chengni Inkstone."

"Grade: Grade 6."

"Attribute: Focus +4."

"Skill: Never Tire of Learning."

This inkstone cost him a full eighty thousand.

But it was worth it.

Not to mention the attributes and skills, it was also of high quality, especially the carving. On the edge of the ink pool, a pair of lifelike Baxie mythical beasts were carved, as if they were swallowing the ink in the pool. The details were carved with such precision that they were clearly visible. One look and you could tell it was master craftsmanship—a true scholar's inkstone that was both practical and artistic. It was fine for daily use, and could also be collected and appreciated as a piece of art.

Of course, this inkstone would definitely be saved for his younger sister.

For items helpful to learning, his sister was the first choice.

He would only sell it to others once it was replaced by something better.

It was a pity that the item Sun Fuchang kept thinking about—the one for having children—still had no leads. He promised that he had been very diligently looking for antiques with themes like "Hundred Children Painting" or "Child-Sending Guanyin," but he just hadn't found anything suitable.

However, Sun Fuchang shouldn't be in a rush; after all, he was currently busy starting from scratch, so he wouldn't be finding a partner in the short term.

In this day and age, it wasn't easy for young people to find a partner to have children with, let alone an Old Man in his sixties?

Perhaps it would be easier if he had money.

But Sun Fuchang had left with nothing, without a cent to his name. How many women would be willing to have children with him now?

So Han Jingyang wasn't in a hurry either.

The 29th.

As soon as Han Jingyang arrived at the shop, Zhou Yucheng eagerly crowded over: "Little Han, look..."

"Be patient. Your matter is such a big deal, it won't hurt to wait a moment."

"No rush, no rush," Zhou Yucheng naturally didn't dare to refute and spoke with a fawning smile, but his palms, which he kept rubbing together, betrayed his inner anxiety.

Han Jingyang didn't deliberately delay either. After Liu Jing and Shen Lele arrived for work and he gave them a few instructions, he took his gear and returned to Zhou Yucheng's house.

As soon as he arrived, he was shocked.

It was this serious?

The black aura, which he had pushed back a few steps three days ago, was not only thicker but had already invaded the interior of the house. Apart from the few items of his that had white or blue auras and were still struggling to hold on, the original various auras had all been eroded and assimilated.

At a glance, it looked like a city submerged in black clouds.

He had only seen this kind of scene when the Axe Gang's second-in-command appeared.

To the point that he even beat a retreat in his heart.

It was truly very scary and looked very dangerous.

However, looking down at the compass in his hand and touching the zhentan wood in his bag, his confidence returned.

If he couldn't even suppress such a small scene, how could he snatch jobs from those long-established masters in the future?

Charge!

He had to face the difficulty head-on.

But his expression was very grim: "Old Zhou, your situation is even more dangerous now. The phrase 'hanging by a thread' is very accurate; it could erupt at any moment. No, that's not right, there are already signs. Has your household been restless in the last day or two?"

Zhou Yucheng nodded hurriedly: "Last night, the nanny fell flat on her face while taking a shower—she barely survived. This morning, my mother bumped her head when getting up, and my wife nearly burned down the kitchen in a panic, luckily we had installed automatic alarm and fire extinguishing devices."

"It's only a day or two away from erupting," Han Jingyang said with a heavy expression: "I might be able to help you guard this house, but for yourself, you'd better hurry and think of a way."

"If you can guard the house, I'll be satisfied. As for me..." Zhou Yucheng gave a miserable laugh: "The worst that can happen is death."

Han Jingyang shook his head: "Let's begin."