Once people turn into salted fish, time becomes especially unbearable.

Huai Shi ambled down the mountain, not bothering to hail a cab. He wandered like a stray dog, walking all theway into the city and observing the hustle and bustle.

He always felt out of place.

I must have developed some kind of PTSD, he thought, the kind where you can't sleep at night without holding a gun after being on the battlefield. If he didn't play video games for at least eight hours a day, and slack off for a full eight hours as well, he would feel distinctly uncomfortable. He had no motivation.

He hadn't shaved in days, his hair was a mess, and he was wearing slippers—everything about him screamed he wasn't a decent person. Feeling the pitying glances of those around him, as if they were thinking, So young and already a dropout, Huai Shi scratched his head, not knowing how to explain himself.

Wandering aimlessly, he stopped by an arcade, bought a milk tea, and sat watching someone dance for half an hour. He drew two capsule toys and then took out his phone to check for updates on "Monsters Die When Killed." He envied other players' powerful cheat abilities, their impressive style, their prestige, and the free treasures they received. Then, he thought of that damn woman in his head who was always scheming to spend his money... Why is there such a big gap between people?

After his contemplations, he sat in the mall and started drawing cards. After using up all the Stone he had amassed over the past few days, he began scrolling through Weibo and Moments. After tagging Old Liu twice under the official Weibo account of a shampoo brand, his enjoyable social media session also came to an end.

Nothing to do. Boredom…

Huai Shi sighed deeply, leaning back in his chair and looking around. He hoped some mercenaries, thugs, or big bad guys would suddenly appear, trying to rob the mall or start a terrorist attack, so he could dash forward and cut down the blind fools...

But after waiting for ages, not a single Wild Monster spawned, and he nearly scared away a mascot who was bouncing around handing out flyers.

Life is truly too difficult, he lamented. No job, no friends, and no money. Only time was so difficult to endure, and it never seemed to pass quickly enough, no matter how he tried to kill it...

He painstakingly endured, wandering up and down the Wanli Mall several times. He even revisited an auction house he had once scammed but found no opportunity to issue fines under the wary and cautious gaze of the person in charge. Disappointed, he could only click his tongue in annoyance and leave with a sigh.

A great sigh of relief came from behind him, as if a burden had been lifted from their shoulders.

Who wouldn't be scared when the Beheading King of Jinling suddenly turns up for an inspection!

Finally, it was time for dinner, time to go home and eat. But seeing the long list of payment notifications on his phone, Huai Shi couldn't help but feel a sharp pang of anxiety.

No, I must bring some income home today.

Huai Shi casually made his way to a restroom, forcibly straightened out his hair, washed his face, and tried to make himself look serious. He nodded, then reached into his pocket, pulled out a red armband he had stuffed in there, and casually slung it over his arm.

I have to return to my old tricks...

Standing on the fifth floor of the mall, he surveyed the various eateries teeming with people and nodded, heading straight for the fire exit.

It's time to teach these people who disregard public order a lesson.

With a kick, he burst open the fire door, taking everyone by surprise as he rushed into the stairwell behind it. Sure enough, he found cigarette butts strewn on the ground and several people crouched down smoking. The sight of someone with a red armband entering caused instant panic.

"Nobody move, inspection!" Huai Shi bellowed, rolling up his sleeves and pointing at the wall. "No smoking, two hundred yuan fine, see it?"

"..."

In the brief silence, those individuals looked up at the bare wall, at a loss for words.

Because there isn't a single sign on this wall! they thought.

Oh, this floor doesn't have one, Huai Shi realized, quickly regaining his stern expression. "No smoking in public areas! Don't you people have any sense of public duty? Don't even think about running; the cameras are watching! You'll be called out over the PA system... acting like children, how embarrassing, right? Come on, stand properly, two hundred each... And you, stop smoking! It's bad for your lungs, you should quit."

Huai Shi, with practiced ease, plucked the cigarette from a dumbfounded man's mouth and flung it into the stairwell gap. From a distance, he heard an enraged curse and had no idea which unlucky soul it had hit.

Perhaps it was the authority commanded by his red armband or Huai Shi's adeptness; by the time he had collected money from four or five people, some still hadn't caught on.

That was until he heard a light chuckle behind him.

"Why are you being such a nuisance again?"

Huai Shi turned around in surprise and then saw Fu Yi. After disappearing for over half a month, she had returned, looking no different.

She seemed to have just finished a meal and was about to come here for a smoke.

"What are you doing here?"

"Just got back from the Open Ocean with my mom. We were chasing currents for half a month. I'm so sick of fish, I needed to eat some meat to recover. Didn't you get my message?"

Huai Shi shook his head.

"Of course you didn't. My phone ran out of credit on the second day, and I haven't had time to top it up since getting back." Fu Yi shook her head, tossed the unlit cigarette away, and patted his shoulder. "Come on, I'll treat you to dinner."

"Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Free dinner—who wouldn't be happy about that!

Huai Shi excitedly rubbed his hands together and hurried to catch up. Before leaving, he turned back to point at the few who hadn't paid their fines, solemnly reminding them, "I've got my eyes on you guys. I have to take care of something first; make sure you go to the front desk later and pay your fines..."

Without waiting for any response, he closed the fire door and bolted.

In the silence, only a few bewildered faces and the angry elder who had just charged upstairs were staring at each other in astonishment.

What on earth just happened? Why is my money gone...?

「. . .」

One can only say that Fu Yi was truly a great buddy. In the private room of Xinhai Wan Li's best barbecue restaurant, the meat was grilling nicely on the fire, and there were even two sets of utensils prepared.

After lazing around for so long, Huai Shi was moved to tears when he ran into Fu Yi again.

"Seriously, you're the best, buddy!"

He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a couple of pieces of meat, dipped them in sauce, and stuffed them into his mouth. He felt a wave of peace wash over him, his eyes welling up. "Pal, why didn't you come back sooner? I've had such a tough time..."

For some reason, Fu Yi, sitting across from him, had a strange look in her eyes, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

"What's the matter?" Huai Shi was puzzled. "Is there something on my face?"

"No... I'm just considering how to tell you..." Fu Yi hesitated for a long time, then, after some thought, raised her hand and pointed at the bowl, chopsticks, and plate in front of him. "You're using my mother's utensils..."

"..."

Huai Shi froze.

In the quiet, footsteps sounded outside the private room, slowly approaching. A rather strikingly dressed lady walked in, speaking into her phone, "Alright, I've received the items. I won't be going; arrange for someone else... I'm having dinner with my daughter."

After hanging up, she looked up and saw the man sitting in her seat, using her chopsticks, and eating barbecue with her daughter.

She was stunned.

Only Fu Yi looked at the two of them with a calm expression and made the introductions. "Mom, this is my classmate Huai Shi. Huai Shi, this is my mom."

"..."

Huai Shi was startled for a long moment. He managed to swallow the meat in his mouth and glanced at his chopsticks, not knowing whether to put them down or keep holding them, until Fu Yi kicked him under the table. Then, he hurriedly stood up, awkwardly nodding and greeting, "Auntie, hello, I'm Huai Shi."

"Mhm, Prince of Paradise, Beheading King of Jinling. I've heard of you for a while now."

After the initial shock, Fu Yi's mother had composed herself. She glanced at the utterly bewildered Huai Shi, called the waiter to add another set of utensils, and sat opposite them, quite calm.

"The meat is ready. Eat quickly before it burns and doesn't taste good."

She pointed to the grilled meat and was the first to pick up her chopsticks.

Huai Shi remained frozen, not knowing whether to eat or not. He was terrified that if he kept eating, "Auntie" might suddenly smash a cup as a signal, and a dozen people would charge in to chop him up.

Although I might not necessarily get hurt, wouldn't it be too disrespectful to fight back then?

Lost in his wild thoughts, Fu Yi glanced at him and shook her head. "Just eat, don't worry. My mom is not like my dad..."

That doesn't mean I can eat in peace!

Huai Shi shot Fu Yi desperate looks, his eyes asking: Why didn't you tell me your mom was here?

Fu Yi returned a look, her eyes replying: My mom said she wanted to meet you. Isn't this a perfect opportunity...?

Then neither understood what the other was trying to convey, and they could only struggle through an even more torturous time with frantic eye signaling, feeling as if they were sitting on pins and needles.

Inside, Huai Shi was filled with anger and grievance: I thought of you as a brother, but you actually wanted to harm me!

"Speaking of which, we should be considered colleagues, although I work in a department under the Existence Institute Ocean Committee. I rarely deal with people from the Jurisdiction Bureau..."

Fu Yi's mother looked up at Huai Shi. "To be honest, I think it's not appropriate to be an Inspector when you're too young. It's better to concentrate on studying."

"Uh... Oh, oh." Huai Shi could only nod. Whatever Auntie said was right; he didn't dare to argue.

Mei Li, a Chinese of Roman nationality, Fu Yi's mother, Director Fu's ex-wife... and also a highly reputable international scholar specializing in ocean current changes and adjustments.

She's much stronger than Director Fu, by an unimaginable margin! Huai Shi thought. With such an ex-wife, he must be under a lot of pressure, right? Yeah, no wonder he's been increasingly irritable lately. The custody battle alone was probably tough enough...

One could see that Ms. Li had the distinctive style of a scholar—meaning she was very direct and blunt, and tended to offend people easily.

Perhaps she knew, but she didn't care.

Plus, with the "elder" halo she possessed, Huai Shi could only play dumb, nod frantically, and smile stiffly, like an oblivious goose that had wandered in from somewhere.

It seemed she was quite dissatisfied with Director Fu's plans for Fu Yi. She didn't want her daughter to waste time in an ordinary school like this. She felt that Fu Yi's time would be better spent assisting her, which would be more beneficial for her future than her current schooling.

Anyway, Fu Yi didn't care either way. This time, she had followed her mother to sea, chasing ocean currents for half a month, helping with sampling, observation, and collection, and recording data. She had gotten quite tanned by the sea's UV rays.

Then, staring at Huai Shi's overly pale skin, which hadn't seen sunlight for so long, her eyes burned with envy.

If Huai Shi were a girl, Fu Yi mused, I would definitely think this Little Green Pool had secretly gone for beauty treatments while I was away...

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