Chapter 445 - 276: Riches and Honor Are Like Floating Clouds to Me

Chapter 445: Chapter 276: Riches and Honor Are Like Floating Clouds to Me

For the next few days, Lin Chu remained immersed in his leisurely travels.

Hiking through alpine meadows.

Taking a dip in wild hot springs.

Burning incense on Jizu Mountain.

Eating a local pig-butchering feast...

He didn’t have any particularly special encounters, just a sense of leisure tinged with emptiness.

He would sit and watch the scenery change, the clouds gather and disperse.

He ate his fill, slept, and woke up to wander some more, completely carefree.

After a few days of this, Lin Chu began to exude a lazy sort of aura, inside and out.

He couldn’t even be bothered to shave the stubble that had grown out.

It was a starkly different state of being compared to his friends back in Peng City.

In his various Peng City group chats—the one for the United Youth Association, his core group of friends, and the social media feeds of many others he knew—everyone was discussing the economy and posting screenshots of their stock market gains...

In short, they were all toiling and stressing over a few pieces of silver.

Unlike him, an idle man.

"Just wanted to let you know, all the gift boxes you ordered have been shipped. I’ve checked everything. As for the money... I guess you could call it a commission. Uncle Duan gave me a five-percent cut, which comes to 2.1 million. How should we split it? It’s your call."

The day before National Day, Lin Chu received a message from Bai Weiwei.

The ten thousand gift boxes for his employees were taken care of. The unit price wasn’t exactly cheap at 4,200 yuan per person, for a grand total of 42 million.

Lin Chu hadn’t deliberately pushed for a lower price. When it came to tea, silver teapots, and ham, you got what you paid for. At this price point, the quality was bound to be excellent.

Duan Wuzhuang had been quite generous to give her a full five-percent cut.

Bai Weiwei, for her part, was quite "savvy." She understood these unspoken social rules and even knew to let him decide how to handle the money.

"Wealth and honor are nothing but floating clouds to me."

Lin Chu sent a brief reply, adding nothing more. To him, that amount of money was truly insignificant.

Seeing his reply, Bai Weiwei pressed her lips together, at a loss for a comeback.

But she also felt genuinely conflicted.

’I’m not so lofty as to be above worldly desires, but to accept such a huge favor—such a large sum of money—for no reason...’

’But if something were to actually happen between us, that wouldn’t be right, either. What would that make this?’

’Selling myself?’

’It makes me feel indebted.’

’Guilty.’

’This man... is so infuriating!’

’Is this his way of testing me?’

"Well then, thank you, Boss," she replied.

Lin Chu stared at her message for a few seconds, then shook his head with a smile, not replying.

’So be it.’

Over the past couple of days, he had occasionally thought about the eaves where they had taken shelter from the rain together, but he thought more often of the afternoon they had spent talking by Erhai.

A couple of days ago, he’d been heading out hand-in-hand with Qiuqiu when he happened to run into Bai Weiwei. He hadn’t thought anything of it and greeted her with a smile, but she had looked awkward and uncomfortable.

The receptionist at his guesthouse, who clearly disapproved of his "scumbag behavior," had also been quite cold to him for the past two days.

’How stupid.’

But it didn’t matter to him.

The old sage figured it out thousands of years ago: familiarity breeds contempt, while distance breeds resentment.

「That night.」

Lin Chu checked out of his room, bid farewell to Qiuqiu, and casually gave her a sum of money. Then they went their separate ways. One man and his dog set off for the next city: Lijiang.

Unknown scenery awaited at the next stop.

Like an unmoored boat.

His company was already on holiday. Lu Ming and Liu Junfeng were blowing up the group chat, saying they wanted to come find him so they could all head back together on the sixth. But Lin Chu firmly refused.

This time was for his own freedom—a kind of spiritual journey, even, just one set in the mortal world. He didn’t want them getting involved.

Yulong Snow Mountain was an incredibly beautiful sight, but as it was already late autumn, he shivered with cold even in his down jacket.

The crowds of tourists didn’t make for a great experience, either.

A person’s state of mind is shaped by the books they’ve read, the paths they’ve walked, the money they’ve earned, the loves they’ve known, and the life they live day after day.

Perhaps it was the high plateau—with its low-hanging sky, tall mountains, and vast, remote landscapes—but Lin Chu felt his heart growing calmer and more compassionate.

He had shed a layer of old skin and grown new flesh.

There were still a few days left before his scheduled return on the sixth. But with the holiday in full swing, the old town was becoming increasingly crowded and unpleasant. So, he got in his car and drove toward more remote areas.

Tiger Leaping Gorge was in its dry season, so he missed the sight of its magnificent, churning yellow rapids.

Shangri-La was already frigid. Even his dog could barely handle it, sneaking into his bedcovers at night.

In Yubeng, he undertook a hike that lasted more than ten hours, all by himself.

Camping in a tent in the mountains at night was somewhat dangerous, but also thrilling. He woke up the next morning with an aching back.

He had originally wanted to visit Haba Snow Mountain and Nanjiluo as well, but it wasn’t the right season, so there wouldn’t be much to see.

Besides, there wasn’t enough time.

On the afternoon of the fifth, Lin Chu returned to Lijiang.

He left his car at the airport and boarded a flight back to Peng City.

Looking down at the earth from the sky, Lin Chu thought about the roads he had traveled and simply smiled.

’What a trek.’

’But it was fun.’

’Still, winter is better spent at the seaside or in the Southern Hemisphere.’

’Cold places are just uncomfortable.’

’Unless you’re going skiing.’

That night while camping in the mountains, just before falling asleep, he suddenly thought of his mother, who had passed away many years ago.

’If she were still alive to see how my life is now, I wonder how happy she would be... ’

’But she can probably see it, right?’

’Among the countless stars in the night sky, one of them must be hers.’

’From a star’s perspective, you can see everything.’

...

A little after ten that night, he arrived back in Peng City. Gu Jiayan was there to pick him up; she was the only one he had told.

Perhaps as some kind of ceremonial gesture, she had brought a bouquet of bright red roses. The act clearly made her a little embarrassed; not only was she wearing sunglasses, but she kept glancing around as if terrified of being spotted by someone she knew.