Chapter 165: Doesn’t He Have Any Pride?
But Fu Cheng’s maternal family wasn’t in the Imperial City. They had practically vanished in recent years, leading some to suspect the once-formidable family had disappeared entirely.
But no one bothered to investigate seriously. After all, the world outside the protection of the Imperial Capital Survival Base was very dangerous.
The food wasn’t the type Li Zexing wanted. He took a few bites and put it aside.
He had a staff member bring over some posters, life-sized cardboard cutouts, and a few keychain plushies.
"Thanks!" Shen Lu took everything, extremely satisfied.
Li Zexing stood up, ready to see them out. "I have something else to do soon, so I can’t chat any longer."
"Okay, okay. Wanwan and I will get going then."
Her goal achieved, Shen Lu was also ready to take her leave. She still had to figure out how to get back to her shop, which was a real headache.
Bai Wanwan, who had been quiet as a statue the whole time, finally spoke up. "L-Li Zexing, can you give me an autograph?"
She didn’t even dare to look up at him as she spoke.
"Sure," Li Zexing agreed readily.
With trembling fingers, Bai Wanwan took out a figurine. It was Dog Hero, standing up inside the cockpit.
The moment he saw the figurine wearing red briefs, Li Zexing’s desire to give an autograph vanished.
He took a deep breath. When the company first announced they were making limited-edition figurines, he had been quite proud.
The figurines were modeled 1:1 after his own face and physique. ’The company will definitely choose my most handsome pose for the model,’ Li Zexing had thought.
For instance, the scene where he killed the Nine-headed Beast with a single punch, or the one where he faced the morning sun and struck a signature pose—both would have been great.
The company made both of those. But they also made a model of Dog Hero right after he was created by the professor.
He was wearing nothing but a pair of red shorts, and his expression was one of dazed, just-awakened confusion.
The moment Li Zexing found out about this particular figurine, he decided to buy it up himself. ’Are you kidding me? I don’t want a version of me in red briefs displayed in someone’s house for them to stare at every day.’
’Don’t I have an image to maintain?’
But he was a step too late. The figurine had been bought by someone for an unbelievably high price.
Li Zexing had considered finding the buyer to purchase it back for double the price.
But in the end, he decided against it.
He never imagined that the person who bought the red-shorts figurine was Bai Wanwan. What he found even more unimaginable was that right here, right now, she was holding that very figurine up to him for an autograph.
Gritting his teeth, Li Zexing signed the back of the figurine. He shoved it back at Bai Wanwan, then turned, opened the door, and walked out without a backward glance.
Bai Wanwan clutched the figurine, a dazed look on her face. "Was he angry?"
Shen Lu replied, "I don’t think so. Didn’t he say he had something else to do? He’s probably just in a hurry."
"Oh, okay." Bai Wanwan nodded, cradling the figurine and examining it from every angle. When her eyes fell on the signature on the back, she couldn’t stop the corners of her lips from turning up.
Only nine of these figurines were ever made, each one an exclusive limited edition. When New Star Company released them, they announced it was a one-time-only run that would never be replicated.
Of the nine figurines, she had fallen in love with this one at first sight.
The groggy-looking Dog Hero was just too cute.
The stoic, fully-armored Dog Hero and the battle-damaged version were both handsome, but she still preferred the one wearing only red briefs.
Spending over a hundred thousand Star Coins to see 95% of Dog Hero... what a steal!
’My only regret is that I didn’t make a better impression during our meeting. I didn’t get to chat more with Li Zexing. I’ll have to do better next time.’
In high spirits, Bai Wanwan floored it and drove Shen Lu all the way back to the Lower City District. Leaning out the car window, she said to Shen Lu, "Next time you go see Li Zexing, remember to call me!"
On the ride back, it was as if a switch had been flipped in Bai Wanwan. She chattered nonstop, no longer hiding that she was a fan of Li Zexing. She asked Shen Lu if she was close with him and tried to dig up some little bits of gossip.
’How would I know any of that?’ Shen Lu had to explain over and over that she and Li Zexing weren’t close and had only met because of Fu Cheng.
But Bai Wanwan wouldn’t listen.
Shen Lu’s head was starting to ache. Worn down by the relentless questioning, she gave up trying to explain and just nodded wearily.
"I know, I know. You should head back now."
’If you can’t beat ’em, give up,’ she thought. ’There’s no point trying to reason with a die-hard fan in the throes of passion; they only hear what they want to hear.’
In any case, she’d gotten plenty of merchandise this time. If she used it sparingly, it would be enough to last her two or three months.
For the time being, she had no plans to seek him out again—unless he came to her shop.
She used the facial scanner to enter the shop. Hearing the noise, Cai Su came out of the dorm, with Xiao Lang trailing behind her.
"Sister Shen, you’re back," Xiao Lang greeted politely, his round eyes fixed expectantly on Shen Lu.
Shen Lu patted Xiao Lang’s head and took out a lollipop. "I brought this for you."
She had gotten it from the Bai Family’s estate. Shen Lu hadn’t taken much, just a single one to give to the well-behaved boy when she got back.
Xiao Lang glanced at his mother for permission before accepting the lollipop. "Thank you, Sister Shen!"
"You’re welcome." Shen Lu turned to Cai Su. "Has everything been okay at the shop these past two days?"
"It’s been fine. With the rain pouring this hard, no customers came to eat."
"Thanks for holding down the fort."
"No trouble at all." Cai Su looked a little embarrassed. With Shen Lu gone for the past two days, she had been the one doing the cooking.
Her cooking skills were no match for Shen Lu’s, of course, so she could only make simple meals. Fortunately, neither Xiao Lang nor Fu Cheng were picky eaters; they ate whatever she made.
"I wonder how Granny Jin is doing," Shen Lu mused. "I hope her condition hasn’t gotten any worse."
Because of the weather and Shen Lu’s trip to the Bai Family’s estate, the shop staff had been given time off, so Wang Daguo hadn’t delivered any meals to Granny Jin.
Seeing that the rain had lightened up considerably, Shen Lu decided to cook something and go check on her.
It got dark early on rainy days. To save time, Shen Lu only made some steamed egg custard and a vegetable stir-fry. There wasn’t enough time to cook rice, so she just grabbed a few steamed buns from her System Warehouse.
She put on a raincoat, a face mask, and opened an umbrella, then plunged headfirst into the downpour.
The floodwater rose past her ankles, making it difficult to walk. It took her a full half-hour to reach Granny Jin’s house.
She knocked and shouted a few times before the door finally opened.
"Xiao Shen? What are you doing here in this weather?"
Even though Shen Lu’s mask left only her eyes visible, Granny Jin recognized her by her voice.
She quickly ushered Shen Lu inside and handed her a towel to dry off.
In the dim yellow light of the room, Shen Lu studied Granny Jin’s face. She looked much better than before, but her vitality hadn’t fully returned.
The floor inside was also covered in water, though it was shallower than on the street, just covering the tops of her feet.
The mask did little to filter out the stench. It had been tolerable outside, but in the relatively enclosed space, the smell was twice as strong. Within minutes, Shen Lu was reminded of the terror of being overwhelmed by the odor.
"Granny, you didn’t buy an air purifier?"
Granny Jin’s lips twitched into a wry smile. "When you get old, your sense of smell isn’t what it used to be. No point in wasting money on one of those things."