Chapter 7: 07

Chapter 7

After school, Lu Zhe went to the computer store.

Boss Fang told him about what happened at school today, "What was that girl thinking? I don't understand how she could falsely claim to be my savior. How could someone make such a claim?" He was angry and would have yelled at her if she hadn't started crying.

"But the girl who saved Kuaile was so striking-looking, surely people at your school would know her?" Boss Fang persisted, "Lu Zhe, could you help keep an eye out for her when you have time?"

Last night's dream had felt so real - even now he could still feel the pain from it. He wouldn't feel at ease until he properly thanked that girl.

"Let me describe her - she's tall and slim, with long hair."

Hearing this, Su Ci, nestled in Lu Zhe's arms, shifted her mouth slightly. Any girl could match that description - was she really that ordinary-looking?

Boss Fang slapped his leg, "Oh right, her skin was very fair, and she had delicate features - basically, she was beautiful. Much prettier than that girl who falsely claimed to be her today."

Lu Zhe was quiet for a moment before asking: "No other distinguishing features?"

Boss Fang narrowed his eyes in thought, his gaze falling on the rabbit in Lu Zhe's arms. He suddenly slapped his forehead, "I remember now! That girl had a red string around her ankle, very similar to the one on your rabbit's foot."

The situation had been urgent then, with the girl lying on the road. He had noticed it accidentally when trying to help her up, and only just remembered now.

Su Ci froze, instinctively pulling back her little foot with the red string.

"Alright, Uncle Fang, I'll keep an eye out," Lu Zhe agreed.

It was already nine o'clock when they left the computer store. The streets outside were lively - it was peak time for the night market.

Smelling the barbecue aromas wafting through the street, Su Ci's red eyes brightened in Lu Zhe's arms, desperately craving food. Apart from that hard, cold bread she'd eaten when she briefly returned to human form, she'd been eating nothing but rabbit food lately and was sick of it.

Watching a girl walk past with a grilled squid skewer, she swallowed enviously.

Lu Zhe was unaware that the rabbit in his arms was staring intently at the street food. He walked slowly, even slower than the pedestrians beside them.

A bicycle approached from ahead, and Lu Zhe moved aside to make way.

The next moment, Lu Zhe, holding the rabbit with one hand, suddenly tripped and fell.

Su Ci was stunned, and before she could react, Lu Zhe had already pulled her protectively into his embrace, his large hand shielding her entire body.

The girl on the bicycle was startled - she hadn't hit him, her bicycle had been several handspans away from him.

"Are you alright? My bike didn't touch you," the girl asked nervously, worried about potential scammers.

Lu Zhe lowered his head, checked that the rabbit was unharmed, then slowly stood up using one hand for support. Ignoring the strange looks from passersby, he said coldly, "I'm fine."

The girl then noticed how handsome the fallen young man was and stared in surprise, "That's good then."

Lu Zhe left with the rabbit in his arms.

Under the yellow streetlights, Lu Zhe's rigid face became increasingly cold in the night.

Su Ci felt something was off, though she couldn't understand why Lu Zhe had suddenly fallen.

Back at his place.

After preparing food for the rabbit, Lu Zhe went to the corner, picked up a dumbbell, and began doing bicep curls - slowly, deliberately, his arm muscles taut with strength.

After about a hundred curls, Su Ci watched as Lu Zhe got down on the floor and started doing push-ups.

Su Ci counted them out of boredom. When she reached fifty and saw Lu Zhe still going, she blinked in surprise.

"Dong Jian's here? What numbers do you want today?" The lottery store owner knew this man in flowered pants, as he had been buying lottery tickets there for over two years without winning.

The man in flowered pants scratched his head, picked up a pen, wrote down his numbers, and had the owner print his ticket.

Zhao Youyou walked up beside Dong Jian, staring at the ticket in his hand. She smiled shyly and gently, "Uncle, today is my mother's birthday, and I just noticed that some of the numbers you chose make up my mother's birth date when combined."

Without heavy makeup, Zhao Youyou looked fresh and pretty, and having cried at school earlier, her red-rimmed eyes made her look pitiful and touched people's hearts. She asked softly, "Would you sell your ticket to me? I'd like to give it to my mother as a birthday gift. I can pay you a hundred yuan for it."

Dong Jian gave her an odd look, "You can buy your own ticket."

The lottery store owner, seeing the girl's pitiful expression, chimed in: "Come on, Dong Jian, you've never won anyway. Just sell it to the young lady. She probably wants to show filial piety, and you'll make a hundred yuan profit to buy more tickets. You won't lose anything."

Zhao Youyou couldn't see the numbers on the lottery ticket, but worried the other person might refuse, she quickly took out her money and looked at him sincerely, "Is this okay, uncle?"

Dong Jian scratched his head and accepted Zhao Youyou's money, giving her the lottery ticket. After all, he wasn't losing anything.

"Thank you, uncle, you're so kind." After getting the ticket, Zhao Youyou gave him a grateful look and immediately left the store.

The lottery shop owner asked Dong Jian, "So, want to buy the same numbers again?"

"Help me change one number," Dong Jian thought for a moment and changed one of the previous numbers to a different digit.

After returning home, Zhao Youyou tried hard to contain her excitement. It wasn't until that night, when she saw on her computer that the winning numbers matched exactly with those on her ticket, that her heart finally settled down.

She immediately shared the news with her parents.

"What did you say? Five million?" Zhao's Mother's voice was shrill.

Zhao Youyou quickly covered her mother's mouth, frightened. "Mom, keep your voice down."

Zhao's Mother looked at the lottery ticket her daughter held out, her hands trembling, "Am I dreaming?" Their family's savings were only fifty thousand at most.

Beside her, the short-statured Zhao's Father was also visibly excited, swallowing hard several times, his hand holding a cigarette trembling, "Youyou, are you sure it's really five million?"

"Yes, it's really five million." Zhao Youyou nodded firmly.

In her previous life, the person who won the five million was that man wearing flowered pants at the lottery store today.

Their family lived on the fifth floor, while that man lived on the eighth floor. After he won, everyone in the neighborhood knew about it, and at that time, Zhao's Father had regretted not playing the lottery.

After being reborn, she had always kept this incident in mind, and now, she was the winner.

"After we collect the five million, let's give some money to help brother with his medical treatment," Zhao Youyou suggested.

"Child, has the excitement made you lose your mind? What nonsense are you talking about?" Zhao's Mother patted her daughter's head.

"No way."

Zhao's Father also objected, "His condition is completely incurable. Spending money on his treatment would be like throwing it into the sea."

Zhao Youyou thought about the last time she saw Lu Zhe in her previous life - his gaunt, sunken cheeks, rigid limbs, and how he still walked with a limp. ALS was indeed an incurable disease.

Zhao's Father's small eyes narrowed with a hint of malice, making him uncomfortable to look at. "Tell Lu Zhe to come home tomorrow and take all his things away."

This money belonged to their family, and Lu Zhe shouldn't get a single penny of it.

Obviously, Zhao's Mother shared the same thoughts as her husband, "Right, we've supported him for all these years for nothing. There's no reason we should still be burdened by him now. Our family's money is our family's, it has nothing to do with him."

Lu Zhe had contracted a terminal illness and become useless to them. Zhao's parents were afraid that if Lu Zhe learned about their five million win, he would try to claim a share. Now, they couldn't wait to sever all ties with him.

Zhao Youyou opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing more.