Chapter Twelve: The Game Begins in Jiangbei

"Jiang, can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead."
"How do you know about Barbie dolls? Have you ever played with them?"
"…"
Jiangbei looked a little embarrassed. "Don’t talk nonsense. Why would I play with something like that?"
"Argh—!"

Beside the ancient town’s flagstone street, Jiangbei and Mao Xiaobai sat carelessly by the roadside, quietly watching a female singer perform. They had been there for over half an hour.

…

It was the Nth time Tang Ran had looked over at Jiangbei, who was sitting not far across from her.

In fact, ever since Jiangbei had appeared, her gaze seemed to be drawn to him uncontrollably, as if by its own will.

She couldn’t quite say why.

Was it because Jiangbei was good-looking?

She wasn’t ugly herself, and over the years, she’d seen many handsome men. Yet none had ever managed to draw her gaze as Jiangbei did.

So what was it?

For the past half hour, she would steal glances at him whenever she could spare the time, mulling over this question.

Then, just a moment ago, she thought she’d found the answer.

She had assumed it was Jiangbei’s aura. That was part of it, but not quite right.

More accurately, it was the sense of purity that he carried; the clean, untainted air about him.

Utterly unadulterated.

Like how the ancients described ethereal beauties as untouched by the dust of the mortal world.

That was how Jiangbei made her feel—untouched by the world.

That, she realized, was why she couldn’t help but watch him.

To draw an analogy: Jiangbei was a flawless, pure existence, while she was blemished. Her own imperfections saw his perfection, and she felt both envy and resentment.

Envy, because how could such flawless beauty exist in this world?

Resentment, because why should he be flawless while she was not? It wasn’t fair.

It was a subtle, difficult feeling to describe.

And so, after wrestling with this subtlety for about half an hour, Tang Ran began packing up her guitar and gathering the tips from her guitar case.

Then, she took the initiative to approach Jiangbei.

She saw him smile.

That smile seemed to say, “I knew you’d come talk to me.”

It made her instinctively flustered; her eyes darted away, startled.

…

Though it was a hot summer day, there was a breeze.

It was as if the wind had stolen a bit of coolness from the clear stream and delivered it to Jiangbei, with just a little left over for Tang Ran, who stood in front of him.

Tang Ran’s courage was crumbling under the weight of Jiangbei’s smile.

Fortunately, she was strong-willed; otherwise, she might have turned and fled.

Tang Ran bit her lip. Since she had come over, she ought to be the one to speak first. Thankfully, she still had a shred of courage left. "Handsome, why do you keep staring at me?"

Jiangbei smiled, his lips curving a little more.

"Beautiful, if you weren’t staring at me, how would you know I was staring at you?"

What a smooth talker.

Mao Xiaobai, sitting to the side, was amazed. He secretly gave a thumbs up in admiration.

Tang Ran immediately blushed, her gaze, which had already been evasive, now fixed firmly on her own feet.

Guilty, flustered, like a child caught doing something wrong, desperate to hide it.

"I wasn’t. Don’t say that," she protested feebly, head lowered.

"Alright, I admit it. I was staring at you, because I think you’re interesting."

Tang Ran: ????

"Interesting like a Barbie doll?"

Jiangbei: "…No, nothing to do with Barbie. You’re just interesting."

Tang Ran fell silent, wanting to escape.

"May I have a chat with you?" Jiangbei asked.

-----------------------

Jiangbei liked playing games. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have agreed to Fang Yuan’s crazy proposal.

So, on the day the college entrance exam ended, when the bald old man Wang Fu spoke of a game to inherit a fortune, Jiangbei had actually been interested, just not in a hurry.

Because, to him, the fun of a game was in the process, not the result.

Today, by chance, he’d met this intriguing female singer in the little town.

He thought, this must be part of the game’s process, so he decided to give it a try.

On the bench by the stream, Tang Ran watched the long willow branches swaying in the wind as if dancing, and felt strange.

Strange, mainly because ever since she’d taken the initiative to approach Jiangbei, she no longer felt like herself.

She knew she was a stubborn girl who refused to admit defeat.

So she couldn’t understand why she was now acting so demure and shy—what a bizarre situation.

"Could I be ill?" she wondered.

Tang Ran turned to look at Jiangbei, then at the black backpack between them.

Jiangbei had explained something that she both thought she understood and yet didn’t.

"Jiang—handsome, are you saying you’re giving me this money to help me become a real singer? And if I fail, I don’t have to pay you back?"

Jiangbei nodded with a smile. "You can think of it as a game, or as an investment in you."

Tang Ran blinked.

Her thoughts had shifted.

Now she felt that this young, handsome man, several years her junior, was indeed playing a game—but it was a terrifying conman’s game.

A very frightening one.

"Let me get this straight: I can take your money and leave now. If I make a name for myself within a year, I call you, you give me more money, and each year until the ninth, it’s the same?"

Jiangbei nodded again. "Perfect understanding—your Chinese teacher definitely wasn’t your PE coach."

Tang Ran: …

'Actually, when I was in school, my Chinese teacher really was my PE coach!'

Tang Ran asked again, "If I don’t succeed, I don’t have to pay you back. If I do succeed, I owe you fifty times what you gave me?"

Jiangbei nodded for a third time. "Yes. It’s an eleven-year game. If you succeed, by June 1st of the eleventh year, you need to pay me back fifty times the amount."

Tang Ran was silent for a moment, then reached out and unzipped the backpack.

Inside were stacks of cash—quite a sight.

Jiangbei had said there was a million inside.

Tang Ran knew that a million was enough to get her started in the first year.

"No IOU? I just take it?" she asked.

She had to admit, though her instincts screamed that this game was incredibly dangerous, she was tempted.

For a simple reason.

With that million, she truly had a chance to make her dream come true.

"Mm. We just need to exchange phone numbers."

Tang Ran took a deep breath.

Her heart was beating a little too fast—maybe a sign of heart trouble.

Should she take the money? Yes.

She’d made up her mind.

Now only one question remained.

"You really don’t want anything else from me?"

She was a girl, after all. At this point, the question was clear enough—Jiangbei should understand.

He did.

He shifted his gaze, smiling, and brazenly looked Tang Ran up and down.

She felt a sudden, inexplicable fear.

As if, in the next second, Jiangbei might open his jaws and swallow her whole.

"Of course I want something."

Her heart thudded—just as she thought, no man is truly decent!

"I want you to pay me back fiftyfold. Don’t forget it."

Tang Ran: "..."