CHAPTER 44: CHAPTER 44: BAD LUCK

[Time remaining until next intelligence refresh: 42 minutes]

After coaxing his daughter to sleep, Qi Yun sat alone on the sofa, idly watching the Spring Festival Gala.

Time flies by; it’s been over ten years since he last seriously watched this show.

Most of the glamorous stars on the screen are unknown to him, and he can’t help but feel the passing of time.

The clock on the wall ticks slowly, making a faint sound.

On TV, the host enthusiastically counts down as the stroke of midnight approaches.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

As soon as midnight arrives, the deafening sound of firecrackers and fireworks erupts outside.

The colorful lights spill through the window, adding a lively atmosphere to the slightly quiet room.

[Today’s intelligence (white): Liu Meng’s fishing line was snapped by a safe today; inside the safe is a honeycomb bracelet worth at least 100,000 yuan]

Honeycomb?

Qi Yun frowned slightly, ignoring the fireworks outside and focusing all his attention on the screen in front of him.

He’s not very familiar with honeycomb items, but the value assessed by the system is never wrong.

The current issue is how to determine the location of the safe in the river and how to retrieve it.

He opened the door, went to the stairwell, lit a cigarette, and took a few deep drags. After some thinking, he called Liu Meng.

"Meng, happy New Year!"

"Hey, brother, happy New Year! I was going to call you to say happy New Year." The other end of the phone was noisy, with the sound of firecrackers crackling.

Qi Yun chuckled and continued, "Did you catch any fish lately? I’ll come find you for a drink tomorrow."

"Sure, come on over." Liu Meng readily agreed, "Come on over! Oh yeah~ Today was tough, almost caught a big fish, but the line didn’t hold up and snapped suddenly."

"But if you come, I’ll grab a few from my father-in-law’s place."

Qi Yun laughed silently to himself; that’s hardly bad luck.

"Okay, I’ll call you tomorrow before I come over. Where did you fish today?"

"Just the usual spot..."

"..."

The location of the safe is clear; next is how to fish it up...

...

The next day, Qi Yun cooked a pot of fermented glutinous rice ball soup, served a bowl to his little one, and then carried another bowl to Zhao Qing’s door.

Before long, Zhao Qing opened the door and saw Qi Yun holding a steaming bowl of glutinous rice balls, looking surprised: "Brother Qi, what’s this?"

Qi Yun replied with a smile, "Nuannuan loves these fermented rice balls. I made extra for you to try."

Zhao Qing hesitated slightly, feeling a warmth she hadn’t experienced in years, a sense of being cared for in daily life.

"Brother Qi, thank you, please come in and sit."

Qi Yun entered the room, putting the rice balls on the table, "Eat up, they’ll be no good when they cool down."

Zhao Qing sat down and scooped some rice balls into her mouth, showing a satisfied smile, "Mm, they’re delicious."

Qi Yun also sat down on a nearby chair and continued, "Are you going out today?"

Zhao Qing gently blew on the spoon and shook her head, "I’m planning to stay home and prepare lessons. Anything you need help with?"

"I need to go out later and thought to ask if you could look after Nuannuan. She really enjoys spending time with you."

Upon hearing Qi Yun’s request, Zhao Qing smiled warmly and nodded without hesitation, "No problem, I like Nuannuan too.

Brother Qi, don’t worry about it. Nuannuan will be fine with me."

Seeing her agree, Qi Yun expressed his gratitude, "Great, I’ll bring Nuannuan by later."

...

In Xia Ping Village, Old Wang’s life remained as leisurely as ever, reclining in a rocking chair while scrolling through pretty streamers, occasionally smiling deeply.

"Uncle Wang, happy New Year." Qi Yun placed the gifts he had been carrying down and smiled in greeting.

Old Wang sat up from the chair, looking surprised, "Oh, out of luck so soon?"

Qi Yun rolled his eyes helplessly, "Can’t you wish me well?"

Old Wang laughed heartily and poured a cup of hot tea, handing it over, "I bet you’re not just here to give me New Year’s greetings?"

Qi Yun took the tea, sipping lightly, and said with a smile, "I’m here to wish you happy, and also to find Binzi to handle some business."

Old Wang raised his eyebrows, "I knew you weren’t here out of goodwill, go ahead."

"Alright, take care, don’t visit Sister Xia too often, take care of your health."

"Get out of here, you rascal."

Qi Yun smirked but wasn’t offended, calling out for Xiao Huangmao and rode away from Xia Ping Village on their electric bike.

"Brother Qi, are we going to get a foot massage?" Xiao Huangmao asked excitedly from the back seat.

Qi Yun turned to glance at him, exhaled some smoke, and replied, "What massage? The technicians are still off for the holidays. I’ll take you there another day; today we’re handling serious business."

Xiao Huangmao looked a bit disappointed upon hearing it wasn’t a massage, "Alright, you better not be tricking me this time."

"..."

Calling him was naturally to get help retrieving the safe.

As for why not calling Liu Meng, Qi Yun couldn’t think of a convincing reason.

If they really fished up a safe, it wouldn’t be easy to explain.

Though Liu Meng is honest, he’s not stupid; flimsy excuses wouldn’t fool him.

But Xiao Huangmao is different...

On the first day of the lunar new year, few shops were open, and after searching for over half an hour, they finally found an open hardware store.

The owner, hearing that they wanted to fish something out of the river, immediately recommended a river retrieval tool—a 15cm-diameter neodymium magnet.

These magnets have strong adhesion, with a nickel coating on the surface. Theoretically, they can provide around one ton of attraction and are often used to retrieve metal objects from water.

Qi Yun checked his phone online, finding the owner’s words to be true, and decided to buy two to try.

"Boss, how much?"

The owner slurped his noodles with a smile, "First deal of the New Year, not trying to earn from you. I’ll sell you both for six hundred yuan."

Qi Yun nodded, seeing that it matched the online price, he promptly paid.

Only when he reached the door did he remember, he also bought two pairs of nylon gloves and a ten-meter rope.

The owner didn’t charge, just gave them for free.

Qi Yun didn’t refuse, leaving a cigarette on the counter before saying goodbye: "Alright, thanks! Wish your business booming this year!"

After leaving the hardware store, they braved the cold wind, cycling for over half an hour, finally arriving at Qingshui River.

After walking a distance, Qi Yun stood on the riverbank, cautiously observing, ensuring Liu Meng hadn’t come out to fish today, before heading boldly to his previous fishing spot.

If they ran into him, it would be quite awkward, primarily because it wouldn’t be easy to explain.