Jiang Li continued to look at the menu while Tong Yi sat next to her, earnestly giving her recommendations, even looking quite serious about it. They studied the menu together for a few minutes until Zhao Qiang finally returned from the restroom. As he pushed open the private room door, he noticed another young man, about the same age as his junior sister, was also inside. The young man sat shoulder to shoulder with Junior Sister, both engrossed in selecting dishes.
Hearing the door open, Jiang Li looked up at Zhao Qiang and asked, “Senior Brother, can I bring a friend to join us for lunch?”
Zhao Qiang nodded, “Of course.” Immediately, he gave Tong Yi a puzzled look, feeling that this young man seemed quite familiar with his junior sister, yet appeared somewhat more mature.
The moment Tong Yi saw Zhao Qiang, he was shocked. Before meeting this ‘legendary’ senior brother, he had imagined several possible appearances for him, but he never expected that the real senior brother would look like this!
If Jiang Xiao Li hadn’t just called him senior brother, Tong Yi would likely have mistaken him for… her uncle’s colleague?
The truth was, this senior brother looked far too old for his age. Although only in his twenties, he appeared quite weathered, like a middle-aged man who had tasted the vicissitudes of life. If someone said that he was ten years older than Third Master Feng, Tong Yi would definitely believe it.
Yet this very person had made him jealous for over half a year.
At this moment, Tong Yi’s mood was particularly complicated, finally realized that his previous behavior had been quite childish. It wasn’t that he judged people by their appearance, but this senior brother’s looks were indeed quite lacking… Even if Jiang Xiao Li wanted to date someone, she probably wouldn’t choose this senior brother.
Seeing the strange look in Tong Yi’s eyes, Zhao Qiang scratched his nose and gave Jiang Li a puzzled look.
Just as Jiang Li was about to introduce the two to each other, Tong Yi suddenly spoke up, “Hello, Senior Brother, I’m Tong Yi. We’ve chatted a few times on WeChat before, and have agreed to a meeting today.”
Zhao Qiang was stunned again and asked doubtfully, “You… are you Mr. Tong, the one planning to invest in our research institute?”
Tong Yi nodded amicably, “Yes, don’t I look like it?”
Zhao Qiang hurriedly shook his head, “N-not at all. I’m just surprised to see you look much younger than I imagined. I even mistakenly thought you were a friend of my junior sister.”
Tong Yi immediately said, “Well, I am indeed a friend of Jiang Xiao Li. I’ve heard her mention you many times, praising your exceptional professional skills. That’s why I considered investing in the research institute.”
Jiang Li finally stopped looking at the menu and turned her gaze sideways at Tong Yi, “You are the investor my senior brother mentioned?”
Tong Yi nodded awkwardly, “Well, that seems to be the case.” He had intended just to meet Jiang Xiao Li’s senior brother but hadn’t expected her to be here too, making the situation quite awkward.
“So, he’s the gullible investor who made a loss investment,” Jiang Li couldn’t help but mutter under her breath.
Tong Yi: “…”
Soon the meal started, during which Zhao Qiang talked about his project non-stop, but Tong Yi’s interest clearly lay elsewhere, as he only wanted to enjoy a meal with Jiang Xiao Li. Perhaps because Tong Yi seemed so familiar and relaxed with Jiang Li, Zhao Qiang didn’t feel nervous at all and found this investor easy to get along with.
As for Tong Yi calling him senior brother, Zhao Qiang found it strange at first, but soon he was no longer curious. Because Tong Yi was friends with his junior sister, it seemed natural for Tong Yi to refer to him in the same way.
By the end of the meal, the investment was a done deal. Zhao Qiang returned to the research institute to resume his work, while Tong Yi invited Jiang Li for a walk by the nearby river.
Having just eaten a lot, Jiang Li also wanted to take a walk to digest, so she agreed. The two strolled leisurely to the river and walked along the embankment. Seeing Tong Yi busy taking selfies with his phone, looking as excited as a prisoner on parole, Jiang Li couldn’t help but ask, “You always said you made a lot of money from investments. Were you exaggerating?” Now that her senior brother wasn’t around, she didn’t need to worry about saving face for this investor nephew!
Tong Yi put away his phone and said smugly, “I’ve never lost money, it’s just a matter of how much I earn.”
Jiang Li raised an eyebrow, “But my senior brother said only gullible people made investments in our research institute.”
Hearing this, Tong Yi laughed happily because it showed that Jiang Xiao Li cared about him.
“Jiang Xiao Li, did you ever check how much money is on the card I gave you?” Tong Yi asked. If Jiang Xiao Li knew how much was on that card, she would never suspect him of boasting!
Jiang Li shook her head, “I only invested twenty thousand yuan with you. Even if there are dividends, it shouldn’t be much. There’s no need to check, right?”
“I think you should find some time to check it.” Tong Yi sighed. Once she checked, she wouldn’t doubt that he was just bragging!
Jiang Li nodded, “Okay, I’ll check when I have time.”
Seeing Tong Yi looking so idle, Jiang Li asked again, “After the entrance exam results are out, which uni do you plan to apply to?”
“I’ve already decided on this: the Finance Department at the Capital University. It’s not far from the place you’ll be attending, so I can hang out with you often,” Tong Yi replied, picking up a stone from the ground and throwing it into the river.
Jiang Li watched in amazement as the stone skipped on the water more than ten times before sinking into the river. “What’s this game?” Her eyes lit up.
Tong Yi looked at her in surprise, “You never played stone skipping when you were a kid?”
Jiang Li shook her head honestly, “Nope.” Given her health conditions before transmigrating, she was rarely allowed near water—she couldn’t even swim, let alone play this kind of game.
Jiang Li picked up a stone and mimicked Tong Yi’s actions, throwing it into the river. Unfortunately, the stone sank the moment it touched the water’s surface.
Jiang Li: “…”
Tong Yi immediately said: “There are skills in playing this, and you have to choose the right stone. Let me teach you.”
Tong Yi then started teaching her step by step. Jiang Li was quick to learn and got the hang of it in no time. Although she couldn’t make the stone skip as many times as Tong Yi, she soon looked like an experienced stone skipper.
Seeing her learn so quickly, Tong Yi felt a bit disappointed. But seeing the bright, innocent smile on Jiang Xiao Li’s face, he felt this was good—this was Jiang Xiao Li, always quick to learn and able to apply knowledge flexibly.
The two played by the river for a while until Jiang Li suggested returning to the research institute. Tong Yi immediately washed his hands in the river and accompanied her back.
As soon as Jiang Li was back, Zhao Qiang came to her and said, “When we chatted on WeChat, I always felt that Mr. Tong was difficult to get along with, but after meeting him, I found out he’s actually an easy-going person.”
Jiang Li thought for a moment and responded, “His moods come and go. You don’t need to worry about him; he knows how to adjust himself.”
Zhao Qiang nodded immediately, “After all, he’s our gul-… I mean, our important investor. Of course, we have to treat him well. But I feel like he’s being so amiable because of you, Junior Sister.”
Jiang Li looked at him with a half-smile, “Senior Brother, you actually do have some emotional intelligence!”
Zhao Qiang: “…”
His emotional intelligence was indeed low, but he could still understand basic social cues. He didn’t expect his junior sister to tease him like this.
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Translator’s note:
The Healer Demands Payment will soon enter hiatus in 2-3 months, meaning I will continue to translate the title as new raws come out, but it will no longer have fixed, twice-per-week release, nor will it have extra/sponsored releases or advanced chapters. A few weeks after that, Daughter of the Dao and Devil Venerable will also enter hiatus.
Currently, I am in need of two replacement novels, and while I am about to lock in one title, I still haven’t found a suitable title for the second one… if you have a novel you want me to translate, give suggestions in the comments! Note that I am only translating female-oriented Chinese novels (no BL, no GL, no male protagonist). I am also unable to translate novels with e-sport or online game settings (too much slang T_T) and I personally don’t want to translate novels with tragedy/sad endings (I’m okay reading one, but translating a novel means I will have to live with the story and characters for 2-3 years… so I want them to have a happy end.)
Waiting for your suggestion 😉
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