“What should we do? Let’s find a place to hide the sword,” Ning Xin suggested.
After saying this, she looked around and even tried to hide the Dawnbreaker behind a broken door leaning against the wall.
Nie Ran, however, remained calm.
“With me, the sword is with me. No need to hide anything,” he replied.
“Brother, this world doesn’t allow carrying restricted knives on the streets. If you walk outside for just two minutes, you’ll definitely be caught, believe it or not?” she retorted.
He chuckled and moved the Dawnbreaker in front of him.
In a flash of golden light, the wide sword that had been taller than people moments ago shrank to the size of a finger and was tucked into his pocket.
Ning Xin, who had been reaching for the door panel, quickly pulled back her hand. “If you had this ability earlier…”
It had caused her so much worry.
Following their previous experience, Ning Xin went to check in while Nie Ran snuck in with the bucket later.
It seemed that the hotel staff hadn’t encountered someone carrying a bucket to check in before. The front desk and security were suspicious and stopped him, asking what he was up to.
Nie Ran couldn’t explain himself properly, making him seem even more suspicious.
The security guard suspected him of wrongdoing and grabbed his arm, ready to drag him out.
Anger flashed in his eyes, and the Dawnbreaker in his pocket began to vibrate.
Inside the bucket, Lang Xiao was awakened and pushed open the lid with his head, catching the attention of the security guard.
“You’re also bringing a dog? Pets are not allowed in the hotel. Please leave immediately!” the guard demanded.
“Let go!”
Nie Ran pushed the security guard with a shove, sending him flying sideways until he hit the wall and stopped.
The onlookers were stunned, and the front desk immediately took out their phone, intending to call the police.
Having waited upstairs for Nie Ran for a while and not seeing him, Ning Xin happened to come downstairs to look for him. As soon as she stepped out of the elevator, she saw the scene and rushed over to stand in front of him.
“Don’t call the police, he’s my brother,” she explained.
The front desk recognized her. “Miss, if you want both of you to stay, you need to provide two IDs, and the hotel does not allow pets.”
“Sorry, sorry, he’s not staying, he’s here to find me, and we’ll leave immediately. Um, big brother, are you okay?” Ning Xin helped the security guard up, whose face looked rather grim.
Seeing that he had just stumbled and not sustained any bleeding or fractures, she breathed a sigh of relief, apologizing repeatedly to them, promising not to violate the rules, and then pulled Nie Ran out of the hotel.
Nie Ran was not pleased with her performance.
“Have you always been so cowardly?” he questioned.
“Cowardly?” Ning Xin couldn’t believe it. “Isn’t it just following the rules of the world we’re in? That’s what we should do.”
“Even if it’s not your fault, you still apologize to others?” he challenged.
After looking at him for a moment, her emotions suddenly dissipated, and she said coldly, “You’re right. This isn’t my fault at all, it’s yours. If it weren’t for you getting into an argument with them, I wouldn’t need to apologize to them.”
Nie Ran sensed that something was off with her emotions and asked:
“What do you mean?”
“You’re so capable, you can manage on your own these days, I won’t be around to hold you back anymore,” Ning Xin said coldly as she opened her wallet, took out a wad of cash, and threw it in front of him before turning to leave.
Watching her indifferent figure, Nie Ran was filled with anger, wanting nothing more than to grab her and teach her a lesson.
But would he really lay a hand on her?
The woman’s every smile and frown seemed to linger in his mind. Nie Ran diverted his gaze, picked up the money, and walked in the opposite direction.
If he could manage well thousands of years ago, why couldn’t he do so here?
Lang Xiao had fully awakened, lying in the swaying bucket with half of his little head poking out, curiously and fearfully surveying this new world.
The urgent task was to find a place to stay.
However, without an ID, he couldn’t enter a legitimate hotel.
He walked the streets for a long time, watching as night fell and the lights came on. Eventually, he stopped in front of a shabby storefront with the words “Accommodation” written on it. Despite the dim lights and dilapidated appearance, he could still sense the irregularity of this place.
Nie Ran pursed his lips and walked into the shop.
Behind the counter, a middle-aged man wearing glasses was playing Solitaire on his computer.
Nie Ran cleared his throat, feeling as awkward as a child learning to speak when he opened his mouth.
“I need accommodation.”
The middle-aged man didn’t even lift his head, his lifeless eyes staring at the computer screen.
“Single room is 50, double room is 80.”
What are single room and double room?
Nie Ran didn’t understand. He looked at the old bottle blocking his way and said, “I need a room with two beds.”
“80, plus 100 deposit.”
He took out cash from his pocket, handed over two red bills, and the owner gave him back one yellow bill along with a key.
“Turn left on the second floor, it’s the third room, Room 206.”
Seeing him not moving, Nie Ran had to carry the bucket upstairs himself.
The corridor was narrow and cramped, the ceiling almost touching his head. After circling around in this birdcage-like place, he finally found Room 206.
He fumbled with the key to open the door, feeling a bit hopeful before entering. But upon seeing the interior, he just wanted to turn around and leave.
Two pitifully small single beds, yellowed sheets and pillows, cracked floor, and cigarette butts in the corner.
On the wall hung a curtain. He walked over and pulled it open. The window wasn’t even as big as his head, directly facing the back kitchen of the neighbouring hotel, with grease stains all over the glass.
The room had a bathroom, but it could only accommodate one person at a time for washing up, and both the mirror and sink were very old.
He turned on the shower, which made a sound like an old ox gasping for breath, before finally spitting out water that smelled strongly of disinfectant.
Was this going to be his place to stay for the next few days?
Nie Ran sat on one of the single beds, recalling the hotel where Ning Xin had first taken him.
Clean, bright, and tidy.
A world of difference from this place.
It was just a temporary place to stay; as long as he could sleep, it would do.
He rubbed his head, trying not to dwell on these thoughts anymore, and started to undress to take a shower.
Lang Xiao crawled out of the bucket, sniffing around the TV cabinet.
Nie Ran pointed at him. “You better behave, or you won’t be going back.”
Lang Xiao tucked his tail and sat on the ground, not moving.
The water in the bathroom never got hot even after a while, so Nie Ran had to hastily take a cold shower. When he came out, he was hungry, and it was already dark outside, with glimmers of light starting to appear from Lang Xiao’s body.
There was no tape in the room to seal the window.
Nie Ran threw Lang Xiao back into the bucket, but the lid fell halfway. So, he turned the bucket upside down and pressed the bottom against the bedside table, trapping the glimmers and Lang Xiao inside.
Nie Ran was quite satisfied with his solution. He picked up the remaining cash and went out to find food.
The city’s nightlife was lively, even after dark, with people still bustling on the streets.
The various lights dazzled his eyes, and he just wanted to find a place to sit down quickly. But each shop along the roadside seemed more dazzling than the last, reminding him of the unpleasant experience in the hotel, so he didn’t want to go in.
After walking for over half an hour, he was drawn by the sound of sizzling.
It was an outdoor-style food stall that had just started operating and wasn’t crowded yet.
As he prepared to approach, he suddenly realized something.
All his knowledge and habits about this world came solely from Ning Xin.
This was a bad sign. However, he believed that he could survive here based on his own abilities, and perhaps even better than her, without having to bow down to anyone.
Nie Ran changed direction and entered an exquisitely decorated restaurant across the street.
The restaurant was particularly crowded, with most people holding their phones up to take pictures.
As soon as he entered, a waiter asked if he had a reservation. Without one, he couldn’t enter.
Nie Ran was about to leave upon hearing this, but then someone who looked like a manager came over and led him to a small square table in the centre of the restaurant.
It was a tiny table with small chairs, and he felt quite cramped sitting there.
Next to him were all young and beautiful men and women, originally laughing and taking photos. Seeing him, they all stopped and looked at him curiously.
Nie Ran ordered absentmindedly, feeling unfamiliar with the menu.
“What is cheese? What are basil leaves? What is milk tea?”
Following the principle of “good stuff isn’t cheap,” he directly ordered several items with the highest prices and sat back, waiting for his food to arrive.
As soon as the waiter left, the people next to him immediately crowded around.
“Hello, can we take a photo with you?”
“Do you have Weibo? Shall we follow each other?”
“Are you alone? Where do you plan to go after dinner? There’s a new bar nearby, are you interested?”
Meanwhile, in the standard room of the budget hotel, Ning Xin was eating takeout while playing with her phone.
The takeout consisted of Korean-style crispy fried chicken, spaghetti, an eight-inch pizza, and a cup of macchiato.
After more than a month since her last meal this sumptuous, she decided she wouldn’t go anywhere for the next few days and would just enjoy life.
The phone was bought new after her old one broke. It wasn’t expensive, just over a thousand, but it had all the necessary features.
Ning Xin watched some videos for a while and wanted to catch up on the latest news. She opened Weibo, but within a few minutes of scrolling, she saw a suspicious photo.
Several stylishly dressed girls were taking photos in a popular restaurant.
And in the middle of them, facing sideways towards the camera, was Nie Ran!
How could he be there? What about Lang Xiao?
Ning Xin wanted to call and ask but remembered he didn’t have a phone.
She found the address of the restaurant on the app, thinking of going to find him, but then stopped in her tracks before leaving.
What was the point of going to find him? To make peace? She wouldn’t do that.
Since he thought she was incompetent and only capable of apologizing, then let him deal with it himself.
Ning Xin returned to her table, angrily grabbing a piece of fried chicken leg and chewing on it determinedly, resolving not to care about him.
However, half an hour later, she couldn’t help but pick up her phone again and search for the Weibo of the blogger she had seen earlier.
The blogger was quite diligent in posting on Weibo, almost reporting her whereabouts in real-time.
According to the latest post, they had left the restaurant and gone to a bar, where Nie Ran was also present.
Although in the photo, he was sitting alone on a sofa, not leaning against anyone or appearing drunk.
But Ning Xin felt like there was a lump in her throat, unable to swallow or spit it out, feeling extremely agitated.
This guy really had some skills. Not even half a day had passed, and he had already blended into a group of beauties.
What’s next? Stay in this world, get married, have children?
With no way to vent her frustration, she finished all her food and drank all her beverage, then got up several times in the middle of the night to run to the bathroom.
At three in the morning, a group of people came out of the bar and stood on the street, hailing taxis.
Nie Ran had drunk quite a bit, but the alcohol here was very mild, and he remained clear-headed.
A girl in a sundress grabbed his hand.
“Are you going home? Where do you live? Can you take me to hang out?”
He withdrew his hand lightly. “No.”
“Don’t be so cold. You haven’t said a word all night. Did you just come here to drink?”
It wasn’t really about the drinking; he wanted to see what else this world had to offer.
But now that he had seen enough, it didn’t seem meaningful anymore. It was better to go back to sleep.
As a taxi pulled up in front of them, Nie Ran prepared to get in, only to have the girl grab his wrist again.
Her soft and fragrant body leaned in, her rosy lips coming close to his ear.
“I don’t want to sleep alone tonight. Will you accompany me?”
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