82 - Bai Family Junior

Translated by rabbitrisu

“……” Wan Yu was truly stunned when she heard Su Zimo’s polite welcome, and then said half-jokingly, “Classmate Su, right now even if you told me that you had a car accident four years ago and lost all your memories, I might believe it.”

“Almost.” Su Zimo nodded calmly. “I don’t have much impressions or memories of my high school era. I only remember some outlines.”

At that moment, only Su Zimo was in the shop. Ghost Umbrella was punished with returning to the black umbrella and facing the wall for one night because he disrespected the shopkeeper.

“What can I do for you?” Su Zimo asked the new visitor again.

“I like teddy bears very much.” Wan Yu bent over to look at the very ordinary brown teddy bear on Shelf No. 1. “I saw teddy bears in the shop just now from outside, so I just came in to have a look.”

“The prices of the goods in this shop are very reasonable.” Su Zimo looked at the only ‘Nightmare Brand Teddy Bear’ left. The price tag read 2 yuan, which was so cheap that people would doubt their eyes.

“But it doesn’t seem to be the teddy bear I want.” Wan Yu said regretfully. “Although I like to find teddy bears, I don’t actually buy many.”

“Because you have a teddy bear that you especially want to find? Maybe it’s a teddy bear that’s special to you?” Su Zimo could feel Wan Yu looking at the teddy bear on shelf No. 1. Her mood seemed very depressed.

“Yes, it was a teddy bear that my grandmother gave me when I was young.” At Su Zimo’s invitation, Wan Yu sat down at the resting table and chairs next to her and received a cup of fruit tea that Shopkeeper Su poured himself.

“The price of that teddy bear was very expensive during my grandmother’s time, and it was a gift she received when she was young. She always said that there was a blessing on the bear which would protect me while growing up safely.” Wan Yu smiled. “I never had a cold even once as a child. One year while I was outside playing with the teddy bear, something suddenly fell from high up. I didn’t get injured. The teddy bear that fell to the ground was completely pierced by the vase shards. It would soon fall apart no matter how it was sewn.”

“My mother always said that the teddy bear protected me.” Wan Yu took a sip of fruit tea and praised it several times. “So since the teddy bear couldn’t be repaired, I’ve always thought about finding one that’s exactly the same.”

“Something is happening later. I hope to find the same teddy bear before a certain day.” Wan Yu said, then sighed again. “In fact, I’ve seen some very similar teddy bears. I don’t know why, but none of them could ever give me a similar feeling.”

“It’s a pity that I don’t have many teddy bears in stock.” Su Zimo was also helpless. “It seems that your teddy bear itself was a bit special.”

“In fact, it’s just an ordinary teddy bear, but it’s grey, and very old fashioned. Speaking of which, that style may have been discontinued long ago, and there may only have been one teddy bear of that kind.”

“A grey teddy bear?” Su Zimo narrowed his eyes. “Do you have a picture of the teddy bear?”

There was actually a grey teddy bear in Su Zimo’s shop, and it must be an ancient style. It was a gift from an old man to his granddaughter, and he specifically instructed Su Zimo to take the grey teddy bear out of the nightmare world.

“Yes, I always carry it with me.” After Wan Yu finished speaking, she took out a small pouch from her purse and took out a faded photo from it.

The photo looked very old. In the photo, a very happy child was sitting on a simple wooden bed with a grey teddy bear in her arms.

Sitting next to the child was an elderly lady with kind, well-maintained eyebrows. Although the background of the photo was simply, the lady’s posture was elegant down to her bones. From her eyebrows, Su Zimo got a sense of familiarity. She looked something like the young Bai Pingting that Su Zimo had seen in the mirror.

Just less impulsive, and more thoughtful.

And that teddy bear was really exactly the same as the teddy bear entrusted to him by the old man in the nightmare world! It was a gift that Grandfather Bai hoped to give his granddaughter Bai Pingting!

“Have you ever seen it?” Wan Yu hurriedly asked as she noticed the change in Su Zimo’s expression.

“It feels like a very old style.” Su Zimo continued to remain silent. “At that time, few people would buy teddy bears. The conditions of class leader’s home must be very good.”

“My parents are just ordinary company employees.” Wan Yu shook her head. “I heard that my grandma was indeed very rich when when was young. She was from a well off family in Jiangdu. Then, something happened . My grandmother’s family fell into trouble. I moved to Shoushan far away with Great Grandpa and Great Grandma, and had a difficult life. When I was young, my family conditions were very bad, and we had few valuable things at all, so my grandma gave me the teddy bear. It became the only toy I had when I was young.”

“It wasn’t until middle school that my parents had truly stable jobs, and they continued to improve themselves, relying on hard work for promotions, so the conditions at home began to gradually improve.” Wan Yu’s face showed a slightly happy expression.

Su Zimo didn’t know Wan Yu very well, but he remembered that she was also a student with excellent grades in school, and she often participated in various school activities and took on various duties. She was a hard working person.

“Although my family conditions have improved a bit, my mother often said that even if she was richer, she would still have less than 1% of the family background her grandmother had when she was young. So, at that time, my grandmother could be regarded as a legendary lady?” Wan Yu smiled and said to Su Zimo, “Grandma always liked to teach me what she knew when she was young. Actually, many people find me weird since I’ve learned a lot.”

“……”

Su Zimo was silent for a while, and finally asked, “Your grandmother, she wasn’t surnamed Bai, right?”

“How do you know?” Wan Yu was really shocked.

“What’s her name?” Su Zimo asked again.

“Bai Pingting.” Wan Yu and Su Zimo both said the name of Grandpa Bai’s granddaughter.

“Don’t scare me.” Wan Yu looked around in fear, as if thinking something like A-Piao ¹ was leaking secrets by her side. She even wondered if her grandmother was with them.

“Your grandmother, how is she doing now?” Su Zimo asked carefully.

“Grandma passed away when I was in high school.” Wan Yu replied strangely. “But grandma was very happy in the later years of her life. We were always by her side, so she should be fine.”

“Then I have something here which may have been prepared for you.” Su Zimo said as he walked behind the counter.

“We were high school classmates. It’s really strange to be so formal.” ² As Wan Yu spoke, her eyes subconsciously followed Su Zimo’s movements. her expression still looked a little nervous.

Then, Su Zimo found a grey teddy bear wrapped in cellophane in the cabinet under the counter!

Su Zimo didn’t know if the teddy bear had any special abilities. After all, to Su Zimo, it was just a no-star product with a price tag of 2 yuan, the same as those displayed on Shelf No. 1. The only difference between the teddy bears were the color and style.

However, Su Zimo gave the teddy bear to Wan Yu not because the bear could actually protect her, but because he had promised Grandpa Bai to do it.

Since Bai Pingting was no longer alive, handing it over to her granddaughter could be regarded as Su Zimo completing his task.

“Oh my god! How could it be exactly the same!” When Wan Yu saw the teddy bear, she clutched her chest nervously, somewhat incoherent. “I thought it would really be impossible. This teddy bear… I though it would be impossible for me to find the exact same teddy bear in my entire life! Oh my god, it’s really exactly the same!”

“How much money do I need to buy this teddy bear?” Wan Yu was about to pounce on it, but in the end, resisted and paused. “Give me a price. If… If it’s expensive, I hope that, for the sake of an old classmate, you won’t sell it too soon. I can save money to buy it.”

Su Zimo held up two fingers.

“Two hundred? Two thousand?” Wan Yu breathed a sigh of relief, then became nervous again. “It isn’t twenty thousand, right?”

“Twenty.” Looking at the blatant ‘2 yuan’ price in the text boxes, Su Zimo suddenly opened his mouth like a lion in front of his old classmate. ³

It’s not that Su Zimo wanted to slaughter a fat sheep ⁴ , but he wanted to take the opportunity to experiment.

"

"

“Twenty?” Wan Yu’s tone was also very surprised, but not because of how ‘expensive’ the teddy bear was. She thought it was cheap compared to teddy bears in normal stores, so she immediately took out a red one hundred yuan bill from her purse and put it on the counter. “Deal, keep the change!”

It was as if she was worried that Su Zimo would suddenly regret it.

“Thank you for your patronage.” Su Zimo pushed the teddy bear on the counter over to Wan Yu. Since it was a no-star product, there was no need to sign a contract.

“Your shop is really strange.” Wan Yu looked around again. “I thought it was a store with very few products, but it just so happens to let people buy what they want.”

As Wan Yu spoke, she once again wandered around in An Yu Yi Yu, no longer interested, then finally… stopped beside the second shelf.

“Huh? So there’s a shelf behind here? I didn’t see it just now. What good things are on it…”

The atmosphere in the shop fell silent for a moment. Su Zimo silently looked at Wan Yu, who was standing in front of Shelf No. 2, while Wan Yu was in a daze holding a ‘Nightmare Brand Standard Dagger.’

Su Zimo remembered that Wan Yu said this when she first entered the store–

[Something is happening later. I hope to find the same teddy bear before a certain day.]

What was it that made Wan Yu anxious to find the teddy bear that can protect her?

It should be somewhat dangerous, and it may even endanger Wan Yu’s life.

For example, the nightmare world.

For example… becoming a trainer.

“Su Zimo, why do you have such a dagger in your store?” Wan Yu glanced at the price tag for the dagger. The price was unspeakably low.

The most important thing was that Wan Yu knew that that kind of dagger shouldn’t appear in ordinary shops.

“I’m a businessman. As long as it can gain profit for my shop, I’ll sell it.” Su Zimo’s face remained blank.

“The price of these daggers may be a bit too low.” Wan Yu seemed to focus on Su Zimo’s expression. “They can sell for more money, more than you can imagine.”

“No matter how much it is, it won’t help me.”

Su Zimo looked down at the computer in the store. The data on the software interface with the store information showed that his lifespan had only increased by two days instead of twenty days.

That showed that no matter how much Su Zimo raised the prices of the goods in his store, the store income was always fixed, and Su Zimo’s gains from raising the prices would just be a pile of bills that are meaningless compared to his life.

“You’re really weird, but you’re right. In this shop, you’re the boss, and I’m just a customer. I only need to buy what I want.” Wan Yu said as she put down the dagger in her hand.

“Then, on that shelf, is there anything you want to buy?” Su Zimo’s eyes were a little expectant.

“In fact, there aren’t many things.” Wan Yu looked at it and saw a walking stick standing alone on the middle level of the second shelf.

It was a broken cane repaired with clear glue using particularly unskilled technique.

"

"

“What is this?”

“Stupid Old Cane.” Su Zimo looked at the three star ghost tool in Wan Yu’s hand, showing a surprised expression.

The ghost tool came from old man Bai, who was the grandfather of Wan Yu’s grandmother. That it was noticed by Wan Yu from the dark, it may be fate. And the ability of the cane was also somewhat practical.

“This is a guiding cane. When you hesitate in the face of a yes/no question, or when you feel conflicted about where to go next, let the cane fall in front of you. It will guide you in the right direction.” Su Zimo directly stated the special ability of the cane. “For you, this cane may be helpful.”

“What on earth does this store sell?” Wan Yu didn’t dare to reach out for it.

“The price is 150 yuan, just for this one.” Su Zimo didn’t explain anything, just said the price. Wan Yu would decide by herself. “How about it?”

“150 yuan is indeed not expensive, but how did you get this item?” Wan Yu was still confused.

“This is a relic left behind by an old man. He hoped to give pointers to the younger generation when they’re stuck. I believe that old man would be very happy if this cane is sold to you. Although it’s not very good, it’s a real treasure.”

When Su Zimo spoke, he had already seen the familiar off-white contract paper appear on the counter. The thick contract paper looked like cardboard, but its texture was soft. Two lines of text were briefly written on it–

[The shop will no longer be responsible for follow-up affairs after the goods are sold.]

[We hope to welcome you again.]

On the lower right, there was a square seal with the words ‘An Yu Yi Yu.’ The golden seal flashed under the lights in the shop. The signature area under the seal waited quietly for a guest to sign.

“If you need to buy it, you can sign here.” Su Zimo placed the metal pen on the side of the contract paper, waiting for Wan Yu’s response.

“Are these… These props are real?” Wan Yu still hesitated.

“If you don’t like it, you can bring the goods back to our store after purchase.” Su Zimo nodded slightly.

“I’ll buy it.” Wan Yu said, then placed another two hundred yuan on the counter with a ‘deep-pockets’ expression. After analyzing the contract for a while to make sure nothing was wrong with it, she used the pen on the paper and signed her name.

The moment Wan Yu made contact with the pen, Su Zimo could almost see the golden light bouncing on the pen tip. An indescribable feeling emerged within Su Zimo’s body. The scent of Shouhua lingered in the place where Wan Yu signed the contract. It emerged instantly in An Yu Yi Yu; the light scent was stronger than normal.

But in an instant, the scent of Shouhua faded again.

“It smelled nice just now.” Wan Yu put down the pen and turned around, then said with some surprise, “Classmate Su, the flowers in your shop are blooming.”

Su Zimo looked around from behind the counter and saw that the half-blossomed Shouhua had completely bloomed. There were some petals resembling double-petaled lilies layered on top of each other, but they looked softer than lily petals. It was like a flower-shaped wedding dress with the skirt stretched out, particularly attention-catching within the cluster of green.

The first Shouhua was blooming.

[Shop: An Yu Yi Yu (Ayuyuyu)]

[Owner: Su Zimo]

[Life Savings: 753 days (33)]

[Shelf No. 1 Capacity (No Stars): 31/50]

[Shelf No. 2 Capacity (One Star): 10/20]

[Ghosts in the Shop: Ghost Umbrella, Peng Peng, Zhang Xiaoqing]

[Shop Upgrade Progress: 398/1000]

[Shouhua: 1 Flower (For Sale, Not Available to Store Members)]

All aspects of the store information were increasing, and Su Zimo’s life savings had also been steadily rising. However, only one flower had been added, and the number in the text boxes behind his life savings decreased by 365.

Su Zimo suddenly understood that the ’33’ in the text box was the progress of the Shouhua’s blooming. Every time his life span increased by 365 days, that is, for each additional year, one Shouhua in the store would bloom.

That is really… a real birthday flower. ⁵

Su Zimo cast his gaze upon the blossomed Shouhua, and then discovered that a note text box had appeared on the open flower.

[Shouhua]

[Special Ability: Only the Shouhua picked by the shopkeeper can be used if touched by a human outside the shop. Using a Shouhua can increase human lifespan by one year.]

Sure enough, it was a flower that can increase the lifespan!

Although Su Zimo had already gotten a clue from the name Shouhua, it was a bit shocking to see its text boxes.

“Classmate Su, if it’s okay, I’ll leave first.” While Su Zimo was still in a daze, Wan Yu walked to the counter and greeted him. “If you need somebody to chat with, you can find me at any point within the next two months. You still have my phone number, right?”

“Two months?”

“To be precise, it’s less than two months.” Wan Yu didn’t explain clearly. “I really hope that I can continue to chat with you in these two months. If possible, I’ll invite you to dinner. Byebye!”

After Su Zimo responded politely, he looked at Wan Yu’s figure that opened the shop door and walked out.

Although Wan Yu didn’t say it clearly, her eagerness for her own safety and the pessimism about two months later was enough to make Su Zimo guess that Wan Yu may be welcomed into the twentieth nightmare world within two months.

To be honest, it was really hard to tell from Wan Yu’s exterior.

And if that was the case, ten Wan Yu may even enter the twentieth nightmare world with Mu Feng and Liu Xu.

Su Zimo shook his head slightly, temporarily leaving behind those things that were irrelevant to him, then turned around and went home.

Because he disappeared from the manor from time to time, and there was no record of the vehicles in the car being used, Su Zimo felt that recently, everyone in the family had begun to have doubts about what he was doing.

In addition, if Ghost Umbrella’s ‘ghost tool revivals will bring the whole world to ruin’ thing was true… Then Su Zimo felt that he couldn’t always let the Su family be uninformed. He couldn’t keep them in the dark. He just needed the right opportunity to tell them something.

Footnotes

<ol>A-Piao is a loan word from Taiwan, it’s slang for a nice ghost. In some cases it refers specifically to young female ghosts, but not always. Sorry, he’s speaking slightly formally, but it doesn’t translate well in a modern setting rather than ancient china, where I could have weird english speech patterns. The actual phrase used would be more literally translated as a lion has a large mouth, but that didn’t flow well. It means to overprice something. Slaughter a fat sheep means to take advantage of the situation in a way that isn’t good for the other party involved. This is a pun. 寿 (Shou) can be translated as longevity or life, which was mentioned when the Shouhua were first introduced, but can also mean birthday ?</ol>