Chapter 2: One Spirit Pearl, Two Demon Pills
A young man wearing a black hoodie stepped out of the sports car parked at the entrance, the hood draped casually over his head.
He had one hand stuffed into the pocket of his jeans, while the other absentmindedly twirled the car keys.
When he reached the steps, he suddenly paused and lifted his eyes to scan the surroundings.
Suddenly, his gaze locked onto a specific direction.
Jiang Linmu’s previously nonchalant eyes instantly lit up. He immediately shoved his car keys into his pocket and dashed over, taking the steps two at a time, his voice carrying an unconcealed leap of joy:
“Brother! Why are you fishing here?”
When he ran in front of Jiang Qing, he subconsciously slowed his pace. He reached out, wanting to touch Jiang Qing’s arm resting on the stone railing, but then gently pulled his hand back. Staring at the fishing rod with a goji berry hanging off it, he asked curiously:
“Brother, why is your bait a goji berry? Is this… a newly researched health-preserving fishing method?” As he spoke, he leaned closer to Jiang Qing, his shoulder almost touching Jiang Qing’s arm, his eyes entirely filled with the adoration of “My brother is so amazing at everything he does.”
Jiang Qing had his temper completely smoothed out by his clingy appearance. His freshly knitted brows relaxed, and he moved the fishing rod slightly to the side:
“Don’t block the fishing line.”
Jiang Linmu immediately stepped back half a pace obediently, but still didn’t leave. He stood right beside him, staring intently at Jiang Qing’s side profile, muttering softly: “Brother, when I went out to play with my friends today, I passed by your favorite dessert shop. I bought the red bean pastry you love. Should I go bring it over for you later?”
Red bean pastry!
Jiang Qing’s eyes instantly lit up.
He gave a feigned cold “Hmm,” but the fishing rod tilted slightly toward Jiang Linmu.
“But,” he suddenly remembered something, “Doesn’t that shop require a two-hour queue?”
Jiang Linmu looked down and kicked a pebble:
“It was just… along the way.”
Jiang Qing remembered how, in the original novel, when Jiang Linmu was kicked out of the Jiang family, he couldn’t even take a thick coat with him, ultimately disappearing silently into the alleyway on some cold night.
He couldn’t help but let out a soft sigh.
Hearing this sigh, Jiang Linmu instantly shot his head up:
“What’s wrong, Brother? Are goji berries not healthy enough? I have American ginseng in my car.”
“…”
Why do you have literally everything in your car?
Right at that moment, a person came running over from the distance.
“Third Young Master! I brought over the red bean pastry you took a long detour and queued up for two hours to get!”
“…”
Jiang Qing watched the driver running over panting heavily, looking at the exquisite paper bag printed with the dessert shop’s logo in his hands, then glanced at his younger brother’s instantly stiffened back, and slowly reeled in his fishing rod.
At this moment, seeing Jiang Qing raise an eyebrow at him, Jiang Linmu finally couldn’t hold back and turned around, roaring:
“Are you sick in the head?! Why did you have to use so many adjectives to describe a single box of red bean pastry!!!”
Was he afraid people wouldn’t know?!
The driver wiped his sweat and solemnly handed over the paper bag: “The Third Young Master specifically instructed that it must be freshly baked, the filling has to be xxx brand red beans, and the puff pastry must be folded 128 times…”
“Stop!” Jiang Linmu grabbed his hair in a breakdown. “If you keep talking, this box of red bean pastry is going to have to be declared intangible cultural heritage!”
———————————————
Jiang Qing sat quietly on the sofa, munching on the red bean pastry.
He sorted through the current plotline.
In a few days, his parents would discover Su Lin’s existence and bring him back to the Jiang family.
And Su Lin’s debut would be the beginning of the nightmare for him and Jiang Linmu.
Because the two of them were completely out of place in this family.
When their eldest brother Jiang Yu was in his room learning the piano, the two of them were either climbing trees or standing on the roof pondering life.
When their eldest brother Jiang Yu was preparing for the college entrance exams, the two of them were either skipping school or on their way to skip school.
When their eldest brother Jiang Yu had already entered the company to gain experience, the two of them were either drag racing or at the billiards hall.
In Father Jiang’s words:
One Spirit Pearl, two Demon Pills.
Jiang Qing melancholically picked up the honey milk in front of him and downed it in one gulp.
The crucial point was that this true young master was also a Spirit Pearl.
How could the two of them, a pair of Demon Pills, ever compete against two Spirit Pearls?
Thinking of this, he took another bite of the red bean pastry.
Sitting on the side, Jiang Linmu watched Jiang Qing drink honey milk like it was beer and eat the red bean pastry like it was a chicken leg, not daring to breathe loudly.
Could it be that my brother found out I accidentally deleted the game save he spent the whole afternoon grinding?
Jiang Linmu swallowed hard.
Suddenly, Jiang Qing turned around.
“Should we just…”
“I’m sorry! Brother! I accidentally deleted your game save!”
Jiang Qing froze with the red bean pastry suspended in mid-air: “What game save?”
“Just… that game you were halfway through, Reborn: I Am Still the Pig Farming King,” Jiang Linmu closed his eyes and hugged his head. “But I’ve already hired ten professional boosters to replay it for you!”
“…”
Jiang Qing silently stuffed the rest of the red bean pastry into his mouth, then pulled out a tissue and methodically wiped each of his fingers clean.
Suddenly, he grabbed a pillow.
“Jiang Linmu!”
“Do you have any idea how fucking hard it was for me to grind out a top-tier Golden Pig?!”
Standing by the door, Uncle Wang leaned against the frame and wiped away tears as he watched the heartwarming scene of brotherly love.
“It’s been so long since the Young Masters smiled this happily…”
A servant leaning against the door beside him, knitting a little yellow duck pattern, looked at the scene inside that was comparable to World War II, and then looked at the butler who was lost in his own nostalgic memories.
“…”
“That was a Golden Pig that could dance Drunken Butterfly!” Jiang Qing swung the pillow so fast it became a blur. “It could even use its tail to draw Along the River During the Qingming Festival!”
Jiang Linmu dodged while shouting: “But one of the boosters I hired is a Pig Farming PhD! He said he can help you breed a pig that does backflips!”
“Get lost!”
“There’s also one who can help you grind out a rainbow pig that sings Love Bargain!” Jiang Linmu did a sliding kneel and hugged his brother’s leg. “The game save can be recovered! But our brotherhood cannot be shattered, Brother!”
Jiang Qing froze with the pillow in the air, feathers fluttering down onto his younger brother’s hair.
He suddenly remembered how, in the original novel, when he was kicked out of the house, Jiang Linmu smuggled ten mechanical tap-dancing pigs overnight just to comfort him.
“Add a full set of holographic equipment.” Jiang Qing tossed the pillow aside. “The kind that supports multiplayer co-op crop-stealing.”
“Deal!”
Uncle Wang tearfully sent a message to Madam: “The Young Masters have started developing modern internet agriculture.”
On the other end, Madam Jiang, who had been watching the security cameras the entire time:
“…”
She stared at the screen completely full of flying feathers, and silently switched her phone app from “Elite Education Consulting” to “Child Psychological Health Consulting”.
At this moment, Jiang Qing was pinching the back of Jiang Linmu’s neck like a cat: “If you don’t manage to get me a pig that can beatbox, you’re going into my pigpen to be the pooper scooper.”
“Mission guaranteed!” Jiang Linmu’s eyes lit up like searchlights, taking the opportunity to hug Jiang Qing’s arm.
Translator’s Note:
- One Spirit Pearl, Two Demon Pills (一個靈珠兩個魔丸): A reference to the hit 2019 Chinese animated film Nezha. The “Spirit Pearl” represents perfection, obedience, and divine destiny, while the “Demon Pill” represents rebellion, chaos, and destruction. Father Jiang is basically saying his eldest son is an angel, while these two younger sons are absolute gremlins!
- Drunken Butterfly & Love Bargain: Very famous, incredibly cheesy Chinese songs heavily associated with older folks dancing in public plazas. The imagery of a pig dancing to these is hilariously absurd!
- Along the River During the Qingming Festival (清明上河圖): One of the most famous and complex panorama paintings in Chinese history.
- Crop-stealing: A reference to Happy Farm (a game similar to FarmVille), which was massively popular in China, where players would log in at crazy hours just to “steal” their friends’ fully grown virtual vegetables.
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