Chapter Five Changes

  "Are you living at my place?"

  Qin Feng fell silent after hearing the words, and it wasn't until after a while that he shook his head and said: "Zi Mo, even if this thing is very valuable, it's still a gift I'm giving you. This money...I won't take it!"

  "Qin Feng, I think you're being too stubborn. Don't say that you don't have the ability to give me such an expensive gift now, even if you did, I wouldn't be at peace accepting it. Stop being so obstinate, you must take this money!"

  After hearing Qin Feng's words, Liu Zimo was somewhat amused and annoyed. This guy is good in every way, but his self-esteem is a bit too strong, to the point of being overly sensitive.

  "What you said is also true, okay, I'll take this money, but I only want half of it, and you help me return the other half to Grandpa Liu."

  Qin Feng thought for a moment, divided the money in half and handed it to Liu Zimo, saying: "It's no problem eating at your house, but my sister and I won't be staying there. Also, I want Grandpa Liu to teach me how to identify antiques, this money will serve as tuition."

  Qin Feng's relationship with those kids around him was not very good, he didn't want to bring his sister to see other people's white eyes, so he also didn't want to live in the Liu family.

  What's more important is that every time Qin Feng sees others scolding or loving their own children, he always feels an inexplicable pain in his heart.

  As for learning how to identify antiques, Qin Feng had a small idea in mind. The fact that the broken glass bottle could be worth so much money really shocked him, and he didn't want to miss out on any other treasures in the future because of his ignorance.

  "You little brat, what's the point of learning all that stuff?"

  Liu Zimo stared at Qin Feng for a long time, shook his head and said: "I can't make the decision, take the money, tomorrow you go talk to Grandpa yourself."

  Although the name is elegant, Liu Zimo is actually a martial arts enthusiast who dislikes literature. His kung fu skills are even more impressive than Qin Feng's, which is also why Old Man Liu has been keeping him by his side all along, intending to pass on his legacy to him.

  "Let's go, I'll talk to Liu Grandpa myself tomorrow."

  Qin Feng nodded, looked up at the sky and said: "I should head back now. Another day I'll take you to catch cicadas. A general appeared in Old Li's chili pepper field, but it got away."

  "Alright, don't forget!" As soon as Liu Zimo heard Qin Feng's words, his face lit up with a smile. If Qin Feng wasn't in a hurry to go home and take care of his sister, he would probably have dragged him out to catch cicadas right away.

  After bidding farewell to Liu Zimo, Qin Feng passed through a chaotic grave mound and returned to his "home" by the railway. The big yellow dog that was originally lying at the door quietly wagged its tail at Qin Feng.

  It is said that a dog that bites does not bark. Da Huang, who was raised by Qin Feng and his sister since childhood, although he is just a native dog, is extremely ferocious. Even the big wolf dog at the entrance of the martial arts school in the town would tuck its tail and run away when it sees him.

  A few days ago, a man who had been driven mad during the chaos suddenly rushed here. If Qin Feng hadn't returned early to stop Da Huang, he would have bitten that person's throat off.

  Gently stroking the soft fur on Da Huang's neck, Qin Feng quietly pushed open the door. The candle on the table was almost burnt out, and the thin flame seemed to be extinguished at any moment.

  Helped his sister to keep the thin quilt that she had kicked off, Qin Feng went to sleep with his clothes on. Since the accident at home five years ago, he hadn't slept naked again.

  －－－－－－－－

  "Qin Jia, if you don't listen, brother won't want you anymore!"

  Standing at the entrance of Railway Elementary School, Qin Feng furrowed his brow. Today, he and his sister were wearing old clothes, but they looked very neat. Even people who often saw them might not recognize them at first glance.

  But Xiao Yao's stubbornness still exceeded Qin Feng's expectations.

  Just now when he took his sister to school for registration, Qin Jia, who had already completed the fourth and fifth grade primary school courses, actually pretended to be crazy in front of the teacher and didn't even pass the simplest entrance exam.

  "Bad brother, don't be so arrogant, no one will care about your arrogance!"

  After hearing Qin Feng's words, Xiaoyao's mouth twitched and she burst into tears. "Jia Jia doesn't want to go to school, Jia Jia wants to be with brother forever!"

  For Qin Jie, the memories this world gave her were not that beautiful. Apart from her brother, she received a lot of ridicule and cold stares. Although she didn't hold grudges against those people, Qin Jie still couldn't convince herself to study and live with them together.

  "Alright, Jie Jie don't cry, it's brother's fault. Sigh, forget it, if you don't want to go to school then just don't go."

  Looking at his crying sister, Qin Feng's heart felt like it had been fiercely pinched by a pair of large hands. The phrase "older brother as father" was most suitable for him. Every time Little Ya cried like this, Qin Feng would always compromise.

  However, Qin Feng still had a few points of annoyance in his heart, because after taking the money given by Liu Zimo yesterday, he was already prepared to go to the town to handle his and his sister's household registration, which only required spending eighty yuan.

  After getting a household registration, my sister went back to school, and Qin Feng also planned to learn a skill to make money. In this way, they would not be looked down upon by the people in the town in the future. However, my sister couldn't understand my kindness.

  "Does brother's words count?" Qin Jia covered her face with her hands, revealing a small gap between her fingers.

  "Stop crying, I'll take you to play at Zi Mo's house, but you have to listen to me." Qin Feng couldn't help but smile wryly. Even though he knew his sister was pretending, he still couldn't bear to discipline the only family member he had in this world.

  "Qin Jia is the most obedient." Upon hearing her brother's words, Qin Jia put down her hands that were covering her face, and a pair of eyes smiled like a crescent moon, revealing a hint of slyness that made Qin Feng unable to think of any punishment.

  "Never mind, if you don't want to go, then just don't go. Once I learn about antiques and make some money, no one will dare look down on us again."

  Shaking his head, Qin Feng took his sister's hand and headed towards the Liu residence.

  The snuff bottle incident inspired Qin Feng greatly, and he decided to put off handling the household registration for now, using that money as capital, changing from picking up trash to collecting antiques. Even if he could only collect one valuable item per month, it was still much more promising than picking up trash.

  Old Man Liu spoke up, and with Liu Zimo's attention, those several young masters who didn't quite get along with Qin Feng didn't cause any trouble. After taking his sister out for lunch, Qin Feng was summoned by Old Man Liu to the back hall.

  "Little guy, you really want to learn about antique appraisal?"

  For Qin Feng, Liu Yun Jiao still has a very good impression of him, but he can't see clearly the child's fate, plus Qin Feng's body has a strong aura and is short-lived, which makes him subconsciously not want to get too involved with him.

  "Grandpa Liu, yes, this one hundred yuan is my tuition!"

  Qin Feng nodded seriously and put ten 10-yuan bills in front of Old Man Liu, he was a very sensitive person, vaguely able to feel the old man's thoughts.

  "Keep the money, two hundred yuan was a bit little to begin with, don't give it to me."

  Mr. Liu waved his hand, he had a large business on the island, managed by his third son, although not a big rich man, but also considered to be a wealthy person, and didn't care about this small amount of money at all.

  "You're a clever kid, you understand the principle of teaching people to fish rather than giving them fish. As the saying goes, in chaotic times gold is valuable, but in peaceful times antiques are prized. Now that the world is at peace, the antique market will also flourish."

  Looking at Qin Feng, the old man's eyes were full of approving expression, and then he said: "The master leads you in, cultivation is up to personal effort, here with me, you can only watch but cannot ask, can you do that?"

  This look-but-don't-ask requirement indicates that Old Man Liu has also made up his mind. If Qin Feng can dodge this calamity, he will take him in as a disciple; if not, then it's best to forget about it.

  Qin Feng nodded and said: "Don't worry, Grandpa Liu, I absolutely won't cause you any trouble."

  "Alright, let me tell you about this snuff bottle today. It's a great thing! I used to have one made by the imperial court back in the day, but it's long gone... who knows where it was thrown away..."

  Liu Yunjiao was once a martial arts instructor at the Presidential Palace on Taiwan, and had extensive contact with those precious antiques, his experience is beyond ordinary people.

  In 1992, in this inland area, there were not many people collecting antiques, let alone in a remote town like this. Liu Yun often couldn't find anyone to talk to and was feeling suffocated. But now that he had started talking, he couldn't stop.

  This lecture lasted for two or three hours, and Liu Yun's mouth was dry and tongue-tied. However, Qin Feng was also a good listener, occasionally clapping to show his appreciation, which made the old man feel greatly comforted.

  The old man's words, full of classical allusions and references, left Qin Feng's eyes shining with wonder; he had never imagined that a small, broken glass bottle could have so much to it.

  "Alright, I'll tell you about calligraphy and painting tomorrow, go find Zi Mo."

  He looked at the time and it was almost time for the kids to practice martial arts, so the old man stopped talking. However, just as Qin Feng was about to leave the house, he called him back and reminded him: "You shouldn't be running around recklessly these days, and you mustn't fight with others. If I find out that you've been doing such things, then don't come back here again."

  Although he understood some physiognomy, Liu Yunjiao was not a professional in this line. He could only see that Qin Feng would have a disaster in about a year or two, and he had no way to resolve it, so he could only hint at Qin Feng like this.

  "Grandpa Liu, I understand."

  Qin Feng nodded in agreement and ran out of the house with great enthusiasm. The knowledge that Master had shared with him today seemed to have opened a door for him, allowing him to touch a world he had never seen before.

  With the care of Old Man Liu, Qin Feng and his sister's life also underwent a huge change.

  The two people who used to rummage through the garbage dumps now roam the streets, collecting trash such as toothpaste tubes and scrap paper from households during the day, but at night they train their bodies and practice martial arts at Liu's place.

  Qin Feng originally improved his diet when he was growing up, and in less than half a year, he suddenly grew to nearly 1.7 meters tall at the age of thirteen, and also developed muscle on his body.