Hello, Welcome to Merit Supermarket (SUPERMARKET)
After leaving the teahouse, Jiang Chenyi was about to hail a taxi home when he suddenly felt a burning sensation in his chest.
"Ouch! Hot, hot, hot!" He almost jumped from the heat.
Fortunately, the three of them hadn't caught up from behind, or they would have seen him in an embarrassing state.
Jiang Chenyi quickly pulled out the source of the heat from his clothes—it was a necklace with a Golden Abacus pendant.
Upon closer inspection, the small golden abacus was almost identical to the one he had taken out at the supermarket, except for its size.
At that moment, the small golden abacus was radiating warmth, signaling that there was a target nearby in need of "assistance."
Jiang Chenyi looked at the abacus with delight.
This was the first time he had encountered a target for "assistance" since taking over the supermarket!
"Great! Finally, business is picking up!" The bad luck from dealing with that despicable family instantly disappeared.
He held the Golden Abacus in front of him to sense the direction of the signal, and opened a map to investigate what kind of gathering place was in that direction.
"A large film studio? That means there will be a lot of people, right? Is this like finding a needle in a haystack?"
Jiang Chenyi sighed in frustration, "Why didn't you give me detailed client information? How am I supposed to find them like this?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the small golden abacus moved slightly, as if to say, "I'm here."
Five hundred meters was close, and Jiang Chenyi quickly arrived at the entrance of the film studio.
Sure enough, even before entering, he saw the square outside filled with parked cars. It was unclear whether a film crew was shooting or if these were tourists' cars.
Jiang Chenyi felt helpless but still prepared to walk in.
But suddenly, the small golden abacus in his hand grew hot again—this meant he was going in the wrong direction.
"Huh? Not inside, so is it outside?" Jiang Chenyi looked around the outskirts of the film studio.
There were still plenty of people outside, making it only slightly less daunting than finding a needle in a haystack.
Jiang Chenyi frowned in frustration.
After a while, he suddenly thought of a quicker way to find the person he was looking for.
He found a quiet corner then held the warm Small Golden Abacus in his palm, and slowly closed his eyes.
In the void, he heard many faint whispers of thoughts, but none were loud enough—clearly not the person he was seeking.
["I want a child..."]
Huh? Did he hear that?
["I want a child, I want to have a child with Miaomiao."]
The voice grew louder and more sorrowful while being filled with unspoken pain and longing.
Jiang Chenyi abruptly opened his eyes, which now shone brightly—he had found you!
He remembered the direction from which the voice had come and followed it, only to find himself walking further and further away then eventually arriving at a small river next to the film studio.
Once there, Jiang Chenyi knew who his client was.
After all, there was only one person standing by the river—it couldn’t possibly be the fish in the water, could it?
After locating his client, Jiang Chenyi didn’t approach immediately. Instead, he stood ten meters behind to observe.
At this moment, the color of his pupils grew even lighter and faintly shimmering with golden light.
Jiang Chenyi was "seeing."
He saw a dense golden aura surrounding the person, indicating that they had done many good deeds, helped many people, and accumulated a great deal of Merit.
Then, he closed his eyes to "listen," to confirm that the voice indeed came from the person in front of him.
After double-checking, Jiang Chenyi finally stepped forward.
"Hello, do you need any help?"
While Jiang Chenyi was observing, Luo Qiuming had just finished a phone call with his wife, Zhang Miaomiao and couldn’t help but light a cigarette.
He knew he still had a scene to shoot later but he really didn’t want to go back just yet—his wife’s sobs echoed in his heart that made his entire body tremble.
Why? Why couldn’t they have a child?
He and Miaomiao had done so many good deeds. Why wouldn’t the heavens grant them even one child?
Was it truly destined that they would remain childless?
Luo Qiuming tilted his head back as a single hot tear slowly rolled down his cheek.
For the sake of having a child, he and Miaomiao had tried everything.
The cigarette in his hand burned down and nearly reached his fingers when Jiang Chenyi suddenly spoke that startled Luo Qiuming and caused him to drop the cigarette.
Luo Qiuming turned around and saw a handsome young man smiling at him.
He was in a foul mood and was about to shoo the man away when he suddenly noticed the young man’s eyes.
Those eyes...
"Hello, do you need any help?" Jiang Chenyi asked again.
Faced with a stranger’s question, Luo Qiuming should have shaken his head and said everything was fine.
But for some reason, when he met the young man’s light-colored pupils, a wave of bitterness surged in his heart.
How could he not need help? But... but no one could help him with this!
Luo Qiuming choked back a sob before he quickly turned his head away and muttered, "No, thank you."
A forty-year-old man like him almost burst into tears in front of a young man...
Luo Qiuming, oh Luo Qiuming, if this were caught by the paparazzi, who knows what kind of story they would spin.
There was no sound beside him, and just when he thought the young man had left, he turned around and nearly jumped like a startled cat.
"You... why are you still here?" His face was full of shock. His usually charming peach-blossom eyes now wide and round like almonds.
Jiang Chenyi tilted his head in confusion: "I never left."
If he hadn't left, where else would he be?
The two of them stared at each other in silence for a few moments before Jiang Chenyi felt he should take the initiative: "You said you didn't need help, but that was a lie, wasn't it? You were almost crying."
Luo Qiuming's face turned red and like an ancient scholar, he used his wide sleeve to cover his face and almost shouted "Don't look!"
"Really, you don't need it? Your inner voice is almost deafening me." The young man touched his ear as if he had truly heard Luo Qiuming's thoughts.
Luo Qiuming was lost in thought for a while, then smiled bitterly: "You can't help me."
The young man didn't seem to mind his words because his smile now carried a hint of comfort: "If you want world peace, then indeed, I can't help you but..."
He deliberately paused and waited until Luo Qiuming's gaze fell on him before slowly uttering the final words.
And those words successfully changed Luo Qiuming's expression.
"If it's just a child you want, I can make that happen."
Luo Qiuming's heart instantly sank to the bottom.
His gaze towards Jiang Chenyi gradually turned cold.
Jiang Chenyi didn't understand at first until the other man snorted coldly: "Miaomiao and I don't need a surrogate. I don't care where you got my information..."
"Hey! Wait, wait, wait!" Jiang Chenyi quickly interrupted him.
Surrogacy? Who said anything about surrogacy? He wasn't into that kind of thing!
Jiang Chenyi, both amused and exasperated, explained to Luo Qiuming: "It's not what you think. The child I'm talking about is one that you and your wife would conceive together, with no third party involved, and it's not about test-tube babies either."
"I can give you a healthy child, one with both of your bloodlines. Whatever you desire in your heart, I can give it to you."
Luo Qiuming was stunned by his words.
Not surrogacy, not test-tube babies... then... how could they have a child?
He wasn't without suspicion.
Because imagine, a stranger suddenly appearing and claiming he could give him a child... Hah... What else could it be but a scam?
But what if it were true?
What if he really could do it?
What if?
Luo Qiuming's mind was filled with "what ifs."
He had been waiting for so long and he didn't want to let go of even the slightest hope.
Luo Qiuming could hear his own heartbeat growing faster, desire and worry intertwining, making it hard for him to make a decision.
Fortunately, Jiang Chenyi didn't really expect him to respond immediately.
He patted his pockets and pulled out a business card.
There was no name, no company and just an address.
"Go back and discuss it with your wife. If you need anything then come find me here. Don't worry, the method I offer is absolutely legal, doesn't involve any criminal activity, and doesn't violate ethical or moral standards. You can listen first and then decide."
Luo Qiuming stared intently at the business card and almost burned a hole through it with his gaze.
The next second, he was startled awake by the ringing of his phone and quickly took the card.
After finishing his call with the director, he turned around but could no longer see the young man and was unsure of when he had left.
Luo Qiuming pursed his lips in thought for a moment, then finally tucked the card back into his pocket.
.........
After successfully handing out a business card, Jiang Chenyi returned to his small supermarket in a cheerful mood.
From the outside, his small supermarket was less than ten square meters.
So, calling it a supermarket was a stretch; it looked more like a small convenience store from the 80s or 90s.
There was no signboard or any identifiers, and the gray wooden door remained tightly shut year-round and hid the interior from view.
Behind the supermarket was a courtyard surrounded by high walls, and the second floor was where Jiang Chenyi lived. The overall area wasn't actually that small.
Lying back on his chaise lounge, Jiang Chenyi counted on his fingers, "I wonder how many days that person will take to consider it?"
He didn't believe that person wouldn't come.
The intensity of their thoughts, even from two hundred meters away, was louder than the cheers of an ordinary person finding a million dollars.
"Two days at most and no longer!" Jiang Chenyi opened his eyes in the darkness.
Unlike during the day, his eyes now seemed to flow with golden liquid that was shining brightly in the dimly lit store.
........
At noon the next day, just after waking up, he heard two identical thoughts.
"Hello, what was it you mentioned about a child yesterday?"
Jiang Chenyi saw a middle-aged couple through the window.
They wore oversized sunglasses that covered most of their faces, and an aura of exhaustion and despair surrounded them.
From their appearance, it was hard to believe they were the glamorous Best Actor and Best Actress seen on TV.
He didn't communicate with them through the window; those who traded through the window weren't the supermarket's true customers.
A pale hand unlatched the bolt and the gray door opened in front of the couple, revealing the young man's clear and bright eyes.
The supermarket's true customers always entered through the front door.
"Hello, welcome to the Merit Supermarket."