The Slacker Academic Always Gets Caught (SLACKER)
"Got it."
Hanging up, Chi Ning fastened his seatbelt and told the driver, "West Gate of Jiurong Mingcheng. Please hurry—I’m in a rush."
"You got it," the driver said, flooring the accelerator.
Pondering his father’s tone, Chi Ning felt he didn’t sound particularly angry. But how could that be?
In his past life, whenever his brother skipped school, their father would personally go searching and even reprimand him in public.
In this era before flip phones became commonplace, most wage earners only had PHS handsets. News came solely from TV and newspapers.
Print media hadn’t declined yet—cheap tabloids capitalized on public curiosity, thriving through high volume sales.
But celebrities don't provide gossip material every day. To make money, paparazzi have written about every wealthy family in Yangcheng.
The tabloid content Chi Ning saw most often was "Chi Family Eldest Son Scolded Shamefully by Chairman Chi for Late-Night Street Racing."
How strict his father was, everyone who read Yangcheng's gossip rags knew.
Chi Ning couldn't figure out why his father wasn't angry after thinking about it the whole way home. He could only mentally rehearse the storm he might face upon returning and consider how to respond.
Lying definitely wouldn't work—maybe he should try provoking his father like his elder brother did?
If he acted even more disgracefully, no one would want him as the heir anymore...
Chi Ning got out of the taxi, walked through the garden to the front door, rubbed his face with his hand, and put on a defiant expression as he faced the door. Just as he was about to practice his lines, the door opened.
Chi Baichuan stood in the doorway. "Why didn't you come in when you arrived?"
Chi Ning looked at his father's youthful, gentle face and his mind went blank.
He hadn't seen his parents in over a decade. The image of his father in his memory had long blurred, leaving only the stark black-and-white portrait in the ancestral hall exceptionally clear.
All the words he'd prepared vanished. His chest ached unbearably, and all the grievances from his past life rushed into his nasal passages, making him want to sneeze from the sourness.
Unable to help himself, Chi Ning reached out to hug his father's waist and buried his face in his chest as he choked out, "Dad."
Chi Baichuan's stern expression immediately faltered. Flustered, he pulled his son inside. "Did someone bully you?"
Chi Ning shook his head.
Chi Baichuan didn't believe him and looked his son up and down carefully.
Yangcheng First High's uniform pants were shorts that only reached the knees.
Chi Ning's fair skin made the dark red bloodstains on his ankles stand out starkly. The two Golden needle hoops that had once adorned his feet to ward off evil were also missing.
Chi Baichuan frowned deeply. "Why is there blood on your feet?"
Chi Ning immediately felt uneasy. "It's someone else's blood. I ran into an injured person at the night market today."
Both Chi Baichuan and Wang Quan, who had been sitting silently on the side, let out a sigh of relief.
Noticing his teacher's expression, Chi Ning instinctively hunched his shoulders. "Teacher, please have a seat. I’ll go wash up and be right back."
He reached to remove the needle hoops from his ankles but found nothing.
Lost?
When did they go missing?
Afraid he might blame himself, Chi Baichuan quickly reassured him, "It's fine. If they're lost, consider it as having shielded you from misfortune. They weren’t expensive—I’ll have two more made for you another day."
Chi Ning paused. The sense of dissonance he’d felt earlier when answering the phone grew even stronger.
Back then, when his older brother had lost a watch, their father had scolded him mercilessly.
Today, he’d lost two pieces of gold, yet his father was being gentle with him—he hadn’t even asked how it happened.
Something wasn’t right.
Really not right.
After washing his feet with soap and returning to the living room, Chi Ning overheard his father speaking to Teacher Wang. "I know my own child. He’s loved reading since he was little. If he suddenly doesn’t want to participate in the competition, there must be a reason. And now he’s come home like this—maybe it’s best to let him rest for a while. Too much pressure isn’t good
for a child’s health. Our family isn’t short on money—even if he never works a day in his life, I can afford to support him."
Chi Ning was stunned, growing even more confused.
He’d braced himself to be scolded alongside his brother, but his father didn’t seem the least bit angry. Instead, he was asking the teacher to give him a break.
What was going on?
Was there really favoritism between two biological sons?
Chi Baichuan continued, "The national competition’s training camp doesn’t start for another ten days. Why not let him take a break until then? We can decide before the camp begins."
"That works. With your son’s abilities, even after ten days off, he’d still easily take first place nationally," Wang Quan said. Having navigated society for over a decade, he knew how to flatter.
Everyone liked hearing their child praised.
Chi Baichuan beamed. "Let’s not be too absolute—there’s always someone better. Still, I appreciate your concern, Teacher."
He took a sip of tea.
Wang Quan then stood and said to Chi Ning, "It’s getting late—I should head out. The notebooks you threw away were picked up by your classmates. They asked me to check if you still wanted them. If not, could they copy or photocopy them? The class monitor said they’d be willing to pay you a small fee for each copy."
Chi Ning blinked. "Photocopy?"
Wang Quan was surprised.
Could this little genius really not realize how valuable his notes were?
He phrased it carefully. "Your notes are very well done. Everyone’s eager to study them."
Chi Ning let out an "Oh."
It had been so long—who even remembered what was in his high school notes? But since he didn’t need them anyway, he shrugged. "They can copy them. No need for payment. Teacher, let me walk you out."
Just then, the doorbell chimed.
Chi Ning’s doorbell was the pull-string type.
A tug on the lever beneath the bell outside would make it ring with a crisp "ding-ding-ding."
Chi Ning opened the door and saw his older brother, Chi Yang, standing there with a motorcycle helmet tucked under his arm.
"Brother."
Chi Yang glanced at him and pulled out a warm fried shrimp cake from his pocket, handing it over. "For you."
Chi Ning froze for a moment before reaching out to take it.
This kind of Old Oil Shrimp Cake could only be found in Taiguan District. In his past life, he would always get a warm piece after returning home from night study sessions.
He used to think the housekeeper bought them, never imagining it was actually his eldest brother who brought them.
Taiguan was the most chaotic area in Yangcheng, while Jiurong District was famously affluent. Even Jiurong had its fair share of shady night markets, let alone Taiguan's lawlessness.
There stood Yangcheng's most densely populated old district, with its cramped pigeon-coop apartments and mixed small markets. Back in the early 2010s, police had busted numerous drug trafficking and organ harvesting rings there.
For an heir to risk going there just for a shrimp cake—it clearly wasn't worth it.
His brother might be a playboy, but he wasn't stupid.
Chi Ning's mind was in turmoil. Subconsciously, he turned to Teacher Wang and said, "Let's go, sir."
Once in the car, Wang Quan pressed against the window, his bald head reflecting a pitiful gleam. "You'll report to the competition prep class in ten days, right? If you don't go, what will happen to No. 1 High's competition slot?"
"I haven't decided yet," Chi Ning replied vaguely, then turned to the driver. "Please make sure Teacher Wang gets home safely."
"Of course, Young Master."
As the private car drove off with Teacher Wang, the mansion's front door was suddenly kicked open with a loud bang.
Chi Baichuan's furious roar erupted from inside. "Get out! Don't let me see you! I don't have such an unfilial son! If you won't apologize, don't come back tonight!"
Chi Ning was startled.
The Old Oil Shrimp Cake in his hand was still warm. What had his brother done to make their father so angry?
"Like I care?" Chi Yang scoffed. He pulled a helmet over his head, fastened it, and let out a cold laugh before wordlessly mounting his motorcycle. Revving the engine, he roared toward the garden gate but slowed down as he passed Chi Ning, muttering coldly, "Eat it while it's hot."
Watching his brother's retreating figure, Chi Ning replayed his father's outburst in his mind.
Honestly, wasn't his brother decent enough? Why was their father always so worked up?
Dazed, Chi Ning wandered back into the living room, where Chi Baichuan sat on the sofa watching financial news, his face showing no trace of anger. He smiled warmly. "Ning'er, go to bed early and rest well. Look at those dark circles under your eyes."
His demeanor was a world apart from earlier.
Chi Ning held the fragrant shrimp cake, unwrapped the greased paper, and took a bite. A rebellious thought crossed his mind.
Oh no—was his father actually biased?
Humoring his father, Chi Ning nodded and asked, "Where's Mom?"
"She's on a business trip," Chi Baichuan replied cheerfully. "What would you like for breakfast tomorrow? I'll have the housekeeper prepare it for you."
"Sweet rice dumplings, please."
The next day.
Chi Ning woke naturally and checked the clock—9:00 a.m. The first class had already started.
But since both his father and teacher had agreed to his ten-day leave, skipping school wasn't an issue.
He shuffled downstairs for breakfast and noticed a small stack of newspapers on the table.
They say finance is all about information.
The Chi family subscribed to nearly every major newspaper, even the tabloids.
One tabloid's bold headline caught his eye: "Chi Family Eldest Son's Midnight Street Race Causes Jiu Pharmaceuticals Transport Truck to Overturn."
Subheading: Chongning Biopharmaceutical's Stock Plummets at Opening—Does Chongning Still Have a Future?
Half the newspaper page was filled with a photo of Chi Yang storming out of the Chi residence, passing by someone nearby. Though slightly blurred, the distance suggested the person was standing not far from the garden gate.
Strange… He hadn’t noticed anyone there yesterday.
Just as Chi Ning was about to flip the page, a dull thud came from the mailbox.
The Chi family’s mailbox was connected to the milk box, both facing the side balcony near the alleyway—a path reserved for milkmen and mail carriers. The boxes were accessible from both inside and outside, placed close to the room where the nanny, Granny Apo, lived. Anything dropped in from the outside could be retrieved from within.
Letters and newspapers couldn’t make such a solid sound. Curiosity piqued, Chi Ning set down his bowl and went to check.
Inside was a plain, unstamped envelope, next to a glass bottle of chilled bayberry juice.
The middle of the envelope bulged slightly. When he tore it open and shook it out, two golden needle hoops rolled out that were tied together with a newly braided red cord. A yellowed note was tucked inside, reading:
The cord snapped. The items fell at the night market’s west gate.
The bayberry juice bottle was brand new, untouched.
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