The next day, Chen Ming enthusiastically toured West Lake. Before his transmigration, he had actually worked in Hangzhou, so naturally he had visited West Lake many times. But in this world, the lakeshore was occupied by wealthy families, restaurants, and hotels, leaving only a few gaps for ordinary people to visit.

  Chen Ming didn't mind and was touring with great interest when suddenly he heard a surprised "Eh?" and someone called out, "Brother-in-law!"

  He didn't pay attention. Someone called again, "Brother-in-law Chen Ming!"

  He suddenly reacted and turned around. There was a young girl of about fifteen or sixteen, staring at him strangely.

  This young girl was extremely beautiful, with snow-white skin and long black hair coiled into a bun. She had an oval face, a straight nose bridge, very large eyes, and clear, bright pupils. Her figure was still somewhat slender, and her demeanor lacked some of a woman's sweet and graceful but had more of a young girl's lively and charming.

  Chen Ming was bewildered. Seeing that the girl looked familiar and that she called him brother-in-law, he suddenly remembered that he did indeed have a sister-in-law named Zhu Chuqing, studying in Hangzhou. Previously, overwhelmed by various matters, he had completely forgotten about her.

  At this moment, after The Great One had wiped out both the Chen and Zhu families, the only remaining loose end had caught up with him. Chen Ming immediately felt心虚, fearing that Zhu Chuqing might see through him and expose the truth that he wasn't the "local Chen Ming." He quickly forced a smile and said, "It's me! I didn't notice you."

  Zhu Chuqing snorted, straightened up, stared at Chen Ming, and said, "You said that once you settled down, you would write to me. But this past month, I haven't received any news at all. Do you know how hard it's been for me? Every day I've been worried sick, afraid that something might have happened to you too. The Chen and Zhu families—it's just the two of us left, depending on each other."

  As she spoke, a line of tears fell down her snow-white cheeks.

  Chen Ming's heart softened. He sighed and said, "I've had my difficulties too. As soon as I arrived in Renhe, the Chen & Zhu Trading Firm was burned down. I've had to run around every day, looking for ways to make a living. I only recently got settled."

  Zhu Chuqing was instantly shocked. She exclaimed, "What? The Chen & Zhu Firm burned down? Half of those shares were mine! My entire dowry is gone?"

  Chen Ming nodded. Zhu Chuqing was overcome with anger; her eyes rolled back, and she nearly fainted. Chen Ming quickly caught her.

  A moment later, Zhu Chuqing slowly regained consciousness, muttering to herself, "What am I going to do? How will I pay for next semester's tuition?"

  The otherworldly Chen Ming tried his best to play the role of a good brother-in-law. He said, "That's alright. I've managed to earn a bit of money. How much do you need for one semester?"

  Zhu Chuqing blurted out a number: "Twelve hundred yuan per semester."

  Chen Ming exclaimed, "What? One semester's tuition is worth a house? That's so expensive—are they robbing people?"

  Zhu Chuqing looked at him strangely and said, "Women's School are all this expensive. My older sister studied here before, and you always paid her tuition. How could you forget?"

  Chen Ming gritted his teeth and said, "No problem. I can afford it."

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  He thought to himself, *Worst case, I'll just make a few more trips to the forest and collect more dead people's wealth.*

  Zhu Chuqing immediately beamed with joy. She said, "Brother-in-law is always so good to me."

  Then she lowered her head and said, "After I finish Wulin Women's School, I won't continue studying. University is just too expensive, and things aren't easy for you, brother-in-law. I need to save some money for the family. Anyway, once I have my secondary school diploma, I can do many things. In a few more months, when I turn sixteen, I'll marry you, brother-in-law."

  Zhu Chuqing's cheeks flushed crimson. Chen Ming was dumbfounded, thinking, What exactly is the relationship between you, brother-in-law and sister-in-law?

  He carefully asked, "Aren't we brother-in-law and sister-in-law? Why would we get married?"

  Zhu Chuqing was furious. Her small, fair hand grabbed Chen Ming's lapel, and she said through gritted teeth, "You're not thinking of backing out, are you? Back when my older sister passed away, she entrusted me to take care of you. And you, in front of the elders of both the Chen and Zhu families, personally promised to marry me, to forever continue the bond between Chen and Zhu!"

  Chen Ming rolled his eyes. Great. Just how close were the Chen and Zhu families? Both sisters marrying the same man.

  Eager to escape, he said, "I have urgent business to attend to. I really need to go. Can't stay long."

  Zhu Chuqing panicked and cried out, "Hey, hey, brother-in-law! I was actually on my way to Renhe to find you, to ask for some living expenses. I never expected to run into you here! Did you come to give me money?"

  Chen Ming gritted his teeth, pulled out a few ten-yuan notes that hadn't even warmed in his pocket yet, and handed them to Zhu Chuqing. He said, "Yes, that's exactly it. Here's a hundred yuan. Is that enough?"

  Zhu Chuqing took the money, carefully counted it, tucked it into her clothes, beamed, and said, "Enough, enough! This hundred and fifty yuan will last me two months. Well then, brother-in-law, I won't bother you anymore. Finish your business and head back soon. Once you're settled, you absolutely must write to me!"

  "Absolutely, absolutely," Chen Ming said insincerely, fleeing as fast as he could.

  He inwardly cursed The Great One. He let the entire family of the "local Chen Ming" die, so why did he have to leave a sister-in-law behind—and a future wife at that? If she sees through me, it'll be trouble.

  Fortunately, a sister-in-law wasn't a sister; she wouldn't be too comfortable getting too close to her brother-in-law. Their familiarity was limited. Besides, Zhu Chuqing studied in another place and they didn't usually see each other often. If she sensed something strange, he could always blame it on them not seeing each other for too long and growing distant.

  Chen Ming left the city, found his bicycle, and rode back to Renhe. When no one was looking, he slipped into the forest and put the cash he had laundered into the保险箱 guarded by the monster.

  Then he returned to his apartment. Chen Ming took out his key to open the door, stood at the entrance, looked around carefully, and nodded with satisfaction when he saw everything was normal—no burglars.

  Since transmigrating, he had been robbed twice. Those petty thieves had given him psychological trauma; now, whenever he entered a room, he instinctively checked.

  But in fact, even if he were robbed, Chen Ming's losses would be quite limited. His large amounts of cash and gold and silver jewelry were all "entrusted" to his monster friend in the forest for safekeeping. Small amounts he carried with him. In the apartment, there were only some bedding, pillows, clothes for changing, and daily necessities like teacups—even if they were all stolen, it wouldn't cost much.

  Chen Ming took a chair and sat out on the balcony, enjoying the early summer scenery of Renhe County while quietly contemplating his next plans.

  His short-term goal was clear: continue the business of getting rich off the dead, and whenever he had time, go to Hangzhou to launder money, save up, and buy a house to settle down. Whether to buy a house in Renhe or invest in property in Hangzhou required careful consideration.

  He had lived in Renhe for so long that he was not only familiar with the local customs but also had some helpful connections. However, the downside was having too many acquaintances. If he bought a house here, how would he explain where the money came from?

  Buying a house in Hangzhou had no such concerns, but there he would know no one and lack connections—the drawbacks were equally significant.

  As for his long-term plan: follow the path of his predecessor transmigrators, avoid falling into traps or taking wrong turns. For now, he would investigate the Plagiarist of Library, Guo Xiaoming, and see if he had left any clues for later generations. Chen Ming believed that since Guo Xiaoming knew there were predecessors, he should also have guessed there would be successors. Perhaps, for some purpose, he had left a legacy for those who came after.