Chapter 655: Rewards
The class leader told me over the phone that she wanted me to get back as soon as possible to help maintain order, if possible.
Although I became one of the PE committee members and led my class to win the intramural basketball tournament, there are still many students who are intimidated by me to this day.
The general impression of me among the boys is: “although I take care of my fellow basketball players, I still have interactions with shady people, so I shouldn’t be provoked.”
As for the so-called “shady people”, there are a few genuine ones, such as Xiao Qin’s father’s men, but those people are currently away from Dong Shan City.
Other than that, there are also the Five Tiger Punishment Squad who come to me from time to time and ask “when will we go together to chop some people up”.
And Tang Jiang, who was bewitched by Shu Zhe’s cross-dressing, would come to the school every now and then to ask where I hid Xiao Hong.
Although Tang Jiang tried not to cause trouble because of his older brother, Xu TianMing’s orders, but he still could not change his style. He also still wears his favorite peaked cap slanted on his head which makes him look like a bad guy to others.
Since he keeps asking about “Xiao Hong”, the boys think that I took his girlfriend named “Xiao Hong”. Maybe I shut her in my basement and ‘educate’ her everyday with Eunuch Cao.
I don’t really have those kinds of tastes? Who wants to ‘educate’ Shu Zhe with Eunuch Cao? Although Shu Zhe does look a bit like the class leader if he wears a long black wig, so Eunuch Cao might like it…
As for the girls of class 2-3, their general impression of me is: “temperamental, abuse of childhood friend, and you will get pregnant if you get too close to him.”
I did mistreat Xiao Qin for a period of time, but it’s not even comparable to what she did to me as a child. Also, what do you mean you would get pregnant when you get close to me, am I spinning around 24 hours a day while shooting out my seeds?
In summary, although it was not explicitly stated by the class leader, but she hoped that I, who was feared by everyone, would play a certain intimidating effect if I went back to the camp.
“If you guys don’t listen to commands and keep roaming the mountain to find the butterfly, then the boys will be hacked to death, and the girls will be impregnated.”
Is that what the class leader wants me to say to them?
I guess you’re finally at the end of the line. The Justice Devil has lost to the allure of money. There’s nothing wrong with it since even Jesus was betrayed by Judas for thirty silver coins. Yang JingYu had an even worse fate as he was sold out to the Japanese army for two pieces of bread.
Unfortunately, I would not be convincing if I said those words while holding a net.
“You guys are not allowed to catch it, only I’m allowed to catch it.”
It would be clear that I only wanted to reduce the number of competitors.
Besides, I had already made up my mind to look for the straw hat that Xiao Qin had lost. I wanted to see if I would be lucky enough to see the butterfly already perched on top of the straw hat.
If I caught the butterfly first, then the students in the class would settled down, right? No one would have the guts to come and grab it from me.
At this point I overlooked one thing: if I really catch the butterfly, then the others would believe that there would be more out there in Cui Song Mountain, so they must capture them all before giving up.
I had a childish idea and I was overjoyed, so I told the class leader that I knew where the butterfly was and that I would catch it first, so that the other students would give up.
“What did you say?” the class leader was both surprised and angry to hear that I would also join the money grubbing zombies, “Ye Lin, this isn’t any different than buying a lottery ticket and expecting to win 5 million dollars. There was an accident just this morning, but now you want…”
I felt like the class leader was going to lecture me, so I quickly interrupted: “class leader, don’t worry, I will stay away from the water. It would be more reliable than buying lottery tickets, um… can you try to control the students and not let them come down to cause a mess? Once I catch the butterfly and get the reward, I won’t treat you poorly.”
“You…” The class leader was so angry with me that she could not speak.
“Class leader, when the time comes, I will also buy you a gift. What do you like?”
“Who, who cares about your gift?” The class leader hung up the phone angrily.
After the class leader hung up the phone, I realized that I forgot to tell the class leader that a large wave of gangsters were coming up the mountain.
So I redialed the class leader’s number. It seems she deliberately let it ring for a long time before picking up the phone.
“Go and make your fortune, you’re not needed here.” The class leader said to me coldly.
“Class leader, I’m not the only one who wants to make money. In fact, there are currently many people who rushed to Cui Song Mountain, most of them are not good people.”
“So, you are a good person?” The class leader asked back with an oddly condescending attitude.
“I’m at least… someone who has donated money to the special education school.” I patted my chest and said, “I also donated five dollars and thirty-two cents to Jet Li’s One Foundation. In short, many gangsters and bums have gone up the mountain, so you have to defend yourself, class leader.”
“You’re not a good person.” The class leader hung up the phone for the second time after saying this.
But rather than saying she was attacking me personally, it’s more like we had a falling out. I don’t know what I had done to piss her off again.
I was simply trying to make more money for my family. Class leader, doesn’t your parents stay in Shanghai where there are more opportunities because they want to make money?
After contacting the class leader, I did not follow the other butterfly catchers up immediately. I deliberately waited for them to pull some distance from me, then quietly followed them, so that when I changed direction midway, no one would follow me.
Unexpectedly, I heard a somewhat lazy and familiar voice behind me.
“Oh, we meet again.”
Dr. Yu SuiLiang, who had scraggly beard and a tired face, draped in a white lab coat, came up behind me to talk to me.
The modified Google glasses he was wearing on his left eye beeped as he walked around. I wonder if he was using a pedometer or some other program.
I still thought it looked like a Saiyan scouter and was curious to see what it displayed for my battle power.
“Dr. Yu, what are you doing here?” I unconsciously turned the net in my hand and mentally reminded myself that Yu SuiLiang, the transformation maniac, was at least half Ai ShuQiao’s underling. Although he was somewhat neither good nor evil, I still had to be extra careful of him.
Dr. Yu looked up at the verdant mountains.
“I was persuading some disabled children in the special education school to undergo my electronic prosthesis transplant operation and as a result, I heard about this incident in the back of the mountain and came over to see what all the fuss was about.”
“Hah, don’t tell me Dr. Yu also has his eye on the half million dollars.” I joked, “Your wish is to transform all of humanity, so $500,000 in research funding is barely enough to even make a dent.”
Dr. Yu did not deny it. He took a cigarette out of his pocket and exhaled a few smoke rings before saying:
“It’s true that half a million dollars isn’t really a lot for me. The maintenance cost of the experimental equipment alone is more than that in a year… by the way, Ye Lin, I see you’re also holding a net in your hand, do you also want to catch the butterfly?”
“So what.” I put up my guard, ready to counter his sarcasm.
“Haha.” Dr. Yu flicked his cigarette, “If you really catch it, then you can come to me to claim the $500,000 reward.”
“Huh.” I didn’t respond for a moment, “Could it be that you’re the American tycoon who issued the reward on the ‘Butterfly Collector’ forum?”
“It’s not me.The person who wanted this subspecies, the so-called ‘Blue Moore Armenian Butterfly’, was Ai ShuQiao.”
My heart jumped and my face suddenly darkened.
Her again, why is she everywhere? I dreamed half a day about getting rich, but now even if I catch it, I have to head to an unqualified mother to receive my reward?
“Ai ShuQiao already issued the task for several years.” Dr. Yu continued, “I heard from a senior at Stanford University that if Ai ShuQiao saw the blue butterfly in Cui Song Mountain before she left China…”
I suddenly remembered that my dad told me that he had come to Cui Song Mountain with his dorm mates in his college days and had seen the suspected blue butterfly species.
So he did not only go with his dorm mates, but also Ai ShuQiao? Did you bring her when she was still your girlfriend?
It felt like fate is repeating itself in some wonderful and bizarre way on this mountain.
“Humph, it’s such a rare butterfly, so Ai ShuQiao must be planning to use it as a gift to make friends with influential people.” I said with a face full of contempt.
“I’m not sure.” Dr. Yu quickly smoked a second cigarette, “If it were me, I would probably take the butterfly and dissect it to see what special makeup it has.”
Who would be the same as you. The first thing Ai ShuQiao would do is to take the butterfly and give it to a mafia godfather, a business magnate, or an top political personnel.
A $500,000 butterfly is nothing. Wasn’t she also planning to gift Ai Mi’s first night, to a congressman who has a chance to run for president of the United States?
Doesn’t matter if it’s your daughter or son, they are all tools to achieve your ambition, so how can I let you get your way.
The butterfly will be mines, but I will not easily give it to you after I catch it. If it is really so important that you still remember it after leaving the country, then you should agree to some of my conditions in order to exchange it.
The first is that Ai Mi is not allowed to be given to that perverted congressman, even if he does get elected as the president of the United States with your financial support.
I know that it is almost a fool’s errand to make Ai ShuQiao agree to this condition with just a butterfly.
But I must keep Ai Mi away from danger, the butterfly is nothing more than a tool to open negotiations. Even if I have to sell my soul for the sake of my sister, I still would not sell it to Ai ShuQiao.
I would rather sell my soul to Xiao Qin’s father. If you don’t agree to my terms, I’ll go through Huo Zhen Bang’s connections and have them assassinate that perverted congressman.
So what if I kill one or two people for the sake of my sister. I wouldn’t hold back even if I had to do it myself.
Although I’m sorry that I couldn’t fulfill my promise of “not becoming a criminal” to the class leader, I don’t regret it, but I would regret it if I let my sister fall into the hands of the pervert.
I made up my mind, but I did not expect a test of life and death was hurtling towards me…