Ren Xiaosu was seriously discussing with Yan Liuyuan what exactly could be done to quickly harvest gratitude.
He was a very "simple" person. So once he understood how valuable a single instance of sincere gratitude was, he also understood one thing very clearly—
He needed it.
Yan Liuyuan, however, felt that Ren Xiaosu had completely misused the word simple.
"Bro, I think you could just go out and do good deeds," Yan Liuyuan suggested. "Isn't that the most direct way to get sincere thanks? Like giving food to the hungry, or water to the thirsty."
Ren Xiaosu's eyes widened immediately."What kind of person do you think I am? If I give them my food and water, what do I eat and drink? What do you eat and drink?!"
Yan Liuyuan said with deep anguish, "Then maybe… don't obsess over sincere gratitude so much, okay?"
"No," Ren Xiaosu flatly rejected him. "There has to be another way!"
Ren Xiaosu had understood long ago that this era had no goodwill toward humanity.
Or rather, humans themselves rarely showed genuine goodwill toward one another.
There used to be a beggar in the town. A kind-hearted girl would bring him food every day.
Later, the girl got married and stopped coming.
The beggar tracked her down to her home and asked, Why don't you bring me food anymore?He was immediately chased out—her husband wasn't nearly as kind.
Everyone thought that would be the end of it. Some people in the town even went out of their way to mock the beggar, waiting to see when he'd finally starve to death.
But that very night, the beggar snuck into the girl's home… and killed both husband and wife.
Ren Xiaosu always felt there was some profound lesson hidden in that story. But back then, he was still young. All he vaguely understood was that when you slept at night, you had to be careful…
…
Early the next morning, a commotion came from the street.
Ren Xiaosu got up and pulled open the door curtain, only to see the band's group heading toward the edge of the settlement. Walking beside them was someone he recognized.
An old hunter from the town—skilled and experienced.
The man followed the band's staff eagerly, clearly delighted, as if he'd finally seized the chance to get acquainted with big shots from inside the shelter walls.
In fact, many people in the town rose in status this way.
It seemed that if a noble from the shelter let even a little something slip through their fingers, it could be enough to make someone rich overnight.
Of course, "rich" meant something like Wang Fugui—owning a small grocery shop.
Ren Xiaosu had once asked Wang Fugui why he always tried so hard to curry favor whenever people came out from the shelter walls. After all, not everyone inside was a noble, right?
Wang Fugui had smiled mysteriously."Sure, there are poor people inside the shelter too. But anyone who can freely come and go? Those are definitely nobles."
According to Wang Fugui, even the poor inside the shelter had a hard time getting out.
Those towering walls didn't just block people on the outside.
They also trapped people on the inside.
At this moment, Wang Fugui was also walking beside the band's staff. When he passed Ren Xiaosu, he kept glaring at him. Finally, he lowered his voice and said,
"You ungrateful little brat. Your Uncle Wang recommended such a great job for you, and you didn't even take it. Do you know what I heard from their staff? They're looking for a reliable local guide to bring into the shelter. Once you're in, they'll need you for all kinds of things in the future!"
Ren Xiaosu froze.
He hadn't expected it to be that kind of opportunity.
If he'd known earlier… would he still have refused?
Yes.
Because if he went in, Yan Liuyuan definitely wouldn't be able to. And there was no way he'd leave Yan Liuyuan alone outside.
Yan Liuyuan whispered, "Bro, maybe you should go talk to the band again? You're way better than Old Liu. He comes back empty-handed all the time, and he's never even dared to go too far from the settlement."
"Enough," Ren Xiaosu said, frowning.
It was impossible not to feel a little heartache, not to be tempted. But he had already made his decision.
"Let's go. I'll take you to school."
When Ren Xiaosu and Yan Liuyuan arrived at the classroom, Zhang Jinglin was already wiping the blackboard. He turned around, saw the two of them, and nearly jumped in surprise.
Both of them had heavy dark circles under their eyes, looking like ghosts.
"You two… what happened?" Zhang Jinglin asked hesitantly.
"My brother insisted on—" Yan Liuyuan started to explain.
Before he could finish, Ren Xiaosu slapped the back of his head and cut him off.
"It's nothing," Ren Xiaosu said. "Just didn't sleep well."
"Oh," Zhang Jinglin replied. He didn't pry further. "Have you decided what you'll teach today? It's your first day substituting."
"I've got it planned," Ren Xiaosu nodded.
During the day, he sat in class as a student. In the afternoon, during the final survival class, he became the substitute teacher.
For the last lesson, Zhang Jinglin sat in the back row. He was worried Ren Xiaosu lacked teaching experience and wanted to keep an eye on things.
Ren Xiaosu walked up to the podium.
The class monitor immediately shouted, "Stand up!"
All the students shouted in unison, "Hello, Teacher!"
To the students, Ren Xiaosu was already a special presence. He was their classmate, the oldest among them, and a minor celebrity in the settlement.
Him teaching a class was fresh and exciting.
At that moment, Ren Xiaosu suddenly said,"Do you think Mr. Zhang works hard teaching you all? You can sit during class, but he stands all day."
With Zhang Jinglin right there, how could the students say he didn't work hard?
So they could only answer—
"Yes!"
Ren Xiaosu continued, "Then shouldn't we thank Mr. Zhang?"
"Yes!" the students replied in unison.
Yan Liuyuan's face turned pale.Here it comes. It's happening.
Ren Xiaosu nodded in satisfaction."From now on, instead of saying 'Hello, Teacher,' you'll say 'Thank you, Teacher.'"
Zhang Jinglin looked completely baffled. He had no idea what kind of nonsense Ren Xiaosu was pulling.
"Alright, sit down. Let's try it once," Ren Xiaosu said with a cheerful smile.
"Stand up!"
"Thank you, Teacher!" the students shouted together.
Ren Xiaosu glanced inward at the palace's typewriter—
And his heart sank with disappointment.
Not a single one of these little brats sincerely thanked the teacher.
Was it really this hard, in this day and age, to sincerely thank someone who devoted themselves to educating others?!
No good.
He'd have to think of another way. His first attempt had failed.
But for Ren Xiaosu, failure was nothing unusual.
Being able to calmly accept failure was one of his greatest strengths.
He once heard a saying:
In life, nine out of ten things don't go your way.
Meaning that out of ten events in a person's life, eight or nine would be disappointing.
But even so—
Does life stop?
Of course not.