Chapter 7
Jiang Jitang woke up, staring blankly at the ceiling. The dream shattered like bubbles, leaving no trace behind.
Suddenly, he sensed something. He abruptly lifted the covers and walked over to the dressing mirror.
The young man who yesterday still showed signs of an early death now looked radiant. His cold, pale skin carried a natural rosy flush, like the blooming roses thriving on his garden wall.
And when he woke up this morning, he didn’t feel the floaty, hungover sensation from yesterday. He couldn’t quite say he felt refreshed, but at least he didn’t feel tight-chested or short of breath. He could tell—the life energy inside his body was far more abundant and vigorous than the previous night.
As expected of the Tree of Life.
“Swish, mreee…”
Golden Eye proudly sought praise. It knew it did the right thing! This was the intuition of a legendary item—supposing an item could have intuition.
“Thank you.”
He stroked the Golden Eye, then recalled the origin of that wishing star.
Last night’s dream—he couldn’t distinguish any traces of fantasy in it. It was completely real.
[Daily task list refreshed. Would you like to review it?]
A chat bubble with a voice prompt popped up.
“Yes.”
The new orders lined up one by one.
Task 1: Please purchase powdered milk and clothing usable for a newborn baby girl for three months. Budget: 580 copper coins -> 1,160 yuan. Note: Must meet basic survival needs. (Difficulty 
, Countdown 06:42:27)
Task 2: Please purchase a set of silk embroidery threads for a seamstress. Budget: 80 copper coins -> 160 yuan. Note: Brand new, grade-one silk threads. (Difficulty , Countdown 18:22:13)
Task 3: Please purchase two wheat-cutting sickles for a farmer. Budget: 18 copper coins -> 36 yuan. Note: Blades must be sharp. (Difficulty , Countdown 15:34:15)
The order requirements were stricter than yesterday—especially the first one.
Only six hours. To prepare supplies for a newborn for three months, with a total cost under 1,160?
A baby consumes three to five cans of formula per month. Even the average formula costs over 100 yuan per can. Plus clothing—this money simply wouldn’t be enough.
But that wasn’t what worried him. Rather, if the beginner-level tasks were already like this, would the tasks get increasingly troublesome after the novice period?
If it stayed with basic living supplies, it would be manageable. But if it called for resources that ordinary people couldn’t easily access, just searching for them would take considerable effort. With his current connections and resources, he absolutely wouldn’t be able to handle overly difficult tasks.
Thinking for a moment, he opened the order details.
[Task Description]
The child is only three hours old. Not a drop of milk has passed her lips. In the harsh winter, she was wrapped in a single layer of tattered cloth and placed in a wooden basin to drift downstream.
A kind-hearted fisherman saw her and brought her home.
He and his wife have had no children for many years and wish to adopt her. But the doctor said she is weak and cannot survive on rice soup alone. She must consume something nutritious, or she won’t live long.
The fisherman’s family is poor. Even after searching all their pockets, they could only gather 580 copper coins. It’s not even enough for a small drink at a restaurant, yet it may determine a baby’s life or death. They hope the order taker does their best.
“…” So dramatic again.
He calculated the resources at hand, then picked up his phone and sent a message:
[Good morning, Aunt Wei, does anyone nearby have unwanted baby clothes?]
Less than a minute passed before she replied:
[Yes, but what do you want them for?]
[Charity work—for kids in the mountains.]
[Alright, I’ll help you ask around.]
Putting his phone down, Jiang Jitang watched the ticking countdown for order selection. Silence flowed through the quiet living room.
Time passed too quickly. In almost the blink of an eye, five minutes were nearly up. But at the final second, he accepted all of them.
I’ll take them all.
“The wholesale shop for infant supplies on Old Street should have discounted baby formula. A can goes for under 100 yuan after discount. Worst case, I can buy cotton and fabric and have them make the clothes themselves.”
Just as he began preparing Plan B, Aunt Wei sent another message:
[Got it—here’s the address. Go there this morning. Their kid just started kindergarten, they’re clearing out old items. They kept everything from before age three. Go check it out if you don’t mind.]
[Thank you, Aunt Wei, you’re truly my lifesaver.]
[What are you thanking me for? You haven’t thanked me for helping move my piano last time.]
“The market price of regular formula is around 150. With a thousand, I can get more than ten cans.”
Among the essentials—food comes first. For infants who don’t have breast milk available, formula is naturally the top choice. Only if that fails would he consider rice cereal.
The baby clothes issue was solved. The remaining money could go toward formula.
Even with his Plan B, Jiang Jitang’s expression relaxed greatly. No wonder she’s the queen of the square dancing group—great connections and reliable sources.
They met through square dancing, after all. Aunt Wei led the dance group, and he played the violin on the side to liven things up.
He had more such connections—like chess clubs, theater enthusiasts, calligraphy circles, cooking class members, gambling rehabilitation centers…
When he was little, his mother had to work and couldn’t watch over him. The elderly students from the local senior university kindly took him in, bringing him along to their lessons.
Because he was bright and had a photographic memory, able to draw inferences, teaching him was especially rewarding. The elders willingly shared all they knew.
Until he turned six and started school, he spent his days at the senior university.
During school breaks, he stayed there too—until college moved him away. Even now, he still kept in touch with the grandparents via cellphone.
In that sanctuary of hidden talents, he learned much. Those kind elders filled the emotional void left by the absence of attentive, loving relatives.
“This life of mine turned out pretty good, didn’t it?” Strangely, he even felt slightly jealous. But thinking of the newborn girl—born an orphan and surrounded by harsh conditions—he realized his own situation wasn’t so bad.
“I hope life will treat you well too.”
He wasn’t a good person—but sometimes, he did good deeds.
In good health, everything else felt better. In high spirits, Jiang Jitang headed downstairs. As he stepped toward the stairwell, his gaze crossed the living room and met the crow perched on the balcony railing.
It was still the same crow. Its black feathers shimmered with a metallic hue, like spilled oil glinting on water in prismatic colors.
But today, it didn’t fly off in fear. Its glossy eyes stared at him, as if puzzled—why did a terrifying two-legged creature exude a natural aura?
Jiang Jitang looked away, pulled out his phone to check for updates on his “request to view the Skynet surveillance system”—no response yet.
“No news is good news. Should I eat pan-fried buns from the south shop today, or glutinous rice from the north?”
Feeling great, he leapt down two steps at a time. As he opened the door, a refreshing breeze brushed against his face.
It had rained last night, and the morning air carried a chill. He walked through the back gate, but his good mood stopped at the sight of wet white papers scattered everywhere.
Square paper slips all along the street, even on the street trees.
They were funeral paper money.
For the sake of city appearance, scattering paper money was no longer allowed, so people secretly spread these square slips during night burials.
Right… last night he seemed to hear faint crying sounds passing by his door.
No idea who died this time.
“Do you play games? I have a game for you.”
Jiang Jitang turned, meeting a pair of bloodshot eyes that looked like they hadn’t slept in days. It was the neighbor’s son—the chubby aunt’s kid, probably still in high school.
“Want to play a game? It’s really fun.” He stared at him like a madman.
“Sorry, Little Jiang, he’s been gaming too much lately.” The chubby aunt hurried over and dragged the boy away. Even when he was far, his twisted, eerie voice could still be heard—
“Mom… play with me. Come play with me, please?”
“Yes, yes. I’ll play.” She replied absentmindedly.
Jiang Jitang frowned, deep in thought.
The address provided by Square Dance Sister No.1 wasn’t far. After breakfast, he bought some seasonal fruits from the downstairs fruit shop and went to visit.
A well-groomed young man bringing fruit—smiling before speaking—naturally appealed to the elderly. The old lady who opened the door beamed with delight.
“You must be the young man A-Wei mentioned! Why so polite? We already gave away some things to relatives and friends; the rest are here, still unorganized—it’s quite messy. Take all you want if you don’t mind.”
The owner of the old items warmly welcomed him and even invited him for tea. But given time constraints, Jiang Jitang left the fruit and pushed the large box away.
It was originally a freezer crate—heavy even if filled with baby clothes and small items.
He loaded it onto the tricycle borrowed from the fruit shop and delivered it home before urgently biking to the wholesale maternity and infant market.
He chose a long-established local store—well-stocked and low-priced.
“The cheapest Stage 1 formula?” The plump shop manager hesitated. “Actually, we have a near-expiry special of infant goat milk formula. Deep discount. If you want it—68 yuan per can, 800 grams, six-month shelf life remaining.”
She brought a sample over. It was a metal can, labeled in two national languages. Jiang Jitang checked it against official nutritional standards one by one on his phone.
It was compliant; DHA, ARA, etc., all included. No reported scandals for this brand.
“Can you discount more? I’ll take a lot. 58 yuan per can, I’ll take twenty.”
The manager agreed readily and, because of the volume, threw in a baby care kit and several bars of infant laundry soap. “These are our best-sellers.”
After that, Jiang used his own money to buy a box of 90 vitamin D capsules, a bottle of iodine disinfectant, and a bag of full-fat goat milk powder—total 116 yuan.
Vitamin D prevents rickets—one capsule per day lasts three months. Iodine disinfectant is for cleaning the umbilical stump and navel. The goat milk powder (800g) had only goat milk in its ingredients.
Without breast milk or formula, full-fat milk powder was his last act of stubbornness.
“I know babies can start on complementary food after four months, but you can’t feed them only that.”
After the shop arranged to deliver everything to his home, the money was spent, and nearly one-third of the six-hour window had passed.
Back home, Jiang Jitang tore off the tape sealing the old-items box to see what was inside.
“No wonder it was so heavy.”
Toys and clothes were all mixed messily together, indistinguishable. There were even many solid wood toys, including a rainbow-colored see-saw with notable weight.
“There are bottles!” With a casual flip, he found surprises. Inside an inconspicuous shoebox near the top were two sizes of glass baby bottles with nipples, a silicone pacifier, and a slightly chipped but functional thermos.
People nowadays are particular—so they usually don’t want used baby feeding items. That’s why these were left behind.
The thermos was an unexpected bonus.
“They can pour boiled hot water into the thermos and use it when needed—at least three times.”
This also reminded him—having hot water available at all times is vital for a baby. But continuously heating it on the stove isn’t ideal—they need readily usable warm water.
He quickly washed the bottles and such, placed them in the sterilizer to dry and disinfect them, then put on gloves to continue sorting and categorizing.
A set of building blocks with missing pieces, a see-saw toy with clear signs of use, a plush caterpillar with its head fallen off, a bunny rattle and teether both torn, a cracked roly-poly chick toy, a drum toy with broken string, and a nearly new box of color cards.
The building blocks and see-saw only needed alcohol wipes. The caterpillar and bunny plush had to be stitched. The roly-poly chick needed glue repair. The drum needed re-stringing.
He brought out the toolbox, quickly stitched the toys, patched the crack, and re-tied the drum.
Next came clothes of different ages—from newborn to age three. There were also two anti-kick blankets (one winter, one spring/fall)—in about 80–90% condition.
There were also yellowed swaddle wraps, bath towels, and other small baby items. They were used but undamaged.
Plus, a pack of almost unused reusable cotton diapers—six pieces.
This type of reusable diaper has one waterproof layer. Not as convenient as disposable ones, but far better than medieval-style cloth wraps.
“More new than I imagined.” Items of better quality or near-new condition had likely been given away first. But the remainder was still about 70–80% new. The quantity was enough for one child from birth to age two or three.
He put everything washable into the washing machine, added unscented detergent, and selected mixed wash + dry + pasteurization mode. The full cycle would take one hour and forty minutes.
Golden Eye was stupefied. The master of this world no longer fussed with his books and guqin [1] and was now doing housework and repairs.
When had he ever done such tasks? Even at his most destitute, he had money to hire servants.
But why… did he feel so happy?
Footnotes:
[1] The guqin is a seven-stringed Chinese zither, a traditional and highly prestigious instrument historically favored by scholars and literati. It is a long, narrow instrument known for its quiet volume and subtle tone, and it is associated with Chinese philosophy and culture.
I’m loving this new story!
So many past secrets to be unveiled, and the tasks are interesting and creative.
Thanks for the translations, I’ll be checking for updates regularly!