I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 1064 Eat Chicken
Seeing Zhang Chen's figure coming down from the mountain, the coachman's face lit up with joy: "You're finally back. It's been so gloomy and unsettling here."

"Let's go." Zhang Chen didn't say much to the coachman. After getting into the carriage, he closed his eyes and continued to cultivate the Qi within his body.

With Zhang Chen's level of cultivation, he could cultivate whether he was walking, sitting, or lying down; cultivation had become an instinct for him.

The sparse spiritual energy in the air gathered and, through his mouth and nose, was gradually refined into his body. Soon, the carriage returned to the Zhang family's courtyard. At this time, the atmosphere in the courtyard was somewhat strange. Zhang Chen stepped into the courtyard and saw a familiar middle-aged man, his father in this life: Zhang Fang.

"I heard from Zhang Xiao and the others that you came out?" Zhang Fang stood in the courtyard, looking at Zhang Chen with excitement, as if he had been waiting for him there.

He is, after all, her own son; there's no reason not to love him.

Zhang Chen glanced at Zhang Fang. The other party's care for him was genuine, but so was his mistreatment of him. In the other party's eyes, his own importance could never compare to the harmony and stability of his "little family".

In order to maintain the integrity of his little family, he always stood by and watched his stepmother mistreat him, silently and coldly observing, and tacitly accepting his stepmother's harsh treatment.

"I'm out," Zhang Chen replied, brushing past the other person before turning and entering his house.

Zhang Fang watched Zhang Chen's retreating figure and followed him into the house. Seeing the dilapidated state of the house, he quickly bent down and said, "Let me help you clean it up."

“No need, I have hands and feet, I can clean it myself.” As he said this, Zhang Chen looked coldly at Zhang Fang: “Actually, I’ve always had a question in my mind: how did those books on feudal superstition end up in my room?”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Fang froze, turned to look at Zhang Chen, his eyes filled with apology and pleading: "I know this matter has wronged you, but for the sake of this family not falling apart, please bear with it and don't pursue it any further. They are all your relatives. Although they did something wrong, it was only a momentary impulse. If you continue to pursue it, this family will fall apart."

"So, for the sake of this family, I became a sacrifice?" Zhang Chen smiled coldly.

"I'm so sorry. I'm not a good father and I can't shoulder the responsibilities of this family. It's all my fault. If you have any grievances, come to me. Please don't take them out on others." Zhang Fang pleaded in a low voice. Even in front of his son Zhang Chen, he was still so submissive, which infuriated Zhang Chen. He waved Zhang Fang away.

"Go away, I don't want to see you again."

Zhang Fang's lips moved, as if he wanted to say more words of persuasion, but looking at Zhang Chen's cold face, all his words stuck in his throat and he could only turn and leave.

"My father in this life was such a coward. Wang Fang was just a peasant girl who didn't even have a job, yet she managed to completely control my father, the head of the family. He couldn't stand up straight at all. He was utterly pathetic." Zhang Chen didn't know what to say or how to complain about the cowardly Zhang Fang. He could only say 'speechless'.

However, given the other party's obvious favoritism towards his new family, the bond between father and son was effectively severed.

Zhang Chen looked at the dusty room, and the next moment, a colorful light flowed from his sleeve. The five little ghosts began to help Zhang Chen clean. Ghosts are born with strange powers, and in just a moment, the entire room was spotless. As for the old furniture in the room, Zhang Chen chose to pile it up in a corner to use as firewood when cooking later.

The five ghosts brought water to Zhang Chen. Zhang Chen silently counted the number of missing pieces of furniture in the house, then turned and went to the street to buy various necessities for daily life. This was not only because he would be staying here for a month, but also because he would be exiled to the north and needed to carry his own luggage and belongings.

Walking on the streets of Shanghai, he felt as if he had traveled back to the 1970s in his previous life. There were no shops on the streets, and if you wanted to buy something, you could only go to the supply and marketing cooperative.

The Han Dynasty had been established for less than twenty years. Resources were scarce and life was dull, so there was nothing that could attract Zhang Chen.

With the money Wang Biao had given him, it wasn't difficult for Zhang Chen to buy things. He bought new bed sheets and quilt covers, laundry detergent, two catties of pork, and ten catties of flour at the supply and marketing cooperative, and then leisurely made his way back.

Upon arriving home, Zhang Chen was about to start heating the oil in the wok when he heard a knock at the door. He had no choice but to stop what he was doing and open the door. There stood Wang Fang, her face beaming with anticipation. Upon seeing Zhang Chen, she said, "We've prepared lunch. It's time to eat. I've come to call you. To celebrate your release from prison, I specially bought a large rooster and a pound of liquor to welcome you home."

Upon hearing Wang Fang's words, Zhang Chen raised an eyebrow. In his understanding, Wang Fang was not the kind of generous person, especially stingy with herself.

After a moment's thought, he already knew why the other party had come—it must be for Zhang Xiao's job. However, since the other party had already stewed a rooster, he figured he might as well eat it. So he pretended not to know the other party's purpose: "Auntie, you're too kind. I'll wash my hands and go right away."

Zhang Chen turned to wash his hands. Wang Fang stood in front of the door and did not leave. Instead, she explained to Zhang Chen, "Zhang Chen, please don't blame me for what happened today. You should know that if one person commits a crime, all the neighbors will be implicated. I had no choice."

"Oh?" Zhang Chen rubbed his face without looking up. He didn't believe the other person's words. Could it be that the feudal superstitious books that had mysteriously appeared in his room were also a misunderstanding?

However, since it was time to eat the rooster, Zhang Chen didn't argue. Instead, he said something that didn't reflect his true feelings: "It was just a misunderstanding. Why should you say more, Auntie? The past is the past. We're all family. What can't we get over?"

"Yes, yes, we're all family, it's all in the past." Wang Fang smiled, completely unaware that Zhang Chen had seen through her scheme to frame her.

Just as the two were talking, Zhang Chen finished washing his face and walked out of the house towards the main room. He saw that the house was filled with the aroma of chicken. Zhang Fang and Zhang Xiao were sitting around a table with a large basin full of chicken in front of them. Zhang Xiao was drooling as he looked at the chicken, while Zhang Fang smiled and said eagerly when he saw Zhang Chen come in, "The chicken is ready. We've been waiting for you."

Looking at the large bowl of chicken, fragments of memories surfaced in Zhang Chen's mind. In the original owner's memories, he had never eaten meat in this family. At most, he would eat some pork cracklings and meat soup. Even when the family stewed meat, it was always Wang Fang's family who would secretly stew the meat in the middle of the night and then secretly eat it all up. When he woke up the next morning, he was lucky if he could drink some meat soup and eat some scraps.

In the original owner's memories, he had long since lost hope in his family. Shi Yuyan was his only hope. He only gave a portion of his monthly salary to his family, and the rest was used to support Shi Yuyan's education.

However, as someone who could see through people's hearts, Zhang Chen recalled Shi Yunan's lukewarm attitude that day. He was no longer the naive boy he once was; he had already seen through many clues.

"Wow, this is the first time I've ever seen a whole chicken family portrait." Zhang Chen joked, but his actions were quick. He picked up his chopsticks, swiftly grabbed a large chicken leg, and started gnawing on it.

"You..." Zhang Xiao was furious when Zhang Chen snatched the chicken leg he had been eyeing for so long with his chopsticks. He was about to stand up and scold Zhang Chen, but Wang Fang quickly stopped him, smilingly smoothing things over and saying:
“We, a family of seven, usually live frugally and rarely have the chance to eat meat. If it weren’t for the fact that we were treating you to a nice meal today, we would never have been so extravagant.”

Zhang Chen remained silent, quietly gnawing on his chicken leg. Wang Fang poured him a glass of wine, and Zhang Chen took a sip. He then ate the chicken leg even faster, finishing it in just seven or eight bites. Looking towards the large basin, he saw Zhang Xiao eating another chicken leg, Wang Fang eating chicken wings, and Zhang Fang eating chicken necks. A large piece of chicken breast was still in the basin. Zhang Chen's eyes lit up, and before anyone could react, he had already picked up the chicken breast and put it in his mouth, biting into it.

Wang Fang looked at Zhang Chen's bulging chicken breast, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she didn't say anything.

How much meat does a chicken have?

Two chicken drumsticks plus chicken breast already make up 80% of the dish.

Zhang Chen ate with great relish. It must be said that Wang Fang was quite skilled at stewing. Although Zhang Chen could not compare to the imperial chefs, he was already an exceptional cook among ordinary people.

Wang Fang suppressed her heartache and watched Zhang Chen finish the chicken leg and then the chicken breast, while still trying to please him by pouring him a drink: "Boss, you're about to be sent to the north from prison. Your job is going to fall through, right? Look at your younger brother, he's already of marriageable age, but because he doesn't have a good job, no one is willing to marry him. Rather than letting your job fall through, why not transfer it to your brother? After you finish your service in the north, I'll have your brother transfer the job back to you, okay?"

Upon hearing Wang Fang's words, Zhang Chen glanced at her, then slowly finished eating the chicken breast in his hand, fearing that Wang Fang might shove the chicken out of his mouth in anger.

"You mean the job thing? Didn't I get released from prison on bail? But I didn't have any money on me then, so I sold my job." Zhang Chen looked at Wang Fang with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Wang Fang's smile vanished, and she froze on her face: "What did you say? You sold your job?"

Zhang Chen nodded upon hearing this: "That's right, it was sold."

"Your brother doesn't even have a job yet, how could you sell him? Go and get that job back for me!" Wang Fang immediately became furious upon hearing this.

(End of this chapter)