Hidden moth

Chapter 266 Who shares my pity?
The occupancy rate of Sesame Apartment is not low, and has remained at around 60% to 70% all year round. He Kao has lived in Sesame Apartment for almost two years, but has never heard of all the rooms in the five apartment buildings being rented out.

There are always rooms in every building that have bad orientation, layout, and location, poor cost-effectiveness, and even problems with water and electricity facilities. Usually no one wants to live there, so it is definitely not normal if they are all rented out.

As they were talking, the two of them had already left the building and were walking towards Sesame Apartments. At the gate, they met a middle-aged man, and Qian Guran even nodded and said hello.

Man: "Is Mr. Qian off work?"

Qian Guran: "Well, it's time to get off work."

Man: "It's quite early today."

Qian Guran: "Yeah, it's rare that I'm not very busy."

Man: "Cook a few dishes later, and then come over to my place for a drink. Afterwards, let's play some wudan (a type of Chinese egg-throwing game)."

Qian Guran: "Thanks! I have an appointment tonight."

After entering the gate, He Kaocai asked, "Who is it?"

Qian Guran: "New neighbor, Lao Li."

He Kao: "You two seem to be quite familiar with each other. How many days have you been living here?"

Qian Guran: "You moved in two days before New Year's Day, and you're very outgoing... You're a rare guest today, why don't you come to my room and sit for a while?"

He Kao: "Okay, I've taken a lot of things back with me, so I can borrow some tea from you."

Qian Guran lived in Unit 0912, Building 0915, a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment, the largest in Zhima Apartment. He Kao had previously lived across the street in Unit , a one-bedroom apartment, the smallest in Zhima Apartment.

Later, He Kao used the excuse of improving his living conditions to move to a one-bedroom apartment and moved to Building 2016 in . Today can be regarded as a revisit to the old place.

When I got out of the elevator, I saw a middle-aged woman with a child waiting for the elevator. The boy looked about seventeen or eighteen years old and was a head taller than his mother.

Qian Guran nodded and smiled, "Going to cram school?"

The woman looked a little surprised, then smiled and said, "Yes, I'm sending Xiaoliang to cram school."

The child named Xiaoliang was quite polite and nodded, saying, "Hello, Uncle Qian!"

Qian Guran: "Well, hello, study hard!"

When they reached the corridor, Qian Guran introduced them, "They are the wife and child of Mr. Li downstairs. The child's name is Li Liangcai. He is going to apply for an art major and is attending a cram school in Qiyuan. His parents have come with him to accompany him."

He Kao: "Live on this floor too?"

This is nonsense, Qian Guran pointed and said, "They live in 0916, a two-bedroom apartment like mine; Xiaomei lives in 0915, the one you originally rented."

After hearing these words and looking at the thoughtful look in Lao Qian's eyes when he spoke, He Kao suddenly realized two things.

First of all, he didn't even know which room Mei Guyu lived in. Secondly, Elder Mei of the Zongfa Hall actually rented an apartment with such simple conditions.

The smallest one-bedroom apartment in Sesame Apartment has a construction area of less than 30 square meters and a usable area of less than 20 square meters. The monthly rent is 2,500 yuan, and the utilities are paid by the student.

There is a two-meter-long and one-meter-wide entrance corridor at the entrance. There is a small stove on the right side of the wall against the wall. It is equipped with a range hood and a sink. There is no natural gas, but you can use an induction cooker to cook simple meals, such as noodles.

On the left side of the entrance corridor is the bathroom, which, in addition to a flush toilet, washbasin, and shower room, also has a washing machine, making full use of the space.

Through the corridor you enter the bedroom, which is also a living room, reception room, study, workroom... It covers an area of more than ten square meters.

Why did Mei Guyu choose to rent the room 0915 where he used to live? He Kao couldn't possibly be so self-indulgent as to think that he was of any particular importance to Mei Guyu.

That only proved one thing: Mei Guyu had no experience of the world as an ordinary adult. Although it was easy for her to witness the world with her cultivation, it was still different from experiencing it firsthand.

So she simply chose a ready-made template, which was the former He Kao: an ordinary employee who had just graduated with a master's degree and joined the back-end technical department of a large company. How did he live in Qiyuan?
The two entered Qian Guran's apartment, closed the door, and made some tea. Qian Guran also took out a set of things and made a simple arrangement. He Kao asked curiously, "Old Qian, when did you also start practicing formations?"

Qian Guran rolled his eyes at him and said, "I'm a fourth-rank cultivator after all, can't I learn more?" He then explained, "I didn't specialize in formations, I just learned how to use them.

This set of magic arrays was given to me by the Zongfa Hall. It not only blocks out sound but also prevents spiritual perception, making it easier to talk."

He Kao: "What a great thing! I want to get one too."

Qian Guran: "Then you can do it yourself. This magic circle is not mine. It is just temporarily given to me by the clan law hall... Let's talk about serious matters. What do you think of the family of three you just met?"

He Kao: "I feel like the child's mother should know me, even though this is the first time we met."

Qian Guran: "The child's father is Old Li whom we met at the gate."

He Kao: "I didn't notice it at the time, but now that I think about it, he must have known me. But his reaction was relatively calm. He must have been prepared and thought it was normal to see me here."

Qian Guran: "It's not difficult to collect your public information. I just ran into that kid's mother at the elevator entrance. Her reaction was that she suddenly recognized you, which caught her off guard."

He Kao is a well-known figure among the warlocks. He is not some old monster living in seclusion in the mountains. His daily identity is just a worker in a big factory. It is not difficult to collect his information.

But who were those three people? They claimed that their children were going to art school and had come to Qiyuan for tutoring. How could they recognize He Kao, whom they had never met, at first sight?
Qian Guran's words were certainly true. With the fourth level of cultivation in the art of looking at qi, the magical power he comprehended was called "the art of seeing colors and describing shapes", also jokingly called "the art of knowing people's hearts".

The art of qigong is good at observing people. As the saying goes, "It is difficult to draw the bones of a dragon or a tiger, and you can know a person's face but not his heart." However, there is a magical power in the world that can see the color and shape, and know the heart of a person.
Of course, it is impossible to read what everyone is thinking in their heart, but it can judge a person's attitude towards another person and the relationship between them.

He Kao: "Is there something wrong with that family of three?"

Qian Guran: "The child was kept in the dark by his parents, but there is indeed a problem with that couple."

He Kao: "What are their origins? Since you said so, you should have investigated it."

Qian Guran: "It wasn't me who checked, it was someone else who did it, and it was very easy to check. They were all Zhiyuanke. Xiaoliang's grandfather was a disciple of Danding Sect..."

Can magic be passed down from generation to generation? Both yes and no! Because talent for cultivation isn't necessarily inherited, and cultivation isn't something that can be passed down.

The child's grandfather was a sorcerer from the Danding Sect, a second-level hermit. He was already seventy years old this year. At such an old age, he was still only at the second-level cultivation level. His achievements in this life might have stopped there.

This senior taught the art of alchemy to his daughter, but unfortunately his daughter did not get started. Later, when his daughter got married, he asked his son-in-law to practice the art, but he also failed to get started.

Therefore, this couple is not considered as formal disciples of the sect, but they are standard guests of fate.

He Kao asked again, "So they want to raise a child?"

Qian Guran: "The facts prove that neither of them is cut out for cultivation, so they place their hopes on their child. Xiaoliang is seventeen years old this year, which is almost the right age to be exposed to and practice magic..."

He Kao: "The child's grandfather can teach him, or he can seek guidance through normal channels... Why are they doing this? Are they hoping to get guidance from Mei Guyu? What's wrong with them?"

Judging from her age and seniority, Mei Guyu is not yet at the stage where she can accept disciples. Her cultivation is indeed high enough, but whether she is good at guiding ordinary people who have not yet started is probably still a question.

Because she was so talented, it would be difficult for others to emulate her cultivation experience. In fact, with Mei Guyu's cultivation level, she was more suitable for guiding high-level sorcerers.

Mei Guyu came to Qiyuan just to experience the world as an ordinary person, and this was a secret act that was not to be made public... The couple's behavior was very taboo.

Qian Guran crossed his legs while holding his teacup, but shook his head and sighed, "Xiao Kao, you may not understand the thoughts of parents. In the eyes of parents, who doesn't want their child to be the most special and talented?

They will try their best to create conditions for their children to receive better guidance.

In their opinion, perhaps only a true master can discover the talent of his child? If not, perhaps a future genius is buried?
Even if he didn't get Mei Guyu's personal guidance this time, he could still become familiar to her and establish a personal relationship. After all, they were once neighbors!

If the child can truly enter the cultivation world and become a formal disciple of the Danding Sect in the future, this will also be a favorable condition. Who knows when it will come into play?"

He Kao also shook his head and said, "How clever! If this child really becomes a disciple of the magic sect in the future, how will he explain his behavior today? If he says it was just a coincidence, isn't that just fooling around?"

Qian Guran said: "This is the difference in cognition. They probably just heard the news occasionally and thought they could take advantage of the opportunity to do something, but they don't know the inside story, let alone the depth of the water behind it.

They just lived here and pretended not to know Elder Mei at all, thinking they were doing a good job.

If the day you mentioned really came, they could just say they came to Qiyuan for their children's entrance exams, and they never expected to rent a house next door to Elder Mei... This doesn't violate any of the sect's rules, so who could disallow it? He Kao: "Don't they know this trick is so obvious?"

Qian Guran asked in return: "Can you see through it at a glance?"

He Kao: "Even if I don't have your level of Qi-gazing skills, I can tell with common sense that there is a problem..."

Children of this age can actually live in the dormitory and eat in the cafeteria when attending art cram school. Even if parents are worried and want to rent a house to accompany their children, only one of them can come. How could a couple put aside all their family affairs and run to another place to accompany their children to study?
Well, it cannot be said that there are no such parents. Since they have paid such a high price and spent a lot of money, why do they still come to Qiyuan? Why not go to Pingjing, the capital of the East Country?

Although Qiyuan is a big city and the capital of Jianghai Province, its level of pre-exam training for art majors is not the highest. Pingjing, on the other hand, brings together the best art colleges and pre-exam training institutions in the country.

He Kao once had a classmate who wanted to apply for an art major, so he went to Pingjing Newspaper's training class.

Even if these can be explained, they should not live in Zhima Apartment. They rent a two-bedroom apartment for 6,000 yuan a month, but this kind of long-term rental apartment is not suitable for living at home.

They should look for a private house near the training class. As long as they don't pursue luxury, they can rent a more suitable house in Qiyuan for 6,000 yuan.

Although there are three types of apartments in Sesame Apartment, the kitchen and bathroom layouts are the same. There is a bathroom next to the door, and a simple stove on the other side of the entrance corridor. There is not even a proper kitchen.

There is no natural gas in the apartment, so I can only use an induction cooker to cook. It's okay for simply cooking noodles and hot dishes on weekdays, but it's very troublesome to cook a proper meal for the family. Not to mention the inconvenience of frying and deep-frying, I can't even put the pots and pans aside.

Gao Xue'e also wanted to move to Sesame Apartment for a while, but later gave up the idea. After all, it is more convenient to be at home if anything happens.

The above doubts may seem insignificant if viewed individually, but when all of them are put together, they definitely cannot be explained.

At this point, He Kao asked again, "How far is the art training class that child attends from here?"

Qian Guran: "Not very close, six kilometers by car, five stops by bus."

He Kao: "Does he want to apply to a college in Qiyuan?"

Qian Guran: "Not really! I chatted with him once. His academic performance was not bad, but he just liked art. His first choice was Chunhua Academy of Fine Arts or CAFA.

His mother wanted him to study plastic arts, but he himself liked industrial design..."

He Kao: "Chunhua Academy of Fine Arts and CAFA are both in Pingjing, but they brought their children to Qiyuan for cram school, and they live in an apartment so far away from the cram school. Isn't this a complete loophole?

I can see it, so why can't Xiaomei see it?"

Qian Guran: "What a joke! Two uninitiated Zhiyuan guests are trying to plot against a sixth-level pharmacist right in front of him. And Xiaomei is a swordsman, doesn't she know what a clear sword heart is?"

Then he laughed and said, "You said there's no proper kitchen here, making it inconvenient to live here. Actually, after that family moved in, the corridor on this floor always smelled of cooking fumes."

Although the apartment's simple stove is equipped with a range hood, the wall-mounted range hood is not very effective in extracting smoke. If you cook, the smell of oil smoke will indeed drift into the corridor outside the door.

He Kao: "Oh, they are really cooking here. I thought we were just ordering takeout."

Qian Guran: “I cook at home, prepare three meals a day normally, and even bought a big refrigerator and dining table.

Most of the people living here are single. Even if they are not single, most of them do not cook for themselves. Just say hello when passing by the door. They often invite neighbors to eat together and also specially invited me over for a few drinks.

One time, they were making dumplings at home. They made a lot of them, and after cooking them, they gave a bowl to each of their neighbors to try. They said that this was a habit they had when they lived in a compound..."

He Kao: "You also ate their food, drank their wine, and even accepted their dumplings?"

Qian Guran: "Well, just treat them as neighbors."

He Kao: "Did they invite Xiaomei?"

Qian Guran: "They often greet Xiaomei and are quite warm and polite, but Xiaomei eats all three meals a day at the company buffet. Except for the first day after reporting, she only comes back after dinner on other days, so she doesn't give them a chance."

He Kao: "How did they get the news?"

Qian Guran: "I don't know. I guess the clan law hall will investigate. I wonder what they will find."

He Kao: "What is the Zongfa Hall going to do? Are they just going to watch them perform here every day?"

Qian Guran: "What else? As long as they don't expose Xiaomei's identity and don't reveal their motives, the clan law hall will not deal with it for the time being, and it may not be easy to punish them afterwards.

They were just Zhiyuanke, not even formal disciples. They probably had never heard of the clan hall's gag order, and no one knew where they heard the news from, so they acted cleverly and came up with some clever ideas.

If someone told them this news, it cannot be said that they broke the rules.

They heard that Elder Mei lived here and that his name was Mei Guyu, but they didn't even know my identity. They only knew that I was the leader of Xiaomei's unit, but they didn't know that I was also a Qi-wangmen sorcerer.

As long as they don't speak out, no one has any reason to do anything to them. They are just bringing their children to Xiyuan for tutoring, which is neither against the rules nor the law, so is that not allowed?
This world is full of all kinds of people and all kinds of calculations, and you can't avoid encountering them when you are in it. These may seem like trivial everyday things, annoying but unavoidable, but since Xiaomei has to experience the world, this is what she has to experience..."

He Kao sighed: "Although it is self-righteous, it also sympathizes with the love of parents in the world!"

Qian Guran frowned and said, "Pitiable? It's fine if you don't understand, but now that you've seen through it, you can't say that! Parents set up a scheme for their own selfish desires, plotting against other people's children for their own children. You can't say it's pitiful.

Xiaoliang is just their child, but who isn’t their parents’ child? "

He Kao was actually a little envious of Xiao Liang subconsciously, because he himself had no parents to take care of him since he was a child, so he sighed. But Lao Qian was serious with him, and he couldn't help but ask again: "Don't you have times when you scheme against others for your own selfish desires?"

Qian Guran answered straightforwardly: "Yes, you know some things! But when I was doing that kind of thing, I would never say that I was pitiful."

He Kao: "So what do you think of this family of three?"

Now it was Qian Guran's turn to sigh, "Xiao Liang didn't know anything about it, so he's innocent."

He Kao asked in return, "How is he innocent?"

Qian Guran: "If he can really cultivate in the future, his parents will have made things worse today..."

In Lao Qian's opinion, the parents did this mainly for their children, but it was not good for Xiaoliang. This family dared to plot against the head of the clan before they even joined the clan, and they did it in such a sensitive matter, under the nose of the clan law hall.

It would be fine if Xiao Liang couldn't achieve enlightenment, but if he did manage to do so in the future, it would be a complete black mark on his history, and he would probably be looked down upon. However, he was completely in the dark, so Old Qian claimed he was innocent.

He Kao frowned and said, "Innocent? This word is not appropriate here! Innocent means that one has done nothing wrong but received an undeserved punishment. Although he has done nothing wrong now, no one is punishing him.

No matter how the clan hall deals with it, he will not be held accountable, and no one will do anything to him.

Not only is he not innocent, his ancestral graves are practically bursting with fireworks! How many children in the world can have such good conditions as him? His grandfather is a sorcerer, his parents have no worries about food and clothing, and they don't need to work and can even accompany him to art classes.

Regardless of whether he can enter the sect in the future, at least he will have the opportunity to learn magic, and there will be magicians like his grandfather who can give him guidance. His parents also took great pains to ensure that he can come into contact with contemporary masters before he enters the sect.

His parents' plan today failed, and you say he is innocent. If the plan today succeeds, would you still say he is guilty? In my opinion, he is neither guilty nor innocent.

The inheritance of magic skills isn't compulsory education, and the art school isn't a training class open to the public. Parents can plan for their children, but the school doesn't owe them anything. There's no reason to expect a master to value them, favor them, or cultivate them.

You said that because of his parents' behavior today, if he were to start practicing cultivation in the future, he might not be welcomed. Why didn't you say that if he didn't have such parents, he wouldn't even have the opportunity to start practicing cultivation?
As for him not being welcomed after joining, that's just your guess; it hasn't happened yet. Even if that were the case, it's up to him to decide what to do—how can he change others' impressions?

One cannot reap the benefits without being affected by karma, or inherit an inheritance without inheriting the debts. Does not taking all the benefits mean one is innocent? The karmic law he possesses is already rare, and how he cultivates in the future is entirely up to him!

Hearing this string of questions, Qian Guran couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "You have a point. It seems that I took it for granted."

He Kao also tried to soften his tone and said, "There might be something wrong with my mentality as well."

Lao Qian and Xiao Kao actually had such an argument behind closed doors. Lao Qian disagreed that parents should be pitiful, while Xiao Kao believed that children were not innocent. Fortunately, they both listened to each other's opinions, and the granularity between leaders and employees was aligned.

After taking a sip of tea, He Kao sighed again: "Speaking of innocence, Xiaomei is actually innocent."

Qian Guran leaned back on the sofa, resting his hands on his head, and said, "Who says it's not true? If it were just this family, it wouldn't be a big deal, but all five buildings of Sesame Apartment are full. Just thinking about it makes me feel overwhelmed!"

**
(End of this chapter)