This humble Taoist priest wants to take the college entrance exam.

Chapter 136 is a perfectly reasonable thing to do (Thanks to Yunchen Xiatian for being the Alliance Leader)
After parting ways with Wen Zhixia at the intersection, Chen Shi'an did not go straight home, but continued walking for a while before turning left towards the Xijiang River.

It was almost 10 p.m., but the banks of the Xijiang River were still bustling with activity.

While it's not as bustling as it is on holidays, there are still quite a few people around at this time of weekday.

Under the banyan tree by the street, a simple cart with two insulated stainless steel buckets on it and a night market lamp connected to a power bank illuminates the small stall.

A jet-black cat lay lazily on a folding stool, while a pretty young woman beside it skillfully packed sweet soup for customers with a long-handled ladle.

"Young lady, is Master Chen coming over tonight?"

"Well, if he's not busy, he should be coming. He'll probably be done with his evening self-study soon. If you have time, you can wait for him for a bit."

"Okay, okay, then give me a bowl of mung bean sweet soup."

"Excuse me, sir... we're sold out of mung bean soup. How about a bowl of white fungus soup instead?"

"Huh? It's not taro sago pudding tonight?"

"Haha, yes, I made white fungus soup tonight."

"Okay, then let's have a bowl of white fungus sweet soup."

Since Chen Shi'an set up his stall last time, many enthusiasts of Chinese studies and traditional culture have come to him, wanting to exchange ideas or buy something.

Unfortunately, Chen Shi'an has been attending classes these days and only has time to come over after evening self-study. The fans don't mind, so they gather here to wait. When Chen Shi'an isn't around, the fans chat in twos and threes, turning it into a small cultural exchange gathering for a group of like-minded enthusiasts.

Chen Shi'an has recently become very popular online. Despite his young age, he has such a broad knowledge base. When talking about Taoism, I Ching, divination, medicine, astrology, and even calligraphy, painting, classical literature, and traditional handicrafts, the depth of his understanding and insights is astonishing.

In addition, given his status as both a student and a Taoist priest, and his handsome appearance, many fans recorded these street interactions and posted them online. As a result, Chen Shi'an's Douyin (TikTok) followers skyrocketed to 100,000 in just a few days.

Although he seems very popular online, most of it is fake. When Chen Shi'an walks on the street, almost no one recognizes him. After all, although the Internet is very developed now, there are still information cocoons. Unless you are interested in this kind of thing, you will never find him even if you scroll through your phone.

Chen Shi'an himself doesn't have much of a real connection to these online things; he treats them as an experience of modern internet life and a way to promote traditional culture. Unlike others who try to capitalize on trending topics, he remains as casual as ever, posting rough, unedited videos without even background music whenever he has free time. This directly and precisely filters out 90% of the casual netizens, leaving only genuinely interested fans.

Because Sister Wanyin and Feimo both set up stalls here in the evenings, Chen Shi'an would come to the Xijiang River every night after his evening self-study to drink sweet soup and chat with his fans who were interested in Chinese studies and traditional culture.

However, his stall doesn't have a fixed location or store, and Chen Shi'an appears at irregular times, making it difficult for fans to catch him.

After discovering that Master Chen always popped up near the dessert girl's stall, the fans also figured out the pattern. They changed their daily routine from waiting for Chen Shi'an to waiting for Li Wanyin. Wherever Li Wanyin's dessert stall was located, that was where these fans would have their little cultural exchange gatherings...

Even Li Wanyin herself didn't expect that, despite Chen Shi'an not being at the stall, she was still able to benefit from his presence and do business in a lively manner.

She also works a regular job, and every day after get off work she rushes to prepare sweet soup, setting up her stall promptly at eight o'clock.

Originally, I estimated that it would take at least 11 or 12 o'clock at night to sell out the sweet soups, but I didn't expect that thanks to Chen Shi'an, the sweet soups would be sold out in about two hours.

After all, she was no longer a student who didn't have to worry about making a living. Having already graduated, Li Wanyin knew very well that she needed to earn money before she could do what she wanted to do. She didn't have the good family background of Zhi Xia Mengqiu, nor did she have the strong abilities of Chen Shi'an, but fortunately, she met Chen Shi'an. In order not to let him down, she would definitely have to work her hardest.

I get up around 6 a.m. every day to prepare ingredients, and then leave for work around 8 a.m. When I get back from get off work, I'm busy making sweet soups and setting up my stall until around 10 p.m. When I get home, I still have to check the accounts, clean the kitchen utensils, and take a shower. I'm busy until almost midnight before I can finally go to bed...

In all her life, Li Wanyin had never had such a tight and busy schedule, but she didn't feel tired at all; on the contrary, she felt exceptionally fulfilled.

Especially when she saw Chen Shi'an walking towards her with his bag on his back under the night sky by the river, Li Wanyin felt a surge of energy.

Just like this moment—

"Sister Wanyin."

"Shi'an, are you done with get out of class?"

"Hmm, how are the dessert sales tonight, Sister Wanyin?"

"Hehe, almost sold out, your fans have been waiting for you for so long."

"Master Chen, your sister's sweet soup tastes really good!" praised a middle-aged and elderly fan standing nearby.

"Really? Thank you all for coming."

Chen Shi'an smiled, then turned to Li Wanyin and asked, "Sister Wanyin, do you still have mung bean soup?"

"Have!"

Li Wanyin, who had just said that the mung bean soup was sold out, took out a bowl of mung bean soup that she had prepared in advance from the small cart and handed it to Chen Shi'an.

This was her habit. Every night she would set up a stall and sell two buckets of different sweet soups. No matter which bucket it was, she would always keep one bowl for herself. No matter which bowl Chen Shi'an wanted to eat when he came over, she would eat the remaining bowl herself.

Chen Shi'an took the mung bean soup from Li Wanyin and stood next to her stall, eating the soup while chatting with the fans.

Offer pointers on their calligraphy and paintings, their handicrafts, or chat with them about those interesting but perplexing classical academic questions from various schools of thought, such as Taoism, I Ching, and divination.

Chen Shi'an was surrounded by eight or nine young, middle-aged and elderly people. Everyone was drinking sweet soup and chatting, just like him. Although he was wearing a school uniform, he looked more like a knowledgeable teacher at this moment.

Just like when he first set up his stall, many passersby were attracted to come over. From their initial curiosity to their serious listening, some of them might come early in the future, just like the fans today, to wait for Chen Shi'an to come and discuss classics.

It is a rare pleasure to communicate with a group of people who share the same interests, even if their academic knowledge is far inferior to your own.

Chen Shi'an dared not call himself a teacher; he simply expressed his own views and understandings while listening to the views and understandings of others. For him, this was also a good way to avoid working in isolation and to broaden his thinking.

On the other side, Li Wanyin, who had just finished selling her sweet soup and was closing up shop, was holding the last bowl of white fungus sweet soup, sipping it slowly, and quietly listening to him speak.

It's okay if you don't understand.

The streetlights cast a gentle glow as she gazed at Chen Shi'an's figure in the crowd, her eyes sparkling. The sweet and refreshing syrup in her bowl slid down her throat and into her heart, and a gentle smile quietly spread across her face.

……

At 10:30, the fans dispersed, still wanting more, and Chen Shian and Li Wanyin also packed up and went home.

The cat yawned, jumped onto the cart, and settled down next to the two empty buckets. Chen Shi'an and Li Wanyin pulled the cart together, while the cat sat facing backwards on the back, its little paws resting on the crossbar, curiously watching the passersby who were also curiously watching it.

"Does Sister Wanyin usually bring all her things downstairs in one trip?"

"No, it's quite heavy, so I carried it in two trips."

"Wouldn't they have collapsed from exhaustion before even setting up their stall?"

"It's okay~"

Two buckets of syrup, each weighing about thirty pounds, and without anyone's help, heaven knows how much perseverance Li Wanyin, a girl, had to run back and forth from the ninth floor twice to carry both buckets of syrup downstairs.

Luckily, there's a spot at the bottom of the stairs where I can put the stroller, so I don't have to bring it upstairs every day; otherwise, I'd have to make at least three trips.

Thinking about how she earned more than two hundred yuan today, Li Wanyin doesn't feel tired at all; she only feels extremely satisfied.

The money she was saving was much faster than she had expected. Her salary was originally due on the 5th, but it was moved to the 30th due to the holiday. Once she received her first paycheck, plus the money she had saved from selling sweet soup these past few days, she could finally start her plan to set up a milk tea stall. Just thinking about this filled Li Wanyin with energy.

After all, selling milk tea isn't just about making money for yourself, it's also about making money for Chen Shi'an. Every cup sold earns him a dollar!
In order to help Chen Shi'an earn more money, Li Wanyin felt that she needed to sell more cups.

Once she earned her first sum of money, Li Wanyin planned to buy Chen Shi'an a new cell phone as a gift, something she had secretly planned long ago.

She didn't tell Chen Shi'an because she knew that if she told him in advance, he would definitely not accept it.

What kind of "sugar baby" is this...? It's only natural for an older sister to give her younger brother a new cell phone!
Not to mention that he's able to make money entirely thanks to Chen Shi'an...

This is only natural... no, it's perfectly justified!
Just thinking about Chen Shi'an taking clear photos of her with the new phone she gave him and praising how smooth it was to use, Li Wanyin couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.

"...What is Sister Wanyin thinking about?"

"..."

Don't be so sharp-eyed! Can't you leave some privacy?
"nothing!"

Li Wanyin snapped out of her daze and asked him again, "Shi'an, do you have your monthly exam tomorrow?"

"Yeah, the exam will last two days, and then we'll have a holiday."

How many days off?

"Five days, where is Sister Wanyin?"

"We'll give it seven days."

"so good."

"You also need to take time off in lieu of leave, but it's only five days."

"We also took time off in lieu of leave, but we only have five days left after that."

Li Wanyin laughed as she listened: "That's how high school students are, so what are your plans for the holidays?"

"I plan to go back to the mountains."

How long will it take to get back?

"Two or three days, they should be back by the 3rd or 4th. What about Sister Wanyin, are you going home for the holiday?"

Li Wanyin shook her head.

"I won't go back this time. There will be a lot of people during the holiday, so I want to set up my stall all day to save up more money... I also have enough funds on hand. I'll take advantage of the holiday to prepare the equipment for selling milk tea later, so I can start selling milk tea at my stall then."

"Sister Wanyin doesn't even take a break during her holiday?"

"Hehe, I'll take a break after I'm financially independent. You want to travel to many places, right? If I have time then, how about I go with you?"

Li Wanyin said this half-jokingly, but Chen Shi'an nodded very seriously:
"Sure. It'll be less boring with someone around. It would be even better if Sister Wanyin could come with me if she had time."

"Then I must work even harder!"

Li Wanyin's eyes lit up, and an unprecedented sense of ambition welled up within her.

So much so that Chen Shi'an felt she was about to rob a bank at any moment...

"Shi'an, when do you plan to go back?"

"The morning of the 1st, I suppose."

"Is Shimo going back too?"

"Yes, I replied."

"That's it..."

Li Wanyin nodded.

Since they met, she has gotten used to Chen Shi'an being at home.

Just thinking about Chen Shi'an's absence for those few days made her feel a little lost, as if something was missing from her heart.

"What is Sister Wanyin thinking about again?"

"...It's nothing! Do your best on the monthly exam!"

(Thank you so much, Yunchen Xiatian, for yet another Alliance Leader! You're so generous! May you prosper! Thank you so much for your support!)
(End of this chapter)