Swallowing the Stars: Starting with Family Revitalization

Chapter 4 Generous Rewards

"real?!"

"Would I lie to you about something like this?"

"Very good!"

Shen Ping was overjoyed and hugged and kissed his wife.

Li Yuewei pushed Shen Ping away and said half-jokingly, "Gently, gently, don't touch the child."

"Yes, yes."

Shen Ping immediately became cautious. He reached out and placed his hand on his wife's belly, pressing his ear close to it, as if he could feel the blood connecting him to his own flesh and blood. An excited smile appeared on his lips. Having a child not only meant that he would have more ties in the world of Devouring Stars, but also that his family would begin to prosper.

Looking at Shen Ping like this.

Li Yuewei couldn't help but laugh. "The results were just taken today, and you can still hear the sound? Alright, go to the training hall. I'm going back to my room to lie down for a while. I have to go to work at the mall tonight."

Upon hearing this...

Shen Ping immediately said, "Wife, you're pregnant, so you shouldn't go to work. What if you bump into something and hurt the baby? You should quit your job."

Li Yuewei rolled her eyes. "I'm not that delicate. Besides, I'm only newly pregnant. As long as I don't do strenuous exercise, I'll be fine. I'll apply for maternity leave in a few months."

Seeing that his wife did not mention resigning.

Shen Ping stopped talking about it. He changed into his training clothes and went to the training hall on the second floor.

Calm down your excited emotions.

He then began practicing his swordsmanship.

During this time, he had already mastered the explosive power of the third level of the Nine-fold Thunder Blade. He had also become accustomed to holding the blade in his left hand, and could perfectly utilize his body coordination by combining it with his movement techniques. After practicing the blade, he then cultivated the Nine-fold Chaotic Origin Guiding Technique.

The cells, which were quickly depleting their energy, thirstily absorbed free energy from the universe to nourish all parts of the body.

At night.

He drove his wife to the HR Alliance Mall building. His wife had been working the night shift for the past few days, and he followed her schedule to commute to and from Pingwei Materials Company.

Arrived at the company.

The receptionist on night shift hurriedly bowed.

Shen Ping nodded and walked straight to his office. The company doesn't have many employees at the moment, but it is still divided into day shifts and night shifts because the time when martial artists leave the wilderness area and return to the base city is not fixed, so the company has to keep operating 24 hours a day.

Sitting at my desk.

I opened my laptop and glanced at today's sales figures; there wasn't a single sale.

In this regard.

He didn't care too much; the main purpose of setting up the company was to obtain family rewards, as long as it didn't result in serious losses.

"After my wife gives birth, I need to go to the wilderness to hone my skills. On the one hand, it will accelerate the improvement of my physical fitness, and on the other hand, it will give me an excuse for my sudden increase in strength."

Turning to look at the night view outside the window, Shen Ping fell into deep thought.

In this world of Devouring Stars, strong personal strength is essential for developing a family, and should even be the top priority. After all, without sufficient military power, no matter how much industrial resources a family expands, it will only benefit others.

As a warrior who lost his right arm, if his strength suddenly increased dramatically, it would inevitably arouse suspicion and covetousness, so going to the wilderness area was very necessary.

There are precedents of people fighting monsters in the wilderness every day, suddenly having an epiphany that improves their swordsmanship and boosts their physical abilities.

……

Early August.

The hot pot restaurant was renovated and officially opened for business on an auspicious day.

On the opening day, due to the discounts and promotions, there were many customers and business was booming. Shen Ping, Li Qi, their wives and parents were so busy that even Li Qi's girlfriend didn't have time to talk to Shen Ping.

They stay open until closing time at night.

Only then did they have time to rest.

"Brother-in-law, it looks like the store needs to hire more employees."

Li Qi suggested.

Shen Ping pondered for a moment and said, "It's normal for there to be a lot of customers when the store just opened. Things will return to normal after the discount promotion ends. However, it's a bit short to have only two or three staff members. Why don't you hire two more?"

Li Qi quickly said, "My girlfriend Su Tong has two or three close friends who haven't found jobs yet. How about we have them come over?"

"Okay, you make the decision."

Shen Ping wouldn't bother with such trivial matters. Back in his neighborhood, he opened the virtual window, where a line of text appeared.

Your family has acquired a new business, taking another step towards prosperity.

[Reward: Second level of the Nine-Fold Thunder Blade]

Seeing this.

Shen Ping frowned. His swordsmanship was already at the third level, but now he was being rewarded with the second level, which was completely useless.

"Is the reward for developing a family business random? Or is it influenced by the overall profit and growth potential of the business?"

After careful consideration.

He felt the second possibility was the most likely.

For example, a materials company has a much better development prospect than a hot pot restaurant, so the rewards are going up. If that's the case, then his idea of ​​developing his business by renting shops will undoubtedly fall through.

"We still don't have enough money. If it were a large hot pot chain or other industries related to people's livelihoods, the rewards would be higher... But once the number of industries increases, it will inevitably compete with the conglomerates in the base city."

Individual martial artists engaging in minor skirmishes won't bother the conglomerate led by the Zheng family in the Central China base city, but if their interests are affected, they will definitely intervene.

Shen Ping was well aware of this, so his original idea was to open a few small shops first and continuously receive rewards to improve himself, but now it seems that this approach is not feasible.

"I can't rush things. My strength is weak, so it's safest to accumulate experience step by step."

He took several deep breaths to calm himself down.

He has a family with special advantages.

There's no need for him to be in a hurry.

For the next few months, Shen Ping did not consider opening a shop again, but instead focused on running the materials company and spending time with his wife. Their lives were uneventful and monotonous.

late at night.

Starlight streamed through the window and fell onto the bed.

Li Yuewei tossed and turned, unable to sleep.

"Honey, what's wrong?"

Shen Ping asked with concern.

Li Yuewei hesitated and said, "Honey, you must have been suffering a lot during this time. The doctor said that it's okay to do that during the second trimester. Maybe you should be more careful."

Shen Ping thought it was something serious, but it turned out to be just this. He laughed and said, "Wife, I'm fine. Now that you're pregnant, you need to be even more careful."

Li Yuewei added, "Then, if that really doesn't work, go outside and find someone to take care of it, just don't bring it home."

Shen Ping immediately became alert. His wife wasn't usually so generous; she was often jealous. Why would she bring up the idea of ​​him finding other girls to solve his physical needs? It must be a test.

"Honey, what nonsense are you talking about? You're the only one in my heart. I wouldn't even touch another girl."

Li Yuewei was deeply moved. "Husband, you're so good to me."

Shen Ping secretly praised himself for his quick thinking, otherwise he would have fallen into the trap. "Go to sleep, don't overthink things."

After this little incident that evening.

He took even better care of his wife, and in mid-April of the following year, she finally gave birth to his child in the hospital.

"Congratulations, Mr. Shen, it's a son."

Looking at the baby the doctor brought over.

Shen Ping's face was full of excitement. He walked to the bedside and let his wife look at their son.

"It's all white and chubby, it'll definitely be edible in the future."

"Let's call him Shen Yu."

After considering several names, Li Yuewei finally chose the name Shen Yu.

While his wife and parents were watching with the child in their arms, Shen Ping opened the virtual window, where a new line of text had indeed appeared.

Your family has welcomed its first member, taking a small step towards prosperity.

[Reward: One Dragon Blood, the fourth level of the Nine-Fold Thunder Blade, and a movement technique at the Intent level.]

(End of this chapter)