Chapter 125: Chapter 125: Splitting Up

Jim Thorne grumbled. He hated waking up early—five o’clock was the best time for a deep sleep, and there was no way he could get up. “What’s the point of waking up so early?” he said. “I’ll give you a ride on my bike tomorrow. We can leave at seven and still make it.”

Tomorrow, Felix Thorne and the others were all going to Wraven, leaving the bicycle free. Adrian Hawthorne’s eyes lit up. A bike would be perfect; he wanted to sleep in a little longer, too.

“Okay, I’ll come get you at seven.”

After setting the time, the two of them seemed a bit closer. Still, Jim Thorne felt awkward. He’d never imagined he’d be partnering up with Hawthorne to sell things, much less chatting with him so calmly. ’It feels… well, it isn’t actually that bad,’ he thought. ’It’s just awkward.’

Tang Xiaonan observed silently from the side, realizing that Jim Thorne actually had a decent head for business and knew how to be flexible. ’Maybe this good-for-nothing third brother of mine will actually make a killing tomorrow!’

’Should I go to Wraven tomorrow to see the excitement, or go to Vessaria to sell movie photos?’

Tang Xiaonan was completely torn. She desperately wished she could be in two places at once. She wanted to go to both, but since she couldn’t clone herself, she had to choose one.

By the next day, however, the choice was made for her. Tang Xiaonan woke up extra early on purpose, but Felix Thorne and the others had already departed. The only ones left at home were Jim Thorne, Phoebe Huxley, and her.

It wasn’t even seven o’clock yet; Felix Thorne and his group had left a little after six.

Bleary-eyed, Tang Xiaonan let Phoebe Huxley braid her hair into pigtails. She couldn’t stop yawning, and her eyes were watery.

“Why don’t you go back to sleep for a while?” Phoebe Huxley said gently.

Tang Xiaonan shook her head vigorously. ’I have important things to do! Since I can’t go to Wraven, I have to at least check out Vessaria. No matter what, I’m going into the city with Adrian Hawthorne and Jim later.’

They were just finishing breakfast when Adrian Hawthorne arrived. He wasn’t wearing his usual crisp Zhongshan suit. Instead, he had on a worn-out jacket with several patches, looking every bit the part of a boy from a poor family.

Jim Thorne wheeled the bicycle out, ready to leave, but Tang Xiaonan grabbed onto it and refused to let go. “I want to go too!”

“Why would you go to the city? It’s full of kidnappers,” Phoebe Huxley said, trying to scare her. “If they snatch you, you’ll never come home. They’ll beat you and curse at you every day and force you to work.”

“But I just want to go!”

Tang Xiaonan squirmed insistently. ’I’m not really a six-year-old,’ she thought. ’If anyone tries anything, it’s not a given who will be kidnapping whom.’

In the end, Phoebe Huxley couldn’t win against her daughter. She agreed to let her go into the city to have fun and even asked Adrian Hawthorne to keep a close eye on the girl. For some reason, Phoebe Huxley just felt Adrian was more reliable than her own son.

Tang Xiaonan sat on the crossbar, Adrian Hawthorne sat on the rear rack, and Jim Thorne pedaled. The three of them set off. The moment they hit the road, Tang Xiaonan regretted her decision. The rural roads were bumpy and riddled with potholes, making her butt ache. After only a few miles, she felt like her backside wasn’t even hers anymore. Her whole body was sore.

But she didn’t say a word. ’If I complain,’ she thought, ’Jim Thorne will definitely turn right around and take me home.’ She still wanted to see the city.

After more than an hour of being jolted around, they finally arrived in Vessaria. It was about the same size as Wraven and showed none of the prosperity it would have in the future. The city looked quite run-down, with the liveliest area being the district around the department store.

The trio went to the movie theater, but the film showing today wasn’t *Painted Skin*. It was a domestic war movie, and the crowd was sparse. Adrian Hawthorne frowned but didn’t lose heart. ’Since we’re already in the city,’ he thought, ’we have to at least give it a try.’

Adrian Hawthorne handed a stack of photos to Jim Thorne. “You take this side, I’ll go over to that side. We’ll split up. If you see anyone with a red armband, run.”

“Got it.”

Jim Thorne impatiently took the photos and went to the other side to start selling. But there were hardly any moviegoers, just a sparse few. In half an hour, he only managed to sell five photos—nothing compared to Emmitt’s performance.

Adrian Hawthorne quickly came up with another idea. “You keep selling here,” he told Jim Thorne. “I’m going to the train station.”

’The train station is full of travelers coming and going,’ he reasoned. ’Maybe more people will buy them there!’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep