Nyoi-Bo Studio

  Nyoi-Bo Studio

  It seemed as though Qin Shu was not the one who had started the fire first.

  The woman on the bed turned over and faced inside. She hugged the quilt in her arms, just like last night. It was as though she could only sleep peacefully with something in her arms.

  The man suddenly remembered the event over lunch. Qin Shu looked at him miserably after the food was thrown all over the ground.

  Fu Tingyu frowned and stopped looking at the woman on the bed. Instead, he turned around to walk up to the couch and sat down with his legs crossed. He picked up the cigarette box on the coffee table, took out a

  cigarette from it, put it in his mouth, and lit it up with the lighter on it.

  Fu Tingyu took a deep puff of the cigarette, and white smoke came out from the corner of his mouth. He smoked as he looked at the woman sleeping on the bed annoyingly.

  Fu Tingyu smoked one cigarette after another, but it failed to calm the man down. Instead, he became angrier and angrier. It was as if there was a fire burning in his body, which made him very annoyed.

  When the cigarette in his hand was about to burn out, the man pushed the cigarette butt into the ashtray. He got up, picked up his coat, put it on, opened the door, and walked out.

  Since it was a winter night, it was particularly cold.

  The man was now very angry, so he did not feel cold.

  When Qin Shu woke up the next day, there was no one in the house.

  People in the village had to work to support themselves.

  Qin Shu knew the man had most probably gone out to work.

  She walked into the kitchen, rolled up her sleeves, and began to cook.

  She knew that he might throw away the food like yesterday, but she just wanted to cook.

  This time, she decided to make something simpler. She washed the rice and saved it for later.

  There was bacon hanging on the balcony. She took a kitchen knife and cut some off.

  Then she took out the corn, chicken, and peas from the refrigerator.

  After washing them, she cut the chicken into chunks.

  She plugged in the power to the rice cooker, poured some cooking oil, placed the ingredients in, and stir-fried them.

  When it was almost done, she scooped up the rice, put in some water, and evenly placed the stir-fried food on top. Then, she closed the lid and pressed the power to start cooking rice.

  This way, he could eat the hot dishes when he came back.

  After doing all this, Qin Shu left. Before she left, she closed the door behind her.

  When she returned to the village chief’s house, she saw Hao Ze and the others coming out of the village chief’s house carrying bags. She recalled they were here to catch worms in the upper Nine Bay.

  Were they on their way out?

  The village chief saw Qin Shu and asked her, “Miss Qin, where did you go at this hour in the morning?”


  “| had something to attend to. Are they heading out now?” Qin Shu looked at the four high-level Gu masters quizzically.

  The village chief smiled and explained, “They aren’t leaving. They are going to Nine Bay to catch insects and make Gu worms.”


  Qin Shu looked at them knowingly. She asked curiously, “Are there still insects in winter?”


  The village chief answered, “Uh huh. There are three seasons to choose from each year if you want to make Gu worms.”


  Qin Shu said with an enlightened look on her face, “I see.”


  Hao Ze suddenly asked, “Do you want to go take a look?”


  Qin Shu glanced at the high-level Gu masters in front of her and asked hesitantly, “Are you sure?”


  Hao Ze smiled, “Of course.”


  Sun Shang stood behind Hao Ze as she said, “You are welcome to join us. The process of producing Gu worms is open knowledge to begin with.”


  “Then give me a minute so that I can get ready.”


  The moment Qin Shu finished her sentence, she ran towards the second floor.

  Hao Ze turned his head and watched as Qin Shu ran.

  Sun Shang also looked at Qin Shu as she went upstairs and said jokingly, “Hao Ze, could it be that you like her?”


  “I didn’t realize that Hao Ze’s taste was so unique,” Li Qian also joked.

  However, the village chief smiled and said, “The people of Kua Yi Village like women like Miss Qin. She would have no trouble marrying herself off here.”


  Li Qian suddenly realized, “I almost forgot the aesthetic taste of Kua Yi Village is different from other parts of Miao Xin.”


  Hao Ze simply replied, “I’m not from around here.”


  o one knew what Hao Ze was thinking since he did not explain himself. He neither admitted that he liked Qin Shu nor denied taking an interest in her.

  Before long, Qin Shu came out of the room. She ran down the wooden stairs and looked at them with a smile.

  “We can go now.”


  Hao Ze retracted his gaze. “Let’s go.”


  The five of them walked towards the entrance of Nine Bay.

  The village chief did not follow them, he only sent them to the entrance before returning.

  The tropical rainforest was very humid.

  Before entering, the five of them stopped and put on their rain boots.

  The rain boots were bought online, so they came cheap.

  After Qin Shu put on her rain boots, she followed Hao Ze and the rest into Nine Bay.

  The tropical rain forest was not easy to walk on, but with Hao Ze and the rest leading the way, it was much easier for Qin Shu.

  Perhaps they were paying special attention to Qin Shu since she was a woman.

  “Miss Qin, have you ever thought of learning how to make Gu worms since you are so interested in the subject?” Sun Shang turned around to look at Qin Shu and asked casually.

  “Gu worm creation is considered a skill, right? Can I learn it too?” Qin Shu looked at Hao Ze and asked quizzically.

  Hao Ze replied, “No, that’s not how it works.”


  Qin Shu did not take it to heart and continued, “Are only people from Miao Xin able to learn it?”


  Hao Ze replied, “No, Gu making is only for people from Miao Xin. Also, the maker has to satisfy special physical conditions. Both conditions have to be fulfilled to get started.”


  Sun Shang interrupted, “Then has Miss Qin ever thought of learning?”


  Qin Shu answered candidly, “No, I was just curious.”


  “It might not be a good idea to learn it.” Tan Lin spoke finally breaking the silence.

  “What do you mean?” Qin Shu looked at Tan Lin. Ever since they met the day before yesterday, she had not heard him speak. He had a thin figure, his skin was a healthy wheat color, and his appearance was the least

  outstanding among the four. Also, he looked kind.

  Tan Lin turned to look at Qin Shu. “If you do not do it correctly, you might get hurt. In severe cases, your life will be endangered.”


  This was the first time Qin Shu heard about the risks entailed in the job. She looked at the four people in front of her and said, “Doesn’t that mean it’s a very dangerous profession?”


  “Not all the time.” Hao Ze smiled nonchalantly.

  Qin Shu asked them, “Then when you decided to go into the profession, did you consider this problem?”


  “I did not consider it since I am an orphan. I went into it simply to make a living and I succeeded.” Li Qian smiled gently.

  “My father is a Gu master, but he was unable to reach a high-rank, so he hopes I can reach the height that he couldn’t achieve,” said Sun Shang.

  “I was chosen by a high-ranking Gu master to be his disciple.” Tan Lin’s reply was simple and concise.

  After Qin Shu heard their reasons for going into the trade, she realized none of them had a choice. She looked at Hao Ze, “What about you?”


  This time, the man did not wait until noon to return home. He did not care if the crazy woman had left or not.

  He wondered if the woman was still sleeping when he noticed the door was closed.

  Did she treat his house as her own?

  Fu Tingyu pushed the door open without walking in and could smell the sweet aroma of rice. It was very fragrant. It was white rice mixed with the smell of meat……