Chapter 816: Snake Killer

Qi Xia recalled the scene from earlier.

Chen Jun Nan had suddenly been overcome with sadness at that moment, but if Di She had truly employed some underhanded trick, why had the others remained unaffected? Although Chen Jun Nan was the one doing most of the talking with Di She, Qi Xia had also exchanged a few words with him, so it shouldn't have been related to "hearing the voice." Could it have been from physical contact? When Di She had attempted to hang himself, Chen Jun Nan had reached out to stop him, and if something had been triggered, that must have been the moment.

"Later, don't touch him," Qi Xia said. "I'll ask a few questions, and once we're finished, we'll return to 'Tian Tang Kou'. Staying too long might cause problems."

"Okay..." Chen Jun Nan nodded. "So, we're not playing this old guy's game today?"

"We'll see."

Qi Xia led the three of them through the door and found that it was indeed a bookstore, though the shelves were bare, with only a few scattered pieces of paper. Di She didn't even turn to look at the four of them behind him; after entering the bookstore, he walked directly into another doorway. The group followed him inside and discovered a small reception area at the back, which in the real world would likely be used for book signings or events. Inside the reception area, several chairs were arranged in a circle, and in the corner, stacks of books were piled up.

"Please, have a seat, everyone," Di She said. "I lost my composure earlier. Feel free to ask anything you want."

"Anything at all?" Chen Jun Nan confirmed.

"Yes, anything, but I might not answer."

Di She pulled over a chair and sat down gracefully, crossing his legs. Qi Xia sat down without hesitation, and the others gathered around him. The four of them faced Di She directly, and it felt somewhat like a press conference.

"What exactly is the 'Hu Zhu Hui'?" Qi Xia asked.

"Hmm..." Di She thought for a moment before replying, "Theoretically, I shouldn't explain this to you without a formal introduction, but you witnessed my moment of embarrassment earlier. If I tell you what the 'Hu Zhu Hui' is, and you agree to keep my hanging incident confidential, deal?"

"Interesting," Qi Xia said. "That embarrassment was something you chose to display yourself, and now you're using it as leverage for our conversation?"

"Ha." Di She glanced at Qi Xia with a polite yet slightly condescending look. "Life is about doing what you want when you want it. Why overthink things? Earlier, I felt like hanging myself, and now I want you to keep it a secret. These are two separate matters with no connection."

"You're surprisingly clear-headed about that," Chen Jun Nan frowned and said.

"That's right," Di She nodded. "I live by going with the flow."

"Deal," Qi Xia said. "But my questions won't be limited to the 'Hu Zhu Hui'. What else will you demand as leverage?"

"It doesn't matter," Di She shook his head. "It depends on my mood. If the conversation goes well, I might answer for free."

"Alright," Qi Xia agreed. "Let's start with the 'Hu Zhu Hui'."

"The 'Hu Zhu Hui'... well, it's a place where people gather, share their hardships, and comfort each other, with me as the host," Di She explained. "You've probably seen similar organizations elsewhere, haven't you?"

"This kind of thing..." Chen Jun Nan furrowed his brow. "It's common in foreign movies, but it's not really popular here, is it?"

"That's true, that's true." Di She nodded and touched his pale forehead. "But in a place like this, there aren't many ways to relieve stress, so I established this organization. Surprisingly, it's been quite popular."

"I'm not quite following," Qi Xia said. "This is the first time I've heard of a 'Sheng Xiao' creating an organization, and a charitable one at that. What's your purpose?"

"As for the purpose..." Di She said, "I'll explain, and you should understand."

Everyone waited for him to elaborate, hoping their doubts would be cleared, but his answer once again surprised them all.

"I set up the 'Hu Zhu Hui' simply to mock these people," Di She said slowly, his eyes widening and his mouth stretching into a grin across his cheeks. "Oh wow, who knew I could make it so big... with more and more 'clients'?"

"Mock them?" Qiao Jia Jin was stunned. "You created an entire organization just to mock the participants?"

"Exactly, spot on," Di She nodded seriously. "Sounds reasonable, right?"

"Reasonable, my foot," Qiao Jia Jin said, his face full of confusion. "What's your thinking here?"

"Because no one in this world wants others to do better than them!" Di She declared confidently. "Don't you wish the people around you weren't doing better than you?"

"What's wrong with that?" Qiao Jia Jin retorted. "If you're unhappy, you should work harder yourself. What's so impressive about mocking others' misfortunes?"

"As if I have a choice?!" Di She said. "Every night when I log into Weibo or Moments, I see people bragging about earning tens of thousands this month, or traveling abroad, or dining at places that cost hundreds per person... They're posting that stuff just to show off how much better they're doing than you. Don't you want them to drop dead?"

"Then don't go into those two apps!" Qiao Jia Jin said. "There are always people like that—what does it matter to you?"

"Two... two apps?" Di She paused slightly.

"Yeah, if those two don't work for you, go somewhere else!" Qiao Jia Jin said. "Go boxing, go work out, go make money—why are you stuck on those two?"

Chen Jun Nan and Qi Xia both looked uncomfortable and reached out to hold Qiao Jia Jin back.

"Old Qiao... hang on a second..." Chen Jun Nan said. "We've gone off track."

"Where did we go off track?!" Qiao Jia Jin didn't agree. "Look at this snake—he's miserable when others do well and happy when they're suffering. How pathetic is that?"

"But... but we have gone a bit off... let me explain..."

Qi Xia chuckled lightly and nodded. "I don't think we've gone off track. We can continue."

"Old Qi, you..."

Emboldened by Qi Xia's support, Qiao Jia Jin pressed on: "White snake, you tell me yourself. You spend every night scrolling, and then you complain about people in there doing too well. How are you any better?"

Di She clearly felt a headache coming on from Qiao Jia Jin's words: "I think I've gotten confused... Are we even talking about the same thing?"

"Yes," Qiao Jia Jin said seriously. "If you say so, then we are."

Qi Xia shook his head helplessly, feeling that both Qiao Jia Jin and Chen Jun Nan were like natural nemeses to snake-like figures.