22: Chapter 22 Recycling Headphones

"Don't overthink it. We were just playing truth or dare, and I lost, so I had to say that."

Lu Xun once said, "Once a pervert, always a pervert." Zhang Wei didn't want to be labeled like that.

The front desk lady still looked at him with suspicion.

An Xiaoxi, who was nearby, had some conscience and explained a few things for him, which finally dispelled the front desk's doubts.

The two went into separate changing rooms. Zhang Wei was the first to change into his swim trunks and enter the pool.

The City Swimming Pool is a national-level sports venue. The pools are built to international competition standards, and the bottom features a retractable floor that can automatically adjust the depth of the water. It's a bit like black technology.

Zhang Wei did a simple warm-up, pushed off the edge, and swam out.

He used to swim a lot in the small river near his rural hometown when he was a child, which gave him excellent swimming skills.

After two laps, An Xiaoxi also came out.

She was wearing a polka-dotted one-piece swimsuit, a rather conservative style. As for her figure... it was as bland as a chopping board. Zhang Wei couldn't help but think of the fitness coach Sun Yicheng; if that girl wore a swimsuit, it would definitely be a sight to behold. He had to find an opportunity to see it next time.

It was An Xiaoxi's first time at a swimming pool. She stood with her arms crossed over her chest, looking a bit timid.

Zhang Wei led her to the shallow end and asked, "Is the headphone situation sorted out?"

An Xiaoxi nodded in the water. "It's sorted. They're over-ear headphones, and they look quite expensive."

Seeing the task easily completed, Zhang Wei relaxed and began to teach An Xiaoxi how to swim.

"Are your lungs as small as a pine nut? You can't hold your breath for even a second?"

"Why are you sticking your butt up so high when you swim? Are you trying to show it off to everyone?"

"Can your arms be any stiffer? Are you a zombie?"

Zhang Wei retaliated with all the verbal abuse An Xiaoxi had thrown at him while gaming.

An Xiaoxi practiced for a while, and, being a little careless, she swallowed several mouthfuls of water. Coupled with her usual lack of exercise, she was now panting heavily, leaning against the edge, her face a bit pale.

Zhang Wei leaned over to comfort her. "It's normal to choke on water when learning to swim. You'll learn to swim after choking a few times."

Then, he added mysteriously, "I know a fun fact about swimming pools. Want to hear it?"

An Xiaoxi, unsuspecting, said, "Tell me."

Zhang Wei said earnestly, "Experts once conducted a survey. Out of every 100 people who have been to a swimming pool, 78% of them have secretly peed in the pool."

Ugh!!!!

An Xiaoxi froze for a moment, then leaned over the edge of the pool and started dry heaving frantically.

Zhang Wei felt thoroughly satisfied. That's for calling me trash at gaming!

It was almost noon when they returned to the car. Zhang Wei took the headphones from the grim-faced An Xiaoxi and examined them carefully.

These were over-ear wireless headphones with a platinum color scheme and a Beat logo printed on them, looking very futuristic.

"You can find an opportunity to sell them online," Zhang Wei said, handing the headphones back to An Xiaoxi to handle. He continued, "There's a good barbecue place nearby. Shall we try it?"

Hearing about food, An Xiaoxi felt nauseous again and said angrily, "If you want to eat, go by yourself. I have no appetite now."

"Don't you know the three most embarrassing things to do alone, as voted online?

They are eating barbecue alone, watching a movie alone, and eating hotpot alone. I'll just order takeout and eat at home."

The two returned to Jiangnan Garden. As they opened the door, they saw Liu Haorui slumped on the sofa, looking utterly defeated.

"Huh, how did you get in?" Zhang Wei asked in surprise.

An Xiaoxi replied, "I gave him the key yesterday. I don't go out much anyway, so I don't need it." Then she turned to Liu Haorui and said, "Brother Rui, quickly sign a few autographs for me. When you become famous later, your autographs will definitely sell for a lot of money. No, you're already famous now. The kind that all the people in the country know."

Liu Haorui gritted his teeth and said, "I'm going to kill that reporter. He didn't even pixelate my face!"

Zhang Wei comforted him, "Netizens have no memory. After a while, when things calm down, no one will remember you."

Then he gossiped, "Think of something happy, like how you said goodbye to being a virgin and became a real man yesterday. Isn't that meaningful? How does it feel?"

Liu Haorui's expression turned strange upon hearing this. "But nothing happened last night."

Zhang Wei was puzzled. "That's impossible. As the saying goes,

'To refuse what's offered at your door is unfilial.' It was practically fed to your mouth; how could you spit it out?"

Liu Haorui recounted what happened last night with a long face.

It turned out that after parting ways with Zhang Wei last night, Liu Haorui accompanied Xue Zhongde to a sauna club. First, they scrubbed down, and then they soaked in the pool for a while.

Next, a group of young women arrived, all dressed provocatively and plump, making Liu Haorui's eyes widen.

Xue Zhongde, being an experienced man, quickly chose a young woman and went upstairs to enjoy the paid services.

Just as Liu Haorui was overwhelmed by choices, one of the women suddenly scrutinized him, then exclaimed in surprise:

"Hey! Isn't this the Interview Brother from today's trending search! That's right! I recognize that mohawk haircut."

"It really is!" Then the women exploded, pulling out their phones from their bags and starting to snap pictures, which completely bewildered Liu Haorui.

At first, he thought they had mistaken him for someone else, but when one of the women opened the trending video, he instantly turned to stone on the spot.

"Later, I put on my clothes and fled home," Liu Haorui said, on the verge of tears.

Zhang Wei asked, "You're famous at just the right time. Luckily, it wasn't posted online; otherwise, tomorrow's trending search would be 'Interview Brother appears at a young model club after social death.' By the way, did you settle the bill?"

"I didn't think much at the time. I paid ten thousand yuan directly before running out. That should be enough, right?"

"Old Liu, you're really unlucky." There were so many things to mock that Zhang Wei didn't know where to start.

An Xiaoxi interjected, "I still have a question. Why did you drag a urea snake-skin bag when you went to receive the award? One hundred thousand yuan isn't that much; a backpack would have been enough, right?"

Zhang Wei shrugged. "I guess he's probably never held that much money, so he has no concept of it."

Liu Haorui said shyly, "Using a snake-skin bag makes me seem down-to-earth, doesn't it? Paired with a suit, it creates a strong contrast."

"It seems what they say online is true; you really are a unique individual," An Xiaoxi said, speechless.

At this point, the takeout arrived. Zhang Wei took a bite, realized he had nothing to do in the afternoon, and felt a bit bored. After some thought, he decided to sell the Cartier ring.

Zhang Wei didn't drive; he jogged all the way to "Fan's Gold Shop."

Upon entering, Fan Haitao, that sly merchant, was still playing games behind the counter.

He looked up and saw Zhang Wei, his eyes lighting up: "Little brother, you're here again, welcome, welcome! Do you have anything to sell today?"

This person was a god of wealth. He had made two hundred thousand yuan by reselling the gold bars he bought from Zhang Wei before. If he maintained a good relationship, he wouldn't have to worry about food and drink in the future.

Zhang Wei didn't waste words; he pulled out the ring and placed it on the counter.

Fan Haitao wasn't discouraged that it wasn't gold bars. He picked up the ring and began to examine it.

"This ring seems to be made of three materials: yellow gold, platinum, and rose gold. Do you mind if I use an instrument to measure it?"

Seeing Zhang Wei nod, Fan Haitao took out an instrument and started operating it.