NOVEL NEXT Chapter 14
Chapter 14: The Family’s Current Situation And The Destitute Father
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
When Shen Fei’s family was in dire straits, the rich and powerful families in the city chose to hit them while they were down.
Even the Gelin family, who had a close relationship with them, never visited again after his grandfather’s death.
Looking at the broken door, Shen Fei slowly sighed. Relying on others was ultimately a dead end. Only when one’s is strong on their own could one be truly powerful!
Shen Fei pushed the door open, and a pungent stench assaulted his nose.
The clean floor in his memory was covered with a pool of unknown vomit and broken glass bottles.
“Ugh…” Shen Fei pinched his nose.
When he left in the morning, it took him a lot of effort to clean this place up.
It had only been half a day, and his father had turned the house into such a mess again…
‘Before training, I’d better clean the yard first.’
Shen Fei helplessly extended his leg and pushed aside the broken beer bottle on the ground. He stepped over the vomit that was emitting the smell of alcohol and, with some difficulty, arrived in front of the cleaning room at last.
“Zzzz…” A loud snoring sound came from his father’s room.
Shen Fei peeked inside. His father was still drunk as usual, and the alcohol in the bottle was all over the bed.
Shen Fei sighed. His workload tonight had doubled. He did not know when he would be able to return things to how they used to be.
Squeak!
Shen Fei only used a little bit of strength, and the door in front of him let out a squeaky sound.
“Son, you’re back? Burp!”
“I’m back, dad.”
“Since you’re home, then… What are you still doing standing around? Hurry up and get some wine for me… The boss from last time wasn’t honest… He mixed water into the one I drank…”
Hearing his father’s shameless tone, Shen Fei’s heart turned cold.
He added the water in the wine. He had thought that his father would sober up if he drank less. In the end, he only drank even more.
Shen Fei definitely could not let him continue drinking like this!
“Dad, if you’re thirsty, I’ll go get you some water.”
Bang!
The table in the room suddenly made a sound.
“Who wants to drink water? What’s the use of drinking water? Go get me a bottle of wine!”
Shen Fei sighed in his heart.
“I’ve already put all my money into my school’s cash card. I don’t have any money to buy drinks. Dad, just bear with it for now.”
After his grandfather’s death, even if they did not use the remaining money in the family to run a business, they could still live a life without worry like an ordinary person if they used it sparingly.
However, her father liked to drink expensive things.
When they were still rich, he would down half a bottle of 2,000,000-yuan wine, and throw up the other half. He would drink an entire case of wine each month.
Now that he did not have much money, he would even swallow the sourest wine.
“Look at what you’re saying… It’s just money, isn’t it? Come over here and take it!”
“Alright, then.”
Shen Fei pushed open the door feebly. The moment he opened it, the smell of alcohol rushed into his nose, causing his eyes to water.
Everything in the room, including the person, was a wreck.
His father, Shen Teng, was holding a smashed wine jar and leaning on the table. His hair hung messily over his shoulders.
Seeing that Shen Fei had arrived, he immediately searched his pockets and casually threw two dirty balls of paper on the table.
“Here’s the money, take it.”
Shen Fei looked at the table. The two items on the table were clearly two paper balls that someone had used to wipe their snot with.
It seemed that his father had drunk too much today.
“Dad, take a good look at what I’m holding in my hand.”
Shen Fei picked up the ball of paper on the table. Just as he was about to bring it to his father, he saw his father close his eyes and fall asleep.
“Zzzzz…”
Shen Teng’s loud snores made Shen Fei angry. He slammed the paper on the table, and the snot splashed all over the table.
“Drink, drink, drink, all you know how to do is to drink!”
His father had been like this for ten whole years! In the past ten years, there had been so many opportunities to change the status quo of their family. However, Shen Teng would only hold a bottle of wine and drink in his room.
He was not like a father at all.
Even Shen Fei’s tuition fees for the academy were paid for by the mayor whenever he came to visit. He saw that Shen Fei was really pitiful, so he helped cover the fees for him.
When would these days of poverty end?
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.” Shen Fei picked up the snot-covered bills, pinched his nose, and walked out.
He would help his father pay for the wine today. He would ask for more when he woke up.
“…Wait!”
Shen Teng, who had been snoring just a moment ago, suddenly opened his eyes.
“What talent did you awaken in today’s ceremony?”
“F…” Seeing that his father’s turbid eyes were filled with anticipation, Shen Fei quickly changed his words.
His father was already so dispirited now. If he were to tell him directly that he had awakened an F-class talent, it would be no different from delivering a blow to his head with a hammer. They could not continue to live like this.
However, directly exposing one’s true talent would not be beneficial to one’s future development.
‘I’ll just tell him I’m average.’
Shen Fei composed himself and deliberately avoided his father’s eyes.
“…C-class talent, Flame Protection.”
“C-class Talent?”
In an instant, the atmosphere in the room became extremely heavy. The anticipation on Shen Teng’s face also disappeared without a trace.
“This talent… is barely useful. You can go first. Come back to me after you’ve bought the alcohol.”
“I’ll be heading out, then.”
Shen Fei felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He quickly grabbed the two dirty bills and left.
On the other end, once Shen Fei had closed the door, Shen Teng shook the wine jar in his hand, unscrewed the lid, and took a swig.
His heart was already filled with endless sorrow as he stared at the broken door.
“C-class talent… Haha, C-class talent… Is our family really going to be finished? Sigh…”
Shen Teng heaved a long sigh, and tears rolled down his face.
“If it was in the past, when father was still alive, it would have been fine.”
Thinking of his glorious past, Shen Teng grabbed the wine jar and drank it in big gulps.
Not long after, his body went limp, and he fell onto the bed.
…
Shen Fei arrived at the pub.
The bartender was an old man. His beard was so long that it almost reached his chest, but he still did not want to cut it. He just tied it into a ponytail and continued to do business.
“Kid, you’re here to buy wine for your father again today.” When the old man saw him, Shen Fei went up to him with a smile. “Is he still the same today?”
“Yes.” Shen Fei nodded his head with certainty. He took out a piece of paper from his pocket and stuffed it into the old man’s hand.
“One bottle of wine, and two bottles of draft beer…”
The old man casually took out a few coins and placed them in Shen Fei’s hand.
“Wait here, I’ll get it for you. Oh yeah, I remember that today’s the day you participate in the awakening ceremony, right? What talent have you awakened? It should be pretty good.”
The corner of Shen Fei’s mouth unconsciously curled up.
Of course, an SSS-grade talent was not bad. But in front of outsiders, he still had to restrain himself.
“It’s just so-so. C-class talent, Flame Protection.”
“Really? That can’t be it.”
Hearing this, the old man turned around and glanced at him in confusion before falling into deep thought.
When he raised his head again, his expression was filled with determination.
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