Chapter 13: Miss Wenyin, would you like to have tea?

Beep~ “Wuyue Plaza Station”

With the announcement, Su Qi stepped off the bus steadily.

Wuyue Plaza, a six-story shopping mall, was just a ten-minute walk from Lin Yin Mansion.

Since it was a weekday, the crowd was thinner than usual.

Carrying his backpack, Su Qi strolled through the mall.

The negative pressure ventilation system made the air refreshingly comfortable.

With his meeting with Lin Xue set for 6 p.m., arriving now would be too early and awkward.

So, Su Qi decided to wander the mall to pass the time.

Wuyue Plaza was well-equipped, offering household goods, clothing, a KTV, and a cinema.

Beyond these, due to the spiritual resurgence, the sixth floor housed counters selling spirit items.

Compared to specialized auction houses, the variety and quantity were limited, and dangerous spirit items were banned from public venues like malls.

Still, spirit items carried a magical allure.

Unlike auction houses, malls allowed entry without money.

Su Qi headed to the sixth floor for two reasons besides killing time.

First, he was curious about spirit items.

Their nature was akin to loot drops in video games, which, as a boy, he found thrilling.

Second, Wuyue Plaza—and all Lin City malls—had a unique feature at their spirit item counters: the Observation Orb.

With the vast array of human abilities and spirit items, malls created the orb to guide first-time shoppers.

By touching it, the orb’s color would direct you to the relevant section.

Before awakening his ability, Su Qi had tried the orb often, but it never reacted.

After awakening Crisp Wife, its embarrassing nature made him avoid testing it.

With time to spare today, he decided to check what type his ability was.

Taking the elevator to the sixth floor alone, he noticed the lower floors were quiet due to it being Wednesday.

The clean environment and soft music added to the calm.

But on the sixth floor, the atmosphere shifted.

Thousands of glass counters glowed with ambient lights, surrounded by diverse people—elderly folks, men in tight suits, others in lab coats, and vibrant youths.

Occasional small scuffles broke out, but staff at each counter quickly mediated, preventing crises.

“Sir, what would you like to buy?”

As Su Qi took in the novel scene, a professional yet alluring guide in a black hip-hugging skirt approached, smiling warmly.

She didn’t judge his school uniform.

Caught off guard, Su Qi felt a bit awkward.

He’d only planned to test the orb and slip away.

Buying spirit items? Even with Wen Yin’s 3,000 yuan, he couldn’t afford them.

Usually, guides ignored him at spirit item sections, so being approached was unexpected.

With a shy smile, he shook his head, explaining, “Uh… sister, I’m just here to use the Observation Orb. I probably won’t buy anything. Sorry for the trouble.”

As he spoke, he got a clearer look at the guide’s face and felt a flicker of doubt.

‘Is it my imagination?’

‘Why does she look familiar?’

But that didn’t add up—he rarely came here and never worked as a guide.

‘Must be a mistake.’

‘Better slip away.’

As he lowered his head to leave, the guide surprised him.

Instead of letting him go, she beamed excitedly.

“Wow, little brother, so you just awakened your ability? You’ve got to test it!”

She grabbed his wrist, pulling him to an Observation Orb. “Just place your hand on it.”

Lacking the typical male physique and shaped by family hardships, Su Qi was introverted.

Faced with such enthusiasm, he didn’t know how to respond and dumbly complied, touching the orb.

The smooth, cool glass met his palm.

The next moment, the clear orb grew warm, its colors shifting rapidly—red, orange, blue, green, cyan, blue again, purple, yellow.

After lingering on yellow for five seconds, it settled into a dreamy pink.

Staring at the pink orb, Su Qi’s mind sprouted a question mark.

‘Pink… what kind of ability is that?’

‘And turning from yellow to pink… something feels off.’

As he puzzled, the guide, with a name tag reading “Lin Xin,” lit up with delight.

“Little brother, congrats! You’ve awakened a rare support-type charm ability.”

Support-type charm ability?

The niche term stunned Su Qi.

His Crisp Wife ability didn’t seem to fit.

Whether making bentos or wearing outfits, it only boosted charisma, not charm in a manipulative sense.

And “charm” sounded… weird.

He wasn’t some seductive sect demon… or, uh, demon boy.

As he grappled with this, a postcard was slipped into his hand.

It featured a beautiful girl’s portrait.

Looking up, he met Lin Xin’s sharp, sparkling eyes.

“Little brother, you may not afford spirit items now, but I’m betting on your potential. If you want to buy or sell spirit items later, call me. Oh, the charm ability section is on the west side of the sixth floor. Check it out.”

After her advice, a customer called for Lin Xin, and she left with a nod.

Watching her go, Su Qi exhaled in relief, marveling at the service difference.

‘No wonder it’s a prime location—the service is top-notch.’

As he headed to the charm ability section, Lin Xin, now out of sight, secretly snapped a photo of him and sent it to a Tengxin contact labeled “Big Client Roommate.”

Photo.jpg

‘Wen Yin, I think I met your precious little brother. He awakened an ability. Wanna know what it is? I got some fine tea—care to join? winking finger emoji’