Chapter 3

At five o'clock the next day, the alarm clock rang tirelessly. Li Minghui, woken up by the noise, looked at his phone and found it was already five o'clock. He was startled awake and quickly got up, dressed, washed his face, and brushed his teeth. After finishing in ten minutes, he hurriedly ate a steamed bun, drank a few large gulps of water, and rushed out the door.

Because good jobs are hard to find, Li Minghui in this world had to take up a job known as a city beautifier, which is essentially a cleaner.

As everyone knows, the job of a cleaner is always done when no one is around, silently contributing. Li Minghui's situation was even more difficult. He was not a formal employee of the Environmental Bureau but a temporary worker. Moreover, he was not hired by the Environmental Bureau but by the "real" cleaners who had connections and permanent positions. However, the good thing was that the salary was not too low. After working for a year, Li Minghui, now a familiar face, earned 3,000 yuan a month.

What can 3,000 yuan do in the capital? If he wanted to live in an apartment building, he could forget it. The rent alone would be at least 4,000 yuan a month, which Li Minghui could not afford even if he didn't eat or drink. Therefore, he could only rent a basement apartment, a small underground space.

Even so, the monthly water and electricity bills for his less than ten square meter residence cost Li Minghui 600 yuan!

At 5:20, Li Minghui arrived at the designated cleaning area. After spending a bit over an hour, he finally finished cleaning his assigned area before 7:00. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Li Minghui hurried back to the basement.

The morning task was completed. Just as Li Minghui was thinking about using the creative software again, a specially set ringtone suddenly sounded: "Master, you have a call, master, you have a call." Li Minghui knew it was from his friend Zhang Wei in this world.

Thinking of Zhang Wei, Li Minghui felt an unusual sense of familiarity, with no hint of strangeness, as if he was a native of this world.

Zhang Wei was the roommate and friend who, like Li Minghui, had come to the capital with dreams of a better life, diving headfirst into the melting pot of the city.

The two had been in the capital for a year. Zhang Wei, with his tall and strong build and good looks, had managed to secure a promising job as a security guard. After more than a year, he had become a security team leader, earning 3,500 yuan a month, a position that, while not an official one, was still respectable.

"Old Five, why did you take so long to answer my call? Do you want to die?" Zhang Wei's loud voice came through the phone as soon as Li Minghui answered.

"Hey, Big Brother, you know my job is tough. Unlike you, I can't even get a good night's sleep!" Li Minghui complained.

"Alright, Little Five, you're in luck tonight. I've got two girls lined up. We'll meet at the usual place, and I'll treat you to dinner!"

Zhang Wei laughed in a somewhat lecherous manner.

"Sure, why wouldn't I go if you're treating me to a fancy meal? I'll see you tonight!"

Li Minghui teased a bit and hung up, shaking his head.

Zhang Wei, the leader of Li Minghui's university dorm, was a typical "moonlighter." Li Minghui couldn't understand how a pure and innocent boy like him in college had turned into this. However, he had no choice but to attend the gathering tonight, hoping that Zhang Wei would spend less money.

Looking at the time, it was only seven o'clock. Li Minghui thought excitedly, "Now I can use the creative software and write for a while!"

Li Minghui's job, while not extremely tiring, was time-consuming. After cleaning in the morning, he could rest, but he had to clean again at ten o'clock, take a nap at noon, clean again at two o'clock, and then clean once more after six o'clock. In total, he spent about four to five hours a day on this job, leaving no time for other activities.

However, he now had three hours to write.

Without opening the creative software, Li Minghui first considered the plot of "Jade Dynasty." Sadly, he found that he could not express the plot of "Jade Dynasty" in words!

"Ah!"

Li Minghui sighed, lamenting his lack of talent for writing. Although he had the classic plot of "Jade Dynasty" in his mind, he could not put it into words.

However, Li Minghui did not give up. He thought that even without writing talent, as long as he had the creative software, he could become a top-notch writer. The classic works of his previous life would be even more classic!

With this thought, Li Minghui activated the creative software in his mind. As he recalled the plot of "Jade Dynasty," he felt a surge of inspiration and creativity. As long as he wanted, he could transform these ideas into words.

A classic "Jade Dynasty" world, filled with countless brilliant words, unfolded in Li Minghui's imagination. However, just as he was fully immersed in this world, a sudden headache jolted him awake.

"Ah!"

Sighing, Li Minghui realized that his mental capacity was even less than that of a child in a super-scientific world. Although he had a burst of inspiration and creativity for two hours while using the creative software, it only lasted for two hours.

"Let's take it slow. My mental capacity will improve eventually!"

Li Minghui was not discouraged. He opened his computer and slowly input the outline of the "Jade Dynasty" story he had imagined. Fortunately, although he was not in the special talent state, he still remembered the outline clearly.

After writing for about forty minutes, Li Minghui looked at the word count on his computer, which showed only 1,000 words of the outline. He sighed, saved the outline, and turned off the computer, heading back to his work area.

Wearing a mask and fully equipped, Li Minghui, who had been working for over a year, was not ashamed of his job. Under the watchful eyes of many elderly people, he cleaned the area without hesitation, using the time to rest and recover his mental energy.

An hour later, Li Minghui finished cleaning. After checking and ensuring it was clean, he returned to the basement, took off his clothes, washed himself, and threw the dirty clothes into a basin.

Putting on a clean set of clothes, Li Minghui eagerly turned on his computer and began to record the "Jade Dynasty" plot from his memory. After about forty minutes, he had recorded about 1,100 words. Checking the time, it was already 11:40, so he washed his hands and started cooking.

After living in the capital for over a year, Li Minghui had grown a lot. Cooking was no longer a challenge for him. Because he had a picky palate and did not like the food in the capital, he usually cooked for himself, and he was quite fast at it.

As a northerner, Li Minghui loved noodles. After washing his hands and cleaning the small cutting board, he mixed a small bowl of dry flour in a basin, added salt, and slowly stirred with his right hand while pouring water with his left. When the flour clumped together, he stopped adding water and began kneading the dough with both hands. With his strong hands, the dough quickly became smooth. He then placed the dough on the cutting board and continued kneading until it was round. He pressed it down lightly to flatten it, took out a rolling pin, and rolled the flat dough into a circle. He then spread some clear oil on the dough, placed it in the basin, and covered it with a small basin. In less than ten minutes, the dough was ready!

He set up the gas stove, poured water into the pot, and turned on the gas. Then, he quickly washed and cut the vegetables...

By the time everything was done, Li Minghui had eaten and washed the pot, and it was around 12:20.

Turning on the exhaust fan, Li Minghui lay down on the bed, took out a cigarette, and smoked it contentedly. He knew smoking was harmful to his health, but as the saying goes, if you don't smoke, you can't guarantee you'll live longer than me. So why not enjoy it?

After finishing the cigarette, feeling very comfortable, Li Minghui fell asleep without taking off his clothes. The good thing about the basement was that it was warm in winter and cool in summer, although it was a bit damp and dark.

When the alarm clock rang again, Li Minghui got up, finished cleaning, and at three o'clock, he continued his work.

In two hours, Li Minghui thought of many plots, but the outline was just a summary. Since he was very familiar with the plot of "Jade Dynasty," by five o'clock, he had recorded about 5,000 words of the outline, which was quite good.

"Didn't expect my writing speed to be so decent!"

Looking at the results of his five hours of work, including the two hours of thinking, Li Minghui smiled foolishly, as if looking at a rare treasure.

After finishing his work again, Li Minghui hurriedly tidied himself up and put on a nearly new casual outfit, heading to a large food stall.

Lin Yun Restaurant, the place Zhang Wei had mentioned, was a Sichuan restaurant with good flavors and reasonable prices, a favorite spot for Li Minghui and Zhang Wei, his close friend and classmate.

When he arrived, Zhang Wei was already there. Without any formalities, he waved and called Li Minghui into a small private room.

The food hadn't arrived yet, but the drinks were already on the table. Zhang Wei had already poured three glasses and looked at Li Minghui with a sly smile, saying, "Ha, Old Five, you're late again. You don't even respect the girls. No choice, drink three glasses first!"

"No, Big Brother, three glasses is fine, but what do you mean by 'first'?"

Li Minghui looked at Zhang Wei's sly eyes and felt depressed.

"Hehe, I have good news. You won't regret drinking!"

Zhang Wei said seriously.

"Alright, I'll drink!"

Li Minghui had a good tolerance for alcohol. The Yanjing beer was not too strong, and he was also thirsty. Without hesitation, he drank the three glasses in quick succession. However, he did not notice that Zhang Wei was smiling in a particularly lecherous manner...

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