Hades Crown Prince

2.Sunset Red Sponsorship

"The most beautiful thing is the setting sun, warm and serene, the sunset is a late-blooming flower..." A group of people in their fifties from a tourist bus traveling from Shanghai to Jiangxi province were happily singing on the bus.

In the Taoist temple, the old Taoist priest and the middle-aged Taoist priest were deep in thought, trying to figure out how much money to give Chen Buqi, who was about to leave the mountain. Too much money wouldn't do, as the boy would spend it all in a day. Too little, and they feared he might end up embarrassing them, after all, they raised him from a young age.

"Brother, I divined last night, and tomorrow morning, some tourists will come up the mountain. Why don't we let Chen Buqi earn his own money? That way, no matter the amount, at least the boy will have a concept of money," said the middle-aged Taoist, looking at Chen Buqi, who was running toward the temple.

"Alright, alright!" The old Taoist nodded slowly.

Down in the village, Chen Buqi found his old friend, Yu Xuan, who had failed the college entrance exam. Back in school, these two had been a terrible pair, always causing trouble. People disliked them, and even the guard dog would avoid them.

"Fatty, did your exam results come out? Where are you going to school?" Chen Buqi casually tugged at his Taoist robe.

"Staying at home!" Yu Xuan kept adjusting his "cool" hairstyle in the reflection of his father's motorcycle mirror.

"What? Are you going abroad?" Chen Buqi asked, surprised.

"Bro, it's 'home' as in 'staying at home,'" Yu Xuan said, using his chubby hand to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear.

"Ah, next time, be clearer. You got me all excited for nothing. Anyway, just wanted to let you know, I’m going on a trip, and I’ll be back for the New Year," Chen Buqi said with a helpless glance at Yu Xuan.

"Where are you going?" Yu Xuan’s eyes sparkled.

"Yangcheng!" Chen Buqi raised an eyebrow.

"Great place! Bro, since I have nothing to do at home, why don’t I go with you? We’ll team up and create our own empire!" Yu Xuan excitedly grabbed Chen Buqi’s hand and shook it.

"Good brother, we’ll leave the day after tomorrow!" Chen Buqi said, moved by the enthusiasm.

The two troublemakers parted ways—one heading for the mountain temple, the other toward the town's internet café—with the same goal in mind: "Make money!"

At the internet café in town, Yu Xuan swaggered over to sit with a few students.

"Yu Bro, what brings you here?" The middle school students nervously looked at Yu Xuan.

"In a few days, I’m going on a trip. You guys chip in some money. When I get rich, I’ll come back and treat you to the best food!" Yu Xuan said as he pulled out a crumpled cigarette.

"Yu Bro, this is all we have." The students rummaged through their pockets and managed to gather 12 yuan.

"Alright, when I come back, I’ll treat you to fried noodles—big portions!" Yu Xuan took the money, satisfied, and left.

Yu Xuan continued his rounds from one internet café to the next, until late into the night, before heading home.

Meanwhile, Chen Buqi lay awake all night, as his request for money from his master and uncle had been ignored. He was told to "freely play tomorrow!"

"Hey, look everyone, there's a Taoist temple!" The tour guide for the group exclaimed.

Dozens of elderly tourists crowded into the temple. With cameras in hand, they snapped pictures left and right. The old Taoist priest, seeing the scene, turned and walked back to his room. The middle-aged Taoist calmly observed, then sat at a table, pretending to read a book. Chen Buqi’s eyes immediately lit up at the sight of so many visitors.

"Stay calm, stay calm," Chen Buqi muttered to himself.

"Click!" Just as Chen Buqi was adjusting his mindset, one of the elderly women accidentally snapped his photo.

Chen Buqi stared blankly at the old woman who took the picture. The tourists began to wander around. Some were praying here, others there, but none were paying any money. Chen Buqi was getting anxious!

Just as he thought someone was about to make an offering, an elderly man stopped in front of the altar and began rummaging through his backpack. Chen Buqi’s heart leapt into his throat as he watched with eager eyes.

The elderly man slowly pulled out a passbook, circled it a few times over the incense, then, to Chen Buqi’s horror, placed it back into his bag—he didn’t leave any money!

"D*mn it! You’re disrespecting me!" Chen Buqi couldn’t hold back his outburst.

The old man smiled at Chen Buqi, then pulled out 5 yuan from his pocket and placed it on the altar.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Chen Buqi’s uncle was dealing with a group of elderly women.

"Master, can we borrow the fortune-telling* (tub)?" A few elderly women approached the middle-aged Taoist, pointing at the fortune-telling* on the table.

"Buqi, come over here." The middle-aged Taoist, expressionless, set his book aside and pushed the* towards the women, ready to show Chen Buqi how to "work the crowd."

One of the rich-looking women eagerly started shaking the*, murmuring softly as the others joined in, chanting "Amitabha." This sight shocked both Chen Buqi and his uncle.

"Master, how accurate is this fortune-telling? It’s showing a bad omen!" The wealthy woman looked dissatisfied, pointing at the*.

"A bad omen? You should be grateful I didn’t pull a life-or-death fortune for you!" The middle-aged Taoist cursed as he stood up.

"Oh my, old Taoist, you can’t talk like that!" The woman snapped, slapping her leg in protest.

"You do realize I’m a Taoist, right? This is a Taoist temple, not a Buddhist one. Amitabha, Amitabha, it’s lucky it’s even somewhat accurate!" The middle-aged Taoist glared at the chanting women.

"Ah, sorry, sorry!" The woman immediately realized her mistake, stopping the others from chanting, and continued shaking the*.

Again, another bad omen.

"Please, help me out, Master!" The woman quickly pulled out 50 yuan.

"You’re insulting me!" The middle-aged Taoist stared at her, unmoved.

"Please, please help!" The woman hastily pulled out two more 100 yuan bills.

The middle-aged Taoist, calm and collected, took the* and carefully picked through the slips of paper inside, eventually finding a good omen. He handed it to the woman, leaving everyone stunned.

"Master, what is this?" The woman asked, confused.

"I’ve changed your fate. Don’t worry!" The middle-aged Taoist coolly placed the money on the table.

Chen Buqi watched the entire scene in awe. In that moment, his uncle’s image was both lovable and shameless.

After the demonstration, the middle-aged Taoist quickly walked away, returning to his room to rest. Without a cloud left behind.

Chen Buqi, quickly adjusting his attitude, began answering the elderly visitors’ questions with a serious demeanor. The more they paid, the more VIP their service became—always with a smile, treating them like family. With his half-baked knowledge, he somehow managed to charm the elderly visitors, keeping them happy and content.

Later that night, after counting the 3524 yuan he had earned, Chen Buqi’s eyes filled with tears of joy. This was the most money he had ever seen. Laughing and crying, he couldn’t stop coughing. His master and uncle watched from outside, speechless.

"Brother, do you think Buqi has gone crazy?" The middle-aged Taoist asked with concern.

"Sigh, I don’t know if he’s crazy, but looking at his face, this kid is about to lose all this money!" The old Taoist sympathetically gazed at Chen Buqi.

"Who’s to say, it’s more than three thousand, we should hold onto it for him," the middle-aged Taoist suggested cautiously.

"That’s a good idea. A kid like him shouldn’t carry around so much money. We’ll leave him just a little. A man’s ambition should lie beyond money," the old Taoist comforted himself.

"Compassion, compassion!"

The two Taoists exchanged a look and smiled knowingly.