Part 1. The Joker Chapter 24 – Frugality and Family
The light outside the window was tinted gold, and Klein looked into Melissa’s eyes, unable to find the words to say for a moment because the lines he’d prepared didn’t work.
He coughed softly twice and his mind raced:
”Melissa, this is not a waste of salary, in the future, Benson and my colleagues come to visit, is it in this kind of place to entertain them? In the future, when Benson and I are married and have wives, do we still need high and low beds?”
”Don’t you have a fiancée yet? You can wait a little longer and save up some more money.” Melissa said logically.
”No, Melissa, it’s the rules of society.” Crane was quite headstrong and had to get on the soapbox, “Since you get paid three pounds a week, you have to have the decency to match the three pounds a week.”
Honestly speaking, he had once squeezed into a shared room, he was not unfamiliar with the current living conditions, completely adapted to it, but it was because of this experience that he understood more and more about the inconvenience of a similar environment for a girl, and his goal was to become an extraordinary person, to study the occult, and to find the “way” to go back home, and in the future it was inevitable that he would have to do some magical rituals at home, and he would be able to get out of his apartment if he was not able to. The apartment was crowded with people, and it was easy to get into trouble.
Seeing that Melissa wanted to say more, Klein hurriedly added:
”Don’t worry, I didn’t consider single-family houses, I plan to look at townhouses, in any case, I need to have my own washroom, and also, I like Mrs. Slim’s bread, tingyen and lemon cake, we can first consider places close to Iron Cross Street and Daffodil Street.”
Melissa’s lips pursed, and after a moment of silence, she nodded slowly.
”Besides, I’m in no hurry to move, gotta wait for Benson to get back.” Klein smiled, “Otherwise he’d open the door to his house and be shocked and surprised and say, Where’s my stuff at home? Where are my siblings? Where’s my home? Is this my home? Have I gone to the wrong place? Goddess, tell me if this is a dream, how can I go out for a few days and come back and not even have a home!”
He mimicked Benson’s tone, and hearing Melissa’s eyes unconsciously curved, revealing shallow dimples in her cheeks.
”No, Mr. Ferrangi would have been waiting at the door to make Benson hand over the keys to the apartment, and Benson wouldn’t have been able to get upstairs at all.” The girl undermined the stingy, money-grubbing landlord.
In the Moretti household, everyone loved to make the landlord, Mr. French, the butt of jokes when they had something to say, a trend started by none other than big brother Benson.
”Yeah, he wouldn’t change the locks for the tenant in the back.” Klein smiled in agreement and pointed to the door, saying wryly, “Ms. Melissa, coming along to celebrate at the Silvercrest?”
Melissa said with a slight sigh:
”Klein, do you know Selena? My classmate, my best friend.”
Selena? A girl with long burgundy hair and deep brown eyes, whose parents were followers of the Goddess of the Night and had given her blessings in the name of the holy Selene, who was not yet sixteen, half a year younger than her sister Melissa, and who was a happy, cheerful, and outgoing girl, instantly appeared in Klein’s mind.
”Hmm.” Klein nodded that he remembered Selena Wood.
”Her brother Chris is a solicitor, also currently earning close to three pounds a week, and his fiancée works part-time as a typist.” Melissa described the situation before following up, “They’ve been engaged for more than four years now, and in order to have a stable and decent life after marriage, they’re still saving up until today, they haven’t stepped into the church yet, and they plan to wait for at least one more year, and according to Selena, that’s how it is for people who are similar to her brother, they usually have to be 28 years old before they can get married, so you have to prepare in advance, and save up your money properly so you don’t waste it .”
Just go to the restaurant to eat a meal, is it necessary to be so much axiomatic …… Klein listened to not know whether to cry or laugh, thought for a few seconds and said, “Melissa, I am the one who has a weekly salary of 3 pounds right now, and it will increase every year in the future, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
”But it is necessary for us to save up for accidents, such as the sudden closure of that security company, I have a classmate who had to drop out of school because the company his father worked for went bankrupt and he could only go to the docks to find some temporary work, and his family’s conditions deteriorated instantly.” Melissa persuaded her brother with a serious expression.
…… Klein reached out and covered his face:
”That, that security company is somewhat related to the government, well, to the government, it won’t just go out of business.”
”But the government isn’t stable either, after every election, if there’s a change of party, then the vast majority of positions change and it becomes a mess.” Melissa persistently retorted.
…… Sister, you really know a lot …… Klein shook his head in good humor and amusement:
”Okay ……”
”Then I’ll put together a stew with the rest of yesterday’s ingredients, and you go down the street and get a pan-seared meat fish, a piece of beef coated in black pepper sauce, a small can of cream, as well as bring me a ginger beer, and, in short, still celebrate a little.”
This was all the kind of food often hawked by the vendors in Iron Cross, a pan-fried meat fish for 6 to 8 pence, a not too large piece of beef coated with black pepper juice for 5 pence, a glass of ginger beer for 1 pence, and a small tin of cream for about a quarter of a pound, which would come to 4 pence-buying a pound of cream outright would only cost 1 sou’-three pence.
The original owner was responsible for the purchase of the family’s ingredients every vacation, and was no stranger to prices; after a few seconds of mental math, Klein came up with a rough estimate of 1 Sole 6p, and extracted the two 1 Sole bills directly.
”Hmm.” No longer objecting to this, Melissa put down the carrier bag containing her stationery and took the bills.
Watching her sister take out the small jar containing cream and the basin holding other food, and walk towards the door with brisk steps, Klein thought for a moment and opened his mouth to call out to her:
”Melissa, buy some fruit with the rest of the money.”
Many vendors in Iron Cross Street would acquire fruits of poor quality or stored for too long from other places, and people here were not angry about it because the price was very cheap, and as long as you go home and excise the rotted areas you can savor the deliciousness, counting it as a cheap enjoyment.
With that said, Klein leaned over quickly and pulled the remaining copper pennies from earlier out of his pants pocket and placed them in his sister’s palm.
”Huh?” Melissa’s brown eyes looked at her brother in confusion and bewilderment.
Klein took two steps back and smiled slightly:
”Remember to go to Mrs. Slim’s and reward yourself with a small piece of lemon cake.”
”……” Melissa’s mouth dropped open and her eyes blinked before she finally spat out just one word, “Okay.”
She turned quickly, pulled the door shut and stomped for the stairs.
……
A river ran through it, cypresses and maples lined its banks, and the air was so fresh it made you feel like getting drunk.
Crane, who had come to settle the matter of the interview, carrying a revolver and a cane, stepped out of the public carriage, for which he had paid sixpence, and leaned along the concrete path toward the three-story brick and stone house, hidden by greenery, that was the office building of the University of Tingen.
”It’s worthy of being one of the two most famous universities in the Kingdom of Ruen ……,” exclaimed Klein, who was here for the “first time”, as he walked.
Compared to this place, the Hoy University on the other side of the river was nothing short of humble.
”Haaa!” “Haya!”
A shout drew closer as two rowboats rushed from the upper reaches of the Hoy River, a wooden oar flipping in a neat and orderly manner.
This was a popular rowing sport at all universities in the Kingdom of Ruen, and with Klein’s family situation where he had to rely on scholarship funding to finish college, both had participated in the Hoy University’s rowing club with Welch and the others, and rowed a good hand.
”That’s young ……,” Klein sighed tersely as he stopped to look out.
In a week’s time, this would no longer be the case, as school was going on summer vacation.
Along the tree-lined road, he walked up to the gray, three-story masonry house, passed the registration, and entered inside with no problem, finding familiarly the office where he had last been received.
Knock! Knock! Knock! He flexed his fingers and knocked lightly on the half-hidden door of the room.
”Come in.” A male voice came out from inside the door.
Watching Klein push the door in, the middle-aged instructor in a white shirt and black tuxedo frowned slightly and said:
”The interview is still an hour away.”
”Mr. Stone, do you remember me? Senior Associate Professor Cohen’s student, Klein Moretti, you read my letter of recommendation.” Klein smiled and took off his hat.
Harvin Stone stroked his big black beard and said suspiciously:
”What’s your business? I’m not in charge of the interview.”
”It’s like this, I’ve already found a job, so I won’t be attending the interview today.” Klein truthfully stated the reason for his visit.
”This way ……” Harvin Stone understood, stood up, extended his right hand and said, “Congratulations, what a polite young man, I will give Mr. Professor and the senior associate professors a word. ”
Klein shook the other party’s hand, intending to exchange a few pleasantries before saying goodbye and leaving, but a familiar voice suddenly came from behind:
”Moretti, you found another job?”
Klein turned around and saw an old man with a full head of silver hair, deep contours but not many wrinkles, his eye sockets were sunken, his eyes were deep blue, and his black tuxedo was straight.
”Good morning, Mentor, Mr. Aztec.” He curtsied busily, “What are you doing here?”
This old man was none other than the senior associate professor of the history department of Hoy University, his mentor, Mr. Quentin Cohen, next to Cohen, there was a middle-aged man with medium build and bronzed skin, holding a newspaper in his hand, unshaven, wearing a bowler hat, with black hair and brown pupils, soft features, his eyes exuding an ineffable vicissitude, and a black mole that could only be detected by a close look growing below his right ear.
Klein recognized him, often helping the original owner’s Hoy University history department faculty member Mr. Aziziq, he liked to argue with his mentor, senior associate professor Cohen, with many conflicting viewpoints, however, in reality, the two people had a very good personal relationship, or else they wouldn’t have liked to get together and chat.
Cohen nodded and said in a soothing tone:
”Azik and I are here for an academic conference, what kind of job did you get?”
”A security company that does antiquities finding, collecting and conservation, they need professional consultants for three pounds a week.” Klein repeated what he had told his sister yesterday, then explained, “As you know, I like to explore history, not summarize it.”
Cohen nodded gently:
”Everyone has their own choices, and I’m satisfied that you remembered to come to Tingen University to inform them, rather than just being absent.”
At this point, Azik interjected and asked:
”Klein, do you know what’s going on with Welch and Naya? I read in the paper that they were killed by a home invasion robber.”
The case turned into a home invasion? And it was in the paper so soon? Klein froze for a moment, weighing his words:
”I’m not too sure about the specifics, before Welch got a copy of the Quaternary Solomon Empire Antigonus family’s notes and asked me for a piece of deciphering, I started to go for a few days, and then I got busy looking for a job, and the police came to find me two days ago.”
He deliberately revealed the “Solomon Empire” and “Antigonus family” to see if the two history teachers would know something.
”Quaternary ……” Cohen frowned and whispered.
The bronze-skinned, mousy-eyed Aztec glared, then inhaled and rubbed his temples with his left hand, which was holding the newspaper, and said:
”Antigonus …… feels familiar …… but can’t for the life of me remember where I’ve heard of it ……”