Chapter 431 - 380
Chapter 431: Chapter 380
"Is this a lot, or what?!"
Barto glanced away, nonchalantly lifting the crate and standing up.
To keep from falling, Gu Ning instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist, clinging to his back. Barto, in turn, pretended not to see the Crystal Stones in her hand as he carried the crate of them over and set it on the living room’s wooden table.
Neither of them spoke, and so a silent battle of wills began.
The little fox, with the little human still on his back, walked around the room and found a toolbox. He rummaged inside for a hammer and some nails, grabbed a wooden plank, and began nailing the broken crate back together.
He’d only swung the hammer twice when Gu Ning released her grip—both the arms around his neck and the legs around his waist—and went limp, as if she were about to plummet to the floor.
Barto reacted in a flash, dropping the hammer and catching her. He scooped her up, swung her around to his front, and set her on the table, finally conceding, "It’s a lot. Alright? I’ll count them for you when we get back! If you scare me like that again, I’m confiscating all your Crystal Stones."
Gu Ning blinked at the little fox, then took off the satchel at her waist and opened it. "I wasn’t trying to scare you," she said. "Put the Crystal Stones in here."
She saw that the little fox was about to repair the wooden crate and noticed Alex was still waiting for them outside. Remembering they still had to go to the Inner City District, she knew they had to get a move on, or they wouldn’t make it back before nightfall.
Barto breathed a small sigh of relief and hung her satchel back on her shoulder. "It’ll only take a few minutes to fix."
As he spoke, he reached for the three Crystal Stones in her hand.
Gu Ning pulled her hand back, not letting him take them.
Barto sighed. "I got those two guns for fifty thousand. They’re military-grade; the ones you see outside are imitations, so of course they’re cheaper."
Gu Ning smiled.
"What are you smiling at?" Barto asked. "I’ll buy you better guns later, just so you stop nagging me about it all day."
Gu Ning’s eyes curved into another smile as she once again dodged his hand reaching for the Crystal Stones.
’She was happy that the little fox was willing to discuss the matter with her properly.’
Barto thought she was still angry with him about it and said with a helpless sigh, "Go on, then. What do you want me to do?"
Holding the Crystal Stones, Gu Ning jumped off the table and walked over to the stairwell.
Cook, who was rummaging through the pile of junk on the floor, followed her. Barto hesitated for a moment before walking over as well. He then saw Gu Ning toss the three Crystal Stones in her hand back into the hidden compartment under the floor.
Barto’s brow twitched. "Even if you’re angry, you shouldn’t take it out on money."
As he spoke, he squatted down to retrieve the three Crystal Stones, and Cook moved to do the same.
Gu Ning grabbed the back of their collars, one in each hand. "Don’t pick them up."
Cook and Barto looked at her, confused.
"Leave some behind," Gu Ning said.
Barto chuckled. "What’s the point of leaving any behind?"
Gu Ning put her palms together and bowed toward the three Crystal Stones. "You wouldn’t understand."
Barto really didn’t understand, but upon seeing her gesture, he felt he was starting to. He raised an eyebrow. "If you’re going to leave some, you should leave more."
"This is enough," Gu Ning said. "We don’t need to leave a lot. The important thing is that we leave something."
Barto was confused again, but he helped her cover the opening with some junk anyway.
After bustling about for ten minutes or so, they finally left the cabin. They carried the crate of windfall treasure, grabbed the trophy from Cook-the-puppy’s sledding competition, and gathered some of his other miscellaneous childhood trinkets.
Seeing Gu Ning and the others come out, Alex stepped forward and took her bulging satchel. "Is there anything else to get?"
Gu Ning shook her head, her face beaming, and pointed to the crate of Crystal Stones that Barto was holding. "Alex, we found..."
"Hm?" Alex asked when she stopped abruptly. "What did you find?"
Gu Ning said mysteriously, "You guess."
A smile spread across Alex’s lips, and he gave it a serious guess. "Is it Cook’s little treasure?"
Gu Ning: "Guess again, guess again."
’He’s getting warmer.’
Seeing her acting like a puppy whose tail was about to start wagging, Barto couldn’t help but smile. He stood there holding the crate, making no move to rush them.
Alex’s gaze swept over the crate, and he pretended to ponder. "His toys?"
Gu Ning held her breath, on the verge of blurting it out.
The smile in Alex’s eyes deepened as he said slowly, "If not toys, then it must be..."
"Where did you get so many Crystal Stones."
Philinos said, leaping down from the roof and looking at the crate in Barto’s hands.
Barto shot the spoilsport a covert glare. The smile in Alex’s eyes vanished, and he shook his head gently.
Gu Ning asked, deflated, "Philinos, how did you know... they were Crystal Stones?"
"You were on the roof, peeking, weren’t you?"
Philinos began, "Who doesn’t know what Crystal Stones..."
Before he could finish, two icy glares shot over from his side.
The fox and the Black Wolf were staring at him, looking as though if he continued, they would grab him by the neck and shove his face into the snow.
Philinos: "..."
His gaze paused on Gu Ning’s disappointed expression for a moment before he said, "...Right. I saw by peeking."