Courtyard House: Starting as a mediocre engineer

Zhuang Zhongchen was somewhat puzzled to discover that someone was following him. Neither the original owner of this body nor after his transmigration had he offended anyone, had he? At least not with any deadly enemies.

Could it be... that scalper from earlier? But that doesn't seem right. In broad daylight, there's no way he'd be trying to rob someone, right? After all, he only exchanged a few dozen kilograms of grain coupons—not a small amount, but not a large one either; it's hardly enough to constitute a case of double-crossing.

Forget it, I'm too lazy to make wild guesses, but it's always good to be cautious.

Zhuang Zhongchen quickly opened the skill shop, purchased Tracking lv0 with 30 skill points, and then upgraded it with 1 skill point, Tracking lv0→lv1.

Fortunately, the windfall of 18 skill points earlier gave me back to 34 skill points. After purchasing more, my skill points dropped back to 3.

We're still in the foundational stage, so the strategy for acquiring life skills is to acquire what we lack. First, we need to address the issue of having everything we need.

Sure enough, after acquiring the tracking skill, a large number of fragments of knowledge in the field of tracking flooded into my mind: how to track others, and how to counter-track; how to track people in the city, and how to track wild animals in the wild; how to track on foot, by bicycle, and by motor vehicle; how to track while moving, and how to ambush and wait...

I've reached... the beginner level of an amateur.

Previously, I relied on my keen senses, which is my natural talent and instinct. Now, at least I have some basic common sense in the field of tracking.

After doing all this, Zhuang Zhongchen continued forward without making a sound, remaining extremely vigilant about the follower behind him. However, after taking only a few steps, he suddenly exclaimed, "Huh?"

Surprisingly, although Zhuang Zhongchen's tracking skills were only at a beginner level, the person following him was also a complete novice. So, it didn't take much effort for Zhuang Zhongchen to quietly lock onto the person—a little girl carrying a military green backpack? Holy crap! A little girl!

Zhuang Zhongchen was startled. Was this some kind of mistake? Could it be another sin left behind by the original owner of this body? Did the original owner not even spare young children?

After quickly searching his memory, Zhuang Zhongchen secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness! The original owner of this body didn't know this little girl at all; at least he didn't have to start from three years old.

Since that's the case, then... I might as well meet this little girl! Anyway, she's not much of a threat, so let's figure out her intentions first!

Suddenly turning around, Zhuang Zhongchen walked straight towards the young girl. Seeing her startled expression, he flashed a cool, roguish smile: "Hello. Excuse me, I feel like I've seen you somewhere before?"

The young girl's face flushed red, her eyes darting around: "Uh... I... yes, yes, I have indeed met you. My older brother is Wen Anguo from the Commerce Bureau. I saw you once during our last volunteer work session!"

Wen Yumei gave herself a big thumbs up for her cleverness. "This girl is indeed a little shrew!"

After school today, Wen Yumei happened to run into Zhuang Zhongchen. Out of curiosity, she followed him as if possessed, never expecting that he would discover her.

At this moment, Wen Yumei felt both ashamed and anxious. How could she have done something so shameful for no reason? She had no sense of propriety whatsoever; it was utterly embarrassing!

Fortunately, Zhuang Zhongchen was perceptive. He suddenly realized, "Oh! So you're Brother Anguo's sister? What a coincidence! My name is Zhuang Zhongchen. You can call me Chenzi or Brother Chen, it's up to you."

"Mmm, Brother Chen, my name is Wen Yumei. You can call me Meizi from now on! My older brother and the others like to call me Xiao Mei, but I still think Meizi sounds better. Hehe." Wen Yumei laughed sweetly. Having avoided Zhuang Zhongchen's gaze, she secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Facing Wen Yumei's feigned composure, Zhuang Zhongchen chuckled inwardly: Wen Anguo from the Commerce Bureau? Who's that idiot?

And the shy expression on this young girl's face was unmistakably that of a girl in love. Well, what can I say? I'm devastatingly handsome! So this kind of girl in love, young woman in love, old woman in love… ugh, ugh, ugh, this idol brother is already used to it all.

Anyway, I'll give the young girl some face, and she thinks she's covered it up very well.

Of course, under Zhuang Zhongchen's keen observation, he had already discovered that Wen Yumei was a beauty in the making. She just hadn't fully matured; her face still had some baby fat, and her figure was somewhat immature. Otherwise, her beauty might even surpass that of Qin Huairu and Mi Cuicui by a degree.

That said, if she weren't a beauty, that scumbag would have kicked her out long ago. Why bother with all this fuss?

"Meizi, I heard that the tripe at that restaurant up ahead is really famous. I'll treat you to some."

"Not good... bang!"

"No need to be so polite. Anguo's girl, isn't she my sister? Are you still in school?"

"Exactly. I've wanted to quit for a long time. I'm graduating next year."

"Finally free! I can go to work and earn money again."

"Hehehe, Brother Chen, how did you know?"

"Is there even a need to guess? You can tell at a glance she's a bit slow."

"No, actually I'm very smart. Heh heh."

"hehe."

……

I unexpectedly met a cute and slightly naive young girl, which was a pleasant surprise. I shared a bowl of tripe with Wen Yumei, and then took her home. Thanks to Zhuang Zhongchen's flirting skills, he had already won the young girl over.

Let's not mention Wen Yumei, whose heart is fluttering with spring fever.

After Zhuang Zhongchen returned to the courtyard house, he had already put Wen Yumei aside. Since the young girl was too young, there was no way she could take any further action; it was merely a casual move.

To put it bluntly, now that Zhuang Zhongchen has become a section chief and reached the legal marriage age of 20, his status as a potential husband will definitely increase significantly, and he will also face pressure from all sides to find a partner.

There's no such thing as singlehood these days. If you become an old bachelor or an old maid, you must have some moral or physical defect, and almost no one will trust you anymore.

To put it more bluntly, it's practically equivalent to the death of the entire society!

In this situation, a suitable partner is needed. Wen Yumei's qualifications are relatively suitable.

Well, with Wen Yumei as a shield, it's been two or three years since I got married and started a family. This gives me a buffer; I can wait a few years before making any decisions.

Even if they eventually get together, Zhuang Zhongchen won't lose out. Okay! This scumbag admits, he's just a lecher!

Since such a cute little girl has offered herself up, why not take advantage of her!

Sitting at his desk, Zhuang Zhongchen opened another letter. It was the one Xing Xiao had written, asking about some issues with hydraulic oil. It had been sent to Zhuang Zhongchen's home along with a package earlier.

However, Zhuang Zhongchen hesitated about how to reply. He had already realized that if he wanted to answer all the questions clearly, the content would become increasingly lengthy…