Chapter 259: Chapter 223: The Punk Hairstylist’s Awakened Superpower

’First Rank Middle Stage. A moment ago, his finger glowed with a faint golden Spiritual Light, and the hair he touched immediately stood on end. Looks like he’s awakened a Superpower that can change the shape of hair.’

’Interesting.’

Lin Li spoke to the punk barber before him. "Do you use your Superpower when you cut hair?"

"Huh?!!!" The punk barber hadn’t expected the young customer to ask such a thing. He looked surprised, then chuckled. "I do..."

Lin Li wanted to experience a Superpower haircut, so he immediately dismissed the idea of finding another barbershop.

At the punk barber’s invitation, he found a chair and sat down, and the man began to cut his hair.

"Any particular style you’re looking for?"

"No particular style. Just cut it short and thin it out a bit."

"You got it..." The punk barber nodded. He then picked up a spray bottle and spritzed Lin Li’s hair with water.

Then, he extended his right hand, his index finger glowing with a faint golden Spiritual Light, and gently tapped Lin Li’s damp hair.

The next moment, all of Lin Li’s wet, flattened hair instantly stood straight up... The punk family had just gained a new member.

"SNIP, SNIP..."

The punk barber’s appearance might have been a visual shock and a bit hard to stomach.

But his haircutting skills were the real deal, every bit as good as the old master at the barbershop Lin Li used to frequent.

The scissors moved swiftly, quickly trimming Lin Li’s upright hair.

In just seven or eight minutes, the punk barber had finished.

After a wash and a blow-dry, Lin Li stood in front of the mirror to look at his new haircut and nodded in satisfaction.

’I’m coming here for my haircuts from now on,’ he decided.

He took his phone out of his pocket and scanned the payment QR code posted on the mirror.

After paying the twenty-five-yuan fee, Lin Li asked the punk barber.

"You must be new to this street, right?"

Lin Li asked because he felt that not only was the punk barber highly skilled, but he also used a Superpower during the haircut.

A unique barbershop like this should, by all rights, have a line of customers waiting. Yet, he was the only one in the shop.

This was the kind of situation you’d only see at a newly opened business.

The punk barber glanced at his phone to confirm he’d received Lin Li’s payment, then said.

"Yeah, as of today, my shop has only been open for a week...

"There haven’t been many customers. The foot traffic on this street is decent, so why isn’t anyone coming in for a haircut? It’s so weird..."

’Why else? It’s probably because potential customers see your whole punk getup and get scared away...’ Lin Li roasted him internally, then left the barbershop.

As he left the punk barber’s shop and walked toward his car, he ran into five middle-school-aged boys. One of them, who had a buzz cut, was telling his friends.

"The barbershop I told you about, the one where they use a Superpower to cut hair, is just up ahead.

"I’m telling you! When I got my hair cut there the day before yesterday, the barber just tapped my hair with his finger, and all of it stood straight up. It was so cool..."

Lin Li stopped and glanced back at the five middle schoolers walking past him, thinking to himself.

’True talent always shines through. With word-of-mouth spreading, that punk barber’s business is going to get better and better.’

He looked away.

Lin Li continued toward his car. The weather outside was just too hot; he wanted to get home quickly to enjoy the air conditioning and some cold watermelon.

[...]

"SIZZLE..."

Flames rose from the stove as oil bubbled in the wok. The greasy smoke was all sucked away by the softly humming range hood.

With her hair tied up and an apron on, Xia Qing scooped the fried chicken strips out of the oil and placed them in a ceramic bowl to the side.

"Mama, let me try some." Standing nearby, Zhou Tongtong stood on her tiptoes, her eyes fixed on the steaming, freshly fried chicken strips in the bowl. She couldn’t help but swallow, calling out impatiently.

Xia Qing picked up a fried chicken strip from the bowl and blew on the steaming morsel with her rosy lips.

When she felt the temperature was about right, she held the chicken strip out to Zhou Tongtong, who was looking up with her mouth wide open, waiting to be fed.

"CRUNCH, CRUNCH..." The crispy fried chicken made a satisfying sound in Zhou Tongtong’s mouth. The delicious taste made her squint her eyes in bliss.

"Mama, I want more..." One chicken strip wasn’t enough for Zhou Tongtong. She called out to Xia Qing, who was putting a second batch into the wok.

Hearing her daughter’s request, Xia Qing repeated her earlier actions and fed her another fried chicken strip.

After that, she bent down, took a stainless steel bowl from the cabinet, then used chopsticks to move a large portion of the fried chicken from the ceramic bowl into the stainless steel one.

"Tongtong, can you take this bowl of chicken strips next door for Mama? Give them to Lin Li," Xia Qing said to her daughter, who was watching her, eagerly waiting to be fed.

Zhou Tongtong had originally thought the bowl of chicken strips was for her! But she still nodded obediently.

"Mhm."

Taking the stainless steel bowl of fried chicken, Zhou Tongtong turned and left the kitchen.

[...]

"WHOOSH..."

In the corner of the living room, a standing air conditioner blew out cool air.

"CRUNCH, CRUNCH..."

In the cool living room, Lin Li sat on the sofa, watching a show on TV while holding half a watermelon and eating it with a spoon.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Lin Li quickly put the watermelon down on the coffee table, left the living room, and walked to the entryway.

"CLICK."

He opened the door to find a cute little girl in a pink dress with her hair in a bun standing at the entrance, holding a bowl of fried chicken strips.

Zhou Tongtong looked up at Lin Li and said, "Good afternoon, Lin Li. Mama asked me to bring you these fried chicken strips..."

"Thanks," Lin Li said with a smile, taking the bowl from Zhou Tongtong. "Wait just a moment, I’ll empty the bowl and give it back to you."

Zhou Tongtong nodded and waited at the door.

Lin Li went back to his kitchen, found a large noodle bowl, and poured all the fried chicken strips into it.

As he was about to leave the kitchen, he paused, opened his freezer, and looked at the single chocolate ice cream bar left inside, murmuring to himself.

’After dinner, I need to make a trip to the supermarket to restock.’

With that, he took the last chocolate ice cream bar from the freezer and walked to the door.

"Here, take this ice cream bar..." Lin Li said, handing the ice cream to Zhou Tongtong as he gave her back the bowl.

"Thank you." Zhou Tongtong’s eyes lit up when she saw the ice cream bar. She happily took the empty bowl and the treat, then skipped back home.

"TAP, TAP, TAP..."

First came the sound of cheerful footsteps, then a small figure skipped into the kitchen.

Xia Qing, who had just scooped another batch of fried chicken out of the wok, turned to her daughter and said with a smile.

"You’re back!"

Zhou Tongtong nodded and placed the small bowl on the counter. Just then, Xia Qing noticed her daughter was holding an ice cream bar.

"Lin Li gave it to me... Mama, can I eat it?" Zhou Tongtong asked, looking at Xia Qing with a hopeful expression.

[...]