Chapter 42: Fish and Chips

Chapter 42 Fish and Chips

The helicopter took off from the landing pad at the Wen Yanlan estate. Yun Fan, flying in a helicopter for the first time, was quite nervous. He gripped the seat tightly with both hands, listening to the deafening roar and watching the houses on the ground gradually shrink.

From the aerial perspective, he could clearly see the layout of the Eight Great Mansions. It was completely different from the ground view—it felt like having everything under control.

Yun Fan understood why Liu Erxing enjoyed flying so much; this sensation of soaring through the clouds was truly wonderful.

As they approached Shengken Academy, Yun Fan realized why Wen Zhaofu had insisted he take the helicopter. He looked down at the ground and saw lines of bumper-to-bumper traffic, stuck in a complete gridlock.

No wonder. The roads were impassable, boats weren’t convenient, so the only option was to take to the skies.

It turned out that even landing spots were competitive. If the Wen family weren’t shareholders of this school, Yun Fan would likely be stuck in traffic today.

After getting off the helicopter, Yun Fan, accompanied by a security detail arranged by Wen Zhaofu, walked toward the school. Not far along, Wen Haochen approached with a middle-aged man.

"This is Director Chen, who handles the school’s marketing," Wen Haochen introduced reluctantly. "This is Butler Yun Fan, who mainly manages our household."

Yun Fan quickly shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. Wen Haochen glanced at him sideways, thinking that despite his youthful appearance, Yun Fan was quite skilled at social interactions.

"Director Chen, if you have matters to attend to, please go ahead. Master Hao Chen can show me around the campus," Yun Fan said with a smile.

Director Chen was extremely polite, bowing obsequiously. "Since you’re representing Zhao Fu, it’s my poor hospitality. I hope you’ll be understanding."

"Not at all, not at all," Yun Fan hurriedly waved his hand.

"Alright, Uncle Chen, you can go now. With you here, we can't relax," Wen Haochen said earnestly.

Yun Fan took a deep breath, thinking to himself that if Wen Qichang were here, he’d probably take a swing at his son.

At school, Wen Haochen wore his uniform and tie, which made him look even more boyish. But with this attire, he seemed a bit smarter than usual. The campus was filled with young men and women just like him, their vibrant energy palpable. Yun Fan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: youth is wonderful.

Being here, Yun Fan realized that the rumors about Wen Haochen being the campus heartthrob were true.

The students here all paid great attention to their appearance. Even in uniforms, they added little personal touches according to their habits.

But Wen Haochen didn’t rely on that—he was just naturally good-looking.

Usually, at the Wen residence, surrounded by various influential figures, Wen Haochen often seemed unable to hold his own. But here, in his natural element, his entire demeanor had changed.

He introduced the school to Yun Fan with great expertise. It turned out he often served as a tour guide, showing visitors around when they came.

Shengken Academy had excellent greenery, with plenty of trees and grass. Just walking through the campus, breathing in the fresh air, lifted one’s spirits. The academic buildings were exquisitely designed, luxuriously decorated, and infused with technological touches everywhere.

Yun Fan bit back a laugh as he watched Wen Haochen’s burst of confidence. He really wanted to take out his phone, record a clip, and send it to his eldest brother to see.

Our little second brother isn't such a fool after all, Yun Fan thought to himself.

His bright, handsome presence naturally attracted many people. Yun Fan wasn’t surprised at all that Wen Haochen was very popular at school.

Seeing Yun Fan smile, Wen Haochen also broke into a grin. His eyes were clear, just as Yun Fan remembered. Thinking that Yun Fan was pleased with his explanations, he raised his hand and rubbed the back of his head.

Actually, he wanted to rub his chest more, because his heart was beating so fast.

"Butler Yun, what are you smiling at?" Wen Haochen asked, looking at him expectantly.

In that moment, Wen Haochen felt that age wasn’t an issue, nor was the gap in their family backgrounds. As long as Yun Fan was willing, he would elope with him right away!

"I was thinking that if Young Master Cheng, Young Master Liu, and Mr. Zhao Fu could see you like this, they’d surely view you in a new light," Yun Fan said, looking at Wen Haochen with approval.

Though it was meant as praise, all Wen Haochen heard were the names "Cheng Yu," "Liu Erxing," and "Wen Zhaofu."

His eyes widened, and he nearly gritted his teeth as he stared at Yun Fan. "Look at me, don’t think about my other brothers!"

"Whoa~" Yun Fan leaned back slightly but wasn’t frightened at all.

After all, even an angry husky is still just a husky, and a dog-training master wasn’t afraid in the slightest.

After snapping like that, Wen Haochen immediately realized his attitude was wrong. He took a step closer to Yun Fan, pouting as he looked at him. Yun Fan didn’t avoid his gaze and met his eyes openly.

Yun Fan didn’t respond to a forceful approach, so Wen Haochen decided to try a softer one. He reached out with both hands and firmly grabbed Yun Fan’s arm.

Huh???

Yun Fan turned to look at the furry head pressed against him and shook his arm, but couldn’t break free.

"Butler Yun, let’s get closer~~" Wen Haochen’s voice took on a whiny, wheedling tone, twisting a few times without winning Yun Fan over.

"Good grief!" Yun Fan flapped his arm like a wet noodle, frowning. "Get off, get off!"

Seeing that Yun Fan was genuinely displeased, Wen Haochen had no choice but to let go, looking at him with puppy-dog eyes. Yun Fan didn’t know where this sudden affection came from, but such close contact made him uncomfortable.

After that, Yun Fan’s expression remained neutral, and Wen Haochen didn’t dare overstep again, sticking to what was appropriate.

When a classmate called Wen Haochen over to help, he raised his hand in response and instantly perked up. Watching his retreating figure, Yun Fan couldn’t help but smile. This kind of youthful energy was rarely seen at the Wen Yanlan estate.

*

The parents at this elite school were all dripping with jewels and self-importance. With just a glance, Yun Fan understood why parent-teacher meetings here were so challenging—everyone was formidable.

Not only were there families from Hong Kong’s elite, but also from other countries. The host spoke in both languages, and Yun Fan, not wanting to treat it like a listening test, instantly tuned out.

Every influential figure had brought security personnel, which explained the traffic congestion. Add to that the unofficial competition of luxury cars, and it was no wonder the roads to the island were jammed.

The parent-teacher meeting wasn’t even called that—perhaps to avoid sounding too harsh, it was renamed "Campus Open Day," mainly to show everyone what these young masters and misses had achieved in their studies.

But parent-teacher meetings ultimately came down to the same thing. Even the children of elite families couldn’t escape report cards.

As the principal spoke on stage, many parents bowed their heads to look at the flimsy pieces of paper in their hands, their faces turning grim.

Yun Fan was no exception.

He stared at the paper, glancing up at Wen Haochen several times, his eyes nearly shooting daggers.

This was a side of Yun Fan that Wen Haochen had never seen before. Instantly, he felt a chill run through him, realizing he might have miscalculated—Yun Fan seemed even tougher than his eldest brother.

When it came to academics, Wen Zhaofu had never set high expectations for him. Wen Haochen thought it was because his brother didn’t want to cultivate a competitor, unaware that his brother had long since realized he wasn’t academically inclined and had simply given up.

But Yun Fan didn’t see it that way. In his view, with such excellent resources and opportunities, how could one allow themselves to flunk so many subjects?

It’s over, Wen Haochen thought to himself, I’m dead meat.

When the free discussion time began, the meeting room fell into complete silence, broken only by the sound of tense breathing.

That’s right. Aside from a very few exceptions, most people attending this parent-teacher meeting were here to get bad news.

They might be ruthless in business, but in front of these flimsy pieces of paper, they were visibly shaken.

"Wen Haochen!" Yun Fan’s shout was the opening salvo for this battle.

Wen Haochen, who had never been called by his full name by Yun Fan before, shuddered in surprise and shot up from his chair. He looked around and noticed that many of his classmates had similarly sprung up like they'd been electrocuted.

"You... you... you... you!" Yun Fan pointed at him, speechless for a good moment.

If it weren't for the fact that this was Wen Zhaofu's younger brother, Yun Fan would have really wanted to make him drop to his knees right there. How on earth did he end up with a report card with a failure rate of over eighty percent?!

"I... I'm not at the very bottom," Wen Haochen forced himself to say.

Yun Fan sat up straight. Though he was thinner than Wen Haochen, he carried a surprising amount of authority at that moment. He looked at Wen Haochen and gave his shoulders a couple of shakes: "Did you come to school to compete for the worst? Do you know how much money your eldest brother spent just to get you into this school? Forget whether you’ve let him down—have you even made that money worth it?"

"You’re graduating in just two months. If you can’t earn enough credits, are you going to beg your dad and your brother again, asking them to spend money to fix this for you?" Yun Fan shook his head in anger. "Wen Haochen, money can buy many things, but it can’t buy a way to cram knowledge into your head!"

Wen Haochen ducked his head. Not far away, some of the big-shot parents were already slapping their children. He felt somewhat relieved—if his father were here, he’d probably be doing the same.

In a fit of anger, Yun Fan grabbed a bottle of water and chugged half of it. Wen Haochen watched, terrified and not daring to speak.

"Second Young Master, if you don’t start using your head, you’ll be easily deceived by people with bad intentions when you enter society and start dating."

Wen Haochen glanced at him and muttered softly, "I like boys now."

Huh, since when did the young master change? Yun Fan paused, thinking to himself, who even wants to know?

"Oh, then you’ll be deceived by men," Yun Fan shot back without missing a beat.

Wen Haochen looked at him again and said even more quietly, "He wouldn’t do that."

Yun Fan immediately rolled his eyes. Listen to that—sounds like he’s already on the path to being deceived.

*

After a moment, Yun Fan wiped the sweat from his forehead. He now understood those furious parents all too well. He used to think, "Is it really that serious?" Now he knew—it really is.

"Sit down," Yun Fan took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

Wen Haochen obediently shuffled over and sat down next to Yun Fan, mumbling, "Don’t you often say ‘just to coast’? Why are you so angry about my situation?"

"Butler Yun, do you care about me so much that you’re acting like this?" Wen Haochen analyzed to himself, growing more convinced as he spoke, and even feeling a bit pleased.

Yun Fan glanced at him: "Did you forget? You asked me to come to the parent-teacher meeting. I’m just doing my job."

"Oh..." Wen Haochen’s shoulders slumped.

"And about the first thing you said earlier—come on, let’s talk about it." As he spoke, Yun Fan unbuttoned his suit jacket.

He really didn’t like wearing such clothes; they made him uncomfortable. It was just a casual action, but Wen Haochen was staring intently.

Yun Fan took off his jacket. The silk shirt clung to his body, and with his movements, the contours of his chest rose and fell. The outline of his shoulder blades was faintly visible on his back. He hadn’t deliberately dressed up, but there was an air of casual elegance about him.

Whoa, since when do butlers carry themselves like this? Wen Haochen’s heart raced, and he took several deep breaths.

Next, Yun Fan seemed to feel he needed more strength, so he undid his cuffs and rolled up his sleeves. He shot Wen Haochen a sidelong glance—a seemingly casual look that carried a strong deterrent, giving off serious gang boss vibes.

Wen Haochen immediately cowered, not daring to look or speak, waiting to be scolded.

"You can slack off—that’s your freedom. But if you choose to give up on your studies, you have to be able to take responsibility for yourself." Yun Fan spoke slowly, word by word. "Not Chairman Wen, not Mr. Zhao Fu—it’s you who has to take ultimate responsibility for your life."

"I slack off, but I can foresee the consequences and take responsibility for them. If you can do the same, I won’t say a word."

In the long silence, Wen Haochen realized how little he truly knew about Yun Fan. He recalled a saying, "playing dumb to outsmart others," which seemed to describe someone like Yun Fan.

So they weren’t the same kind of person after all. Never had been.

"Big Brother said the same thing," Wen Haochen replied. "He told me to take responsibility for myself."

Yun Fan gave a noncommittal "Hmm": "Your brother and I share the same educational philosophy."

Wen Haochen scratched his ear, feeling that that wording was kinda weird. Why were Wen Zhaofu and Yun Fan both acting like his parents?

After saying this, Yun Fan fell silent. Educating Wen Haochen had nothing to do with him anyway. Besides, this was the young master of the Wen family—what right did he have to persuade him? It was just that those scorchingly bad grades were too much to ignore, and he couldn’t hold back.

He glanced at Young Master Wen, who was biting his lip and quietly pondering for a long time. When he was a quiet, handsome young man, Yun Fan thought it was a welcome bit of peace and quiet.

It took Wen Haochen a while to move after seriously facing his grades for the first time. He lowered his head, resting his forehead on Yun Fan’s shoulder, and murmured, "Butler Yun, lend me your shoulder. I need to lean on you."

His head was quite large and heavy, and honestly, Yun Fan really wanted to push him away. But the young master was so fragile right now that he was afraid even a slight push might break him.

"Butler Yun, can I really still change all this?" Wen Haochen asked weakly.

Yun Fan sighed, thinking back to what he had been worried about when he was Wen Haochen’s age. Probably how someone with nothing like him could find a better-paying job and live a decent life.

"Second Young Master, I’ve told you before—the young fear nothing, least of all starting over. But the question is, do you really want to start over?" Yun Fan smiled. "Besides, you’re still the young master of the Wen family. Are you afraid you won’t have such opportunities?"

After that, neither of them spoke. Wen Haochen felt that this conversation with Yun Fan had a huge impact on him. No one had ever spoken to him like this before, treating him as someone who could still be saved.

Oh no, what was he supposed to do now? He liked Yun Fan even more!

"I really like leaning on Butler Yun..." Wen Haochen nuzzled his forehead against Yun Fan’s shoulder.

His forehead was hard, drilling painfully into Yun Fan’s shoulder. Without mercy, Yun Fan pushed Wen Haochen’s head away and glared at him.

*

The school seemed worried that handing out report cards at the parent-teacher meeting would lead to the young masters and misses getting beaten at home and then coming back to blow up the school. So they specifically kept some of the parents who came for the event, saying there would be a special performance the next day.

Yun Fan, representing the Wen family, was naturally also kept behind. Wen Haochen had forgotten to mention this beforehand, which displeased Wen Zhaofu.

In the end, Yun Fan managed to talk him down, saying he had been away from campus for a long time and just wanted to soak up the campus vibe again.

Wen Haochen took Yun Fan to experience their cafeteria. Looking around, it was spacious and clean but looked pretty basic. Instantly, Yun Fan missed Uncle Man and his kitchen dearly.

Yun Fan ordered some British fish and chips he had never tried before. Wen Haochen looked puzzled at the golden food on the plate, pursed his lips, saying nothing.

The fish was pretty bland, but it was okay with sauce. As for the fries, they just tasted like potatoes—Yun Fan didn’t comment.

"You ordered the worst dish in the cafeteria," Wen Haochen pouted. "But you still seem to enjoy it."

Yun Fan smiled and glanced at the Japanese ramen in Wen Haochen’s bowl: "Is there anything good to eat here?"

"Alright, I won’t eat either," Wen Haochen put down his chopsticks.

"No, finish it," Yun Fan said. "Don’t waste food."

Wen Haochen’s stubbornness flared up: "No, it tastes awful."

Yun Fan also put down his chopsticks and looked at him leisurely: "If you don’t eat, I’ll call Mr. Zhao Fu and have him send you to India tomorrow."

God! Someone save me! Wen Haochen covered his face, screaming inwardly. Could it be that I’m really destined to be henpecked?

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Author’s Note: Hao Chen, stop overthinking it. Xiao Yun is only going to be your sister-in-law. [dog head]