Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Shang Zenian offered to treat a girl to lunch for the first time, only to be friend-zoned, leaving him not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

He gritted his teeth. Fine, no rush. There was plenty of time.

Master Shang, who never left empty-handed, unusually didn't push Jiang Cheng, escorting him back to the Chen residence. Jiang Cheng returned with a bag of books.

The old man had just finished an IV and was in good spirits. Seeing him back, he chuckled, "Back so soon? Why didn’t you go eat with Xiao Shang?"

Jiang Cheng had an excuse ready. He typed and played it aloud: "I wanted to eat with Grandpa."

The old man clearly loved hearing that. "Good, good. Then let's eat together."

Mrs. Chen silently ground her teeth. That little mute couldn't talk, but she sure knew how to sweet-talk.

She quickly chimed in, "Girls are just more considerate and thoughtful. Duoduo has been pestering to come see you too."

Duoduo was her own granddaughter, the one who bore a slight resemblance to Chen Yin and served as a substitute for Chen Yin in the old man's eyes.

"Fine, fine," the old man laughed heartily, "cough, cough, all good children."

Jiang Cheng didn't understand the undercurrents of the wealthy family's power struggles. He just felt that the old man, surrounded by such filial children and grandchildren, had no regrets.

That evening, Mrs. Chen’s son and daughter-in-law came over with their child to dine with the old man. Duoduo, just over three years old, was at an adorable age, calling him "Grandpa" sweetly and making him smile from ear to ear.

Chen Pingzhou’s only son, a middle schooler, wasn't sweet-tongued and was quite mischievous. Seeing this, even he considered having another child.

Jiang Cheng was completely oblivious to all this. The Chen family’s meals were lavish—a feast for a poor guy like him—so he just focused on eating.

Two days went by like that. Jiang Cheng gradually adapted to life in the Chen household. During that time, Chen Pingzhou and his wife took him to the cemetery to sweep Chen Rou’s tomb, acting their parts convincingly.

But Old Man Chen was too old to go, and Mrs. Chen and the others weren’t interested. Only Chen Pingzhou accompanied Jiang Cheng, so they could relax a bit and drop the act. He even took the opportunity to call his grandmother.

Even in his room at the Chen residence, Jiang Cheng dared not make calls, unsure of the soundproofing and whether a servant might overhear. A small slip like that would be disastrous.

Chen Pingzhou, still cautious, drove himself. After Jiang Cheng finished his call with his grandmother, he asked, "Have Lin Min and the others given you any trouble these past few days?"

Lin Min was Mrs. Chen, his stepmother.

Chen Pingzhou and his family had their own families and jobs, so they couldn’t be with Jiang Cheng all the time. Staying with the old man meant dealing with Mrs. Chen daily.

Jiang Cheng thought for a moment and said, "Kind of. She sometimes makes snide remarks, but I usually don’t catch them until later. Still, it doesn’t seem to do me any real harm."

Chen Pingzhou couldn’t help but laugh. His stepmother loved being passive-aggressive, but with someone as dense as Jiang Cheng, she likely just ended up frustrating herself.

"What about Shang Zenian? Has he contacted you since the library trip?"

"He asked if I wanted to go to a comic convention yesterday, but I turned him down."

Chen Pingzhou: "..."

His smile vanished. "You turned down Shang Zenian?!"

"Uh..." Jiang Cheng looked confused. "Was that not allowed?"

"Not exactly." Chen Pingzhou felt it wasn’t the right time to spill the beans. "What did he say? Was he angry?"

"I don’t think so. He messaged me today. Oh, by the way, his mother invited me to her place tomorrow. She said she’d show me photos of Mom—I mean, Aunt Rou when she was young. Should I go?"

"Of course!" Chen Pingzhou said, then noticed Jiang Cheng’s puzzled look. Realizing his tone was too eager, he coughed lightly. "She probably has lots of photos of Xiao Rou. As her daughter, it’s only right for you to see them."

Jiang Cheng didn’t suspect anything. Taking out his phone, he said, "I’ll let her know."

Chen Pingzhou breathed a quiet sigh of relief.

When the old man heard he was visiting the Shang family, he was delighted and prepared gifts for him to take. He planned to send him in the family car, but Shang Zenian came to pick him up in person.

Even Chen Pingzhou felt a pang of envy. If Chen Yin hadn’t gone missing, all this should have been hers.

Shang Zenian had switched to a Rolls-Royce Cullinan today. Once in the car, he glanced at Jiang Cheng, watching him fumble but successfully fasten his seatbelt. Afterward, Jiang Cheng let out a tiny, relieved breath, a hint of pride in his eyes at his small achievement.

Shang Zenian’s lips curled up as he started the engine. "Is this ride more comfortable today?"

Clearly, she hadn’t liked the sports car last time—she’d hunched in her seat, pressing her hair down and covering her face. So Shang Zenian had brought a quieter car.

What he didn’t know was that Jiang Cheng was worried the sports car's wind would blow off his wig.

Jiang Cheng nodded and typed on his phone: "Is this your car too?"

"Yeah, but I think it’s too bulky and old-fashioned, like something my dad would drive. I don’t use it much."

Jiang Cheng looked envious and typed: "You have so many cars!"

He had seen Shang Zenian drive three different cars: when he came to the Chen residence, when they went to the library, and today.

And today’s brand he recognized—it was a Rolls-Royce!

Shang Zenian asked, "Is there any car you like?"

Jiang Cheng typed: "I like electric scooters. They’re way more useful than cars where I’m from. They can go through lots of narrow alleys that a big car like this would get stuck in!"

"..." Master Shang, who had been planning a generous car gift, was momentarily speechless, then burst out laughing.

The car soon arrived at the Shang residence.

Jiang Cheng thought the Chen house was already luxurious, but the Shang estate made him realize what true luxury was. The prime location, the massive grounds, even a personal helipad with a helicopter parked on it.

So this was what it felt like to stumble into royalty.

Shang’s mother was waiting at the door. Seeing him, she immediately beamed. "You’re here! Why did you bring gifts? You’re too polite."

Shang Zenian carried the gifts while Jiang Cheng held his phone and earnestly typed: "Hello, Aunt Fang."

"Come on in, it's hot outside."

She led him in. "How are you settling in these past few days? Has anyone been giving you trouble?"

Jiang Cheng: "I’m getting used to it. Grandpa is very good to me. No one dares bully me."

"That’s good. If you’re ever wronged, don’t keep it to yourself. If you don’t want to worry your grandpa, tell your uncle. If he won’t handle it, come to me. I’ll back you up. Never suffer in silence, okay?"

Jiang Cheng nodded obediently. This Aunt Fang truly wanted the best for Chen Yin.

After a while, she took him to see the old photos of Chen Rou.

Shang Zenian tried to join, but his mother waved him off.

"Let me have some time alone with Yinyin. Didn’t your father ask you to handle a document? Go take care of it. A man without a career doesn’t deserve a wife."

Shang Zenian: "..."

Jiang Cheng secretly clicked his tongue in amazement—even among the rich second-generation set, marriage is this cutthroat.

Shang Zenian had no choice but to go handle things first, while Aunt Fang led Jiang Cheng upstairs.

The two of them must have been very close friends back in the day, because Aunt Fang had a lot of photos of Chen Rou. Back when smartphones weren't so advanced, these photos had been printed and collected into several albums.

Most of them were from their teenage years. Chen Rou back then looked even more like Jiang Cheng—about sixty to seventy percent similar. Even Chen Yin herself probably didn't resemble her that much.

But it seemed no one had ever mentioned anything about his father. Chen Yin also took her mother's surname, so her marriage probably wasn't very happy. Jiang Cheng wisely didn't ask.

As Aunt Fang flipped through the album, she told Jiang Cheng stories from the past. When one album was finished, Jiang Cheng moved the slightly heavy album aside and opened the next one—but froze.

One photo showed a boy in a school uniform, tall and straight, with delicate, handsome features. One look and you knew he was the kind of standout figure everyone noticed in high school—handsome, dazzling, with a hint of wild rebellion.

It was Shang Zenian from his high school days.

Jiang Cheng turned the page and found more photos of Shang Zenian. One showed him playing basketball, snapped him mid-dunk—the boy leaped high, slamming the ball into the hoop, his arm muscles tight and fluid, exuding that sharp, explosive energy unique to youth. He looked carefree and brilliant.

So handsome.

Jiang Cheng thought, *So handsome*, and closed the album, intending to set it aside. This album clearly belonged to Shang Zenian; it must have been mixed in by mistake.

Aunt Fang knew exactly what that album meant the moment she saw it. Sure enough, once a man falls in love, they all act the same—like peacocks showing off.

Seeing Jiang Cheng look at two photos and then try to put the album away, Aunt Fang suppressed a smile, held the album down, and said, "The housekeeper must have accidentally mixed this one in while organizing. Since it's already here, take a look. My son's photos are very handsome."

Jiang Cheng had no interest in photos of handsome guys, but out of politeness, he reopened the album.

The third photo was probably taken after a basketball game—Shang Zenian was pulling up his jersey to wipe sweat, his eight-pack abs barely showing. Jiang Cheng stared enviously, wishing even just two of those abs were on his own body...

Shang Zenian's album wasn't thick, but every photo was carefully selected. Not only were they handsome, but they also captured many important moments in his life: his graduation ceremony, coming-of-age ceremony, competition grounds, award stages. That one album basically captured the entirety of Shang Zenian's high school life.

Teenage arrogance, unbridled brilliance.

Compared to that, Jiang Cheng felt his own high school years had been dull and nothing special.

He pulled out his phone and typed, "He's so dazzling."

Aunt Fang thought of how this young man in front of her could have been just as dazzling, and her heart ached. Afraid Jiang Cheng might feel resentful, she kept a straight face and played it down: "Those are retouched. The originals actually look pretty rough. See that basketball photo? Looks cool, right? But after playing basketball, he was all sweaty and stinky! Ew!"

As she spoke, Aunt Fang fanned the air under her nose with a look of disgust.

Jiang Cheng suppressed a smile.

Aunt Fang closed the album and said, "It's getting late. Let's go down for lunch first."

Jiang Cheng was tired of looking anyway. After all, this wasn't his real mother, and pretending to be a loving kid was exhausting. At the mention of food, he immediately stood up.

Time to chow down!

The lunch at the Shang family's was especially lavish. Jiang Cheng ate until he was stuffed. Being rich was great—the food was a hundred times better than restaurant meals, like a feast every single day.

After the meal, Shang Zenian said to Aunt Fang, "Didn't you have afternoon tea plans with your friends? Shouldn't you be heading out?"

Seeing how eager he was to kick her out so he could be alone with Chen Yin, Aunt Fang sighed to herself—"a son grown is a son gone."

"Fine, fine, I'll go have tea. Make sure you take Yin Yin back early so Grandpa Chen won't worry."

"Got it."

Aunt Fang took the hint and left. Jiang Cheng picked up a small bag with a few precious photos that Aunt Fang had given him. He didn't want to refuse, so he planned to give them to Chen Pingzhou.

"Where are you going?" Shang Zenian asked.

Jiang Cheng typed, "Aunt Fang has gone out, so I should head back too."

How could Shang Zenian let him go so early? "It's only lunch. Still early. Stay a bit longer."

Jiang Cheng blinked and typed, "Is there anything fun to do?"

"Lots. Do you like watching movies? I just got the summer blockbusters in. We can watch the new releases."

"Movie? Sure."

Jiang Cheng didn't refuse. Going home now would just mean the old man was napping, and there was nothing to do anyway.

Shang Zenian took him to the basement home theater. Jiang Cheng was surprised to find it was set up just like a real cinema—a huge screen with seats that could recline or sit upright.

"Have a seat," Shang Zenian said, turning on the lights and the player. "Open up Xiaohongshu and search for summer movies. Pick whichever one you want to watch."

Jiang Cheng obediently did as he was told.

He barely watched movies and had no idea which ones were good. After browsing, he picked a foreign horror movie.

Shang Zenian raised an eyebrow. "You sure you want to watch a horror movie? Not scared?"

Jiang Cheng typed, "Nope, I'm really brave! But if you're scared, we can switch!"

If he wasn't scared, there's no way Shang Zenian would admit to being scared. He found the movie and said, "This one works. Let's start."

Jiang Cheng quickly sat up straight.

He really was brave—haunted school buildings, graveyards in the hills, horror novels that made the girls in his class scream—none of it ever scared him.

But after the movie started, Jiang Cheng discovered that Western horror was different from the psychological horror of Chinese style. It relied on violence and gore to get you scared.

Like in this movie: a murderous maniac dragged a bloodstained knife, searching room by room. Just as he was about to discover the protagonist's hiding spot, Jiang Cheng quickly covered his eyes, too scared to watch.

Huh? Why had it gone quiet?

Jiang Cheng peeked through the gaps between his fingers. Oh, the protagonist was hiding under the bed, and the maniac hadn't found him. He let out a small sigh of relief.

"Tap, tap, tap."

The background sound of the maniac's footsteps retreating. The protagonist sighed in relief and came out from under the bed. Suddenly, a terrifying "bang" echoed in the background, and in the same moment, the protagonist saw a pair of feet in front of him. Jiang Cheng nearly screamed, quickly covering his eyes again, while patting his wildly beating heart to calm himself down.

Scared him to death!

Then came the tense standoff and desperate escape. Jiang Cheng was terrified, yet couldn't help peeking through his fingers again to see what happened next.

Shang Zenian barely watched the movie—his attention was mostly on Jiang Cheng.

His expression—scared yet curious, fingers opening and closing to sneak peeks at the screen, wanting to look but afraid to, unable to resist—was far more entertaining than the movie itself.

Author's note:

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