Chapter 29

Chapter 29

His shameless attitude left Jiang Cheng helpless, but fifty thousand was too much, and he felt it was way too generous.

He could only discuss it with Shang Zenian: "Then I don’t need that high a salary—just pay me five thousand a month."

Jiang Cheng had gotten smarter this time—he didn’t offer to work for free, to avoid Shang Zenian bringing up that weird request again.

"The contract is signed. You want me to break the contract and pay you penalties?"

"No, Shang Zenian, I know you mean well, and I really do need the money, but I’ve got hands and feet—I can make my own money. I don’t need your..." Jiang Cheng chose his words carefully, "handouts."

After saying that, Jiang Cheng shrank back toward the car door, expecting Shang Zenian to blow up again.

After a moment, hearing no reaction, he carefully looked up and glanced at Shang Zenian, who had a blank face—it was impossible to tell if he was angry.

But since he hadn’t blown up immediately, maybe it was okay, right?

So Jiang Cheng plucked up his courage and asked carefully, "Okay, Shang Zenian? Please?"

When he was Chen Yin, Shang Zenian always fell for that act.

Now that he was in a different skin, Shang Zenian was annoyed to realize he still fell for it.

But he didn’t want to admit it, like he was taking orders from Jiang Cheng, so he snapped, "Twenty thousand. No less. That's what I pay my maids—minimum. If I pay less, people will think I'm cheap."

"..." Was that a real thing?

Still, twenty thousand was much more acceptable than fifty thousand. He could try to do more for Shang Zenian so he wouldn't feel too guilty.

Jiang Cheng nodded: "Okay, let’s make it twenty thousand then."

The Zhao family matter wasn't settled yet.

If it were just suspicion, it would be understandable—when stuff goes missing, it's normal to suspect someone.

But the Zhao family’s behavior, along with Zhao’s mother saying things like "you come from a low background, so you have bad character," would make anyone's blood boil.

So Shang Zenian had no intention of letting the Zhao family off easily.

He had someone investigate the Zhao family’s background and found that Zhao’s father owned a company that ran an online shop.

The funny thing is, his business was related to "helping farmers," doing live-stream sales, with a corresponding account. By posting various videos about aiding farmers, he had built a decent reputation, with tens of thousands of followers.

However, the so-called "helping farmers" was just a front—they routinely lowballed prices and ripped off the locals.

Last year, due to weather conditions, the price of navel oranges soared. To secure a low-cost supply, they secretly released fruit flies into the orchards—those things leave ugly scars on the fruit—then spread rumors about an upcoming natural disaster.

Scarred fruit greatly reduced in quality and value. The farmers didn't know better and panicked, rushing to sell off the fruit.

The Zhao father and his team put on a righteous act, telling the farmers "don't worry, we'll take the risk," but in reality, they took advantage to lower the price, getting an even lower price than the year before. They then sold the fruit at a much higher price than usual, making a killing.

He didn’t even need to deliberately frame them—just exposing what Zhao's father did would be enough to screw him over.

Shang Zenian first had the audio clip of Zhao’s mother disparaging people from small towns exposed, to generate buzz. The owner of a "helping farmers" company looking down on the poor was a sensitive topic, and Zhao’s father’s live-stream sales suffered as a result.

But it wasn’t fatal. Zhao’s father’s team reacted quickly, buying fake accounts to control the story, shouting down the issue. Since he wasn’t a celebrity influencer relying on fans, the whole thing died down.

Zhao’s mother, upon hearing that her recording had been leaked, knew it must be connected to Jiang Cheng. Seeing that the issue was resolved with little real damage and minimal losses, she was quite smug.

She sent Jiang Cheng a message, deliberately trying to disgust him, thanking him for the free publicity that supposedly boosted her husband’s company’s monthly performance to a new high.

Jiang Cheng thought she was ridiculous and just blocked her.

But before she could bask in her triumph for three minutes, Zhao’s father’s fake "helping farmers" scheme was exposed.

With the prior buildup, this incident immediately attracted widespread attention. Shang Zenian straight-up paid to get them trending. With the help of netizens, Zhao’s father’s live-stream room was shut down, and his company was investigated.

Releasing fruit flies maliciously also constituted the crime of sabotaging production and business operations. Relevant authorities took it very seriously and launched an investigation. Once verified, Zhao’s father would not only have to pay compensation but might also face jail time.

In just one day, the Zhao family went from a comfortable middle-class household to rats scurrying in the streets, despised by everyone.

Jiang Cheng received another message from Zhao’s mother. Since he had blocked her, she sent a friend request, groveling and apologizing, saying she knew she was wrong, begging them to let her family off, that she would never dare again, and that Zhao Zijie was about to take the college entrance exam next year, and this would ruin his future. She begged him, since he'd tutored Zhao Zijie a few times, to let them go.

Her tone was so humble, a world away from her previous arrogance.

Annoyed by her, Jiang Cheng simply blocked her.

For people like her, when she framed and cursed him, he was just a broke student, totally powerless. Now that she was in trouble, he felt no sympathy whatsoever.

Besides, he had grown up in a small county and had come into contact with many farmers, knowing how exhausting it was for them to scrape by. People who screw over farmers deserve whatever punishment they get—it's never too harsh.

As for Zhao Zijie, he enjoyed the comfortable life his parents provided, so he also has to face the consequences of what his parents did. Besides, only his father was arrested. Apart from affecting future civil service exams, nothing else would harm him. How could that ruin his future?

Zhao's mother wasn't sorry—she was just scared, so she faked it.

If, hypothetically, the Zhao family managed to get through this crisis, she would continue the same behavior, even worse.

However, the Zhao family was doomed to never get through this.

Jiang Cheng witnessed the entire process, including the police notice about Zhao’s father being taken away for investigation, and felt a chill run down his spine.

In comparison, Shang Zenian had treated him, Jiang Cheng, way too merciful. It must be because of Chen Yin. Shang Zenian couldn’t let go of her, so he couldn’t bear to deal harshly with Jiang Cheng.

Thinking of this, Jiang Cheng felt deeply guilty and secretly vowed to help Shang Zenian get over this emotional baggage.

Moreover, Shang Zenian had taken revenge for him, so Jiang Cheng owed him another favor and needed to repay it.

Shang Zenian let him rest for a day and only asked him to start work on Sunday.

Since he had no classes, Jiang Cheng decided to go over to make him lunch, then do a thorough cleaning in the afternoon, and add dinner—that way he'd be doing plenty!

He told Shang Zenian in advance, and Shang Zenian didn't say no.

On Sunday, Jiang Cheng finally got to sleep in. He didn't get up until ten, washed up, read a bit, and then headed to Shang Zenian's when it was about time.

On the way, he noticed rows of umbrellas set up on both sides of the road, stretching a long row of stalls. Many students were wandering among these stalls. Jiang Cheng figured it was a school charity sale or flea market, so he curiously walked over to see if there was anything to buy.

Upon closer look, he realized it was the school's club recruitment fair—these stalls were set up by various clubs.

Jiang Cheng wasn’t interested in clubs and wanted to just pass through. But a good-looking guy like him? No way they'd let him pass easily. Seniors swarmed him, all talking at once to recruit him, none wanting to let such a good-looking new student slip away.

With no choice, Jiang Cheng took their flyers, saying he would take them back to look over and consider. A few pushy ones even made him add them on WeChat. He barely escaped the seniors' clutches, then turned to run along a side path.

But because he was running too fast and not paying attention to what was ahead, he ran into a senior girl who was also jogging.

In her hand, she held a cup of water in a disposable cup. The crash sent the whole cup of water right onto his pants.

"Sorry, sorry," the senior girl quickly pulled out a tissue to wipe the water off him. "Sorry about that."

"It was my fault for not watching where I was going. It's fine, I'll just change into another pair when I get back. I should be the one apologizing—did I hurt you?"

"No, I'm fine," she said, her eyes lighting up at the sight of his face. "Are you looking to join a club? How about our Hanfu club? With your looks, you'd definitely look great in Hanfu!"

Jiang Cheng quickly refused: "No thanks, I really don't have time. If there's nothing else, I'll get going."

"Don't go! Our events aren't that frequent, they won't take up much of your time. Let's exchange WeChat, I'll send you our club info to check out... Hey!"

As she spoke, Jiang Cheng had already darted off. The senior girl, wearing Hanfu, couldn't run easily and could only stomp her foot in frustration after a few steps.

Jiang Cheng didn't go back to change his pants. First, he was afraid he wouldn't make it in time, and Master Shang would find an excuse to make a fuss if he didn't get his meal on time. Second, he worried about being chased down by the club crowd again, so he left the school gate in his wet pants.

Fortunately, he was wearing light-colored pants today, so the water stain wasn't obvious. He could just use Shang Zenian's hairdryer once he got there.

When he arrived at Shang Zenian's place, he knocked first. After waiting a while with no answer, he used his fingerprint to unlock the door. The house was quiet, and Shang Zenian's bedroom door was closed—probably still sleeping.

Jiang Cheng checked the living room bathroom and then the room and bathroom prepared for Chen Yin, but found no hairdryer.

It was probably only in Shang Zenian's room.

But he didn't dare to wake Shang Zenian.

Shang Zenian had only prepared skirts for Chen Yin. He'd just have to make do—the wet pants clinging to his legs were very uncomfortable.

Just then, he spotted a pair of athletic shorts lying on the couch in the living room. It still had a hanger on it, clearly freshly washed and dried, and he wondered why they were left there.

Jiang Cheng hesitated for a moment, thinking it shouldn't be a big deal to borrow Shang Zenian's athletic shorts for a bit.

It wasn't a skirt, so he probably wouldn't freak out.

With that thought, Jiang Cheng took the shorts into the bathroom, changed into them, and hung up his wet pants on the hanger. Perfect.

Shang Zenian was tall and broad, so his shorts were big. Luckily, athletic shorts have elastic waistbands, so he didn't have to worry about them falling off despite the size difference.

After changing, Jiang Cheng tiptoed into the kitchen and opened the fridge first.

Fresh vegetables and high-quality meats were delivered daily to Shang Zenian's place. The fridge was stocked with tender greens, premium cuts of meat, and even live seafood in the crisper drawer.

Fortunately, Jiang Cheng had spent two months living the high life before, so he recognized all these ingredients and knew how to handle them.

Plus, nowadays, you can find detailed cooking tutorials online for any dish, so cooking wasn't too difficult.

Jiang Cheng grabbed an apron hanging on the wall, tied it on, and started making lunch.

Compared to tutoring, cooking for Master Shang was much easier. Although Shang Zenian was also intimidating, the suffocating dread he felt around the Zhao family made Shang Zenian seem less frightening.

Jiang Cheng often cooked at home, so making a meal for one person was simple. He wasn't sure how many dishes Master Shang would expect, so he decided on three dishes and a soup, making smaller portions to avoid waste.

He started the rice cooker and began prepping the ingredients.

Shang Zenian had stayed up late playing games with Lu Xiyuan and the others the night before. When he woke up, it was almost noon.

Hearing noises outside, he knew Jiang Cheng had started his shift. He got out of bed, opened the door, and walked sleepily to the kitchen entrance. He saw the figure of someone cooking with his back to the door and froze for a moment, then his eyes narrowed sharply.

Jiang Cheng was wearing his shorts on his lower half. Because of the size difference, the loose shorts looked like a little skirt on Jiang Cheng, exposing slender, straight calves that seemed dazzlingly white against the black fabric.

The loose legs of the shorts swayed gently as he moved the wok, the fabric hanging loosely, making the boy's legs look even more fragile.

He had an apron tied around his waist, the thin straps cinching his slim waistline, the knot made one want to gently tug it open, causing his clothes to fall away and reveal the beautiful sight hidden beneath.

Shang Zenian's Adam's apple unconsciously bobbed.

His dark eyes fixed heavily on the boy's slender back, his gaze trailing inch by inch down the swaying hem of the shorts, over the smooth lines of his straight calves, the shapely buttocks not even hidden by the athletic shorts, and the waist that could be circled with one hand...

Thinking that he was wearing his pants, that his private parts were wrapped in fabric carrying his scent, Shang Zenian's body suddenly flooded with an indescribable, overwhelming heat.

He was sure he wasn't gay, and had no interest in men, but seeing Jiang Cheng in this completely masculine attire, with no trace of Chen Yin, he actually...

"Why are you wearing my shorts?" Shang Zenian asked in a low voice.

His voice was a bit hoarse.

Jiang Cheng was startled by his sudden appearance. Turning around to see Shang Zenian at the door, he patted his chest and explained, "My pants accidentally got wet, and I couldn't find a hairdryer in your place. Then I saw your shorts lying on the couch, so I took them!"

Shang Zenian wasn't satisfied with this explanation and snorted coldly. "I think you did it on purpose."

He thought Jiang Cheng had done it on purpose to seduce him.

"No, I didn't! My pants really got wet. If it bothers you, I'll change and wash them."

Having said that, Jiang Cheng had just finished cooking this dish, so he turned off the stove and immediately went to change.

He should have just put up with the wet pants. Who knew Shang Zenian would be so bothered about it.

Shang Zenian's frame blocked the kitchen doorway, and Jiang Cheng couldn't get past. He whispered, "Could you move aside?"

"Where are you going?"

"To change my shorts. I didn't know you'd mind. Sorry."

"I don't mind," Shang Zenian said, leaning down and staring at him expressionlessly. He asked, "How did you feel that time when you helped me?"

Jiang Cheng was taken aback for a moment before realizing what "help" he was referring to. Thinking back to that intoxicating evening, his face instantly turned red.

Seriously, why did he have to bring up this topic out of nowhere!

Could it be that seeing him in his shorts had reminded him of their past, making him unhappy, and now he was going to settle the score? QAQ

Jiang Cheng tried to brush it off, looking down and saying, "I... I don't remember."

But Shang Zenian wouldn't let it go. "Was it disgusting to jerk off another guy?"

"..." That was way too direct. Jiang Cheng's face grew even redder.

He shook his head.

"Why? Aren't you straight?"

"I didn't find it disgusting. It was just... really embarrassing. I just wanted you to hurry up; you took too long."

At the time, Jiang Cheng had been dazed from Shang Zenian's kisses, his mind a fog, so he probably didn't have the brainpower to think about whether it was disgusting or not.

Plus, there was something else Jiang Cheng didn't dare say: he felt so indebted at the time that he just wanted to make it up to him as best he could.

Aside from not being able to sleep with him, he would try to fulfill any other request Shang Zenian had.

No man dislikes being praised for lasting long, and Master Shang was no exception. He curled the corner of his mouth. "I remember you were breathing hard at the time. So..." Shang Zenian extended a finger, pressed it against Jiang Cheng's forehead, and gently pressed, forcing him to look up and meet his eyes. "Did you get hard?"