SFBF CH68

FOD ADVANCED CHAPTERS, VISIT MY PATREON ACCOUNT.
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Ten minutes later.

Going to his office together with Gu Huaiyu and seeing President Gu pull an exquisite little box out of his safe, Shen Qing’s apricot eyes rounded and widened a degree further.

…President Gu really did have a treasure.

But weren’t President Gu’s treasures all kept in the walk-in closet in the bedroom? Why did the safe in the office have stock in it too?

The safe here should only be for storing office-related items. Was Gu Huaiyu really someone who didn’t separate public and private matters?

Shen Qing directly voiced his question.

Hearing him, Gu Huaiyu glanced at him and said, “It’s nothing. Your Peppa Pig used to be kept in here too.”

Shen Qing: “…That piggy bank?”

Gu Huaiyu’s thin lips closed, making no further sound.

He directly opened the small box in his hand. Tilted in Shen Qing’s direction.

Shen Qing saw two rings standing upright inside.

“These are couple rings?”

He stepped closer to inspect them carefully.

Gu Huaiyu said, “Correct.”

His long eyelashes drooping, the person still holding the box added, “The slightly smaller one is yours.”

“Okay.” Shen Qing wasn’t polite about it, and directly took that ring out.

Judging by the design, it didn’t seem like something meant for the thumb, index finger, or pinky. Shen Qing first held it up to his middle finger and felt it would be a bit tight, so he then slipped it onto his ring finger.

A perfect fit.

He looked at his ring finger—at the shiny ring made of some unknown material. Its design looked ordinary at first glance, but once worn, it was both low-key and luxurious. Suddenly, he felt full of joy.

He genuinely liked this thing from the bottom of his heart.

It was strange, since he clearly didn’t like wearing accessories.

But this ring was very different.

So pretty!

Holding up his hand and admiring it for a long time, Shen Qing didn’t notice that Gu Huaiyu beside him had also been staring at him the whole time.

The taut corners of his lips couldn’t help relaxing once more, and a distant, bright light entered the depths of his dark eyes. Gu Huaiyu asked him, “Do you like it?”

“I love it.” Shen Qing directly expressed his inner joy.

He turned his head, looking at Gu Huaiyu with bright eyes. “Is it for me? Thank you, hubby!”

Gu Huaiyu gave a slight nod, the corner of his lip hooking up lightly. “As long as you like it.”

Then, Shen Qing noticed Gu Huaiyu was still holding that box and hadn’t put on the other ring. He couldn’t help suspiciously picking up the other ring. “But hubby, why aren’t you wearing yours?”

“I…”

For a rare moment, Gu Huaiyu’s attitude was somewhat evasive, and his speech hesitant.

He said, “I won’t wear it for now.”

“Why won’t you wear it?”

Clear question marks appeared on Shen Qing’s face. “Didn’t we agree it’s a shared symbol… If you don’t wear it, there’s no point in me wearing it either.”

As he spoke, the young man put on a face of regret. He gave the ring on his slender finger one final 180-degree appreciation, then made a move as if to take it off.

“If hubby doesn’t like wearing rings, then I won’t wear mine either.”

But before the ring could be taken off, Gu Huaiyu had already stopped him.

Grasping the young man’s wrist with one hand, Gu Huaiyu said, “…It’s just a ring. Wear it if you want to.”

Shen Qing: “Right.”

He suddenly broke into another smile, lips red and teeth white. Looking at Gu Huaiyu with crinkled, smiling eyes that curved upward at the corners, he said, “It’s just a ring, so you should try wearing it too!”

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

A smiling Shen Qing: “Just try it on first!”

As he spoke, he reversed the dynamic, grabbing Gu Huaiyu’s hand and directly sliding the ring that should belong to the other man onto his ring finger.

Still a perfect fit, pushed straight down to the base of the finger.

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

“See, how perfectly it fits!” Shen Qing’s eyes shone brightly.

He spread Gu Huaiyu’s five fingers apart, lined them up side by side with his own, and held them up against the sunlight outside.

Both sets of hands originally had exceptionally long, slender fingers with prominent joints—a hand-lover’s dream. Now, standing side by side, those well-proportioned joints looked even more slender and long beneath the light.

And looking at them this way made the two rings look even better.

How could ordinary-looking rings be so beautiful…

Shen Qing marveled.

Gu Huaiyu also looked at the two hands held up side by side, his expression dazed, his thin lips pressed lightly together. His long fingers curled slightly and then straightened, repeating this a few times as if trembling.

No one knew what he was thinking.

Until he said, “This is a wedding ring.”

He turned his head back to look at the young man. “Do you know the meaning of a wedding ring?”

“A wedding ring?” Shen Qing narrowed his eyes, feeling it was pretty much the same as a couple’s ring, just that the relationship seemed more secure.

That was a good thing.

So he said, “I know. But what does it matter? Haven’t we been married for a long time?”

His tone was relaxed.

After speaking, he looked again at the two hands side by side.

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

Time seemed to stand still. Under the sunlight, the ring flashing with wondrous light was slightly glaring. Gu Huaiyu continued to stare fixedly at them, and abruptly said, “What you say makes a lot of sense.”

Shen Qing didn’t know which part of his words Gu Huaiyu thought made sense, but that didn’t stop him from being smug. “Of course, everything I say is a golden rule.”

Hearing this, Gu Huaiyu couldn’t help hooking up the corner of his lips, noncommittal. “Mm.”

“Then we’ll just wear them like this?” Shen Qing finally said. “…Once they’re on, you’re not allowed to take it off. If you do take it off, you have to let me know.”

Hearing this, the corner of Gu Huaiyu’s lips straightened again. “Why do you think I would take it off?”

Shen Qing: “Just in case.”

His tone remained relaxed. “Of course, if you take it off when taking a shower, you don’t need to tell me.”

“…Once a wedding ring is on, it shouldn’t be taken off unless absolutely necessary.”

Gu Huaiyu raised his eyebrows, his voice suddenly rising a pitch in question. “Do you really know the meaning of a wedding ring?”

Shen Qing: “…”

Once a wedding ring was put on, it couldn’t be taken off again? …

He really hadn’t known that.

So that was the meaning the big boss was talking about. Where was this rule from anyway, or maybe Gu Huaiyu meant the kind of marriage that really emphasized a sense of ceremony?

…

Whatever.

It was such a beautiful ring anyway, he wouldn’t want to take it off either.

A moment later, Shen Qing suddenly spoke again. “Wait a minute.”

He dropped his hand and looked at the big boss beside him. “Did you prepare this pair of rings a long time ago?”

Gu Huaiyu followed suit and lowered his hand.

Once the young man’s hand left his, the hand wearing the ring—along with his entire arm—dropped limply. He raised his eyes again to look at the young man, answering, “Mm.”

Shen Qing: “Were they specifically for me?”

Gu Huaiyu: “Who else would a wedding ring be for?”

Shen Qing: “…What you say makes a lot of sense too.”

Gu Huaiyu: “.”

Shen Qing: “Then when did you prepare them?”

President Gu didn’t answer this question immediately. He only stared at Shen Qing in a long silence.

He seemed to be pondering something.

After a long time, he said, “Recently.”

Someone as impatient as Shen Qing didn’t lose his patience over the big boss’s calm deliberation, even though he didn’t understand what Gu Huaiyu was thinking about.

But perhaps he had grown used to the slow but calm and powerful feeling when the other man spoke, so Shen Qing felt fine with it.

He just thought his husband was actually pretty romantic. Mm, and thoughtful too.

So he had prepared the couple rings a long time ago… Was this another surprise gift he was preparing to give him at some point?

Because Shen Qing suddenly realized—this ring fit perfectly on his ring finger!

Really, an exceptionally perfect fit!

This was different from the blue diamond gemstone ring Gu Huaiyu had given him before. That ring’s selling point was primarily the diamond; the ring itself was just a common white-gold setting whose size could be adjusted at any time. It didn’t really matter as long as it could be worn on any random finger.

But this ring didn’t have a giant diamond on it; the value of the ring itself was already quite high.

Shen Qing was also half an expert now and knew that rings of this band size were crafted only after submitting the measurements. It was essentially custom-made.

And looking at it, it didn’t seem like something bought casually, much less a family heirloom!

So Shen Qing couldn’t help getting curious again. “Also, how did you know my size?”

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

“It’s so precise, you definitely must have measured it,” Shen Qing said with certainty.

“But when did you measure it?” As he spoke, he lifted his hand again, looking at it over and over. “I don’t remember getting my fingers measured?”

It couldn’t be that they had even reported this kind of index to the other party during the arranged marriage…

Gu Huaiyu remained silent at first.

His left hand, which now sported an extra ring on its ring finger, curled into a fist, clenching inconspicuously, but he said nothing about exactly when he had measured it.

It wasn’t until Shen Qing kept pressing the question, practically turning into a demanding little imp and coming over to hug him again, that Gu Huaiyu couldn’t help coughing again.

“Cough.”

Having practiced walking, Gu Huaiyu’s cheeks had a bit more color than usual. He clutched his chest and suddenly asked Shen Qing in return, “Did you know you’re very restless when you sleep?”

Shen Qing: “?”

Of course he knew that!

But out of nowhere, why was the big boss bringing this up? …

Gu Huaiyu, who hadn’t fully caught his breath yet, let his expression return to its usual indifference first. “That’s when I measured it.”

Shen Qing: “???”

“What, while I was sleeping? …”

It took a second for Shen Qing to register before clarifying the other’s meaning. “You measured it when I was being restless in my sleep? But what does that have to do with whether I sleep restlessly or not? …Wait, so what exactly did you do while I was asleep?”

Shen Qing’s mind suddenly opened up to all possibilities… He slept so heavily that he didn’t even know someone had measured the thickness of his fingers. Who knew what else Gu Huaiyu had done to his sleeping self?

He subconsciously supported his waist, which would always ache when he woke up, and looked at Gu Huaiyu in shock.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that something incredible had happened while he was asleep!

Gu Huaiyu lifted his head again, revealing a face restored to calm.

Upon seeing the young man’s startled and skittish expression, he couldn’t help lifting the corner of his lips slightly again and asking slowly, “What do you think I did to you?”

Shen Qing: “…Could it be that you found my restless sleeping disturbing, so you took advantage of my deep sleep to tie me up like a rice dumpling, and casually used the rope to measure my finger size?”

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

The slightly lifted corner of his lips didn’t drop; instead, the upward curve widened.

He had actually been angered into laughing by the young man.

“You really have a rich imagination. However…”

Gu Huaiyu said in a cold voice, “I’m not quite that perverted just yet.”

After speaking, even the corners of his lips dropped. He straightened the direction of his wheelchair, planning to continue working.

“…Then what does you measuring my finger have to do with my restless sleeping?”

Jokes aside, Shen Qing didn’t intend to disturb the big boss’s work, but he was just too curious about this question. “Share it with me?”

Gu Huaiyu: “Because you always come over to hug me, hold my hand…”

Shen Qing: “?”

Looking at the shocked young man, Gu Huaiyu’s dark eyes unavoidably brightened, and his pale, lackluster face seemed to flush a lot more.

This person with a cold and stern voice, who looked completely serious on the outside, subconsciously curled his lips again and said slowly, “When you get touched often enough, you naturally figure it out.”

Shen Qing: “…???”

Li Hong felt that recently, he was having an increasingly hard time understanding his boss’s intentions.

Just before getting off work, when he went to deliver files and make a report to President Gu for the last time, and happened to run into them in the hallway, he shockingly saw it on the ring finger of sir’s left hand… that ring President Gu had suspended giving away during the day.

Li Hong: “???”

Forgive his astonishment at this moment.

It really was the very first time President Gu had issued an order in the morning and changed it in the evening, changing his mind so quickly!

“Assistant Li, what’s wrong with you?” When passing by to say hello, Shen Qing noticed Assistant Li’s expression was very fractured, and kindly asked what was wrong.

Li Hong quickly withdrew his gaze, shaking his head like a rattle drum, not daring to make a peep as he said, “N-nothing, nothing.”

After hastily taking leave of sir and arriving at President Gu’s office, Li Hong had barely set the files down when he saw on President Gu’s left hand, which was resting on the desk, an identical matching ring clearly on his ring finger too.

!

After finishing his work report, Li Hong finally couldn’t hold it back any longer, and asked anyway: “President Gu, about that ring, you gave it to him after all?”

Hearing this, Gu Huaiyu lifted his eyelashes slightly, looked at the ring on his hand, and didn’t mention the convoluted process of putting on this ring, but didn’t shy away from it either. “Mm.”

“That’s great. Like I was saying, for things like wedding rings, the earlier you give it, the better!”

Gu Huaiyu silently stroked the ring on his ring finger, twisting it slightly, and said, “It’s just a pair of rings, given is given. There originally was no need to worry too much.”

Li Hong: “…”

Although that was true.

But President Gu, when you said that, it seemed like you forgot to control your expression… Even the corners of your eyes are starting to curve upward!

Gu Huaiyu: “It just so happens, Shen Qing likes it too.”

Li Hong: “Yes, yes, yes, of course. After all, an eight-figure… After all, it’s something President Gu personally selected! Sir must certainly approve of your taste!”

Hearing this, Gu Huaiyu raised an eyebrow.

But he more or less accepted what the man said.

A moment later, however, the upward curve at the corner of his eyes vanished, and Gu Huaiyu returned to his serious face, asking, “How is the contact regarding the surgery going?”

It was only later that Shen Qing learned the ring on his hand was actually worth eight figures…

He heard it was the cumulative effect of special materials, plus a top-tier designer, plus a super international brand. After learning this, he could only pat his chest and rejoice—thank goodness he hadn’t rashly insisted on paying to buy a pair of couple rings for the two of them.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to buy them anymore.

He just couldn’t afford it.

Over the next few days, the renovation crew quickly satisfied Shen Qing’s requests. Not only did they swap in sturdier railings and pull safety nets along the edges of them, but they also knocked through the two rooms belonging to the babies. The way they knocked through the walls was quite innovative and incorporated design elements, and the kids all liked it a lot.

Little kids naturally liked mazes, hide-and-seek, and that sort of game. The newly constructed playroom was sufficiently “winding and twisting,” so no child would dislike it. Upon hearing about this, Ming Bao directly clamored to come over and play.

Even though Ming Bao’s mother firmly opposed Ming Bao frequently running to Uncle Shen’s house and disturbing Uncle Shen and Uncle Gu, since Ming Bao’s smartwatch now had Shen Qing’s phone number saved in it, Ming Bao directly “overstepped his authority” and made the request to Shen Qing himself.

Of course, Shen Qing wouldn’t refuse such a cute little kid coming to his house to play. They were all kids anyway… Ahem, this sort of thing was like herding sheep; herding one was the same as herding a flock.

Especially since, for the most part, Shen Qing didn’t need to be the one supervising them.

And to welcome Ming Bao’s arrival, Shen Qing even specially prepared new little sheep onesie pajamas for the three toddlers. They were entirely made of white fleece, and came with a cute large hood and a tiny section of tail.

Aozai really liked all new clothes. Shen Qing discovered this kid had a bit of a peacock attribute; as long as he put on new clothes, he would happily spin in circles.

His main focus was showing them off.

And Ming Bao had always liked the color white the most. The soft and white texture was exactly his favorite, so naturally, he also loved this new outfit to pieces.

Only Duoduo…

Well, this kid had evolved again.

The current Young Master Duo was already completely lacking the mental state to pass judgment on clothes.

Anyway, when Shen Qing didn’t ask him to wear anything specific, he would just wear whatever. And if Shen Qing specifically asked him to wear a certain outfit, he would cooperate and change into it.

Duo Zai’s recent catchphrase: “As long as you’re happy.”

Shen Qing: “…”

Regardless, he still took cute photos of the babies and had them printed to continue enriching the content in their growth photo album.

But most of the time, Shen Qing just nested in his room and played games.

…In President Gu’s study, that is.

He didn’t know why the babies’ rooms had been knocked through and decorated so quickly, while the renovation of his own room had dragged on with no progress.

If asked, the answer was that the structure of the house was different. The young masters’ rooms were relatively easy to modify, but sir’s room wasn’t easy to handle.

Shen Qing had also curiously gone to take a look twice. He found that not only was the pink wallpaper gone, but practically all the walls in the entire room had been scraped down. It had currently reverted to the state of a bare concrete room…

Um…

Well…

Even though he wasn’t in a rush, was it really necessary to change it so thoroughly??

And because he had said he wasn’t in a rush, the construction crew really wasn’t rushing anymore.

According to Assistant Tian’s explanation—today, because the young masters had to study together, it wasn’t convenient to scrape walls because the noise was too loud, so a half-day of work was delayed.

Tomorrow, because Young Master Ming was coming over, the noise would still be too loud, so work would be delayed for another day…

When Tian Yi reported all this to Shen Qing, Shen Qing instinctively felt something was a little strange, but also felt the man made sense.

The kids’ rooms had to be rushed because the kids needed to use them urgently.

He wasn’t in a rush himself, so um…

Forget it. He had long chosen to give up thinking about brain-taxing things. Anyway, nothing delayed him from being a happy salted fish.

On the evening Ming Bao came over, after sending the little kid off, Shen Qing sat on his bed focused on screening the various cute photos taken that day, occasionally sending them to Ming Bao’s mother and his little uncle to see. Suddenly, he received a video call invitation.

It was pretty abrupt. Shen Qing was caught off guard and almost tapped ‘accept,’ but when he clearly saw the name of the person sending the invite, he raised his eyebrows high, thinking: Interesting.

The person messaging him was the original owner’s cousin, Lu Xin.

[Lu Xin: Cousin, are you there? Are you there? Are you there?]

[This is an emergency. Lend me thirty thousand first, I’ll pay you back later!]

[It’s really urgent. Can you just lend it to me first? I promise to return it within ten days. Wuwuwu, if you don’t save me, I really am dead this time.]

…

Without accepting the video call, Shen Qing scrolled up through the chat history.

He remembered that this didn’t seem to be the first time this cousin had borrowed money from the original owner. Sure enough, right above the message asking if he was there, was the transfer record of Lu Xin paying him back.

Except that time, the original owner had lent him twenty thousand, and this cousin had promised to pay it off within a month. As a result, he abruptly dragged it out for a year before paying it off in scattered bits and pieces.

Basically, every time the original owner asked him for money, it was as if the original owner owed him money instead. Lu Xin usually started by playing the victim, saying he had no money, and would definitely pay it back when he did.

And if the original owner pressed him too urgently, he would turn belligerent. Saying he had no choice, that if the original owner wanted money he didn’t have any, and if the original owner wasn’t happy with it, they could just call the police.

Otherwise, it was moral kidnapping.

Saying the original owner was a big star, yet he still haggled over this little bit of money. That he really didn’t treat him like a younger brother at all, and that his aunt had loved him for nothing when they were kids…

Looking at those chat logs, Shen Qing’s anger was about to spike.

What was even more excessive was that the twenty thousand from last time wasn’t even the first time the original owner had lent him money…

The chat logs showed that the original owner had lent him money at least three times.

And this time, Lu Xin was still adopting his previous strategy. First playing soft, talking about how pitiful he was. That he had been out eating and drank too much, and “accidentally” got swept up in a brawl, and actually ended up badly injuring someone. Now the other party wanted thirty thousand in compensation, or else they would send him to the police station.

[Lu Xin: Cousin, I know you’re the best. This is the last time, trust me!]

Later, seeing that he didn’t reply, Lu Xin had directly initiated the video call.

Shen Qing: “…”

Because he had been having such a free and easy time playing at home recently, Shen Qing had basically severed contact with the original owner’s “friends.”

He rarely even opened WeChat. Because he rarely replied, the people messaging him every day had gone from a massive pile down to just a scattered few.

What was interesting was that after meeting Shen Yuan and the other Shen siblings last time, the frequency of those people contacting him had suddenly increased. Occasionally, someone would @ Shen Qing in the small group chat, asking if he was there and what he was doing.

But because every time Shen Qing saw those messages, at least a few hours or even a whole day had passed, the timeliness was gone. Feeling like replying or not made no difference, he continued not to reply.

People like Lu Xin, who directly called via video, were actually quite rare.

Shen Qing didn’t pick up the video call, and Lu Xin’s messages came through again: [I know you’re not asleep yet. I’m really anxious. Cousin, this is the last time.]

The text version of the message arrived, followed immediately by another call invitation.

…

Feeling severely harassed, Shen Qing directly declined the call.

Just then, another message popped up on WeChat. Someone was @-ing him in a group chat. Shen Qing took a look and saw it was Lu Xin @-ing him in the family group chat that included the original owner’s mother and aunt—

[@Shen Qing, what are you doing cousin, why are you ignoring people]

[Do any of you know what my cousin Shen Qing is busy with recently, he’s ignoring me qaq]

[[Red Packet]]

As soon as the red packet appeared, the people who participated in snatching it, who originally hadn’t wanted to surface, were forced to surface:

[Lu Qiqi: Damn, just one dime. You’re really generous, bro.]

[Tang Ziyao: Thanks boss.]

[Lu Xin: Do any of you know what cousin Shen Qing is busy with recently? He hung up on me just now, and is ignoring me.]

[Ms. Tang (Original owner’s mother): What’s the situation, Shen Qing is ignoring you?]

[Lu Xin: You know how it is, Auntie. Cousin Shen Qing never bothers with me. I guess I must have made him angry again…]

Shen Qing: 6.

The original owner used to be very poor too, and he wasn’t some saint. He didn’t want to lend money to Lu Xin time and time again either.

But unfortunately, every time he tried to ignore Lu Xin, Lu Xin would sarcastically mock him in the family group chat, and privately gather cliques to speak ill of him behind his back.

The original owner didn’t have many friends to begin with, and had no presence in the Shen family. The only ones he could occasionally chat with were the few siblings around his age on his mother Ms. Tang’s side of the family…

In the original owner’s view, at least in this group, no one was a millionaire. They all came from ordinary families, and Lu Xin and the others would still call him older brother/younger brother. Unlike in the Shen family, where if Shen Yuan wasn’t treating him well, no one else would even know his name.

The original owner didn’t want to lose the siblings here too.

Even though the original owner clearly knew the brotherhood here was fake too—the original owner clearly knew that behind his back, many people in this group had mocked him along with Lu Xin.

Saying he was cowardly, obsessed with saving face, weak, liked to act pretentious, and so on…

Actually, this was a form of bullying too, wasn’t it?

But in the end, every time Lu Xin came to the group chat acting passive-aggressively, he would back down, and ultimately still lend the money to the other party.

Sure enough, Lu Xin @-ed him in the group again: [Cousin, I heard you drive a sports car worth over a million now. You’re so rich but you don’t even talk about giving us some relief. Sigh, sure enough, the gap between us and cousin is getting further and further.]

[Auntie, you tell me. I just asked cousin to borrow a little money, and he won’t even lend it. He’s already so rich. Don’t you think my cousin is stingy? It’s not like I wasn’t going to pay him back.]

After sending this, he even posted a screenshot of Shen Qing declining his video call in the group.

Everyone gradually started discussing it, either asking Shen Qing what kind of car he was driving, or asking Lu Xin what was wrong and what had happened.

Lu Xin reiterated the story about accidentally hitting someone and needing to pay compensation.

Those who asked what was wrong saw this, and treating it like a spectacle to watch without minding if things blew up, they helped him @ Shen Qing:

[Tang Ziyao: @Shen Qing, Boss Shen, Xinxin is so pitiful. Just help him out. You can’t drive a million-dollar car for nothing.]

Shen Qing: …

Looking silently at the chat logs, Shen Qing was almost laughing.

Fortunately, the original owner’s mother, Ms. Tang, who had always favored Lu Xin, hadn’t spoken up.

Otherwise, Shen Qing… might have had to roast one more person.

He sat cross-legged on his bed, pulled up the corners of his lips in a smile, and started taking screenshots and sending them to the group.

The content of his screenshots were the past conversations between Lu Xin and the original owner. Exactly those conversations where he acted unreasonably and refused to pay back the money.

Shen Qing also @-ed Lu Xin in the group: [First, my money is my money. Even if my mom wants to spend my money, she needs my permission. Who do you think you are?]

[Second, I’ve already lent you money many times. If there was even one time you paid it back on schedule, I could consider lending it to you this time.]

[Third, @Tang Ziyao, you’re on very good terms with Lu Xin. Whenever he has a problem, you echo him and play along. Since you care about him so much, why don’t you pay the compensation for him hitting someone? Bumping your upper lip against your lower lip, opening your mouth just to play the good guy—I think your skin is the thickest. Without you kissing his ass, Lu Xin wouldn’t be this arrogant.]

[@Lu Xin, did you have a single ounce of gratitude when I lent you money? I won’t demand that you pay it back on time even once, nor will I demand that you pay me any interest. But tell me, whenever you managed to score some benefits, which time did you ever think of me? You and your friends go out eating and drinking wildly every day, treating each other to drinks. @Tang Ziyao, you haven’t mooched off him any less, have you? If you had thought of treating me even once, treating the person who bails you out every time to a meal, I wouldn’t be roasting you this hard today.]

[We’re all adults. Shouldn’t you understand basic social etiquette by now? Just because I don’t roast you, do you really think I’ll keep giving you face? Oh, right, the million-dollar car is the one my family’s nanny drives to go grocery shopping. I also have cars worth tens of millions. As for why I won’t lend you the money? Go back and think about it yourself.]

After saying all that, he sent a selfie he had casually taken in his home garage earlier, left the group, and blocked Lu Xin while he was at it.

After executing all these operations in one breath, Shen Qing only felt refreshed and invigorated.

He didn’t know if his hand speed was a result of playing games, but the dexterity of his fingers had increased immensely, and his typing speed on his phone was exceptionally fast.

Even though those people had offered some sophistry or explanation while he was typing, Shen Qing hadn’t looked closely.

As for the wealth flaunting in that last photo, in Shen Qing’s view, it was also necessary.

People were just like this: when you’re only slightly better than them, they’ll envy you, mock you, and try to pull you down.

But when they discover that the height you’re at is something they could never reach no matter what, these people will come to curry favor with you, worship you, and praise you with utmost sincerity.

Weren’t those people in the group just bullying him because he was honest and too embarrassed to say no?

Then he was going to turn into someone they couldn’t afford to bully.

Flaunting a wave right before leaving the group was exactly intended to make them feel that, by the time they realized who they had been ganging up on to bully, they would have already lost the chance to turn back and curry favor with him… Haha.

Although Shen Qing didn’t think flaunting wealth was a good thing, it was genuinely effective when dealing with these heartless, snobbish people.

And just as Shen Qing expected, he quickly received a private message from Tang Ziyao. Roughly speaking, it started by apologizing to him, and then carefully asked if all the cars in that photo belonged to his family?

Shen Qing didn’t reply, and continued to block him.

After finishing all this, Shen Qing laughed and collapsed onto his bed.

Then, looking back, he saw Gu Huaiyu standing by the door, gazing at him without blinking.

“…”

Shen Qing’s laughter abruptly stopped.

“How long have you been standing there?”

He sat back up and straightened his posture.

Over the past two days, the big boss had been actively practicing walking. Inside their bedroom, when it was just the two of them, Gu Huaiyu essentially stopped using the wheelchair.

Seeing him still standing there, Shen Qing quickly put down his phone and ran over to support him.

“What were you laughing so happily about?” Gu Huaiyu asked him.

Shen Qing: “It’s something super interesting.”

Thinking about how his ability to “flaunt wealth” was still thanks to riding on the big boss’s coattails, and how those weren’t his cars at all… Shen Qing subconsciously hugged Gu Huaiyu’s arm tighter.

Gu Huaiyu lowered his eyes, unable to stop looking at the radiant young man.

Arriving at the bedside, Shen Qing picked up his phone and handed it over, unlocking the screen for him to see.

Before leaving the group, he had screenshotted and saved the final conversation. For no particular reason other than the fear that unknown relatives might ask about it later; without knowing the whole story, they might make it seem like he had a bad temper.

Keeping a record of what Lu Xin and the others said meant that if that day really came, he could argue it out clearly.

Shen Qing simply wanted to show his husband these screenshots.

But as he was handing it over, his hand slipped. Shen Qing scrambled to catch it, but the phone still fell onto the bed.

Gu Huaiyu took advantage of the moment to pick up the phone to look. Somehow, the home screen had already returned to the WeChat interface.

[Xu Yujie: Wow, the pictures Mr. Shen took of the babies this time are even cuter! They look like three little cotton candies!]

“…”

Gu Huaiyu narrowed his eyes. “This is the super interesting thing you were talking about?”