Chapter 37: Rival Returns to the Country!
At home?
Whose home?
Your home? My home?
Oh… he meant our home.
Us?
Who gave him the audacity to say “us”? He doesn’t actually think they’ll get married in the future, does he?
In an instant, Shen Shuyi’s mind reacted almost instinctively, trying to refute Zhao Yuheng’s words.
He didn’t even know why he was so agitated, as if he feared that if he didn’t argue back, he’d betray his own principles and admit that he wanted to marry the other person.
These words tumbled in his throat, each one scrambling to escape his mouth, turning into knives of insincerity.
In the end, Shen Shuyi froze for a moment and quietly let out a single word: “…Oh.”
Ahhhhhh!!
“Oh” my foot!
Shen Shuyi, pathetic! Useless!
“I didn’t mean marriage. I meant… uh, if it really doesn’t taste good, then don’t drink it.”
Shen Shuyi instinctively picked up the bowl, ready to pour the bone broth from the thermos.
Zhao Yuheng paused: “I never said marriage.”
He… didn’t say it just now?
Shen Shuyi: ?
Are you kidding me?!
How can we be “family” without marriage?
Am I going to become your dad?!
Shen Shuyi immediately clenched the thermos, feeling like the next second he might smash it on Zhao Yuheng’s head.
Zhao Yuheng’s survival instincts kicked in. Not knowing what Shen Shuyi had just thought, he quickly said: “Sorry, Shuyi.”
Not knowing exactly what he was apologizing for, but apologizing first seemed safer.
Shen Shuyi was pleased by this, and his mood improved quite a bit.
“Good that you realized your mistake.” Shen Shuyi muttered, looking at the strangely colored bone broth, feeling guilty, thinking the poison in it was obvious from its appearance. “Next time, let the nutritionist prepare the broth for you.”
After delivering the soup at the hospital that day, Shen Shuyi noticed that his relationship with Zhao Yuheng had become a little strange.
He suddenly realized that Zhao Yuheng hadn’t asked him for money in a long time!
And recently, he himself didn’t bother saving money even though Zhao Yuheng wasn’t asking for it!
Laziness… complete laziness!
Shen Shuyi, oh Shen Shuyi, are you really going to live in a cockroach-infested apartment from now on?!
Thinking this, Shen Shuyi was instantly filled with determination.
No matter what, once his salary for this month came in, he would first pay back Zhao Yuheng!
On July 5th, Hong Kong had fully entered summer.
Shen Shuyi finally received his first paycheck. Because he had skipped work several days last month, his after-tax salary was only 15,000 yuan.
15,000 yuan!
If it had been before, even if this money fell on the ground, Shen Shuyi wouldn’t have bothered to pick it up.
But now, every little bit counts. Shen Shuyi opened Zhao Yuheng’s chat window, ready to transfer the money.
[Salary received, wait for it, I’ll transfer to you right away.]
Hmm…
But then he remembered a Cartier bracelet he saw online yesterday that looked really nice.
Shen Shuyi’s eyes flickered. Just taking a quick look at the website shouldn’t hurt, right?
Reassuring himself, Shen Shuyi happily opened Cartier’s official site and admired the newly released bracelet several times.
After admiring it, Shen Shuyi closed the shopping page, ready to transfer the money to Zhao Yuheng.
?!
Where did my salary go!
=?=!
Just then, Zhao Yuheng replied: [?]
Shen Shuyi: [….]
Shen Shuyi: [Hmm… I think I transferred to the wrong place just now. (pointing emoji)]
Zhao Yuheng laughed: [Where did you transfer it?]
Shen Shuyi, dead serious: [Cartier’s official website (small cat staring.jpg)]
Zhao Yuheng sat in front of the screen and chuckled softly.
Seeing no reply, Shen Shuyi felt guilty: [I didn’t mean to not give you money. You just didn’t reply, and I couldn’t resist opening Cartier’s website to check the new bracelet… (innocent big-eyed cat)]
Zhao Yuheng sent a voice message, laughing at the end: “And then you accidentally added the bracelet to your cart? Accidentally clicked purchase? Accidentally paid for it successfully?”
Shen Shuyi: [Yes!]
Shen Shuyi had no idea that just browsing Cartier’s website would make his freshly received salary disappear!
Terrifying! Cartier must have some money-stealing plugin.
It’s like the site was reaching into his wallet.
Zhao Yuheng: “Which one did you buy?”
Shen Shuyi hesitated a bit, then sent Zhao Yuheng a picture of the bracelet he just bought.
He hoped Zhao Yuheng wouldn’t be so crazy as to use the bracelet to offset debt!
If Zhao Yuheng really did that, Shen Shuyi would drive over and slap him, even if he had skipped work. 🙂
But contrary to his imagination, a few seconds after sending the picture, Zhao Yuheng suddenly transferred him money.
Shen Shuyi froze, looking at the amount: 40,000 yuan!
Shen Shuyi: [???]
Shen Shuyi: [Did you rob a bank?]
Zhao Yuheng: […]
Zhao Yuheng: [I also have a salary.]
Oh, right, Zhao Yuheng was the working emperor.
Shen Shuyi still didn’t understand.
“Why give me money if you already got paid?”
“It’s not just money, it’s my salary transferred to you.”
Shen Shuyi: ….
Oh.
Transferring salary felt strange, like newlyweds. But stop—it’s not like he was marrying Zhao Yuheng.
Zhao Yuheng called via voice. It was work hours, so Shen Shuyi sneakily glanced outside before answering.
“What are you doing? Don’t interrupt my work.”
Shen Shuyi was showing off a little authority.
Zhao Yuheng’s voice came through: “Didn’t you send me that bangle picture?”
That’s a bracelet, thank you.
“Bracelet” is what straight men call it. He suspected Zhao Yuheng would call skincare cream “fragrant lotion” too. 🙂
“There are three designs; I think the silver one would suit you too.”
Oh.
I just don’t want to buy it—that one’s 49,000 yuan ^ ^
…Wait.
Shen Shuyi suddenly realized, disbelief in his voice, softening a bit: “You transferred me money so I could buy the bracelet?”
“Yes.”
Shen Shuyi: …
“Isn’t that a bit much?” Shen Shuyi’s heart thrilled, then came back to reason. “That’s your salary. You only earn 20,000 yuan a month, why give me 40,000?”
“I have side jobs.” Zhao Yuheng’s voice echoed slightly, probably in a hallway. “I don’t need it, just let you have it.”
Shen Shuyi hesitated: “Your grandfather is still in the hospital. Maybe you should save the money.”
He thought again, touching his nose: “Actually, I don’t even really want the bracelet. If I did, I’d have already tricked my brother for money. Shen Lu has more money than I could spend in ten lifetimes ^ ^”
“The hospital and treatment fees for my grandfather are already covered. This money has nothing to do with that,” Zhao Yuheng said calmly. “Besides, it looks good on you.”
He spoke slowly: “Consider it as a gift from me.”
“Next time you see me, wear it so I can see, okay?”
Shen Shuyi hung up, his face still warm long after.
If this weren’t a public place, at Shuiwan One, this young master would already be screaming at home.
WTF?
Shen Shuyi stared at his phone in disbelief.
This straight man—
Zhao Yuheng, recently enrolled in some emotional intelligence or language art class?
How did he suddenly become so smooth-talking and… flirtatious?
He broke his leg, not his brain, right? Thinking about it, there are news stories where accidents made people suddenly geniuses in math or art.
Zhao Yuheng turning from a straight man into a master of flirting wasn’t impossible.
Shen Shuyi’s face stayed hot, and his heartbeat quickened.
The office was unusually quiet. He sat there dazed, scrolling aimlessly, seeing nothing.
After Zhao Yuheng hung up, he sent Shen Shuyi a WeChat message.
[This money isn’t part of your 2 million debt, don’t add it.]
Zhao Yuheng had almost forgotten about it himself. If Shen Shuyi hadn’t constantly reminded him of the 2 million owed, he probably wouldn’t have remembered the compensation.
Of the remaining 1.5 million after 500,000 in compensation, Zhao Yuheng considered it Shen Shuyi’s upkeep allowance.
Zhao Yuheng pressed his thumb on the chatbox, thinking he could tell Shen Shuyi he didn’t need the money. But then, if he didn’t give it, how would he define their relationship?
Zhao Yuheng froze.
If Shen Shuyi ever got tired of this upkeep arrangement, what would their relationship be then? Just creditor and debtor?
A few seconds later, Shen Shuyi sent a message.
[…Oh!]
Zhao Yuheng exhaled slowly.
Forget it, deal with it later. Just thinking about it gave him a headache.
[Hmm.]
[(pat pat head.jpg)] (Note: stolen from Shen Shuyi, no copyright)
Shen Shuyi hesitated for a long time before accepting the payment.
But he saved it, just like the 1,000 yuan from Zhao Yuheng’s grandfather, keeping it in his little treasury, not spending a cent.
After this, Shen Shuyi opened Shen Lu’s chat, boldly sent the 49,000-yuan bracelet picture, along with the official Cartier purchase link.
Shen Lu: [?]
Shen Shuyi: [I want this, buy it for me. (small cat staring.jpg)]
Shen Lu: […]
Shen Lu voice message: “Shuyi, did I ever teach you that when asking someone to buy something, you must be polite?”
Shen Shuyi: [Please! (small cat bowing.gif)]
Shen Shuyi knew how to act wisely, quickly saying: [Long live big brother!]
Shen Lu: …
The brat’s pretending to be obedient too fast; not fun anymore.
Shen Lu naturally agreed without blinking.
After noticing the bracelet price, he was slightly surprised: “Why is it so cheap this time?”
Shen Shuyi, having received it, immediately turned on his brother.
“Hehe, thanks to who? My salary is only 20,000 a month! 20,000!!” Shen Shuyi sneered. “I’m no longer in the same class as a vampire capitalist like you. I am your noble worker grandpa now!”
Shen Lu: …
He wanted to return the bracelet he just bought for this brat.
Couldn’t he behave properly for just a few seconds?
“Now I have nothing more to say to you. I’ve downgraded my lifestyle,” Shen Shuyi said angrily. “I hate you!”
Shen Lu had heard these three words thousands of times since childhood. “I love you” was just as frequent.
Shen Shuyi had always been expressive, whether in love or hate.
Shen Lu had his tricks: “If you hate me, return the 50,000 I just paid you.”
Shen Shuyi quickly went into a sliding-kneel apology: “Sorry, big brother.”
Shen Lu chuckled lightly.
Shen Shuyi noticed the teasing tone and got angry: “You dare laugh at me! Besides the bracelet, buy me three platinum bags, the deep blue sapphire Christie’s didn’t sell me, a BLUSH watch, and Winston’s pink diamond!”
“Winston is a wedding ring; why buy that?”
“None of your business!” Shen Shuyi laughed. “If I don’t see these within a week at Shuiwan One, I’ll report you for tax evasion!”
Shen Lu, coolly: “Don’t worry, Yinghua pays taxes on time. Last year was 60 billion.”
Shen Shuyi’s heart sank.
Shen Lu, seeing no reaction, thought the brat finally understood running a trillion-yuan group isn’t easy.
Instead, Shen Shuyi panicked, sadly: “Damn, still too little. Buy me an astronaut space station too.”
Shen Lu: …
He shouldn’t expect this kid to ever be sensible.
After taking food and treasures from his brother and adding sparkling jewels to his wardrobe, Shen Shuyi stayed in a good mood for days.
Thursday afternoon, Shen Shuyi got a call from Dr. Chen: Zhao Yuheng’s leg was almost fully healed and could be discharged.
Shen Shuyi checked his schedule—no meetings in the afternoon and his work mostly done—so he decided to take leave to pick up Zhao Yuheng.
In the past few days, requesting leave was easy.
Submitting through YH’s office system, approval came in ten minutes.
To reduce hassle, Shen Shuyi requested personal leave, which would deduct salary proportionally.
But today, the request wasn’t approved for some reason.
Shen Shuyi, puzzled, asked at Xiao A’s desk: “Is Emma not here today? Why hasn’t the OA been approved?”
Colleague A: “What happened?”
Shen Shuyi: “I want to take leave this afternoon.”
Going to see your boyfriend again?!
Colleague A silently wept but remained loyal.
“Emma left. Jessica is temporarily handling the secretary department.”
Shen Shuyi: confused. “Isn’t she the tech department head? Why manage the secretary team?”
He disliked Jessica. She was a parachuted tech leader from Yingfutong, known in Hong Kong for internal competition and a wolf culture.
After arriving, she reformed tech, then the entire Yinghua branch.
As a small secretary, Shen Shuyi had to attend three tech sharing sessions a week, all hosted by Jessica.
Nothing useful was shared—just her success stories. Shen Shuyi fell asleep several times, even being called out once. He retorted bluntly:
“Why should I care about your success stories? If I find them boring, I’ll sleep. Problem?”
Jessica’s face turned white then red; she couldn’t recover until the end.
Many colleagues privately sent Shen Shuyi thumbs-ups: “Friend, awesome! Idol!!”
The office sharing sessions were hated.
Anyway, that’s how their grudge started.
Learning Jessica now handled the secretary team, Shen Shuyi understood why his leave was delayed.
The OA process went smoothly until Jessica’s approval, which stalled for an hour.
Colleague A guessed: “Shuyi, why not go to Jessica’s office directly? Face-to-face, she won’t dare block you.”
Shen Shuyi refused.
“Whatever. I’ll just tell HR. Let’s go.”
He grabbed his bag and went downstairs to catch a car.
He followed procedure, finished work, so what right did Jessica have to control him?
Shen Shuyi wouldn’t serve a boss who abused power. ^ ^
Forty minutes later, Shen Shuyi arrived at the hospital.
Last time’s Rolls-Royce was too flashy. This time, he drove a convertible Bentley Continental.
Surprisingly, his visibility drew even more attention than last time.
Only when he disappeared into the underground garage did the crowd disperse.
Shen Shuyi went straight from B2 to the 8th-floor ward, scrolling his phone. Lu Zhiwei sent a message:
[Sweetheart, guess who I saw today!]
[(pics)(pics)(pics)]
Clearly taken at a party, crowded.
Shen Shuyi looked, sending: “Who?”
Lu Zhiwei circled the key parts in red.
“Yan Chi!! Baby!! Yan Chi’s back in the country, didn’t you know?”
“This was taken by my friend yesterday at an investment party. I swear, even if this guy turned to ashes, I’d recognize him!”
Shen Shuyi hesitated: “…You still love him that much?”
“Love him?!” Lu Zhiwei exaggerated in voice: “I love you, baby! Any man who hurt you, I will always, always, always stalk… forever remember his face… forever…”
Shen Shuyi: …
[Stop sending me nonsense ?]
Lu Zhiwei continued with the actual message: [I heard Yan Chi plans to be CEO at Yingfutong. Does your brother know?]
Shen Shuyi froze.
Yan Chi grew up in the Shen family, formally adopted. Everyone knew he would work at Yinghua when he grew up.
Even though Shen Lu sent him to Australia for years, Yinghua always supported and trained him.
This was the old master’s wish. Even with past scandals, Shen Lu never forbade him from working at Yinghua.
If Yan Chi’s first act returning to Hong Kong is to be Yingfutong CEO, he’s publicly severing ties with the Shen family.
Shen Shuyi gripped his phone, silent.
No matter how close he had been with Yan Chi, if Yan Chi cut ties with the Shen’s, Shen Shuyi would always side with Shen Lu.
“…He probably knows by now,” Shen Shuyi said slowly.
With Shen Lu’s abilities in Hong Kong, he could track down a mosquito from another city in a day.
Feeling down, Lu Zhiwei tried to cheer him up: “It’s no big deal! CEO at another company? Maybe he and your brother planned it so he could spy for them! He grew up in your family; he won’t forget his roots!”
“Hmm.”
Mood still sour.
Had Lu Zhiwei known this would upset Shen Shuyi, he wouldn’t have reported it.
Admittedly, he was jealous of Yan Chi being different in Shen Shuyi’s eyes. Finally, a chance to stir trouble, but no luck!
The elevator dinged open, and Lu Zhiwei phoned, soothing him.
Shen Shuyi’s mood was low but improved upon reaching the 8th floor.
Exiting the elevator, he saw Zhao Yuheng at the nurse’s station.
His left leg was fully healed; no bandages today.
Shen Shuyi instinctively touched his Cartier bracelet.
A few seconds later, Zhao Yuheng noticed Shen Shuyi and turned just in time to see him.
Lu Zhiwei’s WeChat voice was full of apologies: “Baby, sorry, my fault, I shouldn’t have told you, don’t be mad, feel better, okay?”
“I’m not mad”, Shen Shuyi replied.
He really wasn’t mad.
Lu Zhiwei was shocked: WTF? So powerful, a few words and Shen Shuyi cheered up!
He defeated the childhood crush; maybe he had a chance!
Lu Zhiwei continued joyfully: “Good, I knew you wouldn’t really…”
Shen Shuyi smiled, quickened his pace, voice light: “Stop, I see Zhao Yuheng, bye bye!”
Lu Zhiwei: “…Huh?”
Beep—the call ended.
Lu Zhiwei held the phone, face dark, thinking, then realized in despair: Why does this scene feel so familiar?!
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