Ten million in pocket money

Shen Yannian chuckled softly, gazing at Su Cimu with utter affection.

The night before the semester began, Su Yunchao even made a special call to Su Cimu to ask whether he wanted him to come along for registration.

"No need, bro. Shen Yannian's taking me to school tomorrow. Just be good and go to work. Don't think you can use taking me to school as an excuse to skip work."

Su Cimu had long since seen through his pretense.

Su Yunchao said helplessly, "Xiao Ci, I just haven't seen you in ages and wanted to see you, that's all. You've been staying with the Shen family for half a month. Haven't you even thought about coming home to visit?"

That damned Shen Yannian must have been clinging to Xiao Ci and keeping him from coming home to see his family!

Hearing Su Yunchao's words, Su Cimu immediately felt guilty. Only then did he realize he hadn't been back to the Su family home for half a month.

"Bro, I'll come home after registration tomorrow, then. I can pick up a few things while I'm there."

"Great! I'll have the kitchen make your favorites and tell Mom and Dad. They'll definitely be happy too."

As soon as Su Yunchao heard that Su Cimu was coming home, his tone brightened.

That only made Su Cimu feel guiltier. He shouldn't have been so lost in Shen Yannian's good looks that he neglected and forgot his family. He really shouldn't have.

"Yeah. Take care of yourself too, bro. Don't spend all your time working. Find someone to date when you have time."

"All right, you little brat. Now you're worrying about my love life? I don't want to get married that early. I'm still enjoying being single," Su Yunchao said crossly.

The brothers traded a few barbs, then hung up.

Shen Yannian had been listening to his call the whole time. Once he hung up, he asked:

"You're going home tomorrow? Staying the night?"

"Yeah, probably. You'll take me to register in the morning, and I'll go home afterward and stay the night. The next day, you can take me straight to school, and then I'll stay at the apartment. I'll only go home on weekends and holidays."

Su Cimu told Shen Yannian his plans, and Shen Yannian nodded in agreement.

"All right. We'll do as you say."

That night, Shen Yannian simply held Su Cimu and slept, nothing more. He took Su Cimu to school to register at nine the next morning. As for the company, he simply took a day off and left everything to Assistant Wan.

Registration at University A always drew attention from all quarters. There were even reporters at the gates randomly picking out good-looking students to interview.

The moment Su Cimu and Shen Yannian walked in, a reporter spotted them and rushed over.

"Are you a first-year student? You're so handsome! What's your major?"

Su Cimu glanced at her press pass and raised his eyebrows. "I'm a sophomore. Chemical materials."

"What about this student beside you? He looks a little old. Is he a graduate student already?"

The reporter began attacking Shen Yannian's age indiscriminately. His face immediately darkened, and he silently noted her name and the company she worked for.

For Second Master Shen, three days wasn't too late for revenge!

Su Cimu burst out laughing at the reporter's words:

"Oh, he graduated ages ago. He's an alumnus of my school, and he's also my fiancé. He has social anxiety and doesn't want to be interviewed, so please keep him out of the shot."

Su Cimu spoke quietly to the reporter. She made an "OK" gesture, indicating that they would blur him out in postproduction.

After interviewing Su Cimu and Shen Yannian, the reporter went off to find more pretty young men and women.

"She calls herself a reporter? What kind of professional standards are those?" Shen Yannian scoffed.

"Aren't you just upset that she said you were old? Why do you hold such grudges? You really are ten years older than me. She wasn't wrong."

This time, Su Cimu sided with reason rather than his loved one, lecturing Shen Yannian with a serious expression.

"I hold grudges? Oh, yes. I do hold grudges."

Shen Yannian sneered and decided to message his assistant shortly to have this reporter and her newspaper blacklisted!

Seeing Shen Yannian fall silent, Su Cimu knew he was getting petty and hurried to soothe him:

"But I like older men like you. You know how to dote on someone, and you only dote on me."

Shen Yannian's mood instantly cleared. He would spare that reporter and her newspaper for the time being.

After signing in with his class, Su Cimu came back out, ready to return to the Su family home with Shen Yannian. At the entrance, he ran into Su Xiaoke, the student he had helped.

"Young Master Su!"

Spotting Su Cimu, Su Xiaoke immediately ran over to greet him.

"Oh, it's you. Have you finished registering?"

Seeing Su Xiaoke reminded Su Cimu of his existence. This was their first meeting since he had helped Su Xiaoke settle his debts.

"Yes, I'm done. Young Master Su, thank you for helping me and even renting a place for me. I'll study hard and repay you and the Su Group in the future!"

Su Xiaoke's eyes shone brightly, and his words pleased Su Cimu greatly.

"My brother rented the place for you, so thank him. University A is an excellent university. Study hard, and you'll make something of yourself."

Su Cimu encouraged Su Xiaoke with practiced ease, and the admiration in Su Xiaoke's gaze grew stronger.

"Young Master Su, do you go to University A too? Then we'll be schoolmates."

"Yes. If anything happens at school, you can come straight to the chemistry department to find me."

"All right, Young Master Su. I won't keep you, then. I still have to go to my part-time job. Goodbye!"

After saying goodbye to Su Cimu with boundless energy, Su Xiaoke left.

Shen Yannian hadn't said a word during their conversation and had simply watched them in silence.

After all, everything about Su Xiaoke gave off the sense that he was the same type as Su Cimu, so he posed no threat to Shen Yannian. Thus, he had let them chat for so long.

"Who is he?"

"Su Xiaoke. The one you got jealous over last time," Su Cimu prompted kindly, raising an eyebrow.

Shen Yannian raised his eyebrows. "The host you bought out of that KTV?"

"What host? He's a good, innocent student who briefly went astray before I rescued him. Now he's studying diligently, and he's even my junior."

Su Cimu spoke with a proud expression.

"So you brought him home after rescuing him?"

"I told him to go to the Su family home and find my brother. My brother probably rented him a place. Now that the semester's started, he should be staying at school."

Shen Yannian's expression eased a little at that.

"Let's go. Back to your place."

When Su Cimu arrived at the Su family home, only his mother was there. Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao were both at the company.

"Xiao Ci and Xiao Shen, you're back. Come, sit down. Did you go register at school today? Did you see Xiaoke?"

"Mom, you've met Su Xiaoke too?"

"Yes. When he came to our house asking for your brother by name, I almost thought your brother had left some romantic debt unpaid. Then I heard why he'd come, and my heart ached for him. That poor child. Thank goodness you bought him out of a place like that."

Liang Zhen's face filled with sympathy and regret at the mention of Su Xiaoke. How could his family bear to treat such an adorable child that way?

"Hahaha! Doesn't that mean I accidentally set my brother up?"

Su Cimu had caught the key point in Liang Zhen's words.

"It was my misunderstanding. Your brother isn't good enough for an innocent child like Xiaoke."

Liang Zhen looked thoroughly disdainful as she said this, as though her eldest son were some foxtail weed clinging to sweet, innocent Su Xiaoke.

Su Cimu nodded emphatically in agreement. "A slick old hand like my brother really isn't good enough for Su Xiaoke."

Mother and son reached a consensus on Su Yunchao not being good enough for Su Xiaoke.

Shen Yannian offered no comment. He could only marvel that they truly were mother and son, with exactly the same thoughts.

Shen Yannian sat quietly listening to the mother and son chat. Once those two got together, their mouths never stopped. He didn't interrupt, finding it quite amusing just to listen.

"Xiao Shen, have you met Xiaoke? What do you think of him?"

Suddenly called on, Shen Yannian straightened up:

"I just met him today. He's quite lively and adorable."

"See? Even Xiao Shen says Xiaoke is adorable. If I could coax Xiaoke into the family as your brother's wife, wouldn't that be a stroke of luck for your brother?"

Liang Zhen's words grew increasingly far-fetched, but Su Cimu continued to chime in:

"Better not. I don't think my brother's good enough for him. Besides, Su Xiaoke might not want to be with my brother."

"Sigh, that's true. I just thought Xiaoke was such a poor child. If he became part of our family, I could dote on him more."

Liang Zhen sighed with great regret.

Shen Yannian withheld comment. He thought their deciding on Su Yunchao's future wife behind his back was a little dubious.

After they chatted for a while, it was lunchtime. Mother and son stopped gossiping about Su Yunchao and invited Shen Yannian to eat with them.

After lunch, Liang Zhen headed out for beauty and skincare treatments with her girlfriends, telling Su Cimu to take good care of Shen Yannian.

Shen Yannian didn't need any special treatment. After eating, he went back to Su Cimu's room with him for a nap.

Shen Yannian tried to get handsy during their nap, but Su Cimu's stern glare suppressed him. In the end, he didn't misbehave and simply held him as they slept.

Shen Yannian got up after a short doze and borrowed Su Cimu's computer to deal with work emails.

Su Cimu, meanwhile, slept until his father and brother came home from work.

He came downstairs with his hair looking like a bird's nest, and Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao immediately gathered around him.

"Xiao Ci, you're home! Did you just wake up?" Su Yunchao thought Su Cimu looked adorable even when he was half asleep.

"Xiao Ci, Dad hasn't seen you in so long. Come here, give me a hug!"

Su Huaiyuan hadn't seen his younger son in ages either and missed him terribly, so he went straight in for a hug.

Not to be outdone, Su Yunchao hugged him after Su Huaiyuan finished.

Su Cimu was passed back and forth like a doll, and Shen Yannian, who had finished his work emails, caught them in the act.

Though they were his father-in-law and brother-in-law, he still looked displeased. Su Cimu was all grown up, so why were they always hugging him? They had no sense of boundaries.

Shen Yannian stepped forward without betraying his thoughts and pulled Su Cimu into his arms:

"Why do you look so sleepy? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, I just haven't woken up properly... I probably won't be able to sleep tonight. I slept too long this afternoon."

Su Cimu rubbed his eyes, gradually coming to his senses. Only then did he notice that his father, his brother, and his boyfriend had formed a circle around him.

"Why are you all surrounding me? Playing ring toss? Break it up. You're keeping me from breathing fresh air."

Su Cimu waved irritably, pushed his way past them, and went straight to the sofa.

His father and brother followed him over and sat down too.

"Xiao Ci, do you have enough pocket money? Your expenses must be high now that school's starting. I'll transfer another five million to you. Buy whatever you want. Don't shortchange yourself, understand?"

As he spoke, Su Huaiyuan took out his phone and transferred five million in pocket money to Su Cimu's account.

Su Cimu's phone chimed, and the money arrived.

"Thanks, Old Su! Love you most~~"

"Five million isn't enough. I'll send you another three million. Come to me when you've spent it. I'll give you however much you want."

Su Yunchao transferred another three million. Su Cimu told him, "I like my big brother best," leaving Su Yunchao thoroughly satisfied.

Shen Yannian, meanwhile, looked at Su Cimu with jealousy written all over his face:

Did he like whoever transferred him money best?

Feeling competitive, Shen Yannian silently took out his phone and transferred Su Cimu a sum of money with the note "pocket money."

After receiving the two transfers, Su Cimu suddenly heard his phone chime again. He instinctively picked it up and looked:

It was a transfer of ten million!

Su Cimu's head shot up as he looked at Shen Yannian:

"Why did you transfer ten million to me?"

At that, Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao both looked up at Shen Yannian beside them:

That rascal! He'd been quietly plotting right here! Damn it, they'd actually lost to him. If they'd known, they would have transferred more!

"My father-in-law and brother-in-law both sent you pocket money. As your fiancé, I should send you some too. Use this for now. I'll transfer you some every month from now on."

Shen Yannian spoke to Su Cimu with a perfectly serious expression.

Su Cimu immediately threw himself into Shen Yannian's arms, clutching his arm ingratiatingly:

"Thank you, Second Master! I like you best, best, best!"

Shen Yannian was satisfied, while Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao glared resentfully at him for stealing Su Cimu's attention!

During dinner, Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao continued to glare resentfully at Shen Yannian, but he wasn't afraid in the slightest. After all, they had started competing over pocket money. He had simply come from behind to take the lead and had nothing to feel guilty about.

"Huaiyuan, A-Chao, why do you keep staring at Xiao Shen? Eat properly and stop looking around."

Su Huaiyuan and Su Yunchao: ...They lowered their heads and obediently ate.

After dinner, Su Huaiyuan and Liang Zhen went for a walk, while Su Yunchao took a call from the company and went off to handle work again.

Su Cimu was the biggest salted fish of all, so he dragged Shen Yannian onto the living room sofa to play games. When he couldn't beat an opponent, he spent money on weapons and instantly killed them, winning the round!